Homemade Donuts, Fresh Meal, On A Budget
Simple, with fresh and pure ingredients - the credo guiding chef Michael Schwartz as he has prepares meals in Michael's Genuine Food and Drink, one of Miami's most popular eateries.
He accepted The Early Show Saturday Edition's "Chef on a Shoestring" challenge, and went back to basics in seeking to serve up a creative, tasty, three-course meal for four, on our recession-busting, $35 budget.
Oh, and did we mention the menu included - homemade donuts?!
Michael also threw his chef's hat into our "How Low Can You Go" ring. The "Shoestring" chef whose total cost of ingredients is lowest will be invited back to prep our blowout, end-of-year holiday meal!
Michael tries to create a neighborhood, laid-back, bistro-like feel in his restaurant, one where there's always something you want on the menu - with serious good eats!
And he's just been named a finalist for the 2009 Best Chef: South James Beard Award - the culinary world's Oscars - and widely considered the highest honor a chef can receive.
His menu on the show included Date & Orange Salad with Toasted Almonds, Braised Chicken Thighs with Apricots, Green Olives & Cous Cous, and Homemade Doughnuts with Orange Marmalade.
FOOD FACTS:
Marmalade: A fruit preserve usually made of citrus fruits. British-style marmalade is sweet marmalade with a bitter tang made from fruit, sugar, water and zest. American-style marmalade is sweet, not bitter. In English-speaking usage, "marmalade" almost always refers to a preserve derived from a citrus fruit, most commonly oranges. The recipe includes sliced or chopped fruit peel, which is simmered in fruit juice and water until soft. Marmalade is most often consumed on toasted bread for breakfast.
Chicken Thighs: Dark meat contains more fat than white meat; therefore, the chicken thigh has more fat and cholesterol than the more popular breast meat. But that's still less fat than you will find in an equal serving of beef, pork or lamb. Chicken thighs are also the most economical part of the chicken, costing about half what you would pay for boneless skinless chicken breasts.
RECIPES
Date & Orange Salad
INGREDIENTS:
3 ounces sliced almonds
Juice of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 naval oranges
12 dates-pitted & halved lengthwise
1 head bib lettuce
1/2 small red onion (thinly sliced)
1 bunch of Italian parsley (picked & washed)
Salt & pepper to taste
METHOD:
Preheat oven to 375°F.
In a small bowl whisk together lemon juice & olive oil, set aside.
Spread the sliced almonds on a baking sheet and toast 6-8 minutes until golden brown. Set aside.
Cut approximately ¼ inch off the top & bottom of the oranges. With a sharp knife cut the pith & peel off the orange, following the contour of the fruit. Work from the top to the bottom of the orange, rotating the fruit as you go. Slice each orange into 6-8 thin rounds.
Separate the leaves from the head of the bib lettuce. Wash thoroughly & spin to dry.
In a large mixing bowl combine the lettuce, oranges, dates, onion, parsley & the lemon juice olive oil mixture. Season with salt & pepper & gently toss.
Divide evenly into 4 bowls. Sprinkle with toasted almonds and serve.
For more recipes, go to Page 2.
Braised Chicken with Apricots, Green Olives & Herbed Couscous
INGREDIENTS:
1/4 cup vegetable oil
4 pounds chicken thighs
Salt & pepper
1/2 cup flour
1/2 pound carrot (approximately 1½ cups) peeled & cut into large chunks
1 medium white onion (approximately 1½ cups) large dice
3 stalks celery (approximately 1½ cups) cut into large chunks
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
7 ounces dried apricots
5 ounces jar pitted Manzanilla olives
24 ounces chicken broth
1 cup orange juice
1/2 cup water
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 cup couscous
1 bunch scallion - chopped
1 bunch cilantro - leaves picked & roughly chopped
1 ounce mint leaves picked & chopped
3 tablespoons butter
METHOD:
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Heat a heavy bottomed casserole or Dutch oven over high heat with vegetable oil. Season chicken liberally with salt & pepper, dredge with flour and brown in 2 batches for 4-6 minutes on each side.
Remove chicken, and add carrot, onions & celery. Sauté for 5 minutes. Add salt & pepper, cinnamon, apricots, olives, chicken broth & chicken into pot. Bring to a boil, cover with a tight fitting lid and place in oven for 1 hour.
In a small pot over high heat, bring orange juice, water and salt to a boil. Turn off flame, add couscous, stir quickly & cover with a tight fitting lid. Let stand for 10 minutes. Turn couscous into a mixing bowl & fluff with a fork.
Combine the scallion, cilantro & mint. Add ½ to the couscous & mix until combined.
Turn couscous into a serving bowl.
Remove chicken from the oven & place over a medium fire on the stove. Gently stir in butter until completely melted. Sprinkle the top with the remaining scallion & herb mixture and serve.
Fresh Doughnuts Dusted with Anise Sugar & Filled with Orange Marmalade
INGREDIENTS:
1 quart vegetable oil
1 cup sugar
1 tablespoon anise seed
2 tubes Pillsbury biscuit dough
8 ounces orange marmalade
METHOD:
In a large, high-sided pot, heat vegetable oil over medium heat to 325°F (use a candy thermometer to check and monitor temperature).
In a large stainless steel mixing bowl combine sugar & anise seed. Set aside.
Open the tube of biscuits and pull individual pieces apart.
Carefully place doughnuts, working in batches of 4-5 into the pot of hot oil. Fry on one side 1 minute or until golden brown. Flip, using tongs, and continue cooking until golden brown on each side. Place hot doughnuts directly into bowl of anise sugar, tossing to coat evenly. Fry remaining doughnuts and coat with sugar.
Fill a small pastry bag, fitted with a large tip, with orange marmalade. Poke a hole into the middle of the doughnut with the tip of the pastry bag. Insert tip of the bag and fill with marmalade. Continue until all of the doughnuts are filled.
Serve immediately.
So, how did Michael fare with our $35 budget?
Date & Orange Salad
almonds $1.99
lemon $0.40
oranges $2.07
dates $2.79
lettuce $1.29
red onion $0.52
parsley $0.99
total $10.05
Braised Chicken
chicken thighs $4.76
carrot $0.49
white onion $0.56
celery $1.49
apricots $2.99
olives $1.49
chicken broth $1.50
orange juice $0.69
couscous $1.67
scallion $0.69
cilantro $0.69
mint $0.69
total $17.71
Doughnuts
vegetable oil $1.79
anise seed $2.64
biscuit dough $1.18
orange marmalade $1.29
total $6.90
Grant total: $34.66
Lowest totals so far for the year:
1. Scott Peacock $32.60
Watershed Restaurant
2. Patrick Connolly $33.32
Bobo Restaurant
3. Bill Poirier $33.35
Sonsie Restaurant