Tag: Classico

Feta-Brined Roast Chicken à la Melissa Clark

On By lukephillaryhIn Ode to NYTLeave a comment
Brined roast chicken Melissa Clark recipe
The ~ perfect ~ sunday night dinner

Roasted chicken. It’s a classic dish. But what recipe to choose? It’s all over the web, in every cookbook. There’s a plethora of tips, an abundance of varieties. The options are endless! Luke and I initially made your typical roast chicken – lemon and garlic in the cavity, salt and pepper, yada yada yada. But then NYT Food posted a new Melissa Clark video – Feta-Brined Roast Chicken. Of course we had to try it. Melissa makes just a few modifications to the usual recipe. The result: a roast chicken with all its wonderful traditional characteristics, but a nuance of newfangled taste.

One important lesson we’ve learned from Melissa’s recipe:

Brining makes everything better!!

You’ll find that this recipe produces an especially moist and flavorful chicken with extra crispy skin.

Ingredients:

  • 1 3.5-4 lb whole chicken
  • 2 oz feta (plus about 2 oz more if you’d like to add to the pan drippings at the end of cooking)
  • 4-6 cups water
  • 2 tsp salt (brine) + 1 1/2 tsp salt (dry rub)
  • 1-2 TBS freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 TBS dried oregano
  • 2 large lemons
  • 1/4 cup olive oil

Directions:

  1. Brine the chicken: Do this the night before serving or morning of (brine for at least 8 hours, up to 36 hours). In a blender, combine water, 2 tsp salt, and 2 oz feta and blend until smooth. But your chicken in an extra-large resealable plastic bag or container and cover with feta-brine.  Add extra water to fully submerge chicken if necessary.
  2. Prep chicken to cook: Remove chicken from the brine, pat dry, and let rest for about 1 hour so that it reaches room temperature.
  3. Make dry rub and dress chicken: Combine 1 1/2 tsp salt, 1-2 TBS black pepper (we tend towards 1 TBS), 2 TBS oregano, and zest of 2 lemons. Rub all over the bird and in the cavity.  Do not skimp on rub!! Cut one lemon into quarters and place into the cavity. Truss the chicken.
  4. Cook: Preheat the oven to 450°F. Place a large, oven proof skillet (cast iron pan) over high heat.  Once heated, add oil. Place chicken breast-side up (legs in the air!). Transfer entire pan to the oven.  Cook for 50 minutes – 1 hour, basting once or twice. To test if finished, pierce chicken with a knife.  If juices run clear the chicken is ready!*
  5. Remove chicken from oven.  Let rest for 10 minutes before slicing (check out this video for carving instruction). Add some feta and juice of 1 lemon to the pan drippings to make a simple sauce. Enjoy with a baguette and green salad!

Details: Serves 4 (Luke and I love using the leftovers for chicken salads).

*Note 1: Another way to test doneness is with a meat thermometer.  Chicken is finished when the internal temperature reaches 150 – 160°F.

To print the recipe, click here: Feta-Brined Roast Chicken

Classic, Simple Banana Bread

On By lukephillaryhIn Luke's DishesLeave a comment
Banana bread simple Nigella Lawson recipe
Baked to ~ perfection ~

Often, we purposefully set aside a couple of bananas, letting them get seriously ripe. We love a pile of black speckled bananas because it gives us the perfect excuse to make a loaf of banana bread.  And if we are ever lacking enough bananas, there’s a good chance our bodega on the corner will have an excellent selection of extra ripe bananas. This is Luke’s recipe (originally sourced from Nigella Lawson) and he is the b-bread maker. But I am the expert on moistness.  And, strongly believing moistness is a vital characteristic for perfectly baked banana bread, I always insist that we take the bread out of the oven a bit earlier than Nigella suggests. Despite banana bread being Luke’s domain, he begrudgingly listens. The result (in my opinion): perfectly baked b-bread.

Ingredients:

  • 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
  • 1/4 cup + 2 TBS whole wheat flour
  • 2 tsp baking powder
  • 1/2 tsp baking soda
  • 1/2 tsp salt
  • 1/2 cup butter, melted
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 large eggs
  • 3-4 **very** ripe bananas, mashed
  • 1/4 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract

Directions:

  1. Preheat oven to 325°F and butter and flour a 9 x 5 inch bread pan.
  2. Mix dry ingredients (flour, baking soda, baking powder, salt) in a medium sized bowl.
  3. In a large bowl, mix the melted butter and sugar.  Beat in the eggs, one at a time.  Then add the mashed bananas, whisking until incorporate with eggs and sugar.  It’s ok if there are a few banana lumps. Next, with a wooden spoon, stir in walnuts and vanilla extract.
  4. In 3 batches, add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients, mixing with a wooden spoon until relatively smooth.
  5. Pour mix into loaf pan.  Give a few shakes to make sure the mix is even in the pan.  Bake for 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes (Nigella’s suggestion.  We typically cook closer to an hour).  You can tell when the bread is ready by inserting a toothpick into the middle (the thickest part).  When you remove the toothpick, it should come out fairly clean.

Details: Makes one 9 x 5 inch loaf of banana bread.

Perfect for breakfast, though we also enjoy a slice toasted in a buttered skillet with a scoop of vanilla ice cream for dessert!

To print the recipe, click here: Classic Banana Bread

~ Classico ~ Spaghetti + Meatballs

On By lukephillaryhIn Classico2 Comments
Spaghetti Meatballs homemade
The Meatballs

Hillary says, “if you’re not using at least two kinds of meats in your balls, your balls aren’t the best they can be!”

Ingredients – meatballs:

  • 1 1/2-2 lbs ground meat > recommended: 1 lb pork, 1/2 lb beef, 1/4 lb ground lamb or veal
  • 1/4 cup lard
  • 1 cup white bread crumbs
  • 1/2 onion, finely chopped and cooked 10-15 minutes (semi caramelized)
  • Approximately 1/3 cup grated parmesan
  • 3 TBS finely chopped parsley
  • 2 tsp dried oregano
  • 1 1/2 tsp toasted fennel seeds, ground
  • 1 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 2 eggs, beaten

Ingredients – sauce:

  • olive oil – to coat pan
  • 1 yellow onion, diced
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 tsp red pepper flakes
  • 1/3 cup red wine
  • 28 oz can crushed tomatoes
  • 1 cup water
  • spices: salt, pepper, 1 1/2 tsp

Directions:

  1. Meatballs: Mix all the ingredients, except the eggs, which should be beaten separately. Then add to mixture and combine.  Cover and let sit for at least 30 minutes while working on sauce.  Can also chill up to 2 days in the fridge.
  2.  Sauce: Heat a cast iron skillet, dutch oven, etc. over medium heat and add olive oil and then onions.  Stirring often, cook 4-5 minutes.  Then add red pepper flakes and garlic, cooking 1-2 minutes more.  Add wine and reduce to a glaze, 2-4 minutes more.  Add water and tomatoes, season, bring to a boil and then lower or turn off heat.  Keep warm and return to meatballs.
  3. Preheat oven to 375ºF.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper (or use nonstick sheets).  Make balls, aiming for golf ball size, and place on baking sheets.  Bake in oven till brown, 10-12 minutes, flipping the meatballs halfway through cooking.
  4. Transfer meatballs to sauce and bring to a simmer over medium heat.  Reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 20-25 minutes.  Prepare spaghetti while meatballs and sauce are simmering.

Serve with lots of parm!! (Hillary’s suggestion)

Details: Makes 20-25 meatballs (approx. 3 days worth of leftovers)

To print the recipe, click here: ~ Classico ~ Spaghetti + Meatballs