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Ultimate Recipe Showdown Recap

April 12, 2010

Thanks to everyone who watched me on Ultimate Recipe Showdown yesterday! I didn’t bring home the big prize, but I truly enjoyed every second of the competition and want to send out a huge thank you to everyone at Food Network and High Noon Entertainment for such an incredible experience! My goal heading into the competition was simply to have my recipes turn out the way they did at home, and I’m very proud that I managed to accomplish that under such stressful conditions. I also want to send out a HUGE congrats to Andria! I’m really looking forward to trying her rock star winning recipe! Also, here are the links for my caramelized plantain cupcakes and peanut butter cookie dough brownies if you are interested in making them.

Overall, I thought the judges were very fair and thoughtful with their candid feedback, and I’ve been keeping their comments in mind since the show filmed while developing new recipes. I was really blown out of the water was when Chef Micheal Psilakis tasted my brownies said “I would not stop eating this until I was sick.” Talk about a surreal moment! Actually, the whole experience was pretty surreal and I tried to take as many pictures as possible throughout the process, so I could share a behind the scenes look of the competition with all of you. I hope you enjoy my little recap!

Two weeks after I found out I was selected to be on the show, while I was in the middle of adapting my recipes so they could be completed under the competition time constraints and furiously testing every brand of chocolate Whole Foods carried to see which would be best in my brownies, a crew consisting of a producer, cameraman, and audio engineer from High Noon Entertainment visited me in Boston to shoot some footage. The 30 seconds you saw of my lab and kitchen took all day to film! Not only did I get to rock my lab goggles (hahaha), I actually had a great time showing them around the lab and chatting about the filming process.

My first big challenge actually began about two weeks before I headed to NYC, and it involved the plantains…. The trick is that they have to have a black-brown peel to be sweet and soft enough for the recipe. Unripe or fermenting plantains = recipe fail, and since it’s difficult to predict when they will be just ripe enough, my strategy was to buy plantains every other day for the 2 weeks before the competition in hopes that 3 of the 30, yes 30, that I brought with me to NYC would be ripe enough. Here they are on my hotel desk in case you think I was joking about stuffing a carry-on bag full of my precious ripening plantains with me. The security guards must have thought I was crazy!

After safely depositing my plantains at the hotel, my next order of business was visiting the Food Network offices and studios at Chelsea Market! We met our competitors and went over the details of the show. Then I got to visit the test kitchens and make sure all my ingredients and supplies were in order. Just being in the Food Network kitchens made my heart flutter.

I attempted to calm my nerves and headed to bed early since our call time was an 8 am the next day. The cameras started filming as soon as we arrived. We put our stuff in the green room, which was filled with tasty snacks, and then put on our Food Network aprons with our names – yay! We actually got two and I smile each time I put one on to cook dinner every night.

Then we entered the studio – the same studio where Iron Chef America is filmed, and the studio slowly started filling up with the film crew. There were about 60 crew members, and when I saw all the people, reality set in about what was about to happen. I was surprised about how nervous I got, but I couldn’t help it because it was such a big production! Before I knew it, Guy Fieri was filming the intro of the show and we were off and baking!

I’m not going to give a recap of what happened when I was baking since you already saw that part, but I did want to share that my favorite part of the show was when I was waiting for the ganache on my brownies to set. I actually took some time to just look around and take everything in and reflect on what an incredible experience I was having.

When it was all over, I managed to find Guy. I was a bit star struck interacting with him the whole time since Apolinaras and I are huge Triple D fans, but he was exactly how he is on the show in real life – super nice and funny, and he really did his best to put everyone at ease. He also gave me a big hug when it was all over and told me I did a good job – awww.

Overall, it was an amazing experience and one I will never forget. I highly encourage anyone thinking about submitting a recipe for next season to do so. You are all so creative and I would love to see a fellow blogger on the show!

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Derry Church Artisan Chocolates Giveaway

April 8, 2010

Thanks so much for all your support about URS! Since I haven’t been able to get into the kitchen this week, I thought it would be the perfect time to tell you about an absolutely delicious set of bon bons and truffles that Chef Eric of Derry Church Artisan Chocolates recently sent me. The flavors were all very unique and inspired by different parts of world, which I think is very clever.

