Chicken Cordon Black and Bleu

Mes amies. I am in a dilemma… What’s a girl to do? You see, Rico and Aristotle, who are the best of friends, are at each other’s throats… and dear me, it appears it is because of me!

Whatever the case, they are both very dear to me, and I cannot, alas, take sides. Therefore, enough is enough! I shall invite them BOTH over for a little soiree and make things right. I shall serve my famous Chicken Cordon Bleu which is guaranteed to melt all hostilities between foes!

‘Cordon Bleu’ is a French term, literally translated as ‘blue ribbon’. It originally referred to an award for culinary excellence given to women cooks but now applies to any superior cook (yes, men too) as well as to this dish. This yummy version of Chicken Cordon Bleu adds paprika and a creamy white wine sauce!

INGREDIENTS

* 6 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves
* 6 slices Swiss cheese
* 6 slices ham
* 3 tablespoons bread crumbs
* 1 teaspoon paprika
* 6 tablespoons butter
* 1/2 cup dry white wine
* 1 teaspoon chicken bouillon granules
* 1 tablespoon cornstarch
* 1 cup heavy whipping cream

DIRECTIONS

As you know with me, preparation is key…

So the first thing you’ll want to do is mix the bread crumbs and paprika in a small bowl for later…

Secondly, blend the cornstarch with the cream in a small bowl…

If they are too thick pound the chicken breasts to about half an inch…

Place a cheese and ham slice on each breast within 1/2 inch of the edges. Fold the edges of the chicken over the filling, and secure with toothpicks…

Coat the chicken pieces with the pre-made mix (bread crumbs and paprika)…

Heat the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat, and cook the chicken until browned on all sides…

Add the wine and bouillon…

Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 30 minutes, until chicken is no longer pink and juices run clear…

Remove the toothpicks, and transfer the breasts to a warm platter…

Slowly whisk the blended cornstarch and cream into the skillet. Cook, stirring until thickened, and pour over the chicken…

And voila! Delicious food!

Now, wish me luck that my Chicken Cordon Bleu can keep my friends from making each other black and blue!

World Famous Lobster Tail

Bonjour mes amies… welcome to the second installment of La Cuisine! I’m sure you’re all still drooling over the delicious roast beef po-boys we made last week, but today we are going to prepare one of my absolute favorites… You see, this weekend I am having a private get together with Aristotle and he has asked me to make my world famous lobster tail… So, I thought it would be a perfect opportunity to share with you all how to create The Perfect Lobster Tail!

All you’ll need are the following ingredients:

Medium Lobster Tail

Mixture to baste:
1/2 lb. butter, melted
1/4 c. lemon juice
Salt & pepper to taste
2 tbsp. parsley flakes

Mix the butter, lemon juice, parsley flakes and salt & pepper together. Place the lobster tail on the broiler, hard side up. Cut down the middle of the lobster tail, leaving an inch of the shell uncut. Loosen the meat around the shell and pull the meat up on top of the shell, but be careful to leave the meat attached to the end of the tail. Slash the lobster meat across the top about 6 times. Baste the meat before placing in the oven. Cook at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes and be sure to baste it every 5 minutes. You can either serve with drawn butter or the basting mix for more flavor.

Bon appetite!

Po Boys to Die for!

Bonjour mes amies and welcome to a new little experiment of mine. I call it… La Cuisine… instead of blogging every minute about my life, no matter how interesting, I thought my readers may enjoy a respite. So I will be posting weekly installments of La Cuisine! What is La Cuisine? It’s where I teach you how to make my favorite indulgences.

This week, it will be Roast Beef Po Boy! Not that I eat them that often, but my dear friend Rico who has promised to teach me Salsa dancing in return for making them for him whenever he wants, absolutely adores them!

The recipe I’m going to give you right now should be enough to fill about 10-12 baguettes… which means you’ll either feed 10 to 12 people or one Aristotle… Mon dieu! I don’t know where he fits it all in his sleek… muscular… I mean, fit body.

So without further ado: Po Boys to Die for!

First of all you’ll need (and I know this is long, but trust me it’s worth it!):

5-6 pounds beef chuck roast (grass fed preferred) or shoulder roast
¼ pound of salt pork, sliced into ¼ inch strips
3 cups of minced onions
1 tablespoon of salt
1 teaspoon of black pepper
1 tablespoon of Creole seasoning blend
¼ cup of lard (bacon drippings or solid shortening such as Crisco can suffice)
6 diced carrots
6 sliced celery ribs
1 tablespoon minced parsley
2 to 3 springs of FRESH thyme
1 bottle of good red wine
2 beef marrow bones
2 quarts of beef stock

Now take your roast and cut a pattern of incisions across the top every couple of inches… each incision should be deep enough and long enough to fit a slice of salt pork. Combine half of the garlic and 1 cup of the finely minced onion, ½ teaspoon of salt and ½ teaspoon of pepper. Place an even amount into each slit you made in the roast. Then press the salt pork into these slits and tie it down so that the roast is as even as possible for even cooking.

You will need a pot that is deep enough and broad enough to hold the roast, but also allows room to spare for all the braising and liquid. First you will melt the lard over medium heat and then place the roast in and brown it all the way around, make sure the salt pork remains inside the roast! Add all the remaining seasonings and vegetables to the pot and cook them until the onions are limp. Then add the wine and enough HOT beef stock to nearly cover the beef. Next come the bones then cover the pot and let it simmer for 4 hours until the beef is nice and VERY tender.

