Resolve to cook, cook, cook!!!!

Breakfast/Brunch / January 7, 2015

You’ve heard me say that if possible, I would cook all the time. And I think all of us have a dual life that splits our desires. That is how I am with cooking. Every extra moment I am thinking of food. Unfortunately, or fortunately, I also love my daily life as a business owner, writer, and branding therapist. And I guess my clients love me back, because my portfolio of business has grown exponentially in the last year. This is all good, except it is squeezing out my cooking time, and that is sad. I have to make sure it doesn’t replace it altogether or I’ll go positively bonkers, but for January at least, that will be the case.

In lieu of single posts about one meal, I’m going to share some photos and recipes about the little bit of cooking I did over the holidays. Why wasn’t there much time plating, photographic and blogging? Well, we had company here and spent lots of time waiting to hear the hostess say, “party of 12, your table is ready!” So you’ll have to be happy with a few stellar dishes.

Ginger Soy Bourbon Grilled Chicken

With Bourbon Sweet Potato Rice Pilaf (see separate recipe for this side)
A nod to our Southern Favorite, Jack Daniels Bourbon Whiskey

Serves 4

Ingredients:

3-4 skinless, boneless chicken breasts cut in half, lengthwise

Marinade:

1/3 C bourbon
1/3 C soy sauce
3 T hoison sauce
½ t sesame oil
Juice from ½ lime
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 T grated fresh ginger
Juice from one orange
Juice from two oranges
2 T sugar
Slices of lime
1 t corn starch
1/3 C water
Fresh parsley

Direction:

Mix all ingredients to lime, using only ONE orange for marinade. Reserve other juice from the other orange for the sauce. Arrange breasts in glass baking dish. Reserve ½ C of the marinade and set aside. Cover the chicken with the rest of the marinade. Let sit for 2 hours but not more than 6. Heat your grill, and cook according to your preference until barely done. Remove, let sit covered with foil for 10 minutes. In a small saucepan, heat the ½ C of marinade and the other juice from the second orange until almost boiling. Whisk together the corn starch and water and whisk it into the hot liquid quickly; it will get thick immediately. Take off the heat. Slice chicken. Serve with sauce, a slice of new lime, some parsley and if desired, some sesame seeds.

Bourbon Sweet Potato Rice Pilaf

A nod to our Southern Favorite, Jack Daniels Bourbon Whiskey

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

2 C cooked white rice
1/3 C golden raisins
½ t each coriander powder and ginger powder
Sprinkling of hot chili flakes if desired
3 T bourbon
Kosher salt and black pepper
1 and a half large, or 2 med
sweet potatoes, peeled and diced small
½ C white onion very large dice
2 T sunflower oil
1 T honey
3 T butter

Directions:

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F. Place sweet potatoes and onion on cookie sheet, pour the oil and honey over it and season with salt. Toss to coat. Cook for 30 minutes or until a bit of caramelization forms on the veggies and they are soft. In a sauce pan, add the rice, raisins, bourbon, spices, pepper, a little more salt and butter and set a side.
When the veggies are cooked, scrape all into the pan. Heat on medium high heat until you hear a bit of searing, about 5 minutes or until very hot and butter is melted. Serve immediately.

Pineapple Salsa Baked Cod with Grilled Tomatillos

A nod to our Southern Favorite, Jack Daniels Bourbon Whiskey

Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 large cod filets, patted dry
1 C canned pineapple salsa (I used Newman’s Own)
2 T olive oil
1/3 C fresh grated parmesan cheese
½ C crushed sea salt flavored Town House Crackers
Salt and pepper

Direction:

Rub filets with oil, season with salt and pepper then set in baking dish so they’re almost touching but NOT crowded. Pour over the salsa, the cheese and then the crackers. Bake in a 400 degree F oven for about 20 minutes or until opaque. Serve with your favorite sides.
For the tomatillos, cut in half through the middle. Oil a grill pan and then heat until very hot. Sear on the flesh side first, for about 5 minutes, until very charred. Turn them over and do the same on reverse. Set aside until serving. They can cool all the way. TIP: Make sure your grill is very hot. If you try and cook slowly they’ll get mushy.
Serve with russet potatoes tossed with salt and pepper and chili flakes and sautéed until done.