Seven Swans a' Swimming

Yesterday I realized just how difficult some of these recipes are. Actually, it’s not that they are difficult to make, just difficult to write. It’s one thing to make it up as I go along, adding this here and that there, tasting it at each step, but it’s another to put it down on paper (or virtual paper) for someone who doesn’t work in a professional kitchen. We have our own lexicon, code, and short-hand way of communicating that makes it simple for us and saves us time, but can be confusing for the amateur hobby chef.

I recently purchased Auguste Escoffier’s French Cookbook. He’s the Johann Sebastian Bach, the Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, the Ludwig van Beethoven of chefs. He is the Master of Masters. Almost all the techniques and basic recipes we use today can be traced back to him, but you wouldn’t know it if you read his book. There’s no list of ingredients and no list of measurements. Many of the descriptions are vague because a lot of it is implied.

It’s not just Escoffier, either. I’ve read recipes from 100-200 years ago meant for the average housewife and they’re just as vague. Chefs today have nothing on Ma Ingalls.

So, today is the seventh day of Christmas. My neighbors have a little pond with some swans (real swans, Sarah…not Farmville swans!). I don’t think swans were meant to be eaten. I’d say their on the ‘list’ along with dolphins and monkeys. I’m sure her true love gave them to her as lawn ornaments (and no, not like the plastic pink flamingo kind!). So, I’ve used the next obvious choice for a substitute: duck. Some grocery stores sell duck whole in the freezer next to the turkeys. Not as fun to use for turkey bowling, but frozen duck football on the other hand….just kidding! I’m sure my Uncle Bill and his boys could bag me a wild one. Of course, you could just use chicken….of course!

Seven Swans a’ Swimming

Smoked Duck Breast with Chanterelles and Wild Berry Jus


4 boneless duck breasts, skin on (or chicken…of course)
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon coarse black pepper
¼ tablespoon dried granulated garlic
3 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons brown sugar
½ cup white grape juice
1 orange, squeezed
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 ¼ cup frozen raspberry, blackberry, blueberry mix
1 ½ cup beef stock/broth
½ cup chicken stock/broth
1 cup chopped chanterelle mushrooms
1 teaspoon rum extract
1 tablespoon pure maple syrup

Combine the salt, pepper, and garlic and season the duck. Prepare your grill, smoker or oven smoking bag. Your grill or smoker should not be more than 250° with plenty of smoke. Use water soaked wood chips if you have to. Smoke the duck 15-20 minutes or until the internal temperature of the meat reaches at least 140°. For the smoking bag, follow the instructions on the bag.
In a sauté pan, cook the mushrooms in a little olive oil until soft, about 5 minutes. Season with a little salt and pepper. Set aside.
In a sauce pan, melt the butter and brown sugar together and simmer for about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the white grape juice, orange juice and cider vinegar. Return to the heat and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Add the berries and broths, bring it back to a boil and simmer for about 25 minutes on medium low until the sauce is thick and reduced by about half. Strain through a fine wire-mesh strainer, pressing on the solids. Discard the solids. Stir in the mushrooms, rum and maple syrup and let simmer for 5 more minutes.

I’d serve this with some fresh steamed vegetables, (asparagus maybe?) and roasted red potatoes and plenty of the wild berry juice to make it ‘swimming’. You could try a whole combination of wild mushrooms, like shitake, oyster, morel, woodear, just to name a few. If you can’t find any fresh wild mushrooms at your local grocery store or specialty store, just use a Portobello, cleaned of it’s gills, cut in half and sliced thin. Remember, Duck is game so don’t overcook it! It’s ok to cook duck breasts medium. Especially if it’s wild duck. Mmm buckshot.

Six Geese a'Laying

Whew! Half-way there! Only one more day of fowl then it really gets interesting. With this one, it was obvious what I was going to do. Eggnog! Just kidding. Actually, that was my mom’s idea and it’s not half bad. Her Eggnog rocks. Maybe I’ll save that for New Years.

