The Tasty Plate

Quick Cassoulet

2011-02-08T15:08:00.000-08:00

I really, really like Mark Bittman's Kitchen Express. I've written about it here before, what can I say? I am usually leery of cookbooks promising too much, too fast, too-anything, but Bittman is an exception. Without fail, each time I prepare one of his recipes, I think, "this is going to be bland, it's too easy, too plain, too...minimal." I thought that with his cassoulet and was, of course wrong again. When will I learn?

Ingredients
1-2 onions, chopped
1-2 carrots, chopped
1-2 stalks of celery, chopped
2-3 cloves of garlic, finely chopped
1/2-1 package of smoked sausage--depending on how much you want, cut into bite-sized pieces (I used organic turkey keilbasa from Trader Joes)
2 cans of cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
1 28 oz can of chopped tomatoes (Muir Glen is best and worth the cost)
fresh thyme (you can use 1/2-1 teaspoon dried in a pinch)
bay leaf
a bit of crusty bread (baguette, country loaf, etc), cut into crouton-sized cubes

Heat the oven to 400.

On the stove top warm some olive oil in a pan, add all the veggies and cook until starting to brown, 8-10 minutes. Add the kielbasa and cook for a few more minutes until beginning to brown. Add in beans, tomatoes, thyme, bay leaf, salt and pepper and cook until warmed through--about 10 minutes.

While the cassoulet is warming, make the croutons. Toss your bread cubes with a little olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Spread on a cookie sheet and put in the oven. They will be crunchy and golden brown in about 10 minutes.

Serve cassoulet with croutons on top.
Serves 4 generously

Tasty!

The Minimalist

2011-01-16T10:16:00.001-08:00

Mark Bittman's column in the NY Times is one no self-respecting cook should overlook. Simple recipes that focus on the quality of the ingredients and the quality of a life not spent entirely in the kitchen are what he's all about. He does not sacrifice taste, only excess time. Next time you are having guests, check out this list of 101 quick small bites for appetizer inspiration. Figure out what pantry items are common among the list and get to stocking up so you'll never have to run to the store at the last minute. The best kind of entertaining is the kind where you're free to be with your guests!

The Best Thing Ever Invented

2010-12-02T18:02:00.001-08:00

Seriously. I say it every time I make. So does every one else. Admittedly it's a lot of work... but it is so phenomenal, it's worth it. In the words of Ferris Bueller, "It is so choice." There are many parts you can make ahead of time, so the work isn't really an issue. It is the perfect piece de resistance for any holiday gathering. It is TIMBALLO!

Have you seen the movie Big Night starring Stanley Tucci? In the story of two Italian brothers trying to make it in America as restaurateurs this amazing...er...dish..if it can be called that, is the grand finale of a meal that has lasted well into the night and consisted of multiple courses. The crowd of beached diners break out in spontaneous applause at it's unveiling and you will too, provided you aren't the type with inhibitions regarding applauding food.

There are many types and styles of Timballo and just about anyone who has experienced it will wax eloquent if given half a chance (just google it and read the ensuing declarations of love), but I am partial this one...having never tried any others. It's just that good. I would like to say that some day I'll try some of the others, but I can't promise that when this is what they will be serving in heaven.

There are several steps and the recipe is broken up accordingly. The making of the pastry for the crust, the making of the sauce, the making of the meatballs, hard boiling eggs, making pasta.

Give it a try, you will not be sorry, and please don't be put off by the length of the ingredient list and instructions!

For the Sauce

2 oz dried porcini, soaked in 1 cup warm water for 20 minutes

1 cup evoo

7 oz prosciutto, finely chopped

1 clove garlic

1 onion, diced

1 carrot, diced

1 celery stalk, diced

1 pound ground veal or pork or a combo of the two

3 Tablespoons tomato paste

Drain the mushrooms, reserving the soaking liquid. Chop the mushrooms and set aside. Strain the liquid through a cheesecloth-lined sieve and set aside.

In a large skillet, warm the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the prosciutto and saute until softened, but not browned, 2-3 minutes. Add the garlic, carrot, onion and celery and saute until golden, 3-4 minutes. Add the mushrooms and the ground meat to the pan and cook, stirring until cooked, 5-7 minutes. Add the mushroom soaking liquid, the tomato paste, stir well, reduce heat to low and cook, covered until slightly thickened, about 1.5 hours. Remove from heat, strain the sauce reserving both the solids and the liquid. Set aside.

(BTW, the above sauce would be magnificent over home made pasta).

For the Pastry

2 3/8 Cups (10.5 oz) unbleached all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons sugar

2 teaspoons salt

7 Tablespoons cold, unsalted butter

1 egg, lightly beaten

About 3 Tablespoons milk

In a large bowl stir together the flour, sugar and salt. With a pastry cutter cut in the butter until the flour is the consistency of coarse meal. Stir in the egg and just enough milk to bring the dough together. Divide the dough into 2 portions, one twice as large as the other (these will be the top and the bottom/sides of the crust). Flatten each ball into a disk and wrap separately in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 1 hour (imperative) and up to 8 hours.

For the meatballs

1/2 pound ground pork or veal or a combo

1 egg

1/4 Cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 Tablespoons minced flat leaf parsley

2 slices day-old country bread, soaked in 1 Cup milk

Flour for dredging

Olive oil for frying

In a bowl combine the meat, egg, Parmesan, parsley and milk-soaked bread. Season with S &P. Shape into balls 3/4 inch in diameter. Roll lightly in flour. In a skillet pour olive oil to a depth of 1/2 inch. Place over medium-high heat and warm until hot but not smoking. Add the meatballs and cook, turning frequently until browned on all sides, about 8-10 minutes. Transfer to paper towels.

For the Pasta

1 pound zitone or penne

1/2 Cup grated Parmesan cheese

2 eggs, lightly beaten

If you're a die hard foodie, you might make your pasta from scratch, but never fear, a high-quality store bought pasta will be just fine

Cook the pasta in salted, boiling water for for about 8 minutes--or about 2 minutes less than you would if you were cooking it al dente. Drain and place in a bowl. Add the liquid from the meat sauce and the cheese. Set aside to cool, and then when cool, stir in the eggs.

For Assembly

1 pound caciocavallo cheese, sliced 1/4 inch thick (provolone is a good, easy to find alternative)

4 hard boiled eggs, sliced (you'll think this is weird but it's good--have faith!)

1 egg, lightly beaten for egg wash

Preheat oven to 350.

On a floured work surface rough out the larger disk of dough to fit over the bottom and up the sides (with a slight overhang) of a 12 inch spring form pan. Spoon the meat-vegetable solids from the sauce over the bottom of the dough-lined pan. On top of the meat, layer 1/4 each of the cheese, the hard-boiled egg slices, the meatballs, and then the pasta. Repeat the layers three more times to fill the pan.

Roll out the remaining dough and use to cover the timballo, pinching the edges together with the overhang to seal. Brush the top with the egg wash. Chill for at least 30 minutes or as long as 2 hours.

Bake until golden, about 45 minutes. Remove from oven and let rest for 10 minutes. Then release the ring of the pan and slide the timballo onto a serving platter. Cut into wedges, and prepare to die.

Serves 10.

Adapted from Italian Food Artisans Cookbook

Tortilla Pizzas, Revisited

2010-11-23T17:10:00.000-08:00

I posted on these a while ago, but they bear a write-up again. Jacques Pepin has a wonderful recipe for quick and simple pizzas that are delicious. Great as an appetizer, simple meal, or dinner for your kids...In these months of busyness and houseguests, you really should give them a try.

Preheat oven to 500.
Oil both sides of flour tortillas with olive oil and lay on baking sheets. layer with fresh, thin slices of tomatoes, or if that doesn't suit your fancy, spread on a bit of your favorite pizza sauce*.
Using a microplane grater, grate a bit of parmesan cheese over the sauce, and then lay pieces of mozzerella (preferably fresh) over that. Drizzle with a bit more olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake until cheese is golden brown and bubbly--about 8 minutes. Sprinkle slivers of fresh basil over the top. Cut into wedges and enjoy.

*A great, quick pizza sauce: 1-2 cloves minced garlic mixed/mashed with about 1/4 t kosher salt, mixed into a 6oz can of tomato paste along with 2-3t olive oil, 1/2 t oregano, freshly ground pepper, and (no matter what you think you think) 1/4 t anchovy paste. Spread thinly over pizza crust.

Maple Vinaigrette!

2010-11-13T15:14:00.000-08:00

A great Autumn-tasting salad:
baby spinach
blue cheese, crumbled
pear, chopped
dried cranberries
walnuts broken into chunky pieces

For the vinaigrette:
2t dijon
2t apple cider vinegar
2T maple syrup
1/4 C canola or grapeseed oil
put in a jar and shake...adjust to your preferences. With the above salad I like it very sweet and maple-y...It made me want to eat pancakes while laying in a pile of fallen leaves. Wouldn't that be sticky?

Thanksgiving Ideas

2010-11-05T09:39:00.000-07:00

I made a thanksgiving meal this past weekend for family that will not be with us on the actual day, and decided to post the new recipes that were good as well as my old stand-bys.
Turkey
I always make Alton Brown's brined turkey because it is quite simply, the best. Brining is really easy and only requires a bit of work the night before the big day...which of course means your turkey must be thawed! BTW, the juices from this brined turkey are extra tasty so you can make a fabulous gravy by mixing a slurry of chicken or turkey stock with a bit of flour and stirring it into the drippings after the bird is removed. Bring to a boil while stirring and season to taste!
Green Beans
This weekend I tried Alton's green bean casserole. It was good--very similar to the traditional, from-a-can-of-mushroom-soup casserole that has some many devotees, but fresh and therefore much better for you! For a very similar dish that requires a bit more work but is totally worth it, go for green beans with mushroom-madeira sauce--my reigning favorite for this particular meal.
Cranberry Sauce
It's hard to admit, but I love cranberry sauce from a can. I know, so do you. But I usually end up making this cranberry apple sauce because it's fresh, easy and really delicious.

3 large Granny Smith apples, peeled and cut into 1/2 inch pieces
1 C cranberries (fresh or unthawed frozen)
1 C water
7 T sugar

Bring all ingredients to a boil. Cook, covered, over medium heat, stirring occasionally for 20 minutes. Serve at room temp.
*This is a pretty smooth sauce, but if you don't want any chunks you can blend it up one it is finished cooking.
--Best of Gourmet 2000

Stuffing
I love stuffing. I have probably made a different stuffing every year that I've made Thanksgiving dinner and am still searching for that one that completely knocks my socks off. Here are a few that were close.

Leek and Wild Mushroom stuffing
Country bread stuffing with smoked ham, goat cheese and dried cherries
Savory bread pudding with mushrooms and Parmesan cheese
Apricot and Walnut Stuffing *

* I am a fan of savory rather than sweetish stuffings--so I am admittedly biased. This last stuffing was written of in such glowing terms in a recent issue of Saveur that I had to try it. It was good--much better than I anticipated, but it was less savory than sweet, so while I had seconds, I wasn't dancing in the aisle...but you may be. In the interest of full-disclosure...

Lastly, squash doesn't thrill me so I've got nothing to say about it, and I figure everyone knows how to make sweet potatoes even sweeter and mashed potatoes mashed...so I'll end this long post here. More on desserts later.

Spanish Bean Soup

2010-11-03T09:29:00.001-07:00

*Note I have only ever made half of this recipe and it still makes a ton of soup!

