FamilyStyle Food

FamilyStyle Food is on the move!

2008-10-20T08:49:00.003-05:00

This blog of mine is about to get a much-needed face lift. (Can you say Woo-hoo?!) I'll be moving over to WordPress in a day or so, and if all goes according to plan the transition will be as smooth as pumpkin pie filling. Check back soon to see the new look!

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The Chocolate Mousse Diet

2008-10-09T10:48:00.012-05:00

Lush chocolate mousse with a healthy surprise inside

That bowl of summer corn chowder is long, long gone and it's about time, too.

My personal chef work is keeping me busy, and putting me in touch with all sorts of people, each with their own set of dietary needs, likes and dislikes. But what I'm hearing most often when planning meals for clients is their desire to eat a healthy diet. It can be hard to distinguish what "healthy" really means when you see the word pasted on all sorts of processed food in the grocery store, from boxes of cereal to packaged frozen entrees.

What do most people perceive to be a healthy way of eating? My sense is that we all know that the more real, unprocessed food we eat the better, but it's still a full time job to keep track of all the information out there about what's good for us or not.

To educate myself, I've veered off my usual reading of glossy food-porn, and started exploring a segment of food and cooking I normally avoid: nutrition and diet.

Among my favorite books in the pile is Renee Loux's The Balanced Plate. Renee's approach to food and cooking enthralls me; her recipes and lifestyle ideas are both seductive and wholesome, if that's possible. It takes a certain talent to meld the subjects of health, diet, and gourmet cooking into what could be a brand new shelf category at the local bookstore.

The biggest surprise ingredient in this seemingly decadent version of Renee's Chocolate of the Gods Mousse is avocado, possibly one of nature's perfect foods. Avocados are loaded with healthy monounsaturated fats, potassium and folate. Combined with pure cocoa - another nutritious antioxidant superfood - and natural sweeteners like maple syrup and agave nectar, this recipe has all the ingredients for a supremely healthy dessert or snack.

It also might seem strange to see soy sauce and balsamic vinegar in the ingredient list for a sweet preparation, but they actually add to the sensory experience when you eat a spoonful of this mousse; touching on all the essential flavors that satisfy our palates: sweet, salty, sour and bitter.

The other amazing thing I need to mention about this recipe is how simple it is to whip up - it literally comes together in seconds in a food processor, and the results will simply blow you away.

I've been making this mousse on a regular basis and watching my kids devour it brings out a certain motherly deviousness in me (insert menacing cackle here); maybe what Jessica Seinfeld feels when she feeds her kids a slice of beet-laced chocolate cake.

Luscious Chocolate Mousse

Renee recommends Green & Black's organic cocoa powder - it can be hard to find, but it does add another layer of delicious richness.

1 ripe Hass avocado, peeled and pitted
1/4 cup agave nectar or maple syrup
1 tablespoon organic evaporated cane juice or brown sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon aged balsamic vinegar
1/4 teaspoon shoyu or soy sauce
1/2 cup high-quality cocoa powder

Process all ingredients except the cocoa powder until smooth. Add the cocoa powder and process again until completely blended - you might need to scrape the sides of the workbowl.

Serve in small cups or bowls topped with fresh berries.

Makes 4 servings.

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Raw Sweet Corn Chowder

2008-08-28T17:52:00.008-05:00

Fresh and Raw Summer Corn Soup

I got impulsive about a month ago and bought a new high-powered blender – The Total Blender by Blendtec. Costco was featuring a live demo of these super machines in action and I was curious.

I’ve been aware of the Vita-Mix brand of commercial blenders, and remember the ads they ran a few years back featuring hot, naked celebrity chefs posing with nothing more than a Vita-Mix and their birthday suit. But since I couldn’t imagine investing in a pricey machine that I’d probably use for little more than the occasional smoothie, I never even considered I might need or want one.

Some DinnerStyle clients of mine own a Vita-Mix, and I’ve been having fun “borrowing” it whenever I’m cooking for them by whipping up smooth soups and sauces for their dinners. The first time I turned it on I was a little amazed not only at its power, but also by how loud it was.

But here’s the thing: that baby made flawlessly creamy soup in about 15 seconds, like a mini cyclone in a jar. Needless to say, I found myself considering replacing my clunky old KitchenAid, which could barely manage to chop ice for emergency frozen margaritas, with a super new Vita-Mix.

When I saw the Total Blender at Costco, I borrowed my friend B’s iPhone and did a little research right there in the store, and found the price was right and reviews were mostly good. It compares neck-in-neck with the Vita-Mix, with a motor that is just slightly more powerful and a comparable 7-year warranty; the jar blade and motor base drive for a lifetime.

Blendtec has been around for years making commercial machines for places like Starbucks, and started marketing to home consumers. (I’d never seen the crazy “ Will it Blend?” infomercials until now, but they are somewhat entertaining) The great thing about buying things like this from Costco is that if the blender turned out to be a dud when I got it home, I could always return it. I love that.

So, I took my new blender home and it’s changing my life. Seriously! ( And no, I'm not even getting paid to say that) Now that its high summer and peak produce time, I’ve been making myself and my kids fresh smoothies for breakfast using organic berries, peaches and mangoes. I throw in entire vanilla beans and almonds and make creamy, dairy-free drinks for T, who suffers from a bit of lactose intolerance. No Chuck Norris action figures yet, but I might be tempted.

The makings for gazpacho in my new blender

I’m also blending up some sweet local tomatoes for gazpacho and raw sauces for pasta.
When I came across this Ani Phyo recipe for soup using raw, fresh sweet corn in the June 2008 Food & Wine magazine, I put my new machine to work.

The soup is fantastic – sweet and creamy, with the cashews giving the soup plush texture, as if it were dairy cream. I like garnishing the smooth soup with whole, raw corn kernels. When you have the freshest corn of the season, there is no better way to eat it than raw!

You most certainly can use a regular blender to make this - just make sure to soak the cashews for a few hours before so they blend up nice and smooth.

Raw Sweet Corn Chowder with Cashews
(adapted from Ani Pyho in Food & Wine)

4 ears fresh sweet corn, shucked and kernels removed with a chef's knife
2 cups water, approximately
1/2 cup cashews, soaked 1 - 2 hours; drained
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 small, peeled garlic clove

2 teaspoons kosher salt, or to taste
2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil or cilantro
1/4 cup choppped fresh tomato

In a blender, combine 2/3 of the corn with 1 1/2 cups water, cashews, olive oil, garlic and salt and puree until smooth, adding more water to achieve desired consistency. Taste for seasoning.

Pour the soup into bowls and spoon the remaining kernels into each one. Garnish with basil and tomato.

Makes 4 servings.

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Simply Roasted Beet Salad with Fresh Mint

2008-07-12T12:15:00.004-05:00

Roast some beets for a jewel-box salad

Let’s talk about beet love.

The thing about beets is this: People tend to either devour them with joyful greed, like a dog might Hoover up a hunk of smoked turkey bacon off the floor, or spit them out in disgust after mistaking their glistening, jeweled beauty for some kind of exotic fruit. There’s no middle ground, no room for wishy-washy ambivalence when it comes to loving beets.

In the history of me, there was a time when I belonged to the latter camp. I found the curiously earthy nature of beets overwhelmingly and distractingly....dirty. Because let’s face it - along with the surprising sugary-sweetness of beets is the underlying, penetrating flavor of the earth in which they grow.

That combination of dirty-sweetness is kind of what I imagined a wad of mud rolled in honey might taste like.

It wasn’t until I worked the salad station in a restaurant kitchen that I became attached to beets in a more sensory way. One of the dishes I was responsible for was a salad topped with goat cheese and balsamic marinated roasted beets. I roasted, peeled and chopped umpteen pounds of beets, staining my hands a startling shade of magenta. I tossed and tasted all those beets to make sure they were cooked and seasoned just right.

Maybe it was that day-to-day intimacy with beets that converted me in the end, but I came around. I crossed over to the world of beet love.

I still prefer roasting to any other method of cooking beets; probably because it’s so easy to wrap them up and stick them in a hot oven, where they pretty much take care of business all by themselves. And I can’t resist beets that are colored vivid orange or the gorgeous candy-striped Chioggia varieties.

Beets have a particular affinity for things tangy; like fresh soft goat cheese, mild vinegars and citrus juices, making them perfect for salads.

I hesitate to call the following a recipe. Consider it more of a method, to ready your beets for a simple toss with olive oil, some fresh herbs, and your tangy ingredient of choice.

Simply Roasted Beet Salad with Fresh Mint

To roast your beets, trim off the greens (save those if they are in good shape and chop some up for your salad) and place them on a sheet of aluminum foil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and a little drizzle of olive oil.

Roast at 400 degrees for about 30 minutes. You’ll know they’re just about done when the kitchen takes on a pleasing aroma and the beets offer no resistance when you poke a sharp knife into them.

Let them cool a bit before slipping off the skin and slicing.

Toss the beets with some of your best olive oil, salt and pepper and a squeeze of fresh lemon or orange juice. Sprinkle with chopped mint, some crumbled goat cheese and serve over salad greens.

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No-Cook Summer Recipe: Tabbouleh with Fresh Basil

2008-06-30T11:57:00.004-05:00

What to make when it's too hot to cook

Do you ever feel like you're in a food rut?

I think we all get into a habit of cooking and eating certain things over and over again, either because your seven year old whines for it on a daily basis or simply because you can whip it up with your eyes closed and one hand tied behind your back.

Although my pantry shelves are sagging under the weight of a large array of boxes, bags and jars – all the interesting ingredients I can’t seem to stop myself from collecting for experimentation purposes, I’ve been watching myself reach for the same things to serve as the basis of a quick, one-dish meal when dinner time is nigh and I don’t have a plan; usually some kind of pasta or couscous.

Somewhere along the line I’ve strayed away from good old bulgur. Remember tabbouleh? All you need is hot water and it magically swells into a nourishing meal.

Way back before we made couscous the new "instant" side dish, there was tabbouleh to save the day. Many a college dorm room or apartment kitchen of mine was scented by that little spice packet that came in the tabbouleh box, with its telltale aroma of dried mint and slightly stale cumin.

I had a few friends over for a summer dinner party the other night, and wanted to have most everything made ahead. I had a Middle Eastern flavor theme going, so pulled out one of my favorite cookbooks, Spice by Ana Sortun, and there was a recipe for tabbouleh that jumped out at me.

It turned out to be the perfect thing to round out a summer meal – fast, fresh and I didn’t have to cook it! Well, not unless you count boiling water as cooking.

What I loved about this version was that it uses basil and walnuts, which was a nice twist on the usual parsley-mint-tomato combo.

Summer Tabbouleh with Fresh Basil

Adapted from Spice by Ana Sortun

1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 small red onion or shallot, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt, plus more to taste
1/2 cup fine or medium bulgur
1 packed cup fresh basil leaves
2 tablespoons fresh parsley leaves
1 cup toasted walnuts or almonds
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

In a medium bowl, combine lemon juice, onion, garlic and salt. Let sit about 5 minutes to soften the onion.

Stir in the bulgur along with 1/4 cup hot water. Cover and let stand about 15 minutes, or until the bulgur swells and is tender. Add a bit more water, if needed, if the bulgur is still chewy, and cover until absorbed.

Pulse the basil, parsley, nuts and oil in a food processor until a paste forms. Season with salt and pepper. Add the paste to the bulgur and stir to blend.

Serve topped with grated sharp cheese (such as feta) and toasted pita bread.

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BLTs with Basil Aioli and Five-Minute Grilled Flatbread

2008-06-11T16:32:00.008-05:00

BLT sandwich on quick grilled flatbread

I love the Vogue food writer Jeffrey Steingarten, and one of my all-time favorite pieces from his book “It Must Have Been Something I Ate” is the one about his search for perfect pizza, which, in true Steingartian fashion sends him on a mission to reproduce the flavor and taste of a true Neapolitan-style pizza crust at home.

Steingarten estimates that in order to achieve blistered, dense and delicious crusts a person needs to simulate the heat of a true wood-fired oven that can achieve extremely hot temperatures, somewhere in the range between 650 and 950 degrees, which proves to be just about impossible to accomplish unless you happen to have a heavy-duty commercial oven. His most successful attempt turns out to be firing up a Weber charcoal grill and placing a pizza stone directly on the rack; when the charcoal is arranged properly (more toward the sides of the stone than piled right under it) your everyday barbecue grill is transformed into a little pizza oven. I tried this method and it seems to work pretty well.

After browsing through a new cookbook called Grilled Pizzas and Piadinas yesterday and getting hungry, I made a simple unleavened dough and lit the grill. I actually wanted to make hot BLT sandwiches for dinner, and thought the bread would be an interesting twist. And since it was so spur of the moment, the dough recipe was a good choice since it doesn’t require yeast or rising time. It doesn’t have the fermented flavor that a good yeasted pizza or flatbread has, but for a quick, interesting meal it was satisfying and fun to make.

This method of cooking on the grill would work with any dough you have, even prepared pizza dough from the bakery or grocery store. I’ve also used this very easy recipe for 5-minute pizza dough from Sara Moulton with excellent results.

BLT’s with Basil Aioli on Grilled Flatbread

Prepared pizza dough or Piadina dough (recipe follows)
Basil Aioli (recipe follows)
Fresh arugula or other greens
Cooked bacon
Sliced ripe tomatoes

Light your charcoal or gas grill to medium-high, arranging coals around edges of the grill once they are hot and glowing. (use long tongs and a heavy-duty oven mitts for this). Place a pizza stone on the rack and heat until a drop of water sizzles and evaporates on contact.

Cut the dough into 3-inch pieces and roll them out on a floured surface into roughly 6-inch diameter rounds.

Place the dough on the stone and cook until both sides are browned and blistered, about 2 minutes per side.

Remove from the stone and spread each with some Basil Aioli. Top with greens, bacon and tomatoes. Fold over loosely and eat like a sandwich.

Basil Aioli
1/2 cup mayonnaise, regular or reduced fat ( I prefer Hellmann’s)
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1 small garlic clove, crushed
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Cover and refrigerate for up to one day.

Piadina Dough (Instant Unleavened Pizza Dough)
Adapted from Grilled Pizzas and Piadinas by Craig W. Priebe

1 1/2 cups unbleached flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup water
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice

Combine all ingredients in a food processor fitted with the dough blade. Process just until the dough comes together, about 15 pulses. Dump the dough on to a floured surface and knead until soft and springy. Cover with plastic wrap to rest for about 15 minutes.

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Edamame Dip with Asian Flavors

2008-06-02T13:36:00.009-05:00

A simple spread

I have a tendency to wait until the last minute to get things done. I usually chalk it up to my spontaneous nature, but I know it's really a symptom of literally having too many things on my plate.

Last night we had some friends over for dinner, and as usual, I left the idea of an appetizer up in the air. Coming up with the perfect little nibble before the main meal is served can be tricky - you don't want to put out too much food since it's better to keep your guests a tiny bit hungry, but at the same time, there should be something available to help absorb the alcohol from the welcoming cocktail or first glass of wine. Plus there's always some other thing that needs to be done, like making salad dressing or setting the table.

