Easy Chicken Gyros

Delicious flavors for my marinade

So I am pretty much obsessed with cooking shows. You guys probably figured that out by now. Seriously though, I am. I've watched hours and hours of Food Network and The Cooking Channel but over the last few years the type of programming has really changed. Instead of COOKING shows with recipes and demonstrations and new techniques to learn, it's become a game show wasteland. Endless competition and elimination shows sprinkled with some travel shows about food destinations. Many of the good chef are no longer on the network and even the new hosts go right to a show where they travel around sampling barbeque, or burgers, or whatever the theme of the show is. It's super hard to keep my attention with shows like that when I am on a never ending quest to learn more and more about cooking and foods.

See! I actually DO use the Moulis I keep buying!

That, my friends, is where YouTube comes in! I can watch hours upon hours of uninterrupted (i.e. NO COMMERCIALS) shows from all my favorite chefs and stars. This evening I have some time to myself. The Chef is off playing guitar with some friends, and I am taking advantage of the peace and quiet to catch up on some writing, and watching cooking shows. So who are my favorites? I sometimes talk about my favorite chefs and hosts when I'm writing a post, many times I am inspired by something they cooked or included in a cookbook or maybe I just finished watching their show and it's fresh in my mind. I always always will watch Ina Garten. I don't think I have ever missed an episode of Barefoot Contessa and her cookbooks are among my favorites. Rachel Khoo is also a favorite. Her Little Paris Kitchen and Kitchen Notebook series are some of my very favorites and I watch the reruns quite a lot. The story of her teeny tiny apartment restaurant in Paris is so inspiring. I wish I could have gone there! Lidia Bastianich is another favorite. Her restaurant in Kansas City is not very far from here- I'm soooo going to make a trip there soon! 

One of my newest chef idols is Gesine Bullock Prado. Her show, Baked in Vermont, is like watching a story of my dream life. Sister of Sandra Bullock, and a former attorney, she is a self taught pastry chef who has a cooking school right in her home and shares her wonderful creations with everyone. Other favorite female chefs I like to watch are  Alexandra Guarnaschelli, and her Chopped co-star Amanda Freitag. Watching all these amazing and highly talented women in the kitchen is very inspiring to me, and really makes me want to create new recipes all the time. After all, isn't that why I spend so much time watching these chefs? Today's recipe is not something I "created" really, I'm sure many many people out there have prepared chicken gyros, but this version has me written all over it. 

This marinade is everything, guys. The chicken stays so juicy and sooooo flavorful. You can use this marinade for all kinds of meats and for all kinds of dishes. Leftover chicken is perfect in salad too. Don't skimp on that oregano though. Yes, it sounds like a lot of that amount of liquid but trust me on this. t's delicious. Always use dried oregano, like Lidia recommends, and crunch it up in your fingers to release the oils. I do not recommend fresh oregano for this- it can overwhelm and have a chemical taste. The Chef found a package of pitas at Walmart of all places and they were so soft and delicious! They weren't the pocket kind, they were the fold kind but man sakes I haven't had a pita this good in a long long time.

The recipe for the tzaziki sauce is provided courtesy of The Chef, whose cooking career was launched at a long-gone Greek restaurant in Des Moines called Papu's. He paid his early dues there in that kitchen and learned a lot about food, Greek food in particular. This is the same recipe for tzaziki that they made back in the day. It was my first time making it, and it was fabulous!

Chicken Gyros

1 lb boneless skinless chicken breasts

1/4 cup olive oil

3 tablespoons lemon juice
zest of one lemon

1/4 teaspoon garlic salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

2 teaspoons dried oregano, crushed between fingers
2 cloves garlic, minced

red onion, thinly sliced 

tomato, thinly sliced
shredded lettuce

soft pita bread

tzatziki sauce (recipe follows)

Place chicken in large zip top plastic bag. Combine marinade ingredients in small bowl and whisk together. Pour over chicken, press out as much air as possible, and allow to marinade several hours or overnight.

Make the tzaziki sauce and refrigerate until serving time.

Preheat grill, or grill pan. Remove the chicken from the marinade and shake off excess. Discard marinade. Cook the chicken until done, let rest for five minutes.

