Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen

There is a hint of Autumn in the air.  We had a wonderful Labor Day weekend with our extended family here at the lake.  I didn’t manage to get my camera out even once to take pictures of all of the food.  David smoked a pork butt for pulled pork and made barbecued beans and blue cheese potato salad from recipes from blogging buddy Dave at My Year on the Grill.  It was all top rate.  David did take pictures and will be posting about his excellent meal soon. 

But in the meantime here is a recipe that is perfect for the cooler nights ahead.  It is a stew that uses end of summer bounty to good advantage.  It calls for plum tomatoes, but any tomatoes from the garden will do.  Add to that sweet corn, green peppers and basil from the herb garden and you have a meal to savor or a wonderful way to freeze what is left from the vegetable garden or from the farmer’s market.  But to me, what makes this stew so special is the topping.  Thin and buttery corn wafers are floated on the top to add just the right finishing touch.  The next time I make this stew, I will double the recipe for the wafers.  They are addictive!

We will be traveling to Michigan to visit family for the next few days so I will not be blogging again until next week.  I will catch up with all of you then.  Enjoy this easy stew.

CHICKEN AND CORN STEW WITH CORN WAFERS ( adapted from Gourmet )

For the corn wafers:
1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened
2 teaspoons sugar
1 large egg white
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons yellow cornmeal
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan

For the Soup:
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 large boneless chicken breasts
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 small onion, chopped fine
1 green bell pepper, chopped fine
1 rib of celery, chopped fine
1 1/4 cups chicken broth (or more if needed)
4 fresh or canned plum tomatoes, chopped
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 cup fresh corn kernels including the pulp scraped from the cobs (2 ears of corn)
1/2 cup thinly sliced scallion greens
1/4 cup loosely packed fresh basil leaves, chopped

Make the corn wafers:  In a bowl with an electric mixer cream the butter, add the sugar, and beat the mixture until it is light and fluffy.  Add the egg white and the salt and beat the mixture at low speed for 5 seconds, or until it is just combined. (The mixture will be lumpy.)  Add the cornmeal, the flour, and the Parmesan and stir the mixture until it is just combined.  Transfer the mixture to a small bowl and chill it, covered, for at least 4 hours or overnight.  Arrange rounded teaspoons of the mixture 3 inches apart on buttered baking sheets and with a fork dipped in cold water flatten them carefully to form 2-inch rounds.  Bake the wafers in batches in the middle of a preheated 425 degree oven for 5 to 6 minutes, or until the edges are golden brown, with a spatula transfer the wafers immediately to racks, and let them cool.

In a 9-inch cast-iron skillet heat the oil over moderately high heat until it is hot but not smoking and in it brown the chicken, patted dry and seasoned with salt and pepper.  Remove chicken from pan.  To the fat remaining in the skillet add the butter and the flour and cook the roux over moderately low heat, stirring constantly, until it is the color of peanut butter.  Stir in the onion, the bell pepper, and the celery and cook the mixture, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are softened.  Add the broth, the tomatoes, the chili powder, and the chicken with any juices that have accumulated in the bowl, simmer the stew, covered, for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the chicken is cooked through, and stir in the corn.  Transfer the chicken to a work surface and let it cool until it can be handled.  Cut the chicken into bite-size pieces and stir it into the stew.  The stew may be prepared up to this point 1 day in advance and kept covered and chilled.  Stir in the scallion greens and the basil, season the stew with salt and pepper, and serve it in bowls, topped with the corn wafers.  Serves 4 to 6.

We have just returned from a quick vacation in Key West. But one of my blogging buddies, Dave of My Year on the Grill, along with his wife Jackie, are having an extended six month vacation in the Virgin Islands. Jackie works for The Government and she has pulled this unfortunate duty, so Dave being a dutiful husband has moved his grill from snowy Kansas and has set up shop in paradise.

Dave is also a weekly contributer to another blog, Our Krazy Kitchen and Min and the girls wanted to throw a beachwarming party for Dave and Jackie. We were all invited to bring something to the party and my contribution is this wonderful Conch Chowder. Surely Dave can get conchs in the Virgin Islands so I hope he will try this recipe. Enjoy your virtual party Dave!

The above picture is the carriage house. Our apartment is located in the lower rooms with the double patio doors.

This is the pool area right outside of our door. Even though the pool was heated, it was too cold to take a dip.

The grounds were lush with vegetation and I did manage to find a ray of sun to sit by the pool in the above lounge chairs.

The Hollinsed House is located in the historic section of Key West and just blocks from the famous Duval Street and Mallory Square where sunset is celebrated each evening.

Crowds of people are drawn to the square next to the sea by street perfomers like this unicyclist, juggling fellow.

As the crowd watched, a four-masted schooner passed by in the harbor.

Cruise ships anchor here and this one almost blocked the nightly spectacle of the sunset.

No trip to Key West would be complete without a visit to The Hemingway House. Ernest Hemingway settled in Key West in the late 1920’s. He was drawn to the area by the abundant fishing possibilties.

The house reflects a Spanish Colonial style. The walls were constructed from coral rocks found in the area. Ceiling to floor windows were used as doors to access the patio and upper porches.

The first room I headed to was the kitchen. It is small but bright. The appliances and counters were raised to accomodate Hemingway’s tall frame.

A picture of Hemingway in the dining room shows him as he appeared when he and his wife Pauline bought the house. He was a young thiry year old.