I usually solve the problem by putting out little dishes of olives or roasted, spiced nuts. They're both satisfyingly salty, not too filling and will please the vegetarians and omnivores alike. But after going through my freezer yesterday and finding some half-full bags of peas and edamame, I thought I'd use them up to serve with crackers when our friends arrived.

This turned out to be a great idea - I created a quick, last minute homemade appetizer recipe instead of serving the usual tub of hummus dip, with most of the ingredients already on hand in the freezer and pantry. It could be that we were all hungry, but this disappeared in no time.

Edamame Spread with Asian Flavors

8 ounces frozen, shelled edamame
8 ounces frozen peas
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons tamari or soy sauce
1 crushed garlic clove
1 teaspoon wasabi powder dissolved in water
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Fresh lemon juice, to taste
Fine sea salt, to taste

Drop the edamame and peas in a medium saucepan of generously salted boiling water.

Cook until tender, about 10 minutes. Scoop out about 1/4 cup of the cooking water before draining.

Puree the edamame and peas together in a food processor along with the remaining ingredients, adding water 1 tablespoon at a time as needed to make a smooth, creamy consistency.

Sprinkle a little more cayenne over the spread before serving with rice crackers or flatbread.

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Pasta Primavera with Asparagus and Poached Egg, Locavore Style

2008-05-30T08:49:00.005-05:00

photo by Josh Monken for Sauce

Simple Springtime Feast

I'm all about eating local now that our farmer's markets are open for business and offering freshly picked spring vegetables like radishes and asparagus.

And I'll find just about any excuse to eat fresh pasta, especially when the entire dish features ingredients that I've sourced locavore-style. I have a thing for oozy poached eggs, and using them as a topper for pastas and salads provides little extra protein and brilliant orange color.

I wrote a feature about this recipe which appears in the May, 2008 issue Sauce Magazine, which I had posted recently but have removed for copyright reasons - instead, you can read the full story on the Sauce website.

photo by Josh Monken for Sauce

Fettuccine Primavera with Goat Cheese, Crisp Prosciutto and Poached Egg

4 thin slices prosciutto
4 ounces fresh goat cheese, softened at room temperature
2 tablespoons heavy cream
¼ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Finely grated zest and juice from half a lemon
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 bunch asparagus, stems trimmed and sliced into 2-inch pieces
9 ounces fresh fettuccine or tagliatelle pasta
4 soft-poached quail eggs*

1. Arrange the prosciutto on a small baking sheet and roast in a 400-degree oven for about 10 minutes, or until crisp. Cool slightly and break into pieces. (prepare up to one day ahead - keep in a covered container at room temperature)

2. Crumble the goat cheese into a large mixing bowl. Add the cream, Parmigiano-Reggiano, lemon zest, juice, salt and pepper to taste and stir until smooth.

3. Bring 5 quarts water to a boil in a large saucepan and add 1 tablespoon salt. Drop in asparagus and cook until bright green and tender, about 3 minutes. Remove asparagus with a slotted spoon and add to the goat cheese mixture. Add pasta to the pan and cook 1 - 2 minutes, or according to directions. Scoop out a ladleful of pasta water (about 1/3 cup) and pour it into the goat cheese mixture, stirring to melt cheese and make a smooth sauce. Drain pasta and toss with the goat cheese until evenly coated with sauce.

4. Divide pasta between two serving bowls. Top with poached eggs and sprinkle with prosciutto.

Serves 2

* To poach eggs, bring a small skillet full of water to a simmer. Add a tablespoon of plain white vinegar. Crack eggs into the pan; keeping heat at a steady simmer (not boiling), cook eggs until whites are firm and yolks are just set, about 2 minutes for quail eggs and 4 minutes for chicken eggs. Remove with a slotted spoon.

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Homemade Granola

2008-05-25T11:04:00.003-05:00

My favorite granola with yogurt

I’d never tasted homemade granola until I was in my early twenties, when my friend Dorie gifted me with some that her mother had made. I remember opening the bag doubtfully, expecting some hard-to-chew cereal product I might be temped to feed to a horse.

Just for frame of reference, this was back in 1980-something, when granola was regarded as an outdated by-product of the seventies, right up there with crocheted plant cozies made from hemp fiber and men sporting four-inch wide sideburns.

But just like Oprah, I had an “Aha!” moment right then and there. Too bad my moment didn’t foreshadow the possibility of making my fortune selling fifteen-dollar bags of granola in fancy food stores, as I’m sure Oprah’s would have.

No, it wasn’t my instinct for making money that was awakened, but my sense of what “homemade” meant. This granola was so unlike the achingly sweet stuff I was used to eating out of a box it was like a different category of food altogether. It smelled of butter and vanilla; each grain and seed tasted fresh and toasted. There were sesame seeds in there, I remember, and nice crunchy clumps of oats. I ate it all and then wanted more.

I begged Dorie to ask her mom for the recipe, but she never delivered it. Apparently that granola was a closely guarded family recipe. What is it with people and their secret recipes? I've never understood the urge to protect a recipe. Why not share the love?

I went on a search mission to replicate the granola recipe. I came close with one batch from Marion Cunningham’s The Breakfast Book, but it wasn’t quite the same. I finally settled on the formula below, which is based on one that I think came from an issue of Gourmet magazine circa 1990 or so (since all I have is the an index card, I can’t be sure).

This recipe makes a good-sized batch of granola; you can keep it in a covered container for two weeks or so, or be generous and give some to friends - and don’t forget to pass along the recipe.

And if Dorie is out there, I'd still love to know your mom's secret!

Granola

4 cups old-fashioned oats
1 cup unsweetened dried coconut
1 cup whole almonds
1 cup of your choice hulled raw pumpkin seeds or raw cashews
1/2 cup sesame seeds
1/4 cup ground flax seed
1/4 cup raw wheat germ
3/4 cup pure maple syrup
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/3 cup melted butter or vegetable oil

Heat oven to 325 degrees.

In a large bowl, layer all ingredients through wheat germ in order given. Pour maple syrup over mixture and stir upward from the bottom, taking care to coat the almonds. Add the vanilla, salt and butter and stir once more to combine well.

Spread the granola in an even layer on a large rimmed sheet pan, or 2 smaller rimmed pans.
Bake 15 minutes; stir granola and bake 10 minutes more or until mixture is golden and almonds are toasted.

Other FamilyStyle Favorites to try:

Homemade Vanilla Extract
Best Buttermilk Pancakes
Whole Grain Pancakes with Roasted Pears

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Rosemary Lemon-Ginger Vodka Spritzers

2008-04-23T17:11:00.007-05:00

A beachside refresher

Our vacation got off to a tremulous start - what with the 5.2 earthquake and all - but we managed to get everyone safely in the car and on the road to Rosemary Beach, our almost impossibly lovely destination on the Florida Panhandle.

This place is one of those scarily-proportioned planned "towns" that seem to spring up out of the swamp land as if by magic. What I mean by scary is just the absolute perfectness about it all; it's so self-contained and pristinely designed that it just doesn't seem real.

And, in keeping with the Mediterranean theme of the architecture, there are rosemary bushes springing up everywhere. I don't think that rosemary would grow here as a native plant, but it does seem to thrive in this climate, because the plants seem to grow into large hedgerows.

Rosemary might just be my favorite herb and every spring I put out numerous small plants in my garden. I always hope that one or two of them will make it through the winter, but so far that hasn't happened.

Seeing them casually growing here to the size of happy Great Danes kind of overwhelms me. I'm starting to feel like cooking something. Or maybe I'm just thirsty.

We came up with this refreshing cocktail recipe while lounging on the beach yesterday. It's pretty good. Might be just about time for another!

Rosemary Lemon-Ginger Vodka Spritzers

1 cup sugar
1 cup water
¼ cup peeled, chopped fresh ginger
2 large springs rosemary, plus more to garnish
Pinch of fine sea salt (seems weird, but it really makes the syrup pop with flavor)
Fresh lemons, halved
Ice cold vodka
Chilled sparkling water

Combine the sugar and water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Stir in the ginger, rosemary and salt; remove from the heat and let steep for about 10 minutes. Strain the syrup and chill.

To make a drink, squeeze fresh lemon juice to taste into a glass filled with ice. Pour in 2 ounces vodka and about 1 tablespoon syrup. Top off with the sparkling water. Take a sip, and add more syrup if you like. Add a rosemary spring for garnish. Cheers!

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Crunchy Shrimp with Ginger Orange Sauce

2008-04-17T21:26:00.004-05:00

photo from myrecipes.com

I know, I have been MIA for a while.

Briefly, I give the following as explanation:

1. My camera got lost.
2. I’ve been up to my eyeballs with work stuff, everyday stuff, and other stuff. Sometimes I feel that being a “good” blogger can be soooo very challenging.
3. My camera got lost.
4. We’re piling everyone into the car for a road trip to Florida tomorrow.
5. Woo-hoo!

I know it’s lame, and I apologize, but without a juicy photo to share (have you seen my camera, by the way?) I’m posting one of my contest winners from a few years ago and borrowing a picture from myrecipes.com. I won the $10,000 grand prize in Cooking Light’s Ultimate Reader Recipe Contest for creating this recipe and it continues to be a favorite with friends and family.
Enjoy, and I’ll check in again soon.

Crunchy Shrimp with Toasted Couscous
and Ginger Orange Sauce

For Ginger Orange Sauce:
1 cup orange juice
1 teaspoon ground cumin
2 tablespoons reduced fat mayonnaise
1 1/2 tablespoons chicken broth
2 teaspoons grated fresh ginger
1 tablespoon chopped cilantro
1 teaspoon fresh lime juice
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, or to taste
For Couscous:
1 cup uncooked couscous
1 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1/2 cup orange juice
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/3 cup sliced scallions
2 tablespoons sliced almonds, toasted
For Shrimp:
20 jumbo shrimp (about 1 pound), peeled and deveined
2 egg whites, lightly beaten
1 cup panko (Japanese breadcrumbs)
1/2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
2 teaspoons chopped fresh cilantro
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 - 2 tablespoons canola oil
2 cups trimmed watercress

1. To prepare sauce, place orange juice in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook until reduced to 1/4 cup, 10-12 minutes. Transfer to a medium heatproof bowl to cool. Add remaining sauce ingredients to the cooled orange juice and whisk until smooth.

2. Place couscous in a 10-inch non-stick skillet over medium heat and cook 3 minutes or until toasted, stirring constantly. Add the broth, orange juice and salt to pan and bring to a boil. Cover and remove from heat. Let stand 5 minutes; fluff with a fork. Stir in butter, scallions and almonds. Cover to keep warm.

3. Place shrimp in a large bowl; add egg whites and toss to coat. Combine panko, ginger, cilantro, salt and pepper in a large zip-top plastic bag. Add shrimp; seal bag and shake to coat evenly with panko mixture. Heat the oil in a 12-inch non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Add coated shrimp in one layer. Cook until golden brown, 2-3 minutes; turn shrimp and cook until second side is golden brown.

4. To serve, spoon couscous onto a large platter. Arrange watercress over and around couscous; top with shrimp. Drizzle sauce over shrimp.
Serves 4. (serving size: 1 cup couscous, 5 shrimp and 1 1/2 tablespoons sauce)

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2008-02-27T08:20:00.011-06:00

Secret, smoky meat rub

A few months back, I met a professional organizer named Aby and I was instantly in awe of her.

Really, I admire any person who possesses both the desire and the ability to transform the cluttered elements of household chaos into pleasingly stratified things of beauty. For someone as organized-impaired as myself, one look at Aby' s Creative Organizing blog fills me with hope for redemption.

I start out with good intentions, buying containers, files, folders and dividers - you name the aisle in The Container Store and I've been there - but still the sheer volume of our everyday stuff seeps through the cracks in the closet doors, and sometimes literally falls out and hits my husband on the head.

Really. Hits My Husband On The Head; as in the case of the jar of peppercorns perched precariously on the tippy-top shelf of the spice cabinet, which falls out while said husband is plunging the depths up to his elbows in search of some cayenne pepper.

And then, when I saw that Lydia at The Perfect Pantry was peeking into Other People's Pantries, I realized that my own spice pantry is such a mess that I really should be embarrassed, but the truth is I'm simply at a loss.

Which brings me to this pathetic cry for help:

Will someone please, please set my spice cabinet to rights?

Leave me a comment with your inspired solution to my spice cabinet woes, and to the calm, cool and creative person with the best idea I will present this lovely little cookbook, 5 Spices, 50 Dishes: Simple Indian Recipes Using Five Common Spices:

Hopefully in a few weeks I will be able to post an after photo, showing off a brand new, neatly organized spice cabinet, but first look at what I have now, four shelves 13 inches wide by 10 inches deep, jam-packed with bags, jars, tins and boxes in no order whatsoever:

And just so you don't leave empty-handed, here is my "secret" smoky spice rub recipe, suitable for packing in jars and giving as gifts:

Smoky Spice Rub

2 tablespoons smoked sweet Spanish paprika
2 teaspoons brown sugar
2 teaspoons kosher salt
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Stir together all ingredients in a small bowl. Store in a covered container for up to a month.
Rub 1 tablespoon per pound onto meat, poultry or fish.

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Chickpea and Sun-Dried Tomato Hummus

2008-02-25T12:59:00.005-06:00

A delicious, high-protein snack

I've told you before about my absolute love for legumes, chickpeas in particular. Canned chickpeas are definitely at the top of my list of pantry staples, and maybe even a desert-island must for me too. Hmmm, maybe my desert island should be located someplace where chickpeas grow in happy profusion, for instance in the Aegean Sea. Do chickpeas flourish in the Aegean Sea? I've no idea, although it's kind of nice to imagine.

But I digress. I've made this Mark Bittman-inspired hummus recipe a few times since it appeared in the New York Times just a few weeks ago, and I love it. I take scoops of it with pieces of crisp flatbread when I start feeling hungry in between meals. Hummus is a great nutritious high-protein snack. It's not just for potluck, people!

This version turns out a lovely shade of ochre with the addition of sun-dried tomatoes and pimenton, which is smoked Spanish paprika (another must-have for the spice rack).

For some reason, Bittman goes to the trouble to cook his chickpeas first - while this does provide good, tasty liquid to moisten the spread, it's not what I call fast. I've found that cooking chickpeas can have iffy results. I try buying them at stores that seem to stock fresh dried beans, but I have no patience for them. Most of the bulk dried chickpeas I've taken home take way too long to cook. After a few hours of boiling what seems like a potful of pebbles that never seem to soften, I reach for a good old can. And for this recipe, which otherwise comes together in a snap, shaving a few hours off the prep time is a good thing.

I also go for the oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes here, rather than the dried ones he calls for. I think they add rich olive-oily moistness to the hummus.

This spread is simply fantastic as a dip, but I've also spread some on tortillas with a little goat cheese for killer quesadillas.

If you're a fan of chickpeas, you might also like these recipes:

Cashew Chicken with Roasted Spiced Chickpeas

Olive Oil-Poached Shrimp with Chickpeas and Feta

Chickpea and Sun-Dried Tomato Hummus

inspired by Mark Bittman

1 (15-ounce) can chickpeas, drained
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes
2 tablespoons tahini
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, plus more to taste
2 teaspoons smoked Spanish paprika
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 small garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

Place all ingredients in the workbowl of a food processor. Pulse until you have a relatively smooth paste (I don't mind if it's a little chunky). Taste and season with more lemon juice and salt, if needed. Scrape down the sides of workbowl and pulse briefly to combine.

