Mendoza

Mendoza.

Mendoza, home of Argentina's wine. The city is larger than I expected. The city is smellier than I expected. In all the travel guides I read, none prepared us for the stench of the open sewer system.

We had some delicious steak in a cute little garden bistro (Anna Bistro) and we had amazing pasta at a little restaurant along side the Italia Plaza ( Ciao Cuoco).

Mendoza is all about the wine however. We signed up for a tour that looked good, no idea whether or not it was a great pick. Low and behold Dave's wonderful determination to truly experience all Argentina has to offer landed us on a tour with a wonderful guide and group of fellow tasters. (Other than the Swiss asking about the bloody war over the Falklands/Malvinas War.. a taboo in our travel guide)

The tour ended at Urban, the one place we had wished to see from all our wine tasting before our trip. (Can you believe the luck?) This wine tour at Urban also ended with a truly gourmet meal, which also couldn't be more perfect for the love of food, wine, and desire to share these experiences with you.

The Menu:

Appetizers:

A potato cake with picked vegetables and a Tabasco sauce: This was a little and beautifully constructed egg shaped ball of mashed potatoes. The picked vegetables tasted complimented the potato and never revealed their true identity. The Tabasco sauce was a surprising kick of flavor and spice to make the heavenly bite sing on our taste buds.

Cappuccino pumpkin with goat cheese foam: This was an amazing delectable little taste of pumpkin like I never could imagine before tasting the treat. It tasted more like a soft boiled egg in a cup, soft and creamy like my mom used to make for me. I imagined the soft boiled egg with a healthy dose of table salt lightly blended together. Instead I was eating a pumpkin puree with a drop of locally made goat cheese.

Starter:

A creamy tomato puree with eggplant chips. This was a very creamy but tart dish. I have to say that this was my least favorite on the menu. The bitterness of the tomato puree was a little too acidic without the right balance of sweet or savory flavors to balance the tang. The croutons and crunch of the crispy eggplant were a light and refreshing texture and flavor along side the thick puree. This is a Spanish dish (all prepared by the owner's wife, a couple from Spain) and without much exposure to the cuisine I must give the disclaimer, and I did eat it all since it was perfectly prepared, it just wasn't well paired to my taste buds.

Main Course:

Rabbit Confit with crispy potatoes and a green bouquet: (I gagged due to my love of bunnies, but did not want the risotto). The protein was topped with small crunch potatoes, and it was the most delicious and tender white (dark) meat that has been put on a plate. My insides were torn due to the type of meat on the plate, but those feelings aside, YUM. The bouquet of greens was also a more pickled group of tomatoes and peppers, as you mixed all the flavors and textures together the experience was a perfect. The pickled vegetables were slightly tart and the rabbit was sweet and savory. This meal was perfectly balanced and achieved what the starter lacked. 

Dessert:

Honey and Rum tulip with meringue ice cream and lemon rosemary jam: The shell was thin and crispy, the honey and rum gave the cone an unusual brightness to the usual sugar-like cones I usually have. As I hit the edge of the tulip with my spoon and the side had shattered into pieces ready to be eaten. With a piece of the tulip and a shaving of the ice cream on my spoon I was ready for my first bite. I made sure to include some of the cinnamon that had been delicately dusted on top. The rosemary and lemon jam added another layer of complexity, but the flavors were so faint they were there to compliment and highlight the balance of rich flavors. The theme of these descriptions is balance. All the courses had savory and sweet, heavy and light, this dish was a combination of all the contrasting textures and flavors and a wonderful finish to the truly gourmet lunch.

all the amazing photography was taken by Dave.

El Bife de Argentina

We have begun to slowly understand how to shop (try not to tell the girl at the shoe store that you want to eat the shoes...comprar, not COMER (oops!!!!!)), order cafe and vino, and how to order beef.

Last night we went out for the Italian and had our first taste of yummy Argentinian bife. The Italian restaurant we tried had it down, eggplant lasagna and steak beautifully marinated in a sweet gravy with hints of smoky cherries. We knew that we were on the right track and the beef we were looking for was in plain sight.

This morning, (or should I say this afternoon since it was after noon before we even thought of leaving the hotel) we ordered the best bit of beef yet. I remembered seeing the locals with a nice thin cut of steak for lunch and I was dying to try the same. Desperately not wanting to over order Dave and I decided to split a lomito sandwich (steak sandwich). It was perfect, we split it in two and sank our teeth into sweet juicy meat. We added a small touch of mayo and cracked pepper to add a little something something to the meal.