Slice the chicken into bite size slices. Serve in warmed pita bread with sliced onions and tomatoes,  shredded lettuce and top with tzaziki sauce.

Papu's Traditional Tzaziki Sauce

1 cup sour cream

1/2 cup packed grated cucumber

1/2 teaspoon garlic salt

1/2 teaspoon onion powder

pinch black pepper

2 teaspoons chopped fresh dill

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

1 tablespoon lemon juice

Peel the cucumbers. Cut into halves and scoop out the seeds. Grate, then blot with paper towels to remove most of the moisture.

Combine the cucumbers and sour cream with all the seasonings and herbs. Mix in the lemon juice right before serving.

I just wanted to talk for a few seconds about the grill pan. Mine is a Calphalon and it's indispensable in my kitchen. There are several really good ones on the market including cast iron grills and they last a lifetime. If you prefer to grill on an actual grill, by all means do, but for small items like this recipe, a grill pan can be your secret weapon.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Eat the World- Korean Beef Lettuce Wraps

One of my favorite of all foodie events in Des Moines is happening this coming weekend- the World Food Festival. If you aren't from Des Moines and you think you might like to visit the city, THIS is the weekend to do so. The World Food Festival is an annual event held downtown, this year in Western Gateway Park, and it's an awesome opportunity to try some foods you might normally not have an opportunity to try. The festival was usually an event for Nephew and Aunt time with my nephew Jeremy but he has moved to Texas so I'll have to find a new partner to taste test the wonderful foods on offer.

"Eat the World" is a theme I have come to really embrace over the last few years, challenging myself to learn techniques and flavors from all over the world. What a fun and delicious way to experiment. Many of the European cooking styles aren't too different from what I'm used to cooking here at home, but when it comes to Asian foods it's a whole new world. A trip to the Asian grocery store can leave you so confused about flavors and spices and sauces and..........everything. If you're like me, and love Chinese food, you try to replicate some of those dishes at home and they're just not the same. That umami component is just not there unless you have the right combination of flavors. But how do you get that? A good Asian cookbook is a start, and so is hooking up with a great Asian cook. Get in there, learn about the ingredients, experiment with fish sauce and oyster sauce and strange looking vegetables. Buy a wok. Buy a really good santoku knife. Be fearless! It's only food and if you don't like it you never have to eat it again, right?

I added several dashes to get the heat level up there.

The recipe we are making today is a bit of a stretch. In all honesty this is absolutely NOT authentic Korean food. It's Korean influenced. The flavors of bulgogi are there, with some modern and healthier twists- like eating the meat from rolled up lettuce leaves- no carbs, no fat, almost no calories in those lettuce leaves. My version features a healthy dose of mushrooms to add protein but no fat, and quite honestly, if you prefer a meat-free recipe, leave it out altogether and use a ton of mushrooms. You'd probably need about 3 pounds of mushrooms for the same yield. Using mushrooms also means your dinner is vegan as well, and if you have gluten or soy problems- just switch to liquid aminos instead of soy sauce. It's so versatile. 

Speaking of versatile, halfway through my cooking, I realized I did not have enough Sriracha so quickly subbed sweet chili sauce. It was a great substitute but had less heat, so a few dashes of Jason's Fire Infusions Spontaneous Combustion sauce did the trick. Just the right heat!

The beef rolls are beautiful rolled up in the lettuce leaves but you can bring more eye appeal by adding some tiny julienned red bell pepper or shredded carrot to sneak some vitamins into your kiddos. Not into rolling your food up in a leaf? That's ok too. Prepare a batch of rice and serve as Korean Beef Bowls. Sticky rice is the best for this use. Let's get cooking!

Easy Korean Style Lettuce Wraps

2 lbs lean ground beef
8 oz package mushrooms

1/2 cup soy sauce

3 tb brown sugar, packed

1-2 tablespoons Sriracha or sweet chili sauce

6 cloves garlic, grated

1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger

1 tablespoon sesame seeds 
hot sauce to taste, if desired

sesame oil
cooking oil

small bunch scallions, sliced, white and green parts

1 head Bibb or butter lettuce, separated into leaves

Toast the sesame seeds in a dry skillet over medium heat until golden and fragrant. WATCH CLOSELY! They will go from pale to burned in seconds. Remove to a plate and set aside.

