Spoonbread for Hieronymus

Clam Chowder for Niall

2011-01-05T11:42:00.000-08:00

Niall,
This first test batch of chowder left Bill speechless. He uttered all kinds of grunts and other appreciative noises, but otherwise pretty much stayed face down in the bowl until it was gone. I'm keeping this recipe as is. The whole thing took 20 minutes from start to finish, including prep.

It is very basic, and the only thing that sets this chowder apart are the two techniques described in the directions for the recipe below. I know it will offend your chefly sensibilities to NOT ADD LIQUID to the clams when you steam them, and if you must cave on this point you could add a splash of white wine, but trust me when I tell you it isn't necessary. This is how I solved the problem we spoke about -- of how to get the broth to taste like a big bowl of steamers and not like that nasty bottled clam juice...

The linguica is really key, and I hope you won't leave it out just because the folks out there haven't been converted yet. The pancetta gives the chowder a clean, mild porkiness, and the linguica lends a tremendous amount of flavor. I can overnight you a pound or two of the good stuff from Lopes Sausage if you don't have access to a source.

The parsley does change the traditional all-white aspect of NE chowder, adding little flecks of green to the bowl. I'm cool with that and I think the fresh herbs offset the richness of the dish, but you could leave them out if the green is too off-putting.I didn't add any salt to the pot at all, but the dish came out perfectly seasoned between the clams and the pork products. Enjoy...

1/2 cup pancetta, diced small
1/4 cup linguica, diced medium
12 littleneck clams, scrubbed
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 small yellow onion, diced large
2 cups red new potatoes, UNPEELED, diced large
1/2 pint heavy cream
2 cups evaporated skim milk (I used regular whole milk and the flavor was phenomenal but the milk did scald. Up to you. I would use evaporated skim milk next time to approximate the texture of regular milk.)
handful chopped parsley
chopped chives (optional)
Ground black pepper, to taste

Turn the flame to medium-high under a large saute pan with a tight fitting lid. Add the pancetta and linguica and let them just barely begin to render -- about a minute. Add the clams, put the lid on the pot, turn the heat to high and walk away for 7 or 8 minutes. Do not take the lid off.
Prep all the other ingredients.

After 8 minutes, all the clams will be wide open and they will have generated a lot of clam liquor. Pour the contents of the pan into a very fine strainer over a small-to-medium-sized pot. Set the strainer with the clams and pork products aside to cool.

Turn the heat to medium under the pot with the clam liquor and add the remaining ingredients. Cook UNCOVERED until the potatoes are just cooked through, about 8 - 10 minutes total. This allows the liquid to reduce a little while the potatoes are soaking up all that good clam broth and cream.

Towards the end of the cooking time, take the cooled clams out of their shells and cut them in half. (This is super quick once the clams are cool. Don't say the prep crew doesn't have time to do this!) Discard the clam shells.

Once the potatoes are cooked through, add the clams and pork back to the chowder. Let cool for a couple of minutes and taste for seasoning. This makes 5-6 servings, and the chowder is good for several days.

Those two techniques -- steaming the clams first to get their liquid (and ensuring big pieces of clam) and then letting the liquid thicken a bit while the potatoes cook in it uncovered are my Xmas gifts to you, even if you already have them.

Love,
Ruthie

Flounder La Bella Fortuna

2009-11-13T08:50:00.000-08:00

I miss Art Bloom. It sneaks up on me sometimes. I used to go and visit him regularly, and I was remembering recently how a friend and I once made the long drive from Bard to P-Town, just to watch the Academy Awards with Art. He was delighted that we had come to see him, and made his standard "special occasion" meal for us; which always took just as long to prepare as it did to eat -- probably 8 hours from shopping to dishes. The courses were always pretty much the same: some variation on steamed mussels, broiled bluefish, lobster and corn, maybe a salad; and vanilla ice cream for dessert. There was lots of wine and bourbon, of course, to go with all that good local seafood.

I remember every detail of the room looking over the bay. The way the light changed from season to season; how it felt to lie on my back and read with the little orange cat Fire sleeping on my chest, and the sound of distant foghorns and the tide coming in. Art and I would talk about Niall and Scott and Beverly; about music and movies and books and relationships. We had adopted each other as family, and those memories of visits to "the kibbutz" before Art got sick are very precious.

Art's special occasion bluefish came from Howard Mitcham's Provincetown Seafood Cookbook - still one of my all-time favorites. Mitcham, a wild man in the venerable P-Town tradition of brilliant and insane kitchen innovators, was still around when I was a kid, and my parents once took me to the restaurant where he did a very brief professional stint, to eat the Haddock Almondine that he had made famous.

I bought some flounder the other night, and enjoyed a little riff on Art's fish, with some updates of my own. The traditional recipe as I remember it, involved squeezing a lemon over a piece of bluefish or halibut, seasoning it with salt and pepper, and then spreading mayonnaise over the fish before broiling, about which Mitcham says:

"Now listen: when I say fresh homemade mayonnaise I mean exactly that. If you try to squeeze by with that cheap commercial mayonnaise then you will have defiled a fine fish who sacrificed his life for your enjoyment."

I seasoned our cod fillet with sumac and pimenton, salt and pepper, squeezed a lemon over it, let it sit while I preheated the broiler and then spread a little mayonnaise and dijon mustard mixture over the fish before broiling. Bill was completely knocked out by the sweet, fresh flounder and it disappeared in a flash. Simple and delicious.

flounder filets
salt
pepper
sumac
pimenton
dijon mustard
mayonnaise
lemon
chopped parsley for garnish

Tomato Vegetable Soup with Rice

2009-07-31T09:19:00.000-07:00

This is my take on Lydia Bastianich's famous Potato Rice Soup that uses a Parmigiano-Reggiano Rind for flavor. I've made it into a rainy-day-at-the-Cape tomato soup, switched out the celery (which I never have in the fridge) for fennel (which I always have in the fridge) and cut back on the rice so the leftovers don't turn to sludge overnight. This is a hearty soup. It would be terrific pureed, as all tomato soups are, and, in fact, that might just be the key to reviving the leftovers now that I think of it...

3 tablespoons olive oil
4 small red potatoes, washed and cut into 1/3-inch cubes
1 large carrots, diced large
1/2 cup fennel, diced large
1 small can tomato paste
1/2 cup leftover French onion soup (obviously, this was what was on hand. Next time, I'd probably increase the chicken broth by half a cup, and saute half an onion, diced large, with the other vegetables.)
4 cups hot chicken broth
2 2-inch-squares Parmigiano rind, exterior scraped
1 fresh or dried bay leaves
freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup long-grain rice
1/4 cup chopped basil or parsley or spinach (optional)

1. In a deep, heavy 4- to 5-quart pot, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add potatoes and cook, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Potatoes will stick to pot; adjust heat to prevent stuck bits from becoming too dark. Stir in carrots and celery and cook, stirring, another 2 to 3 minutes. Add tomato paste and stir to coat vegetables.

2. Add broth, onion soup, Parmigiano rinds and bay leaves. Bring to a boil, scraping up bits of potato on bottom, then simmer. Cover pot and cook until potatoes begin to fall apart, about 40 minutes. Stir in rice and cook until rice is tender but still firm, about 12 minutes. Remove bay leaves, stir in parsley or other green leafy chiffonade (if desired), and check seasoning. Remove rinds and cut into small pieces. Put a piece in each soup bowl and ladle soup on top. Serves 4-6

Restaurant-ish Pasta

2009-07-19T20:45:00.001-07:00

More pasta. Its not all we're eating...really! I just can't find time to blog lately. I'll get around to writing up the fragrant keema mattar, velvety chocolate bread pudding, pickled beets, pineapple zucchini cake with cream cheese frosting and fabulous lemon chicken sometime soon, but for right now, with my preliminary literature review due at 9am and a long night of blurry-eyed proofreading ahead, I will just note that tonight's pasta was spectacular, if I do say so myself. Layers of flavor, good balance and pretty to look at. Bill ate himself into a food coma and passed out on the couch, indicating that perhaps this dish is a little too "restaurant-ish" for every day usage.

3 cloves garlic
1 scallion
6 sun dried tomatoes
hefty glug of white wine
juice of one lemon
olive oil
spoonful of chicken fat
1/2 cup chicken broth
2 T pesto
large handful of shrimp, sheeled and deveined
red pepper flakes
handful frozen peas
2 T pesto
copious amount of chopped fresh parsley
salt and pepper, to taste
linguini
pesto bread crumbs

Linguini a la Campagnola

2009-07-07T22:16:00.000-07:00

I used to live down the block from a little neighborhood Italian restaurant where they make this dish: a fantastically savory pasta in garlic and oil with sun dried tomatoes, perfectly sauteed broccoli and a hunk of broiled goat cheese to swirl into the mix.

I made a double batch, thinking we'd eat the leftover portion for lunch the next day, but BT went back for fourths, until finally all that remained was an empty pan. Instructions to follow.

oil
scallions
broccoli
sundried tomatoes
garlic
parsley
goat cheese
salt and pepper

linguini

Ben & Jerry's Strawberry Ice Cream

2009-07-07T21:38:00.000-07:00

Cook the eggs or don't cook the eggs - that part's entirely up to you. But make this ice cream. Make it without any further delay.
This is my ideal strawberry ice cream, exactly as is.
(The only element I might play around with in the future is maybe mixing everything in the blender for easier pouring and fewer bowls to wash.)

1 pint fresh strawberries, hulled and chopped
juice of half a lemon
1/3 cup sugar
2 large eggs
3/4 cup sugar
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup milk
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Combine strawberries, lemon juice, and 1/4 cup sugar in a mixing bowl, and set aside to macerate in the fridge for 1 hour. In a large mixing bowl beat eggs until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Gradually add 3/4 cups sugar, mixing well. Stir in milk and vanilla and mix well. Mash strawberries to a puree. Add the strawberry puree to the custard and mix well. Gently stir in whipping cream just until combined. Pour into a chilled ice cream maker and follow the manufacturer's instructions.

Rotelli, Asparagus and Peas with Saffron Cream

2009-07-05T21:32:00.000-07:00

Unable to leave well enough alone, I made a number of strategic changes to (an already perfectly good) recipe from Deborah Madison's The Greens Cookbook. (Not using any saffron in the saffron cream, for one thing...!)

Madison writes: "The peas are small and fresh, the asparagus, pencil thin. The fragrant saffron-flavored cream makes this pasta filling and substantial. This is a rather special dish, fine for a company dinner." I most wholeheartedly agree.

4 - 6 ounces fresh pasta (tagliatelle or wide fettuccine would be ideal.
1/2 bunch asparagus
1 cup green peas
1/4 teaspoon tumeric
1 tablespoon butter
2 scallions finely diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
½ cup heavy cream
Salt, to taste
1 cup parsley, roughly chopped
1 thin strip lemon peel; very thinly slivered
Parmesan cheese
Pepper

Bring a large pot of water to boil.
Melt the butter in a wide saute pan, and gently cook the shallots for several minutes, or until they are soft. Add the cream and the saffron infusion, bring to a boil, reduce slightly, and season with salt. When the pasta water is boiling, add salt, and cook the asparagus, and then the peas, in the boiling water. Scoop them out when they are done and add them to the cream. Next cook the pasta; when it is done, add it to the cream, turning it over several times with a pair of tongs to coat it with the sauce. Add the chervil leaves and the lemon peel, and serve on warm plates with grated Parmesan and freshly ground pepper.

Serves 2

Linguine a la Vongole

2009-06-26T16:42:00.000-07:00

Not much of a recipe to record, but damn if this wasn't extra special good...
1/3 - 1/2 lb linguine
1 sundried tomato chicken sausage, sliced lengthwise and then horizontally into 1/2 inch slices
4 plum tomatoes, quartered
3 garlic cloves, sliced thin
12 littleneck clams, cleaned
generous pinch crushed red pepper
generous glug of white wine
handful chopped fresh oregano or basil
handful chopped fresh parsley
2 tablespoons pesto
salt, to taste
handful chopped fresh spinach

Spaghetti al Burro e Formaggio

2009-05-31T16:10:00.000-07:00

This is really an amalgam of two comfort dishes from the Italian restaurants I worked at a million years ago when I was still cooking for pay. At Ciro and Sal's the pasta al burro e formaggio is pure solace: a whiff of garlic, handfuls of freshly grated cheese and lots of chopped parley to brighten the whole thing up. At Carmine's the lemon butter sauce is also a favorite of mine -- the flavors given extra depth and complexity with the addition of white wine and chicken stock and basil. So here, then, is Ciro and Carmine's love child, all grown up: a little lighter and more modern, with the combined wisdom of north and south. (Bill went back for third helpings. How bad could it be?)

1/2 pound whole wheat spaghetti
4 tablespoons of butter
1 clove garlic, finely minced (or more to taste)
1 hearty glug of white wine
1 hearty glug of chicken stock
1 small zucchini, cut in half lengthwise and then crosswise into thin half moons
2 handfuls of fresh baby spinach (or substitute 1/2 fresh basil, if you have it)
1/2 cup fresh parley, chopped
freshly grated Parmesan cheese, to taste
salt and pepper to taste

CJ's Pesto

2009-05-31T10:45:00.000-07:00

Well, it turns out this is really Marcella Hazan's pesto recipe, but since it was passed down to me almost twenty years ago by the lovely and inimitable Courtia Jay Worth, I will always think of it as "CJ's pesto" whenever I make it. It is life-affirming, verdant and-- ah, that reminds me. There's a word for all of that in Spanish: reverdecer. It means to become green again, as in fields after a winter frost. Maybe that's what I need a little dose of right about now.

2 cups fresh basil
1/2 cup olive oil
2 tablespoons pine nuts
2 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons freshly grated Romano cheese
3 tablespoons butter, softened to room temperature

Blend first 5 ingredients to a paste in a blender. When evenly blended, pour into a bowl and beat in the cheeses by hand. Incorporate the butter.

Before spooning over pasta, add a tablespoon or so of the pasta cooking water to achieve the desired consistency.

Scallion Spinach Pesto

2009-05-30T21:59:00.000-07:00

I adapted this recipe from the Wild Leek Pesto over at Kalofagas, using almonds instead of walnuts, and changing all of the proportions in little ways, to suit my tastes. It was extremely delicious on pasta the first night; equally tasty smeared on a piece of broiled fish the next; and finally, tonight, wickedly good stuffed into brined and pan-roasted chicken breasts. (Bill's favorite variation.)

Looks like the scallion pesto may stay in regular rotation for a while...Thanks, Kalofagas!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup almonds
1 cup chopped scallions (green part only)
1 clove of garlic
1 1/2 cup of baby spinach
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup grated Romano cheese
Salt and pepper, to taste

Blend. Taste. Adjust. Apply liberally.

Sizzling Rice Soup

2009-05-29T18:57:00.000-07:00

I loved this soup when I was a kid. Over the years it has completely and inexplicably disappeared from all but a few old-school NYC Chinese restaurant menus; but no matter, I've started making it at home. In fact, we've eaten it three times this week, in an effort to make up for lost time.

The loud sizzle is a special moment in my day. What can I say? I've always loved those little tableside flourishes. Plus, it's a kind of perfect duo: combining the guilty-pleasure-sensation of pop rocks, with the inarguable health benefits of chicken vegetable soup.

3-4 ounces frozen shrimp, thawed
2 tablespoon rice wine
2 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 large skinless, boneless chicken breast
4 cups chicken broth
1 cup chopped raw broccoli
½ can of sliced water chestnuts
¼ cup sliced scallions
handful of snow peas
4-6 rice cakes from 1 package Chinese rice cakes (or you can make your own, which I did the other day but would prefer to not ever have to do again in the future.)

In a bowl, mix together the shrimp, cornstarch, sherry and soy sauce and set aside. Poach the chicken breast in the chicken broth in a soup pot over medium heat. Bring to a boil and then immediately reduce the heat and allow it to simmer until the chicken is just barely cooked through. Remove the chicken breast and set aside too cool slightly.

Add the shrimp mixture, green onions, water chestnuts and broccoli to the pot over medium heat. Simmer for 3 minutes. While the shrimp is simmering, cut the reserved chicken breast into chunks and add the chicken back into the soup. Add the snow peas and adjust for seasoning.

Meanwhile, heat 3 tablespoons of oil in a frying pan. Brown the rice cakes in the oil very briefly on each side. They should be very hot. Remove the rice cakes from the oil with a slotted spoon, and blot on paper towels.

Add the rice cakes to the soup at the table. If both are hot enough, the soup will sizzle loudly.

The Apple Cake of Righteousness

2009-05-29T17:44:00.000-07:00

It's Shavuot...
So why am I baking an apple cake, one might wonder, on the one day of the year I could completely justify making blintzes for dinner, or even a cheesecake...

I'm really not sure. It just sort of happened; but now that I think about it, I suspect it has something to do with the fact that my main peeps have been sick for the last couple of weeks. First my mom and now Bill. I've been nursing both of the patients -- which for me mostly means cooking enormous batches of soup, loading everyone up with Chinese herbs and kvetching loudly that no one is washing their hands often enough. Last week I produced multiple batches of matzoh balls for my poor sick mom, and now for the last three days I've been turning out pots of sizzling rice soup, meal after meal (luckily, Bill loves sizzling rice soup, or the repetition wouldn't be much of a comfort to him in his drippy, feverish state.)

I suddenly found myself making many of his faves yesterday -- fish with wild leek pesto, popovers, tom kha gai, and now this -- this apple cake that he loves best of all. I couldn't swear to it, but I believe the original recipe came out of the Settlement House Cookbook a million years ago. And did I mention that this apple cake, which my grandmother used to make for Rosh Hashanah, is also my mom's favorite thing to eat? Strangely, she and Bill have the same favorite foods, along with sharing the same hypervigilant, overly analytical nursemaid. Of course, this is the best apple cake in the world, so it isn't hard to love.

Anyway, since it is, in fact, Shavuot, let me quote Megillat Ruth by way of reminding my sick mother and my sick husband where I'm coming from and where it's at...

"But Ruth replied: Do not urge me to leave you or turn back from following you; for where you go, I will go, and where you lodge, I will lodge. Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God."

(Ohhhh...the righteousness...the righteousness...)

Ingredients:

6 apples
1 tablespoon cinnamon
pinch of allspice and nutmeg (optional)
1 cup raisins
5 tablespoons sugar

2 3/4 cups flour, sifted
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup vegetable oil
2 cups sugar, or a little less according to taste
1/4 cup apple juice
2 1/2 teaspoons vanilla
4 eggs
1 cup chopped walnuts (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease a bundt pan. Peel, core and chop apples into chunks. Toss with spices, raisins and sugar and set aside.

