Scott Hutcheson

Halloween: Memories in the Making (and recipe for Spider Web Pizza)

Originally published in hauntingly delicious newspapers on October 29, 2009

I love Halloween but not in the sacrifice a goat and worship the devil sort of way. You won’t find any zombies or tombstones in my yard and my kid’s won’t be dressed in gory costumes. This year they’ll be disguised as a pint-sized version of Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson.

Part of what our family loves about this holiday is that it is a neighborhood affair. We live in the North Meridian area where centuries-old maples line the streets forming a golden fall canopy and porch lights illuminate homes where generations of kids have tricked and treated. Going house to house with our kids we see lots of friends. Kids compare their loot while the adults catch up on each others’ week. 

Sometimes I’m envious of our friends who live in new subdivision with their big backyards and perfect sidewalks but all that envy melts away on Halloween evening when my neighborhood becomes a real-life version of what movie sets and theme park main streets try to copy.  

I have no doubt that for my children, trick or treating in our neighborhood will be a lifelong memory they will cherish their whole lives. When you think about it, memories are all we really bring with us on the journey from childhood into the adult world. Even if you manage to keep friends for a lifetime it is your shared memories that create the bond. 

The dinner table is another place where we try to create some Halloween memories. My wife usually makes some spooky desserts and I concentrate my efforts on a fun entrée. Over the last few years I’ve come up with Stuffed Monster Heads (aka stuffed peppers) and Werewolf Paws (aka calzones). This year it was Spider Web Pizza. I know I’ve only got a few years to have this sort of fun with my kids so we are making the most of it and creating as many memories as we can.
   
Spider Web Pizza
This pizza can be made completely from scratch or you can certainly purchase a ready-made crust and use a jarred sauce. The most essential component is the mozzarella cream sauce used to make the web and the spiders made of olives and carrots.  

Spiders
Canned pitted whole black olives
Carrots

Each olive will make one spider so use as many olives as you like. For each olive, cut eight thin carrot sticks, about the thickness of a toothpick and about two inches long. Use an actual toothpick to poke holes in each side of each olive, ideally four holes per side. The olives I used were on the small side so I could only get three holes per side. I realize that an insect with six legs isn’t technically a spider but I hoped my kids wouldn’t notice or care. Once you have the holes poked, insert a carrot “leg” into each hole. Please the spiders on the pizza prior to baking.

Mozzarella Cream Sauce
3-1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/3/4 cups heavy cream, heated just until steaming
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup shredded mozzarella

Over medium-low heat, melt butter in a heavy-bottom, medium sauce pan. Add flour, whisking constantly. Cook, whisking occasionally, for 2-3 minutes; do not let the mixture brown. Whisking constantly, add about two tablespoons of the hot cream to the sauce pan. Add the remaining hot cream in small increments, whisking constantly until a smooth paste forms. Whisk in remaining hot cream and add salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring with a wooden spoon until the sauce is thick and creamy, about ten minutes. Add the mozzarella, stirring until melted and fully incorporated. Let cool for about 30 minutes and then place in a squeezable condiment bottle. After the pizza is cooked, use the squeeze bottle to pipe on a spider web pattern of your choosing. Ig you are uncomfortable using your imagination, you can Google spider webs to find a picture of one.

Chicken Fry (and recipe for Chicken-Fried Ribeye Strips)

Originally published in sweet and sticky newspapers on October 22, 2009

I won’t go so far as to say they won’t eat poultry at all in Oklahoma; but birds of a feather seem to be able to flock together more safely in the Sooner state than in other environs. Maybe that is why cowboy Curly McLain gently encouraged chicks, and ducks, and geese to scurry along as he maneuvered his fringe-topped surrey down the dusty roads of the Great Plains. I’m not sure Curly would have yielded as readily to a herd of steer, especially of he was hungry.

In this area of the country, beef is nearly always what’s for dinner, from Texas brisket to Kansas City strip steaks. In Oklahoma they love beef so much they’ve reinterpreted non-beef dishes to create bovine versions. If you are visiting friends in Oklahoma and someone suggests a “chicken fry” for dinner, there will not be any actual chicken involved. The chicken-fried steak is a staple of Sooner cuisine. You can certainly find chicken-fried steak in other states, but Oklahoma takes it to the next level.

