Leslie Bartosh, CEC, AAC, FMP

  Maybe it is how I was raised..........To me, Sunday Supper requires comfort food, like this beef stew with Duchess Potato. I like to play with themes like beef stew but do twists on them.   Like adding a duchess potato to the dish.   This allows for a very interesting play on textures and flavors.   It also adds nice visual contrast to the plate. Often when I make duchess potatoes for this type of dish, I will flavor them.   As an example, it is fun to bury a whole clove of roasted garlic deep inside the piped potato.   A buried surprise if you will.   Almost like the baby in a king cake but edible. Horse radish also makes a nice addition to a duchess potato when the potato will be pared with beef or lamb.   Horseradish also works any other item where I can see the flavor combination. When I make duchess potatoes, I usually make a big batch.   I freeze the raw piped out potato.   When it is frozen solid, I vacuum pack it and place it back in the freezer.   This allows me to h

  Normally when we think about braised dishes, we are thinking about ingredients that need a long slow cooking process with moisture.   Like a pot roast, as an example.   But, naturally tender items like a chicken breast or a piece of fish can also be braised successfully.   The cooking process is still same:   sear the item and then finish cooking it in a flavored liquid or in this case sauce. This dish came out a brainstorming session a week ago.   It is the 2 nd of dishes to come out of that session.   I have at least one more similar dish in mind.   They are all influenced by a Middle Eastern fish dish, that I used to make in class.   Normally the term Puttanesca refers to a pasta dish.   It does not have pieces of fish in it.   This dish is attributed to the Naples, Italy.   Naples is located on the Tyrrhenian Sea.   So, the idea of using the sauce to braise a piece of fish seemed to be a good match. Braised Riverence Steelhead trout in a puttanesca style sauce, accompani

  Some months ago, a recipe from Texas Monthly, came across my desk.   As soon as I read the title, Smoked Chicken Thigh Confit; I was intrigued.   Daniel Vaughn, the T.M. BBQ Editor was the author of the recipe. What was this?   Smoked Chicken Thigh Confit?   I am familiar with duck leg confit and it is one of my favorite dishes.   But smoked chicken thigh confit?   Being a fan of smoked items and confit, I had to try it. I make duck confit for a few reasons.   1. It tastes very good.   2. The duck legs become very tender. 3.   The confit keeps for a long time in the refrigerator.   4. As the confit is kept the flavor mellows becomes even nicer. But duck legs are not readily accessible to me.   I have to make an approximate 25-mile round trip to buy duck legs at a local Asian market.   Where duck legs are not readily available to me, chicken thighs are at my local grocery.     The 1 st time I made the smoked chicken thigh recipe, I made four thighs.   I then made the recipe a

  This dish came out a brainstorming session.  The cooking method was influenced by a Middle Eastern fish dish.  Fish is not normally associated with braised dishes.  Regardless of tradition, it worked very well! Riverence Steel Head Trout, braised in a bouillabaisse inspired sauce, on a bed of buttered orzo with chives.   Not the best photo.   The flavors in this dish were simply outstanding.     Thank you, Diversified Ceramics, for the great bowl to use for this dish #LifeLongLearning #LifeLongTeaching #FamilyFood    As always, your questions or comments are welcome. Until next time, Bon Appetit Y'all Lesliie Bartosh

 When I made sesame seed buns the other day, I did not know I would use this this soon.  But, I am awfully glad I had them for this sandwich. Fried chicken breast strips on a toasted sesame seed bun with dill pickle strips and spicy slaw seasoned with O'food Gochujang. Next time I do this, I will make it with Japanese style quick pickle cucumber slices. As always, please feel free to ask questions or leave a comment.   Until Next Time: Bon Appetit Y'all Leslie Bartosh

  Sometimes you just need a bun. A sesame seed hamburger bun that is.   These buns fit the bill nicely! These were made using a recipe from King Arthur Flour. It had been a while since I made these.  Glad I revisited this bread.  We do not use a full batch of buns at one time.   They freeze quite nicely. #LifeLongTeaching #LifeLongLearning #FamilyFood  As always, your comments or questions are welcome. Until next time, Bon Appetit Y'all Leslie Bartosh

 Whatever Wednesday saw these tacos show up.   Mesquite charcoal grilled, pulled chicken thigh, glazed with O’Food Spicy Korean BBQ Sauce with spicy slaw (dressing: mayonnaise seasoned with O’Food gochujang), with house canned pickled onions and cilantro on corn tortilla, Japanese style quick pickled cucumber. I will take these any day! #LifeLongLearning #LifeLongTeaching #FamilyFood #Tacos As always your comments and questions are welcome. Until next time, Bon Appetit Y'all Leslie Bartosh

These demi baguettes were made using a variation of my regular formula.   My normal recipe uses AP flour.   I typically use King Arthur flours for all my baked items.   This one used their bread flour.   Everything else was the same.    I like this bread better than my normal demi baguette.   The dough felt better and the caramelization (Maillard effect) of the dough is outstanding.   Overall, I think this is a better product.   I need to repeat this to see if the results are replicable.   To think, this came out the need to utilize some surplus bread flour.   My normal recipe is a loose adaptation of a “Four Hour Baguette” recipe by Daniel Leader.   This bread is a standard in my kitchen.   I may have a new standard!   #LifeLongLearning #LifeLongTeaching #FamilyFood #Bread #StaffOfLife As always your comments or questions are welcome. Until next time, Bon Appetit Y'all Leslie Bartosh

  Recently a recipe for Basque Style Cheesecake - Tarta de Queso came through my email.   The recipe was from the King Arthur flour company.   I have read a little bit about the dessert, but never seen it.   So, this meant it had to show up on our New Year’s Eve menu.   I am glad it did!   It is rich, custardy, and real delight to eat. This was obviously my first time to bake this dessert.   Our oven runs a little hot.   When I next make this dessert, I will lower the temperature by 20 degrees.   Even though the top looks really dark and perhaps burned.   It does not taste bad.   Still, I think it will at least look better if it is not quite so dark on top.   Some subsequent reading has given me some suggestions on ways to improve the cake.   I am already looking forward to making it.   It is super easy.   This recipe is five ingredients!   #LifeLongLearning #LifeLongTeaching #FamilyFood   As always your questions or comments are welcome Until next time, Bon Appetit Y'all L