There are at least 1000 ways an egg can be cooked. There is no way I’m going to mention all of them. I don’t think I could remember them all. I don’t think I know them all! But to me, it doesn’t matter. I love eggs. I’ll eat them anyway I can get them. I’ve even drunk one raw in a glass of milk. Ah, those were the days. Don’t think my body could handle that again, though. Kind of reminded me of an oyster shooter. (And no, it’s not someone who shoots oysters.! It’s a raw oyster in a shot glass with a dollop of cocktail sauce)

I can’t stay in France all Christmas. I think Ron Weasley was right. Muggles who slide down the side of a mountain with wooden sticks strapped to their feet, have got to be insane. So, I’m heading South of the Border or as far South as I can get without needing a passport. Phoenix will do nicely, but I’ll settle for San Diego or even as far North as Santa Barbara. But let’s not do something ordinary and ‘gringo’. It’s Christmas. Make it special!

Six Geese a’ Laying

Huevos Ranchero with Goose Sausage, Refried Navy Beans and Roasted Salsa Verde

Goose Sausage

Sausage is not particularly difficult to make. If you don’t have access to goose, chicken is fine, of course. You should be able to find some goose sausage online. There’s no shame in Maybe later we’ll talk about making sausages. For this dish, cut the sausages in half and fry them up in a skillet until brown and juicy!

Salsa Verde (Green Chili Sauce)

Before we start, there are several things you should know. It’s best to use the canned green chilies. Roasting chilies involves rubbing them with oil, putting them on a hot grill until completely black, putting them in a bowl and covering them with plastic to let them steam in their own heat for an hour and then rubbing off the burnt skin. Way too much effort. However, if you want to go through all that trouble, the taste is totally worth it. Also, using canned tomatillos is totally acceptable because blanching them involves peeling off the paper-like skin, cooking them in hot boiling salted water for one minute and immediately cooling them in an ice water bath. Again, if you want to do that it is totally worth the effort. If you have a tomato garden and you have some nice green tomatoes, those work just fine instead of tomatillos. They are not related in any way (even though they look the same), but the flavors are very similar. You don’t even have to blanch them. Finally, you don’t have to clean the seeds out of the Poblano chilies because they aren’t all that hot. If you want some heat, add a jalapeño or two. If you are feeling brave, you don’t have to clean the seeds out of that one either. Of course, there is no shame in buying a bottle of ready made Salsa Verde.

1 T Olive Oil
1 Small Onion, chopped
2 fresh Poblano chilies, chopped
1 teaspoon fresh minced garlic
½ teaspoon ground cumin
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
1 8oz can green chilies or 10 - 12 roasted fresh Anaheim chilies
1 7 oz can tomatillos or ½ lb fresh tomatillos cleaned, blanched and cut in quarters, or
1 14 oz can chicken or vegetable broth
1 bunch fresh cilantro, chopped fine
1 T lime juice
salt and pepper

In a medium-sized sauce pan, heat the olive oil just a little. Sauté the onions, Poblanos, garlic, cumin and oregano until the onions get soft and the garlic and spices start to sweat. Put this mixture in a food processor with the roasted chilies, tomatillos and half of the broth and blend until smooth. Put all this back into the same sauce pan with the rest of the broth and bring the sauce to a simmer. Let the sauce cook for about five minutes. Add the cilantro, lime juice and salt and pepper. Taste it and add a little more salt and pepper if needed.

Refried Navy Beans

Canned refried beans aren’t as good as the real thing. However, if you want to use canned beans and mash them or put them in the food processor, that works just as good as cooking the beans all day yourself. Just rinse two cans of Navy beans, and mash them in your food processor with ½ cup of the salsa verde.

To plate this fine dish, start with cooked white rice topped with a little salsa verde. Top with a tostada shell (those come ready made too! How convenient!), spread with plenty of refried Navy beans. Top with an egg, fried however you like it (or scrambled if you want…I don’t care!), topped with melted shredded cheese. Top this with some more salsa verde, the sausages on the side and there ya go!

I’d say, “Bon Appetit” but no one in Mexico would understand.

FIVE GOLD RINGS!

Ah, the gilded fifth day. It’s the day sung the loudest in the song because it’s the day pretty much every woman is waiting for. And who wouldn’t? We all love a little bling-bling right? Well, no. I’m sorry to say, ladies, but the fifth day has nothing to do with jewelry. If you haven’t guessed already, it has to do with a bird. Of course. Specifically, it means the Ring-necked Pheasant. (There’s the pheasant! I knew it’d come up sometime or another!) Wow. Seven birds in seven days. No wonder the meaning was changed. One can only eat so much fowl.

