Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen

I am part of a cookbook club sponsored by Food52 on Facebook.  Each month we cook from a different cookbook and post our results on the Facebook page.  This month’s book is David Leibovitz’s My Paris Kitchen.  David is an American in Paris and his cooking style reflects his unique take on his adopted city. Here he combines the American’s love of barbecue with a French twist of making a caramel sauce.  But forget the usual cream.  David uses beer and bourbon.

The only thing difficult or scary about this recipe is when you add the beer to the caramelized sugar.  The mixture seizes up with solid chunks of sugar.  Do not worry about this as they dissolve in the oven as you cook the ribs.  A slow braise in the oven turns the ribs into succulent browned beauties.  I used country style ribs but I think David used baby back ribs.

Sorry about the blurry photo, but I really liked this booth at an antique mall that I visited recently; especially the Lake Rules sign.

But this is the sign that I bought recently.  My entrance porch is much too shady for real flowers so I found these faux lavender bunches that look almost real.  If only I could harness the scent.

Here is the recipe for the Caramel Pork Ribs.  They are worth the effort.

CARAMEL PORK RIBS (David Lebovitz My Paris Kitchen)

We all love garlic bread.  I have made many versions over the years. But I have to say that this recipe is the most amazing I have ever made.  Brought to the internet by Bon Appetit, I couldn’t resist making it.  It helps that my weight-conscious husband is on a motorcycle trip and I can eat anything that I want for dinner.  Last night it was bread and wine with a very small helping of cole slaw and pork.

Usually a confit refers to the method of cooking duck or goose in their own fats.  But in this case, whole cloves of garlic are cooked in butter until they are golden brown.  the mixture is then mashed together with Parmesan cheese, oregano, lemon zest and red pepper flakes.

The mixture is spread on a sliced baguette and broiled. Be very watchful of the bread because it can burn easily.  Not sure what I will do with the leftovers, but I will worry about that later.  I thoroughly enjoyed my indulgence.  My, oh my.  This was good.

GARLIC CONFIT TOAST

•  head garlic, cloves peeled
• ½ cup (1 stick) unsalted butter
• 1 cup grated Parmesan
• 2 teaspoons chopped oregano
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
• ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• Kosher salt
• 1 baguette

I hope everyone had a bountiful 4th of July celebration.  We had our usual large family get together at the lake with lots of food and wine and fireworks.  Before getting to this wonderful chicken recipe I would like to share some of the highlights of our fun.

Of course there was lots of food.  Here is a typical meal prepared by many hands including our son and daughter-in-law.

Our annual wine tasting is always a hit.  The wine is supplied by one of the other Davids in our family.  This year he chose Malbecs for the red wine blind tasting.  Known for their plump dark fruit and smoky flavor, Malbecs offer a good alternative to the more expensive Cabernet Sauvignons.  The 4 top place winners were 2013 Burgess Cellars (Napa Valley), 2013 Rewen Estate (Argentina), 2013 Eighty-Four (Napa Valley) and 2014 La Bete Noire (France).

On another rainy afternoon, our blind white wine tasting involved Albariño wines.  Most Albariño wines come from the Atlantic Coast of Spain.  Eric Asimov describes them as consistently pleasant, refreshing and resolutely dry with a citrus flavor.  Our top four were a 2016 Senorio de Sobral (Spain), 2015 Pazo Senorans (Spain), 2016 Eighty-Four (Napa Valley) and a 2015 Valminor (Spain).  The Valminor is a great value at $10.77 a bottle.

Of course the kids had their own juice and soda tasting.  There was no consistent winner but one total loser.  That would be guava juice.

But most of the fun was in the water. We love this special holiday.

But back to this wonderful creamy pesto chicken recipe.  My basil is thriving and Kristen brought me some from her garden.  I used the huge bunch she brought me to make pesto.  This was what we had for dinner last night after everyone had gone home.  We needed something light and this recipe from the blog Diethood was perfect.  You can find the recipe here.

A good side dish is always welcome on a dinner table.  Sometimes it as simple as sautéed green beans. But I am trying to incorporate unusual combinations in our diet.  Everyone loves corn, but how many people love swiss chard?  In an effort to include it, I made this corn gratin that has all of the friendly flavors of corn with the brightness of healthy chard and nutrient rich red peppers. For more on healthy eating, read this new post about Budpop supplements.

We decided to have this with our Chicken instead of potatoes.  A salad rounded out the meal.  Three days to go on the diet marathon.  David is looking forward to enjoying the 4th of July with family without restrictions.  View some of our previous family get togethers.

Needless to say, he will not be sticking to a diet.  We always have a blind wine tasting that involves many wine choices.  (By the way, the plastic bottles on the right are for the kids juice tasting).  So many funny pictures.

I don’t think any of the adults had this reaction to the fine wines that we were tasting.  Maybe this year we should give the kids  better choices.

But this was a very good choice for dinner tonight. Hope you give it a try.  Would look pretty on your holiday table.

Happy 4th of July.  Will see you next week.  Enjoy!

CHARD AND SWEET CORN GRATIN ( The New York Times )

• Extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 generous bunch (3/4 to 1 pound) Swiss or rainbow chard, stemmed and washed
• Salt
  1/2 red bell pepper, diced
• 2 large garlic cloves, minced
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
• Black pepper
• 3 eggs
• ½ cup milk
• 2 to 3 ounces Gruyère, grated (1/2 to 3/4 cup), to taste
• Kernels from 2 cooked ears sweet corn (1 1/2 to 2 cups)
• 1 ounce Parmesan, grated (1/4 cup)

1. Heat oven to 375 degrees. Oil a 2-quart baking dish or gratin.
2. Blanch chard: Bring a large pot of water to a boil while you stem and wash the chard leaves. When the water comes to a boil, salt generously and add chard leaves. (Set aside stems for another use, or discard.) Blanch 1 to 2 minutes, until tender but still bright. Transfer to a bowl of cold water, then drain thoroughly and squeeze out excess water; chop medium-fine.
3. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a medium skillet and add red pepper . Cook, stirring, until pepper is soft.  Add garlic and cook  30 seconds to a minute, then stir in rosemary, thyme and chopped blanched chard. Season with salt and pepper and stir over medium heat until chard is nicely coated with oil, about 1 minute. Remove from heat.
4. In a large bowl, beat together eggs, milk and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Stir in chard mixture and Gruyère. Stir in corn and mix well. Scrape into prepared baking dish. Sprinkle Parmesan over top and drizzle with remaining olive oil.
5. Bake 35 to 40 minutes, until nicely browned on the top and sides. Allow to sit for at least 10 minutes before serving.

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We have a weight loss contest going on in our household.  David and one of our New Year’s Eve gang friends, Barbara, have challenged each other to lose 15 pounds.  The first one to do so will get a monetary reward.  They both have been struggling since January 1st with a weigh-in each Monday.  They are both getting close.  It is down to just a few pounds each.  But they have decided to extend the contest to 20 pounds lost.  Needless to say, I have been challenged to put healthy low-fat food on the table.

Cooking Light came to the rescue with this Margarita-Braised Chicken Thighs recipe.  The spiced flour coating made the thighs crispy.  The tequila sauce, onions and tropical fruit added juiciness to the oven braised dish.  It was a real winner.  It was also quick and easy.  I served it with farro and broccolini.

We had this for dinner last night.  It may have done the trick, because David’s weigh-in this morning indicated 4 pounds to go to reach the 20 pound goal.  I hope no one gives Barbara this recipe.

MARGARITA-BRAISED CHICKEN THIGHS ( Cooking Light )

1/2 cup flour
1 Tablespoon paprika
2 teaspoons garlic powder
8 skinless, boneless chicken thighs
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
Cooking Spray
1 cup thinly sliced onion (about 1 medium)
5 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup tropical dried fruit (I used a combination of cranberries and pineapple)
1/2 cup fresh orange juice
1/4 cup tequila
1 lime, thinly sliced

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Combine first 3 ingredients in a small baking dish.  Sprinkle chicken with salt; dredge chicken in flour mixture.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Add chicken to pan; cook 4 minutes on each side or until lightly browned.  Transfer chicken to a baking dish coated with cooking spray.  Add onion to pan; cook 3 minutes.  Add garlic, and sauté 1 minute.

Combine fruit, juice, and tequila in a microwave-safe dish, and microwave at high 2 minutes.  Pour fruit mixture into pan; bring to a boil, scraping pan to loosen browned bits.  Cook 1 minute.  Pour onion mixture over chicken; top with lime slices.  Bake at 400 degrees F. for 20 minutes or until chicken is done.  Yield: 4 servings.  350 Calories.

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