30-MINUTE MAGIC RACHAEL RAY GETS A MEAL ON THE TABLE PRONTO.Byline: Natalie Haughton Food Editor Turn on the Food Network and chances are you'll come across Rachael Ray. She may be nibbling nibbling Nutrition The consumption of multiple–up to 17–'mini-meals' per day, as opposed to the usual 3 meals/day. Cf Bingeing, Gorging. a croissant and coffee in a French cafe or whipping up a delicious chicken dinner in just 30 minutes. A vivacious, attractive 30-something, she shares her takes on food and travel as host of two shows - ``30-Minute Meals'' (which debuted November 2001) and ``$40 a Day'' (which debuted April 2002). She enthusiastically shares her belief that ``you don't have to be wealthy to live a rich life.'' Ray teaches viewers how to enjoy life through food and travel and how to make it accessible, enrich their lives, connect with the past and feel good about themselves. Ray is the author of five cookbooks, including ``Rachael Ray 30-Minute Meals,'' ``The Open House Cookbook,'' ``Comfort Foods'' and ``Veggie Meals.'' She gears her cookbooks to two groups - those who don't cook often and feel intimidated by the thought - and those who are busy and have no time to spare. She strives to keep recipes and menus simple and appealing and to get folks out of a cooking rut. < Her latest volume, ``Rachael Ray 30-Minute Meals 2'' (Lake Isle Press; $16.95), is a scrapbook of her life over the last few years, with recipe ideas inspired by her travels, friends, family, fans and takeout foods. Designed to appeal to all kinds of cooks (including novices and children), Ray opts for recipes using supermarket ingredients and no fancy equipment - and she encourages cooks to mix and match creations in her menus. ``Recipes are suggestions, not written law. Food will taste better if you let your own hands and taste buds be your guide,'' she writes. ``Cooking is wonderful and results in immediate gratification. It takes very little investment to get a huge payback. A trip to the grocery store affords you anything and everything - and in a few minutes you can end up with something to eat,'' she says. If you're a beginner, start out cooking once a week, then twice a week - and all of a sudden you'll be a food diva, she adds with a laugh. ``Having fun in the kitchen is what cooking is all about.'' With summertime and the living easy, Ray suggests a favorite menu from her latest book that can serve a few or many. For starters, offer Roquefort, Pear and Walnut Toasts, which go together in a jiffy A fraction of time that has numerous interpretations depending on who uses it. It may refer to one computer clock cycle, one nanosecond, one millisecond or one AC power cycle. There may be others. See nanosecond. 1. . Accompany with a Citrus White Wine Spritzer. Whip up individual servings in glasses, or to keep work to a minimum, multiply the recipe and make a pitcher. The entree - Chicken Paillard pail·lard n. A slice of veal, chicken, or beef that is pounded until very thin and cooked quickly. [Origin unknown.] on Baby Greens - is her rendition of a delicious dish at Balthazar and Pastis pas·tis n. A French licorice-flavored liqueur, usually drunk as an apéritif. [French, muddle, pastis, from Old Provençal pastitz, paste, pasty, from Vulgar Latin restaurants in New York City New York City: see New York, city. New York City City (pop., 2000: 8,008,278), southeastern New York, at the mouth of the Hudson River. The largest city in the U.S. , where she often enjoys brunch. Serve pan-seared chicken breasts over mixed baby greens tossed with lemon juice and salt in a thickened thick·en tr. & intr.v. thick·ened, thick·en·ing, thick·ens 1. To make or become thick or thicker: Thicken the sauce with cornstarch. The crowd thickened near the doorway. 2. sauce of butter and broth. For dessert, try a Quick Tiramisu tir·a·mi·su n. A dessert of cake infused with a liquid such as coffee or rum, layered with a rich cheese filling, and topped with grated chocolate. . Ray hopes her fans will take 30 minutes out of a busy day to cook a great meal with fresh ingredients to enjoy with family and friends. ``Just do it. It's only dinner, but the rewards will last a lifetime.'' Natalie Haughton, (818) 713-3692 natalie.haughton(at)dailynews.com ROQUEFORT, PEAR AND WALNUT TOASTS 1 baguette, thinly sliced on an angle Lemon wedge 1 pear, quartered lengthwise length·wise adv. & adj. Of, along, or in reference to the direction of the length; longitudinally. Adj. 1. lengthwise and thinly sliced 3/4 pound Roquefort cheese, crumbled 1 cup walnut pieces Preheat broiler broiler a young (about 8 weeks old) male or female chicken weighing 3 to 3.5 lb. to high. Arrange 12 baguette slices on broiler pan in a single layer. Toast under broiler lightly on each side. Squeeze lemon juice over pear slices to keep them from browning. Place a slice of pear on each toast and top with Roquefort crumbles and walnut pieces. Return pan to broiler 6 inches from heat source and broil toasts 2 or 3 minutes to melt cheese and toast walnuts. Transfer to a plate and serve immediately. Makes 4 servings. CHICKEN PAILLARD ON BABY GREENS 8 chicken breast cutlets OR halves Extra-virgin olive oil 4 sprigs fresh thyme, stripped and finely chopped (2 tablespoons) 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley (a handful) Peel and juice of 1 lemon Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste 2 tablespoons butter 2 tablespoons flour 2 cups chicken broth OR stock 1 (5-ounce) bag mixed baby salad greens Preheat a large nonstick non·stick adj. Permitting easy removal of adherent food particles: a frying pan with a nonstick surface. nonstick Adjective skillet over medium-high heat. Arrange chicken in a shallow dish and drizzle with about 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil to just coat chicken. Combine thyme, parsley and lemon peel and sprinkle over chicken. Season with salt and pepper