Having spent the first nine years of my life in Oklahoma, and returning to visit, frequently, it has become one of the foods I make sure to experience when there. Most often, chicken-friend steak is accompanied by a pepper-flaked white gravy and served with mashed potatoes. You can also find sandwich versions of the delicacy, the beef equivalent of our own pork tenderloin. 

My own interpretation of the dish departs slightly from the traditional version. I prefer using a rib eye instead of the bottom round usually used. The ribeye costs more but I really like the texture. I also make strips, which are easier for my kids to eat. Fried beef with gravy isn’t a food that should probably on our menus on a daily basis, but it’s a delicious comfort food that can be a perfect indulgence on a cool fall day.   

Chicken-Fried Ribeye Steak Strips

• 2 pounds of 1/3 to 1/2 -inch thick ribeye steaks, trimmed of excess fat
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 3 whole eggs, beaten
• 1/4 cup vegetable oil
• 2 cups chicken broth
• 1/2 cup whole milk, warm milk

Preheat oven to 300 degrees. Place the flour into a pie pan and the eggs into a separate pie pan. Season both sides of each piece of steak with salt and pepper then dredge the meat on both sides in the flour, shaking off the excess. Pound each steak to about 1/4 inch and cut into 1/2 strips. Dredge each strip in the flour, followed by the egg, and then in the flour a final time. Place the meat onto a plate and allow it to sit for 10 to 15.

Place enough of the vegetable oil to cover the bottom of a 12-inch sauté pan and set over medium-high heat. Once the oil begins to shimmer, add the strips in batches, being careful not to overcrowd the pan. Cook each piece on both sides until golden brown, approximately four minutes per side. As they are cooked, move the strips to a wire rack set in a half sheet pan and place into the oven. Repeat until all of the meat is browned. You may need to replace the oil half way through of too much flour has been released into the oil, turning it dark brown.

Once finished frying the strips, remove all but one tablespoon of the oil and whisk in three tablespoons of the flour left over from the dredging. Add the chicken broth and deglaze the pan. Whisk until the gravy comes to a boil and begins to thicken. Add the warm milk and whisk until the gravy coats the back of a spoon, approximately five to ten minutes. Season to taste with salt and lots of black pepper; and serve the gravy over the strips or in a small dish for dipping.

Bacon: The Gateway Meat (and recipe for Sriracha & Brown Sugar Bacon)

Originally published in toothsome newspapers on October 1, 2009

“Eat two pieces of bacon and call me in the morning.” Although the doctor didn’t officially write this on the prescription pad, these were his post-tonsillectomy instructions for my wife. We had heard that having one’s tonsils out as an adult was quite a bit more of an ordeal that it is for children but after several occurrences of strep, our doctor recommended this as the course of action for my wife. Healing seemed to be taking its own sweet time and the level of pain was nearly unbearable. Bacon was the doctor’s proposed remedy, mentioning something about nitrates, and crispy bacon edges scraping at the wounds.

I don’t know about you, but if I had a doctor actually insist that I eat bacon, I’d be as happy as…well…a middle-aged man in a bacon store. My wife didn’t have quite the same reaction. She had been a full-scale vegetarian for the previous decade, eating absolutely nothing with a face. We stopped by the store on the way home to “fill her prescription” but she remained un-persuaded. I told her that since we had bacon in the house anyway, I was fixing a BLT for myself. As I had hoped, sizzle and smell proved to be irresistible seducers.

After a couple days of bacon therapy, she was well on her way to a full recovery; but I began to note a change in her behavior over those next few weeks. Although she continued to live her veggie-patty lifestyle, I would catch her stealing lustful glances at my cheeseburgers and it wasn’t long before she began ordering fish and then chicken when we ate out. She eventually found her way completely back to the land of meat eaters but now considers herself an ethical carnivore, eating only animals that meet her definition of being humanly raised and free of antibiotics and growth hormones.

