How you doin’? I love hearty soups especially during the colder months of winter—actually, any time. This recipe is a cross between a hearty soup and a white chili. I started out trying to make a white chili and just got carried away.
 
Soups are funny things… it’s really hard to make a bad soup. I always loved the story of the Russians Cossacks and Stone Soup. Stone Soup is a European folk tale in which hungry strangers with only two large stone convinced the people of a small town’s populous to each share a small amount of their food in order to enhance the flavor of their stone soup that everyone could enjoy. It exists as a moral regarding the value of sharing.
 
So let me share my recipe of Creamy Spiced Chicken Soup with you—no stones required. It’s fragrant, excites your taste buds and warms the cockles of your heart. Serve with a dollop of sour cream and shredded pepper Jack cheese.
 
Prep time:  30 minutes
Cook time:  25 minutes
Simmer time: 2 hours
Yield:  8 servings (can easily be cut in half)

 
Ingredients 
2 pounds roasted or rotisserie chicken, skinned and boned, pulled into large chunks
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
1/2 cup half-and-half
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup green chopped bell peppers
1 cup red chopped bell peppers, chopped
1/4 cup diced jalapeño peppers
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 tablespoon dried minced shallots
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
6 cups chicken stock
8 ounces jarred salsa verde (green salsa)
1 tablespoon ground cumin
2 teaspoons dried oregano
4 diced tortillas (or 1 cup of Fritos Corn Chips for a toastier flavor)
2 cans (15.5 ounces) white chili beans
Garnish each bowl with 1 tablespoon sour cream and 1 ounce shredded pepper Jack cheese.
 
Directions

1. Pull and skin the chicken meat; set aside. (See ChefSecret for alternate proteins)
2. In a microwave-safe bowl, microwave the cream cheese on high power until soft, about 20 seconds.
3. Add the half-and-half and whisk until completely mixed; set aside.
4. Heat oil in a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add bell peppers, jalapeños and garlic; sauté until soft, 5 to 7 minutes.
5. Sprinkle the flour over the sautéed peppers and garlic; stir to combine.
6. Add the dried shallots, cayenne pepper, salt, and black pepper.
7. Add the cooked chicken, cream cheese mixture, chicken stock, salsa, cumin, oregano, and tortillas; bring to a boil to slightly thicken.
8. Reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour.
9. Add the chili beans and simmer for another hour.

ChefSecret:  You can use any leftover chicken that you may have in the refrigerator, just discard the bones, skin and breading. You can also use 2 pounds of browned ground chicken or turkey meat.

Quip of the Day: “We might be older now, but I have the satisfaction of knowing that I had great hair, listened to the coolest music, and drove the best car.”
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Do you have a question or comment? Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com.  All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide .
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To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. In this New Year, seek out the good in people and avoid conflict. Take a breath and count your blessings, and if you have a little extra to share with others, please consider donating to Feeding America.

#Entrees #ChickenSoup #Chicken #Peppers #Shallots #Cayenne #SalsaVerde #QuarantineKitchen #Covid19 #FeedingAmerica #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup

                                          ©Perspectives/The Consulting Group, Inc., 2022

How you doin’? For some parts of the country, grilling season will be winding down soon so I wanted to include this recipe in before the grill is covered and tucked away.
 
This salad was on the opening menu I created for Jimmy Buffett’s Margaritaville in Las Vegas. I thought it was a simple enough entrée salad but as it turned out so many people ordered it that it turned out to be a real bottleneck in the kitchen. Last week I found it on a menu in Green Valley… and it still is one delicious salad.
 
It's easy enough to make at home. You can use leftover rotisserie chicken and store-bought bottled Caesar dressing like Paul Newman’s or Cardini’s brand, or you can you make my simple dressing recipe below.
 
Prep time:  15 minutes
Grill time:  1 minute
Yield:  2 servings
 
Ingredients 
1/2 head split romaine head
1/2 ounce olive oil
3-1/2 ounces grilled, chilled and chopped chicken breast
2 ounces Caesar dressing (see recipe)
1/2 coarsely chopped hard-cooked egg
3 each split mini tomatoes
1/4 cup thinly shredded carrots
2 tablespoons shaved Parmesan cheese
7 to 8 toasted croutons
 
Directions

1. Remove any wilted or damaged leaves from a head of romaine lettuce.
2. Split the head in half lengthwise.
3. Lightly brush the cut side of the romaine with olive oil.
4. Place the cut side down on a hot grill for 1 minute or until grill marks appear.
5. Place the grilled romaine on a large plate, grilled side up.
6. Top the romaine with grilled chicken.
7. Drizzle with Caesar dressing.
8. Artistically scatter the egg, tomato and carrot shreds on top.
9. Top with shaved Parmesan cheese and croutons.