long-handled, about 3 feet, shaped like pincers with knobs on the ends of the grasping blades. Applied by standing behind the subject in a confined space and closing the jaws to grasp the animal's head just below the ears. , transfer chicken (in two batches) in a single layer to hot skillet and cook 3 or 4 minutes on each side. Remove cooked chicken to a warm serving dish and cover loosely with foil; repeat with remaining cutlets. Return empty skillet to heat and add butter. When butter melts, add flour and cook, stirring with a wire whisk, 1 or 2 minutes to make a light roux Roux , Pierre Paul Émile 1853-1933. French bacteriologist. His work with the diphtheria bacillus led to the development of antitoxins to neutralize pathogenic toxins. . Whisk in chicken broth, and when it thickens enough to just coat the back of a spoon, remove pan from heat. Toss salad greens with lemon juice and salt. Drizzle 2 tablespoons olive oil around bowl and retoss greens. To serve, cover bottom of each of 4 dinner plates with warm sauce. Top with a small pile of salad greens and 2 grilled chicken cutlets. Makes 4 servings. CITRUS WHITE WINE SPRITZER White grape juice may be substituted for the wine for a nonalcoholic non·al·co·hol·ic adj. A beverage usually containing less than 0.5 percent alcohol by volume. ``mocktail mock·tail n. A cocktail containing no alcohol. [Blend of mock and cocktail.] .'' 2 thin slices lemon 2 thin slices lime Ice cubes 4 ounces (1/2 cup) Pinot Grigio OR other dry crisp white wine 2 ounces (1/4 cup) lemon-lime seltzer water seltzer water, mineral water containing free carbon dioxide, obtained originally from springs at Niederselters, Germany. Reputed to have curative value in treating several diseases, it became very popular in the 19th cent. In the 20th cent. In a large stem glass, arrange slices of lemon and lime among ice cubes to fill the glass. Pour white wine and lemon-lime seltzer down over fruit and ice. Stir with straw and serve. Makes 1 serving. NOTE: Multiply recipe several times and prepare in a pitcher, as shown in photo, if desired. QUICK TIRAMISU 1 package ladyfingers (sponge cakes) 1/2 cup strong black coffee OR espresso 2 ounces (shots) coffee liqueur (Kahlua) 2 cups mascarpone mas·car·po·ne n. A fresh soft Italian cheese with a high butterfat content, made from cow's milk enriched with cream. [Italian, augmentative of dialectal mascarpa, whey cheese. cheese 1/2 cup powdered sugar 1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder 1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon Using a pastry brush, paint ladyfingers with coffee combined with coffee liqueur. Line 4 martini glasses with a single layer of ladyfingers (stand up around sides of glass), letting cakes overlap a bit at the stem. Press cakes down to fit the lines of the glass. Beat mascarpone and powdered sugar together 2 or 3 minutes and spoon into glasses, dividing evenly. Top glasses off with coffee and liqueur-soaked ladyfingers. Dust each completed dessert with cocoa powder mixed with cinnamon. Makes 4 servings. SPOTLIGHT ON ... Rachael Ray Age: 35. Hometown: Glens Falls, N.Y. (close to the Adirondacks). Food background: Grew up in the restaurant business; family owned a restaurant in Cape Cod, Mass.; her mom, dad, brothers and grandparents taught her to cook; worked two years at Macy's Marketplace in New York New York, state, United States New York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of ; worked three years as a food buyer and chef at Cowan & Lobel, a gourmet food market in Albany, N.Y., and started teaching cooking classes; did a weekly food segment, ``30-Minute Meals,'' along with travel segments for WRGB-TV/CBS Albany-Schenectady for four years. Cooking style: Can-do cooking. Three favorite foods: Pasta, red wine and anything her mom makes. Foods she dislikes: Blue foods like blue frostings and blue drinks (with the exception of blueberries) or any food with unnatural color. Favorite cookbook: ``Joy of Cooking Joy of Cooking can be:
Favorite kitchen gadget: A Wustoff-Santoku knife with a 7-inch blade. Favorite restaurants: Thalia, New York (She thinks the $10 burger with aged fontina fon·ti·na n. A ripened cheese of variable texture and flavor, originally produced in Italy. [Italian.] cheese and applewood n. 1. wood of any of various apple trees of the genus Malus. Noun 1. applewood - wood of any of various apple trees of the genus Malus apple tree - any tree of the genus Malus especially those bearing firm rounded edible fruits smoked bacon is the best in the city); Mad 28, New York; Cafe Taci, New York (free opera Wednesday, Friday and Saturday nights). $40-a-day cities she likes: Rome and New York; some of the nicest surprises were in Austin and Dallas. Ideal vacation: Rome. What does she do when not cooking?: Watches movies and baseball; reads travel books, cookbooks and thrillers; goes boxing, horseback riding or to batting cages. Worst kitchen disaster: ``I can't make coffee; I can't bake.'' One year Ray tried to surprise her mother on her birthday with her favorite lemon cottage cake. Ray spent six hours making it according to the recipe and it came out looking like a yellow hockey puck. If she could dine with anyone (current or historical), who would it be?: Pedro Almodovar, Spanish filmmaker; Bono, U2 lead singer; her deceased grandfather. - N.H. CAPTION(S): 5 photos, box Photo: (1 -- cover -- color) Citrus White Wine Spritzer (2 -- color) Roquefort, Pear and Walnut Toasts (3 -- color) Chicken Paillard on Baby Greens (4 -- color) Quick Tiramisu (5 -- color) no caption (Rachael Ray) John Lazar/Staff Photographer Box: SPOTLIGHT ON ...Rachael Ray (see text) |
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