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October 26, 2005
Feed the Board, Tuppence a Bag
News flash: Christopher is just starting a two-year stint as Secretary of our HOA Board. There are only 24 units in our building, and with very very few exceptions, everyone in our building is extremely cool and are great neighbors, so this isn't one of those horror stories. Instead, this is a dinner party story.
The three new board members planned to gather last night to go over some 'housekeeping' type items, and C'pher offered chez nous as the meeting spot. I had the night off, and so offered to make dinner for the four of us. Once I regained my composure realizing that Sarah (our building's new First Lady) wouldn't be able to join us (busy peeing in hot tubs, I guess), I realized this was an opportunity to do a whole dinner from start to finish. If this isn't your idea of fun, maybe you should just go finish watching the latest episode of Elimidate or something and leave us in peace.
We had some massive chicken breasts from the store, so I pulled a handful of issues of the fabulous Everyday Food to which everyone should be subscribing), found about 8 chicken recipes I thought I could manage, and C'pher narrowed them down to three. From those I chose Chicken with Poblano Cream Sauce, and then set about making a menu around it. Here's what we had:
• Sesame and Roquefort Biscuits (served with wine and olives)
• Butternut Squash, Feta and Arugala Salad
• Chicken with Poblano Cream Sauce
• Perfect White Rice with Cilantro
• Sautéed Spinach
• Darn Good Chocolate Cake with Sweetened Whipped Cream
I knew I wanted to attempt Leigh's biscuits, so that was a given as a pre-meal snack. They were as easy as Leigh predicted, and Rebecca is now enjoying her winnings (and sharing them with everyone here at work).
Since the sauce for the chicken was supposed to be spicy, I figured the white rice they showed in the magazine was probably a wise side. The picture showed some kind of green herb mixed in with the rice. I initially assumed it was parsley, but figured it must be cilantro, since it was a Mexican-esque recipe. I knew I'd have to reserve some rice sans cilantro since C'pher hates it, but what the hey... he's worth it.
The rice and cilantro was a delicious combo, and strikes me as a great way to stop yourself from adding 'bad-for-you' things like butter or soy sauce to flavor up an otherwise bland dish. The chicken, simply cooked in a skillet, was just fine, but the sauce was a liiiiitle bit of a disappointment. It tasted quite good, but it was not nearly as spicy as I had hoped, even after I added some extra chili powder. It was fine though; I was just hoping for more heat.
When I got the pepper at Safeway, things weren't clearly labeled, and since I don't really know poblano peppers on sight, I was afraid I had gotten the wrong kind. Here is what the pepper I got looked like:
I am pretty sure it was a poblano (also known as an ancho chile when it is dried), and was a little let down when I read on-line that it's not known much for it hotness factor. Maybe I should have sought out a darker one, but what do I know? I grew up in West Virginia where garlic powder is more prevalent than actual garlic.
This being October, butternut squash is in season like mad, and I love the taste of arugala, so the salad seemed a great starter. Spinach thrown in a skillet with olive oil and garlic is a favorite and easy side of mine, and I thought it would stand up well to the strong taste of the chile and cilantro. It did!
I've made Darn Good Chocolate Cake so many times now I thought I couldn't do anything new with it, but I actually used full-sized chocolate chips instead of the mini ones I was accustomed to (remember not to tap the pan too hard or they really will sink to the bottom), and I took the cake out a bit sooner than usual.
These two variations made a much moister cake with big studs of melted chocolate. I whipped the remaining heavy cream I had with a bit of vanilla-scented sugar and it made a fantastic topping. I sometimes think that if I gave up every other responsibility in my relationship with Christopher and just made him chocolate cake (no icing) once a week, he'd still be happy to have me.
Despite all my noise and butting in on their conversation from the kitchen, our new Board seemed to actually get some work done. I think our building is in great hands; they're all members of the Clean Plate Club!
