CLEAN GREEN CUISINE

My Special Baking Project

2011-07-19T09:35:00.000-04:00

Please excuse my absence. I've been busy making a Fausto.

2 Year Blogiversary!

2011-02-23T15:11:00.000-05:00

Today is my 2 year blogiversary! My, how things have changed in 2 years. I know I've been conspicuously absent on this blog lately, but I promise I've been busy. I've been working on a very special baking project that I hope comes out of the oven around May 4 :)

I still have plenty of delicious recipes to share, so stay tuned!

All Star Soup

2011-01-09T10:45:00.000-05:00

I am loving Top Chef All Stars this season. Bringing back the best contestants (or biggest characters) to compete against each other was a great idea from the TC producers. One of the best parts of this season has also been following my friend De's awesome blog, where she gives the play by play with running commentary of every episode. Its hysterical and whenever I read I'm constantly exclaiming, "That's exactly what I was thinking! What's up with that?" To add to the fun of the competition, we all pick 2 contestants to win it all. One of my picks this season is crazy Carla. She's a nut, but she's not a jerk like the majority of the chefs. And I love her style of cooking simple, delicious food. So I was thrilled a few weeks ago when she won the episode! The challenge was to create a healthy but filling dish to serve at the US Open. Carla decided to make a vegetarian African peanut soup, which immediately intrigued me. We also found out that Carla's a runner, so she knows what kind of fuel athletes need. The other chefs doubted Carla's choice, thinking it wasn't sophisticated enough. Don't they know that's what Carla does best? Taking humble comfort food and executing it so perfectly that she kicks your molecular-foam-freeze-dried-loving butt! The judges loved her spicy stew and she won a trip to Italy!

This soup worked out so well for Carla, I had to create my own version. I didn't get much info on what went into Carla's soup, other than that she used sweet potatoes and when she presented it to the judges she called it a "ground nut soup," so I'm guessing she didn't use the peanuts but went with a different nut. Smart move, since just about any nut is healthier than a peanut. But I decided to stick with the peanut for my version. I ground the peanuts in the food processor until they made a peanut butter, but you could also just buy natural peanut butter.

I scoured the internets for African peanut soup recipes, and found that its traditionally made with chicken and often has coconut milk. Sweet potatoes and chickpeas replaced the chicken in my version.

I used lots of fresh chopped vegetables as the base.

TC judge Gail had commented that Carla's soup was really spicy. I like a little heat, but probably not as much as Carla used. I used harissa, which is a North African hot chili sauce that has a little smokiness. You could use any chile sauce, and adjust the amount to your taste. I think this would also be delicious with chipotle peppers, usually my go-to for adding heat to dishes.

This soup is perfect for a snowy January. Warm, comforting and hearty, but still healthy and not too heavy for those of use trying to recover from a gluttonous holiday season.

African Peanut Soup

serves 4 - 6

2 Tbs olive oil

1 medium onion, diced

1 red bell pepper, diced

1 green pepper, diced

1 large carrot, peeled and diced

2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced

1 Tbs fresh ginger, peeled and grated

3/4 cup unsalted roasted peanuts, or 1/2 cup natural peanut butter

1 Tbs harissa, or other chile sauce to taste

2 medium sweet potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1" cubes

1 x 28 can whole plum tomatoes

1 cup coconut milk

2 cups vegetable broth

1 tsp turmeric

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp cumin

1 x 15 oz can chickpeas, drained and rinsed

salt and pepper to taste

chopped peanuts, cilantro, and sour cream, for garnish

If using whole peanuts, grind in food processor until they form peanut butter.
Heat olive oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion, peppers and carrot and saute until softened, about 8 minutes. Add garlic and ginger and saute 30 seconds until fragrant. Add peanut butter and harissa and saute 30 seconds.
Add sweet potatoes to pot and let cook for a few minutes. Meanwhile, pour canned tomatoes with juices into a large bowl and crush with hands or a potato masher. Add tomatoes to pot and stir.
Add coconut milk, vegetable broth, spices and salt and pepper. Cover pot and lower heat to a simmer. Simmer for about 20 minutes, until sweet potatoes are just tender. Add chickpeas and taste to adjust seasonings. Simmer another 10 minutes.
Serve soup topped with chopped peanuts and chopped fresh cilantro. Its also good with a dollop of sour cream.

