Author Archives: robertaklapper

Crispy Garlic Roasted Potatoes are a super simple side dish perfect with anything! Buttery, garlicky, and fluffy inside with crisp, golden edges! You can prepare AND cook your potatoes in ONE PAN!

Note: I am including a similar recipe, however, this one uses more olive oil and a whole head of unpeeled garlic separated into cloves. See below following this recipe.

Ingredients

• 2 pounds (1 kg) potatoes, cut into cubes (preferably Yukon Gold)
• 4 tablespoons good quality olive oil
• 1 teaspoon sea salt
• 3/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tablespoons minced garlic, (or 8 cloves garlic, minced)
• 2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley

Instructions

HOW TO ROAST POTATOES

• Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Lightly oil a baking sheet or tray.
• Arrange potatoes on sheet in a single layer. Drizzle with the oil and season with salt, pepper and garlic. Toss so potatoes are evenly seasoned. 
• Roast in the oven for 45-55 minutes while flipping occasionally, until crisp and golden.
• Remove the potatoes from the oven and season with a little extra salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle over with parsley and serve immediately!

Garlic Potatoes (second recipe)

6 potatoes cut into pieces (peeled), or 2 pounds of unpeeled baby Yukon Gold potatoes (pricked with a fork )

1/3 cup of olive oil

1 head of garlic, unpeeled, separated into cloves

salt and pepper

Bake at 450* for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Flip halfway. Serve with the roasted garlic cloves (may be squeezed onto potatoes, if desired). Season with a little extra salt and pepper to taste.

By Ali Slagle

For pull-apart tender chicken with crisp, deeply spiced skin, rub it with a spicy-sweet mix and roast it low and slow while you’re doing something else. Because this chicken is cooked at a moderately low temperature, the spices will bloom but not burn, and the chicken fat will render slowly and completely (which means you don’t need any oil). The smoky rub in this recipe will turn the chicken skin into what tastes like a barbecue potato chip.

INGREDIENTS

Yield:4 servings

• 4 teaspoons dark brown sugar
• 2 teaspoons smoked paprika
• 1½ teaspoons kosher salt (Diamond Crystal)
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• A heaping ¼ teaspoon ground cayenne
• 4 chicken leg quarters (2½ to 3 pounds), patted dry

PREPARATION

1. Heat the oven to 325 degrees. In a small bowl, stir together the brown sugar, paprika, salt, black pepper and cayenne with a fork or your fingers. Rub the spice mix all over the chicken. (You can do this step 1 to 12 hours ahead. Refrigerate uncovered, then bring to room temperature before cooking.)
2. Place the chicken on a parchment-lined baking sheet, skin side up. Bake, without flipping, until the chicken is cooked through and the skin is crisp, 1 hour to 1 hour 15 minutes. Eat the chicken with pan drippings spooned over top.

Note: I used chicken thighs (with skin and bone), regular paprika, and some hot pepper flakes. So good!!!!

By Melissa Clark

This classic recipe makes a simple garlic, white wine and butter sauce that goes well with a pile of pasta or with a hunk of crusty bread. However you make the dish, once the shrimp are added to the pan, the trick is to cook them just long enough that they turn pink all over, but not until their bodies curl into rounds with the texture of tires.

Note: My family prefers longer cooked shrimp. Still delicious!

INGREDIENTS

Yield:4 servings

• 2 tablespoons butter. (I used more butter, to taste, than recommended. Felt the sauce was too acidic.)
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 garlic cloves, minced
• ½ cup dry white wine or broth
• ¾ teaspoon kosher salt, or to taste
• ⅛ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, or to taste
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 1¾ pounds large or extra-large shrimp, shelled
• ⅓ cup chopped parsley
• Freshly squeezed juice of half a lemon
• Cooked pasta or crusty bread

PREPARATION

Step 1: In a large skillet, melt butter with olive oil. Add garlic and sauté until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add wine or broth, salt, red pepper flakes and plenty of black pepper and bring to a simmer. Let wine reduce by half, about 2 minutes.

