We are now entering February and legend has it if the chef’s groundhog sees its shadow, we have six more weeks of comfort cooking to look forward to.
What exactly is comfort cooking? And no it is not wearing sweats in the kitchen. Comfort foods are those old reliable dishes that hit the spot when the days are short and cold. Also known as peasant food or grandma’s cooking, these are the dishes that first drew me to the stove.
Good chicken noodle soup in a rich broth and thick chewy homemade noodles with crunchy chunks of irregularly cut vegetables. Creamy and very cheesy macaroni and cheese, not the poor relation that comes out of a box and is more closely related to a chemistry set than real food. Roasted chicken pungent with herbs whose smell invades every corner of the house on a wintry Sunday afternoon. Thick rich beef stew brimming with onions and mushrooms with a sharp bite from a little extra red wine that begs to be sopped up with a crust of good fresh bread.
Now I know what you are thinking – who bakes bread anymore – but with the invention of the counter-top bread maker, lots of people do and its easy and delicious, plus most decent grocery stores have wonderful fresh-baked, rustic style breads that are very good.
What makes comfort food so comfortable? Good ingredients and time, not lots of time in preparation but slow long cookin’ that transforms that sad dead chicken into a golden browned crunchy skin roasted chicken that makes you want to savor every juicy morsel.
Time? Who has time to cook like that? Make time! We buy all sorts of gadgets and devices to save us time, cell phones, computers, we pay our bills online, shop online, read quirky food columns online all to save time. So what do we do with all that time we save, besides sit back and grumble that we have no time? So let’s make a pledge in the new year and cook one honest to goodness grandma inspired meal a week. Too much hassle? O.K. One a month. Just step away from the blackberry and the cell phone and step into the kitchen. You know – the place in your house with that thing that has burners and turns raw food into moments to savor. Yeah, that room. The one with the big box that’s covered with the schedule of where everyone in your house needs to be, and also keeps food cold. Put aside your worries and cook.
Relax and enjoy food at a table and enjoy a slow meal, cooked slowly with love and care. Why take the time? Because food is more than just fuel for the body it also nourishes the soul and creates memories. How often does a smell transport you back in time to a simpler slower place? That twinge you get when you smell fresh chocolate chip cookies coming out of the oven? That’s a food memory – the kind that just relaxes you and rejuvenates you.
Being able to cook and create with food is what separates us from animals. I doubt that there are packs of wolves sitting in their dens going, “You know, that antelope was good but what it really needed was a little more garlic and some kosher salt.” They don’t do that. We humans are gifted with those senses and abilities, so let’s not waste them.
Put aside your busy schedule and cook some comfort food. I’ll make it simple for you Here’s a menu and recipes for a simple winter’s meal which will nourish the body and soul. Plus, for those who have been waiting and writing me threatening e-mails – a recipe for crab cakes.
I leave you with these inspirational words:
Slow down.
Enjoy your food.
After all, we left the cave thousands of years ago.
A February Sunday Dinner
- Potato Leek soup
- Herb roasted chicken with garlic mashed potatoes
- Sautéed green beans with bacon and shallots
- Chocolate cherry bread pudding
Potato Leek Soup
Ingredients
- 6 potatoes peeled and diced
- 3 leeks white part only thoroughly cleaned and sliced in half moons
- 3 cloves garlic chopped
- 6 cups chicken stock
- Kosher salt
- Pepper
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
- ½ stick butter
- ½ cup white wine
Instructions
- Saute leeks and garlic in butter in medium sauce pot over medium heat.
- Dust lightly with flour add white wine. Cook 2-3 minutes.
- Add potatoes. Saute 3-5 minutes and add stock.
- Cook over medium heat. Add thyme, salt and pepper to taste. Cook until potatoes are tender puree (use a hand blender).
- Finish with heavy cream, a half cup or more depending on richness desired. Cook 10-15 minutes, serve, and enjoy.
Herb Roasted Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 large chicken
- Kosher salt
- Black pepper
- Chopped fresh thyme
- Chopped fresh parsley
- Chopped fresh rosemary
- Olive oil
- Lemon juice
- Shallots
For finishing
- 2 cups chicken stock
Instructions
- Mix all ingredients (except for stock) plus some chopped shallots to form a loose paste. Rub over chicken inside and out.
