Brine that Bird!

I know we all live really, really busy lives and cooking, especially during the week, has to be simple.  I work full time and I certainly have those nights when I don't want to cook anything so we either go out or get take out.  When I do cook, however, I don't think about how many steps it will take to prepare the meal.  I just think, will this taste good?

So...speaking of an extra step that makes a huge difference, is taking the time to brine poultry.  A basic brine is a mixture of salt, sugar, and water although you can also add spices to the liquid.  The high osmotic content of the brine forces the salt, sugar, and spice mixture into the bird and flavorless poultry water out.  The resulting meat is juicy, flavorful, and incredibly delicious.  It really doesn't take that much more time to prepare (the only difference is that you have to brine the chicken the night before you cook it for dinner), but the result is absolutely worth the extra effort.

Note, a brine is NOT a marinade (a marinade is a simple combination of an oil, an acid, and a flavor enhancer).  The most notable difference is the lack of acids in a brine.  Don't add one.  It will break down the proteins too much leaving a gelatinous mass.  Marinades are great when used correctly, however.  I'll blog more on this in the future!

The Life of a Carnivore (or what we do for love)

I love meat.  I'm not picky on the type...give me beef, venison, chicken, goat, kudu.  You name it, I'll eat it.  At one point in time we had ten different species of animals in our freezer.  When I was in eighth grade I decided I was going to be a vegetarian.  My parents took bets over how long it would last (a month...they both lost).  My always health conscience husband likes meat, but (why I don't know) doesn't like to eat it every night for dinner.  As a compromise we eat fish at least once a week and I try to cook a vegetarian meal just as often. 

Herb Grilled TroutTonight we had herb grilled trout.  I'm the annoying shopper at the market who insists on smelling the fish.  It's the best way to tell if it is fresh (you should also make sure the eyes are clear and the gills, if they are still attached, are spongy).  Fish should never ever ever be "fishy."  If it is, don't buy it.

Springtime in Shenandoah

It's my favorite time of year...high seventies, sunny, low humidity. Waterfall in White Oak CanyonThe best time of year to go hiking! My brother and I went to Shenandoah National Park to climb White Oak Canyon to Cedar Run, my favorite hike in the park. It's a fairly steep climb during which you pass a series of waterfalls. The hike is always beautiful, but we have gotten so much rain lately that it was even more beautiful than usual. The waterfalls were Picking strawberrieshuge! I remembered my camera and I would include pictures, but I left the battery in the charger dutifully preparing for the hike.

Besides the scenery and the joy of being outside, another perk of hiking is being able to eat anything calorie free. Today we had my favorite hiking sandwich...caramelized onion, cheddar, and black bean wraps. They are delicious and high in protein. On the way home we went strawberry picking and I made another seasonal favorite, strawberry-rhubarb preserve.

Update: The pictures I took on my iphone actually came out.  amazing!!!!

Kitchen Therapy

I find cooking very relaxing.  I love to come home, listen to NPR, and prepare dinner.  I honestly believe that there are few better stress reliefs than making dough (except maybe a glass of wine).  You can punch, pull, twist, and tweak; the rougher the better!

Curried Crab LinguiniI am making homemade pasta tonight. I have leftover crab which I will incorporate into the sauce.  It's damp and dreary here so I think I'm going to make a more comforting sauce with curry powder and coconut milk.  I was out of pre-mixed curry powder (whole foods has a great blend) so I tried to blend it from scratch (curry powder is a mix of spices with turmeric as a base which imparts its characteristic red color) but I was also out of coriander and the flavor just wasn't the same.  Luckily my husband works next to a grocery store!

Cooking Without A Recipe

What I love about cooking is experimenting with new flavors and combinations of ingredients.  Most of the time I cook without a recipe and even when I do use a recipe, I don't follow it word for word.  I realize this is difficult for some people and there is certainly nothing wrong with using recipes (I have about 50 cookbooks which I read on a regular basis), and I am posting lots of recipes on this site.  My advice whether you are following a recipe or creating a new one is don't be afraid to experiment and taste what you are cooking as you go along.  Taste spices alone or in combination, with traditional pairings (i.e. sage with Chicken, basil with tomatoes) but mix it up and see what happens.  you might be surprised with the results!

Soft Shell Crabs with Cilantro and LimeI was on the Eastern Shore and happily for me it is soft shell crab season.  I love soft shells but I don't cook them very often which is a shame because they are actually quite easy to prepare.  I bought a dozen live crabs (they were $1 a piece!!!) and headed home.  I didn't feel like going to the grocery store so I decided to experiment with the ingredients I had in my kitchen.  Citrus of course pairs well with seafood.  I only had one lemon but three limes so I decided to mix my citruses.  I have a great crop of cilantro growing in my herb garden so I thought this would be an interesting pairing of flavors with the lime and the crab.