French Toast - The Haiku

What else can I say
To quote Heiress P. Hilton:
My French Toast is HOT

French Toast with Rum Bananas (originally published by Dave Lieberman)

4 large eggs
1/2 cup milk
1 tablespoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 pinches ground cinnamon
4 (1/2 to 3/4-inch-thick) slices brioche, challah, cinnamon raisin bread or any moist and fluffy bread you like
2 tablespoons butter
Orange-Rum Bananas, recipe follows

Beat the eggs, milk, sugar, vanilla, and cinnamon together in a mixing bowl until well blended. Pour the egg mixture into a baking pan large enough to give you room to turn and soak the bread. (A 13 by 9-inch pan works well).  Lay the bread slices in the egg mixture and let them soak, turning them several times, until the bread has soaked up all the egg. Turn them gently so they don’t break apart on you.

Heat the butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium-low heat. When it starts to bubble, lay the soaked bread in the pan. Cook, turning once, until the bread is nicely browned and the egg in the center of each slice is cooked through, about 12 minutes. Serve warm with the Orange-Rum Bananas.

Note: If your skillet isn’t large enough to hold all the bread slices at once, cook them in batches. Before you start your first batch, preheat your oven to 200 degrees F (or “Warm”). Keep the cooked slices warm on a baking sheet in the oven while you cook the rest.

Orange-Rum Bananas :
2 tablespoons rum
2 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons orange juice
2 large bananas sliced thinly on an angle

Heat rum, sugar, butter and orange juice in a large skillet until the butter is melted. Add the bananas. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then lower the heat so the sauce is bubbling gently. Cook until the bananas are softened, about 4 minutes.

Say it isn’t so?! There have been rumors and grumblings for months and months as to whether or not the adorable Dave Lieberman would be continuing his stint on the Food Network. Unfortunately it appears that a definite decision has been made. Dave’s “all grown up now ” and has cut the Food Network apron strings in favor of new opportunities and the possibility of opening his own restaurant in L.A. Honestly, with the departure of Dave from the Food Network there just isn’t any male eye candy left and I’m certainly not going to have a celebrity chef crush on Bobby Flay or (God forbid) Guy Fieri.

My subscription to Blueprint magazine finally managed to catch-up with me after the big move and I thoroughly enjoyed thumbing through it yesterday morning while enjoying my breakfast of delicious coffee and leftover gingerbread. As I’ve previously mentioned I really love making risotto. Yes, the stirring can be laborious, but it’s a dish that you inevitably feel extremely accomplished about feeding to guests when you’re through. So I’m a little skeptical about a shortcut risotto product Blueprint endorses this month that claims “its texture and flavor match those of made-from-scratch versions.” Apparently very little stirring is required and you finish the risotto with a sprinkle of salt and freshly grated cheese. The risotto takes a total of 18 minutes to make, to which I have to say, add 10 more minutes to your prep time and a little elbow grease and you can have the real honest-to-goodness thing.

Blueprint wasn’t completely off the mark this month. They did introduce a new cooking column called “The Kitchen” where they hope to educate readers with a series of “go-to” dishes that you can master and then pass off as your own. In the first article they have a really beautiful lesson on making a classic lasagna. It’s not my kind of lasagna (I don’t put meat in my sauce) but I really like the idea behind the column and I’m looking forward to seeing what recipe the editors will breakdown next. Unfortunately, the Blueprint website hasn’t been updated with content from the September/October issue yet so you may have to go out and buy your own copy in order to get the whole scoop.

The slow cooker hype has been waxing and waning for several years at this point and I still haven’t purchased a proper crock pot. However, I think I may have finally met my perfect time-saving match. I’m currently lusting over this All-Clad version on the Williams-Sonoma website. Like all All-Clad products it’s quite the thing of beauty. Friends and family please take note…the holidays are just around the corner after all.

Dave Lieberman’s Thai Chicken Curry is absolutely delicious.  I’m now officially in love with coconut milk and I can’t wait to use it in something else.  Chris and I devoured the entire dish, which was intended to be four servings, but since this was done slightly pre New Year’s Resolutions time I’m not inclined to feel all that guilty about it.   Suffice to say, you’re going to love this recipe.  I can’t find a link to it anywhere online so you’re just going to have to go out and purchase this adorable cookbook full of Dave eye candy, and of course a large array of unpretentious and tasty recipes.  …or you could just sit in a quiet corner at Borders and covertly write it down.   Either way, you win.

PS:  Tivo Alert!  New Ellie Krieger Episodes air this Saturday at 1:00 PM.  Ellie is so my favorite.

A Marinade of Sorts	Cook
Give it a Rest	Peppers, Onions, & Garlic
Lots of Spice - My Idea of a Good Time	Reduce the Coconut Milk & Broth
Mmm…Snow Peas	Have a Heaping Helping

In an effort to be adventurous in the kitchen my love affair with all things Dave Lieberman continues. I have yet to make a recipe from Dave’s collection that I didn’t find thoroughly delicious, and these Chicken and Black Bean Empanadas were no exception. The chicken mixture is spicy, smoky, and surprisingly hearty, and I’ve said it before but it definitely bares repeating — I honestly believe that puff pastry is the world’s perfect food! The twist on this dish is the great Tomato and Pineapple Salsa Fresca that is served on the side. I loved the tanginess of the pineapple, jalapeño, tomato, and scallion mixture. I actually was extremely shocked that these flavors worked so well together. I even ate the leftover salsa the next day at lunch. Obviously that held up much better on day two than the empanadas, which I definitely do not recommend as a leftover meal. Freshly baked is definitely best in this case as they became quite soggy overnight.

Everything Starts With Onions	Let’s Add Some Heat
Add the Chicken & Beans	Cool the Filling
Stir in Chopped Cilantro	Dice, Slice, and Mix Up the Salsa
Roll Out the Pastry Dough	Divide Into Equal Parts
Layer With Chicken & Bean Mixture	Dampen the Edges, Fold Over, and Seal
Brush With Oil and Bake Until Golden	Now Where’s My Margarita?

This Pea Soup is the easiest meal I’ve ever made. After a long day of errand running I was less than thrilled about the prospect of making dinner…OK…that’s a lie. I always like to cook, but I bet you’ve had plenty of moments when you have absolutely zero desire to do anything more than eat a bowl of cereal (It’s a well known fact that CK practically lived on Peanut Butter Puffins until we moved in together). Fight the Lucky Charms urge! This soup is healthy, hearty, and way more satisfying than anything that comes out of a box. Give it a try, I promise you wont be disappointed. Plus, this would be a great kid friendly dish for an upcoming Halloween themed meal. After-all, Pea Soup looks a lot like Witches Brew. Don’t forget to pick up some good, crusty bread. Dipping is the best part.

Gather & Prep	Toss in the Pot, Simmer
Slice (No Nibbling!)	Blend

Comfort & Joy

Before I started dating CK I essentially refused to eat anything spicy. In the past I’ve honestly gone out to dinner at Mexican restaurants and only ordered margaritas and snacked on corn chips, but now I’m addicted to heat. Essentially this means I tend to double the amount of spice, which is exactly what I did with the chili powder called for in the below soup as well as the chipolte pepper in the cornbread muffins.

Combine Cheese, Mix, Corn & Peppers	Spoon
Choped Onion	Sliced Bacon
Minced Garlic	Saute
Add Stock, Spices & Tomatoes	Add Beans & Boil
Stir in Oodles of Cilantro	Thicken
Fresh From the Oven	Garnish

Fire!