I mean, I don’t believe the world is flat or anything but I do resist new things. So it should not surprise you when I say that up until a few days ago I had not used Panko crumbs.

I know. I know. Everyone has used Panko…for everything. I am pretty sure I even heard of someone using it for spackle. What can I say? I told you, I am technology resistant. But curiousity got the best of me and I furtively picked up a box of Panko crumbs when I was shopping last week, carefully hiding it under the organic flour and vital wheat gluten.

When I got home I watched the kids unload the van and put things away. This is truly why everyone should have children. They are like little oompa loompas carrying out the menial tasks that are so prevalent in the home. When they got to the Panko crumbs there were the inevitable questions.

“Mom, what’s this?”

“Panko”

“I read that. What’s it for?”

“Cooking. Don’t you have some math to do?”

In our house the trump card is always asking about school. Being homeschoolers we don’t often take a full summer off. Generally the kids hope that I get busy writing and forget that they are supposed to be writing reports on primitive cultures, in Latin. The especially hope that I forget about math.

So there the Panko box was, leering at me from the pantry shelf, next to the box of Organic Free Range Chicken Broth on one side and Seventh Generation Dishwasher Soap on the other. Everytime I walked into the pantry I could feel its desire for me, its plotting to have me completely, to indulge my desire for the unknown.

And I caved. I did. I wanted to do chicken breast with maple chipotle glaze but I wanted it to be a little beyond that. I mean smooth chicken, herbed salad, boiled potatoes? Smooth…and boring. A crispy crumb coating would add texture, excitement, depth. The deed was done; I had been seduced.

It. Was. Amazing.

The chicken breast is tender and juicy, the crumb layer crisp and crunchy, the glaze is sweet smoky, and spicy. And it is easy. You can easily have this on the table in under an hour.

My menu was:

Panko Breaded Chicken with Maple Chipotle Glaze

Potatoes with Cilantro Butter

Baby Herb Salad with Balsamic and Maple Vinaigrette

An apple or pear dessert, even sliced with cheese, would be a beautiful finish.

When we had a tea room we would slice the chicken breast in half horizontally. You get two chicken breasts for every one, it is still plenty of food, and it cooks faster. Just make sure you have a sharp knife and cut parallel to your hand.

Here is a series of images to help you visualize it.

Breaded Chicken Breast

• 4 boneless chicken breasts sliced horizontally.
• 2 eggs, beaten
• 1 cup flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 tsp pepper
• 1 1/2 cup Panko plain crumbs
• Peanut oil or olive oil for shallow frying

1. Preheat oven to 350
2. Place eggs in a large bowl
3. Place mixed  flour, salt, and pepper on a plate
4. Place crumbs onto another plate
5. Dip chicken into flour, covering well
6. Dip into egg
7. Coat with crumbs
8. Heat about 2 tbs of the oil in a frying pan until it ripples
9. Place  2 chicken breasts at a time into the pan and fry until golden
10. Turn and fry on the other side until golden
11. Repeat with all of the chicken
12. Place in oven until meat thermometer reads 165F. The finished temperature should be 170F but it will continue to cook as it stands. This will probably take about 15 minutes.

Serves 8

Maple Chipotle Sauce

• 1  cup maple syrup
• 1 – 2 tablesppons chopped chipotle in adobo
• 1 onion chopped
• 1/4 cup butter

1. Cook onion in butter over medium low heat until transparent
2. Add chipotle and syrup and simmer, stirring often, until reduced by half.
3. For a thicker sauce that is more like a glaze process the sauce until smooth.

To Plate

Coat the plate with a few tablespoons of the sauce. Lay the chicken breast on top and dribble a little of the sauce over the top.

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Father’s Day is always fun around here. This year, however, Marc is working on that day so I was glad to test the menu ahead of time. He was very enthusiastic about the chicken, and he tends to be a meat and potatoes (and lasagne) kind of guy. There is enough heat to the glaze to keep it from being too fussy. It has presence!

Adjust the amount of peppers to your own taste. There are a lot of different types of peppers in this but each conributes something besides heat-each has a unique flavor that, when combined, is amazing.

Spicy Apricot Glaze

• 1/2 lb applewood smoked bacon
• 1 1/2 cups chopped sweet onion
• 1 tablespoon garlic, minced
• 1 cup organic orange juice, with pulp
• 1 cup packed dark brown sugar
• 1/2 cup dried apricots, chopped
• 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 poblano peppers, diced
• 1 red Fresno pepper, diced
• 1/2 teaspoon chipotle granules
• 1 teaspoon tabasco
• Black pepper to taste

1. Saute the bacon until crisp. Add the onions and continue to saute until they are tender, and then add the garlic and saute for a minute or so.
2. Add the remaining ingredients. Simmer for fifteen minutes or until the apricots are very soft.
3. Puree mixture in a blender until it is almost smooth. You want it to have a bit of texture. Allow to sit overnight in the refrigerator if you have time. It will keep for up to a week, refrigerated.

Yield:about 1 cup

Just brush it on the chicken toward the end of grilling time and serve the chicken with more glaze on the side.

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Umm….variety?  Challenge? Stepping out of the box with flavors?

The last time I shopped I saw lemongrass at the little natural grocer I use and I decided I would get some and do something with it.  It is very inexpensive and it just smells so good!

Lemongrass is an herb that smells and tastes very much like lemon drops.  It has a sweetened lemon flavor rather than the tart straight citrus.  Because of this it gives the foods that you flavor it with a bit more complexity than just lemon.  It is especially suited for sweet glazes and sweet/hot combinations.

I used bone in chicken thighs because they have so much more flavor than breast.  This dish has deep flavor and it needs flavorful meat to carry it off.  You could do this with a whole chicken, or chicken thighs but I think that breast would be too delicate.

Glaze

• 8 lemon grass stalks, finely minced, use just the white
• 2 teaspoons minced ginger
• Juice and zest of 1 lemon
• 2 tablespoons organic shoyu sauce
• 1 jalapeno seeded and minced, or more to taste
  
• 1/4 c honey
• Salt and black pepper to taste
• 1/4 cup chicken stock

Mix all ingredients in a non reactive saucepan.  Simmer until glaze is reduced and thickened.  Stir often and keep an eye on it so it does not scorch.  Cool.

Chicken

• Glaze
• 8 chicken thighs, bone in and skin on
• salt and pepper to taste

Season chicken thighs wit salt and pepper.  Place on a parchment lined baking sheet.  Brush glaze on and then allow to stand for about 30 minutes.  Do not contaminate the glaze with the brush, just pour a little of the glaze in a small dish and use it from there.  You will want any leftover glaze as a dipping sauce.

• Preheat the oven to 375F
• Brush the chicken with more glaze.  Be careful not to contaminate the glaze with the brush.
• Place chicken in preheated oven.
• Bake until the chicken reaches an interior temperature of 165F, about 45 minutes.  Brush with glaze a couple more times.
• Allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.
• Serve with the remaining glaze for dipping.

Serves 8

image:maryeaudet

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It seems like pork has been on sale a lot at the local Tom Thumb store.  Translated that means that the Audets have been eating a lot of pork!

I wanted something different and I wasn’t sure what.  I knew that I wanted rosemary potatoes because I bought four rosemary trees after Christmas for a ridiculously low price.  In other words, you can plan on seeing a lot of rosemary dishes.

But for the pork I wanted something..different..something..spicy..but not southwestern.

I was sipping a cup of chai and all of a sudden I felt inspiration hit.  (Actually it was Chef Kyrie jumping into my arms unexpectedly but let’s not spit hairs, o.k.?)  Chai and balsamic reduction.  Yum.  I thought of all of those flavors of chai; anise, cloves, black pepper, cardamom….perfect!

This is fantastic.  The balsamic gives the chai just enough fruitiness to bring out the flavor of the pork.  I did add a pinch of chipotle to give it some authority.  I did this in the house but searing the meat on a grill pan and then baking but you would probably get an even better result on the grill.  Cook the pork just until done, don;t overcook it.  Pork used to need to be cooked until it resembled cardboard but now days it is really a very clean meat and is best cooked just to 155.  Let it rest about five minutes out of the oven and it will be succulent, juicy perfection.