Once you begin to discover how to order and where to go it is a delight.

The best insider tip we got so far was from a wonderful waitress at a bar where we had our first taste of Argentinian beer (with salted roasted peanuts). She asked if we were tourists, and asked if we were using the Lonely Planet Argentina book. Naturally we replied, yes. She let us know that while it is a great guide for South East Asia in her experience, when she looked at "ours, for Argentina" it was not a great resource at all. She provided us with maps written in espanol and gave us a great idea of where to go for those leather shoes, cheaper clothing, and all other things.

Happy to have new direction and new recommendations for red meat we are off to a dinner of the bife! We took the recommendation of the hotel concierge and went to a new parilla, Campobravo. The best steak yet, the best food yet. My favorite food here is hands down the empanadas. Tiny meatpies spiced perfectly, these had the tiniest bits of prime cut beef. Next we sank our teeth into bife chorizo.

The story goes, I realized today I totally LOST our translation guide. Saddened that I no longer had what I considered to be my life line, I read the other travel book we had. It explained (light bulb goes over my head) bife chorizo is one of the best cuts of steak and our new favorite part of the cow. (moo!).

Campobravo didn't fail. The steak was sweet, salty, and accompanied by two garnishes.. oregano and garlic, and onion and tomato.. both highlighted the grilled meat in two very distinct ways. We had a large side of pure papas... mashed potatoes mixed with a sweet cream that melted in your mouth, but was so substantive it maintained great texture while absorbing the juices of the bife chorizo.

I will tell the tales of buying grass fed beef and trying my hand at matching similar garnishes and flavors as I am so excited to add to the diversity in my recipe book.

Coffee and Creameries

What is a medialuna? Is it a cookie? hmmm... well. It is half, half moon? half a cookie?

I need more than cookies, lets get the special (cafe con leche, dos medialunas, y juego) and split a sandwich. We already learned our lesson in over ordering at the steakhouse after all...

To our liking we ALMOST over ordered, dos medialunes are two croissants. As it turns out the little language guide let us know that a little too late. These croissants are light and flakey, they have a slightly sticky honey glaze that makes the pastry melt in your mouth. Accompanied by a cafe con leche, these delightful treats highlight the fresh, fragrant coffee. I noticed that this was the first cafe con leche.. well the only out of our three so far that didn't need sweetening up.

After a very long day of walking around Buenos Aires and soaking up the sites.. monuments, tropical foliage, and dog pooooop (ALL OVER! but not to ruin the picture..) we trekked across town for helado. We ran into our first taste of English-less-ness. The cashier was in our opinion mean, but he was the object between us and some of the most delicious ice cream I've ever had. Dave had the Swiss Chocolate and White Chocolate. I had Vanilla ( i butchered the pronunciation followed by a "lo siento") and Swiss Chocolate. I can see why our travel book told us to never be without helado in hand. The most creamy, rich, and pure flavors you can imagine. Swiss chocolate had a soft melted caramel swirled throughout with tiny fresh chocolate flakes perfecting the chocolate's bold flavor. Vanilla, perfect. Chocolate blanco.. similarly to die for. (Dave insists there will be more of this to come, but maybe with a twist of mani (peanut butter)).

After cafe con leches done right, helado that was heaven, Dave and I still don't know where the amazing steak is... I hope we can tell you soon!!!

Two Hours... I love the garlic!

We arrived in Argentina! A land filled with delicious cafe con leche y empanadas con carne.

Upon arriving in a new hemisphere, continent, and country Dave and I wasted little time trying to figure out what direction to go in. We made reservations at a hotel in Palermo Soho, i.e. the hip nightlife neighborhood. After checking into our hotel with a shower that doesn't have a door, I naturally I led the way on our first excursion.. east.. into nothing.

On our way back to the neighborhood (maximum of 6 blocks away from the hotel) we were starving. I pulled Dave back 10 steps to a restaurant with english on the menu (how could we go wrong?) and in we went. It was delicious! A white-fish spread on the bread, delectable starters (the best empanada con carne ever), and our lunch accompanied with a sweet and tangy beet puree marrying all the flavors together.