Dice the mushrooms into 1/4 inch dice. In the same skillet, heat a couple tablespoons cooking oil. Add the mushrooms and half of the sliced scallions and cook over medium high heat, stirring often until the mushrooms are golden browned and all liquid has evaporated. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.

In the same skillet, add a couple teaspoons sesame oil. Crumble in the ground beef and cook, breaking up any large chunks, until cooked through. Drain off any fat. Stir in the soy sauce, brown sugar, Sriracha, garlic, ginger, the mushrooms, and half the sesame seeds. Cook for about 3-4 minutes to reduce the sauce slightly.

Serve the beef mixture in the lettuce leaves, adding rice if desired. Sprinkle with additional sesame seeds and sliced scallions. 

Leftovers make tasty Korean Beef Rice Bowls for lunch
the next day. Delicious!

The wraps make a great low carb entree when you skip the rice and you can use any ground meat you like- chicken or turkey are really delicious in this recipe and so is lean pork! It's a fun Asian twist on the same old "taco night" meal and even if it isn't truly authentic Korean food, it's pretty darn tasty.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Let's Go Shopping- Trader Joe's

"Wanna go foodie shopping?" Ohhhh friends, those are words I love to hear, and my close friends all know it. Some girls go to the mall, this girl loves going foodie shopping. Not grocery shopping, mind you, in the big supermarket. That is something I dread. I love foodie shopping- unique stores, gourmet grocery stores, like Dean and Deluca or Des Moines' own Gateway Market, specialty shops and so on. My recent favorites have been Fresh Thyme, Whole Foods and Trader Joe's.

It wasn't all that long ago that I had to travel to another city to hit Trader Joe's. Many Saturdays I'd get up early and hit the road with my bestie Ronda- heading for Minneapolis to hit Ikea and Trader's and then come back to Des Moines. A few years ago I was so thrilled to hear we were finally getting a Trader Joe's of our very own right here in Des Moines. I wasn't the only person who was delighted. It's a very popular store for great food and outstanding prices. The produce is beautiful, the meat and cheese selections are great, and the store is packed with organic, fair trade, healthy food products. Our location boasts some of the friendliest employees I have ever seen in a retail shop ever. It's just FUN to shop here.

And of course, the food is awesome.

So let's talk about some of my favorite Joe's products. While we aren't big buyers of pre-made or processed foods, we do make an exception at Trader Joe's. I can get a delicious Chinese dinner on the table in a matter of minutes and at a tiny fraction of the cost of takeout. what are my favorites? First and foremost, the pork gyoza. Years ago my daughter and I took a class and learned to make them from scratch but why bother with all that work when I can grab a bag at Joe's and they are every bit as delicious. Super easy to make, all you need is a skillet with a lid. The frozen gyoza get browned on the bottom in a little hot oil in your pan (go non-stick for these guys, trust me on this) until deep golden brown, then you add a couple tablespoons of water, pop the lid on and steam for a few minutes to finish cooking- perfect results every time.

Veggie fried rice, chicken shu mai and gyoza

When the gyoza are done, I remove them to a plate and keep warm while I whip out some fried rice or Kung Pao chicken in the same skillet I just used. The vegetable fried rice is one of my favorites- there is nothing to add, nothing to make to serve alongside, just add it to the skillet and cook until heated. It goes great with the gyoza. I'm also a huge fan of the shu mai dumplings. We have tried the chicken shu mai and the pork shu mai and both are fantastic. You can prepare those like the gyoza, or steam them right in the microwave, which is what I normally do while the gyoza are cooking. 

Kung Pao chicken with pork shu mai and gyoza

The Kung Pao chicken is also a favorite of ours. I always cut the chicken into smaller pieces- it's better distributed throughout the dish that way, and goes great over some instant rice, which we always have on hand, leftover pasta, whatever you like. 

