PowerCooking.net

These braised leeks go very well with a filet mignon.

Ingredients

• 6 large leeks, rinsed and quartered
• sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• About 1/2 – 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup sliced shallots
• 1 tablespoon thyme leaves
• 1/2 cup dry cooking sherry or dry white wine (wine that you’d drink!)
• 1.5 to 2 cups chicken stock (or 1/2 bouillon cube dissolved in water)

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. With cut sides up, season with sea salt black pepper.
3. Heat pan (or dutch oven) over medium-high heat for a couple of minutes. Pour in 2 tbsps olive oil and wait 1 minute. Place cut side of leeks down in pan without crowding them. (Make in batches, and use more oil, if necessary.) Sear them 4 to 5 minutes, until golden brown. Season with salt and pepper, and turn over. Add shallots, thyme, lemon juice, lemon zest and cook 3 to 4 minutes more.
4. Add wine and stock, almost covering leeks
5. Braise in oven 30 minutes, until tender.

Here’s a lamb chops recipe I put together that I feel is pretty straightforward.  The cooking technique is one I learned from another recipe and has always yielded very juicy steaks/red meat.  Also works with thicker cuts of fish.

Here it’s served with collard greens that were boiled for 30 minutes then sauteed in lamb drippings with shallots.  Enjoy!

Ingredients

• ~1lb lamb chops (about 5-6 chops)
• 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 Meyer lemon, juiced
• 1/2 tbsp lemon zest
• 1 tbsp herbs de provence (dried thyme, basil, rosemary)
• 1 tbsp canola oil
• sea salt
• black pepper

Instructions

1. Make the marinade out of olive oil, lemon juice, lemon zest, herbs de provence, sea salt and black pepper.
2. Put lamb chops in a container or plastic ziploc bag – cover with marinade and refrigerate for 1-2 hours.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
4. Use an oven-safe skillet and heat the canola oil over high heat.
5. Sear lamb chops  for 1.5 minutes on each side.  Use a splatter guard per your desire.
6. Insert your leave-in meat thermometer in to one chop, put the skillet in the oven, and cook to 135 degrees F for a “chef’s” medium rare or 145 degrees for the “USDA” medium rare.
7. Remove from oven and let the chops settle for 5 minutes before serving.
8. Season with salt and pepper as desired.

Need to beat eggs quickly?  Here’s how you do it in less than ten seconds.  Seriously – it really beats (haha!) beating eggs with a fork or whisk, and is especially quick for making scrambled eggs – just make sure you add a little bit of milk to your mixture.

All you need is a jar with a lid.  I use Ziploc Twist ‘n Loc Containers which are available at your local grocery store.

1. Break the eggs and add them to the jar.  Make sure you leave some room for air in the jar.
2. Screw the lid tight.
3. Shake vigorously for ten seconds and voila!  Beaten eggs with air bubbles.

* Note: this post assumes you have a dishwasher.  I lived without one for a couple of years before, and now I will never go back.

Do the dishes, forks, and spoons sometimes just sit in the dishwasher because you’ll “put them away later”?   This has certainly happened to me some times because it can feel like a chore.

Well, next time, be efficient in how you load the dishwasher.  Put all the forks together in one “slot”, all the spoons in another, and so on and so forth, grouped by where you actually put them away.   When the dishwasher’s done, simply pull out all the forks with one hand and put them in the right spot.  No need to sort out the silverware.

This isn’t quite as easy with cups, dishes, pots and pans though.  If you have any tips, please let us know in the comments!

Do you find yourself constantly glancing at your recipe book while you’re cooking?   You think to yourself, “What’s next?  What ingredients do I need?  How much do I put in?”

If this is you and you want to take your cooking to the next level, you need to get the book, Ratio: The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking by Michael Ruhlman.

The book teaches you about ratios – the fundamental underpinnings of any recipe.  Once you know the ratios, you can start tweaking recipes and be more confident about creating your own.  The author also gives tips on how to make the ratios work as well as the “why” behind it.

Some examples of ratios include:

• Vinaigrette – 3 parts oil : 1 part vinegar (or acid)
• Stock – 3 parts water : 2 parts bones
• Cookie dough – 1 part sugar : 2 parts fat : 3 parts flour

I did find that the book has a lot about baking and French style cooking, so if you’re looking for something specific, like Asian ratios, you’ll have to apply what you learn from this book and deconstruct Asian recipes you find.  Or maybe there’s a similar book for Asian foods?

In any case, this is a must have book for your kitchen.  Go read more now at Amazon!