Wok-Seared Duck Salad, by Emeril Lagasse

Sizzling Skillets & Other One Pot Wonders, 

by Emeril Lagasse

This recipe was inspired by a Thai dish called laap, which is made with minced or ground chicken, fish, pork, or duck and seasoned with the wonderful flavors of chiles, ginger, fish sauce, and citrus. I decided to use the same flavors with a seared duck breast and make it into more of a main-course salad. This is a refreshing take on northern Thai street food.

2 tablespoons uncooked jasmine rice

1 tablespoon minced fresh red Thai bird chile

2 magret duck breasts (about 12 ounces each) or 1 ½ pounds other domestic duck breasts

1/3 cup minced shallot

1 ½ tablespoons peeled and minced fresh ginger

¼ cup fish sauce (see page 213)

¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice

¼ cup freshly squeezed orange juice

1 ½ teaspoons palm sugar or light brown sugar

½ cup fresh cilantro leaves

½ cup fresh mint leaves

½ cup fresh basil leaves

1 medium head of red leaf lettuce, washed and torn into bite-sized pieces

2 cups bean sprouts

1 cup julienned red bell pepper

1. Heat a wok over medium-high heat and add the rice. Toast the rice, shaking the wok constantly, until all the grains have turned golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer the rice to a mortar and set aside to cool. Once the rice has cooled, grind it using a pestle until it reaches a sandy consistency. Alternatively, grind the toasted rice in a clean spice grinder. Place the rice in a large mixing bowl and set aside.

2. Place the chile in the wok over medium-high heat and cook, shaking the wok, until lightly colored and fragrant, 30 to 60 seconds. Remove the chile from the pan and add to the bowl with the rice.

3. Using a paring knife, score the fatty side of the duck breasts by making shallow cuts in a diamond pattern; this allows the fat to render more easily. Place the duck breasts in the wok, fatty side down, and cook over medium heat until the skin is golden brown and slightly crisp, 4 to 5 minutes. Transfer the duck breasts to a cutting board, slice them into thin strips, and return the strips to the wok. Add the shallot and ginger and stir-fry over medium-high heat until the duck is just cooked through, about 2 minutes. Transfer the duck from the wok to the bowl with the rice and chile and set aside.

4. In a small bowl, combine the fish sauce, lime juice, orange juice, and palm sugar and mix well. Pour the mixture over the duck and toss until well coated. Add the cilantro, mint, basil, lettuce, bean sprouts, and julienned red pepper and toss to combine.

5. Serve the salad immediately.

4 servings

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Drinking the Wines of Lebanon, Saveur Magazine

"The world's oldest wine culture produces some of its strangest, most wonderful bottles"  Saveur Magazine

To be honest, for a long time I never really thought about Lebanese wines. In the shop where I used to work, we carried a few nominal bottles, but they'd never piqued my interest, and generally when I thought of great wines with deep heritages, my mind didn't jump to Lebanon. But as it turns out, the country's vineyards and winemaking have one of the longest-stretching viticultural histories on the planet, through Biblical times, the Roman Empire, and even into the Middle Ages — which is about when historical records began chronicling the practice of winemaking in Burgundy. The wines of Lebanon wines are often compared to those of Bordeaux and the Rhône, perhaps due to the country's political and cultural relations with the French over the past century, but they are something uniquely their own. 

These so-called "Ancient World" wines are on the rise, and today, about 35 wineries are currently producing wine in and around Lebanon's fertile Bekaa Valley, whose winter rain and hot, summer sunshine help the grapes ripen easily.In my search for Lebanon's best vintages, I turned to ilili, a Mediterranean restaurant in New York City, to explore the highlights of their wine list, which represents many of the Lebanese wines available in the US, including wines by Chateau Musar, Massaya, and Chateau Kefraya. As I tasted my way through their offerings, I realized that there's something really interesting happening in Lebanon, something familiar, but also intensely different. Each wine I smelled and tasted managed to surprise me in some new way. The whites had a crazy range of aromas, from passion fruit and pineapple to cut grass and crushed walnuts, but then on the palate, they were surprisingly racy and acidic, even sour. Lebanon's reds seemed a bit more traditional at first, using blends of grapes that I was more accustomed to, but it became very clear that these winemakers were willing to experiment, which led to a wide range of styles: rich, powerful tannins and alcohol from the ripe fruit; potent spice from heavy use of cinsault; dark fruits and aromas from cider to earth, with an eye toward ageing in a world that wants its wines now. Each brand is making wines that speaks to its unique sense of place in the world. 

