Recipes

It Has Been a Long Hiatus But I am Finally Home

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It has been a long hiatus but I am finally home.  I had quite an adventure that I may share one day but for now, I would like to get back to writing my blog, Baja Beat.

My husband and I drove from San Diego to Los Cabos and it was breathtaking.  This is my second time driving through the Baja and we were coming from the opposite different direction – north to south this time.  We literally had no traffic – it was almost eerie that there were no  trucks or cars on the road – but it made for a very relaxing drive enabling us enjoy the natural beauty of the Baja even more.

I want to thank Ramon and Isaiah from the Jardines Restaurant in San Quintin for taking such good care of us.  The swordfish was outstanding and their kindness to us was even more impressive.  Hotel Jardines is a little oasis in the desert with palm trees and lovely gardens filled with plants natural to the Baja.  It was the perfect stop after crossing the border in Tecate and driving through the Guadalupe Valley where we stopped for lunch and wine tasting at the Guadalupe Hacienda restaurant.  The room at Jardines was clean and comfortable and everyone from the night manager to the chef went out of their way to accommodate us.

Hotel Jardines in San Quintin

Hotel Jardines in San Quintin

 

Hacienda Guadalupe View of Vineyards from Restaurant

Hacienda Guadalupe View of Vineyards from Restaurant

 

Quail Salad at Hacienda Guadalupe

Quail Salad at Hacienda Guadalupe

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HOLIDAY RECIPE

I am grateful to be home and look forward to sharing the holidays with my friends and family. I grew up in Iowa and corn has always played an important role in my cooking.  I have been preparing this silky corn custard set on a bed of rich shiitake mushroom sauce for almost 25 years and it still has that “wow” factor.  I generally do not prepare the shiitake mushroom sauce for Thanksgiving as the custard is lovely on its own and the sauce can be heavy with all of the other dishes being consumed.

CORN CUSTARD

Courtesy of Bix Restaurant San Francisco

The Custard

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, softened

2 eggs

1 cup heavy cream

½ tablespoon Dijon mustard

1  ½ cups corn kernels (2 ears)

¾ cup Monterey Jack cheese

¼ teaspoon salt

1/8 teaspoon pepper

1 green onion finely sliced

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  In a bowl combine the eggs, cream and mustard.  When smooth, fold in the remaining ingredients except the butter.  Pour into 6 buttered ramekins.  Place the ramekins in a shallow baking dish filled with 1 inch of water.  Cover with tin foil.  Bake for 30 minutes – serve immediately.

The Sauce 

6 tablespoons unsalted butter

½ teaspoon finely minced garlic

1 teaspoon chopped shallots

¼ cup chopped fresh fennel

¼ cup sliced shiitake mushrooms

¼ cup champagne vinegar

1 tablespoon white wine

¼ cup chicken stock

3 tablespoons minced fennel leaves

Salt and freshly ground pepper

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter in a skillet.  Saute’ the garlic and shallots until soft.  Do not brown.  Add the fennel and mushrooms and sauté for 2 minutes.  Deglaze the pan with vinegar and wine.

Add the chicken stock, reduce by half, and add the rest of the butter.  When sauce has thickened, add the fennel leaves and season to taste with salt and pepper.

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POEM

I made up this little poem a few months ago and it seems appropriate for Thanksgiving since we will be cooking, sharing recipes and creating new memories.

Cooking is Love

Love of ideas, history, family and friends

Love of the bounty of our planet

Love of quality and integrity

Love of artistry

Love of taking the first step

Love of sharing the last bite

 

Buen Provecho, Akiba

Chicken Marbella

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Chicken Marbella has become a classic ever since it was first created by the late Sheila Lukins in the Spring of 1976.  Sheila was cooking a dinner party for 8 people when she met Julee Rosso.  Julee’s boyfriend hired Sheila to cook dinner from “found ingredients” out of cupboards that Julee was all too familiar with. Julee pitched in as time was growing short and guests would be arriving any minute. They frantically searched for ingredients and immediately bonded over their shared loves of food and travel. They had both recently visited Marrakech and Andalusia and the boring chicken quarters became inspired by those wonderful cuisines. They began to transform them into treasures dotted with green Spanish olives, capers, prunes and oregano. Chicken Marbella was born that night and they named it after the magnificent Club Marbella, a beach resort they both loved on the shores of the Mediterranean sea. The dish won raves that night and has continued to do so ever since. Sheila and Julee went on to open the very chic, gourmet take out shop, Silver Palate, in New York City and wrote 3 cookbooks together.