My favorites were the Savannah (a spin on peach crisp with peach jam in a white chocolate ganache piped into a bittersweet chocolate cup and topped with a toasted oat/brown sugar and cinnamon crisp), Rome (strong cappuccino and milk chocolate ganache piped into a milk chocolate cup mold and topped with a creamy white chocolate mousse), and Cairo (Medjool date paste and aged balsamic vinegar reduction in a bittersweet chocolate ganache enrobed with bittersweet chocolate and accented with brown sugar and molasses) – just writing out the descriptions is making my mouth water! Each chocolate is like a little work of art and they are very reasonably priced considering they contain organic local ingredients and are handmade. The best part is that Chef Eric has graciously offered to send one lucky reader a 15 piece bon bon set!

There are two ways to enter:
1. Check out the different flavors offered by Derry Church Artisan Chocolates and leave a comment letting us know which one you’d most like to try.
2. Tweet about this giveaway, or post about it on your blog or Facebook. Don’t forget to come back and leave a second comment with the link for your second entry.

Entries must be in by Thursday, April 15 at 11:59pm EST. Good luck and thanks Derry Church Artisan Chocolates!

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Ultimate Recipe Showdown Announcement

April 4, 2010

Have you all been enjoying this season of Ultimate Recipe Showdown on the Food Network? I was so inspired when I saw Emily, Jenny, and Camilla, on the last season that I decided to enter a few recipes of my own last April. I sent off four recipes and promptly forgot about it, because I knew the odds were slim to none of getting picked. So, you can imagine my surprise when I got a call that I was in the running to become one of the four finalists on the cakes and desserts show! After several more rounds of cuts, Food Network made it official and I was off to NYC in September to film the show!

Remember, when I just happened to meet Emily (whose Comfort Foods show aired a few weeks ago!) at Chelsea Market, home of the Food Network? And when I said edible cookie dough was on my mind a lot lately? And when I said I was encouraged to come up with an original cake recipe? Yep, all related to the show! I’m so glad the cat is finally out of the bag because I can’t wait to share everything about this amazing experience with you! I still can’t believe I’m going to be on Food Network – the Food Network, which I watch all the time!

My episode airs Sunday, April 11 at 9pm EST/ 8pm CST! Will my caramelized plantain cupcakes or peanut butter cookie dough brownies bring home the $25K?!? You’ll just have to tune in to find out. I’m so excited to watch and will be posting a recap with a bunch of pictures and a behind the scenes account of the show after it airs, so stay tuned for that as well. You can also check out a video interview by The Boston Foodie about the show here – thanks Will!

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Indian Spiced Cauliflower, Potato, and Pea Soup

March 31, 2010

My mom is very cute. She recently ordered my brother a few pairs of new jeans from Banana and told me she also wanted to get me a present to keep things “even.” My brother is currently following his dream of becoming a music producer and is devoting all his extra time and money to building a sound studio in his apartment. So as you can imagine, buying non-ratty jeans isn’t high on his list of priorities. I have a feeling he didn’t request the jeans, but my mom probably saw what he was wearing and couldn’t resist pulling the trigger on some nicer duds!

Anyway, the concept sort of made me giggle since my brother and I are both adults and haven’t cared about keeping things “even” for a long time. I told her I didn’t need anything, but when she wouldn’t let the matter go, I finally emailed her my current cookbook wishlist. I’m a bit of a nerd when it comes to organizational matters and always have a current list of books I want to request from the library on my laptop, along with a list of the cooking/photography gadgets I want to buy next and restaurants that I want to visit among other things. You don’t even want to see the list I keep with recipe ideas! So I sent her the list and look what just came in the mail – yay, thanks Mom!

I curled up with a beer on the couch last Friday night and took my time browsing through them all. I’m most excited about the 660 Curries book (thanks for the recommendation Natashya!) since one of my foodie goals is to learn how to make saag paneer. I can’t find an Indian place that I really love by us, so it’s a necessity! All the recipes looked SO good but I didn’t have all the authentic ingredients needed for them, so to satisfy my Indian craving, I made this soup with what I had on hand. It was inspired by the recipe in the book for Restaurant-Style Cauliflower and Potatoes.

