I ought to be working

Vignettes for the Lazy Blogger: Week 1

2008-11-07T18:39:00.001-08:00

Part of the reason I've been slow on this blog lately is that I have a huge backlog of stories and photos to think about. I keep planning lots of lengthy posts, but I never get around to sorting the photos on my computer or the stories in my head. I think a vignette approach might be a better idea.

First, there was San Diego. We went there to a wedding there. The bride was beautiful:

And so were the botanical gardens:

Then there was San Francisco... flowers in the forests......

And produce in the farmer's markets...

And urban environments...

And foggy skies...

And the Stanford campus.

We went there to see my brother Michael and my soon to be sister-in-law Leslie. They have a dog that looks a tiny bit scary in this picture, but who's really quite adorable and sweet. She just didn't like my camera:

The property near where they lived had some funky old cars (and buses) there:

And there was another funky plant:

Okay. I'm done for now : ) I'm skipping the trip to Chez Panisse, because it was too fantastically delicious for a lazy photo-only...

Happy Meal

2008-10-25T11:37:00.001-07:00

Each bite of salty, crispy, cast-iron-skillet browned rosemary-olive bread makes my mouth water in anticipation. Then, the sharp tomato juice drips over the smooth, creamy cheese, filling my mouth with contrasting flavors and textures. The crisped bacon crunches in my teeth and I am in pure bliss because this is the most perfect, delicious fall treat I can imagine. I dip slices of crisp, tart apples into creamy-smooth yogurt, and I crunch my way through a carrot that was just dug out of the Connecticut earth. There are many reasons why this meal makes me happy.

I am happy about where this meal came from. Not everything we eat is local, but every week I try to see how well we can get by with farmer's market and in-season products only. Here's how this meal stacks up:

Local artisan bread
Local artisan cheese
Local, organic bacon (from a humanely raised, family-farm pig. We recently purchased a
half side - about 50lb of meat - at $3/lb)
Leftover bacon grease from aforementioned swine
Tomatoes from our backyard
Local, organic carrots
Local-to-DC-where-I-was-visiting-a-friend heirloom, organic apples*
Local, farmer's market yogurt

*Greg says local-to-DC doesn't count. But I was in DC anyway, so I think it counts.

I do my best to put my money where my mouth is - for it is true that artisan products are generally more expensive than their mass-produced counterparts - but I am equally as often surprised that the value for the money allows me to get away with better deals than I thought. Let's take a guess at this sandwich. The loaf was $4, but I only used a quarter of it. The bacon was $3/lb, and we fried up a pound this morning - maybe a third of a pound went into the sandwich. A few slices of cheese ($2), two carrots ($0.40), an apple ($0.50), and two tablespoons of yogurt ($0.50). I estimate the cost at (1+1+2+0.4+0.5+0.5) /2= $2.70 for each spectacular lunch. It took me 10 minutes to make, with two dishes, one knife and a cutting board to wash and one cast iron pan to clean.

There's not much that I would trade this lifestyle for. I like knowing that every penny I spent on my food went to folks who are working hard to bring back family agriculture, sustainable living practices and all around good values. I like that the meat I ate came from a pig who led a happy animal life (something I feel sure of, because I look the farmer in the eye every week when I buy his pastured chicken eggs and he asks me how Zane and Tori are doing). I like that the food tastes wonderful and that it fills my belly well. I like that I saw two people buy basketfuls of fresh produce using food stamps. I like that in the imperfection of this world, we are all able to live our lives by the principles we believe in, whatever those principles may be. This is what a Happy Meal is for me.

P.S. Greg says I should have called this post "Porky's II", since we had bacon for breakfast and he's funnier than I am

Pumpkin Zucchini Bread

2008-10-22T12:41:00.001-07:00

On a recent drive back from a wedding in Bar Harbor, Greg and I stopped by the home of one of his friends in Portland, Maine. After a delightful lunch and a quick tour of the city (Portland, by the way, is pretty cool), we went on our way, with the addition of one giant squash and one monstrous zucchini taken from our friends' garden.

What's a girl to do? She's to make Zucchini bread!

I've been wanting to adapt my favorite bran muffin recipe to include zucchini for a while now. It took two tries to work out the kinks to this recipe. The trick, it seems, is correctly balancing the moisture of the grated zucchini with the amount of milk, soy milk, buttermilk or yogurt. Since moisture content of zucchini varies with the size of the zucchini (larger = more watery), I'm going to suggest that you adapt the quantity of fluid ingredients based on whether you're using typical, medium-sized grocery store zucchini or the behemoth, overgrown garden zucchini variety (take out a few tablespoons of milk). I added an extra egg to increase the stability of the flour, and I nixed the white flour. I also chose to use pumpkin butter in this recipe because that's what I had in my pantry... You could just as easily add a applesauce, pumpkin puree, or a little extra yogurt in its place.

Why is this recipe a good one? Let me list the reasons:

(1) You can make it one bowl, if you'd like

(2) You can adapt the ingredients to whatever you'd like

(3) There's a lot of zucchini in this recipe.

(4) The bread is moist, tender, and barely sweet, with hints of the fall flavors of pumpkin, cinnamon and ginger.

(5) You can still adapt this recipe further. I kept the zucchini loaf itself plain, but I sprinkled some ground extra sugar, ground nuts and pumpkin seeds on top (see picture above; they all fell off). It would have been better if I had stirred everything in them in. You could add in some ground or toasted nuts (walnuts might be nice), a little extra sugar for sweetness, ground flax, oats, or double the spices for a super fall-themed treat.

Pumpkin Zucchini Bread

Note: less liquid gives you crumbly muffins, and more liquid gives you a soft cake. I am suggesting a dairy ratio for the typical size of zucchini. If you use the massively overgrown zucchini that I did, then take out a few tablespoons of soy milk. You could also substitute 1 1/4 cup buttermilk or play with the milk/yogurt ratio -- I've made the recipe (sans zucchini) with all sorts of dairy combinations, and it's always good. Don't be afraid to cut back by a tablespoon or two on the milk if your grated zucchini has a lot of moisture; it's probably better to lean towards too dry of a batter, since this recipe makes a very moist batter to begin with. If you make this batter and the moisture balance seems off (say, it's dripping off the spoon in large droplets rather sliding or plopping off the spoon in huge blobs), you can always stir in a little extra flour before baking it.

Preheat the oven to 350. Cut parchment to fit the bottom of a loaf pan and use a little butter to secure it in place. If the pan is not non-stick, be sure to butter the walls of the pan. Sift together:

1 cup wheat bran

180g whole wheat flour

1 1/2 tsp baking soda

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

Stir in spices and nuts, if desired:

2 tbsp ground cinnamon

1 tsp ground ginger

Dash of nutmeg

~1 cup toasted nuts, optional

In a medium bowl, blend together:

3/4 cup soy milk + 1/2 cup yogurt *

1/2 cup sweetener of choice (I mix 4 tbsp sugar, 2 tbsp honey and 2 tbsp molasses - it's worth the extra effort, I promise)

1/2 cup pumpkin butter

2 large eggs

3 tbsp vegetable oil

Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Stir in:

2 cups grated zucchini

Pour into loaf pan. Bake until the tops spring back when pressed gently in the center, about 45-60 minutes.

Lame Post

2008-10-09T19:24:00.001-07:00

This post is so lame. It's been so long. This blog has been so ignored. And I have been so ~~busy~~ not busy lately. I really have no excuse, except -- the freedom that I am finding in a Month of No-Work (M.N.W., AKA October) is making me superbly, wonderfully lazy... lazy, lazy and lazier.

Plus, I've been traveling. Vermont for a few days to see a friend, then Indiana for the grandparents (and Rosh Hashanah - more on that soon), then St. Louis to present at a conference, and then Austin to see my brother Andy, his wife Leslie, and their new little baby girl Alexandra. Greg and I are off for the weekend to Maine for a wedding, and the weekend after I'll be in DC for a friend-reunion of sorts.

So, basically, I've got a zillion photos from all this traveling, lots of stories, a few new dishes and no urge to actually post them. See, this blog used to be my escape from the stress of work. I've had no need to escape anything this past month. Good for me, bad for the blog.

I'll post some recipes next week. In the meantime, happy October, and I'm just saying "hi"

Oh. And here's a cow:

I've been a little preoccupied by some daydreaming

2008-08-26T17:52:00.000-07:00

48 hours from now, I hope I will be placing the final edits into this dissertation.
60 hours from now, I hope I will be walking into Kinko's.
64 hours from now, I hope I will place a copy of this dissertation under my last committee member's door
68 hours from now, I damn well better be in Vermont for the weekend.

And 324 hours from now, I expect to stand in front of a group of people and explain why I deserve the degree. So 327 hours from now, I might feel a little less nervous. And 327.1 hours from now, I might be able to call Greg on the phone with a smile on my face and a piece of paper in my hand.

And on October 5th? I get to SLEEP IN for a month and take my first real time off in.... 8 years, at least. I worked every summer since sophomore year in college. I always wanted to take a few months off after college, but I couldn't. Now I can. Phew.

Golly gee, I can't wait : )

Neither can the dogs - I've been a bad dog-mom. They're bored out of their minds. Greg's been awesome in keeping everything going and letting me ignore the world for this last month. It will be a relief to both of us when I can be a normal part of life again.

Like most of my interaction with other people these days, this post is fairly self-serving :D Hope ya'all are well, and I'll be back very soon.

Meanwhile, wanna see the kinds of things I'm working on? Of course you don't. But check this out anyway:

I'd really like to understand this pathway fully, but it's pretty damn confusing, what with many of those arrows actually going both ways, and the arrows that were too complicated to put on there, and the arrows with big question marks on top. Some days I think, why bother trying to understand this? Even the people who dedicate their lives to just this pathway are still a little uncertain about where exactly the arrows all go...

I like looking at the data this way: averages and individual points on the same plot.

That's the hippocampus. There will be a day that comes when I won't care so much about the hippocampus.

It's been a rough week. But relief is very near by...

Nothing better to say

2008-08-11T15:49:00.000-07:00

Things have been so crazy lately that I don't even know where to start. In the past few weeks, I have...

Completely finished my thesis introduction and the first two research chapters
Written some heartfelt acknowledgments. Which I wish I could post here (but I can't, not until everything else is done)
Worked much of the way through a really bad draft of the third research chapter
Sort of, maybe, not really contemplated the concluding chapter
Not even thought about writing my defense powerpoint slides
Canned (I'm not kidding) 34 pints of tomatoes, peaches, apricots, and various kinds of jam (more on that later)
Not gotten botulism (yet)
Gone to Yoga three times a week. This is new. And cliche.
Fell waaaaay behind on my blog reading
Not edited the photos for or told a single story about our West Coast trip
Finally figured out this f@#$$! piece of s#$! of a markup language
--> Actually, let me take that back. LaTeX rocks. It was just the wrong time for me to learn how to use it.
Realized that my thesis topic kind of sucks
Realized I don't have any answers about my topic or my research
Realized that I'm now at the point of knowing more about my topic and my research than anyone else does
Realized that nobody knows anything about my topic

And, the real important one, I have...

Generally speaking, been a terrible friend to everyone around me
Been very fortunate to have such understanding friends (and husband)

So what's left?

About 20 pages of writing (but it's double spaced!)
Somewhere in the range of 15 figures
A tiny bit of data analysis
3 more meetings with my adviser
3 weeks until submission
4 weekends of work until the defense
29 days until the butterflies go away

The Weird Weiss-Maliks

2008-08-06T12:23:00.001-07:00

My parents met when my mother moved into the same dorm that my father lived in at Kent State University. Three years later, my mother was shopping in a supermarket with her own mother, my grandmother. They were discussing how my mom would deal with the soon to be long-distance relationship with my father. My grandmother asked, "Why don't you just marry him?" They walked the store five times without putting a single item in the shopping cart, and then my mother, a Weiss, called my dad, a Malik, to say yes to a question that he had posed before. And so the Weiss-Malik family came to be.

My brother Andy met Leslie at work. They had been dating for a few months when he pulled out a twisty tie, playfully wrapped it around her finger, and marked the diameter. Soon, during a quiet evening at home, he took out a ring and asked her to marry him. And so within a year of dating, they tied the knot.

Greg and I met at the dog park, less than two weeks after my big move to New Haven, and we were agreeable to the marriage idea from early on. We had been dating for two years and living together for six months; I was gone from New Haven for two weeks, and I think he missed me more than usual. He asked me to marry him when I got back. And so I did.

Michael, my other brother, and Leslie (yes, we have two Leslies), met through a mutual friend. They had some quiet conversations about the topic at home. They decided to get married, kept it to themselves for a month, and then casually announced their engagement to the family. But Michael wasn't satisfied with the original proposal. And so, he went one step further, to Proposal 2.0.

http://www.marrymeleslie.com/

This, from the guy responsible for googlemoon and googlemars and googlesky. This, from my brother who used to spend hours on the computer mimicking newspaper print typeset and copying the design of the Advil bottle to create unique party invitations that he could hand out to his friends. This, from the adult who wanted heelys for his birthday. This, from techno-geek supremo :). What I am saying is this: Michael is creative, technology-oriented, loving and fun. Of course he would do something as adorable as this.

Congratulations to Michael and Leslie! (And to Andy and Leslie, who had their first child, little baby Alexandra, a few weeks ago!) Us Weiss-Maliks are getting settled...

The newest addition to the family. Little does little Alexandra know how weird we Weiss-Maliks actually are...

(Updated: Michael made it into this Wiki entry)

A few snippets

2008-06-29T12:53:00.001-07:00

Now that Greg and I are in Alaska, there are just a few things to appreciate...

Like spectacular views out the back door...

6-week old husky puppies that live in an open air pen next door...

Kitchens on the go...

and tasty home-cooked meals: 4 carrots, 4 ribs celery, a yellow onion, one block of tofu (fried in vegetable oil), obscene quantities of garlic and ginger, a can of coconut milk, jalapeno pepper powder, lime juice, cilantro and Basmati rice.

Hope to eat some fresh-caught salmon soon.

Well well well well

2008-06-09T08:16:00.001-07:00

There's been a little time to cook - some hummus, a tasty vegetable dish, several delicious al fresco summer meals and grilled things. There was time for a one year wedding anniversary -- with a spectacular meal to follow. There's been a little time to do other things -- like laundry, showers, sleeping, giving Tori a good ear rub or stopping her from eating our dinners before we do. What there hasn't been time for is photographing / editing / writing / blogging / about it all. This whole "dissertation" thing is keeping occupied. It is probably going to keep me on my toes until the thesis defense, which will be first week of September. In the meantime, I'll just be trying to keep up to date with everybody's else's interesting food blogs, and maybe I'll pop in here every once and a while. We'll be traveling in California from 6/19-6/25 and then up in Alaska from 6/25-7/4 and I'll definitely post some pictures from that trip...

Rachael

P.S. I felt very sad about leaving this blog both unattended and undecorated, so here are a few interesting photographs. A, errr, uhm, 10-22mm wide angle lens may or may not have been recently purchased... although there are no wide angle photos contained below, I hope to have some good ones soon. Oh, actually, the picture of the forest at the bottom uses the wide angle lens, but I hope there'll be better ones to talk about.

I will derive

2008-05-26T10:38:00.000-07:00

One week of agonizing over content, structure, purpose... thinking myself crazy for deciding I could finish up two experiements, work on a grant and write my PhD dissertation in a 10 week time span... and I did it! I wrote the first page... (149 to go)

The past decade has brought forth a multitude of new drug delivery technologies; these novel pharmaceutical agents, drug conjugates, polymeric and lipid carries and implantable biomaterials are revolutionizing a vision of how medical illnesses should be treated. Drug delivery research follows a simple scientific principle (to delivery drugs only where and when they are needed) in order to achieve sustained, regionally specific and targeted pharmaceutical action.

In spite of the promise that drug delivery technology will allow exact spatial and temporal control over medical therapy, few out of the many potential products have been developed into successful clinical therapies. The translation of drug delivery research from benchtop to bedside is hindered for industrial reasons – cost, safety and regulatory and large-scale manufacturing issues – as well as scientific roadblocks. These scientific roadblocks arrive in a variety of guises, yet they might be summarized by a straightforward concept: in the complex adaptive system of the human body, there are many variables to consider.

Predicting the therapeutic effect of drugs in the body is a complex and diverse challenge that could be approached from a variety of angles. It is the purpose of this research to explore the parameter space of drug delivery in several model systems, proceeding from biomaterial to target tissue to biological effect. First, we will examine the factors that govern release of a model hydrophobic drug from the polymeric coating of a vascular stent that is currently in clinical use. Second, the interaction of the same drug with target tissue site components will be considered in a ex vivo tissue mimic of the arterial wall. Third, the pharmacokinetic requirements for neurotrophic factor delivery in the brain will be examined in behavioral and biochemical models of biological effect. It is the intent of this thesis to address a fundamental problem in drug delivery, namely, how to quantify biological and physical parameters that are necessary for effective biomaterial design.

(For the two people who read this blog that I went to ASU with, the complex adaptive systems reference was intentional. Thank you Drs. Pizziconi and Coursen for preventing the phrase "things don't always work out the way we expect them to" from entered this draft of the introduction)

On that note of cheery jubilation (and I do apologize for the work-related interjection, although since I'm starting a process that's going to end in a thesis defense, you might be hearing more), I'd like to share something else that put a smile on my face today:

Grate'r Butter for Greater Pastry, or, Cute Quiche

2008-05-20T19:01:00.001-07:00

I'm all about puns this evening. But, aren't they cute?

I mean, seriously, aren't they cute?

Itty Bitty Fluted Removable Bottom 4" Tartlet Pans!!

I'm sure this is my extra X chromosome talking, here but there is something undeniably adorable, smile-inducing, shoulder-shrugging "awww..." about miniature proportions...

<Ahem>. Moving on... The little quiche tartlets I picked up at the store are cute, and quiche itself is yummy. And easy. And perfect for using odds and ends of vegetables. The basic recipe is pretty straightforward: eggs, cream or milk, cheese and filling of choice. There are a few tricks:

The balance of ingredients in the custard is flexible within reason. You could substitute milk for cream, but I wouldn't reduce the number of eggs and the fat content at the same time (the milk might curdle).

A variety of cheeses work just fine. Fontina and Gryuere are best for creamy flavor and meltability. Chedder and Swiss provide stronger flavor but can get a little oily if you add too much.

Goat cheese provides tangy contrast when it is dollop'ed throughout. All other cheeses should be shredded or cubed into very small pieces.

If you want to lower the fat content of this dish, it's pretty simple: add more vegetables. You could also make the quiche crustless.

Vegan Quiche is easy - puree silken tofu in place of the dairy (shockingly delicious, although I know you wouldn't believe me unless I handed you a piece of normal looking quiche, which you proceeded to marvel about and then I revealed that ta-da you just ate something vegan)

The choice of filling is entirely up to you. I happen to love broccoli quiche, but there are endless possibilities here: leek, onion, chard, garlic, olives, pepper, mushroom, or asparagus (off the top of my head). Make sure that whatever you choose as a filling is thoroughly pre-cooked and squeezed dry, so that no excess water seeps into the custard (which would make for an unpleasant texture).

I think good quiche requires a decent crust, and I must admit that I find most frozen crusts are pasty and bland. I just don't bother making things with pastry, since the storebought variety irritates me a little and the homemade variety irritates me even more. Good homemade crust relies on keeping the butter super, extra cold. The flour is cut around the cold butter until little globules of cold, firm butter are uniformly coated with flour. Water is dribbled in to bring the pastry dough together, and then it is slid along a flat surface to smear the butter into flat sheets. When the cold dough hits the hot oven, the butter melts quickly, creating flat pockets of steam and a flaky, tender crust. The worst thing you can do to pastry is to let it get warm or add too much water.

I really hate making pastry, but I've learned two tricks that make it easier from my friend Jessica, who is pictured above with her son Jonah. I know, "new" tricks for perfect pastry? It doesn't happen, right? Using vodka or the Cuisinart, I've heard it all, but I swear these two suggestions are unique and actually work. First, put the butter in the freezer and then grate it onto the flour. This trick speeds the cutting step and thus reduces the amount of time that the butter has to get warm. Second, use whole wheat pastry flour, which is more tender than all-purpose flour.

Here's what "pea sized pieces" of butter and flour look like for me, with a tablespoon for reference

Broccoli and Lamb Sausage Quiche

Makes a 8-9" quiche, or six 4" mini-quiche!

I have never bothered to hunt down the "perfect quiche" recipe, since I would wager that if it were as good as it could get, then the fat content would be obscene. I'd rather not find out if I'm missing anything. This recipe is loosely based off of several epicurious suggestion and loosely off of a spinach tart recipe that I love. It works just fine as a starting point. I suggested a broccoli, sausage and swiss cheese filling here. You could just as easily substitute any ingredients you like. Keep a generally similar volume of custard to vegetables to cheese and it'll work

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Chop into bite sized pieces:

3-4 crowns of rinsed broccoli

You can include the stem if you wish (just chop it a little smaller than the rest). Add the broccoli to a small pot or sauce pan, along with

3/4 cup water

A glug of olive oil

Cover, turn the heat to medium, and steam until the broccoli is quite soft (~20-30 minutes). Add more water if the pot starts getting dry. When done, drain thoroughly and set aside.

Place an 8" fry pan on a burner set to medium, add:

2 humanely-raised lamb sausages, casings removed (or several ounces of crumbled pork, boar, nitrate-free bacon or turkey)

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

Brown the sausage (~10 minutes). Drain off the extra oil (save the drippings if you wish - they would be delicious with sauteed greens) and chop the sausage into bite sized pieces. Set aside with the broccoli. You should have about 2 cups of vegetables and about half a cup of sausage.

Whisk together:

2 large, free-range eggs

1/2 cup heavy cream (can substitute half and half or milk)

~1 cup grated Swiss cheese (can substitute all or some with a different cheese type)

1/2 tsp freshly grated black pepper

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/2 tsp ground sage

Stir the cooled broccoli and sausage into the custard mixture. Pour into a pre-baked crust, and bake the quiche for ~30-40 minutes, or until the center is set and firm.

A better quiche crust recipe

Makes enough dough for one 8 or 9" pie or tart pan

Ingredients:

6 tbsp butter

1 cup flour, plus extra for rolling the dough

1/2 tsp salt

4-6 tbsp ice water

Put a stick of butter in the freezer. Measure 1 cup of flour and 1/2 tsp salt into a bowl with a box grater and pastry cutter and place all of that in the freezer too. Wait at least 30 minutes.

Take out the pastry ingredients. Grate 6 tbsp of the butter onto the flour with the medium side of the box grater. Toss the butter around with the flour with your fingers; using a pastry cutter or two forks, cut the butter into the flour until everything is in small pea sized pieces. If the butter starts feeling soft, put it all back in the freezer for a few minutes.

