A Jeanne in the Kitchen

We got together with friends for a fun, annual event (more on this in tomorrow’s blog), and we all brought parts of the meal.  I just love potlucks!  They are my favorite type of party.  Potlucks are so much fun and they are a good way to see everyone’s creativity and to try new dishes.   I know there are quite a few other people out there who love to cook as much as I do and I just love all the sharing that comes along with potluck get-togethers.  My contributions to the affair were my Greek cannelloni’s, Greek Crepe Cannelloni Stuffed with Beef  and sausages cooked in red wine that I served with my whole wheat potato bread. Whole Wheat Potato Bread .  Both were big hits and were very popular.  We had a light tapas meal.  We also dined on some fabulous sweet roasted pepper crostinis that my friend Priscilla made and finished the meal off with a delicious key lime pie made by my friend Janet.  And of course, we had wine.  We served a Spanish red that paired perfectly with our Spanish/Mediterranean tapas meal.

Ideally, I would have loved to use chorizo for my dish, but I could not find the type of chorizo I was looking for, so instead, I used two other types of sausage.  I used a combination of hot Italian pork sausage and chicken basil sausage.  No one even knew that I switched sausages and the dish was still a big success.

Sausage Cooked in Red Wine

1 1/2-2 lbs sausage, chorizo or other sausage of your choice

olive oil for cooking

1 cup red wine of your choice

2 tsp black pepper

1 TBSP garlic

2 tsp red pepper flakes

fresh thyme

 

Cook the sausage in a hot skillet with olive oil until browned on all sides.

Once the sausages are browned, removed them from the pan and slice them into small bite-sized pieces.  Then return them to the skillet along with all the rest of the ingredients, except the fresh thyme.  Make sure you scrape all the sausage drippings from the pan, and incorporate them into your sauce.  That’s what will really make the sauce perk up.  You only need to continue cooking for about 5-7 more minutes or until the sausages are completely cooked.

Once the sausages are completely cooked, your dish is done.  Add the fresh thyme right before serving and serve over warmed bread with the sauce.  When I made my whole wheat potato bread, the recipe made two loaves.  We ate one earlier and the other one I froze.  I used the second loaf for this dish.  The bread absorbed all the flavors and some of the spiciness of the dish.

 

Our favorite local winery, InVINtions, A Creative Winery, at InVINtionsWine.com had their “Hallowine” party, that was a spooktacularly fun evening.  Everyone was dressed up in some kind of character, and a good time was had by all.  There were a king and a queen, Malefacent, used car salespeople, pilots, skeletons, Count Dracula and his bride, witches, and our very own, the Wacky Professor Cooksalot.  We bobbed for apples, and had a mummy dressing contest.  We attempted to throw corks into the pumpkins, and of course there was wine.  Lots of wine.  It was a very fun way for the adults to unwind and to let their hair down, and be kids again.

Professor Cooksalot.  She is the professor of cookology.  Some say she is brilliant in the kitchen, but she is not mixing with a full beater.

Professor Cooksalot with her friends, the slightly shady car sales people from Foxy used Cars.

Adding to our motley crew is Mr. Pumpkin and the Sexy Soldier in front of InVINtions.

Marcus, our hostess for the evening.

Some of the staff and guests who helped make the party a barrel (or two) of fun.

Marcus and her motley crew.

The place was crawling with spiders.

Making our mummy.

Yesterday, I left you all with a teaser about good things to come.  I knew this dish was going to take a lot of prep time, and that it was a 3-step process.  What I did not realize was how long it was going to take.   Total cooking time was about 3-3 1/2 hours.  But it was all a labor of love, as are so many wonderful dishes, especially a lot of ethnic dishes.  I enjoyed all the steps and the processes to make this dish, and I know we are all going to enjoy the finished result.  Normally, I do do not show you unfinished dishes, however, I made this one ahead of time, for an a fun get together with friends tomorrow.  I have everything completed except the final baking.  You’ll just have to use your imagination a bit on this one, but I promise you, it will not be too much of a stretch.  🙂  The only thing you will not see is the browning of the cheese and the sauce.

This is a long post, with a lot of details.  Have patience and continue to the end.  The result is well worth the read and the wait.  I promise, you will not be disappointed.