Stir together flour, baking powder and salt in a large mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk together oil, apple juice, sugar and vanilla. Mix wet ingredients into the dry ones, then add eggs, one at a time. Scrape down the bowl to ensure all ingredients are incorporated.

Pour half of batter into prepared pan. Spread half of apple/raisin mixture over it. Pour the remaining batter over the apples and arrange the remaining apples/raisins on top. Bake for about 1 1/2 hours, or until a tester comes out clean

Lemony Herbed Rice Salad

2009-05-24T06:32:00.000-07:00

I adapted this recipe from Viana La Place, adding a variety of fresh produce that was still warm from from Irwin's garden. It's a keeper -- light, fresh and full of flavor.

1 cup arborio rice
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
juice of 1/2 large or 1 small lemon
1 cup tightly packed flat-leaf parsley leaves, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup chopped chives
1/3 cup chopped fresh dill
1 cup chopped cooked vegetables (we had leftover steamed asparagus and broccoli, so I used those -- but it could have been any variety of vegetables, really)
1/3 cup green olives, coarsely chopped (optional)
1 tablespoon capers, rinsed and drained
grated zest of 1 lemon
Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the rice and simmer over moderate heat until just tender, about 14 minutes. Drain thoroughly.

In a large bowl, toss the rice with the olive oil and lemon juice. Stir in the fresh herbs and other ingredients and season with salt and pepper. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Lemon Bars

2009-05-23T16:04:00.000-07:00

I didn't have a camera at the ready to record Bill's exultant lemon bar dance, so this happy photo from last summer will have to suffice. Make these lemon bars. Do it now. They cause spontaneous dancing.

The warm filling has to be added to a warm crust for the chemistry to work out correctly, so start making the filling as soon as the crust goes into the oven. Be sure to cool the bars completely before cutting them.

Photo by Tim Connor
Recipe from Baking Illustrated (America's Test Kitchen, 2004)

FOR THE CRUST
1 1/4 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 cup confectioners' sugar, plus more to decorate the finished bars
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 stick unsalted butter, softened but still cool, cut into 1-inch pieces

FOR THE LEMON FILLING
7 large egg yolks, plus 2 large eggs
1 cup plus 2 tablespoon granulated sugar
2/3 cup from 4 or 5 medium lemons, plus 1/4 cup finely grated zest
1/2 stick unsalted butter, cut into 4 pieces
3 tablespoons heavy cream

1.To line a 9-inch square baking pan, fold two 16-inch pieces of foil or parchment paper lengthwise to measure 9 inches wide. Fit 1 sheet in the bottom of the greased pan, pushing it into the corners and up the sides of the pan (overhang will help in removal of baked bars). Fit the second sheet in the pan in the same manner, perpendicular to the first sheet. Spray the sheets with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Place the flour, confectioners' sugar, and salt in a food processor and process briefly. Add the butter and process to blend, 8 to 10 seconds, then process until the mixture is pale yellow and resembles coarse meal, about three 1-second pulses. Sprinkle the mixture into the prepared pan and press firmly with your fingers into an even layer over the entire pan bottom. Refrigerate for 30 minutes.

3. Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350°F. Bake the crust until golden brown, about 20 minutes.

MAKE THE FILLING
1. In a medium non-reactive bowl, whisk together the yolks and whole eggs until combined, about 5 seconds. Add the granulated sugar and whisk until just combined, about 5 seconds. Add the lemon juice, zest, and salt; whisk until combined, about 5 seconds. Transfer the mixture to a medium non-reactive saucepan, add the butter pieces, and cook over medium-low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until the curd thickens to a thin sauce-like consistency and registers 170°F (76°C) on an instant-read thermometer, about 5 minutes. Immediately pour the curd through a single-mesh stainless steel strainer set over a clean non-reactive bowl. Stir in the heavy cream; pour the curd into the warm crust immediately.
2. Bake until the filling is shiny and opaque and the center 3 inches jiggle slightly when shaken, 10 to 25 minutes, depending on too many factors to name. Cool on a wire rack to room temperature, about 45 minutes. Remove the bars from the pan using the foil or parchment handles and transfer to a cutting board. Cut into 2 1/2 inch squares, wiping the knife clean between cuts as necessary. Sieve confectioners' sugar over the bars, before serving. Makes 16 bars

Saag Paneer

2009-05-16T21:45:00.000-07:00

This is a much lighter version of saag paneer than you would get in an Indian restaurant, but the flavor is right on the money.

10 ounces frozen chopped spinach, defrosted
8 ounces paneer
1 large onion, chopped fine
2 tablespoons ginger garlic paste
1 tablespoon dried fenugreek leaves
peanut oil or ghee
2 teaspoon dhanna jheera powder or 1 tsp ground cumin and 1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 tsp mustard seeds
1/2 tsp red chili powder
tumeric
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 tsp salt, or to taste
1/4 tsp sugar, or to taste
condensed milk, to taste
tsp garam masala (optional)

Dice paneer into 1 inch cubes. (In restaurants, they fry the paneer cubes briefly in a pan to seal and lightly color the surface. One could do this, although I generally do not.) Drain on paper towels and set aside.

In a blender or food processor, puree the chopped onion, ginger garlic paste and fenugreek leaves with 2 tablespoons of water. Set aside.

Heat the oil or ghee in a heavy-bottomed medium saucepan, snf stir fry the pureed ingredients for 5 - 6 minutes. Add the dhanna jeera powder and stir fry for another 30 seconds. Add the spinach and stir fry until most of the liquid has evaporated, moving the mixture in the pan constantly so it does not burn. Add the tumeric and red chili powder, stirring for a minute. Add the tomato paste and warm water (only add the water if the mixture is too thick at this point)

Add the prepared spinach and stir constantly over a low heat for 5 minutes. Add the paneer cubes, salt and sugar to taste (add only enough sugar for a rounded flavour; the mixture should not taste sweet). Cook slowly for another 5 minutes. Finally, stir in the condensed milk (adding less or more depending on how thick and/orcreamy you like it). Sprinkle with garam masala and serve.

Serves 4 as part of a meal.

Bean Burgers

2009-05-10T12:26:00.001-07:00

Photo by Becky Luigart-Stayner

These taste significantly better than they look. In fact, I somehow scarfed two of them down while I was "testing" the recipe. I've been looking for a great bean burger recipe, to go along with those homemade whole wheat hamburger buns I've been turning out. We'll see if Bill likes them, too...

1-1/2 cups cooked beans of any kind
1 cooked potato (any sort, soft enough to mash)
1/2 yellow onion, minced
1 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup chopped cilantro
juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tablespoon cumin
cayenne to taste
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon chili powder
paprika to taste
1/3 cup cornmeal (enough to form patties)
1 ear of corn cooked & shaved
6 meatless meatballs, cooked and mashed

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Mash the the beans and potato together in a large bowl and set aside. In a food processor, pulse the garlic, onion, cilantro and lemon juice together until no big chunks are left. Add to the bean mixture. Add the spices and corn and taste for seasoning. Add the cornmeal and mashed vegetable meatballs and taste for seasoning. Form into patties of desired size. Put the patties on a parchment lined baking sheet and bake for 40 minutes.
Turn on the broiler and broil the patties for five minutes on each side. Serve on hamburger buns.

The pattie mix will keep well in the fridge for about a week.

Slow Cooker Moroccan Chicken 'Tagine' with Olives and Preserved Lemons

2009-05-10T12:10:00.000-07:00

Bill says this was even better than the food he ate in the prince's palace in Marakesh. (Awww...so sweet...)

8 chicken thighs, skin removed
2 tablespoons ginger garlic paste
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon adobo (optional)
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1/2 teaspoon cinammon
pinch of ground allspice
pinch of cayenne
1/4 cup salad oil
juice of 1 lemon

2 grated onions
1 Yukon Gold potato, peeled, cut in half lengthwise and each half cut crosswise into 3 wedges
1 cup chicken stock

1 - 2 preserved lemons, pulp removed and discarded, peel finely diced
1/2 cup mixed, chopped fresh cilantro and parsley
1 1/2 cups ripe green olives, pitted and diced small

1. The day before serving, remove the ceramic insert from the slow cooker. Layer the potato wedges on the bottom of the ceramic insert. Rub the chicken thighs with a paste made of the spices, oil and lemon juice. Stack the chicken pieces on top of the potatoes and pour any remaining marinade over all. Refrigerate, covered, overnight.

2. The next day, set the filled ceramic insert on the base of the slow cooker and turn to low heat. Add the grated onion and chicken stock. Cover and let cook for 6-8 hours. DO NOT LIFT THE LID DURING COOKING.

4. Add the olives and fresh herbs to the sauce when the chicken is very tender and the flesh falls easily from the bone. Continue cooking 5 to 10 minutes, uncovered.

5. Adjust for seasoning, and add more lemon juice, if desired, to taste. Pour the sauce over the chicken and serve at once, over couscous.

Coffee Cake for Mary

2009-05-08T08:56:00.000-07:00

John's mom, Mary Wieczorek, passed away this week. Her memorial service was this afternoon, and everyone present spoke very movingly about what a wonderful cook she was, how generous she was, and how much she will be missed.

I have some of her recipe cards here, for recipes she sent me at various moments. I am looking forward to making them, and to keeping her memory alive in that way.

I made a coffee cake to bring to the memorial, with a cinnamon chocolate streusel topping. It was an easy cake to make, but I sweated over every step, fully as much as if I had been making it to pass Mary's inspection. She had high standards and a great palate.

I'd like to think that she would have enjoyed the afternoon, the cake, the new rosebushes and her beautiful family and friends coming together to celebrate her life and her gifts.

Ingredients:

topping/filling:
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/2 cup chopped pecans
1/2 cup chocolate morsels
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1 stick of butter, softened
1 cup of vanilla sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
1 cup yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 tsp salt

butter or shortening for greasing pans

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
Blend the filling ingredients together and set aside. In a large bowl, cream together the butter and sugar. Add the eggs, one at a time, and mix well. Add the yogurt and vanilla and blend until smooth. Add the dry ingredients, and mix well. Turn half the batter out into either two greased loaf pans or one greased 8 inch square pan. Scatter half of the filling over the batter, then top with remaining batter. Bake for 15 minutes and then carefully top with the remaining filling mixture. Bake for 30 minutes or until the top is brown and the center is firm when pressed lightly. Let cool in the pan for five minutes and then turn out onto a rack to cool completely.

(Leftover) Rice Pudding

2009-05-01T18:30:00.000-07:00

This was a Tyler Florence recipe, until I started messing with the proportions and adding nutmeg and whatnot. Now it's just ridiculous. Rich and creamy and good. Bill says Viola used to make a baked leftover rice pudding that was out of this world. I'll get to that next.

3 cups white rice, cooked (I used jasmine rice, since that's what we had in the house)
3 cups milk
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup raisins
1 teaspoon vanilla extract or more, to taste
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Pinch of ground nutmeg

Combine cooked rice, milk, sugar and butter in a medium saucepan. Add raisins and vanilla. Cook for 25 minutes until most of the liquid is absorbed. Mix in 1/2 teaspoon of cinnamon and the ground nutmeg. Spoon pudding into a serving dish and dust with remaining cinnamon. Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Lagrimas Negras and Perfect Cuban Black Beans

2009-05-01T10:15:00.000-07:00

Today, on this date, I would normally be in Miami, en route to Havana. Every year for the last eight years, I've been teaching a film intensive at the EICTV during the week of my father's yarzteit, quietly mourning and celebrating at the same time, in one of the places where I feel most at home and most fulfilled. This year, for the first time, I cancelled my trip. There's a little too much going on in my life and not enough time to get everything done. I'll go to Cuba in November instead. It was the right decision, but I'm having a momentarily deep pang of regret nonetheless. I wasn't even aware of it, until I suddenly found myself loading up the pressure cooker with black beans this morning, and humming Lagrimas Negras under my breath. When I realized what I was doing, I burst into a chuckle. (Lord only knows what Bill thinks I'm doing, laughing by myself in the kitchen.)

Cuba is changing, of course, in unforeseeable ways, and people constantly ask me what I think will happen next. For me, the biggest changes have not involved the new administrations or the changing travel restrictions or the rising exchange rate of the dollar. The biggest change in this last period of time has been the dissolution of my Cuban family, as I have watched my closest friends in Havana (one of the happiest couples I have ever known) go through a bitter divorce and estrangement. Just last month one of them moved to Italy, taking their son Marcel with her, after several astonishing years and finally reaching the point of no-turning-back.

Now, I have many friends in Cuba, and I am always very happy to see them when I arrive, but my family, that beautiful and bright little jewel in La Vibora, is gone forever, and even now I mourn that loss.

This first week in May is Marcel's birthday, and this will be the first year out of his seven years of life that I am not there to celebrate with them. The houses have been sold, the parents have remarried, and I am left wondering what it means to still have these addresses in my head, ready to direct taxi drivers through the hills of La Vibora and Santo Suarez to homes that no longer exist: Calle Heredia, entre Infante y O'Farril. Estrada Palma entre Goicuria y Juan Delgado. These phones numbers I've known by heart for years - my first call when I land and the last before my plane takes off. The number I repeatedly ask the operator to dial during any kind of personal transition, so I can talk to my beloved sister: "cuarenta, ochenta, setenta y siete, por favor."

What will they eat in Padua on Marcel's birthday this year, I wonder. Will his father call from Cuba during the party? Will I call from New York, I, his auntie, who suggested that they name him Marcel after Duchamp? Will they sing Happy Birthday to him in Italian? I'll visit them all separately in Italy and in Cuba, of course, and life will go on. Of course, I know that. Of course. But how I miss that family and that home where I spent so very many happy hours talking, laughing, eating and feeling loved. I will always miss them as they were, that inimitable little constellation of stars.

I hope Marcel's parents find it in their hearts to forgive each other someday, as in the words of the bolero -- the one every Cuban knows how to sing, the one about leaving:

Aunque tu me has dejado en el abandono
aunque ya se han muerto todas mis ilusiones.

En vez de despedirme
con justo encono
en mis sueños te colmo
en mis sueños te colmo
de bendiciones.

Even though you have left me abandoned
even though all my hopes have died
instead of saying goodbye
with justified rage,
in my dreams I shower you
in my dreams I shower you with blessings.

Perfect Cuban Black Beans
Ingredients:
1 pound dried black beans
8 cups water
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 pieces smoked pork neck bones or 1 large ham hock
2 bay leaves

Sofrito:
1 1/2 cups chopped onion
1 1/2 cups chopped green bell pepper
3 cloves garlic, peeled, and mashed with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns
Olive oil for sautéing
(OR 1 jar of prepared sofrito instead of the previous 4 ingredients)

1 teaspoon oregano
1 teaspoon ground cumin
3 tablespoons vinegar
1 clove of garlic mashed to a paste (or garlic powder, to taste)
1/2 cup dry red wine (optional)
1 teaspoon sugar (optional)
olive oil (optional)
chopped cilantro and white onion for garnish (optional)

Combine dry beans with water, olives oil, bay leaves and pork bones in a 4 - 6 quart pressure cooker. Cook at high pressure for 22 minutes and let the pressure release naturally. Ideally, leave time for the beans to cool in the liquid. If there isn't time for this step, it is probably better to cook the beans at high pressure for 24 or 25 minutes instead of 22 minutes at the outset.

Meanwhile, prepare the sofrito if making it from scratch: chop onion and green pepper. Mash the garlic with salt and peppercorns in a mortar and pestle. Sauté the onions and green pepper in olive oil until the onions are translucent. Add mashed garlic and sauté for another minute or so.

When the beans have cooled slightly, remove the pork neck bones. Remove any edible meat from the bones. Discard the bones and chop the meat up finely, adding it back to the pot along with the sofrito, oregano, cumin, vinegar, and wine. Cover and simmer over low heat for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the finely mashed garlic clove or garlic powder, to taste.

Thicken the beans by taking about 1 cup of beans and mashing them to make a thick paste. Mix the mashed beans back into the pot. Add additional salt and pepper to taste.

Stir in the sugar; then drizzle a couple of tablespoons of olive oil over the beans. Immediately cover the pot, remove from heat, and let stand for 10 minutes. Serve the black beans over white rice, garnished with cilantro and chopped white onions.

English Muffins

2009-04-24T09:37:00.000-07:00

(Photo by Steve at Pulp Kitchen)

Bill asked for Eggs Florentine for his birthday breakfast last weekend, so I made my first-ever-English muffins as the foundation. MAN! The result was so wildly superior to those little cardboard mass-produced things, I couldn't even believe it. Nooks! Crannies! The whole nine.

(They're also incredibly easy to turn out, but please don't tell that to Bill. You just mix everything up and leave it to sit overnight. They cook on the griddle in the same time it would take to make pancakes. Ssshhh...he thinks I did something really fancy...)
(Adapted from the blog "Winos and Foodies")

Ingredients
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 cup warm water (between 105 and 115 degrees)
1/2 cup warm milk (same temperature range as the water)
2 1/3 cups bread flour
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt

In a small bowl, place yeast, sugar and half the water. With a fork, whisk until yeast is dissolved and cover with a towel for at least five minutes. Mixture should start to foam. Add remaining water and milk and cover for another five minutes.

In a large bowl, combine flours and salt. Add in yeast mixture. With a rubber spatula or your hands (or with a dough hook in the bowl of a standing mixer), gently mix ingredients, until just combined. Pour onto lightly floured work surface and knead for up to 8 minutes, or let the stand mixer do all the work if you are using one. the dough will be very soft.

Place dough into a lightly greased bowl and cover with plastic and a tea towel. Allow to double in size, at least 90 minutes, or alternatively, overnight.

Turn the dough out of the bowl onto a lightly floured surface and gently deflate. Roll into a rope at least one inch thick. You'll want no more than 8 or 9 pieces from the dough. Roll each piece into a ball and roll in cornmeal or rice flour. Place on a baking sheet and top with a second baking sheet for a second rise, about 20 minutes.

When ready to cook, heat a griddle or cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Lightly grease or use an oil spray.

Allow to cook on first side for about 10 minutes; you'll notice puffing and the first side getting golden. Flip onto second side using a spatula, and cook for about the same amount of time. Place cooked muffins in a tea towel to keep warm.

Open with a fork or serrated knife, and toast for best nook-and-cranny action.
These freeze beautifully for later use.

Tangy Creamed Spinach

2009-04-17T21:47:00.000-07:00

Of course, then I had to figure out the "Florentine" part of the eggs Florentine. I decided to go with a sort of faux creamed spinach with a poached egg on top, and no hollandaise. The creamed spinach was killer, and I'll make it again and again. I did miss the hollandaise, though, so next year I'll either have to work that out OR I'll make the creamed spinach a littler wetter, pile it into a broiler pan with a couple of indentations for the eggs to nestle in, and bake the eggs right on top with some parmesan and a little cream...We'll see.