I wanted to keep things on the lighter side, so I roasted cauliflower and used it and a few potatoes to thicken the soup. I used a plethora of spices too and added in some peas at the end. It was very tasty and perfect to enjoy in this rainy weather we’ve been having in Boston lately. I’m already excited to head to the Indian market with my good friend Geeti next weekend. She’s going to show me around, and of course I already have a list ready to go of various spices to stock up on. I especially can’t wait to get my hands on some paneer!

Indian Spiced Cauliflower, Potato, and Pea Soup
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
2 tablespoons canola oil
1 head cauliflower, cut into florets (8 cups, 28 ounces)
1 yellow onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground turmeric
4 cups chicken stock
2 cups water
2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 cup milk
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
3 cups frozen peas
2 teaspoons salt

Directions:
Heat oven to 400˚F. Drizzle one tablespoon canola oil over cauliflower florets on a large greased cookie sheet and roast at 400˚F for 20 to 25 minutes or until tender, stirring once halfway through baking.

Meanwhile, heat remaining tablespoon canola oil over medium high heat in a large stockpot and sauté onion for 5 to 7 minutes or until tender; add garlic, coriander, cumin, ginger, garam masala, cayenne pepper, and turmeric and sauté 1 additional minute while stirring. Add chicken stock, water, potatoes, and tomato paste and simmer for 10 minutes or until potatoes are fork tender. Add cauliflower to the soup and puree with an immersion blender until smooth. Add milk, vinegar, peas, and salt to the pureed soup and stir until smooth. Makes 6 servings.

Nutrition: 284 calories, 6.6g fat, 10.7g fiber, 12.4g protein per serving
Cost: $1.75 per serving

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Mascarpone Stuffed Cornbread French Toast

March 26, 2010

My favorite dinner to make when I’m cooking dinner for one is breakfast. Apolinaras isn’t a huge fan, so I always jump at the chance to whip up a broccoli cheddar omelet, turkey bacon, and whole wheat toast with jam when he’s out of town or at one of his late night networking events. I normally lean towards savory breakfast options over sweet ones, but I recently thought it would be fun to combine the best of both worlds in a savory French toast.

My idea was to make a cornbread packed with the goodness of caramelized shallots, pancetta, and sun-dried tomatoes, similar to this one, and then stuff slices of it with mascarpone cheese before frying it up as French toast. Now while I had a feeling the flavors would complement each other well, this was one of those experiments that I wasn’t completely confident would work. My main concern was about the syrup – I certainly wouldn’t consider the dish a true French toast if I didn’t enjoy syrup on top! So I hesitantly poured on some pure maple syrup and tentatively took a bite – then I promptly woofed down the entire slice standing in the kitchen without even sitting down at the table….oops. The French toast exceeded my expectations and reminded me of something that would be served in one of my favorite brunch spots, the Bongo Room in Chicago (oh how I miss you!). I will definitely be making this again!

Mascarpone Stuffed Cornbread French Toast
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:

Cornbread:
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup chopped shallots
1/2 cup diced pancetta
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup yellow cornmeal
2 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
2 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk
1/2 cup chopped sun-dried tomatoes

French Toast:
1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1 tablespoon butter
1/3 cup pure maple syrup

Directions:
To make the cornbread, heat oven to 350˚F. Heat olive oil over medium heat in a large nonstick skillet. Sauté shallots for 15 to 17 minutes, stirring frequently, or until caramelized; remove shallots from pan. Add pancetta to the pan and cook over medium high heat for 6 to 8 minutes or until browned; remove from pan and drain on paper towels.

Meanwhile, combine flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl. Whisk together butter, eggs, and buttermilk in a large bowl. Stir the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients until most of the lumps are dissolved. Stir in the caramelized shallots, pancetta, and sun-dried tomatoes. Pour the batter into a greased 9-inch bread pan. Bake at 350˚F for 40 to 45 minutes or until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Cool for 5 minutes in the pan and then use a knife to cut around the edges. Turn pan over and remove the loaf of bread. Let cool completely, about 2 hours. Cut into 8 slices.