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Cod Steamed in Parchment with Asian Flavors

2008-02-19T13:08:00.010-06:00

I’ve rediscovered the simplicity of steaming seafood in a package – somehow I’d forgotten how easy, low-calorie and delicious this method is for quick, healthful meals.

In my late teens, I spent a few summers on a beautiful rocky island off the coast of New England, waiting tables at night and lounging on the beach by day. I was part of a crew of young restaurant rats – waiters, maids, dishwashers and cooks who migrated to the island every season. Each one of us was seduced by the promise of a summer spent hiking, biking, and swimming in the ice-cold Atlantic, subsidized by the summer people for whom we worked our tushies off in exchange for cash tips.

You were considered lucky if you landed a job in one of the old hotels because that meant you had an inexpensive place to live for the season. The large Victorian houses would often offer the whole top floor - former servants’ quarters - for employees to room dormitory-style.

It sounds quaint, but in reality it was more John Belushi than E.M. Forster – think post-adolescent boys, keg parties and shared bathrooms.

The real perk of the job turned out to be the surfeit of pristinely fresh seafood: mussels, clams, swordfish and bluefish just pulled from the surrounding sea. On our nights off, since we didn’t have kitchens, we’d fire up a little hibachi grill and get dinner ready. We’d wrap whatever fresh fish was available in foil, throw in a little seasoning and place the packet on the grill. Minutes later, we’d have a meal we could eat straight out of the foil, maybe with some grilled island corn on the side.

The beauty of this method lies not only in how easy and quick it is put dinner on the table, but that you use little or no fat. The fish cooks in its own juices and is enhanced by whatever herbs, aromatics and thinly sliced vegetables you include.

I used Asian flavors like sesame, chili and scallions in this recipe, but you could use sliced cherry tomatoes, basil and minced garlic to go Mediterranean-style, or use carrot, leeks and parsley for a more simple French flavor. Just remember to cut the vegetables into small, thin pieces - the cooking time is quick.

Cod Steamed in Parchment with Asian Flavors

Serves 2

1 skinless fish fillet, such as cod, salmon or halibut (about 1 pound)
3 green onions, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger
2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil
2 teaspoons gomasio *
Pinch of dried chili flakes
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Heat oven to 400 degrees.
Lay an 11 x 14-inch piece of parchment over a large sheet of aluminum foil. (The foil helps keep any juices from leaking out of the package)

Arrange fish in the middle of the parchment; sprinkle with onions, ginger, sesame oil, gomasio, chili flakes, salt and pepper.

Gather the two long edges of the foil together and fold down over the fish to make a neat package, tucking the short ends together over the top.

Place the packet on a large baking sheet and bake 15 - 20 minutes. The fish will be opaque and flaky when done.

* a blend of sesame seeds, salt and seaweed available in the natural or international section of well-stocked grocery or natural foods stores; substitute plain toasted sesame seeds if you can’t find it.

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Gingerbread Pancakes

2008-02-15T15:27:00.005-06:00

Today A is feeling under the weather; I'm thinking it must be a touch of the flu; the same bug that has gone all around our school, neighborhood and back again.
So far, it hasn't had any affect on her appetite - so much for starving the flu.

Whatever her affliction, she's requiring classic comfort food; warm herbal tea sweetened with honey (my kids like Red Zinger), leftover rice, cinnamon toast and pancakes.

These gingerbread pancakes have become popular with my kids, and I guess that's no surprise. It must be that they are sweeter and spicier than my usual no-fail buttermilk pancake recipe.

I'm hoping that a promise of gingerbread-pancakes-in-bed will be just what the doctor ordered for a speedy recovery. And if I must reveal my alternate motive for serving a sick little girl breakfast in bed, it is this: I want her to stay in bed, tucked away in her room - keeping all her flu cooties with her! Here's to health...

Gingerbread Pancakes

Makes about 16 pancakes

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoons ground ginger
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
2 eggs
1/2 cup dark brown sugar, packed
1/4 cup vegetable oil
2 cups milk
2 tablespoons molasses

In a large bowl, stir together flour, cocoa, ginger, cinnamon, baking powder, baking soda, salt and cloves.

In a medium bowl, lightly beat together eggs, sugar, oil, milk and molasses; pour over the dry ingredients and mix just until dry ingredients are moistened.

Spray a griddle with non-stick spray or grease with butter; place over medium heat until hot.

Spoon about 1/4 cup batter for each pancake onto griddle. Cook until small bubbles emerge and start to pop on the surface of the pancakes; turn with a spatula and cook until second side is lightly browned.

Serve hot.

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How to Juice a Pomegranate

2008-02-08T09:59:00.000-06:00

Depending on who you listen to, getting the juice out of a pomegranate can be a messy, daunting task, right up there with hacking open stubborn coconuts with a machete. (see my friend Jaden's very funny post about coconuts)

For example, in my go-to guide, The Produce Bible (a beautifully photographed encyclopedia of all things fruit, vegetable, herbal and nutty) author Leanne Kitchen first warns that pomegranate juice will permanently stain your clothing. She goes on to describe a juicing method, which involves peeling the sectioned fruit while submerging it in a bowl of water, collecting the seeds that float to the top and finally, chopping them in a food processor to collect the juice. Okaaay. Seems like a lot of work.

And the New Joy of Cooking (NJOC) not only includes the method above for seed extraction, but alternatively has you rolling the fruit around on the counter to release the juices, quartering them, picking out the seeds, wrapping them up in cheesecloth and then squeezing the bundle really hard over a bowl.

While I admit that I'm somewhat of a purist - I mean, most sensible people would just go out and buy a bottle of juice - I'm also lazy. I want fresh-squeezed pomegranate juice, and I don't want any trouble, hear? Why make things so complicated?

When I saw a recipe I needed to try - Pomegranate Sorbet in A Passion for Ice Cream, I decided to juice my own darn pomegranates. I also happened to have a lot of them on hand - Costco had flats at a bargain price.

My easy-peasy method is simply to cut them in halves (or into quarters if they are Really Big Pomegranates) and juice them in my electric juicer. No mess, not much fuss. There was a little bit of splashing, but I assure you, no clothing was harmed during the filming of this episode.

I found that 3 pomegranates gave me a generous 2 cups of juice, just what I needed to make the sorbet. The NJOC did say that crushing the seeds can release tannin, resulting in bitter juice; but I didn't find that to be a problem - I must have a gentle juicer.

Pomegranates are in the last throes of their season now - but if you do find some in the market you can refrigerate them for up to a month, easily. Of course, you can make this gorgeous, jewel-colored sorbet with store bought juice, too. Just make sure you buy pure juice without added sugar and other kinds of juices.

Pomegranate Sorbet
adapted from A Passion for Ice Cream by Emily Luchetti

3/4 cup sugar
1 cup water
2 cups pure pomegranate juice (fresh or bottled)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt

Whisk together the sugar and water in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil and simmer until sugar is dissolved. Transfer syrup to a Pyrex or stainless steel bowl. Stir in the pomegranate juice, lemon juice and salt. Refrigerate until cold, at least 2 hours. Churn in an ice cream machine according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Scrape the sorbet into a freezer-safe container and freeze until scoopable, about 3 hours, before serving.

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Grilled Cheese Sandwich with Fig Jam, Basil and Goat Cheese

2008-02-04T10:54:00.001-06:00

A sandwich for the front page

When it comes to periodical food porn, I confess that I’m an addict. I’m attracted to glossy magazines like a fruit fly to a tumbler of port; easily taken in by the pin-up shots on the covers of my favorite magazines; Food & Wine, Bon Appetit, Vegetarian Times and especially the slickly designed Aussie imports Donna Hay and Delicious.

Just as soon as the February issue of Gourmet fell through the mail slot, I was hooked: the cover photo is a simple, oozy grilled cheese sandwich. It was almost lunchtime and I was hungry, so I went into the kitchen and made one.

It’s rare that I have the time and inclination to try a recipe as soon as it catches my eye. You know how that goes – flag the page and forget about it for a few years.

I had to make some substitutions, because when you have a Spontaneous-Cook-the-Cover episode, you don’t always have every ingredient called for; in this case my pantry was missing both the Taleggio and Fontina cheeses and escarole greens.

Instead, I made my version of this panini sandwich with sliced Raclette, goat cheese and fresh basil leaves. I did have some fig jam on the shelf just waiting for such an opportunity, which was a good thing because the sweet-savory preserves are a fantastic surprise. At first bite, this sandwich made my day - gooey, tangy cheese, grilled, warm bread and hit of fresh basil. I had a very happy lunch.

The only way to improve upon this sandwich recipe would be to add some crisp bacon or pancetta – but really, even a piece of grilled shoe leather would taste better with some crisp bacon or pancetta, so I guess that just goes without saying!

Grilled Cheese with Fig Jam, Basil and Goat Cheese
adapted from Gourmet
Serves one.

2 (1/2-inch-thick) center slices sourdough bread (from a 9- to 10-inch round)
2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon fig jam
2 ounces sliced Raclette or Fontina cheese
1/4 cup soft crumbled goat cheese
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves

Brush 1 side of bread slices with oil and arrange, oil sides down, on a work surface. Spread jam on bread slices and top one slice with the cheese. Arrange basil on top of cheese, season with salt and pepper. Close sandwich.
Heat a heavy griddle or stovetop-grill pan over medium-high heat. Place the sandwich in the pan; weigh with a sandwich press or heavy skillet. Cook 2-3 minutes, until undersides are golden brown. Turn over with a spatula, and cook on the second side until golden brown and cheese has melted. Slice in half on the diagonal, and serve right away.

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Crispy, Creamy Chocolate Cookies

2008-01-30T12:13:00.000-06:00

It’s no surprise around our house that when I get ready to bake cookies, it usually means I’m craving chocolate. True, I sometimes distract myself by making other kinds of cookies, but every time I take a test-nibble of a freshly-baked gingersnap, shortbread or snickerdoodle all I can think is how much better they'd be if only I'd thrown a scoop of cocoa or a handful of some chocolate chunks in the dough.

I tell myself that responding to my brain’s internal cry for some dark, sweet chocolate has some kind of medicinal effect on me - at least if seems that way, because I always feel a lot better after consuming some.

I flagged the page with this chocolate cookie recipe - adapted from one by French pastry master Pierre Herme - from Peggy Knickerbocker’s cookbook Simple Soirees. Not only did the name of this recipe call out to me with the words “chocolate” “crispy” and “creamy”, but I liked the idea of an icebox cookie; you can make the dough a few days ahead (or up to 3 months if you freeze it) and simply slice off what you need and then bake.

But, cookie bakers beware – the original recipe as printed in the book is incorrect!

I came this close to making a big chocolate mess of good cultured Plugra butter and pricey Sharffen Berger chocolate. When I mixed up the dough – right after adding the 1/4 cup flour called for, I had a soft blob of chocolate-flavored butter that I knew would never bake up into a respectable cookie. I decided to do a little research before baking.

After a brief Google search, I found a review by Ann Ellenbecker on the Powell’s Books website along with a corrected version of the recipe – yes, there should be 1 cup PLUS 1/4 flour in there!

Phew. Baking Disaster averted.

The cookies turned out just fine, although the dough does crumble a bit when slicing and I’d describe them as more crispy than creamy - mine were soft inside, but not really moist enough to be called creamy. But they are sweetly, demurely, bite-sized - perfect for those private feed-the-craving moments.

Do you want to win a trip for two to Napa Valley? I do too! Enter the Death by Chocolate Contest over at Culinate starting February 4 through February 8. Vote for your favorite chocolate post (mine would be nice) and at the same time YOU are entered in the sweepstakes. Fingers crossed...

Vote for me in the Death by Chocolate contest!

Crispy Creamy Chocolate Cookies
adapted slightly from Peggy Knickerbocker

1/3 cup excellent-quality cocoa powder such as Scharffen Berger * see note
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/4 cup all-purpose flour
11 tablespoons (1 stick plus 3 tablespoons) unsalted butter
2/3 cup dark brown sugar
1/3 cup granulated sugar
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt or fleur de sel
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
5 ounces excellent-quality bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped

Sift together the cocoa powder, baking soda, and flour. In a large mixing bowl, using a mixer, cream the butter until smooth, add the brown sugar and granulated sugar and blend again.

Add the salt and vanilla and blend for about 1 1/2 minutes. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture and mix on the lowest speed until the ingredients are incorporated. The dough will be crumbly. Stir in the chopped chocolate.

Turn the dough onto a work surface. Press the mixture together with your hands, forming a ball. Cut the ball in half and work each half into a log about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Wrap each log in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. (You can enclose in foil and freeze the logs for up to 3 months - thaw slightly before slicing)

Preheat the oven to 325° F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment.

Slice the logs into 1/2-inch-thick rounds. Place the rounds on the baking sheets, 1 inch apart. If the cookies break apart, press them back together.

Bake one sheet at a time for 12 minutes. The cookies will not be firm nor appear to be done. Remove them from the oven and let them cool on the sheet on a wire rack until they are barely warm. Store the cookies in an airtight container.

Makes 4 dozen cookies.

* The original recipe calls for sweetened cocoa powder; I didn't have any, so I increased the amount of granulated sugar from 1/4 to 1/3 cup.

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Provencal Beef Stew - Slow Food, French Style

2008-01-28T10:44:00.001-06:00

Rich, beefy, slow and satisfying

I’m a recently converted braising believer. I say recent because by nature and circumstance I’m more of a spontaneous, wait-until-the-last-minute, fly-by-the-seat-of-my-pants kind of cook. Planning and making lists can be drudging work for me, so when it comes to deciding what to have for dinner, I tend to rely on a well-stocked pantry, simple recipes and quick cooking methods like grilling, broiling or stir-frying.

Which is all well and good. But now that both of my kids are in school all day, I’m feeling like I have a tiny bit more time to think about our daily dinner plans – and nothing seems more luxurious to me then having the wherewithal to start cooking dinner 4 hours in advance.

I know, some of you are thinking – Hasn’t this girl ever heard of a Crock-Pot?

I do own one of those, but for some reason I haven’t yet developed enough of a relationship with it to consider having an affair. I reserve my affection for a heavy-duty Le Creuset Dutch oven.

Sliding that pot full of meat, vegetables and wine-rich broth into the oven for a few hours not only fills the house with amazing smells, but leaves me hands-free to do other things. I love the fact that dinner can be bubbling away in the oven, and all I’ll need to do later is either slice some bread or boil wide egg noodles and toss some baby greens with dressing for a salad.

This recipe resembles a French-style beef daube, which is just a fancy name for beef stew. Traditionally made in a very large earthenware dish called a daubiere, it’s slow food at its best – rich with tender beef, herbs and red wine. I throw in aromatic herbs like thyme and rosemary, and use a chopped fennel bulb in place of celery for a little Provencal twist.

Also, I prefer to cook the most of the vegetables separately from the stew; that way they retain their color, texture and flavor rather than turn into overcooked beige mush.

Bouquet of herbs, ready for the pot

For more braising ideas, check out my recipe for:

Moroccan Braised Lamb with Toasted Almond Couscous

Update - I just learned about my fellow blogger Lia's Swirling Notions Braisy Chain - what a great idea! I just love that blue Le Creuset pot, too.

