Old-School Buttermilk Fried Chicken

In an effort to be both hip and timely my book club read The Great Gatsby last month. It was going to be, well, great. Cool, smart ladies reading classic fiction we hadn't looked at since high school, putting on lipstick, heading out to see Baz Luhrmann's much-hyped film, chatting it over with ice cold gin and tonics afterward. I could almost feel the cigarette holder between my fingers, not that I smoke, but we were just going to be that awesome.

But apparently we forgot. We forgot that we're not 16 anymore with endless summer stretching before us. We forgot the obligations. Work. Travel. Spouses. Pets. Kids. Oh, and some of us need to be in bed by 10 pm. So the movie never got seen. Not by any of us. And then it was gone. Out of the theaters while we were still making our great plans. Awful, right?

At least we still have book club. And this plate of cold fried chicken.

You know the scene? Tom and Daisy huddled at the kitchen table shortly after the accident, a platter of cold fried chicken between them. This is symbolic fried chicken, people.

In keeping with Gatsby, this is old school fried chicken - shake it in a paper bag and deep fry it old school. No Corn Flakes. No oven "frying". No rushing. Old school fried chicken takes time. First there's a leisurely herb-scented buttermilk bath.

Then a slow fry. Resist the urge to make your oil too hot or you'll end up with burnt on the outside, raw on the inside chicken. Nobody wants that. Keep the oil right around 325-350 degrees. Adjust the heat accordingly as you work. Don't speed it. Savor the process. Then eat the chicken. And remember, there's always Netflix. 

Old-School Buttermilk Fried Chicken
adapted from SimplyRecipes.com

3 pounds chicken pieces (I used 12 drumsticks)
1 quart buttermilk
1 large onion, thickly sliced
1 tbsp Tabasco sauce
1 tbsp cayenne pepper
1 handful fresh parsley, roughly chopped
1 handful fresh thyme
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tbsp Penzeys Black and Red Spice (or 1/2 tbsp cayenne and 1/2 tbsp ground black pepper)
1 tbsp onion powder
1 tbsp seasoned salt
2-3 cups canola oil for frying

Whisk together the buttermilk, Tabasco sauce and cayenne in a large bowl. Toss in the onion slices, thyme and parsley. Place the chicken pieces into the mixture and marinate at least overnight (8-36 hours). Drain the chicken pieces in a colander.

Heat the oil in a large, deep, heavy pot over medium high heat to 350 degrees. Your oil should be about an inch and a half deep in the pot. 

Meanwhile, layer two large paper grocery bags, one inside the other. This is a great time to bust out the sturdy Whole Foods bags that you have stashed in a closet somewhere. Dump the flour, Black and Red, onion powder, and seasoned salt in the bag. Fold over the top a couple of times to seal the bag and give it a shake. Add the drained chicken pieces, reseal the paper bag and give it a few heart shakes to coat the chicken.

Working in batches, carefully place a few chicken pieces into the hot oil. Don't crowd them. Fry the chicken on one side for about 12-15 minutes then carefully flip each piece and fry the other side about 10 -14 minutes until crispy, golden and cooked through. Drain on paper towels. Season with salt and pepper. Serve hot, or let cool to room temperature, refrigerate and serve it Gatsby-style. Cold.

Auto Pilot Lemon Garlic White Fish

I've been making a concerted effort to incorporate more fish into the KC kids' diets. Sure, I want to broaden their palates and encourage a heart-healthy low-fat diet and the Omega-3s are super too. But realistically, the reason I want them to eat more fish is because it's just so freaking fast. And easy. Everyone needs a couple of good auto-pilot, ready in 10 minutes recipes. This, friends, is one of those.

Start with a few thin, mild white fish filets. I used tilapia because it was both inexpensive and available at my grocery store, but flounder, sea bass, sole...take your pick.

Okay, ready? Grab a lemon, some garlic, and a couple of your favorite herbs and spices. I happened to have Penzey's Trinidad Lemon-Garlic Marinade and a jar of Fines Herbes (I know. I'm fancy) on hand but simple lemon-pepper and parsley would work just as well. In fact, dill, oregano, chives, basil...it's all good. Use what you have and what you like.

Lay your fish filets in baking dish. Squeeze half a lemon over the top. Sprinkle and rub everything else on.

Broil the filets until the fish is opaque and flaky. If you want to get all fancy sprinkle some fresh chives on top and garnish with lemon slices.

 That. is. it. Grab a fork and dig in.