Step 2: Add shrimp and sauté until they just turn pink, 2 to 4 minutes depending upon their size. Stir in the parsley and lemon juice and serve over pasta or accompanied by crusty bread.

By Millie Peartree

Served with salted butter or on their own, hush puppies are the perfect starter or side for any meal, but especially seafood or barbecue.

Yield: 20 hush puppies

INGREDIENTS

• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted and cooled
• 1 large egg, at room temperature
• ¼ cup grated white or yellow onion (from about ½ large onion)
• 2 tablespoons chopped chives (optional)
• 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
• 1  tablespoon brown sugar
• 1½ teaspoons baking powder
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more for finishing
• 1½ cups fine yellow cornmeal
• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• 1 cup buttermilk
• 1 quart vegetable oil, for frying
• Salted butter, for serving (optional)

PREPARATION

Step 1

Set a rack over a baking sheet. (If you do not have a rack, a paper towel-lined baking tray will work as well.)

Step 2

In a medium bowl, whisk together melted butter and egg until smooth. Add onion, chives (if using), both sugars, baking powder and salt, and mix until no lumps are present.

Step 3

Mix in cornmeal and flour. While whisking, stream in buttermilk and incorporate until mixture is smooth but not runny. It should be thick enough to easily scoop and drop into hot oil.

Step 4

In a medium skillet with high sides or a deep cast-iron skillet, heat 2 inches of oil to 350 degrees over medium-high heat. Working in batches, scoop 1-tablespoon balls of the batter and carefully drop them into the oil. Fry until one side is golden brown, about 1 minute, then, using a spatula or spoon, flip and fry for another 1 minute until golden brown on all sides.

Step 5

Using a slotted spoon, remove hush puppies from hot oil and place on the prepared rack to drain. Sprinkle with a little more salt. Enjoy hot, with salted butter, if you like.

I found this recipe on Instagram and was pleased with the results. It has five ingredients plus salt and pepper. If you like Old Bay Seasoning, you can add some. I opted not too. From Sally’s Baking Recipes, “For the absolute best crab cake, I recommend using lump crab meat or a mix of lump crab meat and backfin meat. Lump crab meat guarantees those big, mouthwatering bites of crab.” Her crab cakes are baked. I pan fried these in a small amount of oil.

Ingredients:

1 pound of fresh, lump crab meat

1/3 cup mayonnaise

1/3 cup Panko bread crumbs

1 egg, beaten

1 Tablespoon chopped fresh dill or parsley

salt, pepper to taste

1 teaspoon lemon juice, plus more for serving (optional)

Procedure:

Whisk the egg, mayonnaise, parsley or dill, (lemon juice,) salt and pepper together in a large bowl. Place the crab meat on top, followed by the Panko. With a rubber spatula or large spoon, very gently and carefully fold together. You don’t want to break up the crab meat.

Cover tightly and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes and up to 1 day.

Using a 1/2 cup measuring cup, portion the crab cake mixture into 6 mounds. (Don’t flatten!) Use your hands or a spoon to compact each individual mound so there aren’t any lumps sticking out or falling apart.

Pan fry until brown on one side, flip gently, then pan fry on second side until browned.

Drizzle each with fresh lemon juice and serve warm.

By Samin Nosrat

“This recipe, adapted from Samin Nosrat’s “Salt Fat Acid Heat,” is inspired by the Southern grandma method of marinating chicken overnight in buttermilk before frying it. You’re roasting here, but the buttermilk and salt still work like a brine, tenderizing the meat on multiple levels to yield an unbelievably juicy chicken. As an added bonus, the sugars in the buttermilk will caramelize, contributing to an exquisitely browned skin. Be sure to leave 24 hours for marinating the chicken.”