8 LEBANESE WINES TO TRY

Massaya Gold Reserve

Massaya Rosé 2009 ($13)
This rosé seems to be inspired by a southern Rhône style, with its gorgeous, deep salmon color. Hints of strawberries and candied watermelon are particularly apparent and this, coupled with its sharp acidity, makes it great for warm weather drinking.

Musar Jeune White 2009 ($21)
The entry wines from Chateau Musar are a great introduction to Lebanese wines at an affordable price, and are as playful as their funky labels. My favorite is their white, with a hint of honey on the nose and a powerfully citric acidity on the palate. Despite a high level of alcohol, it's young, fresh, and fruity.  

Hochar Père et Fils 2003 ($28) 
Hochar Père et Fils is Musar's younger, mid-level wine, elegant with a long finish. 

Chateau Kefraya

I love the smells of earth and leather — and even a wet smell like a forest floor — and these came together beautifully on the palate with notes of cedar, baking spice, and prunes. In truth, it's my favorite wine of the tasting: a fully developed bottle, ready for drinking now.

Chateau Kefraya 2006 ($25) 
I love the Chateau Kefraya's fresh black plum flavor, topped with a bit of spice. It's one of the few wines in this tasting where the alcohol seems a bit more subdued, making it smooth and easy to drink.  

Massaya Gold Reserve 2008 ($39)
The newest winery of these three, Massaya is making really good, really marketable wines. It's most famous for its Gold Reserve, and I can see why: with its dark black fruits and elegant black pepper notes, this wine is big, powerful, and modern. The 2008 is a little out of balance right now, 

Musar Jeune White

but a few more years in the bottle, and it will be as delicious as any Napa Valley Cabernet.

Chateau Musar (white) 2003 ($49)
Made from native Obaideh and Merwah grapes and aged for several years before release, this wine has a deep, rich honey color and smells like cooked apple pie with raisins and nuts; in contrast to the aroma, it's shockingly dry and acidic to the taste. It's strangely delicious, tasting slightly of calvados and marzipan—an exciting wine for the more daring palate.   

Chateau Musar (red) 2002 ($52)
This is a wine with serious aging potential, meant to lie down for 15 years or more before being opened. Lighter in color and in body than any of the other reds, the Musar still has incredibly powerful tannins that are just beginning to mellow and meld into the delicate, plummy fruit that shows on the finish. 

Comte de M 2003 ($65) 
Also from Kefraya, the Comte de M is considered to be the more prestigious of their wines. Velvety and smooth, with strong tannins and spice, M had all of the qualities of a beautifully developing wine: tobacco, earth, spice, with jammy baked fruit and my favorite element: a little whiff of cooked broccoli 

A Touch Of India: Fresh Curry Leaves, by Monica Bhide

Fresh Curry Leaves Add A Touch Of India

by MONICA BHIDE

This recipe is adapted from Modern Spice by Monica Bhide (Simon & Schuster 2009). Dried pomegranate seeds are not a substitute for fresh ones. Add the dried ones to this recipe, and you will have a mess on your hands — trust me.

"Curry leaves have nothing to do with curry powder. 

Nothing at all."

Makes 4 servings

1 1/2 pounds medium shrimp, shelled and deveined

2 tablespoons pomegranate molasses

1 teaspoon minced garlic

1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric

1/4 teaspoon red chili powder or red chili flakes

1/2 teaspoon ground coriander

1/4 teaspoon table salt

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 sprig fresh curry leaves

2 large or 4 to 6 small shallots, thinly sliced

1 cup fresh pomegranate seeds

In a large bowl, combine the shrimp, pomegranate molasses, garlic, turmeric, chili powder, coriander and salt. Mix well. The best way to do this is with your hands.

Heat the vegetable oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. When it shimmers, add the curry leaves and shallots. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until the shallots just begin to change color.

Add the shrimp and marinade. Toss for a few minutes, just until the shrimp are completely cooked through.

Remove from the heat and serve immediately, sprinkled with pomegranate seeds.

Chuck Wagon Chili

Sizzling Skillets & Other One Pot Wonders, by Emeril Lagasse

Of course, when my husband is given the opportunity to pick a recipe he beelines for the chili. Not to mention, we need to perfect a recipe (with a 'je ne sais quois') for a Thanksgiving weekend chili cookoff. In my opinion, what made this dish was the meat. Kevin picked up a beautiful cut of boneless short rib meat already cut into stew-sized chunks. He prepared the meat while I chopped and diced the veggies, prepared the beans and sorted out the dozen or so herbs and spices that went into this recipe. after searing off the meat and cooking down some of the vegetables, we methodically mixed in the remaining ingredients. Kevin happily glugged a bottle of dark beer into the mixture (and another into his belly). 
As usual, Emeril surprised me with the addition of several spices I wouldn't normally use in a chili recipe-- cinnamon and cumin to name two. And in the end, I could actually taste hints of both. We let it slow cook as long as we could humanly hold out. It smelled divine! It was traditional enough tasting, but with a few unexpected flavors that made it unique. It was even better the next day. 
This was the last recipe we made and this was the most traditional slow cooked recipe I made from Sizzling Skillets... truly a one-pot wonder... well, maybe two if you count the frying pan in which we seared the meat. 

