PAN ROASTED CHICKEN BREAST - SÜLT CSIRKEMELL

I have been making Airline Chicken Breast with some success, but it was still hit and miss. Sometimes the meat was juicy, other times a bit dry. So drawing on the Hungarian experience and not shying away from grease I came up with the solution for an always juicy and flavorful pan roasted chicken. 

PAN ROASTED CHICKEN BREAST

2 boneless, skinless chicken breast fillets 

olive oil divided [roughly 1/3 cup] 

salt and pepper to taste 

2 Tbsp butter fresh lemon

• Preheat the oven to 375F.
• Brush both sides of the fillets with olive oil and sprinkle them with salt and pepper.
• Coat a stainless steel skillet with a thin layer of oil and heat it up. Reserve the remaining oil.
• When the pan is hot, place the chicken fillets in the oil and slow fry them for 3 minutes on one side.
• Using a kitchen thong, turn the fillets over with and slow fry them for 3 minutes on the other side.
• When both sides developed a golden crust, drizzle the filets with the remaining oil and place the skillet in the preheated oven for 10 minutes.
• Spread the tops with a couple of tablespoons of butter.
• When the butter is fully melted, squeeze some fresh lemon juice over the fillets.
• Let the fillets rest for a few minutes before serving.

PASTA FROM LEFTOVER SAUCE

Well I didn’t reinvent the wheel, but occasionally I make something good from leftover stuff. The meat was eaten but not the sauce. There was nothing wrong with the sauce; it was a perfectly good sauce, just a bit too much. It was tomato based, containing tomato chunks, onions, garlic, basil, and heavy cream. To use it up I made pasta. The more sauce you have the more flour you will have to add for the pasta. Although mild, the sauce determines the pasta’s flavor. The first day we ate it with some ricotta and the second day with chopped pan roasted garlic. From tasty sauce to tasty pasta… it would have been just as tasty with butter. 

PASTA FROM LEFTOVER SAUCE 

leftover sauce, egg, salt to taste, flour, melted butter 

Take the leftover sauce and puree in a food processor or a blander. 

Add an egg, a pinch of salt and enough flour to make pasta dough: Not too soft and not too hard to handle.

Roll it and cut it and cook it like any other homemade pasta.

Pour some melted butter over the pasta and heat it through in a large skillet.

with ricotta 

STACKED PORK CUTLETS - BÚBOS KARAJ

As it is so often the title is not an exact translation... But this is funny. Here is Google’s translation of the original recipe: “I fry the slightly squashed, salted and peppered meat almost ready, 3 tbsp. on oil under cover. If both halves are nicely blushed, I put them in a heat-smeared bowl greased with butter. I fry the flour light on the remaining fat, add milk to it, but I do not boil it, at the end I add the egg yolks and grated cheese.” Haha. 

2018 wasn’t a prolific year for the blog. I even forgot I made this. It’s basically pork chops with an interpreted version of Mornay sauce, loads of sour cream with some type of vegetable. In hindsight it's similar to Dubarry Pork Cutlets, though the flavor must have been different without the nutmeg. Judging by the photos and the fact I held onto the file it must have been a dish I thought was worth repeating. So here it is three years later, amidst a world of change. We lost a precious daughter to MS, oh how I miss her... our grandson is in medical school and by fall the other two grandchildren will also be at university provided restrictions ease at UBC. So far the family escaped COVID19, but relations in the old country were not as fortunate.  Many happy and sad events happened in three years. And yet life went on... for some of us.

