Pile on the Paella!!!
Pear and Baby Green Salad with Manchego cheese and honey
Potato frittata
Chicken, Shrimp and Chorizo Paella
Flan
Potato Frittata
1 large red potatoes peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/2 cup diced onion
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil, or to taste
3large eggs
2 tablespoons freshly grated Romano
Minced fresh parsley leaves
- Pat dry the potatoes and onions.
- In skillet set over moderate heat, heat 2 tablespoons of the oil until hot. Add the potatoes and salt and pepper and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and just tender. Transfer to a plate.
- In a bowl, combine the eggs, Locatelli-Romano, and salt and pepper. and gently stir to combine.
- Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of oil to the skillet and heat it over moderate heat until hot. Add the vegetable and egg mixture and cook it over moderately low heat until golden brown and set on the underside. Invert a plate over the skillet and flip the frittata onto the plate.
- Add another tablespoon of oil to the skillet and slide the frittata back in, uncooked side down. Cook until completely set.
- Transfer to a plate and cut into wedges. Sprinkle with parsley.
Pear and baby greens salad with Manchego
yield: 2
2 cups baby greens
1 pear, sliced
¼ cup toasted walnuts, chopped
1 ounce Manchego
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon honey
Salt and pepper to taste
in a small bowl combine water, vinegar, mustard, and honey. Combine well. At the slowest possible speed, drizzle in olive oil in and whisk super-fast. Add as much or as little salt and pepper as you’d like.
On a chilled plate lay a bed of greens, top with pears, walnuts, and cheese. Drizzle dressing on top and serve.
Spanish Paella Recipe (Seafood, Chicken, and Chorizo)
Ingredients
¼ cup olive oil
1 Spanish chorizo, cut into ½-inch discs (Andouille sausage is a good substitute)
4 boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut into 1-inch pieces
2 teaspoons kosher salt, divided
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
1 large onion, diced
1 large carrot, peeled and diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teaspoon saffron threads (about 2 pinches)
¼ cup chopped fresh parsley, divided (or carrot tops or chives)
2 cups Bomba rice or Calasparra rice
5 cups chicken broth or vegetable stock
8-12 ounces prawns or jumbo shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails on
8-12 ounce cleaned mussels, beards removed (optional)
½ cup frozen peas
Lemon wedges, for serving
Instructions
Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Brown the chorizo on both sides for 2-3 minutes per side. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside.
Add onion, carrot, bell pepper, and garlic and saute for 5-7 minutes until the onion is translucent. Add tomato paste and stir well, cooking for 1 minute. Add paprika, saffron, and season with 1 teaspoon salt & ¼ teaspoon pepper. Continue to cook and stir for 5 minutes.
Season chicken thigh pieces with remaining 1 teaspoon kosher salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Add chicken to the pan with the vegetables and oil. Return the chorizo to the pan. Cook and stir for 1 minute. The chicken will not be cooked through and that’s okay.
Add rice to the meat and veggies. Stir well to coat each of the rice grains in seasonings and oil from the pan.
Slowly pour the broth around the pan. Give the pan a shake to settle the rice grains but do not stir from this point onwards. You want a crusty layer of rice to form on the bottom of the pan. This is called the socarrat and it is key to a really good paella. Stirring not only prevents the crust from forming but it also results in mushy rice, which is not what you want in this dish.
Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cook uncovered for 15-18 minutes, giving the pan a shake once or twice during the cooking process, but do not stir. If it sounds like the paella is drying out before the rice has cooked through, you can add a splash of extra liquid or reduce the heat a little more.
Add any seafood like shrimp, mussels, clams, or calamari at this point, if using, and sprinkle the peas on top. You can nestle the seafood down into the rice a bit. Whether you are adding seafood or not, continue to cook the paella uncovered for 5 more minutes until done (about 20 to 23 minutes total time after adding the liquid to the rice). The liquid should be mostly absorbed and the rice should be tender.
Remove the paella from the heat and let it rest for 10 minutes. Sprinkle with fresh parsley and serve with lemon slices.
Flan
Ingredients
- 3/4cup granulated sugar
- 1/4cup water
- 14oz can condensed milk, preferably la lechera
- 12oz can evaporated milk, preferably Carnation brand
- 1 3/4cups heavy whipping cream
- 1 1/2Tbsp vanilla extract, preferably Mexican Vanilla Extract
- 5large eggs, room temperature
- 1/4tsp fine sea salt
- Berries to serve,strawberries, raspberries or blueberries, Optional for garnish
Instructions
Prep – Preheat the oven to 350˚F with a rack in the middle of the oven and bring a kettle of water to boil which you will need for the water bath. Take out a 9-inch by 2-inch round, non-stick cake pan so it’s ready to transfer melted sugar.
Make the Caramel – In a medium heavy saucepan, stir together sugar and water until dissolved. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat without stirring, about 3-5 minutes. Once you see it start to turn golden then start swirling the pan frequently over the heat until it’s the color of cinnamon, about 1-2 minutes, then remove from heat and continue swirling constantly for another 30 seconds as it turns amber-colored.
Immediately pour melted sugar into your round cake pan and quickly tilt your baking dish to spread the caramel over the bottom of the pan before it sets (be careful, that bottom of the pan will turn hot!). Set the pan aside and prepare the custard.
Make the Custard – In a blender add condensed milk, evaporated milk, heavy cream, vanilla, eggs, and salt. Blend for 1 minute on low speed (to avoid too much foam/bubbles). Strain the mixture through a fine mesh sieve lined with cheesecloth (cheesecloth is optional but helps break up the bubbles and foam.
Cover the cake pan with a sheet of foil, making sure the foil isn’t touching the top of the custard (you don’t want to bake your foil into your flan).
Make the Water Bath – Set the cake pan inside of a large roasting pan then set the roasting pan in your oven (it’s hard to carry the roasting pan after the water is in there). Pour hot water into the roasting pan, at least halfway up the sides of the cake pan, making sure it doesn’t reach the top of your baking pan or get inside your cake pan.
Bake at 350 for 70-80 minutes. When it’s done, jolt the pan and you should see a stiff jiggle in the center. If it seems too liquid/wobbly, bake for another 10 minutes. Remove from oven, uncover, transfer to a rack, and cool to room temperature. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or overnight to fully set the custard.
To Serve – Run a knife around the edges of the pan (clean your knife periodically). Set a rimmed platter over the cake pan and holding the top and bottom with both hands, invert the cake onto the platter. If the cake doesn’t slide out easily, tap the cake pan until you feel it dislodging then lift the cake pan gently off the cake. Garnish with berries if desired and serve spooning extra caramel sauce over each slice.