Now that we have kids, our family of four eats a well-balanced diet. Many of our meals are meatless, we eat far more poultry than red meat, and we buy our chicken, beef, and pork from local farmers, including our bacon. My favorite bacon supplier is Chef Chris Eley of Goose the Market in Indianapolis. Chris is to the bacon lover what Jerry Garcia was to the Deadheads. He has made an art out of the practice of bacon making, procuring his meat from Indiana’s finest pork purveyors, and smoking and curing it to perfection. His bacon is available daily in his store and he also offers a Bacon-of- the-Month Club.

I love bacon in many forms – with eggs, in a sandwich, atop baked beans. I have even had some amazing bacon ice cream. My most recent bacon obsession is a sweet and spice version I make with Sriracha, a Thai hot sauce named after the seaside city where it was first produced. Sriracha has a consistency much closer to ketchup then Tabasco and besides sun-ripened chili peppers, it includes vinegar, garlic, sugar, and salt. The heat from Sriracha is certainly warm but not overwhelmingly so. I love it on scrambled eggs and also use it to flavor stews and soups. Just about anywhere you might use a splash or two of Tabasco, Sriracha will work.

My latest bacon obsession includes Sriracha and brown sugar. The result is an explosive combination of sweet, salty, spicy flavors combined with the fatty goodness of the bacon.  If I could put a warning on this bacon, I would. Eat at your own risk, vegetarians, for this might be the very bacon that will push you over the meat cliff.

Bacon with Sriracha and Brown Sugar

• 8 strips of bacon (thick cut is best)
• Sriracha
• Brown Sugar

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Put a baking rack on a baking sheet and arrange the eight strips of bacon on the rack. Squeeze a thin ribbon of Sriracha down the center of each strip of bacon. Use a pastry brush to spread coat the entire top surface of the bacon with the hot sauce. Sprinkle the top of each piece of bacon with a generous portion of brown sugar. Place in the oven and cook to your desired bacon doneness.  I like mine fairly well done which takes about 25 minutes.

A Friendly Game of Football

Originally published in crunchy newspapers on September 24, 2009

Friday night lights, Saturday tailgating, arm-chair quarterbacking on Sundays afternoons and Monday nights. They may call baseball the national pastime but you could certainly make an argument that football is just as much a national obsession.

One of the things I appreciate the most about the gridiron is that a player can’t do much on his own. In basketball a skilled player can grab the rebound, dribble the length of the court, and drive to the basket. In baseball, the batter at the plate can put a score on the board with a single swing of the bat that sends the ball over the fence. Football is different. Even when the fastest member of the team returns a kick-off for a touchdown, he doesn’t to it all alone. It takes a field full of blockers to clear the way. Football is unique too because it calls on players to be highly specialized. A defensive lineman has a single focus – bring down the guy with the ball.

One of the other aspects of the game I appreciate is that small consistent successes achieve the very same outcome as one giant success. When a team is on offence, all they need to do is move that ball an average of three yards and one foot on each and every down. Do that consistently and they put six points on the scoreboard, the very same six points that comes from an 80-yard touchdown pass from Payton Manning to Dallas Clark. Not to be too much of a pigskin philosopher, but there’s some simple yet profound lessons to be learned from what happens on the football field.

Another of my favorite parts of the game is not what occurs on the field; but what happens in the stands on Friday nights, in parking lots on Saturday mornings, and in living rooms around the big screen. As someone who writes about food, family, and community, I can’t think of better settings to be immersed in all three. Spending a Friday night attending a hometown high school game is as great way to experience community as any – seeing kid’s you’ve watch gown up play ball, cheer, bang the marching band drum, or just have a good time in the stands; spending time with other parents; and, of course, eating a ribeye sandwich from the Boosters.

The living room is another great place for the ultimate football experience, warmer and a bit more intimate than being there live. Whether it is the Super Bowl, one of the gazillion college bowlss, or just a regular-season match-up, watching at home with friends is always a good time. One of the best parts of these “home” games is the chance they provide for continuous grazing of wings, chili, nachos or whatever other football foods are on the buffet.

Each season I try to come up with a new signature dish to contribute to these viewing parties. This year it is a Smoky Jalapeño Popper Dip. This was inspired by a version of poppers I make on the grill – peppers stuffed with cheese, wrapped in bacon, and then smoked over hickory wood. They are delicious but don’t hold up well for the three hours it takes to watch a game. So this dip version works great eaten with chips or crackers. If this sounds good but you don’t have time to make it yourself, just invite me over to watch the next big game. This is what I’ll be bringing.
 
