That's What Bob's Cooking: February 2013

Thursday, February 28, 2013

Baked Chicken Stuffed with Pesto and Cheese

I was perusing Pinterest a while back, and found a picture of this recipe. So, I looked it up and found that is “fits” exactly what I’ve been making lately. When I was planning the grocery list this week, I noticed that we had everything to make it, so on the menu it went.

It’s really an easy recipe, the hardest part being pounding the chicken breasts. Notice I made 5 portions, out of 2 large breasts. I chopped up some fresh mozzarella we had in place of the shredded mozzarella. Please make note that I didn’t measure the almond flour, and went heavy, and still ran out, so plan to go HEAVY!!

Baked Chicken Stuffed with Pesto and Cheese

Ingredients:
2 large boneless, skinless chicken breasts
2 T (heaping) your favorite pesto
2 T (heaping) sour cream
2 T (heaping)grated mozzarella cheese (I used heaping tablespoons of pesto, sour cream and cheese)
2 eggs, beaten (or if they're large eggs one will probably be enough)
3 T(heaping) finely grated Parmesan cheese
3 T almond flour

black pepper to taste

Instructions: Preheat oven to 375F/190C. Spray a small casserole dish with non-stick spray. Trim any visible fat from chicken breasts, then put them one at a time inside a heavy plastic bag and pound with meat mallet until the chicken is as thin as you can get it. Don't worry too much about the shape or whether there are some loose pieces, you can tuck them in when you roll up the chicken.

In a small bowl mix together the basil pesto, sour cream, and mozzarella.

Use a rubber scraper to spread a thin layer of this mixture over each chicken breast, stopping about 1/2 inch from the edge of the chicken (so it doesn't run out so much as it cooks.) Roll up the chicken breasts and secure them with a couple of toothpicks. (I roll them so the finished piece is as thin as I can get it so they will cook quickly.)

Prepare two bowls, one with the beaten egg and the other with the grated Parmesan-almond flour mixture, seasoned with black pepper to taste. Dip each chicken breast roll first into the egg mixture and then into the Parmesan-almond flour mixture, patting it on so the chicken breast roll is well-coated with the mixture.

Put chicken breasts into the casserole dish and bake until the chicken is firm and lightly browned. (Start checking after about 25-30 minutes; total baking time will be 40-45 minutes.) Serve hot.

Sunday, February 17, 2013

Italian Torta

Years ago I used to buy a Torta, which was an Italian appetizer, or layered treat. It’s layered with Cream cheese, pesto and sundried tomatoes. I used to mix it up and spread it on bread. It was SO YUMMY!!

A few days ago, we were invited to an “appetizer and game” night. I was going back and forth between making empanadas, baking a savory cheese and making this torta. Well, the torta won, because of time.

Italian Torta

Ingredients: (quantites are based on the size you want to make-for the pictured torta, below is what I used)

16 oz Mascarpone (separated into 1/3rds)

8 oz Pesto
8 oz Sundried Tomato Pesto (or chopped sundried tomatoes)
Pinenuts, roughly chopped
Basil

If you’re layering this torta “upside down” as pictured, spray Bundt pan with pan spray. Spread 1/3 cheese into bottom of pan. Layer tomato mixture onto cheese.

For the next layer: spread 1/3 cheese on top of sun dried tomatoes.

Next layer: Spread pesto on top of cheese, and finish torta off with the remaining 1/3 cheese. Top (the bottom) the torta off with the pine nuts. Place Bundt pan in the freezer for 3-4 hours, or over night.

To serve, flip the torta over onto a serving plate, and garnish with fresh basil.

Unused portions of the torta can be frozen and used at a later date.

Wednesday, February 13, 2013

Vodka Cream Pasta

Looking for a perfect idea for Valentine's Day Dinner? Well, here you are. I made this for Craig, and he loved it, and he's pretty picky! Recently I asked him for some dinner ideas, you know something we haven't had in a while, and this recipe came first t his mind! I know something was good, when Craig asks for it again!

Vodka Cream Pasta

Ingredients

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon butter

2 cloves garlic , minced

2 shallots , minced

1 cup vodka

1 cup chicken stock

1 can crushed tomatoes (32 ounces)

Coarse salt and pepper

16 ounces pasta , such as penne rigate

1/2 cup heavy cream

20 leaves fresh basil , shredded or torn

Directions

Heat a large skillet over moderate heat. Add oil, butter, garlic and shallots. Gently sauté shallots for 3 to 5 minutes to develop their sweetness. Add vodka to the pan (3 turns around the pan in a steady stream will equal about 1 cup). Reduce vodka by half, this will take 2 or 3 minutes. Add chicken stock, tomatoes. Bring sauce to a bubble and reduce heat to simmer. Season with salt and pepper.