On the other side of the culinary globe we have delicious pillowy cloud of delight- gnocchi. Tonight for dinner I was lazy. Hey it's a million degrees outside and I hate that. Drains me. So I was looking for something delicious and easy and again Trader Joe's had exactly what I was looking for.  Also from the freezer section, sweet potato gnocchi with butter and sage. Holy schmoly it is delicious. Lovely little nuggets of sweet potato and Grana Padano cheese bathed in a rich and buttery sauce accented with chopped sage. Dinner was on the table in almost no time. I just pan-grilled some boneless pork chops in a little Sinful Food wild sage olive oil and grilled a little red onion in there as well. While the chops were resting, I tossed the bag of gnocchi in the same skillet, added a little water per the directions and six minutes later I had a dinner I will be making over and over and over. It was the perfect autumn dinner- tender juicy Iowa pork chops with the hint of sage from that incredible olive oil, hit with a little Signature Seasoning, and snuggled up next to the chops, those delightful little nuggets of love. They are creamy and just the slightest bit sweet, with the creamy buttery sauce and bits of sage adding the perfect balance of flavor. Sage can be overpowering if overused but this combo was perfect. 

I was so impressed with these products, I can't wait to try even more of the frozen ethnic foods Trader Joe's offers. There are several more varieties of dumplings, stir fries, Indian and Mexican dishes just waiting for me to try.

Want to try the wild sage olive oil? Visit Sinful Food to check out all their amazing products. Click HERE to get yours!

Disclosure of Material Connection: This is a "sponsored post." As a Brand Ambassador, the company who sponsored it compensated me via a cash payment, gift or something of value. Regardless,  I only recommend products or services I believe are of good quality and safe. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Cooking with Wine- Fish Piccata

You should always cook with a wine you would drink. Wise words, and truly, words to live by if you are like me and love cooking, love wine, and love cooking with wine. It's no secret to you guys that I am deeply in love with Riesling. Maybe it's my German DNA but there is something about that grape that just appeals to me. Big plus- unlike a lot of other whites, it's never aged in oak. I absolutely hate that oak flavor in wine, especially white. I've complained about that before so I won't rehash it all here. I grabbed an inexpensive Riesling recently, from the Fetzer winery, and it's great for cooking and amazingly drinkable.  

We've covered the wine many times before, so let's talk about something a lot more fun- grocery shopping. Not just any grocery shopping, we all know how much I HATE a boring trip to the supermarket, but fun grocery shopping, gourmet shops, ethnic markets, Trader Joe's, Whole Foods, small town grocery stores, you get the idea. In these kinds of stores I don't feel like I have to rush to get out. I like to take my time and check out all the unique items. At the supermarket, for example, they have balsamic vinegar. Might even have two brands. But at Gateway Market or Dean and Deluca they will have twenty different balsamic vinegars, and shelf after shelf of olive oil and all kinds of wonderful things. Olives? You guys know how I am about olives, right? I get in trouble at the olive bars. I'm an olive hoarder, and heaven help me if there is a bin of Peppadews on the bar........

The spice aisle is another danger zone for me. Right now in our kitchen there is a six foot tall shelf unit that is packed with spices. Literally packed. Peppers, herbs, spices, flavored salts, whole spices, ground spices, hot and spicy, smoky and sweet, spices for baking, spices for pickling. In spite of this enormous collection of delicious, I never fail to find something new when I'm browsing in the spice aisle. Maybe a new curry blend, or a new meat rub. It ends up in my basket.

The Chef is always crackling jokes about the pastas and grains we have accumulated in the pantry. There must be four different kinds of lentils in there. Wheat berries, bulgur, amaranth, teff, farro, a few different types of rice. Pastas. Lots and lots of pastas. The Chef is an Italian guy so of course we use a lot of pasta! I love collecting the unusual shapes that I don't find in the normal supermarket and use them for special recipes and pasta salads.

Of course no trip to a gourmet or specialty food store would be complete without at least a couple additions to our staples and condiments. You never know when you're going to need a tablespoons of capers, or a few anchovy fillets. Yes, I do need that many containers of cupcake sprinkles and absolutely we need eighteen different kinds of hot sauce.

