Almond-Cinnamon Granola

I’ve been on a big granola kicker lately. This post is about my latest variety that is pretty basic flavor profile, but it’s really awesome and easy to make.

This particular variety has been the most popular among my roommates. It’s not too sweet, maintains a crunchy aspect through milk and yogurt, and has a great cinnamon flavor.

I didn’t have sliced almonds when I was making this, but please feel free to use them instead of the hand sliced ones that I used. This will create a larger garnish and more texture than this picture depicts.

You can also substitute any nut (for almond) and any spice (for cinnamon) to create your own unique granola. I suggest the following: walnut-honey, coconut-coconut oil, chestnut-maple, pistachio-agave, macadamia-orange blossom honey, and cashew-raw honey.

I’ve also found myself adding more nuts, dried fruit, coffee beans, and chocolate to the mx to make a grab-and-go trail mix.

Prep time: 15 min

Cook time: 2-3 hours

Ingredients:

2 cups oats

½ cup quinoa

3 Tablespoons flax seed

3 Tablespoons hemp seeds

1 cup sliced almonds

2 teaspoons cinnamon

2/3 cup maple, honey, or agave

2 Tablespoons **apple butter**

2 Tablespoons vanilla extract

½ cup butter

1 Tablespoon Himalayan or sea salt

Directions:

1. Combine: oats, quinoa, flax seed, hemp seed, and almonds in bowl.
2. Preheat oven to 225°F
3. Combine: cinnamon, sweetener, apple butter, vanilla, butter, and seasalt in a sauce pan. Heat until butter is melted
4. Pour warm mixture over dry mixture. Mix until incorporated.
5. Transfer to a sheet/cookie tray lined with foil.
6. Place in oven for 2-3 hours, until tips of some items become slightly brown.
7. Remove from oven and allow to cool.
8. Store in an airtight container in a dry space for up to three months. 

Garlic Confit

I recently had the opportunity to clean out my pantry and, much to my surprise, I ran into some old garlic that was going bad. Now, I hate to throw things out, so I decided to preserve them further.

In restaurant’s we have many processes that we use to both save and utilize multiple applications of the same product. The most obvious for me in this situation was to confit it.

The process of confit means to preserve in oil, or it’s on fat (when pertaining to animals). This will extend the shelf life up to a month, even if you’re working with old garlic.

If you are facing the same issue I was, simply cut the bad garlic out of the bulb when you remove the skin. Trim down any brown pieces off any cloves so the flavor won’t transfer into the oil.

This cooking process will yield you two products: garlic infused oil and slow-cooked garlic. Both of these products are really great to utilize in the kitchen. The cooking process mellows out the garlic flavor and makes it very rich and savory – not pungent at all.

I would use the oil in salad dressings and as a base in soups. My favorite thing to do is sauté my veggies in it before I add it to rice or pasta. You can also drizzle this on some bread and roast, sear, or press it to make garlic bread. Make it super garlicy and spread some of the confit garlic on there as well for good measure.

The actual remanding cloves of garlic will be light brown, a slightly roasted color. You can use this as a thickener and flavoring agent in spreads, sauces, and soups.

Fold the garlic in with some cream cheese or mascarpone cheese with onions, shallot, citrus, and herb; and you have a fantastic stuffing for a chicken or ravioli.

You can also blend this up with some marinated artichokes, sautéed spinach, and garlic oil to make a simple chip dip. Extra points if you add some chive, tarragon, and crab!

Prep time: 10-20 minutes (depending on amount)

Cook time: 20-30 minutes

Ingredients:

Garlic cloves

Fat (olive oil, grape seed oil, coconut oil, blended oil, or avocado seed oil)

Directions:

1. Trim the rough ends off the garlic; as well as any brown or green parts.
2. Place trimmed garlic into a sauce pot.
3. Pour enough fat into the saucepan to cover the garlic by at least a quarter inch.
4. Place pot on the fire and bring up to a simmer.
5. Allow to simmer until garlic is tender and slightly brown.
6. Remove from heat and allow to cool
7. Strain garlic from oil by pouring into a colander or fine mesh strainer. Make sure you have a container below the strainer to capture the oil.
8. Store oil and garlic separate in refrigeration. 

