Oven-Roasted Mojito Chicken

This is an easy chicken dish that's full of vibrant but mild flavors.  I found it in the Dinosaur BBQ cookbook, and even though I had never seen had it at their restaurant in many dozens of visits there, I could tell that it had potential.  Some combination of the garlic, the slowly sauteed onions bathed in drippings, and the citrus-tenderized chicken made this dish hard to beat, and able to stand on its own as a centerpiece or complement a latin feast, as I did last night.

The name of the dish refers to the sauce that is used as a marinade for the dish.  There are a couple of kinds of mojo sauce, much like the words "curry" or "salsa" can be confusing, but we're focused on the Cuban variant here.  Searching for some backstory has led me to others that will be featured in future recipes.  Traditionally served over pork and/or yuca when referring to the Cuban mojo sauce, this is most commonly defined by a mixture of bitter orange juice, garlic, olive oil, and oregano.  Omit the oregano and you get mojito marinade, not to be confused with the minty rum drink.  This recipe does contain oregano, it's not enough to dominate the flavor, so I won't change the title to indicate the parent sauce.  Also, since I have never seen bitter oranges for sale, I stick to a ratio of 8 parts regular OJ to 1 part lime juice, and freshly squeezed for both whenever possible.

Shakshuka (North African Eggs Poached in Peppers and Tomatoes)

Shakshuka apparently means "mixture" in Arabic slang, and that's exactly what you get with this delicious and unique vegetarian dish.  Served for lunch more than it is for breakfast, this poached egg dish boasts an incredible amount of healthy flavor and a pleasing array of silky textures achieved by slowly cooking the eggs in a bed of unbelievable flavors.  It's a common dish in Morocco and Tunisia among other places.  Think of it as a much more delicious, much more Middle Eastern version of huevos rancheros, if you've ever had that.

We found this worldly delight at a vegetarian cooking class based on Yotam Ottolenghi's book Plenty.  Yotam was recently on an episode of Anthony Bourdain's Parts Unknown, so he's a credible source now that he's been on TV, for as John Cleese once said at a talk of his I attended, "I don't have to be an expert, but I am a celebrity".  If you have the patience in the morning to simmer this dish while you wait for epic mealtime, I highly recommend you give this a shot.  He's a very passionate chef with a great approach to his vegetarian dishes, and I definitely encourage you to not only try this, but have a look at his book.


Shakshuka
from Plenty, by Yotam Ottolenghi

• 1/2 tsp cumin seeds
• 3/4 cup light olive oil
• 2 large onions, sliced
• 2 red bell peppers, cut into 3/4" strips
• 2 yellow bell peppers, cut into 3/4" strips
• 4 tsp raw sugar
• 2 bay leaves
• 6 thyme sprigs
• 2 tbsp parsley
• 2 tbsp chopped cilantro, plus more for garnish
• 6 ripe tomatoes, roughly chopped
• 1/2 tsp saffron threads
• pinch cayenne pepper
• salt and black pepper
• 8 eggs

In a large heavy pan, toast the cumin seeds on high heat for 2 minutes.  Add the oil and the onions, and saute for 5 minutes.  Add the peppers, sugar, and herbs, and continue cooking on high heat for 5-10 minutes further.

Add the tomatoes, saffron, cayenne, and some salt an pepper.  Reduce the heat to low and cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.  Make sure not to overcook; add water as necessary to maintain a thick sauce consistency with minimal evaporation.  This should be incredibly potent and thick at the end of this process.

If placing into individual serving pans, divide mixture into 4 deep frying pans.  Remove the bay leaves, then make small wells in the mixture.  Crack the eggs into a small dish one at a time, and pour the eggs gently into the wells in the mixture in 8 spots.  Sprinkle with salt and cover the pan(s) with lids.  Cook on very low heat for 10-12 minutes, until the eggs are just set.  Don't cook this too fast, or the eggs will be tough.

Sprinkle with chopped cilantro and serve.

Slow Cooker Pot Roast Sliders with Blue Cheese

Okay, here's a quick one with only one picture - sorry, I'm the worst blogger ever sometimes.  In my defense, I was trying to throw a party, which went over much better once I served everyone some pot roast sliders.  And that brings us to the recipe, which I found online and modified slightly to improve the flavor and healthiness, and also to use what I had available.  I'll note that the original recipe called for chuck roast and I used top round, which is MUCH more lean and probably didn't have quite the same flavor or moistness as would have been found in the original, but it was still delicious, meaning this is pretty forgiving.

If I had it to do over, I would brown the meat, and would definitely use chuck roast to get something a bit more moist and rich, but I was pleased with the immense amount of flavor these sandwiches had, most of which happened to come from the pungent blue cheese paired with the tender threads of a mild, tender beef.  I'll definitely make this again, new and improved, and post a few more pictures some time soon.  In the meantime, go with this for now, or substitute your favorite preparation for a 2 pound pot roast yielding fork-tender beef that can be shredded, and you won't be disappointed with the end result.


