Cooking on Cast Iron

Boneless Skinless Chicken Thighs

My favorite thing in my kitchen is my Lodge Cast Iron Griddle. One side is a grill pan and one side is a flat griddle. It is amazing and I use it for almost everything. Cast iron is a super southern thing and some how, it makes me feel closer to my heritage. I love cooking just about everything on there from toasting bread to eggs, bacon, sausage, chicken and vegetables. I love the sound of my gas burners as they turn on and the sizzle of the meat when it hits that hot cast iron...This recipe is for boneless skinless chicken thighs, which make a regular rotation in our house. They are PERFECT for busy families because they are quick, healthy, and super tasty.


Recipe for Cast Iron Chicken (serves 3)

6 organic boneless skinless chicken thighs
Rub the chicken with any rub you like (I used a spanish inspired rub from the Spice House)
1-2 tbls Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper to taste

1) Heat up cast iron until smoking (or any heavy bottomed pan)
2) Put olive oil or butter on griddle
3) Place chicken on griddle (turn down heat to medium when chicken is on)
4) Cook until no longer pink-maybe like 3-4 minutes per side MAX

I served my chicken with a mixed vegetable concoction of green beans, bell peppers, green onions, and cherry tomatoes. Drizzle the whole thing with a little bit of oil and a spritz of lemon. Yummo!

Cheaper Pieces of Meat

To save money at the Balk household, I often attempt to cook less desirable pieces of meat. For example, pork steaks are far less expensive than pork tenderloin or pork chops. In addition, brisket, rump roast, and round roast are often cooked low and slow until they fall apart. The other night, I cooked lamb shoulder blade chops. They have them at Whole Foods a lot and are a fraction of the price of lamb chops and/or rack of lamb. They are very tasty and fatty, which is a plus for me. Paleo people love animal fat (some more than others, I should say). To impart extra flavor and to tenderize, I marinated the chops in a herb, garlic, and olive oil mixture.

Recipe for Marinated Lamb Shoulder Blade Chops (serves 4)

4 chops (usually around 8 ounces or so)
Handful of parsley, oregano, mint and cilantro (finely minced)
2 cloves of finely minced garlic
1/4 cup olive oil
1 tbls of dijon mustard

Before leaving for work in the morning, get a tupperware, large baggie or big bowl,  and mix mustard, olive oil, s/p, herbs and garlic. It should sort of be like a vinaigrette. Salt and pepper each chop before putting them into the mixture. Massage the meat with the mixture (yes, it is important to impart as much flavor as possible into these guys). Leave all day.

When home, set up grill with a medium amount of charcoal. As always, place charcoal on one side so there is a hot and a cool side. When the fire is ready to go and the coals are ashy, put the chops on. You will want to check them frequently as the fat will burn. I would say that 3-4 minutes per side is all that is needed. Touch them for desired doneness.

A really neat trick is to use your face when assessing desired doneness. For medium rare, the meat should feel like your chin pad and for medium, the meat should feel like the end of your nose. Rare should feel like your cheek (I won't even list well-done because nothing should be well-done not even chicken). Let the meat rest after pulling it off for at least 5-7 minutes.

Marinated chops cooking on first side

Second side cooking. There should be a nice char on each side.

I served the lamb with lemon wedges and roasted brussel sprouts. Enjoy!

Lunch of Champions

As I continue to eat like a caveman, I have found that creativity is key. I have been sauteing extra vegetables in the morning to add to the leftovers just so they are slightly different. Today's lunch is a gem: leftover lamb, homegrown green beans, squash and leftover roasted brussel sprouts.  Just because it is lunch doesn't mean it shouldn't be tasty and exciting.

Cook like an Italian...

One of my favorite things to make for an easy supper is risotto. Risotto is a wonderful italian dish made of rice. There is so much starch in the rice that it makes a luxurious and creamy dish. Many think that it contains cream, but it does not. Now, I know that many think that it is quite difficult to do; however, it could not be easier. Remember I am not classically trained and perhaps some would say that my risotto is not loose enough. So be it. I like it this way! Someone got kicked off of Top Chef for too stiff Risotto!

Risotto is so versatile and is a vehicle for so many things. I will use leftover vegetables, grilled meats or seafood and once you have the technique, you won't ever be afraid to make it. Just get creative and throw in whatever you want... The above picture is corn, caper, and shrimp risotto. I love anything salty and briny like capers and/or olives. Although, my husband does not care for capers. Truly, anything will work here. The only stipulation is that arborio or carnarolli rice is necessary. There will not be enough starch otherwise.