In a large saute pan over medium heat, melt a tablespoon or so of butter and saute one small onion, finely diced, with 2 cloves of minced garlic until everything is soft and translucent. Stir in 16 ounces thawed and drained frozen spinach, and one crumbled beef boullion cube. Stir in 8 ounces sour cream, 1/4 cup parmesan (or more to taste), salt, pepper and garlic powder to taste.

This keeps well and is a good base for eggs florentine, or as a side dish or as a stuffing for fish fillets, etc...

Southern Black-Eyed Peas

2009-04-10T11:11:00.000-07:00

It is a sad fact that there is less and less soul food to be found in Harlem. I mean - in Harlem restaurants, at any rate. The old restaurants have mostly gone out of business, many of them just over the last year. Bill and I found this out the hard way, when I was craving biscuits one Sunday morning last fall, and we pounded the pavement for an hour, only to find that virtually all of our old haunts had closed. (Thank god for Margie's Red Rose Diner. I'll cry my eyes out when those screen doors close for good.)

The following week an article about the death of soul food in Harlem appeared in the NY times, with this beautiful photo by Chester Higgens, Jr.

M&G diner is/was just a few blocks from us, and Bill used to refer to it as his "office." The diner managed to stay open for 40 years, but is now permanently closed, and I guess we'll be turning out our own biscuits and salmon cakes and black-eyed peas from now on.

2 quarts water
1 pound black-eyed peas, soaked for at least 6 hours ahead of time, unless you are using a pressure cooker
1 large ham hock
3 slices uncooked bacon, diced
1 onion, peeled and roughly chopped
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 teaspoons creole seasoning
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
salt to taste

Combine all ingredients in a large pot. Cover and boil gently until peas are tender, stirring occasionally. This takes about 1 hour on the stove. I've also done it in the pressure cooker in much less time - you just have to be really careful not to overcook the peas which can happen easily. If using a pressure cooker, use a little less water and add a little oil so the beans won't foam up and clog the valve.

Remove the ham hock to a cutting board. While the hock is cooling, partially mash the peas to thicken the liquid. Continue to simmer the peas, uncovered, to reduce the liquid by half for a thick but still soupy consistency. Taste for seasoning AFTER the liquid has reduced down to the finished consistency.

While peas are simmering, cut any edible meat off the cooled ham hock, discarding everything else. Return the chopped meat to the peas.

Serve in bowls with biscuits for dipping.

10 Minute Naan

2009-03-29T17:20:00.000-07:00

Success! I'll be making this a LOT from now on. Easy, satisfying, delicious. Recipe to follow.

Dal Shorba (Indian Red Lentil Soup)

2009-03-28T10:31:00.000-07:00

Red lentils are always a good "welcome home" when Bill comes off the road. We ate this hearty soup with fresh, homemade naan. Hard to go wrong, really.

Adapted from a recipe by executive chef Vikram Sunderam of Rasika restaurant.

8 ounces dried red lentils (1 1/2 cups)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 medium onions, thinly sliced (about 3 cups)
1 3-inch piece peeled ginger root, finely chopped (about 3 tablespoons)
4 medium cloves garlic, minced (about 3 tablespoons)
3/4 pound tomatoes, coarsely chopped (about 2 1/2 cups)
1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
2 teaspoons Madras curry powder
2 teaspoons garam masala
1 teaspoon ground ginger
4 cups water, or as needed
1 medium green bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1/2- to 3/4-inch pieces
1 cup packed mint leaves (from 1/2 bunch)
1 cup packed cilantro leaves (from 1/2 bunch)
Salt
Lemon wedges and yogurt, for garnish

Rinse and drain the lentils; sort through them to discard any debris.

Heat the oil in a large (at least 4-quart) pot over medium-high heat until the oil shimmers. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, for 12 to 15 minutes, until they are golden brown; reduce the heat as needed to keep the onions from burning. Add the ginger and garlic and cook, stirring, for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the tomatoes, turmeric and curry powder; cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring to blend the spices. Add the water and bring the soup base to a boil.

Add the lentils to the soup base along with the bell pepper, mint and cilantro. Reduce the heat to medium or medium-low so the soup barely bubbles at the edges. Cook for about 20 minutes, until the lentils are tender.

Process the soup in batches in a blender until smooth, filling the blender no more than halfway; or use an immersion (stick) blender in the pot. Strain the soup through a fine-mesh strainer. Season to taste with salt; adjust the consistency with additional water as needed. Serve with lemon wedges.

Muttar Paneer

2009-03-28T09:09:00.001-07:00

Another keeper by Arvinda Chauhan. I might add some cubed potatoes next time for a little more body, but the flavors are pitch-perfect.

1 tbsp sunflower oil
3 to 5 whole green cardamom pods (optional)
5 to 6 dried curry leaves (optional)
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1/2 cup puréed fresh tomatoes
OR 1/4 cup canned ground tomatoes
1 tsp finely minced garlic
1 tsp finely minced fresh ginger
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp Indian chili powder or ground cayenne
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
1 tsp sea salt, or to taste
1 tsp granulated sugar
1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen peas
3/4 cup cubed paneer
1 cup light cream
1/4 cup water
1 tbsp chopped cilantro
1/2 tsp. garam masal

In a large sauté pan, heat oil over medium heat. Add cardamom pods and curry leaves (if using). Cook until golden brown. Add onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until caramelized, about 10 to 15 minutes.

Add tomatoes and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add garlic, ginger, ground coriander, cumin, chili powder, turmeric, salt and sugar. Stir and cook for 2 to 3 minutes. Add peas and paneer. Stir well. Stir in cream. Cover and cook for 10 minutes. Add water, stir and
simmer, uncovered, until the sauce is thick and creamy, about 8 to 10 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl and garnish with cilantro and a sprinkling of garam masala. Serve with naan and basmati rice.

Paneer at home

2009-03-28T09:07:00.000-07:00

This recipe, by the lovely Arvinda Chauhan, yields approximately 3/4 cup of cubed paneer, enough for the Mattar Paneer recipe above. Bill's been craving saag paneer lately, so I've got the paneer all ready to go. Couldn't be easier.

4 cups homogenized milk
1/4 cup white vinegar
1 teaspoon salt

Line a colander with a thin muslin or cheesecloth. Place colander
over a large bowl.
In a medium saucepan, bring milk to a boil. Turn off heat. Add
vinegar and salt and stir until the milk curdles. Pour and strain curdled
milk through cheesecloth. Twist cheesecloth tightly to extract as
much moisture from the paneer as possible.
Line a plate with another cheesecloth. Place paneer ball in centre
of plate and apply a heavy weight on top to form it into a block.
Allow paneer sit for 6 to 8 hours to drain out excess liquid. Remove
cheesecloth and gently cut paneer into cubes. Add to your
favourite Indian curry and enjoy!
Note: If not using immediately, place the block of pressed paneer
into an airtight container covered with whey and refrigerate for up to 4 days.

Chana Punjabi

2009-03-28T07:52:00.001-07:00

The Wednesday Chef's Chana Punjabi recipe looks hard to resist. Now that I've got the pressure cooker working overtime on dried garbanzos, I figure I could get this on the table (from scratch) in under an hour and for a fraction of the cost. Mmmm...

Serves 2

1 tablespoon canola oil or other vegetable oil
1 medium onion, chopped
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced ginger
1 small Thai bird chili, chopped or 1 jalapeño, seeded and chopped
2 large tomatoes, chopped or a 14-ounce can of diced tomatoes, drained
1 1/2 teaspoons paprika
1 teaspoon salt, or as needed
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon garam masala
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 15-ounce cans chickpeas, drained
2 tablespoons minced cilantro
Cooked rice for serving

1. In a medium saucepan over medium-low heat, heat oil and add onion. Sauté until translucent and soft, about 5 minutes. Add garlic, ginger and chili, and sauté until soft and fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add tomatoes and 1/4 cup water. Cover and cook until tomatoes are very soft, about 5 minutes, then remove from heat.

2. Purée mixture in blender or food processor until smooth. Return to pan and place over medium heat. Add paprika, 1 teaspoon salt, coriander, the garam masala, turmeric and lemon juice. Add chickpeas and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low.

3. Cover and simmer until sauce is thick and chickpeas are soft, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Stir pan about every 10 minutes, adding water as needed (up to 1 1/2 cups) to prevent burning. When ready to serve, sauce should be thick. If necessary, uncover pan and allow sauce to reduce for a few minutes, stirring frequently, until desired consistency. Stir in cilantro, adjust salt as needed and serve with cooked rice, if desired.

Basbousah for Carmen

2009-03-20T08:35:00.000-07:00

My friend Carmen got married last month. Her new husband is Egyptian, and for the last couple of years we've been talking about how much she loves his cooking, and about the merits of Middle Eastern food in general. This recipe, adapted from Joan Nathan, is one of their wedding presents. I'd like to think it's got a little touch of both of their cultures in it: semolina and almonds for him, and a drop of miel para la iyalocha. (Maferefun Ochun!) A honey-glazed cake for a happy home, with lots of love from me and Bill.

Cake:
2 cups cream of wheat
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 cup sour cream or yogurt
1/2 cup sugar
3 tablespoons melted unsalted butter
1/4 cup unseasoned bread crumbs
2 dozen blanched almonds (available in Middle Eastern stores)

Syrup:
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup honey
1 cups water
2 tablespoons orange flower water (or vanilla or even 1/2 cup lemon juice or orange juice -- if you use fruit juice, zest the rind of the fruit before you juice it and add a little minced zest to the cake batter. I added a shot of grand marnier to the syrup for an orange-infused basbousah last night, and it was divine.)

whipped cream for serving

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix together the cream of wheat and baking powder in a bowl. Add the sour cream, sugar and melted butter and mix well.

2. Grease a 10 inch round cake pan and dust with the bread crumbs. Pour in the filling and pat down until it is even. Make a diamond design by scoring the mix with a knife. Put one blanched almond in the center of each diamond. Bake for 30 - 45 minutes, until golden on top.

3.In the meantime, bring the sugar, honey and water to boil in a saucepan and let simmer until it is a thick syrup. Add the orange flower water or other flavoring.

4. As soon as the cake comes out of the oven, pour the syrup over it. Let stand until cool. Serve each diamond-shaped piece of cake with whipped cream.

Moroccan Eggplant Salad

2009-03-19T17:20:00.000-07:00

This Sephardic classic is always a major favorite on our seder table. I roast the eggplant on baking sheets instead of the more traditional (but unwieldy) pan-frying, and liberally apply ras el hanout from Sahadi's.

2 large eggplants
2 tablespons kosher salt
vegetable oil
1 small can tomato paste
2-3 cloves of garlic, mashed to a paste
juice of 2 lemons
1 tablespoon ground cumin
Harissa or dried red pepper flakes, to taste
1 tablespoon ras el hanout
1/2 cup chopped cilantro

Cut the eggplants in quarters, lengthwise and slice each long piece into 1/2 inch half slices cross-wise. Salt the slices and let sit in a strainer overnight. The next day, pat dry and spread out on a couple of sheet pans. Coat the slices lightly with vegetable oil and roast at 400 degrees until browned, turning once and making sure not to burn the slices. This can take anywhere from 15 - 25 minutes, depending on the weight and color of the pans and the oven.

(The recipe can be made up to this point a day before serving.)
Mix together the tomato paste, garlic, lemon juice, spices, and half of the chopped cilantro in a serving bowl. Add the eggplant slices, coating them with the tomato mixture. Garnish with the remaining chopped cilantro. Serve at room temperature. Serves 6

Arroz Con Pollo

2009-03-13T21:39:00.000-07:00

Photo by Brianna Rohlehr

I was very happy with the big steaming pot of arroz con pollo that we surprised James with up in Hastings-on-Hudson last weekend. (Did I mention that we love the Rohlehrs?)

It's a tricky dish, and all kinds of things can go wrong with the timing. I read somewhere that parboiled rice was the key, and it worked out very well, but I'm quite certain I can get it to work with regular rice next time.

Happy Birthday, James!

4 strips of bacon
1 chorizo link, cut in half lengthwise and sliced into thin half moons
8 chicken thighs, bone in, skin on
Salt, pepper, 4 cloves of garlic, pimenton, ground cumin, olive oil and white vinegar for marinating chicken
Olive oil for frying
1 large onion, chopped
1 large green pepper), chopped
5 cloves garlic mashed
1 (12 oz.) bottle of dark beer
3 1/2 cups rich chicken stock
1 (8-ounce) can of tomato sauce
1 teaspoon Bijol or 1 tablespoon annatto oil (for coloring)
1 bay leaf
2 teaspoons oregano
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 1/2 teaspoons salt (or more, to taste)
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1/3 cup pimento-stuffed green olives
3 1/2 cups of parboiled rice (or a slightly smaller quantity of regular long grain white rice)
1/2 - 3/4 cup frozen peas
1/3 cup roasted red peppers, cut into strips

Twelve to twenty-four hours ahead, combine the spices, oil and vinegar in a food processor or a mortar and process into a smooth paste. Rub the mixture all over the chicken and under the skin. Cover and keep refrigerated until about an hour prior to cooking. Let the chicken come to room temperature while prepping all the other ingredients.

Sauté the bacon and chorizo in a large frying pan. Reduce heat to low and let the fat render out -- about 10 minutes. Once the fat is released, remove the bacon and chorizo, increase temperature to medium-high and add the chicken to the hot bacon fat. Remove the chicken when it is browned on both sides.

Add a little olive oil to the same pan you fried the chicken in, and sauté the onion and green pepper until the onion is translucent. Add the mashed garlic and cook an additional minute or two, stirring frequently.

Take the chicken stock and beer and pour into a large covered pot. Add the browned chicken pieces, cooked onions and green pepper, tomato sauce, Bijol, bay leaf, oregano, cumin, salt, and pepper, bacon (crumbled, chorizo and olives. Bring everything to a rolling boil, reduce heat, cover and cook on low for 15 minutes.

Add the rice. Bring to a boil and reduce heat. When the rice has absorbed some of the liquid, cover and simmer on low for about 30-45 minutes, or until the rice is fully cooked. Add the frozen peas and red pepper strips during the last five minutes of cooking.

Birthday Cake

2009-03-13T08:16:00.001-07:00

We don't just love the Rohlehrs. We lurve them.

And we were very happy to be around to celebrate a particularly auspicious birthday with them last weekend.

I set out to make RLB's golden layer cake with white chocolate cream cheese buttercream, but...well, the best laid plans, you know...The night before the surpirse birthday lunch, the cakes went all kerflooey and sank to pancake height in the middle. I was pretty much beside myself until I came across a recipe for Dorie's Berry Surprise Cake. With that inspiration in mind, I quickly hollowed out the sunken layers, filled them with whipped cream and berries and frosted the whole assemblage with the white chocolate cream cheese buttercream. Considering that it was very nearly a complete disaster, I was extremely pleased with the results. Folks went back for seconds, so that's always a good sign. If I make "Rohlehr Cake" again, I'll make sponge cake layers, as Dorie intended.

Thanks to the magical Mrs. Rohlehr, for cooking up that surprise and letting us be a part of it. Here's to many, many more celebrations together.

Photos by Brianna Rohlehr

Seafood Chowder

2009-03-12T21:21:00.000-07:00

Chowdah! Just the sound of the word (combined with the sight of our beach) makes my heart race. I am so ready for summer.

5 slices of bacon, diced small
1 yellow onion, diced medium
1 Yukon Gold potato, peeled and diced medium
12 littleneck clams, scrubbed well
1/2 - 3/4 lb basa or cod filets, diced large
12 large shrimp, shelled and deveined
chicken or fish stock
cream
salt and pepper, to taste

Saute the bacon over medium heat in a large pan with a lid. After about two minutes, add the potatoes and onions to the pan, and saute everything together for a few minutes until the onions have begun to soften. Add the clams and just enough stock to barely cover the potatoes and onions, and come about 1/4 up the sides of the clams. This was about 2 cups last night, but could be a little more or less, depending on the size of the pan. Cook, covered for two minutes. Add the shrimp and fish and cream (I didn't measure the cream -- I would say it was about 1 1/4 cups) and cover and cook for four to five minutes longer. The clams should be open at this point. They may need up to a minute longer. At that point, discard any clams that have not opened.

Scallion Oil

2009-03-02T13:18:00.001-08:00

(Recipe by Eileen Yin Fei-Lo)
3 bunches of scallions, washed, dried, ends cut off, each scallion cut into 4 pieces
3 cups of peanut oil

Heat wok over medium heat. Add peanut oil, then add scallions. When the scallions turn brown, the oil is done. Strain the oil through a fine strainer into a bowl and allow it to cool to room temperature.

Pour the scallion oil into a glass jar and refrigerate until needed.

Chinese Baked Bun Dough

2009-03-02T13:14:00.000-08:00

(From the Dim Sum Dumpling Cookbook by Eileen Yin Fei Lo)
1 ½ teaspoons dry yeast
5 tablespoons sugar
1/3 cup hot water
1 1/3 cups high-gluten flour (Pillsbury Best Bread flour, enriched, bromide preferred)
1 small egg, beaten
3 ¾ tablespoons peanut oil

In a large mixing bowl, dissolve the yeast and sugar in hot water. Set in a warm place for 30 to 60 minutes, depending upon the outside temperature. (In winter the longer time will be required).

When yeast rises and a brownish foam forms on top, add flour, egg, and peanut oil, stirring continuously with your hand. Begin kneading. When the mass becomes cohesive, sprinkle a work surface with flour, place dough on it, and continue kneading. Knead for about 15 minutes, picking up dough with a scraper and sprinkling the work surface with flour to prevent sticking.

When smooth and elastic, place dough in a large bowl. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth and put it in a warm place to rise. Dough will take from 2 to 4 hours to rise, depending upon temperature (it will take longer in cold weather). Dough will perform better if stored overnight and used the next day.

Char Siu Hum Bao (Chinese Baked Roast Pork Buns)

2009-03-02T13:03:00.000-08:00

Were these just as savory as any char siu bao in Chinatown? As addictive as the taboo bao in The Untold Story? As traditional as the bao in Once Upon a Time in China? Well, I'd certainly like to think so, and I believe Bill will back me up on this point. (And really, after eating five bao in two days, he'd better back me up.) The recipe isn't complicated, it just takes a bit of time to complete all the steps. Well worth the effort, if you're far from a ready source of hot hum bao and need a fix.

Sauce Ingredients

2 teaspoons oyster sauce
¾ teaspoon dark soy sauce
2 teaspoons ketchup
1 ½ teaspoon sugar
Pinch of white pepper
3 tablespoons chicken broth
½ teaspoon sesame oil

Combine the sauce ingredients. Reserve.

