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ButtermilkFried Chicken Thetruthis,noneofthe chefs interviewed for this fried chicken story were eager to offer up their fried chicken recipes, so we grabbed this one from one of our favorite sources for online recipes, the foodie website food52.com. Serves 4 INGREDIENTS For the spice mix 1teaspoon smoked paprika 1teaspoon dried oregano 1teaspoon dried thyme 1teaspoon dried marjoram 1teaspoon garlic powder 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper 2teaspoons kosher salt 4boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 1pound) For the flour and butter- milk dredges 1cup (140grams) all-pur- pose flour 1teaspoon cornstarch 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1cup (240milliliters) but- termilk 1egg 4cups vegetable, canola, or peanut oil, for frying DIRECTIONS 1. The day before you plan on frying the chicken, whisk together the paprika, oregano, thyme, marjoram, garlic powder, pepper, and salt to form the spice mix. Set aside 1tablespoon of the spice mix, then sprinkle the rest all over the chicken thighs. Cover the chicken with plastic wrap and refrig- erate overnight. 2. To fry the chicken, mix to- gether the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, and reserved spice mix in a pie plate or shallow dish. Mix together the buttermilk and egg in another pie plate or shallow dish. Set up a wire rack over a sheet tray. 3. Fill a large, heavy skillet (a 12-inch cast-iron pan works) with oil until 3/4-inch high. Set on high heat and bring to 360degrees. Preheat the oven to 375degrees. Dredge the chicken in the butter- milk mixture, then the flour mixture, then the buttermilk mixture again, and finally back into the flour. Fry the chicken for 4to 5minutes per side, until deep golden brown all over. If the chicken is not fully cooked (the internal temperature should read 165degrees), place the chicken on the wire rack and bake for 8to 10minutes, or until just cooked through. Kickin Chicken's Good Ol' Fashioned Mac 'n Cheese The recipe for Kickin Chick- en's fried chicken is — not surprisingly — top secret, so chef Justin Williams shares the recipe for the popup's popular side dish instead. Serves 8to 10people INGREDIENTS 2tablespoons all-purpose flour 2tablespoons unsalted butter 2cups whole milk 11/2 pounds shredded sharp cheddar 1pound shredded Provolone 1box of cavatappi noodles For breadcrumb topping 1loaf sourdough 1/4 cup melted butter DIRECTIONS 1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. 2. Fill one pot with water, add 1/4 cup salt and bring to a boil. 3. While water is coming to a boil, in another pot add flour and butter to start roux. Stir roux until golden brown, add milk and whisk until smooth. 4. Once milk starts steam- ing, start adding cheese, one handful at a time, to the roux on medium heat. Stir until cheese in melted and repeat, trying not to burn cheese on bottom. 5. Once all cheese is mixed in, remove from heat and boil noodles. Let noodles drain for 3to 4minutes to remove all water. Stir noodles into cheese sauce. Taste and add salt, if needed. 6. Top with breadcrumb topping (see directions below) and bake for 20to 30minutes, or until bread- crumbs brown. Breadcrumbs topping: Remove crust from sour- dough. Add bread to food processor and pulse until you have bread pieces about the size of pebbles. Toss with melted butter and reserve for topping. RECIPES VERNON MCKNIGHT — HERALD CORRESPONDENT These days, chefs are elevating the humble comfort classic with quality ingredients like free-range chicken from small, family farms. ByRaúlNava SpecialtoDigitalFirstMedia When it comes to fried chicken, gone are the days of fast-fried dominance; colonels and cartoons may be the most recognizable poultry purveyors, but now, high-end chefs are serving up fancy fried fowl. While fried chicken may be most identified with Southern soul food, many cuisines have their own take on the fried fowl. These days, chefs are ele- vating the humble comfort classic with quality ingredi- ents like free-range chicken from small, family farms. They're using refined tech- niques, like sous-vide to slow-cook the chicken be- fore finishing in the fryer. What once was a guilty fast-food pleasure is now a proud centerpiece on fine- dining menus. For those making fried chicken at home, Chef Jus- tin Williams offers some tips. "Look for air-chilled chicken, never frozen. It will retain its moisture much better," he says. Like many chefs, he recommends brining the chicken to keep it moist. When you're ready to fry the chicken, always take caution not to burn your- self with the oil. Williams also reminds us to regu- late the temperatures of the frying oil. "Dark meat and light meat fry at differ- ent temperatures — 350 de- grees for dark meat and 335 for light," he says. And of course a fried fowl feast demands some side dishes. THE DISH Finger-licking good Fried chicken like your grandma never made By Glenn Hoffman Special to Digital First Media With Becky Selengut's latest cookbook, "Shroom: Mind-Bendingly Good Rec- ipes for Cultivated and Wild Mushrooms" (205 pages, Andrews McNeel Publishing, $35; 75 reci- pes) in hand, start foraging in your local grocery store, specialty market, farmer's market, or Asian market. Selengut is a self-pro- fessed "meat eater working on eating less