Fried Chicken, Risotto and Gingerbread

Well, it was another weekend full of cooking.

Actually, I packed in most of my cooking last Thursday night when I hosted the boys--Lou, Jesse and Joey--for dinner and for bridge. I finally made the celery root soup I was supposed to make on Thanksgiving Day (they loved it). I also served a simple salad of arugala, toasted walnuts and pears. For the main dish, I made porcini mushroom risotto, from an excellent recipe I got out of Bon Appetit a few years ago:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/108603

I made it without using the pressure cooker, so it took about twenty minutes to reach that perfect state of moist creaminess. The only problem was that I failed to put in the full amount of salt, so we each had to add some salt at the table. I forgot to take pictures.

For dessert, I served gingerbread men and boys (close up of the men above), using the recipe from my Aunt Nancy's cookbook, Emory Seasons.

Here's the recipe:

1 cup butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup molasses
2/3 cup light corn syrup
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon each baking soda and salt
1 teaspoon each ground ginger and cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
red cinnamon candies and raisins for decoration

• Cream butter and sugars until light.
• Add molasses and corn syrup. Mix well.
• Stir in dry ingridients with heavy spoon. Work until smooth. Use hands to knead if necessary.
• Cover dough and refrigerate until firm, about 1 hour.
• Remove portion of dough and roll on lightly floured board. Cut with desired cutters.
• Bake until lightly browned at edge. Cool 30 seconds before tranferring to rack.

That's it. Here are some pictures of me and the boys with the cookies:

On Saturday night, I reached back to my Southern roots and made friend chicken for the San Francisco Tsunami Swim Team holiday party. I love this recipe both because it's so simple and easy and because I love the cinnamon flavoring.

I got it out of The New York Times a few years ago, and it's unbeatable:

Lard and butter combined, or vegetable oil (I used the oil)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon coarse salt
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 good chicken, cut into serving pieces, or use 8 to 10 leg pieces (drumsticks and thighs), trimmed of excess fat.

• Choose a skillet or casserole at least 12 inches in diameter that can be covered. Add enough fat to come to a depth of about 1/2 inch, and turn heat to medium-high. If you are using butter, skim any foam as it rises to the surface.
• While fat heats, mix together the flour and seasonings in a plastic bag. Toss chicken in bag, 2 or 3 pieces at a time, until well coated. Put pieces on a rack as you finish.
• When oil is hot (a pinch of flour will sizzle) raise heat to high. Slowly add chicken pieces to skillet (if you add them all at once, temperature will plummet). Cover skillet, reduce heat to medium-high, and cook for 7 minutes.
• Uncover skillet, turn chicken and continue to cook, uncovered for another 7 minutes. Turn chicken again and cook for about 5 minutes more, testing as necessary to ensure that both sides are golden brown.
• Remove chicken from skillet and drain on paper towels. Serve hot, warm or at room temperature.

Yield: 4 servings

I actually made 24 thighs, and I had plenty of the cinnamon and flour mixture left over. I cooked the tighs in three skillets on top of the stove at once.

Here's a picture of the resulting mountain of chicken: