Burger with Blue Cheese, Bacon, Dijon and Arugula

I really enjoy a good burger every once in a while and this one is a stand-by of mine. First, I am a proponent of a charred crust but red, juicy interior. For that reason, I tend to make my patties pretty large. Next, I add some thick-cut bacon, which goes with pretty much anything. My favorite burger cheese is without question blue, so I add that for even more richness. Dijon mustard is slathered onto the bun for tang, and to round out the flavor profile and cleanse the palate, I add plenty of fresh and peppery arugula. Satisfying and simple.

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Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef (an 80/20 meat/fat ratio is ideal), divided into 2 patties

4 strips thick-cut bacon (2 per burger)

2 ounces blue cheese, roughly crumbled (1 ounce per burger)

Dijon mustard

Arugula

Hamburger buns (here, I used focaccia because that's what I had in the apartment)

Salt and pepper for seasoning

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Procedure:

(1) Cook bacon in a cast-iron skillet. Set aside bacon and either discard the grease or set it aside for later use.

(2) Put skillet over medium heat. Open a window and blow a fan at your fire alarm or disconnect it, because the room will soon fill with smoke!

(3) After forming the patties and seasoning them liberally with salt and pepper, add them to the skillet.

(4) Introduce patties to skillet. Turn the heat down to low-medium and do not move patties for a few minutes. This will allow a crust to form. Flip patties and allow a crust to form on their other side.

(5) Hold patties on the side of the skillet with a metal spatula in order to allow the laterals (the "sides" as opposed to the "tops"/"bottoms") of the burgers to brown. This should take about a minute for each lateral.

(6) At this point, burgers should be cooked to medium-rare. If you desire a more well-done result, transfer burgers to the oven for a couple of more minutes. Anticipate this potentially necessary extra step and preheat oven accordingly.

(7) Serve on buns slathered with dijon mustard and topped with bacon, crumbled blue cheese, and arugula.

Pan-Sauteed Apples

I often see two-pound bags of apples on sale for $2.00-$2.50. When this is the case, I will almost always buy a bag to make this dish. It is such a natural, wholesome thing to eat and can be served as a side, as dessert, or even as a snack. If you like apples at all, you will love this, and if you don't like raw apples, you should definitely give this dish a try; your opinion will likely change. My favorite part of this dish is the natural caramel sauce that forms at the bottom of the pan- no added sugar is needed; the natural sugars of the apples plus some honey or maple syrup are enough to put this dish over the edge!

Ingredients:
2 pounds apples* - peeled, cored, and cut into chunks
3 tablespoons butter (3/8 of one stick)
Juice of half of a lemon
Honey or maple syrup, to taste
Cinnamon, to taste
Nutmeg, to taste
Pepper, to taste
Salt, to taste

*Certain apples tend to fall apart more easily and thus are more appropriate for making applesauce than for making this dish. I tend to have the best luck with the Granny Smith or McIntosh varieties; pink lady and golden delicious are better suited for applesauce.

Procedure:
(1) Squeeze lemon juice into a bowl.
(2) Peel, core, and cut apples into chunks. Toss the chunks in the lemon juice; this will keep them from oxidizing (this is what causes them to turn brown after sitting exposed).
(3) Melt butter into a deep sautee pan. Introduce apples and any excess lemon juice.
(4) Stir to ensure that all apples become coated with melted butter.
(5) Add honey, cinnamon, nutmeg, pepper, and salt to taste.
(6) Stir every minute or so until apples have softened and a thick sauce has formed.
(7) Serve warm alone or with vanilla ice cream and/or pound cake.

Sweet Potato-Chipotle Soup

Most things I cook are inspired by things I've had before in restaurants and in other people's homes. However, sometimes I see a unique recipe that I just have to try, and that was the case when I came across Homesick Texan's blog post on sweet potato-chipotle soup. When I laid eyes on that recipe for this absolutely delicious Tex-Mex-style thick soup, I left for the market minutes later and prepared it for dinner that very night! This soup is sure to brighten up the coldest of winter days. Here is my version:

Ingredients:
2 pounds sweet potatoes (about 2-3 large ones or 4-5 smaller ones), peeled and cubed
1 pound onions (about 2 large ones or 3 smaller ones), diced
4 cups chicken stock
2 chipotle peppers
Olive oil
Juice of 1 lime
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste
Cumin, to taste
Nutmeg, to taste
Oregano, to taste
Greek yogurt
Pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds) or sunflower seeds

Procedure:
(1) Put a splash of olive oil in a pan over medium heat.
(2) Add diced onions and sautee for about 10 minutes, stirring frequently.
(3) Add cubed, peeled sweet potato and mix well with browned onions.
(4) Season with salt, pepper, cumin, nutmeg, and oregano.
(5) Add chicken stock, reduce heat to low-medium, and allow to simmer for about 15-20 minutes.
(6) Before blending, add chiptoles.
(7) Blend with either a standing blender or immersion blender. Soup should be quite thick.
(8) Mix in lime juice before ladling soup into individual portions.
(9) Serve with greek yogurt, either swirled in or added as a dollup.
(10) Garnish with pepitas or sunflower seeds.

Thai Chili-Basil Chicken with Green Mango Salad

I've had more than a few people ask me when it was that I really started to "get into" food. My general answer is that I really started to take pleasure in eating and cooking around age 19 or 20, but if I had to name a pivotal moment, that would be when I had my first bite of the crispy chicken basil at Nud Pob in Boston on a cold and snowy day in November of 2004. Crispy, succulent bits of chicken blanketed with handfuls of Thai basil and strips of fiery red and green chiles over sweet and nutty pad thai... it was heavenly and I will never forget. I used to go back there once per week during college and though I tried several items on the menu, the crispy chicken basil was by far the most memorable. When I moved to New York in 2007, I searched high and low for something similar, and though the crispy pork belly with chili, garlic, and basil at SriPraPhai gave me my fix to an extent, it just wasn't the same. The next time I returned to Boston on a trip to visit a friend, I made a beeline to Nud Pob and ordered order the crispy chicken basil, and I must say that some combination of the heat of the chiles and my sheer joy of being reunited with a long lost favorite caused my eyes to water. Yes, a dish I had eaten dozens of times in a hole-in-the-wall, bare-bones basement restaurant moved me to tears! Here is my twist on the dish, along with a refreshing green (unripe) mango salad.

THAI CHILI-BASIL CHICKEN

Ingredients:
1 pound boneless chicken breast, cut into 1-inch chunks
Cornmeal, to coat chicken chunks
Fish sauce*, to taste
Black soy sauce, to taste
Lime juice, to taste
Handful of Thai basil*
2 kaffir lime leaves*, torn into small pieces
2-4 red or green bird chiles*, minced, depending on desired spiciness
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2-red onion, minced
Cooking oil - olive, peanut, or vegetable are all fine

Procedure:
(1) Coat chicken chunks with cornmeal and set aside.
(2) Put a large skillet or wok over low heat with a liberal pour of cooking oil.
(3) Add minced garlic, onion, kaffir lime leaves, and bird chiles.
(4) After about a minute, turn up the heat to medium and add chicken chunks. Cook on all sides for a few minutes and add a few liberal dashes of fish sauce, black soy sauce, and lime juice. Stir to thoroughly coat chicken chunks with this pan sauce.
(5) After about another minute of cooking, add Thai basil, and allow to wilt a bit while stirring.
(6) Serve chicken and its sauce over white or jasmine rice. Top with more fresh Thai basil.

GREEN MANGO SALAD

Ingredients:
3 green (completely unripe) mangos*
1 tablespoon palm sugar*
1/2-red onion, cut into thin half-moons
Handful of peanuts
Fish sauce*, to taste
Juice of 2 limes
Handful of fresh mint

Procedure:
(1) Grate mangos into matchstick-size bits. If you don't have a grater, you can cut the mango into small, thin strips. Put into a bowl.
(2) Combine with mango a liberal dash of fish sauce, lime juice, palm sugar, onion, peanuts, and mint.
(3) Serve at room temperature.

***General note on ingredients***
I understand that many of the ingredients I have mentioned are not available in mainstream grocery stores. If you are in New York, you can find any of the Thai ingredients (except for green mango) in these recipes at Bangkok Center Grocery in Chinatown, just north of City Hall. If you don't have access to a store where these ingredients are sold, here are my suggestions.

-Brown sugar can be substituted for palm sugar.
-Kaffir lime leaves can be left out in favor of slightly more lime juice.
-Jalapeños, serranos, or another type of potent chile can be substituted for bird chiles.
-Though there is no exact substitute for green mango, ripe mango sliced into small pieces combined with grated apple produces a similar flavor and texture. Regarding green mango, this can be very difficult to find. However, if you are in New York, there is an outdoor fruit stand one block to the north of Bangkok Center Grocery that regularly has them.

Patatas Bravas

Today's dish is inspired by another Serious Eats post made earlier this week. Patatas bravas - meaning "angry potatoes" - are a typical Spanish bar snack. The "brava" part of their name refers to the slightly-spicy and tangy sauce that is served over them, which tends to vary depending on where in the country you are. On the coast near Valencia, the sauce is mixed with an aioli and thus has a garlicky flavor; in Madrid, the sauce's tomato base and addition of paprika are what stand out most. This is a crowd-pleasing dish that pretty much everyone will enjoy, so try this at your next party or as a side with dinner.

Ingredients:
2 pounds potatoes*
1 cup tomato sauce
1 tablespoon dijon mustard OR 2 tablespoons mayonaise
1 tablespoon vinegar
Salt and pepper
3 teaspoons paprika
2 teaspoons cumin
2 teaspoons garlic powder
Cayenne pepper or hot sauce, to taste
Olive oil
Scallions or parsley, for garnish

*Any kind of white potatoes will work here. Russet, fingerling, etc. are all fine to use.

Procedure:
(1) Boil potatoes for about 5-7 minutes until they are still firm but a fork can pierce them.
(2) Remove them from water and allow them to cool while you prepare their sauce.
(3) Combine tomato sauce, mustard or mayonaise, paprika, cumin, vinegar, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper or hot sauce and mix well. Regarding the cayenne pepper or hot sauce, put in as much as you'd like. I suggest adding a little at first and then adding more to increase the level of desired spiciness, as it is easy to add spiciness but difficult to reduce spiciness unless you increase the quantity of the rest of the ingredients. Traditionally, salsa brava is mildly spicy.
(4) Put a cast iron skillet (if you don't have one, just use a regular skillet) over medium-high heat.
(5) Cube potatoes or cut them into small wedges and toss in olive oil, salt, and pepper.
(6) Add potatoes to skillet and toss occasionally to make sure that they become crisp on their exterior.
(7) When potatoes are done, serve them on a plate or in a large bowl, covered in sauce and garnished with scallions or parsley.