To make the French toast, spread 2 tablespoons mascarpone cheese on 4 slices of cornbread and place the other 4 slices on top to form 4 sandwiches. Whisk milk and egg together in a shallow dish and dip sandwiches in egg mixture. Heat butter over medium high heat in a large nonstick skillet. Place sandwiches in the pan and fry until golden brown on both sides, about 5 minutes. Drizzle maple syrup over each piece of stuffed French toast. Makes 8 servings.

Nutrition: 438 calories, 24.8g fat, 2.0g fat, 11.0g protein per serving
Cost: $1.03 per serving

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Curried Chickpea Sweet Potato Squares

March 22, 2010

Thanks so much for all your kind words about my first 5K! It was beautiful here in Boston this weekend so Apolinaras and I went on a long bike ride and it was so warm that I was able to just wear just a tank top and capris – yay! Apolinaras has gotten really into biking and goes on 40 mile trail rides every weekend now. I hung on for 10 miles this time, but definitely want to get a more comfortable seat and start going with him more often! It’s a bit ironic, but the days that I have a tough workout, I also tend to cook more healthy meals because I don’t want to undo all my hard work. So when I was craving a rich potato gratin the other day, I decided to see if I could make something just as tasty but a bit lighter.

I had some organic sweet potatoes left from Eva’s farm share, and decided to layer them with an Indian-spiced chickpea mash. The flavors were inspired by Nigella Lawson’s Sweet Potato and Chickpea Curry. Apolinaras complained that he missed the potatoes when they were all gone, so they were definitely a hit! Also, I’m submitting this recipe to be included in Reeni’s March Side Dish Showdown!

Curried Chickpea Sweet Potato Squares
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
6 tablespoons olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon ground cardamom
1 15-ounce can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
4 large sweet potatoes, scrubbed, peeled and sliced into 1/4-inch rounds (mine were 38 ounces peeled)

Directions:
Heat oven to 400˚F. Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium high heat in a large pan and sauté onions for 5 to 7 minutes or until tender; add garlic, coriander, cumin, turmeric, ginger, and cardamom, and sauté 1 additional minute. Place onion mixture in a food processor with the chickpeas, vinegar, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 cup olive oil, and pulse for several minutes until smooth.

Layer half the sliced sweet potatoes in a greased 9×13-inch baking pan. Spread chickpea mixture evenly on top; layer the remaining sliced potatoes on top of the chickpea mash. Brush top layer of the potatoes with remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and sprinkle evenly with remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt. Bake at 400˚F for 30 to 35 minutes or until potatoes are tender. Cut into squares. Makes 12 servings.

Nutrition: 166 calories, 7.3g fat, 3.9g fat, 3.3g protein per serving
Cost: $0.53 per serving

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Caramel Mocha Crunch Cookies

March 18, 2010

I ran my very first 5K last weekend! After being inspired by the book Born to Run and many runners including my half-marathon champion Dad and bloggers like Shannon and Elina, I decided to try jogging on the treadmill in January on a whim. Even though I’ve always been pretty athletic, running has never come naturally to me, so you can imagine my surprise when I actually got hooked fairly quickly.

I’m really enjoying it because I feel so energized after I jog, and like I’ve done something good for my body, unlike when I use the elliptical or bike where I tend to have trouble pushing myself. I also love just being able to throw on my shoes and run outside, without having to trek all the way to the gym to use the machines. So, when Shannon mentioned she was running the Ras na hEireann 5K, an Irish themed race celebrating St. Patty’s Day, I decided to sign up and use the race as motivation to make myself run a bit farther and faster every week.

Unfortunately, the weather didn’t corporate at all on Sunday and we had to run the whole thing in the gusty cold rain! The wind was blowing hard and the water cups were flying off the tables. My pants got so waterlogged that I kept having to hike them up, and I actually got too hot because I wore too many layers under Apolinaras’ bright yellow rain jacket, but I still had fun and managed to meet up with speedy Shannon after the race! I was pretty happy with my time of 32 minutes flat – I still had some steam left when I was done, and I know I will be able to get faster as I increase my training and figure out how to run a smarter race!