Later in the evening, without finding a clock for hours we guessed it was 4pm (Buenas Tarde!) and we knew it was necessary to find the cafes we read so much about. We arrived at el Gato Negro and ordered up Cafe con leche (ordered properly!!) with little shortbread cookies that sent us to another place:

We were on a roll... next was dinner, top rated steakhouse, waited two hours to get seated, the famous beef of Argentina.

Over cooked, tough, sinewy, what??? (Like my crappy dentist I think I have another bad review). The atmosphere, wine and sides were actually just as delightful and delicious as all the wonderful flavors we experienced before. Sadly the beef just didn't make the cut. As Dave put it... "2 hours for what?" my response: "for the garlic!"

My favorite part of the meal: Roasted garlic for the bread, and a side primarily garlic in a sweet beef based gravy with caramelized roasted carrots. This seemingly simple combination will be a future Keenie Kitchen experiment.

Needless to say our favorite Malbec yet didn't fail...

... and we are still up for the challenge of finding that perfect cut of Argentinian beef. I will let you know when we find it.


... And to share, a view from the square which we not so gracefully translated as the spot San Nicholas raised the Argentinian flag in August of 18something? .... (our translation book just doesn't have every word) anyways, it was a cool view of the bustling city traffic from behind the Washington-like monument marking the spot:

The Inspiration .. don't let it get boring

Having the desire to cook home-made meals throughout the course of my busy life, from the minute I started grad school through today, so I have mastered the protein-to-last-a-week method of cooking.

The recipe in "The Inspiration" can easily be doubled, tripled, quadroooopled, or whatever to accommodate more eaters or a lengthy week full of sweet home-made chicken goodness.

The best part about cooking Granny's chicken fricassee is it has the most beautiful, sweet flavor and it turns all things into equally tasty meals. I will give you a way to make chicken fricassee into chicken vegetable soup. What I like best about this is you can use all the leftovers you have hanging around.

Pantry:

What do you have? broccoli, squash, kale or greens, white beans, asparagus, brussel sprouts, frozen veggies, frozen pearl onions(yum), rice, noodles..
What you need: onion.

Putting it together:

1. Chop the onion into small pieces
2. Heat butter in a medium sized pot and add the onion.
3. Once the onion is fragrant add the veggies, if adding frozen veggies add them 2-3 minutes before non frozen, if no frozen veggies add fresh veggies.
4. Once the vegetables are slightly golden add some water, left over chicken and broth. (enough water so you'll have enough liquid for soup- its a personal preference so i won't put a measurement)
5. What do you like? rice, pasta, egg noodles, potatoes? Cook those per instructions.
6. Taste the soup, do you like the taste? it might need a little extra bouillon.. add as necessary.
7. Once the starch is cooked add to the pot for a minute or two
8. Some good additions are cracked pepper and parsley.
9. Eat!

Notes:

• The soup can cook in as short as 15 minutes or as long as 45 minutes depending on how long you want the flavor to develop, the time you have to cook it, and the ingredients you choose.
• Think about what veggies you have.
• For Kale, add when you add the water, for swiss chard add when it is close to the end of cooking time.
• Potatoes and acorn/butternut squash can be cooked in the broth: In this case I would make the onions golden, add water and broth, add the potatoes/squash and let cook for 12 minutes before adding other vegetables.
• Pearl onions are a great addition, i like to brown them in butter first, and you do not need the chopped onion if you go that route.
• White beans are not something I would put in because I honestly think beans are icky, it is a texture thing I have always struggled with. But so many people like beans I figured I'd suggest it, for you bean loving crazies, I think white beans are a tolerable (or delicious) addition (depending on your preferences).. tell me if you have other bean suggestions because I am not the best resource for that.
• Chicken Fricassee is very versatile and sweetens up some of the older things you have laying around in your pantry, or a combination of all the flavors you want and love.

The Inspiration

After a long week and late nights of work to get the projects I have done before I leave for my trip to Argentina, (!!) I decided it was time to revisit my most relaxing dish, and my inspiration for my cooking in general.

For as long as far back as I can remember into my childhood, I can remember my Grandma's chicken fricassee. I  thought fricassee was such a great/comical name and what was equally fun were the  nicknames it developed: chick a frick, chicky chick, chick.

As a youngster my mom and grandma exposed me to the recipe-less world of a pinch of this and that. It was by far the best lesson in getting to know your ingredients so without looking you could create a delectable dish. I used the this-or-that method to replicate this chicken fricassee from my childhood.