Italian Cooking

2010-12-20T17:44:00.000-05:00

At long last and with much ado, I'm finally ready to share with you the extraordinary trip to Italy we took all the way back in October. During our trip we spent 5 days on the Tuscan countryside, staying at the Castello di Spaltenna in Gaiole in Chianti.

If you look real hard you can see me waving from the top left window. The highlight of the trip for me was the private cooking class my mother and I took with Chef Simone at the Malborghetto restaurant. Chef Simone greeted us warmly with warm espresso when we arrived at the restaurant late morning to learn how to prepare a delicious traditional 4-course Tuscan lunch.

The restaurant was not open for dining, they were just starting to prep for their dinner service. Chef Simone was an amazing teacher. Warm, friendly and patient, and full of tips and tricks. I was surprised at how much we learned from him! Simone invited us into his small and tidy kitchen and we got right to cooking. The first step was to prepare dessert, which was an Italian classic - Tiramisu. I've never made it before and was surprised at how easy it was. We started by separating egg whites and yolks.

My mother beat the whites to a soft peak with some sugar.

I whisked together the yolks and mascarpone cheese, then gently folded in the whites.

Then we started layering the custard with delicate, slightly crunchy Italian ladyfingers quickly dunked in strong espresso.

And that's it! The Tiramisu needs a couple of hours in the fridge to set, but we whipped it up in just a few minutes. Next it was time to start the sauce for the pasta course, a hearty Bolognese. Bolognese is a meat sauce made with very little tomato - the meat is the star. We started by grinding onions, carrots and celery in a very serious grinder.

For those of us who don't have industrial meat grinders, a food processor will do. One of the many clever tricks Chef Simone taught us was to soak onions in cold water before chopping to eliminate tears.

We then sauteed the vegetables in olive oil.

As the vegetables sauteed and softened, we learned another trick. If the vegetables are starting to brown too quickly, and aren't softened yet - add water! Simone told us it was a chef's secret that they never talked about because it just sounds too simple. But its a very obvious way to add moisture without changing the flavor. Once the vegetables were well softened, we added ground beef. The chef didn't use a lot of measurements. For this sauce, he just said to eyeball an equal volume of vegetables and ground beef.

Once the meat was browned, we added a little pureed tomato and red wine, then let the sauce simmer while we moved onto the pasta. Homemade, of course. Chef Simone pulled together the dough for spinach-ricotta ravioli like magic. A little flour, a little water, one egg and some salt kneaded together yielded the most perfect pasta dough I've ever seen. I was amazed at how sturdy it was as we rolled it out and yet still so light.

My mother and I set up a little assembly line to fill the ravioli with a mixture of frozen blanched spinach and ricotta.

Ricotta in Italy is different than what we have in the the states. Its much creamier and smoother.

The ravioli was placed on floured baking sheets and then frozen. It can go straight from freezer to boiling water, so you can make a large batch ahead of time and just cook them as you need them.

With all this prep done, we moved onto our appetizer. I have to be honest, I was a little nervous when the chef told us we would be making chicken liver crostini. I've never had liver before, and it did not appeal to me. But under Chef Simone's tutelage we put together a warm liver spread that was rich and earthy, with just a mild liver flavor. You start by sauteing onions in olive oil, and then added whole livers to the pan. They need to be well cleaned - best to have a butcher do that.

Cook the livers through, then add sweet wine, anchovy paste and capers. The sweet and salty elements keep the liver from being too overpowering in this dish. Once everything is cooked, you mash it all together or give it a quick whirl in the food processor and serve with toasted bread.

Finally, we moved onto the main course. Yes, there's more food! This was a very traditional Tuscan dish of white beans and sausage. Chef Simone had cooked the cannellini beans ahead of time with some herbs and garlic, but he said canned would also do. This dish was incredibly simple but flavorful. You just start with some beans, garlic, sage rosemary, sausage (casings removed) and a little tomato sauce.

Simone chops up several heads of garlic at the beginning of the week and stores them in a jar with some safflower oil. For everything else in the kitchen he uses extra virgin olive oil, of course.

Saute the garlic, sage and rosemary in olive oil and then add the sausage and a little water.

When the sausage is nearly cooked through, add the beans, a scoop of tomato sauce, and salt and pepper. Cook until beans are soft and start to break down.

And then...it was time to eat! We started with the chicken liver crostini, served in a little fondue pot-type dish with a candle underneath.