For buns:

2 teaspoons peanut oil
1/3 cup onions, cut into ¼-inch dice
½ cup Roast Pork
1 Baked Bun Dough recipe
1 small egg, beaten
2 tablespoons Scallion Oil

Prepare Filling: Heat wok for 30 seconds over high heat. Add peanut oil and coat wok with spatula. When a wisp of white smoke appears, add onions, lower heat to low, and cook, turning occasionally, until onions turn light brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Add roast pork, raise heat, and stir-fry to combine the pork with the onions, about 1 minute. Add Shao-Hsing wine and mix well.

Lower heat, stir sauce mixture, and add to pork and onions. Stir until well mixed and sauce thickens and bubbles. Turn heat off. Remove mixture from wok and transfer to a shallow dish. Allow to cool to room temperature, then refrigerate for 4 hours, uncovered, or overnight, covered.

Prepare Buns: Preheat oven to 350F. Cut 8 squares of waxed paper, 3 ½ inch on a side.

Remove dough from bowl, knead several times, then roll it out with your hands into a sausage shape 8 inches long. Divide into 8 one-inch pieces. Work with one piece at a time, keeping others under a damp cloth.

Roll each piece into a ball, then with your fingers, press to create a dome and a well.
Place 2 teaspoons of pork filling into well. Hold bun in one hand and with the other turn the bun, pinching it closed. Pressh firmly to seal. Place completed bun, sealed side down, on a square of waxed paper. Repeat until all buns are made.

Place all buns on a cookie sheet, at least 2 inches apart, to allow for expansion. Put buns in a warm place for about 1 hour to permit them to rise. Using an atomizer, spray each bun lightly with warm water. With a pastry brush, brush each bun with beaten egg.
Bake for 15 to 20 minutes. Halfway through the baking time reverse the tray in oven. When buns are golden brown, remove them from the oven, and while still warm brush them with Scallion Oil. (As the buns cool, the crust tends to slightly harden. The brushing with Scallion Oil prevents hardening, as well as adding piquancy.) Serve immediately.

Char Shui

2009-02-28T12:01:00.000-08:00

(Recipe adapted from Eileen Yin Fei Lo)
2 ¼ pounds moderately fatty pork shoulder or butt
1 ½ tbsp. dark soy sauce
1 ½ tbsp. light soy sauce
1 ½ tbsp. honey
1 ½ tbsp. oyster sauce
2 tbsp. shao Hsing wine
3 ½ tbsp. hoisin sauce
½ tsp. five spice powder (I like Penzey’s brand)
black pepper to taste
red food coloring (optional)

Cut meat into strips 1 inch thick and seven inches long. Using a fork, tenderize meat by piercing all over. This also allows the sauce to penetrate.

Mix marinade ingredients into a ziplock bag large enough to hold meat.

Place meat in bag, mush it all around in the marinade so it is all covered, then push out all of the air, seal bag and leave it in the refrigerator for twenty four hours.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place roasting rack on rimmed cookie sheet, and drape meat over it. Roast for 20 minutes, until the meat is done. Baste the meat as it cooks a couple of times with some of the marinade. Allow to cool after it is done, then cover and refrigerate until needed.

Tangy Red Lentil Soup With Niçoise Olives

2009-02-28T11:48:00.000-08:00

Once a month, when I know I'm going to be home for a couple of hours, I make a big batch of rich chicken stock, using the Edna Lewis method. Last week there was an article in the NYT about how making stock is (supposedly) too much work, results in too many pots to wash and is altogether not worth the effort. Along with the article they listed a number of soup recipes in which the bones cook right along with the soup, instead of requiring the separate step of making stock first and then soup later.
This was one of those recipes, and I'm here to tell you, people: TAKE THE TIME TO MAKE A BIG BATCH OF STOCK ONCE A MONTH WHILE YOU'RE WATCHING A VIDEO OR CONDITIONING YOUR HAIR. There is no substitute in terms of depth of flavor. I had to triple the amount of tomato paste called for and add a whole mess of salt to this recipe just to give it flavor. Other than that, it was pretty good. A nice occasional change from our Turkish red lentil standard. The olive garnish is very cute.

1 large celery stalk, finely chopped
1 large carrot, unpeeled, finely chopped
1 large onion, finely chopped
3 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt to taste
1 small can tomato paste
1 pound red lentils, rinsed
1 pound chicken backs
4 thyme sprigs
2 lemons, halved
1/4 cup whole niçoise olives.
Pimenton, for garnish
1. In a 4-quart saucepan, combine celery, carrot, onion, garlic, olive oil and salt. Cover and cook over low heat, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 10 minutes. Stir in tomato paste and cook 1 minute. Add lentils, chicken backs, 8 cups water and thyme, and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered, until lentils have broken down, about 30 minutes.

2. Discard thyme sprigs. Remove chicken backs, remove meat from bones, chop meat and return meat to soup. Using an immersion blender, partially purée soup. Taste and add salt if needed. Ladle soup into bowls, squeeze in lemon juice and serve topped with olives.

Yield: 8 servings.

Lighter Potato Gratin

2009-02-25T20:18:00.001-08:00

This was a major hit. Bill is now fully on board in regard to the superiority of the Yukon Gold potato.

Onion mixture:
1 Tbsp butter
1 big onion, sliced thinly
3 garlic cloves, smashed and chopped finely
Salt and pepper

Bechamel:
2 Tbsp butter
3 Tbsp flour
2 cups milk (I used skim)
1 tsp red chili flakes
Salt & pepper

4 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and sliced thinly (approximately 1/4 inch rounds)

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Lightly butter an 8x8 inch baking dish.

Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and cook slowly until caramelized. Add the garlic and cook for 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, in another pan, prepare the bechamel sauce/white sauce by melting the butter, blending in the flour & adding the milk gradually while stirring constantly till the mixture thickens, 3-4 minutes. Add salt, pepper and red chilli flakes and cook for 1-2 minutes, stirring frequently.

Arrange half of the potato rounds in a layer, slightly overlapping in the baking dish, and season with generous amounts of salt and pepper. Spoon half of the onion mixture over the potatoes. Repeat to make a second layer with the remaining potatoes, season, and sprinkle the rest of the caramelized onions over the top.

Pour the white sauce as evenly as possible all over the potatoes.

Bake for 50 to 60 minutes, until the liquid is absorbed, potatoes are tender and the surface is golden/lightly browned. Let stand 10 minutes before serving

Hertzberg Boule

2009-02-17T17:16:00.000-08:00

I've been baking fresh bread every few days since the Hertzberg book arrived. Let them eat sammiches!

Makes four 1-pound loaves. The recipe is easily doubled or halved.

3 cups lukewarm water
1-1/2 tablespoons granulated yeast (1-1/2 packets)
1-1/2 tablespoons kosher or other coarse salt
6-1/2 cups unsifted, unbleached, all-purpose white flour, measured with the scoop-and-sweep method
Cornmeal for pizza peel

Mixing and Storing the Dough

1. Warm the water slightly: It should feel just a little warmer than body temperature, about 100°F. Warm water will rise the dough to the right point for storage in about 2 hours. You can use cold tap water and get an identical final result; then the first rising will take 3 or even 4 hours. That won't be too great a difference, as you will only be doing this once per stored batch.

2. Add yeast and salt to the water in a 5-quart bowl or, preferably, in a resealable, lidded (not airtight) plastic food container or food-grade bucket. Don't worry about getting it all to dissolve.

Boule

3. Mix in the flour—kneading is unnecessary: Add all of the flour at once, measuring it in with dry-ingredient measuring cups, by gently scooping up flour, then sweeping the top level with a knife or spatula; don't press down into the flour as you scoop or you'll throw off the measurement by compressing. Mix with a wooden spoon, a high-capacity food processor (14 cups or larger) fitted with the dough attachment, or a heavy-duty stand mixer fitted with the dough hook until the mixture is uniform. If you're hand-mixing and it becomes too difficult to incorporate all the flour with the spoon, you can reach into your mixing vessel with very wet hands and press the mixture together. Don't knead. It isn't necessary. You're finished when everything is uniformly moist, without dry patches. This step is done in a matter of minutes, and will yield a dough that is wet and loose enough to conform to the shape of its container.

Allow to rise: Cover with a lid (not airtight) that fits well to the container you're using. Do not use screw-topped bottles or Mason jars, which could explode from the trapped gases. Lidded plastic buckets designed for dough storage are readily available (see page 14 of the book). Allow the mixture to rise at room temperature until it begins to collapse (or at least flattens on the top), approximately 2 hours, depending on the room's temperature and the initial water temperature. Longer rising times, up to about 5 hours, will not harm the result. You can use a portion of the dough any time after this period. Fully refrigerated wet dough is less sticky and is easier to work with than dough at room temperature. So, the first time you try our method, it's best to refrigerate the dough overnight (or at least 3 hours), before shaping a loaf.

The scoop-and-sweep method gives consistent results without sifting or weighing. It's easier to scoop and sweep if you store your flour in a bin rather than the bag it's sold in; it can be hard to get the measuring cups in a bag without making a mess. Also: Don't use an extra-large 2-cup-capacity measuring cup, which allows the flour to overpack and measures too much flour.

Relax! You do not need to monitor doubling or tripling of volume as traditional recipes.

Boule
On Baking Day

5. The gluten cloak: don't knead, just "cloak" and shape a loaf in 30 to 60 seconds. First, prepare a pizza peel by sprinkling it liberally with cornmeal (or whatever your recipe calls for) to prevent your loaf from sticking to it when you slide it into the oven.

Sprinkle the surface of your refrigerated dough with flour. Pull up and cut off a 1-pound (grapefruit-size) piece of dough, using a serrated knife. Hold the mass of dough in your hands and add a little more flour as needed so it won't stick to your hands. Gently stretch the surface of the dough around to the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter-turn as you go. Most of the dusting flour will fall off; it's not intended to be incorporated into the dough. The bottom of the loaf may appear to be a collection of bunched ends, but it will flatten out and adhere during resting and baking. The correctly shaped final product will be smooth and cohesive. The entire process should take no more than 30 to 60 seconds.

6. Rest the loaf and let it rise on a pizza peel: Place the shaped ball on the cornmeal-covered pizza peel. Allow the loaf to rest on the peel for about 40 minutes (it doesn't need to be covered during the rest period). Depending on the age of the dough, you may not see much rise during this period; more rising will occur during baking ("oven spring").

7. Twenty minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 450°F, with a baking stone placed on the middle rack. Place an empty broiler tray for holding water on any other shelf that won't interfere with the rising bread.

8. Dust and slash: Unless otherwise indicated in a specific recipe, dust the top of the loaf liberally with flour, which will allow the slashing knife to pass without sticking. Slash a 1/4-inch-deep cross, "scallop," or tic-tac-toe pattern into the top, using a serrated bread knife.

9. Baking with steam: After a 20-minute preheat, you're ready to bake, even though your oven thermometer won't yet be up to full temperature. With a quick forward jerking motion of the wrist, slide the loaf off the pizza peel and onto the preheated baking stone. Quickly but carefully pour about 1 cup of hot water from the tap into the broiler tray and close the oven door to trap the steam. Bake for about 30 minutes, or until the crust is nicely browned and firm to the touch. Because you've used wet dough, there is little risk of drying out the interior, despite the dark crust. When you remove the loaf from the oven, it will audibly crackle, or "sing," when initially exposed to roomtemperature air. Allow to cool completely, preferably on a wire cooling rack, for best flavor, texture, and slicing. The perfect crust may initially soften, but will firm up again when cooled.

10. Store the remaining dough in the refrigerator in your lidded (not airtight) container and use it over the next 14 days: You'll find that even one day's storage improves the flavor and texture of your bread. This maturation continues over the 14-day storage period. Refrigerate unused dough in a lidded storage container (again, not airtight). If you mixed your dough in this container, you've avoided some cleanup. Cut off and shape more loaves as you need them. We often have several types of dough storing in the refrigerator at once. The dough can also be frozen in 1 pound portions in an airtight container and defrosted overnight in the refrigerator prior to baking day.

VARIATION: HERB BREAD.

Follow the directions for mixing the Boule dough and add 1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves (2 teaspoons fresh) and 1/2 teaspoon dried rosemary leaves (1 teaspoon fresh) to the water mixture.

You can also use herbs with the other bread recipes in this chapter.

Creme Brulee

2009-02-14T06:45:00.001-08:00

This really couldn't really be any easier, but it never fails to impress. (And Bill likes playing with the butane torch.) Niall says people like creme brulee because its vanilla pudding you get to order in French -- i.e., familiar comfort food dressed up as a sophisticated dessert. We surprised Gloria with creme brulee on V-Day this year. A hit!

9 egg yolks
3/4 cup superfine white sugar plus 6 tablespoons
1 quart heavy cream
1 vanilla bean

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. In a large bowl, cream together egg yolks and sugar with a whisk until the mixture is pale yellow and thick.

Pour cream into a medium saucepan over low heat. Using a paring knife, split the vanilla bean down the middle, scrape out the seeds and add them to saucepan. Bring cream to a brief simmer, do not boil or it will overflow. Remove from heat and temper the yolks by gradually whisking the hot vanilla cream into yolk and sugar mixture. Do not add hot cream too quickly or the eggs will cook.

Divide custard into 6 (6-ounce) ramekins, about 3/4 full. Place ramekins in a roasting pan and fill pan with enough water to come halfway up the sides of the ramekins. Bake until barely set around the edges, about 40 minutes. You may want to cover loosely with foil to prevent browning. Remove from oven and cool to room temperature. Transfer the ramekins to the refrigerator and chill for 2 hours. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of sugar on top of each chilled custard. Hold a kitchen torch 2 inches above surface to brown the sugar and form a crust. Garnish with cookies and fresh fruit. Serve at once.

Variation: Before dividing into ramekins: add 3 ounces of shaved dark chocolate for chocolate creme brulee; add 4 slices of crystallized ginger for ginger creme brulee; add 3 slices of orange peel for orange creme brulee. Let steep 20 minutes to infuse the flavor. Strain out the ginger and orange peel before baking.

Lemony Shrimp with White Beans and Couscous

2009-02-13T15:01:00.000-08:00

Adapted from Real Simple
Photo by Kan Kanbayashi

1 10-ounce box couscous (1 1/2 cups)
2 cups chicken broth
Kosher salt, cayenne pepper and pimenton to taste
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 cloves garlic, sliced thin
4 scallions, chopped
1 pound medium shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 15.5-ounce can cannellini beans, rinsed
3/4 cup fresh flat-leaf parsley
Juice of 2 lemons

30 minutes before cooking, marinate the shrimp in half the lemon juice and the spices.

In a saucepan, bring 2 chicken stock to a boil. Stir in the couscous. Cover and let sit off heat for 5 minutes; fluff with a fork before serving.

Meanwhile, heat 1 tablespoon of the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and scallions and cook for 30 seconds. Add the shrimp and cook, stirring, until they begin to turn pink, about 3 minutes.

Stir in the beans, parsley, lemon juice, the remaining butter, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Cook until heated through, 2 to 3 minutes. Adjust for seasoning. Serve with the couscous.

Yield: Makes 4 servings

Sticky Spiked Double-Apple Cake with a Brown Sugar-Brandy Sauce

2009-02-12T12:01:00.000-08:00

The photo of this outrageous and unparalleled cake came from Apartment Therapy's The Kitchn, but the recipe itself is pure Regan Daley. SO moist. SO good. A new favorite.

1 cup raisins
1/3 cup brandy
1 cup unsulphured dried apple slices (if only rings are available, cut them in half)
1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 cups all purpose flour, sifted
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves (preferably freshly ground)
1-1/2 cups tightly packed dark brown sugar
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3/4 cup coarsely chopped pecans, toasted
2 medium sized tart cooking apples, such as Northern Spy or Rome Beauty, one peeled, one unpeeled, both cored and cut into 1/2 inch pieces

Additional unsalted butter, at room temperature, for greasing the pan

Brown Sugar-Brandy Sauce (recipe below) warmed slightly, to serve.

In a small bowl, soak the raisins in the brandy for 45 minutes. Add the dried apple slices and macerate for a further 15 minutes. Do not drain!

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Butter a 9 x 13 inch pan and line the bottom and up the two long sides with a sheet of parchment paper, letting the paper hang over the edges by an inch or so. Lightly butter the paper. In a small bowl, sift together flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, and cloves together into a bowl and set aside.

In a large bowl with a hand held electric mixer or whisk, or in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, blend both sugars. Add the eggs and beat on medium speed until thickened and pale, about 2 minutes with a machine, 4 to 5 minutes by hand. Add the cooled melted butter and mix to blend. Fold in the dry ingredients in two additions, mixing just enough to moisten most but not all of the flour. Add the dried fruit and brandy mixture, chopped pecans, and diced fresh apple, then fold them into the batter with long, deep strokes. Don’t fret about the ratio of fruit to batter — there is a remarkable amount of fruit but it bakes into a wonderfully chewy cake.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan and set in the center of the oven. Bake for 1 hour and 10 minutes to 1 hour and 20 minutes, or until the center springs back when lightly touched, a tester inserted into the center comes out clean and the cake is beginning to pull away from the sides of the pan. Transfer to a wire rack and cool. This cake keeps beautifully, well wrapped, at room temperature for up to 5 days, although it is best within 2 or 3. Serve warm or at room temperature with a healthy pour of the warm Brown Sugar-Brandy Sauce. Makes enough for 10 to 12 people (or 2, if you give them a couple of days ...).

Brown Sugar-Brandy Sauce
Makes about 2-1/4 cups

1/3 cup unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 cup tightly packed dark brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
2/3 cup heavy cream (36%)
2-1/2 tablespoons brandy

Combine the butter, sugars and cream in a small, heavy bottomed saucepan. Stir this mixture over low heat until the sugar dissolves, then increase the heat to medium and bring the sauce to a very gentle boil, stirring all the while. Cook 5 more minutes, then remove from the heat and stir in the brandy or other liqueur. Serve immediately, or cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate until needed, up to 3 days. To rewarm, either microwave the uncovered sauce on low power or transfer the cold caramel to a saucepan and stir over low heat until warm.

Serves 10 to 12

Chocolate Chip Raisin Cookies

2009-02-11T12:02:00.000-08:00

These cookies, which were baked in honor of Marianne's birthday, led to a moment of extreme pride for Bill as I handed him a hot cookie while he was sitting on the couch, watching the football game with his feet up last Sunday. He said he felt like calling up all his friends to brag about how good he's got it. Uninterrupted football plus hot cookies equal one happy Toles.
Marianne liked them too, and she's a much tougher critic.
Before I started meddling, this was an Alice Medrich recipe.
Alice writes:
"These cookies are especially delicious if you chill the dough overnight before baking. And for the best cookies of all - that is, the ones that are brown and crunchy at the edges and chewy in the centers - eschew parchment paper, silicone-coated pan liners, and/or cushioned pans, and simply bake on unlined, ungreased baking sheets."

