Cheddar Dill Scones

So this is an old recipe from several years back that I make every so often and realized that we hadn't yet shared.  I know scones aren't on everybody's list of "Stuff To Eat Whenever Possible" but these scones will be!  I have had some scones in my day that were awfully bland and much more akin to the offspring that would be produced by a hockey puck mating with a biscuit.  This is not okay.  Scones should be light, flaky, buttery, and generally awesome.  So I set out to make a good one and after tweaking a couple recipes to get the desired result, I have come up with this.

I like dill and cheddar but you could substitute any cheese and herb combo that you may desire.  Fennel and Havarti or Gruyere and basil or whatever you like.  Or leave out the cheese and herbs and toss in some fruit like blueberries or raspberries.

Since scones make me think of stuffy old British folk taking tea and how awfully boring that must be, I decided to rock out with someone Brits who may take their scones with some whiskey and a side of mayhem and blasted some Siouxsie & The Banshees.  I definitely like their earlier stuff so I went with a classic of theirs from 1977 "Bad Shape".  - justin

CHEDDAR DILL SCONES
Time: 35 min
Difficulty: Easy
Servings: As large or small as you want to make them but about 15

• 4 cups + 1/4 cup (to flour a rolling surface) of flour
• 2 tbsp baking powder
• 2 tsp salt
• 3/4 lb cold, unsalted butter, diced into cubes (the butter must be refrigerated until final mixing or the scones will be small and dense)
• 4 extra large eggs, beaten lightly
• 1 cup cold heavy cream or half-and-half
• 1/2 lb extra sharp yellow cheddar, grated
• 1 cup fresh dill, minced fine
• 1 egg beaten with 1 tbsp water or milk

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Dice butter into cubes and put back in fridge for later use.  Add the 4 cups flour, the baking powder, and the salt to a large bowl and mix.  Take the butter cubes out of the fridge and add them to the flour mixture all at once and incorporate them with either a stand mixer or hand mixer/egg beaters until the butter is in pea-sized pieces.  Add the grated cheese and chopped dill and incorporate quickly.  Combine the eggs and heavy cream in a small bowl and mix them into the butter and flour mixture until it just holds together.  Do not over mix!  The scones will turn out like a hockey puck mated with a biscuit!  Again: Do not over mix!  Less is better!  If you aren't sure if you are over mixing, you are probably over mixing! 

Pour the dough out onto a surface dusted with the remaining 1/4 cup of flour and roll out into a rectangle 1 inch thick.  Cut into 4 inch squares and then in half diagonally to form triangles.  Mix the 1 egg and water/milk to make an egg wash and brush it on top of the scones.  Bake on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper or sprayed with non-stick spray for 20 to 25 minutes or until the outside is a nice crusty brown and the inside is fully cooked.  Guess you'll just have to try one to see if they are!

Cheesy Cauliflower Bake

I guarantee you that you could serve this to 10 people who claim they don't like cauliflower, not tell them what it is, and at least 9 of them are going to love it.  If you're into watching your carbs, this is the PERFECT substitution for mashed potatoes.  A little high in fat, maybe, because of all the cheese.  But it's great.  We made it last night to eat with Fish Piccata and I'm eating the leftovers for breakfast as I type this up.  Good way to fool kids into eating their veggies too, if you happen to have that problem.

So how about a little smooth and creamy singing by Iggy Pop with "The Passenger".  (I dug all the clips from classic movies on this video.)  -jen

CHEESY CAULIFLOWER BAKE
Prep Time:  25 minutes
Bake Time:  30 minutes
Difficulty:  Easy
Yields:  about 8 cups

• 2 heads of cauliflower
• 3 tablespoons butter, cubed
• 1/4 cup milk
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 3/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• salt and pepper to taste (and any other seasoning)
• 2 eggs
• 1/4 cup green onion, chopped (about 3 onions)
• 3/4 cup Cheddar cheese, shredded
• 3/4 cup Gruyere cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Generously coat a 2-quart baking dish with non-stick cooking spray and set aside. 

