Duck Leg Adobo – A Real Family Meal

If you’ve worked in restaurants before, you know that every night before service the staff sits down to what’s called the “family meal.” One of the younger cooks is usually charged with scraping together something filling and, more importantly, not expensive. It was during one of these meals that I first had adobo.

When I worked at the Carnelian Room in the late 80’s, much of the kitchen crew was Filipino, so chicken and pork adobo was a very common dinner. One of the dishwashers made a particularly great version, and I fell in love with the bold, simple flavors. I also remember being pretty annoyed that the dishwashers there were better cooks than I was at the time, but that’s another story.

Anyway, I happened to have some duck legs around last week, and all it took was a well-timed email wishing for adobo to inspire this video. I understand that most of you will not use duck for this, but if you do, be sure to save the fat.

Duck fat is prized by chefs, and more heart-healthy than people realize. It can be used for just about anything you’d normally fry in butter or vegetable oil. I roasted some Brussels spouts with mine, but it also will make just about the best homefries you’ve ever tasted.

Like I said in the video, no duck, no problem. If you can simmer it in a sauce, it will work in this recipe. Because of the high soy sauce content, be careful about over reducing, but other than that, not much can go wrong. This is cheap, easy, and very flavorful, which is why it makes for such a great “family meal.” Enjoy!

Ingredients for 6 duck legs:

6 duck legs (or about same amount of chicken or pork)

salt and pepper to taste

1 tbsp vegetable oil

1 tbsp reserved duck fat

1 large onion, sliced

8 cloves garlic, minced

1 cup seasoned rice vinegar (if not seasoned, use a little sugar to taste)

1/2 cup soy sauce, or to taste (this is a fairly salty dish, so if you're not into that kind of thing, add less and adjust later)

1 1/2 cups chicken broth

2 tsp sambal chili sauce, or other hot pepper sauce to taste

2-4 bay leaves

View the complete recipe

“Ultimate” Ranch Dressing – The Ultimate “Ultimate”

After five years, and a few thousand requests, I’m finally posting my “ultimate” ranch dressing recipe. What makes it the “ultimate?” Nothing, except that’s what I’m calling it, and in the world of dips and dressings, that makes it so. By the way, ignore those other roughly 65,000 “ultimate” recipes; this one is the actual “ultimate” ranch dressing.

It’s been ages since I made homemade ranch dressing, and I’d forgotten how much better it is than the bottled stuff. Don’t get me wrong; I like high-fructose corn syrup, artificial flavorings, and preservatives as much as the next low-information voter, but this really is significantly more delicious.

As you’ll see, I used some crème fraiche (which we showed you how to make in this video), but relax, sour cream will work perfectly. However, I do believe the buttermilk is crucial. That some of my peers are calling their ranch dressings “ultimate” without using buttermilk, really makes me question their grasp of the word “ultimate.”

Anyway, hyperbole aside, this really is the best ranch dressing I’ve ever had, and I hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for about 2 cups Ranch Dressing:

1 1/3 cup real mayonnaise

1/3 cup sour cream or crème fraiche

1/3 cup buttermilk

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon onion powder

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

pinch of cayenne

pinch of salt

1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed

1/4 teaspoon dried tarragon

2 teaspoons sliced fresh chives

1 tablespoon minced fresh Italian parsley

2 drops Worcestershire sauce

View the complete recipe

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls – The Least Scary Halloween Treat, Ever!

When I was asked to join some of my fellow foodies on YouTube, to produce a video for a special seasonal playlist called “Halloween Sweet Treats,” I sat down and considered all the scary sweets recipes in my repertoire. After several minutes of deep thought, I realized I had nothing.

Not to sound like a curmudgeon, but sticking broken pretzels into a marshmallow and calling it a “scary spider,” just isn’t my thing. So, instead of trying to figure out how to make a chocolate truffle look like a bleeding eyeball, I made a batch of pumpkin cinnamon rolls. They may not be scary (what’s the opposite of scary?), but they are seasonal, and incredibly delicious.

I used to joke that when Halloween/Thanksgiving time rolls around, the only thing a chef has to do to make a recipe seasonal is to add some pumpkin to it. Chili with a spoon of pumpkin stirred in? Halloween chili! Dinner rolls with a spoon of pumpkin kneaded into the dough? Thanksgiving dinner rolls!

Well, that’s exactly what I did here, and while it may be formulaic, it also produced the best cinnamon rolls I’ve ever tasted. One key is a nice soft, sticky dough. Be sure to only add enough flour so that the dough just barely pulls away from the side of the bowl as it kneads.