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 t. baking soda
1/2 pound (2 sticks) unsalted butter, melted and still warm
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
3/4 t. salt
2 large eggs
1 t. vanilla extract
2/3 cup bittersweet chocolate chips, chunks or morsels
1 cup (4 ounces) finely chopped pecans
1 cup raisins

Mix the flour and baking soda together thoroughly. Set aside.

In a large bowl, combine the melted butter, sugars and salt. Stir in the eggs and vanilla. Stir in the flour mixture just until all of the dry ingredients are moistened, then stir in the chocolate, nuts and raisins. If possible, cover and chill the dough for at least 2 hours, preferably overnight.

Position the oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven and preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Remove the dough from the refrigerator to soften.

Scoop up level tablespoonfuls of dough and place them 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheets. Bake, rotating the cookie sheets from top to bottom and front to bak about halfway through the baking time, for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the cookies are golden brown at the edges and no longer look wet on top. Use a metal pancake turner to transfer the cookies to a wire rack and let cool completely. (The cookies keep, in a tightly sealed container, for several days.)
Makes about 60 cookies

Blue Kitchen's Roasted Cauliflower and Dill Soup

2009-02-08T19:59:00.000-08:00

For the full story on how this lush and hearty soup came into being, check out Blue Kitchen's fascinating site at www.blue-kitchen.com. I made a few strategic adaptations to punch up the flavor: more garlic, with the tiniest little bit stirred in right before serving, twice as much dill, more pure chicken broth -- but essentially it's still Blue Kitchen's creamy Polish-inspired cauliflower soup, and it is absolutely fantastic.

1 head of cauliflower broken into florets, about 6 cups
3 carrots, peeled and cut into bite-sized chunks
olive oil
freshly ground black pepper
1 medium yellow onion, chopped fine
4 cloves garlic, minced and then pounded into a paste
5 cups chicken stock
2/3 cup chopped fresh dill
salt to taste

Preheat oven to 400ºF. Drizzle vegetables with olive oil and toss to coat. Spread into a single layer in a large roasting pan [or onto a large baking sheet with a rim] and season with pepper. DON’T add salt at this point. Roast vegetables in the middle of the oven until tender and golden brown, stirring occasionally, for about 35 - 45 minutes. Remove from oven. The soup can be made a day ahead up to this point; cool vegetables slightly, then cover and refrigerate.

Peel and chop onion and garlic while the cauliflower mixture roasts. When it’s ready, heat a large, heavy pot or dutch oven over a medium flame. Add a tablespoon of olive oil and sauté onion until softened and translucent, 3 to 5 minutes. Add 95 percent of the minced garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 45 seconds. Add cauliflower mixture to pot, along with broth and water. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to low to let soup simmer for 20 minutes or so.

Toward the end of this time, carefully ladle out 3 cups of cauliflower and broth and purée it in a food processor or blender. Avoid puréeing any of the carrots with the cauliflower and broth. Return the purée to the soup pot and stir to blend. Remove from heat, stir in the fresh dill and the last little bit of the minced garlic and adjust for seasoning. Serve hot.

Beatrice Ojakangas's Whole Wheat Hamburger Buns

2009-02-07T22:10:00.000-08:00

I've been following Beatrice Ojakangas's baking books for so long, I feel like I know her; like we're family. Before Peter Reinhart and Jim Lahey had even learned to say poolish, Beatrice Ojakangas was already an expert in the field. She grew up baking bread every day on a working farm in Minnesota, immersed in the Scandinavian traditions of baking, and with the innate talent and curiosity of a natural innovator. Beatrice understands bread so thoroughly from a hands on perspective, that all of her instructions are clear and simple - a rarity in books about serious bread baking. Processes that become hopelessly complicated in other writers' hands (like sourdough, for instance. As soon as someone mentions percentages of hydration my brain shuts right off) are revealed to be as easy as stirring together a cup of this, a cup of that, and waiting for three days. Now that's what I'm talking about. Her recipes are so well-tested that you cannot fail if you follow her directions. (That means you, John!)The hamburger buns? Perfect.
1 packet active dry yeast
1/2 cup warm water, heated to 105 to 115 degrees
1/2 cup milk, scalded and cooled to 105 to 115 degrees
1/3 cup butter, softened
1/4 cup sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup whole wheat flour
2 1/2 cups a ll purpose flour
In a large mixing bowl, disolve yeast in warm water. Let stand for five minutes until the yeast foams. Add the milk, butter, sugar, egg, whole wheat flour and salt. Blend well. Add the all purpose flour to make a stiff dough. Turn out onto a floured surface and knead until smooth, about five minutes. Wash the mixing bowl, grease it, and put the dough in the bowl, turning it over to grease the top of the dough. Loosely cover with a towel and set in a warm place. Let rise until doubled in size, about one to one and a half hours.Punch down and divide dough into 12 balls (24 for dinner rolls)
Space 3 inches apart on a greased baking sheet and flatten slightly. Let rise for one hour.
Bake at 400 degrees for 12 to 15 minutes. (20-25 minutes at 375 degrees for dinner rolls)

Overnight Steel-cut Oatmeal

2009-02-07T22:03:00.001-08:00

1 cup steel cut oats
1 cup dried cranberries
1 cup raisins or dried blueberries
3 cups water
1/2 cup milk
cinnamon, to taste
maple syrup or brown sugar, to taste

The slow cooker saves the day again! (Or at least it saves the thirty minutes we would normally take to make steel cut oatmeal for breakfast.) This method works best if you turn on the slow cooker before you go to bed. This way your oatmeal will be finished by morning. In a slow cooker, combine all ingredients and set to low heat. Cover and let cook for 8 to 9 hours. Stir and serve.

Perfect Brown Rice

2009-02-07T17:49:00.000-08:00

"Cooking brown rice, or at least cooking it well, is tricky. The goal is to soften the texture of each grain's fibrous bran coating—a process that takes longer than that called for in the cooking of white rice—without causing the rice to become mushy. Unfortunately, the labels on most packaged brown rice recommend an ineffective method that suggests boiling water and rice in a two-to-one ratio, then allowing the mixture to simmer for 40 minutes or more, until all the liquid is absorbed. We followed those directions and ended up throwing away more than a few pots of unsatisfying rice. What we ultimately found is that brown rice looks and tastes the best when it has been boiled and drained like pasta and then steamed in the small amount of moisture that remains in the pot. The boiling cooks the rice, while the subsequent steaming allows the grains to retain their integrity and come out light and fluffy."

1 cup short, medium, or long-grain brown rice
Kosher salt, to taste

1. Rinse rice in a strainer under cold running water for 30 seconds. Bring 12 cups water to a boil in a large pot with a tight-fitting lid over high heat. Add the rice, stir it once, and boil, uncovered, for 30 minutes. Pour the rice into a strainer over the sink.

2. Let the rice drain for 10 seconds, then return it to the pot, off the heat. Cover the pot and set it aside to allow the rice to steam for 10 minutes. Uncover the rice, fluff with a fork, and season with salt.

This recipe was first published in Saveur in Issue #111

Tomatoes Stuffed with Brown Rice and Feta

2009-01-29T15:59:00.000-08:00

This is my new favorite thing to eat. Saveur says "When making this dish, use firm tomatoes; if they're too soft, the tomatoes may collapse when baked. We suggest using a creamy, less briny French feta in the rice filling to round out the tomatoes' tanginess, but any good-quality feta will do." I strongly suggest adding 1/2 a cup of chopped dill. That addition somehow makes it taste like you're eating a little bowl of spanikopita filling -- and really, what could be better than that?
(Photo by Andre Baranowsky)

1 tbsp. plus 1⁄3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
6 large firm beefsteak tomatoes
Kosher salt, to taste
2 1⁄2 cups cooked, cooled Short-Grain Brown Rice
1 1⁄2 cups roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves
3⁄4 cup crumbled feta
1⁄2 cup plus 2 tbsp. chopped fresh mint
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1. Rub the inside of a 3-quart baking dish with 1 tbsp. of the oil and set aside. Using a serrated knife, cut off the top third of each tomato and discard the tops. Cut 1⁄8" off the bottom of each tomato so that they'll sit upright in the baking dish; discard bottoms. Using a small spoon (a grapefruit spoon works the best), scoop out the seeds and pulp from each tomato and discard. Sprinkle the insides of each tomato with a little salt. Place the tomatoes upside down on a plate layered with paper towels and let them sit for 30 minutes to extract excess tomato juice, which may make the filling soggy.

2. Meanwhile, heat the oven to 400° and make the rice filling: Stir together the remaining olive oil, rice, parsley, feta, mint, and garlic and season with salt and pepper. (You should have about 4 cups of the rice mixture.) Arrange the tomatoes in the prepared baking dish, cut sides up, and fill each with about 2⁄3 cup of the rice mixture, mounding the tops slightly. Using a small brush, coat the tomatoes with some of the olive oil from the baking dish. Bake the tomatoes until the filling begins to bubble and brown lightly and the tomatoes soften, about 45 minutes. Serve hot or at room temperature. Serves 6.
This recipe was first published in Saveur in Issue #111

The Best Oatmeal Cookies

2009-01-28T20:41:00.001-08:00

I read somewhere that using melted butter results in a soft and chewy cookie, and I can now confirm that important fact at the god's honest truth.

1/3 cup brown sugar
1 1/4 cups rolled oats
1/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. baking soda
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted
1 tbsp. light corn syrup
1 large egg
1/2 tbsp. vanilla extract
1 cup white chocolate chips or raisins
1 cup dried cranberries

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. and line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

In a food processor, process the brown sugar, 1/2 a cup of the oatmeal and the granulated sugar until it’s very fine; set aside.

In another bowl, sift together the flour, the salt and the baking soda. Add in the remaining oats and set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer, combine the butter and the corn syrup. Mix with the paddle attachment until light and fluffy (about 3 minutes).

With the mixture on low speed, add the processed oatmeal mixture and mix until combined.

Add the egg and vanilla extract and mix until just combined.

With the mixture on low speed, add the remaining dry ingredients and mix until just combined (don’t overmix).

With a wooden spoon, mix in the chips and cranberries.

Roll dollops of the cookie dough into balls and place them onto the cookie sheets, leaving about 2 inches between cookies. You can make these as large or small as you like.

Bake the cookies for 10 minutes (keeping an eye on them so they don’t burn if you’ve made small cookies). When they’re done they should be slightly golden around the edges.

Remove the cookie sheets from the oven and let rest on a rack for 10 minutes before transferring the cookies to a wire rack to cool completely. Let your cookie sheets cool and then repeat with the remaining batter.

Deborah Madison's Pan-Seared Tofu with Thai Red Curry Glaze

2009-01-27T20:55:00.000-08:00

I pan-seared the tofu as described below, but then switched up at the last minute and added a Thai-inspired cashew sauce instead of the red curry glaze in the recipe. Hard to go wrong with anything by Deborah Madison. The red curry glaze is killer too.

1 one-pound package firm or extra-firm tofu, drained
1/4 cup coconut milk
1/4 cup chicken stock
1 tablespoon fish sauce
1 tablespoon lime juice
1 teaspoon Thai red curry paste
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon peanut oil
Minced cilantro for garnish

1. Cut tofu widthwise into six slices.

2. Combine coconut milk, stock, fish sauce, lime juice, curry paste and sugar in small bowl, and set aside.

3. Heat oil in large nonstick skillet until shimmering. Add tofu, and cook over medium heat until golden brown, 6 to 7 minutes. Turn and cook about 5 minutes more.

4. Add coconut milk mixture to pan and simmer, turning tofu once, until liquid reduces to thick syrup and tofu is glazed, about 2 minutes. Transfer tofu to serving platter, and scrape the glaze left in pan over tofu. Garnish with minced cilantro and serve immediately.

Thai-style Cashew Sauce

2009-01-26T21:05:00.002-08:00

Cashew butter
Water
Soy sauce
Thai fish Sauce
Coconut milk
Thai roasted chili paste
Thai red curry paste
Lemon juice
minced garlic
minced scallion

"Floaters" -- or -- the best possible matzo ball soup

2009-01-26T12:30:00.001-08:00

My secrets for authentic matzoh ball perfection? Fresh dill, proper seasoning, chicken fat instead of olive oil and egg whites beaten to stiff peaks. Go forth and float, meine kinder...

1 cup matzo meal
4 large eggs, separated
1/4 cup oil (For maximum flavor, I like use the chicken fat that congeals on the surface of my homemade stock here, but olive oil works just fine too.)
1/4 cup water (some people use seltzer. I don't see a noticeable difference.)
1 scant tablespoon salt
4 dashes fresh ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/3 cup chopped fresh dill

Soup
10 cups homemade chicken stock
1 chicken bouillon cube
2 carrots, peeled and cut into large chunks
1/4 cup chopped fresh dill

Mix matzo meal together with the salt, pepper and garlic. Taste the mixture. It should taste slightly overseasoned at this point. In a small bowl, beat the egg yolks and oil until doubled in volume and mix into the matzo meal mixture. Add the chopped dill and water. In a separate bowl beat the egg whites to stiff peaks with an electric mixer, making sure that both the bowl and the beaters are very clean and have no trace of grease on them before beginning. Fold the beaten egg whites into the matzo meal mixture in three batches, folding the last batch in very gently so the mixture maintains its volume. Refrigerate for 1/2 to 1 hour.

Bring chicken stock to a boil and add the boullion cube.
Moisten the palms of your hands with cold water before forming each matzo ball. Form the matzo balls - approximately walnut sized in diameter, and as perfectly round as possible - and drop them directly into the boiling stock. They should float to the surface within thirty seconds or so. If they stick to the bottom, gently dislodge them with a spoon so they can float freely. When all of the matzo balls are formed, carefully drop the carrots into the pot. Cover and cook at a rolling boil for ten minutes. Reduce heat to low, cover, and continue to cook at a simmer for at least 30 minutes more. Taste a matzo ball to make sure that they are entirely cooked through. Add the rest of the chopped dill to the pot, adjust for seasoning and serve.
(This recipe yields 12 perfect matzo balls)

Quick-rise Dinner Rolls

2009-01-25T07:13:00.000-08:00

Hot DAMN! Perfection on a plate. Fluffy and tasty and rich.
2 cups water
1 cup butter
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
½ cup water
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
3 packages quick-rise yeast
1 teaspoon salt
7 ½ cups self-rising flour

In a large bowl place 2 cups of water and butter. Microwave for 2 ½ minutes. In another bowl, mix 1 cup sugar and eggs. In separate cup, microwave ½ cup water for 30 seconds. Add 1 teaspoon sugar and dissolve the yeast – mix. Mix butter, water, sugar, and eggs mixture together; add salt. Mix in the yeast mixture. Stir in 7 ½ cups flour. Mix well and let rise. When ready to use, dump onto floured surface, lightly knead using enough flour for easy handling. Shape into rolls (or bread loaves) and place on greased baking sheet (or loaf pan).
Let rise for 30 minutes in a warm area or until doubled in size. Brush tops with melted butter. Bake at 400, until tops are golden. Turn out to cool on a rack. Brush tops with melted butter again. Makes 24-30 rolls.

Light Corn Muffins or Pancakes

2009-01-10T11:11:00.000-08:00

These muffins gave me a chance to try out the "Edna Lewis Baking Powder" I mixed up last week, with excellent results. Miss Lewis felt (as do I) that double-acting baking powder gives baked goods an off-putting metallic taste. She recommended mixing up one's own baking powder, using 2 parts cream of tarter to 1 part baking soda. These muffins came out light and golden and satisfying, and I didn't miss the taste of whole milk or butter for a second. We turned the leftover batter into a tasty batch of corn pancakes this morning, topped with blackberries and syrup.

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup enriched corn meal
1/2 cup sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup skim milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 egg whites or 1 egg, beaten
Directions
Preheat oven to 400F. Combine dry flour, corn meal, sugar, baking powder and salt (if desired). Stir in milk, oil and egg, mixing just until dry ingredients are moistened. Pour batter into 12 greased or paper-lined medium muffin cups. Bake 15-20 minutes or until golden brown.

Velvety Broccoli Feta Pasta from the Apartment Therapy "Kitchn"

2009-01-08T13:55:00.000-08:00

Velvety Broccoli and Feta Pasta
(photo and recipe by the good folks over at The Kitchn)
This one's a keeper. Broccoli and feta have such a natural affinity for one another, and the method is so simple, that it got me wondering about other possible vegetable-cheese combinations for this easy, weeknight pasta sauce. Acorn squash and fontina with a little fresh sage, maybe?

1 pound broccoli
2 tablespoons water
Salt and pepper
Olive oil
1/2 small onion or two shallots, chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/3 cup chopped flat parsley
1 lemon, juiced
1/2 cup feta cheese (low-fat if you want to be good) - divided
1/4 cup water

Cut the broccoli into small florets and steam on the stove or in the microwave with the 2 tablespoons of water. Season lightly with salt and pepper.

Heat a drizzle of olive oil in a large sauté pan. Cook the onion and garlic until it just begins to soften then add the broccoli. Cook for several minutes or until the onion turns translucent. Add the parsley and cook until it's well wilted. Pour in the lemon juice and simmer for about two minutes.

Transfer to a blender and add 1/4 cup of the feta cheese and the 1/4 cup water. Puree until smooth, adding a drizzle of olive oil and a little more water if it sticks and turns to a lump. Puree until as smooth or chunky as you prefer.

Taste and add any necessary additional salt and pepper. Serve with a good ridged pasta like the rotini above.

Chicken and Dumplings

2009-01-04T21:24:00.001-08:00

I first tasted chicken and dumplings circa 1992 when Elissa took me on a pilgrimage to Dip's Country Kitchen in Chapel Hill. I've never forgotten the taste of them, and have always longed for more. Of course, I had no idea that when I set foot in Dip's I was entering the chicken and dumpling wars, between devotees of the fluffy, matzoh-ball-like Northern drop dumplings, (often disparagingly referred to as being "yankee," although historically speaking, they are every bit as Southern as the other kind) and the proponents of chicken stewed with flat, rolled dumplings called "slickers" or "chicken pastry," like we had at Dip's. But join I did, and now I'm a crusader.

So, what is it now, seventeen years later or something like that? Last week I finally turned out my first batch of chicken and rolled dumplings, and Bill was wildly delighted with the results. Completely over the moon. Said they tasted exactly like Viola's, which is really as high as praise ever gets over here in Viola's Kitchen, so I was very pleased.

You can imagine that I thought I was being very clever, cutting Goya "discos" (empanada dough) into strips instead of rolling out my own dumplings, but it turns out that busy Southern cooks have been using packaged biscuit dough in exactly the same way for years. Oh well. So I'm not going to revolutionize Southern cooking...