Auto Pilot Lemon Garlic White Fish

2 filets flaky, mild white fish (such as tilapia)
1 lemon
1  tbsp garlic, chopped
1 tsp dry lemon-garlic marinade or lemon pepper
1 tsp dried Fines Herbes or dried parsley
1 tbsp fresh chives, chopped (optional)

Preheat the broiler. Place the filets in an oven-safe dish. Squeeze half a lemon over the top. Sprinkle the fish with the garlic and whichever herb and spice combo you're using. Cook under the broiler until the fish is opaque, flaky, and cooked through (about 7 minutes for a 1/2-inch thick filet). Garnish with lemon slices and fresh chives. 

Looly's Solo Apple Crisp

No doubt about it. Looly's growing up. With a visit from the tooth fairy under her belt, it's time to start pulling her weight in the kitchen.

Last spring when she was a mere babe of 5, not the worldly, gap-toothed 6-and-a-half-year-old you see here, we took a field trip to Penzeys Spices, where Looly chose a jar of Vietnamese Extra Fancy Cinnamon. She's been waiting to make her own apple crisp ever since and apparently I've been neither accommodating nor timely in making it happen. So she did what any gap-toothed, worldly 6-and-a-half-year-old would do. She went online and printed out a recipe herself.

Look at her, hands washed, hair back, apron on, ingredients assembled, reading through the whole recipe before she starts. She's already a way better cook than her mother who has an embarrassing habit of needing to run to the store for a roll of parchment paper or a bunch of cilantro because I swear it said nothing about that a minute ago.

 And check out those knife skills. I was 25 before I knew to curl the fingers on my left hand.

Mixing the "crisp".

Watch out, Martha. Looly's in the kitchen.

Looly's Solo Apple Crisp
adapted from Simply Recipes

5-6 medium apples (preferably Granny Smiths)
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 cup brown sugar
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 cup rolled oats (old fashioned or quick-cooking)
1/2 cup butter

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Lightly grease a 9" x 13" pan.

Peel, core, and chop the apples into 1-inch chunks. Place them in the prepared pan. Sprinkle the lemon juice over the top.

In a bowl, stir together the brown sugar, cinnamon, and oats. Use your fingers to rub the butter into the oat mixture. Sprinkle the oat mixture on top of the apples. Bake 35-45 minutes until the apples are soft and the topping is golden brown and crisp.

Looly's Extra-Fancy Vietnamese Cinnamon Apples

After much anticipation, Looly finally got to put her Extra-Fancy Vietnamese Cinnamon to the test. Did I mention this is no ordinary cinnamon. It's extra-fancy. What separates extra-fancy cinnamon from regular cinnamon, you ask? A mini-tuxedo and top hat perhaps? Sadly no. But Penzeys claims their Vietnamese Cinnamon is the strongest, richest, and sweetest cinnamon around, so hold onto your top hats, people. Looly is understandably impressed.

Personally I've been craving rot your teeth, chisel out of the pan cinnamon rolls with cream cheese icing, but always the picture of moderation, Looly chose simple warm cinnamon apples instead. She is like her mother in other ways.

Hacking Peeling some apples

Grating the nutmeg

Go time!

Looly's Extra-Fancy Vietnamese Cinnamon Apples

6 Granny Smith (or other tart) apples, peeled, cored, and sliced into wedges
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 tsp. Penzeys Extra-Fancy Vietnamese Cinnamon
1 Tbsp. lemon juice
1/8 tsp. nutmeg
1/8 tsp. salt
2 Tbsp. butter

1. Combine apple slices, brown sugar, cinnamon, lemon juice, nutmeg and salt in a large bowl. Toss to coat.

2. Melt butter in a large pan over medium heat. Add apple mixture and cook until soft, about 10-12 minutes.

3. To make them extra-fancy, top with a dollop of whipped cream, sprig of mint and a bit of lemon zest. Dig in!

Pretty fancy, eh?

Bean's Vanilla Night

Bean loves Horizon Vanilla Milk boxes so imagine her delight when she found out we could make vanilla milk at home using the Mexican Single-Strength Vanilla Extract she picked out at Penzey's earlier this month.

Bean's Vanilla Milk

2 Cups milk
2 Tbsp. granulated sugar
2 tsp. vanilla extract (not imitation)
sprinkle of ground cinnamon (optional)

Warm the milk over low heat in a saucepan. Add sugar and stir until dissolved. Stir in vanilla. Pour into pretty cups and top with a smidgen of cinnamon if you like.

