Lake Lure Cottage Kitchen

While searching for a good cranberry dish to serve for Thanksgiving dinner, I found Anna Pump’s The Loaves and Fishes Party Cookbook in the library. I have found that I like most everything that she prepares and have blogged about her recipes in the past. This sweet and tart chutney appealed to me on many levels. It is tart enough to give a tang to bland turkey and just barely sweet. We had it last night with pork roast and it was just right. My husband said it was a keeper. The beauty of the dish is that it will keep up to three months in the refrigerator. I don’t think it will last that long, but it is good to know that I have a great side dish for Thanksgiving.

CRANBERRY-LIME CHUTNEY

1 lime, very thinly sliced
1/4 cup finely chopped onions
1/2 tsp minced garlic
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup light brown sugar
2/3 cup apple cider vinegar
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1/8 tsp ground allspice
1/4 tsp cayenne
1 tsp salt
3/4 cup peeled and coarsely chopped tart apple
1/2 cup dark raisins ( I used dried cranberries)
4 cups fresh cranberries
1/2 cup chopped pecans ( I added this ingredient )

In a saucepan, bring to a boil the lime slices, onion, garlic, sugar, brown sugar, apple cider vinegar, spices, and salt. Cover, and simmer 20 minutes. Add the apples and raisins. Return to a boil and simmer another 10 minutes. Add the cranberries and cook, covered, for 10 minutes more. Add the pecans. Cool mixture.

To store the chutney, cover and refrigerate. Bring to room temperature before serving.

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If you want to try a different burger for the Labor Day weekend, this just may be one you will like. My husband has sworn off a lot of beef dishes and especially hamburgers for health reasons. Unfortunately one of my favorite foods in the world is a perfect hamburger on a toasted bun with just mustard and onions. I miss my hamburgers and when he is away I light up the grill and cook three burgers from a pound of ground beef and eat them for three consecutive nights to get my fix. Because of this, I am always looking for recipes that we both can enjoy when he is home.

Translated from German, frickadellen means “large meatballs, lightly flattened”. The recipe comes from Anna Pump of the Loaves and Fishes Market in the Hamptons and is featured in her latest cookbook Summer on a Plate. The burger is made from boneless chicken thighs and is seasoned with lemon juice Spanish paprika , cumin and cayenne pepper. After it is grilled it is topped with sauteed onions, capers, more lemon juice and minced parsley. You can serve it on a toasted bun the way I like it or as a dinner entree with a side of rice or couscous.

The actual grinding of the boneless chicken thighs takes a little time, but it can be done ahead of time. The cubed meat is placed in a food processor with a metal blade and pulsed until it is chopped. When mixed with the additions and formed into patties, it can rest in the refrigerator until you are ready to grill.

The topping is quick to assemble while the burgers are resting or on the grill. Just saute onions until soft, add drained capers and lemon juice and then garnish with parsley after adding to the finished patties.

Our family will be here for the Labor Day weekend. We have been working all summer to finish the cottage in anticipation of this special occasion, so I may not be posting for a while. Have a wonderful end of summer celebration and I will be back soon with new recipes and pictures of the “almost complete” cottage.

CHICKEN FRICKADELLEN WITH CAPER AND LEMON TOPPING

2 pounds boneless chicken thighs, skinned, trimmed of fat, and cut into large chunks
1 cup minced onion
1 cup soft fresh bread crumbs
2 large eggs
2 Tbls fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp smoked Spanish paprika
1 tsp ground cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper

Topping:

3 Tbls olive oil
1 cup finely chopped onion
1/3 cup capers, drained
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup minced fresh curly parsley

Place the chicken in a food processor fitted with a metal blade. Pulse a few times until coarsely chopped. ( I did this in batches ) Transfer into a large bowl. Add the onion, bread crumbs, eggs, lemon juice, salt, paprika, cumin, and cayenne and, using your hands, knead until well combined. Shape into 8 patties.

To grill, brush the grill lightly with oil. Cook the patties over medium high heat for 12 minutes, turning them once.

To make the topping, in the olive oil saute the onion in a skillet over low heat for about 8 minutes until onions are light brown and glossy. Add the capers and cook 3 minutes, stirring a few times. Add the lemon juice, turn the heat to high and cook 30 seconds. Spoon the topping over the patties and sprinkle with parsley.

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The 4th of July celebrations on the lake are always fun. There are festivals at Rumbling Bald Resort and two fireworks displays on either end of the lake. The Rumbling Bald fireworks are on the fourth and the city shoots their fireworks on the evening of the fifth. At dusk the lake is full of boats making their way to the east to view the first of the events. We take sweaters and blankets because the evening tends to get cool. There is something special about viewing the bright bursts of color from the boat.

The traditional 4th of July dinner has always been ribs on the grill, but this year I am trying something different. I have been experimenting with a variety of meat and vegetable combinations and finally hit on this version which I think is a winner. Chicken cubes are marinated in one baggie and pineapple and green and red peppers in another. They are arranged on the skewers and basted with the marinade from the fruit and pepper mixture. They cook quickly and look vibrant on a bed of orange rice.

The rice salad can be made ahead of time and compliments the teriyaki flavors so well. I love this salad. It comes from Anna Pump’s new book Summer on a Plate. It can be served at room temperature which is an added bonus if you are asked to bring a dish to a picnic.

I will be posting another recipe for the fourth of July soon. It is one that I have had in my arsenal for years. It is called Firecrackers.