To represent the five golden rings, I’ve picked something that’s not a meat and is very popular, especially if you’re from Hawaii. Or, in case of today’s recipe, Brazil. There’s a restaurant here in town called Tucano’s. It’s one of my favorite places to eat. It’s a Brazilian place that serves not only my favorite Feijoada, but also a Brazilian BBQ of sorts called Churasco. It’s done on long sword-like spits over a wood burning pit. They have everything - pork tenderloin, beef tenderloin, sausage, chicken, vegetables and, of course, brown sugar glazed pineapple. I’m salivating as we speak. Every time I go there, I feel like I have to be carried out in a wheelchair.

You can do this out on the grill in the summer, if you like. For the sake of winter, I’m doing it in the oven. Unless you’re in Phoenix during those frosty 70° winters. Oh, and you definitely have to down it with some guarana!

Five Golden Rings

Pork Loin Brazilian Churasco with Roasted Squash, Red Peppers and Pineapple Rings

1 2-3 lbs pork loin roast
2 T salt
2 tsp granulated garlic
1 tsp pepper
1 cup brown sugar, packed
1 T chili powder
Juice of 2 limes

2-3 zucchini
2 large red peppers
¼ C olive oil
2 tsp salt
1 tsp pepper

1 large can pineapple slices
½ C pineapple juice from can
½ C brown sugar, packed
½ tsp ground allspice

6 pack or 2 liter bottle of guarana soda, chilled

Preheat oven to 325° F. Trim the fat off the roast. In a heavy skillet, render the fat. If there’s little or no fat, use olive oil. You should get at least a couple of tablespoons fat. Mix together the salt, granulated garlic and pepper and season the roast. Brown the roast in the hot grease on all sides until golden brown, about 3-5 minutes each side. Place on an oven broiler pan and place in the oven. In the same skillet, mix in the brown sugar , chili powder and lime juice and heat just until the brown sugar becomes liquid and starts to simmer. Pour over the roast in the oven, fat scraps and all, making sure you completely cover the roast. Cook for 1 - 1 ½ hours or until a meat thermometer reads 155°F.

While the roast is cooking, cut the ends off each zucchini, then cut them in half cross-wise. Cut each half in quarters, trimming off the seeds. Do the same with the red peppers. In a mixing bowl, toss the oil, salt and pepper together and mix in the squash and red peppers, coating well. In another mixing bowl, combine the pineapple juice, brown sugar and allspice. Carefully soak the pineapple rings in the mixture.

When the roast has 30 minutes left, add the vegetables on one side of the roast and the pineapple on the other. Cook until the roast is done. Let the roast rest for 10-15 minutes before carving.

Four Calling Birds

It’s interesting how the English language has evolved. Only in England can you be speaking the same language as they did say 500 years ago and not understand a single word. I was reading in the newspaper the other day (I think I’m still the only one! My brother only reads the sports page (sort of) and my mom only buys the newspaper because here in Utah we get the LDS Church News for free with a subscription to the local paper), and they, a word that now means “un-employable people with very little else to waste tax-payer dollars on and too much time on their hands”, (Aren’t you glad I broke it down to one word?) discovered that the items listed in the 12 Days of Christmas now cost close to $87,000, slightly up from last year. I’d like to see the day when the Leaping Lords take a pay cut. It’s a union thing.

Anywho….back to the English language we all know and hate so much. These same very bored people noted that “calling birds” refers to canaries. You know what I’m going to say next. “Wrong!” Actually, according to a friend of my mother’s who did some research, none of which I can remember so your just going to have to take my word for it, the original manuscript for the song lists, not “calling birds”, but “cawling birds”, meaning “birds that caw.” Think “Four and Twenty Blackbirds, Baked in a Pie.” Yeah, I think I’ll stick with chicken. It’s a safer bet.

For this recipe I’ve used quail, which is actually more closely related to the partridge and which I could have used instead of pheasant. However, pheasant worked better for the salad on the first day and quail works better here. Yeah, chicken’s looking good right about now, huh?

Risotto is an Italian dish that uses a short grain rice called Arborio. It has a lot of starch which gives it a creamy texture when it’s cooked. You can find some par-boiled risotto mixes in your grocery store, or you can just use plain everyday, joe-blow rice. Whichever floats your boat.

