Mushroom and Potato Gratin with Thyme and Parmesan

Oh là là!  It's been far too long since I last blogged!  I've had a busy couple of weeks and simply could not squeeze it in, nor much cooking for that matter.  Hopefully now I can get back on track :)
Yes, I know I made a dish like this not too long ago--I guess it's obvious that I love potatoes and cheese lol.  These were awesome, equally good as the other!  I served them with a steak (and some green beans for me), quite wonderful.

Link to original recipe:
http://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/mushroom-and-potato-gratin-with-thyme-and-parmesan.html

Ingredients:

1 T. unsalted butter, plus more for greasing
1 1/2 c. heavy cream
1/2 tsp. bottled minced garlic
3 fresh thyme sprigs, plus 1 1/2 tsp. minced
salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste
2 lb. yukon gold potatoes, thinly sliced (I used food processor)
1 T. olive oil
1 lb. mixed mushrooms (I used button and porcini), thinly sliced
1/4 c. grated Parmesan-Reggiano, plus more to garnish top

Instructions:

1. Heat oven to 375°F and grease 8" x 8" baking dish with butter (I used glass).

2. In a large saucepan, combine the cream, garlic, thyme sprigs, and a pinch of both salt and pepper.  Bring to a low boil over medium heat, then remove from heat and set aside.

3. Add sliced potatoes to cream mixture; cover and let stand while preparing the mushrooms.

4. In a frying pan over medium heat, warm the olive oil and melt the 1 T. of butter with it.  Add the mushrooms plus a pinch of salt.  Cook for 7-9 minutes, or until most of liquid released by mushrooms has evaporated.

5. Add the minced thyme and a pinch of pepper.  Cook for one more minute, then remove from heat.

6. Arrange one-third of the potato slices, slightly overlapping and in layers, in prepared dish.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and 1 T. of the Parmesan.

7. Spread half of the mushrooms over the potatoes and sprinkle with 1 T. of the Parmesan.

8. Repeat layers in #6 and #7, then top with remaining potatoes.  (** the original recipe says to use a spatula at this point to press down the potatoes.  I did so, but it made little difference, so I won't do so next time.)

9. Remove the thyme sprigs from the cream sauce mixture (if you haven't already while fishing out the potatoes) and then pour mixture over the potatoes.  Top with desired amount of Parmesan, salt, and pepper.

10. Cover dish with aluminum foil and bake for 45 minutes.

11. Remove foil and bake for 20 additional minutes.  After removing from the oven, let cool in pan for 10 minutes before serving.  Enjoy!

Candied Pecans

Just like it states in the original recipe blog where I found this recipe: these smell sooooo AMAZING when they are baking!  And they are quite delicious, too, of course.  They aren't exactly the same as what you would get at one of those places at a fair or whatnot--think they are more on the sweet side than those.  Either way, mmmmm!
Link to original recipe:
http://www.gimmesomeoven.com/candied-pecans-recipe/

Ingredients:

1/2 c. sugar
1/2 c. brown sugar, packed
1 T. cinnamon
1 tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
12 oz. pecan halves (unsalted)
1 egg white

Instructions:

1. Heat oven to 300°F.  Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. Combine first five ingredients in a medium bowl.

3. Combine pecan halves and egg white in a large bowl, stirring until all pecans are well-coated.

4. Pour sugar mixture over pecan mixture and mix until well combined/coated.

5. Spread pecans onto parchment in single layer.  Bake for 20 minutes, then stir and bake for additional 20 minutes.

6. Remove from oven and let pecans cool on sheet on a rack until room temperature.  Enjoy!

Stuffed Mushrooms With Ricotta Surprise

I had made these once before and just had to make them again...so very delicious!  This time, I did not have any fresh parsley on hand, nor any pancetta, so I used dried parsley and regular bacon--still completely tasty, highly recommend!
Link to original:
http://www.italianfoodforever.com/2011/06/stuffed-mushrooms-with-ricotta-surprise/
(for some reason, the side scroll bar disappears after being on the site for a moment--you can get it back by refreshing the page)

**The pork chop pictured here was a recipe that was just so-so, thus will not be posted**

Ingredients:

1 lb. button mushrooms (or baby bellas would be good, too.  I only had 12 oz. of mushrooms on hand, so I ended up with a little leftover stuffing because I used a little more on most ingredients)
2 T. finely chopped pancetta or bacon
1 T. olive oil
1 1/2 tsp. bottled minced garlic
1 tsp. dried parsley (or 2 T. fresh, chopped)
6 T. breadcrumbs
1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 c. dry white wine

1/2 c. ricotta
salt and pepper, to taste
olive oil, to drizzle

Instructions:

1. Heat oven to 375°F.  Brush mushrooms clean and pop out stems.  Place caps on a baking sheet.

2. Finely dice 2/3 of the stems.

3. In a small skillet, heat olive oil over medium heat.  Add mushroom stems and pancetta (or bacon) and cook until the mushrooms have softened.

4. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or two.

5. Remove from heat, transfer to bowl and add parsley, breadcrumbs, and Parmesan.

6. Stir in wine, season with salt and pepper.

7. Spoon a small amount of ricotta into each mushroom cap (just enough to cover/fill leveled) and season with salt and pepper.

8. Top with breadcrumb mixture, then drizzle with olive oil.

9. Bake for 25 minutes, then allow to cool on sheet for 10 minutes after removing.

10. Serve and enjoy!

Chicken Stock

This was my first time making my own stock and I loved it...except for the attempt on cutting up a whole chicken.  Next time I will either have a better knife or will just buy a chicken that is already cut up.  Apart from that, it was rather easy and it made the house smell fantastic :)

Update: I make this stock all the time now, it is my go-to recipe for it. When I refer to chicken stock in a recipe, this is what I am using!

Link to original recipe (I used "method 2"):
http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/how_to_make_chicken_stock/

(I forgot to take a picture at the very end, so I'll have to get one next time!)

Ingredients:

1 T. olive oil (I might have used more, think I didn't measure)
4 to 5 lbs. of chicken pieces/whole chicken cut up
1 large yellow onion, quartered
1 large carrot, cut into 2 inch segments
celery tops/leaves and 1 stalk, cut into 2 inch segments
1 bunch of flat leaf parsley (no idea how much this was exactly)
optional: leek or green onion parts  (I had leek)
1 bay leaf
1 T. salt
6 qt. cold water

Instructions:

1. Pour olive oil into 12 qt. stockpot and swirl to coat bottom.  Heat on medium-high, then add half of chicken pieces skin side down.  Brown and turn to brown other side.  Remove pieces and repeat for other half of pieces.

2. Return other half of chicken pieces to pot.  Add the remaining ingredients and increase heat to high.  Bring to a boil.

3. After boiling is reached, reduce heat to necessary level for maintaining a low simmer (it was medium-low for mine).  Cook, uncovered, for 4-6 hours (I went for 6 hours).

4. Use a slotted spoon or spider ladle to remove the large vegetables and chicken pieces.  Discard or keep for use in something else (some might choose to use the chicken in a dish, for example--just be careful to remove all bones).  Pour remaining liquid through a fine mesh strainer (or line a regular strainer with a dampened paper towel) and press until all liquid has been separated into a bowl.

5. Store in fridge for up to a week or preserve in freezer bags or canning (I did freezer bags).

Molasses Oatmeal Cookies

Seems my mind is stuck on molasses these days (haha, yes, couldn't resist).  I made these cookies right after the ones I posted the other day, mainly because those were disappearing rather quickly.  Hadn't ever tried these before; they turned out great!  Perfect balance of the spices and very easy to make.  They have a slightly chewy and crunchy texture, great for lovers of both types of cookies!
Original recipe:
http://www.crisco.com/recipes/molasses-oatmeal-cookies-852

Ingredients:

1 c. butter flavored shortening
1 c. firmly packed brown sugar
1 c. sugar
2 eggs
1 T. milk
1 T. molasses
2 tsp. vanilla extract
2 c. all-purpose flour
1 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. ground cloves
1/4 tsp. salt
2 c. quick oats

Instructions:

1. Heat oven to 350°F.  Line baking sheets with parchment paper or spray with nonstick spray (I used paper).

2. Combine shortening, brown sugar, sugar, eggs, milk, molasses, and vanilla in bowl of electric mixer.  Beat at medium speed until well combined.

3. Combine remaining ingredients except oats in separate medium bowl.  Add this mixture gradually to other mixture and blend in with mixer.

4. Add oats to mixture and stir in by hand.

5. Use two spoons to drop dough balls of around 1" (original recipe says to form balls by hand, but I found the dough was too sticky for such) onto parchment.

6. Bake for 11-12 minutes (11 worked for me).  After removing from oven, let cool on sheet for 2 minutes before transferring to cooling rack.

