Cooking Basics 101 concludes on April 29; Cinnamon Ice Cream; Upcoming ACE class – An Introduction to Middle Eastern Cooking

Post Date: 26 April 2017

Cooking Basics 101 Concludes This Weekend

                                                            Lemon Olive Oil Pound Cakes

The third and final session of this class will meet this Saturday morning, April 29, at 10:00 AM at Lake Braddock Secondary School.  On this week’s menu is an Orange Couscous Salad, Salisbury Steak and Onions with Roasted Carrots with Lemon and Thyme, and Lemon Olive Oil Pound Cake (pictured above).  And since we are doing baking we will be discussing the roles of Baking Soda and Baking Powder in baking.

 

Cinnamon Ice Cream

 

Although summer is still a ways off, when I saw this recipe in the May issue of Food Network Magazine, I felt I should try it right away and get a head start on this year’s summer ice cream project.  It is a quick and simple recipe to make, and the best part is that it does not require an ice cream maker. You simply combine sweetened condensed milk and cinnamon in a bowl, whip 2 cups of heavy cream until peaks form, fold the cream into the cinnamon/milk mixture, and freeze in a 9 x 13 inch glass pan.

Here is the link to the recipe:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/marcela-valladolid/cinnamon-ice-cream

 

ACE Class – An Introduction to Middle Eastern Cooking

 

This one session class meets on Thursday evening May 4^th at 6:30 at the Plum Center in Springfield.  In this class we will be making Hummus, a Tomato Coriander Salad, Lebanese Shortbread Cookies, and Shakshuka, a tomato based Israeli breakfast dish.

 

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 spring term.  Summer catalogue will be out soon.

 

May 4 – Thursday Evening – Introduction to Middle Eastern Cooking – Plum Center

 

May 31 – Wednesday Evening – Stuffed Jumbo Sells – Plum Center

 

June 3 – Saturday Morning – Beach House Brunch v2.0 – Plum Center

 

 

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

 

http://www.fcps.edu/is/ace/

 

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                          

 

 

 

 

 

Cooking Basics 101 continues on April 22; Japanese Inspired Pork Chops; Ricotta Gnocchi

Post Date: 20 April 2017

Cooking Basics 101 begins at Lake Braddock This Weekend

 

After skipping last weekend due to the Fairfax County Public Schools spring break, Session 2 will meet this Saturday morning, April 22, at 10:00 AM at Lake Braddock Secondary School.  On this week’s menu is a traditional French Vinaigrette, Baked Salmon with Mustard (pictured above) and Sautéed Asparagus, and a no bake Marscapone Strawberry Cup for dessert.  We will also be discussing how long to store spices and the uses of different kinds of salt.  The why and how of pounding meat will be covered as well as further discussion on safe food temperatures.

Japanese Inspired Pork Chops with Asparagus

 

For my most recent foray into Japanese cooking, I decided to try something different.  Instead of trying a recipe from a cookbook or online, I made a Japanese style sauce for pork chops and asparagus.  First I blanched the asparagus spears by boiling then for 4 minutes then putting them in an ice bath until needed. For the sauce, I used Soy Sauce, Mirin, Sake, and freshly Grated Ginger. I brought these 4 ingredients to a boil, then simmered while the sauce thickened.  I seasoned the Pork Chops with salt and pepper, then sautéed for 4 minutes per side in vegetable oil.  I removed them from the pan, let the pan cool for a few minutes, then wiped the pan clean with paper towels.  I returned the Pork Chops to the pan, then drained the Asparagus and added them to the pan.  I set the heat to medium-low and poured the sauce over the Pork Chops and Asparagus and let them warm for 3-5 minutes before serving.

Ricotta Gnocchi

 

I saw two recipes for this dish recently, one in The New York Times and one in Food and Wine magazine.  Since in the summer term I will be doing a Ricotta class, I thought this would be a good time to try this dish out.  I followed the recipe from Food and Wine, the link to it is below.