4 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
5 cans garbonzo beans
1 C tomato sauce
1 t garlic salt
1 t pepper
1 t cumin
1/2 t salt
1 t basil
1/4 t oregano
4 links chorizo, sliced
1 large onion, chopped
1.5 lbs cooked ham, diced
1 packet yellow rice seasoning (vigo or goya, or alternatively, you can use some saffron and salt to taste)

Boil potatoes for 15 minutes. Add cans of garbonzo beans, draining only 2 cans. Boil for 10 minutes more. Add reminaing ingredients, stir and cook on low for 2 hours.

This is a thick, hearty stew. Definitely a meal all by itself.

Best Easy Soups for Fall

2010-10-14T10:44:00.000-07:00

Is the changing weather arousing a desire in you to hunker down with a warm bowl of soup? Here are some tasty, easy soups we've begun making around here.

Split pea and barley
Does that army-fatigue green color turn you off? Think you don't like this kind of soup? Think again. Recipes abound, some people like to throw in a ham hock, some like the addition of bacon and some like to keep it strictly vegetarian, anyway you make it, it's hearty, healthy and tasty!

White bean & chicken chili
I've had many a white chili but this blew all former contenders out of the water. You may think the addition of greens is odd, but it's actually quite fabulous. If you don't have chard, try spinach, beet greens, or if you're a fan, kale.

Roasted tomato
Sounds simple, but I've made this soup at least three times in the past 2 weeks. It's just that good. Tomatoes are plentiful this time of year and this can be made with any kind or a combo of kinds. I must add that as written it is super decadent. I've made it with just 1T of the recommended butter and a touch of half and half in place of heavy cream and it is phenomenal, so save yourself the calories!

Want bread to dip? Think you can't make a beautiful and tasty artisan loaf? I implore you to pick up a copy of My Bread and try it. All you need is a dutch oven (that's a covered pot like you might cook pasta in) and the ability to read. Seriously. (And yes, there are more highbrow ways of making bread, but this method really can't be beat if you've always wanted to give making your own bread a whirl but have been afraid...you can get highbrow with the great Breadbaker's Apprentice down the road.)

Quinoa with everything but the kitchen sink

2010-05-18T05:08:00.001-07:00

A fabulous, healthy, tasty and fast meal that everyone (even finicky little ones) will eat!

Preheat oven to 400

2 C quinoa, soaked for 10-20 minutes, then drained and rinsed
3 C chicken stock or water

Add both of the above to a pot, bring to a boil, then cover and turn heat to low. Cook until all liquid is absorbed; about 25 minutes.

While the quinoa is cooking do the following:
2 red bell peppers cut into thick strips and layed on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and put in oven.

1/8 C olive oil
2 Italian sausage links (organic), cut into bite-size pieces
2 portobello mushrooms (or 2 C of your favorite mushroom) sliced in 1/2" pieces
2 large handfuls of baby spinach

Cook sausage in a olive oil for about 4 minutes then add mushrooms. Saute all until sausage is cooked through and mushrooms are sufficiently wilted. Add in spinach and stir/cook until wilted (covering the pan can speed this process).

remove peppers from oven and cut into bite-size strips; stir into sausage mixture. Stir in qunioa (you may not want to use all of it--it depends on the ratio of quinoa to veggies you want) and then mix in 4 oz crumbled goat cheese.

Voila!

Nuts for the Holidays

2009-12-09T17:26:00.001-08:00

Like the not-so-clever double-entendre? I made these nuts last year and just finished eating them almost a year to date despite the fact that the recipe says they keep for two weeks. (I hate this age of covering your butt to the extreme...but I digress). You may think nuts around the holidays are a bit cliche and passe, and perhaps they are, but they are tasty nonetheless. And super easy. If you make a ton as I did last year and find yourself eating them well into 2010, they are good chopped up on salads or as a snack.

Legal Seafood Asian Salmon

2009-10-28T16:41:00.000-07:00

I just made this tasty salmon for dinner. Very quick as far as hands-on time, but there's about 40 minutes of time involved in simmering, marinating and cooking so plan accordingly.

Looking in my fridge for some veggies was a bit disheartening but I came up with a side that went so well with the salmon I will always make them together. I shredded some brussel sprouts and green cabbage and sauteed in olive oil and garlic. Once they were bright green--about 5 minutes on medium high heat, I stirred in about 2 T of the sauce from the salmon and cooked about a minute more. Tasty and crunchy. I served all of this with some Yukon Golds whipped with 1T butter and enough milk to make them smooth.

All in all a fast dinner that was healthy and impressed my hubs. What more can a girl ask for?
VEW

Stocking My Freezer

2009-10-07T18:36:00.001-07:00

If there is one comfort to a summer that passes too quickly, it is that the onset of Autumn brings with it an intense nesting instinct in me. Suddenly all the things that I couldn't be bothered with when the sun was shining and the gardens were growing become like long-lost friends with which I can't wait to get reacquainted.

My plans this year are perhaps my most ambitious. Without getting preachy I'll just say that I've learned a lot from reading books, researching, talking with friends and participating in a CSA. The knowledge I've gained demands that I be a better steward of the earth and its inhabitants, as well as my family's health. To that end I'm trying to eat more whole foods, and buy only things that are responsibly grown. I felt like I was doing a good job before, but I want to do more. I've been trying to figure out which staples/snacks in our house I can make from scratch without too much trouble, and thus remove us at least another step from the industrialized food chain. The list will only increase I'm sure, but so far I've been making or planning to make the following things and will post recipes when I am not just satisfied, but thrilled with the results:
Wheat bread for my kids' sandwiches
Artisan breads
Crackers for my husband's snacking
Hummus
Marinara sauce to stave off ordering pizza in a pinch
Various pastas
Bagels
Cheese
Pickles

It's so fun to realize how easy it is to make things that all my life have come in a box or jar or cellophane, and even the most pathetic effort generally bests the store bought version as is usually true with homemade things. Please feel free to share any tips, sites, or recipes that fit the bill!
VEW

The Best Hummus

2009-10-07T18:26:00.001-07:00

We eat a lot of hummus around here. I used to make it from canned chick peas until one day, desiring to eat foods as close to their natural state as possible, I wondered if I could find dried chick peas at my grocery store. I did and the resultant hummus was fabulous. I will never go back to canned. Not only do more nutrients remain in the final product compared with canned peas, the texture is unparalleled. This was as good as any restaurant hummus I've had and it was really easy. I make it to taste (I love the addition of freshly ground cumin and I like the tang that the addition of sumac adds), and started out working from this recipe.

If you eat hummus you really must give this a try. Yes, you have to plan ahead a bit since the chick peas require overnight soaking, but other than that, there really is very little time different between cracking open a can and giving your soaked peas a quick soak and boil. Oh, and peas you don't use right away can be frozen after they're boiled, making your next batch even easier than your first. I now maintain a steady supply of ready to go chick peas in the freezer.

VEW

Beet Greens!

2009-09-14T16:47:00.000-07:00

I was a skeptic. Worse than that, a non-believer. I had read that beet greens were edible. I may have even read that they were good, but I didn't believe it. I was like my 4 year old who refuses to believe that anything I make for dinner will be remotely edible, let alone palatable. But I finally tried them. I don't remember what sparked it. A conversation with a friend perhaps. Or the fleeting thought as I chopped off a huge bundle of greens from a bunch of beets that I was being wasteful...I really don't know. But now I am a believer. They were so good I went out and bought some more. If you like sauteed spinach I can guarantee you will like beet greens. Same texture, similar taste but without that strange astringent aftertaste you sometimes get with spinach. Furthermore, at least in season, beet represent the greatest value in veggies and the 2 dishes you can get from this one plant are so different, it's hard not to start loving the beet. And all this from a person who last year not only merely tolerated the beet, but tossed the greens with a sneer at the thought of eating them. My apologies to those wasted greens.

Sauteed Beet Greens

Trim greens from one bunch of beets. Submerge in a sink of water to wash. Trim thick, woody ends and ribs. Roughly chop leaves.

In a pan, heat extra-virgin olive oil and add at least 2 cloves chopped garlic. Just as it begins to turn golden, throw in the greens, scant 1t kosher salt and stir. Cook until wilted. Eat. Buy more. Repeat. Become a believer.

VEW

Pick a Leaf Pesto

2009-09-02T15:59:00.000-07:00

Tonight should have been a pizza night: My husband is out of town for the second night in a row, I have 3 small children that never seem to tire, today was the first day we had to all be out the door and 25 minutes south of home in the early (for us) morning...I am tired. But I couldn't bring myself to feed me or my kids a bit of dough with a bit of processed tomato and some poor quality cheese. The scene in the fridge wasn't promising. I had a bunch of singlet veggies and not much else. Upon realizing they would all go to waste since we are headed out of town for the weekend I brainstormed the following tasty dish which I will now add to my repertoire of speedy, good meals.

I had some arugula and decided a pesto topped with my random veggies would be good. I didn't really have enough of any one ingredient for a true arugula pesto so I used what I had and it worked well. I always make pesto to taste rather than by measurements, so I will just try to approximate them here.

2 big handfuls of greens: I used a lot of arugula and added about 10 big leaves of basil, 10 leaves of sage and a bit of parsley.
3 cloves of garlic
6T total of nuts: I used pine nuts and walnuts
Process in a food processor then add:
1/3 C extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 C total Pecorino and/or Parmesan cheese, grated
Salt to taste

To this add pasta water to make the consistency to your liking.

To the cooked pasta and pesto I added one whole zucchini, peeled into ribbons with a veggie peeler--my new favorite thing to do since a friend gave me the tip that I think she learned from Jamie Oliver.

This alone was great, but grilled chicken would be good with it for something more hearty, or you can do what I did and saute whatever veggies you have on hand and top the pasta with them. I used some grape tomatoes, red bell pepper and red onion. It was so much better all around than pizza and just as quick.
VEW

Saturday Morning

2009-08-29T12:35:00.000-07:00

Interesting that my first post-baby post was about butter and my first post-baby painting is a still life of a doughnut... It's called Saturday Morning. Many such a morning finds my husband running down the street to a little bakery to bring back a "second breakfast" of treats. I used to find the amount of sugar consumed during this period a bit alarming but have since embraced the glee with which my kids receive the treats. I thought the sprinkle doughnut was the epitome of what Saturday mornings are like around here and I wanted to preserve that memory.

VEW

A Simple Summer Meal

2009-08-28T18:52:00.000-07:00

A visit to a local farm and neccessity of quick preparation inspired this meal for friends.

Pasta with Roasted Summer Vegetables
Country Wheat Bread with Homemade Butter
Peach Tart with Blueberries and Whipped Cream

In a shallow roasting pan toss:
4 cloves garlic roughly chopped
3 baby eggplants, sliced in 1/2 inch pieces
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 portobello mushroom, chopped
1/4 C olive oil
salt

Roast at 350 degrees for 1 hour, remove from oven and add 1 zucchini sliced into ribbons with a vegetable peeler and a handful of chopped, fresh herbs such as basil, sage, thyme, oregano and tarragon. Stir to wilt. Toss with fresh pasta.

The bread is self explanatory, for the butter, see post of the same name.

This tart was great. It reminded me of a peach cobbler but was much more elegant. It looks beautiful and had my guests going back for more. I used regular peaches and added blueberries after I removed the tart from the oven. Serve with freshly whipped cream.
VEW

A Foddie's Rock Star

2009-08-28T08:20:00.000-07:00

Ever wonder the difference between snails in your garden and escargot? Novella Carpenter did and the answer she found may surprise you. You can read the whole thing here.
VEW

Quintessentially American...Unfortunately

2009-08-28T07:44:00.000-07:00

My husband is off on a camping adventure. He does this every year and I am glad for the outlet it gives him. It is one of the handful of times that he ventures into a grocery store alone to pick out his provisions for the following few days; something I'm sure he relishes as my voice is surely nowhere in his head telling him to put down that over-processed, sugar-laden thing he has picked up precisely because he was not allowed to have it during his childhood either. I exaggerate a bit. He actually comes home with quite healthy snacks, knowing that in order to feel good on the many miles of hiking he'll be doing he can't subsist on Pop Tarts and Cheez-Wiz.

