cheff jonny

Alright, I would reccommend this red to anyone. But I warn you, its so bold that you'll have to make a dish with strong spices focused on the pairing. Not for the faint of heart, this wine kicks off with a fruitiness that gives only a slight nod to the tannins. I can't say that it is sweet though. I can imagine that it would do well to cut through a fattier meat like lamb shank or a pork ribeye chop but a smooth enough finish to be drinkable anytime. Five minutes later you'll be still savoring it's rosiness in the back of the tongue. I want to make a sorbet out of it and pair it with a blackcap raspberry sorbet when they come in season. Dang that's a good blended red.

I don't do a whole lot of pasta dishes. I'm usually attracted more to whole grains and sushi rice or using root vegetables instead of a heavy starch. However, every once in a while, I feel like a nice egg pasta as long as the dish is on the lighter side. Here's last night's attempt at a light pasta dish without pulling off the trusty buerre blanc sauce or buerre noisette. Cream can be healthy as long as you reduce instead of using a thickening agent. Sauces are so much lighter this way.

I felt like fish an rice tonight. This is not your average fish and rice though. No. There's a hint of fresh clorofil flavor from the basil, parsly and peas. The light briney flavor of tuna, and the smokeyness of BBQ'd bacon signal the summer ahead. I seared the Ahi Tuna with fresh ground black pepper, evo oil, and sea salt after which, I added some softened butter to give it more moisture. The risotto is cooked in 1 part chicken stock to 2 parts vegetable stock with yellow onion and garlic, then finished with white wine, lemon thyme, parsley and basil. Of course I added salt and pepper too. I rubbed my own BBQ rub on the bacon and seared it to a crisp in the pan I later cooked the tuna in. ( I didn't wipe the pan out, bacon fat is a good thing.) This Pinot Gris pairs very well with the dish. It cuts right through the creamyness of the rice and brings a shear citrus note to the very front of the tongue without too much sweetness. It brought out the floral aspect of the tellicherri black pepper on the fish and gave a brighter flavor to the tuna. I was pleasantly surprised. Describing a wine pairing always makes me feel pretentious. Sorry. There is no white table cloth in the room, just my cruddy '60's turquoise sparkle countertop. Yay retro!

(no animals were harmed in the making of this dish...alright, the fish didn't see it coming when they clubbed them in the head and dragged them by a long hook to the processing room where many large hawaiians cut them into restaurant size portions and packed them for shipping.) Bon Apetit!

O.k., by popular demand, I'll put down the recipe. After all, I'm not the type of chef to have a secret recipe. Everything I've learned about cooking came from someone else's brain. When it entered that wind tunnel I call my head and came out again, it was just a reinterperated mish mash anyway.

Here it is...

8 oz. Angus grass fed beef (london broil - I keep it around cuz its a huge peice of a cow and economic when cut into portions)

4 stalks Broccoli Raab- rough chopped (baby broccoli - picked in the spring instead of summer)

5 medium Sunchokes - washed and sliced ( or fingerling potatoes will work, but they will provide a different flavor)

3 tbs. Ginger - fresh, minced

1/2 c. Beef Stock

1 tsp. Sea salt

1/8 c. Jonny's Peanut Sauce

Sautee first three ingredients consecutively ( remove the meat after browning) on high heat, deglaze with stock and braise ( with lid on until beef is tender) 20 minutes, then add the last four ingredients, reduce until sauce liquid is a sauce consistency. :) enjoy.

Jonny's Peanut Sauce - as follows

3 lrg. heaping tbs. creamy peanut butter

1 can good thai coconut milk

1/2 tsp. Sriracha ( garlic chili paste )

2 tbs. ginger - minced

2 tbs. garlic - minced

1/8 c. sugar

soy sauce to taste

bring all to a simmer and stir in soy sauce a little at a time. to taste! 

 

You won't believe it 'till you see it, so I've got to show you. I spent $18.00 on all this.

Left to right...top, Spring Mix, Broccoli Raabe, Rainbow Chard, Leek. Bottom, Morels, Black Truffles, Sunchokes, Cauliflower. (Yes, I said Black Frickin' Truffles! 2 for $5.00) I love Oregon!

O.k. so it's a nice baked chicken BAD AAASSS baked chicken! I actually had some time to prepare something nice this time and I did it on a 30 something parent's buget. Hah! I always go so plain when I use exotic ingredients but when I use my everyday pantry ingredients, I bust out the flavors. I guess, "Go for what you know" ,holds true and I know asian ingredients. So I present,

                                  

Oh, harmless you say. Heh Heh.

Looks like any normal baked chicken with a few herbs and spices on it right?

O.k., here's the recipe, as best I can remember it. Although I have to admit, I was drinking this kick ass raspberry/cranberry wine from Sea Mist Winery, ( cheezey name ),and I wasn't paying that much attention when I was making the chicken last night...I digress.

Back to the plain old chicken.

• chicken legs (foster farms is a local brand for me and no hormones in them)
• 10 leaves of fresh basil
• 3 tbs. minced fresh ginger
• 3 tbs seasoned rice vinegar
• 2 lrg. cloves of garlic
• 1 tbs. ground coriander
• 1/4 c. tamari soy sauce ( its richer )
• 2 tbs. fine ground unbleached sugar
• 1 tbs. tamarind paste
• 1 lime - juiced
• 1/2 lemon - juiced
• 2 tbs. grapeseed or peanut oil (makes the skin crispy)
• Mix all ingredients together and pour remaining marinade over chicken. Bake at 375 for 1 hour or 165* internal temp.

Here's the sauce...

• 1 tbs. grapeseed oil
• 10 button or wild mushrooms- sliced
• 1 red bell pepper - julienned
• 3 scallions - sliced
• 1/2 c. chicken stock
• 2 1/2 tbs. tbs. hoisin sauce

Sautee first four ingredients until tender then add last two ingredients, now is a good time to add a little Sambal or Sriracha hot chili paste if you want. I have a four year old and I didn't want to hear her cry last night so I refrained.

I made some Calrose rice tossed with more Seasoned Rice Vinegar and sugar to accompany it.

Here's the finished product....Bon Appetit

• Last night we had roasted chicken, rubbed with thyme, paprika, garlic,salt & pepper. That means today, we have chicken salad. Here's my chicken salad sammy recipe...

 

 

• Chicken (of course)
• lemon juice
• capers
• celery - diced
• red onion - diced
• mayonnaise
• dijon mustard
• salt and white pepper
• tomato - sliced
• arugula
• fresh baked honey wheat bread
• I ate it with a Snoqualmie 06 Merlot - from Washington - great wine, suprisingly good pair with the arugula