Wicked Good Roast Chicken with Fennel, Beets and Lemon

Wicked Good!  And simple to prepare.  Cooks in about 1 1/2 hours.

Recipe for four:

1 whole chicken, cut into four pieces
4 small beets, peeled and quartered
2 lemons, quartered
1 large fennel bulb, trimmed and sliced thick
1 whole head of garlic, seperated, leave skins on
2 handfulls cherry tomatoes, whole
2 cups white wine
1/3 cup white vermouth
1 cups chicken stock
olive oil
3 T butter
6 sprigs fresh thyme
salt and pepper

Set the oven to 325* - Coat the chicken with olive oil and season with a good amount of salt and pepper.  Arrange the chicken along with all the ingredients (except the tomatoes) in a large roasting pan, and cover with foil.

Place in the middle of the oven for 45 minutes.  Then remove the foil, add the tomatoes and increase the heat to 425* - Cook for another 45 minutes uncovered.   What you're trying to do here is brown the chicken and reduce the liquid to about a 1/2 a cup, just enough to sauce the meal.

Serve onto warm plates with jasmine rice.

Bon Appetit!  Chef Hobbes

Roasted Chicken Thighs With Artichokes, Herbs And Lemons

Although this dish take about 1 hour and 45 minutes to cook, there is almost no prep, which makes a great easy friday night dinner, with not many dishes to do, just pop it in the oven and sit back with a glass of wine!

Recipe for two:
4 organic chicken thighs, skin on and bone in
2 artichokes, trimmed
2 lemons, cut in half
1 onion, peeled and quartered
1 head of garlic, separated but not peeled
1 acorn squash, quartered and seeded
Hand full of cherry tomatoes
A few springs of thyme
1 c Madeira
Olive oil
1/2 stick butter
Salt and pepper

Tip:  By leaving the skins on the garlic, this helps them not get to burned or black!

Set the oven to 400*  Place chicken thighs in a roasting pan with some olive oil and salt and pepper.  While the oven is getting hot, boil the trimmed artichokes, ( by trimming I mean remove the small leaves at the stem and shorten the stem if it's to long, then cut off the sharp needles on the ends of the leaves ).
When the artichokes are almost done, remove and drain.  When they are cool enough, cut in half length ways and remove the fine hairs or the choke!

Place the oiled thighs in the oven and cook for about 30 minutes, then remove and add some more olive oil and all the ingredients  except the tomatoes, wine and butter.  Make sure that the artichokes and lemons are face down so they caramelize.   Cook for about 45 minutes and check for doneness, if the chicken is getting to done pull it out and return it later.  If everything is caramelizing nicely then add the wine, butter and tomatoes and cook for a bit more or until the liquid has reduced.  The chicken should be crispy and the vegetables browned, and just enough liquid to sauce the plates...

Serve on to warm plates.

Bon Appetit!  Chef Hobbes

Lemon Pasta To Die For!

OK, this pasta has anchovies in it!  You won't taste them, honest!  Anchovies are a Chef's ace in the hole.  They use them in stews,  pot roasts and then some, to build flavors, and you don't even know it!  So don't not put the anchovies in. . .  Deb's kids love this dish, and now they know what's in it!

Recipe for four:
1 - 16 oz packet of good quality organic pasta
1/2 yellow onion finely chopped
2 t garlic finely chopped
2 egg yolks
1 - 2 oz can of anchovy fillets, finely chopped and smeared*
1 c parsley chopped
Zest and juice of one lemon
1 big pinch of chili flakes
1 t paprika
Salt and pepper
3 T olive oil

I'm not going to assume that you know how to cook the best pasta, so here's how!  Pasta needs lots of room to cook and release it's starch, so use the biggest pot you have and completely fill it with water and a few three-finger pinches of sea salt.  Bring the water to a solid rolling boil.  Then add the pasta, and stir it for a bit with some steel tongs.

While the pasta is cooking, place a large saute pan on the stove over high heat and add the oil.  When the oil is hot add the onions, anchovy and garlic, shaking the pan, and cook until soft but don't brown it.  When they're done add the chili flakes, lemon juice and a little pepper and the paprika, and stir.  Cook for only about a minute.  Just before the pasta is done, take a ladle of the hot water and add it to the two egg yolks in a seperate bowl and whisk.  Drain the pasta, and return it to the pot it was cooked in, and then add the egg and the other mixture and stir...

*Tip: once the anchovies are chopped finely, place in a bowl and with the back of a spoon smear them into a paste!

Serve on warm plates with a little extra virgin olive oil.

Bon Appetit!  Chef Hobbes

Proper Avocado Crostini, With Cayenne And Lemon

Now this is Proper!  Blimey, my mouth is watering while writing this!

Shown here to the right is one with a balsamic drizzle.  And the one below has just lemon juice, which is the one I prefer...

Just brush a couple of slices of sourdough bread with a little olive oil, and pop them in the oven set at 325* turning once, about 20 minutes or until crunchy.

Now slice up some avocado and lay it on the bread, sprinkle with salt and pepper and a little cayenne and a squeeze of lemon juice!

Absolutely Proper!

Bon Appetit!

Roasted Cauliflower and Garlic...

My friends love this dish.  Even if you hate cauliflower you will love this!  It's quick and easy, and you can serve it on its own or as a side dish.

Heat your oven to 400* then slice a cauliflower into 3/4" steaks.  Lay on a roasting pan or sheet pan, then drizzle with olive oil, and season with salt and pepper.  Break open a whole head of garlic, and cut the little hard bit off on the root end.

Cook for 30-45 minutes, turning the cauliflower once.  What you will be trying to achieve is to caramelize one side before you turn it.  Isn't that  easy?!

If you're serving this own its own, try this simple little vinaigrette.  While the cauliflower is roasting,  mince and mash one garlic clove, add a pinch of salt, then whisk together with 1 to 2 tablespoons of fresh lemon juice to taste.  Then finely chop 1/4 cup pitted kalamata olives and combine with the other ingredients....  Yum!

Bon Appetit!

Ginger Tea...

So, I was in the store yesterday, and heard two ladies complaining about how sick they were and that all their friends had the bug!

So here's a recipe to help you, if you have a cold, or if you just want to build your immune system up a bit...

2"-3" fresh organic ginger peeled and sliced
1/2 organic lemon
1 large teaspoon local honey

Bring two big cups of water to a boil and add ginger, turn heat down so you have a vigorous simmer. Simmer for about 20 minutes, then strain liquid into a cup and add honey and the lemon half. The tea will be spicy hot so you may need more or less honey...

Cheers!