Prepare a large glass of ice water. Drizzle water onto the dough, one tablespoon at a time, stirring after each addition (it will take ~5-6 tbsp of water). When the dough begins to gather into a cohesive (not sticky) ball, turn it onto a lightly floured countertop and knead (smearing the dough across the counter) just once or twice with your palm.

Form the dough into a disk shape, dust thoroughly with flour and wrap in plastic wrap. Freeze for just a few more minutes while you clean up, or let rest in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it.

Roll the dough to fit desired pie or tart pan. Pre-bake the crust at 350 degrees for about 10 minutes and cool slightly before adding the filling.

Apple Spiral Pecan Bread, Could Be Rushed

2008-05-17T11:22:00.001-07:00

About 60 seconds after the last fork is placed on the table and the last morsel of dinner consumed, my grandfather turns to my mother and says, "Ok, Linda, let's go the living room". About 10 minutes after we all relocate to the living room and easy conversation finally settles down to stay, my grandfather turns to my grandmother and says, "Okay, Nance', let's go home". When they walk in the door of their home, the newspaper comes out, the TV turns on, but before long, my grandfather turns to their pet parrot and says, "Okay, Pepper, it's time for bed". Pepper usually agrees.

It turns out that I am my grandfather's granddaughter. We're both on the move. We both look for the next step 3 paces before the last one. We think ahead, and when the goal is known - why wait? I've gotten to be very good at rushing: rushing out of obligation, rushing out of necessity, rushing out of the basis of my personality. I hurry in the morning to get dressed, multitasking as best as I can. I fry the eggs while tamping the coffee down; I pour the orange juice while the butter melts on the toast. I make lunch for Greg and I with my own breakfast in hand. I run around at work to write busy emails and perform speedy experiments, and then I scramble to make dinner once I get home. I rush my way to the end of every day. Dinner's done? Time for cleaning/movie/work/dog park - let's go! My willingness to move with purposeful speed is not just due to the fact that I like things done quickly -- I'm usually impatient to see what's next.

There are a few particular things that I choose to never rush about, notably, my walk to work - I could ride a bike - and the time I spend with Greg - why rush that? These days, I maintain my weekends as a necessary sanctuary of slow pace - I've learned that I burn out otherwise. There are also a few things that will not be rushed, no matter how much I wish them too: Greg (in any capacity), getting Tori to pee (when it's 10pm and raining), and letting ciabatta rise.

Bread will not be rushed: yeast, it turns out, is a fickle and moderate creature that will often refuse to conform to my scheduling needs. Good flavor from wheat takes some time and consistent attention that my week seems too rushed to afford, yet somehow I fit it in. My patience is always rewarded with a satisfying, buttery bite. Bread will do that for a person.

Equally fortunate, I found a bread recipe whose flavor and crumb don't depend on perfect timing. This is a fantastic and flexible recipe (originally from Peter Reinhart, who else) that I have adapted several times. I am very pleased with the result. Making this bread in an evening is - honestly - pretty easy. Reinhart has a habit of providing pages worth of detail in every recipe, but I've posted my modification here with as simple of instructions as I can manage. The nice thing about this bread is that a precise rise is not necessary for good flavor (since it is enriched with eggs, buttermilk and other tasty things). This recipe is not picky in the slightest. The enrichment also helps the bread from going stale, though I doubt - with sticky apple butter and pecans nestled in these slices - a loaf will last you very long. With a little bit of butter and a dash of salt on top, I can't stop eating it. Compared to a regular cinnamon role, this bread is low fat with practically no added sugar, and I love how the bit of whole wheat flour plays off the spicy, moist apple butter and rich nutty pecans. I've made three loaves in a week (one that was plain sandwich bread, below) and I'll be sure to make more soon.

Apple Spiral Pecan Bread

Makes 1 loaf

Simply omit the apple butter and spiraling step to make a normal loaf of sandwich bread.

At first I thought I wanted Walnuts in this bread -- but since Greg is allergic, we went with Pecans and I don't regret it for a moment. However, I think it should be pretty clear that you could substitute whatever you wish for the spiral part. Some ideas: chopped apricots, figs, plum jelly, preserves of any sort, fresh fruit or applesauce, honey, walnuts, pecans, pistachio, or hazelnuts. Taste your filling of choice before using it - the filling should be delicious just on its own, and if it's not, add extra salt, sugar or spices until you are satisfied. The apple butter I used her is all natural: just apples simmered away with a touch of cinnamon and cloves.

I could imagine this going savory with pine nuts, garlic and cheese. Take this idea and run with it...

Stir together in a large bowl:

2 c flour*

1 1/2 tsp active yeast

3/4 tsp salt

Crack an egg into a small dish and whisk it lightly with a fork. Pour on top of the flour:

Scant 1 c buttermilk **

About half the whisked egg

If using whole wheat flour, add an additional:

1-2 tbsp honey (optional)

If using an electric mixer, fit with the dough hook and mix on medium speed for 3-4 minutes, until everything comes together as a uniform dough. If doing things by hand, mix with a large spoon or your hands for 5 minutes. Drizzle in more buttermilk or water if the dough looks dry; sprinkle in extra flour if it looks too moist. The dough should clear the sides of the bowl but stick to the bottom; alternately, it should be moist and stick just a little bit to your finger when touched. Let the dough rest for a few minutes, and then continue kneading for another 10 minutes or so. If you peel off a small bit of dough and stretch it between your fingers, it should be see-through.

Lift the dough off the counter or out of the bowl and drizzle some olive or vegetable oil in the bowl. Form the dough into a loose ball and role around in the oil to coat. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and set in a warm place for as long as it takes for the dough to double in size (~1-2 hours, depending on temperature; you could always turn the oven on for 2-3 minutes, turn it off, and let the dough rise in there).

Sprinkle a clean counter with excess flour. Turn the dough onto the counter and stretch, roll and tug at the dough with your fingers until the it is ~8x16 inches in size. Spread the surface of the dough with:

~3/4 cup apple butter

And sprinkle on:

~1/2 cup roasted pecan pieces

Roll the dough up the long way so that the resulting log is about 8" long. Place in a lightly oiled loaf pan, seam-side up (can't you just see that apple butter bubbling out of the top of the loaf?). Brush the rest of the egg over the loaf, and sprinkle with a little brown sugar or cinnamon if desired. Set loaf pan in a warm place and allow to double in height (again, 1-2 hours). Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 325 degrees. When the loaf has doubled, bake for ~45 minutes. It should spring back nicely when you tap the top. Remove from the oven and cool completely before slicing.

(I haven't tried it yet, but I bet this apple/pecan/whole wheat combo would be perfect with slices of good cheese...)

*I used 50/50 whole wheat and bread flours; all purpose would be fine. The bread flour will yield a better crumb. You can also add a tablespoon or two of gluten to the flour if you wish, which will make for a chewier bite.

**Substitute milk, or milk with something sour (a bit of unflavored yogurt, sour cream or the like). The Reinhart recipe included 1 tbsp vegetable oil or shortening as an additional enrichment; I chose to omit the oil.

I got tagged for a meme

2008-05-10T09:11:00.001-07:00

Here are the rules:
A) The rules of the game get posted at the beginning.
B) Each player answers the questions about himself or herself.
C) At the end of the post, the player then tags five people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog.

1) Ten years ago I was…

A little sad about some things that don't weigh me down anymore

2) Five things on today’s to-do list:

Organize my to-do list!
Pre-cook a few meals for the week ahead
Deal with our mouse infestation by putting out humane traps
Pull weeds and plant sunflowers in the yard
Spring cleaning

3) Things I’d do if I were a billionaire:

Donate most of it, I think. Does an individual person ever, ever have personal use for more than a few million dollars? I think I would set up a research/lobbying foundation for political issues I care about, including significant funds for education and scholarship awards.

"Just me" use -- travel and learn how to be a real photographer. If I could actually travel, maybe some of that photography could deal with political issues too.

4) Three bad habits:

Getting my hands messy while cooking and then touching all of the door knobs and handles in the kitchen. This will one day send Greg over the edge.
Accidentally derailing conversation topics, because I'm occasionally a space cadet like that
Setting potentially unrealistic work deadlines for myself; getting burned out; taking it easy for a little bit; realizing that slowing down let the work pile up; frantically doing things I should have done a while ago. Repeat. And repeat. And... yeah, repeat.

5) Five places I’ve lived:

Toledo, Ohio
Phoenix, Arizona
East Rock, New Haven CT
Wooster Square, New Haven CT
Downtown, New Haven CT

(do three places in New Haven count?)

6) Six jobs I’ve had in my life:

Other than 6 years of lab research!

SAT and math tutor
Cataloging chemical names and MSDS lists for a lab at ASU
Picking up dog poop at a kennel facility at a vet hospital
Secretary at a small company
Summer outreach camp for middle school girls in engineering
TA, TA, TA, TA, TA, TA, TA, TA (yes, times 8, and this year is THE LAST YEAR)

7) Tag 5 other people

Goodness, I don't think five people even read this blog right now. Plus I can't tag Liz because she tagged me : D

Nutcase 101
Brett, but I bet he won't do it...
28 Cooks
Jessy and her dog Whinny, though Jessy I think you're excused from question #6 : )
Marce, who might still be away on vacation!

The Pressure's On

2008-05-05T07:16:00.001-07:00

Have I told you yet that Greg organized a chapter of the National Kickball league right here in New Haven? This was to be a summer of sports and outdoor recreation. We had plans, oh there were plans for fitness and getting in shape... well, poor guy, things don't always go as planned. Greg had a youtube-worthy moment this weekend, and it might have been worth it if only someone had a camera on them. I was working on Saturday so I did not get to witness the event myself, but, apparently, he made a spectacular swan dive towards the giant bouncing rubber ball in order to tag someone out. Unfortunately, by making this amazing save, he landed awkwardly on his side and broke his shoulder.

In case you ever break your shoulder, here's what to expect: horrible pain for the first seven days, an uncomfortable sling that rubs your skin raw, Vicodin, and no use of your arm for 6 weeks. This, and the ER doctor said that his was the slightest injury he could have made. (Better than dislocating a shoulder, apparently).

Greg has been a real trouper about the whole ordeal. There's not much he can do at the moment except watch movies and be uncomfortable on the couch. There's not much I can do for him, either, which makes me feel helpless. So I decided to make him something uber-healthy for Greg to eat on Sunday.

I'm not really a "gadgetty" kind of kitchen person, but a friend of our's gifted us a pressure cooker recently. She passed it along with constant assurances that her husband makes spectacular tofu dishes using it. I haven't quite been able to duplicate the dish that she described (she said it becomes dense and spongey, with a texture akin to frozen tofu), but I have found this new kitchen appliance useful for cooking things rapidly. I've found that, in the last, final stages of cooking, when the grains are drying up and absorbing moisture from every source possible, the tofu can get a little drier and hole-ier.

Pressure cooker tofu is nothing dramatic (for me, so far), but it the method I used to make this healthy salad is simple and the resulting dish is delicious and refreshing. The tofu has a wonderful texture that contrasts nicely with the wild rice, and the flavor creeps up on you: first nutty and grainy, then a burst of citrus flavor and olive oil. Next time I might add a little cilantro. Other possible additions? Toasted chopped walnuts, a little feta, pine nuts, or a squeeze of lemon juice.

Wild Rice Salad with Citrus and Tofu

What I liked better than the texture of this tofu (although that was good too) is the flavor. By cooking the tofu in the pressure cooker with orange juice, the citrus flavor thoroughly infused each cube of tofu. No weird sour/beany taste left.

Slice into 1/2" cubes:

1 package firm tofu

Add tofu to pressure cooker pot, along with

1 cup wild rice

1 cup orange juice

1.5 cups water

A glug of olive oil

Fit the lid onto the pressure cooker, turn the stove to high, and wait for the steam valve to open. Lower the burner so that the pot emits steam in steady spurts (~medium heat), and cook for ~15-18 minutes. (Keep an ear out and nose out for the sounds and smell of a dry pot/burning rice. Better to stop the pressure cooker sooner and finish the rice on the stove if need be). Meanwhile, wash and slice:

1 bunch beet greens (substitute spinach or arugula)

Peel and slice into 1/4" cubes:

2 oranges (I used one Valencia Orange and one Blood Orange)

When the pressure cooker is done, release the steam valve. Let the rice and tofu cool for a minute (taste the rice; if it doesn't seem done, continue cooking on low heat). In a separate pot, steam the greens until wilted (~5-7 minutes) then shock in a bowl of ice water. Squeeze out the excess water and chop finely. Whisk together:

1 tbsp honey

1 tbsp cider vinegar

1 tbsp olive oil

1/2 cup orange juice

1/2 tsp ground sea salt

1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Add the dressing, along with the greens and orange slices to the tofu and rice. Toss together and adjust seasoning if necessary.

Leftovers three ways. Way #3: Cumin Spiked Veggie Burgers

2008-05-04T12:11:00.001-07:00

Having had some delicious soup and then enchiladas just the other day, I found myself staring at several more cups of assorted roasted vegetables (asparagus, peas, carrots and zucchini) tossed with braised tofu and steamed quinoa. Lacking any other ideas, I decided to try my hand at veggie burgers. It was surprisingly simple to prepare, and the end result was tasty...Not earth shattering, but tasty : )

My dad used to always make me smiley face meals. Greg does too : 0

Here's what things looked like before starting the recipe.

Cumin Spiked Veggie Burgers

Makes ~6 patties

I think there are a few things that make this recipe a success. (1) Roasted vegetables = flavor. (2) Quinoa = excellent texture. (3) Egg + Bread Crumbs = binding ability). And (4) Ground up pecans = even better flavor and texture. I'd say you could substitute pretty much any kind of nut in this recipe, although I think the fat content of the pecans helped things along. Be sure to adjust the amount of bread crumbs according to the moisture level of your particular batch.

I found these veggie burgers a tiny bit crumbly and reminiscent of falafel (with all that cumin). I think there are many spice combinations you could try here - curry, salt and pepper, mushrooms, barbeque sauce, etc. If it is important to you that the burgers hold together well, add another egg and up the breadcrumbs.

In a blender or cuisenart, puree:

~1 cup leftover vegetables and grains

1 egg

1/2-3/4 cup pecans or other nut

Small handful of parsley

Stir in:

~1/2 cup leftover vegetables and grains
~1/2 cup toasted bread crumbs (more or less, depending on how moist things seem)

1 tbsp worstershire (optional)

1 tbsp cumin

1 tsp cayenne pepper

Salt, pepper, other spices if desired

If the batter seems too dry, add a dash of olive oil for moisture. Salt and pepper to taste. Working with ~1/3 cup of batter at a time, form into flat patties. Add a swig of olive oil to a good fry pan, and fry the burgers on medium-low heat for ~3-4 minutes per side, or until the egg is cooked through.

Serve burgers on toasted bread or wheat buns, with a slathering of mayo, mustard, ketchup if you wish, and topped with lettuce, red onion and tomato. Delicious.

Leftovers Three Ways. Way #2: Roasted Vegetable and Grain Enchiladas

2008-04-26T13:19:00.000-07:00

I've gotta say, after trying this recipe, I may never again pay $5 for fake meat based on TVP, tofu, or weird fungi. This was good. And natural. And cheap. And it used up these leftovers.

I'm not actually a fan of fake meat. I'd usually rather have vegetables, or occasionally have the real thing. Yet every once and a while, the craving for nachos or meatballs hits me, and I just find myself not wanting to spend $15 for a bowl of free range chili (for that price, I'll take the ribs).

This does the trick and it's all natural and homemade. This time, I used a pre-mixed taco seasoning for flavor (I wanted something salty!). Next time, I'd keep things simple to let the vegetable flavor shine through. I could imagine a variety of light seasonings: a little lemon juice, salt and pepper, maybe a little sage or coriander, cayenne, chili powder, or curry powder. I absolutely loved what the ground up pecans did to this dish. Greg is allergic to walnuts, but I imagine those would work just as well. Next time I'll up it to a full cup of nuts, and I'll toast them beforehand. I also happened to toss in some of the braised tofu as well, although I'm not sure that it added anything, so I left tofu out of this recipe.

Roasted Vegetable and Grain Enchiladas

Serves 2-4

Substitute any vegetables and any grain (except white rice, which might get mushy...) and any nuts you wish. Toasting the nuts before hand might be tasty. This particular set of roasted veggies included carrots, zucchini, asparagus and green peas - but of course, anything would work quite well. You could assemble the filling ahead of time.

In a blender or cuisenart, puree, or finely chop by hand:

~1 cup mixed roasted vegetables and Quinoa

1 egg

Generous 1/2 cup pecans

In a medium bowl, combine the veggie/grain mixture with:

Another 1/2 cup roasted vegetables and Quinoa

Seasonings of choice

Set aside the veggie/grain mixture. Chop:

1/2 sweet onion

1 red pepper

To a large fry pan, add:

1 tbsp olive oil

and saute the onions and peppers on medium-high heat until soft (~10 minutes). Add the veggie/grain mixture and continue sauteeing until cooked through (~10 minutes). Add a splash of olive oil to the bottom of a large casserole dish and assemble the enchiladas with:

6 10-12" flour tortillas

Add ~1/3 cup enchilada filling to each tortilla. Wrap the tortilla around the filling and place, seam side down, in casserole dish. Once assembled, pour over the top of the enchiladas:

1 cup simple red salsa, with a few shots of hot sauce if you wish

1/4 cup chopped pickled jalepenos or green chilis

Bake at 350 degrees for 40 minutes, or until everything is bubbling. Sprinkle over the top of the enchiladas:

1 cup grated cheese

1/4 cup chopped cilantro

Bake for another 10 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly. Serve with sour cream. and extra salsa.

Leftovers Three Ways. Way #1: Roasted Vegetablesand Quinoa Soup

2008-04-24T11:41:00.001-07:00

Passover is a symbolic and ritualistic event. The Passover seder and subsequent meal includes many different foods - all of which have meaning. Among other traditions, Passover should include roasted meat (to commemorate the lamb blood that the Jewish slaves smeared over their doors), fresh peas or other springtime vegetables (renewal), and, of course, no wheat is permitted (to remind ourselves that upon escape, the Jewish slaves were not able to wait for their bread dough to rise, or, to remind ourselves that the Jewish slaves ate poor, unenriched bread, depending on your tradition).

Since our house is mostly veggie, I chose to roast springtime vegetables (asparagus, peas, carrots, zucchini), braise tofu, and serve it all over quinoa drizzled with olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper.

This Passover was a sad event for me. I was rushing through an animal experiment whose timing was out of my control; it could not be postponed no matter what. I spent my entire weekend in lab, hunched over a bench-top with a sterile mask covering my mouth so that I could do something that I hate and find engrossing all at the same time: do brain surgery on 40 rats. For a cultural holiday designed to make you aware of the how you are enslaved in your own life - and remind you that your ancestors have, on more than one occasion, escaped from what opressed them, and that cultures (and animals) across the world experience slavery even today- this was a travesty. I felt terrible. I was both the one doing the enslaving and feeling enslaved. I felt denied the one yearly event that is important to me.

Yet, somehow it all worked. I finished my surgeries at 5pm on Sunday and raced home to assemble a small seder dinner by 7pm. Greg, myself, my officemate Audrey (who had never been to a seder before), and our Jewish friend Josh sat down to a lovely evening where we swapped stories of religion, discussed the symbolic importance of everything we ate, and had more than a glass of wine or two.

When we finished our meal, there was enough leftover roasted vegetables and quinoa (among other dishes!) to feed a small army. I used these roasted vegetables in three ways this week, and I thought I'd share the ideas with you. These are, of course, all very loose recipes.

Roasted Vegetable and Quinoa Soup

Serves 4

Certainly this recipe calls for improvisation. This is a kitchen soup sort of soup! What I like best is the contrasting flavor of lemon and Quinoa

Combine the following ingredients in a medium sized soup pot:

2 cups mixed ratio of roasted vegetables and Quinoa, with tofu if you prefer

4 cups good vegetable stock

2 cups water

Cover, turn the heat to medium and simmer for 15-20 minutes, or until the stock thickens slightly. Add

The juice of half a lemon (or, lemon juice to taste)

Sprinkle with

A handful of chopped cilantro

And serve!

Abortion Art and Our Neighbor With Furry Boots

2008-04-22T07:05:00.001-07:00

Several months ago, our neighbor told Greg that she would be graduating soon and was to have a senior project exhibited in April. When Greg said he'd like to see it, she said, I hope we can still be friends afterwards. Later, we both shrugged and figured her nervousness was an oddity, like the furry boots she wears even when it's 90 degrees outside.

The story broke several days ago. Aliza Shvarts repeatedly inseminated herself, herbally induced abortions in her home every month for nine months, collected the blood each time, and smeared this evidence with Vaseline across plastic sheeting that was wrapped around a cube to serve as a projection screen for videos she took of herself performing the act. Wow. As Greg put it, "Gross. We know her."

Anyone who knows me for more than a few minutes probably picks up on the fact that I am an opinionated person. It's just in me. I don't know why. Sometimes the opinions drive me nuts - they never go away - and sometimes they drive other people nuts - for the same reason. Opinions are neither right or wrong, they just are, and I equally enjoy giving and hearing them. So it's funny, when I think about this necessary aspect of my own personality, that I've never really offered up an opinion on this blog about something other than food. Well, this particular story might be quite a leap off topic, but I find it impossible to ignore - especially since Aliza Shvarts is our next door neighbor, a passing friend that we long ago nicknamed "Boots" who waves to our dogs and parks behind my Camry.

When the story first broke, I was horrified. Obsessed might be more like it. Despite the fact that I am quite firmly pro-choice, this (apparently) flagrant disregard for life - originating from a truly lovely woman who likes funky footwear - floored me. Perhaps even more shocking was the fact that Greg was cheering her on. This surprised me for two reasons: (1) although Greg himself could win a prize for being opinionated, it's usually not about philosophical life vs. non-life debates (more often it's about the correct way to put silverware in the dishwasher, but I digress) and (2) how on earth could he be cheering her on? I argued that it's not right to use "life" (no matter how small or cellular that life may be) as a political tool. He argued that anti-choicers have been using this tool to ruin female lives for the entire history of anti-choice. These continuing conversations took a rather interesting turn when it came out that Aliza's "pregnancies" probably didn't take place, that the blood was just menstrual fluid, that there are no true abortion herbs available online (if there were why bother with RU 486!), and that, indeed, Aliza had pulled off an incredible hoax on liberal and conservative America alike. Furthermore, although science requires, necessarily, that this is a hoax - Aliza denies that it was any kind of hoax. She insists that she regularly inseminated herself and induced bleeding at the end of the month.

