Ina's Spinach Gratin - Yum the Fuck Out!

As I mentioned before - this is my attempt to bring a side dish to a potluck that gives the same feeling as the green bean casserole without the same vomiting all over myself trying to make it.

I baked 1/2 last night - to try - and I am bringing the unbaked half tonight. It turned out to be fuckin delish. I still haven't unpacked all my kitchen accessories so instead of buying a block of gruyere I happened to find a fresh fondue mix at my favorite grocery store Marzcyk. The mix was grated gruyere and nutmeg and some other shit that sounded like a good idea - and it worked great because I have no fucking clue where my cheese grater is let alone my cuisinart. Mission accomplished. Plus, I was really tired from being kind of a grumpy bitch so I had some help with the stirring and the thickening - of the dish. It really didn't take that long but I felt like I was a real complainer about it. Thanks for the help Anita.

Ingredients

4 tablespoons (1/2 stick) unsalted butter
4 cups chopped yellow onions (2 large)
1/4 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups milk
3 pounds frozen chopped spinach, defrosted (5 (10-ounce) packages)
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup grated Gruyere cheese
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed saute pan over medium heat. Add the onions and saute until translucent, about 15 minutes. Add the flour and nutmeg and cook, stirring, for 2 more minutes. Add the cream and milk and cook until thickened. Squeeze as much liquid as possible from the spinach and add the spinach to the sauce. Add 1/2 cup of the Parmesan cheese and mix well. Season, to taste, with salt and pepper.

Transfer the spinach to a baking dish and sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan and the Gruyere on top. Bake for 20 minutes until hot and bubbly. Serve hot.

What A Long Strange Trip It's Been - Just Kidding I hate the fucking Grateful Dead and all they stand for

I have been super motherfucking busy over the last few months trying to find my slice of Americana and I did and I am gonna eat the shit out of it so suck it more house for your money I got LESS HOUSE FOR MY MONEY and am loving every minute of it. Even though there is so much left to do I will finally be cooking something tomorrow night for a potluck on Friday.

I was asked to make a green bean casserole. Frankly I would rather eat shit....well maybe not but if forced to choose I know there would be a lot of wells and uh, a pretty fucking close tie. I hate cream of mushroom soup and I only like canned green beans in a beef stew so I will not as long as I live EVER make a green bean casserole. I will however be making a spinach gratin from precious li'l Ina Gartens bag of tricks. I hope it is good - seems real easy and shit - throw in some spinach - cream - sal and pimiento - I am leaving out the nutmeg because it always pisses me off when I eat it. A little parm and gruyere and my "casserole" is complete.

I hope this bitch taste good.

Suck it. Lylas, Amanda

I Want to Make You So Bad

Ina's Spinach and Cheddar Soufflé
Ina swears by this recipe for spinach and cheddar soufflé. It turns out perfectly every time!

SPINACH AND CHEDDAR SOUFFLÉ
Serves 2 to 3

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus extra for greasing the dish
1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for sprinkling
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup scalded milk
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
Pinch of cayenne pepper
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 extra-large egg yolks, at room temperature
1/2 cup grated aged Cheddar cheese, lightly packed
1 package frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and squeezed dry
5 extra-large egg whites, at room temperature
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Butter the inside of one 6-to-8-cup soufflé dish (6 1/2 to 7 1/2 inches in diameter x 3 1/2 inches deep) and sprinkle evenly with Parmesan.

2. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. With a wooden spoon, stir in the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes. Off the heat, whisk in the hot milk, nutmeg, cayenne, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Cook over low heat, whisking constantly, for one minute, until smooth and thick.

3. Off the heat, but while still hot, mix in the egg yolks. Stir in the Cheddar, the Parmesan, and the spinach, and transfer to a large mixing bowl.

4. Put the egg whites, cream of tartar, and a pinch of salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on low speed for one minute, on medium speed for one minute, then finally on high speed until firm, glossy peaks are formed.

5. Whisk one-quarter of the egg whites into the cheese sauce to lighten, and then fold in the rest. Pour into the prepared soufflé dish, then smooth the top. Draw a large circle on top with the spatula and place in the middle of the oven. Turn the temperature down to 375 degrees. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes (don't peek!) until puffed and brown. Serve immediately.

NOTE: To make in advance, prepare the recipe through Step 3 (adding the cheeses). You can do this up to 2 hours ahead. Keep mixture covered at room temperature, and then proceed with the recipe just before baking.

Send your questions to inaforhb@hearst.com. Watch Ina on the Food Network's Barefoot Contessa (check foodnetwork.com for airtime).