Smoky Jalapeño Popper Dip

• 8 jalapeño, halved (lengthwise), stemmed, and seeded
• 16 ounces of cream cheese, room temperature
• 16 ounces of sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
• 8 strips of bacon, cooked crisp, and crumbled
• Chips or crackers

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees, place the jalapeños on a baking sheet, and roast for about 20 minutes until soft and the skin is just beginning to char. Let cool and chop. Add the jalapeños and other ingredients (except chips or crackers) into a mixing bowl and combine. Clean hands are the best tools for this job. Please the mixture into an oven-proof dish and bake at 350 degrees uncovered for about 40 minutes or until the dip it bubbly around the edges and beginning to brown. This is terrific right out of the oven but still pretty good at room temperature.

Mending Both Bone & Spirit

Published in belly-filling newspapers on September 17, 2009

If the 12th visit was free, our punch card would be filled up by now. In just eight years as parents we've been to the ER much more than our share. Other families with boys tell us its par for the course in a testosterone-filled household.

I had my own share of injuries as a kid. There was the rusty nail through my foot from a less than adept kung fu move and a three-inch rip in meatiest part of my thigh courtesy of a rusty piece of sheet metal. You would think I grew up in a scrap yard with the sharp and rusty objects I encountered, but that wasn’t the case. I must have had a built-in metal detector that was stuck on the rust setting.

Since my sister will likely read this I have to also mention the time she “accidently” cut me with scissors and when she slammed my finger in the car door. Thanks, sis. It’s a wonder I reached my tenth birthday with all my digits still firmly attached to my body.

As an adolescent, my injuries came less from running around outside and more from sports – sprained ankles, bruised ribs, and jammed fingers. The black eye was the best badge of courage, not serious enough to put you on the disabled list but visible enough to solicit lots of compassion from the fairer sex. There’s nothing like a black eye to bring out a cheerleader’s inner Florence Nightingale. 

My children, my oldest in particular, loves to swap war stories. He takes in every detail of my tales of maimings and wants to see the scars. He then tells his own stories, exaggerating a bit more each time about the details, like the size of the rock his buddy Robbie pitched at his head when he was three.

As much daredevil as my oldest has in him, it is the youngest that is likely causing my insurance company to rewrite their actuary formulas. This week marked his third broken arm, all occurring within the last 14 months. This was the worst of the three, with the above-the-elbow break requiring a full-arm cast.

Seeing your own child hurt or sick is without a doubt one of life's must burdensome difficulties. My heart aches for families dealing with problems much more serious than broken arms. The most agonizing part of having a child in pain is the feeling of helplessness. Yesterday afternoon our little guy, although not in agony, was certainly uncomfortable. Aside from a dose of children’s pain reliever, there didn’t seem like there was much we could do for him.

As I thought ahead to dinner time, I decided that there was no better time for comfort food and when there was a broken arm in the house and that perhaps a version of macaroni and cheese with an extra boost of calcium might be good for both his bones and his spirit. I headed into the kitchen to whip up a version that included sharp cheddar, cream cheese, sour cream, and butter. It seemed to do the trick, filling his belly and setting him on the road to recovery. Good thing he’s not lactose intolerant.

Bone-Mending Macaroni and Cheese

• 1 lb elbow macaroni
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 4 tablespoon all-purpose flour
• 3 cups milk, heated in microwave
• 8 ounces cream cheese
• 8 ounces sour cream 
• 16 ounces sharp cheddar cheese, shredded
• Pinch of freshly grated nutmeg
• Salt and freshly-cracked black pepper to taste
• ½ cup panko breadcrumbs

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Cook macaroni according to directions, drain, and return to pot. While the macaroni is cooking, place a large sauce pan over a medium burner, add the butter and melt. Add the flour and stir with a whisk or wooden spoon until golden but not brown. Add the heated milk a little at a time, stirring constantly. After all the milk is added continue stirring until the mixture begins to thicken. Add the cream cheese in chunks so that it melts then add the sour cream and cheddar cheese. Add the nutmeg and salt and pepper to taste. Pour the cheese mixture into the macaroni and stir to combine. Spray a 9”x13" glass casserole dish with cooking spray and pour in the macaroni and cheese. Top with breadcrumbs and bake for 30-45 minutes, the lesser time for a creamier dish. This makes about ten servings.

White Out: North Alabama Style BBQ

Published in peppery newspapers on August 27, 2009

On a single trip from one end of Indiana to the other you could, if so inclined, feast on lake perch in “da' region” for lunch and then a brain sandwich in Evansville for dinner. These are truly regional dishes because you would be hard presses to find one in the geographic home of the other.

There are lots of factors that contribute to how food traditions develop. One reason has to do with what happened to be available at the time these dishes were first eaten. It doesn't take a degree in food anthropology to figure out that perch showed up on dinner tables in Northwest Indiana because of that giant body of water we call Lake Michigan. Similarly, Southern Indiana's history of hog farming resulted in creative uses for the entire pig, brains and all.

Of course these sorts of regional patterns aren't found only in Indiana. Head to the southeastern United States and you'll find wide variety in the way BBQ is prepared. Much of the difference comes in the style of sauce used. Certain parts of South Carolina are known for a mustard-based sauce. Golden in color and tangy sweet, this sauce finds its way onto pulled pork and chicken. A place called Maurice’s Gourmet BBQ put this mustard sauce on the map.

Travel east a bit to the coastal areas of both Carolinas and the taste is for a thin spiced vinegar sauce. This is one my favorites. Its sourness will make you pucker when slurped up on its own but compliments the fatty richness of pulled pork beautifully. Other parts of the Southeast, like Georgia and Tennessee, do a fine job with BBQ and enthusiasts seem to enjoy the tomato-based sauces with which the rest of the country is familiar. I lived for several years in Chattanooga, Tennessee which is nestled right against both the Alabama and Georgia borders. Drive an hour or two in nearly any direction and you’ll discover distinctive interpretations of BBQ.

I recently discovered yet another sauce that is entirely different than all the others found down South. What makes this style of BBQ even more fascinating is the small geography in which it is found. The epicenter of this BBQ is Decatur, Alabama about 20 miles outside Huntsville. The original white sauce was first served by Big Bob Gibson in 1925. Four generations later the Gibson family is still going strong and their white sauce is more popular than ever. At Gibson’s the white sauce is served with pork, but it is most popular on chicken. At the restaurant, chicken halves are slow-smoked over hardwoods and then dipped in the sauce just before serving. Most diners as more sauce. Gibson’s creamy, tangy, peppery sauce is available for purchase by the bottle at the store and can also be ordered online here.

I recently tried my hand at making some myself and thought the results were pretty spectacular. I served it on smoked chicken breasts but it work well on grilled chicken or even turkey. Here’s my recipe.

North Alabama-Style White BBQ Sauce

• 1 cup mayonnaise

• 3/4 cup cider vinegar

• 1 tablespoon lemon juice

• 1-1/2 tablespoons smoked black pepper*

• 1/2 teaspoon salt

• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne

Whisk together all ingredients, cover, and refrigerate for at least eight hours before using. Smoke or grill chicken halves or pieces. When chicken is ready, pour half the sauce in a shallow dish and place the chicken in the dish, turning to coat. Serve the other half of the sauce so your guests can add more if they desire. 

* this smoked black pepper is my all-time favorite specialty ingredient. It can be ordered by mail from Adriana’s Caravan. You can certainly make this with regular pepper, I just love the extra smokiness added by this product.

