Nigella Lawson :: "...Comfort food is comfort food..." Roast Chicken

"...Comfort food is comfort food wherever you are and it always comes down to roast chicken and mashed potatoes in the end." Nigella Lawson

Here's a Cooking Lounge post from February 2013 featuring Nigella Lawson (click link)

Roast Chicken
Garlic Mashed Potatoes and Gravy
Sauteed Green Beans

During the lull of days between Christmas and New Years, comfort foods and seasonal favorites that are simple to prepare, hold well and serve guests and visitors with ease are ideal Holidays Recipes (see more ideas >>> GOOD FOOD).

H A P P Y    H O L I D A Y S

Enjoy,
Cooking Lounge

Whew...New Cooking Lounge Posts on the way

Wow! New York City had a beautiful summer. Yes, sweltering, skin melting, cook an egg on the sidewalk, heat for a few days here and there in July, with August coasting into fall as if scripted. 

Now, in the days of indian summer, late harvest are in farmers' markets like tomatoes; and, fall favorites - local apples, pears and pumpkins - are in abundance almost everywhere, often at a great price. Pick-up that seasonal bargain then thumb through a cookbook or google recipes on an iPad, and of course search Cooking Lounge.

And fast becoming a near national holiday, of sorts, Halloween is just around the corner. Halloween is that riotous mark in the sand for the Holidays - Thanksgiving, Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, New Years - 
...food... parties...cocktails...more food.

Cooking Lounge has fresh new posts on the way after a little downtime to recharge, write and cook.

Now, while you are here, click around; check-out Good Food for original recipe ideas.

Visit soon for all new posts from Cooking Lounge.

Enjoy,
Cooking Lounge

photo: wbj

Bacalao Salad - Holidays Recipe

FOOD:

The Cooking Lounge Bacalao Salad is a latin and caribbean take on a traditional whitefish salad made from salted cod. 

From Puerto Rico in the Caribbean to Italy, through Portugal on into Norway in Europe, there is recipe upon recipe for a whitefish salad made with dried, salted codfish. Triangular trade routes paved the way for cod to become a traditional staple across continents.

A friend from Puerto Rico and a friend's Mom from Panama dipped into memories of mothers' kitchens, sharing their favorite version of this traditional cod dish. Cooking Lounge's fresh take has big, bright flavors, that go well with almost any buffet spread, make a light yet filling lunch salad on a bed of greens, and complement meat as a side (see serving suggestion).

Bacalao Salad (capers, olives, chive flowers, fresh herbs)

Requires some planning to make but is relatively inexpensive. The salted cod soaks in cold water in the fridge for 24 hours; and, the water needs to be changed at least 3 times to desalinate the cod. Blanch rehydrated codfish with juice 1/2 lime. Drain. Toss with herbs, spices, capers, olives, onion, lemon, lime, extra virgin olive oil, etc. Chill to marry and enhance flavors.

So worth the effort because Bacalao Salad holds well, serves a group, and has fresh, bright flavors that satisfy. 

Bacalao Salad w/ Chorizo Bacon Fritata and Salsa Fresca
serving suggestion

Try this Cooking Lounge Holidays Recipe for Bacalao Salad.

Soaked Desalinated Codfish

Blanched, Drained Codfish

Bacalao Salad Preparation

Cooking Lounge Bacalao Salad

• 2 lbs boneless Bacalao (salted cod)
• 3/4 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 1/4 cup Capers
• 3/4 cup Goya Olives
• 1/2 chopped Chive Flowers (was lucky at market; chives work.)
• 1 Lemon
• 1 Lime
• 1/2 Red Onion
• 1 Serrano peper (deseeded, diced)
• 1 cup Fresh Parsley
• 1 tablespoon Fresh Oregano leaves
• 1/4 cup Cider Vinegar
• Salt, Pepper, Crushed Red Pepper

Cooking Lounge is a guide. Make this recipe you own: play with measurements, use what you have, experiment. Have fun cooking.

