Cycling Foodie

Late afternoon … take a ride and savor a gorgeous Indian Summer day!

All the while, thinking about what to cook for dinner. Of course there will be salad, but I find myself really in the mood for roasted chicken … and roasted potatoes.

Salad … 

Organic baby heirloom lettuce with avocado,

 the last of the summer garden tomatoes (a special thank you to John & Carol), garnished with Laura Chenel chevre (http://www.laurachenel.com/), and UC Davis Centennial Blend Extra Virgin Olive Oil (http://oliveoil.ucdavis.edu/). A little freshly ground coarse sea salt. A touch of freshly ground Trader Joe’s Everyday Seasoning. Perfection in a bowl.

Roasted potatoes …

Roasted chicken thighs …

Look at all of that juice the roasted chicken thighs produced. I just HAD to make gravy. I rarely make gravy, but this called for gravy.

OK, so there was not much fat in that juice because I skinned the thighs before roasting, so I put a about a tablespoon each of olive oil and butter in a sauce pan. Heat that until the butter is melted, add a generous tablespoon of unbleached flour. I ALWAYS use unbleached or whole wheat flour, NEVER bleached. I added some Herbs de Provence, but you can add whatever herbs you like. Whisk until smooth, add the juice from the roasted chicken and keep whisking until it bubbles. Add chicken stock as necessary to create the right consistency for your tastes. Remember to season to your taste with salt and pepper, and serve hot.

We enjoyed this with a 2010 Sofia Rose from Francis Coppola Winery (http://www.franciscoppolawinery.com/visit). Well, I did. My sweetie had a Sierra Nevada Pale Ale (http://www.sierranevada.com/beers/paleale.html)

Dessert … brownies …

Sunday morning …

Inspired by my friend Julie’s Saturday morning Facebook post about her homemade apple fritters, I was inspired to experiment with apple pancakes today. Using Marion Cunningham’s Buttermilk Pancakes base recipe (The Breakfast Book, p. 112), I made a few modifications:

Apple Pancakes

½ cup non-fat Greek yogurt, plain
½ cup non-fat milk
1 egg, separated
3 tablespoons butter, melted and cooled slightly
¼ cup whole wheat flour
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 tart apple, cut into a fairly small dice

• Put the egg white in a clean bowl suitable for whisking.  Set aside.
• Whisk dry ingredients together.
• Mix together the yogurt, milk, and egg yolk.
• Whisk egg whites until light, but not quite to stiff peaks.
• Add melted butter to  milk mixture.
• Add flour mixture to milk mixture and stir until just combined. Do NOT overmix!
• Carefully stir in the apples.
• Gently fold in the whipped egg whites.
• Be really careful to NOT overmix this batter.
• Cook on a hot griddle (cast iron works best) until you can see bubbles coming through the batter, then flip.
• These can be held for a short time in a 200-250 degree oven while you cook enough to feed everyone.
• Serve them hot with your preferred toppings. Me? I prefer a bit of butter and real maple syrup.

Works Cited

Cunningham, M. (1987) The Breakfast Book. Alfred A. Knopf, Inc., New York

Voila!

Roasted Curried Vegetables

These are so simple to make. Preheat your oven to 325 degrees. Clean and cut broccoli and cauliflower into evenly cut large bite-sized pieces; drain well. If you’re using whole broccoli and cauliflower, you can use the stems, too. Mini or fingerling potatoes are perfect for this, but you can also use large potatoes, cut into bite-sized pieces. You will want to cut the potatoes into smaller pieces than the broccoli and cauliflower, though, to ensure even roasting. Cut one onion (I prefer red) into about 1-inch cubes. Drizzle the vegetables with a good olive oil, then sprinkle generously with your favorite curry powder. Toss well to combine. Spread evenly on a baking pan. Do not crowd the vegetables – otherwise they’ll steam and not roast. Place the baking pan(s) in the middle of your preheated oven. If you’re using multiple baking pans, be sure to leave plenty of room between them and to rotate them (top to bottom) after about 30 minutes.

Depending on the size of your cuts, the vegetables will take about 60 to 90 minutes to roast.

Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Yams or sweet potatoes are a divine addition.

You may want to cook the potatoes or sweet potatoes separately. Sometimes they take longer to roast than the other vegetables.

Enjoy!