Thursday, January 31, 2013

Twice Baked Stuffed Potato with Yams




By: Miriam Borys

Yield:  4 Over Stuffed Potato halves (plus 2 potato skins to turn into an appetizer)

Ingredients:

3  large russet potatoes
1   medium large yam
2 Tbsp. cilantro (diced) - green onion would work well here too

1/2 cup chicken stock 
salt & pepper to taste

1/4 - 1/2 cup olive oil 
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. pepper


Procedure:           

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F (190 C)
Wash potatoes well under cold water.
Dry potato with a clean cloth.    
Add olive oil, 1 tsp. salt & 1 tsp. pepper to a large bowl. Mix well.
Place potatoes in oil and coat evenly and then place on a foil lined baking tray.                                                 
Clean yam and remove any blemishes.
Place the yam in the oil and coat and also place on the same baking tray.
Place on a rack in the oven and bake for 60 - 70 minutes depending on the thickness of the potatoes.
When a paring knife inserted into the middle of the potato goes in easily the potatoes and yam are done.
Remove from the oven and allow to rest on the counter to cool down slightly.
Cut each potato in half lengthwise which gives you 6 half potatoes. 
Working on one half of a potato at a time, use a paring knife (be very careful not to cut yourself) to cut around the potato, 1/4 of an inch from the edge of the jacket as a guide to how much potato you want to remove.
Scoop the potato out of the jacket leaving the 1/4 inch ridge which will keep the potato from collapsing in on itself.
To ensure I have enough potato to over stuff 4 potato halves I use the potato filling from all the potatoes but only stuff 4 of the halves.  (The remaining potato jackets can be sliced, and garnish with cheese. Bake until cheese is melted and serve potato skins as an appetizer) 
While the yam is still hot, carefully peel being careful not to take any of the flesh part of the yam with the peel.
Combine potato bits and yam in a bowl. Season as desired with salt and pepper.
Mash with a potato masher or a fork.  This does not have to be smooth like mashed potatoes but can be if that is the texture you desire.
Wash and chop cilantro. Add warm chicken stock (or vegetable stock) to the mashed potato/yam mixture. Mash or stir until it is well mixed.
Scoop mashed mixture into the scooped out potato halves. Garnish with cilantro and hold in the fridge until dinner time.
To heat, place on a baking tray again and reheat for 30 minutes in a 350 degree oven.
These potatoes make dinner prep so easy as planning ahead and baking the potatoes the day before is always an option.


Chef Miriam Little Borys, B.Ed., MA.
'Cooking Uncovered'
http://www.youtube.com/user/mlborys?feature=mhee
blog: www.cookinguncovered.blogspot.com
Website: www.miriamborys.com

Tuesday, January 22, 2013

Hard Cooked Eggs – How To



By: Miriam Borys

Yield: 4

Ingredients:

4 eggs
cold water to cover eggs
Ice water bath

Procedure:                                                                        
Completely cover eggs with cold water in a cooking pot.
Place on the stove and on high heat bring the water just up to the boil. This takes about 10 minutes at about 700 feet above sea level. The more water you use and the colder the eggs determines how long it will take to bring the water to the boil.
At the boiling point, take pot of boiling water and eggs off the stove, cover and allow to rest for 15 minutes.
After 15 minutes place cooked eggs in very cold water to cool down for 2 -3 minutes. 
Peel and enjoy.

Miriam Little Borys, B.Ed., MA.
'Cooking Uncovered'
http://www.youtube.com/user/mlborys?feature=mhee
blog: www.cookinguncovered.blogspot.com
Website: www.miriamborys.com


Tuesday, January 15, 2013

Easy Chicken Stock


Recipe By:  Miriam Borys

Servings: makes almost 4L of chicken stock (16 cups)

Ingredients:
750g    chicken bones (necks & backs) these are usually so cheap in the grocery stock
2          onions – large (peeling is not really necessary as you will strain the stock after cooling)
3          bay leaves
10         black peppercorns
2 cups  leeks (you can use the whole leek or just the ends that you can’t use for soup making)
3 stalks celery (2-3 cups)
1 bunch cilantro stems (save the aromatic leaves for other recipes but use the stems for stock making)
Optional:  fresh thyme, rosemary or oregano
5-6 L COLD water
Wash and chop vegetables  
Add chicken, vegetables, bay leaf, & peppercorns to a large stock pot and cover with cold water. Make sure the cold water covers all the ingredients.
Bring up to the boiling point. Immediately turn down and simmer for 1 hour. Skim off any impurities off the top of the stock but do not disturb the stock.
Cool stock in the fridge overnight if possible to allow the fat to congeal on the top.
Pour stock through a fine wire mesh strainer to preserve the liquid stock and to remove all the impurities. Discard the cooked vegetables and chicken bones.
Keep stock in the fridge for a couple of days until needed or freeze stock for later use.
Principles of Stock Making[i]
Start with cold water that covers all the ingredients
Simmer stock gently
Do not cover
Skim off any impurities that rise to the top but do not stir
Strain carefully
Cool quickly