Recipe for Risotto with Shrimp, Capers, and Fresh Corn (serves two with leftovers)*

*most recipes call for way more butter, but I am not sure it is necessary

1 cup arborio or carnarolli rice (found at most fine supermarkets)
2 tbls butter
2 tbls EVOO
1 finely chopped white onion
2 cloves garlic
2 ears fresh corn
1/4 cup of capers
3/4 pound of good quality medium sized peeled and deveined shrimp
Chicken Stock (around 6-8 cups) Warmed
Fresh Parmigiano Regiano at the end
Saffron threads (optional)
Fresh parsley for garnish (also optional)

For the Rice:

1. Melt one tbl of butter and two tbls of olive oil in a heavy bottomed saute pan (on Medium heat)
2. Add chopped onion and garlic and coat with the fat. Saute for 5 minutes
3. Add rice in and toast with butter and oil. The rice needs to be coated with fat
4. Stir occasionally until the rice is slightly toasted (it should start to smell good)
5. Slowly add one cup of hot stock (make sure the chicken stock is warmed)
6. Stir (you will continue to do step 5 and 6 over and over again) until liquid is absorbed
7. Add more stock. Repeat and Repeat. Taste as you go adding salt and pepper as preferred

Please keep in mind that this cooking method requires attention, patience, and constant stirring. Stirring helps the starches release. This whole process takes around 20-25 minutes. Ultimately, it is ready when you taste the rice and it is slightly al dente (which is italian for "to the tooth"). It should have a slight bite, but also be soft.

8. While the Risotto is cooking, assemble your extra ingredients.
9. Cut your corn off of the cob. You will add it to the risotto in the last 3-4 minutes of cooking.

 Side note: If using sausage, you would want to cook the sausage and then remove it from the pan and then cook your rice in the same pan (yummy sausage bits). I used shrimp so I cooked them on my trusty cast iron skillet, which was a gift from my mom and is my all-time favorite kitchen gadget.

10. Salt and pepper the shrimp and drizzle with olive oil.
11. Cook until the tails are curled and the color is pink.
12. Measure out capers
13. Add corn to risotto and stir. Let heat through.
14. Grate parm and add to the risotto.
15. Add last tbl of butter and stir vigorously*
16. Add capers and shrimp and serve immediately.
17. Drizzle with EVOO for great flavor and pizazz!

*Ann Burrell stirs that fire out of her risotto at the end, which is a trick she learned in Italy.

This truly is one of my favorite things to cook and one of the foods I miss the most now that I am carb-free. Perhaps a special occasion? Enjoy!

Biking on the Northshore

We went biking a couple of weeks ago when it was super windy and the waves were huge. We rode past the Bahai temple in Wilmette, which is an all-faith temple and is the only one of its kind in all of North America. How interesting that it is in Wilmette, IL. It is absolutely gorgeous, perched right by Lake Michigan, and is open to the public.

Lake Michigan at Gilson Park, Wilmette, IL

Chicago in the Summer

My hubs and I always say that there is no better place to live than Chicago in the summer. It is warm, bug-free (for the most part), and filled with activity. We have been fortunate to do some fun things this summer, including attending a gala for the opening night of Lolapalooza. What a great picture my cousin took of us sitting at the party with the skyline behind us. It was a super fun night and the food was catered by the most popular food trucks in Chicago.  I have to say that I somewhat disappointed in the food. The Mac and Cheese truck was good, but some of the other food items were slightly disappointing.  I noticed right off the bat that the food was pre-cooked so that the trucks could serve the people faster. This is probably why the food was not the best. Oh well, Pat and I decided that starting a food truck is maybe in our future (we have lots and lots of dreams).

Sausage Stuffed Squash

So, my friends came over for dinner the other night and they brought me a basket of lovely foodie things (I am not certain that she is somehow southern with those manners). In the basket was an assortment of homegrown vegetables including gigantic squash and zucchini. Of course, I decided to stuff that squash with some sort of meat. This squash was baked in the oven and stuffed with an assortment of paleo-friendly foods (a little added goat cheese, which is not paleo). The picture does not do it justice. It was delicious. The sausage and veggies were caramelized. As you will see, I don't measure things and tend to throw all fresh things in a skillet at once.

Recipe for Sausage Stuffed Squash (serves two hungry eaters)

One large homegrown zucchini cut in half or two medium grocery store bought zucchini (cut in 4)*
8 ounces of organic breakfast sausage (hot italian or regular italian sausage would work)
1/2 vidalia onion
1 diced small bell pepper
1/2 fresh tomato
Splash of white wine for deglazing the yummy sausage bits (chicken stock is fine too)
10 ounces of frozen spinach (squeezed of all liquid!)
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper
*if using small squash, the cook time will be decreased.

Preheat oven to 400. Cut each squash in half vertically from the tip to the base. Scrape out the insides of the squash. Put in heavy bottomed pan and drizzle with extra virgin olive oil. In the meantime, brown sausage in a saute pan and break up (over medium high heat). When browned, add onion, pepper, and tomato. Stir veggies around in the fat of the sausage and mix together. Let brown while occasionally stirring. Deglaze with white wine or chicken stock. When the liquid is absorbed,  add frozen spinach and decrease heat and cover for 10 minutes. Add salt and pepper as needed. Put mixture into the squash and place uncovered in the oven for 45 minutes if using large squash and 30 minutes if using medium squash. The squash are ready when they are soft on the outside. Enjoy!