Kale and Potato Gratin

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 pounds thin-skinned boiling potatoes such as red potatoes
• 1 bunch kale
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 teaspoons coarse salt
• 1 teaspoon pepper
• Between 1/3 and 2/3 cup bread crumbs
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese (optional) OR 3 tablespoons olive oil and 1 tablespoon minced fresh herbs, such as thyme or sage

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350° F.
2. Get a pot of water boiling large enough to accommodate the potatoes. Also prepare an ice bath.
3. Meanwhile, slice the potatoes 1/4-inch-thick. Set aside. Remove and discard the spines from the kale then chop the remaining leaves in 1/2-inch-thick ribbons by stacking the leaves and slicing in the direction of the veins. This doesn't need to be exact, as long as you end up with a pile of roughly 1/2-inch-thick shreds of kale.
4. When the water is boiling, add a dash of salt and gently drop in the potatoes, cooking for about 2 to 3 minutes, until tender, but not cooked through. Drain and plunge into the ice bath. Drain again and dump onto a dish towel and blot.
5. In a large bowl, combine the olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper. Add the kale and rub the olive oil mixture aggressively into the leaves. Layer the kale and potatoes alternately with a sprinkling of bread crumbs and Parmesan in a 9"x12" rectangular casserole or glass or ceramic baking dish.
6. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 15 minutes, until top is crispy.

Chipotle sweet potato soup!

Ingredients:

• 2 sweet potatoes
• 1 yellow onion
• 3 cloves garlic
• Vegetable broth
• Chipotle peppers to taste
• Cilantro for garnish
• Salt
• Pepper
• Olive oil

Instructions

1. Lightly sauté onions and garlic in a large pot.
2. Throw cubed and peeled sweet potatoes into pot with 1 chipotle pepper and some adobo sauce from the can.
3. Pour in broth so it is just covering the potatoes.
4. Boil until the potatoes fall apart when poked with a fork.
5. Add salt and more adobo sauce to taste.
6. Serve with cheesy toast and with cilantro on the side.

Zesty Braised Chicken with Lemon and Capers

Ingredients:

• 8 bone-in chicken thighs with skin (6 ounces each)
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• All-purpose flour, for dusting
• 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 4 large peeled garlic cloves
• 1 1/2 cups Sauvignon Blanc
• 1 1/2 cups chicken stock, preferably homemade
• Four 1-inch strips of lemon zest
• 4 thyme sprigs
• 1 tablespoon capers, drained
• 1 bay leaf

Instructions:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and dust with flour. In a large ovenproof skillet, melt the butter in the oil. Add the chicken, skin side down, and cook over high heat, turning once, until browned, 12 to 14 minutes. Transfer the chicken to a large plate and pour off all but 1 tablespoon of the fat.
2. Add the garlic to the skillet and cook over low heat until softened, about 5 minutes. Add the wine and boil over high heat until reduced by half, about 5 minutes. 
3. Add the stock, lemon zest, thyme, capers and bay leaf and bring to a boil. Return the chicken to the pan, skin side up. Transfer the skillet to the oven and braise for about 45 minutes, until the meat is tender.
4. Return the skillet to the stove and boil until the sauce is slightly reduced, about 5 minutes. Discard the thyme, bay leaf and lemon zest, if desired, before serving.

Braised Chicken with Cilantro, Mint and Chiles

Ingredients:

• 4 chicken drumsticks
• 4 skinless, boneless chicken thighs
• 1 tablespoon ground coriander
• Salt
• Freshly ground white pepper
• 2 tablespoons canola oil
• 1 cup packed cilantro, plus leaves for garnish
• 1/2 cup packed mint leaves
• 1 small onion, quartered
• 2 poblano chiles, stemmed and seeded
• 1 jalapeño, stemmed and seeded
• 1/2 cup light cream or half-and-half
• Sliced pickled jalapeños, cooked rice and warm naan, for serving

Instructions:

1. Make 3 slashes to the bone in each drumstick. Rub the chicken all over with the coriander and season with salt and white pepper.
2. In a large Dutch oven or enameled cast-iron casserole, heat the oil. Add the chicken and cook over high heat, turning occasionally, until browned all over, about 8 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, in a blender or food processor, combine the 1 cup of cilantro with the mint, onion, poblanos and jalapeño and blend until finely chopped. Add the cream and 1/2 cup of water and puree until smooth.
4. Pour the green sauce over the chicken and bring to a boil. Cover partially and simmer over moderately low heat until the chicken is cooked through, about 30 minutes. Sprinkle the chicken with cilantro and serve with jalapeños, rice and naan.