As a present for my niece, Cara, I prepared the food for her wedding reception and Chicken Marbella’s combination of slightly sweet and tart made it the star attraction.

For my sister, Debra, who asked me to send her the recipe:

Original Recipe – From the Silver Palate Cookbook

Since Chicken Marbella is such a spectacular party dish, the quantities are to serve 8 to 12 but the recipe can be successfully divided to make a smaller amount.  I used just one chicken and divided by half the ingredients – that gives you more of the good stuff to spoon over it.

4 chickens, 2.5 lbs each, quartered

1 head of garlic

¼ cup dried oregano

Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

½ cup red wine vinegar

½ cup olive oil

1 cup pitted prunes

½ cup pitted olives

½ cup capers

6 bay leaves

1 cup brown sugar (I do not use the brown sugar – I think it makes it too sweet)

1 cup white wine

¼ cup chopped parsley

In a large bowl combine chicken quarters, garlic, oregano, pepper and coarse salt to taste, vinegar, olive oil, prunes, olives, capers and juice, and bay leaves. Cover and let marinate, refrigerated, overnight.

Instructions

  • Preheat oven to 350 degrees
  • Arrange chicken in a single layer in one or two large, shallow baking pans and spoon marinade over it evenly. Sprinkle chicken pieces with brown sugar (again, I don’t use the brown sugar) and pour white wine around them.
  • Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, basting frequently with pan juices. Chicken is done when thigh pieces, pricked with a fork at their thickest, yield clear yellow (rather than pink) juice.
  • With a slotted spoon transfer chicken, prunes, olives and capers to a serving platter. Moisten with a few spoonfuls of pan juices and sprinkle generously with parsley or cilantro. Pass remaining pan juices in a sauceboat.
  • To serve Chicken Marbella cold, cool to room temperature in cooking juices before transferring to a serving platter. If chicken has been covered and refrigerated, allow it to return to room temperature before serving. Spoon some of the reserved juices over chicken.

Updated Version of Chicken Marbella Recipe’

This updated version is made with boneless/skinless chicken thighs and much more of the good stuff so that everyone gets their fair share. It is baked covered so that the chicken doesn’t dry out and then flashed under the broiler to brown it just a bit. The leftovers, re-heated with their juices separately reduced, are wonderful over arugula as a lunch or dinner entrée salad. The key to this dish is the overnight marination which is essential to its moistness, especially when you’re using only chicken breasts. And, the chicken keeps and improves further if you marinate it longer..

Updated Version – Recipe’

Serves 10

5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken thighs, halved
20 cloves of garlic, peeled and finely pureed
¼ cup dried oregano
Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 cup red wine vinegar
1 cup olive oil, good quality
2 cups pitted prunes
1¾ cup pitted Spanish green olives
1 cup capers with a bit of juice
6 bay leaves
1½ cup light brown sugar (optional)
2 cups white wine
½ cup fresh Italian parsley, finely chopped

Instructions

  • In a large bowl combine chicken pieces, garlic, oregano, pepper , salt, vinegar, olive oil, prunes, olives, capers and juice and bay leaves. Cover and let marinate, refrigerated, overnight.
  • Pre-heat oven to 350°F.
  • Arrange chicken in a single layer in two large shallow baking pans (do not crowd or the chicken will steam), and distribute the marinade over it evenly. Sprinkle chicken pieces with brown sugar (optional) and pour white wine around them. Cover the pans tightly with foil.
  • Bake for 30-35 minutes, basting every ten minutes with the pan juices. Chicken is done when juices yielded are clear, not pink. Pre-heat the broiler well and baste the chicken again. Place the pans of chicken about 2″ under it for 3-4 minutes until the chicken becomes just slightly browned. Do not leave it long, as it will dry the chicken out. Pass the sauces on the side.

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News Flash: New Restaurant in Cabo San Lucas:  El Peregrino

El Peregrino is a charming new restaurant just off the beaten path in downtown Cabo.  The menu is international with traditional Mexican dishes, Cuban sandwiches, fish, chicken, octopus, sashimi, pork sliders, tuna tartare, rib eye, New York strip and BBQ ribs.  It has a nice selection of wines that are reasonably priced and a full bar.  Our group consisted of 12 people and for a new restaurant, El Peregrino was running smoothly and everyone agreed the food was good and the service was “spot on” AND IT IS AIR CONDITIONED!!!!