Pot Roast Sliders

• 2 lb beef chuck roast, trimmed of excess fat, or top round if you've got one lying around
• 1 tbsp brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 1/4 tsp celery seed
• 1 tsp granulated garlic
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/4 C soy sauce
• 1 cup beef or vegetable broth
• 1 packet french onion spice dip mix, or soup mix

• 12 white dinner rolls
• 1 C mozzarella cheese, shredded
• 3-5 oz blue cheese crumbles
• 1/4 C mayonnaise
• 2 tsp prepared horseradish
• 1/8 tsp ground black pepper
• 2 tbsp butter
• 2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
• 1 tsp poppy seeds (optional, I didn't have)
• 2 tsp dehydrated onion, or 2 tbsp minced onion, sauteed in 2 tsp olive oil until slightly browned
• 1 tsp sugar

If you have time, season the beef with a bit of salt and pepper, and brown it in a skillet.  If not, just throw it right into the bottom of your slow cooker, and cover with the next 8 ingredients.  Cook on high for 4-5 hours, or low for 7-8, until fork tender.  Remove to a casserole and shred with two forks.  If this is done too early, cover with foil and place in a 200 deg F oven with a bit of cooking liquid to keep warm.  Mix the horseradish with the mayo and black pepper to make a slathering sauce for the buns - this will keep them from getting soggy.

Once it's showtime, boost the oven to 375 deg F and remove the meat.  Next, slice your dinner rolls in half and assemble the sandwiches.  On each roll, spread on a layer of the horseradish mayo at least on the bottom half, ideally both halves, then top with shredded beef, mozzarella, and blue cheese.  Close up the sandwich.

Melt the butter in a microwave-safe dish and stir in Worcestershire sauce, poppy seeds, onion, and sugar.  Brush this onto the tops of the rolls.  Cover this with foil, and bake for 10 minutes.  Remove foil and bake for another 10 minutes, then serve.

Roast Leg of Lamb with Potatoes and Onions

If you haven't tried cooking lamb, you're missing out.  A good leg of lamb is moist, rich, tender, with just a hint of a wild game flavor, and it takes to garlic and rosemary with dignity.  I made this dish years ago and it was so mouthwatering that I ate it out of the tupperware with my bare hands, like an animal, for probably a solid week afterwards.  Not that this is the raving endorsement you should be looking for, but I thought it was a pretty good story.  Cheers to my housemate for taking some very artistic shots this time, but jeers to him for making me realize that I need a better camera.

Ready to be sliced and served

Roasted Leg of Lamb with Potatoes and Onions
(Gigot D'Agneau Aux Pommes De Terre Et Oignons) 
Bon Appétit, May 1999

Serves 6 to 8

• 1 6- to 7-pound bone-in leg of lamb, excess fat trimmed 
• 3 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme or 1 1/2 teaspoons dried
• 2 teaspoons minced fresh savory or 1 teaspoon dried
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary or 3/4 teaspoon dried
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper 
• butter for roasting pan
• 3 1/2 pounds russet potatoes, unpeeled, cut into 1/4-inch-thick rounds
• 2 1/2 pounds onions, thinly sliced (about 8 cups)
• 1 3/4 cups beef stock or canned beef broth 

If you have a food processor, I highly recommend using it to slice the potatoes and onions.  It gives you a perfectly even cut and saves 10 minutes of manual labor.

Ready your root vegetables.  A bed of potatoes and onions serve to cushion the lamb against burning, and absorb the drippings

Preheat oven to 400°F. Using small sharp knife, cut 1-inch-deep, 1/2-inch-long slits all over lamb. Cut up the garlic into thin slices and insert garlic into slits in the lamb. Rub oil all over lamb. Mix thyme, savory, rosemary, salt and pepper in small bowl. Rub herb mixture all over lamb. Set aside. 

Get the garlic deep down into the slits in the meat

Fresh thyme and rosemary really make this dish.  If you don't have fresh rosemary, don't even bother this time.

  

Grease up that lamb!

Rub the herb mixture all over the surface of the lamb

Generously butter large roasting pan. Combine potatoes, onions and stock in large pot (stock will not cover vegetables). Bring to boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer until potatoes are halfway tender, about 10 minutes. Transfer potato mixture to prepared pan; spread evenly in pan.

Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake 10 minutes. Reduce oven temperature to 375°F. Place lamb in roasting pan atop potato mixture. Roast until thermometer inserted into thickest part of lamb registers 130°F. for medium-rare, about 1 hour 50 minutes. Remove from oven. Tent with foil and let stand 15 minutes. 

Thinly slice lamb. Arrange lamb on large platter. Surround with potato mixture and any juices from pan and serve.