Allisons Magic Mexican Corn

Ingredients

• 6 ears of sweet yellow corn
• extra-virgin olive oil
• unsalted butter
• Kosher salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• jalapeño
• crushed red pepper flakes
• limes (juice and zest)
• Manchego cheese
• chives

Instructions

• Set oven to 450°. Without husking the corn cobs, place them on a baking sheet spaced out just a little bit, then roast them them, turning occasionally, about 15 minutes, until heated through and tender but still a litte crispy.
• While your corn is roasting, prep the other ingredients: measure butter, dice jalaeno, grate cheese, slice chives and zest limes.
• Once the corn is done, let it cool so you can handle the cobs. Then shuck and cut the kernels from cobs.
• Heat oil in a large skillet over high heat. Saute corn kernels over high heat until for 3–5 minutes. Stir in the butter and season to taste with salt and pepper. Take off the heat and add jalapeño, crushed red pepper flakes over. Squeeze lime wedges over, then sprinkle with cheese, chives, and lime zest.
• DO AHEAD: You can roast and slice off the corn kernels a few hours in advance if you need to.

Mexican Roasted Chicken with Mango Salsa

Ingredients

• 4 pounds chicken, whole, guts removed, rinsed and patted dry
• 1 medium lime, zested
• ½ medium lime juice, fresh squeezed
• 1 tablespoon chili powder
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1 tablespoon cocoa powder
• ½ tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon cumin
• ½ teaspoon chipotle powder
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 12 ounces beer

Instructions

1. Preheat oven to 350. Cover a cookie sheet with foil, and top with a baking rack. Place the oven rack on the lower 1/3rd of the oven.
2. Combine ingredients, except chicken, in a medium bowl.
3. Loosen the skin on the breast and take some of the seasoning mixture and spread under the skin onto the breast. Spread the rest of the seasoning over the whole bird and place breast side up on the rack.
4. Pour 1/4 of the bottle of beer on the top, then roast chicken until a meat thermometer reaches 165 degrees. basting with beer every twenty minutes. Then allow to rest for 20 minutes until the temperature reaches 170 degrees. This takes approximately 20 minutes per pound.

Mango Salsa:

• 2 large mangoes, chopped
• ½ cup red onion, chopped
• 2 large avocado, chopped
• ½ cup roasted red peppers, chopped
• 1 small lime juice, freshly squeezed
• ½ cup cilantro, fresh chopped

Orecchiette with Sausage and Tuscan Kale Pesto

*I haven't actually made this yet.  Just saving it here for later.

Ingredients

• 3 cups (85 g) Tuscan kale, blanched*
• 1 cup (30 g) fresh basil
• 4 garlic cloves, whole
• 1/4 cup pine nuts or walnuts
• 1/2 cup (45 g) Pecorino Romano cheese
• extra virgin olive oil
• 1 pound (454 g) orecchiette pasta
• 4 sausage links, casings removed
• 4 tablespoons dry white wine like Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Grigio, or Chardonnay

Preparation

• Bring a pot of water to boil over high heat. Prepare another bowl full of ice for the ice bath.
• Cut off the tough stems from the Tuscan kale. And pick the basil leaves from the stems, discarding any that are damaged.
• When water is boiling, add the Tuscan kale and blanch for 15 seconds. Remove and plunge in the ice bath for 15 seconds and drain in a colander. Roughly chop the kale.
• Next, add the basil leaves in the boiling water for 5 seconds, until wilted. Scoop out and drain in a sieve. When cool enough to handle, squeeze dry and set aside.
• Cut each garlic clove in half and plunge in boiling water for 15 seconds, then transfer to the ice bath to cool.
• Put the kale, basil, nuts, garlic, cheese, and olive oil in the bowl of a food processor and purée until smooth.
• Transfer into containers for storage. Will keep well in the refrigerator for 2 weeks.
• To make pasta, bring a large pot of water to boil and season with salt. Add the orecchiete pasta and cook for about 8 to 11 minutes, or according to package directions.
• Reserve about 1 cup of the cooking water. Drain the pasta.
• Wipe the same pot clean and heat on medium high. Add a little bit of olive oil to the pan.
• When oil is hot, add the sausages, crumble with a wooden spoon, and cook until browned all over.
• Add 2 scant cups of the pesto and stir. Immediately add 4 tablespoons of white wine and cook until the alcohol has evaporated, about 1 to 2 minutes. Then, add half the reserved cooking water (about 1/2 cup) to loosen the pesto. Stir well.
• Put the pasta back into the pot and toss until well-combined, adding more pasta water if needed.