As I watched him unload his bags yesterday I noticed something odd. A plastic pint-sized container of whole, already peeled garlic. "What are you doing with that?" I asked him perplexed. He shrugged, but I'm sure he has a gourmet (by camping standards) meal in mind. He is after all, quite spoiled by good food, as I am fond of reminding him when he complains about my addition of flax seed meal or some such thing that he finds a little too healthy in his scones, cookies, etc.

He packed a few pungent cloves and left the rest of the container on the counter, perfuming the entire house with its manhandled, I'm-so-handy stench. I studied the label. There had to be the equivalent of 4 heads of garlic cloves packed in there--all perfectly peeled. It had cost him ninety cents. That's a lot less than buying the actual heads of garlic would cost. Interesting considering the heads of garlic are sold in bulk: no packaging costs, no labeling costs, no labor of peeling and putting into container and pressing on a lid costs. I have passed these containers many a time in the store and thought, albeit fleetingly, of grabbing one to save myself the extra, what? 5 seconds? it takes to peel a clove myself. Seeing the ridiculousness and utter un-need of such things I always pass them up. Besides, prep is one of the joys of cooking. Its meditative quality is calming...when you're not rushing. These nude cloves of garlic presuppose rushing. I began to hate them. And then I noticed something in small print: Product of China.

WHAT?

I began to feel very superior for not having brought this contraband into my house. Do we really need a country half way around the globe peeling our garlic and flying it around the world just to save us mere seconds? I laugh at the sheer ridiculousness that is our food system. How did it come to this? Can I boycott such things by standing in the produce section with a little sign? Then again, do these nudies even deserve as much thought as I've already given them?
I am sure my husband did not notice this little tidbit of information, and I like to believe that if he had he too would have passed on this purchase (especially having just finished The Omnivore's Dilemma and finally having jumped, at least partially, on my bandwagon).

Is there a better argument for buying local as much as possible? Better yet, grow your own Victory Over Stupidity garden and be sure to plant lots of garlic. I will. More on that next Spring.

VEW

Butter!

2009-08-26T14:24:00.000-07:00

Lest I give a false impression with the title of this post, let me just make plain that I have a slight fear of butter. It is the same fear I have of bacon, but idiosyncratically not of things like whipped cream or summer sausage. I use butter as little as possible in my cooking, despite that fact that it makes all things better. I think I simply fear that if I were to really let go with it, because I cook so much, I would quickly condemn myself and those I feed to a life of clogged arteries and excess cellulite. With that being said however, I feel that if one if going to use butter, better that it is in its rawest form--fresh butter on warm bread for instance, which is what this post is about.

I love making butter from scratch. It is so easy and so satisfying and SO GOOD. There is a great demonstration of how to do it from Saveur Magazine's web site (which is my reigning favorite food site btw). Basically, you just whip heavy cream until the solids separate from the liquid (buttermilk), wring out in cheesecloth, wash it, and then mash in some salt. Voila. You can do it with a mixer but it really is nice to do it by hand with a whisk...if you like that kind of thing.

I made two kinds: one with unhomogenized, grass-fed, organic cream and one with plain organic cream. The grass-fed cream smelled quite ripe and I worried that the butter wouldn't taste that great, but the whipping process mellowed it and it came out well. I have yet to do a side-by-side taste test as promised in an earlier post, but I really am curious so I will soon. The grass-fed cream butter was slightly yellower than the other--a by product of the grass, rather than grain diet of the obliging cows.

If you are a fan of the butter you get with good bread at good restaurants, you must give this a try as it blows even those away.

-VEW

Back in the Saddle

2009-08-21T17:19:00.000-07:00

So it has been a while since I've written anything, but for good reason. My posts slowed and finally ended last Fall as I felt sicker and sicker in the midst of my third pregnancy. I didn't think anyone needed recipes for plain egg noddles, mac and cheese, store bought bread, etc. When I regained my appetite it was not exactly for the stuff cooking blogs are made of. There was lots of unhealthy and uber low-brow dishes flying about my house for a while as I gave up trying to not indulge my cravings. One healthy baby boy and a few months later, I am starting to cook again as I should--tasty, mostly healthy, seasonal as possible in New England meals. And while I did not join a CSA again this year simply because I knew it would be a bit overwhelming with two small children and a new baby, I have been doing my best to buy seasonal, local produce and make interesting things with it. In doing such I have a new respect for beets that didn't exist last year when they kept showing up in my farm share, I have passed up on the pathetic looking out of season strawberries on numerous occasions despite my desire for shortcake, and I have begun checking out more farmers'markets than just those nearby (they are popping up everywhere which is a good sign of the times).

Tonight I made two batches of fresh butter. One was with an unhomogenized, grass-fed cream, the other with a homogenized, pasteurized organic cream. I am going to see what difference in taste they yield. It should be interesting as the grass-fed batch smelled like a cow pasture from the get-go so I am hoping that will turn out to be a good thing...though I am not so sure.

More on the taste test later.

Lentil and Tomato Soup

2008-11-06T14:23:00.000-08:00

VEW

This is a really tasty Midle-Eastern take on lentil soup (Once you click of the link, scroll down this recipe--there are others listed along with it). I was skeptical that it would have enough flavor for my liking as I read over the recipe--but it was great. The key lies in grinding the spices. It's easy to find whole cumin and coriander seeds in the spice section of ant grocery store, and a spice grinder (aka coffee grinder) can be had for a little as $10.

I paired this soup with chunks of chicken marinated in a mixture of saffron, water, lemon juice and minced garlic, then cooked on my grill pan, and dill rice. I believe I posted dill rice previously but it wasn't coming up when I searched prior blog entries for it so here it is again:

1C basmati rice

2 C chicken stock

2-3 T dill

Put all ingredients in a pot and heat on high. Once it boils, cover and turn heat to low. It should be ready in about 2o minutes.

Thomas Keller's Egg Sandwich

2008-10-08T18:06:00.000-07:00

VEW

If you're a fan of fried egg sandwiches, then you have to try this one. It's merely a slightly different take on the old standard, but the slight difference makes for a phenomenal treat. If you happen watch the Adam Sandler flick Spanglish, stay tuned at the end to see Keller demonstrate how to make his favorite midnight snack.

The World's Easiest Cookies

2008-09-24T11:58:00.001-07:00

CLN

I have been given this recipe by several people but never really believed that they were good. Well, I finally tried some that a friend made and they are in fact delicious. I made them with natural peanut butter but you can certainly use the trans fat version if you so desire.

1 C peanut butter
1 C sugar
1 egg

Mix it all together and bake at 350 for about 12 min.
How's that for easy?

Raspberry Almond Scones

2008-09-23T11:14:00.000-07:00

VEW
Yet another scone concoction that is pretty tasty. Is all honesty, can you really make one that isn't?

1/2 C ground almonds (use a food processor...)
2C all-purpose unbleached flour
1/2 t salt
1T baking powder
3T sugar
6T cold, unsalted butter
1 egg
1/2 C whole milk
1/4t almond extract
1t vanilla extract
1 C fresh raspberries tossed with 1 T flour to coat

Preheat oven to 375. Mix dry ingredients together and cut in butter until mixture is like coarse crumbs. In a separate bowl mix wet ingredients, then mix into dry ingredients until a dough is formed. Knead a few times to incorporate all the flour. Divide dough in half and flatten into 2 rounds about an inch thick. Press raspberries into one round leaving about 1/2" at the edge. Lay the other round on top pressing down slightly. Press the edges together to seal the berries in. Line a baking sheet with parchment. Cut dough into 8 wedges and lay close together (not quite touching) in a circle. Brush tops with a little milk and top with turbinado sugar. Bake until golden--about 20 minutes.

Cookbook: Braises and stews

2008-09-15T04:43:00.000-07:00

CLN

While roaming through William Sonoma I found a great cookbook propped up by the Le Crueset dutch ovens. It may just be that fall is approaching and I start to crave rich and comforting stews and braises but everything in this cookbook looks great. I ,of course, paid full price for it but you can get it used here.

Sage and Cracked Pepper Papardelle with Wild Mushrooms

2008-09-13T18:46:00.000-07:00

VEW
I could eat pasta with mushrooms for the rest of my life and be happy.If you’re luke-warm about mushrooms, I think this recipe could convert you to my side. The rich sweetness of the sauce and the fresh earthiness of the pasta is a really great combination.

Pasta recipes vary tremendously as far as the ratio of flour to eggs and the type of flour. I have made many different kinds; I have mixed and rolled by hand, mixed by food processor, kneaded by hand and rolled by pasta roller. It’s all good and leagues better than dried and even the store-bought fresh pastas. The one constant is that you really should knead by hand for a few minutes. It gives you a silkier dough, and if you’re going to go through all the trouble of making pasta from scratch, you should want to get your hands in it! I’ll give you the latest recipe I’ve used, but if you have one you use, make it as directed, just add the sage and pepper to the flour as this recipe states.

2 ¼ C King Arthur brand Perfect Pasta Blend Flour

3 eggs at room temperature
1-2 T water
8-10 fresh sage leaves, minced
Freshly ground black pepper (about ½ t)
Mix the flour, sage and pepper. You can either make a well in the center of the flour mound and add in the eggs, gradullay incorporating the flour as you mix, or if you’re short on time you can do this all in a food processor. Mix in the egg and little bits of the water at a time until the dough just clings together. Knead for at least 3 minutes; 6-10 will yield increasingly better results. Wrap in plastic and set aside to rest for 20 minutes. Alternatively, throw it in the fridge and take it out 20 minutes before you’re ready to use it.
I use an Imperia hand-crank pasta roller to roll out sheet of pasta and then I cut them however I want. To make pappardelle, flour the sheets well and then fold them in half, in half again, in half again etc. until you have a small sheet that is manageable to slice into 1” ribbons with a large knife. Unroll them and lay on a floured towel . If you aren’t going to use your pasta right away, or if you want to store for a few days or even weeks, you can freeze it on a cookie sheet. When ready to cook, just drop in boiling water as you would dried pasta. It will cook in about 3 minutes. (This is very helpful if you end up making more pasta than you can use in one night).

Mushroom sauce
2T unsalted butter
2 large shallots, sliced in ¼” rounds
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 lb assorted mushrooms, thickly sliced (shitake and baby portobellos are readily available in most stores)
3/4oz dried mushrooms such as porcini or Polish Cépes, soaked in ½ C boiling water for 30 minutes
1/4C dry red wine
1/3 C heavy cream
3T ricotta cheese
¼ Cup finely grated parmesan or pecorino cheese
1T freshly chopped parsley
Melt the butter in a large frying pan and sautee the shallots and garlic until beginning to carmelize. Deglaze the pan with about ¼ C red wine. Simmer until wine is almost gone, then add the fresh mushrooms. Cover and cook over med-low heat until softened—about 8 minutes. Add in the dried mushrooms with their soaking liquid. (It’s generally a good idea to pour the liquid through a fine mesh sieve to keep any sediment from your dish.) Gently simmer uncovered for about 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Make sure your sauce stays saucey. If you find the pan drying out a bit, turn down the heat and/or partially cover the pan. Pour in the heavy cream and cook for another 5 minutes. Just before serving stir in the ricotta, parmesan cheese and parsley. Gently toss with cooked noodles. Serve with a drizzle of fine extra virgin olive oil and some gray salt. I could die happy…

Swiss Chard and Ricotta Ravioli

2008-09-13T18:00:00.000-07:00

VEW

This is a nice mellow recipe and a great way to incorporate Swiss Chard into a meal if you find yourself at a bit of a loss as to what to do with it (like me). A friend of mine who is a great cook made this as written and raved about it. I had extra time on my hands so I made pasta from scratch rather than use the store-bought wrappers the recipe suggests. Homemade pasta will never disappoint you and it really is very easy. It is a bit time consuming until you really get the hang out of, that is the only conceivable argument anyone could have with it. We have been enjoying making pasta for about 9 years now. I remember in the beginning we would make it with friends and we'd end up eating at 10pm. The meals were always fabulous, so it didn't seem to matter. These days the process is much faster, so if you're put off by the time factor, keep going! I will post more later on making fresh pasta as the comfort food season is almost upon us and what is better than pasta?

Tomatoes, Tomatoes, Tomatoes!

2008-09-08T19:06:00.000-07:00

VEW

The perennial question of what to do with the abundance of in-season tomatoes is upon us. Here are a few good recipes that I have made this week.

Rustic Tomato Tart. You can use purchased pie crust or puff pastry to make such a tart, which is what I do in a pinch but I don’t love them. Homemade is definitely the way to go if you have the time (you can use a basic pate brisee recipe like this). While you can use just about any cheese that suits your fancy, I have had great success with Brie, Fontina and goat cheese. You can add in any combo of fresh herbs that floats your boat as well. I like the pepperiness of thyme to offset the sweetness of basil, but really, anything goes with tomatoes and cheese right?

1 recipe tart dough (see above)

variety of fresh tomatoes, sliced in 1/2" slices

variety of fresh chopped herbs

Parmesan cheese

Your choice of cheese, thinly sliced

Preheat oven to 375. line a baking sheet with parchment paper.Roll dough into a circle and transfer to parchment. Sprinkle with some freshly grated Parmesan and put in the oven for about 8 minutes, or until just beginning to turn golden (not brown!). Remove and layer tomato slices in concentric circles leaving about 1 inch of dough at the edges. Sprinkle with herbs. Top with cheese. Gently fold the edges of the dough inward, pleating as you go to form a rustic looking tart. Bake until the cheese is melted and the crust is golden brown.

The finished product

Roasted Tomatoes with Herbed Goat Cheese and Lavash Crackers
This past weekend the number of tomatoes gracing my countertops slowly threatening to go bad were causing me a fair amount of stress. So I cut up a bunch of the Garden Peach variety that is growing like mad in my garden and tossed them in a pan with salt and olive oil and roasted them at 350 until they were soft and carmelized. At this point my husband announced that he would like to make the appetizer, so we ran out to our garden in the pouring rain and cut some chives, oregano, parsely, thyme and basil and came in sopping, but triumphant. My willing sous-chef finely diced the herbs and mixed them into about 4 oz of goat cheese with a little cracked pepper and then dropped mounds over the roasted tomatoes. We served it with some homemade lavash crackers and voila!

Shrimp Tikka with Mango Chutney, Coriander and Cilantro Flatbreads with Raita

2008-09-08T18:52:00.000-07:00

VEW

This is FANTASTIC. So good, so fast. It is perfect as written, but when I want to make it even faster, I skip the skewering/grilling of the shrimp and just throw the whole batch in a frying pan and cook it up.

The flatbreads (pictured above) are so tasty and easy! I have made them one at a time in a frying pan, but tonight I made the whole batch at once on my griddle and they were great. Please try this if you have even a small affinity for Indian food. It is one of my favorites.
Oh, one more thing. I am usually die-hard about making everything homemade, but as good mangoes are generally hard to find where I live, I have used a mango chutney that a local farm makes instead of making my own and the recipe doesn’t suffer one bit. Enjoy!

Avocado-Feta Salsa

2008-09-08T06:19:00.000-07:00

CLN
I am a self-proclaimed queen of dips and this one is a favorite. I recently brought this to a party where is was promptly devoured by my neighbor.

2 plum tomatoes, chopped
1 avocado, chopped
1/4 C. finely chopped red onion
1 clove garlic, minced
1 T. fresh parsley
1 T. fresh oregano
1 T. olive oil
1 T. red or white wine vinegar
4 oz. feta cheese, coarsely crumbled

Combine all but the feta and gently stir. Add in feta and cover and chill for up to 6 hrs. Serve with pita or tortilla chips.

Curried Zucchini Soup

2008-09-02T17:08:00.000-07:00

CLN

I have been getting my fair share of zucchini lately from my farm but unfortunately, my husband is not as fond of it as I am. I started making this recipe and even my husband enjoys it now. I tried freezing it with moderate success. The taste wasn't compromised but the texture was a bit. I have served it with a variety of things including: frittatas, salads, sandwiches and grilled bread with cheese melted on top ....enjoy!

Eggplant

2008-09-02T15:59:00.001-07:00

VEW

Eggplant: (n.) A vegetable that inspires apathy, boredom and even fear as it begins to show up in increasingly larger quantities in my farm share.

This is one thing I haven't loved seeing in my farm share basket. There are some people who can make eggplant taste good, even interesting, but I am not one of them. I usually find it bland and soggy at best. Tonight as I trolled the crisper for ideas for dinner, I had 3 white eggplants glaring at me at if to say, are you really going to let us go the way of that first batch of Swiss chard?

No, I decided, I am not. I will conquer you! Of course this conquering was occurring right around 5pm with 2 children getting more ornery by the minute, desperately needing something to eat. So I tried this recipe for Rigatoni with Eggplant, Tomato and Ricotta despite the fact that it sounded utterly bland.

I was wrong.

It was actually quite tasty. My uber-finicky eaters even ate it. Go figure. I made it as written using a white eggplant and I used linguine because it's what I had. It worked just fine. If I were to make it again, I would toss it with freshly made pasta, and perhaps toss in a mixture of fresh herbs in addition to the basil that is called for. If you give it a try, note that the recipe is for 2 and didn't make much, so you may want to double it.

2008-08-20T05:18:00.000-07:00

Peach Cobbler Scones

VEW
It’s August and we’ve just begun getting fresh peaches from our farm share. I love peach cobbler but would feel a little guilty about eating it for breakfast so I came up with this slightly better-for-you alternative.

2 C unbleached all purpose flour (I prefer King Arthur)
2 T white sugar
Scant ¼ C packed light brown sugar
1T baking powder
2T flax seed meal (bob’s red mill)
1t salt
1/8 t cinnamon
Bit of nutmeg*
6T sweet cream butter
1 egg
Scant ¼ C half & half
1/2t vanilla
1 ripe peach, skin removed and cut in a dice
Demerara or Turbinado sugar for sprinkling

Preheat oven to 375degrees. Mix all dry ingredients and cut in butter with a pastry cutter until mixture is the size of peas. Pat diced peach with a paper towel to remove moisture; toss in flour mixture until each piece is coated. In a separate bowl beat egg, half & half and vanilla. Gently mix into dry ingredients and knead until dough comes together. It will be fairly wet and sticky after a brief bit of kneading. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and form dough into 6-8 rough balls. Sprinkle with sugar and bake for about 15 minutes until golden.

*Using whole nutmeg and grating a bit with a small microplane grater is easy and far better than using the store-bought pre-ground kind.

2008-06-21T16:50:00.001-07:00

Make it Beautiful

VEW

I love cooking, but my first love is painting. I am a painter and my preferred genre is still life. That pretty much means I get inordinately excited about things like grocery store produce sections and farm stands. I think there is an insane, even existential beauty in simple, natural things. If you really stop and think about it, the lovliness of vegetables and fruits, not to mention the tastes and textures when we actaully put them to use and eat them, it can truly be overwhelming.

Today was the first pick-up at the farm from which I have purchased a share. We were told not to expect much--it's still early in the growing season here and the nights can still drop to fifty degrees or so. I arrived not expecting much and was pleasantly surprised. Three types of lettuce, bok choy, pea shoots, strawberries, chives. I couldn't wait to get it all home and washed, and when I did, I wrapped it up bouquet-like in papertowels and layed it in the fridge. Every time I opened the fridge I smiled.

As I prepared dinner tonight I realized that as much as I love cooking I look forward most to plating things. It can be an artform. I don't always do a good job of this--to be honest, many nights it's all I can do to get a decent meal on the table in the pot it was cooked in. But taking the time to make what you've spent time cooking beautiful is worth the minimal effort. Plating elevates anything and adds to the sensual pleasure that is eating. Early on in my cooking career if nothing else I would grind some cracked pepper, or sprinkle an appropriate dried green herb around the edges of my plain white plates. Tonight I made a great summer appetizer that we learned at Reza's restaurant in Chicago: Pita with feta, radish and parsley. I have a large white circular platter, I arranged the pita quarters fan-like down two of the sides and placed 2 chunks of feta at either end. The center was filled with bright red radishes and bouquets of parsley framed the edges of the plate. I'm sure I'm the only one who gets excited at the sight of such a thing--but it really was pretty, and that makes it more fun to eat.

None of us lives life as slowly as we would like, taking a little extra time to make it beautiful is worth the time and will enliven your table in new and fun ways.

2008-06-13T12:36:00.000-07:00

A Serendipitous Kitchen Mishap

VEW

One fine day, as the birds were chirping and the sun was shining and a gaze out my kitchen window revealed that after three years my gardens were at last showing signs of flourishing, I decided it would be better to prep some food for a party under these idyllic circumstances rather than fitting it in willy-nilly to the mayhem (albeit joyous) that tends to make up Saturdays at home with young children.
My tasks were easy enough, even a bit rote, so perhaps I was daydreaming as I reached out my arm to place the 1.5 liter bottle of olive oil that I keep at hand back in its spot by the stove…and missed. Let me take a moment to set the scene: In the corner of the kitchen where I usually work, there is a large, two- tier lazy susan that is likely supposed to be used for pots and pans. I find that it is much more convenient to store my spices, oils, vinegars, garlic, etc. there instead as everything can be seen in a quick spin. At this given moment, the lazy susan was open, revealing numerous bottles of all sorts of things. On the counter above are glass jars with flour, sugar, etc. and some oils, salt and pepper that I use regularly. Can you picture it? As I reached out to put the probably-too-large bottle of olive oil back, it jumped out of hand smack into the corner—glass hitting granite--and simultaneously spewing oil and tiny fragments of glass all over the top of the counter and its inhabitants and more horrifyingly, the lazy susan and all it contained. Now, when my stove was installed, one of the feet broke just slightly enough to make the oven ever so uneven that whenever I make a cake I have to arrange the layer just so or I have a sadly lopsided cake…I was not so lucky with the lazy susan. It was installed impeccably, and somehow doesn’t sag under the weight of everything it is forced to carry; I found this out as the oil quickly engulfed all the spices from B to T (yes, I alphabetize them) encompassing about 320 degrees of the circle--47 bottles of oil soaked glass and paper.
After cleaning up the glass, which stuck like shrapnel to the sides of so many bottles and occasionally my fingers, I began the long and tedious process of bathing each bottle in hot, soapy water and massaging them clean with towels. As I was doing this though, my woe-is-me pitying of myself turned to thoughts about cooking and why I love it so much as to have all this junk in the first place (and yes, I use it all…except perhaps for the pickling spice. Just why would I have that?). This is what I realized, again, for I have had this epiphany before: cooking brings people together, allows you to serve people you love and enjoy and reminds of times and places. Eating together is one of the most intimate things people do—across all cultures and times. As I washed off each individual bottle, stories came flooding into my head; the tasty Garam Masala from a little shop the my sister-in-law discovered and gave as a gift along with a great cookbook from Madhur Jaffrey, the copious yellow-labeled bottles from Penzey's Spices that I was turned on to by CLN of this blog, the saffron that was brought back from Turkey by a friend of a friend and shared with me. Washing the paprika I began remembering the first time I decided I liked hummus—at a party given by a friend who I’ve lost touch with and shouldn’t have. It seems silly and sentimental, but the preparation of certain meals and use of certain spices reminds me of travels with my husband and dear friends, of people come and gone, of who we were before we had kids, of who we are since having kids. It truly is one of the threads that makes up the tapestry of life and this little mishap made me take a rare minute (or 25 really) to contemplate how blessed I have been in life, how much I love the people with whom I’ve shared meals and of all the meals I look forward to sharing in the future.
So while I can not recommend shattering your own bottle full of olive oil all over your kitchen, I can say that life’s too short to eat without thinking or cook without caring—at least some of the time. Food is sustenance in so many more ways that the obvious. Perhaps that’s why heaven is often described as one big feast. Count me in. Cheers!

2008-06-12T04:57:00.000-07:00

Great Pancakes!

VEW

These are easy and quick to whip up from scratch--and I feel good about giving them to my kids which is always an added bonus:

1C wheat flour

2T flaxseed meal

2T wheat bran

1T sugar

2t baking powder

1/4t salt

Mix the above ingredients together and then add the following 3 ingredients after you've mixed them together:

1C milk

1egg

2T canola oil

I usually add blueberries (the small, wild ones are best) at this point, but you can add in whatever you like.

Cook them up, put on "It's A Good Day" by the Susie Arioli Band and you have all the makings of a June Cleaver sort of day.

2008-06-03T19:17:00.000-07:00

Grilled Salmon with Dijon-Honey Vinaigrette

VEW

When you live in the northern parts of the country you must squeeze every drop of warm, sunny weather out of the few months that comprise Spring, Summer and Autumn. For me that means grilling often. I'll grill just about anything that one can eat, but fish has always scared me a bit. I've done fish steaks, but fillets have always left me with visions of shredded bits of flesh stuck to my grill thereafter flavoring all other meats with a general and no so appetizing fishy-ness. I am well aware that there exists a host of gadgets to combat this problem: cedar planks, roasting baskets, racks. Being a relative gadget minimalist, I have never wanted to acquire any of these, but I have the cabinet space so what am I afraid of? I am currently in the market for some such things. However, as a recent trip to Florida proved, such things may make life easier, but are not necessary. I was cured of my irrational bias against grilling fish when my brother-in-law, a self-proclaimed mere occasional griller, grilled a large Grouper fillet to not-shredded perfection over a sea-air corroded gas grill that had 3 of 4 burners on the fritz. I came home determined to get right in the saddle. I went to the store and bought some wild Coho Salmon and made this recipe from Bobby Flay. It was great. The vinaigrette was just as good on a simple salad of Romaine, cranberries, walnuts and crumbled blue cheese as it was on the fish, and I am confident that when I grill chicken tomorrow, it will not taste like last night's salmon. Did I mention the whole meal including time to light a charcoal grill took 25 minutes? Give it a whirl.

Bolognese sauce--so easy, so good

2008-04-30T05:04:00.000-07:00

There are a million takes on this meaty ragu that takes its name from the city of Bologna on the north eastern side of the Italian boot. I fell in love with this simple dish at a little restaurant in a tiny hamlet called LaMole in Chianti. You can find a bunch of recipes all over the internet but in my opinion the things that make a really good sauce are the use of whole milk, dry white wine, good meat and time. The sauce requires little hands-on time but will benefit greatly from a lot of time simmering on the stove.

Finely chop:
3 stalks celery
2 carrots
1 large onion
4 cloves garlic

Saute in 1/4 C extra virgin olive oil until golden--about 5 minutes. Then add:

1 lb ground pork and 1C chopped pancetta or prosciutto
(You can substitute or add ground veal or ground beef as well--all in all you want about 1.5-2lbs of meat for this recipe)

Once the meat is no longer pink, add in:
1 6oz can tomato paste
1C whole milk
1C dry white wine
1 C water

Simmer covered for about 1.5 hours. Season with coarse salt and then take the lid off. The sauce will be very saucy at this point--it is best very thick and this is achieved by simmering away most of the liquid so only the solids and the oils remain--about another 1-1.5 hours.

Best served over homemade/fresh pasta such as linguine, pappardelle or spaghetti.

A good accompaniment is a fennel apple salad (from Simple Pleasures by Alfred Portale)
Finely slice 1 Granny Smith Apple and 1 bulb fennel. Combine with a little olive oil, the zest of 1 lemon and some shavings of parmesan. Season with coarse salt. I served over arugula dressed with lemon juice and a bit of olive oil. This was a really light, sweet and nutty salad which complemeted the richness of the pasta well.

Better Cinnamon Chip Scones

2008-04-30T04:49:00.001-07:00

I made these the other morning fully expecting them to be not quite as good as the regular recipe (posted here a few months back) but they were in fact better! Try this out:

1C unbleached all purpose flour (I use King Arthur)
1C whole Wheat flour
2T sugar
1T baking powder
2T wheat bran (Bob's Red Mill brand)
2T ground flaxseed meal (same brand as above)
1t cinnamon

Mix all of the above together then cut in

7T unsalted butter

mix in 1/2 C king Arthur cinnamon chips

Mix together the following and then add to the flour/butter mixture:
1 egg
1/3 cup heavy cream + 1% milk to equal 1/2C total
1t vanilla

**If the mixture is not coming together readily, just add milk by 1/2T until you can form it into a knead-able dough.

Mix and knead until dough comes together. Form into 2 balls and flatten each into a disk. Cut into wedges. Bake on parchment lined sheet at 425 for about 12 minutes. Makes about 8-10 scones depending on size.

2008-04-15T16:31:00.000-07:00

Bistro Entertaining

VEW

This 2 course casual dinner is tasty, short on prep and encourages conversation and even help from your guests.

Appetizer

Mussels Steamed with Vermouth and Thyme

Place 2 T butter in a large pot and melt. Add 1 finely chopped shallot and 2 finely chopped cloves of garlic. Saute until tender but not yet golden. Add 2 cups vermouth or white wine and a few springs of thyme. Bring to a boil and then add in 2lbs cleaned mussels (always discard any mussels that do not close upon touch when you're cleaning them). Cover the pot and steam for a few minutes. Remove mussels to a large bowl. If you wish, add one more chopped shallot to the broth and cook until translucent. Throw in some chopped parsley and pour over the mussels. Serve with good crusty (or toasted) bread.

Main Course

NY Strips with Mushroom Madeira Sauce

The recipe referenced here uses blade steaks which are less expensive than NY strips--but my husband vetoed using them. The sauce is great and super easy--but if you want something richer whisk in a little butter (1T) and cream (3T) at the end and that should do it.

Sides

Zucchini Friti

SO GOOD.

What can I say? The cooked zucchini clumps up--which is good because it makes for great presentation and makes it easier to eat. Cut 4 medium zucchinis into matchstick about 1/8" thick. A Mandolin would be helpful but isn't necessary. Pour canola oil a couple of inches deep in a large pot and heat to 375. Dip handfuls of zucchini in a bowl of milk, then in a bowl of flour. Cook in the oil for about 3 minutes or until they are a light golden color. Remove (a spider is very useful for this) and drain on paper towels. Salt just after removing.

Green Beans with Shallot Dijon Vinaigrette

Blanch about a pound of green beans in salted, boiling water until crisp tender--about 4 minutes. Drain and run under cold water to stop cooking. In a jar add 1tsp Dijon mustard, 1T minced shallot, 1tsp fresh thyme, 1tsp fresh tarragon, 2T white wine vinegar and a little salt and white pepper to taste. Shake up and then add about 2T olive oil. Shake again and pour over beans. * This is not your typical vinaigrette ratios of oil to vinegar--it makes a much thicker, tangier dressing that sticks well to the beans.

Dessert

Chocolate Polenta Cake with Homemade Vanilla Ice Cream

If there's one thing I could impress on you it would be to make this cake. I love Italian cooking and have thus come across polenta in dessert recipes numerous times but never made one until now. Why? Because polenta just doesn't sound that appetizing in a dessert. It certainly doesn't sound decadent. This cake is fabulous. It is similar to a flourless cake in that it only uses a tiny bit of polenta and a slightly larger amount of ground almonds. Together they make for an uber-moist, perfectly dense rich dessert. This goes to the top of my list for easy and tasty desserts. The homemade ice cream was a great addition, but store bought would be fine as would whipped cream. Oh, and when it says to line the cake pan with parchment, let the paper rise higher than the edge of the pan--don't trim the excess. The cake rises--souffle-like and the edges will keep it from spilling over like mine did.

2008-04-15T16:18:00.000-07:00

A Few Changes for the Better

VEW

When we at the TP started this blog, it was with grand intentions...mainly for ourselves and our own enjoyment. We all love to cook and we thought that by recording our weekly menus we would be creating an archive that we could use and that others could also benefit from. Apparently, life with small children and a bevy of activities has caused us all to fall off the blogging wagon. It appears that our set up of recording a whole week's worth of menus complete with descriptions was too time consuming and thus we stopped writing all together. So from now on we will be posting meals that we find exceptional, occasional menus, reviews, entertaining ideas, etc.

Stay tuned for what we hope will be some fabulous ideas for summer cooking. We have joined a local farm and will be getting loads of organic goods to cook with...likely we will not know what to do with some of it and therein lies the fun.

2008-01-31T10:57:00.000-08:00

Weekly Menu 7

VEW

Lamb Chops with Sundried Tomato Butter, Green Beans with Garlic and Prosciutto, Baked Eggplant with Prosciutto, Sundried Tomatoes and Kalamata Olives

Chipotle Chicken Fajitas with Quick Corn Risotto

Lemon Chicken, Baked Cauliflower with Lemon-Mustard Sauce, Wild Rice and Lentils

Day 1
This was a slightly more involved celebratory dinner I made for my husband, but it came together really quickly as the lamb cooks for mere minutes and everything else is pretty hands-off once it’s cooking. The Sundried-tomato butter was really good—I would definitely try in on a pasta or orzo as suggested (see recipe).

Season lamb chops with s & p, sear on a hot grill pan brushed with a little olive oil and just a few mintes per side (lamb should be served medium rare at the most...) Spread a little Sundried tomato butter on each chop.

For the green beans, sautee some garlic and olive oil in a pan for about a minute and add in about 2 T chopped prosciutto for one minute more. Rinse beans and throw in the pan, cover. Cook for about 10 minutes, remove the lid, add a bit of sea salt and cook until carmelized.

I am not a huge fan of eggplant, but this recipe was pretty good. I doctored it to use some of the ingredients I had left over from the other dishes above and it worked out well. A pretty forgiving recipe if you don't follow it to a T.

Day 2
Chipotle Chicken Fajitas with Quick Corn Risotto
The fajitas are straitforward: Cut some red, yellow and green bell peppers into strips along with onion and whatever else suits your fancy. Do the same with some boneless chicken breasts and marinate for at least 30 minutes in some lime juice, minced garlic and chipotle seasoning (How much you use depends on how hot you like it). My sister-in-law sent this to us and it’s great. It gives the chicken that smoky, spicy chipotle flavor and sets these apart from your run-of-the-mill version. If you can’t find a chipotle spice you like, you can replace it with 1-2 chipotles in adobo sauce—just beware that these are hot! Sautee the veggies first, then remove and tent on a plate to keep warm. Cook chicken, throw everything together for a minute in the pan and then plate. Serve with pico de gallo, sour cream, cheese, fresh cilantro and guacamole.

The “risotto” is easy and tasty. I’m not a fan of pepper jack cheese, but it’s what makes this dish great so don’t substitute plain jack cheese.

Day 3
Lemon chicken, baked cauliflower with lemon-mustard sauce, wild rice and lentils

This lemon chicken is one of my favorites. The cauliflower was so good I was wishing I’d bought 2 heads as I could’ve eaten one alone. You can easily cut the sauce in half and have plenty.

For the chicken, mix the juice of 4-6 lemons with ¼ C olive oil, 1T red wine vinegar, 1t dried oregano (or 1T fresh chopped) and 4 garlic cloves chopped and some salt and pepper. Put in a large ziplock bag and add a cut up chicken (I really recommend using bone in chicken as opposed to boneless chicken breasts); marinate for at least an hour and as long as overnight. Pour chicken with marinade in a 9x13 pan and bake at 400 for about 45 minutes, flipping once.

For the wild rice and lentils, I just threw together the ends of bags. I tossed about a cup of wild rice and ½ C of lentils in a pot with 1.5C water and 1 C chicken stock. You can change the ratio of water to stock, just keep the liquid to about 2.5 cups to start. Bring all to a boil and then cover and simmer until done. You may have to add a little hot water if it’s too dry. Salt to taste. This sounds boring, but it was really good, and the lemony juices from the chicken are great to spoon over the top.

2008-01-28T14:16:00.000-08:00

Scones, Fabulous Scones

VEW

Please pardon the horrible lag in new posts. This is the first year that I participated in the “holidays are so busy” cliché. I am still recovering. Couple that with the fact that my only New Year’s Resolution was to slow down a bit. Which means letting certain things go when more important things (say, my kids) are underfoot. Anyway, for the Tasty Plate, that should translate into simpler weekly menus and quicker preparations…so I guess it’s a good thing.
One of the things I am always busy doing and will likely never give up is making scones. The world of scones is huge and varied and limitless. I will post a few of my favorite recipes here. If the word scones conjures up images of crumbly, tasteless bricks that can be found at certain coffee establishments, please give any of these recipes a try—you will be pleasantly astonished.

Basic Scone recipe
This recipe is my mom’s and is responsible for launching me into my need for a scone to always accompany my morning coffee. While this is likely due in large part to the fact that when I was young my parents would often make these scones at night, after we kids were in bed and enjoy them alone in a quiet house. The following morning the scene was always one of mixed emotion: childish outrage that they had done it AGAIN! And excitement that they had at least left some for us.
These are classic cream scones—best eaten with raspberry preserves and freshly whipped cream.
2 cups unbleached, all purpose flour
2T sugar
1T baking powder
1/2t salt
6 T butter
1 egg, beaten
1/3 C half & half or cream plus enough milk to equal ½ total liquid
1 slightly beaten egg for egg wash
Mix dry ingredients and then cut in butter with a pastry cutter until the mixture is like coarse crumbs. Combine the cream/milk mixture with the beaten egg; add into crumb mixture and stir to combine. Knead a few times to bring dough together. Form into 2 discs and cut into wedges. Brush tops with egg wash. Bake on parchment paper on cookie sheets at 425 for about 12 minutes.

Cinnamon Chip* Scones
2 Cups unbleached, all purpose flour
1T baking powder

2T sugar
1/2t salt
6 T butter
¼ Cup sour cream
¼ Cup buttermilk

1 egg
½ cup cinnamon chips
Mix dry ingredients and cut in butter. Mix wet ingredients and add to dry; stir to bring dough together, then knead a few times to make a nice dough. Add in chips and knead to incorporate. At this point you can either prepare them for baking as in the previous recipe, or you can just pull off mounds of dough and place them on the baking sheet for a more rustic looking scone.

Orange Currant Scones
These are a great, tasty scone. The recipe makes quite a few—I often cut it in half and reduce the butter to 6T.

Oatmeal Currant Scones
These are similar to the scones above but the oatmeal adds interesting texture and flavor. They aren’t quite as dense as other scones, and on days I feel bad about letting my 3 year old eat a scone for breakfast, the oatmeal in this makes me feel better. Slightly.

This scone recipe is great for add-ins and is my current favorite. I leave out the raisins and add in any kind of chip or dried fruit and have good results everytime. To add something to the recipe, make the dough and knead it until it comes together (I often add 1-2T of cream because I find the dough as written is a bit dry), then knead in the chips or dried fruit. I use about a cup. If you add dried fruit sprinkle the tops with some turbinado sugar for a nice crust and some added sweetness.

Great add-ins:

Dried cranberries, soaked in a little orange juice for at least 15 minutes before adding

Small frozen blueberries—tossed with 1T four before adding

Applesauce or grated apple—you will need to adjust the liquid ingredients so your dough isn’t too moist

*While you can find Hershey’s cinnamon chips by the chocolate chips in certain grocery stores, they are not available everywhere for some reason. King Arthur’s chips are far superior and you can order online through their web site, so no one has an excuse for not making these.

2007-11-10T16:12:00.000-08:00

Tasty, Fast and Fabulous Appetizers

VEW

Here are a couple really good, really easy appetizers that look nice as well.

Jacques Pepin’s Tortilla Pizza
Truly you won’t believe a pizza made on a flour tortilla could be this good and certainly not elegant. But you would be wrong, like I was. Were it not for Monsieur Pepin touting these as something he loves I never would’ve tried them.

Lightly coat both sides of a couple flour tortillas with olive oil, then sprinkle with 1 T freshly grated Parmesan cheese (each), sea or kosher salt and pepper. Top with thinly sliced tomato and grated fresh mozzarella. Drizzle with 1 T olive oil and bake at 500 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Let rest for a minute and then add freshly chopped basil. Slice and serve.

Prosciutto-Wrapped Shrimp with Herbed Goat Cheese
These take about 4 minutes to cook and a few minutes to assemble. If you want to make it even faster, buy goat cheese that already has herbs mixed in it.

Find the recipe here.

Smoked Salmon Crostini with Cilantro-Lime Sauce
Slice a baguette and brush with olive oil, toast in the oven. Let the toasts cool, then spread each with a bit of the cilantro-lime sauce (below). Top with a small piece of smoked salmon.
For a slightly different presentation, plate the salmon pieces and toasts separately on a platter with the sauce in a pretty bowl on the side.

Cilantro-lime sauce (from epicurious.com, but perhaps under a different name as I couldn’t find it on the site.)
1C pakced fresh cilantro leaves
3 T fresh lime juice
1 clove garlic, peeled
1t Dijon mustard
¼ t hot pepper sauce
¾ C mayo
Blend first 5 ingredients in a food processor until cilantro is finely chopped. Add mayo and process just to blend. Transfer to a small bowl and season with salt and pepper. Cover and chill. (Can be made 1 day ahead).

2007-11-07T10:09:00.000-08:00

Weekly Menu 7

VEW

Baby Romaine Salad with Spicy Chicken and Warm Chipotle Vinaigrette & Smoky Refried bean Tostadas

Lettuce Gyros Filled with Spicy Halibut

Grilled Fish & Two Bean Salad with Hearts of Palm and Blue Cheese

Pork Skewers with Avocado Tzatziki and Pita Bread

Lentil Soup with Curry and Lamb

Day 1
Both of these recipes are from the Fine Cooking Annual (2007) cookbook. The Tostadas are so simple I didn’t expect much but they were great and literally take minutes to prepare. I modified the recipe (see below) to my tastes and what I had on hand. The salad is a refreshing change from the norm, which is a plus if you’re like me and easily get burned out on salads.

For the tostadas, brush 6 corn tortillas with a little bit of olive oil, place on a cookie sheet and put in the oven at 350 for about 10 minutes until they start to brown and are crisp. In a pan sauté a small chopped onion in some olive oil, add in 1t of adobo sauce from a can of chipotles in adobe and a can of pinto beans. Stir in one cup of water and salt to taste. Cook until creamy and thick. Top tortillas with some beans, sliced radish and fresh cilantro.

Day 2
This fantastic dish was the first recipe I made from Cat Cora’s Cooking from the Hip cookbook and my first ever Cat Cora recipe. It will go on my relatively short list of phenomenal dishes. Flavors, presentation, ease and healthfulness make this a truly outstanding dish. It seems like a bit of work at first glance but everything comes together very quickly—the feta mint Tzatziki is to die for…I ate the leftovers with hummus and pita for lunch the next day.

Day 3
This salad was good, colorful and definitely substantial enough for a lunchtime meal, but I added some grilled fish when I served it at dinner. It makes a big salad, and it will all keep well as leftovers as long as you don’t mix the arugula in with the rest of the ingredients, but rather serve the salad on a bed of arugula when you plate it.

I was unable to find this recipe online so pick up a copy of Cooking From the Hip or check it out from your local library if you’re interested!

Day 4
The pork skewers were inventive and interesting, though I found the pork was tastier two days after the meal. I added the suggested cherry tomatoes to my skewers and they were a nice addition. I also served the whole meal with pita bread to make it a little more substantial. It’s cold here right now and as we haven’t yet acclimated to the change of seasons, I grilled these on my grill pan as opposed to outside on a real grill.

(The avocado tzatziki recipe can be found here.)

Day 5
Adapted from an Alfred Portale recipe, this is one of my favorite soups.
Gently brown about 1.5 cups of chopped lamb and 1 chopped onion in a bit of olive oil. Add 2 cloves of minced garlic, a generous teaspoon grated ginger, some red pepper flakes if you like heat, and 3-4 t of your favorite curry powder (Portale uses Madras, I use a mixture of that and some others I have on hand). Stir for a minute and then deglaze the pan by stirring in 4.5 cups low sodium chicken broth and 1 cup water. Add in 1 cup lentils and bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low and partially cover, cooking until lentils are done, about 30 minutes. Bring the soup back to a boil and toss in 4 cups chopped baby spinach cooking just until wilted. Serve with freshly chopped cilantro.

2007-10-11T17:39:00.000-07:00

Weekly Menu 6

VEW

Roast Chicken with Apple Cauliflower Soup

2 Kinds of Pizza: Barbeque Chicken Pizza with Roasted Yellow Peppers

Spicy Sausage and Goat Cheese Pizza with Roasted Peppers and Rosemary

Spicy Sausage and Wild Mushroom Pappardelle, Green Salad, Sour Dough Bread

Day 1
I am a big fan of roasting whole chickens and I have made a variety of different recipes to that end. Chickens stuffed with lemons, herbs, apples. Chickens simmered in broth and then roasted; chickens rubbed in herbs and slathered in butter. The following recipe is my favorite—the trick is that you do nothing. It sounds too good to be true but trust me. Or trust Thomas Keller because it is his recipe, his favorite roast chicken and he is a master. You rinse and pat dry a chicken. Salt and pepper the cavity, truss the bird (find trussing how-to here) and sprinkle with kosher salt. Roast at 450 for about 50 minutes and then you’re done. Keller gives some ideas on what to do after that, but that’s all I do and it is awesome every time. You really won’t believe doing nothing could taste so good.

Apple Cauliflower Soup
The soup is something I just made up tonight as I was waiting for the chicken to cook. I would like to work on this recipe more because it’s pretty good, but who knows when that will happen so for now, here it is:
Chop up 2 peeled apples ( I used Golden Delicious, but I think something more akin to a Granny Smith would work better) and put in a pot to simmer with 1 can chicken broth. Cut up 3 shallots and caramelize in a pan with 1 T butter, 1 t fresh thyme, minced and a little olive oil. Steam 1 head of cauliflower (this will take about 20 minutes). Add the onion mixture and the cauliflower (along with up to ½ C of the water used to steam it) to the pot of apples and stock, cover and simmer for 15 minutes. Blend until smooth and return to pot. Add 1/4 C light cream, 2T butter, salt and white pepper to taste (it requires about a teaspoon of salt if you’re using low sodium stock). Serve warm. (Makes about 4 servings)

Day 2
I have always been a believer that chicken doesn’t go on real pizza, but my husband has always liked barbeque chicken pizza so I finally gave it a try and I really like it. Here’s our easy (dare I say low-brow?) take on it. On a premade pizza crust such as Mama Maria’s, spread purchased barbeque sauce. Add shredded chicken (I just boil boneless, skinless chicken breasts until cooked and then shred them). Roast some cut up yellow peppers drizzled with olive oil at 400 until the skins are just starting to char, then add them to the pizza. Top with sliced jack cheese and bake until cheese melts. Top with fresh cilantro.

