Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen

Dinner was from the freezer and pantry tonight.  We have had four days of constant rain that have made me depressed. Pictures tonight are horrible without natural light. Maybe when the sun comes out again I will feel better, but I certainly haven’t been in the mood to cook.  

The carnitas were in a freezer bag from a previous meal.  The meal was wonderful in spite of coming from the freezer and pantry.  You can find the recipe for the pork carnitas here.  The final run under the broiler makes the carnitas crispy. The recipe for the rice is here. It is basmati rice flavored with cumin, turmeric, and cinnamon.  I opened a can of black beans and flavored them with oil, vinegar and orange zest.

The sun has come out today and I have hopes that my enthusiasm will return.  Enjoy your Memorial Day Weekend.

Brown rice has never been a favorite in our house.  But its nutritional value is so much better than white rice.  I was going through my stash of ancient Gourmet Magazines the other day and found this recipe for Herbed Brown Rice Stuffing to accompany a roasted chicken.  We had just gotten home from our 6 weeks in Florida and cooking was not high on my “to do” list. I put the rice on to cook (It takes 40 minutes), headed for the grocery store for a rotisserie chicken and finished the additions to the rice when I got home.

The boring brown rice was transformed with the addition of roasted red peppers, chopped vegetables, bacon, tomato paste, parsley and chicken broth.  Plus, we had enough to go with our pork chops for the next night.

I lost a friend last month.  So many memories.  We went on a girls’ trip to New York City a few years ago and posed for this picture in the “Friends” fountain in Central Park.  Karen (center), you will live on in our hearts always.

HERBED BROWN-RICE STUFFING ( Gourmet Magazine May 1992 )

3 slices bacon, chopped
1 small onion, chopped fine
1 rib of celery, chopped fine
1 small green pepper, chopped fine
1 garlic clove, minced
7 ounce jar roasted red peppers, rinsed, drained and puréed in a food processor
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 cup chicken broth
1 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
1/2 cup finely chopped scallion greens
4 cups cooked brown rice

In a heavy saucepan cook the bacon over moderate heat, stirring, until it is crisp and transfer it with a slotted spoon to paper towels to drain.  In the fat remaining in the pan cook the onion, the celery, the bell pepper, and the garlic over moderately low heat, stirring, until the vegetables are softened, add the red pepper purée, the tomato paste, and the broth, and simmer the mixture, stirring occasionally, for 10 minutes, or until it is thickened.  In a bowl stir together the vegetable mixture, the bacon, the parsley, the scallion, the rice, and salt and pepper to taste, transfer the stuffing to a baking dish, and heat it in a 325 degree oven for 15 minutes, or until it is hot.  Serves 4 to 6.

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The place to be at Christmastime if you love Gingerbread houses is the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, NC.  It began with a few gingerbread houses built by members of the community in 1992.  No one had any idea that two decades later the Grove Park Inn National Gingerbread House Competition would be one of the nation’s most celebrated and competitive holiday events.  The event has attracted the highest quality of competition and the best judges in the United States.

The Grove Park Inn is the perfect venue for displaying the Gingerbread houses.  With fires burning in its many fireplaces and immense Christmas trees everywhere, the setting is something right out of a Victorian masterpiece.  Christmas magic is in the air.

The winner, from Innisfil, Ontario Canada, created her “Dream House”.  The gingerbread castle features Gothic spires and arches – an inspired sugar-filled creation.  The details were amazing.

Another view of the detailed work.

3rd Place went to a local Asheville resident whose gingerbread sculpture “The Bakers”, featured two gingerbread cookies baking gingerbread.

Of the top ten winners, this was one of my favorites because of its unique colors and whimsical theme.

I also loved the detail on this entry.  There were so many beautiful gingerbread houses.  I have not made a gingerbread house before, but this competition has inspired me.  What I have made is a delicious gingerbread cake.

I have blogged about this before, but it is perfect for Christmas and full of freshly ground spices and fresh ginger.  The recipe comes from Ruth Reichl and was featured in her novel Delicious!  I think that you will agree that this is just what you need for dessert during the holidays.  I wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.  May the holidays bring you joy and peace.

BILLIE’S GINGERBREAD ( From Delicious! by Ruth Reichl )

CAKE:
Whole black peppercorns
Whole cloves
Whole cardamom
1 cinnamon stick (I used 2)
2 cups flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
1 cup sour cream
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup sugar
2 large pieces fresh ginger root (1/4 cup, tightly packed, when finely grated)
Zest from 2 to 3 oranges (1 1/2 teaspoons finely grated)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Butter and flour a 6 cup Bundt pan.