Cut cauliflower into medium-sized florets.  Steam until tender.  Times will vary, depending on the size of your florets, 5-15 minutes.  You should be able to slide a fork into it easily - "fork-tender".  Remove from heat.

Place cauliflower into food processor bowl (if you don't have a food processor, egg-beaters/hand mixer would probably work).  Add butter, milk, garlic and cayenne.  I added just a pinch of salt, a few cranks of fresh black pepper, and a pinch of Caldo de Pollo (seasoned Mexican chicken bouillon).  You can use whatever seasoning you want - thyme, rosemary, dill, seasoning salt.  Blend in the food processor until smooth and creamy.  At this point taste it to see if it's seasoned to where you want it, add more seasoning if necessary.  Then add the eggs and blend those in.

Stir in the green onion and cheeses with a spoon, leaving a little bit of cheese to sprinkle on top; don't use the food processor.  Pour into your greased pan.  Sprinkle the remaining cheese on top and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Greek Summer Salad

I know it's the middle of winter, but sometimes, you need some summer food.  Something light, refreshing and easy.  So I came up with this the other day and it's been great.  We've eaten it straight up, we've eaten it on top of a lettuce salad, we've eaten it with an olive, salami and cheese platter.  And you can't beat something that tastes great and is still healthy.  Good New Year resolution food, if you're into that kinda thing.  I hadn't initially planned on adding beans... then I saw them sitting on the shelf and thought, "Yeah!"  I liked how it turned out a lot! 

I was listening to some Boston punk, so I decided to post a little Darkbuster, playing "Whiskey Will".  I should have saved this song for a recipe with whiskey in it but... I don't think I'll be at a loss for punk songs about whiskey. ;)  -jen

GREEK SUMMER SALAD
Time:  20 minutes, no cooking
Difficulty:  Can you use a knife?  If yes, then easy.
Yields: 4-5 cups

• 2 cucumbers, seeded and chopped
• 2 roma tomatoes, seeded and chopped
• 1 shallot, chopped
• 1/2 cup green olives, chopped
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 can (15oz) white beans, rinsed
• 3/4 cup feta cheese
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• salt and pepper to taste

Mix all ingredients and toss!  Can't get much easier than that!

Spiced Cider & Pumpkin Bread

Homemade pumpkin puree

I don't really get into the baking mood much, but on Christmas morning this year, I was overcome with the notorious holiday baking bug.  We had two sugar pumpkins getting pretty ripe, so we cut those suckers up and roasted them, then pureed the roasted insides.  I had some delicious, dark cider left over in the fridge, and thought I'd use that and mulling spices in the pumpkin bread!  It was great!  Not especially sweet, but very moist and spiced!  I think I might make this a Christmas tradition.

And nothing says Christmas like busting out some old school Agent Orange being "Too Young To Die".  (And, you know... pumpkins... orange... etc.)  -jen

Roasting sugar pumpkins

SPICED CIDER & PUMPKIN BREAD
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time:  60 minutes
Yields:  2 loaves 

• 2 cups brown sugar
• 2 cups pumpkin puree
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup vegetable oil
• 1 cup apple cider
• 4 and 1/2 cups flour
• 1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
• 1 teaspoon powdered ginger
• 1 teaspoon ground allspice 
• 1 teaspoon ground cloves
• 1 teaspoon cardamom
• zest of 1 orange
• 2 tablespoons baking powder
• 1 cup chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Generously coat 2 loaf pans with non-stick cooking spray and set aside.

Combine brown sugar, pumpkin, eggs, vegetable oil and cider.  Add flour, cinnamon, ginger, allspice, cloves, cardamom, orange zest and baking powder and mix until thoroughly combined.  Stir in pecans and divide batter equally into the two loaf pans.  Bake for 60 minutes or until a knife inserted comes out clean.  Cool on baking rack until room temp.

Note:  If you'd like to make your own pumpkin puree, quarter a sugar pumpkin and roast at 350 degrees F for 1 hour.  Let cool, remove skin, and puree in a food processor or with an stick blender.  A medium sugar pumpkin will yield about 2 cups of puree.  