I'm tagging a few friends to join in the fun:

Jenny at Picky Palate

Janelle at Talk of Tomatoes

Annie at The Cheesemonger's Wife

Happy Braising...

Provencal Beef Stew
makes 4 - 6 servings

2 – 3 pounds beef chuck, cut into 2-inch pieces
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped (about 1 cup)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon tomato paste
5 peeled whole garlic cloves
2 cups hearty red wine, such as Syrah, Merlot or Cotes-du-Rhone
1 –2 cups beef or chicken broth
2 bay leaves and 4 sprigs each fresh thyme and rosemary, tied into a bundle with string
2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1-inch chunks
1 cup chopped leeks
1 fennel bulb, stems trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch wedges

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Season the beef generously all over with salt and pepper.

Heat the oil in a large Dutch oven or heavy casserole over medium-high heat. Add the beef, in batches, and brown well on all sides. Remove beef to a platter.

Add onion to the pot and cook 5 minutes, stirring every now and then, until onion is softened. Return beef to the pot and sprinkle with flour. Stir in the tomato paste, garlic and wine. Bring to a boil. Add enough broth to just cover the beef; toss in the herb bundle. Cover the pot with a sheet of parchment or foil, then top with the pot lid.

Place in the oven to braise for 2 1/2 – 3 hours. The cooking liquid will be slightly reduced and the meat should fall apart when prodded with a fork.

Meanwhile, place the carrots, leeks and fennel in a large skillet with 1/4 cup water. Place over high heat until the water boils, then cover and lower heat to a simmer. Cook until the vegetables are tender but still colorful, about 10 minutes.

Just before serving, stir the vegetables into the stew; season with more salt and pepper to taste. Serve over wide egg noodles, mashed potatoes or with some crusty bread alongside.

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Kid-Friendly Food: Turkey Meatballs with Cilantro

2008-01-23T15:18:00.000-06:00

I don’t know what it is about meatballs, but they seem to be the “it” food these days. I’ve seen recipes for meatball sliders teased on the cover of glossy food magazines and every Food Network personality seems to have a variation; Giada De Laurentis makes Mini Meatball Subs, Rachael Ray has her Spanikopita Chicken Meatballs, and Mario Batali, maybe most tempting of all, has a recipe for Lemon-Scented Meatballs.

Mario's seem most like the meatballs I grew up eating, the Italian-style ones my mother would make for our Sunday gravy, with the exception that she used beef rather than veal - they were big, tender and simply seasoned with garlic, parsley and Parmesan cheese. I still haven’t nailed down her recipe (she never wrote it down, it seems), but these might come close.

I’ve been playing with the traditional Italian meatball ingredients; switching them out for Asian and Latin flavors. After all, every ethnic cuisine includes seasoned meat rolled into balls.

Even better, meatballs couldn’t be more family-friendly; I like to make a big batch and freeze some for a quick and healthy “emergency” meal, served with brown rice and sauteed spinach.

I use ground turkey thigh in this recipe, it's a lower-fat alternative to beef and the dark meat produces a juicy meatball.

Turkey Meatballs with Cilantro

1/3 cup fine breadcrumbs
1/2 cup milk
1 1/2 pounds ground turkey
1/2 cup chopped green onions
1/3 cup chopped fresh cilantro
2 garlic cloves, pressed
1 egg
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoons olive oil

Combine the breadcrumbs and milk in a small bowl; soak 10 minutes.

In a large bowl, combine turkey, onions, cilantro, garlic, egg, cumin, paprika, salt and pepper. Add breadcrumb mixture and mix until combined; form 1 1/2-inch diameter meatballs.

Heat the oil a 12-inch nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Arrange meatballs in pan and cook until browned on all sides and cooked through, 7-10 minutes.

Makes about 2 dozen.

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Gluten-Free Almond Waffles

2008-01-14T13:56:00.000-06:00

A waffle for everyone

We invited some friends over for brunch over the weekend who are fish-eating vegetarians with a child who has Celiac disease and is on a gluten-free diet. My husband T doesn’t eat any dairy products, and my own kids want nothing but pancakes and bacon for breakfast on Sunday mornings.

What to do? Trying to find the perfect menu on occasions like this is challenging, to say the least.

But I take it on with relish (no, not the kind with pickles). Figuring out the right formula of foods that will please everyone can be like solving an intricate puzzle, kind of like completing the Sunday New York Times crossword. Not that I ever attempt crosswords; my own problem-solving skills come directly from the right side of my brain.

I felt satisfied with my choice to make Belgian waffles, because everyone likes them, but I needed to make them acceptable to those avoiding wheat and dairy.

Because I’m now in the business of cooking for people, (look at my new DinnerStyle website!) catering to each of their personal dietary needs, restrictions and desires is also my business. So I thought this would be a perfect opportunity to test a recipe for gluten-free, dairy-free waffles.

Fellow blogger Sheltie Girl at Gluten A Go Go recently posted a recipe for hazelnut waffles that looked delicious – I decided to give them a whirl.

I ended up playing with the recipe quite a bit (which always manages to drive T a little crazy – he’s a left-brained instruction-follower sort of guy), because I didn’t have exactly the ingredients that Sheltie Girl calls for in her recipe.

There was a spine-tingling moment just minutes before our guests arrived when I thought the experiment was a dud – I was this close to sending T out for bagels, but the batter came together and baked up into big, beautiful waffles with a crisp outside and tender inside. Success!

I served them with warm maple syrup and a big bowl of fresh fruit.

Gluten-Free Almond Waffles

Makes about 6 Belgian-style waffles

2 cups gluten-free all-purpose flour ( I used Bob’s Red Mill brand)
1/2 cup almond flour or meal
1 tablespoon flaxseed meal
4 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons cane sugar
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 eggs, separated
1 3/4 cups unsweetened soy milk
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract

Heat waffle iron to medium-high and spray with nonstick spray if necessary.

Mix flours, flaxseed, baking powder, sugar and salt in a small bowl. Stir in the egg yolks, soy milk, oil and extracts and whisk until smooth. Let batter stand 5 minutes to allow flaxseed to gel.

Beat the egg whites with an electric mixer or with the whisk attachment of an immersion blender (my favorite method for beating small amounts of egg whites) until soft peaks form; fold egg whites evenly into batter.

Pour batter onto waffle iron and bake about 5 minutes, or until steaming stops. Remove waffle carefully and transfer to a baking sheet in a 200-degree oven to keep warm.

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Homemade Rosemary Potato Gnocchi

2008-01-08T08:18:00.000-06:00

Leave the gun, take the gnocchi

We have just a few traditions in our house that we abide by with comforting regularity, and one of them is spending the holidays during the last few weeks of the year with my sister-in-law L, otherwise known as YaYa, and her husband S, The Old Man.

Because they teach at a university, they have the benefit of a long vacation break between semesters. Because we have a few children, we make them fly out of Logan Airport at holiday time to visit us. It’s a win-win situation, really.

When I tell people that we have relatives moving in for a few weeks over the holidays, they usually groan in sympathy. I know they’re probably imagining a scene out of a John Candy movie, where crazy Uncle Jack overstays his visit, starts drinking beer at lunch, terrorizes the children and stops up the toilet.

While we definitely start drinking lots more alcohol and we have actually called upon the services of Roto Rooter at least once this past month, to say that we look forward to the visit is putting it mildly. We live for it.

Who wouldn’t? For us, it’s all about celebrating and feasting; for two whole weeks we feel like we’re on vacation. By unplugging ourselves from our usual routine we can really get into the spirit of things. We cook together just about every night. We make multiple trips to the wine store to restock, and depending on our mood, stay up too late listening to music, talking or playing our favorite obscure board game, Who Killed Dr. Lucky.

We manage to keep up a fun spirit of camaraderie in the kitchen; everyone gravitates toward a job, depending on the menu. T and The Old Man team up for things like crabcakes and their famous pumpkin ravioli, while YaYa is mistress of salads and table setting. She also helps me plan our list of menus, because somebody needs to be in charge.

Although, this year, because I just finished reading Phoebe Damrosch’s book Service Included, we took to calling each other “chef” – with the just the right tone of irony, of course – because Thomas Keller runs his kitchen with a sense of democracy, that’s how all the employees at Per Se are instructed to communicate, apparently.

This was our Year of the Gnocchi. We used a recipe from chef Charlie Palmer’s cool waterproof book, the Practical Guide to the New American Kitchen. We all agreed that these were as light, tasty and fluffy as potato dumplings could be. I think that baking the potatoes (rather than boiling them) makes for lighter gnocchi; they don't absorb all that water and can just merge gracefully with the flour and egg.

The lost art of gnocchi rolling

If you don't have a neat ridged gnocchi board, you can use a fork to make distinctive grooves in each dumpling. However, you will miss out on the pleasure of feeling just like an Italian mama.

Potato Rosemary Gnocchi

Serves 6, generously
Adapted from a recipe by Charlie Palmer

3 large baking potatoes, about 2 pounds total
2 egg yolks
2 – 3 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
3 tablespoons olive oil (if sauteeing)

Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Poke the potatoes a few times with a fork and place directly on the oven rack. Bake 25 –30 minutes, until fork-tender. When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, remove the skins and push them through a food mill or ricer into a large bowl.

Add the salt and egg yolk, and 2 cups of flour and mix together. Turn the mixture out onto a floured surface and knead, adding more flour if needed, until a soft (but not sticky), smooth dough forms.

Divide the dough into portions the size of your hand, and roll each into a rope about 1/2-inch thick. Cut into 1-inch lengths. If you’re inclined, roll each gnocchi firmly over a gnocchi board or the concave side of a fork. Arrange the gnocchi on a floured baking sheet as you go.

Bring a large stockpot of water to a boil; drop the gnocchi in batches into the water and boil until they bob to the surface, about 3 minutes.

At this point, you can sauce them up as you please, or lay them out on a tray and freeze them (transfer them to zippered bags when they’re solid) so that you have an emergency late-night gnocchi stash on hand .
If you want to sauté the gnocchi, set up an ice bath with a colander set into a large bowl of ice water. Remove the gnocchi from the boiling water with a slotted spoon and immediately drop them into the colander. Drain and toss with the olive oil.

Just before serving, sauté the gnocchi in melted butter, garlic and some spinach or dandelion greens. Pass the grated Parmesan.

Gnocchi getting a toss in the pan

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Cherry Pistachio Biscotti Dipped in White Chocolate

2007-12-22T11:57:00.000-06:00

Festive treats for holiday cheer

Biscotti are great all-around cookies. I like that they're easy to make and keep for a week or two on the kitchen counter, so you can bake them ahead of time. It's also a cinch to take a basic recipe and play around with themes and variations - you could mix in any kind of nut, chip or dried fruit in endless combinations. Think apricots and almonds, cranberries and pecans, hazelnuts and chocolate chips.

Sometimes I like to drizzle my biscotti with melted chocolate, as I did here. They look especially festive on the Christmas cookie tray.

Cherry Pistachio Biscotti
Yield: 1 1/2 dozen

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1 tablespoon freshly grated orange zest
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoons orange extract
2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/3 cups dried cherries, coarsely chopped
1 1/4 cups shelled raw pistachios, chopped
4 ounces chopped white chocolate

Heat oven to 350 degrees.

Beat butter and sugar in a large bowl at medium speed with an electric mixer until light and fluffy. Add eggs, beating well; beat in orange zest and extract.

Combine flour, baking powder, and salt; add to butter mixture, beating at low speed until blended. Stir in 1 cup each cranberries and pistachios until evenly mixed.

Divide dough in half. Using lightly floured hands, shape each portion into a 14" x 2" log. Place both logs 3" apart on a large baking sheet lined with parchment paper.

Bake for 20 minutes or until firm to the touch. Cool logs on baking sheet 10 minutes. Lower oven temperature to 300 degrees.

Cut each log into 1/2"-thick diagonal slices with a serrated knife using a gentle sawing motion. Stand slices on their sides on baking sheet. Bake 15 more minutes. Transfer biscotti to wire racks to cool completely.

Melt chocolate in a small microwave-safe bowl on medium-high heat in 2 15-second intervals, stirring in between. Try not to overheat, because white chocolate can burn easily.

Dip one end of each biscotti into the melted chocolate and sprinkle with reserved cherries and pistachios. Allow to set about 1 hour before serving.

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Maida Heatter's Chocolate Whoppers

2007-12-17T14:36:00.000-06:00

My favorite cookie is a Whopper

A long while ago, I lived in Miami and spent a few years working at a wine store; tasting, spitting, not spitting (a job perk), unloading cases of wine and every once in a while selling wine to customers.

One of my clients was none other than Maida Heatter, renowned cookbook writer and baker. She lived (and probably still does) in Miami Beach and would come in periodically to stock up on wine and gourmet goodies. She had a sweetly disarming way about her; she'd usually bring in some of her cellophane-wrapped homemade cookies for us to sample.

When we'd swoon with delight and thank her profusely she'd yell, "Honey, I can't hear you, I'm deaf as a post. Now where's that chardonnay I bought last time?"

I hope that she's been outfitted with one of those high-tech hearing aids these days, because if she were listening I'd tell her, loudly, about how I've been collecting her cookbooks and using her delicious, never-fail recipes for cookies and sweets for years and years now. I just love her.

In fact, my most favorite cookie is Maida's Chocolate Whopper, a big, fat, brownie-like confection with a crisp, shiny top and a moist, dark and nutty chocolate interior worthy of the word "devilish".

They come together in minutes, and all you need to do is drop blobs of the batter onto baking sheets.

You will be very popular if you make these and then give them to people. Just keep a few for yourself, too.

Check out everything Maida at Squidoo Food, Anna's Whoppers at Cookie Madness, and Mondays with Maida over at My Little Kitchen.

Chocolate Whoppers

Makes about 15 large cookies

6 ounces semisweet chocolate, coarsely chopped
2 ounces unsweetened chocolate, coarsely chopped
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons
1/4 cup sifted all-purpose flour (sift before measuring)
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
2 eggs
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons instant espresso powder
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
6 ounces chocolate chips
1 cup pecans, toasted and roughly chopped
1 cup walnut halves, broken into large pieces (or use all pecans; I do because I’m not a walnut fan)

Heat oven to 350 degrees. Line 3 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

Place the chopped chocolate and butter in a medium saucepan over low heat and stir until gently until just melted.

Whisk the flour in a small bowl with salt and baking powder. Beat the eggs, sugar, espresso and vanilla in a large bowl using an electric mixer on high speed until light and fluffy, about 5 minutes.

Mix in the chocolate mixture until just blended. Add the flour mixture and beat at low speed until incorporated. Using a wooden spoon, stir in the chocolate chips and nuts.

Use a 1/3-cup measure to form the dough and drop onto baking sheets, spacing about 2 inches apart.

Bake 17 minutes on the upper and middle racks, or until the tops are dry and shiny, shifting the sheets halfway through baking. Slide the parchment with cookies onto wire racks to cool completely.

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Toasted Almond Button Cookies

2007-12-15T15:18:00.000-06:00

The one-bite cookie

I saw this Holiday Cookie Guide in the Washington Post the other day and was totally impressed. I loved the clean, crisp look of the layout as well as the subject - 26 cookie recipes each with their own simple, appealing photo.

But, I did what I always do when browsing for cookie recipes; I skipped right over those that required rolling, cutting or decorating. I have something resembling a small panic attack, probably much like the one that some people get when they attempt to make pie pastry – it’s a combination of fear (of sticky, messy dough) and impatience (with anything requiring fussing with).

My kids still love me, I think. But I imagine they would love me more if I would make some decorated gingerbread people to hang from the tree. Maybe I’ll look into a 12-step program to move me through the process of my cookie dough anxiety.

In the meantime, these cute almond cookie buttons called out to me. They’re require nothing more complicated than the easy pinch and roll method, you can make the dough up to 5 days ahead and they contain lots of ground, toasted almonds. I love toasted almonds!

When I make these again, I'll use hazelnuts instead, and top them with some warm chocolate-hazelnut spread, like Nutella.

I was invited to a cookie swap at my friend Alanna’s and had to make 10 dozen cookies to share. How convenient for me. I made them.

I’m kind of on a cookie bender right now, so bear with me for a bit. This week I’ll be sharing some of my all-time favorite cookie recipes (no rolling required, promise).

Toasted Almond Buttons
makes about 60 cookies

from the Washington Post

2 cups whole, skin-on almonds, toasted (see NOTE)
2 cups flour
3/4 cup confectioners' sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
16 tablespoons (2 sticks) plus 1 1/2 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
3 ounces semisweet chocolate

Position an oven rack in the middle of the oven; preheat to 350 degrees. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper.

Finely grind 1 cup of the almonds in a food processor or blender and transfer to a large mixing bowl. Add the flour, confectioners' sugar and salt. Use your hands to thoroughly work in 16 tablespoons (2 sticks) of the butter and the vanilla and almond extracts until a soft dough forms (it should not crumble).

Transfer to a resealable plastic food storage bag and refrigerate until well chilled (at least 20 minutes) or up to 5 days. Use the palms of your hands to roll the dough into 1/2-inch balls. Place on the baking sheets; spray the back of a small-size melon baller with nonstick cooking oil spray and use it to indent the top of each ball, holding the edges of the dough together as you work (if the edges crack, blend them back together).

Bake 1 sheet at a time for about 15 minutes, until the cookies begin to brown. Transfer them carefully to a wire rack to cool.

Meanwhile, place the chocolate and the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons of butter in a small metal mixing bowl and suspend the bowl over a saucepan containing an inch or two of very hot water over medium heat. When the chocolate and butter have melted, stir to combine. Use a spoon to drizzle a small amount of chocolate into the indentation of each cookie. Top each with one of the remaining whole almonds. Let set completely before storing.

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Whole Grain Pancakes with Roasted Pears

2007-12-12T17:01:00.000-06:00

photo courtesy of Josh Monken

'Tis the season to be jolly, right? To me, that means doing the rest of my holiday shopping on the internet (they deliver!), staying up past my bedtime with a glass of wine, and not getting up in the morning until I've read a chapter or two from my latest book. I wait until J finds his way next to my pillow, finally realizing he's hungry for breakfast and nudging me out of the sack.

There's no question that pancakes will be on the menu on holiday weekend mornings around here, so I dreamed up a few extra-special recipes.

The December issue of Sauce features my pancake story with more recipes - pick it up!

Whole Grain Buttermilk Pancakes with Roasted Pears

1 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup oats, regular or quick cooking
1/4 cup cornmeal
2 tablespoons raw wheat germ
3 tablespoons brown sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
3 tablespoons melted butter

Whisk together the flour, oats, cornmeal, wheat germ, sugar, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl.
In a small bowl, beat the eggs with the buttermilk and butter until smooth; pour over the dry ingredients and stir just until dry ingredients are moistened.

Spray a griddle with non-stick spray or grease with butter; place over medium heat until hot. Spoon about 1/4 cup batter for each pancake onto griddle. Cook until small bubbles emerge and start to pop on the surface of the pancakes; turn with a spatula and cook until second side is lightly browned.

Serve warm topped with roasted pears.
Makes about 12 pancakes.

Roasted Pears

4 ripe, firm Bartlett pears, cored and cut into 1/2-inch wedges
3 tablespoons melted butter
1/4 cup maple syrup
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Heat oven to 425 degrees.
Toss the pears on a rimmed baking sheet with the butter, syrup and cinnamon. Roast until pears are tender and golden brown, 15 – 20 minutes. Serve warm over pancakes or ice cream.

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The Tardy Food Blogger

2007-12-07T08:50:00.000-06:00

A girl has to work...

For the few dozen of you who check in on my blog, I offer sincere apologies for offering nothing but the same old picture of dinner rolls. Thanksgiving seems so long ago now.

But, you'll be happy to know that at least I've been keeping busy with my personal chef work, so I have that going for me.

A brief recap:

I "dry-brined" the turkey this year after reading a post on the Epicurious blog by Rick Rodgers, a turkey-day expert. I added some spices and a good smear of lemon-garlic butter before putting on the Weber to roast. I thought it was disappointingly dry. I'm not sure if it's the method or simply that free range turkeys are just a bit, well, chewy. Remind me to try a different bird next year.
I was inspired to make big, fat cookies after looking at my friend Anna's blog, Cookie Madness. More on that later.
I've been digesting the heated discussion about the Bon Appetit magazine redesign. I personally like the new look. Change is a good thing.

We should all be like Martha, who not only has her own blog these days, but hires people to write it for her.

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Whole Grain Dinner Rolls with 3 Seeds

2007-11-21T08:03:00.000-06:00

Whole wheat dinner rolls; tender and wholesome

I don't know about you, but when I'm planning what to prepare for my Thanksgiving table, bread tends to be one of the last things on the list; it might be that this most traditional of all meals is already packed with bread and starchy foods, from the stuffing right down to the multiple sides of potatoes, sweet potato and squash.

Admittedly, I avoid stuffing if at all possible. I just don't see the point of eating turkey-scented bread cubes when I can save room for the main event.

That's why I totally approve of dinner rolls for Thanksgiving - small rounds of fresh, warm bread to sop up your gravy is just perfect. You don't need to overcommit to a large pile of stuffing.

I got a little ahead of myself this year (yes, and also because I wanted to post this recipe before the big day) My recipe is based on one from the Martha Stewart Living Cookbook (they're called "Health Rolls" in the book; I think we can do better than that). I made the dough in my bread machine, which I highly recommend, if you have one. You can even shape the rolls ahead of time, put them in the pan and refrigerate up to one day ahead. Just let them come to room temperature before baking.

Whole Grain Dinner Rolls with 3 Seeds

Makes 16 rolls

1/2 cup bulgur wheat

1 cup milk
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/3 cup honey
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
2 1/2 -3 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 cup quick-cooking oats
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons active-dry yeast
1 tablespoon EACH sesame, flax, and poppy seeds
1 tablespoon flaked sea salt

Cook the bulgur in 2 cups boiling water in a medium saucepan until water is absorbed, about 15 minutes. Cool.

Place the milk, eggs, honey, oil, whole wheat flour, 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour, oats, cooled bulgur, salt and yeast in a bread machine in the order given. Process on the "dough" mode, adding more flour if needed.

Remove dough from bread machine pan and from into 16 balls. Arrange in two 8-inch round oiled cake pans. Brush tops with oil, cover and let rise 20 -25 minutes.

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Sprinkle roll tops with the seeds and salt; bake until dark golden brown on top, about 25 minutes. Transfer to a rack and cool in the pan 10 minutes before unmolding. Serve warm.

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Cornish Hen for Two with Cranberry-Thyme Sauce

2007-11-19T18:31:00.000-06:00

A meal for lovebirds

Sometimes, preparing a little holiday feast for two is just the ticket - maybe your whole family is stranded in Chicago due to a freaky snowstorm (don't laugh - the forecast looks iffy), or you and your lucky love bunny are simply planning a cozy Thanksgiving this year.

This recipe is fairly easy and delicious...enjoy.

Cornish Hen for Two with Cranberry -Thyme Sauce
adapted from Bon Appetit, December 2007

3 tablespoons butter, divided
1 tablespoon golden brown sugar
3 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme, divided
1 1 1/2- to 1 3/4-pound Cornish game hen, halved, backbone removed, rinsed, patted dry
1/2 tablespoon all purpose flour
3/4 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup orange juice
1/3 cup frozen cranberry juice cocktail concentrate, thawed
1/4 cup dried sweetened cranberries

Preheat oven to 450°F. Blend 2 tablespoons butter, sugar, and 2 teaspoons thyme in small bowl. Pat hen halves dry with a paper towel and sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper.

Spread skin of each with half of butter mixture. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add hen halves, skin side down. Sear until deep brown, about 4 minutes. Turn, skin side up, and sear 1 minute. Remove from heat. Transfer hen halves, skin side up, to a small rimmed baking sheet. Reserve skillet (pan juices will be dark).

Roast hen halves until cooked through and juices run clear when pierced with a fork, about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, blend remaining 1 tablespoon butter and 1/2 tablespoon flour in a small bowl. Add broth, orange juice, cranberry concentrate, and remaining 1 teaspoon thyme to reserved skillet.
Boil until sauce is reduced to 3/4 cup, whisking often, about 7 minutes. Whisk in flour mixture and cranberries. Simmer until sauce coats a spoon, stirring often, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.

Transfer hen halves to plates. Spoon the sauce over and serve.

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3 Simple Sides for Thanksgiving

2007-11-16T10:01:00.000-06:00

Cider-Roasted Fennel & Baby Carrots, Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes,
Green Beans with Lemon-Shallot Butter

Thanksgiving is a small family gathering at our house, which is kind of nice. We don't have much in the way of extended family in town, so I don't feel the pressure to make Uncle Jack's favorite stuffing made with bags of salty, stale supermarket stuffing mix or Grandma's sweet potato casserole loaded with sticky, sweet marshmallows.

I know, this holiday is all about tradition. But those old family recipes sometimes need a little dusting - not to make them extra-fancy, more like paring them down to their basic, pure selves.

There really isn't much to preparing simple vegetable sides worthy of a place next to the turkey. I like to save the drama for the turkey, anyway. And that will be another story, for another day.

Cider-Roasted Fennel & Baby Carrots
serves 4

1 pound baby carrots, peeled
1 large or 2 small fennel bulbs, stems trimmed, sliced into 1/4-inch wedges
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon kosher salt (or use about 1/2 this amount of fine sea salt)
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup apple cider

Toss the vegetables on a large, rimmed baking sheet with the olive oil, salt and pepper to taste. Pour the apple cider over and place in a 400-degree oven. Roast 25 minutes, stirring halfway through, or until the vegetables are caramelized and the cider is reduced to a syrupy glaze.

Roasted Garlic Mashed Potatoes
serves 4

10 plump garlic cloves, peeled
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and diced
3 cups warm milk (reduced fat is fine)
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
Salt to taste

Place the garlic cloves on a large sheet of aluminum foil; drizzle with the oil and wrap into a package. Roast in a 400-degree oven about 20 minutes, until the garlic is very soft.

Put the potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with cold water. Add 1 tablespoon salt and bring to a boil. Cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain well; return to the saucepan and set over low heat. Mash in the butter and garlic with a potato masher or wooden spoon, mixing until the potatoes are smooth. Stir in 2 cups milk and season with more salt, if needed. Stir in more milk as needed to make a smooth puree.

Green Beans with Lemon-Shallot Butter
serves 4

3/4 pound green beans, trimmed
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
1 shallot, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon grated fresh lemon zest
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place the beans in a 10-inch skillet or saute pan. Add about 1/4 cup water and set over medium-high heat until the water starts to boil. Cover the pan and cook 5 minutes, or until beans are crisp-tender. Pour off any remaining water and return the pan over the heat; add the butter and shallot to the beans and cook until the beans are evenly coated with butter. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

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Roasted Pork, Tuscan Style

2007-11-15T09:04:00.000-06:00

Stick your fork in a juicy slice

You know how people say we talk about the weather when we can't think of anything else to say? Well, today I want to talk about the weather because that's all I've been thinking about.

I took myself on a walk this morning after dropping the kids at school - it's such a glorious postcard-perfect day someone needs to take a picture of it (because, obviously, I didn't).

The sky is pristinely blue, a chilly breeze is blowing leaves around, and the trees are still holding on to their brilliant array of fall foliage. It sounds so sappy, but the sight of it really took my breath away.

And then, I started thinking about what I wanted to eat.

So much of what I find myself craving depends on the weather; like a cool cucumber and ripe tomato salad on a humid summer day or fresh green things in early spring.

Now that it's so close to Thanksgiving, I love grocery shopping more than ever. It really is the only time of year when I can walk into my favorite store and find an array of food I won't see again until next year, unless I place a special order for it. The meat department especially draws me in - I'm tempted by fresh duck, goose and quail and big, beautiful pork roasts.

A roasted rack of pork is one of my favorite things to cook and eat. I rub it with olive oil, honey and some of my Tuscan Spiced Salt, and slide it into a hot oven. It turns out so much better than a boneless pork loin ever could - because the rib bones are intact, the meat stays juicy. Plus, it just tastes good.

Roasted Rack of Pork, Tuscan Style

for 4 servings

1 2-pound pork rib roast, trimmed
Honey
Olive Oil

Tuscan Spiced Salt, about 2 tablespoons

*note: I noticed I had "3" tablespoons here - better to use about 1 tablespoon per pound*

Heat oven to 425 degrees. Rub the pork with a little honey and olive oil and the Tuscan salt.
Arrange in a shallow roasting pan and roast about 30 minutes, or until an instant thermometer reads 140 degrees. Remove from the oven and let stand 15 minutes before carving.

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2007-10-18T16:55:00.000-05:00

Snack on these...

I grew up in a part of the United States where the appeal of boiling up peanuts for a snack is right up there with throwing your herring in a vat of lye. You know that people have been known to do such things to perfectly harmless ingredients, but why?

However, recently I became great chummy with the folks at the National Peanut Board after my shrimp salad recipe won a nice prize. (They love that sort of thing, you know, for promotional purposes).

I had some interesting conversations about all things pea-nutty; topics covering the research, cultivation, nutrition, history and overall plain goodness of the peanut.

And then Matt and Ted Lee presented me with an autographed copy of their book, The Lee Bros. Southern Cookbook. These guys know from boiled peanuts. Homesick in New York City, they started boiling peanuts in their apartment, then tried to get fancy food stores and restaurants to buy them. It took a while for the idea to catch on, but you have to credit their talent and cleverness. They're now award-winning food writers and proprietors of a mail-order company that supplies all manner of Southern foods and condiments, including boiled peanuts, of course.

I came across fresh, raw peanuts at Global Foods Market, my fabulous ethnic foods emporium, and brought them home. After leafing through my stacks of cookbooks, I riffed on an idea from Madhur Jaffrey in her book World Vegetarian (have I ever told you how much I love her recipes?)

Boiled peanuts are pretty darn good. They really taste like the legumes they are, kind of a sweetly grassy cross between water chestnuts and baby lima beans. The seasonings in this recipe permeate the shell, delicately flavoring the softened peanut with a whiff of the exotic.