Here's what I did do and will do again soon:

Simmer chicken thighs in chicken stock with diced celery, carrots, onion, a bay leaf, fresh thyme and parsley for about an hour. Strain the broth and reserve the chicken and vegetables. Discard the herbs. Bring the strained broth to a simmer.

Cut the Goya discos into strips and coat each strip with flour before dropping into the broth. Stir gently to separate and then cover tightly for fifteen minutes. Taste to see if the dumplings are done and have lost their "raw" taste and texture. If not, cover and continue to cook until done. The broth should have thickened to the desired consistency. If not, thicken with a little additional flour and water. Shred the reserved chicken and add shredded chicken and reserved vegetables back into the pot. Adjust for seasoning. Watch husband swoon with delight.

Last week I also became an instant fan of Southern Plate. What a marvelous cook! I clipped out her chicken and dumplings recipe, just in case I decide to try her biscuit dough method sometime.

Southern Plate's Chicken and Dumplings:
3 or 4 chicken breasts
32 oz Chicken Broth
1 can cream of chicken soup
1-10 count can Pilsbury layers biscuits
salt and pepper to taste
flour

Cook chicken breasts in approx. 4 c. of water until fork tender, about 45 minutes. Place broth in medium to large sized pot. Stir cream of chicken soup into gently boiling broth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Pull biscuits apart into three layers. Dip each layer into flour and then tear each layer into three pieces and drop into gently boiling broth mixture. Do not stir biscuits a lot, or they will cook up, only gently push dumplings down into broth as they float to the top. Cook about ten minutes after last dumplings are added. Add shredded chicken and turn on low until ready to serve.

Carmine's Pasta Giardiniera

2009-01-04T16:50:00.000-08:00

Actually, this is an adaptation of the Carmine's recipe. Mine is a bit lighter than the official version, with no sacrifice of flavor. At the restaurant, we used to use thinly sliced mushrooms and zucchini in addition to the vegetables listed here, and amped everything up with chopped basil and parsley.

1/8 cup olive oil
3 tablespoons prosciutto, diced
3 cloves garlic, sliced thin
1 small onion, diced large
1 broccoli spear, diced small
1/2 cup chicken stock
handful fresh spinach or arugula, chopped
1/2 cup sweet peas
2 cups tomato sauce
1/2 cup half and half
1 cup grated parmesan cheese, optional

The Amazing Five-Hour Duck

2008-12-31T22:06:00.000-08:00

This was just ridiculously good.
From The 150 Best American Recipes: Indispensable Dishes from Legendary Chefs
and Undiscovered Cooks by Fran McCullough and Molly Stevens
(Reprinted in Cook's Illustrated)

1 Pekin (Long Island) duck, wing tips cut off (not necessary, but more elegant)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped garlic
1 small handful of thyme sprigs

"Preheat the oven to 300 degrees and set a rack in the middle level.

Remove the giblets from the duck; save the giblets and wing tips for stock, if you like. Dry the duck well with paper towels. Remove any loose globs of yellow fat from the two cavities. Rub the large cavity with salt and pepper and the garlic and put the thyme in it. With a small sharp paring knife, make dozens of slits all over the duck, piercing the skin and fat but being careful not to pierce the flesh. The easiest way to do this is to insert the knife on the diagonal, not straight in.

Put the duck breast side up on a rack (a cake cooling rack is fine) set on a jelly-roll pan and put it in the oven. Every hour for 4 hours, take the pan out of the oven, pierce the duck all over with the knife, and turn it over. Each time, pour off the fat in the pan.

After 4 hours, increase the oven temperature to 350 degrees (see note). Sprinkle the duck with salt and pepper and cook for about 1 hour longer, or until the skin is crisp and browned. Let rest for 20 minutes before serving.

Mindy Heiferling suggests taking the duck in a couple of Asian directions. For a Chinese duck, put peeled, chopped fresh ginger, scallions, and garlic in the cavity and brush the duck during the last hour of cooking with a mixture of hoisin sauce, soy sauce, toasted sesame oil, and a little honey. For a Thai duck, put chopped fresh lemongrass, fresh cilantro, and garlic in the cavity and brush during the last hour with a mix of Thai curry paste, unsweetened coconut milk, and lime juice."

Blackberry Vinaigrette

2008-12-31T21:59:00.000-08:00

1/2 cup Ripe Blackberries, pureed and strained
Balsamic Vinegar
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Agave Syrup
Salt and Pepper
(to taste)

Field Salad

2008-12-31T13:13:00.000-08:00

This was one exciting little salad, and so pretty to look at. I wish we had gotten a good pic. Next time.

Ingredients:
Endive spears
Baby arugula
Half a bulb of fennel, sliced very thin
Handful of ripe blackberries
Crumbled goat cheese
Candied pecans
Chopped chives
Blackberry vinaigrette

Microwave Mixed-Fruit Marmalade

2008-12-30T22:15:00.000-08:00

If John were here, I could shout "Dude! I made marmalade in the microwave! Without any pectin!" and I he would really get just how exciting that is, and would also not mind at all that I still go around yelling "dude!" at my age. Everyone should have a friend like that, I say.

I improvised this recipe after first looking at a few microwave preserve variations online and then surveying the landscape of citrus fruit that was beginning to lose its shape in the fridge. All of the online recipes called for equal parts fruit to sugar, which sounded like too much; so I cut down on the sugar, but ended up cooking the mixture about twice as long as recommended just to get it to thicken. No matter; I couldn't be more pleased with the results.

1 red grapefruit
1 naval orange
1 lemon
1 1/2 cups sugar
Zest all of the fruit. Mince the zest finely and reserve. Cut the pith away from the fruit and cut the fruit into small chunks, removing any seeds. Pulse the chunks of fruit in a food processor until uniformly blended. Pour the fruit into a 4 cup pyrex measuring cup with a pour spout. Add the sugar and reserved zest, mix well, and cook on high in the microwave for 8 minutes. Continue to cook at 2 minute intervals until the marmalade is slightly thickened. Can according to your favorite canning method.
Makes 3 8-ounce jars

Helen Boltz's Spoonbread

2008-12-29T07:32:00.000-08:00

The Kansas Heritage website boldly proclaims that "Helen Boltz's spoon bread is the best that Kansas Cooking has to offer" Well, we'll just see about that now, won't we...

1qt milk
1 cup corn meal
1 1/2 t salt
2 T butter
4 eggs

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Heat milk and gradually stir in corn meal mixed
with salt. Cook, stirring, until smooth and thick. Cover, cook until mushy.
Add butter.Meanwhile, in another bowl mix the eggs until well
blended. Then stir slowly into the mush.

Pour into a well greased 1 1/2 qt bowl and bake uncovered at 425 degrees
for 50 to 55 minutes. Serve immediately, with lots of butter.

If you are lucky it will serve 4 or 5. Generally one or two can demolish this dish.
Photo by Ian Smith

Slow-Cooked Turkey with Pecans and Cranberry Mostarda

2008-12-26T17:26:00.000-08:00

Now...what to do with all that lovely mostarda...

Spice rub:
1/4 cup dried minced onion
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons kosher salt
OR
1 envelope onion soup mix

1 (3 to 4 lb) skin-on boneless turkey breast, fully thawed
11 oz. cranberry mostarda
1 bag frozen pearl onions
1 cup pecan halves

Rub the spices all over the turkey breast. Brown the turkey breast, skin side down, in a heavy saute pan, 8 minutes. Place the turkey breast in the slow cooker, on top of the frozen onions. Mix the mostarda and pecan pieces together and spoon over the turkey. Cook for 6 to 8 hours on the low setting, occasionally spooning some of the mostarda mixture back over the turkey breast. Taste the sauce and adjust for seasoning before serving.

Serves 6 - 8

Lemon Chess Pie with Blackberry Compote

2008-12-23T22:40:00.000-08:00

This pie was a hit at xmas. My mother-in-law was completely blissed out while eating it, and that's really why we bake, after all, isn't it? I'd like to get the pie to slice a little more cleanly next time. (More cornmeal? Next time I'll try 3 tablespoons. More eggs? Dunno. We'll see)
The blackberry compote is essential to the dish, and such a welcome, unexpected flavor -- like a sudden burst of sun-drenched-August-well-being right smack in the dead of winter. The compote comes from a recipe in Gourmet magazine, but the chess pie recipe is all mine. Gourmet makes their lemon chess with buttermilk and six eggs and a coconut shortbread crust, and I'll certainly get around to trying all of those variations at some point -- but for now, I'm very happy with my lemon pie.

1 9 inch pie shell
1 1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup butter, melted
4 eggs, beaten
1 cup half and half
1 tablespoon vanilla
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon cornmeal
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
Zest of 2 lemons, finely grated
Blackberry compote

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. In a mixing bowl, cream together sugar and butter. Beat in eggs, milk and vanilla. Add flour, cornmeal, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Mix until smooth. Pour mixture into prepared pie crust. Bake in preheated oven for 35 to 40 minutes, until set in center. Cool completely and serve chilled or at room temperature, with blackberry compote.

Blackberry Compote:

1/2 cup water
1/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 whole allspice
3 cups fresh or frozen blackberries (1 1/2 pints)

Preparation

Bring water, sugar, juice, and allspice to a boil in a small saucepan over moderate heat, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Boil until reduced to about 1/4 cup. Cool syrup to lukewarm and discard allspice. Purée 2 cups blackberries with all of syrup in a blender. Force purée through a fine sieve into a bowl to remove seeds. Stir remaining cup berries into sauce.

(Photo by Romulo Yanes)

Mario's Cranberry Mostarda

2008-12-20T07:24:00.001-08:00

I've become mildly obsessed with mostarda, since Bill brought a couple of jars of the stuff home from Milan. John and I conjured up this first batch together in the sinkless-and-still-under-construction kitchen tonight. So much fun.

2 cups water
2 cups granulated sugar
1 lb fresh cranberries
3 tbsp Colman’s dry mustard
1 tsp mustard oil
2 tbsp black mustard seeds
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, ground cayenne to taste

In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the sugar and 2 cups of water and bring to a boil. Add the cranberries and cook over high heat for 10 minutes, or until the cranberries begin to burst.

While the cranberries are cooking, place the mustard in a small bowl and add just enough water to form a thin paste.
In a saucepan, heat the mustard oil to smoking, add the mustard seeds, cover tightly until popped and fragrant. Allow to cool slightly. Add the mustard oil, seeds, salt and peppers to the Colman's mixture. Stir this mixture into the berries and cook over high heat until the mixture is thick and syrupy, 20 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow to cool. The mostarda can be refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 1 week. It can also be canned.

Prep time: well under an hour.

Yield: 4 cups.

Joan Nathan's Hummus

2008-12-14T12:22:00.000-08:00

1 cup dried chickpeas
1 cup tahina
1/2 cup lemon juice, or to taste
2 cloves garlic, or to taste
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin, or to taste
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons pine nuts
Dash of paprika or sumac
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley or cilantro

1. Put the raw chickpeas in a bowl with cold water to cover and soak overnight.
2. Drain and rinse the chickpeas, then place them in a heavy pot with enough cold water to cover. Bring to a boil, then simmer, partially covered, for about an hour or until the chickpeas are soft and the skin begins to separate. Add more water as needed.
3. Drain the chickpeas, reserving about 1-1/2cups of the cooking liquid. Set aside 1/4cup of the cooked chickpeas for garnish. In a food processor fitted with a steel blade, process the remaining chickpeas with the tahina, lemon juice, garlic, salt, pepper, cumin, and at least 1/2 cup of the reserved cooking liquid. If the hummus is too thick, add more reserved cooking liquid or water until you have a paste-like consistency.
4. Heat a frying pan and add 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Spread the pine nuts in the pan and stir-fry, browning on all sides.
5. To serve, transfer the hummus to a large, flat plate, and with the back of a spoon make a slight depression in the center. Drizzle the remaining olive oil on top and sprinkle the reserved chickpeas, pine nuts, paprika or sumac, and parsley or cilantro over the surface.
6. Serve with cut-up raw vegetables and warm pita cut into wedges

YIELD: About four cups, or six-to-eight servings

Syrian Red Lentil Soup

2008-12-14T11:51:00.000-08:00

This is one of Bill's faves. I think he likes the drama of the presentation (red sumac thumbprints, a dollop of Greek yogurt, chopped fresh cilantro against a bright yellow background) almost as much as the taste. Its delicious too.

2 cups red lentils
3 quarts of chicken stock
6 cloves of garlic
2 t ground coriander
1 t kosher salt
2 T vegetable oil
chopped cilantro, mint, lemon wedges, Greek yogurt, ground cumin and crushed red pepper for garnish

Simmer lentils in chicken stock for 40 minutes, until soft.
In a mortar, pound the garlic, coriander, oil and salt to a paste. Add to soup and simmer for another 20 minutes.
Garnish with cilantro, mint, cumin, sumac and crushed red pepper, as desired.
Serve with lemon wedges, a dollop of yogurt and warm bread.

Potaje de Garbanzos (Cuban Chickpea Stew) Slow Cooker Version

2008-12-12T10:58:00.000-08:00

1 lb. dried garbanzo beans, soaked overnight, water discarded, rinsed and picked through.
2 quarts chicken broth
2 chicken boullion cubes, or, preferably, a packet of sazon with achiote
2 links of chorizo, sliced ¾" thick
1 1/2 cups sofrito
2 medium potatoes, peeled and sliced in ½" rounds
3 cloves garlic, peeled, mashed and finely minced
½ cup tomato paste
2 teaspoons paprika
2 tablespoons ground cumin
2 bay leaves
1/2 lb flank steak, cut into large chunks
1 small ham hock or part of a smoked turkey drumstick
handful of chopped cilantro
Ground black pepper, to taste
Salt, to taste

Combine all ingredients in a 4 quart slow cooker, adding additional water as needed, to cover all ingredients. Cook on low for 6 - 8 hours. Adjust seasoning. Remove bay leaves and ham hock or turkey drum. Serve with crusty bread for dunking.

Syrian Tomato-Rice Soup with Kibbeh

2008-12-09T16:29:00.000-08:00

I took a great many liberties with a recipe for tomato rice soup in the Jewish/Syrian cookbook Aromas of Aleppo, and then adapted the results to the slow cooker. Completely fabulous and incredibly easy.

Tomato Paste
1/2 cup white rice
2 1/2 quarts beef or chicken broth
2 cloves of garlic, mashed to a paste

1/2 pound ground beef
1/2 t allspice
1/2 t cinnamon
1/4 t cayenne
1/2 t cumin
1/2 t garlic powder
salt and pepper, to taste
1 t olive oil
2 t raw white rice
handful of chopped fresh cilantro, plus additional for garnish

Combine tomato paste and broth in the ceramic insert of a 4 quart slow cooker. Add the rice and garlic, and set the cooker on low.

In a mixing bowl, combine the beef, spices, rice and chopped cilantro, mixing well, until all ingredients are thoroughly combined. Form into 15 meatballs (kibbeh) and drop them gently into the broth in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours, turning the heat up to high during the last 30 minutes of cooking time. Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve with warm bread. Serves 6

Nancy Silverton's Hot Fudge Sauce

2008-12-07T18:01:00.001-08:00

7 1/2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, cut into 2-inch pieces
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 cup light corn syrup
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons water
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
3/4 tablespoon instant coffee granules
3 tablespoons Cognac or brandy

1. Melt chocolate pieces in large stainless steel mixing bowl (or top of double boiler) over saucepan of gently simmering water. Be sure water does not touch bottom of mixing bowl to prevent chocolate from burning. Turn off heat and keep warm over warm water until ready to use.

2. Bring sugar, corn syrup, water, cocoa powder and instant coffee to boil in large saucepan over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer 1 to 2 minutes, stirring constantly to dissolve cocoa powder and sugar and to prevent burning on bottom of pan.

3. Whisk in melted chocolate. Boil hot fudge for few minutes to reduce to consistency you desire. It should be quite viscous and surface should have glossy shine. Cool slightly and beat in Cognac or brandy.

Slow Cooker Poulet Yassa

2008-12-07T17:23:00.000-08:00

The kitchen still isn't finished, but I'm happily cooking away in my electric slow cooker, in the meantime. Poulet Yassa is one of our Senegalese favorites, and we were both pretty thrilled with this slow cooker variation. Spicy, lemony and rich.

3 1/2 pounds bone-in chicken thighs
Juice of 3 lemons
Salt or Maggi seasoning, to taste
Cayenne pepper, to taste
4 cloves of garlic, minced
5 yellow onions, sliced into thick half moons
2 T Dijon mustard
knob of butter

Combine all ingredients (except the butter) in the slow cooker ceramic insert. Marinate for at least 12 - 18 hours, turning the chicken pieces a few times if possible.
Brown the chicken in a saute pan, skin side down, for 5 to 7 minutes.
Place the onion mixture in the bottom of a 4 quart slow cooker, and stack the chicken pieces on top. Cook on low for 5 - 6 hours. Remove chicken and keep warm on a serving plate. Transfer the onions and accumulated juices to a large saucepan and reduce over high heat until all the liquid has evaporated, about 15 minutes. Taste and adjust for seasoning. Off the heat, swirl the butter into the onion mixture. Serve chicken over rice or couscous, topped with the onion mixture. Serves 4

Slow Cooker Boeuf Bourguignon

2008-12-05T19:21:00.000-08:00

Adapted from Rick Rodgers

1 lb baby carrots
1 lb pearl onions
4 ounces of slab bacon, cut into 2 inch strips
2 lbs beef bottom round, cut into chunks
1 Tbs vegetable oil
10 oz mushrooms, quartered
4 shallots, finely diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup dry red wine
1 cup beef broth
2 Tbs tomato paste
2 Tbs chopped parsley
1/2 tsp dried thyme
1 bay leaf
2 Tbs butter
2 Tbs flour
salt and pepper, to taste
Place the carrots and the onions in the slow cooker.

In a large skillet, brown the bacon. Remove and ad to slow cooker. Brown the beef in the skillet full of bacon drippings. Brown the beef on all sides. Transfer the beef to the slow cooker and season with pepper.

Into the skillet, add the mushrooms and shallots. Cook, stirring often until the mushrooms gave given off their liquid and are beginning to brown. Add the garlic and cook for a minute. Transfer all to the slow cooker.

Add the red wine, broth, tomato paste and spices to the skillet. Cook over medium heat for one minute, scrapping up any browned bits. Pour over ingredients in the slow cooker.