Lately The Chef and I have been on a more healthy track when it comes to food. We still like an occasional "naughty" treat but for the most part it's been lean proteins like chicken, fish and lots of eggs, and tons and tons of fresh fruits and vegetables. This time of year there is everything under the sun available from farmstands to supermarkets. I'm going with one of my favorites, baby spinach, and some beautiful flounder fillets to make a deliciously light and flavorful version of one of my favorite Italian dishes, veal piccata. Briney capers and freshly squeezed lemon juice and a big splash of that beautiful Riesling will complete my dish. The Chef still needs his pasta, so I'm adding some buttered orzo, but you could easily swap that for rice or even quinoa or another grain for even more protein power.

The Sinful Food Garlic Olive Oil is the perfect oil for this dish. It adds a nice garlic flavor in the background without being overpowering. I think it makes the dish. You need to invest in this oil and you can get yours by clicking HERE.

Easy Fish Piccata with Wilted Baby Spinach

6-8 flounder fillets*

Signature Seasoning

flour

2 teaspoons Sinful Food Garlic Olive Oil

1/3 cup Riesling

2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, chopped

1 tablespoon capers, drained thoroughly

2 tablespoons butter

1 package baby spinach, washed and dried

hot cooked buttered orzo for serving

*Use can use any light flaky fish you like, such as tilapia, sole, etc.

Pat the fish dry on both sides. Sprinkle with Signature Seasoning. Dredge the fillets in flour and shake off the excess.

Heat the olive oil in a nonstick skillet until hot. Add the fish and cook about 2-3 minutes per side, depending on thickness, until golden brown. Remove the fish to a plate and keep warm.

Add the garlic, wine, juice and capers to the skillet. Cook for a minute to blend flavors and soften garlic. Increase the heat to high. Stir the butter in until melted, then add the spinach. Cook until spinach is wilted.

To serve, place about 1/2 cup orzo on plate, top with about 1/3 cup spinach, then the fish. Serve with sauce spooned over and additional lemon wedges.

This is the first time I've ever cooked flounder, and to my memory may even be the first time I've ever eaten it. I can assure you, it will not be the last! The flounder was probably the best tasting fish I have ever had. Zero "fishy" taste, and while that sounds almost silly, most people know what I mean. I purchased the frozen fillets at Aldi and they were quick to thaw, individually packed, had zero bones- just delicious. I am definitely going to stock up on flounder- can't wait to try it in things like fish tacos, stuffed fillets, etc.

Disclosure of Material Connection: This is a "sponsored post." As a Brand Ambassador, the company who sponsored it compensated me via a cash payment, gift or something of value. Regardless,  I only recommend products or services I believe are of good quality and safe. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

ArtWeek and Al Pastor

Des Moines' summer season of festivals is in full swing. This weekend Des Moines hosted it's 20th annual Arts Festival in Western Gateway Park. What started decades ago as Art in The Park near the Des Moines Art Center has grown and evolved into a huge festival with nearly two hundred artists from all over, features food and live music, and has been the recipient of a number of major awards including the Gold Grand Pinnacle Award for the past three consecutive years. It's hard to believe but more than two million people have visited the festival. I remember around the ten year anniversary the festival was usually held on the downtown bridges, but it quickly outgrew the limited space in that part of downtown and found it's current home in Western Gateway Park.

The same weekend as the downtown arts festival there is also an equally popular arts festival held at the State Fairgrounds called ArtFest Midwest. The Varied Industries Building on the fairgrounds is the scene and 250 regional artists display their works. It's a bit more casual than the downtown festival but just as exciting- and air conditioned! Besides being able to view, and purchase, art from local and regional artists, there are also a lot of activities for kids and a lot of tasty food choices as well, with many vendors who will also be there for the State Fair in August. There is a free shuttle bus to take visitors back and forth so you can catch both without having to drive and park. Pretty convenient.

You might wonder what this has to do with food...... there actually is a roundabout connection. The festival in Western Gateway Park is not only a showcase for artists from all across the country, it's also a preview of coming attractions for "fair food" and a great opportunity to try out some of the food trucks that are increasing in number every summer. Since the city loosened the restrictions allowing food trucks, it's been growing like a wildfire. This year downtown Des Moines, the Capitol complex, and many of the larger office parks regularly see food trucks parked and open for service during the lunch hour. People here are embracing this new way to try food you might not normally try. The city has come a long way from the early days of Mexican food trucks set up in odd locations, often out of the way from the action of downtown, and around office areas. It wasn't that long ago that truly was the only kind of food truck in the city, and although some of them looked a little sketchy, alot of people swore by them for authentic Mexican food at great prices. For a lot of us, it was an introduction to tacos like we'd never seen before.