meat." She has created a visual guide to create the umami that meat eaters want, while avoiding cream, butter and heavy sauces. Vegan and gluten-free eaters will find plenty to tickle their mush- room fancy. Selengut presents 15 mushrooms and offers facts and techniques to ensure success for cooks of every stripe. Each chapter has five recipes and bever- age pairings for a specific mushroom: two simple rec- ipes, two intermediate rec- ipes, and one tour de force for a date night in or other special occasion. I found king trumpet mushrooms readily avail- able (marked as royal trum- pet) at the Sunday Marin County Civic Center farm- ers market. King trumpet and tomato sandwiches with spicy mayo delivered KTLTs to topple the BLT from the top of many a list of simple tomato season treats. Applewood-smoked salt flakes and the lime and chipotle mayonnaise ele- vated ordinary sandwiches to extraordinary. King trumpet toasts with Gouda, apricot jam and arugula is a simple recipe that simply tastes in- credible. Vegan mozzarella shreds were an easy vegan substitution for grated Gouda and melted fine in the oven. This could be an impressive holiday appe- tizer. Adventuresome cooks with time on their hands must try the king trum- pet "scallops" with car- rot puree, leek and parsley vinaigrette. In just under two hours, two plated en- trees were ready to trans- port us to a romantic, Mi- chelin-starred restaurant in our own kitchen. Color, flavor and texture mar- ried sublimely. Mushroom stem "scallops" took on a lovely brown at each end and stayed moist with the basting liquid of water and a splash of rose. COOKBOOK CRITIC Ad d pl an t- ba se d um am i to m ea ls w it h 'S hr oo m' Kingtrumpetand tomatosandwiches withspicymayo Serves: 4 Pairing: French rose 2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil ½ pound king trumpet mushrooms, sliced length- wise into ¼-inch slices ¼ teaspoon smoked salt 1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt 1large red heirloom tomato, cut into 4thick slices Freshly ground black pepper 8slices potato bread, toasted ¼ cup spicy lime and chipo- tle mayonnaise 4butter lettuce leaves In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Add half of the mushroom slices to the pan and sprinkle with half of the smoked salt. Cook until the mushrooms release their water, crisp up and brown; flip and repeat on the other side. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate, add the remaining 1tablespoon oil to the pan, and repeat with the rest of the mushrooms and smoked salt. Sprinkle the sea salt over the 4tomato slices. Grind some pepper on the tomatoes. Lay out 4pieces of the toasted bread. Spread 1 tablespoon of the mayon- naise on each slice, lay down a piece of lettuce, a slice of tomato, and one-quarter of the mushroom slices. Top with the remaining bread. Spicylimeandchipotle mayonnaise Serves: 4 ½ cup mayonnaise (review- er's note: I love reduce-fat Vegenaise) Finely grated zest of 1lime 1teaspoon freshly squeezed lime juice ½ teaspoon ground chipotle chili powder (substitute spicy pure chili powder of your choice) 1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt In a medium bowl, whisk to- gether the mayonnaise, lime zest and juice, chili powder, and salt. Taste and add more salt if you'd like. Store in the fridge until you are ready to use. Kingtrumpettoasts withGouda,apricot jam,andarugula Serves: 6(makes 12toasts) Pairing: French pinot gris 12baguette slices, cut on an angle ¼-inch thick 2tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brush- ing the bread ½ pound king trumpet mushrooms, cut in half crosswise, then sliced ¼-inch thick ¼ teaspoon fine sea salt ¼ cup apricot jam ¼ cup small arugula leaves ½ cup grated Gruyere (reviewer's note: ingredient list says Gruyere, recipe title says Gouda, and I substitut- ed vegan mozzarella shreds) Position a rack in the middle of the oven and preheat the broiler. Lay the baguette slices on a baking sheet. Brush the slices with olive oil on the top side only. Broil until they are brown and crisp on top, checking every minute. Don't walk away because, man, they love to burn when your back is turned. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Add half of the mushroom slices to the pan and sprinkle with half of the salt. Cook until the mushrooms release their water, crisp up and brown; flip and repeat on the other side. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Add the remaining 1tablespoon oil and repeat with the remain- ing mushrooms and salt. Spread a scant amount of jam on each toast. Top with an arugula leaf, a few pieces of mushroom, and a scant teaspoon of cheese. Put back in the oven just until the cheese melts, about 1 minute. Remove from the oven, and garnish with another slice of mushroom and a tiny dollop more of the apricot jam. RECIPES Becky Selengut's latest cookbook, "Shroom: Mind- Bendingly Good Recipes for Cultivated and Wild Mushrooms" (205pages, Andrews McNeel Publishing, $35; 75recipes) GaylaEckels: (530) 737-5044 geckels@redbluffdailynews.com Suzy Noble: (530) 737-5056 snoble@redbluffdailynews.com GoMultimediathisChristmasSeason! Flights of Fancy AvailableNovember2throughJanuary10 6 column inch size ads or larger Pub lish 4 times wi thin 7 da ys , get the 5th ru n FREE! 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