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“The one thing we can never get enough of is love. And the one thing we never give enough of is love” Henry Miller

Enjoy Food411’s Valentine’s Day Gift Picks – we have a blast finding and selecting these pciks for you!

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A few months ago we posted about Jamie Oliver’s terrific new book, Jamie’s Food Revolution. We just became aware that Jamie is now following through with the theme of the book – helping people learn to cook/promoting healthy food for children, by creating a petition that he will present to the White House. You can help spread this mission by signing the petition : and please pass it along to your friends.

Keeping with Jamie’s initiative to help people create easy, fresh meals at home, we have included some of his basic “Jam Jar” salad dressings which will help make eating more salads and veggies a pleasure. It is surprising to learn just how easy it is to make salad dressing. There is no need to ever buy processed salad dressing again. Remember not only will you save money by making your own, the bottled dressings are filled with sugars, and all types of additives.

“Jam Jar Dressings”

French dressing
Peel and finely chop ¼ of a clove of garlic • Put the garlic, 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard, 2 tablespoons of white or red wine vinegar, and 6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil into a jam jar with a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper • Put the lid on the jar and shake well

Yogurt dressing
Put 1/3 cup of natural yogurt, 2 tablespoons of white or red wine vinegar, and 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil into a jam jar with a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper • Put the lid on the jar and shake well

Balsamic dressing
Put 6 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil and 2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar into a jam jar with a pinch of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper • Put the lid on the jar and shake well

Recipes from JAMIE’S FOOD REVOLUTION (Hyperion; October 2009)

Many readers write to us thinking that our Chef Silvia is not a real person – just a symbol like Betty Crocker! Well, she is as real a person as you can get! Full of life, and enthusiasm for preparing food to share with friends and family! To prove this to you, we are sharing a video of our Chef Silvia making marinara. Enjoy!! Remember if you have any cooking related questions, you can also use the “Ask Chef Silvia” feature on the Food411 website

Cooking Video

Below is a video of one of her cooking classes that she does for private parties or corporate events. Such fun!

Cooking Class

So now you know she is REAL–send her your questions! Use Food411 as your “go to” resource for the best online food directory and to get answers to any questions from a real live Chef!

Do not miss our annual holiday gift picks ” A gift that tastes good is always a gift in good taste!”

Our gift picks are completely editorial, as is the entire Food411 directory!

Jamie’s Food Revolution: Rediscover How to Cook Simple, Delicious, Affordable Meals’
by Jamie Oliver

This cookbook is different and exciting. Jamie’s mission is to get people to cook simple, wholesome meals at home to put an end to the processed food and fast food that has taken over our society! He asks us to pledge to learn a few recipes from the book and “pass them on”. Jamie believes that non-cooks can cook these meals and proves it by including some of these folks, in full-color, with their meals! He firmly believes that anyone can be taught a few simple dishes. If they learn to make a few recipes they will become hooked on real food and pass on the processed/fast foods. It is a admirable mission – and this cookbook is a great tool.

His message is, you can do this!! You can make healthy, delicious food, from scratch quickly and economically. Many of the recipes are not completely “healthy” — he loves butter & cream but they are real food – none of the additives found in processed foods/takeout. They are quick and simple to make, and will give just about anyone the confidence to continue in the kitchen. The recipes have pictures that make the process easy to follow. If you are familiar with Jamie, you will hear his “voice” through the book which is also fun.

The 20 minute meal section is terrific and is based on dishes that are usually ordered for takeout. He proves here that it is actually faster to cook the meals yourself – allowing you to use just a few simple ingredient to make quality meals.

We tested the Pan-fried Glazed Pork Chops. They came out absolutely delicious, and were very quick to throw together.

This is a perfect cookbook for anyone just staring to cook, anyone afraid to cook, even seasoned home cooks will find this cookbook inspiring.

To make the planning of the meal easy, here are a few numbers that will come in handy.

How big a bird to buy:
1.5 lbs/per person turkey (uncooked). You will have leftovers with this amount.

How long to cook:
Until the internal temperature is 165 degrees for a perfect bird. Range is 165-180. Measure this in the thigh with an instant read thermometer
Let rest for 25-30 minutes before carving. Bird will stay hot for 1 hour so don’t panic – let the juices set!

What temperature to set oven to for all the side dishes:
350-375

Amount of coffee to use per cup:
2 tablespoons per cup when making a pot with a auto-drip machine.