I really was surprised at how much I enjoyed it! But I had to pace myself, knowing all the food that was to come. Before the pasta course, Simone brought us back into the kitchen to teach us how to make a parmesan basket to serve pasta in. You just sprinkle grated parmesan cheese cheese into a small non-stick skillet, melt it over a low heat, and then flip it onto an upside down bowl to form a bowl shape as it cools.

Delicious melted cheese and lovely presentation!

This was easily one of my favorite dishes of our trip. Delicate pasta with a rich, hearty sauce. The main course came next, humble beans and sausage elevated to a whole new level.

And of course, the Tiramisu for dessert, dusted with grated chocolate. I was completely stuffed at this point, but could not help eating all of this!

Cooking in this beautiful, authentic Tuscan restaurant with such a warm and knowledgeable teacher was definitely the highlight or our Italian vacation.

We even got aprons with our names on them! Thank you, Chef Simone!

Now obviously I've been home for 2 months and have had plenty of time to try out these recipes on my own. First up had to be the Bolognese. As I started to gather my ingredients, I realized we didn't have any red wine, an essential component to the sauce. I ran down to our local Wine Emporium, and was shocked and thrilled to see that they carried the Chianti Classico from the tiny Castello di Spaltenna, where we stayed in Tuscany!

I'm glad we didn't try to lug any of this wine home, knowing that we can pick it up right down the street. Not having a professional grinder, I chopped my onions, celery and carrots in the food processor. Much easier than chopping by hand!

For meat, I used ground beef from Hardwick Beef.

After a long simmer with lots of red wine, I served my Bolognese over penne (not quite ready to attempt the homemade pasta) with a parmesan bowl that turned out to be more of a parmesan plate.

We were immediately transported back to the Tuscan countryside. And now you can be, too!

Chef Simone's Bolognese

2 large onions

4 large carrots

4 stalks of celery

2 Tbs olive oil

1 Tbs tomato paste

2 lbs ground beef

1 - 2 cups dry red wine

1/2 - 1 cup pureed tomatoes

salt and pepper

Peel the onions and carrots and cut them into large chunks. Whir them in food processor with the celery until finely chopped, but not turned to mush.
Heat olive oil in large dutch oven over medium hear, and add vegetables. Saute until softened, about 10 minutes. Add tomato paste and saute a few more minutes
Add ground beef, breaking up large chunks, and saute until just browned. Add about 1/2 cup red wine and reduce heat to a simmer. Continue adding red wine as it cooks off.
When meat is cooked through and it starts to look saucy, add pureed tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Simmer on low for another 20 minutes or so, add more tomato if sauce starts to look dry.
Serve over your favorite pasta with lots of parmesan cheese.

Buon Appetito!

Next up, I'm going to be making Tiramisu for Christmas Eve. My parents are hosting the Feast of the Seven Fishes! Stay tuned!

Fall Risotto

2010-10-28T17:04:00.000-04:00

Why hello there...remember me? I used to blog here occasionally. About food. I hope you didn't forget about me or give up hope that I would return. Well for a good chunk of this month I was unable to connect with you because I was eating my way around Italy. What an amazing place! But I'm not quite ready to share that trip with you today. I'm a little rusty on this whole blogging thing, so I'm just going to share with you a tasty, simple fall recipe.

After weeks of eating lots of pasta and not a lot of vegetables, I needed to come home to something slightly more virtuous. Not that this recipe is light, and its still delicious. Its hearty, but it is definitely healthy. And uses the best flavors of the season.

To beef up the healthy factor I passed on the rice and used heart-healthy barley as the base of this recipe. Then added some fall produce.

Butternut squash, kale, sage, shallots and garlic. The butternut squash is roasted until soft, so some of it melts into the risotto but there are still some meaty chunks.

And the bitter kale is such a nice contrast to the sweetness of the squash and another seasonal treat I threw in the mix - dried cranberries!

I have a nice little tip for scraping the seeds out of squash. I always use a grapefruit spoon.

The serrated edges are perfect for removing all the seed goo that likes to hang onto the squash. This is also a good tool to remove seeds from chili peppers.

What really makes this recipe luscious and creamy is the addition of goat cheese. I stirred in a whole log at the end and it also adds a great tang.

This recipe make a huge batch that I've been eating for lunch all week. It reheats very well.