While sauce simmers, cook pasta in salted boiling water until cooked to al dente (with a bite to it). While pasta cooks, prepare your salad or other side dishes.

Stir cream into sauce. When sauce returns to a bubble, remove it from heat. Drain pasta. Toss hot pasta with sauce and basil leaves. Pass pasta with crusty bread.

My Complete Profile

I was born and raised on the East side of Portland Oregon, by two native and second generation, Oregonians, my Mom and Dad (Jack and Joan). Oregon, and the Northwest are deep in my blood. That being said, I have always had an interest in cooking. I would love to add a warm loving story here about how my Mom nurtured my love of cooking by setting me up on or near the counter top to help with whatever she was cooking. Well, that's not exactly the case.

Being a child of the 70's and 80's, I had a great exposure to classic foods like Spam, Tang, Rice-a-Roni and Hamburger Helper. While many of these premade, sodium roller coaster, treats where regulars on our table, my Mom would have to hold the title as "casserole queen". Casseroles are her favorite and her specialty. Whereas, my Dad was more of a spur of the moment kind of cook. His creations included many of the items from our makeshift pantry. Sometimes, i think he was thinking, "the more ingredients, the better it'll be!". I think my first attempt at cooking would have to have been making cookies, either peanut butter (with the criss-cross fork tine print on top), or chocolate chip cookies. Over the years I have made so many of both of these recipes, I have surely lost count.

During middle school, my Mom encouraged me to take Home Economics, thinking that all kids, boy or girl, should know how to cook out in this world. This sparked a growing interest in cooking. So when I entered my junior year of High School, at David Douglas, I enrolled in the culinary arts program, we called it Food Services I. This was a class that had been offered many years before, where the students ran a restaurant, The Kilt, during the lunch periods. Unfortunately, since the class had not been offered in several years, so we didn’t have enough students to open the restaurant, that year. Within the first few weeks of this class, my instructor asked if I'd like to be involved in an outside "club" (kind of like a version of Eagle Scouts) that was mentored by local business owners. It sounded interesting so I joined (not to mention it got me out of the first 2 periods of the day).

At our first meeting I was approached by Sylvia Poesdel, the owner of the Portland landmark restaurant, Sylvia's Italian Restaurant & Dinner Theatre. She asked me if I would be interested in an afterschool job, coming to work for her to learn the cooking/chef trade on the job. I jumped at the chance and started in October of 1985. During my senior year I rejoined the culinary arts program (Food Services II) and this year we were able to reopened the restaurant, which the rest of the students voted me to manage. I just absolutely loved it! I worked at Sylvia's until after I graduated, in 1989. I learned a lot about the restaurant industry, and I would have to say it would be one of just a few life altering jobs I have had throughout my career.

After high school, while I was working at Sylvia's, I applied to culinary arts school. The Two things kept me from continuing my career in culinary arts, were financial and having worked out in the field, I saw so many negative attributes to being a chef, I decided that since I love to cook, I wanted it to be a hobby, and not a drag to go work each day.

When I left Sylvia's, I worked at a hotel, then Safeway. From there I joined Fred Meyer in the Service Deli, and was quickly promoted to a manager. During the next 8 years, I worked throughout the Portland and Southern Oregon areas. In 1998, I earned a promotion to the regional specialist position (District Manager) in Seattle. During this career move, I learned so much about the Food Service industry. I was charged to develop a new service salad case program, as well as work on a new catering program. I had the opportunity to work with manufacturers to develop these new programs.

In 2000, I met the love of my life, Craig. I also, moved from the food service program to the grocery department as an assistant manager. In the capacity I learned to develop my management skills as well as managing inventory. By being the best in my category, I earned the position of manager, where I moved from store to store cleaning up and reorganizing as I went. I also was entrusted with training future Food managers for the region. At which point I was pursued by another company to run a store for them, and enter back into the restaurant industry. During these 3 years, I learned the Restaurant Supplier side of the business. While I enjoyed the time I spent in this opportunity, I yearned to go back to the Grocery industry, and spend more time with my first love, cooking, and writing about my adventures….in the kitchen!