How much stuffing:
1.25 cup per person (this should also result in leftovers)

We found an actual turkey meal calculator online for you to use:
http://www.csgnetwork.com/turkeydinnercalc.html

And remember the important part of the holiday is being with people you care about and having gratitude in your life. Try not to get stressed out over the perfect meal…and ask for help! Any guest that offers to bring a dish, say yes!! If you only have to make the main dishes, it will be much easier. Ask others to bring appetizer and desserts, and even the sides!

Our resident chef, Chef Silvia likes to make cooking easy. She wants to keep it simple, for herself and when she teaches others. Making cooking easy for people will encourage people to cook!! Most of us want the same thing. Simple dishes that will use fresh wonderful ingredients. In her “notes from the chef” this month, this is what she shared.
“I love one pot cooking. It especially suits me because I don’t like to fuss with cooking when I’m off duty. I want to keep it simple and I want whatever I cook to stretch into several meals. I don’t know about you, but when I get hungry, I don’t always want to wait an hour until I can prepare a meal. It’s got to be fast but it definitely has to be good. Not many dishes will fit these tough requirements but a hearty soup will work every time. They’re easy, deliciously satisfying and there’s always plenty of leftovers.

This month check out two soup recipes that I made recently that kept me (and friends) happy and well feed for days. ”

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup with Crimini Mushrooms and Melted Brie
Butternut squash is sweet and buttery so why add additional sweeteners? Yet, many recipes add maple syrup, molasses or sugar. Too often, a bowl of this soup in restaurants tastes more like dessert. In this recipe, I’ve taken every precaution to balance the natural sweetness of the squash by mixing it with mashed potatoes and mushrooms. I then enhanced the creaminess by finishing with just a bit of half and half and garnishing it with Brie. I just loved how this turned out.

2 medium (or one large) butternut squash (cut in half lengthwise)
4 medium potatoes (peeled, diced, boiled)
4 – 6 cups chicken broth (depending on how thick you like it)
2 tablespoons butter
½ cup half and half
1 small onion (diced)
1 8 oz package of crimini mushrooms (sliced)
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
½ cup canola oil
Salt and pepper to taste
¼ inch slices of Brie (or other creamy cheese) + chopped fresh parsley for garnish

Cook squash in a pre-heated 400 degree oven, cut size down (seeds and stringy matter removed) on a baking sheet drizzled with olive oil for about 1 hour or until the squash can easily be pierced with a fork. Scoop out the squash from the outer skin and set aside.

Place a large stockpot over medium heat. Add the olive oil and heat until hot but not smoking. Add the onions and sauté until soft. Add the potatoes and the squash and mash together. Add the broth a bit at a time, incorporating until you reach the desired thickness.
Lower the heat and simmer for a minute or two. Add the butter and the half and half, stir. season to taste, simmer for another minute.

In the meantime place a large sauté pan over high heat and add the canola oil and heat until hot but not smoking. Add the sliced mushroom and cook until golden, about two minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

To serve, fill each individual bowl with the soup. Add a few mushrooms followed with a few slices of brie

Mushroom Barley Soup with Chicken and Wild Mushrooms
1 cup of barley
4-6 cups chicken broth
8 oz. boneless chicken breast (cut in bite sized pieces)
1 small/medium onion (diced)
1 large clove garlic (finely chopped)
1 red bell pepper (diced)
16 oz. wild mushrooms-medium dice or sliced (shitake, crimini, Portobello, oyster or any combo)
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil + ½ cup
Season to taste
Garnish with fresh chopped parsley

Place a large stockpot over medium heat. Add ¼ cup olive oil until hot but not smoking. Add the chicken pieces and brown on all sides. Add the onions and cook until soft and golden followed by the garlic. Cook for a few moments and add the broth. Bring to a boil and add the barley. Cook for about 30 to 45 minutes or until the barley is soft but still firm.

In the meantime, place a large sauté pan over high heat. Add the remaining oil and heat until hot but not smoking. Add the sliced or diced mushrooms along with the pepper. If you do not have a large enough sauté pan cook the vegetables in two batches. Cook until golden, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. When the barley is cooked add contents of the sauté pan to the stockpot and stir. Serve warm, garnish with parsley and enjoy over and over.