                                              My Best Caesar Salad Dressing
I have been serving Caesar Salads in my restaurants for years using this made-on-premises dressing. It’s really quite easy and I think it’s the best Caesar Dressing ever. Of course, you don’t have to limit the use of this dressing to just a traditional Caesar Salad—it’s great on any green salad and even makes a nifty chicken marinade as well. Due to food safety concerns, I always suggest using pasteurized egg yolks which can be purchased in your local supermarket. However, it is easy to pasteurize eggs in your own kitchen—check out the ChefSecret at the end of this recipe.
Some people are a bit squeamish about using anchovies. They don’t like to open the tin and touch those slimy little things. Anchovies add that earthy, sweet, salty and umami flavor that cannot be found anywhere else. I keep of tube of anchovy paste in the refrigerator so I always have it on hand. I also add a couple of anchovy filets on top of the Caesar Salad, but that’s a personal option. If you are serving a Chicken Caesar Salad leave off the anchovies.
 
Prep time:  10 minutes
Chill time:  4 to 8 hours
Yield:  10 servings
 
Ingredients
1 cup mayonnaise
1/4 cup pasteurized egg yolks (see procedure for pasteurized eggs or egg substitute)
1/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons cold water
3 tablespoons minced garlic
1-1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 tablespoon anchovy paste (from a tube)
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon dried parsley
salt and ground black pepper to taste

Directions

1. Blend mayonnaise, pasteurized egg, Parmesan cheese, water, garlic, lemon juice, anchovy paste, sugar, parsley, salt and pepper in a blender jar until smooth, about 1 minute.
2. Transfer the dressing to an airtight container and refrigerate 8 hours or overnight.

ChefSecret:  Avoid using raw or uncooked eggs in any of your recipes. It’s really easy and very important to pasteurize eggs correctly. Here’s how:

1. Bring the eggs to room temperature (20 to 30 minutes before pasteurizing).
2. Place the eggs in a saucepan filled with cold water, fitted with a digital thermometer. 
3. Turn on the heat and bring the water up to 140°F.
4. Keep the water temperature at 140°F for 3 minutes (and no more than 142°F), reducing the heat on the burner if necessary. Set a timer.
5. Remove the eggs from hot water and rinse thoroughly with cold ice water.
6. Use right away or store in the refrigerator until needed.

​Special Note:  Jumbo sized eggs require 5 minutes in 140°F water. 

Quip of the Day:  “How do you make any salad into a Caesar salad?  Stab it twenty-three times.
(Julius Caesar -- et tu Brutus?) Got it now?
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Do you have a question or comment? Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com. All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide.
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To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. Take a breath and count your blessings, and if you have a little extra to share with others, please consider donating to Feeding America. 

#Entree #Lunch #Dinner #GrilledRomaine #GrilledCaesarSalad #PaulNewman #Cardinis #Chicken #PasteurizedEgg #Anchovy #Covid19SurvivalBlog #FeedingAmerica #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup 

                                              ©Perspectives/The Consulting Group, LLC, 2022

How you doin’? This recipe is especially for cousin Betty Anne.
 
Real Swedish Pancakes recipes are usually handed down from mother to daughter. This recipe was given to me by Claes, one of my food clients who lives in Stockholm. He said that this is his grandmother’s recipe who was born on a lantgård (farm) in Sweden. She then passed this authentic recipe to him.
 
You’ll soon discover that kids love them and there are never any leftovers—never, in fact, and they all ask for seconds and thirds so batch-prep accordingly.
 
Spoon a little melted butter over the pancakes and sprinkle with sugar or serve with lingonberry sauce. The pancakes can be made into larger cakes; however, the yield will be smaller. You can also use the batter to make light, delicate crepes.
 
What is the difference between a crepe and a Swedish pancake, you ask? Visually it can be difficult to tell the difference, but once you take a bite it's very apparent. Crepes are denser and chewier due to the amount of flour, less eggs and no butter. Swedish pancakes are lighter and fluffier by using less flour, more eggs and real butter.
 