 

Stuffed Crepe Cannelloni with Beef

• First Step – Making the Kimas or Meat Sauce

1 large onion, diced fine

salt & pepper to taste

1 1/2-2 lbs ground beef

1/2 cup dry white wine

6 medium tomatoes, diced small

1 1/2-2 tsp sugar

2 bay leaves

1-1 1/2 tsp allspice

1-2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp ground cloves

2 TBSP garlic

3 cups chicken or beef stock

olive oil

 

Saute the onions, salt and sugar in the olive oil, stirring frequently.  Just as the onions start to caramelize and turn color, add the ground beef and continue cooking until the beef is cooked.

Once the beef and onions are cooked, add the wine.  Let all the liquid from the wine cook off completely.  This will help reduce the acidity of the dish.

Once all the wine is cooked off, add the diced tomatoes and the rest of the ingredients.

Bring the sauce to a boil, then reduce to a simmer, and continue to cook for 45-60 minutes, or until the sauce is rich and thick and all the liquid has been cooked off.

This sauce is a very versatile sauce and is used for many different Greek dishes.  Once the sauce is cooked, remove the bay leaves and discard.  This sauce is so rich and aromatic.  Your whole house will be filled with the delightful aromas of the spices for the rest of the day.  I had a little leftover rice that I added to the meat mixture as well, to give a little more texture, since I am using it as a filling.

 

• Second Step – The Crepes

3 large eggs

3/4 cup flour

1 1/2 cups milk

salt & pepper to taste

1 tsp ground nutmeg

2-3 TBSP melted butter

olive oil for cooking

 

Whisk the eggs and the flour together, then slowly incorporate the milk and seasonings.   Add the melted butter and mix well.  Let the batter set in the refrigerator for about an hour before making the crepes.

Once the batter is ready, get a small, 6″ skillet very hot, then brush it with olive oil.  Add a small amount of the batter to the skillet and immediately swirl it around to fill the space of the skillet.  Pour off the excess.  Cook for about 30-60 seconds, then gently scrape the edges with a spoon and gently flip the crepe over with a spatula.  You want very thin crepes, so you will only use a small amount of batter for each crepe.

Repeat the process until all the batter has been used.  I doubled the recipe, and I made 20 crepes.

Once all the crepes are cooked, it is time to fill them with the kimas or the meat sauce.

Add 1 heaping TBSP of meat mixture to the crepe.  Fold it in from the top, then gently grab the edges and roll, just like you are rolling a burrito.  Place the seamed side down on your baking pan.  Continue until all the crepes are filled.

 

• Third Step – The Bechemal Sauce

 

1 1/2- 2 TBSP butter

1 1/2-2 TBSP flour

1 3/4 cup milk

salt & pepper to taste

1/2 tsp ground nutmeg

3 1/2 TBSP heavy whipping cream

Parmigiano Cheese

parsley

 

Preheat the oven to 350* F

In a hot skillet, melt the butter and whisk in the flour.  Then add the milk and the seasonings, continuing to whisk constantly.  Add the cream and let simmer for about 20 minutes.

When the sauce is done.  Spoon it over the cannellonies.  Top each cannelloni with a little Parmigiano cheese and parsley.   Bake for 30 minutes, or until the cannellonies are golden brown.

Once the cannellonies are done, it’s time to eat.  Is good to be Greek.

The Chef is just about to enter the kitchen to create something yummy and delicious.  However, because her creativity will take some time to prepare, she wanted to give you all a little something until the creation has come to fruition.  You will be able to savor the results from her latest creation in a bit. But in the meantime, sit back and and enjoy a few more kitchen quotes from the pros.

Food … can look beautiful, taste exquisite, smell wonderful, make people feel good, bring them together, inspire romantic feelings …At its most basic, it is fuel for a hungry machine.

~ Rosamond Richardson~

In cooking, as in all the arts, simplicity is the sign of perfection.

~Curnonsky~

 

… food is delightfully, an area of licensed sensuality, of physical delight which will, with luck and enduring tastebuds last our life long.

~ Antonia Till, from Loaves & Wishes~

 

A home is a place where a pot of fresh soup simmers gently on the hob, filling the kitchen with soft aromas … and filling your heart, and later your tummy with joy.