Aliza didn't actually list her reasons explicitly, although many people have put these words in her mouth: free speech, art, political discourse, necessary controversy, useful discussion. Equally, the other side argued their reasons: disregard for life, fuel for the anti-choicers, attention grabbing stunt, danger to her own health, pointless, no-good-discussion-can-come-of-this. Several days of "do you think she did it?" discussion followed these events. The controversy which surrounded this topic made our conversations on it inexhaustible: the parents, the adviser, Yale, her... how, why, and what did this all mean?

I sat on my rigid, anti-what-she-did opinion for a while, and then I felt it ... strangely... melt away. Because what Aliza did or didn't do was exactly the point of her piece. Anti-choicers have argued, for long while, that conception begins at fertilization as opposed to implantation. This concept strikes many (myself included) as absurd - eggs are commonly fertilized and then lost in menstrual fluid. It's quite a normal process, and if indeed personhood begins at fertilization, I will have killed somewhere nearing 70 "people" in my adult, female, menstruating life. When we all thought that Aliza became pregnant and aborted those pregnancies, it was horrifying. When we realized that it was just normal menstruation that she chose to make into an attention grabbing piece of art, we rolled our eyes and turned our backs.

Yet what's the real difference? Why is it different for a sexually active woman on the pill to routinely engage in sex and have a fertilized, non-implanted egg go down the toilet every month, and for an art student to engage in the same act (minus the romance) and pretend that some herbal remedy (as opposed to the pill) was involved?

The difference is that it is a moral judgment, not a medical one, which determines the reaction. As a sexually active woman on the pill, I am no different than Aliza Shvarts. She could have yelled this fact on the top of her lungs and I never would have heard it - but 4 days of agonizing over this controversy, and it finally just hit home in a rather satisfying and permanent way. Aliza couldn't have said what she wanted to say. She needed to do what she did and allow other people to say it, personally, individually, publicly, softly and loudly to each other. She needed to do what she did to allow people to come to their own conclusions.

So now, we don't see Boots tromping around our street. In fact, when we did see her once, she revealed that Yale was planning to expel her, that she's received death threats, that her parents are terrified and flew in from California to stay with her, she's worried that her landlord is angry with her, and that she's upset about her future. All of these fears were revealed to Greg in only several shy sentences. Her father called her on the cell phone that very minute. She replied that she was okay, that the bus just dropped her off and she'd be inside right away.

All this over menstrual blood. Job well done, Aliza. Your work was brilliant.

Some links

The Story

Yale's Rebuttal

An excellent commentary

Some things are just primal

2008-04-13T15:26:00.001-07:00

Look what I did:

My first ribs in 7 years, and they were outstandingly, mouth-wateringly spectacular. I remember enough of my last rib sampling to know that these ribs were worth the high premium ($2.50 a rib bone!) for more than just the relatively happy pasture-based life that my extra dollars afforded this animal - they were also complex in flavor with well distributed fat. There wasn't a speck of gristle on this rack.

The slow roast in the oven idea comes straight from Greg's dad (thanks, Jim). The ribs are liberally seasoned, placed over a rack of simmering water in the oven and slowly steamed over the course of the afternoon. The salt acts as a brine (keeping moisture in). The longer the ribs steam, the more tender and fall-off-the-bone the meat becomes. In the last 20 minutes of cooking, the ribs are placed on a low fire grill and basted several times with barbeque sauce. This last step on the grill built up a mouth watering crust of savory, sweet, tangy barbeque sauce. These ribs were, in a word: awesome. There are some human activities, like pulling melt-in-your-mouth roasted meat off the bone, that are just so primal, and...I want more.

Awesome Pork Ribs

I chose a very simple dry rub and used store bought barbeque sauce (I used "Bone Sucking Sauce" brand - I couldn't not try it, with that title - watch out, the link has music). You could put anything in the rub you like, so long as there is a good amount of salt in the first step. I'm not sure if a one hour brine actually tenderizes, but I found warnings, online, that brining overnight "might" make the meat too salty - so, extend the brining time at your own risk.

Combine the ingredients for the dry rub:

1 tbsp sea salt or kosher salt

1 tsp celery salt

1 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp black pepper

2 tsp garlic powder

Rinse:

4-5 lb humanely raised pork ribs, ~2 servings (trimmed of fat if necessary - mine did not require this step)

in cool water and drain for a moment. Place the ribs in a deep baking dish and rub with seasonings. Cover and store in the refrigerator for at least an hour or up to several hours. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 250 degrees. Remove the ribs from the fridge and place them on a grate or cooling rack. Cover the bottom of the roasting pan in silver foil and place the grate or rack with the ribs on top. Form a tent out of aluminum foil and place in the oven. Pour in:

3 cups water

After the first hour, remove the ribs with tongs onto a plate or cutting board. Smear both sides liberally with

3-5 tbsp mustard

Continue cooking, turning the ribs every hour, for 3-4 hours. You can cook the ribs for up to 6-7 hours, so long as the heat is low and you keep an eye on them. Make sure the internal temperature has reached at least 160 degrees (but don't stop there! the ribs get tender from prolonged cooking). Get the grill preheated to medium-low heat and place

1 cup good barbeque sauce

in a small dish. Transfer the ribs to the grill and baste each side. Grill on low or medium heat, basting every 5 minutes, for about 20 minutes, or until a good thick barbeque crust has formed. If necessary, turn the flame up to high for a moment to char the meat - but make sure to keep an eye on it so that it won't burn. Serve and enjoy!

The ultimate, perfectly textured bran muffin.

2008-04-13T12:48:00.001-07:00

I happen to love bran muffins - actually, I love bran. It adds a nice texture to baked goods, and the nutty flavor and healthy omega three's are added bonuses. But, good muffin recipes are hard to find, and I've been looking for a long time. Traditional muffins are easy to toughen by over-mixing; bran muffins are almost always flat and heavy. Sometimes you can rescue a bran muffin's texture but adding lots of oil to the batter or butter to the final product. But what's the point of making a muffin out of something healthy if the flavor and texture is completely overwhelmed by oil? I'm not opposed to full fat bran muffins - they're delicious - but that's not that recipe I'm looking for.

That is, the recipe I was looking for... see, I found the bran muffin recipe of my dreams. It's basic. The flavor is the teensiest bit bland, but in a good way, because the muffins call you to play with all sorts of exciting add-ins. If you're anything like me, the ingredient list is going to strike you as fussy and when you mix it all together the batter will just see too liquidy. You might scoff at the idea of 1.5 tbsp in 12 muffins. But when you watch these glorious - repeat, glorious - muffins puff up into golden domes as they bake, your mouth will start to water. And then when they've cooled down and you take your first bite - you will be happy and saitsfied: healthy, tasty, perfectly textured bran muffin at long last.

This recipe is dead on for texture. I made some slight flavor modifications based on what I had in the pantry and epicurious recipe suggestions. Here are some ideas for what you could add to it:

Fresh or Dried fruit, like blueberries, cranberries, bananas, apples, raisins, figs, etc

Grated zucchini or carrot

Chocolate chips, toasted walnuts, pecans

Coconut flakes, shredded coconut or coconut milk to replace the oil

A variety of flavored jams, preserves or sweet things to tuck inside

Spices... cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, something spicy

Etc

I have made this recipe four times already. Twice, I used a mixture of yogurt and milk (turned out fine), once I used buttermilk (turned out better - the butermilk regulates the acidity and moisture level perfectly), and a fourth time I tried using all whole wheat flour (too sour). I have also played around with the sweetener part of the recipe and decided on a mix of sugar, honey and molasses. As I said, fussy! But tasty. My suggestion to simplify the sweetener step is to take a 1/2 c. measuring cup and fill it with whatever sweetener you want to. Just make it a 1/2 cup and you'll be fine. I tried both oat bran and wheat bran and do not have a preference; use whatever you wish (wheat bran is lighter).

Ultimate Buttermilk Bran Muffins

Adapted from the Healthy Oven Baking Book by Sarah Phillips, recipe here

Makes 12 muffins or 1 loaf

In my favorite batch, I chose to add chunked (chunked, not mashed) banana and coconut flakes. It was a wonderfully moist, barely sweet breakfast treat.

Preheat the oven to 350 and butter a muffin tin or loaf pan. If using the loaf pan, cut parchment to fit the bottom, and butter that too. Sift together:

1 cup wheat bran

2/3 cup (80g) unbleached all-purpose flour

2/3 cup (90g) whole wheat flour

1 1/4 tsp baking soda

1/2 tsp salt

In a medium bowl, blend together:

1 1/4 low-fat, cultured buttermilk (can substitute yogurt with milk or soy milk)

1/4 cup granulated sugar

2 tbsp honey

2 tbsp molasses (see, 1/2 cup total)

1/4 unsweetened applesauce

1 large egg

1 1/2 tbsp vegetable oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

Gently fold the dry ingredients into the wet ingredients. Stir in:

1/2 cup unsweetened coconut flakes

A banana, sliced into 1/2" chunks

Pour into prepared muffin tin or loaf pan. Bake until the tops spring back when pressed gently in the center, about 20 minutes for the muffins and about 30 minutes for the loaf. Do not overbake. Cool on a wire rack and enjoy.

Anticipation

2008-04-13T10:38:00.001-07:00

This may very well be the best$33.47 I've spent in a while:

Greg and I will know in a few hours. It has been 7 years since I last tasted ribs, and I think, with this insanely expensive pasture-grazed Pork, it's gunna be good...

Busy Bear

2008-04-07T06:39:00.000-07:00

I am calling myself a busy bear instead of a busy bee, because "busy bee" seems to imply something happily buzzing around a pretty flower, and that's not at all how I've been feeling lately.

Work and life are keeping me stressed and hectic these days. I haven't even glanced at a news story in the last two weeks, let alone all of my favorite blogs. Here's a big "sorry" to the e-world for not keeping up with your recipes and stories. I guess I'm going to put my head back down and continue pursuing these projects. I've got a huge experiment coming up next week, so it might be a while... In the words of our favorite CA governator, I'll be back. Err, eventually

If I told you I had a recipe for peanut butter cookies with three ingredients would you call me crazy? Oh, they're gluten free and taste awesome too. Just read on...

2008-03-22T14:15:00.001-07:00

Three ingredients, no mixer necessary, and these peanut butter cookies are mighty tasty. Now, they might not have a chewy texture or a a perfectly sized crumb - in fact, they might not have any crumb at all - but they do have what is necessary and sufficient to receive the title of excellent peanut butter cookie: peanut butteryness.

Because really, what does flour do to a peanut butter cookie? Flour makes the cookie taste less like peanut butter. Get rid of it!

So here you go. Mix these three ingredients together. Plop them onto a cookie sheet and don't over-bake. Serve them to your friends and try to get someone to guess what the other two ingredients are. I have yet to find a taste tester who can tell these cookies are missing the flour - it's all delicious fun. This recipe is a great choice for individuals who cannot have wheat gluten.

Simply Peanut Butter Cookies

1 cup creamy peanut butter

1 cup granulated sugar, plus extra for rolling

1 egg

Thoroughly mix all three ingredients together. Roll into teaspoons of dough into small balls and roll into sugar; and flatten cookies onto a baking sheet by pressing fork tines into the top. Bake at 350 degrees for ~8-10 minutes. They'll seem underdone and way too soft, but they'll harden up as they cool.

You can also press a chunk of chocolate into the top before putting them in the oven, if desired.

Biscotti Biscotti

2008-03-15T06:29:00.001-07:00

William-Sonoma, you tricked me. You, master of cookie cookbooks, king of classic cookie recipes... you, you failed me.

Sort of.

Actually, these biscotti are amazing and I think you should make them first thing tonight before you go to bed. I can't stop eating them. What I take issue with is that William Sonoma makes a whole big pointed fussy scene about how you should cream the butter and sugar until no grit can be felt between your fingers. Now, I've used this advice in other recipes and been very happy with it - properly creamed butter and sugar provide for moist, substantial cookie crumb. Whenever you've tasted homemade cookies with perfectly moist, even texture, they probably creamed the butter and sugar really, really well.

But I made these biscotti twice - once, in a rush, with fridge cold butter and just incorporated sugar, and a second time, with fridge cold butter that I creamed with the sugar for almost 15 minutes over a bowl of steaming water to help the butter along - and the verdict's in: biscotti do not benefit from properly creamed, room temperature butter, at least in this recipe. In fact, they're better off with gritty bits of butter and sugar that cut into the flour. The first batch came out crumbly and dry but not hard. They melted in my mouth. The second batch was more cake-like or cookie-like than biscotti-like. I didn't want cake-like or cookie-like, I wanted biscotti-like: crumbly, dry, melt in your mouth biscotti. Then I sent samples of both batches to my grandmother - queen of all things biscotti - and she declared her preference for the well-creamed-butter batch. So, take your pick.

My advice would be to cream your butter and sugar for about four to five minutes in a stand mixer. Oh, and make these: they're nutty, crumbly, buttery, not too hard, not too sweet, perfectly crisp, flecks of orange zest balanced by loads of cinnamon and toasted, fragrant hazelnuts...last for at least a week...so simple and delectable.

By the way, last Saturday morning, our alarm clock self-adjusted for daylight savings time one day too early. We scrambled out of bed because I was frantic to get to lab on time, and then I found myself with one extra hour before needing to go take care of my experiment. So I made biscotti. In scrolling down the past few entries of this cooking blog, I just realized that it is has been fairly heavy on the sweets and low on the savory. I figure I owe y'all an explanation. See, I've been working crazy hours for the past two weeks and we've been, <gasp>, surviving entirely on take-out. This schedule was all supposed to last for the entire month of April, until a fellow lab member kind of screwed me over in an aggressive battle for the surgical space that I needed and the remaining half of my experiment has pushed until the end of April. </rant>. Her rudeness = my inconvenience = better for our sustenance!

Hazlenut and Dried Cherry Biscotti

Recipe reworded from William-Sonoma Cookies. Note that you could substitute any toasted nut or dried fruit that you wish - I tried macadamia nuts too, but I prefer the hazlenuts by far.

Makes ~24 biscotti

1/2 cup unsalted butter

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 tbsp grated orange zest

2 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 3/4 (280g) unbleached all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp ground cinnamon

1/4 tsp salt

1 cup hazlenuts, toasted and skinned, coarsely chopped

1/2 cup dry cherries, coarsely chopped, optional

Preheat the oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with parchment*.

Cream the butter and sugar with the zest. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well on low speed after each addition. Beat in the vanilla on low speed until blended.

Sift the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt together onto a sheet of parchment paper. Add the flour mixture in two or three additions to the egg mixture, stirring just until incorporated. Stir in the hazlenuts and cherries until evenly distributed. The batter should be very soft.

Turn the batter out onto a floured surface and divide in half. Shape into a log about 12" long and 1.5" in diameter. Press lightly on the top to flatten the log into a biscotti shape. Shape the second log, leaving at least 4" between the two (they will spread as they bake).

Bake the logs until the edges are golden, 25-30 minutes. Let the logs cool for 10 minutes. Using a serrated knife, cut the logs on the diagonal to 1/2" slices. Turn the slice on their sides and return them to the oven. Bake them until the edges are golden, about 10 minutes longer. Cool completely and store in an airtight container.

*You can toast the hazlenuts at this point if needed. Just put them in the oven for ~10 minutes, then skin them between hands or a towel - don't let them burn.

Easiest Tasty Winter Soup

2008-03-08T12:32:00.001-08:00

I wish I could say that I enjoyed a bowl of soup this week. I wish I could tell you these leftovers are sitting in my fridge right now... but I can't. Why? It might be because I am masochistically inclined to pile up work into short periods of time, because graduate research involving animals takes up ungodly hours of the day, or because I really can't wait on more minute to finish this chapter of my thesis... it might be that all of those reasons add up to a really, really busy week (soon to be month) with hardly time to shower let alone cook.

And this is the perfect soup - that I so-happened to make almost two weeks ago - for what I am craving this week. It is healthy but filling, wintery but not full of cheese and cream. It is a satisfying, stick to your ribs kind of soup that doesn't take more than 20 minutes of active time to prepare.

Easiest Tasty Winter Soup

1lb dried Great Northern beans

2 small onions

1 head Napa cabbage

1 bay leaf

4 cups water

4 cups stock (vegetable, or free-range organic chicken)

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Put the beans in a large pot with an extra 1" of water to cover. Either: (1) soak overnight, or (2) bring to a boil, turn off heat and soak for one hour. Drain the soaking water and rinse beans thoroughly.

2. Slice the cabbage (1/4")and dice the onion (1/4-1/2"). Add the onion with the bay leaf, water and stock to the beans. Cover, bring to a rapid simmer and cook until the beans are tender (2-3 hours, depending on how old the beans are). Add the cabbage and season with salt and pepper to taste. Simmer for another 15 minutes.

Gnocchi like we had in Italy, step by step. And a video clip from our trip.

2008-02-28T19:11:00.001-08:00

Greg and I recently traveled through Italy for three weeks. I ordered gnocchi half a dozen times. Five out of six times, what arrived at our table had clearly originated from a vacuum-packed, commercial gnocchi supplier...and with good reason. A batch of fresh gnocchi can take up to an hour to prepare.

At one point in our journey, we found ourselves in the charming and non-touristy town of Padova, AKA Padua, just outside of Venice (see video above - three weeks footage of our trip, and it took me almost a year to pots one clip!). After a long day of traveling in cold, drenching rain, we stumbled into a little inn that was a block from our hotel. Greg eagerly ordered the spicy clam linguini, and I hesitantly pointed to the gnocchi. The spicy linguini was the best we had on the trip (or ever since), and the gnocchi were amazing: sized like scallops and drenched in an artichoke puree, I felt like I was eating light, pillowy clouds. Commercial gnocchi are not exactly better or worse, they're just different. At least once, it's worth the time to try making gnocchi at home!

Recipe credit to Heidi at 101 Cookbooks

Photo credit to Greg, somewhere in Domestic Bliss (?) , CT

1. Slice two large russet potatoes. Bring to a boil, cover, and cook until a knife inserted in the center slides out easily. Alternately, bake the potatoes. Peel and let cool for a moment.

2. Push the potatoes through a ricer

3. Mound the potato shavings and make an indent in the center, in which you should place 1/2 to 1 well-beaten egg. Sift 3/4-1 cup flour on top.

4. Knead the dough lightly, adding extra sprinkles of flour as necessary (up to an additional 1/4 cup). The dough should not be sticky, but it should feel light, soft, and a little pillowy. Like Play-doh. If you can roll it into tubes without it sticking to the board, it's firm enough; feel free to add more flour to make it firmer.

5. Roll sections of dough into logs

6. Cut the logs to the desired size

7. Form the gnocchi. Drop into salted boiling water and cook until they float to the top. Gnocchi are best served with thin, clingy sauces (eg, herby pesto, a non-chunky marinara, brown butter and sage, or something creamy).

A note on how to form gnocchi: using a gnocchi board (picture), or the tines of a fork, lightly press the gnocchi to form ridges. Method (a), in the photo above, I used my index finger to create ridges on one half and smoosh the other side into a orochietti shape. Method (b), use the palm of your hand to quickly roll a segment of dough down the board. The dough turns into a tube (gemelli shape) , and this is how I made all of the gnocchi pictured at the top. Alternately, refrigerate large tubes (1" diam) and slice with a knife into scallop sized pieces.

Would you believe me if I said these gnocchi were too pillowy? These gnocchi were so soft that they lacked definite bite, and they didn't quite hold up to the quick red sauce I prepared. Slicing the gnocchi into large, scallop sized pieces about 1" around cured that problem. Alternately, and probably a better option, add a full egg (I only added half of one) and a little extra flour to create a firmer dough. This will make the gnocchi much easier to work with. Test a few pieces of gnocchi in boiling water as you go in order to find the right size gnocchi or amount of flour (this is really the only way to be sure you like the texture).

Tori's Drunk (on Pear Infused Vodka)

2008-02-24T18:50:00.001-08:00

Tori, the dog, was drunk before noon this Saturday. It might be my fault.

Mmm, pear infused vodka. This turned out soo good...

See, lately I've been into flavored Vodka, and by "flavored" I don't mean Raspberry Stoli. I mean, flavors I choose. Thanks to my dad for passing this tip along to me: if you'd like to make an infused vodka, just pour cheap vodka into a sealable contained and toss in dried fruit, coffee beans, citrus peals, or whatever individual item strikes your fancy. Let it sit for a few days or weeks, and viola: your own, personal, preservative free Kahlua is on its way to completion.

The coffee-bean Vodka was so rapidly saturated with, err, coffee-beanyness, that it became opaque after only a few days. I tried getting a photo by holding the bottle up against a light source, and this is what I got. See the coffee beans all the way on the right?

I've used this technique to great success with dried pears. The shriveled up pears already have natural (or added?) sugar, and this sweetness rounds out the flavors of the infused vodka enough to have a sip-able or mixable concoction. Last night, I decided to churn up a Vanilla Pear Vodka ice cream (akin to Rum Raisin). Well, of course, the alcohol content was too high and the ice-cream was really more like cold-cream-not-iced, but after 3 hours in the freezer, it was semi solid enough to eat with a spoon. The flavor was excellent, though next time I'd lower the Vodka content and increase the pear content.

Thief. I might find it cuter if, in the last hour, she hadn't slurped up a bowl of soup, polished off our gnocchi leftovers, and gorged herself on a to-be-thrown-out macaroni casserole. Greg and I look forward to a sleepless night with multiple trips to the front yard...

It was Friday night and Greg and I had already devoured a hearty vegetable pot pie for dinner -- we didn't actually finish our boozey cream. We fell asleep, forgot about the cups sitting on the coffee table, and Tori found them the next morning. Needless to say, she was overly friendly for around 20 minutes before passing out for a nice Saturday morning nap. Boozehound.

This picture is from a while ago for another purpose. We used Gordon's Vodka for this recipe.

Soft Ginger Cookie-Land

2008-02-21T15:57:00.001-08:00

I searched for a long time to find a soft ginger cookie that would match this Lemon Gelato Recipe. The recipe I finally found has many enviable merits:

Strong molasses /ginger flavor
Incredibly soft. In fact, in the week that it took us to eat all 40 of them (with friends! other people helped!), the cookies became softer every day; the ginger flavor intensified, too. This is the perfect cookie to make if you need something that won't go stale quickly. These would be fantastic care-package cookies.
You add boiling water to the dough. Why is this a merit? Because there's no "cutting of butter" or "mix just until incorporated" - these cookies couldn't turn out tough if you tried

With all these merits worth detailing, this cookie is not - a very unfortunate not - so great for you (not that cookies are healthy food, but I'd rather eat butter than hydrogenated oils any day). It calls for 1/2 cup of vegetable shortening which amounts to a very small amount of trans fat per serving (even if you get "Trans fat free" shortening, don't be fooled). Next time I make these, I'll substitute butter or oil and see if they still hold their texture.