Going Hungarian: Chicken Paprikash

Sizzling Skillets & Other One Pot Wonders, by Emeril Lagasse

I started Emeril's One-Pot cookbook challenge with a Portuguese-inspired dish (Portuguese Pork & Clams) which reminded me of my grandmother's part-Portuguese heritage and am ending with a Hungarian dish that reminds me of my grandfather. Having grown up in Pittsburgh, where Hungarian food reigned supreme during our Sunday dinners, I become extremely nostalgic when encountering anything to do with stuffed cabbage/peppers or paprika-based dishes. My grandmother made Hungarian dinners nearly every Sunday, so I'm excited to have a modern take on such a familiar dish.
Emeril's Chicken Paprikash is a wonderful, updated interpretation of the simple paprika chicken with which I am familiar. First off, it contains all the traditional ingredients one would expect, from paprika to sour cream. The unexpected twist was an addition of white wine to the sauce. My grandmother never cooked with wine, so this was surprising and extremely welcomed. Anyone who knows me, knows I always cook with wine-- and sometimes even add it to the food. (Truffle salt is my guilty pleasure and often makes it into the mix, as in this case.)
Another difference is the light 'breading' and sauteeing of the chicken before stirring it into the sauce. The breading was simply flour & paprika and helped too thicken the sauce. This was, by far, the spiciest dish I made from the cookbook. When prepping the recipe and considering the measurements, the paprika and cayenne seemed minimal, but ended up tasting rather firey until the addition of sour cream (Which helped cool and balance the heat). Frankly, this what I expect from Emeril's recipes-- ramped up flavor with a kick of fire.

In an ongoing effort to support local markets and source as much of our ingredients from organic/ local places, I mustered up some Amish Kitchen egg noodles. Pre-made and bagged, yes, but direct from Millersburgh, OH. For those of you who are not familiar, northern Ohio is home to country's largest Amish/Mennonite population. Needless to say, we can get our hands on some seriously good cheese, produce and pasta right on our back doorstep. 

When we finally served up the chicken sauce over egg noodles, we toasted my grandparents and dug right in to the Chicken Paprikash, which seemed completely familiar, yet modern. This was my second favorite recipe from the cookbook (a very close second to the English Cottage Pie).  In retrospect, I realized when the cookbook first arrived my instinct was to dog-ear recipes that remind me of my family and childhood. That's what comes to mind when people think of "one pot wonders" -- hearty home cooking. While many of the Sizzling Skillets' recipes seem complex/complicated, the ultimate outcome is always the same-- a meal chock full of flavor and comfort served out of one pot. It took three weeks of cooking my way through this book to recognize the common strain through such a diverse lot of recipes. Whether you make Caribbean-style Oxtails, Tuscan White Bean Soup or a Vietnamese Crepe the outcome is as stated above...  a meal chock full of flavor and comfort served from one pot.    

When that said, Emeril's Chicken Paprikash will certainly be in high rotation among our Sunday meals.

'Tis the season for Tuscan White Bean Soup

Autumn is upon us and nothing warms the bones better than a rib-sticking Tuscan White Bean Soup. This is a comforting, hearty soup with flavors reminiscent of northern Italy. We used baby lima beans because we just love their tender, creamy consistency, although in Italy it would likely be made with cannellini beans or great Northern beans. Use whichever beans you love or have on hand; just take note that the cooking time will vary slightly.

Tuscan White Bean Soup with Broccoli Rabe

Sizzling Skillets & Other One Pot Wonders, by Emeril Lagasse

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 cups small-diced onion

1 cup small-diced celery

1 cup small-diced red bell pepper

1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons minced garlic

1 teaspoon dried Italian herbs

¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper

8 cups chicken stock or canned low-sodium chicken broth

2 pounds dried white beans (cannellini, baby lima, or great Northern), rinsed, picked over, soaked overnight, and drained

1 piece Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese rind, about 1 × 3 inches

1 bay leaf

4 cups water

1 ½ pounds broccoli rabe, tough stem ends trimmed, chopped into bite-sized pieces

1 sprig fresh rosemary

Grated zest of 1 lemon

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

6 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese, finely grated (about 1 ½ cups)

Extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling

1. Heat the olive oil in an 8-quart soup pot or stockpot over medium-high heat. Add the onion, celery, bell pepper, 1 teaspoon of the salt, and ¼ teaspoon of the black pepper and cook, stirring, until the vegetables are tender, about 6 minutes. Add the garlic, dried Italian herbs, and crushed red pepper and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the stock, beans, Parmesan rind, bay leaf, and water and bring to a low boil. Reduce the heat to simmer gently and cook, partially covered and stirring occasionally, until the beans are tender, 45 to 60 minutes.