7. Grab some milk and enjoy!

Poulet à la Gaston Gérard (Chicken with Comté sauce)

The title of the this post is in French (obviously); the part in parentheses is not a translation, but rather an explanatory title.  I'd never made this before, but have tried other recipes with chicken and Comté cheese.  This one was much better, though I still felt like it needed a little something more seasoning-wise.  I plan to make it again eventually and will update when I do.  Don't get me wrong, it was delicious--and if you make it and discover what the 'something' is, do let me know :)  The original recipe is in French, which can be found here:
http://www.cuisineaz.com/recettes/poulet-a-la-gaston-gerard-28766.aspx

Ingredients:

3.5 to 4 lbs of bone-in chicken (the original recipe calls for a whole chicken cut up in pieces, but I am terrible at that, so I just used thighs and drumsticks (which is what my family enjoys most anyway :))
salt and pepper
50 grams (or around 3 1/2 T.) butter
1 tsp. paprika
110 mL (or around 7 T.) dry sparkling wine (use slightly less if you do not have sparkling)
150 grams (or 5.3 oz) of Comté cheese, grated
400 grams of crème fraîche (most scales can be switched to metric, which is what I did.  It's around 14 oz., or slightly less than 2 small (8 oz) tubs.)
3 T. breadcrumbs

Instructions:

1. Season the chicken with salt and pepper.  Melt the butter in a large heavy skillet over medium-high heat.  Place chicken in skillet and brown slightly on each side (about 4 min. per side).

2. Sprinkle the paprika over the chicken.  Cover and reduce heat to low.  Cook for 30 minutes.

3. Transfer chicken to an oven safe baking dish (I used ceramic, think glass would work equally well).  Heat oven to 465°F.

4. Pour off grease from skillet.  Return to the stove, medium-high heat.  Add the wine to deglaze the pan, then begin adding the Comté little by little, stirring to incorporate.

5. Reduce heat to medium.  Add crème fraîche in same manner, stirring until fully incorporated and sauce becomes completely smooth.

6. Remove from heat and pour sauce over top of chicken in baking dish.  Sprinkle breadcrumbs over top of all.

7. Bake for 15 minutes.  Serve with desired sides and enjoy!  (I chose a rice/quinoa blend and French cut green beans :))

Pappardelle with Venetian Duck Ragù

Duck is fairly expensive, so I'm always nervous when it comes to trying a new recipe with it (plus, hard to resist making my favorite recipe for it every time).  I'm very pleased that I gave this recipe a shot--it's excellent!  I'm also pleased that I chose to modify with using an immersion blender to make the sauce smooth (my family doesn't like tomato chunks in sauces).  Tip: if you have never used an immersion blender, they are a really cool and handy device--just remember to start it AFTER placing in the sauce and to hold on tight.  It will naturally be drawn right to the bottom of the pot and happily cling there.
Link to original recipe:
http://www.finecooking.com/recipes/pappardelle-venetian-duck-ragu.aspx

(I made 1 1/2 times the original recipe, which is reflected in the pictures.  Amounts listed below are original, not the increased.)

Ingredients:

1 T. olive oil
4 skin-on, bone-in duck legs
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 medium celery stalks* chopped
1 tsp. bottled minced garlic*
1 small yellow onion* chopped
1 medium carrot* chopped
(*I chopped all of these together in the food processor)
1 T. chopped fresh sage
1 fresh or 1/2 dried bay leaf (I used the fresh)
1 c. dry Italian wine (I used Masciarelli, will use again next time)
1 can (28 oz) diced tomatoes (I used this plus 14 oz crushed tomatoes)
1/2 c. chicken broth
1 lb. pappardelle pasta
freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Instructions:

1. Heat oil in 5 to 6 qt. dutch oven over medium-high heat.  Season duck with salt and pepper and place skin side down in pot (I had to do mine in batches--don't crowd them!).  Sear until the skin in browned, around 7 minutes.  Turn over and cook for 2-3 minutes more.  Remove from pot and set aside.

2. Pour off all but 1 T. of the oil.  Reduce heat to medium-low and add the chopped mixture, sage, and bay leaf.  Cook, stirring frequently, for 7 to 8 minutes.

3. Pour in the wine and increase heat to high.  Bring to lively simmer, keep simmer for 1 minute, then reduce heat to medium.

4. Stir in tomatoes (with their juice) and chicken broth.

5. Return duck to pot (with any accumulated juices), return heat to high, and bring liquid to a boil.  Reduce heat to low to maintain a gentle simmer.  Cover pot and simmer for 1 1/2 to 2 hours, until meat is fork-tender (it was 2 hours for mine).

6. Remove duck from pot.  Shred the meat from the bone...tip: I used my tongs to pull the meat off of the bones and it worked great, much better than having to do so with bare hands and wait for meat to cool.  Discard chunks of skin.

7.  Meanwhile, cook pasta according to package directions.

8. Remove bay leaf from the sauce, then use immersion blender to purée.

9. Add shredded duck to sauce, then toss with pasta.

10. Grate Parmigiano-Reggiano over top to garnish after dishing up.  Enjoy!