Miriam Little Borys, B.Ed., MA.
'Cooking Uncovered'
http://www.youtube.com/user/mlborys?feature=mhee
blog: www.cookinguncovered.blogspot.com
Website: www.miriamborys.com
                                                                                                                                             



[i] Labensky et al, ‘On Cooking A Textbook of Culinary Fundamentals’ Pearson Prentice Hall, 2006

Thursday, January 10, 2013

Easy Moroccan Style Chicken




By: Miriam Borys

Inspired by: Brent Calis ( Brent Calis Photography 
http://brentcalisphotography.com/blog) 

Yields: 15 chicken pieces of chicken
Time:  Marinate for 2 – 24 hours
Broil 10 – 15 minutes
Bake  20 minutes
Steaming vegetables for the last 10 minutes of cooking

Ingredients:
2 tbsp. ground cinnamon
2 tbsp.  ground ginger
1 tbsp.  turmeric
½ tbsp. black pepper
1 tbsp. salt
1/3 cup olive oil
1 large zip-lock bag for marinating chicken
15 - 20 chicken thighs bone-in - thawed
Combine spices & oil in a zip-lock bag.
 Add thawed chicken pieces and message until all chicken is coated.  Allow to marinate for desired time. .
Preheat oven to ‘broil’ setting. Broil chicken for 10-15 minutes until it is crispy.
Turn oven to 350 degrees on convection and continue to cook chicken for 20 minutes until the chicken is cooked (an internal temperature of 165 – 170 is the only accurate measure of doneness – use probe thermometer).
After 10 minutes on convection add prepared vegetables to the steamer & steam for 10 minutes. These vegetables are a great addition to this Moroccan style dinner.


Miriam Little Borys, B.Ed., MA.
'Cooking Uncovered'
http://www.youtube.com/user/mlborys?feature=mhee
blog: www.cookinguncovered.blogspot.com
Website: www.miriamborys.com


Sunday, January 6, 2013

Mini Frittata Bites


Recipe Title:  Mini Frittata Bites (click here to go directly to my YouTube video of this recipe)

By: Miriam Borys

Yield: 12

Ingredients:

12 eggs
3 slices ham
2 Tomatoes
1 baguette or bread of choice
hot sauce

salt & pepper (a small sprinkle on 
each frittata bite)

options, ham, cheese, green onions, salmon,
pesto sauce, spinach to name a few


Coat each muffin cup with olive oil or coconut oil so that after baking the bites can be removed easily.
Cut the bread to size & place in the bottom of each muffin cup.
Cut ham or tomato to size and place on top of the bread.

OPTIONS:
At this point you have many options to choose from that would taste amazing in these bites. Please remember that leftovers can be an inspiration for these mini frittatas:

hot sauce
cheese – grated cheese works very well for these bites
green onion - diced
spinach – chopped
smoked salmon
jalapenos
chives – fresh if possible
fresh herbs (basil, thyme, oregano)
cilantro
flat leaf parsley – chopped
sautéed onions or shallots
small diced mushrooms – sautéed
pesto sauce
Crack each egg separately into a small dish. Whisk each egg with a fork so that the yolk is broken.
If you are adding pesto sauce, add the pesto first to the egg in the small bowl and whisk together before adding to the muffin cup.

Pour a whisked egg into each muffin cup over the desired options & bread.
Bake at 350
° for 15 minutes.
Remove from muffin pans and serve hot or prepare and bake ahead and freeze individually to serve later.
This breakfast snack would be a perfect go-to item for those hungry working peeps that tend to eat breakfast on their commute to work.

Miriam Little Borys, B.Ed., MA.
'Cooking Uncovered'
http://www.youtube.com/user/mlborys?feature=mhee
blog: www.cookinguncovered.blogspot.com
Website: www.miriamborys.com


Friday, January 4, 2013

Vegetable Clam Chowder


 

Recipe Title:  Vegetable Clam Chowder


This is a perfect dinner for a cold January night  when soup is the perfect choice and you want to minimize the cooking. This all-in-one soup blends together natures best ingredients...tomatoes, onions, garlic, carrots, bell peppers, & 1 small can of clams...such an amazing taste. I hope you enjoy this great meal!


By: Miriam Borys

Servings: 6
Time:  40 minutes start to finish

Ingredients:

3 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. coconut oil
2 onion – diced
3 garlic cloves
2 carrots
1 yellow bell pepper
1 red bell pepper
1 can whole baby clams  (142g)  
1 L Vegetable broth
2 cups white wine
2 russet potatoes – peeled & cut into large cubes (these potatoes are more hearty and do not become mushy when cooking...perfect for a chowder)
1 can (28 oz.) diced tomatoes
Hot sauce
1 tbsp. bouquet garni 
Salt & pepper

Dice onions & garlic. Saute in oils in a pre heated hot soup pot.
Peel carrots & dice into chunks.
Clean & core bell peppers (see video for the most efficient way to do this)
Add diced carrots & peppers. Saute for 5 minutes
Add salt & pepper, herbs & hot sauce.
Deglaze with white wine.
Add vegetable broth, canned tomatoes and prepared potatoes.
Cook for 25 minutes until potato chunks are tender.