Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen

Add the cooked stew to the casserole to which you have added a handful of white cheedar cheese and then sprinkle the top with another handful of white cheddar.  Place the second piece of pastry on the top and rustically seal and bunch the pastry together.  Give the pastry an egg wash and put it back in the oven to brown and puff.

Sara Foster has two markets in the Research Triangle area of North Carolina.  The area includes Duke University, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, and The Research Triangle Complex.  So much happens in this incubator of thought, science, software and medical research.  The people drawn to this part of North Carolina are highly educated, enviromentally aware and demanding about what they eat.  It was the perfect place for Sara Foster to open her food emporiums.  Sara worked for Martha Stewart in the early years of her career and long ago branched out into her own style.  She has written several cookbooks and is recognized for her approach to cooking which involves simple honest food prepared with local  and seasonal ingredients.  Her cookbooks inspire me.

Over the Easter holiday we traveled to the coastal area of North Carolina.  While skirting Chapel Hill I suggested to David that we stop at Foster’s Market for lunch.  OK this is something that you need to know about me.  I take any and every opportunity to experience an interesting meal.  Forget the fast food joints;  I want “an experience” of unique eats.  Why waste your time on mediocre meals?  So we got off of Interstate 40 and proceeded to Foster’s Market.  It is not far, but our GPS gets confused.  I hate my “Betty” sometimes.  I thing she is trying to land us in a dump or no man’s land.  Right before we arrived at  the restaurant on the left of Martin Luther King Blvd, Betty sent us to the right through a winding neighborhood and landed us back on the right street to turn back to the left for a few yards.  Evil Betty!  That’s why my next picture is crooked.  I was upset.

We had the soup and sandwich combination featuring pork and black bean soup with a ham and cheese panini.  I didn’t get a good picture of our food but this is what the market looks like on the inside.

In honor of the upcoming Cinco de Mayo holiday, I made Sara Foster’s Southwestern Shepherd’s Pie with Chicken and Chili Mashed Potatoes.  It is in her Foster’s Market Cookbook.   If you are short on time you can use a rotisserie chicken.  There is a little heat to it, but not much.  It is an interesting take on shepherd’s pie and we loved it.  It was both homey and satisfying.

SOUTHWESTERN SHEPHERD’S PIE WITH CHICKEN AND CHILI MASHED POTATOES

3 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 red onion, diced
2 ribs celery, diced
1 red bell pepper, cored, seeded, and diced
1 green bell pepper, cored, seeded, and diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 jalapeno, seeded and minced
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
8 cups shredded cooked, chicken
3/4 cup dry white wine
3 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme or 1/2 heaping teaspoon dried thyme
1 teaspoon red pepper flakes
Kernels from 2 ears fresh corn (1 cup fresh or frozen corn)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Mashed potatoes made from 6 large Russet potatoes
2 teaspoons chili powder
Fresh parsley and fresh thyme, to garnish, optional

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.

Heat the olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat.  Add the onion and cook, stirring frequently, until slightly brown, about 5 minutes.  Add the celery, red bell pepper, and green bell pepper and cook 3 minutes more, stirring occasionally.  Add the garlic and jalapeno and cook 3 minutes more, stirring occasionally.

Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until the flour starts to brown slightly, about 5 minutes.  Add the chicken and wine and stir until the wine begins to evaporate, about 1 minute.  Slowly add the chicken broth, and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture begins to thicken and coats the back of a spoon.  Reduce heat to low, bring the mixture to a low boil, and cook 5 to 10 minutes or until the mixture thickens and is creamy.

Remove from the heat and add the parsley, thyme, red pepper flakes, and corn.  Season with salt and pepper and transfer the mixture to a 9 by 13-inch baking dish.

To make the chili mashed potatoes,  Mix basic mashed potatoes with 1 teaspoon of the chili powder in a bowl until well combined.

Spoon the chili mashed potatoes on top of the chicken and bake 20 to 30 minutes or until the potato peaks are slightly brown and the chicken mixture is bubbling around the sides of the dish.  Remove from the oven, sprinkle with the remaining chili powder and the parsley and thyme, if desired.  Serve immediately.

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In season three of the Food Network’s The Next Food Network Star, Rory Schepisi won the Bon Appetit cover challenge for her tender and flavorful baby back ribs.  Even though she did not go on to win the contest, her ribs recipe is a winner.  Rory has a restaurant called BootHill in Vega, Texas and has appeared on TLC’s Homemade Simple. 