The main ingredients here are Ricotta, Flour, Egg and Parmesan cheese.  Since the Ricotta, etc., mixture is too soft to roll out into the traditional logs used in potato gnocchi, Chef Justin Chapple, the author of the recipe, uses a cool and unique to get the gnocchi, shown in the photo above.  A piece of string is tied tightly across the top of you pot around each of the handles, then the water is brought to a simmer.  The gnocchi mixture is placed into a piping or zip lock bag and an opening of ½ to ¾ inch cut from a corner.  You then squeeze out a length of mixture for you gnocchi, about ¾ inch, then use the string to cut it free so it will fall into the simmering pot.

If you try this recipe, there is one thing to be aware of.  Chef Chapple says to make the gnocchi in 3 batches, using a slotted spoon to remove the done pieces to a lightly oiled baking sheet.  However, by the tie I finished the second and third batch the first two had gotten cold.  So I would suggest keeping the baking sheet in a warming oven as you add the done items to keep it hot for serving.  But it was fun to make and tasted great.

http://www.foodandwine.com/recipes/ricotta-gnocchi-summer-herbs

 

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 spring term.  Summer catalogue will be out soon.

May 4 – Thursday Evening – Introduction to Middle Eastern Cooking – Plum Center

May 31 – Wednesday Evening – Stuffed Jumbo Sells – Plum Center

June 3 – Saturday Morning – Beach House Brunch v2.0 – Plum Center

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

http://www.fcps.edu/is/ace/

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                          

 

 

New Cooking Basics 101 begins on April 8; Steaming Salon in the Oven; Japanese Meals – Yakitori

Post Date: 5 April 2017

 

Well, it looks like the spring weather is here to stay, complete with April showers.  Pretty soon it will be time to take the basil plants outside to my new garden.  I hope everyone has a successful growing season.

 

Cooking Basics 101 begins at Lake Braddock This Weekend

                                Caprese Salad and Chicken Italiano with Blanched Broccoli

This 3 session class begins this Saturday morning, April 8, at 10:00 AM at Lake Braddock Secondary School.  In our first session we will be making a Caprese Salad, Blanched Broccoli, Pan Fried Chicken Italiano, and a no-bake Blueberry Ricotta Parfait for our dessert.  We will also be discussing knife skills, safe food handling techniques, and proper cooking temperatures.  Additional recipes will be given out to try at home.

Steaming Salon in the Oven

I found this technique discussed in a recent New York Times Wednesday food section article, so I decided to try it.  Link to the article is below.  To make an analogy with traditional steaming methods, in this case the entire oven serves as your pot. For the actual cooking, you use the upper and lower levels of your oven.  On the lower level you place a pan of water you have just boiled.  The pan with your salmon goes on the upper level.  The recommended cooking temperature is relatively low, between 225 and 275, according to the recipe.  I went with the high number, 275.   I cooked 3 x 5 ounce filets; it took 25 minutes.

https://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1018664-oven-steamed-salmon

 

Japanese Dinner – Yakitori

 

Continuing my foray into Japanese cooking, this past week I made Yakitori, chicken cubes on skewers with green onion.  I consulted several recipes, including the cookbook My Japanese Table by Debra Samuels (Tuttle Publishing, Tokyo), www.japanesecooking101.com, and the food section of the NHK website, Japanese Public Broadcasting.  Most recipes call for chicken thighs, but I used skinless boneless breasts and cooked them on a counter top griddle instead of over charcoal.  For a vegetable, I blanched some Broccoli then placed it in an ice bath. Just before the Yakitori was done, I drained the Broccoli and arranged it on the griddle around the skewers to heat it up before serving.  This will be a nice dish to do outside on a grill when the weather gets warmer.

 

Here is the link to the NHK version:

 

http://www3.nhk.or.jp/nhkworld/en/radio/cooking/20130614.html

 

 

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 spring term.  Summer catalogue will be out soon.

 

April 8, 22, and 29 – Saturday Morning – Cooking Basics 101 – Lake Braddock Secondary School

 

May 4 – Thursday Evening – Introduction to Middle Eastern Cooking – Plum Center

 

May 31 – Wednesday Evening – Stuffed Jumbo Shells – Plum Center

 

June 3 – Saturday Morning – Beach House Brunch v2.0 – Plum Center

  

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

 

http://www.fcps.edu/is/ace/

 

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