Hungry Hoosier Smoked Pork Loin

I'm busy getting things ready for Saturday's 2nd Annual Boone County Battle of the BBQ to benefit the Boone County Cancer Society. I'll be making a Smoked Pork Tenderloin that is first brined with eight different spices and a splash of Jack Daniels (wondering what in the world "brining is? If so, go here). If you are reading this prior to Saturday (5:00 - 7:00 pm) and you live in or near Lebanon, please plan to check it out. If you are reading this after the event, you may be looking for the recipe for "The Hungry Hoosier" team's Smoked Pork Tenderloin. You can find the recipe below:

Jack Daniels-Brined Pork Chops

• 1/2 gallon water
• 1-1/2 cups brown sugar
• 1-1/2 cups kosher salt
• 3 onions, sliced thin
• 50 black peppercorns
• 30 allspice berries
• 6 cinnamon stick
• 30 whole cloves
• 16 bay leaves
• 1/2 of a nutmeg, grated
• 2 cups Jack Daniels
• 1 gallon ice cold water
• 2 ten pound whole pork tenderloins
• Ice 

In a large stock pot bring 1/2 gallon of water to boil and add the brown sugar and salt whisking until the sugar and salt are dissolved in the water. Add the other ingredients to the hot water and allow this to steep for about 10 minutes. Pour into a cooler. Add the 1 gallon of cold water and then the tenderloins. Add enough ice to keep the tenderloins cold. Let brine overnight. You may need to add more ice

When you are ready to cook the loins, prepare your grill for smoking using indirect heat, smoke for 4-5 hours (at a steady 225 degrees) adding soaked wood chips for smoke. Loins are done when they reach an internal temperature of 155 degrees. Let the loins rest for about 30 minutes before slicing to serve.

I also do pork chops using this method but it is much faster and you don't make nearly as much of the brine liquid. You can find that recipe here.

Pop Quiz

Published in cold and frothy newspapers on July 30, 2009

On a late-summer trip across Indiana in the early 1900s, you might very well have gotten hot and thirsty along the way and would have needed to stop for a cold drink. The drink you found would have depended on where you stopped. This was the high-growth period for soft drinks and bottling companies were springing up everywhere to bottle and sell Coca Cola. Without the interstate system we have today it wasn’t feasible to produce Coke centrally and then ship it across the United States.  Coke sold their formula to small bottling companies to get the beverage into the hands of thirsty Americans.   Most of these small bottlers, besides bottling Coke, produced other sodas. Some developed their own formulas and others bought syrups or licensed formulas.  

In doing some research I found a book printed in 1914 listing all the bottling companies in Indiana. There were dozens in communities both large and small and, according to the list, Boone County was home to two such companies: Lebanon Bottling Works and the W. S. Lane Company. These companies produced root beer, cream soda, strawberry, and lemon sour.

Sadly none of these Indiana companies survived but many did in other parts of the U.S. Ale-8-One from Kentucky is one that has stood the test of time. It was first bottled in Winchester, KY in 1926 and the operation continues. You can find Ale-8-One here in Indiana if you know where to look.

Over the last few years there’s been resurgence in the production of small-batch artisan soft drinks. Companies like Jones Soda Company, GuS (Grown Up Soda), and Fizzy Lizzy are a few that have found national distribution.  In Indiana the new-breed soft drink action can be found at some of our micro breweries and brewpubs. The Mishawaka Brewing Company, for example, makes Lazy Dog Root Beer, Crazy Dog Cherry Cola, Orange Creme and Lazy River Lime Soda.

Many of these unusual sodas, both old and new, can be found under a single roof on Route 66 in Oklahoma. Pop’s is a gas station that sells cold bottles of over 500 different kinds of soda pops. These distinctively flavored beverages have also found their ways onto the menus of some of the nation’s finest restaurants. The French Laundry (Yountville, CA), for instance, has created menus that pair a different soft drink with each course - Lobster Fricassee with a tart effervescent Meyer Lemon GuS soda.

These soft drinks are so unique and flavorful they can also be incorporated into cooking. After tasting some micro-brewed root beers my mind and taste buds started working overtime and I settled on using root beer to flavor a bread pudding. I reduced two liters of soda down to a cup leaving me with intensely flavored syrup. The root beer lent a warm gentle spiciness to the dessert.

As you try to keep cool during these last few weeks of summer you might consider seeking out one of these more unusual soft drinks and if you are in the mood for a Root Beer Bread Pudding, here is my recipe.

Root Beer Bread Pudding
2 liters of root beer

Pudding
1/2 cups sugar
5 large beaten eggs
1 cups milk
4 cups slightly stale Italian or French bread, cubed

Topping
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1/2 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 cup chopped pecans

Sauce
1 cup sugar
1/2 stick butter
1 egg, beaten

Pour the root beer into a stock pot and turn the heat to medium high. Reduce to one cup (should take about an hour). This step could be done a day ahead. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and spray a 13x9 inch pan with nonstick spray. In a large mixing bowl mix together the 3/4 cup of root beer syrup, sugar eggs, and milk. Add the cubed bread and let sit for ten minutes stirring occasionally so all of the bread pieces can absorb the liquid.  In another bowl, mix and crumble together brown sugar, butter, and pecans. Pour bread mixture into prepared pan. Sprinkle brown sugar mixture over the top and bake for 35 minutes, or until set. Remove from oven. For the sauce, add the sugar, butter, egg, and remaining root beer syrup to a saucepan and whisk constantly over medium heat. Pour over bread pudding. Serve warm or cold. This is very rich so a scoop of vanilla ice cream might help mellow it out.

Fancy but Frugal Chicken Marsala

Originally published in bold and spicy newspapers on January 22, 2008

Earlier this week we all witnessed the elegant and peaceful transition of power that occurs every four (or eight) years in our great country. This 233-year-old experiment in democracy continues to move forward even when the economy is trying its best to grind to a halt. There was a great deal of celebration going on in our nation’s capital on Tuesday and the Obama family was making appearances at ten different balls during that evening.

The celebration started earlier in the week with dozens of other balls, galas, and receptions. Maybe this will jump start our economy. At least the hotels, caterers, and dry cleaners in the D.C. area probably had a good week.

Some of the names and sponsors of these events are interesting and attending them isn’t cheap. Did you know there was a National Association of Manufactures Gala? How about a Green Inaugural Ball at which only organic food and drink was served, all lighting was LED, and even the music and entertainment was engineered to have a minimal environmental impact. Tickets to this one were $500.

The Baltimore/Washington Black McDonalds Operators Association had their own inauguration gala. The cost for that one was $200. I’m guessing they didn’t serve McNuggets. The Soccer Moms for Obama Inaugural Ball only cost $60. There is even an Indiana Society Washington, D.C. Inaugural Ball where Capital-based Hoosiers can get in on the celebration. That one cost $350.

None of the Hutchesons got invitations to any of those balls and even if we had, we couldn’t have afforded to go, except maybe to the soccer mom ball. Instead we went to work and school like any normal Tuesday and caught the highlights that evening on TV. The occasion did, however, seem to warrant more than the typical weeknight meal so I busted out the Chicken Marsala, a fancy but frugal dinner. There was certainly cause for celebration Tuesday but we’re in a recession so filet and lobster was out of the question.

If you’ve got a special occasion coming up but you’re watching your wallet, this dish might be just the ticket. I served it with tiny orzo pasta to catch some of the sauce and a side of green peas. If we had cleared out the furniture, our living room could have doubled as a dance floor and maybe I could have sold tickets. Does $6.60 or $8.80 sound like a good price for the Hutcheson Family Inauguration Ball? 

Chicken Marsala

• 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
• Kosher Salt, Freshly-Cracked Black Pepper (Garlic Powder, Cayenne Pepper optional)
• 2 (6 to 8-ounce) boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut in halves and pounded to one-quarter inch.
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 3 cups sliced mushrooms, washed and dried
• 1 tablespoon minced shallot 
• 3/4 cup Marsala wine
• 1 cup chicken stock
• Salt and fresh-cracked black pepper
• 2 tablespoons chopped parsley

In a shallow bowl or plate add the flour and salt and pepper to taste. The other spices can be added to taste if desired. If you do, go easy on the cayenne. Stir to combine. Dredge the chicken breast in the seasoned flour, shaking to remove the excess flour.
 
Add olive oil to a large heavy-bottom sauté pan (stainless steel works well). Use medium-high heat to heat the oil to hot but not smoking. Add one tablespoon of the butter and cook the chicken breasts until golden brown on both sides, about three minutes per side.

Move the chicken to a plate and set it aside. Add another tablespoon of the remaining butter to the pan and add the mushrooms. Stir them frequently, until mushrooms are golden brown around the edges. Add the shallot and cook another half minute. Add the Marsala wine, increase heat to high, and bring it to a boil, scraping the bottom of the pan to remove any browned bits. When the wine has reduced by about half, add the chicken stock and cook for three minutes, or until the sauce has thickened slightly.