Butternut Squash and Kale Barley Risotto

1 medium butternut squash, about 1 - 2 lbs

1 medium bunch of kale, tough stems removed, washed and chopped

2 Tbs olive oil

1 large shallot, diced

1 Tbs chopped fresh sage

1 large clove garlic, minced or crushed

1.5 cups pearl barley

4 cups vegetable or chicken broth

handful of dried cranberries

4 oz. goat cheese, crumbled

Preheat oven to 400º
Peel, remove seeds and chop butternut squash into 1" chunks
Toss with about 1 Tbs olive oil and season with salt and pepper in a large roasting pan
Roast squash about 20 minutes, until tender
Heat broth in a medium saucepan over low heat until just warm. Keep over low heat
Meanwhile, heat 2 Tbs olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add shallots and sage and saute 2 - 3 minutes. Add garlic and saute 1 minute more
Add barely to pan and toss to coat in oil. Cook about 1 minute
Add 2 ladlefuls of broth to barley mixture. bring to a simmer and then reduce heat to low. Stir and cover saute pan. Cook about 5 - 10 minutes, until most of the broth is absorbed. Continue to add broth by the ladleful and cooking until absorbed.. About half way through cooking, add kale, stir, and cover. Continue to add broth and cook until kale is wilted and barely is just tender.
Stir in cranberries and roasted butternut squash, cooking and stirring another minute or 2.
Crumble goat cheese over the top and stir until all the goat cheese is incorporated.

Serve warm and enjoy!

The Labor Party

2010-09-08T21:39:00.003-04:00

Our annual Labor Day celebration has become one of my favorite events of the year. For an entire long weekend, I get to plan a menu and cook every meal for a group of food and drink-loving and appreciating friends. For some people this might sound like a nightmare, but for me its a dream come true. I get to design a menu and theme meals using the freshest late-summer produce, explore new recipes, re-invent classics, and feed it all to my wonderful (and drunk) friends who enjoy every bite. And we get to do all this at my favorite place in the world - our Cape house!

I was especially excited this year because we got to start our weekend early. The house was empty as of Thursday, so we were able to drive down Thursday night and stay all the way until Monday. Even with a grumpy gentleman called (Hurricane) Earl attempting to derail our plans. As of Thursday morning, it was not looking good. This hurricane was predicted to nail us Friday night with heavy wind and rain. Our little cottage has been through a lot of storms. According to family legend it was even picked up and moved down the street during one in the 60s. My grandfather and his brother rolled it back in place on telephone poles. Uphill. With one hand. In the snow. With no shoes on. You get the picture, its been through a lot. But, you definitely do not want to be inside it when its faced with a storm. I was quite nervous, but figured we needed to head down to batten the hatches, so we braved it with Colucci and Daisy and drove down Thursday night. Thank god I had a serious blogger with me. I totally forgot my fancy camera so many of these pictures are stolen from Daisy. And check out her adorable and clever posts about the weekend! Daisy brings the wit, I'll bring the recipes.

We woke Friday morning to a rather lovely day.

And even though it wasn't Saturday, I made a batch of blueberry pancakes and bacon with the last blueberries of the season (tear).

We moved all the furniture off the deck, but it was so nice out all day that we ended up moving it back so we could hang out on it. We went for walks on the beach and swam.

Colucci assembled the Red Baron and got it in the air.

There was a lot of kite-flying this weekend.

Daisy and I tackled an impossible black and white Ansel Adams puzzle.

And then it was time for more eating and drinking. Colucci made a batch of delicious Tom Collins, squeezing endless lemons and limes and mixing them with simple syrup, club soda, and gin.

Friday night's dinner had an Italian theme, so I started assembling bruschetta for appetizers.

Please ignore the hurricane hair.

Tomato-Olive Bruschetta

1 baguette, sliced

2 Tbs olive oil, plus more for brushing bread

3 large ripe tomatoes

1 clove of garlic, diced

1/4 cup sliced kalamata olives

2 Tbs torn basil

1 Tbs red wine vinegar

salt and pepper to taste

Pre-heat oven to 350º
Brush both sides of baguette slices generously with olive oil and place them on baking sheet. Bake about 15 minutes, turning once, until crisp and golden.
Meanwhile, chop tomatoes and add them to a medium bowl. Stir in garlic, olives and basil.
Whisk together 2 Tbs olive oil and 1 Tbs vinegar, pour over tomato mixture and toss. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Spoon tomato mixture over bread slices and serve immediately.

As apps were being served, it started to get dark and ominous outside.

But we drew a line in the sand that Earl would not cross.