BUTTERNUT SQUASH, FETA AND ARUGALA SALAD
1 medium-sized butternut squash, seeds removed, peeled, and cut into ¾ inch cubes
2 Teaspoons olive oil
coarse salt and fresh ground pepper
¼ cup crumbled feta cheese
1 small bunch (5 oz.) torn arugala
Pre-heat oven to 425º. In a roasting pan or shallow dish, combine squash with olive oil; season with salt and pepper to taste. Roast until fork-tender, 35-45 minutes.
Transfer squash to a bowl; gently toss with feta and arugala. Top with a bit more olive oil if desired.
CHICKEN WITH POBLANO CREAM SAUCE
1 poblano chile
2 Tablespoons canola or olive oil (I used olive)
½ of a small onion, chopped
1 clove of garlic, minced
1/3 cup heavy cream
coarse salt and fresh ground pepper
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Roast poblano chile over a gas burner or under the broiler until charred all over. Wrap in paper towel (or in a bowl covered with plastic wrap; steam 5 minutes. Rub off skin; remove seeds and ribs. Chop coarsely.
Heat 1 Tablespoon oil in a small saucepan over medium heat; add chopped onion and garlic. Cook until soft, 5-7 minutes. Add chile and heavy cream and turn off heat. Stir to combine.
Pour in blender and puree. Add water if too thick. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Return sauce to pan and keep warm.
Season chicken breasts with salt and pepper. Heat remaining 1 Tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Cook chicken until golden and juices run clear, 4-5 minutes per side. Slice and serve with sauce.
PERFECT WHITE RICE (WITH CILANTRO)
1¾ cups water
1 teaspoon coarse salt
1 cup unconverted (not 'instant') white rice
1/3 cup cilantro, coarsely chopped (optional)
Bring water and salt to a rapid boil in a 2-quart saucepan. Stir in rice, return mixture to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer.
Cover, and cook without lifting lid to prevent steam from escaping until rice is done, 15 - 20 minutes (check toward end of cooking time). The rice should be studded with steam holes when done.
Let stand, covered, 5 - 10 minutes, then fluff rice with a fork. Stir in chopped cilantro and serve. (Pesto sauce, black beans and sliced scallions, butter and grated Parmesan cheese, and rice vinegar and toasted sesame seeds are also good mix-ins.)
SAUTÉED SPINACH
I sometimes mince two cloves garlic and after warming it in the oil for a few moments, let it cook along with the spinach. Sometimes the garlic bits can get a bit browned, but I like the taste.
2 lbs. spinach
3 Tablespoons olive oil
1 large clove garlic, peeled and crushed
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
the juice of ½ lemon
Remove the spinach stems. Fill a large basin with water and wash the spinach. Repeat 2 or 3 times, then drain.
In a large skillet with a lid, heat half the oil over medium heat, add the garlic and stir until it begins to turn golden, about 3 minutes. Remove the garlic and discard.
Add the spinach in batches, flipping and stirring with tongs to wilt, before adding more. When all the spinach has been added, raise the heat to high, season with salt and pepper, and cook, covered, for 3 minutes.
Drain the spinach in a colander. Return spinach to the skillet to heat through. Sprinkle lemon juice over the spinach and serve.
Posted by kyle at October 26, 2005 2:50 PM
Comments
O.K. I promise not to be a constant commentor, but I thought I'd share a chocolate cake idea. My friend makes the same recipe you list, but she adds some Kahlua to the batter. Delicious!
Posted by: Robin at October 26, 2005 5:20 PM
As a rule, I generally shy away from booze in cakes, though I'd likely make an exception for Kahlua. To get the same effect sans alcohol, I've added strong coffee, a shot of espresso, or dissolved a tablespoon of espresso powder in the sour cream. It just intensifies the chocolate taste.
And comment away, Robin! I'm sure Harold (my blog's host) will issue a cease and desist order if things get out of hand.
Posted by: Kyle at October 27, 2005 10:28 AM
If you belonged to our CSA, you would have gotten an organic butternut squash and some arugula yesterday. The jury is still out on the whole idea, I will keep you posted.
p.s. I still think that your biscuit contest was fixed. (insert Rebecca grr face here).
Posted by: Nicole at October 27, 2005 12:21 PM