Remove the beef from the pot onto another dish that will hold the dripping sauces. Raise the heat of the pot until the liquid is hard. This should be done with the pot uncovered for about 45 minutes. While boiling down the gravy, baste the roast so it doesn’t dry out!

By now the beef should be ready to fall apart (if cooked properly), but do your best to slice it as thinly as possible, putting these pieces into a separate serving dish. Strain the gravy and season it to taste with salt, freshly ground pepper and throw in some cayenne pepper if you’re brave!

Lastly, pour the gravy over the beef… the result should be a sloppy, beautiful, beefy mess!

I cannot emphasize this enough… you MUST… I repeat… MUST serve them on CRISP… CRUSTED… FRENCH bread. Then dress your Po Boys with lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, mayonnaise and whatever else is to your liking. You can also mix a little horseradish in with the mayonnaise to give it an extra kick of flavor!

A Girl Must be Chased!

How absolutely wonderful! My new assistant is working out wonderfully. And, speaking of wonderful… I received a little gift from Aristotle the other day. Just out of the blue! A little thank you for the food I’ve made him over the brief time we’ve known one another. Only Aris would think to get me a gift that I would never buy myself: A membership to the Cheesecake of the Month Club!

Mon dieu! How did he know? How did he know that the cake of fromage is my favorite dessert on the planet? And not only that! Mon dieu! I have absolutely NO restraint when it comes to it. I am a MAD, WILD woman when I’m near it… I’ll eat the whole thing myself… it may even end up in my hair. It’s not a pretty sight.

Which brings me to my predicament. My quandry so to speak. I pride myself on my figure… and between you and I, I have a small feeling that Aris appreciates my figure as well. So how does one eat cheesecake everyday of the month and not gain a pound?

Perhaps… well, perhaps I will just have to have Aris over to enjoy it when it comes. Do you think that is too forward? I mean, really, what would you do? It would be, you know, just a little cheesecake party, him and I and some Dom Perignon to wash it down. That wouldn’t be too forward would it? Or would it? A girl must be chased. Not the other way around. Ah what to do, what to do… I welcome any tidbits of advice.

Touché Fredrica!

So, can you believe it?! My assistant just up and left! Didn’t even give me notice. How gauche! And of course, I’ve always been exceptionally kind to her. Perhaps, as some say, it just got too hot in the kitchen for her. Some also say I am upset. In a pig’s eye! I’ve got bigger fish to fry. Ha ha! I am being very witty this morning with my cusine references I must say.

Touché Fredrica!

Anyhoo, everything is working out just fine. I’ve already got another assistant. You see, it wasn’t too hard to find a fantastic replacement, for I am an exceptional boss and I reward my workers with splendid perks! For example, everyday I bring out snacks for them to enjoy. Today my lucky new assistant shall receive these adorable little sliders.

Those are Aristotle’s favorites… not that I really think too much about him or worry about what he likes… it’s just that he really appreciates me, I mean, cooking, so I can’t help but spoil him a bit. Like yesterday, he was feeling rather down because he had lost something or the other - actually I believe he had lost his nail clippers and you know how manicured and handsome he insists on being (not like American men) - so I fedex’d him this delightful Shrimp Scampi and oh well, it was absolutement adorable how much he gushed over it! He’d never had scampi before.

Not MY scampi that is.

Anything else is a sad sad imitation of greatness.

Curry-ing Favors

While the city was on fire this weekend, I took the opportunity to get reacquainted with a couple of old friends: cumin and cayenne.

Some say it is counter-intuitive to eat spicy food while the weather's hot, but personally I love it. Sauce or solid, if it's spicy, I'm sold. Earlier last week, a secret admirer dropped off a few delightful coconut curry chocolate bars inspiring me to prepare my famous chicken tikka masala. Beyonce once begged me to pass along the recipe to her personal chef, but I absolutely refused as it's been in the family for years. (For you, dear readers, I'll let you in on a tip: I may or may not have used this secret sauce.)

I was also tipped off to this delicious Thai Curry Cheddar which made a scrumptious afternoon snack. Since Fall is upon us, it might not be a bad idea to change up the menu at CAVE to incorporate this in a samosa appetizer... Stay tuned!

A Very Savory Summer Indeed

My apologies, as lately I have been very busy editing the upcoming issue of Pate Today. I can’t wait to incorporate more foie gras into the menu at CAVE having just finished an intimate portrait of the famed owners of Les Trois Petits Cochons (The Three Little Pigs) restaurant - old friends of mine and creators of the James Beard award-winning Pate Forestier. We completely lost track of time laughing over delectable crepes de pâté and glasses of my favorite bordeaux.

Summer Soiree

While out East, I was invited to a small soiree where I sampled a savory Bacon Wrapped Sirloin Gorgonzo. While it was certainly a delicious summer appetizer, I was much more interested in the White Wine and Cheese Mingle from maitre fromager Max McCalman. Fromage fabuleux! Of course, no gathering is complete without the requisite treat and I was pleasantly surprised by the spread from Curious Cookie. I must remember to send some to dear Saige - I’m sure she would love them!

Imagine my surprise when I returned from my whirlwind trip only to find out Aristotle was unable to pick me up from the airport because he was arrested! Mon dieu!