We have been making these pork ribs since the first time they appeared in Bon Appetit.  The challenge she had in making them was the fact that they usually took her 4 to 5 hours to cook to achieve the tenderness she desired.  The Food Network challenge gave her only 2 hours.  She met the challenge by braising the ribs in the oven with a little chicken broth before she finished them on the grill.  This works to our advantage because I love any recipe that can be partially prepared ahead of time.

The homemade barbecue sauce is based on ketchup with a brown sugar and molasses component.  It also can be prepared ahead of time.

The original recipe calls for baby back pork ribs but we always substitute country style ribs because we like the meatiness.  Either cut would be great.

The grilled cantaloupe is a unique accompaniment to the ribs.  It is grilled briefly and brushed with honey and sprinkled with cayenne.

Now that warm weather has found us at Lake Lure, it is good to fire up the grill again.

RORY’S RIBS WITH GRILLED CANTALOUPE

Barbecue Sauce and Ribs:
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 garlic cloves, peeled
2 1/4 cups ketchup
1 3/4 cups low-salt chicken broth, divided
7 tablespoons soy sauce, divided
6 tablespoons (packed) dark brown sugar
4 1/2 tablespoons molasses
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

4 large racks baby back pork ribs (each about 2 1/2 pounds)
8 tablespoons chili powder, divided

Heat oil in medium saucepan over medium heat.  Press garlic through garlic press into pan.  Stir 30 seconds.  Mix in ketchup, 3/4 cup broth, 3 tablespoons soy sauce, brown sugar, molasses, and vinegar.  Bring sauce to simmer.  Reduce heat to medium-low; simmer until reduced to 3 cups, stirring occasionally, about 15 minutes.  Transfer to bowl.  Can be made 1 week ahead.  Cover and chill.

Sprinkle each side of each rib rack with salt, pepper, and 1 tablespoon  chili powder.  Arrange 2 rack on each of 2 large roasting pans.  Position 1 oven rack in top third of oven and 1 rack in bottom third; preheat to 450 degrees F.  Pour 1/2 cup of remaining broth and 2 tablespoon of re3maining soy sauce around ribs in each pan;  cover each with foil.  Bake ribs 30 minutes; reverse sheets.  Bake ribs until tender, about 45 minutes longer.  Uncover; cool slightly.  Cut each rib rack between bones into individual servings.  Brush ribs generously with sauce.  Can be made 2 hours ahead.  Let stand at room temperature.

Prepare barbecue (medium-high heat).  Grill ribs until heated through and slightly charred, turning occasionally and brushing with more sauce, about 10 minutes.  Pile ribs on platter.

GRILLED CANTALOUPE

1 whole cantaloupe, rinsed, cut in half, seeded, each half cut into 1/2-inch slices
Honey
Cayenne pepper

Grill cantaloupe slices on 1 side until showing grill marks, about 3 minutes.  Mound, grilled side up, on platter.  Brush with honey, sprinkle with cayenne.

Here is a picture of the ribs dinner from The Food Network.

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We have been away from home for the long holiday weekend.  While at my Daughter-in-Law’s sister’s home, Kim made a wonderful brunch for the crowd.  She and I poached the eggs for her Mexican take on eggs benedict.  It is a challenge to poach 12 eggs, but by the time we had gotten to the twelveth egg we were pros.  We poached 6 eggs at a time in a large skillet.  The 1/4 cup vinegar called for is enough for any number of eggs.  Vinegar in the water helps the egg whites stay together.  To make it easier to drop an egg into the simmering water, break it into a small shallow bowl first and then slip it into the water.

The recipe for the Mexican Benedict came from The Blue Plate Diner in Salt Lake City, Utah.  Dried black beans are cooked and seasoned before the dish is put together.  If you are in a hurry canned black beans could be substituted and seasoned according to the recipe.

Everyone enjoyed this and there was no pesky hollandaise sauce to deal with.  The topping of picante sauce and cheese was just right.  Kim topped the finished dish with sour cream, cilantro and guacamole.  The mojitos hit the spot also.

MEXICAN BENEDICT

For 1 serving:
1/4 cup white vinegar
2 eggs
1 English muffin
1/4 cup Blue Plate Black Beans, heated
1/4 cup picante sauce, heated (such as Pace)
3 tablespoons shredded Cheddar cheese
3 tablespoons shredded provolone cheese
1 heaping tablespoon sour cream
2 tablespoons sliced black olives (optional)
2 sprigs cilantro
1 tablespoon guacamole

1. Fill a deep skillet with water ( 3 inches deep ), add vinegar and bring to simmer over medium heat.  Heat broiler.
2. Crack eggs into simmering water and cook until desired doneness, 3 to 5 minutes.
3. Split and toast English muffin.  Place on an ovenproof plate.
4. Remove poached eggs from water with slotted spoon and place one egg on each half of muffin.
5.  Spoon black bean mixture over eggs.  Spoon picante sauce over black beans.  Sprinkle top with shredded cheeses and place under broiler until melted.
6 Remove from broiler and garnish with sour cream olives, cilantro and guacamole.

