Brown some potatoes in the oven, deep frier, pan fry. 

While waiting on the potatoes: 
Seed and chop 4 Jalapinos 
Add to a frying pan with some evoo not disturbing until one side is dark. 
Toss in 1 tbs of minced garlic and stir for about 20 seconds 
Add the juice from 3-4 Oranges 
1 - 2 tsp smoked paprika 
1/2 tbs salt 
1 - 2 tsp ground cumin 
1 cup water 

Once at a simmer add: 
1 tbs butter gyrating the pan until incorporated 
simmer until reduced about 1/2 

mix a 1 tbsp of flour with warm water in a cup until there's no lumps 
while mixing the sauce slowly add the flour water mixture until the sauce is slightly thick. 

Add potatoes and toss until evenly covered. 

Would be great with some pulled pork or chicken on top, but we ate it solo. 

Last night I decided that for dinner I wanted a salad. However I wanted something substantial that wouldn't leave me hungry 30 minutes later. For the primary protein I decided on roasted chicken, which it seems every major grocery store has ready to go these days in their deli. Safeway had some beautiful green leaf lettuce so I used that as my primary green. The construction went something like this.

When I got home I started soaking a handful of craisins in some dark rum, and set them aside. Then I rinsed and tore up my green leaf, put it in a colander and mixed in some field greens for variety. I put the mix, colander and all, into the fridge.

*Tip* Put your salad plates into the refrigerator or freezer while preparing the salad to keep the vegitables crisp over the course of a long dinner.

Then I pulled all the meat off 1/2 of my roasted chicken setting the skin aside and gave it a rough chop. The chicken was put into a bowl along with the mayo and spices and was mixed until all ingredients were evenly distributed. Put that into the fridge until the salad is ready to assemble.

Toast some pine nuts in a pan over medium-high heat until they start to brown.

Peel the outer skin off of a carrot; then continue using the carrot peeler to create thin strips of carrot and peel the whole carrot down. Once you have an unpeelable core left just give it a rough chop. Put the carrot in the fridge. 

Cut up the chicken skin and put on some tin foil, and into an oven/toaster oven on broil/toast for about 10 min or until crispy. 

Time to make the salad dressing. First mix the sour cream and mayo in a bowl, then add all spices according to your taste and mix well. Put the dressing in a piping bag/ziplock/squeeze bottle.

Pull your plates and ingredients out of the fridge.

Cut an avocado into quarters, then cut each quarter into 4 slivers and arrange four pieces on each plate, pointing up, right, down, and left, on the outer edge of the plate.

*Tip* If this salad is going to sit for more than 10 minutes before serving toss the avocado slivers in a little lemon or lime juice before plating.

Then put down your bed of lettuce in the center. Create a round patty out of the chicken salad and put right on top of the salad.

Next, sprinkle the pine nuts, and carrot strips over the top.

Give your rum craisins a chop and sprinkle lightly around the edge of the salad, and plate.

Then squeeze on your salad dressing in a zigzag pattern. Add a few bits of your crispy chicken skin right on the center of your chicken salad to finish it off.

Serve with a dry white wine and/or lemon sparkling water.

Salad Ingredients: 
Green leaf lettuce
Mixed field greens
Carrot
Pine Nuts
Craisins
Avacado
Chicken Salad

Chicken Salad Ingredients:
roasted chicken
Mayo (enough to coat, not drown)
Cayane Pepper
Paprika
Salt

Salad Dressing Ingredients:
2 parts sour cream
1 part mayo
Cayane Pepper
Crushed Red Pepper Flakes
Smoked Paprika
Garlic Powder
Onion Powder
 

I dropped by Amano's Pizza Bistro last night to pick up a bite to eat. I got pan fried dover sole with broccoli and cheese rosoto, and white anchovie with lemon and chive mascarpone bruchetta. The small broccoli florets really changes the texture of the rosoto, and the flavors were magnificent. Amano's also has cooking fish down perfect. There's just a little bit of crispy browning on the surface of the fish, and it's moist and flavorful on the inside. I bring up Amano's this time not to rave about their food so much as to announce an event I just learned about.