We actually just took bets on how high the water would come up. And I won because I was still convinced that this storm was going to be brutal. Turns out, it was nothing but a little wind and rain. Lisa even drove down to join us during the heart of the storm! But first, dinner is served.

I've posted pictures of my famous seafood lasagna on the blog before, but never shared the recipe. Its a crowd-pleaser every time. Its starts with your basic red sauce, ricotta, pasta and mozzarella, but a couple twists make it extraordinary. First, there are layers of sauteed shrimp, scallops and lobster meat.

Then each slice is topped with a healthy serving of tomato-basil bechamel.

Its rich, savory and decadent. Perfect served with a ceasar salad made with homemade dressing and croutons.

So at long last and by popular demand...

Seafood Lasagna with Tomato Basil Bechamel

Serves 10

Adapted from Seasoned by the Sea by Cynthia & Robert Ahern

1 lb medium shrimp, peeled and deveined

1 lb scallops

2 small cooked lobster tails

1/2 tsp dried basil

1/2 tsp dried oregano

1/4 tsp pepper

1 quart tomato sauce

1 lb box no-boil lasagna noodles

2 lbs part-skim ricotta

2 eggs

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

1 cup grated fresh mozzarella

For Bechamel:

4 Tbs unsalted butter

6 Tbs flour

1 1/2 cups seafood stock

1 1/2 cups milk

2 Tbs tomato paste

2 Tbs chopped basil

salt and pepper to taste

pinch of nutmeg

Cut shrimp, scallops and lobster meat into bite-sized chunks. Not too big, not too small. Heat olive oil in a large saute pan and cook shrimp and scallops for 2 to 3 minutes. And lobster, oregano, basil and pepper and cook until just heated through. Remove the seafood and set aside, and drain the liquid and set aside of bechamel.
Preheat oven to 350º
Mix together ricotta, parmesan, and eggs. In a 10-by-13 baking dish, begin with a layer of tomato sauce. Top with a layer of lasagna noodles. Spread one third of ricotta mixture on top of pasta and top with a third of seafood. Top with noodles, tomato sauce and ricotta and continue layering until you have 3 seafood layers, then top with a generous amount of tomato sauce.
Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes. Remove foil, sprinkle with mozzarella and cook for another 15 minutes until bubbly and lightly browned.
Lasagna should set for about 30 minutes after cooking, so account for that time in your schedule.

While lasagna cooks, make bechamel:

In a medium saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Stir in flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 4 minutes. Mix together cooking liquid from seafood and seafood stock and pour into roux, whisking to eliminate lumps.
When sauce is hot, stir in tomato paste, salt and pepper, nutmeg and basil.
Just before serving, stir in milk and heat until hot and thick but not boiling.
Serve lasagna cut into squares, topped with bechamel and garnished with fresh basil.

Then go swimming at midnight in a hurricane, if you're my stupid husband.

We weathered the storm, the house stayed in place, and we woke up to a beautiful morning.

And egg sandwiches made with my favorite buttermilk biscuits.

Then enjoyed another fun day of swimming, kite flying, bocce and boating.

To be honest with you, Saturday night's dinner was the meal I was looking forward to the least. The last couple years, Derek and I have talked about cooking lobster for everyone. I said I'd be happy to serve lobster as long as I didn't have to put the lobster in the pot. And did my darling husband say, "of course I'll cook the lobster for you, you do so much for all of us this weekend, its the least I could do"? Oh, no. He gently reminded me of my former vegetarian belief that if you're going to eat something, you should be able to kill it, and tactfully pointed out how hypocritical I was being by eating the lobster and pawning the murder part off on someone else. So I had always just refused to serve lobster. But with my new meat-eating ways, I decided this year I would suck it up and treat everyone to a big lobster feast. And big it was.

This critter was 10 pounds. Huge! I wasn't even sure if he'd fit in the pot. Oh, but he did. And I put him in myself. I stuck him in the freezer for about 15 minutes before cooking to numb him, because that's supposed to be less painful. Perhaps I should taken a few minutes in the freezer myself.

Yes, there was screaming and crying. It reminded me of driving the OCV in New Zealand. But I did it!

And it was worth it because this guy was delicious. Luckily, Derek took over for the dismembering.

And left quite an impression on the kitchen window.

To serve with the lobster, I went simple and traditional. Steamed corn on the cob and roasted potatoes.

I made one of my favorite salads, not traditional New England fare, but still local and seasonal.