Boiled Peanuts, Indonesian Style

1 pound fresh, raw peanuts in the shell
1 dried chili pepper, crumbled
1 2-inch knob fresh ginger, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 or 2 whole star anise

Put all the ingredients in a medium-sized saucepan and cover with water. Bring to a boil; lower heat, cover and simmer about 1 hour, until peanuts are soft. Drain, cool and eat.

More bloggers and their delicious boiled peanuts:

Eat All Day
Algerian Cuisine by Chef Zadi

Desert Candy

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Special Request: Starbucks Chocolate Cinnamon Bread

2007-10-12T14:18:00.001-05:00

Dark, moist cake with a spiced sugary topping

A and I had a girls-only shopping expedition last weekend. Her little powder-blue shoulder bag was stuffed full of gift-card loot from a recent (10 years old) birthday, so we headed off to the mall, one of my least favorite destinations in this world.

It's not that I don't enjoy shopping. I do! It's just that malls have a numbing and dumbing effect on me; I get as overstimulated and disoriented as a wayward bluejay on acid.

I must have been born without the intricate inner GPS system needed to navigate oneself in large public shopping areas, because inevitably I get lost looking for the bathroom or take a right turn out of Bath & Body Works instead of a left, finding myself miles away from the exit that leads out to the parking garage.

So it was good that A was with me. Since were focused on two stores, Limited Too and Gap, we safely pointed ourselves in their direction...right past a Starbucks counter that pulled me over like a dustball succumbing to the strong suck of a Dyson D17. I decided I really needed the fortification of a Grande Green Tea Latte (nonfat, two pump) to get me through the whole mall thing.

While standing in line, we drooled over the Chocolate Cinnamon Bread, a new addition to the Starbucks pastry array, developed by the hot Swedish-New York-Ethiopian-born chef Marcus Samuelsson.

It turns out that other food bloggers tracked down the recipe and baked it at home with good results, including Foodaphilia and Nicole at Baking Bites.

I made A very happy yesterday when I made this cake, and I have to admit it was worth a trip to the mall for the inspiration.

However, despite the word "bread" in the recipe title, be aware that this is not in any way a quick bread, but more like the dark, dense chocolate pound cake of your dreams. The crunchy spiced sugar on top is a nice touch.

Starbucks Chocolate Cinnamon Bread

From the kitchen of Marcus Samuelsson

Chocolate Batter:
3 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
3 cups granulated sugar
5 large eggs, at room temperature
2 cups all-purpose flour
11⁄4 cups Dutch-processed cocoa (I used Hershey's Special Dark cocoa)
1 Tbsp ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon salt
1⁄2 teaspoon baking powder
1⁄2 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup buttermilk
1⁄4 cup water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Cocoa-Spice Sugar Crust:
1⁄4 cup granulated sugar
3⁄4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1⁄2 teaspoon Dutch-processed cocoa powder
1/8 teaspoon ground ginger
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1⁄4 cup white decorating sugar

Preheat the oven to 350°F. Grease two 9 x 5 x 3-inch loaf pans and line the bottom of the pans with overhanging sheets of parchment paper (this will make it easier to remove the baked cakes.)

Make the Chocolate Batter: In the bowl of an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar with the paddle attachment on medium speed, until light and creamy, about 5 minutes. Add eggs one at a time, beating until each egg is completely incorporated before adding the next and scraping down the sides of the bowl several times.

Meanwhile in a medium bowl, sift together the flour, cocoa, cinnamon, salt, baking powder and baking soda. In another bowl, whisk together the buttermilk, water and vanilla. With mixer on low speed, alternately add the flour mixture and buttermilk mixture to butter, beginning and ending with the flour and beating just until blended. Divide the batter between the two pans, shake the pans to even the tops and set aside.

Make the Cocoa-Spice Sugar Crust: In another small bowl, whisk together the sugar, cinnamon, cocoa, ginger and cloves. Sprinkle the surfaces of both batters with the decorating sugar. Sprinkle with the cocoa sugar mixture, dividing evenly. Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, about 45 to 50 minutes. Let cool completely, run a thin knife around the sides to release the breads and remove from pans.

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Peanut Shrimp Salad - It's a Winner!

2007-10-07T10:57:00.000-05:00

My peanut-crusted shrimp salad with basil-lime dressing (photo: MyRecipes.com)

Wow! I'm back after a great trip to Birmingham, where I was lucky to be chosen as a $10,000 category winner in the Southern Living Cook-Off.

All I can say is that the folks at Southern Progress, who also publish Cooking Light, Cottage Living, Sunset and numerous other lifestyle magazines, not only know how to throw a cook-off, but are an amazingly talented, passionate and hospitable group. You get the feeling that they love going to work every day.

I made some new friends, caught up with some old ones and even got that relaxing massage.

The grand prize winning recipe, Roasted Banana Ice Cream with Warm Peanut Butter Sauce, looks wonderfully decadent with lots of Southern style. My only problem with it is that I have an allergy to bananas and I won't be able to try it!

Peanut Crunch Shrimp Salad with Basil-Lime Dressing
Makes 4 servings

Basil-Lime Dressing:
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
1/4 cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons Crisco Pure Peanut Oil
1 tablespoon Asian fish sauce
1 tablespoon Domino Granulated Sugar
1 teaspoon Asian chili garlic sauce
1 teaspoon peeled, grated fresh ginger
1 garlic clove, minced

Shrimp Salad:
1 cup panko crumbs
1/2 cup USA-Grown Dry Roasted Salted Peanuts
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1 teaspoon McCormick Gourmet Collection Red Curry Powder
20 jumbo Certified Wild American Shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 egg, lightly beaten
2 tablespoons Crisco Pure Peanut Oil
3 cups mixed baby salad greens
1 cup diced English cucumber
1 cup peeled diced mango
1/2 cup mung bean sprouts
1/4 cup fresh mint leaves
3 green onions, trimmed; white and light green parts sliced into matchsticks
1/4 cup USA-Grown Dry Roasted Salted Peanuts, chopped

1. To prepare Basil-Lime Dressing, puree all ingredients in a food processor. Set aside.

2. Pulse panko, peanuts, cornstarch and curry powder in food processor until fine crumbs form; transfer to a pie plate.

3. Toss shrimp with the egg in a large bowl. Dredge shrimp in peanut mixture to coat.

4. Heat oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat. Place shrimp in skillet; cook shrimp 3 minutes per side, or until golden.

5. Gently toss greens, cucumber, mango, bean sprouts, mint and onions in a large bowl with 2 tablespoons Basil-Lime Dressing. Arrange salad on individual serving plates; top each with 5 shrimp; sprinkle with peanuts and drizzle with remaining dressing.

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Fall Flavor: Warm Spiced Root Vegetable Salad with Feta

2007-10-02T13:31:00.000-05:00

Ready for a new season with a warm autumn salad

Ahem -- so I have a few exciting announcements. I apologize for the suspense, but I wanted to time it just right.

First, starting with this salad recipe from the October issue (On Newstands Now!), I'll be contributing occasional recipe features to Sauce Magazine. I'm thrilled about this - I've long wanted to share more of my recipes with people, hopefully enticing them into the kitchen to get cooking. Plus, flexing my writing muscles seems like a good idea.

As of this moment, there's no link to my piece on their site, but I'll direct you there if and when it's up.

The next bit of news is that I'm off to Birmingham, Alabama to compete as one of 15 finalists in the Southern Living Cook-Off. It's a biggie - the largest annual cooking contest in the United States with a cash award of a cool 100k for the Grand Prize winner.

I'm long past counting on winning anything; that way lies disappointment and intermittent spells of bitter growling. Not very becoming behavior for a yoga mama like me! Also, T hates to be around a sore loser. Just wish me luck and hope that I can squeeze in time for a hot-rock massage at the hotel "spalon".

Last but not least, I've spent the past few months planning a new career - I'm starting a personal chef business, called DinnerStyle.

Now that J has started first grade, all previous bets are off. I'm free for six-and-a-half beautiful hours each and every weekday: I'm ready to join the few, the proud and the self-employed.

So, I've equipped myself with a traveling cooking toolbox, a rolling cooler and good liability insurance. Call me! I'll happily come to your house and cook up a feast or two.

See you in a few...

Spiced Roasted Root Vegetable Salad with Feta and Pumpkin Seeds

Makes 4 servings
1 small butternut squash (about 2 pounds)
1 pound parsnips
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon smoked Spanish paprika
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
Zest and juice of 1 orange
2 tablespoons olive oil
4 cups prewashed baby arugula or baby spinach
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/4 cup pepitas (hulled green pumpkin seeds), toasted*
2 tablespoons pumpkin-seed oil
2 teaspoons honey
2 teaspoons red wine vinegar

Heat oven to 425 degrees.

Peel the squash with a vegetable peeler, trim off the top and bottom and slice in half. Scoop out the strings and seeds with a large spoon and discard. Slice the squash into 1/2-inch pieces and spread on a large rimmed baking sheet.

Peel the parsnips and slice into 1/2-inch pieces. Add to the squash on the baking sheet.
In a small bowl, whisk together the cumin, paprika, cinnamon, salt, pepper, orange zest and juice and olive oil. Pour over the vegetables and toss to coat evenly.

Roast the vegetables 20-25 minutes, stirring once or until tender and lightly caramelized.
Add the arugula (or spinach) to the warm vegetables and toss to wilt slightly.
Transfer to a large platter or serving bowl. Crumble feta cheese over salad and sprinkle with pepitas.

Whisk together the oil, honey and vinegar and drizzle over the salad.

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Deliciously Vegetarian: Black-Eyed Pea and Soybean Salad with Lime and Avocado

2007-09-28T11:31:00.000-05:00

It's hard to stop eating this simple salad

I saw a recipe recently - the first-place winner in the Vegetarian Times Reader Recipe contest - that inspired me to make this salad for lunch yesterday. It was delicious! This is a recipe to satisfy any number of your vegan, high-fiber, low-carb, low-fat desires. My only problem is that I wanted to eat the whole bowl myself.

Black-Eyed Pea and Soybean Salad with Lime and Avocado
adapted from Greens (aka Vegetarian Times) magazine October 2007

makes 6 servings
1 (14-ounce) can black-eyed peas, rinsed and drained
1 (14-ounce) can soybeans, rinsed and drained
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 avocado, diced
1 small tomato, diced
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 cup finely chopped shallot or red onion
1 serrano chile pepper, finely chopped (You could use a jalapeno, but I love serranos because they have a dependable heat level, unlike jalapenos which are sometimes very bland)
1 small garlic clove, finely chopped
2 tablespoons fresh lime juice
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon low-sodium teriyaki sauce
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1. In a large bowl, layer the peas, beans, bell pepper, avocado, tomato, cilantro, shallot, chile pepper and garlic.

2. Whisk together the lime juice, oil, vinegar, teriyaki, sugar, salt and cayenne in a small bowl.
Pour dressing over the bean mixture and toss gently to avoid smashing the avocado.

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Old-Fashioned Sugar Cookies with a Twist

2007-09-24T12:55:00.000-05:00

Spoon Cookies filled with Chocolate

A while back, I clipped this cookie recipe from Gourmet magazine, filed it away and forgot about it.
But in a fit of house cleaning, which is ongoing and never ending, I found the recipe in a crumpled pile under some old notebooks and 3rd grade homework. Before sticking the page in the recycling bin, though, I went over to Epicurious and added it to my online recipe box.

(And just to digress for one second, is anyone else as irritated with the "new and improved" Epi as I am? What was wrong with the old one? Now I sit and twiddle my fingers waiting for the pages to load and the annoying little pop-ups to go away.)

As much as I enjoy having some quiet time flipping through my favorite food magazines, they multiply like mold spores and I never seem to catch up. I make a mental note to remember a certain page or recipe, which everyone over the age 35 knows is a bad idea. All those notes end up in a dusty corner of my mommy brain, lost forever.

Since I'm still in the gather-it-up-and-get-rid-of-it stage ever since The Big Flood, I'm liking the idea of flagging favorite recipes and menus on sites like Epi and My Recipes. They pretty much have every recipe that's been published in the last decade available for free, so there's no need for me to stockpile issues in the basement, where I trip over them. I even bought new recipe organizing software that allows me to import recipes and their swell photos. I know! I'm all 21st century now.

Anyway, I'm glad I saved this one since they were so simple and fun to make. This is basically a shortbread dough made with brown butter, which is the secret to their extraordinary flavor. I love the little nut-like bits of browned butter in the baked cookie, too.

These seem to be fairly unusual; in my brief search for similiar cookies, all I found was one in a cookbook by Beatrice Ojakangas, The Great Scandinavian Baking Book. She calls them Finnish Teaspoon Cookies.

I chose to fill these with chocolate because, why not? My second choice would be some good apricot jam.

Cook butter until it turns the color of golden honey

Form cookies with a deep-bowled spoon

Spoon Cookies

2 sticks (1 cup) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt, slightly rounded
Chocolate ganache * or fruit preserves

Melt butter in a medium saucepan over moderate heat. Cook 10-12 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the butter turns golden, smells nutty, and flecks on bottom of pan turn deep caramel brown. A thick foam will form and cover the surface just before butter begins to brown - keep close attention and stir more frequently.

Pour the butter into a medium bowl set into a larger bowl of ice to stop cooking. Stir frequently until butter appears emulsified and opaque, about 3 minutes. Stir in sugar and vanilla.

Whisk together flour, baking soda and salt in a small bowl; add to butter and stir until a dough forms. Shape the dough into a ball, wrap in plastic and let stand at room temperature 1 or 2 hours.

Place oven rack in middle position and heat oven to 325 degrees.

Pinch off a piece of dough and press firmly into the bowl of a teaspoon. Slide the dough off the spoon and place flat-side down on an ungreased cookie sheet. Continue forming cookies and arrange on sheet. Bake until very pale golden, 12-15 minutes. Cool cookies on a rack 5 minutes before transfering to a rack to cool completely.

Spread cookies with soft, spreadable chocolate ganache or warmed preserves.

Makes about 2 dozen sandwich cookies.

Chocolate Ganache

8 ounces dark chocolate, chopped
1 cup heavy cream

Place the chocolate in a heatproof bowl. Heat cream just to a simmer, then pour over chocolate. Stir gently until smooth.

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Good Omens

2007-09-20T15:33:00.000-05:00

I came home recently and found this wayward starling flying around my house, looking as panicked as a little bird could look.

It took a long 15 minutes before she finally noticed that I'd propped open the front door for her, and away she went, doubtless home to her nest to share the story -- "Oh, darlings, you'll never guess the day I've had!"

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Protein Rush: Provencal Lentils with Spinach

2007-09-18T08:59:00.000-05:00

This doesn't taste like diet food to me...

I saw my friend L at our weight training class at the Y the other day and noticed how svelte she looked. When I asked her about it she told me she's been on the South Beach diet for a few months now, and not only is she losing weight and feeling fantastic, but her eating habits have changed; like she no longer craves bowls of pasta for dinner and bagels for breakfast. Instead she and her husband (who's shed more than 20 pounds so far) are eating more lean meats and salads.

It made me think about how my own food preferences have evolved of late. While there is no denying that I will happily shovel a bowl-full of spaghetti into my pie hole, more often than not these days it'll be the whole wheat kind. My ten-pound bag of white jasmine rice sits aging in the back of the pantry closet because now I make brown rice instead.

I'd never been a dieter; until I had kids I was one of those people with a "fast" metabolism -- I could easily eat my husband under the table and never gain a pound. And don't even talk to me about low or no carb -- I become a mean, unhappy person when deprived of a large hunk of crusty bread or some kind of starchy sidekick with meals. But a few years ago I examined a photo of myself looking bloated, pudgy and so unlike the me I used to be that I wondered "Who is that?"

I wanted to lose weight without feeling restricted by a diet. Giving up whole categories of food just wouldn't work for me -- I like eating a little bit of everything. I also believe that diets work in the long run because they force you to pay closer attention to what you put into your mouth -- something that our eat-and-run culture seems to have forgotten how to do.

I started getting on the treadmill every day, slowly working my way from 30 minutes of walking to 45 minutes of running. And although I didn't conform to any strict plan, I became aware of what foods I was eating and made what at first seemed like inconsequential changes in my habits; changes that added up to a whole lot of extra calories.

For instance, giving up coffee (since for me it doesn't seem to go down without 4 ounces of half and half) and exchanging my morning glass of orange juice for water. No second helpings at dinner time, and sometimes a bowl of low-fat frozen yogurt ( I like Haagen-Dazs) for dessert if I was still feeling hungry. For snacking, I'd grab a handful of almonds or plain, stove-topped popcorn instead of cookies and chips. And I became a whole-grain fiend -- T and the kids would erupt in a chorus of groans whenever I pulled out the whole-wheat burger buns.

The positive result was that a little more than 6 months later, I found myself free of those pesky 35 pounds of "baby weight".

So that was a few years ago, and the changes became habits that stuck with me; slowly my kids have come around to eat that icky brown wheat bread without complaint and (usually) won't break down in tears if I make lentils for dinner. My daughter A completely surprised me the other night by helping herself to seconds of this recipe, which I served with brown rice and some leftover roasted chicken.

Now L, my sister-in-law, who lost more than 60 pounds last year, has developed a craving for lots more grains in her cooking. So what could be bad about that? I plan to do more exploring in the name of "good for you" eating, as long as it stays real and delicious.

Provencal Lentils with Spinach

Makes 4 servings
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 small onion, finely diced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 cup small dark green Le Puy lentils (I buy them in bulk at Whole Foods and Dierberg's)
1 bay leaf
2 3/4 cups chicken or vegetable broth
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 box frozen spinach, thawed as directed on package
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon red wine vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts

Heat the oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and salt; cook until softened, stirring occasionally Add the lentils and bay leaf to the pan, stirring until lentils are coated with oil.

Pour in the broth and bring to a boil; lower heat to a simmer and cook, covered, until liquid is nearly absorbed, about 30 minutes. Stir in the garlic and spinach, breaking the spinach up with a spoon; cover and continue cooking 5 – 10 more minutes.

Remove from the heat; add thyme, mustard, vinegar and pepper to taste. Taste and add more salt if needed; sprinkle with pine nuts. Find the bay leaf and remove it before serving.
Serve with brown basmati or jasmine rice.

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Figs stuffed with goat cheese

2007-09-16T11:09:00.000-05:00

Figs and goat cheese are perfect partners

Mark Bittman, the New York Times Minimalist, lured me in once again with this story about grilled figs. I’m never one to turn down the promise of a simple ripe fig, especially when stuffed with cheese, so I snatched up a precious six-pack of organic California Missions at Whole Foods yesterday to try it out.

If you watch the accompanying video on the NYT website, you’ll see Mr. Bittman standing in the middle of a vineyard in Sonoma while chef Gary Danko prepares his stuffed figs with nothing more than his fingers and a hot grill, conveniently using a freshly plucked grape leaf as a wrapper.

As it happened, there weren’t any fresh grape leaves to be found in my backyard, so I improvised with hydrangea leaves. Did you know they are totally edible? And no, I am not the heir to Euell Gibbons; I picked up that tidbit from Ina Garten – she once decorated a platter of fruit and cheese with her hefty Hampton-sized hydrangea leaves on her TV show. *UPDATE: I feel I should add that even if you feel goofy enough to start seasoning your figs with hydrangea buds or flowers, don't. They are both poisonous!

Also, since I didn’t want to fire up the grill for a few little figs, I put them under the broiler instead. That worked out just fine and I loved the result: warm fig and slightly oozing, tangy goat cheese balanced with a few drops of salty-sweet soy sauce and balsamic vinegar.

Ivonne, the creator of a very delicious blog, Cream Puffs in Venice, is hosting the Sugar High Friday event for food bloggers this month, featuring figs. This is my contribution, and although it’s not really a “sweet” thing, I couldn't resist making and sharing this.

Warm Figs Stuffed with Goat Cheese
adapted from Mark Bittman
makes 6 servings

6 fresh figs
2 tablespoons fresh soft goat cheese
1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme, rosemary or other fresh herb
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 large hydrangea leaves or 6 6-inch square pieces of foil
6 toothpicks
Soy sauce and balsamic vinegar, for drizzling

With a paring knife, gently slice through the stem of each fig and make 3 1/4-inch slits. Pull the cut sides apart, forming a small pocket.

Sprinkle a tiny amount of herbs, salt and pepper into each pocket, followed by a pinch of goat cheese. Wrap figs in leaves, securing with toothpicks, or enclose loosely with foil.

Arrange fig parcels on a small cookie sheet and place under a hot broiler for about 2 minutes, or until leaves start to brown and cheese softens.

Unwrap figs and drizzle very sparingly with a one or two drops soy sauce and vinegar. Serve warm.

More FamilyStyle Figgy Business

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Mediterranean Barley Salad with Roasted Eggplant

2007-09-13T12:49:00.001-05:00

A hearty salad full of Mediterranean flavor

This salad recipe is one of those that gets passed around from friends to potlucks and back again - a keeper. I first made it to bring to a picnic dinner at my neighbor B's house last Labor Day. I think it went over well; she's made it multiple times since then and is doing her best to spread the love around the neighborhood. She's good at that.

The basic recipe came out of this one from Gourmet.

I omitted the zucchini and olives from the original (I'm not a fan of either) and substituted cherry tomatoes, which lend their own sweet roasty, juices to the tender eggplant and toothsome barley. This is easily made vegetarian-friendly by using vegetable broth or water instead of chicken broth.

Make it once and pass it around...

Mediterranean Barley Salad with Roasted Eggplant
makes 8 side-dish servings

1 1/2 pounds eggplant, diced
4 cups cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 cup chopped green onion
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 1/4 cups pearl barley
2 1/2 - 3 cups chicken or vegetable broth
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion, soaked in cold water 10 minutes; drained
1/2 cup chopped fresh mint
6 ounces crumbled feta cheese

Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 425°F.

Toss eggplant with 2 tablespoons oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper on a large shallow (1-inch-deep) baking pan. Repeat with tomatoes on a second pan. Roast vegetables in oven, stirring occasionally and switching position of pans halfway through baking, until eggplant is golden brown and tender and tomatoes are brown and wrinkled, 20 to 25 minutes total.

Heat 2 tablespoons oil in a 3- to 4-quart heavy pot over moderately high heat until hot but not smoking, then cook scallion, cumin, coriander, and cayenne, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add barley and cook, stirring until well coated with oil, 2 minutes more. Add broth and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until all of liquid is absorbed and barley is tender, 30 to 40 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand, covered, 5 minutes. Transfer barley to baking pan with roasted tomatoes and spread to quickly cool, uncovered, about 20 minutes.

Whisk together lemon juice, garlic, sugar, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and 3 tablespoons oil in a large bowl. Add barley and tomatoes, eggplant, onion and mint to bowl with dressing and toss until combined well.

Sprinkle cheese over the salad and serve.

Make ahead note: Salad can be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Return to room temperature before serving.

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Ricotta Gelato with Blackberry Syrup

2007-09-04T13:41:00.000-05:00

I feel like I've taken a brief hiatus from my blog -- after the excitement of returning from vacation and getting the kids ready for school, this is the week I'm finally breathing easier (oh, but going to my first yoga class in months might explain that).

Plus, I've been working on some exciting projects. I'm going to keep you in suspense for a little bit longer, but things are going be different both at my house and in my life, hopefully in all the best ways. But, for now here's two clue words: cooking and income. Stay tuned.

Meantime, I made this INCREDIBLE gelato from the September 2007 Bon Appetit while I was in Maine, using rich, homestyle ricotta cheese I bought at Enoteca Italiano, a specialty food shop in Kittery. But I wasn't happy with the picture I took -- you know how that goes -- so I made it again the other day. All I can say is that if you have an ice cream maker in your possession, or even if you know someone who does, get it out on the counter and make this!

The ingredient list is shorter than Polly Pocket's miniskirt and couldn't be easier to throw together. Here's the one thing, though. Do NOT use plain old supermarket ricotta cheese. I bought some Sargento ricotta at my local store, since it was the only whole-milk choice they had. It wasn't nearly as thick and wonderful as the first batch I made.

I called DiGregorio's market here in St. Louis, and they sell a homemade-style ricotta made in Chicago which I will go out of my way to use next time. Also, Whole Foods sells "hand-dipped" ricotta ( which means nothing more than a WF employee scooping the cheese from large tubs into small bulk containers. I asked once.), which would work well, too. If really want to go all out, make your own with the creamiest milk you can find. Whole Foods has a recipe here.

Ricotta Gelato with Blackberry Syrup

1 pound fresh whole-milk ricotta
1/4 cup whole milk
3/4 cup simple syrup

Blackberry Syrup

3 cups fresh or frozen blackberries
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Puree ricotta, milk and syrup in a food processor or blender until very smooth.
Transfer mixture to an ice cream maker and process according to manufacturer's instructions. Place gelato in a freezer-proof container and freeze until firm, about 2 hours. Before serving, leave gelato at room temperature for about 10 minutes to soften a bit.

To make syrup, place all ingredients in a medium saucepan and stir to dissolve sugar. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat; lower heat and cook uncovered until berries are soft, about 15 minutes. Press through a fine-meshed sieve set over a bowl, discard solids. Serve at room temperature, as the pectin in the berries will firm up if chilled.

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Comfort Food: Perfect Roast Chicken

2007-08-22T15:46:00.001-05:00

Crisp, golden, juicy roast chicken - it's really good

We’re just back from our rear end-numbing road trip to Maine, and as good as it was to get outta town, arriving home feels like work. There’s more laundry and unpacking to do, along with grocery shopping and cleaning the kitchen, since no matter how much I try to clean out the fridge before a vacation, I’m always greeted on my return by some forgotten container of leftovers and yogurt with green hair growing out of it.

A simple meal like roast chicken is so easy and comforting when the cupboard is bare. All you need – besides the chicken of course - are basic seasonings, a hot oven or, if the weather is nice, an outdoor grill.

I don’t know why, but the thought of cooking a whole chicken (yes, with the bones!) can seem daunting to some cooks. For instance, my mother hardly ever served roasted chicken when I was growing up – instead, it was saved for special occasions at a restaurant.

And I know how convenient it’d be to pick up a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store, but I have a problem with those; by the time you get it home, the chicken has been stewing under a heat lamp for hours; dried out and overcooked.

I’ve been making a version of this chicken recipe for years now. Sometimes we roast it on the grill, which produces an even better chicken with crisp, golden skin and a delicious smoky aroma. The method is from Marcella Hazan’s Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking, a cookbook I consider an absolute necessity in the kitchen.

This is also a great way to make use of any leftovers the next day. Make a chicken taco with some shredded chicken, or pile chunks on some crusty bread and make a panini with basil, goat cheese and slow roasted tomatoes.

Perfect Roast Chicken

1 3 1/2 – 4 pound chicken
1 tablespoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
1 small lemon
Optional seasonings, depending on what you have on hand:
A handful of fresh herbs, such as rosemary, thyme, basil, parsley
One or two garlic cloves

Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Put the chicken in a shallow roasting pan or casserole and pat the skin dry with paper towels.

Mix together the salt and pepper in a small dish; season the chicken on all sides, rubbing over the skin into the cavity.

Poke about a dozen holes in the lemon with a fork or a skewer and place in the cavity. Tuck the herbs and/or garlic in with the lemon, if using, and tie the legs together with a 12-inch-long piece of kitchen twine.

Arrange the chicken breast side down and roast for 30 minutes. Turn the chicken over and roast an additional 30 minutes.

Raise the oven temperature to 400 degrees for 20 minutes, or until the skin is golden and juices run clear from the thigh when pierced with a fork.

Remove from the oven and let rest 10 minutes before slicing or carving. Save the juices that run out and serve with the chicken.

To roast in an outdoor grill, prepare grill for indirect cooking and heat to medium-high. Place chicken breast down directly on the grill rack and cook as described above.

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Farm Fresh Summer Tomato Salad

2007-08-13T09:45:00.000-05:00

Simplicity in a bowl - fresh ripe tomatoes

After a just one week here in Maine, I'm reveling in the peak of summer produce - what could be better?

The weekly bounty

My Missouri friend Alanna (of A Veggie Venture), and Stephen Cooks, have been maintaining a virtual relationship with the folks at Wolf Pine Farm, a community-supported farm in southern Maine. In a simple twist of fate, it happens to be the very same CSA that my sister and brother-in-law belong to, and is always at the top of my list of places to visit during our annual summer trips.

As I helped L gather her weekly share, I couldn't help thinking that summer is almost over - all the more reason to savor the simple, fleeting pleasures of sweet summer tomatoes.

Simple Summer Tomato Salad

Fresh tomatoes, in a a variety of colors and sizes
Extra-virgin olive oil, the best you can find
Salt
Finely sliced red onion, optional

Serve the tomatoes in a bowl, drizzled with olive oil and seasoned with salt. Stir in some sliced onions, if you're feeling adventurous.

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Cocktail Hour: Basil Vodka Gimlets

2007-08-06T20:29:00.000-05:00

Ultimate summer refresher - Lemon basil infused gimlets

We're here in Maine, escaping a Midwestern heat wave and eating blueberries, lobster and corn on the cob until our bellies swell like overfilled beach balls.

Tomorrow we visit Wolf Pine Farm, which I'll be sure to report on. For now though, here's a a welcoming drink; a delicious summer cocktail I lifted from the July issue of Gourmet magazine. It was hard to have just one.

Lemon Basil Vodka Gimlets
adapted from Gourmet magazine
makes 6 drinks

1 cup lemon basil syrup*
3/4 cup vodka
3/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/2 cup sparkling water
1 cup ice cubes
Fresh basil sprigs, for garnish

Stir together all ingredients in a pitcher until cold, then strain into 8-ounce glasses half filled with ice.

Lemon Basil Syrup

1 packed cup fresh basil leaves
1 cup water
3/4 cup sugar
Zest from 1 lemon, peeled with a vegetable peeler

Bring all ingredients to a boil in a small saucepan, stirring until to dissolve sugar.
Cool; strain syrup through a sieve into a bowl or measuring cup. Chill until cold.

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When Daddy Cooks: Chicken with Broccoli

2007-08-01T16:10:00.000-05:00

Stir-Fried Chicken with Broccoli - and I didn't help

Last night just before dinner time, I found myself starring in my own version of This Old F@#$%ing House, scraping layers of paint off my basement banister in the interest of my After Flood Redo; covered in dust and minuscule pieces of paint. I'm hoping it isn't the lead kind.

That's why it felt so fantastic to delegate cooking to my capable husband, who has a deft hand with a knife and a frying pan, but hardly ever gets enough practice.

Freshly showered and wine glass in hand, I had the pleasure of watching someone else do the cooking. It was nice. I could get used to it.

He chops, he stirs, he cooks!

Chicken with Broccoli, Daddy-style

2 egg whites, lightly beaten
1 tablespoon cornstarch
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 pound boneless skinless chicken (husband likes thighs)
1/3 cup chicken broth
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup sake, dry sherry or white wine
1 tablespoon honey or brown sugar
1 head broccoli, trimmed and sliced into bite-sized pieces
1 tablespoon peanut oil
1/2 cup thinly sliced onion
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 hot chili pepper (optional)

Whisk the egg whites, 1 teaspoon cornstarch and salt in a a medium bowl.
Slice the chicken very thinly crosswise and add to the bowl, tossing to coat. Set aside.

In a small bowl, mix chicken broth, soy sauce, sake, honey and remaining cornstarch; set aside.

Blanch broccoli in a pot of boiling water 2 minutes, drain.

Heat the oil in a wok or large skillet over high heat. Toss in the onion, garlic and chili; stir until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the chicken and stir until no longer pink, 3 minutes more.

Make a well in the center of chicken mixture; pour in soy mixture and bring to boil. Add the broccoli and stir everything together until evenly coated and thickened.

Serve with steamed rice.

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Weekend Breakfast: Best Buttermilk Pancakes with Strawberry Sauce

2007-07-29T15:07:00.000-05:00

Fluffy stack for Sunday morning

This recipe is without a doubt my tried-and-true favorite. I've made dozens of other pancakes over the years but they just don't measure up to these big, puffed and tender cakes.

The only thing I've added to this perfect tangy ratio of butter, eggs, flour and buttermilk is a bit of wheat germ. It must be the mom in me, but somehow the extra fiber makes them seem more wholesome and less like a pile of carbs. Who am I kidding?

This time I made use of an overload of strawberries I had on hand to make a sweet sauce to pour over the stack instead of the usual maple syrup, which instantly transforms a favorite comfort food into a fresh and summery treat.

My kids ask me to make pancakes for breakfast every weekend, and I've been trained to mix them up in my sleep - which is what I'd rather be doing on most weekend mornings anyway.

Best Buttermilk Pancakes
adapted from The Joy of Cooking

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
3 tablespoons sugar
2 tablespoons wheat germ, raw or toasted
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, wheat germ, baking powder, baking soda and salt.

2. Melt the butter in a medium microwave-safe bowl on high power for 30 seconds. Stir in the buttermilk, eggs and extract until smooth.

3. Pour the buttermilk mixture over the dry ingredients and stir just until the flour is incorporated.

4. Pour 1/4 cup scoops of batter onto a greased, heated griddle set over medium heat. Flip the pancakes when bubbles start to appear on top, after about 3 minutes. Cook the other side until golden brown.

5. Serve right away with warm, buttered maple syrup or strawberry sauce.

Strawberry Sauce
Makes 1 1/2 cups

1 pint fresh strawberries, hulled and sliced
1/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

Place all ingredients in a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve sugar.

Cool slightly; puree in a blender or food processor and serve over pancakes, yogurt or ice cream.

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Back to the Future: Wolfgang Puck Pasta

2007-07-27T11:00:00.000-05:00

California-Style Pasta with Thyme and Goat Cheese

Way back in the ‘80’s my favorite meal was a roast beef sandwich on a toasted “bulky” roll, which in parts of the world other than Rhode Island would be known as a Kaiser, smothered with mushrooms, piled high with salty meat and so juicy the bulky would be saturated and falling to pieces after just two bites. I’d get them at Chelo’s, a chain of local restaurants.

I’m dating myself here, but that was a quarter of a century ago. I was in high school, my hair was big, and if you’d offered me a pizza with goat cheese on it I know I would’ve looked at you funny.

At the same time, Wolfgang Puck was in Hollywood creating California cuisine - pulling pizzas out of wood-burning ovens and serving salads as entrees at his legendary restaurant Spago.

Look how we’ve grown up! I now love goat cheese, Wolfgang Puck has become as much a brand name as Chef Boyardee, and you can walk into your local mini-mart, grab a frozen Wolfgang Puck pizza, microwave it and eat it in the car (I’m not saying that’s a good thing).

The August issue of Food & Wine has a feature story about Puck, which got me interested in this recipe. Apparently, this was the first pasta dish on the menu at Spago and put goat cheese on America’s culinary map.

I haven’t had a roast beef sandwich in years, but I did have a look at the 2007 Chelo’s menu – the sandwich is still there - along with Asian grilled salmon on California mesclun greens.

Capellini with Goat Cheese, Thyme and Toasted Pine Nuts

Inspired by Wolfgang Puck

12 ounces dried capellini pasta
1 cup chicken or vegetable broth
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 ounces soft goat cheese
2 tablespoons toasted pine nuts
Thyme sprigs, for garnish

Cook the capellini in a large pot of boiling salted water.

Meanwhile, bring the broth to a boil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the thyme and simmer until reduced by half. Lower heat, stir in the butter and goat cheese until melted and smooth.

Drain the capellini and add to the skillet, tossing to coat with sauce.

Twirl the capellini into portions with a large serving fork or tongs and place on individual plates. Sprinkle with pine nuts and garnish with thyme, if you like.

Serves 4-6.

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Food Porn of the Day

2007-07-22T11:52:00.000-05:00

Giada and her cleavage - um - tomatoes

I'll let this photo from Esquire speak for itself - just a tidbit I wanted to share from my lazy Sunday morning reading.

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Garden Fresh: Roasted Red Pepper and Basil Sauce

2007-07-18T11:18:00.000-05:00

Roasted and Rustic

I wish I could say that I plucked ripe red bell peppers out of my garden to make this; what I really did was buy a large bag of peppers at Costco. Along with a few cherry tomatoes and homegrown basil, this sauce is a great thing to have on hand for a quick meal, to serve over pasta, grilled shrimp or chicken.

I find the process of roasting peppers therapeutic; something about the way they spit and sizzle while they roast, combined with the pungent smell of charred vegetable says "delicious" to me.

My kids however, walk into the kitchen making unattractive gagging sounds when they smell them.
It must be the same instinct that compels small children to pick bits of unidentified spices out of their hot dogs. They'll come around, someday.

Roasted Red Pepper-Basil Sauce

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 or 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
6 red bell peppers, roasted and peeled *
1/2 cup cherry tomatoes
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Warm the olive oil in a small skillet over medium heat; add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 2 minutes, stirring from time to time.

Transfer the garlicky oil to a food processor along with the remaining ingredients and pulse to form a chunky sauce. Taste for seasoning. Serve at room temperature over pasta or as an accompaniment to grilled seafood, meat or poultry.

Keeps up to 4 days, refrigerated.

* To roast bell peppers, place them on a sheet of foil 3 to 4 inches under a preheated broiler element (or put them on your outdoor grill rack, with the grill on medium-high direct heat). Turn them as each side turns dark brown (but not incinerated!). When they're evenly roasted, put them in a large bowl; cover and let them steam about 15 minutes. When cool enough to handle, peel off the skins and discard the stems and seeds.

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Weekend Herb Blogging: Lavender Lemonade

2007-07-15T17:51:00.000-05:00

Herbal Refreshment

In my front-door herb garden, my lavender plants are in the starring role right now -- you can smell the blooms from across the street!

I've been noticing lots of recipes for lavender that are intriguing me (rubs, panna cottas, roasted chickens and shortbread cookies), but time is of the essence, and today is hot.

I saw this recipe in the August issue of Everyday with Rachael Ray (She's everywhere!) and made up a batch. It has a nice undertone of lavender and seems to be a perfect partner with lemon.

Susan at FoodBlogga is hosting Weekend Herb Blogging this week. Go on over and check out what's growing and cooking.

Lavender Lemonade
adapted from Everyday with Rachael Ray

7 cups boiling water
2 tablespoons fresh lavender flower buds
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup lemon juice

Pour 3 cups of the water over the lavender in a heat-proof bowl; let steep 15 minutes. Pour remaining water over sugar in another large heat-proof bowl and stir until dissolved.

Strain lavender mixture and pour into a pitcher along with water and lemon juice. Chill.

Serve over ice with a lavender sprig.

Beautiful Bins of Lavender at the Portland Farmer's Market

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Cool Cucumber Noodle Salad

2007-07-10T15:57:00.000-05:00

Healthy and Fast = Great Summer Meal

Let me pass on this recipe before I have to run off again - I swear my days have less minutes in them lately. Whatever happened to the lazy days of summer? All I've been doing this week is driving around town and perspiring a lot. Well, okay, I did sit by the pool a couple times last week.

This is a great recipe based on one from Cooking Light, perfect when you crave cool, crunchy, vegetable-ly food and you don't feel like cooking much of anything.

Spicy Cucumber Noodle Salad with Edamame

makes 4 - 6 servings

8 ounces uncooked soba (buckwheat noodles)
1 cup frozen shelled edamame (green soybeans)
1 cup diced English cucumber
1/4 cup sliced green onions
1/4 cup reduced fat mayonnaise
1 tablespoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons white miso (soybean paste)
1 teaspoon soy sauce (low-sodium, if you prefer)
1 teaspoon Asian chile paste with garlic
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1 cup thinly sliced red bell pepper

1. Cook noodles in boiling salted water 2 minutes; add edamame. Bring to a boil and cook 2 more minutes. Drain and rinse with cold water. Drain and set aside to cool. Dump noodles into a large bowl and toss with the cucumber and onions.

2. Whisk mayonnaise, vinegar, lime juice, miso, soy sauce, chile paste and sesame oil in a medium bowl. Pour dressing over the noodles; add bell pepper and toss well to combine.

The salad will keep, chilled, up to 2 days.

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Quick Summer Side Dish: Spicy Corn with Mustard Seeds

2007-07-02T09:07:00.001-05:00

Fresh corn sauteed with chiles and mustard seeds

When did weekends become all about running around and less about sitting around? A few months ago, almost ten years after our first baby arrived and we'd parted ways with leisurely weekend mornings, we resubscribed to the Sunday New York Times. I like seeing the blue plastic bundle waiting for me on the front stoop - it gives the impression that I am a person who has time to read the newspaper.

I can't say I've ever managed to read the whole paper; a half hour spent with the Book Review and the Arts and Leisure section on Sunday mornings seems to be my limit before I'm off and on with the day.

This past Sunday, my promise to grill ribs for dinner had to be postponed at the last minute, as I found myself at Home Depot shopping for home improvement projects right around dinner time. Time for Plan B! I made a quick dash to the store to buy some chicken to throw on the grill and fresh corn for 25 cents an ear.

I was inspired by this recipe which appears in the July issue of Sunset magazine. It's from a new cookbook by Ruta Kahate called 5 Spices, 50 Dishes: Simple Indian Recipes Using Five Common Spices.

It was delicious! I used just one chile pepper, and found it gently spicy. I also added some lime juice for a little extra flavor. This is a 5-minute recipe, especially if you use frozen corn.

Slicing the kernels off the cob can get a little messy, though. I managed to splatter corn juice all over T and his Times crossword puzzle.

Spicy Corn with Mustard Seeds
makes 4 servings

6 to 8 ears corn (or use 4 cups thawed frozen corn)
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon brown mustard seeds
1 or 2 serrano chiles, thinly sliced
1/4 teaspoon turmeric
Salt
1 tablespoon minced cilantro
1 -2 teaspoons fresh lime juice, to taste

1. Slice kernels off corn, if using fresh.

2. Heat vegetable oil in a wok or sauté pan over medium-high heat, add mustard seeds, and cover. When seeds stop popping, lower heat to medium and add chiles; stir 30 seconds.

3. Stir in turmeric. Add corn and salt to taste. Toss, turn heat to low, cover, and cook until corn is tender, about 5 minutes (cook frozen corn about 1 minute). Stir in cilantro and lime juice. Serve warm.

Ruta Kahate, Sunset, JULY 2007 5 Spices, 50 Dishes

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Black Raspberry Birthday Cakes

2007-06-27T14:18:00.000-05:00

I felt Farmer's Market Greed during our Saturday morning trip to the Tower Grove Farmer's Market. I was in line waiting - relatively patiently, I might add, despite the fact that my eyeballs were starting to sweat and it wasn't yet 9 a.m. - to purchase a few baskets of fresh, dewy black raspberries. Then the woman at the front of the line chose to buy all the pints displayed on the table. I felt a clenching, anxious panic come over me as I watched her snatch them up.

The person behind me sucked in her breath and said "Oh, are there any left!?"

That's just what I was wondering, but because I was in the process of sending out invisible extra-pointy asparagus spears into the back of the black raspberry-buying woman's head, I wasn't able to articulate the question myself.

It turned out that yes, there were plenty more berries - enough for everyone!

But I was a little traumatized by my greediness. I might need to do some deep breathing before shopping for precious produce next time out.

We just happened to be celebrating a birthday in the middle of a busy weekend, and I thought that individual cakes would be satisfying and fuss-free. I might be a little greedy, but I don't have time to mess with fussy, fancy cakes. I adapted a recipe for Brown Sugar Bundt Cake from Dorie Greenspan's Baking: From My Home to Yours (is there any recipe in this book that doesn't turn out perfectly?) by baking the batter in oversized Texas muffin tins instead of a Bundt pan and reducing the baking time.

These are essentially big, rich cupcakes. They would be yummy without the topping, maybe just a dusting of powdered sugar over the tops.

I would stand in line for these any day. Just don't buy all the berries!

Black Raspberry Almond Birthday Cakes
for 10 cakes

2 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 cup finely ground almonds, hazelnuts or walnuts
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 sticks (8 ounces) butter, softened
2 cups (packed) light brown sugar
3 large eggs, at room temperature
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon almond extract
1 cup buttermilk, at room temperature

Topping:

1 cup heavy cream
3 tablespoons sour cream
1/4 cup powdered sugar
2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 pint mixed fresh berries (blueberries, raspberries and blackberries or black raspberries)
Powdered sugar

Heat the oven to 350 degrees.

Grease 2 6-cup oversize (Texas) muffin tins with softened butter and dust with flour, tapping out the excess.

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt in a medium bowl.

In an electric mixer, beat the butter and sugar with the paddle attachment on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating for one minute after each addition. Beat in the extracts.

Reduce mixer speed to low and add flour mixture in 3 additions, alternating with the buttermilk, beginning and ending with the flour mixture, and mixing just until dry ingredients are incorporated.

Spoon batter evenly into 10 cups of the muffin tins (pour water 3/4 full into the 2 empty muffin cups for even baking) and bake 20 - 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean.

Cool pans on a rack 15 minutes before turning cakes out to cool completely.

To make the topping, combine all ingredients in the bowl of an electric mixer and beat at high speed until the mixture forms soft peaks. Dollop over the tops of the cakes and top with berries. Dust with powdered sugar.

Happy Birthday!

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