Ah! I’m running over a week late! I blame the business, the preparations for vacation (the boyfriend and I leave on a cruise this Sunday… I’m very excited), my parents returning to the states (they had spent the majority of June touring Turkey, and it’s wonderful to have them back!) and so forth. So I’m rather late- I apologize for this (particularly to H’s family members, who I’m sure have been waiting to hear news!)

Two weeks again, over came the lovely H for our weekly cooking date. This was the week of her birthday- happy belated, H!- and so we were looking to make something special yet simple… and, of course, to watch Aladdin (the sequel) because for those who don’t know her, she’s a bit of an Aladdin fanatic.

I had suggested this crunchy parmesan chicken tender recipe of Giada’s; she countered by suggested we used a variant of it in a salad. Not being one to scoff at the benefits of leafy greens, I readily agreed, and we made this salad. The salad ingerdients themselves other than the chicken and the vinaigrette are of H’s design, so blame her if it’s not to your liking ;)

That said, it’s rich, it’s creamy (that avocado really does it), crunchy, soft, fresh, and very delicious. It’s got a Southwestern flare with the cornmeal but has a bit of Italian influence in the heavy use of lemon and parmesan cheese.

Southwestern Cornmeal- & Parmesan-Baked Chicken Salad

Chicken Adapted from Giada de Laurentiis’ Crunchy Parmesan Chicken Tenders

Ingredients:

• 2.5 chicken breasts, cleaned, de-boned
• 1 cup 1% organic milk
• 3/4 cup grated Reggianito cheese
• 4 tablespoons cornmeal
• 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
• Large pinch of sea salt
• 2 roma tomatoes, diced coarsely
• 1/2 avocado, cut into small pieces/cubes
• 2/3 cup yellow corn, kerneled
• 7 oz. fresh organic spring mix
• 2 tablespoons Tilamook sharp cheddar cheese, grated
• Vinaigrette: 1 part honey to 1 part extra-virgin olive oil to 2 parts lemon juice + salt/pepper

Process:

1. Preheat oven to 500 degrees F
2. Pour milk into a small bowl, and submerge chicken in bowl. Cover with plastic wrap, place in fridge for approximately 25 minutes.
3. Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and lightly brush with olive oil; set aside
4. Mix together the cornmeal and Reggianito in a small bowl
5. After the 25 minutes have elapsed, remove the chicken from the milk bowl and coat thickly with the cornmeal-cheese mixture. Press the cornmeal mixture firmly into the chicken to create a thick crust. Place each coated chicken breast onto the parchment paper-lined baking sheet.
6. Space the chicken pieces out evenly, drizzle with more olive oil, and bake for 15 minutes or until golden and crispy on the outside but soft inside. Set aside chicken to cool while you prepare the salad.
7. Place spring mix, tomato, corn, and avocado in a bowl and toss thoroughly. Mix together vinaigrette (whatever quantity you desire) and drizzle onto the salad.
8. Sprinkle on grated Tilamook and toss once more.
9. Cut the chicken into large cubes, place on top of salad, and toss again. Serve and nom!

I used local cornmeal (from the Gristmill) and recommend using some that’s as fresh as you can find- it really gives it a crisp and delicious crust. The chicken was incredibly tender thanks to the milk bath- no need for buttermilk, 1% was enough to coat it well! The avocado adds richness and creaminess, the corn sweetness. It’s a hearty salad, so mind that you not overeat it- but it’s really delicious. H came up with a rather brilliant combination for this one, I must say :)

I realize that may be a bit pompous to say, but honestly, this is a rather foolproof delicious pesto. I’ve been rather fed up with the pestos I’ve found as of late. They’re all ‘too’ something: too oil; too yellow; too spiced; too bland; too thin; and so on. Finding a pesto that’s got the proper taste, consistency, and colour is rather difficult, and I’m hard-pressed to find that combination. Sauces and Love has a wonderful pesto but unfortunately it’s quite pricey for a small quantity.