Lower the heat to medium and return the chicken breasts to the pan and continue to cook for about five minutes until the chicken reads 170 degrees on a probe thermometer. Add the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter, salt and pepper, to taste. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve immediately. I serve this over orzo pasta.

Love, Lyrics, and Cheesecake

Originally published in minty-fresh newspapers on December 11, 2008

Maria
Say it loud and there’s music playing
Say it soft and it’s almost like praying

It’s one of the most memorable scenes from West Side Story. At the school mixer, Tony and Maria lock eyes from across the room.  They share a dance, a kiss, and then Tony, bursting with new-found love, starts belting out Maria. We’ve all been there, that moment when we fall head-over-heels and the courses of our lives are changed forever. This is movie love, Broadway-musical love, shout-it-from-the-rooftops love, hopefully without gang wars, murder, and Shakespearian tragedy.

I’ve fallen in love four times in my life. Each love, I was certain, would last forever. I met Debbie in fourth grade and she made my head spin for the next five years. I wrote her a song that sounded suspiciously like You Light Up My Life. Things didn’t work with Debbie. We wanted different things…I wanted her and she wanted my best friend. I floundered around for a couple of years, without feeling the need to burst into song, until Beth entered the picture. When she didn’t get elected homecoming queen I wrote her a song of consolation assuring her, “You’ll be my queen forever, making everything new. That’s why I am (beat) forever in love with you.” I left for college while she finished high school and distance took its tool.

I fell in love for the last time in 1986. While in Gatlinburg that year I paid $9.95 to record a song for her. It was All I Need by soap star turned pop singer Jack Wagner. I gave her the cassette tape and we’ve been together ever since.

If you are counting, you will note that I’ve described three of the four great loves of my life. The fourth occurred on December 16, 1971. It was my seventh birthday and I was celebrating it at my grandmother’s house.  At first is seemed like a typical birthday – cousins, hats, noisemakers, presents. Then my grandmother entered the room with a cake I had never seen before. It had the requisite candles but no gooey frosting and no “Happy Birthday Scott” inscribed on top. My grandmother sliced it and set a piece before me. With the very first bite I knew that this was no ordinary cake. This was a bite of heaven.

Cheesecake
Say it loud and there’s music playing
Say it soft and it’s almost like praying

Thus began my life-long love affair with cheesecake. Nearly every birthday since, this has been my cake of choice. Cheesecake has never left me for my best friend. No matter how far from it I roam, my love never wanes. Even when I stray and take a nibble of carrot cake or a lustful second helping of German chocolate, cheesecake always welcomes me back. Cheesecake asks for nothing in return.

Normally I am a cheesecake purist. I don’t any strawberries or cherries on it and I waste no time at the Cheesecake Factory debating which one to try, plain is just fine with me. This holiday season, however, I decided that cheesecake and I needed to spice things up a bit. Thirty-seven years, after all, is a long time together. Peppermint Cheesecake seemed just right for this holiday season. You’ll be happy to know that cheesecake and I have an open relationship. So, I’m sharing the recipe. Let me know if you break into song.

Peppermint Cheesecake

Crust    
20 vanilla sandwich cookies
3 tablespoons melted butter   

Filling
½ cup sugar
1-1/2 cups sour cream
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 pound cream cheese (room temperature) broken into small pieces
2 tablespoons melted butter
1 package (10 ounces) Andes Peppermint Crunch Baking Chips

In a food processor pulse the cookies until they are small crumbs. Stir in 3 tablespoons melted butter. Press into the bottom of an eight-inch spring form pan.

In a mixer, add the sugar, sour cream, eggs, and vanilla and mix for about one minute. Add the cream cheese and mix until smooth. Mix in the 2 tablespoons melted butter and fold in one cup of the Andes Peppermint Crunch Baking Chips. Pour into pan and bake in the lower third of a 325 degree oven for 60 minutes or until the top begins to brown and an inserted knife comes out clean. Chill for four hours or overnight. Top with whipped cream and the remaining peppermint chips.