Super Soft Ginger Cookies

Slight modification to Bon Appetit's Recipe

Makes ~40

I had the same difficulty that other bakers noted: these cookies are messy to make, since the dough is so soft. But do not despair! Rather than refrigerating for an hour, I would suggest several hours of chill time. I left mine in the fridge overnight and had little difficulty forming them out of damp hands. Lots of excess sugar helped create that mouth-watering crumbly top, and a push in the center helped keep the cookies thin and flat. I kept these cookies non-fussy by removing the extra spices.

4 cups unbleached flour
1 cup sugar
5teaspoons baking powder
3 teaspoons ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup molasses
1/2 cup pure vegetable shortening
1 large egg, beaten to blend
1/2 cup boiling water
Additional sugar

Preparation

Add the flour, sugar and spices to a large bowl. Add molasses, shortening, and egg. Using electric mixer, beat until well blended. Beat in 1/2 cup boiling water. Chill dough 3-4 hour or overnight

Preheat oven to 400°F. Lightly moisten your hands and roll chilled dough by generous tablespoonfuls into balls. Roll in additional sugar to coat. Place dough balls 2 inches apart on ungreased baking sheets. Bake until cookies are puffed and cracked on top and tester inserted into center comes out with some moist crumbs attached, about 12 minutes (do not overbake). Transfer cookies to racks and cool.

Luscious Lemon Gelato and a Control Fix

2008-02-15T08:26:00.001-08:00

Do you really like it when the papers on your desk make right angles? Do you secretly smile when the tupperware containers stack exactly in the fridge with room left over? Does your heart skip a beat when the ingredients around you magically form mise en place?

You, my friend, may very well be just like me. You might be a closet control-freak. People wouldn't guess it, looking at me: hair generally awry, loose fitting clothes, dusty shoes and post it notes littering my workspace, forgotten appointments and misplaced keys... yes, I am messy, it is true. But I permit the mess in my life to exist in exchange for a a few moments of perfect order. Maybe what I really like the contrast of the two. Simplicity in the face of a chaotic day makes me smile.

Thus, there are the hectic evenings. There are the rushed lasagnas, pa sta du jour's, and the let's-use-up-leftovers-now stews. These meals generally imply an excess of effort, complication, and hashed together attempts to balance out whatever random flavors might be sitting in my cupboard. This kind of utilitarian attitude towards cooking puts food on the table, but it doesn't relax me. Understanding the design of simple, flavorful recipes - that is what relaxes me. Those perfect recipes are the basic pleasure of cooking: pure, clean, singular flavors. Finding the simple essence of a thing is what feels healthy to me.

So this dessert might be 80% half and half and it might go well with ginger cookies that turn out to be a mess to prepare (recipe forthcoming), but it will make you feel good inside. Not only is this dessert guaranteed to taste amazing, but the recipe is as bare-bones as good cooking can get. If you're a closet control freak like me, you can make the counter spotless, arrange your ingredients in little bowls and set the whisk to the side of a heavy bottom saucepan. Then you can grin, because you know this one will taste spectacular.

No, it didn't last long.

Luscious Lemon Gelato

Slightly adapted from this Gourmet recipe

Makes ~4 cups - you can just as easily make a half batch, but why?

If you don't believe me, read the epicurious reviews: this Gelato is truly spectacular. It is just tart enough to make your mouth water, and its fresh sweetness will remind you of a perfect summer's day. The velvety cream will melt slowly in your mouth and you won't be able to stop yourself from reaching for more. It can't go wrong. Just heat the custard slowly to make sure it doesn't curdle. If you don't have an ice cream maker, try this granita style (freeze slowly on a cookie sheet, scraping with a fork every 20 minutes).

1 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

The zest of four lemons*

1.5 cups sugar

1/4 tsp salt

6 egg yolks

4 cups half and half

1 tsp vanilla

In a solid saucier or soup pot, whisk together the lemon juice, zest, sugar, salt, egg yolks and 2 cups of half and half. Turn the heat to low or medium-low, and bring to a bare simmer, whisking often. As soon as the mixture comes to a simmer, take the pot off the heat and let cool. Strain through a few layers of cheesecloth** and place in the refrigerator to chill for two hours or overnight.

Add the remaining two cups of cream and vanilla. Freeze the mixture in an ice cream maker, following the manufacture's direction. Let the gelato firm up for at least an hour or two in the freezer before serving (the flavor will improve as it sits)

*This should give you 1 cup lemon juice. Since you're zesting, find organic/unwaxed, if possible

**Based on Epicurious reviewer suggestions, I left the zest in the first time I made this. But Greg said it reminded of hair, so the next time I made it I included the straining step - I think it is better without the zest.

"She makes me soup"

2008-02-04T10:22:00.001-08:00

Greg is sick, it's snowing outside, and that means soup. I came home from work in the middle of the day to make this, throwing everything together from what I had in the fridge. Because I had roasted some fennel on Sunday, the soup was done in 30 minutes.

There are two Matzoh Ball camps: dense Matzoh (my dad) and soft Matzoh (my brother). My dad rolls Matzoh balls around in his hands until they are perfectly spherical. Once simmered, these symmetric balls are dense or even chewy to the bite. Many people prefer them this way. My brother and I are of the soft camp. If you'd like to try them this way, just take a teaspoon and lightly scoop up some dough, then drop the dough into boiling water without any further manipulation. This method will yield a wonderfully spongelike Matzoh Ball that soaks up the soup flavoring. I wouldn't have them any other way.

This soup is fragrant, sweet, salty and filling. If you choose to make this with vegetable stock, this is a wonderful vegetarian alternative to chicken noodle. If you don't want to bother with fennel, substitute carrots sliced into 1/4" disks and skip the roasting step.

Matzoh Ball Soup with Fennel

1 large fennel

1 medium onion

4 cloves garlic

4 cups stock (vegetable or free-range chicken stock, or water would probably do fine)

2 cups water, optional

1/2 tsp each: celery salt, oregano, freshly ground black pepper

1 cup baby arugula or other green (eg, regular arugula, spinach, kale, or even cabbage) chopped to an edible size

Matzoh Ball Mix (or make your own)

Olive Oil

Salt to taste

The fennel may be prepared the day before. Preheat the oven to 350. Discard the fennel fronds and slice the bulb into 1/2" wide wedges. Scatter the wedges of fennel onto a nonstick cookie sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Roast the fennel until soft throughout and brown on the edges (~30 minutes), stirring every 10 minutes or so.

Peel the onion and slice into 1/8" rings or half-moons. Peel the garlic and slice as thinly as possible. Add 1-2tbsp of olive oil to a heavy bottom soup pot and bring to medium heat. Add the onions, garlic and fennel. Saute until the onion until it is nicely browned, about 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the Matzoh Ball Mix as directed (generally this involves mixing the Matzoh powder with eggs and oil and chilling for 15 minutes).

When the onions are done, deglaze with the stock and add an additional two cups of water*. Add the seasonings. Simmer for about 5 minutes and salt to taste. How much salt this soup needs will depend on what kind of stock you used - add about a half teaspoon of salt to start, and add additional salt about 1/4 tsp at a time. Give the salt enough time to dissolve before adding more (a minute or so while simmering should do it).

Gently scoop teaspoons of Matzoh Ball Mix directly into the pot. Add the arugula, cover, and turn the heat to high. Allow the soup to boil for about 10 minutes. Simmer for another minute or two, adjusting the liquid level with water or seasoning with additional salt if desired. Enjoy.

*You may ommit this step for a thicker, stronger broth. I like my broth light.

Eye-bee-thuh not Eye-bee-za

2008-02-02T12:10:00.001-08:00

I want to tell you about a dinner we had. I don't have any pictures of it, I don't know exactly how it was made and I certainly won't be able to give you an entire ingredient list or link to a recipe. The dinner consisted of drinks and a few appetizers at a well-known local restaurant. I want to record it here so I never forget, so I can look back on this writing and drool, so that one day maybe I could try to make something like them myself.

Tuna Tartar - I don't even normally eat raw tuna. The tiny, perfectly sized cubes of tomato tricked me. Come to think of it, I don't even normally eat raw tomatoes! But where did the tuna stop and the tomato begin? You've got me. Their perfectly similar texture and shape was balanced by sweet tuna vs sharp tomato. With chopped fresh onion, bits of other unidentifiable goodness and perfectly simmered lentils on the side, this tuna tartar was delicious, creamy, and way more than the sum of its parts.

Seared Scallops with Corn Flour Tetilla - Seared scallops are always good, but what made this special was its side: a creamy, bechemel-ish cheese layer sandwiched between two grilled polenta-type slices. The dense texture and nutty flavor of the polenta contrasted with the creamy smoothness of who-knows-what-kind-of-tantilizing-cheese. The balance of flavor and texture was sublime.

Potato Tortilla - there are potato tortillas (oil+thinly sliced potatoes+oven) and then there's this. No I don't have a clue what was seasoning that oil but it might as well have been pure MSG. Bacon fat? Duck fat? Was it merely the Idiazabal cheese listed on the menu? I probably won't figure it out until I try it at least a few more times...

That's all folks. Oh, here's where you call for reservations.

Wild What

2008-01-27T18:38:00.001-08:00

I have a confession to make. When I deviate from my mostly vegetarian palette... when I indulge in what I try to be sure is humane, ecologically raised food... when I find myself wanting some meat... I want... well, meat. I mean real meat, powerful, chewy, flavorful meat. Don't give me any of that chicken breast white crap: I want bacon, chicken thighs, or wild boar.

Wild Boar? What?

No, seriously, it's pretty much my new best friend. Let me list the reasons:

(1) My primary concern in choosing what I eat is sustainability. Wild Boar are sometimes Feral Pigs, which exist in annoying, pest-like abundance - reducing the local population of feral animals does the environment, relatively speaking, a favor. Even when "farm-raised", Boar primarily forage for food and are generally raised with less grain than pigs or cattle. This species can be farmed on a much smaller ecological footprint and with fewer antibiotics than grain-fed animals. So, whether the Wild Boar is obtained from a local feral pig population or is raised on a large acerage farm, I feel good making a choice to minimize any ecological impact.

(2) My second concern in choosing what I eat is to ensure fair animal husbandry. Not all Wild Boar is "Wild", but truly free-roaming meat can be located quite easily. I eat it happily: these animals have a good life nosing around in the forest for mushrooms and other edibles.

(3) My third concern in choosing what I eat is based on health. The health benefits of eating wild game meat are well documented (akin to eating grass fed versus grain fed beef)

(4) Although chicken, pork or fish are occasionally on our menu, Greg and I will probably never eat beef. When your husband knows some who died from CJD, it kind of turns you off of the whole species, at least until America starts testing its animals. Wild boar fills my otherwise unfillable craving for red meat.

(5) Wild Boar is flavorful and delicious.

(6) My local market carries a steady supply from this fantastic company.

(7) It's the sort of thing that would make Michael Pollan proud.

Prepared well, the Wild Boar I've had has been very flavorful and tender. The last time I tasted some at a restaurant, it literally fell apart on the fork. The prepared sausages we've been eating at home have a wonderfully delicate texture and a hearty, beef-like flavor. So, we decided it was time to try making a boar roast ourselves.

When I searched for a good guide on cooking wild boar, I quickly came up short. There actually aren't many recipes on the internet and many of the recipes I found did not distinguish between different cuts of meat. The dinner I worked on tonight was my best shot at uniting all of the advice I read: marinating, slow cooking, pairing with complementary flavors and textures.

So, how'd everything go? Well, okay, the Wild Boar Roast was dry. Very dry. Bone dry. Chewy, actually. The wild mushroom pan sauce was the true star of the show: it was out of this world for "savory". The Boar pan drippings lent a meaty flavor to the mushrooms that I know I could never achieve with just wine and salt alone, and the last bit of butter emulsified everything into satiny goodness. I could have licked the pan - it was that good. As for the meat, the texture left much to be desired, but we devoured it anyway since the flavor was spot on. The red wine and sage complemented the rich, wild flavor of the Boar wonderfully. I wouldn't change the flavors of this dish, only the cooking method. Here are a few guesses for next time:

- Choose a different cut (although, the "mini-roast" available at my local market is dirt cheap and I'm not sure I want to spend, say, $60)

- Cook the meat longer (akin to brisket)

- Marinate longer (some recipes suggest up to five days)

- Marinate with something other than red wine (eg vinegar)

- Create more surface area for the meat to be exposed to the pan sauce while cooking (eg a ragu or bolognese)

In the meantime, if you're curious about Boar but don't want any hassle, these sausages are amazing.

I know these mushrooms and polenta circles look awful, but oh my gosh it was delicious. So flavorful.

Wild Boar Roast with Wild Mushrooms and Polenta

1 Wild Boar roast, 1-1.5lb (for example)

2 tbsp olive oil

2 cups Red Bordeaux, or other hearty wine (more examples)

1 med onion

3-4 med carrots

6-8 cloves garlic

~2 tsp chopped fresh sage or 3/4 tsp dried sage)

12 oz cremini or baby bella mushrooms

4 oz wild mushrooms of choice(eg, Maitake, AKA Hen of the Woods)

2 tbsp butter

Extra Olive Oil

Polenta***

Add the roast and 1 cup of red wine to a plastic ziptop bag. Press out all of the air, seal the bag, and marinate for 6-8 hours in the refrigerator.*

About 3 hours before dinner, preheat the oven to 275 degrees. Cut the onion in half and cut each half in 4 wedges. Peel and slice the carrots into 1/4" medallions. Peel the garlic and leave whole. Set the vegetables aside. Slice off the woody ends of the stems, then halve or quarter the cremini or bella mushrooms so that they're all of similar size. Roughly chop the wild mushrooms. Set the mushrooms aside.

Add all of the olive oil to a cast iron dutch oven or heavy bottom casserole dish. Bring to medium high heat. Carefully place the roast into the pan: it's going to sizzle quite a bit. Brown the roast for 1-2 minutes per side. Make sure the roast gets a nice color on each side. And by "side", I mean all sides: at least four turns around plus two ends.

Once the roast is evenly browned, add the vegetables and cover with a good quantity of freshly ground pepper. Sprinkle 1/2 tsp of salt on top. Cover the dutch oven and place in a 275 degree oven. Baste every 30 minutes, turning the roast, until the internal temperature reaches 170 degrees** and the vegetables are cooked through. (Add the sage right at the end).

Slice cold polenta to 1/2" thick circles, place on a cookie sheet and brush with olive oil. Sprinkle with freshly grated black pepper. When the roast is cooked, remove the casserole dish and bring the oven temperature up to 350. Place the polenta circles in the oven and cook until lightly browned and soft throughout, ~20 minutes.

Meanwhile, remove the cooked vegetables and roast to a platter, covering with silver foil and a towel to keep warm. Reserve the pan drippings and juice in the dutch oven. Add the mushrooms to this broth. Cook over medium heat with the lid off, stirring often, until the mushrooms begin to caramelize and the liquid is almost completely reduced (~10 minutes). Deglaze with an additional cup of red wine and repeat the process (~10 minutes). When about 1/2 cup of juice is left, turn off the heat and stir in 2 tbsp butter. Salt to taste.

Slice the roast as desired. Plate the roast with several polenta rounds on the side. Drizzle the mushroom glaze over the polenta rounds and spoon other vegetables and mushrooms on the side. Enjoy with a glass of the same wine you used to cook the boar. This dish goes well with plain Great Northern beans (recipe below).

*As I mentioned above, I probably should have marinated for longer

**Don't do what I did. The roast was in the oven for an hour and I basted it for the second time. The juices were bubbling. Out of curiosity, I took a spoon and sampled the basting liquid. It tasted horribly raw but for some reason I didn't spit it out. I checked the temperature of the liquid, which was only 140 degrees (a far cry from the required 170), and then proceeded to freak out. I am hoping that this particular boar haunch didn't host any parasites, or maybe they stay put in the meat and don't flow out into the juices. In any event, I did two shots of rum for good measure! I wanted to tell this story because some websites - D'Artagnan included - tell you that Boar is best cooked rare (like beef) and suggest a low temperature of 120. Personally (and I certainly could be wrong), I think this is a terrible idea, since foraging animals are fairly likely to pick up parasites such as these. Phrases like "burrow through the wall of your small intestine" come to mind. The only way to be safe is to cook the boar thoroughly. So, 170 degrees might worsen the toughness of the meat, but I would recommend it.

***You can make your own and cool it into a solid shape, or avoid the extra hassle and buy the tube:

Great Northern Beans, quick method

These creamy beans are flavorful enough to hold their own without extra seasoning.

1 cup Great Northern Beans, rinsed and picked over

3 cups water or broth

salt to taste

Add beans to a pot and cover with 3" of water. Cover the pot, bring to a boil and then turn off the heat. Let stand for one hour. Empty out water and rinse beans thoroughly.

Place beans back in the pot with the 3 cups of water or broth. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook until the beans are creamy (~1 hour, depending on how old the beans are). If the beans are at all gritty or grainy, keep cooking! Salt to taste.

Things are good, though I'll still be out for a while...

2008-01-17T06:21:00.000-08:00

I'm still going to be off food blogging for a bit (got sick, now I'm catching up with work, d'oh!), but I just wanted to leave the blog on a better note than the last two posts. My mom is much better. She is recuperating as well as could be hoped for and is on the way to a full recovery. It's not clear how much longer she'll be in the hospital (several days or several weeks?), but if everything continues to go as well as it has so far, she should be back home in about a week.

I'll be back to posting recipes soon... in the meantime, happy blogging!

Thank You.

2008-01-09T15:00:00.001-08:00

Thank you to everyone for their concern. My mom had a severe cerebellar hemorrhage on Saturday. I find myself lacking the words to describe her current condition, and for her privacy I will refrain from discussing it here. She has been in critical care in the ICU for five days; although there will be a long road to normalcy, so far the physical aspects of her recovery have been very good. My father and the rest of the family are coping. This occurred so unexpectedly that the whole thing has been quite a shock. Now, it remains for us to be patient as she heals.

Here's to hoping that my next post is from New Haven with more good news. Thanks again for your kind words of support.

Out for a while

2008-01-08T04:54:00.001-08:00

A family medical emergency has me flying to phoenix and more than a little distracted. I won't be posting for a while. Happy New Year, and happy blogging,

Rachael

A Lentil Soup You Won't Soon Forget

2007-12-28T11:09:00.001-08:00

Recipe for homemade bread to serve it this lentil soup with

In Tempe Arizona, off University Drive, sharing a plaza with a dry-cleaners, an ethiopian diner and an abandoned bank dusty, sits a yellow stuccoed cafe whose inner ceiling is strung with ivy that flourishes all year round. I visited there at least several times a month when I lived nearby, and I was almost always served by the same waiter - a curiously blue-eyed, sandy-haired 20-something man who tended to follow my friendly inquiries with some religious musing or a cryptic smile. One could never be certain if he was chemically high or spiritually high. Either way, the effect never failed to make me smile back. The restaurant was a family owned and operated Israeli Cafe called Sabuddy's, and they served The Best Lentil Soup I've ever had.

Why was it so good? At the time, I wouldn't have been able to tell you, exactly. It was thick, hearty, nourishing, and possibly umami-laden. The only identifiable components were lentils, white pepper and some potato, though its exact composition depended on the day. Its consistency varied from watery to stand-a-fork-upright, but it was always amazingly creamy and filling with a bright, yellowish color and flecks of pale white lentil skin. My friends and I never managed to get an exact recipe out of our spiritually enlightened waiter, except to confirm on more than one occasion that the soup was vegan.

Since moving away from Sabuddy's lentil soup, I have tried on many, many occasions to duplicate it. A friend and I wondered - what was the secret ingredient? Was there some vegetable or seasoning we knew nothing about? MSG? Did they sneak bacon, or maybe chicken stock in it? Some illegal drug that kept us coming back? We tried everything we could think of, except the problem was there that there wasn't much to try save carrots, celery, potato, and spices. Homemade lentil soup was never the same as what was served at Sabuddy's.

That is, homemade lentil soup was never the same until I discovered these:

It was the type of lentils that made the difference, and my eyes were suddenly open to a world of flavor.

What do you think of when someone says "lentil" to you? The typical brown and green varieties are a bit bland - filling, yes, but lacking in any culinary oomph or interest on their own. When I started learning more about this often overlooked legume, I was surprised to find a diversity of form and flavor that is not properly appreciated in American cuisine. Lentils have been around for more than 9,000 years. Although often considered peasant food, lentils have endured in a variety of cuisines in the Near East, India and the Mediterranean - probably because of their remarkable flavor, excellent nutritional value and ease of preparation. Pair lentils with a grain and you will be providing your body with a complete set of essential amino acids - good for vegetarians. This dream dictionary claims that if a young girl dreams of lentils, she is dissatisfied with her lover, though I might take a less Freudian approach to the matter. I was also amused to find out that in the Old Testament, Esau gave up his birthright to Jacob for a bowl of lentil soup - perhaps my biblically inclined waiter was hinting at more than my agnostic (and recipe-inquiring) mind could appreciate.

Today, I decided to try experiment with the several kinds of lentils sitting in my pantry. The cooking technique for lentils is quite straightforward: rinse lentils in four changes of water prior to cooking, do not soak, and do not salt or add acidic ingredients until you are ready to serve the dish (both of which would toughen the lentils). Cooking times will vary, and you can choose to halt the cooking process earlier to drain water and retain the lentil shape, or you can boil them down into a creamy stew. As with any legume, skimming foam off the top of the boiling water and cooking them thoroughly will help make them easier to digest. Here are four different types of lentils all prepared the same way:

Type	Color	Flavor/ Texture	Lentil : water ratio	For intact lentils	For softer lentils
Brown / Common	Think army fatigues	Mild, watery Firm, holds shape	1:3	30 min*	>60 min
Harvest Gold	Yellow	Hearty, nutty Very soft	1:2.5	15 min	>30 min*
Petite Crimson / Egyptian	Red, hulled and split	Hearty, meaty Mush	1:2.5	10 min	>30 min*
Beluga / Black / Urad	Black	Fruity and fragrant, sweet Very firm, holds shape well, glossy	1:3	30 min*	>60 min*

*Lentil is best suited for this texture

Note: Older lentils require more water and longer cooking times. These are my very-approximate estimates based on the particular packages of lentils I had. Stir and taste often, adding more cooking liquid as necessary. Thoroughly cooked lentils will be creamy through the entire bite.

And here is, as best as I can duplicate it, Sabuddy's lentil soup. I suspect their version could be even easier to prepare than mine.

Sabuddy-Style, The Best Lentil Soup

Serves: well, that depends on how hungry you are. About two.

