Paper Chef Challenge #28- The Few But Mighty Roud Up

This one was kind of difficult with the offal. Not so readily available, palatable or easy to prepare, but the few but mighty took to it with zest.

In order of entry:


From Magnus Akesson an addmitted non-lover of the offal (and I apologize, Magnus for putting you through it) from Amsterdam, made a beautiful Toasted quinoa bread with chicken paté on a fennel salad.

I just today found wild fennel growing in the alley outside my house. I just wonder how much motor oil it soaked up in growing.




Hank Shaw of www.honest-food.net and fellow Californian hunted down his offal the old fashioned way -- and you can read the whole account here. He made a dish called Mountain, Marsh & Field, with not 1, but 2 kinds of offal. Great name to match the dish.




This entry from Ilva, the Grand Dame of the Paper Chef Challenge is an ORANGE SCENTED CHICKEN LIVER PATE' WITH MARSALA JELLY SERVED ON QUINOA PAN BREAD or PATE' DI FEGATINI AROMATIZZATO CON ARANCIA E MARSALA

All caps, because I don't dare re-type for fear of misspelling. An for those who can read Italian, the words actually do roll off your tongue.

Ilva, I thought it impossible to take an inviting picture of pate, but you did it. Equally impressive, she chose her seasonal ingredient from her trans-gender lemon/orange tree.




And mine, chicken gizzards, Indian Chinese Style.


I'm giving the helm for Paper Chef #29 and the 1st prize to Hank. You can't beat 2 offals, one being rabbit kidney, combined with a stunning presentation. And then there is the whole hunting it down himself thing. ...

Thanks everyone for taking part! It was great.
Cookbad

gobi manchurain gizzards with cilantro lemon quinoa

By CookBad

Here is my entry for Paper Chef #28. The challenge was to make something with offal, quinoa, spring onions and whatever is in season in you area. I chose lemons, from the lemon tree in my front yard and cilantro, which I grow in a pot on my porch.

I loved this Gobi Manchurian recipe from the January 2008 issue of Saveur much I tried it with chicken gizzards instead of cauliflower and it was great. The recipe for the gobi is here and I just switched out the cauliflower for gizzards.



The quinoa was stright forward enough:
Cook quinoa in a 4- to 5-quart pot of boiling salted water, uncovered, until almost tender, about 10 minutes. Drain in sieve, then set sieve over same pot with 1 inch of simmering water (water should not touch bottom of sieve). Cover quinoa with a folded kitchen towel, then cover sieve with a lid (don't worry if lid doesn't fit tightly) and steam until quinoa is tender, fluffy, and dry, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand (still covered) 5 minutes.
Mix with chopped cilantro, lemon zest and spring onions.

Paper Chef Challenge #28: The ingredients are. . . .

ROUND UP HERE

Here is it is:
The challenge is to come up with a dish and make it by April 8th from the following ingredients.

Any kind of offal (it's making a comeback!), quinoa, spring onions and something that is growing now & in season your area (meat included).

The last part is inspired by the woman behind the challenge, Lucullian delights amazing strawberry dish, which are certainly stating to pop up in some part of the world.

If you are still stuck under 3 feet of snow, then pick ingredient that you are most looking forward to having fresh in spring.

All entries must be in by midnight PST on April 8th.

Send the following to favolaus@gmail.com:
• A little picture of the dish, and what you call it.
• A link to your blog URL
• A link to the post that your dish is on
• You name
• Anything else you would like me to add

Looking forward to seeing them all!

Cookbad

Getting Ready for Paper Chef Challenge #28

ROUND UP HERE

Be part of one of the longest running food blogging challenges -- Paper Chef #28!

It is on now:
Go here for the challenge list of ingredients. . .

I was thrilled to win last months Paper Chef hosted by Lucullian Delights with my Cilantro, Pistachio, Ancho Chile Rubbed Chicken with Stinking Rose Polenta, and as the winner, I get the honor of hosting it this month.

Owen of Tomatilla who started Paper Chef describes the challenge as:

"Food bloggers in the US and Japan and many other parts of the world will be familiar with "the Iron Chef" cooking show. Great chefs are put up against one of the iron chefs in a rather over-the-top and dramatic cooking competition to see who can make the most spectacular food from a host of regular ingredients and one special ingredient - say octopus. There is a somewhat similar TV show in Britain called "Ready, Steady, Cook!"

So, check back on Thursday April 3rd at noon EST. I'll announce the 4 ingredients -- The first 3 ingredients will be regular food stuff and the 4th will be something topical, seasonal or trendy.

Over the next 5 days submit your entry at any point. Tuesday, April 8th at noon the challenge will end and I'll do a round up a couple days after that.

Me and my co-blogger, AteThat will chose the winner, and will also be announcing a Readers Choice winner. The winner of this months challenge gets to host next months challenge.

Cilantro, Pistachio, Ancho Chile Rubbed Chicken with Stinking Rose Polenta

By Cookbad

I'm throwing my hat in the ring for this round of The Paper Chef Challenge!

I was very pleased with the outcome of this dish. The final honey glaze is really nice. You could thicken it with pistachio flour or add crushed pistachio for color.

You can make this in under 45 minutes. Halves really well. I am really happy with it

STILL, it greatly pains me to only have terrible photos of this wonderful dish. My camera has gone missing and I had to take these with my laptop. No amount of adjusting in photoshop could improve them.

Cilantro, Pistachio, Ancho Chile Rubbed Chicken with Stinking Rose Polenta
Serves 4

For the chicken lotion:
1 cup roasted salted pistachios
2 cups cilantro leaves
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 garlic clove, chopped
1/3 cup olive oil

For the Chicken dry rub:
2 tablespoons ancho chile powder
1.5 tablespoons cumin seeds
1.5 tablespoons corriander seeds

4 organic chicken breast halves with skin and ribs attached

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/2 cup honey

For the Polenta:
1/2 clove of garlic rubbed with olive oil

6 cups of low salt chicken stock
1.5 cups course corn meal

Cilantro leaves for garnish
lime slices (optional)
ancho chile powder
salt to taste

Preheat oven to 400 f.

Throw the oil rubbed garlic in the oven and roast for 20 minutes.

Put the first 5 ingredents in a food processor and pulse into a paste or chicken lotion.

Toast cumin and corriander in a pan over med-high heat until fragrant (about 90 seconds)
Crush up and add ancho chile powder.

Rinse, pat dry and salt chicken. Stuff lotion under the skin of the chicken then massage both sides with the dry rub mixture.

Heat a cast iron pan over med high heat. Add some olive oil then brown both sides of chicken.

Put in the oven and cook for 20 minutes.

At this point you want to start the polenta.
Add 1.5 cups of stock to 1.5 cups of corn meal. Stir stir stir until the mixture boils. Reduce to a simmer and stir often. When garlic is roasted, squeeze each clove into the polenta. Keep stirring. It should be finished in about 25-30 minutes.

After the chicken has been cooking for 20 minutes remove from oven and rub the rest of the lotion over the chicken.

Cook for 5 more minutes. Remove from oven.

Remove chicken from pan. Scrape bits of the bottom of the pan, add honey and whisky until smoothish.

When serving, put a pinch of ancho chile pepper on the polenta and serve with a couple of lime slices if you so desire.

UPDATE!! I won!
So, I'll be hosting next months challenge!