Tacos al Pastor is becoming a very popular menu item in Latin restaurants and food trucks these days, and for good reason. The tender juicy pork takes on the sweet pineapple flavors and hint of spice from the peppers. You often see the pork cooked on rotisseries like the ones used for gyros, and carved off the pile of stacked pork cuts for each serving. It's fantastic and one of my favorite Mexican/Latin dishes. Of course at home, we don't have one of those fancy rotisseries and don't need to make that much pork at one time. That's where the pork chop comes in. As an Iowa girl I grew up loving a juicy Iowa pork chop as much as any other all American food and as an adult I appreciate the way pork lends itself to many different flavors and cuisines. In this simple version of al Pastor the chops are marinated in sweet pineapple and orange juices, warmed up with chili powder, cumin and chipotle pepper, with onion and garlic for kick. I grill these chops to get some good caramelization and grill marks from the sugars in the marinade. I had more marinade than I needed for my pork chops so I threw a couple chicken breasts in there as an experiment. I bet they will be just as delicious. I might even make a little bowl of pineapple, cilantro and jalapeno salsa to serve with the chops. This recipe is perfect for thick-cut Iowa chops.

Pork Chops Al Pastor

1 cup crushed pineapple with juice

zest and juice of one orange 

zest and juice of one lime

1/2 cup chopped onion

3 cloves garlic

2 tablespoons chili powder

1 teaspoon cumin

2-3 chipotle chilies with a little adobo sauce

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon pepper

6-8 inch thick pork chops, bone-in

In a blender or food processor, place the onion, garlic and chipotle peppers. Add some of the pineapple and puree the vegetables. Combine all other ingredients except chops and mix. 

Pour over chops in a large zip top bag and distribute over the chops. Allow the chops to marinate in the mixture for at least four hours.

When ready to cook, remove chops from marinade and discard marinade. 

Grill chops using a grill or grill pan to 145 degrees for pork. Since I threw a couple chicken breasts in the marinade those guys will cook to 165 degrees.

Check out those grill marks!

Serve chops with cilantro rice or some roasted potatoes and avocado tomato salad or grilled corn. I just love the combo of pineapple, citrus and a bit of heat from chilies and you know I am allllll about the Iowa pork. 

The chicken turned out delicious!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Peachy Summer Chicken Salad

Who likes thrift store shopping? This girl does, that's who. I love spending a leisurely day strolling through the aisles and seeing all the fun things for sale. Many of the items bring back memories. I see lots of vintage dishes and Tupperware pieces that my mom or friends' moms had in their kitchen when I was young. Many times I will find souvenir glasses from different places, restaurants, breweries, festivals, and I always wonder about the person who first bought this item, and how it ended up at the Goodwill. I primarily look through the dishes and cookware, and books, sometimes I'll find a cool piece of framed art or something like that. I'm mostly on the lookout for unique dishes, serving pieces, cast iron, and cookbooks. Some of the really old utensils and dishes spark my imagination about the original owner of these things. Who was she? Did she have a large family? What was her favorite thing to cook? 

Check out these little thrift shop gems!

Sometimes I will get little hints and peeks at the original owners, especially when I'm flipping through cookbooks. I get super excited when I see handwritten notes on the pages, or a news clipping of a recipe tucked between the pages. Sometimes I've found carefully pressed and preserved labels from long gone canned foods with a recipe using whatever was in the can. Those are always fun. Some of those vintage recipes are a little cringe-worthy by today's standards, with lots of weird canned meat products and more gelatin than I can even imagine. Seems like everything was jellied and molded back in the fifties and sixties. I'm actually thankful that trend died off!