Cover the cooker. Set heat to low and cook for 8 hours. With a slotted spoon, discard the bay leaf. Transfer the meat and vegetables to serving platter and cover to keep warm. In a saucepan, heat the butter over medium heat and add the flour. Cook for one minute, do not let brown. Slowly whisk in the liquid from the crock pot. Cook until slightly thickened, about 10 minutes. Add salt and pepper, to taste. Pour sauce over the meat and vegetables. Serve immediately.

Serves 6

Toad-in-the-Hole

2008-12-05T07:43:00.000-08:00

My first solo apartment was up in Rhinebeck, NY, where I floundered through nine strange and lonely months after dropping out of college, halfway through my junior year. I was up there working with emotionally disturbed adolescent girls at The Astor Home for Children, and trying to live through a string of phenomenally bad choices. The kids (all too damaged to find homes in foster care) left an unhealable wound in my heart; and I still think of them, often. It was soul-crushing work, really, and I found myself in need of comfort almost all the time. (Which is how I came to fall back into old bad habits, drinking and smoking much too much for a while, but that's another story.)

I found refuge at the Copper Kettle II - a diner where I ate lunch or breakfast almost every day before my shift, and where the ancient waitresses looked after me and kept the tuna melts and lemon pie coming all through that long, snowy winter and cold, rainy spring. (By the time summer came I was starting to search for an exit, and fall found me back on the UWS.)

Toad-in-the-Hole, a Copper Kettle breakfast special, is pure Americana. To me it seemed almost exotic, I guess - the epitome of the non-Jewish, working class Hudson Valley where everything was different from the world I had known growing up. I made Toad-in-the-Hole for Bill this morning, tucking a little chopped ham under the egg and grating some fresh parmesan over the top. Still a marvelous, welcome comfort after all these years.

Molly’s Tarte Tatin

2008-10-28T17:50:00.000-07:00

I got this recipe off the Smitten Kitchen site, which I love. I missed the part about using salted butter and the tart was overly sweet as a result. There was also too much liquid by far. I'll keep working on it, and I'll probably only use half the amount of butter in the recipe next time. Minor quibbles notwithstanding, as a fancy birthday surprise for my mom, it absolutely did the trick.

Crust
1 stick plus two tablespoons cold salted butter (5 ounces), cut into cubes and chilled in the freezer
1 tablespoon sugar (optional)
1 1/2 cup flour
3 to 6 tablespoons ice water

Filling
8-10 medium apples
1 stick (4 ounces) salted butter
1 cup sugar

Prepare Crust: I always use the food processor for this. Pre-mix the flour and sugar in the food processor container, and cube the butter on a plate. Then put the dry ingredients and the butter in the freezer for a while. This will get everything, including the blade and container, nice and chilled. The colder everything is, the flakier and more tender your crust will be. Prepare about 1/3 cup ice water and refrigerate.

After you’ve chilled everything for at least 20 minutes, add the cubes of butter to dry ingredients and pulse until the largest pieces of butter are no bigger than tiny peas.

Add the ice water a little at a time, processing just until the dough starts to come together into a mass. (it won’t quite be a “ball,” and it won‘t look smooth–you don’t want to overprocess it!) Turn out onto well-floured surface and pat together into a ball. Don’t handle the dough too much, or the warmth of your hands will start to melt the butter. Flour the top of the dough and use rolling pin to quickly press and roll the dough out into a 10 to 11-inch circle. Keep turning the dough as you do this to make sure it doesn’t stick to the rolling surface. Throw more flour underneath the dough if necessary. Check the crust to make sure it’s just big enough to cover the top of your tarte tatin pan. Move the crust onto a piece of parchment paper or onto a floured rimless baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate.

Prepare filling: Preheat oven to 375° F.

Peel, core and quarter the apples. Don’t cut them into smaller pieces than quarters–the quarters shrink considerably during cooking. You can squeeze a bit of lemon on them, but it’s not necessary.

Over low heat in a heavy, ovenproof skillet measuring 7 to 8 inches across the bottom and 10 to 11 inches across the top, melt the stick of butter. Remove from heat, add the sugar and stir until blended.

Shake/tap the pan so the butter-sugar mixture distributes evenly across the bottom. Arrange apple quarters in pan, first making a circle inside the edge of the pan. Place them on their sides and overlap them so you can fit as many as possible. Then fill the center of the pan; you may have some apple left over. Keep at least one extra apple quarter on hand–when you turn the apples over, they may have shrunk to the extent that you’ll need to cheat and fill in the space with an extra piece. This one piece won’t get quite as caramelized as the other pieces, but don’t worry–it will still cook through and no one will notice.

Return your pan to the stovetop on high heat. Let boil for 10 to 12 minutes or until the juices in the pan turn from golden in color to dark amber. Remove from heat. With the tip of a sharp knife, turn apple slices over, keeping them in their original places. If necessary, add an extra slice of apple to keep your arrangement intact. Return to the stovetop on high heat once more. Let cook another 5 minutes and then remove from heat.

Place the crust on top of the apples and brush off excess flour. Tuck edges under slightly, along the inside of the pan, being careful not to burn fingers. You can use your knife.

Bake in oven until the top of the crust is golden-brown in color, about 25-35 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool on a rack about 30 minutes.

Run a sharp knife along the inside edge of the pan. Place a plate or other serving dish on top of the pan and quickly flip over the whole shebang so the Tarte Tatin drops down onto the plate. The pan will still be hot, so use potholders and be careful. If there are any pieces of apple left behind in the pan or otherwise out of place, carefully put them back where they are supposed to be.
This keeps well for about a day at room temperature; if you have to refrigerate it, warm it up slightly before serving for optimum enjoyment

"Arroz Con Cosas" Omelette

2008-10-26T08:03:00.000-07:00

I haven't been cooking since our kitchen was ripped out a couple of weeks ago. It has yet to be put back together. The stove is now finally connected again, but washing pans in the (newly painted, easily scratched) bathtub is a drag, so we've had almost a month of restaurant take-out.

Of course, if you have to live on take-out, Harlem is not a bad place to be. We order from Floridita a lot. Their asopao makes me irrationally happy, and I could eat their yellow rice all day long. Just perfect.

This morning, unable to take it anymore, I finally had to cook, and improvised this omelette around some of that precious leftover yellow rice from Floridita. I figured, the Japanese make rice omelettes, why shouldn't there be a Cuban version? The result was one of those greater-than-the-sum-of-its-parts moments. Simple, but heavy on the mmmmmmmm factor, and it got our day off to a very nice start.

Ingredients:

Nonstick cooking spray or vegetable oil
1/3 cup chopped chorizo
1 cup leftover yellow rice, brought to room temperature
handful of chopped Italian parsley
1 small carton original eggbeaters
2 T grated Parmesan cheese
1 slice Muenster cheese, chopped into small dice

Heat a saute pan over medium heat. Coat the pan with cooking spray or oil, and saute the chorizo until it starts to brown slightly. Lower the heat to low, add the rice and saute until heated through. Add the parsley and stir to combine. In a separate bowl mix together the eggbeaters an Parmesan cheese. Raise the heat to medium. Pour the egg mixture over the rice and scatter the Muenster cheese over the top. Cook until the eggs are just barely set. Fold in half and serve.

Serves 2

Fire Island Biscuits and Sausage Gravy

2008-10-05T20:49:00.001-07:00

These are cream biscuits and they defy all reason, all logic, all traditional biscuit wisdom. Manhandle them - they like it a little rough. No need to break out the pastry blender, since there's no fat to cut into flour or any of the fussy, anxiety-provoking techniques traditionally associated with biscuit-making. Just a bowl, a spoon and a baking sheet. They come together in a flash and they are delicious.

INGREDIENTS
2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour , plus extra for the counter
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon table salt
1 1/2 cups heavy cream

1. Adjust oven rack to upper-middle position and heat oven to 450 degrees. Line baking sheet with parchment paper.
2. Whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in medium bowl. Stir in the cream with a wooden spoon until dough forms, about 30 seconds. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter and gather into a ball. Knead the dough briefly until smooth, about 30 seconds.
3. Shape the dough into a 3/4-inch-thick circle. Cut biscuits into rounds or wedges. Place rounds or wedges on parchment-lined baking sheet. (The baking sheet can be wrapped in plastic wrap and refrigerated for up to 2 hours.) Bake until golden brown, about 15 minutes, rotating baking sheet halfway through baking. Serve with sausage gravy.

SAUSAGE GRAVY

INGREDIENTS:
1 hot Italian sausage, crumbled
1/2 yellow onion, diced small
1 T flour
The tiny amount of cream left over from the pint used to make the biscuits
Skim milk, to taste

Saute the crumbled sausage and onion in a small pan until the sausage is almost cooked through and the onion is translucent. Add flour and cook over medium heat for two minutes, stirring. Add the cream and continue to cook until the flour has lost its raw taste, adding additional skim milk if the gravy seems too thick. Adjust the seasoning and serve hot.
Makes 6 biscuits and just enough gravy

Craig Claibourne's Sunflower, MS Spoonbread

2008-09-13T20:20:00.000-07:00

"Craig Claiborne was the pioneering food editor of the New York Times food section, having started it in 1957. Claiborne was originally from Sunflower, Mississippi, where his mother and the family's cooks served up this basic soufflé-style cornbread." Adapted from The Cornbread Gospels by Crescent Dragonwagon.

Craig Claiborne was one of my early influences. I read the food section in the Sunday Times religiously, and bought the Chinese Cookbook Craig wrote with Virginia Lee while I was still in high school, determined to teach myself how to cook. Wish I had known him.

Ingredients

Vegetable oil cooking spray
3 cups milk
1 1/2 cups sifted stone-ground yellow cornmeal
3 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon salt
4 eggs, separated
2 teaspoons baking powder
Procedure

1. Preheat oven to 350°F, and spray a deep 1 1/2- to 2-quart baking dish with oil.

2. Bring the milk to a boil in a medium saucepan, preferably nonstick. Gradually pour in the cornmeal with one hand, whisking with the other, creating a very thick mixture. Reduce heat; add the butter and salt. Continue cooking over low heat, stirring almost constantly, for 10 minutes.

3. Remove the cooked mush from the stove; transfer it to a medium-size heat-proof bowl. Let the mush cool to lukewarm, about 20 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, place the egg yolks in a small bowl and the whites in a large, high-sided, nonplastic bowl. When the mush is lukewarm, beat yolks vigorously with a fork, then whip baking powder into them and quickly mix yolks into the mush, making sure yolk mixture is thoroughly incorporated.

5. Beat egg whites until stiff and glossy. Gently fold them into mush; transfer batter to prepared baking dish.

6. Bake until a knife inserted into center comes out barely clean, about 40 minutes. The spoonbread will have risen slightly, and its top will be irregular, with small deeply golden-brown patches. Serve immediately.

Serves 6

Wedding Spoonbread Redux

2008-09-11T19:49:00.000-07:00

We got married on Sunday, in upstate New York, with our friends and families beaming all around us. The ceremony was the culmination of an indelibly memorable weekend. Our friend Tim Connor summed it up beautifully here.
(Have you seen Tim's installation of photo light boxes on display at the Atlantic/Pacific station in Brooklyn? Drop what you're doing and go see it, for god's sake! You'll leave inspired.)

At the end of the wedding we gave out little favor bags with the spoonbread recipe and pots of homemade strawberry jam. John and Karen tested the recipe today and sent me pictures of their luscious heart-shaped spoonbread, along with a few important modifications, which are reflected below: essentially,the J-K version is twice as sweet as the standard, and baked a little longer than usual. (Sort of like John, come to think of it...)
Ingredients:
4 eggs, separated
1 cup cornmeal (preferably arrowhead mills)
3 - 4 cups whole milk (it depends on the kind of cornmeal you use. The finer grinds will absorb more liquid. If you use the larger amount of liquid, the baking time will be increased by about fifteen minutes)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup honey or more, to taste
2 Tbs sweet butter, plus more for buttering the dish and serving

Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 1 and 1/2 quart baking dish. In a large bowl, whip the egg whites until medium peaks form. Set aside.
In a mixing bowl, whisk together the cornmeal and 1 and 1/2 cups milk. In a pan over low heat, scald the remaining milk and then add the cornmeal mixture to it, whisking constantly until it begins to thicken, about 8 minutes.
Remove from the heat. Add the salt, sugar and butter. Stir in the egg yolks, one at a time. Fold in the egg whites. Pour the batter into the baking dish. Bake for about 65 minutes. Try not to open the oven during baking. The top will be a deep crusty brown, and a toothpick inserted into the center will come out clean. Serve hot, with butter and jam.
Serves 6
(Wedding photo by Frank Jump)

Kirsti's Norwegian "Soggy Cake" (Blotekake)

2008-08-17T21:17:00.000-07:00

My cousin Kirsti made this traditional marzipan-robed marvel of a layer cake for my cousin Erica's birthday yesterday. A blotekake consists of three layers of rich sponge cake (sukkerbrod), separated only by whipped cream and a filling of berries macerated in sugar. Once the layered tiers are covered in whipped cream, the entire cake is wrapped in a very thin sheet of marzipan and decorated with berries. SO good...

Kirsti's Eplekake

2008-08-17T20:57:00.000-07:00

My cousin Kirsti, a talented baker, brought a version of this beautiful Norwegian Apple Cake to a family picnic up in Woodstock a few years ago. Its moist and sweet, and packed with twice as many apples as you normally find in an apple cake. The cake, which is completely satisfying, comes together in less than half an hour. Pretty amazing.

10 T butter
3/4 cup sugar
2 eggs
1 t baking powder
1 cup flour
4-6 apples
1 t vanilla sugar
cinnamon to taste, sliced almonds to taste

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.
Cream together butter and sugar in a large mixing bowl. Add eggs, one at a time.
In another bowl, sift the flour and mix together with the cup of sugar and baking powder. Combine the dry ingredient mixture with the wet ingredients. Spray a cake pan with Wondra spray. Turn the cake batter into the greased pan.
Peel and core the apples, and cut each one into 8 wedges lengthwise. Working in a circular patter, submerge as many apple wedges as possible into the batter.
Mix together cinnamon and vanilla sugar and sprinkle on top of the cake. Decorate with almond slices if desired. Bake until fragrant and golden brown - perhaps 45 minutes to an hour.

Spicy Lemon Garlic Green Beans

2008-08-09T20:02:00.000-07:00

1 pound of green beans, trimmed
Scant 1 tablespoon butter
1 teaspoon olive oil
4 large garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
Juice and minced zest of 1 lemon
1 teaspoon Thai roasted red chili paste

Cook beans in large pot of boiling salted water until crisp-tender, about 4 minutes. Drain.

Meanwhile, melt the butter with the oil in heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the garlic; stir for one minute, or until the garlic is fragrant. Add beans and toss. Stir in parsley, lemon juice, lemon zest and chili paste. Saute for 3 - 4 minutes or until heated through. Season with salt and pepper, to taste. Transfer to a platter and serve hot.

Lebanese Tahini Dressing

2008-08-08T13:31:00.000-07:00

Rich and lemony, with loads of flavor. This dressing (my attempt at using up the half empty jar of tahini in the fridge) brightens up everything from grilled chicken to vegetable salads to sandwich wraps. I like it best slathered all over a warm round of lavash...

4 garlic cloves, minced to a paste
Juice of 2 lemons
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup tahini
1 T Ground cumin, or to taste
1 T Ground coriander, or to taste
1 T Spanish paprika, or to taste
2 T Ground sumac, or to taste
Pinch of cinammon
1/2 cup freshly chopped parsley and/or cilantro
Salt and pepper to taste.

Makes 2 cups

Mandarin Salmon

2008-07-28T22:19:00.000-07:00

I was talking on the phone the whole time I put together this salmon dinner, which turned out to be major hit. Wish I had paid closer attention to what I was doing...next time I'll measure everything.

1 8 ounce Salmon Filet
6 Asparagus Spears, washed and trimmed

Marinade:
Hoisin Sauce
Soy Sauce
Sesame Oil
Honey
Dijon Mustard
Garlic Powder
Powdered Ginger

Line a baking pan with aluminum foil. Line up the asparagus spears on the foil and lay the salmon filet on top of the bed of asparagus. Pour the marinade over the salmon and let sit for 15 minutes or up to one hour. Fold the aluminum foil around the fish and crimp into an airtight package. Bake at 400 degrees for 20 minutes or until medium.

The Gloria Burger

2008-07-06T08:43:00.000-07:00

Of course, this is really the Mar-a-lago turkey burger that rose to fame on Oprah's top ten list, but Gloria wanted me to test it, so I've clipped the recipe and renamed it, as a first step.

* 1/4 cup scallions, thinly sliced
* 1/2 cup celery, finely chopped
* 3 Granny Smith apples, peeled and diced
* 1/8 cup canola oil
* 4 pounds ground turkey breast
* 2 Tbsp. salt
* 1 Tbsp. black pepper
* 2 tsp. chipotle Tabasco™
* 1 lemon, juice and grated zest
* 1/2 bunch parsley, finely chopped
* 1/4 cup Major Grey's Chutney, pureed

Sauté the scallions, celery and apples in the canola oil until tender. Let cool.

Place the ground turkey in a large mixing bowl. Add sautéed items and the remaining ingredients. Shape into eight 8-ounce burgers. Refrigerate for 2 hours.

Season the turkey burgers with salt and pepper. Place on a preheated, lightly oiled grill. Grill each side for 7 minutes until meat is thoroughly cooked. Let sit for 5 minutes.

Serve with a side of Mar-a-Lago Pear Chutney and your favorite toasted bread, pita or hamburger roll.

Mar-a-lago Pear Chutney
NGREDIENTS

* 1 Anjou pear, peeled and diced
* 1/2 tsp. cinnamon
* 1 tsp. sea salt
* 1 1/2 cups Major Grey's Chutney
* 1/4 cup dried currants or raisins

Preheat oven to 350°.

Toss the diced pears with the cinnamon and salt. Bake on a parchment-lined cookie sheet for 10 minutes.

Cool and mix with the chutney and currants or raisins.

Apple Tart with Frangipane

2008-07-04T20:05:00.000-07:00

Tart apples paired with crumbly almond frangipane and fresh, buttery puff pastry form a classical French combination that I've been meaning to play around with for a while now. I've made a few minor changes (most notably substituting almond pie filling for the super expensive and hard to find frangipane) and I'm probably going to tweak the dessert further in future trials, but for a first attempt (and considering that I was flying blind with no recipe to work from) this actually came very close to being exactly what I had in mind. The tarts disappeared in the blink of an eye at the family barbecue -- always a good sign.