Chicken Piccata

One of my favorite dishes from my youth.  My mother didn't, nor did anyone else in my family, cook anything piccata but one of the jobs I had for a couple years in high school was as a waiter and they had veal piccata on the menu.  I used to get it quite regularly and as I've gotten older I've done fish piccata every so often when I get the craving for that butter fat, lemon, white wine tanginess.

The dish is pretty simple and versatile so, as I stated before, you can use pork, veal, chicken, or fish for this recipe as piccata refers to a style of preparation as opposed to a specific protein or sauce.  Pounded, breaded, fried, and served in sauce.  I generally use snapper or sole when I do fish and have done pounded out pork tenderloin steaks as well so mix it up if you like.

And to accompany this delicious dish I went with a classic song from a classic punk group who I'm shocked to say, has not yet been featured in a recipe of ours.  These guys are also a flashback from my youth because it was my high school days when I first heard Agnostic Front and it may very well have been this song, "Gotta Go".  I know it was one of the first that I'd heard from them so it's fitting that I go all the way back to sophomore or junior year. - justin

CHICKEN PICCATA
Time: 40 minutes
Difficulty: medium
Servings: 3-4

• 3-4 chicken thighs, deboned, skin removed, cut in half
• 1cup all purpose flour
• 1 cup panko bread crumbs
• salt & pepper to taste
• 1 large egg
• 1 tbsp water
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 4 tbsp butter divided into 2 tbsp halves
• 1 cup onions, minced
• 2 tbsp capers
• 1/2 cup fresh squeezed lemon juice (about 2 lemons)
• 1/2 cup white wine

Preheat oven to 350.

Pat your thighs dry with some paper towels.  Toss your flour and panko in a gallon zip lock bag, along with some salt & pepper to season it up.  Beat your egg and water together to make a little egg wash.  Dredge your half thighs in the egg wash and toss inthe flour and bread crumbs to coat.  Set aside until all are done.  allow them to sit while you heat a large skillet to medium high heat and add your olive oil and 2 tbsp of the butter.

Brown the chicken on both sides until the breading starts to crisp up.  Place the thighs on a sheet pan in the oven for 10 minutes to finish them up.

While the chicken is in the oven, toss the onions in the skillet with all the drippings from the chicken.  After 5 minutes or so, when the onions should be translucent, add the lemon juice, the white wine, and the capers.  Simmer for about five minutes and when the chicken is done add the last 2 tbsp of butter to the sauce and stir it in as it melts.  When the butter is all incorporated, serve the chicken and drizzle the sauce all over the servings.

Chicken Pot Pie Soup

I like my creamy soups real thick... like a gravy!  Justin, however, prefers his a bit thinner, and that's how we usually make them.  This time around, I decided I was in the mood for a thick-ass soup.  Really, this could simply be used as a chicken pot pie filling if you wanted, because that's pretty much what it is.  Ohhhh... but it was so good!  I think I need to heat up some leftovers while I type this up.

You'll note that I used frozen peas & carrots in the recipe, when everything else is fresh.  I purposefully did this simply because the frozen peas and carrots ALWAYS make me think about pot pies... that 1950s retro thing, I dunno.  I also wanted to be really productive and bake some pie crust to sprinkle on top, but I got lazy (and intoxicated) and went with crumbled crackers instead.   And lastly, it seemed like a pain to write this in the recipe, but it calls for 1 cup + 2 tbsp butter.  Well, I actually used the chicken fat from baking chicken for those last 2 tablespoons instead of butter, to help lend a little extra chicken awesomeness to it.

NOFX's "Mattersville" came to mind as I was thinking of how homey this soup was.  I haven't thought about this song in a little while, it makes me laugh.   -jen

CHICKEN POT PIE SOUP
Time:  45 minutes
Difficulty:  Medium
Yields:  About 12 cups

Bonus pic!  Deformed bell pepper with alien pods bursting
open inside of it!