To celebrate, I decided to bake some cookies! I made a rich mocha dough, stuffed a balled-up caramel into the center of each cookie, and then rolled them in chopped macadamia nuts. I polished off a few of these right away – good thing I had already worked out!

Caramel Mocha Crunch Cookies
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1/2 cup unsalted butter
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate
1/2 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
2 tablespoons instant coffee
1 large egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/3 cup baking cocoa
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
18 caramels, rolled into balls
1/2 cup macadamia nuts, finely chopped

Directions:
Heat oven to 350˚F. Place butter and chocolate in a bowl and microwave on high for 1 minute, stirring after 30 seconds; mix until smooth, microwaving for 15 additional seconds at a time, as needed. Place melted chocolate mixture in a large bowl and stir in both types of sugar, instant coffee, egg, and vanilla extract until smooth. Stir in flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt until soft dough forms.

Wrap cookie dough evenly around the 18 caramels and roll each cookie in chopped macadamia nuts. Place on an ungreased cookie sheet and bake at 350˚F for 10 to 12 minutes or until set. Cool 5 minutes and transfer to wire racks to cool completely, about 30 minutes. Makes 18 cookies.

Nutrition: 187 calories, 10.9g fat, 1.6g fiber, 2.4g protein per cookie
Cost: $0.31 per cookie

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Crab and Red Pepper Bisque

March 14, 2010

As promised, here’s the recipe for the crab bisque I served at our lab ski retreat. This is my favorite soup recipe on my blog so far, although it’s not really a fair comparison because it’s the only one that contains heavy cream and butter – it’s nice to splurge every once and awhile!

We always get our fresh lump crabmeat from Costco (it’s in the produce section by the guacamole) because it’s high quality and not too pricey at $13 a pound. I had a feeling we wouldn’t be able to find crabmeat at the small grocery store by our ski house, so my PI, Carla, was nice enough to go to Costco, stash the lump crabmeat in a cooler, and bring it with her! It was a good thing too, because the seafood section at the store was pretty sad, and I couldn’t even find pancetta for the stuffed chicken recipe below and ended up having to use bacon instead!

The crab is definitely the star of this dish, but I did build additional layers of flavor by also using leeks, garlic, roasted red peppers, and tomato paste (which I finally found in a tube – yay)! I also thickened the bisque with a roux and added some red wine vinegar for a little extra tang. I used an immersion blender so there were still some pieces of crabmeat, which I actually enjoyed, but you can definitely put it in the food processor if you want a smoother consistency. It’s so rainy and miserable in Boston right now that just looking at the picture is making me crave a nice big bowl. Although, I actually have a feeling I’m going to crave a bowl every time I look at this post, even in the middle of summer!

Crab and Red Pepper Bisque
Printable Recipe

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 leeks, white and light green parts only, chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1/4 cup flour
4 cups chicken stock
1 12-ounce jar roasted red peppers, drained and chopped
1/4 cup tomato paste
1 pound fresh lump crabmeat
1/2 teaspoon dried basil
1 cup heavy cream
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2 teaspoons salt

Directions:
Heat olive oil over medium heat and sauté leeks for 5 to 7 minutes or until tender. Add garlic and sauté 1 additional minute.

Meanwhile, melt butter over medium high heat in a large stockpot. Whisk in flour until smooth and cook one minute or until mixture starts to brown. Add chicken stock, red peppers, tomato paste, 14 ounces crabmeat, basil, and sautéed leeks to the stockpot and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes or until thickened. Use an immersion blender to puree soup until smooth.

Add heavy cream, red wine vinegar, and salt to the stockpot and simmer for 2 to 3 minutes or until heated through. Scoop into serving bowls and garnish with remaining 2 ounces crabmeat. Makes 4 servings.

Nutrition: 687 calories, 55.3g fat, 2.5g fiber, 14.8g protein per serving
Cost: $5.30 per serving

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