Find this article at: http://www.housebeautiful.com/kitchens/recipes/spinach-souffle

Vita - Super Awesome Patio - Not as Awesome Pork

So I went to Vita on Saturday for a little happy hour - which is from 3:00 - 6:00 I think and it was nice. The rooftop patio was pretty fun and I thought it would have been nice to check it in the evening with the lights and all that shit. And the happy hour is semi-decent - Peroni is $3 which me likes. I think the wine is 2 for 1 and there was some other grody domestic on sale for the cheap. It was a lovely place - even if the interior was trying a little too hard for my taste. Don't get me wrong, it was nice but seemed like whomever created it was desperate to be in the now which is going to be pretty dated in a few years but what do I know since my fashion sense has been defined as grandma chic, I don't really think I am one to judge.


Here is the bummer of it all, if I am going to a happy hour, I want some food to be happy as well. There was no food item that I could find on the menu that seemed to go well with a happy hour. I went for the pulled pork and it was like $9 - and NOT worth it. Maybe I would have been fine with $3 but not $9. And everything else looked like some pretentious fucker thinks that just because it is expensive and on a teeny fucking tiny plate that I am going to like it well guess what bitch, I don't celebrate at Applebees so don't think you can pull the wool over my eyes. I would rather eat in a dive with tasty food than somewhere with the most beautiful view in Denver with the shit you throw on plates and call FANCY! Although, I will admit that the view is pretty fucking nice but not after that apartment building is completed, then you will just be a shitty restaurant with a dated design.

Go to Vita for the patio - but be prepared to leave hungry and confused about how LoHi turned into the plastic surgery capital of Colorado. I will go into more detail in my Lola review.

New FUN Game I like to Call - What am I eating RIGHT THIS MINUTE

Currently, I am eating one of those samosa wraps - from Amy's food arsenal. I like that brand because it is real food - not light just organic and usually has some veggies involved.


This is pretty good, even though tofu is hiding in it somewhere.

My Pretty Dutch Oven + Ina's Perfect Roast Chicken = Fabulously Glamorous!

So, I wrote a post for this last week, but I am completely rewriting it as I find there was way too much swearing in it, even for me. I don't need to throw out the F-bomb 37 times in a post about delicious chicken. It sounds so aggressive. As my jiu jitsu instructor has pointed out - I have a tendency to be too combative initially and that often makes it more difficult to accept change. I hope he appreciates that I am changing my entire personality for him.

So here is the lean and clean version.


I finally used my gorgeous turquoise dutch oven to make Ina Garten's Roast chicken. I love this recipe because it is simple and elegant. However, it was even better in my dutch oven because once the chicken is cooked - you remove the chicken and most of the chicken fat from the dutch oven and then - throw in a little chicken stock and some flour to make the gravy. It was so much easier to get the right consistency. I think it just cooks so evenly.

I have attached a video - the actual recipe is not online right now but I can tell you what to do.

1) Buy a chicken
2) remove the gross stuff inside
3) cut off the neck? (maybe - this didn't work too well and I need to get out my meat bible so I can learn how to properly dissect a chicken.
4) Salt and pepper the inside of the chicken
5) Stuff the inside with
a "bunch" or "handful" of thyme - this last time I used rosemary because I have it - and I don't think I used quite enough
one lemon cut in half
some garlic - like 4 cloves
6) Give it rub down with about 2 tablespoons of butter
7) Slice up some onion and throw it around the pan
8) Cook it at 425 for an hour and a half
9) EAT IT UP GOOD - once you remove it from the dutch oven and let it sit with some foil over it- because this bitch looses her juices if you don't watch her. She cannot be trusted.


Here is a similar recipe from Ina - but this one has carrots and fennel - I didn't use that recipe exactly but it does the job.

Ingredients

* 1 (5 to 6 pound) roasting chicken
* Kosher salt
* Freshly ground black pepper
* 1 large bunch fresh thyme, plus 20 sprigs
* 1 lemon, halved
* 1 head garlic, cut in half crosswise
* 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter, melted
* 1 large yellow onion, thickly sliced
* 4 carrots cut into 2-inch chunks
* 1 bulb of fennel, tops removed, and cut into wedges
* Olive oil

Directions

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.

Remove the chicken giblets. Rinse the chicken inside and out. Remove any excess fat and leftover pin feathers and pat the outside dry. Liberally salt and pepper the inside of the chicken. Stuff the cavity with the bunch of thyme, both halves of lemon, and all the garlic. Brush the outside of the chicken with the butter and sprinkle again with salt and pepper. Tie the legs together with kitchen string and tuck the wing tips under the body of the chicken. Place the onions, carrots, and fennel in a roasting pan. Toss with salt, pepper, 20 sprigs of thyme, and olive oil. Spread around the bottom of the roasting pan and place the chicken on top.

Roast the chicken for 1 1/2 hours, or until the juices run clear when you cut between a leg and thigh. Remove the chicken and vegetables to a platter and cover with aluminum foil for about 20 minutes. Slice the chicken onto a platter and serve it with the vegetables.

Dutch Oven

I have a prand spanken new Le Crueset Dutch Oven and I was wondering if anybody has any favorite Dutch Oven recipes to share? I am scared to use it so far and am looking for a really good recipe to start with.

Thankyou.