Grilled Pork Loin Chops with Chai Reduction

• 8 pork loin chops
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1 c triple brewed chai
• 1/4 tsp dried chipotle, or to taste
• 2 tbs balsamic vinegar
• 2 tbs honey

Make reduction:

Simmer chai, honey, and chipotle until reduced to about 1/4 cup.  Add balsamic vinegar and set aside.

Make Pork Chops:

1. Preheat oven to 350F
2. Season the meat and add to a preheated grill pan to create grill marks.  Place on a baking sheet.
3. Repeat with each chop.
4. Brush with the reduction and place in the oven.
5. Brush 3 or 4 more times using up all of the reduction.
6. Bake until internal temp is 155, about 40 minutes.

Serves 8

images:(c)MaryeAudet 2009

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I will post pictures of this in a bit. You see, there has apparently been a mutiny in techni-land and my computer is not speaking to my camera. Even my husband, who is the computer fixer in our family, has been unable to mediate between the two. He has graciously and wonderfully volunteered to take my camera to work and load the pictures on his laptop when he has time and then emailing them to me. As soon as that happens pictures will magically appear on today’s recipe. Life is good.
Anyway. In my shopping the other day I found a nice, slightly overripe papaya that had been marked down. I snagged it and was thinking about what I would like to use it in…the different flavors, etc. I came up with this tropical fruit tart which has a summery/vacation in the Bahamas type of flavor and is very easy and relatively quick. The presentation is beautiful, as you will see when the pictures come up, and the pastry was buttery-crumbly perfection and held up well out of the tart pan. The rum glaze added a faint pina colada type flavor which complimented the fruit and filling nicely. I would not add the fruit to this more than about 2 hours ahead and, as the glaze got a bit cloudy as it chills, I would glaze the tart right before serving. If you are making ahead and not glazing brush the bananas with lemon to prevent browning. This should serve 8-10 depending on the generousity of your slices.

Tropical Fruit Tart with Rum Glaze

Tart pastry

1 1/4 c flour
2 Tbs sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 c butter
1/4 c organic shortening
about 4 tbs ice water
Bowl of ice water

Mix together dry ingredients.
Blend butter and shortening well and chill a few minutes in freezer.
Put fingers in bowl ice water, shake off excess water and cut butter mixture into flour mixture until it looks like coarse crumbs, keeping fingers cold by dipping into the bowl of ice water as needed.
Add the 1/4 c ice water and toss together until dough holds together well.
Turn pastry out on a floured surface and roll to size.
Place in tart or pie pan, and, using a small ball of leftover dough, press gently into pan.
Prick with fork all over.
Sprinkle with sugar and bake at 400 until golden..about 10 minutes
Set tart pastry aside to cool completely. you may remove it completely from the pan when it is cooled or finish in the pan. I removed mine.

Filling
1 lb cream cheese at room temp
1/2 c cream of coconut ( Coco Lopez)
1/3 c sugar
1 c toasted coconut
1/4 c finely chopped crystallized ginger

Beat cream cheese and cream of coconut together until fluffy.
Add sugar, beating until smooth and not grainy.
Add coconut and ginger and mix well.
Spoon into cooled crust and smooth.

May be refridgerated at this point and finished later.

Topping
I/2 ripe papaya
1 banana
1 ripe strawberry, hulled
3 mint leaves

Slice papaya thinly in a horizontal (across the narrow) direction to make petals.
Lay the papaya petals around the edge of the tart, overlapping slightly.
Slice the banana about 1/2 inch thick on a sligh diagonal.
Lay the banana slices around with tips overlapping the papaya row, just slightly.
There should be a small space in the middle of the tart at this point.
Take the strawberry and carefully with a sharp knife cut oval *petals* without cutting through the base..continue as long as you can, 4 around the outside and then some in the middle.
Gently peel back the petals to open up the strawberry flower.
Place in the center of the tart.

Glaze

1/3 c cream of coconut
1 tbs butter
1/4 c sugar
1/4 tsp rum extract..
cook first three ingredients, stirring, until sugar is no longer grainy and butter is melted.
Add extract.
Cool slightly and brush over fruit.
Garnish Tart with mint leaves before serving.

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