Both memory and my mom helped me piece together the basic steps and important flavor steps. But the exact smell and taste was a long process.


Shopping List

-          A package of chicken (preferably a dark meat) bone in! ( take most of the skin off but not completely you want a minimal amount of natural fat)

-          One small onion or ¾ of a medium-large onion (too much onion ruins the flavor so be careful)

-          Clove of garlic

-          Salt, Pepper, Parsley

-          Bouillon (a chicken base)- (you can use 1 or 2 cubes depending on how much chicken but I like a scoop of the giant powder kind at Costco)

Putting it Together:

1)      Cut the onion into rings, thin, but not so thin that they will disintegrate.

2)      About a tablespoon of oil in the bottom of  a pot; heat over medium high

3)      Add onions, salt and pepper (don’t overdo the salt because the chicken base has a lot, I just kind of shake it over the onions) and parsley I’d say a tablespoon, I tend to put in a bunch because it really cooks down.

4)      Stir the onions around a lot, keep them so they barely turn clear – do not want them to brown but just a little is okay.

5)      Once the onions are just a little clear throw the chicken in,  add water and chicken base, enough to cover chicken and bring to a boil.

6)      Once it boils for 15, 20 minutes bring to a simmer.

7)      Smash the garlic clove so it is still whole but separated so the flavor can escape and throw it in the pot.

8)      cook for 1 to 3 hours.

Notes:

• You can eat it after 35 minutes or so but for great flavor you really want it to fall off the bone. To fall off the bone cook it for 1.5 - 2.5 hours
• Thighs are better if you are worried about bones
• I wouldn’t recommend cooking for more than 3 hours because the chicken starts to lose its texture/substance.
• Things that make a difference: browning vs. not browning the chicken, amount of onion, chicken base... I don't brown the chicken, i use probably a quarter cup per 6 drumsticks, i slowly add the base.

TO - no - FU

Since moving to Colorado, and since dating Dave (who used to be a vegetarian, *cough*), I have really started to eat and enjoy tofu. I am on a mission to make tofu in a variety of delectable ways that leave you saying, “woah, I love tofu, who knew?”

I plan on posting my tofu trials and tribulations so you don’t make the same mistakes and can discover tricks to preparing the spongy white block of food.

The Stir-Fry:

The only way I tried to cook tofu was to put it in a stir-fry. On the first attempt I put some peanut oil in the pan, cubed the tofu, dropped in the hot skillet and off it went, sizziling and spitting oil and water on my hand and arm. I threw in the veggies after 5-7 minutes. That was bland.

Next attempt, (blot the water out of the tofu) Salt and Pepper. Bland.

Third attempt, garlic powder, salt, and pepper, cooked until more golden brown.. now we are getting somewhere. I continued with this method realizing one key was to really let the tofu get golden brown before throwing in any of the stir-fry veggies. I settled on this method for a while without making any alterations.

At some point while I was on the phone with Dave (master of the stir-fry), back when I lived in Denver, he said something about butter and tofu, I thought he said it was the key to its success. Well I don’t know if he did say butter after all because my next attempt to make the stir-fry I pulled out the tub of whipped butter and Dave said, “butter?”… well regardless of what I heard and who said what, butter became the next miracle in stir-fried tofu.

The last key to a better stir-fried tofu is letting it really cook, longer than until it gets golden brown. I like it when you cook the cubes long enough so they have a nice crispness on the outside. Instead of cooking them with the veggies, tofu has been put in its own stir-fry pan up until the last step of saucing the meal. Since tofu is so absorbant I think that cooking it with the veggies prevented it from getting crisp, as it absorbed some of the water from the vegetables.

Whole Foods, Foolish Craigs, etc…

I went to two “blast” classes at the gym this past weekend. Afterwards Dave and I were on our way to Costco. I said, “I can’t wait to get a hotdog.” Dave, in keeping his promise to help me be healthier (including killing my abs at the gym so I couldn’t stand up straight for two days), took me to Whole Foods for lunch instead. (No more hotdogs for me, so sad). The Kung-Pao Tofu had such a nice meaty tofu, not as “silky” as mine. How do they do it?

This is my next adventure, to figure out how to make a meatier tofu. I don’t know if baking will do the trick but I will let you know how it goes…