Chili Con Carne a la me

Chili Con Carne a la me.

This chili con carne is my version of a chili. You will find more original recipes out there. But this is the way I like it. Years ago I started out with the recipe my mom used, not spicy at all. Through the years my version became more spicy, more smokey and got more colors and beans. And one thing is for sure, we never had any toppings on my moms chili.

Serves 8-10.

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds ground beef 
• 2 onions, chopped
• olive oil
• 5 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 can tomato paste
• 4 cans (15 oz) diced tomatoes
• 1 can chipotle in adobo sauce, chop the chipotles, use less if you do not like it spicy
• 2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, I use Valrhona 
• 4-6 bell peppers, bite-sized diced
• 6 cans beans, rinsed, I used black beans white beans, and red kidney beans
• salt & pepper

Toppings:

• sour cream
• jalapeno, sliced
• scallions, sliced
• cheddar cheese
• cilantro

Directions:

Heat olive oil in a large pot. I use my large slow cooker, where the insert goes on the stovetop.  Sauté the onions until they are golden brown. Take the onions out and into a little bowl. 

Add a little more oil to the pot and brown the ground beef, crumbling the meat with a wooden spoon. Try not to stir it to much, the more you move the meat around, the more you cool down the pan. And you want the meat to get some searing and color. When the meat is browned, add the tomato paste, letting it get some heat, to get a sweeter and deeper tomato flavor. Then add the garlic, onions, diced tomatoes, cocoa and the chipotle with the sauce. Season with salt and pepper. 
Here you can add more spices like paprika, cayenne, cumin or chili powder. Before I fell in love with chipotle, I used fresh jalapeños and some smoked paprika in my chilies.
Let the chili cook covered at a low simmer for 2-4 hours, stirring occasionally. I set my slow cooker to 8 hours on low.  

After 2-4 hours, (6 hours in slow cooker), add the bell peppers and after another 30 minutes add the rinsed beans, and let it simmer for yet another 30 minutes, before it is ready for the final seasoning and serving. 

Serve the chili with toppings to your likings and a few slices of good baguette.

Enjoy!
 

Oven Roasted Chicken with Chickpeas

Oven Roasted Chicken with Chickpeas.

I love a one-pot dinner or in this case one-bakingpan dinner, well if you serve it with steamed rice, you need to make those too. The yogurt helps making the chicken juicy and making the skin nice and crispy. I did not add the chili or the jalapeño, but I think this dish need a spicier note.

This recipe is kinda like an Indian-style chicken dish, without the spiciness. If you like spicy food add some chili powder og a sliced fresh chili to the chickpea mixture. The recipe is a adapted from a New York Times recipe.

Serves 4.

Ingredients:

• 8-10 chicken thighs, bone-in and skin-on

Marinade:

• ¾ cup (1¾ dl) greek yogurt

• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

• 2 tablespoons water

• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric

• 1 teaspoon ground cumin

• 2 teaspoon salt 

• ½ teaspoon fresh ground pepper

Chickpeas and cauliflower:

• 1 cauliflower, in florets

• ½ red onion, sliced

• 2 cans of chickpeas (garbanzo beans)

• 2 tablespoon olive oil

• 1 teaspoon ground turmeric 

• 1 teaspoon ground cumin

• ½ teaspoon chili powder - optional

• 1 tablespoon fennel seeds

• salt & pepper

Lemony onions:

• ½ red onion, sliced

• 2 tablespoons lemon juice

• salt 

Yoghurt sauce:

• ¾ cup (1¾ dl) greek yogurt

• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

• ½ jalapeno, grated - only if you like spicy food

• fresh mint, chopped

• fresh coriander, chopped

• salt to taste

Sprinkle with:

• fresh mint, chopped

• fresh coriander, chopped

Directions:

In a ziplock bag mix the marinade and add chicken making sure to coat it evenly. Let the chicken marinate overnight in the refrigerator or at least 30 minutes at room temperature.

Preheat the oven to 400 ℉ (200℃).

Scrape the excess marinade off the chicken, and place the chicken parts on a parchment paper lined baking sheet. Bake the chicken for 15 minutes. Next time I might just roast the chicken for 10 minutes before adding the chickpeas, to make it a little crisper.

Mix olive oil, chickpeas, cauliflower florets, fennel seed, cumin, turmeric, chili, half the red onion slices, salt and pepper. Making sure to get the oil and seasoning all over the chick peas and cauliflower. Place chickpeas and cauliflower florets round the chicken on the baking sheet. Bake for another 25-35 minutes until the chicken is crisp and tender, tossing the chickpeas mixture occasionally. 

Meanwhile mix the ingredients for the lemony onions, and set aside. Make the yogurt sauce and refrigerate. 

When the chicken is ready, sprinkle the lemony onions, mint and cilantro. Serve with steamed rice and Yogurt sauce. 

Enjoy!

Béarnaise Sauce - Sous Vide

Béarnaise Sauce - Sous Vide

Bearnaise is one of the most famous sauces ever. And basically it is just butter, butter and a little egg yolk and acidity. But it's mostly butter. Normally bearnaise made from scratch is kinda nerve wracking. You want a warm sauce, but you do not want it to separate, which it has a tendency to do. Another thing, you want to be able to serve the sauce along side your perfectly cooked and still hot steak. So it tends to always be a stressful endeavor to get everything ready at once. This recipe, will help you tremendously. By sous vide'ing the sauce components, you can cook up your steak and sides, at the same time. So just before you slice and serve the steak, you quickly blend the sauce and season it, and everything will hit the dinner table at once. 