To up the fancy factor, we served the milk warm in the same tiny green teacups I used to drink from at my Grammy Arta's house when I was Bean's age.

Why yes, that is a pink monkey nightgown on Roo.

Since warm vanilla milk is best sipped alongside a tasty treat, we made heart-shaped shortbread cookies dipped in dark chocolate.  We used this simple Shortbread Cookie recipe from JoyofBaking.com and Bean was thrilled that we got to put her vanilla to work again. The cookies were crumbly, buttery, and delicious.

Looly and Roo measuring flour

Their perfectly measured 260 grams

Bean and her own vanilla

Ready for the oven

Why not dip a few pretzels too?

yum!

Still to come, Looly's Vietnamese Extra Fancy Cinnamon.

Pork Chops ala Roo

Last night Roo got to try out the Pork Chop Seasoning he picked out on our trip to Penzey's earlier this week. He handled the meat while Bean took over preparations for a Lemon-Feta Orzo Salad. All I needed to do was steam a little broccoli and dinner was done.

My little pork chop seasoning pork chops

Bean has mastered the Microplane

Sous chefs

Here's a glimpse at Roo's not-so-secret recipe.

Pork Chops ala Roo

8 boneless pork loin chops, 1 inch thick
3-4 Tbsp. Penzey's Pork Chop Seasoning, but be careful.  If you don't love salt as much as Roo does, decrease this to about 2 Tbsp. It is salty!)

Dump Pork Chop Seasoning in a clump on top of pork chops. Rub, scrub, wallow, and bathe the chops in seasoning on all sides until your mom say that's enough. Grill in a grill pan until done.

Bean's Lemon-Feta Orzo Salad

1 package whole wheat orzo
1 lemon (zest and juice)
1/2 Cup feta cheese, crumbled
2 Tbsp. fresh parsley, chopped
2 Tbsp. Olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

1. Cook orzo according to package directions, drain, rinse in cold water, drain again and transfer to large bowl
2. Zest lemon, set aside the zest, and squeeze juice into a small bowl
3. Add olive oil to lemon juice and whisk together
4. Pour lemon-olive oil over orzo, add feta cheese, lemon zest, parsley, and mix. Season to taste with salt and pepper

Dinner is served!

Field Trip to Penzeys

About six years ago, when I was pregnant with Looly, I saw a video of a toddler who could identify a slew of herbs and spices by name based on a single hearty whiff. Impressive, no doubt, but I had an inkling that much like the alphabet song and learning colors, repetition was key to recognition of scents and flavors too. Armed with bountiful childless wisdom, I set out to make Looly a spice prodigy.

Before she could sit upright I wiggled jars of cumin and cardamom under her nose, repeating the names to her catatonically, while she stared back with an appropriate level of cross-eyed bewilderment. As she got a little older, my instructions to sniff led to violent bursts of air exiting her tiny nose, resulting in both of us covered in powdered ginger, much sneezing, and more often than not, tears. Luckily for Looly, I soon got pregnant with twins and traded my spice rack for a comfortable seat on the couch and a stomach settling box of Club crackers, which she was more than happy to share.

Today my kids aren't completely spice deficient. They know some basics; cinnamon, cloves, ginger, nutmeg. They recognize basil, fresh oregano, and have been known to use pine needles in their own water table "cooking" to represent rosemary. But, there's still a long way to go and this week, a chance run-in with a whole star anise provided the perfect launch pad for a field trip to Penzeys Spices.

We are fortunate enough to have a Penzeys within walking distance of our home and the kids really enjoyed the in-person visit. One of the coolest things about shopping at Penzeys is that they provide sniffable jars of every herb, spice, and blend they sell. Compare and contrast the California basil with the French basil. Search for the subtle differences between the Ceylon, Korintje Indonesia, China Tung Hing, and Extra-Fancy Vietnamese cinnamons. So much to smell!

For those of you who might not have instant access to a spice store, Penzeys puts out a great catalog that always includes several recipes and often a coupon, and you can order online. 

Following our big sniff-around, I invited Looly, Bean, and Roo to pick something to bring home. Here's what they chose.

Our haul, including Grey Sea Salt, Very Hot Crushed Red Pepper, and Ruth Ann's Muskego Ave. Chicken and Fish Seasoning (free with my coupon!)

Roo's pork chops are scheduled for Thursday night, and the girls are clamoring to make cookies. Now it's time to get cooking!