For the sausage pizza, remove the casings from spicy Italian sausage and crumble in a pan to brown. I made a quick sauce of tomato paste, salt, fresh rosemary minced, dried oregano, pepper and olive oil all to taste, and spread it on the crust sparingly. Top with sausage, more of the roasted peppers from above, dollops of goat cheese and a few slices of jack cheese. When it comes out of the oven, top with fresh flat leaf parsely if you’re so inclined…

Day 3
This is a recipe from Jamie Oliver’s The Naked Chef Takes Off cookbook. As such it was simple and fast yet good. My husband made the pappardelle from scratch which automatically takes any pasta dish up about 5 notches. Here is a similar recipe, just add in the sausage.

Green Salad
I get really tired of salads, but they are a good idea so I try to come up with interesting combinations so as not to bore myself. For this one I used a combination of greens I had in the fridge and added in a lot of herbs—fresh parsely, basil, mint—but you can use whatever you have around. Adding in about ¼ C of each herb really imparts a great flavor that is a much needed change from the typical salad. I dress it with whatever kind of vinaigrette suits my fancy…just pick an oil and then pick a vinegar and toss as little sea salt on top.

2007-10-09T05:36:00.000-07:00

Weekly Menu 5

VEW

Chicken Enchiladas with Green Rice

Greek Lamb Burgers with Oven-Roasted Asparagus

Asparagus Soup with Pan-Roasted Scallops & Tomato Bread

Day 1
This recipe was given to CLN of this blog by a friend of her mother’s. It is very good and different than any of the other enchilada recipes I have.

Boil 2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts with salt and pepper and a bayleaf until cooked through. Remove from water and let the chicken cool, then shred it. Add ½ C water, 10 oz green enchilada sauce (or a salsa verde, or blended tomatillos if all else fails). Mix together with ½ C sour cream, ¼ C chopped cilantro and 4 oz can of green chiles. Heat tortillas to make them pliable and put the chicken mixture along with some jack cheese and onion inside and roll up. Place seam-side down in a baking pan and cover with enchilada sauce (see below). Bake covered for 20 minutes at 375, then take the foil off, add additional cheese on top and bake for another 5 minutes.

Enchilada Sauce
Here is a great 10 minute enchilada sauce that gives a pretty authentic flavor and depth to this dish. The quality of the chili powder determines how good the sauce will be…

Green Rice
CLN turned me on to this great side. It’s a nice alternative to Spanish rice or plain rice and beans as a side when you’re making the enchiladas.

Day 2
This is a great recipe from Cooking Light magazine. I generally find their recipes to be a good idea but just not very tasty. This one was an exception; I will definitely make the lamb burgers again. If you have a favorite Tzatziki sauce recipe, feel free to substitute it for this one, though it is pretty good…but don’t make the mistake of making the sauce in a food processor to save time…it will turn out too runny.

Oven-Roasted Asparagus

This is one of my favorite sides because it is quick and delicious. Rinse and trim asparagus by holding the bottom of each stalk and bending until it breaks; discard the woody bottom. Lay on a baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil, kosher salt and pepper. Broil for about 3 minutes until crsip-tender. Serve as is, or grate some lemon zest over them. You can also wrap a bundle of stalks in prosciutto before broiling for a different take on this dish.

Day 3

If you haven't been to Williams Sonoma’s web site for great recipes you are missing a goldmine. I have never made anything bad from their offerings and everything is simple—no über long ingredient lists or ultra-fancy cooking techniques. The results are always elegant and most important, delicious. This soup is great, healthy (if you cut back on the heavy cream or substitute light cream), and you can’t beat the tasty simplicity that is seared scallops. As with all seafood, try to get it the day you plan to cook it, and if you have a good fish monger or seafood shop, that is preferable to the grocery store.

Tomato Bread
Tomato Bread should be a staple in everyone’s repertoire. To make it, toast baguette slices drizzled with a bit of olive oil. As soon as they come out of the oven, cut a garlic clove in half and rub vigorously over the coarse surface of the bread—you will be amazed at how much flavor this imparts. Next cut a tomato in half and rub it over the bread, squeezing it as you go so the juices seep out and are soaked up by the bread. Enjoy immediately!

2007-10-09T05:09:00.000-07:00

Weekly Menu 4

VEW

Lamb and Artichoke Kebobs with Lemon and Rosemary, Risotto with peas, Caesar salad, Lemon Crème Brûlée

Wine pairing Chateau de Flaugergue 2003 Coteaux Du Languedoc Cuvee Sommeliere

Mustard-Crusted Roast Chicken, Green Beans with Tomatoes and Pancetta, Crispy Potatoes

Wine pairing: Kendall Jackson Meritage 2003

Prosciutto-Wrapped Salmon with Three Cheese Cavatelli and Spinach

Bun Cha

Day 1

I made this for a dinner I had with 4 girlfriends. It was easy, good and I didn’t spend all night cooking.

Lamb Kebobs
Cut up lamb into small pieces and put in a large ziplock bag with olive oil, 1 T chopped, fresh rosemary, the zest of 1 lemon and the juice of 1 lemon, a container of frozen artichoke hearts, kosher salt and pepper to taste. Let sit in the marinade for a least an hour and up to 4. Grill until the lamb is medium rare. (Adapted from Williams Sonoma Hors d’Ouerves cookbook, which I highly recommend).

Risotto
The Risotto base I used this time was Jamie Oliver’s,which I’ve written about in a previous post, but any will do. At the end I tossed in some peas, fresh flat leaf parsley, freshly grated Parmesan and drizzled with extra virgin olive oil.

Caesar Salad
The Caesar is self-explanatory. When I have time on my hands (which seems like never lately) I prefer to make my own croutons and dressing which make this salad a lot more enjoyable, but on this occasion I didn’t and none of my guests left out of disgust…

Lemon Crème Brûlée
The Lemon Crème Brûlée was my first time making a crème brûlée and I will do it again as it was easy and good. I don’t have a torch so I just used my broiler to get that crispy, golden brown top and it worked well.

Day 2
This is a recipe from Fine Cooking that is only available online if you’re a member of their site…which is too bad. It was a fabulous recipe so if you get a chance to pick up the September issue of Cooking Fresh, do it! (CN of this blog told me that Sam’s Club sells old issues of various magazines like Fine Cooking for about half the newsstand price…FYI). If you can’t find this exact recipe, any roast chicken dinner will work in this weekly menu, with a side of sautéed green beans and farm stand cherry tomatoes. Drizzle with some balsamic vinegar and a sprinkle of salt. Please remember that when we can’t lead you to an exact recipe, the main purpose of this site is to lay out weekly menu ideas because we find that to be the hardest part of meal planning.

Day 3
Wrap wild coho salmon fillets in a slice or two of prosciutto, cook 10-12 minutes (I had 2, 7 oz fillets) at 425 degrees.

Pasta
Melt 2 T butter and 2T olive oil in a skillet. Add 2 cloves chopped garlic and sautee until golden. Add 1 cup whole milk ricotta, ¼ cup half and half, and ¼-1/2 C pasta water. Stir to combine. Add 3 C chopped baby spinach, zest of 1 lemon, nutmeg, gray salt, white pepper, red pepper flakes for heat and 1-2T lemon juice. Cook until spinach wilts. Throw in ¼ C diced smoked mozzerella cheese. Stir and keep warm. Meanwhile, cook some cavatelli noodles, add to the sauce along with freshly grated parmesan and parsley. I wouldn’t serve this as a stand-alone pasta, but the flavors went nicely with the salmon.

Day 4
Bun Cha
Vietnamese food is one of the best kept secrets of the food universe in my opinion. It is the shy step-sister to Thai food and all too often overlooked. This recipe makes easy work of the fresh, healthy and flavorful ingredients that make up much of this region’s diet. Because Vietnamese food relies mainly on loads of fresh herbs like mint, coriander and basil as well as the ubiquitous fish sauce for flavor, you won’t find butters or oils very often in its cuisine. Having traveled to Vietnam, I was skeptical that the simplicity of this recipe would result in an authentic dish, but I was wrong! It was great and reminded us of the Bun we had at Pho 2000 in Saigon. Enjoy!

2007-09-10T17:05:00.000-07:00

Confessions of a Foodie

VEW

I love to cook. I love to eat. I eat just about anything and like most of it. But there are some things I have trouble with. Things that people who love food are probably not supposed to have trouble with…things that get me in trouble with fellow, more serious foodies. I write this in a spirit of gest, but I assure you it’s all true.

I have never professed an undying love of lobster. It all began when, as a 14 year old I had my first whole lobster and no one warned me that on top of water gushing everywhere upon cracking the beast open, there could also be a number of other unsavory looking things in there. So I eagerly cracked open the crimson crustacean only to lose my appetite upon seeing the green tomally that some consider the best part. I have only truly lost my appetite on two occasions, that was the first. Not wanting to disappoint my parents, who spent a considerable sum on this treat for the family, I managed to eat the lobster by dousing it in…ketchup. But that’s not the end of my lobster tale. I have grown to love lobster in stews, bisques, pastas and the like, but have never been a huge fan of whole lobsters until recently. On a weekend in Maine we had a fabulous outdoor dinner with farmstand corn on the cob, field greens just picked from the garden and Maine lobster. The lobster tasted fabulous, so much so that upon arriving home one day later, my husband and I bought some lobster to make again—our first time making them at home. The catch was that I would have to plunge them into the boiling cauldron.

Now, I have read all the recent debates about humane and inhumane killing of lobsters. I can’t say I really cared…it wasn’t going to change my mind about eating lobster and I had never actually cooked one myself…but when it came time to take the plunge, I couldn’t do it. And it wasn’t due to a twinge of guilt, it was again a fear of losing my appetite. I took the brown paper bag out of the fridge and opened it to take the first victim out…and the slow moving of the legs gave me the shivers. It is after all, a bit like picking up a giant spider, or rather looking at one because I confess I couldn’t even pick it up. It all makes me wonder who in the world originally looked at a lobster and thought, hmmm, that looks like it could have some pretty tasty meat under all that armor. Clearly not someone who was as far removed from the production of ready to prepare meats as I.

In the end I had to go back on my word and call in the reserves in the form of my husband, who being a man, did the job, but only this once he assured me with a sidelong glance that clearly said, Are you serious? It was a rare moment of weakness in the kitchen. I guess I have my work cut out for me.

2007-09-08T19:32:00.000-07:00

Weekly Menu 3
CLN

Chicken skewers with parsley-feta pesto and Greek salad

Beef and avocado tacos with beans and rice

Cuban burgers with mojo, grilled red potatoes and cucumber salad

Day 1
This is based on a Rachael Ray recipe, you can find it here. It's essentially a big salad but I find it tastes better with the components served separately. I serve the grilled chicken with the pesto on the side, the salad and toasted pita accompany the dish. I like to make the salad without the celery and make my make my own dressing using Lemon juice, olive oil, garlic and oregano. As a rule of thumb use 1 part vinegar( lemon juice) to 2 parts oil.

Day 2
Find the recipe here. This combination may sound odd but the crisp radish, creamy avocado and pickled jalapeno work really well together. I often use a flank steak in place of the skirt steak if that is all I can find. I like to use Emeril's Essence as a rub for the meat. You can make up a batch and keep it in the freezer. For the beans and rice I simmer a can of black beans, add chili powder and some fresh lime juice to liven them up and serve them over white rice.

