The Fumbling Foodie

Elise's Chicken and Molly's Corn

If you haven't been here for a while, let me fill you in: My Sweet Lady Wife and I are 'between houses'. The old house has been sold. We close on the new house December 5 (16 and a wake up). Meanwhle, we are living in this little two bedrom apartment. The aparment is nice, as apartments go - it is clean, quiet, and safe. For a Foodie, however, the kitchen leaves a lot to be desired: there is about two square feet of counter space. Two of the stove's four burners actually work well enough to almost boil water.

As a result, dinners must be simple. (And add to this the fact that I have a cold this week). A couple of weeks ago, Elise posted a scrumptious chicken recipe and Molly wrote about her Brown Buttered Corn. I had a menu.

I don't believe I have ever had a simple corn dish that tasted as good as Molly's Brown Buttered Corn. The thyme really gave the butter some flaver and it transfers to the corn wonderfully. My Sweet Lady Wife - who is a Wisconsin farm girl and a corn connoisseur - loved it. Definitely a keeper.

I modified Elise's chicken recipe to be more 'saucy' (A little more vermouth and cream in the pan sauce). I also used applewood-smoked bacon instead of the pancetta. It was excellent. I think it's really difficult to turn a naked chicken breast into something really tasty but this certainly was.

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Chicken Legs with Raspberry Vinaigrette

Chicken Drumsticks: What could be more pedestrian? Not now. Not after French Chef Bernard Chirent demonstrated this recipe the other night during a cooking class at my favorite Gourmet Kitchen Toos Store in Glendale. This recipe turns the ordinary drumstick into food for the gods.

Chicken Legs with Raspberry Vinaigrette

Chicken Legs
Raspberry vinegar
Veal stock (demi glace)
White pearl onions
butter
olive oil

Blanch the onions for 2 minutes, remove from the water and let cool. You can then peel them easily and remove the root.

Cut the 'foot' end off each drumstick. Sear the drumsticks in butter and oil until nicely browned. Remove from the pan and set aside, covering with foil.

Pour off most of the fat and deglaze with raspberry vinegar. Reduce by 1/4 and add veal stock to taste. You should be able to taste the raspberry.

Put the drumsticks back in the pan, add the onions, cover, reduce the heat to medium, and let cook slowly for 30 minutes.

La Piazza Al Forno

I have a new favorite pizzaria. La Piazza Al Forno opened in downtown Glendale three weeks ago at a spot on Glendale Avenue facing Murhpy Park.

Wood Fired Brick Oven Pizza.

Yes, there is a wood-fired brick oven in the place. You can watch them make your pizza, stoke the oven with chopped wood, and enjoy a little of downtown Glendale. La Piazza Al Forno is family-owned and family-run. They take great pride in their pizza, and they should.

Even the crust is great. Oh the crust. Thin. So tasty that I could eat it all by itself. Fresh Mozzarella. And they don't smother it in sauce.

While you are waiting for your pizza, order some stuffed shrimp. I did and they were a marvel of perfection. It's so easy to overcook shrimp but these were perfect.

La Piazza Al Forno
5803 W. Glendale Ave
Glendale, Az 85301

(623) 847-3301

Can't Keep a Good Man Down

I've seen sailboats with bigger galleys than this. About 2 square feet of counter space. A 4-burner stove with two burners that actually work. A garbage disposal that shakes so much I'm afraid it's going to tear itself out of the sink.

Only four and a half more weeks. 31 and a wake-up.

Meanwhile, I must cook. I look through my recipes to see what I can make with two burners, a pot and a spoon. I rummage through the contents of my pantry - now residing in cardbard boxes in the living room. I find some tomato-basil handmade pasta from DeCio Pasta. This stuff goes from raw to al dente in four minutes - perfect for a stove so wimpy that it can barely boil water.

I discover that long ago I bookmarked a recipe that Ellen published: Shrimp and Pasta with Red Peppers and Peas. Her recipe calls for boiling the pasta in one pot and the shrimp-veggie mixture in another. The thought of coaxing TWO pots of water to a boil is more than I can stand. I saute the peppers, snow peas, and shrimp.

It tasted pretty good. I don't have a picture because I can't find the camera. Next time though, I'm not going to just mix everything together. I think the presentation wil be better if I put some pasta on the plate, top it with the shrimp-pepper-peas mixture, then top it all with some sauce. And then take a picture. har har.