Tastes Like Food » Gluten For Punishment

The Other Den

Gluten For Punishment — Thu, 15 May 2008 17:44:09 +0000

Last night we dined at the Izakaya Den (owned by and located across the street from Sushi Den). It was fabulous. You can order the exact same sushi as is served across the street, and they serve additional contemporary meal options as well.

Here’s what I recommend if you go there:

Drinks:
-Pink Blossom – Hangar mandarin blossom vodka, St Germaine Eldeflower Liquer, Cointreau & cranberry juice.

-Shoshu Smash (and you can really get smashed on these, so watch it) – muddled orange, lemon, lime, vodka, Iitomo Shochu, fresh yuzu juice & seven.

Food:

-Roasted Red & Yellow Beets – with green tea smoked mozarella in a baked lemon-basil vinagrette.

-Grilled Panzanella Salad – with jumbo lump crab, Colorado goat cheese, pistachio & plum wine vinagrette.

-Baked Spicy Roll
-California Roll
-Vegetable Tempura Roll
-Red Dragon Roll

(the above rolls all have cooked fish for those of you who are sushi wimps!)

Izakaya Den
1518 S. Pearl Street
Denver, Colorado 80210
303.777.0691

The Gourmet Pizza Fake Out

Gluten For Punishment — Thu, 08 May 2008 03:17:53 +0000

I spend countless hours in the kitchen quite frequently cooking up some pretty amazing dishes for my friends and family. I love to cook, try new recipes, but recently I discovered a little “short cut” in making a fantastic dish–homemade pizza made so easy, anyone can make this and it’s virtually impossible to screw up.

Starting off with the “short cut” part of this: BUY PRE-MADE FROZEN WHOLE FOODS BRAND PIZZA DOUGH FROM WHOLE FOODS. They make the most out-of-this-world dough and it’s only about $3. Set it out until it reaches room temperature and then divide the dough in half (makes 2 medium pizzas). Roll it super thin and place it onto a pizza pan (my pan has little holes on the bottom to make the dough crispy). Then drizzle about 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil onto the dough and add 2 crushed cloves of fresh garlic–now spread that around the dough, covering all of it. Next, top the dough with a layer of fresh baby spinach leaves. Then add slices of mozzarella fresca and top that with freshly grated parmesan cheese and fresh ground black pepper and salt to taste.

Preheat oven to 425°. Place pizza into your oven for about 10-12 minutes. Enjoy. I recommend pairing this pizza with Vinyard Block Estates’ 2005 “Block 312″ Cabernet Sauvignon.

Grilling With Cedar

Gluten For Punishment — Sun, 04 May 2008 01:40:55 +0000

Well, it’s that time of year where the leaves are budding on the trees, the sun is up longer and we want to spend more time outside. Which means it’s a great time to fire up that grill. This year, you should seriously consider purchasing cedar planks to enhance the flavor of your grilled dishes. Pretty much anything tastes fantastic cooked on a cedar plank–fish, chicken, vegetables. You can easily find these planks at stores such as Costco and Whole Foods. 3-5 planks will run you about $8-$10, well worth the extra cost.

You need to soak your cedar plank in water, for about 20-40 minutes before you set it on the grill. Then, rest your grillables onto the plank and set atop low heat. Depending on what you’re grilling, it’ll take about 10-20 minutes to cook your food.

This evening I grilled 1lb of salmon and fresh asparagus and served it with some seasoned hash browns and a cool glass of Merlot. I covered the salmon with paper-thin slices of lemon to further enhance the flavor as well as prevent the salmon from drying out. This meal serves 4-6 people, and is absolutely perfect.

Spring Parmesan Chicken

Gluten For Punishment — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 21:13:07 +0000

Most dishes I make are gluten-free and contain less than 10 ingredients. As a designer I typically believe that less is more and I believe that approach may also apply to food. I try to always pair a wine that I really feel goes best with the dish so that if you are entertaining or just want a really out of this world meal, you’ve got it. Spring calls for lighter dishes and that’s where our Parmesan Chicken dish is the one that simply can’t be beat. I highly suggest pairing the dish with grilled tender-crisp asparagus, crispy pan fried spring red onion and Cline Cellars’ 2006 Cashmere (a best buy at just $15), chilled to precisely 50°.

Parmesan Chicken

2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts (preferably organic)
1 cup fresh grated parmesan cheese
2 tbs extra virgin olive oil

Over medium heat, warm olive oil. Dredge chicken breasts in cheese, fully coating each breast. Gently lay breasts into pan and reduce heat to medium-low. Sauté breasts for approximately 5 minutes each side until cheese is golden brown and the juices of the breasts run clear. Serve.

Tomato + Mozzarella Salad

Gluten For Punishment — Fri, 25 Apr 2008 17:50:32 +0000

As the weather heats up, it just feels better to transition to lighter meals. Combined with enjoying this dish in an outdoor setting (the deck overlooking the golf course) and a fine glass of Pinot Noir (I recommend La Crema, 2005), life doesn’t get much better. This evening we’ll be having just such a dinner. Here’s the salad I’m creating for our family:

Tomato/Mozzarella Salad
4 ripe roma tomatoes, sliced 1/4-inch slices
4 balls of fresh whole mozzarella, sliced 1/4-inch slices
Fresh Basil
Balsamic Vinegar
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Arrange tomatoes, cheese and basil in alternating order around serving plate. Lightly drizzle oil and vinegar and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Serves 4.

Taste of Sushi Den

Gluten For Punishment — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 21:36:48 +0000

Last night I treated some new friends from LA to one of Denver’s finest restaurants, Sushi Den. We dined on spicy firecracker rolls and Bincho (seared tuna) accompanied by chilled sweet plum wine and ice cold Kirin. Our tuna appetizer was drenched with a light and tasty Ponzu-like sauce — yum! Nat & Rob suggested that I try the roe (slightly salty fish eggs) which was probably the only thing that I wasn’t a fan of. Good food, great company and fantastic weather. See you at Sushi Den.

Potato Bliss

Gluten For Punishment — Wed, 23 Apr 2008 20:59:53 +0000

One of our favorite recipes during the cooler months is my roasted new potatoes recipe. It’s simple, healthy and can be prepared quickly and best of all, everybody loves it. I serve this as a side dish to grilled cherry-chipotle chicken breasts and fresh from the garden steamed asparagus.

Roasted New Potatoes

1lb small red potatoes (may substitute any fingerling)
extra virgin olive oil
kosher salt
fresh cracked black pepper
4-5 sprigs of fresh rosemary

Preheat oven to 400°. Wash potatoes and remove any bad spots. Slice each potato in half so that all pieces are approximately the same size to promote even cooking. In a 9X13 glass dish, evenly distribute the potatoes. Drizzle olive oil over potatoes sparringly, just enough to coat. Toss. Season with kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper. Top with rosemary sprigs. Cover dish with aluminum foil and place into oven for 50 minutes. Remove foil, toss potatoes and continue to bake for an additional 12-15 minutes until potatoes are slightly golden brown. Enjoy.