Chicken Fried Gourmet

Porcini Crusted Chicken with Blueberries and Polenta ala Marc Vetri

I know what you are thinking...blueberries seriously ??? But really this works on all sorts of levels and isn't this why you come here, to see al the culinary wacko stuff I try to pull off?

This is an adaptation of a recipe from Marc Vetri's new cookbookthat pairs blueberries with Porcini Crusted Halibut. Chef Vetri has a restaurant in Philadelphia that I would love to try if I ever make it that way. Philly seems to be giving NYC and Chicago some play for a progressive foodie town from what I am seeing.

As I am not the biggest fan of fish I substituted chicken breast. The basics of this recipe are to finely grind dried porcini mushrooms use this powder to crust your protein and sear/cook in a non stick skillet (to keep the porcini powder from burning). The sauce is prepared by simmering blueberries in sugar, water and some champagne vinegar (I used white wine vinegar). I felt like the end product of the sauce needed something so I added some freshly ground black pepper as well as some fresh blueberries. The recipe does not call for polenta but hey, polenta goes with everything as does it's southern cousin, grits. I added some Romano cheese to the polenta as well.

                

This turned out really well. The blueberries cut into the earthiness of the mushroom crusted chicken as well as the creaminess of the polenta, a very nice balance. Marc's cookbook also has a recipe for a free form lasagna with blueberries and porcini that I will need to try in the future after tasting this combination.

If you want a different type of Italian cookbook then look no further than Marc Vetri.

Wine Country Bistro - Shreveport LA

[Note] I have been holding on to this post for a few weeks now. When I write a post it is usually in one sitting and somewhat spur of the moment. I have been having writers block with this one in part because I do not think my words can explain just how great an experience this was. Hope this all makes sense and enjoy:)

 

My wife and I rarely go out to eat dinner so when we do we try to go someplace new or somewhere where we know we will have a good time (Columbia Café). A few weeks ago we were able to enjoy a Friday night out and decided to try Wine Country Bistro – a wine bar / restaurant. Ann’s parents were able to babysit so we were off to an early start of the evening. We arrived at the restaurant around 6:45pm and were promptly seated. The menu was divided up by 1st course, 2nd course and so on. We started off with a glass of wine, go figure- at a wine bar  - I had a Malbec and she had a Pinot Noir. We decided to have one of the specials of the night as an appetizer – It was a red snapper over creamy grits with cherries and foie gras. Although I love to cook fish I really do not care to eat it so we both ate the grits while she had the fish and I had the foie gras.

 

For dinner we had the crab cakes and the shrimp and grits with local sausage. There was absolutely nothing to complain about here. Once Ann cut into the crab cake it just fell apart and was full of crabmeat unlike some that you find nowadays. The Shrimp and grits were creamy and the sausage added just the right amount of spice and not sure if this is a word but it should be – Porkiness. Backtracking a little bit, I had asked our waiter if they would mind me taking pictures in the restaurant during the meal since I had a foodblog. He said he didn’t see why not but would go ask the chef (one of the owners). He came back with an offer to go into the kitchen after our meal for a behind the scenes look at things. During the course of our meal he brought a “gift” from the kitchen which were two pieces of chocolate flavored with orange. I forgot to ask the chef where they came from but in one of the kitchen pics you can see the bottle on the line. We were also presented with a dessert of crème brulee with fresh berries. The chef, Michael Brady, does an awesome job and asked that we call ahead next time so he can set something up for us. Cannot argue with that.

I do not know why we waited so long to try this place but it was well worth it. You can view their site Wine Country here.

I look forward to our next visit.

Steaks marinated in Duck Fat with Cheesy Grits and Grilled Scallions

This was supposed to be part of our recent anniversary dinner for my wife and I this past weekend. Ann ended up being sick the whole weekend and is just now starting to recover so while I had steak for dinner on Sunday she had chicken soup.

I had an idea for a steak preparation that I have not seen done before. I am not saying it has never been done before, if it has I have just not come across it.

When we buy steak we usually just buy a really thick Ribeye or New York Strip and cut it half. Not only does this save money but you also get a smaller portion so while I cannot say it is healthy, it is better for you than a whole steak. The trick is to find a really thick cut of steak with even marbling throughout, unless you really enjoy fat. Speaking of fat and healthy my idea for this steak was to coat it in Duck Fat.

What is duck fat ? Duck fat is the rendered fat, usually from a duck breast that is primarily used in making duck confit.

I seasoned the steak with salt and pepper and grilled till it was medium. I was going for medium rare but this one cooked a little fast. I threw some green onions on the grill to get a light char and start to caramelize the natural sugar in them.

I paired the steak with some Monterey Jack cheesy grits that I spread thinly across the plate and the grilled green onions/scallions.

Chicken & Grits "Waffles" with Sweet Potato and Rosemary Cane Syrup

Sometimes I like to cook the same things over and over and routinely change up one of the ingredients either by presentation, preparation or texture. I had wanted to do something with chicken and grits and thought I had the idea perfected. Instead of just making a pile of cheesy grits I would turn them into Grit Waffles. Crazy you say? Yes but the idea sounded really tasty, crispy on the outside but with cheesy gooey grits inside.

They sell chicken and waffles so why not make an “upscale” if you will version. I started by making the grits as usual – one part milk to one part chicken stock, add grits, cook ,add cheddar cheese and butter, salt and pepper to taste. For the chicken I chose boneless skinless breasts and marinated them with a mixture of beer, creole mustard, worchestire sauce, garlic, and cayenne pepper. I seared these on a flat top till cooked through.

Sauce wise I went with sweet potato. I juiced about three sweet potatoes and added this to about a cup of milk, crushed garlic and simmered for about 30 minutes. I strained the garlic out before serving. Why juice the sweet potatoes? No particular reason other than I had not done it before and I thought it would give me a lighter cleaner sauce. It did.

I had one sweet potato left over so for a different texture I peeled and cut it into chunks about half the size of a piece of dice. I seared these on the flat top as well with a little salt and pepper.

To cut the richness of the whole dish, I took about a ½ cup of cane syrup and heated it on the stove with about 5 sprigs of rosemary, a shot of worchestire and garlic. I probably heated it too much as when it hit the plate it immediately firmed up like a piece of caramel candy. It still served its purpose though.

Back to the “grit” waffles, they did not work out like I thought they would. Next time I think I will just incorporate a mixture of the finished grits with a waffle batter mixture.

To finish plating the dish I added a “streak” of creole mustard, added a scoop of cheesy grits, the chicken, some sweet potato bits, topped it with sweet potato cream and drizzled the rosemary cane syrup over everything.

For dessert, and please keep an open mind here, I took some french bread slices and toasted them. I then smeared these with Nutella, sprinkled some Maldon Sea Salt and topped with shredded fresh parmesan cheese. It just works......