Hemingway loved cats and there are still forty or more cats roaming the grounds descended from the original six-toed cat. This cat has found a comfortable spot on the buffet in the dining room.

Here are two more cats resting comfortably in Hemingway’s king size bed. The headboard is an old Spanish gate.

This is a view of one of the upper porches with it’s exterior shutters.

Hemingway’s office was located in a carriage building behind the main house. He wrote “To Have and Have Not” and “For Whom the Bell Tolls” in this room.

Cats are not the only creatures to have freedom to wander in Key West. Chickens and roosters are on every street corner; talk about free range chickens!

One of Ernest Hemingway’s favorite hangouts was Sloppy Joe’s Bar. This is not the original location, but it has become the place that everyone associates with Hemingway.

We could not go without sampling the original sloppy joe. It was delicious. I will see if I can get the recipe. But in the meantime, here is a recipe for Conch Chowder for Dave and any of you who want to participate in his Beachwarming Party. Enjoy your stay in The Virgin Islands Dave!

CONCH CHOWDER

1/4 cup diced bacon

1 garlic clove

1/2 thyme sprig

2 celery stalks, sliced finely

1/4 cup tomato paste

salt and pepper to taste

2 finely chopped onions

1 teaspoon paprika

2 medium green pepper, diced

2 potatoes, diced

1 pound conch meat

1 28 ounce can of diced tomatoes

1 cup water to thin broth

In a Dutch oven, fry bacon until golden brown. Drain. Add peppers, celery, onions, thyme, and garlic. Cook until soft. Add tomatoes, tomato paste, water, conch, and potatoes. Bring to a boil. Add enough more water to cover mixture. Simmer for 25 minutes. Return bacon to pot. Make sure there is always sufficient water in pot. Serves 4 -6.

We had the conch chowder with a plate of conch fritters.

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This is not what I am supposed to be making this week for Barefoot Blogger Thursday. Sometimes circumstances get in the way when you belong to a foodie group. I mentioned last week that we had joined Weight Watchers. We have our first weigh-in this afternoon. I have lost two pounds. Not great but at least I am going in the right direction. What I was supposed to make was Ina Garten’s Shrimp Bisque. I have made it before and it is delicious; full of succulent shrimp and half-and-half and butter. Right now I can’t afford the calories. The recipe was chosen by Jennifer of Our Blessed Home. You have to go over to her blog on Thursday or after to get the details of Ina’s soup.

The soup I did make made me feel so healthy. It is full of good for you vegetables like spinach, red peppers, carrots and celery. It tasted wonderful. In this past week I have tried to slow down and actually savor what I am eating. I have appreciated every mouthful. Another benefit of this attempt at losing weight is the fact that I have been walking two miles a day. Our dog Daisy is benefiting from these long walks too. She trots along at my pace and comes home panting and drooling. So do I. I am becoming very familiar with our neighborhood and I hope to increase the distance I walk. Give this soup a try. It is perfect for a light lunch.

KIELBASA AND BLACK BEAN SOUP (From Weight Watchers in Twenty Minutes)

1 tsp canola oil
1/2 pound low-fat turkey kielbasa, thinly sliced
1/2 cup chopped onion
2 carrots, chopped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 red pepper, chopped
4 cups reduced-sodium chicken broth
1 (15 ounce) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry

Heat the oil in a large nonstick pot or nonstick Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add the kielbasa and cook, stirring, until lightly broned, about 3 minutes.

Add all the remaining ingredients except the spinach; bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the vegetables are tender, about 10 minutes. Add the spinach and cook until heated through, about 2 minutes longer.

3 Points. 6 Servings

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The Barefoot Blogger challenge for this week was chosen by Jill of My Next Life. I love a good chowder and Ina Garten knows how to make a chowder that sticks to the ribs. Fresh corn this time of year is starchier than the succulent small kerneled variety of early summer so it is perfect for chowder. The potatoes add heft and earthiness to the dish and the bacon and cheese just make it darn good. There is turmeric in the recipe and I was curious as to why she chose that spice until I added it to the pot. The turmeric enhances the golden hue of the dish. Some might think that the chowder is a bit bland but sometimes it is good to let the natural flavors take star billing.

The only change I made to the recipe was to leave out the olive oil, because I figured that the bacon fat and butter were more than adequate in the fat department. I also halved the recipe because it makes enough to feed a food blog convention.

CHEDDAR CORN CHOWDER

8 ounces bacon, chopped
1/4 cup good olive oil
6 cups chopped yellow onions (4 large)
4 Tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup all purpose flour
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
12 cups chicken stock
6 cups medium diced white boiling potatoes, unpeeled (2 pounds) I peeled mine
10 cups corn kernels, fresh (10 ears) or frozen (3 pounds)
2 cups half and half
1/2 pound sharp white Cheddar cheese, grated

In a large stockpot on medium high heat, cook the bacon and olive oil until the bacon is crisp, about 5 minutes. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and reserve. Reduce the heat to medium, add the onions and butter to the fat, and cook for 10 minutes, until the onions are translucent.

Stir in the flour, salt, pepper, and tumeric and cook for 3 minutes. Add the chicken stock and potatoes, bring to a boil, and simmer uncovered for 15 minutes, until the potatoes are tender. If using fresh corn, cut the kernels off the cobs and blanch the kernels for 3 minutes in boiling salted water. Drain. (If using frozen corn, you can skip this step.) Add the corn to the soup, then add the half-and-half and Cheddar. Cook for 5 more minutes, until the cheese is melted. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve hot with a garnish of bacon.

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