Mmmm....

It's Ohio Brew Week in Athens! Which, obviously means all things Ohio Brews. To us, however, it's also all things food. We have the pleasure of judging the Craft Brew Cooking-Athens Cuisine Showcase and Competition this Tuesday. Then the Brew-B-Q Cook-Off Competition on Friday. This will be our third year judging the Craft Brew battle. Each year the entries have really wowed us. Always unique; always delicious. We always leave with new ideas for cooking at home and extremely full bellies.

Since it's a foodie week for us, it seems appropriate to get crackin' on the food blog. I'm going to get as many recipes up this week as I can, including a Feta Spread that's been getting a request or two.

But first - the glory that is Creme Brulee. I'm in love with Creme Brulee. In fact, I'm having an affair with Creme Brulee. Scratch that, Brian & I are BOTH having an affair with it. I ask for it... he cooks it... and we both devour it. Back in June, I bought him a very self-serving gift. A Creme Brulee kit complete with 4 ramekins and a mini-blowtorch. The latter being the main reason he so enjoys cooking it, I might add.

So we've made it numerous ways so far and served it with various fresh fruits. Here is the basic recipe we've been using.

Creme Brulee (4 servings)

You'll need:

1 pint heavy cream

1 vanilla bean, split and scraped

1/4 cup sugar, divided

3 large egg yolks

The steps:

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.

Place cream, vanilla bean (and pulp) into a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. NOTE: Should you want flavored Creme Brulee, add something! This is the time to do so; while your cooking the cream & vanilla. We've added lemon zest, juice & zest of orange, and almond extract. They've all been delicious.

Remove from heat, cover, let sit for 15 minutes. Remove vanilla bean.

Meanwhile, in a medium sized bowl, whisk together sugar and the egg yolks until well blended and begins to lighten in color. Temper in the cream - going very slow making sure the eggs don't scramble, stirring continuously.

Pour the mixture into ramekins (approx. 7-8 oz size). Place the ramekins into a cake pan or roasting dish. Pour enough hot water into the pan to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins.

Bake until the creme brulee is just set - still trembling in the center (40-45 minutes).

Remove the ramekins and refrigerate for at least several hours.

Just before serving:

Remove creme brulee from refrigerator for approx. 30 minutes.

Sprinkle a layer of sugar on top of the creme brulees. Make sure it's an even covering. Using a torch (Brian's FAVORITE part), melt the sugar to form the crispy top.

Allow to sit for about 10 minutes before serving.

Top with fresh fruit. Blueberries, blackberries, wineberries, Clementine slivers, or whatever is fresh at the farmers market.

EAT. ENJOY. And DON'T FEEL GUILTY ABOUT IT.

CAUTION! Making this recipe just one time can severely screw your diet. I believe we've made it 4 times since mid-June. I feel only slightly guilty about that. Oops. Sorry waistline.... I'll see you again soon.

Summertime... and blogging hasn't come easy.

I love writing. Brian loves cooking. Yet we've been terribly lax with our food blogging. We've been eating... just not blogging. Several people have asked where we've gone, and when the next blog will appear, so here we are. Glad to know you're enjoying!

Another post will be coming this week. And here's the early disclaimer -- it WILL NOT be a healthy one. But one I've become addicted to eating. And Brian has become addicted to making. Seemingly because he gets to use a mini-blowtorch.

This, however, is a health one. And quite tasty also. It's a great summertime chicken dish that is rather quick to prepare. Happy reading and eating!

Chicken with Honey-Orange-Garlic Sauce

You'll need:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, trimmed
2 oranges
2 tablespoons flour
salt & pepper
1 cup chicken broth
3 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 cup white wine (use a mild, fruity wine)
2 tablespoons honey
1 cinnamon stick
Assorted micro-greens

Steps:

First, zest and juice one orange. Keep in a small bowl. Peal and pith the other, then halve and slice.

Combine flour, salt & pepper in a shallow dish.Dredge chicken in the flour. Transfer remaining flour into a small bowl, add broth and whisk to combine.

Heat oil in a large, non-stick skillet over med-high heat. Brown the chicken (3-4 minutes per side). Remove from pan. Add wine to pan to deglaze (about 1 minute). Add flour/broth mixture, orange zest & juice, honey cinnamon and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer.

Return the chicken to pan. Cook, turning once or twice until cooked through. Sauce should thicken. (10-12 minutes)

Remove cinnamon stick before serving.

Plate chicken, spooning sauce over it. Top with orange slices and micro-greens.

Serve with your favorite veggie. We paired it with lemon-basil carrots (recipe later).

Back at it

So after a vacation hiatus, we're back to blogging. We spent a wonderful week in Florida visiting (among others) Mickey & Minnie, Doc Brown and the time-traveling Delorean and a congregation of gators. We ate at some amazing restaurants, a few of which I review below. When we travel, we plan much around the restaurants we want to try. This vacation was no different. And many of the choices soared.

Emeril's Tchoup Chop was one of the highlights. Their "Kicked-up" crabcake appetizer was divine. It was adorned by a mango-habanero butter sauce and caramelized pineapple compote. Ridiculously mouthwatering. I could have eaten 5 of these things. I had a King Salmon filet with a gentle yamasa ginger butter sauce. Brian enjoyed a pepper grilled, yellowfin tuna steak with a ramp-ginger cabernet reduction. The sauces were exquisite. The service was exceptional. I'd go back to Orlando just for this restaurant.

Salt Island Restaurant matched The Tchoup Chop in service, and was a close second in terms of the food. They had a most extensive wine list and very knowledgeable servers. We had an appetizer called Scallops on Fire - scallops topped with Blue Crab meat baked in a fiery sauce. Pretty respectable way to start a great meal. Both the seafood and the steaks were well prepared and pleasing.

Another dining experience we enjoyed was Cameron Mitchell's Ocean Prime. They had the most delicious Crème Brûlée I've ever tasted. The wine list was pretty impressive also.

Anyway, back to reality (ugh!) - back to blogging (hooray!).

This recipe is one of Brian's original creations. And it's fabulous. The sauce is different every time. It just depends what we have on hand and what we're in the mood for. Tonight's sauce (the one below) will be especially delicious - sweet and spicy; my favorite combination of flavors.

When we first started making this, we fried the chicken. Tasty, but oil-laden. Brian tried it in the oven one night and the result was fantastic. Just as crispy; just as tasty. And MUCH healthier. That's how we've been cooking it ever since.

Panko Crusted Chicken with Sriracha-Peach Reduction

The Sauce:

First, start the sauce. In a saucepan, combine the following:
2 tablespoons butter
1/3 cup jam, jelly or preserves - tonight, we're using peach preserves
1/2 cup red wine - use what you drink
Sriracha - we use a lot, we like it hot. Use what your palate can handle.

Combine & stir all. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Don't cover. Stir it occasionally.

Chicken:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Start with boneless, skinless chicken breasts. As many people as you're feeding, that's how many you need.
Pound them out with a meat tenderizer. You'll want them about 3/4 inch thick. Once that is done, coat with Panko bread crumbs. These can be purchased in the Asian section of the grocery, or you can make them (more on that in another blog).
Lay flat on a cookie sheet covered with non-stick aluminum foil.

Bake at 350 for approximately 15 minutes or until cooked through completely.

Toward the end of the baking time, remove the sauce from heat and let cool slightly.

Remove the chicken from oven, and dress with the sauce reduction. So delicious.