Prep time:  10 minutes
Cook time:  15 minutes
Yield:  10 to 12 servings (roughly 50 pancakes)
 
Ingredients 
3 large eggs
1-1/4 cups whole milk
3/4 cup all-purpose flour
1-1/4 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon butter, or more as needed
Granulated or confectioners’ sugar for finishing
Lemon wedge, whipped cream or lingonberry sauce garnish
 
Directions

1. Beat the eggs in a bowl with an electric mixer until thick and lemon-colored, 3 to 5 minutes.
2. Stir in milk.
3. Sift together flour, sugar and salt in a separate bowl.
4. Add to egg mixture and mix until batter is smooth.
5. Coat a griddle with butter, heat over medium heat. Drop tablespoonfuls of batter on the griddle; spread to make thin pancakes.
6. Cook until light brown on bottom, 1 to 2 minutes. Flip and continue cooking until second side is light brown, 1 to 2 minutes more.
7. Repeat with remaining batter.
8. Roll the pancakes and sprinkle with granulated or confectioners’ sugar.
9. Serve with a lemon wedge, whipped cream and a ramekin of lingonberry sauce.

ChefSecret:  Never use margarine to make this recipe—use real butter.  In fact, never use margarine for any of my recipes except buffalo wing sauce.  The flavor of margarine seems to work well with Frank’s Hot Sauce.  But that’s for another time.

Quip of the Day: “When can a pancake get arrested? When it commits unwaffle activities.”
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Do you have a question or comment? Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com. All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide.
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To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. Take a breath and count your blessings, and if you have a little extra to share with others, please consider donating to Feeding America. 

#Entree #Breakfast #Brunch #SwedishPancakes #Fruit #Covid19SurvivalBlog #FeedingAmerica #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup 
                                                         ©Perspectives/The Consulting Group, LLC, 2022

How you doin’? As the weather starts to warm up, we start to think about out outdoor brunches and barbecues. Nothing goes better with these home entertainment activities than a Blood Mary cocktail.
 
The creation of the Bloody Mary dates back to the 1920’s and is often credited to Fernand Petiot while a young bartender at Harry's New York Bar in Paris. However, it appears he simply spiced up an existing and well-established combination of vodka and tomato juice while working at the St. Regis Hotel, New York City during the 1940s.
 
The real secret to a great (not just good) Blood Mary is the mix… so much more than simple tomato or V-8 juice. It involves a mélange of ingredients that are complementary to each other as well as a great assortment of garnishes—you can never have too many toppers for a great Blood Mary.
 
What does a Blood Mary do for a hangover?  If you really want to feel better after a long night of drinking, maybe try a Virgin Mary on for size made with this mix. The non-booze ingredients of a Bloody Mary deliver up electrolytes, water, Vitamins A and C, and Vitamin B6, all of which might just help with a hangover.
 
Prep time:  15 minutes
Yield:  32-ounces
 
Ingredients 
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon fine grind black pepper
1/4 teaspoon celery salt
2 tablespoons sweet and sour mix
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
1/2 teaspoon Rose’s lime juice
2 tablespoons red Burgundy
2 dashes Tabasco sauce
1 to 2 teaspoons prepared horseradish (more, for a stiffer kick)
32 ounces tomato juice
 
Directions

1. Combine all the ingredients in a large pitcher and stir well.
2. Cover and store refrigerated until ready to use.

ChefSecret:  A bartender’s secret to a great Blood Mary is not only the Blood Mary Mix (see above), but the garnishes. You can simply garnish with a stalk of celery and a lime or lemon wedge, or you can go all and rim the glass with celery salt and load it up with cheese cubes, olives, peppers and even skewered shrimp (Shipwreck Mary, Lesson #73) and make a meal of it.

Quip of the Day: “Legend says that if you stand in front of the mirror in your bedroom at 3am and scream Bloody Mary then your spouse will appear, throw sandals at you and tell you to shut the hell up and go to sleep.”
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Do you have a question or comment? Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com.  All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide .
-------------------------------------------
To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. Take a breath and count your blessings, and if you have a little extra to share with others, please consider donating to Feeding America.

#Cocktail #HappyHour #ZippyBloodyMary #BloodyMary #Tabasco #RosesLimeJuice #Cheers #2022 #Cheers# QuarantineKitchen #Covid19 #FeedingAmerica #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup 
 
                                                              ©Perspectives/The Consulting Group, Inc., 2022

​How you doin’? For my generation there were lots of wonderful memories with some of mom’s or grandmother’s cooking—today’s kids may not have the same recollections. If you have a family favorite you might want to document now so it can live on as a family legacy to share with your current and future mini me’s.
 
When I think back to my childhood most of the great baking came from my Aunt Esther and I have shared several recipes of hers with you on this blog. And then there was the yeasty waffle recipe from Aunt Waffle (actually, Aunt Ethel). My mother’s recipe… not so much. I once featured on one of my restaurant menus, “Apple Pie like mom used to make $2.95; Apple Pie like mom thought she made $5.95.” That being the case, I have a fascination with other moms’ great recipes.
 