Location:  Esq. Zaragoza y 20 de Noviembre

Hours:  Mon: 1:00 pm to 11:00 pm     Wed – Sun:  1:00 pm to 11:00 pm     Closed Tuesdays

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More to come about El Peregrino in my October blog.

GOING AWAY DINNER PARTY

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My husband, Fay, and I had the occasion to host our dear friends this week for a small going away party and of course I wanted to cook something special for them. Fay had organized “big boy” steaks for the guys but I wanted to prepare something with seafood for the girls. I had been toying with a few pasta recipes that I have prepared over the years.  One is with salmon, lemon, white wine, butter, capers and parsley.  The other is shrimp, olive oil, lemon juice and arugula.  I knew I wanted this pasta dish to be fresh and as light as possible because we are having some seriously hot weather.

I had beautiful feathery dill and fresh parsley from the farmers market but I also had arugula and micro-greens.  I kept going back and forth and even woke up dreaming about what to cook but the fresh dill won me over in the end.

MENU

Gazpacho Andalusia

Steaks on the grill

Habanero salsa

Steamed asparagus on a bed of butter lettuce with a dusting of  finely grated hardboiled egg.

Dressing of rice wine vinegar, Dijon mustard and olive oil.

Lemon shrimp fettuccini with dill

Lemon Pots de Crème

 

LINGUINI WITH SHRIMP, LEMON AND DILL

Linguine with Lemon, Shrimp and Dill

About this recipe: This dish can easily serve 4 people.  It works well as a vegetarian dish by substituting asparagus for the shrimp.

Ingredients

  • 1 pound shrimp (cleaned)
  • 3/4 pound linguine
  • 4 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
  • 3tablespoons butter
  • 3 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • Handful of fresh dill chopped
  • Handful of fresh parsley chopped
  • Zest of one Lemon
  • Juice of 2 lemons (1/4 cup)
  • One lemon thinly sliced and then halved
  • Small handful of Capers
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • Feta or goat cheese (optional) 

In a large heavy bottomed pan, melt the butter and olive oil over medium low heat

  • Add the garlic and gently sauté’ for 1 minute
  • Add the white wine and simmer until most of the wine evaporates
  • Add the shrimp and sauté’ until they just begin to turn pink stirring often
  • Remove from the heat
  • Add the dill, parsley, capers, lemon zest, lemon juice and lemon slices. Toss to combine.

Cook the linguini in a large pan of boiling salted water until tender. Drain, return to the pan, and add the sauce and shrimp.  Gently heat everything together while also turning all the ingredients over and into each other so as to cohere both pasta and shrimp with the other ingredients. Once you are sure that all is good and hot, serve without delay with fresh scallions sprinkled over the top.

LEMON POTS DE CRÈME

Lemon Pots de Creme

 

About this Recipe:  I started making this Lemon Pots de Crème recipe in the 90’s.  I first discovered it when I was given Annie Somerville’s cookbook, “Field of Greens” as a gift.  It is super easy to prepare and very satisfying.  I love it with a fresh berry buried at the bottom of the ramekin or with fresh fruit to top.

Ingredients

  • 2 whole eggs
  • 8 egg yolks
  • 1 1/4 cups white sugar
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest
  • 1 cup fresh lemon juice
  • 2 1/2 cups heavy cream

Procedures

Preheat oven to 325 F degrees

  • In a mixing bowl, vigorously whisk the eggs, yolks and sugar
  • Whisk in the lemon juice
  • Whisk in the cream
  • Pour the mixture through a fine mesh strainer
  • Add the lemon zest to the strained mixture
  • Pour into 8 6 oz custard cups or ramekins
  • Place them in a  baking pan and add enough hot water to come halfway up the sides
  • Cover the pan loosely with foil and bake until the custard is just set (40 to 45 minutes).  The custard should still be soft in the center when lightly shaken.  It will continue to set as it cools.
  • Remove from the baking pan and cool and then refrigerate.

Note:  If you would like any of the other recipes listed in my menu, please leave a comment and I will post it.

We are going to miss you Alina and Anatoliy but we are confident that this will be a great adventure.

Buen Provecho