You can certainly embellish by adding some chopped walnuts or pecans to the cinnamon-sugar layer, but since I decided to garnish with pumpkin seeds, I went sans nuts. Anyway, despite not being very horrifying, these really would make a special treat at any Halloween party. I hope you give these a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 16 Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls:

(I used a deep 13 x 9 baking dish)
Bake at 350 degrees F. for 30 minutes

For the dough:

1 package of dry yeast

1/4 cup very warm water (about 100-105 degrees F.)

1/2 tsp white sugar

1/2 cup pure pumpkin puree (not pumpkin pie filling)

1/4 cup heavy cream (can sub milk, but cream is better)

1 tsp fine salt

1/4 cup melted butter

1/2 tsp vanilla extract

3/4 tsp pumpkin pie spice (or 1/2 tsp ground ginger and 1/4 tsp allspice)

1 large egg

1/4 cup granulated sugar

3 to 4 cups all purpose flour (divided), as needed 
 (add enough flour to mixer so that dough just barely pulls away from sides, and a very soft, slightly sticky dough is formed)

*knead for at least 6-7 minutes

For the filling:

5 tbsp melted butter, brushed on rolled dough

3/4 cup packed brown sugar

1/4 cup of granulated sugar

2 tbsp ground cinnamon

*For the glaze:

1/4 cup room temperature cream cheese

1 cup powdered sugar

1/4 cup milk, or as needed

1/4 tsp vanilla extract, optional

*adjust glaze by adding more powdered sugar or milk to achieve desired consistency

1/4 cup toasted pumpkin seeds to garnish

And the Winner Isn’t….Pumpkin Roll!

I’m going to be posting a seasonal pumpkin recipe on Friday, and let me tell you, it wasn’t easy deciding on which food wish to do. I get tons of pumpkin requests this time of year, and while I’m not going to spoil the surprise, I can tell you that the venerable pumpkin roll didn’t make the cut. Maybe next year I’ll do my take, but in the meantime, here’s a video from my friends at Allrecipes.com, featuring one of their highest-rated versions. Enjoy!

Click here to get the ingredients and to read the written recipe!

Brussels Sprouts with Warm Bacon Dressing and the Holiday Side Dish Dilemma

As I enjoyed this very tasty Brussels sprouts with warm bacon dressing recipe, I was reminded Thanksgiving side dish decision time is rapidly approaching. It’s that annual dilemma where we’re forced to choose five or six recipes among hundreds of potentially awesome options.

What makes this decision so tough is that you want things that are traditional and comforting, but at the same time, want to keep the menu fresh and interesting. You love those buttery mashed potatoes, and yet you’ve wanted to make twice-baked potatoes for years. You always make Grandma’s chestnut stuffing, but that spicy cornbread version you saw on Pinterest sure looks amazing. What do you do?

Do what I do; keep the starchy cornerstones classic, and switch up the vegetable sides instead. Go ahead and do your favorite and familiar potato, stuffing, and gravy recipe; but when it comes to tired old dishes like green bean casserole, or peas and carrots, let your freak flag fly.

As long as you have a few comfort food favorites around, people will forgive a little experimentation, and this creative, un-cooked Brussels sprouts recipe would fit the bill. I love the contrast between the raw, crunchy vegetable and the rich, smoky, sweet and sour dressing. This would do any turkey proud.

While I decided to go raw this time, you can certainly turn this into a hot side by giving it a quick, stir-fry in a large skillet. Just a minute or two, until it starts to wilt, and you’re good to go. Anyway, I’m not sure if I made your side dish selection simpler or more complicated by showing you this new and exciting offering, but I’m sure you’ll figure it out. You always do. Enjoy!

Ingredients for 4-6 servings:
1 1/4 pound Brussels sprouts (will make about 1 lb. trimmed and sliced)

1 tbsp vegetable oil

4 oz bacon, sliced

2 tbsp brown sugar

1/3 cup cider vinegar

1 lemon juiced

salt and pepper to taste

pinch of cayenne

View the complete recipe

Columbus Discovers New Sport – Competitive Salami Sandwich Making

I don’t do a lot of sandwich recipes here on Food Wishes, mostly because, well, they’re sandwiches, but today I’m making an exception. On Thursday, I participated in a sandwich making contest sponsored by Columbus Salumeria, and I wanted to share what turned out to be the winning concoction.

Columbus sponsored the #TopWichSF event to promote their new line of Farm to Fork Naturals, and things got off to a appetizing start as Sean Timberlake, from Punk Domestics and Hedonia, treated us to an array of small bites he created using these great new products. 

Photo courtesy of Columbus Salame

I really loved his wonderful Waldorf-filled endive topped with strips of oven-crisped salami. With entertaining season right around the corner, I highly recommend you add this to your repertoire.

I was grateful for the energy and inspiration the tasty bites provided, as I was up against two very worthy opponents in Michael Procopio from Food for the Thoughtless, and Lynda Balslev from TasteFood. 

The competition was held at the Hotel Vitale, and started with a romantic pedicab ride to the Ferry Building across the street. We were given 10 minutes and $10 to buy any additional ingredients we wanted to accessorize our sandwiches with.

My idea was to do a smoked turkey and teleme sandwich, topped with some kind of meat relish made with soppressata and fruit. I ended up finding some beautiful pluots, and used the rest of my cash to get a small bag of pine nuts. They were raw, but I figured I could toast them on the panini press, which I knew was hot and waiting. I was gifted a few grapes which while delicious, played no part in my creation.

We had just 20 minutes to build our sandwiches, while a distinguished panel of five judges looked on. I was a little nervous to begin with, and knowing there were representatives from YumSugar, Chow, SFWeekly, and Tasting Table there, only added to it. The time went by incredibly fast, which made my fellow competitors' work that much more impressive.

Getting ready to bone marrow the bread.
Photo courtesy of Sean Timberlake

Michael bought some bone marrow butter and used it to toast a turkey, soppressata and apple panini. A brilliant idea, and had time allowed for a longer, deeper caramelization, it would have crushed my non-beef-fat-fried offering.

Photo courtesy of Columbus Salame

Lynda did a fennel salami, fig, and goat cheese sandwich, which she topped with apple slaw, shaved fennel, and her secret ingredient, fennel pollen. It was a classic combination of flavors, and a great way to show off the Columbus salami. By the way, check out Lynda’s great recap of the event, where you can see and read more about her beautiful sandwich. 

Despite their worthy efforts, the judges awarded my rustic-looking sandwich the grand prize. I received a dangerously large basket of salami and other gourmet goodies, as well as $500 cash! 

I figured that a two-year’s supply of salami was enough of a prize, so I’m having them donate the money to the SF Food Bank. I would have just spent the money on more salami anyway. 

A huge thank you to Columbus for inviting me to participate. They have a bunch of great photos on their Facebook page in case you want to check out some more of the action. Also, a sincere thanks to Michael and Lynda for helping make the event such a fun experience. Enjoy!

Photo courtesy of YumSugar

Smoked Turkey & Teleme Sandwich with Pluot, Sopressata, & Pine Nut Relish

Ingredients for 4 Sandwiches:

For the relish:

8 oz Columbus Sopressata, diced

1 cup pluot, diced

1/4 cup toasted pinenuts

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

2 basil leaves, chopped

salt and pepper to taste

The rest:

1 tbsp Harissa or other hot chili pepper paste

6 tbsp mayonnaise

8 slices bread or 4 rolls

4 oz room temp teleme cheese

8 oz Columbus Smoked Turkey

Mix relish ingredients and let sit in fridge for 1 hour to develop flavors. Mix the harissa and mayonnaise; spread on bread. Spread both sides of bread with teleme cheese and top with turkey. Top with relish, and serve immediately, or wrap and press with a plate in the fridge for 30 minutes to compress.

“BBQ” Broiled Red Snapper – This One’s For the Haters

There’s a fairly large population of folks who just don’t like fish. I’m not talking about people with allergies, but those poor souls who’s worst nightmare is arriving at a dinner party, only to find out the main course is fish. Their reasons are as diverse as they are unfortunate.

Well, this broiled red snapper recipe may be just what the doctor ordered. Normally we don’t want to cover up the delicate flavors of the seafood, but in this case, we have no choice. It’s not like you can’t tell you’re eating fish, but close enough.

By the way, the last time I made red snapper, a few people wondered out loud if that was a wise choice, sustainability-wise. I believe the variety I used was local and not in danger, but I know it’s on some no-eat lists. However, things may be looking up for red snapper in the Gulf.

I just read that there appears to be an abundant red snapper population there, and fishermen are anxiously waiting for the bureaucratic powers that be to raise the limits. You can read more about that here. Of course, this will work with any white fish, so I hope you give it a try soon. Enjoy!

Ingredients:

2 (7-oz) red snapper filets

2 tbsp mayonnaise

1 tbsp lemon juice

1 tbsp bbq sauce

salt and cayenne pepper to taste 

View the complete recipe

Bonus Red Snapper Info

I have no way to verify whether this info is accurate, but I found it compelling and wanted to share.