TERIYAKI CHICKEN SKEWERS

Makes 3 servings (can easily be doubled)
3 boneless chicken breast halves cut into 2″ squares
1 green pepper, cut into 1″ squares
1 red pepper, cut into 1″ squares
1/2 fresh pineapple, cut into 1″ squares
2 Tbls sugar
4 Tbls Soy Sauce
4 Tbls Mirin (sweetened sake) If you can’t find this, eliminate the soy and use 8 Tbls teriyaki sauce
6 wooden skewers, soaked in water

Place chicken pieces (you should have 18 pieces) in one large baggie. Place pepper and pineapple pieces in another baggie. Mix sugar, soy and mirin (or teriyaki sauce) in small sauce pan and heat just until sugar dissolves. Cool. Pour half of marinade over chicken and the other half over the peppers and pineapple. Marinate for 1 to 2 hours.

Thread ingredients on six wooden skewers alternating. You should have three each of red pepper, pineapple, chicken and green pepper.

Prepare grill. It should be hot. Spray grill with oil and grill the skewers turning as needed and basting with the marinade from the veggies and pineapple, until chicken is cooked, approximately 10 minutes.

ORANGE RICE SALAD

2 Tbls olive oil
2 Tbls unalted butter
2 cups finely chopped onion (one large)
1 1/2 cups long-grain white rice ( I used Uncle Ben’s)
1 1/2 cups fresh orange juice (I used mixture of fresh and juice from the carton)
1 1/2 cups water
2 tsp kosher salt (I used less)
2 tsp ground pepper
1/4 cup toasted pine nuts
1 cup finely chopped celery
1/4 cup minced fresh chives or scallions
I added the zest of one orange

Dressing:
1/4 cup fresh orange juice
3 Tbls fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup olive oil
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp pepper

In a heavy pot over low heat melt the butter with the olive oil and saute the onions and rice for 5 minutes. Stir often, so it does not brown. Add the orange juice, water, salt and pepper. Cover and cook 15 to 17 minutes ( Mine took 20 ) or until rice is just tender. Spoon the rice into a large bowl. Fluff it with a fork to separate the grains. Add the pine nuts, celery and chives.

Place all the dressing ingredients in a jar with a tight fitting lid and shake well to blend. Pour dressing over the rice and toss gently but thoroughly. Let cool to room temperature before serving.

Printable recipe – Teriyaki Chicken Skewers
Printable recipe – Orange Rice Salad

David has gone on a two week fishing trip to Canada. He will be staying at a remote fishing camp and fishing for Walleye. Walleye are found in the Northern United States and Canada and are considered to be one of the best tasting fish. He took a mason jar of my homemade lemon viniagrette with him to sprinkle on the freshly caught fish.

I love any excuse to cook something special, so before he left I made this hazelnut-crusted chicken with raspberry sauce and baby greens. This is the kind of meal I like; a little bit decadent, a little bit healthy. The brilliantly pink hued (wouldn’t you call that hot pink?) raspberry sauce is made with fresh raspberries pureed in a blender with an infusion of safflower oil to emulsify. It was wonderful on the chicken and on the salad. The chicken was rich with a coating of mustard and mint flavored mayonnaise topped with panko crumbs and finely chopped pecans. I could not find hazelnuts. Somehow I feel it would have been even better with the hazelnuts.

The recipe came (via Bon Appetit) from Anna Pump’s new book Summer on a Plate. I love that title and looking at this colorful dish you can see that the title is appropriate. I am ordering the book from Amazon today. Anna’s previous book, Loaves and Fishes, is out of print and is currently selling for over $50.00! Get this one while it is reasonable. If the rest of the recipes are as good as this one, you can’t go wrong. Now I wonder what I am going to be eating for the next two weeks. Cooking for one is a challenge.

HAZELNUT-CRUSTED CHICKEN WITH RASPBERRY SAUCE

Raspberry Sauce:
3/4 cup lightly packed fresh raspberries (about 3 1/2 ounces)
3 Tbls white wine vinegar
1 Tbls sugar
1/2 cup safflower oil
3 to 6 tsps water (optional)

Chicken:
1 cup chopped hazelnuts (about 4 1/2 ounces)
3/4 cup panko crumbs
1 Tbls plus 1 tsp coarse kosher salt ( I did not use this much)
3 tsp coarsely ground black pepper, divided
1/3 cup honey mustard
1/3 cup finely chopped fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup mayonnaise
4 large skinless boneless chicken breasts, butterflied (I cut them all the way through to make 2 thin breasts out of 1)
4 Tbls unsalted butter
3 Tbls peanut oil
4 cups baby salad greens
1/2 cup fresh raspberries

Puree raspberries, white wine vingar, and sugar in blender until smooth. With blender running, gradually add safflower oil. Add water by teaspoonfuls as needed to thin to desired consistency. Season raspberry sauce to taste with salt and pepper.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Mix hazelnuts, panko, 1 tablespoon coarse salt, and 2 teaspoons pepper in shallow bowl. Mix honey mustard, mint leaves, mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, remaining 1 teaspoon coarse salt, and remaining 1 teaspoon pepper in bowl. Add chicken; coat.

Dip chicken pieces, 1 at a time, into crumb-nut mixture, coating both sides and pressing to adhere. Transfer coated chicken pieces to baking sheet.

Divide equal amounts of butter and peanut oil between 2 large nonstick skillets; heat over medium-high heat. Add 2 chicken pieces (in my case 4) to each skillet; reduce heat to medium and cook until chicken is light brown, about 4 minutes per side. Place chicken on rimmed baking sheet; transfer to oven. Roast chicken until cooked through, about 15 minutes.

Divide salad greens among 4 plates; top with chicken. Garnish with fresh raspberries and serve raspberry sauce alongside.

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