Day 3
This burger is a twist on the cuban sandwich, which I love. The recipe calls for making a garlic mayo, I never do that and don't think it is worth the trouble, I just use regular mayo. To weight the burger on the grill, we usually use a brick or heavy cast iron skillet. I serve mojo to dip the sandwich in. Mojo is a citrus, onion and garlic marinade. You can find it in most grocery stores in the Goya or ethnic aisles. For a great side with this you can roast some red skin potatoes and when they're nice and crispy pull them out and pour mojo over them and garnish with scallions.
Mojitos-A traditional Cuban cocktail

Cucumber salad

This is very simple and you can just make it to taste. slice cucumbers and to them add white wine vinegar, olive oil and sugar. Depending on what is on hand you can also add onion and some dill. This is best made a few hours ahead so the flavors can meld and the cucumber can break down a bit.

2007-08-19T12:45:00.000-07:00

Weekly Menu 2
VEW

Lemon Chicken, Sweet potato fries with sweet paprika, Green beans with garlic, lemon and gray salt

Balsamic-glazed Salmon with roasted corn and tomatoes, tarragon whipped potatoes & broccoli slaw salad

Wine Pairing: Bonterra Mendocino County Chardonnay 2005

Linguine with roasted cherry tomatoes and basil, Raspberry pie a la mode

Wine Pairing: Cline California Syrah 2005

Risotto with shrimp, peas and mint, Chocolate Soufflés with whipped cream

Wine Pairing: Vignamaggio Chianti Classico 2003

*For reviews of these wines, visit http://winecask.blogspot.com/

Day 1
This is a simple, well-rounded, weeknight meal that requires little hands on time.
I use a modified version of the lemon chicken recipe you can find at Marthastewart.com. It is best with bone-in chicken even if you generally prefer boneless breast meat. It’s a simple recipe consisting of fresh lemon juice, red wine vinegar, garlic, olive oil and oregano. I often serve it with steamed basmati rice (my default rice) instead of the sweet potatoes.

Sweet potato fries with sweet paprika
Sweet potato fries are easy to make but don’t expect them to be crispy like regular fries: Peel and cut 2 medium sweet potatoes into thick sticks. Lay on a cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil, kosher salt and sweet paprika. Toss gently with a spatula to coat all sides. Bake in a 400 degree oven for about 25 minutes—turning once. (Serves 2)

Green beans with garlic, lemon and gray salt
Green beans are a favorite in our house and this is a tasty, simple recipe. Wash and trim beans. In a large fry pan sauté 2 chopped cloves of sliced garlic in a bit of olive oil. When the garlic is just beginning to color, add the green beans and cover the pot. Cook on medium heat for about 10 minutes—or until desired doneness. Take off heat and add the zest of one lemon, and a sprinkle of gray salt.

Day 2
The salmon portion of this recipe is a modified version of the honey-glazed recipe you can find at Williamssonoma.com.
Combine ¼ c cherry tomatoes halved, with ½ c corn, 2T finely chopped onion, 1T olive oil, 1/2T balsamic vinegar & 1/2t kosher salt. Roast in a 400 degree oven for 30 minutes. Then add the zest of a small lemon, and a little freshly chopped French tarragon.

Set aside. (Serves 2)

Make a glaze by combining ¼ C balsamic vinegar, and 1t olive oil in a small pan. Simmer gently until reduced by two-thirds. The sauce will thicken and sweeten.
To salmon fillets, add some kosher salt, lemon zest and olive oil. Cook on a grill (or grill pan), basting with some of the reduction sauce until opaque.

Tarragon whipped potatoes
For the potatoes, boil baby reds (skin on) until tender. Drain and mash, then add milk, ¼ C sour cream and a little butter and beat with a mixer until desired consistency. Add salt, pepper and fresh tarragon to taste.

To plate, lay a salmon fillet on top of some potatoes and spoon the corn mixture next to them. Top salmon with a drizzle of the reduction.

Broccoli Slaw Salad
Broccoli slaw is a great and healthy way to liven up your salad. For this one I used the slaw (which you can purchase in a bag by the bagged salads usually) as the main ingredient.
To a good handful of slaw, add a little bit of lettuce (any kind), a few leaves of mint torn into little pieces, some dried cranberries and walnuts. Toss with a good blue cheese dressing such as Briana’s. You can also add blue cheese crumbles if you wish.

Day 3
This is a very tasty, simple pasta. It is especially good at this time of year when good tomatoes are available.
Combine 2 pints cherry tomatoes with 1/3 C olive oil and approximately 1T of chopped herbs such as rosemary & thyme, 4-5 smashed cloves of garlic and some salt and pepper. Roast in a 325 degree oven for 40 minutes. The tomatoes will be bursting and juicy. Toss in a handful of fresh basil, torn into pieces, a bit of chopped flat-leaf parsley and toss with linguine. Grate some Parmigiano cheese over the top. Serves 4.

Dessert
I bought a freshly made pie at a local farm and picked up some freshly made ice cream at a local place.

Day 4
This is a very fresh, festive risotto from Jamie Oliver’s cookbook, The Naked Chef Takes Off. I was intrigued by his use of Vermouth in place of white wine in his risotto base, and I must admit I was skeptical about putting so much mint in a delicate risotto—but it was wonderful. It just goes to show that moving out of your cooking comfort zone can be very rewarding.
Find his basic risotto recipe here
http://www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/pasta/basic_risotto_recipe
To make a decent version of the above dish, throw in some peeled shrimp & fresh peas at the end, cook until the shrimp are done, then take it off the heat, add in a handful of basil and half a handful of mint, and finish with a “glug” of olive oil.
*Interesting tidbit: Oliver says not to add Parmigiano to any risotto containing seafood because they don’t go well together—that’s something I’d never heard, but it was great without the addition of cheese (and calories!).

Dessert
Chocolate soufflés are easy and fast to make. You can serve with whipped cream, ice cream, berries, or a drizzle of berry puree. Dusting the plates with cocoa before plating is a fun way to present this crowd pleaser.
http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/11330

2007-08-09T12:13:00.000-07:00

Special Occasion
Casual Small Plates Dinner
8.03.07
VEW

This is one of my favorite ways to entertain because you get to taste a lot of different dishes and wines and there’s no pressure of having to have everything ready and warm at the same time.

Warmed figs with blue cheese, walnuts, honey and white pepper
Wine Pairing: Beppe Marino Bricco Allegro Moscato D’Asti 2003

Prosciutto wrapped shrimp with herbed goat cheese

Pan seared scallops with asparagus puree and porcini mushroom ragout
Wine Pairing: Caymus Conundrum 2005

Cannelini dip with rosemary and tomato on toasted baguette

Grilled tenderloin tip skewers with artichokes and rosemary
Wine Pairing: Numanthia (Toro) Termes 2002

Lava cakes with whipped cream
Espresso drinks… made to order

Figs

The Figs are pretty self-explanatory: for a nice presentation, slice each in half and cut just enough off the side they will lay on so that they lay flat. Top each with a piece of blue cheese and a walnut; warm under a broiler just until the cheese starts to bubble--about 1 minute. Drizzle with honey and sprinkle with freshly ground white pepper.

Shrimp

These Shrimp are phenomenal and easy. A friend made them for me, I'm not sure where the recipe was from.

For the goat cheese mixture, bring about 3 oz. of goat cheese to room temperature to soften it, then mix in approximately 1 T minced basil, 1T minced parsely, a scant T of thyme and some S & P. Slice open the back of large, uncooked shrimp and stuff. Wrap each shrimp in a thin piece of prosciutto. Oil a grill pan with a little olive oil and cook shrimp for a couple minutes per side--until opaque.

Scallops

The scallops are loosely based on a Thomas Keller recipe that you can find in his French Laundry cookbook. Though a lot of his recipes are fairly out of reach whether due to time, cost, or hard to find ingredients, they are educational and fun to read and occasionally I find some that are great even when messed around with by casual cooks like me.

Cannellini dip

In a food processor combine, one can cannellini beans, 1/2 t garlic powder, 2t minced fresh rosemary and about 1/4 c olive oil. Process until smooth, add more oil if necessary for a nice consistency. I served this with sliced cherry tomatoes from the garden on toasted bread.

Skewers

Marinate tenderloin tips in olive oil, lemon zest, fresh rosemary, kosher salt and pepper. Add in one package frozen artichoke hearts. When you are ready to grill, simply skewer the meat and artichokes alternately and grill until desired doneness.

Lava Cakes

I have a number of lava cake recipes that I use for different occasions. Here's a great one http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/5429

A Word on Mixing

2007-08-05T11:40:00.000-07:00

I love to cook, but I must admit that at day’s end I often find myself rushing through otherwise joy-inducing steps in the cooking process as I plow towards my goal of being able to simply sit, unbothered enjoying good food and a glass of wine. However, as I stopped to smell the proverbial roses tonight in the kitchen, I was reminded of how much the little things can make a big difference. What was this enlightening, epiphany-inducing event? Using a bigger bowl. Don’t knock it ‘till you’ve tried it. I was preparing to whisk some balsamic vinegar into some olive oil, and reaching for a mixing bowl, I uncharacteristically grabbed the bowl on the bottom of the stainless steel nest—the big bowl that never sees the light of day because it barely fits in the sink to be washed. I tossed ingredients in that big bowl with reckless abandon and whisked, tossed, and mixed without a care in the world; there was no way any of that stuff was getting unceremoniously flipped out of a too-small bowl. It was fun, if only in part because of my amusement at my amusement. It shouldn’t be surprising though; I find similar delight when I actually prep first, cook second; when I use my prep bowls, the proper knife instead of the one closest at hand etc. It just goes to show that the small things really can make a big difference, and an extra dish or two in the sink at night’s end is a small price to pay for finding a little more joy in the journey. So use that bigger bowl, that dusty china that can’t go in the dishwasher or that big chef’s knife you’re not as deft at wielding—it’s worth it.
7.27.07
VEW

2007-08-05T11:12:00.000-07:00

Weekly Menu 1
VEW
Fresh and Light Summer Foods

Mediterranean quiche, field greens and nectarine salad with cranberries & rice wine vinaigrette

Grilled steak salad with green beans and blue cheese

Turkey burgers and apple-fennel salad with parmigiano

Day 1
This quiche is more like a savory tart. In fact I’ve made it in a fluted tart pan and it makes a beautiful presentation. http://www.emerils.com/recipes/by_name/mediterranean_quiche.html
The salad is pretty self explanatory and provides a good way to use up any summer fruit you have around—peaches work as well as nectarines; you could even use pears. Toss field greens, or any mixture of lettuces with fruit slices, dried cranberries, walnuts, and a vinaigrette made by combining seasoned rice wine vinegar with olive oil. I like to top this salad with a sprinkle of fleur de sel.

Day 2
This is a recipe a friend forwarded to me that sounded too simple to be as good as she said it was…but knowing what a fabulous cook she is, I gave it a whirl and loved it. Mid-summer is a great time to find green beans and wax beans at farm stands, and they are a great stand in for the haricot verts this recipe calls for. This is a great one dish meal that makes a pretty enough presentation to serve at a dinner party. http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/recipe_views/views/105157

Day 3
These burgers provide an elegant and healthy alternative to a beef burger. Alfred Portale of New York’s Gotham Bar and Grill has yet to disappoint me as far as his recipes go, and they’re unique as well. Both of these recipes are from his Simple Pleasures cookbook. The burgers call for juniper berries which you can get at Penzey’s Spices; I have substituted dried currants with good results. The apple fennel salad is really tasty and fresh—I am not a huge fan of licorice-tasting fennel, but the combination of flavors works to dull it just enough so that everything melds wonderfully.