Summer Delight: Silky Lemon Semifreddo

 

Have I mentioned how HOT it is in Texas?  So hot that I've been having an ice cream sandwich or popsicle every day. Probably not the best diet to have.

My daily conversations with Liz always revolve around food - what we are currently eating, plan to cook or would love to be eating. She is a master hostess and made an amazing ice cream dessert for one of her dinner parties, which inspired me to make a semifreddo.  

In my research for the best recipe, I found that there are several many ways to make this dessert.  It doesn't have to be citrus based - some are based on berries, bananas or mangoes. Insight from Liz is that the flavor sometimes isn't as strong so in order to get that intense lemon flavor, I added more lemon and lime juice than the original recipe and also cut back on the sugar and buttered crust. You can also add in some lemon flavored liquor to give it a little more punch, but I can't justify buying a bottle of limoncello, for instance, just for one dessert. 

Just be prepared, you'll go through several bowls and mixers. Another downside? You have to wait eight hours until you can enjoy it, but that gives you plenty of time to do the dishes...

Lemon Semifreddo

(adapted from Giada)

20 amaretto cookies (can be found at Central Market)

1 cup heavy cream

Zest from 2 lemons

Zest from 1 lime

1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (approximately 4-5 large lemons for me)

1/4 cup lime juice (approximately 4 limes) 

8 egg yolks

1/3 cup sugar

1/4 cup sugar 

Pinch of salt

1. Prepare everything first. Zest the lemons and lime first before squeeze the juice from them. Squeeze the rest of the lemons and limes, which I do directly into the measuring cup so I know exactly how many more lemons/limes I need. Get a large bowl, fill with water and ice and set aside.

 

2. Get a small saucepan with water, put on stove until it starts simmering. While that is happening, separate the egg yolks and whites. Save the whites for another meal/dish. Put the egg yolks directly into a large bowl that will fit on top of the pot of simmering water.  Add 1/3 cup sugar, lemon and lime juice, and the salt. 

3. Put it on top of the simmering water on the stove and using an electric mixer, mix until it almost triples in size and is fluffy, creamy/frothing and turns a pale yellow. This took about 7 minutes.

 

4. Once done, take the bowl and put into the ice bath so it completely cools down. Fold in the zest.

 

5. Next, whip the heavy cream and 1/4 cup sugar until it also triples in size and holds firm peaks when you stop.

6. Fold the heavy whipping cream into the lemon mixture.

7. Take a loaf pan and spray with cooking oil.  Take a plastic wrap that is enough to wrap around the pan and stick it to the bottom and sides of the pan.  Make sure you have enough plastic wrap hanging over both sides of the pan so that you can fold this over later. Take a few handfuls of the amaretto cookies and crumble them into the bottom of the loaf pan until you have a very very very thin layer of crumbles.  This was approximately 10-12 cookies.  If you wanted a firmer, richer crust, you can mix the crumbled cookies with melted butter before putting in the pan, but I think this is just fine without those few extra calories...

8. Pour the mixture into the loaf pan.  Fold over the plastic wrap so it covers the top and put this in the freezer for a least 8 hours, preferably overnight.

9. To serve, unfold the top two layers of plastic wrap and pull out. If you can't, put the sides of the loaf pan under hot water - careful not to get the semifreddo wet.  You should be able to easily take out.  Slice about 1 inch pieces for a serving and crumble two amaretto cookies on top for additional extra crunch.  

I dare you to have only one slice.

Easy Creamy Chicken Piccata

My brother-in-law made this dish for me when I stayed with them. He's taught me a few other dishes so it's fitting that I call him Chef Alcaraz. So, what makes this dish?  Definitely the crispy crust and the oh my, oh my, the lemon-y butter-y sauce goodness. This is the type of sauce that you want to pour over everything you have on your plate - broccoli, rice, pasta, whatever. Trust me, it will taste better with this sauce.

Chef Alcaraz made it with chicken breast but I used what I had in my freezer - boneless chicken thighs and it was just as good. I changed it up by using panko crumbs to give it a crunchier bite to the dish and of course, I used cream. Like this sauce, cream makes everything better, smoother and silkier. 

A key thing to note for this is that you should cook your meat on medium heat, not high. If you cook on high, your meat will cook on the outside too fast and start burning before the middle is cooked. When you realize how easy this dish is to make, you'll cringe a little that you've ever spent the $10 plus dollars on this same dish in a restaurant. 

Creamy Chicken Piccata

Adapted from this recipe

Serves 4

4 boneless chicken thighs

1/2 cup flour

1/2 cup panko crumbs

1/2 cup chicken stock

1/3 cup capers

3 tbsp butter

3 tbsp olive oil

1/3 cup cream

1/3 cup fresh lemon juice

Zest from one lemon

Handful of chopped parsley

1. On a clean plate, put the flour and panko crumbs.  Make sure your chicken thighs are washed and thoroughly dried with paper towels. If you find that your thighs vary signficantly in thickness, flatten them out between two sheets of plastic wrap or wax paper.  This helps ensure your meat cooks evenly.