November is the beginning of the Meyer lemon harvest in California, Florida & Texas. A cross between a mandarin orange and a lemon, the meyer lemon yields 3-4 times the amount of juice of a regular lemon! It has a sweeter, less acidic flavor than the common lemon. In addition to being delicious, the fruit itself is just beautiful. They originated in China where they have been grown for several hundred years. Frank Meyer, a plant explorer for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, introduced them to the U.S. in 1908.

They are perfect for making lemonade, less sugar will be required due to their sweeter juice.

For a change from the usual cranberry sauce this holiday season try this meyer lemon recipe.

Cranberry, Pomegranate and Meyer Lemon Relish

- 3 1/2 cups cranberries (about 14 ounces)

- 1 cup pure pomegranate juice

- 3/4 cup sugar

- 1/4 cup fresh Meyer lemon juice or regular lemon juice

- 2 tablespoons finely grated Meyer lemon peel or regular lemon peel

- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Combine first 5 ingredients in large saucepan. Stir over medium-high heat until sugar dissolves. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium; simmer until berries begin to burst, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Transfer to small bowl. Stir in parsley. Cover and chill until cold. Can be made three days ahead. Keep chilled.

Source: news-press.com

Our friends at Bottlenotes are hosting a wine tasting event in NYC – Friday, November 13. They are bringing in wineries from Argentina, California, Chile, China, France, Italy, Lebanon, New Zealand, Portugal, Spain and South Africa, just to name a few! Along with this terrific assortment of hand-crafted and estate wines will be Artisanal Premium Cheese, charcuterie, chocolate, cigars and more.

Food411’s readers are being offer a $10 discount on all tickets. Just enter the code Food411 when purchasing. A portion of ticket sales for the event benefits Robin Hood, a local non-profit organizations which combats poverty at its roots, giving 100% of every donation directly to programs helping poor New Yorkers. Present a business card to be eligible for the Grand Raffle of two-round trip JetBlue tickets to San Francisco for a weekend of exclusive wine tastings including a winemaker dinner. Discover new wines, enjoy a fun night out, ”Around the World in 80 Sips” sounds like a perfect way to spend an evening while benefitting a worthwhile local charity.

Details: Friday, November 13, 2009 – 6:30pm. 583 Park Ave (at 63rd)

Tickets: Code Food411 for a $10 discount
$50 Earlybird
$60 in advance (before 2:00pm Nov. 13th
$75 at door
$125 VIP includes private tasting hour 5:30pm (exclusive sparking/champagne tastings), & reserved seating

Our Chef Silvia creates exceptional “team building” cooking events for many corporate clients. Recently, her client was a very large beer company. See how this unique recipe was created to truly customize their experience!

“A client that produces beer asked me to create a few menu items using their brand. Since I had never cooked with beer before I decided to experiment on a few friends. What resulted was this delicious dish that was a wonderful blend of savory and sweet and a perfect Fall dish–colors and all.”

Sauteed Chicken with Butternut Squash in a Beer Maple Sauce, Topped with Shitake Mushrooms
Serves 4

Ingredients.
12 fillets of boneless chicken breast (seasoned and dredged in flour)
1 butternut squash (quartered and seeds removed)
4 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons flour
4 tablespoons maple syrup
6 oz beer
12 oz chicken broth
1/2 cup canola oil
1/2 lb. shitake mushrooms (stems removed and sliced)
1/2 lb french beans (optional)

Bake the squash in a 400 degree oven until tender but still firm. Cool, remove the skin and any stringy particles still remaining. Dice into medium bite sized cubes and set aside.

In a small saute pan cook the mushrooms in hot (but not smoking) canola oil until golden and crispy (about 3 minutes). Remove and drain on paper towel, season with salt and set aside.
Steam or saute the string beans until tender but still firm. Season

In the meantime, heat a large saute pan over medium heat. Add the extra virgin olive oil and cook the chicken until golden on each side and cooked through (about 4 minutes depending on the thickness of the chicken). Remove, season and set aside. Lower the heat, add the flour and mix with the juices in the pan. Cook for about one minute until golden. Add the beer, stir and add the broth and the syrup. Reduce the sauce for about 2 minutes (add a bit more broth and beer if too thick) until it resembles the consistency of a thin syrup. Add the squash to the pan along with the butter. Toss until the pieces are warm and coated with the sauce.

Plate by piling the squash onto the center of each plate, anchored by the chicken. Drizzle with the sauce, top with the mushrooms and the beans. Serve and enjoy!