Philadelphia's first Secret Supper

A few weeks ago, I had the great pleasure and opportunity to attend Philadelphia’s first Secret Supper with Chef Barbie Marshall which was hosted by the ever-entertaining Dish CrawlPhiladelphia organization and Tap Room on 19^th in South Philly.
If you haven’t had a chance to stop by and check out the place, please do as soon as you can! Their simple-pickup-style cocktail selection is sure to please any cocktail lover, or someone just looking to get into the scene (I suggest their cider and whiskey!); they also have a phenomenal beer selection, of which I sampled the aged pale ale (which was the most perfect balance of sour I have ever had).
I was able to spend a lot of time talking to the Mixologist (Ross Maloof) and the General Manager (Craig Steel) about the drink selection and both were very excited about their pairing for the night.The first three courses were paired with cocktails, followed by a Yards IPA and a 2010 Merlot from Ostancia. Dessert was paired with “Lucky 7” from Evolution Craft Brewing Co.
First up was an Amuse of chicken and waffles. This first course was meant to wow all the guests, and Chef Barbie nailed it. This little two-bite wonder left everyone chanting for more – I think if she had just served chicken and waffles all night everyone would have been happy! The juicy deep fried chicken paired perfectly with the cast iron cornmeal waffles. I will have to confess there were a few extras left over…. And I ate them all.Course one came out as a cold dish. The fennel and citrus wintergreen salad was quite a surprise. Chef explained that this particular variety of wintergreen was more sweet than bitter; and paired with a citrus fennel dressing, it just got sweeter. This dish was paired with a cocktail composed of Bison Grass vodka, Crème de Violette, and tarragon. With all these dainty green notes floating around the semi-bitter radicchio, you could really explore the finer points of the local wintergreen.Course two was one of my favorites. A light puree of Padanna squash soup which was garnished with Pickled Neck Pumpkin and black pepper cream. There were also some pepitas thrown on top for a further enhancement. This dish was paired with a house-made cider and whiskey in a mug. Personally, I love the combination of squash and apple so having both items be locally sourced was just a far out experience.Course three presented itself as a trio risotto balls with Arancini and Tallegio. Displayed on a bed of basil flower tomato sauce these little bundles of joy were accented with local saffron (yes, local saffron!). Chef Barbie explained that the local variety isn’t as potent as the imported ones, but that just means you can use more! This was paired with a white whiskey ginger accented with a burnt orange garnish – which was my favorite course by far.The cocktail with orange and ginger was able to cut through the fattiness of the risotto and cheese perfectly. The result was experiencing the dish for the first time, every time. Simply put “fantastic.”Course four  was a real authentic Pennsylvania dish paired with one of the most popular local brews. This was really PA to the core. If you’ve never had the opportunity to have a Lancaster “Pot Pie” you have missed a treat! Unlike your traditional pot pies, the Lancaster variety contains no roux or any actual pie for that matter. It’s a fresh pasta-based dish with poached chicken, served with braised greens and without a pie crust. This was a totally different experience for me, but a profound one to say the least. The combination was so light and joyful and the Yards IPA that it was paired with added the weight it needed to feel satisfactory. If anything, this was more like a chicken noodle soup with some amazing local greens than a pot pie – but I could eat it ALL day.Course five  wound up being a seasonal meatloaf paired with a Merlot. HOWEVER, this isn’t your ordinary beef loaf, no my friends, this was nothing less than the great American turkey! That’s right; Chef Barbie took some local turkey and turned it into this incredible delicatessen. The loaf was served with a simple cranberry chutney, glazed carrots, and mashed root veg.
What really brought this dish together was the root vegetable blend, which contained something I’ve never experienced – Parsley Root. So, imagine the aromatics of a parsley stem and a parsnip together with the starchiness of a carrot. This was local comfort food to a tee! As I looked around the room, I was hard pressed to find a face that wasn’t smiling with satisfaction.



Course six, the last course, was of course dessert! Chef Barbie flexed her culinary muscles a bit and explored the world of cheesecake. The thick slice of cake came out with a hickory nut brittle covering the top, set on a basic caramel sauce. Chef Barbie also went on to explain that hickory nuts represent fertility. She explained that the Pennsylvania Dutch chose to settle in this area based on the healthy abundance of hickory trees. This fact really spoke to her as she was building her dishes. I will have to say that pairing that with a smoked porter was fantas-tic-al! Sweet and Smokey are one of my favorite combinations in the food world and it was a good end to the menu progression. 





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