Barefoot Bloggers: Caesar Club Sandwich

If I had to pick my favorite food a good sandwich has to be high on the list. It is hard to beat a good New York sub or a Bánh mì. Even though I say this a good sandwich like this is something I never make.

I did make a few changes when I put this together. Since I can't ever seem to find arugula I ended up just using some leaf lettuce. Also I knew my wife wouldn't like the sun-dried tomatoes so I left those off as well. I know it would have been better without those changes but I can say that this was a terrific sandwich even with the changes I made. This has to be one of my favorite Barefoot Blogger recipes so far.

Thanks to Karen of Shortbread for this pick - I really liked this one. And check out her blog for lots of southern cooking. I have to try the ham salad recipe she has listed for another sandwich.

Caesar Club Sandwich

(Source: Barefoot Contessa at Home)

Serves 3

Ingredients

• 2 split (1 whole) chicken breasts, bone in, skin on
• Good olive oil
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 4 ounces thinly sliced pancetta
• 1 large garlic clove, chopped
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1 1/2 teaspoons anchovy paste
• 1 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/2 cup good mayonnaise
• 1 large ciabatta bread
• 2 ounces baby arugula, washed and spun dry
• 12 sun-dried tomatoes, in oil
• 2 to 3 ounces Parmesan, shaved

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Place the chicken breasts on a sheet pan skin side up. Rub the chicken with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Roast for 35 to 40 minutes, until cooked through. Cool slightly, discard the skin and bones, and slice the meat thickly. Set aside.
3. Meanwhile, place the pancetta on another sheet pan in a single layer. Roast for 10 to 15 minutes, until crisp. Set aside to drain on paper towels.
4. Place the garlic and parsley in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade and process until minced. Add the anchovy paste, mustard, lemon juice, and mayonnaise and process again to make a smooth dressing. (Refrigerate the Caesar dressing if not using it immediately.)
5. Slice the ciabatta in half horizontally and separate the top from the bottom. Toast the bread in the oven, cut side up, for 5 to 7 minutes; cool slightly. Spread the cut sides of each piece with the Caesar dressing. Place half the arugula on the bottom piece of bread and then layer in order: the sun-dried tomatoes, shaved Parmesan, crispy pancetta, and sliced chicken. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and finish with another layer of arugula. Place the top slice of ciabatta on top and cut in thirds crosswise. Serve at room temperature.

Barefoot Bloggers: Individual Meat Loaves

I'm a big fan of meatloaf so I was happy to see this choice. I looked at the recipe though and it seemed like a pretty standard meatloaf. The only thing that seemed a little out of the ordinary was the amount of the onions and the fact that you pre-cook the onions.

After making these I can honestly say I have no idea what people commenting on these are raving about. Not that there was anything wrong with them - they just seemed pretty ordinary to me. Maybe I have spoiled myself but most good meatloaf recipes I have used have more than one type of meat, maybe some bacon, and probably something better than ketchup on top. I am clearly in the minority from what I see in the comments on foodnetwork and the barefoot bloggers that have done this so far. I might make this again in the future and try to dress it up a bit but it is definitely not my favorite meatloaf.

Thanks to Tonya at What's on my Plate for this selection. She has a very varied blog. A lot of vegetarian cooking (obviously not all if she chose meatloaf) and even has an entry on making your own butter.

Individual Meat Loaves

(Source: Foodnetwork.com )

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 1 tablespoon good olive oil
• 3 cups chopped yellow onions (3 onions)
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme leaves
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 3 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
• 1/3 cup canned chicken stock or broth
• 1 tablespoon tomato paste
• 2 1/2 pounds ground chuck (81 percent lean)
• 1/2 cup plain dry bread crumbs (recommended: Progresso)
• 2 extra-large eggs, beaten
• 1/2 cup ketchup (recommended: Heinz)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.
2. Heat the olive oil in a medium saute pan.
3. Add the onions, thyme, salt, and pepper and cook over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes, until the onions are translucent but not brown.
4. Off the heat, add the Worcestershire sauce, chicken stock, and tomato paste. Allow to cool slightly.
5. In a large bowl, combine the ground chuck, onion mixture, bread crumbs, and eggs, and mix lightly with a fork. Don't mash or the meatloaf will be dense.
6. Divide the mixture into 6 (10 to 11-ounce) portions and shape each portion into a small loaf on a sheet pan. Spread about a tablespoon of ketchup on the top of each portion.
7. Bake for 40 to 45 minutes, until the internal temperature is 155 to 160 degrees F and the meat loaves are cooked through. Serve hot.

Barefoot Bloggers: Baked Shrimp Scampi

I have a Valentine's day tradition to make a fancy dinner for my wife and I was hoping that this months recipe would be something I could use. Well since my wife doesn't eat shrimp I was a little disappointed at first - this would be another recipe I would not make since it would be only for myself. I thought about it a little more and thought - why not try it with chicken? Even better - why not do chicken and shrimp?

I'm not sure I have ever actually cooked with shrimp. The first thing I discovered was how hard it is to find some nice large shrimp in Minnesota. None of the grocery stores near me seemed to have what I needed so I ended up having to go to Coastal Seafoods - a specialty seafood store that I knew would have them and they did not disappoint.

The scampi was very easy to make. Since I was doing shrimp and chicken I made only a quarter recipe of each and made them in individual gratin dishes. The recipe makes it really easy to make part chicken since the meat really only comes into play at the end. I cut up a chicken breast into pieces about the same size as the shrimp. I even "butterflied" them like the shrimp. I put the chicken in the oven a little earlier since I thought it might take longer but I don't think it was necessary. As you can see from the pictures my shrimp browned a little too much on the top - only because I was busy taking pictures of the chicken and let the shrimp go too long.

The shrimp and the chicken were both terrific. I haven't had good shrimp like that in a long time and they were simple to make. The chicken was good too and my wife and son enjoyed it. Thanks to Jill at Insanely Good Food for this recipe. I have got to try the Mustard Wings she has on her site - they look really good.

Baked Shrimp Scampi

(Source: Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics, pages 128-129)

Serves 6

Ingredients

• 2 pounds (12 to 15 per pound) shrimp in the shell
• 3 tablespoons good olive oil
• 2 tablespoons dry white wine
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 12 tablespoons (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 4 teaspoons minced garlic (4 cloves)
• 1/4 cup minced shallots
• 3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley leaves
• 1 teaspoon minced fresh rosemary leaves
• 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
• 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 extra-large egg yolk
• 2/3 cup panko (Japanese dried bread flakes)
• Lemon wedges, for serving

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
2. Peel, devein, and butterfly the shrimp, leaving the tails on. Place the shrimp in a mixing bowl and toss gently with the olive oil, wine, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Allow to sit at room temperature while you make the butter and garlic mixture.
3. In a small bowl, mash the softened butter with the garlic, shallots, parsley, rosemary, red pepper flakes, lemon zest, lemon juice, egg yolk, panko, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon of pepper until combined.
4. Starting from the outer edge of a 14-inch oval gratin dish, arrange the shrimp in a single layer cut side down with the tails curling up and towards the center of the dish. Pour the remaining marinade over the shrimp. Spread the butter mixture evenly over the shrimp. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes until hot and bubbly. If you like the top browned, place under a broiler for 1 minute. Serve with lemon wedges.

Barefoot Bloggers: Coconut Cupcakes

When I saw this months recipes I thought - Oh great, two more recipes my wife won't eat. Normally I don't make the ones that only I will eat but I changed that rule for these. I have never really been a big cake person but coconut cake is one that I have a hard time passing up. I think it goes back to childhood memories when my grandmother would make a cake every year for my grandfather's birthday. The cake was always half coconut and half banana and I remember liking both halves.

So I decided to make these. It makes way more cupcakes than I will eat but it is not like it is that hard to get rid of cupcakes. I passed out a bunch at a meeting tonight and I will send whatever else I don't want to eat to my wife's work tomorrow - they won't last long there.

These cupcakes weren't much like my grandmothers cake but they were delicious. There is coconut in the cake so there is lots of coconut flavor. I loved the cream cheese frosting too - just like on a good carrot cake. As you can see my son had to use every ounce of his self control to keep from sticking his finger in a cupcake - I did let him lick the beater though. At lunchtime he told me "full ravioli, hungry cupcake".

Thanks to Jamie at Jamie's Green Kitchen for this pick. Looking at her blog it looks like she really, really, really likes cupcakes - I can see why she picked this recipe.

Coconut Cupcakes

(Source: Barefoot Contessa Cookbook, page 175)

Yield: 18 to 20 cupcakes

Ingredients

• 3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 2 cups sugar
• 5 extra-large eggs at room temperature
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
• 1 1/2 teaspoons pure almond extract
• 3 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 14 ounces sweetened, shredded coconut

For the frosting:

• 1 pound cream cheese at room temperature
• 3/4 pound (3 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
• 1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 1/2 teaspoon pure almond extract
• 1 1/2 pounds confectioners' sugar, sifted

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.
2. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream the butter and sugar on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. With the mixer on low speed, add the eggs, 1 at a time, scraping down the bowl after each addition. Add the vanilla and almond extracts and mix well.
3. In a separate bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. In 3 parts, alternately add the dry ingredients and the buttermilk to the batter, beginning and ending with the dry. Mix until just combined. Fold in 7 ounces of coconut.
4. Line a muffin pan with paper liners. Fill each liner to the top with batter. Bake for 25 to 35 minutes, until the tops are brown and a toothpick comes out clean. Allow to cool in the pan for 15 minutes. Remove to a baking rack and cool completely.
5. Meanwhile, make the frosting. In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, on low speed, cream together the cream cheese, butter, and vanilla and almond extracts. Add the confectioners' sugar and mix until smooth.
6. Frost the cupcakes and sprinkle with the remaining coconut.