STACKED PORK CUTLETS

6 slices of deboned thin pork chops 

salt and pepper to taste 

3 Tbsp oil 

1 broccoli 

2 Tbsp butter for greasing 

Mornay Sauce – well sort of 

2 cups whole milk 

4 1/2 Tbsp flour 

3 1/2 Tbsp butter 

salt and pepper to taste

2 egg yolks 

1/3 cup Canadian marble cheddar cheese 

10 heaping Tbsp sour cream, divided

• Debone the chops and tenderize them.
• Season the chops with salt and pepper and set aside.
• In a medium pot bring two cups of water to boil.
• Cut the broccoli top into florets and dice the stalk.
• Add the broccolis to the boiling water and cook until the broccolis are a vibrant green color.
• Drain the broccolis and set them aside.
• Next slow fry the chops in oil until lightly brown on both sides.
• Meanwhile butter an oven proof dish.
• Arrange the chops in the dish with the broccolis on top.
• Preheat the oven to 350F.
• Next prepare the sauce.
• In a small bowl make slurry from a small amount of the milk and the flour.
• On medium heat melt 3 Tbsp butter.
• Add the slurry and the remaining milk.
• Keep stirring with a wooden spoon until the sauce begins to thicken a bit.
• Season it with salt and pepper to taste.
• Remove from the heat and set the sauce aside.
• Grate the cheese and set it aside.
• Next place 2 egg yolks in a medium bowl and slowly start adding from the warm sauce. Stir it smooth and add the egg mixture back to the rest of the sauce.
• Next add the grated cheese and stir it smooth. The cheese will melt in the residual heat.
• Add half of the sour cream to the sauce and pour it over the chops and the broccolis.
• Dot it with the remaining sour cream and place the dish in the preheated oven.
• Bake for 20 minutes.

WHITE CHOCOLATE POUND CAKE

This was Jim’s birthday cake in year 2018. Adapted from I Say Nomato, it was a rich pound cake with White Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream. The photos and the recipe have been waiting in a folder for well over a year. Looking at it… I ought to make a cake.

What would be more uplifting during these sad times than baking a cake… perhaps sharing it? I can still run it up the hill to Leilah’s. I will put it on the table by the door, step back and we exchange a few words through our double masks. Irresponsibility might be around us, it IS what drives the virus, but we are different. We trust the science and we care for what happens to others.

One day this too will end… in the meantime we are learning about human nature; the lack of logic and ethical thinking. Altruism goes out the window with the slightest of inconvenience. People insist on getting together with family, holding celebrations, going on trips and holidays. It doesn’t matter that others are paying the price with their lives and those who care for them are burning out. Sad times… indeed.    

WHITE CHOCOLATE POUND CAKE

1 cup butter

1/2 cups sugar 

2 cups flour 

2 tsp baking powder 

1 tsp salt 

4 eggs 

1 tsp pure vanilla extract 

1/2 cup milk 

White Chocolate Swiss Meringue Buttercream 

Lindt milk chocolate for decoration

• Preheat the oven to 325F.
• Fully line two 9 inch cake pans.
• Beat the butter and sugar until very fluffy.
• Meanwhile in a separate bowl whisk together the flour, baking powder and the salt.
• One by one add the eggs to the butter mixture and beat to combine.
• Add the vanilla extract and beat to fully combine.
• Reduce the speed and begin to add from the milk and the flour mixture to combine.
• At the end beat the batter on high speed for a few seconds.
• Bake for 30 to 35 minutes or until cake tester inserted in the middle comes out clean
• Remove cakes from the oven and place them on a wire rack to cool.
• Make sure the cakes are fully cooled down before assembly.
• Cut both cakes horizontally in the middle.
• Spread each layer with the 1/5 of the buttercream, using the last part for the side.
• Spread the side with a thin layer of crumb coat and chill for half an hour.
• Spread the remaining buttercream over the crumb coat and decorate the top with Lindt chocolate pieces.

HUNGARIAN CABBAGE STRUDEL – KÁPOSZTÁS RÉTES

It seems the luxurious savory flavor of goose fat is an essential ingredient of Hungarian cabbage strudel, which I bravely replaced with butter. So it wasn’t “divine”, but with pulled dough it was a contender even for the most discriminating foodie. Few cooks take the time to hand stretch the dough, but I hoped my efforts would compensate for the lack of goose fat. I didn’t know, but apparently if you can get kosher food stuffs you can get goose fat called schmaltz. Maybe next time…. provided I live long enough.

The filling is simple enough. I have no camera person and not being tech savvy, I have yet to document every step of pulling the dough. I seem to get to a crucial stage, get overexcited by the magic of it and promptly forget the camera . By the time I remember the strudel is rolled up. So check out the video, it will help to piece the process together. The lady in the video, scroll down] is making a cherry strudel. She scatters breadcrumbs over the pulled dough, omit this step for cabbage filling. 

I made a sweet cabbage strudel, but some people prefer it savory. In such case omit the grated peel and in its place add some freshly grated black pepper. Still, add about a teaspoon of sugar to the filling.