~ Keith Floyd~

One cannot live well, love well or sleep well unless one has dined well.

~Virginia Woolf – from ” A Room  of One’s Own”~

 

I haven’t made cookies in quite some time, and I was really feeling the urge to do so.  Plus, I also had some Nutella that was just begging to be used in a delicious, creative way.  I love Nutella, and I love cookies.  So I made some delectable chocolate cookies that were stuffed with ooey-gooey hazelnuts and Nutella (or as you can see, I used the generic brand from my favorite place in the whole world – Costco).   You’re all going to love these, and with the holidays just around the corner, these would be the perfect holiday cookie.  They are a labor of love, but they are so worth it.  Literally, every bite just melts in your mouth.

All you need to make some magical and delectable cookies.

Chocolate Hazelnut Cookies

36 tsp Nutella or hazelnut spread

36 roasted and peeled hazelnuts

1 1/2 cups of softened butter, or 3 sticks

1 1/2 cups brown sugar, firmly packed

3/4 cup sugar

3 large eggs

3 TBSP milk

3 tsp vanilla

3 cups flour

1 1/2 cups cocoa powder

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tsp salt

powdered sugar for dusting (optional)

 

Spoon out the hazelnut spread onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.  Stick 1 hazelnut in the center of each spoonful of hazelnut spread and place in the freezer for at least 1 hour to set.

Preheat the oven t 350* F

 

Mix all the dry ingredients together and blend well.

In the meantime, mix the butter and sugars together until well blended and the dough is light and fluffy.  Add the eggs one at a time, and mix in between each one, then add the vanilla and mix again.   Slowly add the dry ingredients 1/2 at a time and mix in between each addition.

When the dough is ready, remove the hazelnut spread from the freezer.  Spoon out 1 heaping TBSP of dough and roll into a ball, then gently press flat on a lightly floured surface.  Take one hazelnut spread ball and place in the center of the dough.  Then fold the dough around the hazelnut spread.  Shape into a round ball, and lightly press to slightly flatten on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake for 10-15 minutes.  The cookies should be soft.  You do not want to over cook them, or the filling will firm up and will not be ooey and gooey.  When you bite into the cookies you want a semi-liquid, soft filling.

Once the cookies have completely cooled, you can do a light dusting of powdered sugar if you like.  The result is a little bit of Heaven.  These are soft, chewy, ooey-gooey cookies, that are very rich and delicious.  I promise you, this one is a definite winner.

 

 

Even though we are still getting through all of our leftovers, they are main dishes and I still need to prepare side dishes and vegetables to go with them.  We have to have balanced meals, right?!  The Queen of leftovers was in the house again today, making some yummy pork and vegetable quesadillas out of, you guessed it, leftovers.  I pulled some smoked shredded pork out of the freezer and mixed it with my leftover vegetable saute, Presto Pesto Chicken then added this all to some tortillas with cheese.  My husband topped his quesadilla with tomato salsa and sour cream and I topped mine with the my peach salsa.  Peaches from Palisade  The peach salsa and the pork go together very well.  I love the combination of peaches and pork.  I love the smoky flavor from the pork mixed with the sweet and spicy flavors of the peach salsa.  Sadly, my avocados had seen better days, so they got tossed and were not part of my quesadilla this time.   I also made some pappas fritas caliente, or spicy fried potatoes, to go with the quesadillas.  So not only did we have a quick, easy meal, but I also cleared out some of the leftovers from my refrigerator, making more room for more dishes yet to come.

All I need to make pappas fritas caliente.

2 russet potatoes, peeled and cubed

1 large jalapeno, seeded and diced fine

1/3 onion, diced fine

1 TBSP garlic

1 tsp chili powder

1-1 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, or to taste

salt & pepper to taste

1-1 1/2 tsp fresh thyme and oregano, chopped fine

olive oil and butter for cooking

 

In a hot skillet, add your oil and butter and the potato cubes.  Cook for about 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are a light golden brown and a little crispy on the outside and soft on the inside.

Add the rest of the ingredients, except the fresh herbs, (if you are using dried herbs, you can add them at this point) and continue to cook for another 5-10 minute, or until the onions are translucent and the potatoes are golden brown.

