Cook-Off - 2007 Winning Recipes
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First Place: Chai Steeped Chicken Breasts with Oriental Aioli, Vegetables Vinaigrette and Spiced Black Rice By Contestant Roxanne Chan, Albany CA Serves 6 Ingredients: 6 boneless skinless chicken breast halves, about 1 ½ pounds 6 cups water 1 T fresh garlic, minced 1 T ginger root, minced 1 stick cinnamon 2 star anise 4 green tea bags Aioli: ¼ cup plain yogurt ¼ cup mayonnaise 1 T mint, snipped 1 T basil, snipped ½ t seasoned rice vinegar ½ t soy sauce 3 cloves fresh garlic, pressed ½ t green curry paste ½ t lime zest Rice: 2 cups water 1 cup black (purple) Thai rice, rinsed and drained 2 T plum sauce 1 T lime juice 1 T soy sauce 1 T sesame oil 4 cloves fresh garlic, pressed ½ t five spice powder Vegetables: ½ cup carrot, shredded ½ cup red radish, shredded 2 green onions, minced ½ cup small European cucumber, peeled and diced 2 T cilantro, snipped 1 cup napa cabbage, shredded ½ cup vegetable oil 1 head fresh garlic, separated into cloves, peeled 2 T seasoned rice vinegar 1 t soy sauce 1 t chili garlic sauce 1 t ginger root, peeled and minced Garnish - pickled ginger Preparation: In a 4 quart pot place the water, garlic, ginger root, cinnamon, star anise and bring to a boil. Cover and simmer 5 minutes. Add tea bags and cover the pot. Let steep 5 minutes, then remove the tea bags. Reserve 2 T liquid. Add the chicken to the pot, bring to a boil, then cover the pot and remove from the heat. Let the chicken steep 10 minutes or until no longer pink inside. Remove the chicken and set aside. Combine the ingredients for the aioli in a small bowl and set aside. In a medium sauce pan combine the water and rice; bring to a boil, cover and simmer 25 minutes or until tender and the liquid has absorbed. Remove from the heat and let stand 10 minutes, then put the rice in a strainer and rise; drain. Place in a medium bowl along with the rest of the ingredients for the rice plus the 2 T reserved poaching liquid. Mix well. Pack into a mold; set aside. Place vegetables in a medium bowl. In a small pan bring the oil to a simmer; add the garlic cloves, cover and cook until the garlic is tender about 20 minutes. Transfer the cloves to the bowl with vegetables. In a small bowl add 2 T of the garlic oil to the rest of the ingredients for the vinaigrette; rice vinegar, soy sauce, chili garlic sauce and ginger root. Toss with the vegetables. Unmold the rice onto a platter. Surround with the vegetables. Slice the chicken breasts and arrange on top of the vegetables. Drizzle aioli over the chicken then garnish with the pickled ginger.

Second Place:

Garlic Stuffed Calamari with Smoked Gilroy Sauce
By Contestant Diane Sparrow, Osage, IA

Serves 6

Ingredients:
Smoked Gilroy Sauce:
1 ½ pound fresh tomatoes
1 large head garlic
3 T olive oil kosher salt fresh ground black pepper
1 small yellow onion, chopped
2/3 cup dry white California wine
1 t kosher salt
½ t fresh ground black pepper
2/3 cup heavy cream
3 T fresh basil, chopped

Stuffing:
18 cloves fresh garlic, peeled
1 T olive oil
1/3 cup dry white California wine
1/2 t kosher salt 1 pound cleaned shrimp, finely chopped
2/3 cup panko bread crumbs
¼ cup drained sun dried tomatoes chopped
1 shallot minced
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
3 T fresh basil, chopped
2 T fresh mint, chopped
12 fresh cleaned squid tubes, approximately
1 ½ inches in diameter
½ cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
Fresh basil for garnish
Fresh cooked linguine and garlic bread to serve

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Lightly spray a 9x15 inch baking dish. Set aside.

Cut the tomatoes in half. Place on the rack of a stove top smoker, cut side up. Cut the top off the head of garlic and place with the tomatoes in the smoker. Drizzle the tops of the tomatoes and garlic with 1 ½ T olive oil. Sprinkle with kosher salt and ground pepper. Place wood in the bottom of the smoker. Place the drip pan over the wood. Put the rack over the drip pan. Cover smoker and heat until wood is smoking. Smoke over medium heat for 30 minutes.