HUNGARIAN CABBAGE STRUDEL

Pulled Strudel Dough:

1-1/2 cups bread flour

1-1/4 cups all purpose flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/4 cup very soft unsalted butter

1 egg

1-1/4 cup lukewarm water

1/2 tsp vinegar

flour for flouring the tablecloth

Cabbage Filling:

4 cups of shredded green cabbage

salt to taste

1 Tbsp goose fat, I replaced it with 1 Tbsp light olive oil and 1 Tbsp sweet butter

1 1/2 Tbsp sugar

finely grated peel of 1 lemon

1 Tbsp caraway seed

1/4 cup butter, melted

1 egg, beaten for brushing

helpful video of stretching and rolling up the dough

• Make the pulled strudel dough first.
• Place the flours and the salt in a bowl of a standing beater. 
• With the whisk attachment, start beating the flours just under medium. Continue beating at this speed. Don’t stop the beater even while you are gathering the rest of the ingredients. 
• Add the soft butter and continue beating. 
• Add the egg, the vinegar and the lukewarm water and continue beating. 
• When the dough comes together, take off the whisk attachment and put on the dough hook.
• Continue beating just below medium speed for 10 to12 minutes. 
• Take out the dough, it will be sticky, and place it on a floured board. 
• You don’t want folds and air pockets, so knead the dough gently until it no longer sticks to the board. 
• Form the dough into a mound. 
• Lightly butter the top and cover it with a clean kitchen towel. 
• Let the dough rest for a full two hours.  
• Meanwhile prepare the filling.
• Place the shredded green cabbage in a large bowl with 2-3 pinches of salt and let it stand for 20 minutes. Squeeze out all he water and discard.
• Place the goose fat or in this case the light olive oil and sweet butter in a large skillet on LOW medium heat.
• Add the cabbage and slowly sauté until tender.
• When the cabbage begins to soften, add the sugar, the grated peel of a whole lemon and the caraway seeds. 
• Place a clean white tablecloth or an old sheet on the kitchen table. Don’t use your good linen, because it will stain from the butter. 
• Scatter some flour all over the tablecloth and spread it around with your hands. 
• Pick up the dough and stretch it a bit with the back of your hand to every direction. 
• Place the dough on the center of the cloth. 
• Pat it gently to flatten it slightly. 
• Now reach under the dough with the backs of your hands against the dough and gently pull your hands apart slightly and toward you, stretching the dough as you do so. 
• Work your way around the table repeating this process. 
• Stretch the dough further by grasping the outer part of a thick edge and gently tugging on it. 
• When the dough has been stretched a few inches more on all sides, repeat the hand movements described above. 
• In a few minutes of stretching, a paper thin dough will have reached the edges of the table so you will have a few inches of overhanging dough on every side. 
• Rip off the thick edges by hand. Don't use scissors. 
• If the dough tears at any point, just leave it alone. If you try to patch it first of all it won't work and secondly it will harden the dough. Any tears will be covered up when the strudel is rolled. 
• Use a pastry brush to drizzle the dough with melted butter. Do not let the brush touch the dough and be generous with the butter. 
• Turn on the oven to 450 F. 
• Arrange the filling in a haphazard log three inches from the edge. 
• Using the tablecloth flip the dough over the filling and drip some melted butter on the top. 
• Now slowly lift the tablecloth and let the dough slowly roll over the filling. My dough was not a perfect rectangle with lots of tears and I ended up with a fair amount of dough scraps. But that’s OK, nobody will know it in the end. 
• Roll over all the dough, cut the extra ends and tuck the ends under. 
• Place the strudel on a parchment lined baking sheet and shape the strudel to fit the pan. 
• Brush generously with melted butter. 
• Bake in the preheated oven at 450 F for 15 minutes. 
• Then lower the temperature to 350 F and bake for further 20 minutes or until golden. 
• Let the strudel cool to lukewarm and cut into slices 
• Cover up leftovers with a clean kitchen towel and store on the counter or in the cupboard. It will keep for a couple of days. However strudel is best on the day it is made

SHEET LINZER - TEPSIS LINZER

 

When you have lattice bars, linzer pastry, apricot linzer bar and they are all delicious, but basically are versions of the same thing, why would I want to add another linzer recipe? For one thing Sheet Linzer has become a standby at our house and as soon as it cools and I slice it up, Jimre collects them for his frozen stash.  There he has slices of pies, squares, muffins and loaves to go with his morning coffee. I dare not let him run out lest I want to deprive him of his daily good morning coffee ritual. And because it’s easy and fast, I make it often. The thought occurred, if something should happen to me, and you never know in this covid laden world, perhaps Leilah or one of our friends would take pity on him and make him a sheet of the stuff. He could buy pies and squares but not sheet linzer.   

SHEET LINZER 

3-1/3 cups flour 

1 cup less 1 Tbsp butter 

1/2 cup sugar 

scant tsp baking powder 

1 egg 

3 Tbsp sour cream 

1 cup apricot jam [no other jam will do] 

2 cups walnuts, finely ground 

 

Preheat the oven to 375F.