2 tbsp olive oil

1 small onion, diced

1 tsp coriander, 1 tsp white pepper

2-4 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup petite crimson "red" lentils, rinsed thoroughly and picked over*

2-3 cups water or stock (I'd actually avoid vegetable stock here - use free-range, organic chicken stock if you have it, or else just water)

1 small Russet potato, cubed to 1/2"

Salt and black pepper to taste

A lemon wedge, if you so desire

*If you can't find red or yellow lentils (check the bulk food section of natural groceries) you might be stuck. Green / brown / black / French lentils will simply not work in this recipe.

Heat the olive oil in a soup pot until it shimmers. Turn heat to medium and add onion, coriander and white pepper to the pot. Cook, stirring, until the onion is translucent. Turn heat to medium-low and add garlic, lentils, water or stock and potatoes. Cover and simmer for 45-60 minutes, stirring often as the soup thickens.

The lentils will soften and completely break down to the point where it looks like you pureed the whole thing in a blender; then, the soup is done. Add extra water or stock if necessary and don't be afraid to cook the soup for longer than stated here: the final soup will have the consistency of a smooth, thin porridge and it will be very creamy. It will thicken as it cools.

Salt and pepper to taste. Serve with good bread and a squeeze of lemon juice.

Notice the powdery stuff on the yellow lentils? That's talc - part of the reason why you need to wash lentils very thoroughly

That Season of Hats and Mittens

2007-12-26T08:49:00.000-08:00

Perhaps I am an oddity, but after moving from Arizona to Connecticut, I quickly discovered that Winter is my favorite season. I'll forgo lush Springtime, activity-filled Summer, and colorful Fall for That Season Of Hats and Mittens and Christmas Trees. Here are a few of my favorite things:

The smell of ice in the air, especially when you know it is going to snow
The sound of claws scrambling on bark as two squirrels greedily argue over acorns
The perfect, quiet air of heavy snowfall (which is improved vastly over winter break, when the Yale undergrads are gone)
Dogs that sniff more because it's cold (and hard to smell!)
Red cheeks and chilly ears
Radiators
True appreciation of blankets, and particularly, of that miraculous stuff, Wool
Comfort food

Okay, you knew I had to bring it back to food. This is a food blog, right? Well, I actually don't have any recipes for you today (unless you consider confirmation that a 1:1 cheese:pasta ratio is not high enough for good macaroni and cheese - I did an experiment - a recipe). I will, however, mention one more of my favorite things about Winter - it reminds me of the colors of the desert southwest. I find the naked trees, faded contrast and desolate panoramas beautiful in their own right. I love the striation in the snow of white upon gray upon darker gray, even though I know it comes from road dirt. The damp concrete that reveals meandering cracks, hidden shapes and mysteriously watery reflections makes me want to pull out a camera every five steps. Winter is a feast for my eyes.

Toasted Bulgur Wheat

2007-12-21T16:09:00.001-08:00

Bulgur is prepared by parboiling, drying and grinding whole wheat berries. This nutty grain is my go-to recipe for potlucks or dinner parties. Bulgur, in my mind, is a wonder-grain for vegetarians. It's not packed in amino acids like Quinoa, but what it lacks in protein, it makes up for in flavor. Once toasted with oil in a pan, the wheat grains release a wonderful nutty flavor that complements roasted vegetables quite well. The fact that most people haven't had bulgur makes this dish a pleasant surprise.

As an added bonus? Leftover bulgur tastes even better the next day.

The recipe I have listed here is quite time consuming. I don't always invest an entire afternoon to prepare bulgur wheat; in fact, for most dinners, I whip something together in less than 30 minutes by skipping the roasted vegetables (I stir in a little chopped onion or parsley instead). Toasted bulgur on its own is amazing. You can also substitute whatever is in your pantry - I have made this with cauliflower, broccoli, asparagus, onion, garlic, tomatoes, zucchini, carrots, mushrooms of all sorts, and squash. If you wish, you could stir in chopped nuts, feta, parsley or roasted garlic at the end. It will taste like winter comfort food no matter what, I promise.

To shorten this recipe, you can chop, toss and roast all of the vegetables together at once. Doing them in batches didn't bother me since I was cleaning while I cooked, but if you're in a rush, just roast everything on several pans all at once. Keep an eye on things to make sure the vegetables don't burn. When you substitute other vegetables, note that denser vegetables (eg, carrot) will take more time and thus need to be chopped smaller than watery vegetables (eg, zucchini).

Roasted Vegetables with Toasted Bulgur Wheat

Serves: 10-12

Lots of olive oil

Salt and Pepper

1 head cauliflower

1 bunch asparagus

1 small eggplant

1 medium zucchini

1 onion

4 medium portobella mushrooms

2 cups bulgur wheat, medium-course grind

4 cups water or stock*

1 tsp salt, 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper, 1/2 tsp cayenne pepper, 1 1/2 tsp ground sage

Preheat the oven to 350. Prepare and roast the vegetables in four batches. While roasting one set, prepare the next set of ingredients, tossing each with plenty of olive oil, salt and pepper before its time in the oven. While roasting vegetables, be sure to stir often so that they do not burn. (1) Peel any green leaves off of the cauliflower and slice into 3/4" sheets. Remove tough part of main stem, if there's any of it left, and then chop or pull apart cauliflower florets until everything is bite sized. Toss with liberal amount of olive oil and salt and pepper, pour into a large baking dish or cookie pans and roast until tender and browned on the edges (~45 minutes, depending). (2) Hold a test piece of asparagus by each end and bend until it snaps. Using the length of this stalk as a guide, trim the rest of the asparagus to the right length. Roast for ~15 minutes. (3) Peel and cube (1/2") the eggplant; salt excessively and leave in a colander for 20 minutes, then rinse off the salt and squeeze out all the water you can. Chop or slice the zucchini into 1/2" thick pieces. Dive the onion. Roast all of these together for ~25 minutes. (4) Slice the portobellas to 1/4" thickness. Roast for ~10 minutes. When you're done, reserve any pan drippings and add to the bulgur.

At some point in this process, prepare the bulgur. It can sit without getting mushy. Add 4 tbsp olive oil to a large, heavy bottom pan. Add bulgur and cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently until the bulgur is toasted to a deep honey-brown color. Don't burn it, but get close! Add all of the vegetable stock and spices at once, cover, and simmer over medium-low for 20-30 minutes. Check often, as the cooking time will depend on what kind of bulgur you use. When done, the bulgur should taste nutty; it will be mostly tender with some al dente pieces, but it should not "stick to your molars", as my husband puts it. If the bulgur starts getting dry, just stir in more stock 1/2 cup at a time. Salt and pepper to taste.

Spoon bulgur into a large casserole dish and cover decoratively with vegetables. Keep warm in oven until ready to serve or cool for at least an hour before placing in the fridge. This casserole will taste even better if it sits overnight.

* You can use water, chicken stock or vegetable stock for this. I use homemade vegetable stock (recipe below). If you don't want to bother with a homemade stock, look for a stock that is mostly clear (not a "broth" of pureed vegetables), and look for something with a slightly bitter, rich flavor to it. After much trial and error, I found that I prefer this stock, whose first ingredient is onion. Depending on where I shop in a particular week, I use this one too. My pet-peeve is carrot and tomato based stocks or broth purees, which are far too sweet for most vegetable dishes. I honestly think a good stock (whichever one you use) makes a world of difference.

Vegetable Stock

This takes somewhere around 1 lb of vegetable scraps: onion skin peelings, the ends of carrots, mushroom stems, garlic ends, tomato bits, parsley, etc. I even throw in kale stems or spinach leaves if I have it. Avoid sulpherous vegetables like cauliflower, cabbage or broccoli. If you don't have any mushroom stems, sprinkle in a few dry mushrooms to compensate - it really makes a difference. If the vegetable scraps look low, I supplement with a chopped carrot / onion / celery, etc. Taste the broth after about an hour and decide if it seems too watery.

Add vegetable scraps to a large pot with 1 bay leaf, a palm-full of peppercorns, and 1 1/2 tbsp salt. Add water to cover vegetables completely (8-10 cups), cover, and simmer on high heat for 3 hours. Cool for 1 hour or, if you live in the east like us, on a clean shelf in the pantry/mud-room /garage below 40 degrees overnight!

Line a colander with paper towels or cheese cloth and set over another pot or large mixing bowl. Pour stock into colander and drain, squeezing any extra broth from the vegetables as you go. Pour into a clean container and use within several days.

Pieces of Peace

2007-12-17T18:49:00.001-08:00

This cookie recipe mocks me, I think. For I am a cookie-person: above anything else, I know and love cookies. Whether it's peanut butter, oatmeal, sugar or chocolate I am craving, I will make it happen with a little butter and a stand mixer. Just yesterday, a friend asked me if there was anything in that exact moment that would make me a happier person, and I said, "if I had a chocolate chip cookie, fresh baked out of the oven, in my hand, I would be happier." Not, "if my research was doing better", or "if I didn't worry about my family", or "if my husband and I could stop arguing about hanging shirts on the back of the bathroom door", or better yet, "if there was world peace" - no, all I wanted was a cookie.

Seriously. This is serious stuff. Especially because I knew that two days hence (tonight) cookies would be required for the cookie exchange that I had organized.

Tonight's loot

So this cookie, this cookie that I chose to make for my cookie exchange, for my craving of happiness, it mocks me. It will not slice right. It will not bake right. It will not keep its shape. It will foil my multiple attempts to make it. It will crumble into tiny pebbles of chocolatey goodness.

They're called "World Peace Cookies" because if everyone had one of these we might just all stop fighting. I'm renaming them World Piece Cookies, because they fall to so many pieces that everybody could have a bite if we just learned to share - and the making of these cookies surely didn't put me at peace. I don't have a solution to the crumble problem - which not everyone encountered (according to the others who made the recipe) - except to say that if the dough looks too dry, it probably is. Either bake it, and enjoy the flavor completely, or do what I plan to do next time, and reduce the flour by two tablespoons and stir in an extra two teaspoons of whole milk or heavy cream until things look "about right".

As for the problem of world peace? Well, I don't have a solution for that either, except to say happy holidays, and remember, for the people reading this blog at least, that small everyday joy is always within our reach - especially when you keep a supply of cocoa powder in your pantry door.

Recipe for World Piece Cookies

Original Source

Happy Hanukka, Chanukah, and Hanukah

2007-12-12T09:24:00.001-08:00

When I was little, and the checkout lady at the grocery store would say "Merry Christmas" as we paid for the bill, I would snap back "Happy Hanukah!". Years later I learned to drop the sarcasm and would merely smile weakly instead. It's hard for the majority of America to remember that there are other cultures in their midst - can I really blame them?

I love Passover, with its careful rituals and symbolic food. I love Rosh Hashana, with apples and honey to ring in the New Year, and Yom Kippur with its solemn promise of new beginnings and holy requirement of the fast. I even love yarmulkes for their representation of equality, for which there is no holiday but that they make their presence at every holiday. My relationship with Hanukah is slightly more complicated.

Hanukah is a catch-22. When America wishes me a Merry Christmas, I am hurt that they have forgotten Hanukah. When America remembers and wishes me a Happy Hanukah, I am hurt that they have forgotten Passover. Hanukah, of all of the Jewish holidays, is the least important. Hanukah is what we Jewish people celebrate to prevent our children from celebrating Christmas. Hanukah, for me, has been an ironic joke: while I can appreciate the motivation behind the larger than life Menorah sitting out on the New Haven central park this December, I can also smile weakly and remember that America will never understand Passover, Rosh Hashana, Yom Kippur, yarmulkes, Sukkot, Mitzvahs, the Kiddush, or Shabbat.

So, this year, I am torn for celebrating both Hanukah and Christmas. I could analyze it all to death, I could try to "make a stand" and not light the Menorah this year, refuse a Christmas tree altogether, or tell the checkout lady really why her "Merry Christmas" bothers me, but honestly... when I put the candles in their right spots and I say the prayer, I am at peace. I am remembering my childhood, the little Menorah that was all mine, wax everywhere and the sound of the match striking its flame. I am remembering how many people I have explained the story of Judah and the Maccabees to, and how many times it all made our parents smile. Hanukah, whether I like it or not, is tradition, and I can smile with strength in knowing that on these 8 days, across the US, Jewish people are united in knowing we are not alone in what is generally speaking a mostly Christian nation.

Potato Latkes, a basic primer

Makes ~6 3" latkes

You can use any amounts you wish, and you can vary the type of potato and spices. Sometimes I skip the draining step and parboil the grated potato instead - those latkes will cook quicker and be more tender, but, having lost of all of their starch, they won't stick together very well.

2 starchy potatoes (Russett)

1 egg

2 tbsp flour

*Spices

*This Hanukah, I used 1/2 tsp salt, 2 tbsp stone ground mustard, and ~1 tbsp smoke paprika (perhaps to remind myself of my Hungarian roots). Alternately: salt, pepper, chives, onion, garlic, curry, sage, celery salt, etc. Anything tastes good with potatoes.

Peal and then grate the starchy potatoes with a large box grater. Let the potato gratings rest for a few minutes. Squeeze out all of the moisture. Let them rest a few more minutes. Squeeze out every bit of water you can.
Lightly beat the egg and stir together all of the ingredients with the potato gratings.
Preheat a well seasoned pan on medium-high heat with a light layer of vegetable oil.
Plop ~1-2 heaping tablespoons of Latke mixture on the hot pan and spread out so the latke is thin without having any holes. Don't touch the latke for at least 2 minutes (it needs to cook a bit to firm up). Fry each latke for at least 3-4 minutes on each side. It may take longer, depending on how large your potato gratings were - make sure to test a latke to be sure they are soft throughout.
Serve piping hot** with chopped scallions, sour cream, applesauce, and, if you're me at age 13, ketchup.

** Latkes keep well on a cooling rack in a 200 degree oven.

How to make New England Iced Tea

2007-12-10T09:08:00.000-08:00

Preferably on a blustery cold day, with raw wind and temperature below 35F

Pour 2 cups boiling hot water into thermos
Add tea bag of choice. Inhale the steam now - it may be your last chance - and seal the thermos.
Take a 10 minute walk
Upon reaching your final destination, sit down and enjoy the beverage. It will now be ice cold.

Eat your vegetables

2007-12-05T21:24:00.001-08:00

7 years ago, when I first started my vegetarian ways, I started learning how to cook. I wanted things a certain way, with certain ingredients, in a certain amount of time with a certain cost. Sometimes those wishes are hard to fulfil all at once. Sometimes, what I succeed with in the ingredient list fails miserably in flavor. Sometimes? I'm just too damn picky. Nowadays I can usually see a train wreck coming. But sometimes, I expect a recipe to go very, very wrong, and I make it anyways.

Tonight's dinner was a lofty goal. It was to be comfort food, a dairy-free lasagna, and it and couldn't involve tofu, nuts or tomato sauce. I wanted to the first thing because it's below 30 outside. I wanted the second thing because, well, otherwise I'd regret it. And I wanted the third thing... just because I was feeling picky. I also needed to use up a pound of mushrooms. I mean, aren't they cute? Though, seriously folks, please wash your mushrooms. It might be pasteurized manure, but it's still manure! Flavor be damned - I choose not to knowingly eat dirt.

Er, anyway, traditional lasagna relies on a Bechemel sauce to add moisture between layers. It's a clever trick, because the creamy fat in the bechemel tames and binds together the other flavors without stealing the show itself. For a while now, I've been imagining a dairy-free lasagna that utilizes a Veloute sauce instead of a Bechemel. They both start with a roux (equal volume flour and fat - aka butter - cooked together); to make a Bechemel, add milk, and to make a Veloute, add stock. The Veloute would have a heartier but sharper flavor than a Bechemel would.

I struggled with the mushroom part. It's easy to overpower or cover up a mushroom flavor; it is harder to balance it, especially without cheese. Here, I used half of the Veloute for layering with mushrooms, and I pureed the other half with an equal volume of frozen peas. I reduced the puree on the stove, to give the lasagna a bit of structure, and assembled the whole thing with no-bake noodles.

I know: mushrooms, peas and no-bake noodles. You're expecting this to bomb, too, right? In fact, until the first bite, I assumed it had bombed. And then I took a taste of melt-in-my-mouth goodness: balanced, filling, structured, flavorful, all of it, this lasagna rocked. Greg, who is often skeptical of my vegan-style or dairy-free creations, raved. He called it Steak Lastunia. Meaty like a steak. Looks like a lasagna. Fills ya' up like a stew. Inventive name, no?

The whole thing wasn't super photogenic, but it actually looks lovely, delicate and very green in person. Served with a good salad and a grain or lentil based side, this is definite dinner-party material.

Okay, like, I just got up (at 11pm) and had a second helping. Greg says it was my third. Oh that's good.

Mushroom Lasagna with Pureed Peas

Serves: 4, if you have willpower

Ingredients:

About 1 pound assorted mushrooms, sliced to 1/4" *

1 small onion, chopped (~1/2 cup)

8 no-bake Barilla lasagna noodles**

3 cups stock

4 tbsp butter***

4 tbsp flour

1.5 cups frozen peas

1 tsp oregano

2 tbsp chopped flat leaf parsley

Salt and Pepper

*I used 2 medium portabella's, about 10 oz baby bellas, and several oz shitakes. The one pound total was already sliced and minus the stems (the portabella stems miraculously disappeared when I turned my back - err, Tori - and shitake stems aren't very good to eat)

**Or however many will make 4 layers in an 8x8" pan

***I could taste the butter in the final dish. If you want to go with less fat, reduce this to 2-3 tbsp and just cook the roux a little more carefully. It'll thicken the same.

Preheat oven to 350F.
Add 2 tbsp olive oil to large pan over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mushrooms start to caramelize (about 10 minutes). Add onion and cook until translucent (~5 minutes)
Meanwhile, melt butter in a saucier on medium heat. Whisk in flour until smooth, and cook the roux to a light, nutty brown color, whisking occasionally (5-10 minutes).
Add stock to the cooked roux 1/2 cup at a time, whisking thoroughly between each step to prevent lumps.
Splash the last tablespoon or so of stock into the mushroom pan to deglaze (scrape up the bottom to get all of the good bits).
Reserve 1.5 cups of Veloute. Add peas to remaining sauce. Puree in the pan with an immersion blender or a transfer to a blender/food processor for this step and return to saucier. Cook over medium-high heat until the puree has reduced by ~1/2 (10-15 minutes).
Layer the lasagna:

1/2 cup Veloute
2 noodles
1/2 cup Veloute
1/2 mushroom mixture
2 noodles
Remaining Veloute
Remaining mushrooms
2 noodles
1/2 pea puree
2 noodles
1/2 pea puree
Parsley

7. Cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Remove foil and broil until lightly browned. Serve immediately.

A Chanukah Bush Just Isn't The Same

2007-12-04T13:50:00.001-08:00

My nose is stuffy, I can't stop sneezing, my throat's all scratchy, my ears are painful, I have to breath through my mouth, I walked two miles today in the wind and the cold, I worked many long hours this month but can't take any days off now, and we're really testing the minimum heat law in Connecticut with our thermostat set at 61 at night... but all of that goes away when I come home and see this:

Because this Saturday, we picked out ornaments. And this Sunday, we drove to the farmer's market to pick up lentils for homemade stew and flour for homemade cinnamon buns, and then after that we steered our Volvo 240 Wagon to the cut-your-own-tree farm for the second bit of happiness. My new husband and I stood there, cradling our cups of hot cider, gazing at the vast fields scattered with Christmas Trees. All of the trees were different shapes, sizes and personalities. Some were tall and skinny, others were short and fat. Some were elegant, grand even, some were comfortable, some were in need of friendship and some were offering up their supple branches to the nearest passerby with a promise of heavily laden ornaments and tinsel. Then the snowflakes started falling, Greg quipped, "This is quaint", and with a mischievous smile and a squeeze of my hand, he pulled me off the in the direction of where our little Christmas Tree was waiting. It took us an hour to be sure, by which time our toes were completely numb and we had already walked back to our first choice. It was a pale, frosty blue looking tree, wider than it was tall, waiting for us like an old friend at the back of the room: it saw us before we saw it.

This day was unique, because I'm Jewish, and I'm from Arizona, and I've never had a Christmas Tree in my life. I have, however, throughout my childhood, stared longingly into windows of cheery homes, each with their carefully decorated conifers whispering of family together and things flavored with cinnamon. In my family, Christmas evening meant Blockbuster movie rentals; Christmas day was for deli meats off of a Costco Party platter or sometimes Chinese take-out. Every year on Christmas, I would imagine other families settled around the real or imagined hearth, enjoying a tradition that I couldn't be a part of.

But now that we have our little family together, Greg and I can make of these traditions what we will. For Greg, who was raised with many Christmas traditions, it reminds him of being a little kid, of growing up on a farm, and of feeling the love of his family around him. It reminds him that we both like to have a home with a real or imagined hearth ourselves. It speaks to our settled nature, our two dogs that we treat like children, and that at this time of the year there are things more important than work and the daily grind.

For me, I've been living Christmas vicariously through Greg's memory and Greg's family without any traditions of my own to reference. So I don't have that childhood recollection to fall back on; my memories are of exclusion and denial. Now? Now I am included, now I am a part, now I am Jewish and I can decorate our home, bake cookies and wrap presents - not just for those around me, but for my own happiness as well.

Bread. Like, Six Weeks Later.

2007-12-01T19:23:00.001-08:00

Now this is just ridiculous. After my last post about the bread starter (and my promise to give you the full recipe in a few days), I found myself so busy leading up to several weeks of travel that I just couldn't fit in the time to edit the photos and finish things up.

But I assured myself, with 8 hours of travel time to a conference, 7 days to spend in San Diego, and 2 more hours on a plane, 3 days at home in Phoenix, and an additional 8 hours back to New Haven, I would finally write up my bread post, and a few more to boot (homemade oreo cookies, banana bread, pumpkin muffins, blueberry muffins, oh, there were baked things). I would make each post perfect, with beautiful photos, and I would be satisfied to indulge my hobby because I like doing this just because I like doing this - even if nobody ever actually read it or made the recipes.

My Mom and one of her dogs (if a thing that tiny can be considered a dog - keeping in mind that my mother is only 5 ft tall, on the small side herself)

Well, there I was, on an airplane (err, times 5, with connections), all of my photos conveniently organized on a CF card, laptop fully charged, and, err... uhm. No bread book. No scrap paper with scrawled notes. And thus not a single recipe. Nice plan, eh?

Then I figured: no problem. I'll get home, have a week to blog, and then at the very worst I'll just do it again on the 8 hour plane ride to Phoenix, the 6 days of Thanksgiving relaxation, and the 8 hour travel back home. Right? Yeah right. And then I got back home, and then I got sick, and blah blah blah blah.

