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January 8, 2008

A Kitchen with a View

One of the perks of my job is that I get to gaze out of many different kitchen windows while I work. This afternoon I looked up from my work and saw a flock of wild turkeys (all hens) pecking their way around my client's horse paddock. Wild turkeys are a common sight around here, but I always stop to watch them. Today I was rewarded by seeing something that I've never seen before: wild turkeys taking flight! I've seen them hop from the ground to our fence then walk along the fence before disappearing over the other side, I've seen one run around our yard in a frenzy when I've let my cat out without noticing that there is a turkey in the yard. But I've never seen one fly. Until today.

There were eight hens in the flock and they took off one by one. Each took an awkward run of a few steps, then gracefully lifted into the air and flew off to roost in the trees. The contrast between the awkward run and the graceful flight was amazing.

Posted January 8, 2008 9:35 PM | Comments (2)

January 5, 2008

Mini Pie Revolution Roundup

Be sure to check out the results of the Mini Pie Revolution blog event. My mini lemon meringue pie is shown in the center of the mini pie revolution collage of entries. The roundup includes a brief description of each submission and an announcement of the winner. All of the pies look delicious.

It's fun to participate in events like this. I love seeing what other participants do. I've made only sweet mini pies, but entries like this cornmeal crusted tomato tarts inspire me to try some savory mini pies.

Posted January 5, 2008 1:50 PM | Comments (1)

January 1, 2008

French Twist French Toast

Once French Twist French Toast was mentioned, it was a given that we had to try it. Tom is a huge fan of French Toast and made it two mornings in a row. As we expected, it was delicious. This is the start of a secondary French Twist tradition.

French Twist French Toast.jpg

Posted January 1, 2008 11:32 AM | Comments (0)

December 24, 2007

My contribution to the Mini Pie Revolution

Ann and Karyn over at The Mini Pie Revolution Headquarters are seeking to liberate the world from cupcake oppression by taking cupcake pans and using them to make mini pies. You already know that I am a fan of mini desserts. I read about the Mini Pie Revolution on Serious Eats just after making my mini pumpkin chiffon pies.

Since Christmas is tomorrow, and Christmas means desserts, and I have a thing for mini desserts, and my dad loves lemon meringue pie. I made Mini Lemon Meringue Pies.

OK, so before these pies, I've made pie crust twice in my life and both times were in the past month, and those pie crusts were gluten-free for one of my clients. I knew that the biggest challenge of making these mini lemon meringue pies would be figuring out how to work the miniature pie crusts. I decided to use foil cupcake pans to bake my pies. Why? Because I knew that if I had trouble getting the baked crusts out of the pan, I could use my kitchen scissors and release the crusts from the pans. My first attempt at the crusts was a wreck. Sorry, no picture. The crusts shrunk down to nothing. For Take 2, I did a better job of pricking holes in the crusts and I also placed a paper muffin cup liner inside each pie and filled it with dry beans to weigh down the crust. My second set of mini pie crusts didn't shrink. Yay!

I made a simple lemon filling, which I let cool then refrigerated for a few hours. I went back and forth about adding the meringue topping tonight or waiting until tomorrow, but I didn't want to have to haul all the meringue makings to my parents' home, so I did the meringue tonight. I've made meringue before to mix in to a recipe, but I've never made a meringue-topped pie. The meringue recipe has you whip in a bit of cornstarch once stiff peaks form. A mini pie doesn't give you a lot of room to make a beautifully swirled meringue top (at least not if you have my meringue spreading skills). But it was easy to spread the meringue on the mini pies. The meringue browned nicely after about 15 minutes in a 350 degree oven.

lemon meringue pie

Posted December 24, 2007 9:19 PM | Comments (5)

October 15, 2007

National Meatloaf Day

The folks at Serious Eats have declared October 18th to be National Meatloaf Appreciation Day. On October 18th, I'll be making my favorite meatloaf for one of my clients. I love traditional ground beef meatloaf, but all of my favorite meatloaves are made with ground lamb. The one I chose for National Meatloaf Appreciation Day is a great company meatloaf, but it is also easy enough to make for every day.

Both in my house and with my clients, meatloaf is not cold-weather food. I make it year round. It's good hot and cold. I always make huge meatloaves so that there are plenty of leftovers. One of my clients has me make meatloaf almost every time I cook for his family.

My favorite meatloaf is based on Lamb Spiral Loaf Stuffed with Feta and Mint from The Weekend Chef by Barbara Witt. Since I can never leave a recipe alone, I turned it into Lamb Spiral Loaf Stuffed with Spinach, Feta, and Mint.

I love making this meatloaf. You mix chopped red onion, minced garlic, fresh parsley, dried oregano, cumin, egg, salt, pepper, and ground lamb. Then spread it out on a sheet of foil into a large rectangle. Cover the surface with wilted baby spinach, feta, and chopped fresh mint, then use the foil to help you roll it up like a jelly roll. Bake it on a broiler pan to 160 degrees F. I always want to cut it immediately to see the spinach feta spiral, but it is better to wait 10 minutes before cutting it. For a dinner party, I serve it with a sauce made from diced tomatoes, red wine, mint, and oregano. For weeknight meals, I serve it without the sauce. It is delicious either way. It just came out of the oven. I can't wait to try it.

Here it is.

Lamb Spiral Loaf Stuffed with Spinach, Feta, and Mint

I use a probe thermometer when I cook it, so it always comes out moist. The combination of lamb, feta, spinach, and mint is exquisite. This meatloaf forms a delicious crust. Gotta go, my meatloaf is calling me.

Posted October 15, 2007 8:13 PM | Comments (1)

May 18, 2007

PCN Personal Chef of the Year

Wow! My fellow personal chefs at Personal Chefs Network honored me with the 2007 Golden Whisk Award for Personal Chef of the Year.

The award was announced last week at the end of the PCN convention. Since we didn't go to the convention, some of my local PCN buddies and I got together for lunch on the last day of the convention. We were finishing up our lunch when Sharon Worster, the CEO of PCN, called me to tell me that I was the PCN Personal Chef of the Year. I was speechless. My friends made so much of a commotion that that everyone in the dining room wanted to know what was going on. Since I couldn't be at the convention this year, it was wonderful to share this moment with my PCN buddies. It really hasn't completely sunken in. My prize, a red Artisan stand mixer, arrived today. It screams "you're a winner!" There's a plaque on the way too. It will hang in my office next to my 2005 Golden Whisk Award for New Personal Chef of the Year.

I'm blessed to be part of such a great organization. PCN has been with me through all the ups and downs of my business. The cooking is the easy part of running a personal chef service. I'm sure that I wouldn't be in business if it weren't for what I have learned and shared with colleagues. They bring out the best in me. This is a solitary business. PCN truly encourages collaboration among its members. By helping each other, we help ourselves.

Posted May 18, 2007 12:13 PM | Comments (5)

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