1 box Dufour puff pastry, thawed
1/2 can Solo almond pie filling
3-4 large apples, peeled, cored and sliced as thin as possible
1 T cold butter, cut into small pieces
2 t vanilla sugar
1/4 cup apricot jam, thinned witha little water and heated to form a syrup

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
Roll out the puff pastry on a piece of parchment paper and trim the edges so that it is a neat and even rectangle. Transfer pastry on parchment to a baking sheet.
With a knife, cut a 3/4 inch border all the way around the perimeter. Dock the entire space within the border with a fork.
Spread the almond filling over the docked pastry, leaving the border uncovered. Fan the apple slices on top of filling. Dot with butter and sprinkle with sugar. Bake for 20-30 minutes or until the pastry is cooked all the way through.
Brush the apple slices with the apricot jam. Serve warm.

Giant Popovers with Strawberry Butter

2008-07-04T20:00:00.000-07:00

My mother-in-law has been nostalgic for her mom's popovers lately, so I broke out the popover pan for the first time in twelve years. I remember the approximate date because the circumstances were, um... memorable, involving a batch of popovers and a raucous band of hungry Buddhist monks (don't ask!)
Anyway, the first batch for Gloria turned out dreamy. I was pretty thrilled.
There are many different camps of opinion when it comes to popover methodology, and bakers get so shrill and pushy when the topic comes up, that I probably wouldn't be able to do the debate justice in just a few words: cold oven, hot oven, etc, etc. As a result of all the wildly differing opinions, I actually have no idea what the science of the dish actually demands; but since this particular method worked so well for me, I'm going to record it.
The strawberry butter couldn't have been simpler (sweet butter whipped with some pureed fresh strawberries and a dollop of honey), and it pushes the flavors completely over the top. This recipe is designed for the Chicago brand 4 cup popover pan

1 1/4 cup flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 large eggs
1 1/4 cup milk
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into 4 even pieces
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, melted

Oil or spray popover pan. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and set rack in middle of oven. Preheat popover pan in oven for 2 minutes. Blend flour, salt, eggs, milk and melted butter until mixture is the consistency of heavy cream, about 1 to 2 minutes. (A hand mixer is great for this.) The batter can be made ahead of time and refrigerated, but the batter must be at room temperature before baking.

Place 1 small piece of butter in each cup, and return pan to heated oven for one minute.
Fill each cup half full with batter and bake for 20 minutes. Reduce temperature to 300 degrees and continue baking for 20 minutes.
Serve HOT. Popovers are best straight from the oven.
Makes 4 giant popovers

Warm Sausage and White Bean Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette

2008-06-25T11:09:00.000-07:00

I added a whole lot of flavor-packed ingredients to this entree salad, including the "healthy fried onions" that I've been crowing about (steamed in the microwave and then browned in a dry nonstick pan), and to his great embarrassment, Bill all but licked the plate.

2 Bruce Aidells Sundried Tomato Chicken Sausages
1/2 yellow onion
1/2 red bell pepper, sliced into thick strips
salad greens
1 roasted beet, sliced into half moons
1/4 bulb of fennel, sliced into half moons
1 scallion, sliced thin
white beans
cucumber
kalamata olives
garlic
balsamic vinegar

Jaden's Citrus-Soy Fish Fillets with Soba (or shirataki) Noodles

2008-06-17T19:57:00.000-07:00

This recipe is brought to you courtesy of the marvelous and talented Jaden, aka Steamy Kitchen. I would add a little chili paste next time, a drop or two of sesame oil, and maybe some chopped cilantro instead of the parsley we had kicking around in the vegetable bin. Lately when I make noodle dishes, I make regular pasta for Bill and shirataki noodles for myself. I'm pretty much addicted to them.

serves 4

4 fish fillets
salt & fresh ground pepper
6 oz. dried soba noodles

Citrus Soy Sauce:
1/2 cup vegetable broth
2 tbl lemon juice
2 tbl honey
2 tsp soy sauce
1 tsp rice wine or dry sherry
1 tsp lemon zest
Kosher salt, freshly ground pepper and garlic powder for seasoning the fish

Boil soba noodles according to directions on package. Remember to generously salt your boiling water. Drain, set aside. While soba noodles are cooking, combine sauce ingredients in small saucepan and simmer until slightly thickened, about 5 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning. The sauce should be bright, sweet and slightly tart. Season fish fillets generously with salt and pepper and garlic powder. Heat a large, non-stick pan with 2 tbl cooking oil over med-high heat until hot but not smoking. Add fillets and fry 3 minutes. Flip fish and fry another 2 minutes, take a quick peek by poking the thickest part of the fish and add another minute if needed. Serve fish over bed of soba noodles. Pour Citrus-Soy over fish.

Shrimp and Broccoli Lo Mein with Cashews

2008-06-17T19:28:00.000-07:00

A happy accident, this noodle dish. I went to re-create the shrimp and snow peas with cashews from a few weeks ago, but accidentally grabbed the oyster sauce instead of the hoisin when I reached into the fridge. The change resulted in a totally different dish, and, it turned out, a completely delicious quick dinner. Its light and full of good lean protein and vegetables without tasking "healthy." I ate it with shirataki noodles, and Bill had lo mein. Not a pretty dish per se, but totally satisfying and way better than Chinese take out.

2 T cooking oil
3 cloves garlic, sliced
1 inch fresh ginger, minced or 1 t dried ground ginger
1/3 red onion, sliced into thin strips or 2 scallions, sliced into thin rings
1 cup raw shrimp, shelled and deveined
1 full head of broccoli, steamed briefly but not fully cooked
1 cup chicken stock
2-4 hefty glugs of oyster sauce, or to taste
1/4 cup soy sauce, or to taste
1/2 cup salted, roasted cashews
1 teaspoon cornstarch
1 package shirataki noodles or lo mein noodles, cooked and heated through

Heat the oil in a saute pan or wok. Saute the garlic, ginger and onion or white scallion rings until they are fragrant. Add the shrimp and broccoli and toss to combine. Add 3/4 of the chicken stock and the hoisin sauce. Saute until the shrimp are cooked through. Add the cashews, green scallion rings and cook just until heated through. Add the cornstarch mixed with the remaining chicken stock and bring to a boil just until thickened. Serve hot over noodles. Garnish with green scallion rings.

Linguine Frutti di Mare

2008-06-11T14:14:00.000-07:00

So every month when Saveur shows up, I hand the magazine to Bill and say "pick one thing you want me to cook out of this." And this month he went straight to the linguini with seafood. Its the kind of dish he's always happy to eat. I cut the amount of oil down to almost nothing, tossed in a couple of clams and a little crushed red pepper. I substituted whole wheat linguine for the white stuff too..

SERVES 2
Kosher salt, to taste
8 oz. dried whole wheat linguine
1⁄8 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1⁄2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1⁄2 cup chopped red bell pepper
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 small yellow onion, chopped
pinch of red pepper flakes
1⁄3 cup white wine
1/3 cup chicken stock or clam juice, warmed up
8 mussels, scrubbed and debearded
8 littleneck clams, scrubbed
1⁄2 cup halved cherry tomatoes
2 tbsp. unsalted butter
8 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
8 leaves basil, torn, plus more for garnish
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1⁄2 cup grated asiago cheese
4 lemon wedges

1. Bring a pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add linguine; cook until al dente, 8–10 minutes. Drain pasta; reserve 1⁄4 cup pasta water.

2. Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a 12" skillet over medium-high heat. Add green and red peppers, garlic, and onion; cook until they begin to soften, about 3 minutes. Add wine, stock, mussels and clams; cook, covered, until mussels open, about 2 minutes. Add reserved pasta water, tomatoes, butter, and shrimp and cook, stirring, until shrimp are just pink, about 1 minute. Add cooked linguine, toss to combine, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens and clings to pasta. Stir in basil and season with salt and pepper. Divide pasta between bowls. Sprinkle with more basil, asiago, and garnish with lemon wedges.

This recipe was first published in Saveur in Issue #112
Photo by Andre Baranowsky

Brown Sugar Buttermilk Pie

2008-06-11T14:10:00.000-07:00

Also from this month's Saveur, comes a recipe for a plain buttermilk chess pie. I loved the warm chocolate chess and lemon chess pies we used to serve at Virgil's Real BBQ, so I clipped this mostly out of nostalgia. We'll see how BT feels about it.
Photo by James Oseland
SERVES 8

A variation of this classic Southern custard pie, also known as Jefferson Davis pie, is served at Boone Tavern in Berea, Kentucky.

3⁄4 cup plus 1 tbsp. flour
1⁄2 tbsp. plus 2⁄3 cup sugar
1 tsp. fine salt
12 tbsp. unsalted butter, diced
2⁄3 cup packed light brown sugar
2⁄3 cup buttermilk
1⁄2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
4 egg yolks plus 1 egg

1. Put the flour, 1⁄2 tbsp. sugar, and 1⁄2 tsp. salt into a food processor and pulse to combine. Add 6 tbsp. of the butter and pulse until pea-size pieces have formed. Drizzle in 2–3 tbsp. ice water; pulse until dough just comes together. Turn dough out onto a floured surface; form into a ball. Flatten into a disk and wrap tightly in plastic wrap. Chill for at least 1 hour.

2. On a floured surface, roll dough into a 12" circle about 1⁄8" thick; transfer to a 9" pie pan. Trim dough, leaving a 1⁄2" overhang; fold edges under. Flute edges with fingers. Chill for 1 hour.

3. Heat oven to 325°. Pour water into a 4-quart saucepan to a depth of 1"; bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. Whisk together remaining sugar and salt, brown sugar, buttermilk, nutmeg, egg yolks, and egg. Set bowl over saucepan. Add remaining butter; cook, whisking frequently, until smooth and warm, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat; let cool for 5 minutes. Pour mixture into chilled pie shell. Bake until center is just set, 45–50 minutes. Transfer pie to cooling rack; let cool completely before serving, about 2 hours.

This recipe was first published in Saveur in Issue #112

Boone Tavern Spoonbread

2008-06-11T14:03:00.000-07:00

I clipped this recipe and photo out of the current issue of Saveuer, and I'll get around to testing it eventually, but at first glance I'm pretty skeptical. First, there's the thorny issue of white vs. yellow cornmeal. And then there's the question of method -- the paddle attachment?? Really?? And finally, there's the matter of the photo not accurately reflecting the recipe. (Where's the parchment paper?) For now, I'll stick with the tried and true.

SERVES 6–8

This starter, one of the most popular offerings at Boone Tavern, which has featured the specialty for more than 60 years, is a creamy-centered corn bread pudding that rises like a soufflé.

4 tbsp. unsalted butter (1 tbsp. softened,
3 tbsp. melted)
3 cups milk
1 1⁄4 cups finely ground white cornmeal
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. fine salt
2 eggs, well beaten

1. Grease a 9" round cake pan with some of the softened butter. Cut out a parchment paper circle to fit inside the pan, nestle it into the bottom, and grease the paper with the remaining softened butter. Set the prepared pan aside.

2. In a 2-quart saucepan, bring the milk to a boil, whisking occasionally, over high heat. While whisking, pour in the cornmeal in a steady stream. Whisk vigorously to incorporate the cornmeal, for about 1 minute. Remove the pan from the heat and set aside to let the cornmeal mixture cool to room temperature.

3. Heat oven to 350°. Transfer the cornmeal mixture to the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Add the remaining butter, baking powder, salt, and eggs and mix on medium speed until uniform and aerated, about 15 minutes.

4. Pour cornmeal batter into the prepared pan and bake until golden brown and puffy and a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 1 hour and 20 minutes. Serve immediately.

This recipe was first published in Saveur in Issue #112

Perfect (And Healthy!) Sour Cream Mashed Potatoes

2008-05-23T22:03:00.000-07:00

I'll say it again: Ellie Krieger rocks the show.
I'm loving cooking my way through both of her books right now, as I continue on in my quest to lighten up. Ellie is an upbeat and wonderfully creative nutritionist, and her cooking is spot on, too.
This here is an amalgam of two of her lightened comfort food recipes: Parmesan Mashed Potatoes and Sour Cream Smashed Potatoes. I say: why not both at once?

Ingredients
2 pounds Yukon gold potatoes, diced unpeeled
1/2 cup low-fat sour cream or buttermilk
1/2 cup skim milk
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan
Salt
1 tablespoon unsalted butter

Place potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat and cook until tender, about 10 minutes.

While potatoes are cooking place buttermilk and milk into a small saucepan and cook over a very low heat until just warm. Be careful not to boil or milk will curdle.

Drain the potatoes, add the warmed milk and mash together to desired consistency. Stir in cheese and salt. Top with the butter and let it melt.

Sauteed Beet Greens

2008-05-23T21:33:00.000-07:00

Not much of a real "recipe" to record, but since this is for Hieronymus and posterity, the technique is worth preserving. These are so very tasty, and exactly how both we like our greens: garlicky, vinegary, hot-saucy, smokey and fresh.

Ingredients:

olive oil
1 slice of ham or bacon or prosciutto, chopped
6 cloves of garlic, sliced thin

Greens from one bunch of fresh beets, large veins removed, chopped into small pieces
kosher salt and pepper, to taste
2 good glugs of chicken stock
1 quick glug of vinegar
Frank's hot sauce, to taste

Saute the chopped ham in the olive oil for a minute or two. Reduce the heat, add the garlic and saute, watching closely to make sure it doesn't brown too quickly. Raise the heat and add the greens. Stir and season. Add the chicken stock and vinegar and cook just until the greens are cooked through. Add hot sauce to taste.

Serves 2

Spiced Pork Chops

2008-05-23T21:16:00.001-07:00

These are the famous spiced chops from Home Restaurant in NY, with only a couple of changes on my part; the most important being the real necessity of brining the chops before cooking them, so they stay moist and juicy under all that high heat. I also added a little brown sugar to the rub. It rounds out the spice mix and makes for good caramelization.
We ate this with sauteed beet greens, sour cream mashed potatoes and a big salad. Happy Memorial Day Weekend, family...

Brine:
1 qt cold water
1/4 cup kosher salt
2 T sugar

Ingredients:
Olive Oil
2 double thick center cut pork chops (12 oz)
Ground black pepper

Spice Mix:
Equal parts toasted ground cumin, coriander and mustard seed.
A couple of teaspoons of brown sugar

Brine the chops for a few hours before cooking them (at least 2, not more than 8)
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Rinse the pork chops well, pat them dry, and in a wide shallow bowl, coat them generously with the spice mixture. They will not need additional salt. Add pepper to taste.
In an ovenproof saute pan, brown the chops in olive oil just until nicely browned on all sides. Put the pan with the chops in the oven and bake until done -- approximately 15 minutes, depending on the size of the chops. The best thing to do is check the temperature on an instant read thermometer. Pull it out at 150 degrees and let it rest for 5 - 10 minutes.
Serves 2

Jeremy Jackson's Velvet Spoonbread

2008-05-23T15:12:00.001-07:00

Have you not read this book yet? Its an absolute must read. The best kind of food writing, and on a subject very dear to our hearts.
"One part mush, one part soufflé, and one part cornbread, spoonbread has no equal. Long a staple in southern cuisine, spoonbread has largely failed to find a broader audience. But it deserves more. It accompanies a wide variety of dishes with ease, and often is the main course itself. You're just as likely to encounter it at breakfast as at dinner. Put butter on it and drizzle it with maple syrup or honey. Eat it with applesauce and eggs. Or serve it with ham and redeye gravy."

Ingredients:

1 cup cornmeal
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 large eggs, separated
1 teaspoon sugar
¾ teaspoon salt
1 cup milk

Instructions:

1. Preheat your oven to 375°F. Grease a 2-quart baking dish with vegetable shortening or nonstick cooking spray.

2. Pour 1 ½ cups boiling water over the cornmeal in a large bowl and whisk until smooth. Add the butter and let it melt while you separate the eggs. Whisk the egg yolks, sugar, and salt into the cornmeal mixture. Gradually whisk in the milk. Allow the mixture to sit 20 minutes while the cornmeal absorbs the milk.

3. Separately beat the egg whites until they form very stiff peaks, then gradually fold the cornmeal mixture into the egg whites until everything is combined.

4. Pour the batter into the prepared baking dish. Put it in the oven and immediately lower the oven temperature to 350°F. Bake for 65 to 75 minutes, until set.

Applesauce Sour Cream Pancakes

2008-05-23T08:03:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to play with the CI multigrain pancake recipe for a while, but I never seem to find the time to make ground muesli flour and all that other stuff.
The recipe below reflects my first attempt at applesauce sour cream pancakes, using whole wheat flour and flax seed. I essentially took our blueberry pancake recipe and lightened it: substituting apple sauce for all of the melted butter, and switching out some of the white flour for King Arthur's white whole wheat. I tried to include some of the flavors I associate with apple sauce sour cream coffee cake. Not too shabby!
I'm going to work on some candied ginger apple butter to go with.

Dry Ingredients
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/3 cup white whole wheat flour
1/3 cup brown sugar, sifted
1 heaping teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
pinch of salt
1 tablespoon ground flax seed
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

Wet Ingredients
1 egg plus 2 egg whites (separated, whites beaten to soft peaks)
2 heaping tablespoons of thick yogurt or lowfat sour cream stirred into skim milk to equal one cup of liquid or a tiny bit more
1/4 cup applesauce
shot of maple syrup
dash of vanilla extract
Butter or nonstick cooking spray

Combine dry ingredients in a large bowl.
Stir the wet ingredients (except for the egg whites) together in a separate bowl or large measuring cup. Combine the dry and the wet ingredients and stir into a lumpy batter, folding the egg whites in last. Don't overmix.

Heat a small amount of butter in a skillet over medium heat or spray with nonstick cooking spray. Ladle 1/4 cup of batter onto the skillet for each pancake. Cook for a minute or two on each side. They should be well-browned.

Serve hot with maple syrup, butter, chopped fruit and sausages.

CI Almost No-Knead Whole Wheat Bread

2008-05-18T11:15:00.001-07:00

I watched the video over at Breadtopia.com at least three times, but still managed to add too much liquid to this first batch of almost-no-knead bread, a la Cook's Illustrated, so the results were a little bit off. I also need to invest in a cloche and a kitchen scale. I'll try it again using precise measurements and the right equipment, but I have to say, this first round was really pretty good. It certainly tasted better than your average whole wheat bread. Bill loved the crust. His verdict:
"This is good in all kinds of ways."

2 cups (10 ounces) all purpose or bread flour
1 cup (5 ounces) whole wheat flour (I used white whole wheat)
1/4 tsp. instant or rapid-rise yeast
1 1/2 tsp. salt
2 Tbs. honey (or 2 Tbs. raw sugar)
3/4 cup plus 2 Tbs. (7 ounces) water at room temp
1/4 cup plus 2 Tbs. (3 ounces) mild flavored lager
1 Tbs. white vinegar

Preheat the oven with Dutch oven or Cloche inside to 500 degrees. Reduce temperature to 425 when the bread dough goes in and bake covered for 30 minutes. Then remove cover and bake an additional 15 minutes or until the internal bread temperature reaches about 200 degrees.