I kind of feel like a loser blogger, especially since this is NaBloPo Month. Other bloggers have put me to shame!

Here's the basic idea. It looks scary, but I promise it's not. Start before 6pm on day one to make the poolish. Start at around 4pm on day 2 to have fresh, hot bread sometime around 8pm. It's really worth it. Total hands-on time, including cleanup? About 2 hours, maximum.

1. Mix the dough

2. Preferment

3. Stretch the dough, rise and stretch

4. Continue rising

5. Shape the dough

6. Proof

7. Bake

Ciabatta, Poolish Version

Makes two 1-pound loaves

From "The Bread Baker's Apprentice", by Peter Reinhart

(My notes are centered under the photos.)

Ingredients

3.25 cups (22.75 oz) poolish

3 cups (13.5 oz) unbleached bread flour*

1.75 tsp (0.44 oz) salt

2 tsp rapid rise yeast

6-8 tbsp (3-6 oz) water, lukewarm (90-100) **replace up to 1/4 cup with olive oil

After the poolish ferments overnight, it looks something like this.

1. Remove the poolish from the refrigerator 1 hour before making the dough to take off the chill

After mixing everything together just until incorporated: the dough will be sticky and lumpy.

2. To make the dough, stir together the flour, salt and yeast in a 4-quart mixing bowl. Add the poolish and 6 tablespoons of water. Mix on low speed with the paddle attachment until the ingredients form a sticky ball. If there is some loose flour, add the additional water as needed and continue to mix. Mix on medium speed with the paddle attachment for 5 to 7 minutes, or as long as it takes to create a smooth, sticky dough. Switch to the dough hook for the final 2 minutes of mixing. You may need to add additional flour to firm up the dough enough to clear the sides of the bowl, but the dough should be quite soft and tacky

After kneading in an electric mixer for more than 5 minutes, the dough becomes smooth and pliable (even though it still sticks to the bottom of the bowl as the paddle turns - see lower left corner). The dough should clear the sides of the bowland you should be able to stretch a piece out thin enough to see light through (without the dough breaking).

3. Sprinkle enough flour on the counter to make a bed about 8 inches square. Using a bowl scraper or spatula dipped in water, transfer the sticky dough to the bed of flour and proceed to stretch and fold: lift both ends of the dough with outspread hands and stretch until it is two-three times its original length, allow the dough to relax for two minutes, and then fold envelope style (one over the other back to the original size). Mist the top of the dough with spray oil, again dust with flour, and loosely cover with plastic wrap

Here's how you fold the dough.

4. Let rest for 30 minutes. Stretch and fold the dough again; mist with spray oil, dust with flour and cover. Allow the dough to ferment on the counter for 1.5-2 hours. It should swell but not necessarily double in size.

After the first fold, before rising. My kitchen is so cold that I turn the oven on to 180 for just a few minutes, turn it off, and then put the pizza peel in the oven to let the dough rise at somewhere around 90F.

5. Shape the dough as desired on a freshly floured surface (RWS suggestion: split into two or three loaves and carefully elongate; Peter Reinhart asks you to set up a couche -- too much trouble for me). Mist the top of the dough with spray oil and dust the dough with more flour, then cover the dough with a kitchen towel.

The first picture is after the 30 minute rise. The second picture is after the 2 hour rise. My oven temp was a little warm and I think the dough rose a too much (it deflated slightly when I moved it).

6. Proof for 45-60 minutes. (Meanwhile, turn on the oven to 500 degrees or as high as it will go).

I chose to incorporate Herbes De Provence, a french seasoning that includes flavors like lavender. Those are the herbs you see sprinkled on top. I also drizzled extra olive oil everywhere. As I mentioned, this batch rose a little too quickly and then deflated a bit, so these "dough logs" are not as puffy as they should be... but it still came out fine.

7. Generously dust a pizza peel or the back of a sheet pan with semomlina flour or cornmeal and very gently transfer the dough pieces to the peel or pan (RWS note: I do step #5 on a pizza peel to avoid this transferring step). Lift each end up and tu the dough out to a length of 9-12 inches. If the dough bulges too high in the middle, gently dimple it down with your fingers to even out the height of the loaf. Slide the doughs on to a baking stone (or bake directly on the pizza pan). Pour one cup hot water into the steam pan and close the door. After 30 seconds, open the door, spray the side walls of the oven with water and close the door. Repeat twice more at 30-second intervals. After te final spray, turn the oven setting down to 450 and bake for 10 minutes (RWS note: my oven isn't good at staying hot so I leave it at 500 the whole time and still bake a few extra minutes). Rotate the loaves 180 degrees and continue baking for 5-10 minutes longer, or until done. The bread should register 205F in the center and should be golden in color (but the flour streaks will also give it a dusty look). The loaves should feel quite hard and crusty at first but will soften as they cool.

In the oven. Note regarding the whole water-in-the-oven thing: the aim here is to keep the external surface of the dough moist and pliable for the first several minutes in the oven, so that it can go through a final last rise (if the surface cooked too quickly, the dough could not become nice and puffy like you see here). It's kind of a pain but I think it's worth it. I use a small metal dish bought especially for the purpose (I actually cracked a piece of corning glass on my first attempt): I place the dish in the oven while the oven preheats. I fill a small spritzer with water, and then follow the directions carefully - being cautious not to hit any heating elements or the glass on the oven door (which could easily shatter. Be careful).

On the counter. Oh, it smells yummy!

8. Transfer the bread from the oven to a cooling rack and allow to cool for at least 45 minutes before slicing or serving (RWS note: if you slice before this time, you will let steam escape and halt the cooking process of the loaf thus possibly destroying some delicate final flavors. But, you also get slice warm bread and melt butter all over it right away : ) ).

I Like Bread

2007-10-11T17:16:00.001-07:00

"I made bread!" I said to Greg. Again, and again and again. "I made bread!". As if the thin coating of fine, white flour on the front of my jeans wasn't enough to justify the accomplishment. "We're eating the bread that I made!". Enter: butter and butter knife, melting goodness all over the golden loaf. "This bread has tomatoes from our garden on it!". Wait for it: "Greg, I made bread!!!"

This is a big deal. In all of my culinary exploration, in the dozen or more hours I might spend every week cooking, I have avoided all things yeasty. Actually, avoid is an understatement, since I can't recall that last time (if there was a last time) that I opened a yeast packet. There are two reasons for this:

Although I bake on occasion, I really prefer to "cook". Something about baking requires the sort of precision that my scientist's heart can't handle outside of the confines of a polymer chemistry lab and the hours of 9am-5pm. No. More. Measuring. Says the engineer.
Isn't it just easier, and tastier, to buy bread at the store?

See the dense, fine crumb? This is "try #1": too little water and not enough time to rise... sandwich bread.

In my case, issue #2 becomes all the more prominent when right here in New Haven we have some of what-I-am-sure is the Best Bread in all of New England, a local brand called Chabasso. As I grapple with the English language to find words to describe the Wonder of this rather non-WonderBread-Bread, I'm at a loss. It's really good: plain, with cheese, dipped in olive oil, slathered with garlic and butter - I simply do not care, and I will, yes I will, eat a whole loaf in one sitting if allowed. Greg and I have a favorite above all others, too: the olive oil Ciabatta. It looks something like this and although the taste is out-of-this-world fantastic, it's really the texture that does me in: chewy, soft, yet substantial enough to hold its own against whatever spread you might challenge it with. So, with a ready supply of Chabasso brand Ciabatta at hand for $3 a loaf, why bother making my own?

This is a "poolish". Ferment for several hours at room temperature and then allow for slow flavor development in the fridge

Making three batches of bread required an excess of time I wouldn't normally afford, but having done this... it was totally worth it. I don't think I could actually even taste the bread, since the mere fact that it wasn't a hard, golf-ball sized hunk of flour took my breath away and obviated any possibility for logical critique. Making bread with my bare hands was exciting and filled me with pride. I was so excited that I could have eaten all in one sitting with nothing other than a knife and some butter irregardless of taste - though it just so happens that the taste was not terrible, either.

Following a first rise, the soft, supple ciabatta dough is gently folded onto itself. My guess is that this helps produce the nice, oblong holes seen in traditional ciabatta.

All three times, I intended to make an Olive Oil Ciabatta. The ciabatta recipe from this amazing book relies on utilizing a poolish - a soft, spongey, pre-ferment that is allowed to develop flavor over 24 hours. Then, I kneaded, watched it rise several times, and eventually baked it in my oven at 500 degrees. I tried three times. First, I didn't add enough water to make a soft dough and I didn't let it rise enough, so the resulting bread was soft and finely crumbed sandwich bread. Second, I achieved the right consistency and the right texture, but I didn't let the poolish ferment for a full 24 hours, so it was good but not super flavorful. Third, I had the right consistancy, it fermented and rose correctly, and I used a stand mixer to do my kneading. The texture of this batch was far superior to the other ones, and the flavor was spot on. Now, I can almost replicate Chabasso's Ciabatta in my own home, and I know with further tweaking there is much to explore.

Yup. Butter. It's good. It's all that's needed.

All of these thoughts bring me to why I like bread, or now, more appropriately, why I like making it:

(1) Like baking, there is some degree of precision and predictability in the recipes

(2) Unlike baking, and like cooking, the sky's the limit. It won't go wrong - it'll just be different than you expected. It was the fact that I followed the recipe to a T. (exactly 6 tbsp liquid) instead of going by "feel" (perhaps 10 tbsp?) that I ended up with sandwich bread instead of Ciabatta.

So, I like bread. I'm giving the recipe for the pre-ferment (the poolish) here and will post the complete ciabatta recipe within a few days.

Poolish

From "The Bread Baker's Apprentice", by Peter Reinhart

11.25 oz     unbleached bread flour

12 oz           water, room temperature

1/4 tsp       instant yeast

Stir together the flour, water and yeast in a mixing bowl until all of the flour is hydrated. The dough should be soft and sticky and look like very thick pancake batter. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and ferment at room temperature for 3 to 4 hours, or until the sponge becomes bubbly and foamy. Immediately refridgerate it. It will keep for up to 3 days in the refrigerator.

Tempered Tempeh

2007-10-04T16:14:00.001-07:00

Until about two months ago I had only had Tempeh twice in my life. The first time, I bought the package, tasted it, and threw it out. The second time, I bought the package, cooked it, tasted it, and threw it out.

The third time, I had better luck. A vegetarian coworker brought in a sample of a barbeque Tempeh recipe she swore would change my heart. She was right: one bite and I was hooked. The baked Tempeh had none of the sour, harsh, fermented flavors of my previous attempt -- it was dense and chewy, with a wonderfully hearty flavor. Although I am sure there are purists out there that eat this fermented soybean product raw and unadulterated, it turns out that my unaccustomed taste buds require Tempeh to be cooked for a really long time before it seems edible. How long exactly is "a really long time"? It probably depends on the marinade, but I have learned that the heat and flavorings better reach every last grain on the inside of the Tempeh sheet before I venture a bite. For baking, that means at least 40 minutes to an hour, depending on thickness. I strongly dislike sour flavors, so perhaps others wouldn't be so picky as I am.

I've raved about a vegetarian sandwich before, and here I'll rave again. Both sandwiches are delicious, healthy and satisfying (avacado-based fat in the former and hearty protein and fiber in the latter). This is the kind of sandwich that actually will fill you up, and as an added bonus, it turns out that Tempeh is easier to digest than Tofu. I think even if I tried, I couldn't make this recipe more simple. I don't even bother mixing the marinade: I just measure the ingredients into a pan, slice the tempeh and let it bake for an hour. I assemble the slices of baked Tempeh on whole-grain bread with sharp greens (Mache or Arugula are good), sprouts, sliced red onion, and a decent slathering of mayo - which in my opinion, is key. Greg's sandwich gets tomatoes and cheese too.

Barbeque Tempeh

Makes enough Tempeh for about four sandwiches

1 /2lb Tempeh (usually this is one package, and different varieties are available - anything grain based is fine)

1/4 cup olive oil

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

3 tbsp maple syrup

Optional spices*: 1 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp paprika, 1/2 tsp chipotle chili powder, 1/2 tsp thyme, and several dashes of cayenne pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Slice Tempeh in half once, and then in half (thickness-wise) again. Measure wet ingredients into a baking dish that is small enough so that all of the Tempeh will be covered and layer in the Tempeh. Bake for 45 minutes or until cooked through.

*The other flavors in the dish dominate so I don't usually bother with the spices... adding them gives the Tempeh more of a barbeque flavor

Having my cake and eating it too

2007-09-24T20:16:00.001-07:00

Do you remember very much from your childhood?

As a very young child, I remember fleeting moments of frustration mingled with happiness. I couldn't always make things work like I wanted to exactly when I wanted them. For instance, I knew that if I found the square plastic case with the picture of a jean pocket and a red cap sticking out of it, and I got the round disk into the player and pushed a certain button, my favorite song would come on ("Born in the USA" by Bruce Springsteen, in case you wondered). But sometimes the CD wouldn't be the right one; or I'd put it on upside down; or there'd be no CD in there at all. Or I'd push the wrong button or push it too many times and then the wrong song would come on and I never knew why.

Life as a little kid was a confusing world of rules that I couldn't control. Adults never understood me, eating chocolate for breakfast was Definitely Out of The Question, and whenever I tried to make cupcakes out of the box, they just tasted funny. It never occurred to me that there would come a day when my knowledge base (or physical skills) would be to my own satisfaction, but it did occur to me that as far as stages in life, I was just starting out. There were bullies at school, bees that that would sting a person for (apparently) no reason, and, time-outs that seemed as arbitrary of an occurrence as seeing a falling star. In short, being a child for me was about unpredictable, unavoidable circumstance. My world felt out of my control, and I didn't like it that way.

Of course, like every other grown person out there, I figured it all out eventually. There were those brilliant years of independence, of new skills and talents, of feeling like I knew it all even while I mistakenly thought I was humble, of reinventing myself every 30 seconds only to discover that the new me still wasn't quite right, of realizing that I didn't know anything at all but still wasn't humble, and of pure desperation for just not being able to be the person I wanted to be with the life that I thought I really wanted to have. Then I slowly began to construct my adult world. It started with a canine companion, an apartment, some important friends, the relationship, the career path and ultimately a personality that seems to be here to stay. There was a moment in life when things, attainable, tangible things (goals?) were finally within my grasp.

Suddenly I find myself with a pathetically mundane life filled with various goals I have invented for myself: the house, a good haircut, two dogs, my husband... we take them to the park in our Volvo wagon, which is where we met, under the big tree at the bottom of the hill. It's so picturesque some days that I almost want to gag (the fact that anybody is still reading this is promising). You see, it turns out that exactly what I wanted as a young kid - dessert before dinner, a big wheels truck, to watch cartoons on Saturday morning - really wasn't actually that important. Those exact things changed from day to day and year to year in as capricious of a manner as I choose my hair color. I think I finally figured out that the most important thing I have, the thing that keeps me together when I'm stressed out or feel like I'm losing it, is knowing that what I control is merely a state of mind. Sometimes, getting my control fix after a bad day is as simple as turning on the oven and grabbing a recipe. In the world of baked goods, it's easy to measure out exactly 1 cup of sugar, and to feel pretty good about that small success while you're at it.

I'm an adult now. I get to have my cake and eat it too. Chocolate, with beer in it, for breakfast even, if I want.

Chocolate Guinness Cake

Serves: don't ask

My posts have been full of "bests" lately, but this really is the best chocolate cake I have ever had. By now you should realize that I am a cookie person; the Chocolate Guinness Cake may change my dessert preferences forever - seriously. It is unbelievably moist, fail-proof, chocolatey, complex, dense and light all at the same time. It is amazing. I will be singing the praises of this cake for years to come. It'll take you several bowls and at least a half hour of hands on time to make it, but it's worth it. I should add that while about 80% of the people who ate this sang its praises repeatedly, the remaining 20% (Greg included) said that it was pretty good but didn't knock their socks off. I say, just try it and decide for yourself.

"Original" Source: Barrington Brewery in Great Barrington, MA

Modified Source: Deb at SmittenKitchen

The "original" epicurious recipe makes a gigantic cake. I made 75% of the original recipe in three 8" rounds. Deb made a 50% batch for a Bundt pan. One 8" round would easily serve 6-10, which is the recipe I am providing here. I think these would make fantastic cupcakes, especially with a gooey ganache or jelly filling.

Here is the recipe for one 8" round pan:

1/2 cup Guinness

1/2 cup butter

6 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder

1 cup all-purpose flour

1 cup sugar

1/4 tsp salt

1 large, preferably organic/free-range egg

5 tbsp sour cream

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter one 8-inch round cake pan with 2-inch-high sides. Line with parchment paper*. Butter paper.
Bring stout and butter to simmer on stove or in microwave. Add cocoa powder and whisk until mixture is smooth. Cool slightly.
Whisk flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in large bowl to blend. Beat egg and sour cream in another large bowl to blend.
Add stout-chocolate mixture to egg mixture and beat just to combine**.
Add flour mixture. Using rubber spatula, fold batter until completely combined (the batter will be slightly lumpy - that's okay).
Pour batter into pan and give the pan several good thumps flat against the counter***. Bake until tester inserted into center of cakes comes out clean, about 25-35 minutes; remember to turn halfway through the cooking time. Cool 10 minutes. Turn cake out onto rack, brush tops with extra stout****, and cool completely before frosting.

*Note: my favorite trick for chocolatey things is to butter the pan thoroughly, add cocoa powder to coat, shake around the pan, and tap out the excess (see photo up top). I do this instead of parchment paper - way easier

**If the chocolate mixture is too hot to comfortably hold a finger in, just temper the eggs by mixing them with a half cup of the hot mixture at a time. I figure if it burns my finger it'll curdle the eggs.

***Thumping cake batter is always a good idea. It gets the air bubbles out so that the cake will cook evenly. Plus, it is good satisfying fun.

****I added this part. : )

Frosting

I made a chocolate ganache with Baileys in it that I wasn't psyched about. For frosting, I refer you to either of the two sources above, or else just search the web for chocolate ganache recipes (whipping cream + bittersweet chocolate = great) and drizzle over the cake after it has cooled completely.

Wedding, part 3

2007-09-02T13:57:00.000-07:00

Olive Oil. We went through almost a gallon of it. Thank you Costco. And friends Kim and Ian, for shopping with us so that we could use their truck to transport all of this food.

Way back when we first got engaged, Greg and I envisioned a fairly simple wedding. With budget constraints, a certain aversion to excess, and some good hard-headed-stubbornness to always do things with our own hands, we came up with the following ideas: on the beach somewhere, very small, and we'd do the catering ourselves.

We told a few people of our plans, and after hearing some laugh, others furrow their eyebrows, and quite a few say "What? Are you mad?", we completely abandoned the idea of a sit-down reception following ceremony. Our families had never met before and the thought of planning a traditional wedding sent me into increasing throws of grumpiness and bad temper: circumstances called for creativity. We decided that if tradition demanded a fanfare-filled, indecently priced, and short-lived event, we'd throw tradition to the wind and get married our way. We had a mostly private ceremony with our immediate families in Italy, and then three months later we threw a celebratory bash for our friends and the rest of our family.

Whether I love food or food loves me, or food equals love to me, I knew that our reception would be centered around food we had lovingly prepared ourselves. The last two days have been a hectic rush of culinary preparation, but I think I feel confident in saying that it worked beautifully. For my own reference mostly, I wrote down the full menu at the bottom of this post, along with a few vaguely written recipes that others might enjoy. The food was great and designed to remind us of the three weeks we spent in Italy. Of course, we made far too much for anybody to eat in a single evening. Even after having most of our guests leave with plates full of leftovers, we still have a fridge stocked with yummy bites for a minimum week's worth of snacking. There are a few things we won't be able to finish off, but I plan to make the savory items into ravioli for freezing, and any remaining bruschetta topping will be great as a fresh pasta sauce. The four cheese lasagna, as we figured after our trial run, was a huge hit. The second most popular dish were the vegan meatballs - very funny, since there were only 4 vegetarians in the whole place, and many of the meat-eaters were shocked to discover that they weren't eating meat at all.

It was a truly wonderful evening. I was so busy that I didn't get a single picture of any of it, but my dad was diligent in snapping pictures every few minutes so we will have a record of the night after all. We invited 150 people, 66 RSVP'd yes, and I'd say somewhere around 50 showed up. We brought in houseplants and little white globe lights, every pitcher and serving utensil we owned, along with big sheets of white butcher paper for covering the tables in true Italian style. Greg's mom made flower arrangements from the weeds in our front yard, and my parents patiently assembled caprese salad skewers until the Italian flag colors of red (tomato), white (mozz), and green (basil) were imprinted in their minds forever. Greg grilled until midnight on Friday, and I made 24 cups of bechemel at 8am on Saturday. My father-in-law fussed over the exact seasoning on his salt cod bakala until it was spicy and perfect, and my aunt, uncle and cousin stuffed favor bags full of photos, and chocolate covered raisins and espresso beans. It was an adventure, to be sure, but I wouldn't trade the memories for the world.

The best part? We were able to see everybody in one room. I can't help but be nostalgic about putting away the wedding dress and sad to remove theknot.com from my bookmark list, but I am filled with happiness to know how many of our friends and family were in one room on one night, sharing laughter and some four cheese lasagna. Being among so many individuals that are important to me, I couldn't escape a feeling of gratitude for all of the fortune in my life. Our love of family and friends is what our wedding has been about.

Greg and I wrote our vows in secret and recited them to each other for the first time on May 21st. I called him my "biggest surprise" and he called me his "greatest success". Even in the three months that we have been married, I see our relationship move forward in ways that I shouldn't really be surprised about after all. Saturday night cemented that bond for me. When I glanced his eye from across the room, or found myself helpless with laughter at stories of Greg's childhood, I was reminded again of how lucky I am to be with such a tremendously talented, generous and loving person. I've said it before in this blog and I'll say it again: thanks, Greg. Love you.

I won't tell you how much the Costco bill came to, but let me just say I'd like to shred my credit card right now. One of the best things I did to prepare for this was to break things down in two ways: (1) by ingredient category (dry goods, canned goods, dairy, fruit, etc), and (2) by recipe in basic steps.