2. Take the dry chicken and evenly coat each piece. 

3. In a pan on medium, heat up the olive oil and 2 tbsp of butter.

4. Cook one side of the chicken for about 5-6 minutes.  Flip the chicken and cook for another 5-6 minutes until crispy and golden brown.

5. Remove the chicken from the pan. There should be plenty of butter and chicken bits left.  If not, you can add in a few extra tbsp of butter or you can do what I do and add in cream. :) Add in the lemon juice, zest, stock and capers. 

6. Once the liquids blend together and you have scraped up the bits of chicken and incorporated into the sauce, add the chicken back into the pan and add in one final tbsp of butter.

7. Remove to serving platter, making sure to add all the sauce and sprinkle the top with chopped parsley.  This is best served with linguine with simple herbs, S&P and olive oil - and even better when you add some of this sauce!  I had leftover rice and that worked well too.

Crisp Fennel Salad

Well, well.  Happy New Year!  A resolution for 2011 is to provide you with more posts each month - I realized I've slacked these last few months but did you also realize that I've had this blog for more than a year!  Hooray!

So, I discovered fennel from one of my go-to Food Network chefs - Giadda. She's definitley one that I consistently watch, but I do have to say, the way she closes her eyes while she tastes the dish and does that mmmm-MMMM sound, makes me cringe and like her just a little less. So annoying! Ha! Her dishes are fairly good, not too complicated but beware some are hit and miss. 

Back to fennel.  It's a crisp, sweet, licorice-ish flavor veggie.  It's an odd looking thing with the bulb and several stalks that are typically tossed.  For me, it was one of those intimidating veggies that I saw in the store, wasn't sure how to cook or eat it and so just kept walking to the cauliflower and broccoli.  After seeing Giadda and Ina use fennel various ways, I thought to give it a whirl.  Baby steps, though!  Make it into a raw salad with a simple lemon vinagrette and wow, I love this salad and I love fennel!  Now, if it wasn't so expensive I think I'd be inclined to eat this at every meal.  A fennel bulb will cost around $3-$4 and two will feed one person.  If you're making for several, you'll need about 5 bulbs. 

As for the stalks, you are suppose to cut the tips and discard. I've tried grilling/sauteeing them and they are edible.  Also, my dad pulled back the outside, fiberous layer (like a banana) and the inside veggie meat was quite delicious.  Just takes a little work.  Also, for plating, save a few of the leaves for garnish to add a nice touch.

Crisp Fennel Salad

Serves 1

2 bulbs fennel (bulbs only)

S&P

1 lemon

1/4 cup olive oil

Handful of arugula

Freshy grated parmesan cheese

1. Wash the fennel well as it can be quite sandy.  I cut the bulb right where the green stalks start to protrude.  Then cut the end off too - where it's a tad tough.  Then half it vertically as shown below.  I don't cut out the core which some may tell you to.  It's a little harder but still edible in my opinion.  Then slice them up!

2. In a small bowl, grate the lemon zest then juice the entire lemon.  Add a good pinch of salt and pepper.  Then with a fork, whisk in olive oil until it creates a yummy vinagrette.  Keep tasting until it's just right - adding S&P as needed.  

3. In a bowl, toss the arugula, fennel and the dressing.  Once incorporated, add in the freshly grated cheese, taste and add more S&P as necessary.  Done!  I also grilled a tomato to complement this salad and yum!

Baked Lemon & Thyme Chicken

While shopping at the amazement that is Costco, I tend to get sucked into the book section as well and that day, found an Ina Garten Back to Basics cookbook.  Hooray!  Since I'm already going to spend $100 bucks at Costco (why is it that you can NEVER leave Costco without spending at least $100?), what's one book?  It seems that convincing yourself to buy more things when you're already spending a lot is pretty easy....

I've tried this two ways - baked in the oven and also on the grill.  I prefer cooking in the oven since the meat is a little more tender, moist and juicy.  Grilling seemed to make the chicken a tad too dry and didn't hold the flavor as well since you are not grilling directly in the juices. 

I suggest marinating this the night before in a plastic bag or in the baking dish so when you get come, preheat the oven and then just put in the dish.  So easy.

Also, notice those green beans in that top picture?  From my daddy's garden!  He's the only one in this family with a green thumb.  I usually get a bag of fresh green beans every time my folks come over = very spoiled.  Clean, snap and cook in oil with garlice, salt and pepper - so good and love the crunch too.

Baked Lemon & Thyme Chicken

Adapted recipe by Ina Garten

4 chicken leg and thigh (bone-in)

6 sprigs of thyme and chopped

2 tspn of salt

2 tspn of pepper

4 lemons (zest of 2 and juice from four)

1/3 cup of good olive oil

5 garlic cloves, peeled and chopped

1. Take the thyme and roughly chopped.  Do the same with the garlic.  Add both to a baking dish large enough to fit the chicken. 

3. Clean the lemons and zest two directly into the baking dish.  Squeeze juice from all four.  Add S&P and the olive oil.  Give it a good mix.  Do a quick taste test - and add more lemon juice or S&P as ncessary.  