Add the fresh herbs right at the very end of the cooking process and mix well.

Quesadillas carne de cerdo con salsa de melocoton y pappas fritas caliente es listo.  !Que Bueno!

 

My husband says I have been cooking too much lately, and we have to get through a lot of our leftovers before I start making more first-overs, so I thought it might be fun to try something else today.  I was doing a room purge, which I do about every 6 months or so, and I came across a cute little book I forgot about.  It is filled with fun kitchen quotes and sayings from some pretty famous chefs.  I thought it would be fun to share some of their thoughts about food and cooking with you all today, for a brief change of pace.

 

Some people like to paint pictures, or do gardening, or build a boat in the basement.  Other people get tremendous pleasure out of the kitchen, because cooking is just as creative and imaginative an activity as drawing or wood carving or music.  

~Julia Child~

 

Cookery is not chemistry.  It is an art.  It requires instinct and taste rather than exact measurements.

~ Marcel Boulestin,  from Petits et grande plats ~

 

I feel a recipe is only a theme, which an intelligent cook can play each time with a variation.

~ Madame Benoit~

 

Even more than long hours in the kitchen, fine meals require ingenious organization and experience which is a pleasure to acquire.

~ Elizabeth David, from French Country Cooking~

 

The secret of good cooking is first, having a love of it.  If you’re convinced cooking is drudgery, you’re never going to be good at it, and you might as well warm up something frozen.

~ James Beard~

 

The most indispensable ingredient of all good home cooking:  love for those you are cooking for

~ Sophia Loren~

Enjoy!  Bon Apetit! Desfruitas y Mangia!

 

My muse seems to have taken the day off.  I was feeling a little less than inspired to be really creative, so I just made a real simple dinner, made with some leftovers that needed to be used.  Even though I pride myself on my creativity, especially in the kitchen, even I have those days where I am just not feeling up to the challenge.  It happens, even to the best of us.  Fortunately, these days do not happen to often though.

Dinner was just a simple pesto chicken, served with roasted potatoes and sauteed vegetables, with some of my leftover whole wheat potato bread.  Whole Wheat Potato Bread  Nothing fancy; just a simple dinner and a quiet evening.

Pesto chicken with roasted potatoes and sauteed vegetables.

I coated the chicken on both sides with homemade pesto, then I roasted it in the oven at 375* F for about 20 minutes, before turning it over and adding mozzarella cheese and pine nuts.

Quartered red potatoes tossed with garlic, olive oil, salt & pepper.  I roasted both the chicken and the potatoes together.

After about 20 minutes, I stirred the potatoes and flipped the chicken over, then topped it with mozzarella cheese and pine nuts.  I let them both roast for another 20 minutes or so, until the cheese on the chicken was browned and a little crusty.  The pine nuts toasted on top as the chicken was cooking, so no need to toast them before hand.

We always have our veggies.  We eat a wide variety of vegetables all the time.

I sauteed my heartier vegetables first, then added some grape tomatoes right at the very end, so they would not break down.

All that was needed to make this simple meal complete was a glass of wine, and voila!  Presto, pesto. Dinner was served.  I chose a crisp chardonnay with hints of grapefruit to accompany the meal.  It was a nice pairing.

 

 

 

 

Well, October 2018 is certainly shaping up well for me and “A Jeanne in the Kitchen”, at ajeanneinthekitchen.com.  I have been nominated for another blogger recognition award, this time, it is The Versatile Blogger Award.  My blogger friend who nominated me was Bushra’s Lifestyle Blog

I love Bushra’s Lifestyle blog.  She always has some very good ideas and is always so positive.  Thank you so much.  Once again, I am honored.

Share 7 facts about me:

1.  I love all things about food.  I love to plan the menu; I love to shop for the food; I love to cook the food; and I love to entertain.
2.   I grew up in Southern California, and was the quintessential California beach bum until I moved to Colorado.  Now, I would never even think of moving back to California.
3.   I am an avid scuba diver and rescue diver.  My husband and I travel all over the world in search of the best dive locations.
4.  When I am not cooking or in the kitchen, I live in the water, whether it be scuba diving or swimming, or teaching my H2O classes.  I am also a swim coach for young swimmers from 6-10 years old.
5.  My babies are my fur babies.  I have two great big Saint Bernards and two cats.
6.  I am very adventurous, and love to try everything.
7.  Family and friends are very important to me.  They are my everything.