In a large bowl, combine the flour, butter, sugar, baking powder, egg and the sour cream.

Cut a sheet of parchment paper to fit a large baking sheet. 

Place the parchment on a flat surface.

Roll out the dough on the parchment end to end to equal thickness.

Gently move the parchment with the rolled out dough onto the baking sheet.

Poke it all around with a fork.

Spread the top with apricot jam.

Scatter the ground walnuts all over the top.

Place in a preheated oven and bake until linzer is lightly browned.

Let the linzer cool and cut into squares.

LEMON BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

Let it be known, these are muffins and not cupcakes. Adapted from Cooking Classy, these muffins are fluffy and moist… and are bursting with blueberries. Just one bite and you will know they don’t even need buttering. 

I would make it with fresh blueberries, sure, but I prefer the frozen variety, they seem to be larger in size and more economical than those tiny baskets of fresh blueberries from the supermarket. The lemon zest gives them an intoxicating aroma, and although the juice of fresh lemon is subtle, it enhances both flavor and texture. If you don’t have a fresh lemon, it is best to leave it out; lemon extract and concentrated lemon juice gives a bitter flavor. Speaking of substitutions, full fat sour cream and real buttermilk is a must. Buttermilk made from milk and vinegar will never be as good as the real thing.

LEMON BLUEBERRY MUFFINS

1/4 cup soft butter

4 Tbsp oil 

3/4 cup sugar 

2 eggs 

2 1/2 cups flour 

zest of 1 lemon 

1 tsp baking powder 

1/2 tsp baking soda 

1/2 tsp salt 

4 Tbsp fresh lemon juice 

1/2 cup 3.25 buttermilk 

1/2 cup 14% sour cream 

1 2/3 cups blueberries 

• Preheat oven to 425F.
• Line a muffin tin with large size parchment liners. 
• Add soft butter, oil, sugar, eggs, zest of 1 lemon, baking powder, baking soda and salt to a beater bowl and beat until fluffy.
• Add the lemon juice and beat to combine.
• In a medium bowl put the blueberries with a scant 1/4 cup of the flour. Tipping the bowl, coat the blueberries with the flour.
• In a measuring cup whisk together the sour cream and the buttermilk.
• Alternating, gradually add the remaining flour and the sour cream mixture to the butter mixture and stir it with a wooden spoon to combine. [From here on end don’t beat the batter]
• Add the blueberries and gently fold it into the batter.
• Divide the batter in the prepared muffin tin.
• Bake in the preheated oven for 8 minutes.
• Reduce heat to 400F and bake 12 minutes longer.
• Test for doneness and bake it 2-3 minutes longer if needed. It took 15 minutes longer in my oven.
• Remove muffin tin from the oven and place on a wire rack.

SWEET POTATO HASH WITH HAM

 Our traditional Easter feast was somewhat lackluster this year, starting with the fact the two us were all alone again… without family or friends. The three of them did a better job over at Leilah’s, [below is her video] but I couldn’t be bothered to roast a juicy ham let alone hunt down a country ham for just two people. Covid be damned, I didn’t even make kalács. Part of me is ashamed; there are so many people worse off than we are, but I couldn’t help feeling... fed up with the whole pandemic and on top of that this totally unpredictable weather. The constant wind makes it impossible to plan an out of door visit. It is Monday now and the leftover ham got a bit of a reprieve by way of an oven roasted sweet potato hash. 

SWEET POTATO HASH WITH HAM 

2 cups leftover precooked ham, 

yam or sweet potato roughly equal in volume to the ham 

3 Tbsp olive oil 

1/2 onion 

1/2 red pepper 

salt to taste 

olive oil for drizzling 

2 green onions

• Preheat the oven to 400F.
• Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.
• Cube the ham and add it to a large mixing bowl. 
• Peel, slice and dice a yam and add it to the bowl.
• Finely chop the onion.
• Place 3 Tbsp oil in a non stick skillet over medium heat.
• Add the chopped onions and sauté until soft.
• Meanwhile dice the red pepper and add to bowl. 
• Transfer the softened onions and oil to the mixing bowl.
• Sprinkle with salt and toss.
• Transfer the mixture to the prepared pan and spread it out evenly.
• Drizzle the top with more olive oil.
• Place the baking sheet in the preheated oven and bake for 40 minutes or until the potatoes are fork tender. 
• Chop the green onions and sprinkle them on the top.
• Serve with Hungarian cucumber salad.