I recently purchased an adorable basil plant- local and organic- at the grocery store for $3 and was very excited about the prospect of my indoor fresh herbs… but the lack of direct sunlight meant this was an unsuccessful attempt. Oh, no! Dying basil plant! Clearly there was only one thing I could do: emergency pesto. Luckily, it turned out completely and utterly delicious. I know this is a recipe I’ll be following again- and soon- because that first batch is almost gone already :). It’s terrific with some plain fresh capellini and a light drizzle of olive oil. Perfecto!

The Perfect Pesto

Ingredients:

• 3/4 cup chopped basil (coarse)
• 1/4 tsp minced garlic
• 1/2 cup grated fresh Reggianito cheese
• 1 heaping tablespoon fresh grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese
• 1 tsp sea salt, sprinkling of pepper
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon sunflower seeds
• 1/2 tsp lemon juice
• 1/4 cup salted cashews, coarsely chopped

Process:

• Place all ingredients in food processor
• Process on low until all elements are combined and a thick paste-like consistency is formed; do not overprocess to where all the cheese and nut bits are gone- keep a bit of coarseness!
• Spread onto some freshly toasted ciabatta or mix into hot pasta with a bit of extra olive oil for a yummy, delicious time

So simple! So good! So sure to be making this one again soon! Actually, I’m tempted to get a ton of basil, some cute jars, and jar some of this as christmas or holiday gifts… nice packaging will make this have the perfect touch. Seriously, make some. It’s so much cheaper than buying t at the store, and likely to be more delicious, as well! Pine nuts are the traditional nut for pesto, but I almost like it better this way :).

Recently, H and I made a delicious Tomato and Goat Cheese Tart, using David Lebovitz’s recipe. It was so good- and so simple to make- that I was determined to make it again and- of course- experiment with it a bit (general rule: make it once more-or-less as described, then start having fun with it).

I wanted to try a whole wheat crust, putting some herbs into it (Kerbey Lane Cafe here in Austin has a tomato tart with an herbed crust that I really enjoy, and thus wanted to try getting something to be similar) and trying a different cheese. My mother had kindly given me a large piece of Reggianito (the Argentine version of Parmigiano Reggiano)… clearly, it was a sign.

This turned out very well, and was just as easy as the first one to make! I took a hint from some comments I read on David’s recipe page and made two major adjustments: 1) using rice at the bottom (I know, it sounds absolutely insane, but hear me out), and 2) drying the tomato slices.

Rice: An issue I had with the tart our first time around was that after removing it from the oven, there was quite a bit of moisture hanging about at the bottom of the crust and it made the bottom crust a bit moist. To remedy this, I sprinkled a bit of jasmine rice along the bottom (see pictures below) to soak in the moisture. The commentors on David’s blog say you can use it for both savoury and sweet tarts. Neat!

Tomato drying: I placed the tomato slices within paper towels and pressed down, to remove some of the moisture (but did not carve out the seeds and seed-holding gel, as H tells me this is where the nutrients live!). The result: dyer tomatoes, without the loss of nutrients.

And thus- here’s adaption number two of this yummy and tasty treat!

Tomato and Reggianito Tart with Whole Wheat Herb Crust

Adapted from David Lebovitz’s French Tomato Tart, which is in turn adapted from A Culinary Journey in Gascony

Ingredients (variation of original):

• 1 cup organic AP flour
• 1/2 heaping cup organic whole wheat flour
• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• slightly under 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon each of dried basil, thyme, and rosemary
• 8 tablespoons soy butter
• 1 large egg, cage-free
• 3 tablespoons cool water
• 3 tablesppons Dijon mustard (Grey Poupon)
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 3 tablespoons jasmine rice
• 1/2 cup chopped basil
• 8 large shavings of reggianito
• 8 large roma tomatoes, ripe (quantity will vary based on tomato size and your tomato preferences)
• Sea salt (large grain) for sprinkling on top

Process:

Visit David! (Recipe at the very bottom). Only changes I made were:

• using a food processor for mixing the dough
• adding the dried herbs to the dough mixture (and using both types of flour)
• no honey this time!
• reggianito cheese in stead of goat cheese

And that’s that! It’s quick, it’s simple, it’s delicious… and with the whole wheat crust and added herbs, better than before in terms of health! Try it out and make your own changes. I’ll probably keep changing this ever time I make it. Hah.