Note: This recipe calls for a whole chicken, however I used parts. They were incredibly delicious, and I rotated the pan only once, from back to front. They were done in about an hour, turning the oven down to 400* after 20 minutes at 425.*

INGREDIENTS

Yield: 4 servings

• 1 chicken, 3½ to 4 pounds
• Kosher salt or fine sea salt
• 2 cups buttermilk
• PREPARATION
• Step 1: The day before you want to cook the chicken, remove the wingtips by cutting through the first wing joint with poultry shears or a sharp knife. Reserve for stock. Season chicken generously with salt and let it sit for 30 minutes.
• Step 2: Stir 2 tablespoons kosher salt or 4 teaspoons fine sea salt into the buttermilk to dissolve. Place the chicken in a gallon-size resealable plastic bag and pour in the buttermilk. (If the chicken won’t fit in a gallon-size bag, double up 2 plastic produce bags to prevent leaks and tie the bag with twine.)
• Step 3: Seal the bag, squish the buttermilk all around the chicken, place on a rimmed plate, and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours. If you’re so inclined, you can turn the bag periodically so every part of the chicken gets marinated, but that’s not essential.
• Step 4: Pull the chicken from the fridge an hour before you plan to cook it. Heat the oven to 425 degrees with a rack set in the center position.
• Step 5: Remove the chicken from the plastic bag and scrape off as much buttermilk as you can without being obsessive. Tightly tie together the legs with a piece of butcher’s twine. Place the chicken in a 10-inch cast-iron skillet or a shallow roasting pan.
• Step 6: Slide the pan all the way to the back of the oven on the center rack. Rotate the pan so that the legs are pointing toward the rear left corner and the breast is pointing toward the center of the oven. (The back corners tend to be the hottest spots in the oven, so this orientation protects the breast from overcooking before the legs are done.) Pretty quickly you should hear the chicken sizzling.
• Step 7: After about 20 minutes, when the chicken starts to brown, reduce the heat to 400 degrees and continue roasting for 10 minutes.
• Step 8: Move the pan so the legs are facing the rear right corner of the oven. Continue cooking for another 30 minutes or so, until the chicken is brown all over and the juices run clear when you insert a knife down to the bone between the leg and the thigh. If the skin is getting too brown before it is cooked through, use a foil tent. Remove it to a platter and let it rest for 10 minutes before carving and serving.

Recipe from Susan Levin Turner

Adapted by Kim Severson

The recipe has been adapted here for a loaf pan, which is a little easier to find and work with. Ms. Turner likes to coat the inside of the greased cake pan with sugar, which helps the cake slide from the pan and offers a little more crispness to the crust. This recipe uses flour instead for tenderness, but the sugar method offers a homey Southern touch. Or use a combination of both. —Kim Severson

Note: From this blog, you must have noticed that I love baking pound cakes. This recipe is exceptional – really delicious! I was not able to find key lime juice but found key limes at Whole Foods. They took awhile to zest and juice, but the effort was so worth it! ( If you don’t get enough zest from the key limes, use the zest from regular limes.) Hint: The glaze makes enough for two cakes. Halve the recipe.

Ingredients for the cake:

• 1 cup/226 grams unsalted butter at room temperature (2 sticks), cut into pieces, plus more for greasing the pan
• 2 cups/240 grams all-purpose flour, more for flouring the pan
• 1½ teaspoons baking powder
• 4 ounces/113 grams cream cheese at room temperature, cut into pieces
• 1½ cups/297 grams granulated white sugar
• 4 eggs at room temperature, lightly beaten
• 2 tablespoons lime zest
• 1 tablespoon Key lime juice (I added a little more.)
• For the glaze:
• 4 ounces/113 grams cream cheese at room temperature
• ¼ cup/57 grams unsalted butter at room temperature
• 2 cups/227 grams confectioners’ sugar
• ¼ cup/60 milliliters Key lime juice
• 2 tablespoons lime zest (optional)
• PREPARATION
• Step 1: Make the cake: Heat oven to 325 degrees. Generously butter and flour a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan. Sift the flour and baking powder and set aside.
• Step 2: Mix butter and cream cheese in bowl of a stand mixer, or with a hand mixer on medium speed, until blended; gradually add sugar and beat on medium speed for 5 minutes until light in color and fluffy. Add the beaten eggs about a quarter at a time, fully incorporating before adding the next.
• Step 3: Add lime zest and mix to incorporate. Add dry ingredients alternately with lime juice, beginning and ending with flour mixture and adding juice in two additions. Mix just enough to incorporate. Pour batter into pan until it is just ¾-inch from the top. (You may have a little batter left over; do not use it or you risk overflow. Make a cupcake!)) Firmly tap the pan on the counter a few times to reduce air pockets.
• Step 4: Bake for about 1 hour, or until just set in the middle. Check cake after 30 minutes; if top is browning too quickly, tent with foil. If the cake is not set in the middle after an hour, continue baking, checking middle at 5-minute intervals, until set.
• Step 5: Cool in the pan for 20 minutes; loosen edges and turn out cake onto plate with raised edges to contain the glaze.
• Step 6: Meanwhile, make the glaze: In a glass bowl, beat the cream cheese and butter until well blended and a little fluffy, about 2 minutes. With the mixer on slow speed, gradually add confectioners’ sugar until fully incorporated, then beat for 20 to 30 seconds.
• Step 7: Mix in the lime juice, then heat the mixture in a microwave oven for less than a minute, until it is very warm and loose. Using a wooden skewer, poke several holes in the cake. Pour half the glaze over cake, let sit for 10 minutes, pour remaining glaze over cake and sprinkle with lime zest (optional).

This week I would like to recommend two very different restaurants. The first, a new, modern Greek diner in East Williamsburg, Brooklyn, and the second, a wonderful Japanese restaurant specializing in curry in Fort Lee, New Jersey.

Baby Blues is “a casual (brunch and) lunch spot that serves nourishing food with no frills (ny.eater.com).” One of the menu choices is: “Like a Greek Bagel,” a slice of dense, grainy sourdough bread covered with a salty whipped feta and slices of smoked salmon and heirloom tomato on the side. There are also egg salad, grilled cheese, or bacon-egg-and-cheese sandwiches, three different Greek inspired salads, fruity bowls and toasts, including homemade banana bread covered in cashew ricotta and a crunchy baklava crumble to enjoy with their excellent coffee.

My family and I celebrated Mother’s Day with a brunch at Sazanami Curry Bar. We were very pleasantly surprised. The food was wonderful – from sushi to gyozas to the different kinds of curry (hot or mild). Everything was served with a homemade pickled cabbage, and the best dish, I thought, was pumpkin croquettes, made like the potato croquettes recipe on this blog, but using ground pork instead of beef and Japanese pumpkin. ( Kabocha or Hokkaido?) I’m trying to duplicate the recipe. Will keep you posted.

By Alexa Weibel

Time 40 minutes

“Chicken Milanese is a simple dish that makes chicken breasts seem positively lavish. Similar to Italian veal Milanese, this classic dish pairs hot and crispy breaded chicken with a cool and lemony salad. The recipe takes a little preparation, but the execution is easy: Pound lean chicken breasts until thin, bread them, then pan-fry until the bread crumbs are golden; the crust ensures that the chicken stays moist. While not traditional, this version adds onion powder, garlic powder and grated Parmesan to the breading.”

INGREDIENTS

Yield: 4 servings

• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 2 teaspoons Kosher salt (such as Diamond Crystal) and 1 1/2 teaspoons black pepper
• 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 10 ounces each)
• ½ cup all-purpose flour
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1 ¼ cups panko bread crumbs
• ½ cup finely grated Parmesan
• About 1 cup olive oil (or neutral oil), for pan-frying
• For the Salad:
• ½ cup shaved Parmesan
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, plus lemon wedges for serving
• 5 ounces arugula (about 5 packed cups)
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes (optional), halved
• PREPARATION
• Step 1: Prepare the chicken: In a small bowl, stir together the onion powder, garlic powder, 2 teaspoons salt and 1 ½ teaspoons pepper.
• Step 2: Set each chicken breast on a cutting board. Set one palm on top of one breast to hold it still then use a chef’s knife with the other hand to slice the breast in half horizontally. Repeat with the second chicken breast, then, using a meat mallet or the bottom of a heavy skillet, pound each piece until no more than ⅓-inch thick. Season generously on both sides with half the seasoned salt.
• Step 3: Set the flour and eggs into two separate shallow bowls. To a third, add the panko, finely grated Parmesan and the remaining seasoned salt and stir to combine. Dip one piece of chicken into the flour to coat all over, then transfer to the eggs and turn to coat. Add to the panko mixture and turn, pressing panko into it until fully coated. Transfer to a baking sheet and repeat with the remaining chicken. (The breaded chicken will hold in the refrigerator for a few hours.)
• Step 4: In a medium nonstick skillet, heat a ½-inch layer of oil over medium-high. Working in two batches, add the breaded chicken and cook, undisturbed, until golden on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. (You could also cook them all at once in a large skillet, though you’ll need twice the amount of oil to do so.) Transfer to a wire rack and lightly sprinkle with additional salt, if desired.
• Step 5: While the chicken cooks, prepare the salad: In a large bowl, whisk to combine the olive oil and lemon juice; season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the arugula, cherry tomatoes (if using) and shaved Parmesan; toss to coat then season to taste again with salt and pepper.
• Step 6: Divide the chicken among plates and pile the salad on the side. Serve immediately, with lemon wedges for squeezing on top.

By Kay Chun

“This fast weeknight dinner features quick-cooking flounder prepared alla Milanese, the style of breading and frying meat cutlets. The fillets are lightly breaded and pan-fried until golden and crisp on the outside and tender in the middle. A lemony, brown-butter pan sauce with capers comes together quickly to add a tangy brininess to the dish. Any leftover fish makes for terrific sandwiches the next day, stacked with lettuce, tomato, pickles and mayo.”

Note: My only suggestion would be to double the recipe for the sauce. If you prefer to use less butter, substitute olive oil instead.

INGREDIENTS

Yield: 4 servings

• ¼ cup all-purpose flour
• 2 large eggs, beaten
• 1 cup plain bread crumbs
• Salt and black pepper
• ½ teaspoon dried oregano
• 4( 5- to 6-ounce) flounder fillets (or other thin white fish fillets)
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 5 tablespoons neutral oil, such as safflower or canola
• 2 tablespoons minced shallot
• ¼ teaspoon minced garlic
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice, plus lemon wedges for serving
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1 tablespoon capers, plus 1 tablespoon caper brine
• PREPARATION
• Step 1: Place flour, eggs and bread crumbs in three separate shallow bowls, and season each with salt and pepper. Crumble the oregano with your fingertips and add to the bread crumbs; mix well.
• Step 2: Season fish with salt. Working with one piece at a time, dredge in flour (shake off excess), dip in egg (shake off excess) then dredge in bread crumbs, pressing to adhere. Transfer to a large plate.
• Step 3: In a 12-inch nonstick skillet, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter in 1 tablespoon of the oil over medium heat. Add 2 fillets and cook until golden underneath, about 3 minutes. Flip fish and cook until golden on the second side and cooked through, 2 minutes longer. Transfer to a large paper towel-lined plate, and season with salt. Wipe out skillet. Repeat with 1 tablespoon of the butter, 1 tablespoon of the oil and the remaining fish.
• Step 4: Wipe out skillet and melt the remaining 4 tablespoons butter over medium-low heat. Add shallot and cook, stirring occasionally, until shallot is softened and butter is golden brown, about 2 minutes. Stir in the garlic until fragrant, 30 seconds. Add the remaining 3 tablespoons oil, plus the lemon juice, parsley, capers and caper brine, and mix well. Transfer the brown-butter vinaigrette to a small heatproof bowl, and season with salt and pepper.
• Step 5: Divide the fish among the plates and drizzle with the brown-butter vinaigrette. Serve with lemon wedges.