Four Calling Birds
Roasted Quail Stuffed Portobello with Cilantro Lime Risotto

4 boneless Quail or chicken breasts
4 tsp olive oil
1 T salt
½ T pepper
½ T ground coriander
4 large Portobello mushrooms
2 T white wine vinegar
¼ C olive oil
2 T white Worcestershire sauce
½ tsp ground rosemary
1 box risotto rice mix (w/out seasoning)
Or
1 C Arborio rice
2 T butter
2 green onions, chopped
½ tsp minced garlic
¼ tsp cumin
¼ tsp coriander
2 ½ C hot chicken broth
1 bunch cilantro, chopped fine
Juice of one lime
Salt to taste

Preheat oven to 300°F. If using Arborio rice, start the chicken stock simmering. Mix together the salt, pepper and coriander. Season the quail, or chicken, with this mixture and coat each with a teaspoon of olive oil. Let rest.

With a spoon, gently clean out the black gills from underneath the mushrooms. Mix the white wine vinegar, olive oil, white Worcestershire sauce and rosemary. Add the clean mushrooms and let soak.

If using risotto mix, follow the instructions on the box with out the seasoning packet. Instead, use the green onions, garlic, cumin and coriander, and use the chicken broth instead of water. If using Arborio rice, first, sauté the green onions, garlic and spices in one tablespoon of butter in a heavy skillet. Add the rice. Stir the rice until well coated with the butter but doesn’t turn brown. Add ½ cup chicken stock and let simmer, stirring occasionally until the liquid is almost completely soaked up by the rice. Add another ½ cup of chicken stock. Keep doing this until all the chicken stock is gone and soaked up by the rice. This should take about 18-20 minutes on medium heat.

While the rice is cooking, gently brown the quail in another hot skillet with a little olive oil, about 30 second each side. Place the quail and mushrooms on an oven broiler rack and place in the oven about 10 minutes. Turn off the oven but leave the quail and mushrooms inside until the rice is done.

When the rice is done, stir in the cilantro, lime juice and 1 tablespoon butter. Season with salt, to taste.

To plate, start with the risotto, then the mushroom, inside up to look like a nest, then the bird.

This is a challenging recipe, but not so difficult that you can’t do it! Keep it simple by using chicken and long grain rice, if you must.

Three French Hens

I’m not sure what is defined as a French Hen. Is it a chicken with a beret and a rude attitude towards anything non-French? What ever the case may be, I’m sure it’s tasty. Provençal, on the other hand, I do know. And yes, it is tasty!

It originally referred to the Provence region of France between Paris and the Mediterranean Sea. Now, it means anything to do with small medieval villages. If you’ve ever seen the movie Chocolat with Juliet Binoche (and if you haven’t, shame on you!), that is Provençal. It’s kind of like “Country Style” or “Home Style” or “Southern” cooking here in the States. Think French Rednecks. (Now that’d be funny! Wee Wee Mon-sewer!)

I chose soup for the third day for a reason but I’ll wait until I’m done to tell you why. Those of you choir-geeks who know the song “The Twelve Days After Christmas” know what I’m talking about.

This particular recipe has been in our family since our good friends, the Millers, invited our family to join them in their summer retreat in San Diego and Louise introduced it to us. This is just the kind of soup you need when you’re sick. Fresh, nutritious and easy on the stomach.

Three French Hens

Provençal Chicken Soup

1 large onion chopped
1 clove garlic minced
1/2 cup celery, leaves and all chopped
2 quarts water
2 bay leaves
1 teaspoon thyme crushed
1 teaspoon rosemary crushed
3 pounds chicken pieces
2 carrots diced
4 ounces mushrooms sliced
2 medium potatoes peeled and cubed
1 cup frozen corn
1 cup frozen peas
1 zucchini sliced
1 cup broccoli florets
1 cup cauliflower flowerets

In a large pot, sauté the onion, garlic and celery until soft. Add the water, spices and chicken and simmer covered for 1 hour. Remove the chicken and let cool. De-bone. Add the carrots and mushrooms to the broth and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the potatoes and simmer for another 5 minutes. Add the remaining vegetables and simmer for at least 10 minutes or until the potatoes are done. Add the chicken meat and serve with a hearty bread.

Two Turtledoves

Day Two. What’s to say about turtledoves except that I don’t think I’ve ever seen one and our family cat once gave birth to a liter of four, two black and white tabbies and two calicos and my sisters named one of the calicos Regina Turtledove. Not sure what that means but the other calico kitten was named Tiger which was more appropriate. Anywho…

I’m sure some of you are hunters and may, or may not have, bagged a dove or two. My grandfather and his brothers used to hunt quail. My Uncle Bill and his sons like to hunt duck, among other things. He had a German Shorthaired Pointer named Hoss that was a little too good at what he did. Once you made the shot, if you didn’t get to the bird before Hoss did, there usually wasn’t much left of the bird. He didn’t like to share, that silly dog. I’m not much of a hunter so I think I’ll stick to eating.