6:30-7:30, Appetizers

Fruit Platter (cantaloupes, red and and green grapes, Asian pears, oranges)
120 Crabcakes (Prepared by friend Stacey) with Lemon Aoili Dip
100 Lox Bites
Cheese Platter (Prepared by friends Kim and Ian)
Cracker Assortment
Green and Black Olives

7:30-8:30, Main Dishes

120 Vegan Meatballs in Sauce
6 9x13" pans Four Cheese Lasagna
120 Caprese Salad Skewers
9lb Grilled Marinated Shrimp
Caesar Salad (Prepared by my Sister-in-law)
4 9x9" Spinach Tart
Grilled Vegetables: 10 Eggplants, 15 Zucchini, 2 each of Red, Yellow and Orange Bell Peppers
10 Loafs of Ciabaso Bread, with Olive Oil
4 Bruschetta Toppings: Tomato/Basil/Garlic, Caramelized Onion/Garlic, Pesto, and Olive Tapenade
Salt Cod Bakala (prepared by my Father-in-law)

8:30-9:30, Dessert (prepared by my Mother-in-law)

100 Frosted Cupcakes
Chocolate Cookies
Almond Cookies
Brownie Bites

The Booze: 100 Peroni, 20 bottles red wine, 20 bottles white wine, 15 bottles champagne

Spinach Tart
My mom's recipe. One of the few things she cooks (she is a self-admitted "food assembler", meaning that she assembles frozen vegetables and main course items into microwave dishes), and it is excellent and easy. Her version includes some sauteed mushrooms and jack cheese, but I prefer just the spinach.
Serves: 6-8

9" pie crust
16 oz frozen chopped spinach, defrosted and thoroughly squeezed to remove all traces of water
1/2 pt whipping cream
3 eggs
Salt, pepper and nutmeg

If using frozen pie crust, place in fridge the night before to defrost. Place on counter one hour before prepping
Preheat the oven to 350. Thoroughly butter a removable bottom tart pan and drape with pastry. Press pastry into all corners of the pan and sprinkle with several pinches of kosher salt. Chill for 10 minutes, and then bake until cooked through (depending on crust thickness, 5-10 minutes).
Meanwhile, stir together remaining ingredients. Add salt and pepper to taste* with a dash of nutmeg.
Pour filling into tart pan, and bake until set in middle, about 25 minutes.

*This will take a lot of salt and I am sorry to say that I'm just bad at measuring. The only way to check the seasoning, if you are averse to raw egg, is to microwave small bits until they cook through.

Grilled Vegetables

Eggplant, or other firm-fleshed vegetable
Equal parts olive oil and balsamic
Salt and Pepper

Slice eggplant (or other vegetable) to 1/2" thickness (a mandoline helps).
Marinate overnight with equal parts oil and balsamic vinegar
Grill the next day, seasoning each side well with salt and pepper

Four Cheese Lasagna
(Click link for recipe)

Caramelized Onion/Garlic Bruschetta Topping

Olive Oil
2 large yellow or sweet onions
1 head garlic
Salt and Pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Start a heavy bottom pan warming on stovetop with olive oil to coat
Slice garlic in half. Brush cut sides with generous amounts of olive oil. Wrap, cut sides up, in silver foil and bake for 45-60 minutes, until cloves have steamed through and begun to caramelize (wait for them to turn a golden color. They'll get very sticky when they're done!). Squeeze out garlic cloves into a small dish and set aside.
Slice onions to 1/8-1/4" thick rings. Add to warm pan and stir to coat with olive oil. Turn heat to medium-low and watch onions carefully, continuously stirring so that they evenly brown without sticking. It will take 30-40 minutes for them to reach a golden color, and you can add more olive oil if things get dry.
Puree onion mixture with garlic in food processor until smooth. Salt and pepper to taste (it will take a lot of salt)

Lox Bites

Assemble the following on small crostini round: 1/8" slice of cucumber, slice of lox, 1/2 tsp softened cream cheese and sprig of dill

Caprese Salad Skewers

Marinate small mozzarella balls in Italian seasonings, garlic and olive oil at least overnight. Slide the following onto each skewer: 1-2 grape tomatoes, basil leaf, mozzarella ball, and slice of proscuitto. Drizzle with olive oil.

We kept our to-do list on the fridge. Each little paper was a dish, and it actually helped things stay super organized.

Artichokes Braised with Red Wine

2007-08-28T08:30:00.001-07:00

Braised Artichokes. Two words that mean one thing: effort. This recipe is not difficult by any means, but if you do try it make sure that you are in the mood to have many tiny spines prick into your fingers over the course of an hour as you prep the artichokes, and that you're in the mood to get a wine and chicken-broth based facial for an hour as you braise them slowly in a cast iron pot. This is a hot and tedious recipe, but it's totally worth it.

Because the thing is, who doesn't like to eat artichokes? They're expensive and a pain in the you-know-what to prepare, but when you're done, the result is a tender, creamy, flavorful veggie based flesh that can be used to blend other flavors or can be simply enjoyed on its own, with as little adornment as a splash of lemon juice, or if you're feeling real frisky, a pat of melted butter. Artichokes are good. Real good. Sometimes I wonder what random cave-person or hunter-gatherer plucked, peeled, cored and cooked an artichoke on total whim before realizing that it was edible. Let's thank them for it!

This recipe packs a real punch in an I-hope-you-like-red-wine sort of way. With a solid 1/4 cup of red wine for each tiny little baby artichoke, make sure you pick something you'd drink on its own (especially because you're going to be left with exactly two cups of wine for drinking). The rest of the recipe is fairly simple. I chose flavors that would be relatively mild compared to the red wine. Having made this recipe a while back, I've thought about what would improve this: next time, I'll sprinkle chopped toasted walnuts and crumbled blue cheese on top, and maybe I'd stir in some chopped porcini mushrooms with the pancetta.

I needed something mild and creamy to serve this with, so as to balance strength of the artichoke and wine flavor. I made a lemon and saffron risotto with ricotta cheese. I didn't measure anything so I couldn't tell you the recipe, but I would suggest you try it on your own (just stir in ricotta instead of your favorite cheese, along with a splash of fresh squeezed lemon juice, lemon zest and saffron.) If you don't make a risotto to go alongside, make sure whatever you pair this dish with complements the braised artichokes. I'd avoid anything with a red sauce.

By the way, guess what the cool part about braising artichokes in red wine is? They start off looking like this:

And end up looking like this:

Apparently the edges absorb red wine but the centers don't!

Artichokes Braised with Red Wine
Serves: 2, maybe 4 if you have other sides

1/4 cup olive oil
1 tsp red pepper flakes
2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 oz Italian Pancetta (substitute bacon, or ommit)
8-10 Baby Artichokes
2 cups good, dry red wine
2 cups organic, free-range chicken broth
4 cloves garlic
Baby spinach and arugula for serving

Fill a large bowl with cold water and squeeze the juice of two lemons into it. Drop the lemon halves into the bowl. Prep the artichokes: cut off top 1/3, pull off all green/heavy leaves and make sure no spines remain, then peel stem, slice in half, then in quarters, and use a small paring knife to remove any purple leaves*. Drop in lemon water and swirl to rinse off
Heat a heavy bottom, preferably cast iron skillet or dutch oven on medium heat. Add olive oil, red pepper flakes, chopped pancetta and black pepper, cooking for 4-5 minutes. Add baby artichoke quarters and stir to coat
Turn heat to medium-high. Partially (less than 50%) cover the pot. Over the course of 40-60 minutes, ladle in half a cup of braising liquid. Allow liquid to simmer and evaporate off until artichokes begin sticking. Add additional half cup liquid, scraping the bottom with a wooden spatula to deglaze. Cook until artichokes are soft and edible (more or less braising liquid may be necessary depending on the heat of your pan, and you could use water in a pinch)
Add garlic and cook over low heat for an additional 3-4 minutes.
Serve on top of baby spinach and arugula. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle on freshly ground black pepper.

*In theory, baby artichokes are entirely edible (choke and all), but I don't totally trust that. I always cut off just the tips of the purple leaves. You should be left with pale green leaves and soft artichoke flesh when your done. I love leaving the stems on to eat later - they're slightly tough, but still flavorful.

**You could also try a more traditional braising method by just dumping in all the braising liquid and cooking over low heat for a very long time. I figured that would make the artichokes mushy, instead of tender and caramelized (as they were in this recipe)

The New Haven Test Kitchen, or, Four-Cheese Lasagna Is Difficult to Photograph

2007-08-13T18:17:00.000-07:00

I just couldn't get a good picture of a slice of the lasagna...

I don't believe that I've mentioned this before, but Greg and I have a little Test Kitchen going on these days. We are auditioning recipes for our wedding reception, an event that we will be catering ourselves. Since we were technically wed on May 21st in Italy (or more technically, by a justice of the peace on May 13th in New Haven), and since only about a third of the 150 people we invited are attending, we don't have to worry about anything except the food, and it is only a relatively small quantity of food that we need to prepare at that.

The New Haven Test Kitchen

In our spare evenings, after we shine our shoes and dust under the piano, we're trying to come up with a menu that can serve 50 (maybe 60?) people at 6:30pm on September 1st. Here's our plan so far:

To Start:
- Cheese platter
- 120 mini Costco crabcakes (they're really good!) with dipping sauce
- 120 Lox Bites (Lox and Dilled Cream Cheese on Crostini)

Main:
- 180 Veg meatballs simmering in homemade sauce
- 2 9" Spinach Tortes
- 120 Grilled Shrimp in Italian Marinade
- Big Salad, greens with feta, pears, and balsamic dressing
- Loafs of our amazing local bread (Ciabaso) with Olive Oil and Balsamic for dipping
- Bruschetta bar, with 2-4 cups each of various toppings: olive tapenade, traditional tomatoes, roasted garlic, pesto
- Fresh Fruit Platter: Cantaloupe, Pears, Grapes, Strawberries, and whatever else
- Lots of Greg's Pizza Bites (puff pastry stuffed with pizza toppings)
- My Father-In-Law's Bacala
- Caprese salad skewers

We tried some things with shrimp... (don't worry, they didn't go in the lasagna)

I joked about the "New Haven Test Kitchen", but it is partially true. I spent 8 hours on Saturday and 3 hours on Sunday gathering ingredients, new kitchen equipment (fluted removable bottom tart pans!), and nerve to tackle several previously unexplored recipes with Greg. Not only do we need to find recipes that taste good, they need to be straightforward to prepare (read: assembly line), not too expensive, and most importantly - transport-able, reheat-able, and easily serve-able at room temperature or on chafing trays with sternos. This veritable food convivium has been exhausting, to say the least, since it turns out that despite what I may have thought when I was 6, stuffing myself with puff pastry dough and cheese for hours on end is not What I Always Wanted.

Speaking of saturated fat, let's talk about the point of this whole article: the main dish of the reception. The Big One. Because it turns out that catering to a crowd of meat-eaters, when you yourself would prefer not to serve meat, is complicated. If I had my druthers, I'd like to not serve so much dairy either, but clearly my duties as a hostess outweigh my political views. Except for the 10% about meat. Thus, sans flesh-based animal protein, I will turn to another source: four 9x13 size pans of Cook's Illustrated Four-Cheese Lasagna, or what I like to call, Melted Heavenly Sin (until today I would have doubted that you could stack "heavenly" and "sin" together, but oh, yes, yes you can). This is a recipe from America's Test Kitchen, and I constructed it, almost to the letter, over the course of two hours this afternoon.

If you know anything about me as a blogger, a cook, or, heck, a person, it's that I do not follow written instructions well. I simply can't stand making something without changing it, even if I've never made it before. I know, sick, but I swear it's not cooking ego or anything like that - it's curiosity. If I trust the author of a basic recipe well enough to try the recipe, I believe it will taste good as is. I want to know what happens when I muddle with it. Thus, you will rarely find my basic pancakes without a new fruit or bran ratio in them, my cake recipe without a soy based substitution, or my heavy-cream-alfredo without some skim plus roux. I just have to fiddle. I have to tweak. And although it often leads me to rubbery pancakes, dry cake and curdled sauce... I do enjoy the process.

Except in this case. I took it upon myself as a challenge: make a recipe as it was intended, with no substitutions or alterations. Just do it! Do it so that I will know the perfect proportions, so that I only need try it once before the real deal, so that the alterations that I do eventually make are to things like prepping ingredients ahead, rather than major Taste Kidnappers. Do it because it will make my to-do list shorter and my taste buds, probably, happier.

And I did it. Sort of. Like I said, I don't follow directions well. I got 80% through assembling this lasagna, grumbling in my head the whole time about how the pasta:cheese ratio was totally off, when I realized where my missing cheese was: sitting in front of me, that big bowl of ricotta that I had entirely forgotten to layer.

Woops.

More on that later. Meantime, I can promise you that while this is not a quick or simple recipe, this is an extraordinary lasagna. I can also promise you that I've never used the word extraordinary to describe food. Why today? Well, it's perfect in flavorful complexity. In short, it fills your mouth with some of the greatest cheese-based sensations you've ever met with, and your stomach with something that will keep you full for hours (a 2x2" square of this packs a whopping 420 calories). It's just cheesy and delicious.

What was that about forgetting the ricotta? Oh, yeah. So I ended up having to pull back pasta layers and stuff the ricotta into where it should have been in the first place (i.e., in every layer of all four layers), which disturbed the delicate structure of layers a bit, definitely ruined the photos I was hoping for, but didn't harm the taste at all. In the end, because of this mistake, I ultimately omitted a decent quantity of pasta sheets, and thus the cheese:pasta ratio is way off (so if it looks a bit soupy in my photos, that was my fault not the recipe's). But I know this will be fixed by performing the recipe exactly as intended, and that was the lesson I needed in the first place.

Told ya' it wasn't a good picture...

America's Test Kitchen Four-Cheese Lasagna

Serves: 8-10
From the July 2007 issue of Cook's Illustrated

It's important not to overbake the lasagna. Once the sauce starts bubbling around the edges, turn the oven to broil. If your lasagna pan is not broiler-safe, brown the lasagna at 500 degrees for about 10 minutes. Whole milk is best in the sauce, but skim and low-fat milk also work. Supermarket-brand cheeses work fine in this recipe. The Gorgonzola may be omitted, but the flavor of the lasagna won't be as complex. The test kitchen prefers the flavor and texture of Barilla no-boil noodles, but this recipe will work with most brands. One box of Barilla will yield enough noodles for this recipe; you may need two boxes of other brands.

6 oz Gruyere cheese, shredded
1 oz Parmesan, finely grated
1 1/2 c part-skim ricotta
1 large organic egg, lightly beaten
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 tbsp + 2 tsp minced fresh flat-leaf parsley
3 tbsp unsalted butter
1 medium shallot, minced
1 medium garlic clove, minced
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups whole, organic milk
1 1/2 cups free-range, organic chicken broth
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 bay leaf
Pinch Cayenne
15 no-boil lasagna noodles
8 oz Fontina, shredded
3 oz Gorgonzola, crumbled

Place Gruyère and 1/2 cup Parmesan in large heatproof bowl. Combine ricotta, egg, black pepper, and 2 tablespoons parsley in medium bowl. Set both bowls aside.
Melt butter in medium saucepan over medium heat until foaming; add shallot and garlic and cook, stirring frequently, until beginning to soften, about 2 minutes. Add flour and cook, stirring constantly, until thoroughly combined, about 1 1/2 minutes; mixture should not brown. Gradually whisk in milk and broth; increase heat to medium-high and bring to full boil, whisking frequently. Add salt and bay leaf, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer until sauce thickens and coats the back of a spoon, about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally with heatproof rubber spatula or wooden spoon and making sure to scrape bottom and corners of saucepan (you should have about 4 cups).
Remove saucepan from heat and discard bay leaf. Gradually whisk 1/4 cup sauce into ricotta mixture. Pour remaining sauce over Gruyère mixture and stir until smooth; set aside while softening noodles.
Adjust oven rack to upper middle position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Place noodles in 13 by 9-inch baking dish and cover with very hot tap water; soak 10 minutes, agitating noodles occasionally to prevent sticking. Remove noodles from water, place in single layer on kitchen towel, and pat dry. Wipe out baking dish and spray lightly with nonstick cooking spray.
Distribute 1/2 cup sauce in bottom of baking dish. Place 3 noodles in single layer on top of sauce. Spread 1/2 cup ricotta mixture evenly over noodles and sprinkle evenly with 1/2 cup fontina. Drizzle 1/2 cup sauce evenly over cheese. Repeat layering of noodles, ricotta, fontina, and sauce 3 more times. Place final 3 noodles on top and cover completely with remaining sauce, spreading with rubber spatula and allowing to spill over noodles. Sprinkle evenly with remaining 1/2 cup Parmesan.
Spray large sheet foil with nonstick cooking spray and cover lasagna; bake until edges are just bubbling, 25 to 30 minutes, rotating pan halfway through baking time. Remove foil and turn oven to broil. Broil until surface is spotty brown, 3 to 5 minutes. Cool 15 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining 2 teaspoons parsley; cut into pieces and serve.

**(And don't even be tempted to remove the blue cheese or substitute anything, as I originally thought about doing - it is the balance of the different cheese flavors and textures that gives this lasagna its punch)

Heavy Cream, Butter, Syrup... and Gran Marnier.

2007-08-12T09:22:00.000-07:00

There are all those healthy mornings: the granola mornings, the egg-white omelet mornings, the hold-the-sugar-add-the-soymilk and the cereal with yogurt and fresh fruit mornings. Healthy Stuff. And then there are mornings like this morning.

Can anybody say "heavy cream"? Greg may have been too hungover to enjoy this breakfast, but I definitely wasn't.

I'm not going to say too much about this French Toast, except that it was Full Fat Fantastic. I toasted several slices of whole grain sandwich bread until crispy, sliced some strawberries and preheated the oven, containing a well-buttered cast iron skillet, to 350.

I added eggs, cream, sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, and... Gran Marnier!

This was the best part. The Gran Marnier was a perfect splash of flavor, helped along with the other spices. I'd highly recommend this rather thrown together recipe. With heavy cream, it literally can't go wrong. Next time I'd think about adding sliced oranges, or layering the toast with bananas and cream cheese. Or maybe even topping the whole thing with some whipped cream (not doing this today took some severe self restraint, folks, saved only by the fact that I ended up adding a splash of heavy cream to my iced coffee, woops, I wasn't going to tell you that).

You could probably simplify things by making it all the night before and popping it in the oven straight from the fridge. Otherwise, enjoy.

Gran Marnier Baked French Toast
Serves: 2

2 tbsp butter
4 slices whole grain sandwich bread
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 cup organic milk or soy milk
2 large organic eggs
2 tsp vanilla
2 tbsp Gran Marnier Liqueur
Pinch of Salt
1 tbsp cinnamon

Strawberries for garnish

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Add butter to baking dish or cast iron skillet and place in oven as it preheats.
Toast bread to a golden brown. Meanwhile, whisk together remaining ingredients.
When bread is toasted, arrange slices in single layer in skillet. Pour egg mixture over and swirl to coat. Return skillet to oven and bake until set in the middle, about 15-20 minutes. Broil for an additional 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, slice strawberries for garnish*.
Assemble and enjoy

*I sauteed the sliced strawberries with a pat of butter, just until warmed through. I told you this was a "heavy cream" sort of morning...

Golden Lentil and Bulgur Salad with Grilled Lemon Quarters (sans leftovers)

2007-08-06T15:46:00.000-07:00

I'm going to begin this blog entry with a story about my dog, Tori. Four and a half years ago, I lived on my own in Arizona. I was working towards my bachelor's degree and wanted some canine companionship. I found my companion at the Arizona Animal Welfare League: short, black, furry and friendly, when she saw me walk by her outdoor enclosure, she rushed to fence and forced her nose through the chain links, curling her long pink tongue as far as it could reach around the cold metal. She tried, in every way her doggy language permitted her, to tell me that she would make a very good friend if I would just take her home and let her try. Her many remarkably and doggy-like qualities maker her my perfect companion: energetic, social, loving and cuddly, everyone who meets Tori agrees that she is sweet and good-natured.

But there is something else that everybody agrees on: if a goat ever challenged Tori to a tire-eating contest, the dog would win, hands down. Tori will eat anything that she can fit into her mouth, edible or not, with speed quicker than Greg can say "kitchen remodel". One day we walked in on her gnawing off chunks of freshly spackled drywall. She's gotten batches of cookies, bags of chocolate, pans of brownies, many types of clothes, socks, dish towels, sticks, dirt, small rocks, fruit, nuts, and whole lemons - and yes these words are all plural as in On More Than One Occasion. She has been known to eat an entire 7lb eggplant Parmesan casserole, a platter of deli meats, and, months later, a 9x9" pan of lasagna cooling in a still-rather-warm-oven. One time the soap in the dishwasher overflowed, and I came running when I saw her eagerly slurping up the suds. Tori's teeth rather regularly pierce the heavy duty metal of dog food cans destined for recycling. Pounds of cheese, cups of butter, loafs of bread - you name it, she ate it.

Which brings me to today's post, a topic that, even one day later, is still making me tear up slightly: Tori ate the leftovers from the best dish I've made all year. Now "best dish I've made all year" (indeed, the leftovers-of) sounds like a rather bold proclamation, and it is. Maybe it was because the dish was exactly what I was craving that evening, or that I was hungry and the dish was healthy, or that it was a brand new dish, something I expected to fail, and something I made without a recipe. Or, maybe it was because the dinner actually turned out really good. Whatever it was, Tori ate it all, in her sneaky, quiet-as-a-mouse manner, while I sat 10 feet away, distracted and oblivious to the delicious food rapidly reaching her insatiable stomach.

Fortunately we ate our first helpings far before her hungry teeth reached the platter, giving me an opportunity to rave about how simple and delicious this dinner truly was. I assembled vegetable kabobs the night before (yellow pepper, red pepper, parboiled carrots, baby bellas and sweet onion) and marinated them with herbs, olive oil, garlic and balsamic overnight. The next day, I assembled baked tofu with quarted lemon slices, started the bulgur salad and left Greg to deal with the grill.

Why was this dish so good? Two words: caramelized lemons. Wow. This idea is one taken directly from 101cookbooks (my second reference in two weeks, I know), and just like sauteed versus boiled gnocchi, I can promise you I will never, ever go back to raw lemon. The juicy, sweet, grilled-marked bites of lemon were A-w-e-s-o-m-e with a capital A. Really. Seriously. Try it. Just quarter lemons and throw them on the grill with everything else - in the words of Martha Stewart, it's a good thing. Grilling these lemon chunks gave them a sweet, warm, mellow flavor that would be perfect for squeezing over any vegetable, seafood, or grain based salad.

Which brings me to the actual recipe provided here. This Bulgur salad was healthy and delicious, speckled with bits of green parsley and yellow lentils. It was easy to prepare and tasted amazing, with a nice balance of bright and mellow, salty and sweet, and chewy and tender. The flavors and textures worked well together. My only comment will be about the balsamic. I don't claim to know what makes any particular balsamic vinegar a "good" vinegar, but I do know that my cheap balsamic happens to be sharp and tart and my smaller bottle of slightly-more-expensive stuff is mellow and sweet in flavor. This recipe requires something mellow and sweet to balance with the salty, nutty Bulgur. I served this Bulgur salad warm on a big platter, surrounded by Arugula (which was a perfect spicy complement to such a mellow salad) with chunks of tomatoes and oil cured olives, and topped by the skewered kabobs whose lemon quarters served to dress the whole dish together.

