Keep The Husk Stuffed

 

This one's a thinking chef's recipe. And that's because this chef really loves to think about traditional recipes and how to mixup them up a little. Chef Jimmy from Cabot Cheese's test kitchen stopped by Tonia's Kitchen to talk about his ideas on grilled corn husks with fish and cheddar. The inspiration comes from both grilled corn and fish tacos, with a cheesy twist. Chef Jimmy told Tonia the addition of Cabot Cheddar here really brings out the flavor!

• 2 - 4 dried corn husks

• 2-4 Grilled Fish Fillets

• 8 ounces of Cabot Pepper Jack cheese

• 8 ounces of Cabot Garlic Herb Cheddar

• 8 ounces of Cabot Seriously Sharp Cheddar

1. START with a package of dried corn husks, the kind used to make Mexican tamales, available at the grocery or craft store. For each bowl, soak about three husks in hot water for a couple of minutes until more pliable.

2. PLACE two husks together, wide ends overlapping by a couple of inches, to form a boat shape. Tear four strips from the third husk to use for tying.

3. FOLD or roll down the edges, on one side, where they overlap to make them even, then poke a small slit with the tip of a paring knife. Thread the narrow tip of one of the ties through the slit and tie. Repeat on the other side.
4. PINCH together the husk on each end, and tie with another strip.

5. STUFF the “boat” shape with some paper towel to hold the shape you want,and let stand until dry or overnight. Make a few boats to fill with different flavors of cheddar. Arrange them on a platter with dried corn cobs, to serve alone or accompanied with fresh pears or apples, dried fruits, roasted nuts or favorite crackers. Top with the Cabot cheese and grilled fish.

No One Will Ever Say They're Small

  

This is a big one!  Cookbook author Elinor Klivens, who wrote Big Fat Cookies, told Tonia's Kitchen about her recipe for Stuffed Chocolate Chip Cookies, and stuffed they are!  Elinor told Tonia she starts with an all brown sugar dough, and standard chocolate chip cookie ingredients.  She then sets aside one cup of extra chocolate chips, takes 2 tablespoons of dough and balls them on a cookie sheet.  Eleanor then adds the chocolate chips and places two more tablespoons of dough on top of that. She describes it kind of like a chocolate chip sandwich.  When it's all baked, it's delicious!

2 cups (280g) unbleached all purpose flour

3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 cup (226g/2 sticks) unsalted butter, slightly softened for about 30 minutes

1 1/2 cups (240g) packed light brown sugar

2 large cold eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 cups (505g/18 ounces) semisweet chocolate chips

1
Position a rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 175°C/350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

2 Sift the flour, baking soda and salt into a medium bowl and set aside. In a large bowl, using an electric mixer on medium speed, beat the butter and brown sugar until smoothly blended, about 1 minute. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides of the bowl as needed during mixing. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix until blended, about 1 minute. The mixture may look slightly curdled. On low speed, add the flour mixture, mixing just until incorporated. Mix in 2 cups (336g) of the chocolate chips.

3 Roll 2 tablespoons of dough between the palms of your hands into a ball, flatten it slightly to make a 2-inch (5cm) disk and place on one of the prepared baking sheets. Repeat to make a total of 16 disks, placing 8 on each baking sheet and spacing them 4 inches (10cm) apart. Leaving a 1/4-inch (6mm) plain edge, lightly press 1 tablespoon* of the remaining chocolate chips onto each disk. Using the remaining dough, make 16 more disks, placing one on top of each chocolate-chip-topped disk. Press the dough disks gently to cover any of the chocolate chip filling that shows around the edges.

4 Bake the cookies one sheet at a time until the edges are lightly browned but the centers are still pale golden, about 15 minutes. Cool the cookies on the baking sheets for 10 minutes, then use a wide metal spatula to transfer them to a wire rack to cool. Serve warm (the filling will be soft and melted) or at room temperature.

5 The cookies can be stored in a tightly covered container at room temperature for up to 4 days.

6 * I ended up using less than 1 tablespoon of chips – it was difficult placing all that amount of chocolate inside each disk of cookie dough