2. Using a slotted spoon, transfer about 1 cup of the beans from the pot to a small bowl and mash them with the back of a spoon. Return the mashed beans to the soup and add the remaining 1 tablespoon salt. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and continue to cook, uncovered, until the broth thickens slightly, about 15 minutes. Add the remaining black pepper, the broccoli rabe, and rosemary sprig and continue to cook until the broccoli rabe is just tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the lemon zest and lemon juice. Remove the Parmesan rind, bay leaf, and rosemary sprig and discard them. Serve the soup in wide, shallow bowls, garnished with grated Parmesan and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.

13 cups, about 6 servings

Butternut Squash Tagine & The Kalahari Queen

Sizzling Skillets & Other One Pot Wonders, by Emeril Lagasse

Kevin and I were in Las Vegas earlier this year and spent quite a bit of time lounging around Lagasse Stadium, Emeril's sports bar in the Venetian. I am not a gambler and do not part easily with my money, but I do love a good horse race. I had not yet placed a single bet during our trip (really!), but the moment I saw "Kalahari Queen" among the list of horses, I had to dip into the cash stash-- and bolted down the stairs to the window. Got the bet in just under the wire... and The Queen didn't let us down. My one and only bet in Vegas was a winner. Needless to say, I picked up the tab. Ever since, I have wanted to develop a cocktail called the Kalahari Queen. This has not officially come to fruition, but some semblance of a recipe has been formed... (Where is Our Lady of Libations, Chris Delhavi, when I need her?)

1 1/2 ounces spiced rum

1 ounce pear juice or nectar

3/4 ounce fresh lime juice

3/4 ounce Simple Syrup 

Angostura Bitters

Clove nutmeg- preferable fresh grated 

In cocktail shaker filled with ice, add rum, pear juice, lime juice, and simple syrup. Shake vigorously for about 6 seconds, then strain into cocktail glass. Top with a dash of bitters and a few gratings (or dash) nutmeg

When perusing Sizzling Skillets & Other One-Pot Wonders, I envisioned the Kalahari Queen pairing well with Emeril's Butternut Squash and Chick Pea Tagine because of it's warm North African flavors. This was the second recipe collaborated upon with Catherine Murray of Photo Kitchen, and all the lovely pictures once again come from her. I chose this recipe both because it (and she) is vegetarian and because I wanted to see how she brings all the orangey-golden colors to life in the clay tagine. Check out Catherine's blog (Freshly Baked by Photo Kitchen) to see more mouthwatering shots of this recipe. 

Unlike traditional North African tagine stews (which often consist of meat and vegetables) this recipe called for butternut squash, carrots, onions, peppers (which I forgot) and of course, chick peas. The combination of aromatic spices and a touch of saffron made this a most fragrant dish. It just occurred to me that I never thought to use saffron in tagine recipes, but am now a fan! (Thanks to Ariana for the giant load of Spanish saffron direct from Bhutan). Another interesting twist was the addition of dried fruits, which one might expect in Moroccan cuisine, but this combined with the spice & herbs created a truly unique flavor profile. Bummer: golden raisins were nowhere to be found in our grocery store, so we made due with dark raisins, which no doubt lent a different flavor (and look) to the final dish-- but their dark color gave the photos a little more visual interest. 

We were giggling that the beautiful squash, when cut in half, looked like a chiminea-------> 

The butternut squash, of which I am not generally a fan, absorbed the warm flavor of the spices and stock. No one ingredient overpowered another. I highly recommend trying this recipe- even if you are not a fan of b-squash- because there was, by no means, that typical "butternut squash overkill" one finds in soup or risotto (not my fav). 

If anything, this was a chick pea heavy recipe, and we were both OK with that! In order to keep this dish purely vegetarian, I replaced the chicken stock with vegetable stock. No complaints! We let the tagine work its magic while Catherine photographed the English Cottage Pie. Once we returned to the kitchen, the fragrant dish was cooked down into a medley of orange deliciousness. When paired with cous cous (which was cooked separately in water) and brightened with a splash of lemon, made an extremely filling dish with a lot of leftovers, shared with Catherine and a few other friends. Next time, I plan to cook the cous cous in vegetable stock (or even directly in the tagine) and will get my hands on golden raisins. Curious as to how that one little omission changed the dish... keep you posted.