Antique stores are another goldmine for vintage and unique kitchen things, although they can get a little spendy at times. Small towns in rural Iowa are fantastic for finding reasonably priced vintage pieces. During the years The Chef and I lived at the lake I often popped in to a couple different antique shops in nearby towns and picked up some beautiful old canning jars and cool glassware pieces, and a number of great local church and community cookbooks. Those are also always fun. I love those cookbooks because you get a name to associate with the recipe, and more than a couple of those names in those old books were familiar. They might be my neighbors' grandmother or mother in law or aunt. I loved finding those connections because then I really could ask about the person and what they were like.

My friend Jessica and I have long been thrift store shopping buddies. A handful of years ago, when we were throwing around the ideas and dreams of owning a tearoom/bistro/gourmet shop together, we often scoured the thrift shops in search of beautiful china pieces and tea services. My garage became the storage facility for things we bought in anticipation of starting this dream business. As it sometimes does, our lives took different paths for a couple years, with real life becoming more urgent than our dream business. That dream is not gone, it's just moved on the ladder of priorities right now. Anyway. we still love thrift shopping, and a couple recent trips yielded some jackpot purchases. I've been able to score some pretty cool cast iron pieces- a pair of matching red enameled cast iron mini Coquettes and a pair of individual cast iron gratin dishes, some very awesome cookbooks, some even signed by the author, and some cool framed art for my dining area.

One of the cookbooks Jessica nabbed was written by Clotilde Dusoulier, and her cookbook, Chocolate and Zucchini, is amazing. Amazon says: "Clotilde Dusoulier is a twenty-seven-year-old Parisian who adores sharing her love of all things food-related—recipes, inspirations, restaurant experiences, and above all the pleasure of cooking with the fresh ingredients found in her local Montmartre shops. But her infatuation with food was born not in her mother’s Parisian kitchen, but in San Francisco, where she moved after college and discovered a new world of tastes. When she returned to her beloved France, her culinary exploits inspired her popular and critically acclaimed blog, ChocolateandZucchini.com.

In her first book, Dusoulier provides a glimpse into the life of a young Parisian as she savors all that the city has to offer and shares her cooking philosophy in the form of more than 75 recipes that call for healthy ingredients (such as zucchini) and more indulgent tastes (such as chocolate). The Los Angeles Times calls her recipes "simple, charming, and fun."

Appetizers such as Cumin Cheese Puffs, sandwiches and tarts like Tomato Tatin, soups like Chestnut and Mushroom, main dishes including Mustard Chicken Stew, and desserts like Chocolate and Caramel Tart can all be found alongside menus for entertaining, as well as tips for throwing cocktail or dinner parties with French flair. Chocolate & Zucchini is the book for anyone who has journeyed to Paris and can still recall the delicious flavors and aromas—or for those of us who only dream about them."

As I flipped through the book I found loads of recipes I knew I would love. including this salad. This is my version of the recipe, with very little change from the original. I prefer to leave my peaches' peel intact, since we like the peel, and I have made both with regular balsamic and white balsamic and it's equally delicious with both. Her original recipe used hazelnuts which, sadly, I was not able to find, so I substituted broken English walnuts.

Peachy Summer Chicken Salad

3 ripe peaches or nectarines

3 tablespoons hazelnut oil or olive oil 

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 pound chicken breast, cooked and cut in cubes (about 3 cups)

2/3 cup toasted walnuts, roughly chopped

8 cups (1/2 pound) half baby spinach and half arugula

salt and pepper

Peel the peaches, if desired, and cut into bite sized chunks. Place in a large salad bowl with the chicken, hazelnuts, and baby spinach.

In a small bowl whisk together the oil and balsamic vinegar. Drizzle over the salad. Season with salt and pepper, toss to coat with dressing. 

Serve this salad with a cold and crisp white wine such as a German Riesling or a good California Pinot Grigio. I served mine with an iced green tea lemonade and it was the perfect summer dinner. I kinda knew I'd like this salad, but holy smokes, it was so good, so much better than I expected. Perfect mix of sweet and savory, with plenty of protein from the chicken and the walnuts, I didn't even feel like I needed bread to go along with it, and the juicy summer peaches fed that craving for something sweet. You simply must try this recipe!