Next Tuesday (November 17th 2009) they're having a wine tasting event. It's a 3 course meal paired with 3 wines starting at 6:30pm. The first course is Kathy's Homemade Fresh Green Corn Tamales, Salsa de Chile Guajillo, and Natas, served with a red wine (TBA). Course 2 is a Salad of Curly Endive, Apples, Duck Breast, and Scallions with a Creamy Mustard Dressing and Herbed Croutons. Course 2 is also served with a Red (TBA). The third course is a Cassoulet in the style of Castelnaudary. A baked Casserole of Cannelini Beans, Pork Loin, House made Sausage and Crusty Bread crumbs. The cost for the whole event is $45/person, which although is more than I normally spend at Amano's for two people, I believe will be well worth every penny.

If you're interested in attending it is RSVP only, so drop me a line and I'll get you in contact with the right person, or call Amano's yourself and I'll see you there!

Fresh and Easy makes pizza making easy. I stumbled across their pizza and focaccia dough a few weeks ago and have been quite happy with the results. The first pizza I made I used their rosemary focaccia dough. Following the instructions I oiled the pan and the dough, but I stretched it long and thin so that it would cover my whole baking tray. Then I lightly salted the top and put it in the oven at the recommended temperature until it was about 75% done. At this point I pulled it out of the oven and topped it with the sauce I made (there's no reason you can't use jarred spaghetti sauce for this I just happen to like making pizza/pasta sauces) and fresh mozzarella, roasted red peppers, herbed goat cheese and some tapenade I mixed up. I bumped the heat in the oven up as high as it would go on bake and then put the pizza back in until it was golden brown and bubbly.

Today I used their dough labeled for pizza and followed the same method I had used with the focaccia. I oiled the pan, stretched the dough, lightly salted and added some herbs, then tossed it in the oven until 75% done. This time I put just cheese and basil on half; then cheese and sauce on the other half. The cheese side came out like awesome cheesy bread, and the sauce half came out like a good cheese pizza.

The lesson here isn't so much the toppings that I added to the pizza as much as the process. Prep time on these (minus the sauce/topping preparation) was less than 10 minutes each. Add about 20 minutes for bake time and you have a fresh pizza in less time than it would take to have one delivered.

I can't say enough good things about Amano's Pizza Bistro (16th St & Baseline in Phoenix AZ). The outer shell of the building presumes nothing, the name might lead you to believe that maybe you can get a nice slice and a grinder, but this is not what Amano's is. Step inside the small brick building and you'll be greeted by well dressed wait staff, sat at tables lit with votive candles and smells of delicious Italian inspired concoctions wafting from the kitchen. Their main menu is creative, containing mostly spruced up Italian classics. Their real gems are in the daily specials though. A bruchetta of the day which could be anything from herbed goat cheese, roasted red peppers and tapanade, to house smoked trout on a lemon garlic aiole. What ever it is, order it and you will not be disappointed. The appetizers range from seared provolone with toasted spinach and roasted red peppers to muscles in a wine and cream sauce. They also will have a salad, pasta, and a variety of entrees that vary by the day and season.

Yesterday we visited Amano's, and deviating from our normal pattern of starting with the bruchetta of the day we ordered the seared provolone with toasted spinach and roasted red peppers. Simple and delicious out came a plate with a thick round of provolone that had been seared just to the point that it was getting crispy on one side, then topped with some toasted spinach and house roasted red peppers. We ate it on it's own and with some of the rolls that they provide, with olive oil and balsamic, to start each meal. To follow that we ordered the salad of the day which was oven dried heirloom tomatoes and wilted spinach salad with apple cider bacon vinaigrette and feta cheese. The plate came out and on it was a thick chilled slightly dried tomato round, which was sweet and juicy, but firm from the oven drying. On top was a layer of the spinach feta and dressing, then another slice of tomato and more spinach mix. Even with the bits of bacon and feta cheese this salad still was light, well balanced and refreshing. I believe the vinegar was drizzled on top and so our decision to separate the two tiers of salad and eat them separately gave a tangy first half and a less so second, but it still ranks as one of the best salads I've ever had. For the main course we ordered butterfish with basmati rice and asparagus tips oven cooked in parchment paper. They serve it to you in the parchment on a plate, and I like it this way as it emulates unwrapping a present, which this dish certainly is. On first bite I could immediatly identify why the fish got it's name. The white flesh did have a rich buttery taste to it, and it had also absorbed the flavor from the lemon slices that had been layered on top of it during the cooking process. The fish was moist and flavorful, perfectly cooked. Some cream or cream sauce had been added sparingly to the base of the basmati rice which gave it yet another layer of rich flavor and paired well with both the fish and the asparagus which came out well done, but not at all mushy or over cooked.

With no room left for desert we got our $40 bill paid and departed, happy, full and full of ideas for the next feast I develop.