I recently read in Allrecipes that James Beard shared his mother's recipe for shortcake with a friend.  James Beard claimed that his mother’s secret ingredient in baking her shortcake was finely crumbled hard-boiled egg yolks, which enrich the dough without toughening it. Even before Beard was the famous award-winning James Beard who wrote 20 cookbooks, hosted cooking shows and changed the game of modern cuisine, his mom was whipping up one seriously delicious—yet delightfully strange—shortcake recipe. Thanks mom!
 
When I was in Melbourne several years ago, I worked with an old-world German pastry chef and he, too, used finely crumbled hard-boiled egg yolks, which enriched the dough without toughening it contributing to the baked cakes' perfectly tender crumb. The technique has also appeared in recipes from The Great British Bake Off in 2018. What I found out is that this method is common in Northern European baking, where savvy bakers discovered that the small egg yolk bits prevent too much gluten from forming in the dough, keeping the baked goods (like shortcakes) ultra-tender.
 
The next time you’re in the produce section of your local supermarket and see all those beautiful, aroma-blessed fresh strawberries, pick up a couple of baskets (or flats) and then walk right by the packaged, convenience spongy bun shortcakes and go home to make your own home-baked shortcake pastry following the recipe below.
 
Prep time:  30-40 minutes
Bake time:  15 minutes             
Yield:  6 Servings
 
Ingredients 
For the shortcake pastry
2 cups all-purpose flour, plus additional for rolling
1 tablespoon, plus 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, divided
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes and chilled
2 hard-boiled egg yolks, pushed through a small mesh sieve
3/4 cup heavy cream, chilled
1/2 teaspoon almond extract
1 tablespoon melted unsalted butter
 
For the strawberry topping
3 pints fresh strawberries, washed, hulled, and halved
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon orange liqueur
 
For the whipped cream topping
1 cup chilled heavy cream
1 tablespoon granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
mint sprig (garnish)
 
Directions
To make the shortcake pastry

1. In a large bowl, sift together the flour and all of the baking powder.
2. Mix in 1/4 cup of the sugar and the salt.
3. Add the chilled butter cubes and using your fingertips, work the butter into the flour mixture until it has the consistency of coarse crumbs.
4. Stir in the sieved hard-boiled egg yolks.
5. Slowly add the cream and almond extract in small increments, blending into the mixture until absorbed before adding more; gently mix until the dough just comes together. Do not overwork the dough.
6. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured board and gently knead into a smooth ball (about two or three turns). Gently pat down the dough to make a flat 1-inch-thick slab.
7. Using a lightly floured 2 1/2-inch-round biscuit cutter, cut straight down to create 6 shortcakes.
8. Place the shortcakes on a plate lined with waxed paper or plastic wrap and refrigerate for an hour.
9. Preheat an oven to 450°F.
10. Just before baking brush the tops of each shortcake with melted butter and sprinkle with the remaining sugar.
11. Transfer the chilled shortcakes to a parchment-lined sheet pan.
12. Bake on the center rack of the oven until golden and firm to the touch, about 15 minutes.
13. Remove from the oven and let cool.

To make the strawberry filling

1. While the shortcakes cool, prepare the fruit filling and whipped cream.
2. Place the strawberries in a large bowl, gently fold in the sugar and orange liqueur and let sit until macerated (make soft by soaking in the liquid).

To make the whipped cream topping

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whip the chilled heavy cream on low and gradually increase speed until it begins to thicken.
2. Reduce speed, add sugar and the vanilla extract and begin to slowly increase the speed until the whipped cream is thickened, about 4 minutes.

To assembly the strawberry shortcakes

1. Using a fork or serrated knife, split the shortcakes in half horizontally. Place the bottom halves on plates and generously spoon the macerated strawberries and juices over them.
2. Top with a heaping dollop of whipped cream. Top with the other half of each shortcake and more whipped cream. Garnish with fresh mint.
3. Serve immediately.

ChefSecrets:  The secret to tender shortcakes is to not overwork the dough.

Quip of the Day: “Why were the little strawberries so upset? Because their parents were in a jam!”
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Do you have a question or comment? Send your thoughts to ed@perspectives-la.com.  All recipes and cooking tips are posted on our website https://www.perspectives-la.com/covid-19-survival-guide.
-------------------------------------------
To you and everyone dear to you, be strong, be positive, stay well, stay safe and be kind. Take a breath and count your blessings, and if you have a little extra to share with others, please consider donating to Feeding America. 

#Desserts #StrawberryShortcake #Strawberries #EggYolks #JamesBeard #QuarantineKitchen #Covid19 #FeedingAmerica #PerspectivesTheConsultingGroup
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                                           ©Perspectives/The Consulting Group, Inc., 2022