Grind your peppercorns, cloves, and cardamom (individually) and measure out 1/4 teaspoon of each (You can use pre-ground spices, but the cake won’t taste as good.)  Grind your cinnamon stick and measure out 1 teaspoon (Again, you can use ground cinnamon if you must.)

Whisk the flour with the baking powder, baking soda, spices, and salt in a small bowl.

In another small bowl, whisk the eggs and egg yolk into the sour cream.  Set aside.

Cream the butter and sugar in a stand mixer until the mixture is light, fluffy, and almost white.  This should take about 3 minutes.

Grate the ginger root-this is a lot of ginger-and the orange zest.  Add them to the butter/sugar mixture.

Beat the flour mixture and the egg mixture, alternating between the two, into the butter until each addition is incorporated.  The batter should be as luxurious as mousse.

Spoon batter into the prepared pan and bake for about 40 minutes, until cake is golden and a wooden skewer comes out clean.

Remove to a rack and cool in the pan for 10 minutes.

SOAK:
1/2 cup bourbon
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar

While the cake cools in its pan, simmer the bourbon and the sugar in a small pot for about 4 minutes.  It should reduce to about 1/3 cup.

While the cake is still in the pan, brush half the bourbon mixture onto its exposed surface (the bottom of the cake) with a pastry brush.  Let the syrup soak in for a few minutes, then turn the cake out onto a rack (I used a serving plate).

Gently brush the remaining mixture all over the cake.

GLAZE
3/4 cup powdered sugar, sifted or put through a strainer
5 teaspoons orange juice

Once the cake is cooled, mix the sugar with the orange juice and either drizzle the glaze randomly over the cake or put it in to a squeeze bottle and do a controlled drizzle.

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It is the beginning of the holiday season and we are thankful to be able to share this time with family and friends.  We are especially thankful for our home after the scare of forest fires.  I set a holiday table that combines both Thanksgiving and Christmas.  It has a woodland theme in celebration of our beautiful North Carolina mountains.

We will be having an unusual Thanksgiving dinner with family this year.  Everyone loves Jeff’s Ribs so there will be no turkey on our table.  I was asked to bring the bread component to the meal.  Biscuits go well with ribs so I did a riff on the basic biscuit.  I made these Cheddar, Bacon and Chive Biscuits that I found on Epicurious.  I made them small because there will be lots of dishes on the table and huge biscuits may be more than everyone can handle.

I wish all of you a bountiful Thanksgiving and hope the holiday season brings you joy and fellowship.

CHEDDAR, BACON AND CHIVE BISCUITS

Do you want to pep up that can of tuna?  Instead of a tunafish sandwich for lunch, try this riff on the popular pantry item.  All you need is a good quality olive-oil packed tuna, a can of spicy pickled jalapenos and carrots and some crispy fried corn tortillas.  It took me a while to find the pickled jalapenos on the international food aisle.  This is the brand that I used.

I loved combining the tuna with this pickled jalapeno mixture rather than the more caloric mayonnaise dressing.  Because I had the special 9 80 Panama sauces from my previous post and giveaway, I also added a tablespoon of the Wild Cilantro sauce.  This is optional if you do not have it.

When the tuna mixture is served on the crispy corn tortillas you will not miss having a boring sandwich.

As a disclaimer I have no connection with La Costena or 9 80 Panama sauces other than being given a set of sauces to try.  All opinions are my own.  Now on to the winner of the 4 pack of sauces.  The winner is Karen of Back Road Journal.  Please email me, Karen, with your address.  Congratulations.

TUNA TOSTADAS (Adapted from Food and Wine)

Canola oil, for frying
4 corn tortillas
Salt to taste
5 ounce can of tuna packed in olive oil, drained
1/4 cup chopped pickled jalapeno peppers and carrots from a can plus 1/4 cup of the brine
1 Tablespoon Wild Cilantro 9 80 Panama sauce (Optional)
Chopped cilantro leaves
Sliced radishes
Toasted sliced almonds

In a medium skillet, heat a small amount of oil.  Add 1 tortilla to the hot oil and fry over moderate heat, turning, until browned and crisp, about 3 minutes.  Transfer to paper towels to drain; season lightly with salt.  Repeat with the remaining tortillas.

In a bowl mix the tuna with the jalapenos and carrots and their brine plus the Wild Cilantro sauce if using.  Spoon the tuna onto the tostadas and top with cilantro, radishes and toasted almond slices.

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