Instead of Turtledoves, I’ve used squab which is actually a pigeon and is roughly the same size as a turtledove. You could also use Cornish game hens, quail, or that universal bird - chicken.

Two Turtledoves

Prosciutto Wrapped Boneless Squab with Mediterranean Tomato Fig Sauce

4 boneless squab, or 2 large boneless chicken breasts
2 slices prosciutto (Italian ham)
Olive oil
¼ C diced sweet Vidalia onion
½ tsp minced fresh garlic
4 Roma tomatoes, diced
4 figs, diced
1 T chopped fresh sweet basil
2 T balsamic vinegar
1 C chicken broth
1 15 Oz can crushed tomatoes
Salt and pepper to taste

Season the meat with a little pepper. No salt. Wrap with the prosciutto and secure with a toothpick. In a large heavy skillet with a little olive oil, sear all sides until golden brown, about a minute each side. Add the onions, garlic, Roma tomatoes and figs and sauté a couple of minutes until the onions, tomatoes and figs are soft and aromatic. Deglaze with the balsamic vinegar and chicken broth, scrapping any residue off the bottom. Mix in the canned tomatoes and fresh chopped basil. Bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5 minutes or so and the sauce is nice and thick. Serve over cooked couscous or angel hair pasta.

I honestly haven't tried it yet...tonight? Friday? We'll see.

A Partidge in a Pear Tree

It’s December. Carols, presents, mistletoe and food, food, food, food, food! Thanksgiving is wonderful because of all the food, but it’s only one day. Christmas is one whole month of culinary dreaming and I mean more than visions of sugar plums dancing in my head.

One of the beauties of Christmas food is that, unlike the Thanksgiving feast, it is not limited to American fare. My brother-in-law Kurt’s ancestors are from Sweden. So my sister likes to cook a traditional Swedish yuletide smorgasbord for their Christmas. My grandfather Clarence spent three years in Germany so we love to nosh on some authentic German snacks like braunschweiger and liptaur cheese. When we lived in Santa Barbara, our holiday tradition was to drive up to Solvang. Seeing all the Scandinavian stores really made it feel like Christmas, even without the snow.

It’s neat to see all the various international Christmas traditions that differ from the ones we Americans inherited from England and Northern Europe. The Catalan folk in Spain have a Christmas tradition of making chocolates that look like…well, Baby Ruths come to mind. Think Mr. Hanky to you South Park fans. Yup, he’s real!

So, starting today (and hoping I can make it! If Julie Powel can do 365 days of Julia Child, then I think I can manage 12 days of Christmas!), I’m going to do a recipe a day to represent each of the 12 days in that immortal song. It was inspired by last years Christmas episode of Bravo Channel’s Top Chef competition. Each contestant drew a day and they had to prepare a dish corresponding to that particular day. So, here we go…Day one!

A Partridge in a Pear Tree

Cold Pheasant Salad with Baby Greens, Bleu Cheese, Fresh Pears and Hibiscus Champagne Pear Vinaigrette

Vinaigrette -
½ C Champagne Vinegar
1 12 Oz can Pear Nectar
2 C Olive Oil
4 Oz dried Hibiscus (found in Mexican section in the supermarket or in health food stores)
Dash salt

Warm the oil in a sauce pan, but don’t let it get hot! 200° F will be enough. Remove from heat and add all the hibiscus. Let it seep 12-24 hours. Strain into a seal-able jar.

Blend together the vinegar, nectar and salt. While the blender is on, slowly drizzle in just ONE cup of hibiscus infused oil. You can save the other cup for another time.

Salad -
1 lb cold, cooked Pheasant (or chicken), shredded
1 lb bag mixed baby greens
4 Oz bleu cheese crumbles (or Gorgonzola, Roquefort or Stilton)
2 fresh pears, cored and cubed

Mix everything together with the vinaigrette.

If you’re a hunter and can bag a nice pheasant (we have a couple lurking around out house) just roast it at 325° F until a meat thermometer reads 165° F, about 2 hours. Let it cool before pulling it apart. Sometimes you can find pheasant canned. Any poultry or fowl will do with this recipe!