 

There are so many wonderful bloggers out there, it is hard to only be able to recognize 15.  But I will try.

1.   Globe&Life
2.   anindianhomemaker
3.   BallesWorld
4.   Odedi’s Wine Reviews Blog
5.   Indians Abroad Desi Videsh Me
6.   LIBARAH
7.   Quotes, Blogs and Rad Tech
8.   Lilly Eves World
9.   In Dianes Kitchen
10.   Plants and Beyond
11.   OJ’s Pride
12.   Ella @ thewackyspoon.com
13.   snapshotsincursive
14.   Laleh Chini
15.   itsgoodtobecrazysometimes.wordpress.com

 

Thank you all.  I enjoy reading your blogs and your posts.  Keep up the good work; you and all the other wonderful bloggers out there.

 

My husband bought tickets for us to go see For King & Country a while ago, as a surprise.  They are an up and coming band with a ton of energy and a lot of percussion.  I love them.  I discovered them at Christmas and have been smitten with them ever since.   We made a whole night of it, with wine and dinner and then the concert, which was so much fun.  We are members at InVINtions, A Creative Winery, http://www.inVINtionsWine.com in the south Denver area, and part of or membership includes two free bottles of wine per month, along with either a glass or a tasting of wine for each of us every month as well.  So we have the wine and the entertainment covered for the evening, all we needed was dinner.   There is a delicious family owned and operated Indian restaurant just across the parking lot from InVINtions, called HSS Hot Breads Indian Cuisine http://www.hotbreadsdenver.com, that we thought would be just perfect.  We had been to this restaurant before and really like it a lot.  So Indian from Hot Breads it was.  We ordered our meal and took it over to InVINtions to enjoy with a glass of wine, and then off to the concert we went.  It was a fun, fantastic evening  all around.

We had both had a fairly large lunch earlier today, and we were not hungry enough to each have our own dish.  So we ordered one main entree and two appetizers to split,  This turned out to be the perfect sized meal.  We ordered Andhra curried chicken, which came with basmatti rice.  We also ordered some garlic and onion naan bread and two samosas.  As we were waiting for our food, we had a great conversation with the owner, Sunbil.  He is a very nice, friendly man with a big smile.  The restaurant offers delicious, authentic Indian foods, with dishes hailing from both Northern and Southern India.  They also have a very impressive dessert selection as well, that are made by his wife, who also happens to be the pastry chef.

The Hot Breads menu has a wide range of delectable dishes that has something wonderful to offer for everyone.

The desserts are a combination of traditional European style pastries, as well as some traditional Indian pastries.  They all look fabulous.  I wish I could try them all, but alas, I would be twice the size of this pastry case if I did.

For dinner, we asked Sunbil what was his favorite dish, and he recommended the Andhra chicken curry, because it was a dish that comes from the region where he was from.  So, we ordered the Andhra chicken curry, two samosas and the garlic and onion naan bread.  There was a mint chutney sauce and a tamarind sauce that came with our meal as well.  Both were really good, but out of the two, my favorite was the mint chutney sauce.  We took it over to InVINtions and enjoyed this delicious dish with a glass of a South African White blend, known as the South African Great White.  The pairing was perfect.  A dry, but fruity light and crisp white blend mixed with a spicy curry.  They flavors complimented each other very well.

We did not pass up on the desserts either.  Sunbil gave us one of the Rasmalai pastries to try, which of course, was scrumptious.  It was so light and moist and airy, with hints of pistachio, and a delicious, light cream filling.  YUM!

I like date nights.  We usually do our best to have a great time, no matter where we go, or what we do.  This one was particularly fun.

 

*** InVINtions, A Creative Winery

9608 East Arapahoe Road, Greenwood Village, CO http://www.InVINtinsWine.com

(303) 799-9463

 

***HSS Hot Breads Indian Cuisine

9678 East Arapahoe Road, Greenwood Village, CO http://www.hotbreadsdenver.com

(303) 247-9264