4. Rinse and pat dry the chicken.  Add to the baking dish, moosh around and then turn over the chicken.  Cover tightly and let it sit in the fridge for at least 4 hours.  I highly recommend doing this the night before and the next morning, turn over the chicken before heading into work. 

5.  In a 420 degree oven, cook chicken for approximately 20-25 minutes.  Halfway through the cooking process, I like to scoop the juices over the top.  When time is up, insert a fork and make sure it's cooked through.  Serve with a side of veggies and rice!

Sorta Lemon-y Chicken

You all know I love my dark chicken and the many different ways to cook and eat them. This dish is fairly simple but make sure you have a good ventilation system in your kitchen.  I was scrambling to open up my windows to make sure my smoke alarm didn't go off!  Or, I think this is a clear sign I need to invest in some more corningware or even a dutch oven - hooray!

This dish can be served with a slew of sides.  Best with some steamed carrots, cauliflower or green beans - all of which I had none.... Sigh.  So my staple of plain white rice it was! 

I'd adjust a few things on this recipe. First, I'd actually squeeze in lemon juice and the zest of one or two lemons. I mean, this dish is called lemon chicken and if that citrus bang doesn't hit or even nudge you when you take that first bite, might as well just be called baked chicken.  So flavor was a little too faint and its probably attributed to the overwhelming power that is called soy sauce.  So less soy sauce, more lemon and more honey to balance the more lemon.

Lemony Chicken

Serves 2

Recipe adapted from Cook, Eat, Love

Four chicken thighs

1/3 cup hot water (or chicken stock)

Splash of olive oil

3 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped

Fresh thyme, pull off from about 4 or 5 sprigs and give a rough chop to release aroma
Splash of sherry vinegar
1 1/2 tbsp soy sauce
5 tbsp honey
1 lemon, finely sliced
1 juice and zest of one lemon (Extra that I would add)
S&P

1. Wash and then thoroughly pat dry your chicken.  Combine the S&P, garlic and thyme in a bowl. Then sprinkle this on the chicken - stick some under the skin as well. Do not take the skin off.  This will help when you brown the chicken and add flavor to the sauce. 

2. Heat some olive oil in a pot and brown the chicken so you get a nice browning on both sides. This is where my kitchen started to smoke!  Can you see from the below picture? Make sure you turn the vent on high or have some windows open.  Ha!

3. Once brown, add the vinegar and let it quickly bubble and reduce by half.  Then add in the soy sauce and honey (I mixed my soy sauce and honey together first before adding).  Make sure this mixes well with the vinegard and move around your chicken so they are nicely distributed and coated.  I like to flip my chicken a few times to make sure.

4. Add 1/2 cup of hot water (or chicken stock) and add the lemon slices (make sure you wash and dry the lemon before slicing.  Who wants dirty lemon slices in their food!). This is where I would add in the juice and zest of one lemon. Turn your heat to medium, let it bubble and reduce. This should take 5-10 minutes.

5. Take off heat and then serve immediately with fresh veggies or rice. Make sure to spoon some of the sauce on the chicken and the rice.

Side note: Cleaning this pot is no bueno.  I highly suggest you take the chicken out, serve with sauce and then immediately soak the pot in warm water while you are happily eating your meal.

Mushroom & Jicama Salad

I've been on a side dish, salad, quick and easy kick for a few weeks now. This is one of the easiest salads to make and watch out, you may end up eating the entire dish in one sitting! I've had jicama before, and at the time, it was served in slices with no additional seasoning. Honestly, I wasn't impressed. It's a type of food that is good while you are eating it, but not exciting enough to make you run out and buy several to eat again for the next few days. (Like I do often with mushrooms, tomatos, squash, cheese....) It wasn't until a recent trip to Hawaii with my sister that I had jicama again - cut into cubes with other raw vegetables in a citrus dressing. We couldn't figure out every ingredient in the dish. It was good enough that we went back for tres servings each - good thing it was a buffet!
I saw this recipe from Giadda a few weeks later - pretty perfect in that it included cheese and mushrooms. Fresh from Hawaii, I thought Jicama would make a perfect addition to this dish - and I was right! White button mushrooms have a contrasting light vs. dense consistency so the jicama adds a juicy and sweet side to the dish. I pretty much ate half - 2 servings - in one sitting and skipped my main dish since I was full on this salad. The below recipe is the original recipe from Giadda - I just added in Jicama slices and lemon zest.
Fresh Mushroom & Parsley Salad

Recipe from Giadda

1 pound large button mushrooms, trimmed, cleaned and thinly sliced
1/3 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice (I squeezed approximately 2 large lemons)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2-ounce piece Parmesan

(I added in 1 half medium sized Jicama sliced)

(I added in the zest of one lemon)

In a medium salad bowl, mix together the mushrooms and parsley. (Add Jicama here)

In a small bowl, whisk together the oil and lemon juice until smooth (also added in lemon zest here). Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Add the oil mixture to the salad bowl and toss until all the ingredients are coated. Shave the Parmesan on top and serve.