- Cook in 350-degrees oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Depending on size of bird, cook until it reaches internal temp of 165-degrees.
- Add 2 cups of chicken stock to pan drippings and cook on the stove until reduced by half. Serve with chicken.
Roasted garlic mash potatoes
Ingredients
- 6 lg. Yukon gold potatoes
- 4 oz butter
- 8 cloves garlic roasted in ¼ cup of olive oil in 350-degrees for 10-12 minutes until soft and golden brown.
- 1 cup heavy cream
- Kosher salt
- Pepper
Instructions
- Cook potatoes starting in cold water till tender but not mushy.
- Drain, put in mixing bowl on low speed add garlic, salt, pepper, slowly adding butter and cream until smooth and creamy.
Sautéed Green Beans
Ingredients
- 1 lb blanched green beans
- 2 shallots chopped
- Salt
- Pepper
- 6-8 slices bacon diced
- Olive oil
Instructions
- Sauté bacon and shallots in olive oil over medium heat until bacon becomes crispy.
- Add green beans, salt, and pepper.
- Cook until beans are warm through.
Chocolate cherry bread pudding (version 2)
Ingredients
- 8 cups diced stale French bread
- 6 whole eggs plus 2 yolks
- 2 cups heavy cream
- 1 cup sugar
- ½ cup chopped bittersweet chocolate
- 8 oz dark sweet pitted cherries
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 345F. Lightly butter a casserole dish.
- Place the bread in a large bowl.
- In a separate bowl, mix the cream, sugar, eggs, and yolks. Toss with the bread. Add chocolate and cherries.
- Pour into the buttered casserole dish and bake for one hour. If the top gets too brown, cover with foil.
- Serve with warm vanilla ice cream.
And now… what you have all been waiting for…
The Persnickety Chef’s FAMOUS Crab Cakes
Ingredients
- 1 lb jumbo lump crabmeat
- 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
- 6 green onions chopped
- ½ cup mayonnaise
- Old bay
- Panko bread crumbs to bind
Instructions
- In a bowl place crabmeat. Do not break up.
- Add all ingredients except panko. Mix lightly keeping lumps intact.
- Add panko to bind.
- Form into desired sized cakes.
- Bake in oven at 375-degrees for 12-14 minutes until golden brown.
Food News
Lobster House Restaurant owner Keith Laudeman isn’t making any promises regarding the reopening of one of Cape May’s favorite spots – ok, technically it’s in Lower Township. He is hopeful that April will be the lucky month but “honestly I don’t know.”
For those of you not in the loop, a 3 a.m.7-alarm fire gutted the Lobster House Restaurant kitchen and caused extensive smoke and water damage to the northeast corner of the main dining room September 26th of last year. The cause of the fire was traced to a faulty exhaust fan vent in the kitchen.
The main dining room, diner and banquet facility upstairs have been closed ever since, although the wholesale food operations, fish market, raw bar, schooner and dockside take-out operations remained open. The restaurant was spared complete devastation by the fact that favorable winds turned the fire away from the rest of the building.
In October, Laudeman thought the restaurant might be opened for the Christmas holidays but the extent of the damages and gathering the necessary permits delayed construction.
Laudeman assured CapeMay.com that when the restaurant does open “everything will be the same but freshened.” All the woodwork will be re-varnished, new carpeting will be installed but the décor will remain the same.
The Lobster House is Lower Township’s largest employer with 450 workers on the payroll. The fire put at least 350 people out of work.
The good news is….summer’s a coming in at last and we can all look forward to breakfast at the Diner and dinner in the main dining room because it’s just not summer without the Lobster House.
In other food news, as you may or may not know, Restaurant 1919 (The Anchorage’s old location) is gone. In its place will be Lucky Bones, owned and operated by the Craig family of the Washington Inn and Pelican Club fame.
Lucky Bones is located across from the Lobster House as you’re crossing the Schellenger Landing Bridge. Expect a springtime opening.
Again, just in case you’ve been off the island for a while, the Pelican Club closed its doors Dec.31st. They essentially lost their lease and plans are now underway to either convert the facility to penthouse condo suites or perhaps keep it as a facility for banquets and weddings. We’ll keep you posted.
Guess What? Martini Beach has some surprises in store and Manager Karin Rickard invites you to come on down and see what’s behind the red doors.
Bon Appétite!