Watermelon Feta Salad

5 cups watermelon, seeded and chopped into 1" chunks

8 oz. feta cheese, chopped

1/4 cup sliced basil

1 Tbs red wine vinegar

2 Tbs olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

Toss watermelon, feta and basil in a large bowl.
Whisk together vinegar, olive oil, and salt and pepper.
Pour over salad and toss. Serve immediately.

After dinner, we walked over to the Sand Bar to see the legendary Rock King perform, which is also becoming a Labor Day tradition. Last year, Rock celebrated his 50th year performing at the Sand Bar. So you can imagine how old his jokes are.

We returned home to these amazing Lemon Blueberry Ice Cream Sandwiches.

As I was serving Baked French Toast and more bacon Sunday morning, I realized that I might be trying to kill my guests this weekend with fat and calories.

But Lisa reminded me that I was playing to my audience. And this audience likes their bacon.

Lunch was, of course, lobster rolls.

And the theme for Sunday's dinner was very near to my heart (and might be clogging it) - Southern food night! Starting with Pimento Cheese, of course.

I'm cheating with this picture - its from the Kentucky Derby! But same food, same setting.

Pimento Cheese

2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

1/4 cup copped roasted red peppers

3 Tbs mayonaise

hot sauce to taste

salt & pepper

Stir together all ingredients in a small bowl, seasoning with hot sauce and salt and pepper to taste.
Serve with celery sticks and Ritz crackers. Or use as a sandwich spread.

The centerpiece for this meal turned out pretty amazing. I based it on Smitten Kitchen's recipe for Sweet and Smoky Spareribs. They cooked low and slow in the oven for 6 hours, and were meltingly tender, perfectly tangy and just a little sweet.

Sweet and Smoky Spareribs

inspired by Smitten Kitchen

Serves 8

8 - 10 lbs pork spareribs

1.5 cups brown sugar

1 Tbs chipotle chili powder

1 Tbs smoked paprika

3 tsp salt

2 tsp onion powder

1 tsp garlic powder

1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

2 tsp smoked paprika

1 Tbs red wine vinegar

Pre-heat oven to 200 degrees.

In a mixing bowl, combine the brown sugar, chipotle, paprika, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, cloves and ginger. Mix together with a fork.
Place each slab of ribs on a piece of foil large enough to fold into a packet. Sprinkle
spice rub over the ribs, patting it in generously on all sides.
Turn the ribs meat side down and tightly fold the foil to make sealed packets.
Place each packet on its own baking sheet (I had 3) and place it in the oven.
Bake for 4 hours at 200 degrees, then reduce the temperature to 175 for another two hours or until a fork easily penetrates the meat.
Open each packet carefully and pour the accumulated juices into a saucepan. Boil the juices and reduce them by half, at which point you will have a syrupy sauce that easily coats a spoon. Stir in paprika and vinegar.
Remove the ribs from the foil and serve the sauce alongside the ribs.

On the side, I served more of my biscuits, a peanut lime slaw, white wine braised kale, and baked beans. Well, they weren't exactly baked as I cooked them all on the stovetop. But you get the idea. The flavors complimented the ribs perfectly.

Root Beer Stove-Top Beans

2 Tbs canola oil

2 medium onions, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

2 19 oz. cans cannellini beans, drained

1 1/2 cups root beer (preferably artisanal)

3 Tbs apple cider vinegar

3 Tbs molasses

2 Tbs tomato paste

2 Tbs Dijon mustard

1 tsp chipotle chili powder

1 teaspoon coarse kosher salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Heat oil in a large pot over medium heat. Add onion and saute until softened and starting to brown.
Add garlic; stir 1 minute. Add beans, root beer, vinegar, molasses, tomato paste, mustard, chipotle powder, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper; mix.
Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to a low simmer.
Simmer until sauce is reduced and very thick. Serve hot. With ribs.

To one big happy family....

Monday had to come and we had to leave the beach once again. Our delicious drunken weekend is over for this year. Now I just have to start planning next year's menu.

Kinda Corny

2010-08-29T20:42:00.000-04:00

Have I happened to mention this is my favorite time of year? Once or twice or a thousand times on this blog? The delicious, fresh produce is seemingly never ending. We are literally gorging ourselves on corn and tomatoes right now, knowing we won't be eating them again for a very long time once the summer is over. These are 2 vegetables that I'm pretty adamant about eating in season because the stuff that gets shipped in from California and Mexico the rest of the year is hardly worth eating. Tomatoes can be salvaged by roasting so I do cheat occasionally, but I won't go near corn off-season.

So what have we been doing with the corn? I had a double corn dose with some grilled empanadas. The dough was made with masa, dried and limed ground corn that is used to make tortillas. Which basically what these are - tortilla pockets. Its very simple dough, just corn and water and a little salt.

The dough is divided into 4 balls and then flattened into tortillas.

Having a tortillas press really helps this process. My mom picked one up for me in Mexico - just one of the many gadgets in my kitchen that gets used about once a year. You can also use 2 heavy frying pans, that will work just as well.

For the filling I used...more corn! Grilled and tossed with sauteed zucchini and summer squash (more abundant summer vegetables) and chopped queso fresco.

The reason you really need to make your own dough for this and not use store-bought tortillas is that you actually mold the dough around the filling so everything stays in when cooked.

Traditionally empenadas would be fried, and you could certainly bake them for a lower fat version. But since the grill was already on I decided to grill these.

They came out nice a crispy but a little on the dry side and in need of a sauce. Luckily I had...tomatoes! I sauteed them into a spicy tomato sauce that was perfect on these.

The leftover filling made a great side salad.

Cheesy, corny goodness...

Grilled Corn and Zucchini Empanadas

Serves 2

1 cup masa flour

3/4 cup water

1/4 tsp salt

2 ears corn

1 small zucchini, roughly chopped

1 small summer squash, roughly chopped

olive oil

salt and pepper

1/2 cup queso fresco, chopped

1/2 cup monterey jack cheese, grated

2 large tomatoes, chopped

2 cloves of garlic, crushed or minced

1/2 tsp chipotle powder or 1 canned chipotle

1/2 smoked paprika

In a medium bowl, mix together masa flour and water until it forms a crumbly dough. Gather into a ball, cover with damp towel, and chill until ready to use.
Heat a small amount of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat, add zucchini and summer squash, sprinkle with salt and pepper and saute until lightly browned. Transfer to a medium bowl.
Light a grill and heat to medium-high.
Husk corn and brush with olive oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill until starting to char, about 10 minutes, turning occasionally.
Let corn cool slightly, then cut kernels from cob and toss with squash. Added chopped queso fresco and toss.
In the large skillet, heat a little more olive oil over medium heat. Add tomatoes and garlic and simmer about 10 minutes. Stir in chipotle and and paprika and cook about 5 more minutes. Remove from heat and cool a few minutes, then transfer tomato mixture to blender. Blender until pureed but still chunky, keeping top of blender slightly open to allow heat to escape. Return sauce to pan and heat over low.
Remove dough from fridge and divide into 4 equal portions. Roll each into a ball. It helps to have wet hands. Cover with damp towel. Working one at a time, press each ball between 2 pieces of plastic wrap using tortilla press or 2 heavy frying pans. Press evenly until thin and about 5 - 6" across. Set aside, using a thin spatula to transfer to another damp cloth. Continue pressing all for dough balls.
For each tortilla, mound a small amount of squash and corn mixture on half of tortilla, leaving about a 1"space around edge. Sprinkle a little monteray jack on filling. With wet hands and thin spatula, carefully fold other half of tortilla over filling and press edges to seal. Repeat with remaining tortillas.
Brush each tortilla pocket with olive oil, the transfer to grill. Grill each side about 5 minutes, until crisp and slightly charred. Top with tomato sauce and serve with remaining filling along side.

My next corn recipe was inspired by and amazing corn soup I had last week at my favorite Boston-area restaurant, T.W. Food. Its tiny place that cooks local, seasonal food that is always unbelievably delicious. We visited for Boston Restaurant Week, and for my appetizer I selected the corn soup with an heirloom pepper and maple relish as the garnish.

When I decided to try this at home, I used fresh crab meat (perhaps inspired by Daisy?) as the garnish. The sweet crab complimented the corn beautifully.

