Carameliza

Moving... to tumblr

2010-05-02T12:15:00.000-05:00

Hi Everyone, moved the address of my blog to:

http://carmeliza.tumblr.com/

hope y'all will come follow me there!

Buttermilk Ice Cream

2010-04-06T09:48:00.002-05:00

Is it 80 degrees out? I think it is!
To tell the truth, I barely use my ice cream maker. It feels like a lot of trouble for something I can buy pretty easily. But I'm slowly becoming interested in the machine again. I keep the base frozen in the freezer so I don’t have to think of freezing it when I want ice cream. (It takes 12 hours to freeze and it will not compromise with me on that...)

This ice cream is really simple. My fear with buttermilk ice cream is that it may be too watery and turn out like the hated ice milk of yore. I've solved the issue with heavy cream, of course.

Buttermilk Ice Cream
Makes 1 pint
This one is excellent with a tart or a cobbler.

1 cup buttermilk, cold
2/3 cup sugar
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
2 cups heavy cream, cold
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

Whisk the buttermilk, sugar and salt together in a bowl until the sugar and salt are completely dissolved. Add cream and vanilla. Freeze according to the manufacturers’ directions on your ice cream maker.

Banana Bourbon and Chocolate Flake Ice Cream

2010-03-26T18:22:00.000-05:00

Root Vegetables

2010-03-14T18:13:00.008-05:00

We’re approaching spring, I’ve seen crocuses to prove it! I do think it feels wintery, however. Root Vegetables are a winter staple. If you get some great ones, they'll have the greens in tact, like the beets to the right. Radish, turnip and beet greens can all be sautéed with olive oil + garlic, sprinkled with sea salt and served with a squeeze of lemon on a piece of crusty bread. Radish and Butter Sandwiches.

What is a Root Vegetable & How do I Choose One?
>

Roasted Root Vegetables (pictured above in a salad with a poached egg)
Serves 4 as a side dish
These simple vegetables can be served at room temperature with a salad or mixed with 2 cups cooked quinoa (pronounced: keen-wah) for a great side. Don’t limit yourself to using only these root vegetables, you can substitute beets, carrots or Jerusalem artichokes.

¾ teaspoon flakey maldon sea salt
1 sprig rosemary, roughly chopped(1 ½ t)
1 medium potato, cut in 3/4 inch pieces
1 medium turnip, peeled and cut in ¾ inch pieces
1 medum celeriac, peeled and cut in ¾ inch pieces
1 parsnip, peeled and cut in ¾ inch pieces
1 small onion, sliced
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon white vinegar

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Place all the ingredients except the vinegar on a sheetpan with sides and use clean hands to toss them all together. Once everything is well coated in oil and rosemary bits, spread the mixture in an even layer. Roast for about 1 hour, until the vegetables are cooked through and golden brown at the edges and on the bottom. Toss with vinegar, adjust salt and pepper to taste.

Roasted Root Vegetables with Quinoa

Meatloaf Madness

2010-03-12T21:39:00.009-05:00

The beginning of the week was a big sunny bunch of madness. Now, with the rain and a chill it’s a little sad. Which brings me to the great comfort of meatloaf. If meatloaf were emotion on display, it would be a long warm hug from a big friend.

Meatloaf for me had always been associated with the school cafeteria, but now I’ve grown to appreciate it’s self-basting fatty goodness. It’s really easy to make and above all, satisfying. I like to make it in a loaf pan so it is essentially simmering in its own fat the entire time. The fat drains off at the end, but it is no diet food - it’s a giant loaf of meat, with breadcrumbs.

Meatloaf
Serves 8

If you really want to get jiggy with this, add 2 tablespoons of beef marrow fat or bacon fat. Remember, fat equals flavor. It does not equal modeling contracts or the right to wear bikinis in public. Consider your priorities.

1 ½ cups Panko (Japanese breadcrumbs) or coarse breadrumbs
2/3 cups buttermilk or whole milk
2 ½ pounds ground beef (85% lean is best)
1 large egg
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
½ cup chopped flat leaf parsley, plus more for garnish
½ cup tomato sauce
2 teaspoons dry mustard
1 large shallot
½ teaspoon chopped rosemary
1 teaspoon coarse sea salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
4 strips bacon

Use your hands to combine all the ingredients except the bacon in a large bowl until well combined. Place the mixture in an 8 ½ inch by 4 ½ inch by 2 ½ inch loaf pan, form into a loaf shape.

Place the loaf pan on a sheet pan with edges. Lay the bacon over the loaf in a cris-cross pattern, tuck the ends into the pan if they hang over the edge. Bake at 375 degrees until internal temperature is 145 degrees, about 1 hour 20 minutes. Let the meatloaf cool 10 minutes, run a knife between the pan and the loaf to release it. Place the meatloaf on a platter or cutting board, discard the grease that is left in the pan or use it to make a gravy. Cut in 1 inch thick slices.

Chocolate Chip Cookies with Bacon

2010-03-04T20:24:00.009-05:00

These cookies were recently dubbed "Weirdly Excellent" by my good friend, Dr. Smith. Two of my favorite adjectives, especially when used together.

A good question another friend, Erin Weston, asks when her notions about good food are challenged:"Is it good or is it gross?" a rhetoric, to which she always answers (herself & whoever is nearby) "Well, if you have to ask..."

The idea of Bacon in dessert can often fit snugly into the latter category, but here it actually works, that's a promise.

Chocolate Chip Cookies with Bacon
Makes about 3 dozen cookies

If you beat the egg into the batter for the full three minutes, they will have a lighter texture. You can spoon these directly onto a baking sheet once the batter is made, or you may hold onto the dough in the freezer, wrapped in 1 ½ inch diameter roll to bake off as you want to eat them. They’ll keep frozen for about a month, refrigerated for a couple of weeks.

3 strips thick cut organic bacon, cut in half crosswise
2/3 cups sugar
1 cups flour
½ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon fine sea salt
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1 large egg
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
2/3 cups bittersweet chocolate chips
1/2 teaspoon finely grated orange zest(optional)

Heat a skillet over medium heat. Add the bacon, cook until it just begins to brown, strain the fat and sprinkle with 1 tablespoon of the sugar. Be careful the sugar and bacon don't burn. Remove to a baking rack to strain (it would stick to paper towel)once the bacon is crisp and golden. Let cool, crumble into tiny pieces, set aside.

In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, soda and salt, set aside
In the bowl of an electric mixer, beat the butter and remaining sugar together until lightened. Add the egg and beat until pale and creamy, about 3 minutes. Beat in the extract. Mix in the flour until just incorporated, stir in the chips and bacon.

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Grease two baking sheets. Place 1 tablespoon mounds of dough or ¼ inch thick slices of the log about 2 inches apart on an parchment lined baking sheet. Bake until lightly golden, rotating pan halfway through baking, about 12 minutes. Let cool on pan for 5 minutes, then transfer cookies to a baking rack to cool completely.

STRONG TIP

2010-02-28T23:18:00.008-05:00

When I'm filling a Ziploc bag, I always turn the edge of it over to form a cuff.
That way, stray pieces of food don't get caught in the zipper part and interrupt the seal.

Panzanella with Raspberries

2009-08-26T18:25:00.008-05:00

The raspberries were such an intense color at the greenmarket today. They looked like they’d dye your eyes inky pink just by staring at them. I’d be a bad cook if I ignored a single good tomato in August, especially with the blight of their people. Here are the results…

Panzanella with Raspberries
serves 2

½ teaspoon sea salt
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 shallot, thinly sliced
2 cups fantastic ripe tomatoes, cut in chunks or cherry tomatoes cut in half
¼ cup raspberries
3 cups 2 inch cubes of bread
1 small cucumber, peeled and sliced
1 tablespoon chopped chives
5 large basil leaves, torn to pieces
1/3 cups extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup ricotta cheese (optional)

in the bottom of a salad bowl mix the salt and vinegar. Add the shallots, let sit for 5 minutes. Add remaining ingredients except ricotta. Toss to combine. Let sit for an hour. Serve topped with a big spoonful of ricotta cheese.

Chantarelles

2009-08-06T18:56:00.003-05:00

A few weeks ago, I was on my way to a dinner. I realized I was about half an hour early, so I set into the woods for a quick walk. I stood by a waterfall. I had a thought, about some guy I was seeing. I got really mad. (Formerly I had just been sad, so this was an improvement...)I turned to go back, and there was a field of Chantarelle mushrooms right in front of me!

I made my sweatshirt into a bundle and collected about three pounds of them. I always wanted to have a magic abundant rare mushroom bonanza! We sauteed a bunch at the dinner. Some people were scared of things randomly found in the woods, by a city girl no less. But I'm still here, we all survived. They were Chantarelles. I dried some on strings on the rafters of the house.
Corn and Chantarelle Hash
Serves 2

1/4 cup good butter
2 small red onion or shallots, chopped
8 chantarelle mushrooms, chopped
kernels shaved off two fresh ears of corn
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
1 teaspoon fresh chives, chopped
salt and pepper

Heat a medium skillet over medium high heat. Add butter, mushrooms and shallots,sauté until fragrant and the shallots are translucent, about 7 minutes. Add corn, sauté until corn is just cooked through, about 4 minutes. Stir in thyme and chives. Season with salt and pepper to taste

Eating Off Season Tomatoes

2008-06-05T09:03:00.003-05:00

We're so close. So close. I can almost taste it and it's summer boiled down to a sweet tomato. I worry about people out there, eating grainy tomatoes in the dead of winter. Or in the summer when they almost taste good but they're missing the dewy earthly flavors they have when they're in season. But people do it and I just can't fight it. So I'll help. Here's some tomato tips:

If you have some pale and sad tomatoes, put them in a brown paper bag overnight with a pretty ripe banana. Close the bag, in the morning they'll be redder inside and out, they may even taste a bit better.

If you eat tomatoes off season, it's best to dry them out in the oven for a number of hours at a low temperature with some herbs, sea salt and a sprinkling of olive oil.

Smaller cherry and plum tomatoes are always more sweet and rewarding off season.
They are best slow poached in the oven, swimming an inch of olive oil with herbs and sea salt.

If you smell a tomato and it smells like one, it has a better chance of tasting good.

When is tomato season? In my book it's very late July to early September, when they look like they're about to burst and often do in the bag on the way home from the Market.

Wheatberry Salad with Asparagus and Ramps

2008-05-14T15:25:00.003-05:00

Wheatberry Salad with Asparagus and Ramps
Serves 2 as a main course, 4 as a side dish

My friend Erin is wheatberry-crazy. I decided to check them out for myself.
They are flavorful and sort of eternally al dente. The drawback to making wheatberry anything is the soaking time. Some recipes suggest soaking overnight, Erin insists 3 days is the perfect amount of time for soaking.

1/2 cup wheatberries, soaked in water for 3 days
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/2 small onion, cut in 1/2 inch pieces
12 ramps, whites cut in 1/2 inch pieces, greens separately in 1 inch pieces
1/2 pound asparagus, cut in 1 inch pieces
1/4 teaspoon anchovy paste
3 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
1 teaspoon freshly chopped mint leaves
1/2 teaspoon champagne or other white vinegar
3 ounces mild feta cheese
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

1. Drain and rinse the wheat berries. Boil the wheat berries in plenty of salted water for 1 hour, or until al dente.

2. Meanwhile, heat one tablespoon of the oil in a medium sauté pan over medium heat. Add onion and the white of ramps, sauté until lightly browned. Add the ramp greens and asparagus, sauté until asparagus is bright green and still a bit crunchy. Stir in the anchovy paste, pine nuts, mint leaves, remaining olive oil, and vinegar. Add the wheatberries and toss to combine. Crumble the feta over the top. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Ramps, Fingerlings and Asparagus Oh My!

2008-05-07T13:59:00.004-05:00

Ramps, Fingerlings and Asparagus Oh My!

This week the green market in Union Square is just beginning to have some really sexy produce. In particular, I've found some lovely eggs. They vary widely in size, so they're no good for baking, but wonderful for frying. The yolks are ORANGE, not yellow, thank you very much! Okay, they were pricey but well worth it. * They are from Tammarack Hollow Farm

* this is a statement I sense you will here from me often.

A Tangle of Ramps
Serves 2
Ramps are a form of wild leek. You can find them in the greenmarket now. (May). You could also forage for them pretty easily. I love this foraging expert, take one of his tours when you get a chance: www.wildmanstevebrill.com

1/4 pound ramps, cleaned with root ends removed
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

heat the oven to 350∞. Place the ramps with their leaves still attached in a heavy sauce pan with the oil. Toss to coat the ramps in the oil. Spread them out in a single layer. Roast for about 15 minutes, until the leaves have crisped up, and the bulbs have become translucent and are tinged brown.

Roasted Fingerling Potatoes
Serves 2

1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 pound small organic fingerling potatoes, cut in 1 inch lengths
a good pinch of salt
1 small sprig of rosemary, leaves only
1 tablespoon butter
2 cloves garlic in their skins

Heat the oven to 350∞. Toss all the ingredients in a small heavy bottom sauté pan. Be sure the cut side of the potatoes are flat to the bottom of the pan. Roast for 35 minutes, until the skins are wrinkled a bit and the bottoms have formed a golden crust.

Asparagus on the Stove
Serves 2

1/4 pound trimmed thin asparagus
1/2 teaspoon olive oil
fine sea salt

Heat a heavy bottomed sauté pan over high heat. In a small bowl, toss the all the ingredients together. Once the pan is quite hot, add the asparagus in one layer. Toss occasionally- they are done when they are bright green with charred spots on them.

New Radish and Butter Sandwiches

2008-05-07T09:21:00.002-05:00

New Radish and Butter Sandwiches
Serves 2

The radishes were flirting with me- I had to pick them up and take them home with me immediately.

1 bunch radish greens
2 radishes
2 tablespoons softened high quality European butter
6 slices fresh baguette
Maldon or other flakey sea salt

Heat one tablespoon of the butter in a small sauté pan over medium heat. Once the butter has melted, add the radish greens and sauté until wilted, about 3 minutes, remove from heat. Slather the bread with the rest of the butter. Divide the wilted greens among the slices of bread. Slice the radishes ultra thin, divide among the sandwiches. Sprinkle each sandwich with a pinch of salt

Nut Butters

2008-04-01T15:55:00.012-05:00

I'm so excited to post this week! Alexandra Rowley generously shot this story with me last week! I'm gloating. Thank you Alexandra!

Nut butters are a great pantry item. (I do like to keep them in the fridge, though to stop them from going off) Good nut butters are basically just ground nuts. Check the ingredients before you buy them.

The idea I started out with was replacing the peanut butter in a peanut butter cookie with other nut butters. Turns out, I don't just dislike the peanut butter cookie because I'm not a huge fan of peanut butter, but the cookie texture and doesn't get much better with different nut butters. But I now had all these nut butters and an mini obsession with having them work in simplish recipes.

The recipes I developed for this week's story are easy to achieve.I made them with a stir it all together attitude. You can use the weight I give in each recipe to replace the nut butters with ground nuts, if you have whole nuts on hand. The recipes are rich, each of them will be good in a meal, but might overwhelm if they appear in the same evening.

A few notes on Nut Butters

They will most likely have some oil swimming on the top, but it should be about 1/2 inch of oil at the most.
Buy the nut butters from a place that probably sells a lot and may even store them in the fridge. That way they wont be rancid. Call me paranoid, but they are expensive! Also, store nut butters in the fridge, nut oils are delicate and can go off.

These nuts can be substituted for one another based on the fat content, so you don’t have to alter a recipe for texture if you would like to use a different nut.

Basic list of substitutions:

Peanuts for pine nuts or cashews
Pecans for brazil nuts
Pistachios for almonds
Walnuts for hazelnuts

Walnut Brioche Toast
Makes 6 toasts or 1 cup walnut frangipane

This frangipane (the paste you make before you spread it on Brioche) can also be baked in the bottom of an already baked pastry shell and become the rich base for a fresh fruit tart.

1/4 cup soft unsalted butter
1/3 cup sugar
1 large egg
1/3 cup walnut butter (you could also use hazelnut butter)
2 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
1/4 teaspoon orange flavored liquer (optional)
6 slices of brioche or challah sliced in 1 1/2 inch thick slices
18 walnut halves, optional
powdered sugar for dusting

Heat the oven to 350∞. Combine all the ingredients except the brioche and walnut halves in a medium bowl until fully incorporated. Spread about 1/4 cup of frangipane evenly across each piece of brioche. Place three walnut halves in the center of each piece of bread. Bake for about 15 minutes, until the "frangipane" has puffed up and turned golden brown at the edges. Dust with powdered sugar.

Almond Butter and Cumin Salad Dressing
Makes 1/4 cups dressing

This salad dressing can be used on any type of salad but I love it with greens that have a bite like raddichio and arugala. It's a sturdy dressing and it needs a spicy or bitter counterpoint. Always slowly toast spices in a dry pan until perfumey before you grind them into a powder, it adds so much. The heat brings out the fragrant oils in whole spices.

2 tablespoons dry roasted almond butter (or pistachio butter)
2 tablespoon almond oil
2 teaspoon champagne vinegar
2 teaspoons hazelnut oil
1/4 teaspoon ground coriander seed
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon dry mustard powder
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
4 dashes Orange Bitters (optional)

Whisk all the ingredients together in a small bowl.

Pecan Butter and Ricotta Linguine
Serves 4
This is one of those things that tastes best if you make it just before you serve it.

1 pound linguine
1/4 cup unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
6 tablespoons pecan butter
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon lemon zest
6 tablespoons lemon juice
2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
1/4 cup chopped parsley
2 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese (3/4 ounces)
Salt and pepper to taste
12 cup ricotta cheese
1/4 cup homemade or high quality breadcrumbs
3 tablespoons chopped toasted pecans (optional)

Cook the pasta in boiling salted water until al dente, (almost but not completely cooked through.) Use a heatproof cup to remove one cup of the cooking liquid before draining the pasta. Set the pasta aside. Set the cooking liquid aside.

Use the empty pasta pot to heat the butter and olive oil over medium low heat with the pecan butter and red pepper flakes, stir with a heatproof rubber spatula to dissolve the pecan butter into the hot butter. Stir until smooth, add the lemon zest and juice, thyme, parsley, rosemary and the pasta water.

Turn the heat to high, once the liquid begins to simmer, add the cooked pasta, stir to heat and coat the pasta with sauce, remove the pot from the heat, stir in the parmesan and stir to coat. Taste and season with salt and pepper. Divide between bowls, dollop the top of each bowl with a scoop of the ricotta cheese and a sprinkling of half the breadcrumbs.

Monkfish braised with Cashew Butter
Serves 4
This one could be assembled a day ahead and cooked the next day.

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 small onions, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon sweet Spanish paprika
2 tablespoons chopped fresh thyme
1/4 cup roughly chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup cashew butter
1 teaspoons anchovy paste
2 teaspoons finely grated lemon zest
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
6 5 ounce pieces pounds monkfish filet, (about 2 loins)

Heat olive oil in an ovenproof medium sized sauté pan over medium low heat. Add the onions and sauté, stirring very infrequently, until onions have wilted and begun to turn translucent, about 20 minutes.

Heat oven to 400∞. In a small bowl combine the chili powder, thyme, parsley, cashew butter, anchovy paste and zest. Stir to combine, add to the onions and stir to distribute evenly. Generously salt and pepper the monkfish filets. Nestle into the onion mixture. Roast for about 25 minutes, until the flesh comes apart easily when flaked with a fork.

Beets with Pistachio Butter Sauce
Serves 4 people as a side dish
One of my favorite restaurants in New York is Lupa. They used to make a vegetable side of Beets with Pistachio butter. Sometimes they still do. Below is the recipe as I first remember tasting it, bright and saucy.

I use a raw pistachio butter, I think the roasted pistachio butter has a muddy taste, is it really muddier or am I so in love with the bright green of raw pistachios that my mind just says "eat the pretty one"?

1 bunch beets, tops and greens removed, beets cut lengthwise in half
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 sprig thyme
1 sprig rosemary
3 tablespoons (2oz) pistachio butter
1 tablespoon verjus or freshly squeezed lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt
freshly ground pepper

Heat oven to 425∞. Roll out a 34 inch length of foil. Fold in half crosswise, open it up, have one half resting on the baking sheet. Place beets cut side down in a single layer in the center of the foil half. Sprinkle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Place the thyme and rosemary over the beets, fold the foil over the top of the beets. Pinch and fold the sides of the foil to form a big sealed tinfoil packet. Roast for 30 minutes, or until beets are easily pierced in the center with a paring knife. Once beets are cool enough to handle, slip off skins.

Mix the pistachio butter with verjus or lemon juice and 1/4 cup of water. Season with salt and pepper to taste, Spoon over beets.

Hazelnut Cocoa Cookies
Makes about 4 dozen
Alexandra called this "Nutella in a cookie"
I agree!
These are tiny. But they'd be good bigger. You could bake them by the tablespoon instead of the teaspoon, the baking time would be longer. (not sure how much longer)

1 cup hazelnut butter (8 ounces)
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
3 tablespoons high quality cocoa powder
3 large egg whites
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
3/4 teaspoons armagnac

Heat the oven to 375∞. Stir all ingredients to combine in a small bowl, just until uniform consistency. Place by the teaspoon with spacing them 2 inches apart on a sheet of parchment paper or silpat in the oven for 13 minutes, rotating pan 180∞ halfway through baking.

My Fat Sandwich

2008-03-19T13:33:00.006-05:00

My Fat sandwich

I realize that I have a few versions of the fat sandwich. This one is my everyday. I started eating them on the way to a New Years Eve weekend one year.
What could be better than fat on fat on bread. Truly!

1 ripe avocado, preferable around February when they're best
2 teaspoons meyer lemon juice
2 tablespoons of soft salted rich European butter
1 teaspoon very fine extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste
3 slices of crusty artisinal peasant bread, toasted or not

Halve and pitt the avocado(see below). Use a fork to mash each half within its shell. Add the Meyer lemon juice and olive oil, mash a bit more to combine, season with salt and pepper. Slather the bread with soft butter, then smear the avocado mixture on top.

Use a knife to cut the avocado lengthwise in half. Turn the halves to separate. Use a large knife to crack into the pit, lodging it lightly on the blade. turn the knife, this will release the pit.

Spicy Pumpkin Seed dip

2008-03-19T11:58:00.009-05:00

Spicy Pumpkin Seed Dip
Makes roughly 3 cups
Be sure to get pumpkin seeds in a store where people buy them regularly. Pumpkin seed oil is volatile and can go rancid, which is that sour cloudy flavor you may sometimes experience when an oil gets old or stored in a warm area.

You don't have to use fresh tomatillos, it's easier if you don't, but it may be saltier so taste the dip vefore you seaon it. Add more adobo sauce if you like things extra spicy. I think this sauce would be great with chicken as well, especially after looking at the NYT piece last week... http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9507E0D7143BF931A25750C0A96E9C8B63http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9507E0D7143BF931A25750C0A96E9C8B63http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9507E0D7143BF931A25750C0A96E9C8B63

10 ounces (about 2 cups) raw hulled pumpkin seeds or pepitas
20 ounces fresh tomatillos, about 10 large
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 small yellow onion, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon, adobo sauce from a can of chilies in adobo
1 teaspoon or fine sea salt
2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice
2 cups loosely packed cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped

Toast pumpkin seeds in a single layer on a sheet pan for 15 minutes at 350∞, stirring the seeds around a couple of times to prevent scorching. Remove from oven, set aside to cool.

Strip the paper off the tomatillos. Rinse them in cool water. Place tomatillos in a small pot covered in cool water. Bring to a gentle simmer and cook for about 12-15 minutes, until the flesh is softened. Drain, and core the stems with a paring knife, set aside.

Meanwhile, heat a medium saucepan over low heat. Add olive oil, onions and garlic, sauté until the onions are translucent, about 35 minutes. Add the tomatillos, mash them with a spoon to break them up. Stir in the adobo sauce, remove from heat and set aside.

Place the cooled pumpkin seeds in the bowl of a food processor with the salt. Pulse to finely grind. Add the tomatillos, onion mixture, lime juice, and cilantro. Pulse until the mixture is chunky-smooth. Serve at room temperature, garnish with additional cilantro leaves.

Lima Bean Soup

2008-03-16T21:40:00.006-05:00

Lima Bean Soup
Serves 2
It's been so rainy cold that I've just wanted to make some bean soup.
I had wanted to find these enormous gigante beans, but Met Food wasn't selling any. I settled on some goya dry lima beans. Depending on how old your beans are, they may need a soak before you cook them or they may take a bit longer to simmer and soften. If your beans are fresher they should take less time to cook.

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 cup dry lima beans,
1 medium yellow onion, chopped (about 2 cups)
3 cloves garlic, chopped
1 drained peeled Italian plum tomato from a can, chopped
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
3 tablespoon chopped cilantro leaves, plus more for garnish
1 small pasilla, ancho or other smokey dry chili, crumbled for garnish

Heat a large sauce pan over medium heat. Coat with olive oil. Add the dry lima beans, onions, and garlic and sautee, stirring frequently, until onions are translucent and browned around the edges, about 15 minutes. Add tomato and vinegar, cook until the liquid has evaporated.

Add 5 cups filtered water and salt and cilantro. Bring to a simmer, cook for 90 minutes, or until beans are very soft, Remove half the beans from the broth, mash them in a bowl with a fork and return them to the soup. Adjust seasoning, garnish with additional chopped cilantro and crumbled pasilla chili.

Sea Bass with Gastrique

2008-03-06T17:41:00.002-05:00

Sea Bass with Gastrique
serves 6

Roasting fish is really easy in the oven, the trick is to cook it through, but not overcook it. I like to lay down a layer of foil on a sheet pan under the fish so that it's easy to clean up.

6 8 ounce filets of Sea Bass or other rich fleshed ocean (not fresh water) fish
extra virgin olive oil
fine sea salt

Heat the oven to 400∞. Place the filets on the sheet pan. Lightly coat the filets with olive oil. Sprinkle the filets generously with sea salt. Cook for about 10 to 15 minutes or until the flesh is still moist but flakes apart easily when you coax it with a fork. Spoon a large tablespoons of the Gastrique sauce over each filet just before serving.

Gastrique for the fish
Makes 1/2 cup
Gastrique is a fancy French way of saying caramel made with vinegar. It's a technique used for making the orange sauce in the famous Duck a l'Orange.
All very intimidating sounding, but quite do-able. Be brave, the scariest part about this sauce is when you add the vinegar to the caramel, it hisses and spits at you, so stand back. You can tame the beast.

Make this sauce and store it tightly covered at room temperature for up to two days.

2/3 cup sugar
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
large pinch of salt

Place the sugar and 1/4 cup of water in a small saucepan over medium low heat. Stir continually until the sugar melts completely, about 5 minutes, brush any sugar sticking to the sides of the pan off with a barely wet pastry brush. Don’t touch the pan at this point to stir it or otherwise. The sugar mixture will start to turn a golden color after about 15 minutes, swirl (don’t stir) to spread the caramelization throughout the melted sugar. The caramel will start to turn a deeper amber color, remove it from the stove. Immediately stir in the vinegar, salt and zest with a wooden spoon or heatproof spatula. The mixture will froth and bubble madly, be careful! Stir until the caramel is dissolved completely in the vinegar.

Transfer the gastrique to a heat proof cup or sauce boat with a spout. The sauce can be reheated in a microwave or placed in a small saucepan filled half way with hot water over low heat.

Glazed Carrots with Fennel Fronds

2008-03-05T12:06:00.004-05:00

Glazed Carrots with Fennel Fronds
Serves 6 as a side dish

Growing up we had carrots with dill and honey. Dill, like cilantro is one of the great culinary divides. I am on the "love" side with cilantro, the other side with dill. I replaced the dill with a visual doppelganger: Fennel fronds. The fronds are the feathery tops you find on the top of a fennel bulb. They have a light flavor and visually they at the hit of green that's so appealing to me.

2 bunch carrots,(1/2 pounds) peeled and cut in 1 inch rounds
2 tablespoons Pernod or other fennel flavored liquer
1 tablespoon maple syrup
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoons salt
2 tablespoons snipped fennel fronds

Place all the ingredients except the fennel fronds in a medium sauce pan with 1 1/2 cups water. Heat covered over medium hi heat, bring to a boil, simmer for 12 minutes or until carrots are almost cooked through. Remove cover, turn heat to high and boil rapidly until the liquid has reduced to a syrup and the carrots are crisp tender, about 10 minutes more.

Two Sweet Little Cookies

2008-03-04T14:41:00.009-05:00

The Coffee Fennel Cookie
Makes about 7 dozen

These cookies are fascinating to me because of the clear chemical transformation that happens when you leave them sitting overnight before you bake them. I love them dipped in plain hot coffee.

1 cups granulated sugar
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
1/2 vanilla bean
1 tablespoon ground espresso
2 large eggs
1 cups flour, sifted

Butter two baking sheets, dust with flour, knock out excess flour, set aside. In the bowl of a food processor or coffee grinder pulverize the sugar with fennel seed and vanilla bean and coffee. Use a fine mesh sieve to shake out the powder and leave behind the larger, woody pieces. Discard whatever is left in the strainer, (or put it in the sugar bowl you use for coffee to flavor your sugar).

In the bowl of an electric mixer use the whisk attachment to combine the sugar mixture with the eggs. Beat until light, thick and pale, about 7 minutes. Gently fold in the flour in three additions.

Spoon the batter onto the sheet pans by the teaspoon, smooth the rounds with the back of a spoon, Alternately, pipe the batter onto the sheet pan in 1 1/4 inch rounds. Leave the baking sheets sitting out at room temperature for at least 8 hours or over night. They'll look almost cooked in the morning.

Heat the oven to 350∞. Bake the cookies for 7 minutes, until crisp and pale on top and cake like layer has formed on the bottom. Cool on a wire rack, store in an airtight container for up to one week.

Ginger Dollar Cookies
Makes about 13 dozen

You can make these cookies bigger and get less of them. They store nicely in an airtight container for up to a week. They are buttery, not too spicy and perfect with tea.

1 cup flour
1/4 cup cornmeal
1/8 teaspoon fine sea salt
5 tablespoons soft unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
2 tablespoons super finely diced crystallized ginger
1/2 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
4 large egg whites

Heat oven to 375∞. Line two sheet pans with parchment paper or silpat mats. In a small whisk together the flour, cornmeal and salt, set aside. Beat the butter and sugar until fluffy and pale in an electric mixer using the paddle attachment, about 5 minutes. Add the vanilla, gingers, zest and egg whites, beat until uniform. Add the flour mixture, stir until just combined.

Drop batter by the half teaspoon onto the sheet pans, leaving 1 1/2 inches between cookies. Bake until the cookies are golden at the edges and pale in the center, about 9 minutes. Remove to a baking rack to cool.

Bright Green Dressing

2008-03-04T14:25:00.003-05:00

Bright Green Dressing
Makes 3/4 cups
Although I used this for a salad dressing, it could be lovely with roasted pork or chicken. It's quick to make and the Dijon is pungent.

1 bunch parsley, leaves only
1/2 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons plus one teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 tablespoons nut oil, such as hazelnut
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon high quality Dijon mustard
3/4 teaspoon salt
large pinch freshly ground black pepper

Combine all ingredients in a blender, pulse until creamy and thick. Adjust salt and pepper, to taste.

This week...

2008-03-04T14:03:00.009-05:00

Last week Mark Lund lundphoto.com and James Leeland Day jameslelandday.com shot a beautiful bunch of photos with me. I'll post them here with the recipes over the next couple of days. I'm so excited. Stark contrast to my counter with the point and shoot! Between Mark's light and James' props, it worked out wonderfully.

Pumpkin or Sweet Potato Calzone

2008-02-28T15:44:00.004-05:00

Pumpkin Calzone
I had some leftover roasted pumpkin in the freezer. I used it in this recipe after draining it for a couple of days. If you don’t have fresh sweet potato puree is a nice alternative, see recipe below. Start by making the dough. While it's rising, make the filling.

Cornmeal Calzone Crust
Makes 6 calzones
This dough can be made by hand as well, whenever possible I prefer to make yeast and pasta doughs in the mixer, it's a lot easier.

2 teaspoon active dry yeast
1/4 teaspoon honey
2/3rds cup warm water (not hotter than 110∞)
1 3/4 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup cornmeal
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Stir the honey in the hot water to dissolve. Add the yeast, let stand for 10 minutes, the yeast will "bloom" and become creamy, set aside.

In the bowl of an electric mixer with a dough hook whisk together the flour, cornmeal and sea salt. Add the yeast mixture and the oil. Mix on low with the dough hook until a dough forms, about 2 minutes.

Increase to medium speed and knead the dough inside the mixer until it is smooth, elastic and forms a ball that pulls away from the bottom of the bowl, about 8 minutes. You may need to add a couple of additional tablespoons of flour to get the right consistency.

Place the dough in a clean greased bowl covered with a kitchen towel and let rise in a warm area for 1 hour, until doubled in size. Meanwhile, make the Pumpkin Calzone Filling.

Pumpkin Calzone Filling
Makes 2 1/2 cups filling

1 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 shallot, thinly sliced
1 clove garlic, thinly sliced
1 1/2 cups pumpkin or sweet potato puree
3/4 cups ricotta cheese
1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons finely grated Romano cheese
1/4 cup (1 ounce) shredded fresh mozzarella
1 large egg, lightly beaten
a pinch ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon fresh chopped oregano leaves
1/2 teaspoon fresh chopped rosemary leaves
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon salt
freshly ground pepper, to taste

Heat a small sauté pan over medium heat. Add butter, olive oil, garlic, and shallot. Sautee until shallot is golden and crispy, about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Stir together remaining ingredients until uniform. Combine with the olive oil - shallot mixture. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper. Set aside.

Getting It Together
Place a large pizza stone in the center of the oven. If you don’t own a pizza stone, these will still turn out fine. Heat oven to 450∞. Sprinkle a clean work surface with flour. Divide the dough into 6 equal pieces. Pat each piece into a thin round about 7 inches in diameter. Spread a heaping 1/3 cup of filling over each half the round, leaving a 1/2 inch border at the edge. Fold the dough over the filling, press out as much air as possible and pinch to seal the edges. Carefully lift the calzones one by one onto the pizza stone or a sheet pan dusted with cornmeal. Bake about 20 minutes or until nicely browned on the outside.

Farotto (Farro Risotto)

2008-02-26T15:12:00.004-05:00

Farrotto
Serves 4 as a side, 2 as a main course

This recipe makes a risotto like grain dish, using the grain farro.
I was puzzled by farro for a while. I thought it looked like barley so it must be- it's not. Technically, farro is a type of wheat, emmer wheat. It was probably one of the first cultivated grains.

I love the idea of cooking with a vegetarian stock in place of chicken stock, but I think the flavor in most of the vegetarian stocks goes flat by the time your risotto is done. That's why I'll use the traditional trinity of onion, carrot and celery in the dish itself. When a vegetarian dish finishes cooking, the flavors have cooked and balanced but they are still bright. In a stock they would have cooked two times, once in the making of the stock, and once again when the stock is added to the dish during cooking.

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, plus 1 more for drizzling at the end
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 cup dry white or red wine
1 medium carrot, finely chopped
1 cup farro
1 stalk celery, finely chopped
1/4 cup chopped parsley
2 teaspoons fresh thyme leaves
1/2 cup finely grated parmesan cheese

Heat oil and butter together in a medium saucepan over medium low heat. Add onion and carrot, sauté until onion is translucent and beginning to brown at the edges, about 8 minutes. Add the wine and celery turn the heat to high, simmering until the wine is syrupy and has almost evaporated, about 7 minutes.

Add the farro and 1 1/2 cups filtered water. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, Cook stirring occasionally, about 35 minutes until farro is cooked through, most of the liquid is absorbed and the farro is lightly veiled in liquid. Stir in the parsley, thyme and parmesan cheese. Drizzle with an amazing high quality extra virgin olive oil.

Big Baby Bear

2008-02-13T22:54:00.000-05:00

My horoscope from Freewillastrology.com this week said " you're most likely to thrive if you pursue silky, smooth, velvety, plush feelings of every kind."
So in that spirit I'm indulging in a great bedtime drink.

The Big Baby Bear
Growing up I had the Baby Bear drink when we got to go to Sarah Beth's Country Kitchen, it was warm milk and honey. But I'm older and I like liquor. You could also try this with whiskey.

1/2 cup half and half
1 tablespoons wildflower honey
1/2 cup water
3 ounces Armagnac

Heat the first three ingredients in a pan until hot, but not boiling. Whisk to dissolve the honey. Remove from heat, swirl in Armagnac.

Acini De Pepe

2008-02-03T13:38:00.000-05:00

Acini de Pepe
Should "unhang" 2 medium sized adults

My best friend from high school is Italian American. Spending time with her family I learned a lot about Italian American cooking. This is a variation on the recipe her mother made with Pastina or Acini de Pepe. In my memory is the dish "Pastina" is usually comfort food for children.

I think it's super rich hangover food. Pastina gets a little too textureless so I've substituted Grattoni, which is a little bigger, close in size to the tiny Fregola. You can substitute any teeny tiny pasta.

1 Cup dry Grattoni, Fregola, Corallini, Ditalini or other tiny pasta shape
2 teaspoons high quality Extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons unsalted Butter
2 large eggs
2 ounces freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1/4 teaspoon finely chopped fresh rosemary
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh parsley
additional salt and pepper, to taste

Have all the ingredients ready to dump into the pot. Cook pasta in salted water, according to package directions. Drain pasta, return immediately to the still hot pot with remaining ingredients. Stir until the eggs have mixed with the cheese and made a uniform creaminess. Divide between 2 bowls. Conquer hangover.

Braised Celery, Burnt Orange and Fennel

2008-01-30T16:55:00.000-05:00

Braised Celery, Burnt Orange and Fennel
Serves 4 as a side
These are wonderful plain, but luxury never hurt anyone. Thin a quarter cup of mayonnaise with a couple of teaspoons of fresh lemon juice. Smear the top of each piece with a tablespoon of this sauce.

1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
1/2 teaspoon fennel seed, roughly chopped
pinch red pepper flakes
1 tablespoon butter
2 whole bunches of celery
1 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

Remove outside, tougher celery stalks so that about each bunch has about 6 inner stalks still attached. Save the extra celery for another use. Cut the top off each bunch of celery so that each bunch is now 6 inches long. Halve the stalks lengthwise, trim the base and set aside.
Heat a 10 inch heavy skillet over medium low heat. Have all the ingredients at the ready. Add the zest, fennel, pepper flakes to the hot dry pan and stir constantly until the zest begins to toast and the fennel seed become fragrant, a couple of minutes.

Add the butter, once it melts, add the orange juice and 1/2 cup water, place the celery cut side up in the pan, turn heat to medium high. When half the liquid has evaporated from the pan, about 12 minutes. Turn the celery cut side down. The celery is cooked when the liquid has greatly reduced and is slightly syrupy, about 12 minutes. Serve immediately, pour pan glaze over the celery.

Things I Love to Cook with: Porcini Broth in a Cube

2008-01-30T16:13:00.000-05:00

This product is a gives great vegetarian umami flavors. It must be all that MSG. But I love it for a quick stock for soup or base for a mushroom risotto.

I found it in the Italian Food Center and I've also seen it in Murray's Cheese on Bleecker Street.

Strong Tip: Microplane Graters

2008-01-30T15:01:00.000-05:00

Use a microplane grater. They are like a little choir of razors.

I first discovered this in the 1990's while I was doing side gigs at Cooking by The Book while I worked full time at Martha Stewart. Suzy (the owner of CBTB) had discovered a wood working rasp was an amazing grater. She had some sort of copyright on it. We bought microplanes immediately for the Martha by Mail catalog and Martha gave them to people for Christmas.

I looked, it seems Microplane has some other story about a wood rasp becoming a grater. My guess is the evolution of this tool is most likely a 100th monkey type story.

I think the microplane grater, in all its forms, is one of the best kitchen tools. Microplaning really makes everything easier. I'm all for easier. It has exponentially reduces grating time.And you can avoid the bitter pith when getting zest from lemons and oranges. Plus whatever food it grates comes out in a fluffy curly beautiful mound. It's an irresistible tool.

A bunch of companies make them, but my favorite is this one in the picture. It has two different sized holes for grating, and it travels well,which is important to me for photoshoots. This one is by Cuisipro.

Dry Beans in Winter

2008-01-22T15:00:00.000-05:00

Beans
Makes 2 generous main course servings
or 4 side servings

No matter what this recipe is slow cook. If the beans you buy are older, they may take more time to soften up, so let them simmer longer. They are always better when, after cooking, you let them sit over night in their cooking liquid. The butt of the Parmesan is a wonderful flavor-adder.

1 bay leaf
1 3 inch x 2 inch heel (rind) of Parmesan cheese
2 2-inch pieces lemon rind, yellow part only
(use a vegetable peeler!)
2 stems fresh rosemary
1 clove garlic in its skin
1 cup medium dry beans, soaked in filtered water 8 to 24 hours
11/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 teaspoons Cabernet or other red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons finely chopped flat leaf parsley

Drain and rinse beans. Bring 6 cups of filtered water to a boil, add the bay leaf, Parmesan heel, lemon, rosemary, garlic and beans. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer. Remove when the beans are tender, about 45 minutes. Stir in sea salt and vinegar. Let cool and store at room temperature over night, then refrigerate afterwards. Before serving or transforming it into another recipe, remove the rosemary stems, bay leaf, garlic and Parmesan heel. Stir in olive oil and parsley.

Transform this into:
A soup - remove half the beans and puree them, stir them back into the soup, add cooked, drained pasta, some chopped parsley, herbs and chopped cooked vegetables, drizzle with some high quality extra virgin olive oil.

A bean salad - drain the beans from the liquid, add 1/2 cup chopped parsley, 1/4 cup chopped cilantro and 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil. You may also add chopped red onions and some feta. This is a salad that can grow depending what you have in your fridge.

Strong Tip: Cooking with the heel of Parmesan

2008-01-22T14:18:00.000-05:00

The end of a piece of Parmesan cheese can add a lot of flavor to a dish. I think of it as a the vegetarian version of a ham hock for beans. I always sneak it into the cavity of a chicken before I roast it with herbs and lemon. It's also great to throw into vegetarian soups. You don't eat it! You throw it out like an herb sachet before you serve whatever you're making.

Quince Poached with Star Anise

2008-01-22T13:53:00.000-05:00

Poached Quince
Quince has a lovely honeyed fragrant flavor. It has not been so common in my farmer's market this year. Quince looks like a giant chartreuse and yellow apple that's a bit oblong at the bottom. Sometimes they're covered in a fuzzy dryer lint sort of layer.

There were some beautiful ones at the organic market, so I've grabbed them, they're usually available from October through December. Quince have loads of pectin so they're good for making jams and jellies: they're the main ingredient in the Spanish fruit paste Membrillo(the deep mauve jammy stuff served with Manchego cheese).

Serve this syrup and fruit with pancakes, crepes or ice cream. You can also use it in cocktails using champagne, sparkling water, vodka, rum and/or ice.

8 cups filtered water
1 1/2 cup granulated sugar
2 1 inch pieces Vietnamese or regular cinnamon sticks
2 whole pieces Star anise
1/2 a bay leaf
1/2 vanilla bean seeds scraped + pod
2 quince(about 1 pound) peeled, seeded and cut in 1 inch wedges
a pinch of salt

Place all the ingredients in a saucepan over high heat, bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer and allow to simmer for 2 hours. Cover and set aside until completely cool. Remove quince and boil the syrup until it thickens a bit. You may store in the liquid for up to three weeks in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Growing Apples

2008-01-14T11:37:00.000-05:00

My friend Erin and her father Noel are obsessed with the Honeycrisp apple. They have a wonderful nursery in North Carolina(http://www.weston-farms.com/weston.cfm), where the Honeycrisp won't grow, so I've agreed to grow apples for them upstate. I'm fine with the Honeycrisp.

It's a nice apple, though it's not charming my pants off. Quince does that for me. So we've decided I'll have some quince and some Honeycrisps, I'd also love to have a couple of other pear or apple trees. I'm just not so sure what to grow!

I went to the farmer's market in Union Square, I did a tasting. This confused me further. Each apple had such lovely individual characteristics, it was impossible to decide! I'll go again and talk to the farmers at the market today. If the farmers look friendly, I'll ask their advice, but I'd appreciate your input as well.

Tomato Sandwiches

2007-07-29T14:18:00.000-05:00

This is the season where it is hard for me to eat anything outside of tomato sandwiches. I love tomatoes in season. I can't get enough of them. I eat them absolutely obsessively. I don't want to go out to dinner. I just want to eat the gorgeous tomatoes that I get from the greenmarket. They are bursting with flavors. They are intense, sometimes smokey, hyper-summer tasting.

The ugly tomatoes, the heirlooms are really diverse in their flavors. I dont know all their names. The green striped guys: Green Zebras are sort of citrusy. Black Brandywines, the deep brown red ones with tinges of green are smokey. The Peach tomatoes have slight fuzz on them and are delicately flavored.

I get crusty fresh bread, I slather on some wonderful real mayonaise, (Delouis fils fresh mayonnaise is rich and eggy)
I take a practically bursting, farm stand, often organic, heirloom tomato and I slice it into barbaric thick slabs.
I sprinkle the open sandwiches with sea salt, fresh ground pepper, and little bits of bush basil and sometimes a bit of sharp extra virgin olive oil.

Then I try to take a snapshot of each of them before I need to devour them.

Inky Misty Darkness

2007-07-29T14:06:00.000-05:00

Inky Misty Darkness Punch
makes 2

This is a great summer fruit punch. It's really black purply. Try to use the flesh from the center of the melon, where it is sweetest and most perfumy.

2/3 cup Campari
1 cup Black Currant Juice ("Currant C" is my favorite brand right now)
2 tablespoons finely chopped ripe ripe cantalope

Fill a cocktail shaker half way with ice. Add all ingredients and shake until your hand starts to numb. Divide evenly between two cocktail glasses, adding more ice if you need it.

Beet, Peach, Blue Cheese and Lamb's Quarter Lettuce Sandwich

2007-07-18T15:26:00.000-05:00

Makes sandwiches for 2, with leftover beets for salad

Lamb's Quarter is a green that grows wildly in the New York area and it' s an easy thing to forage for, but I bought these.

1 large beet, about 6 ounces, sliced super thin (I did mine on a Japanese mandoline)
2 tablespoons white vinegar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
2 loosely packed cups Lamb's Quarter leaves
2 ounces high quality blue cheese, such as Cabrales
1 ripe peach, sliced

In a medium saucepot bring vinegar and 1 cup of water, salt and bay leaf to a boil. Add beets, Bring back to a boil, cover, remove from heat; let stand 10 minutes. Drain and set aside.

Heat a small saucepan over medium low heat. Add olive oil and Lamb's Quarters, sauté until Lamb's Quarters have wilted. Remove from heat, squeeze out the liquid, and coarsely chop.

Toast 8 slices of hallah or 4 slices of brioche like bread. While the bread is still hot, crumble the blue cheese on the four slices. Spread the softened cheese (the heat will soften it) across the pieces of bread. Divide the greens, beet, and peach evenly among half the bread slices. Grind a bit of fresh pepper on top. Top with blue cheese spread bread.

Summer Salad Composee

2007-07-18T15:23:00.001-05:00

I always thought, when I was a student at French culinary school, that the Salad Composee was overtaught. I thought it merited a nodd. But, now I see that it teaches a very clear culinary lesson. When you cut anything to be eaten, how you cut it determines (with other factors) how you will taste it. The Salad Composee is interesting because it serves its' components separately, amassed on a plate. Traditionally each part of the salad is dressed individually, before the plate is arranged.

Whenever you make a dish, particularly a salad, the larger chunks will spend more time in your mouth, on your tongue. They'll get more "air time". So, in this salad my melon was very pungent and ripe, it would take over the more subtle flavors of say, the cucumbers, so I sliced them super thinly. You always want to consider what will make the perfect bite. What do you want to taste the most? Make it bigger. If every element plays against the other in proportion, things should work out quite well.

One thing to remember: if you are cooking something, different rules apply. Things like root vegetables generally can be mixed when cooked and cut to the same size for even cooking… more on chopping at some later time…

1 cup cucumber, cut in 1 inch slices
1/2 cups super finely sliced melon
1 small endive, thinly sliced into rounds
1/4 cup shredded carrots
1/4 cup finely sliced raw beets
3 mint leaves, minced
juice of 1/2 lime
2 teaspoons olive oil
coarse flakey sea salt and pepper, to taste

Place all the vegetables in sections inside a large salad bowl. Scatter the mint leaves, salt and pepper. Drizzle with olive oil.

Tomato Dressing

2007-07-18T15:18:00.000-05:00

13 grape tomatoes, sliced in half
2 tablespoons fine salted butter
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar

Melt butter over low heat. Add tomatoes, cut side down to pan, tomatoes will barely simmer. Once tomatoes have begun to wither and wrinkle, about 10 minutes Remove from heat to a blender. Add red wine vinegar and puree until smooth. Season with salt.

Sweet Potato with Salad and Dirty Cowboy Dressing

2007-07-18T09:46:00.000-05:00

Serves 2

Dirty Cowboy Dressing
The yam was so sweet smelling while it cooked, that I knew it needed several bitter flavor counterpoints: coffee and endives.

1 tablespoon fresh mayonnaise
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
5 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon finely minced red onion or shallot
1 teaspoon freshly ground coffee
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
salt and pepper to taste
1 teaspoon fresh chopped cilantro leaves
2 leaves lemon basil, finely chopped

1 large garnet yam, cut in 1 1/2 inch pieces
2 Belgian endives, chopped into 1" rounds
1 small head red leaf lettuce, torn
1 avocado, pitted and cut in 1 inch pieces

In a large bowl, whisk together the first ten ingredients until uniform and smooth, set aside. Place the yam in a small saucepot with enough cold water to cover. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer. Remove when yams are easily pierced with a paring knife, drain. Set hot yams in dressing, toss to coat. Divide greens between two plates, top with yam salad and avocado.

Tomato Melon Soup

2007-07-18T09:39:00.000-05:00

Do you know the moment where you open a really ready squash or melon, where the pungency of this dark cave freshly opened, suddenly unconcentrated, where that hits you? Where you feel like you may gag because you are so struck in the nose by the fecund aroma, you're not sure whether to run and puke or sniff deeper to feel the scent open down your throat?
I just had that moment.

A really ripe melon mixed with some sautéed tomato and red onion, give you a different kind of umami, one you might think you'd find at a whorehouse. I think I originally made a recipe from Jean Georges that was quite similar.. This soup will depend entirely on the quality of your ingredients and their ripeness, so be sure you choose really fragrant ingredients at the farm stand or market.

Tomato Melon Soup
This soup can be served warm or cold. I prefer it cold. This soup sometimes ends up tasting, not unpleasantly, like lipstick. Once puréed, give it a taste Thin it with water, more lime juice and salt to season as desired. When you are making a dish that will be cold, season it at the end of cooking, however don't be surprised if you need to season it more once it has chilled. Cold things always need much louder flavors than hot food.

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 red onion, diced in 1/4 inch pieces
1/2 pint lovely ripe cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 small ripe pungent melon, seeded, peeled and chopped into 1 inch pieces
3 leaves lemon basil, shredded
juice 1/2 lime
salt to taste

Heat a medium sautee pan over medium heat, add olive oil and butter. Once butter begins to sizzle, add red onion. Sautee until onions are transluscent. Add tomatoes, cook until they begin to give up their juice, add cantalope, cook 2 minutes more. Transfer to a blender, add in shredded lemon basil, puree until smooth. Blend in salt and lime juice to taste.

Corn with Lavender

2007-07-18T09:30:00.000-05:00

This corn was quite nice, though not dreamy. It needed a little fresh lavender, lime, butter and salt.

Farm Stand Goodness

2007-07-18T09:27:00.000-05:00

These strawberries taste like someone grew them in powdered sugar instead of dirt. They told me to eat them or make them directly into jam. I've gobbled the whole quart. I think these were picked today and never refrigerated. Some things get strange in the fridge. I think even a few hours and the berries would have lost some strength in their perfume. I was looking for that farm stand experience. I'm really having it. It's not thin, not pretty and perfect. My fingers are stained and I'll probably get the runs later, it's a lot of strawberry for one girl! Apparently this can still be done. I am always wondering if the things that tasted good when I was young tasted that way because my taste buds were so keen, if the new experience of life was so vibrant, or if my memory improved the taste of things. I also sometimes think that the way farming and genetic engineering has changed flavors, they are somehow forever lost.

I wished for edible things to be growing around my house. I swear a magic raspberry bush appeared and this other bush suddenly sprouted red currants! Oops. On checking with my foraging book, not currants at all. Haven't eaten any, guess it's best to look.

Chick Peas and Beet Greens Pasta

2007-06-27T16:04:00.000-05:00

Chick Peas and Beet Greens Pasta
Serves 2
I have a general dislike for the chickpea, however I recently found these amazing Italian chickpeas from the Mecca of all good things Italian: the Italian Food Center in the Chelsea Market. The chickpeas have a cryovac - like packaging where all the air has been sucked out of the package and the plastic sticks to it like jeans on a 14-year-old mother. These have a wonderful toasty flavor, something almost invisible in the average chickpea! I simmered them in some water for an hour or so before using them and without soaking them beforehand. You can also use canned chickpeas

3 cups extra short ziti or whichever pasta you choose
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large clove garlic, sliced
1/2 onion, sliced
1 pinch red pepper flakes
1/4 cup fresh shelled peas or frozen
1/2 cup chickpeas
1/4 cup dry white wine
3 loosely packed cups beet greens
juice of one lemon
5 large basil leaves, minced
salt and pepper to taste
very fine extra virgin olive oil, optional but recommended

Boil the pasta in salted water until very al dente, or just a bit undercooked. Before draining it, reserve one cup of the cooking liquid, set aside, and drain pasta.

Meanwhile, heat olive oil in a medium saucepot over medium low heat. Add onions, sauté until they begin to turn translucent (about 3 minutes), add garlic and sauté until the edges are tinged light brown. Add red pepper flakes, peas, chickpeas, and white wine. Crank the heat to high and simmer until the liquid is reduced by half, (about 3 minutes).

Add the beet greens, 1/2 cup of the pasta water and the cooked pasta. Simmer on high until greens are wilted and pasta is heated through. Stir in the basil and lemon juice. Season to taste with salt and pepper, drizzle generously with fine extra virgin olive oil.

Caramelized Grilled Cheese

2007-06-20T13:55:00.000-05:00

Grilled cheese is lovely, and one of my favorite quickie meals. It's even better with a crunch layer of caramel on the outside. The bitterness of the caramel cuts the rich flavors of the cheese providing a great counterpoint.

2 thick slices of crusty rustic raisin bread
1 teaspoon raw honey
1/2 teaspoon green peppercorn mustard
4 slices fontina
3 slices parmesan
1 tablespoon crumbled fiori de sardo cheese
good grind of pepper,
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon salted great quality butter

Spread one slice of the bread with honey and the other with mustard. Cover the mustard side with cheeses, grind pepper on top. Top the cheese with the honeyed bread, honey side out.

Heat a small cast iron pan over medium low heat. Add olive oil and butter. Once butter has melted, add the sandwich, honey side down. Place a weight like a foil covered brick or another pan on top of the sandwich to press it down a bit. Cook for about 10 minutes, until the honey on the bread has caramelized. Flip the sandwich, cook 5 minutes more, the other side will have caramelized now too. Cut in quick decisive chops so the sandwich doesn't fall apart.

(Pot) Brownies

2007-06-12T16:10:00.000-05:00

I have a friend who is sick and nauseous from chemotherapy. I thought some exceptional brownies might cheer her up. These can be made according to the directions I give, without the marijuana and the brownies will be delicious with a fudgy center. If you have a friend who needs some medical marijuana, chop it super fine, add it to the butter, melt it together, and leave it over night at room temperature to leach out the THC. I didn’t strain out the solids, though I'm sure it would work if you chose to.

I have no idea how much marijuana to tell you to use. I ended up using two very finely chopped tablespoons. The strength of the drugs in the brownies depends on the strength of the medical marijuana. The flavors in the brownie should be strong enough to cover up the flavor of herbs. This recipe makes the equivalent of 2 pans of brownies. No one ever feels satisfied with just one tray. Okay, okay, if you would just feel fine about one pan, cut the recipe in half. It still bakes for about 40 minutes.
One full recipe makes 36 brownies

2 tablespoons fine dark cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup fine unsalted European butter
1 pound high quality bittersweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
3 cups sugar
8 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
1 tablespoon orange liquer, such as Cointreau
2 teaspoons instant espresso powder
extra butter and fine cocoa powder for the pan

Butter one 13 x 9 inch pan or two 8-inch square pans. Line the bottoms and two ends with one piece of waxed paper or parchment. This will help ease the brownies out of the pan. Butter parchment paper. Dust with cocoa, tap out excess. Set aside.

Heat the oven to 350°. In a medium bowl, whisk together the first four ingredients, set aside. Melt the butter and chocolate in a mixing bowl over gently simmering hot water. Stir frequently until melted and smooth(if you did put marijuana in the butter, there will be a little texture). Remove from heat and set aside. Beat in the sugar until well combined. Add the eggs one at a time, being sure each one is fully combined before adding another. Beat in extract and liquer. Gently stir in flour mixture until just combined. Spread batter evenly in pan, bake for 45 minutes, until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few wet crumbs on it. Let cool 5 minutes on a wire rack. Invert to release, gently tug at parchment paper to help. Remove parchment.

Fresh Chamomile Tea

2007-05-30T16:43:00.000-05:00

Serves six
This is a refreshing tea especially if you mix it with a sharp ginger beer.

1 cup fresh chamomile flowers
1/4 cup honey

Fill medium stockpot with water, cover, and bring to a boil, stir in chamomile flowers and honey, steep four minutes, strain, allow to cool, serve over ice.

1 -2 -3 Vinaigrette

2007-05-29T16:32:00.001-05:00

In French cooking there are a few standard sauces that serve as the base for variations. Technically they're called "mother" sauces. Appropriately, I learned this from the mother of my French exchange program family. I always think of it as 1 - 2 - 3 sauce because that is the proportion of the recipe. One mustard, two acid, three oil. In any vinaigrette you need three basic elements: mustard, an acid (like a lemon juice, verjus, or vinegar), and an oil.

I call this sauce a base or "Mother" sauce because you can easily derive many variations of vinaigrette from it. Switch a sesame oil and a rice wine vinegar and the sauce has Asian flavors. Substitute a gentle hazelnut oil for the olive oil or a purple mustard for the traditional Dijon, or use a grainy mustard… you get the idea, the variations are infinite.

1 - 2 - 3 Vinaigrette
You need a lot less dressing than you think. A rough estimate is 5 cups of loosely packed bite sized pieces of salad to one recipe of vinaigrette.

1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar
3 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
pinch sea salt
pinch freshly ground pepper

The trick to getting a really creamy vinaigrette lies in emulsifying it properly.
Whisk together the salt, pepper, mustard and vinegar to form a uniform paste. Add the olive oil in an extremely slow steady drizzle while you whisk briskly. Every once in a while to check the olive oil is fully encorporated and the mixture looks creamy. This recipe can be multiplied and made in the blender.

There are a couple of things I like to keep in mind when I make a salad. I love to make the dressing in the bottom of the bowl, before I put in the greens. I set the greens loosely on top. This way the salad is all ready to go to the table and await tossing. If you toss the salad just before you serve it, you end up with crisp greens rather than the wilty sludge that comes from a premature tossing. When you do serve it, toss the salad a lot more than you generally believe is necessary. That way everything is definitely coated.

Spaghetti Omelet

2007-05-24T11:57:00.001-05:00

Spaghetti Omelet
Makes 1

I tend to use real thick European butters because decadence isn’t decadence if you don’t go the whole way there. Omelets are one of my favorite ways to use leftovers. The best omelet fillings are always rich, full of fat and flavor. I use a spaghetti covered in a porcini tomato ragu, but use whatever leftover pasta you may have. I also loved using leftover pulled pork or Bolognese when I ate meat. The French and classically trained chefs tend to be quite fussy about omelets. And there are a few tricks, although none of them include leftover pasta, I'm pretty sure.

Omelet Tips

-the eggs should be cooked over a low flame, this creates the creamiest curd texture
- the fillings should be moist, but not dripping with sauce, as cooking is essentially a process by which, among other chemical reactions, the water contents is reduced or removed from food. This process can be slowed or produce nasty effects if there's too much extra liquid in an omelet.
- always remove eggs from a pan before you think they're completely cooked, the heat the eggs retain continues to cook them a bit after they leave the pan. You can always cook something more, but you can't go back and uncook it.

Spaghetti Omelet

3 large eggs
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon rich European salted butter
1/3 cup cooked sauced leftover pasta
1 tablespoon sour cream, fresh ricotta or mascarpone

Whisk the eggs, salt and pepper together in a small bowl until well beaten. Heat a small skillet over a low flame. Add the butter, once it foams, add the eggs.

Gently whisk to create fluffy curds. Once you have a good amount of fluffy curds, but the batter is still sloppy- wet, let the eggs cook a bit to form a uniform skin on the bottom. Trace the edges and underside of the omelet with a rubber spatula to release from pan. Place the pasta on top of the wet eggs and cover until the omelet puffs up and the eggs are still a bit slick.

Use the rubber spatula to fold the omelet into a half moon shape and slide onto plate. Serve with a scoop of sour cream, ricotta or full fat yogurt.

Chicken Fried Tofu

2007-05-23T15:49:00.000-05:00

Chicken Fried Tofu
I'm mostly vegetarian. I miss fried chicken. I miss the crust and the crunch. Now my palate has adjusted to lighter flavors, as I'm pescatarian and chicken tastes a little musky to me. So I'm giving this a go. I just read The Last Chinese Chef. In the book the chef boils tofu rapidly for 30 minutes, rendering the texture "spongy" so it can hold sauce. All the marinated tofu I've had isn't steeped enough in flavor for me. Although boiling makes the tofu texture less creamy than I'd like, the flavor is so much in the finished result.

1/8 teaspoon sweet smokey Spanish paprika
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
3 cloves garlic, sliced
3 slices jarred jalapeno pepper
1 1/2 cups cultured buttermilk
Half a 12 ounce package firm tofu, cut into cubes
1/2 cup cornflakes, crushed coarsely in a food processor
Crisco, or vegetable oil for frying

Bring tofu to a boil in enough water to cover by 1 inch. Leave tofu at a rapid simmer for 30 minutes. Meanwhile, combine the first five ingredients in a resealable plastic container. Use a pair of tongs to lift the cubes of tofu from pot to the marinade. Cover and refrigerate for 8 hours or up to 2 days.

Place crushed cornflakes in low bowl. Arrange a few layers of paper towels on a large plate. Drain tofu from marinade and dry with paper towels. Heat vegetable oil over medium heat. Coat each cube of tofu with cornflake crumbs, pressing the crumbs into each plane of tofu. Tap to remove excess crumbs. Oil is ready when a cornflake dropped in the oil bubbles and floats immediately to the surface. Gently place cubes, a small batch at a time into the oil. Fry for about 2 minutes per side, or until a deep golden color. Drain to paper towels. Serve with lemon and sea salt. Use witch hazel on face and walls.