ChefTools.com Blog: 4/10/11

Friday, April 15, 2011

ChefTools gets 2 new employees!

It’s been an exciting week for Cheftools.com. On Monday, two new employees came aboard the ChefTools team at our HQ here in sunny Seattle, and they’ll be regularly updating this blog (and our Facebook and Twitter sites) with food news, new products available on ChefTools, promotions and recipes.

Sara Monzo is ChefTools’ new marketing coordinator and Neal McNamara is the new content editor. We’re excited about them because it means we’re continuing to expand and that we’ll be even more diligent about letting you know the best ways to outfit your kitchen.

Sara lives in Redmond, Wa., and has a ton of marketing experience. Even better, she loves to cook and she loves getting her hands on the newest cooking tools – and believe us, when we have a cool new gadget or a blockbuster sale (or just a good recipe), she’ll let you know.

Sara cooks at home all the time, and especially enjoys fixing Mexican-style dishes. (She makes a mean enchilada sauce.) She is “addicted” to pho (pronounced “fa”), a Vietnamese soup that’s Seattle’s signature dish – Philadelphia has cheese steaks, New Orleans muffaletta sandwiches, and Seattle has pho – and has the strange power to warm the soul on even the grayest, coldest of Pacific Northwest days. She recently got a Le Creuset Dutch oven and can’t stop using it.

Neal lives in Seattle and joins our team after a career in newspaper journalism. He’s lived all over the country, but he’s originally from New York. So, he’s pretty much obsessed with pizza, coffee and bagels. Sadly, he hasn’t found anything west of the Hudson River that he would call pizza (Connecticut has great pizza, surprisingly; they call it “apizza”). But he’s still looking, and toils in his own kitchen trying to recreate New York-style pie (he’s working on perfecting a dough recipe and trying to get his landlord to install a brick oven in his apartment – so far, so bad). He would be lost in the kitchen without his chef’s knife and his grandmother’s World War II-era cast iron pan.

So keep checking our blog and Facebook and Twitter pages. We’ll be looking to connect and share information with you, and hear from you about what you want out of ChefTools.com.

Let’s get you cooking!

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Grilled Leg of Lamb - Perfect for Easter Dinner

Now that Easter is only a few days away, we thought we'd share a spectacular Leg of Lamb recipe with you. Our own Marketing Specialist - Sara - has made this recipe countless times and can't rave enough about it! Sara even made this for a dinner party with friends who thought they didn't like lamb and she converted them. When we heard that, we thought we must share this with all of our peeps! We hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we did.

(photo courtesy of Susana Howe / Bon Appetit)

Recipe courtesy of Epicurious.com

Grilled Leg of Lamb

w/Rosemary, Garlic and Mustard

1 well-trimmed 6-pound boneless leg of lamb, butterflied to even 2-inch thickness

8 garlic cloves, peeled, divided

1/2 cup whole grain Dijon mustard

1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil

1/4 cup dry white wine

2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh rosemary

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Nonstick vegetable oil spray

Fresh rosemary sprigs and fresh Italian parsley sprigs

Open lamb like book on work surface. Using tip of small knife, make 1/2-inch-deep slits all over lamb. Thinly slice 4 garlic cloves. Insert garlic slices into slits in lamb. Combine remaining 4 garlic cloves, mustard, olive oil, white wine, rosemary, and lemon juice in processor. Blend until coarse puree forms. Spread underside of lamb with half of puree. Place lamb, seasoned side down, in 15 x 10 x 2-inch glass baking dish. Spread remaining puree over top of lamb. Cover lamb with plastic wrap and chill overnight.

Let lamb stand at room temperature 2 hours. Coat grill rack with nonstick spray and prepare barbecue (medium-high heat). Sprinkle lamb generously with salt and pepper on both sides. Grill lamb to desired doneness, about 17 minutes per side for medium-rare. Transfer lamb to cutting board; let rest 10 to 20 minutes.

Thinly slice lamb against grain. Overlap slices on platter. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Garnish with fresh herb sprigs.

ChefTools To Help Get You Cooking:

E-Z Rol Garlic Peeler Tube

$8.79

RSVP Herb Scissors

$9.95

Amco Lemon Squeezer Juicer
$11.95

Cuisipro Oil Mister Sprayer

$15.99

Victorinox Fibrox Granton Edge

Carving Knife, 12"

$68.59

Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Thursday Is National Pecan Day

Not exactly a well-known holiday, but in our opinion, one worth celebrating.

When we hear the word pecan, the first thing that comes to mind is PIE. And who doesn't love a great Pecan Pie?

Here at ChefTools we're all about cooking and baking and providing you with the best tools for your Culinary adventures. So today we thought we'd show you some tools to help you celebrate the fabulous Pecan, by offering a mouth-watering Pecan Pie recipe.

(photo courtesy of Mark Thomas, BonAppetit / Epicurious.com)

The one below is courtesy of BonAppetit Magazine and can be found on Epicurious.com.

Bourbon-Orange Pecan Pie with Bourbon Cream

1 butter pie dough disc or pre-made, frozen pie shell
1 cup (packed) golden brown sugar
1 cup light corn syrup
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) unsalted butter, melted
2 tablespoons cornstarch
3 large eggs
3 tablespoons finely chopped candied orange peel
4 tablespoons bourbon
1 tablespoon grated orange peel
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups pecan halves (about 9 1/2 ounces), toasted

1 cup chilled whipping cream
2 tablespoons sugar

Roll out dough on lightly floured surface to 13-inch round. Transfer to 9-inch deep-dish glass pie dish. Trim overhang to 1/2 inch. Fold overhang under; crimp edges decoratively. Refrigerate 1 hour.

Preheat oven to 375°F. Line pie crust with foil. Fill with dried beans or pie weights. Bake until crust edges begin to brown and crust is set, about 17 minutes. Remove foil and beans. Bake until golden brown, pressing with back of fork if crust bubbles, about 5 minutes longer. Transfer pie crust to rack. Maintain oven temperature.

Whisk brown sugar, corn syrup, corn starch and melted butter in large bowl to blend. Whisk in eggs 1 at a time. Stir in candied orange peel, 3 tablespoons bourbon, grated orange peel, vanilla, salt, and then toasted pecans. Pour filling into prepared crust. Bake pie until edges puff and center is just set, about 35-50 minutes. Cool pie on rack at least 1 hour. (Can be made 6 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.)

Using electric mixer, beat 1 cup chilled whipping cream, 2 tablespoons sugar, and remaining 1 tablespoon bourbon in large bowl until cream holds peaks. Serve pie warm or at room temperature with bourbon cream.

ChefTools To Help You

Of course in order to bake the best pie, you need the best tools for the job. We just so happen to have everything you need, and at extraordinary prices! Here are some gorgeous Le Creuset items to help you on your way to the perfect pecan pie!