If a recipe calls for white wine (or red), how do I know what KIND of white wine (or red) to use? I know that's a pretty broad question, but I thought you might be able to provide a general rule of thumb...

I like this question.  It's one I usually answer circumstantially.  For example, if we're drinking white wine, and I need a splash to cook with, chances are I snitch from from the bottle we're savoring.
If you'll be drinking, simply cook with what you'll be drinking, especially if the required amount is small.  (The exception might be a chardonnay with lots of wood or smoke flavor, whose characteristics can take over. )
I tend to be a little more selective with red wine.  Anything with much tannin can become very intense if reduced.  I prefer fruitier reds that fall in the middle of the flavor spectrum. (merlot, shiraz, chianti, etc.)
If I'm buying specifically for cooking, I will usually pick up a blended wine. Usually it will just say "Red" on the label, this is made from a mix of grapes and is typically designed to please everybody - which makes for good cooking wine. ( I dig the Coppola "Rosso" and "Bianco")
These blended wines are usually pretty cheap too, also a good trait in a cooking wine. However, I'd like to note that if you're going to make a wine reduction sauce, not to go too low.  Because reducing a poor quality wine only concentrates the poor quality.

3 Steps to a Better Roast Chicken

A roast chicken is one of those preparations that manages to be comfort food in many countries of the western world.  Which is great in that it pleases many palettes.  The catch is this: despite its simplicity, it comes with more stigma, lore, secret tricks, and wive's tales than just about any preparation I can think of - many of which confuse and lead astray. 
All chicken roasting myths aside, a few simple steps and a little forethought can lead you towards a phenomenal roast chicken.

These are chickens pictured on the farm where I purchased mine.

1. Buy a Better Chicken - Chicken is an ingredient where a few extra dollars will earn you a far superior product.   If you can, go to a farmer's market and purchase from a farmer with whom you can speak about the chicken.  In a super market, spring for the organic bird, they take just a little longer to raise and have more time to become tasty. ***
2. Brine it- A soak in salty water goes a long way to accentuate the flavor and retain moisture during the cooking process.  Also, it doesn't require as much forethought as one might think - as little as three to four hours in a strong brine will do the trick. 
3. Dry it- If dry = brown and brown = delicious, then dry = delicious. Right?  Yes, pat your chicken dry with paper towels or a tea towel inside and out.  Or more ideally, set it on a rack in the fridge overnight to completely air dry.   This allows for crispier skin and so leads to tastier chicken.

A Better Roast Chicken Recipe

1 whole chicken 3-5 lbs.
salt

optional:
1 stick cold butter
1 bunch sage
1 head garlic, peeled and sliced

To brine your chicken, dissolve 6 tablespoons of salt in two cups (16 oz.) of hot water. Once it's dissolved, add 15 ounces of ice to cool the brine (if you don't have a scale, the brine should fill a quart container once you add the ice)  Submerge your whole chicken in the brine for at least three to four hours and up to 7.  If you expect to cook it directly after brining, you can brine it at room temperature.

1.  Dry it- whether or not you have brined your chicken, you should dry it out.  Pat it well inside and out with paper towels. 

optional: I love to stuff goodies under the skin of my chicken and one of my favorites is a trio of butter, garlic and sage.  I do this by scooting a spoon under the skin both from the cavity side of the breast and from two incisions at the hip joints.  Then I push the butter, sage, and garlic under.  If there is any sage or garlic left, I put it in the cavity.



3.  Season it- If you haven't brined your chicken, season it very well with salt.  If you have, you will still want to give it a light dusting of salt. 
4.  Cook it- Set your oven to 450˚F and keep it there.  It should take around 50-60 minutes in it's entirety.  To check for doneness a thermometer should should read 155˚F at the thigh.  If you don't have a thermometer, give the thigh a stab with a paring knife and the juices should run clear.
5. Rest it- Before doing anything to your bird, let it rest for 15 minutes.  This lets it finish cooking, and it lets the extreme heat redistribute. 



***Organic requirements for chicken - includes - organic feed, no animal byproducts, no hormones, no antibiotics, outdoor access, no irradiation, no pesticides (for the feed), no synthetic fertilizers, no sewage sludge (yes, folks, you read that right), no synthetic pesticides, and no GMO.

A side note: Typically I would truss a chicken, which involves tying up the legs and pulling them close to the body.  This adds mass to the area at the base of the breast and results in more even cooking. . . I didn't have any string.

Snacks For a Rainy Weekend

By Lauren Rauh

It was the night before the hurricane was supposed to hit. By the time I made it to the grocery store that evening the shelves were pretty picked over. In the pre-hurricane panic, it at first seemed the masses were most worried about starving. But on closer inspection it wasn't clear the most practical things they wanted—canned beans, instant rice, the nonperishable staples—it was the junk food isles that boasted the long stretches of bare shelves. Perhaps everyone was less worried about starving and more worried about boredom…nothing like a bag of Cheetos to chase the cabin fever away! Now, I’m no health nut, but I usually find junk food much too salty and never filling enough to justify the price and purchase. No, I prefer to make my junk food; popcorn, candies, spiced nuts, by the bowl full for parties and movie nights. But the hurricane gave me ample time to think up some additional snacky snacks.

With all the canned beans stacked in my cabinets, I thought of the yummy, crunchy, spiced snacks that I ate by the handfuls in India during parties and holidays (I studied, worked, and traveled in India for two inconsecutive years, by the way). These snacks were always fried however, and I wondered if I could recreate the taste without all the messy hot oil. I’m sure I’m not the first to come up with this pleasing protein-packed snack, but I’m quite happy with the outcome. My roommate and I gobbled up the goodies during our Saturday night movie marathon to weather the storm.

1 lb. cooked chickpeas (about 4 cups or 2 cans worth)

1 Tbsp. olive oil

1 tsp. paprika

1 tsp. cumin

Salt to taste

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. If using canned beans drain and rinse them well.

Carefully and thoroughly dry the rinsed beans. If the fiber casings come off while drying you can discard them or leave them behind, they’ll get crispy in the oven.

Combine the oil and spices in a large bowl. Toss the beans in the bowl, making sure they are evenly coated. Spread the beans evenly on a baking sheet and bake the beans until they are crispy.

Stir the beans every 10 minutes or so for about 40 minutes. The beans should be crunchy all the way through, don’t worry about over baking them. Let the beans cool and snack away to your hearts delight!  These will keep for up to a month in an airtight container.

The Prodigal Blogger

Hey everybody, I have been away for a little while working and playing hard.  So there has been a little lag in blog posts and newsletters.
But I'm back, and I will bloggin' atcha a lot in the very near future. 
Thanks for stickin' with me.