I really wish I had those leftovers!!

Golden Lentil and Bulgur Salad
Serves: 4

1/2 cup Bulgur Wheat, rinsed
2 tbsp olive oil
1 shallot, chopped
1/2 cup Yellow, or Golden, Lentils
2 cups water
1/4 cup loosely packed flat leaf parsley, roughly chopped
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar (preferably sweet)
Salt and Pepper to taste
Suggested for serving: two cups baby arugula, olive oil for d, grilled quartered lemons and chopped cured olives

Add olive oil to saucepan over medium heat. Add shallot and cook until softened, stirring frequently (about 3-4 minutes). Add Bulgur, a sprinkle of salt, and cook over medium-high heat, stirring constantly, until lightly browned (about 5-6 minutes)
Meanwhile, rinse lentils and add with 1 cup water to a small saucepan. Cover and cook until tender, about 5-10 minutes.
When Bulgur is toasted, add 1 cup water and simmer until Bulgur is al dente (about 15 minutes, depending on the size of the Bulgur). Add 3 tbsp balsamic and continue cooking until Bulgur is tender and the balsamic is absorbed*. Stir in parsley, remaining 1 tbsp balsamic, and salt and pepper to taste.
Stir yellow lentils and Bulgur together. Serve warm, drizzled with extra olive oil, next to fresh baby arugula, chopped olives and grilled lemon quarters.

*If the cooking times don't add up right, just add a little extra water and continue cooking until the Bulgur is done

Settled on Spicy Spinach (with a Couscous Crust)

2007-07-29T09:07:00.000-07:00

This is a recipe that led me astray: I started in Japan and ended up on the West Coast. Even though I normally despise Teriyaki-anything, being one of those bastardized and way over-used flavors, I wanted Teriyaki Salmon the other night. Then I decided on spinach as a side dish, then I thought I'd do something quiche-y, then I wanted something healthy... and if you're like me at all that means nixing the cheese and heavy cream and using Tofu instead. Actually, if you're truly like me, you'd intend to add an egg to the tofu/spinach creation and instead accidentally crack it on the side of the cutting board only to spend 10 minutes cleaning up the goopy mess... but I digress. In the absence of egg, my Spinach Tofu creation headed vegan and curried.

Why curry? Well, the honest to god truth is that I had a "What Would Heidi Do" moment, and flavors likely to be found in a California Kitchen popped into mind. Then of course, my Teriyaki Salmon sounded terrible and I went with a Ginger glaze instead.

Were the Curried Spinach with Tofu and Ginger Glazed Salmon the the best palette combination ever? Not really, which is why I am not including both recipes here. But individually the dishes were great and I figured I'd post the spinach recipe rather than the salmon. My favorite feature of this recipe, and something I will definitely be working on for an ultimate baked dish, is a What I Think Is Quite Clever invention of my own: using couscous for a "crust" of sorts. It's a good way to get in some carbohydrates without loading up on buttery dough, and the couscous gets flavored by the spinach/tofu/shallot drippings as it bakes at high heat. This whole recipe comes together in a snap, and as with most of what I post here, I'll add the comment that this is a perfect base for playing around with flavors. There are few spices that would go wrong here. Other ideas? If I wasn't so lazy, I would have pureed the tofu rather than crumble it (baked pureed tofu has a texture that is remarkably similar to quiche), and if there were mushrooms to be found in my fridge, I would have added some bellas to the shallot step.

Curried Spinach with Tofu
Serves: 2, as part of a main course, or 4, as a side dish

2 shallors
2 cloves garlic
1 package firm tofu
1 large bag fresh spinach
1-2 tbsp curry powder*
1 tsp cumin
salt and pepper to taste

2/3 cup couscous
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup water or broth

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Add shallot and olive oil to large pan and cook over medium-low heat until shallot is translucent (about 3-4 minutes). Add garlic, curry and cumin and reduce heat to low, cooking for an additional 2 minutes.
When the garlic/shallot mixture is cooked through, add spinach to the pan. Crumble tofu on top. Turn pan to medium-high heat and cook, stirring often, until the spinach is completely wilted. Salt and pepper to taste. Continue stirring and cooking until some of the tofu liquid has evaporated (about 5-10 minutes total). Make sure to crumble up the tofu as it cooks.
Meanwhile, add olive oil to a shallow baking pan. Toss couscous with salt and pour into pan. Top couscous with the tofu/spinach mixture, pressing carefully to ensure even distribution of casserole ingredients. Pour water or broth into pan corners.
Bake, covered with silver foil, for 20 minutes. Remove foil and broil for an additional 3-4 minutes.

*Note, I've got a thing for spice lately. I used an ton of curry powder in this recipe - Greg started hiccuping when he tasted it. Really, truly, honestly, do this one to taste. All curry mixtures are individual and composed of many different spices with varying levels of heat, so where you buy your curry and also what your personal spice limit is will affect how much curry you should add to this recipe... I'd start with 2-3 tsp and work your way up. It's best to cook spices like curry in oil first since their flavors are fat soluble, but if you're not sure about the spice level it's easy to add in some curry powder at the tofu step too.

I promised you blueberry buckle (P.S. I won't spoil HP7)

2007-07-20T11:16:00.000-07:00

FYI: no spoilers here! I don't believe in spoiling plotlines so I won't. Read on safely...

I am a terrible person. A truly awful, tempted, weak person, acting of my own accord for my own personal gain (as more than one Harry Potter character has pondered, ack, do I belong in Slytherin?!) I read Harry Potter Seven two days before its official release. I soaked in every last word, knowing full well of JKR's desperate please to save any advanced copy access until the 21st. It took me about 8 hours on Wednesday night and 2 hours this morning to work my way through the giant (and quite certainly authentic) PDF file, but the deed is done.

Why, why would I do such a thing? Well, I had already bought the book. It's on its way via overnight fedex for Saturday. I knew the book could be found online, and, err, I just... I couldn't help myself. It was out there: tempting me, luring me with a promise of my own 5 years of reader expectation to be immediately and thoroughly satisfied (in short, I was greedy). I had also rather unintentionally stumbled on some spoilers, and after reading those little supposed-snippets, I had to find out for myself if they were true - they weren't, thank goodness. I hated it, I loved it, heck, it almost made me cry. For better or worse, the story is finished, and I'll save my analysis until after more people are likely to have finished the book.

There. I did a bad thing. For some reason I felt the urge to share this with the world...

Speaking of guilty consciences, I did promise the blueberry buckle, and here it is! This recipe resulted from one of Greg's coworkers sending him home with two cups of delicious, perfectly ripe blueberries that she brought back with her on a plane from Washington. I made a half batch but I'll give you the full recipe.

The blueberries were amazing; the buckle was even better. You can make this in one bowl if you wish, and the vigorous stirring involved means it's literally impossible to go wrong since the batter is not likely to get tough like other muffin or quickbread recipes. Coming from someone who despises working with pastry dough, I truly appreciate that such quick recipe could give such a nice silky texture to a baked good (no worries about butter temperature here). The resulting concoction, not unlike a coffee cake, was amazingly buttery and rich. It was the perfect way to make the perfect blueberries... perfectly unhealthy.

I made some very slight alterations to this recipe (more blueberries, less streusel). When I made the buckle with the full amount of sugary/buttery crust, it was just a bit too much. If you like things rich, just make twice the topping per the original recipe's request. I also threw in two heaping tablespoons of corn starch, an addition that I had read would help all purpose flour achieve a similar texture similar to cake flour (this is the same idea as tossing in a package of instant pudding to make cake stay moist). This simple recipe would be delicious with any other sweet berries, or maybe some chopped apples sauteed first with a little butter and sugar. It would also be great minus the streusel and plus a little drizzled honey. Or with toasted walnuts on top. Or... mmm...

Blueberry Buckle
Adapted from The Desert Book by Nancy Baggett
Serves: At least one, I think : )

Batter:
200g all purpose flour (~1 2/3 cup, but I implore you to weight it out if you've got a scale)
2 tbsp corn starch
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
3/4 cup granulated sugar (generous 3/4 cup if the blueberries are tart)
10 tbsp very soft butter (do not melt)
2 large organic eggs
1/4 cup milk
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
4 cups blueberries

Topping:
1/2 cup, scant, sugar
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp ground cinnamon
3 tbsp butter

Sift the flour, corn starch, baking powder and salt together into a bowl. Add the butter and sugar. By hand, or in a mixer on low speed, stir until mixture is blended and crumbly (about 2 minutes)
Add milk, eggs and vanilla to a small measuring cup or bowl. Whisk together with a fork. Pour on top of flour mixture and beat together until the egg mixture is incorporated. Raise your hand / the mixer's speed to medium and beat for an additional 1 1/2 minutes, scraping down the bowl as needed
Gently fold in the blueberries*.
Pour batter into a greased 9x13 pan.
Make the streusel: mash together all of the ingredients with a fork until crumbly. Sprinkle on top of the batter.
Bake 35-45 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean and the top is crispy.

*Note: as with all blueberry dishes, if you let this sit for too long it will turn green...

A sheepish grin plus several excuses

2007-07-18T18:41:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I said I'd post after we got back from Italy. I didn't mean to lie! I really believed what I said...when I said it... err, I didn't say exactly when I'd post regularly, did I? The thing thing is... well, you know. It just kinda happened. And while I won't pretend I didn't break your trust, I will offer the following lame excuses:

I had 1900 photos from our vacation to sort, edit, upload, caption and distribute.
Not that I actually have gotten anything accomplished since getting back, but, there's the job.
The post-wedding-honeymoon-get-in-shape-be-proactive-to-do-list slump.
Summer heat sucks, the kitchen is the hottest room, and we don't use enough AC to make a difference.

The funny thing about the summer heat is that it doesn't discourage me from creating edible concoctions (indeed, I find myself cooking and serving up just as much in July as in February), but it does make me disinclined to document the activities. Because when your face is sweaty and your hair is sticky and you're leaning over a pot of simmering, well something, do you really want to reach for the camera? I thought not. No, what you really want to do is get the heck out of the kitchen until the curry lentils are done and you can eat in front two fans and a AC unit

That said, I do miss this blog, both writing it as well as reading your comments. So I offer a compromise. That is, if you'll have me back:

Pictures of Italy now
Pictures of Blueberry-Buckle-To-Die-For later

Now while I can provide you with aforementioned photos immediately, the blueberry buckle under question is stilling sitting on the kitchen counter, with a small corner scooped away for tasting. I don't have the photo yet. But I can tell you that the batter bowl was can-I-eat-the-whole-thing fantastic and the recipe is so easy that I simply can't not share it with you soon.

Back to the photos. Here's the trip. Here's the wedding. Here's us after the wedding hanging out at Roman Forum. Did I just say "hanging out at the Roman Forum"? Thought so. The wedding was more than I could ask for, the trip was amazing, and I feel like we succesfully did things our way while maintaining traditions that were important to us. There's a small part of me that still misses all the fuss and fanfare that a 200 person sit-down-dinner would have brought, but that part is quickly overwhelmed when I close my eyes and picture the simple, romantic and personal time with our families that we had instead. I hope you enjoy the pictures in the links above, and I thought it would be fun, in the spirit of closing one chapter of my life and opening another, to add in two more.

First, what I looked like on a "pre-date" hiking-date with Greg (a Wednesday night dinner and a movie plus kiss was to follow several days later). I think he vaguely mentioned that day that he "had a thing for long hair". I think I started growing it out that day - a cosmetic decision I don't regret for a minute (can anyone say ponytail?) I also stopped dying it pink, and that was another good move.

Second, what I looked like, or rather where I was, when he proposed (I'm the one on the right). In New Orleans. Doing a habitat for humanity project. Away for two weeks. Covered in sweat, grime, toxic chemicals. Lacking cell phone reception. And so excited on this day, the last day of the trip, and what I just realized was about to be the first day of something else, that I couldn't even push a wheelbarrow.

Corny Corn Corn Corn

2007-06-08T18:38:00.000-07:00

I love Italian food. Really, I do. Clearly, I must anticipate enjoying many things about Italy to have felt a strong desire to: (a) get married there, and (b) spend 3 weeks traversing the country with my brand-new husband, filling our bellies with good food and then attempting to hide the belly-related evidence from photographic record during trips to, say, the rocky diving platform outside of our hotel room on the Amalfi Coast (fat chance of that working, so to speak). In fact, I could actually say that the most anticipated part about my trip to Italy was going to be the food: Italy is the homeland of everything I value in my own culinary style.

In double fact, one unexpected bonus of the trip was finding my culinary skills expanded. Never mind that for 80% of the time I had no access to raw ingredients or a kitchen - by simply tasting authentic Italian food, perusing the menus, and spending endless hours nibbling, snacking, munching, and picking on various edible delights (or frights, as the case may be), I feel that I have expanded my repertoire and skill without ever picking up a knife. Greg and I had countless discussions attempting to understand exactly what it is about the good food we enjoyed that made it so good: the preparation, the recipes, the freshness, the quality of ingredients? (yes, yes, yes and YES). We picked apart the most treasured meals: "Is that fresh oregano or dried?" or "I think this is a bechemel and not heavy cream". We jotted down notes in a travel book so as to not forget the taste of authentic Italian upon return to the States. We eagerly anticipated many amazing meals to come forth from our own kitchen.

Nifty.

That said (and I do promise more thorough discussion of the trip and food to come), what did I make as the first meal as soon as I got home?

Grilled corn. And fruit salad. And the next day, a turkey stew that might just pass for chili.

"Are you mad, woman?" No. Just utterly, completely, sick and overwhelmingly tired of Italian food. I never thought I'd say these words in my life, but, please god give me something Americano! In the process of saturating my taste buds (as well as the mental capacity to endure yet one more vegetable-deprived, touristy and overpriced meal outside of some magnificent artistic structure - though I swear I'm not complaining), perhaps I discovered two other things: (1) a renewed interest and appreciation of the culinary merits of my own culture's food, and (2) quite an interest in what grilled corn cobs look like at 55mm and 1.4 aperture. I present to you the latter.

Grilled Corn
Serves: 4

4 cobs of fresh corn
2 tbsp butter
salt

Start the grill preheating on a low heat setting
Peel back corn husk and thoroughly remove silk
Smear ~ 1/2 tbsp butter across surface of raw corn and sprinkle with salt to taste (squeeze of lime or a grating of pepper wouldn't hurt if you're in the mood)
Bring husk back into proper position. Tie loosely with extra husk. Dip entire cob system into water and place on grill.
Grill for anywhere from 15-30 minutes, depending on how tightly you wrapped up the cob and how hot the grill is. Sprinkle extra water on the cob every so often to keep the steam going. Cobs should be slightly charred and corn kernels should be easily pierced.
Serve with equally American picnic fare

P.S. I promised discussion of the trip and I will indeed include some! I decided to post about different segments of the trip, along with food we ate and pictures, every few days. Thought I'd jump in with a recipe first, since I need to spend some sorting my 1200+ photos of the trip... at the very least, here's a teaser, and my comment of, wow, what an spectacular time: wedding, trip and everything.

Greetings from Italy

2007-05-18T12:46:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Italy. I am sitting here in an internet cafe, having been in this country for a full 48 hours (I think? It is very difficult to keep track of time here). I do not have a way to get pictures off of my camera, so no photos for this yet, but I thought I'd say something about how our time has been so far.

In a word, fantastic. I think I love this culture, just as I knew I would. Accordian players on the tram, friendly, welcoming people, wonderful food, amazing sights everywhere - wow. We have been doing typically touristy things so far, trying not to be too typical. Tomorrow our families will be here and I know they will enjoy it too.

Best part? Well, aside from the guy, the gelato.

Check back in, as I might be able to post photos and I'd love to keep a more thorough visual journal of this trip. Either way, Greg convinced me to take a photo of every meal we have, and so far I've kept up with it! New recipe ideas already.

'Ciao', I suppose!
-Rachael

The Waffle House

2007-05-15T08:16:00.000-07:00

Here we are, approximately 36 hours from departure to my honeymoon, and I am posting about waffles. Waffles? Waffles, you say? "Oughtn't you be packing, or organizing, or calling someone on that very long to-do list of your's?" Well, yes. I should be doing those things. But these are good waffles!!

I think you already know that Greg and I are both particularly fixated on Saturday morning breakfasts. They come in a variety of flavors, quantities and calorie loads: from the super healthy egg white only and vegetable omelets to hash browns with free-range, nitrate-free bacon, I'm game for anything on a lazy weekend, and I tend to make interesting things on weekday days as well. Yet despite this vast repertoire of daily experimentation, I must admit that until several weeks ago I had never, in my life, made waffles. See I didn't own a waffle maker. But then, what with wedding registries and all, one magically showed on my front doorstep. I gave it a shot with minor modifications to the recipe that was included.

Perhaps this is why there are wedding registries. This waffle recipe is so good that if Greg and I ever find ourselves in a marital slump, I'll just make the waffles and they'll be so delicious that nothing else will matter but soft blueberries and pillows of butter and syrup. We'll ignore our argument for the sake of bran, whole wheat flour and soy milk that combine together to make a complex, fluffy, wonderfully flavored waffle, good tasting and healthy waffle. I swear! I would quite definitely pick these over Belgian or buttermilk waffles any day, and I think I've made it five times in three weeks already.

I have included my version of the pamphlet recipe, as well as the original version itself. This last Saturday was the first time I included peaches, and I enjoyed it though the flavor was subtle. I whipped the egg whites for the peach version, to help lighten it, but I think it'd be almost as good without that step. You could just as easily take out the peach puree and bring the soy milk up just over 3/4 cup - with that modification there would be no need to whip the egg whites. Treat this batter gently and it will reward you - over-zealous mixing will make the waffles tough instead of cloud-like. Enjoy.

Peach-Bran Waffle Clouds
Makes 4-6 waffles, serves 2
Modified from Cuisinart pamphlet

Dry Ingredients
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
Heaping 1/2 cup wheat bran (the large flake kind, found in bulk containers at health food stores)
1/2 tablespoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt

Wet Ingredients
3/4 cup frozen peaches
1 tbsp granulated sugar
1/2 cup soy milk
3 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 large egg, separated

1 cup frozen blueberries, optional

Warm peaches in microwave until soft. Puree with handheld blender.
Mix generous 1/2 cup peach puree, sugar, soy milk, oil and egg yolk together. Reserve remaining peach puree for topping
Sift dry ingredients together into wet ingredients. Gently fold together
Whip egg white with handheld blender until stiff peaks form. Gently fold egg whites into batter.
Let stand while waffle iron preheats. Add 1/3 cup batter to each side of the iron and cook until lightly browned. Serve with butter, syrup, yogurt, blueberries and extra peach puree.

Basic Waffle Recipe
Makes 10-12 waffles, serves 4
Original version from Cuisinart Pamphlet

2 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 1/2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1 tablespoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cup lowfat milk
6 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 large eggs

Place ingredients in a large mixing bowl and combine until well blended and smooth. Let batter rest 5 minutes before using. Preheat waffle iron and prepare waffles.

Calories per waffle in original version: 174

My goodness

2007-04-22T05:40:00.000-07:00

My goodness, I knew it had been a while since I last posted a recipe but when I looked at the time stamp I realized that it has been almost one month. Yikes. I kept meaning to post that I've been very busy and will be cooking again soon - but then I actually got so darn busy that I couldn't even find the time to post that short message.

I do promise I will begin cooking again (at the moment, Chef Greg has taken over all household duties), but for the time being I hardly have time think about what I want to eat let alone cook it. Hopefully things will lighten up in another week or two, then that's two weeks of cooking, and then we're off to Italy to go get hitched.

Thanks for staying tuned in and understanding my negligence in commenting on your own blogs... and I swear, more recipes coming soon!!

Rachael

Curly Noodles, Hungry Dog, and Chicken Based French Onion Soup

2007-03-25T10:17:00.000-07:00

Okay... this is weird. I'm about to share one of my first recipes that involves meat. And the ironic part about it all is that I think it could be made equally well vegetarian. This whole experimenting with meat thing has been a bit strange, especially because I think I am satisfying my craving with very small amounts of chicken, and in that respect I have confirmed my "mostly veg" nature quite well.

I have a thing for caramelized onions, but frankly I use them far too often in far too many dishes where they don't belong, when all the time, all I want is a good French Onion Soup. I can't believe it took me this long to try making one; now that I've made it, I'll make it again and again. If it weren't for the fact that I have to fit into a bikini for my honeymoon, in, uh, 6 weeks, I'd've probably poured this soup into ramekins and baked it traditionally with cheese and bread and a lot more salt.

But, the aforementioned bikini requirement won't go away, so while this is not quite a healthy recipe, it's also not as overboard as one could choose to make it. Feel free to adapt.

It's buttery, sweet, full of deep flavor, and, as Greg put it, downright beefy despite the lack of beef (ref slow caramelized onions). These onions are true melt-in-your-mouth-goodness. I think the next iteration of this recipe will include some dried porcini mushrooms, but I wanted to keep things simple and made this with as few ingredients as I could manage. There is only a very small amount of chicken in here, and as I mentioned before, you could just as easily leave it out.

I made this soup on Saturday, and it was a little too rich and buttery. I refrigerated it overnight and skimmed off quite a bit of excess fat on Sunday - then it was perfect.

I can't tell you how tempted I was to title this post "Freedom Onion Soup" ; )

French Onion Soup
Serves 2-4

Splash of olive oil
2 chicken thighs, on the bone, washed under cool water and patted dry
2 tbsp flour
2 tbsp butter
2 sweet onions, sliced thinly
2 cloves garlic, chopped
4 cups good vegetable stock (I swear by "Kitchen Basics")
1 large escarole, chopped into ~1/2-1" squares
Salt and pepper to taste

Preheat a heavy soup pot with a splash of olive oil and add chicken thighs skin side down over medium heat. Cook approximately four minutes per side and reserve for later use. Drain excess fat if desired.
Add butter and onions to pot, stirring occasionally over medium-low heat for up to 45 minutes. Aim to develop a deep caramel color, but watch pot carefully to avoid burning the onions*
Sprinkle flour over onions, add garlic and stir to fully incorporate. Cook for an additional 3 minutes to form a roux, then deglaze with vegetable stock. Remove excess fat and skin from chicken thighs. Shred and add to pot along with escarole.
Simmer for 10-15 minutes, until escarole is cooked through and soft, and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Optionally: refrigerate overnight and skim excess fat the next day. Serve over pasta that has been boiled in heavily salted water.

*This is where the heavy bottomed pot is most useful. Your patience will be rewarded by soft, sweet, caramelized onions, I promise!