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

YouTube Idols and a Fresh Grilled Corn Salad

It's been about five years since the first time I put pen-to-paper so to speak and began writing about my cooking experiences. There was been a lot of changes in those five years, different social media sources, those clever super sped up cooking videos, and YouTube. YouTube is a goldmine of information and videos to watch, everything from a short clip of a single recipe to fully produced 30 minute "shows" by everyone from amateurs to professional chefs getting in on it. During the last year I really got to thinking of YouTube as a great way to keep up with some of my personal favorites, like Rachel Khoo, since I am rarely able to catch her shows on American satellite tv, and a YouTube favorite, Hilah Cooking. The brainchild of Texas cook and YouTube sensation Hilah Johnson, Hilah Cooking is a fun and "real woman" cooking show and companion blog that I find highly entertaining! Besides her great sense of humor, her recipes are killer! Hilah makes real food- fresh, pretty much in live-time and her recipes are not filled with pricey ingredients, she doesn't use an army of ridiculously expensive and unnecessary tools and gadgets, and the finished dishes look like something I want to eat. Right now. 

Recently I watched a Hilah Cooking video in which Hilah was making a fresh corn salad, starting with slightly charred ears of fresh corn. Raw corn. Still sweet and juicy and touched by a little grill heat to give you just a few bits of grilled taste. Her video is hilarious, taking a jab at that current Pinterest trendy phrase "Mexican street corn" and bringing out the giggles in me. I would soooo love to hang out with this woman! Her recipe sounded delicious, with that corn that's not really cooked. I was immediately convinced I needed to make this- or something a lot like it. I mean, come on, I am a Minnesota turned Iowa girl after all- we are all about the corn. Hilah's recipe sounds totally delicious with a nice kick of heat from those fresh Serrano chilies. I am going to switch up her recipe a bit and add some avocado maybe or even toss some pan seared scallops in there to make it an entree salad. I cheated and roasted my corn and scallions over the burner on my gas range- worked like a charm! Here is how I did it.

Tex Mex Iowa Sweet Corn Salad with Scallops

4 ears fresh Iowa sweet corn
3 scallions
1 Jalapeno or Serrano chili
1 cup halved heirloom cherry tomatoes
1 avocado, cut into cubes
1 package large scallops, thawed if frozen
1 tablespoon chili powder
3 limes
1/2 cup cotija cheese
1/4 olive oil, plus more
2 cloves garlic, grated
salt and pepper
1 package arugula
1 small bunch fresh cilantro

Clean the ears of corn, removing as much of the silk as possible. Rub each ear of corn with a small drizzle of olive oil, season with salt and pepper and set aside. Heat a grill to high, or heat a heavy skillet or grill pan over high heat. Add the corn and grill over high heat, turning so that you get char on all sides. Set corn aside to cool. Throw the scallions on there for a just a minute or two to get some char marks and flavor. Set them aside. 

Place the scallops in a bowl and squeeze half of one of the limes and a tablespoon of olive oil over and sprinkle with the chili powder. 

Sear the scallops in a hot skillet until just cooked and they have the beautiful golden brown crust. Remove to a plate and set aside.

This is the golden brown sear you're looking for.

Cut the corn off the cobs and discard the cobs. Place the corn in a large bowl, add the tomatoes, avocado, and the scallions, which have been chopped. Add a handful of chopped cilantro.

In a small bowl or jar, juice the remaining limes. For an intense lime flavor you can also add some of the zest to the dressing. Whisk in the 1/4 cup olive oil, grated garlic and salt and pepper to taste. 

Cotija cheese crumbles like a charm.

Drizzle half the dressing over the vegetables, toss to coat everything, then add the cheese, toss again, and serve the corn salad on top of a handful of arugula with remaining dressing on the side. Top the salad with the scallops.

So fresh! This is a great party recipe for when you are having friends over on a summer evening- very limited indoor cooking IF you go the skillet route and lots of fresh flavors. Like that super trendy, if not slightly irritating recipe for Mexican street corn, this dish has a TexMex hint of flavor but it's totally Iowa with that crunchy sweet corn. I love it because it doesn't have any mayonnaise in the recipe, and I find the whole idea of cooking mayo on an ear of corn completely yuck. I hope you'll try it. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."