Note: If stove top smoker is not available, place wood shavings on the bottom of a heavy Dutch oven. Place a rack over wood. Set the cut tomatoes and garlic in a disposable aluminum pan on rack. Cover Dutch oven and cook as directed above.

Heat remaining olive oil in a medium skillet. Add the onion and cook until soft. Squeeze the smoked garlic from the paper and chop or smash. Coarsely chop the tomatoes. Add smoked garlic and tomatoes to the onion in the pan along with the drippings from the smoker. Cook for 5 minutes over medium heat. Add the white wine, salt and pepper. Cook for 3 minutes. Stir in the cream and cook for an additional 3 minutes. Turn off the heat and add the chopped basil.

While the vegetables are smoking, place the 18 cloves of peeled fresh garlic in a small sauce pan with the olive oil. Heat and stir until hot. Add the 1/3 cup of wine and salt. Cover pan. Reduce heat to medium low and cook for 12 minutes or until garlic is very soft. Smash the softened garlic with the back of a fork to make a paste. Place in a small bowl. Add the shrimp, bread crumbs, sun dried tomatoes, shallot and lemon juice. Gently toss in the basil and mint. Salt and pepper to taste. Place mixture in a sealable freezer bag and snip one corner. Turn the squid tubes inside out. Stuff the tubes evenly with the shrimp and garlic mixture. Place in prepared pan. Pour the Smoked Gilroy Sauce over the squid. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

Place the cooked linguine on a serving plate. Top each serving with 2 squid and some of the sauce. Sprinkle with parmesan. Garnish with fresh basil. Serve with plenty of garlic bread.

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Third Place:

Pork Florentine Pinwheels with Tropical Kona Coffee Sauce
By Contestant Barbara Housel, Kailua-Kona, HI

Serves 6

Ingredients:
3 - 4 pounds pork loin

Stuffing:
2 T butter
½ cup red onion, chopped
2 cups spinach, cooked, drained and chopped
¼ cup macadamia nuts, toasted and chopped
¼ cup bread crumbs
2 T fresh parsley, chopped
¼ cup mushrooms, chopped
1 t minced garlic
½ cup artichoke hearts, drained and coarsely chopped
½ t dried summer savory
½ t dried basil
3 T heavy cream
Salt and pepper to taste

Tropical Kona Coffee Sauce:
1 cup strong 100% Kona Coffee
3 T balsamic vinegar
1 T Liliko'i or orange juice
2 cloves garlic, sliced
2 T honey
¼ cup Chardonnay
1 t cornstarch mixed with coffee
2 cups beef stock
1 t Dijon mustard
4 Hawaiian chili peppers, crushed (optional)
1 cup pineapple in juice
1-3 T butter
Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Preparation:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Pork:
Slice the pork into serving pieces and place the pork between two pieces of plastic wrap. Pound the pork using a meat mallet until the meat is roughly ¼ inch thick. Season the pork with salt and pepper. Make stuffing. Stuff and roll the meat (jelly roll style) and secure with toothpicks. In a heavy ovenproof skillet, sear the meat on all sides. Place the skillet in the oven, uncovered for 8 to 12 minutes to finish cooking. Remove the pork rolls from the oven and allow to rest about 15 minutes. Remove toothpicks. Slice the meat into rounds. While the meat is cooking make the sauce.

Stuffing:
Heat butter in a large skillet, add onions and sauté until soft. Add mushrooms and sauté until soft. Add garlic, summer savory, basil, salt and pepper and cook for 5-6 minutes. Add the heavy cream, artichoke hearts and spinach; cook until the cream evaporates, about 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the parsley, nuts and enough breadcrumbs to tighten the mixture. Note: Allow the stuffing to cool, the stuffing will be easier to handle.

Tropical Kona Coffee Sauce:
In a small sauce pan combine beef stock, garlic, mustard, chili peppers, Kona Coffee, Liliko'i and pineapple in juice. Cook until the mixture reduces by half; strain the mixture and return to saucepan, add honey and chardonnay, simmer for 10-15 minutes. Whisk in butter and thicken with cornstarch, keep warm. If the sauce becomes too thick, add a little coffee. Serve the pork pinwheels with the Tropical Sauce over polenta, mashed potatoes or salad greens.