• Blanch the rehydrated cod in hot water for 2-3 minutes. Cooking Lounge added the juice of 1/2 lime to the water. 
• Let fish cool. Break up fish and remove any stray bones or skin.
• Mix in capers, olives, chive flowers, red onion, fresh parsley
• Make Citrus Marinade with juice of 1 lemon, teaspoon lemon zest, juice of 1/2 lime, fresh oregano leaves, salt, pepper, crushed red pepper for extra spicy, optional. 
• Toss with marinade and chill for several hours for best flavor.

Enjoy,

Cooking Lounge

photos:wbj

Holidays Recipe - Mashed Celeriac, Parsnip, and Potato

FOOD + LIFESTYLE:

photo: wbj

The Holidays are a great time of the year to make this crowd-pleasing, rustic root vegetable mash featuring often overlooked and misunderstood, celeriac (commonly known as celery root in US).

In this Cooking Lounge Holidays Recipe, the potatoes provide volume and a familiar flavor base, the parsnip adds sweet, creamy, earthy goodness. The celeriac sends the mash over-the-top with hints of herbaceousness and celery along with hearty texture. The flavors and textures in the Mashed Celeriac, Parsnip and Potato stand out yet meld beautifully with butter and cream. 

photo: wbj + Nina Masuda

photo: wbj      

photo: wbj

At Cooking Lounge, the focus is simple ideas for better living; so, recipes are more of a guide than a how-to. As you get to know more about food, flavors, pairings, growing seasons, and simple techniques, you will be able to create amazing meals that work for you.

Mashed Celeraic, Parsnip and Potato 
2 lbs of new potatoes
1 lb parsnip
1 large bulb Celeraic (celery root) approximate wt 12 ounces - 1lb.
1 stick of butter
1 cup of half and half or cream
salt
pepper
fresh parsley

To slow oxidation, I put aside a large bowl with cold water and salt for the cut root vegetables to soak. Some recipes suggest lemon and water for the celeraic. The point is keep the ingredients from turning brown.

Celeraic is a tough skinned, ungainly bulb. I used Mastrad's Elios Y Vegetable Peeler for minimal loss of flesh. Also, the handle felt ergonomic so no cramping up when peeling lots of food. After peeling the celeraic, dice and drop in bowl of water until time to cook. Make the cubes of vegetables about 1 inch each so cooking times will be about the same. Continue with parsnip, peel, slice and dice, then add to bowl of water. Next the potatoes. Depending on the variety and taste preference, the potatoes can be skin on. The skin left on for this version.

Drain and rinse the root vegetables. Add to large pot of water with a teaspoon of salt. Bring to boil. Reduce heat. Cook on low until tender (fork pierces with ease).

Drain cooked celeraic, parsnip and potato; add to large bowl. Mash and stir until blended. Add 4 tablespoons of butter and 1/2 cup of half and half. Mix. Add remaining butter, half and half. Mix. Add salt and pepper to taste. Add more half and half if desired. Remember this is a rustic mash so it WILL NOT be like a puree.

Return mixture to large pot and cook on low heat for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally so it does not stick to pan. Place in a serving dish, top with rough chopped parsley. Mashed Celeraic, Parsnip and Potato are ready to serve. If you have more time, you can stud the top with butter and bake in a 350 oven until the top is golden brown. Mastrad's Orka silicone pot holder came in handy taking the mash out of the oven and; in a pinch, the Orka silicone pot holder worked as a trivet). You can even prepare Mashed Celeraic, Parsnip and Potato a day or so in advance; just heat and brown. Yummmm!

This post features products from innovative, international kitchenware brand, Mastrad. Mastrad sent a few items for Cooking Lounge to review. Not paid for the review. All opinions are solely Cooking Lounge. (BRANDS send more stuff. More to play with in the kitchen and more props.)

Enjoy,
Cooking Lounge