• 1 cup + 2 tablespoons butter
• 1 large orange bell pepper, minced (about 1 cup)
• 1 medium yellow onion, minced (about 2 cups)
• 3 stalks celery, finely diced (about 1 cup)
• 8 oz package of mushrooms, diced
• 1 heaping tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 cup frozen peas & carrots mixed
• 1/2 lemon, juiced
• 1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped
• 2 teaspoons rubbed sage
• 1 teaspoon savory (it's an herb, for those of you not familiar - it's optional)
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 cup + 2 tablespoons flour
• 4 cups whole milk
• 4 cups chicken broth (homemade preferable for super chicken flavour!)
• 2 cups cooked chicken, cubed
• Add salt to taste (some broths are saltier than others)

In a large stockpot, melt butter over medium-high heat.  Add bell pepper, onion, celery, mushrooms, garlic, peas & carrots.  Cook until tender (about 10 minutes with that many veggies).  Add thyme, sage, savory, paprika, white pepper, cayenne pepper and lemon juice.  Stir in flour, coating all the veggies, and cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes.  (It will be paste-like.)  Add the milk and broth all at once and whisk until the roux (flour/butter paste) is fully broken down and there are no flour lumps.  Continue stirring until the soup just begins to boil, then turn heat to low and add chicken.  Taste soup at this point and add more salt if necessary.  Remove from heat and serve with crumbled crackers on top.

Blackened Chicken Alfredo

So this is an older recipe from five or six years back that we decided to resurrect and revitalize.  My brother, Drew, always raved about this one since it's creamy, cheesy, pasta goodness with some awesomely spiced chicken so this remake is for him.  I used some penne that I had around the house but you could use some fettuccine or whatever you prefer.  Also, the mushrooms and sun dried tomatoes are optional and can be added in quantities to your liking or not at all if that's what you prefer.

For musical accompaniment, The Vandals with Urban Struggle.  Cause it's the Vandals, that's why. - justin

BLACKENED CHICKEN ALFREDO
Prep time: 20min
Cook time: 25 min
Difficulty: Medium
Serves: 4-6

•  Enough water to boil 1 lb of noodles
• 1lb of noodles
• 1 lb boneless skinless chicken cut into 1 inch cubes or thin strips
• 1 tbs blackened seasoning
• 4 tbsp butter
• 1 cup chopped mushrooms
• 1 cup diced yellow or white onion
• 1/4 cup diced sun-dried tomatoes 
• 2 tbsp minced garlic
• 1/2 cup white wine (I used a pino grigio)
• 1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
• 1 tsp grated lemon zest
• 2 1/2 cups heavy cream
• 2 tsp Kosher salt
• 2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 cup shaved or shredded Parmesan cheese
• 1/4 chopped green onions

Toss the chicken and the blackened seasoning together in a gallon ziplock and set in the fridge.  This can actually be done as early as the day before cooking if you really want to get those flavors in there.

Salt your pasta water generously and bring it to a rolling boil and add your pasta of choice.  Bring it back up to a boil and drop it to a low boil for 10 min, or until al dente.  Drain and set aside.

When you drop the noodles in the water, bring a cast iron pan up to heat over a medium burner and add 2 tbsp of the butter and let it melt.  Add your chicken that had been sitting in the blackened seasoning and let it blacken.  The milk solids in the butter, along with the spices in the seasoning, will turn dark and blacken as the chicken cooks.  Try not to move it around too much before the surface touching the skillet has time to caramelize a bit.  If it doesn't blacken completely, don't fret.  You're going to smother it in alfredo later anyway and it's going to taste awesome so no worries.

When your chicken has cooked, remove and set aside.  Return the pan to the heat and add the mushrooms, onions, and sun-dried tomatoes.  Saute for 3 minutes or until onions become translucent.  Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute more.  Add the wine, lemon juice, and lemon zest and simmer for 5 minutes, using a spatula or wooden spoon to scrape up all the brown bits from the bottom of the skillet.  Add the chicken that was set aside, the heavy cream, kosher salt, and ground black pepper and bring the heat up till the cream is at a low boil.  Allow it to reduce by 1/3.

After the cream sauce has reduced and thickened, kill the heat, stir in the butter, Parmesan and the pasta.  Mix well and allow the pasta to absorb some of that sauce.  Serve it up with the chopped green onions served on top and with a couple of slices of the sun dried tomato if you like!