BLUE PLATE BLACK BEANS

1 cup dry black beans
3 1/2 cups water
2 tablespoons canned diced green chiles
1/4 cup diced white onions
1/4 cup picante sauce (such as Pace)
1 1/2 tablespoons oregano
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper

Place beans in a colander and rinse well.  Place in large saucepan, add water, and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer 1 hour, stirring occasionally.  Add remaining ingredients and simmer 20 minutes.
Makes 2 cups

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This is not the first time I have had this chicken, but it is the first time I have made it myself.  This used to be my husband’s speciality.  I received Julia Child’s The Way to Cook Cookbook for Christmas in 1989.  I consulted it often and made many great dishes from it.  By 1989 Julia Child had perfected her cooking style and meant this book to be a textbook on techniques and the last word on the way food should be prepared.

David latched onto this recipe, I think, because it requires you to spatchcock a chicken.  He took great delight in bandying the word about and flattening chickens by removing the backbone and throwing them on the grill.  What is it with you men?  We women prefer to butterfly our chickens; same process and easier on the ears.  Use scissors or a very sharp knife to cut out the backbone of the chicken.  Then turn skin side up and press very hard on the breast to break the breast bone.  Tuck the wing bones behind the chicken, make slits in the skin near the tips of the breast and insert each leg in the opening created.

CHICKEN IN BONDAGE.  It’s not pretty but it cooks faster this way.

I’m not sure what prompted me to return to this succulent chicken dish.  Maybe it was because I had a beautiful organic chicken that was calling for special treatment, calling to be slathered in mustard and feathered with breadcrumbs.  Whatever the reason, I’m glad I returned to this classic preparation.

The chicken is first broiled and basted.  Some of the juices are mixed with the Dijon mustard along with tarragon and shallots.

The chicken is then coated with the mustard mixture and breadcrumbs are pressed into it.  I used crumbs from a rosemary olive oil bread.  The chicken is returned to the oven, now set at 400 degrees F.  and baked until the crumbs are browned and the chicken is cooked through.

Savoring this bird was worth every effort of the preparation.

DEVILED CHICKEN WITH MUSTARD AND BREADCRUMB COATING

To butterfly a chicken:
First remove the backbone by cutting down close to it on each side with a heavy knife or sturdy shears.  Spread the chicken skin side up on your work surface and bang the breast with your fist to break the collarbones and some of the ribs; this flattens the chicken.Fold the wings akimbo by tucking the wing ends behind the shoulders.  Then maka a slit in the skin at either side of the breast tip.  Push the knee of the drumstick firmly up under the armpit to loosen the joint; then pull it down and insert the tip of the drumstick through the skin slit.  The leg will be held in place.

For 4 servings:
A 3 to 4 pound chicken, butterflied as described above
2 tbs melted butter mixed with 1 tsp olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste
A pinch of thyme, tarragon, or mixed herbs, optional

The mustard and herb coating:
Cooking juices from the chicken
3 Tbs Dijon mustard
2 Tbs finely minced shallots
1/4 tsp tarragon
2 drops of hot pepper sauce
1 cup crumbs from fresh homemade type white bread

Preheat the broiler.  Brush the chicken all over with some of the butter and oil.  Arrange it skin side down in the baking dish, and set it so the surface of the flesh is about 5 inches from the hot broiler element.  After 5 minutes, brush the flesh, which should just be starting to brown, with the butter and oil.  Baste again in 5 minutes – use the juices in the pan when the butter mixture is gone.  Broil another 5 minutes, then sprinkle lightly with salt, pepper, and optional herbs.  Turn the chicken skin side up.  Broil and baste for 10 minutes more.

Drain the fat and juices out of the broiling pan into a small bowl; skim off and discard all but 1 to 2 tablespoons of fat from the top of the juices.  Blend the prepared mustard in another bowl with the minced shallot, herbs, and hot pepper sauce.  Beat up the remaining juices; blend half of them into the mustard.  Spread the mustard over the top (skin side) of the chicken, then pat on a coating of crumbs.  Baste with the remaining juices.

Ahead of time note:  May be prepared somewhat ahead to this point; set aside at room temperature.

Final cooking and serving:  Roast in the upper third level of a 400 degree oven for 10 to 20 minutes or until crumbs are browned and the chicken is cooked through.

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