Disclaimer: This sauce is made with raw eggs. I recommend using pasteurized eggs. This would minimize the risk of getting Salmonella food poisoning. You can find pasteurized eggs in some supermarkets here in California, on safeeggs.com you can see where to find them in your neighborhood.  In Denmark you'll find it right next to regular eggs. For tips and information on how to handle eggs, check out FDA’s website. The Danish version of FDA,  Fødevarestyrelsen also has advisory on eggs. 

Serves 6-8 normal people or 4 Danes 😉.

Ingredients:

Reduction:

• 1 bunch fresh tarragon, save some leaves for finishing the sauce

• 4 small or 2 medium shallots, minced

• ½ cup (1 dl) white wine vinegar

• ½ cup (1 dl) dry white wine

• 6 whole black peppers (for the reduction)

Sauce:

• 3 egg yolks

• 300 g butter

• 3-4 tablespoons reduction

• Salt and pepper to taste

• tarragon leaves, finely chopped

Directions:

Reduction:

In a small saucepan, combine sprigs of the tarragon, shallots, vinegar pepper and wine over medium-high heat. Bring to a simmer and cook until reduced by half. Remove from heat, strain the liquid and set it aside to cool. You can make larger amounts and freeze it in smaller portions in an ice cube tray.

Sauce:

Preheat water bath for 131℉ (55℃). (You can go as high as 140℉ (60℃) if you want to, keeping in mind not to exceed 149℉ (65℃) where the eggs coagulate.

Place reduction, butter and egg yolks in a heat resistant plastic bag, do not seal.
Place the bag in the water bath for 30 minutes.
Pour the heated mixture into a blender, and blend until you have a thick sauce. I use a immersion blender. Season with salt, pepper and tarragon, and serve immediately.

Enjoy!

Danish Breaded Pork Patties - Karbonader

Danish Breaded Pork Patties - Karbonader

This dish is a walk down memory lane, an old school danish dish. In Denmark you would call this type of food Mormor mad (grandmother food). And for sure this is the type of food from yesteryear, but sometimes this kind of comfort food is soothing. A lot of traditional Danish dishes are only seasoned with salt and pepper, making the ingredients take center stage. Some might call it bland, and for sure it can be bland. This I would call filled with subtle flavors. A juicy pork patty with a nice crispy crust, here served with fingerling potatoes, cauliflower and another classic: peas and carrots in a white sauce.

Serves 4.

Ingredients:

Patties:

• 1 pound (450 g) ground pork
• ¼ pound (120 g) ground veal
• 1 egg
• bread crumbs
• salt & pepper

White sauce with peas and carrots:

• 25 g butter
• 2½ tablespoons of all-purpose flour
• 300 ml milk
• 100-200 ml water from the peas and carrots
• ⅛ teaspoon sugar
• salt
• 600 g peas and diced carrots (I used frozen peas and carrots)

Directions:

Patties:

Start by dividing the meat into 4, shaping them into circular thick patties.
Beat an egg in a shallow bowl. In another shallow bowl pour in the breadcrumbs, seasoning it with salt and pepper.
Dip the pork patties in the egg mixture, making sure to cover the entire patty in egg. Then roll the patty in the breadcrumbs, again making sure to cover the whole patty. Repeat with the last 3.

Heat a mixture of oil and butter on a frying pan. Fry the patties for about 5-8 minutes over medium heat until they are well done, flipping them carefully from time to time.. 

White sauce with peas and carrots:

Cook the peas and carrots for about 10 minutes, in light salted water. Reserve some of the water for the sauce. 

Melt the butter in a saucepan. Add the flour, mix with a whisk and warm through, making sure not to get any color on the mixture.

Add some vegetable water while whisking vigorously making a thick paste without any lumps. Add more water and milk until you have the desired consistency, you want it to be a bit on the thick side. Let the sauce boil a few minutes to get rid of the flour taste. Season the sauce with sugar and salt. Stir in the cooked peas and carrots.

Serve the Karbonader with boiled potato, boiled cauliflower and a whiter sauve with peas and carrots.

Enjoy!

Grilled Portobello Mushrooms

Grilled Portobello Mushrooms

I love almost all thing mushroom, and grilled portobello mushrooms is right up my alley. It's a quick side for a backyard BBQ. Adding the parmesan make a perfect flavor combination.

The sesame seeds on the photo, is an accidental 'cross contamination' from the chicken on the grill.

Ingredients:

• 2 portobello mushrooms
• ½ cup (1 dl) freshly grated parmesan
• about ¼ stick (ca 30 g) butter, salted and soft
• a splash of olive oil, for brushing the top of the mushrooms 
• A sprinkle of chopped parsley

Directions:

Preheat the grill.

Clean the portobello mushrooms with a damp paper towel and remove the stems. Brush the caps with olive oil and set aside gills side up.

Mix butter and parmesan, and divide it evenly over the mushroom caps. Grill over hot grill for about 10 minutes. You want the mushrooms to be soft, but not mushy.  Let the mushrooms rest for a few minutes, to soak up the butter.

Enjoy!