Corn Soup with Crab

serves 2

2 ears of corn, shucked and kernels cut from cobs, cobs reserved

1 small onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, crushed or minced

olive oil

salt and pepper

1/4 white wine

1 cup water

1/2 cup milk

1/2 Tbs unsalted butter

2 oz. fresh crab meat

1 Tbs snipped chives

Heat a small amount of olive oil in a dutch oven or large pot over medium heat. And onion and saute until softened but not browned. Add garlic and all but 1/4 cup corn kernels, season with salt and pepper, and saute about 5 more minutes until softened. Scrape pulp for corn cobs into pot. Add white wine and scrape up any bits from bottom of pan. Cook a few more minutes until most of the liquid has cooked off. Add water to pot and simmer about 5 more minutes.
Remove pot from heat and let cool slightly. Add soup to blender and puree until smooth. Strain through a fine mesh sieve if you're a perfectionist, or just pour back into the pot if you like it rustic (like me).
Stir milk into soup and re-heat over medium-low heat.
Meanwhile, melt butter over medium heat in a small saute pan. Add corn and saute about 4 minutes. Add crab and saute until just heated through. Stir in chives.
Serve soup garnished with corn and crab mixture.

Excellent with some tomato bruschetta on the side...

Had enough corn yet? I didn't think so. Another vegetable that just started coming out of the ground (quite literally) is potatoes. They're small and new, delicious and versatile. I found a couple recipes recently for a corn pesto served with pasta, and decided to take it one step further and make my one pasta. Well, sort of. How about potato gnocchi?

I know it sounds like a lot of work to make your own gnocchi, but trust me, it is terribly easy. You just make mashed potatoes and stir in some flour to form a dough, roll the dough into ropes, and cut it into pieces. Its fast and easy and totally accessible for a weeknight dinner.

I have to warn you, this is not a light dish. Between the potato, corn and bacon, it is rather starchy and rich. A little goes a long way, but it is indulgently delicious.

Corn Pesto with Bacon and Potato Gnocchi

serves 2

1.5 lbs potatoes, peeled and cut into 1" chunks

1/2 - 3/4 cup flour, plus more for dusting

2 slices bacon

1 small onion, diced

2 ears of corn, shucked and kernels cut from cobs, cobs reserved

1 clove of garlic, minced

salt and pepper

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese

1/4 pine nuts

1/4 extra virgin olive oil

small handful sliced basil leaves

Boil potatoes in a large pot of salt water until tender. Scoop potatoes from water with slotted spoon and let cool a bit. Keep water in pot. Mash potatoes into a medium bowl with a potato ricer or masher. Stir in 1/2 cup flour, adding more to make dough come together. Season with salt. Gather into a sticky dough.
Divide dough into 4 chunks. Line a large baking sheet with parchment. On a floured work surface, role each dough hunk into a long rope, about 3/4" thick, and cut into 1" pieces. Lay pieces on parchment and continue with remaining dough. Set aside.
Cook bacon in a large skillet until crisp. Remove bacon and drain. Pour off all but about 1 Tbs of bacon drippings from pan. Add onion and saute until softened but not brown. Stir in corn and garlic, saute about 5 more minutes.
Scrape corn mixture in food processor and add grated cheese and pine nuts. Process until blended but still chunky. With motor running, pour in olive oil and process until a uniform sauce comes together.
Return pot of water used for potatoes to a boil. Add gnocchi in 2 batches and cook until gnocchi floats, about 4 minutes. Drain and reserve some pasta water.
Add gnocchi to saute pan and pour in corn pesto. Add a little pasta water to thin slightly and stir until gnocchi is coated. Transfer to 2 plates, crumble a slice of bacon over each and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Garnish with additional parmesan cheese.

Its good to a be a lightly corny sometimes.

Setting up Camp

2010-08-12T10:15:00.001-04:00

Those who know me know that I'm not exactly a roughing it kind of girl. Despite having a crunchy hippie side I am most definitely a city girl who's preferred vacation excursions involve posh hotels and fancy restaurants. That's partly because I am a spoiled brat who was lucky enough to have parents who treated me to these fancy vacations. "Roughing it" meant going to our beach house that doesn't have a dishwasher. My husband had a decidedly different upbringing. His parents own a trailer that they drove (and still drive) all around the U.S., and would set the boys up outside in a tent. When he was old enough to go on his own, he spent many weekends taking backpacking and canoeing trips. But he hasn't done that in years, certainly not since I came into his life. The closest he's gotten to camping was our New Zealand OCV, which was basically our apartment on wheels.

A few years ago, my parents returned to their hippie roots (being crunchy is in my blood) and started camping again. For several weekends every summer they rent a site on Moon Island in Squam Lake, New Hampshire. The island has no electricity, a composting toilet and is reached via kayak or canoe. When they told me they wouldn't be using one of the weekends they reserved this summer, I knew I was in trouble. It took me several weeks to tell Derek about the available site and he got so excited that I quickly needed to come to terms with the realization that I was going camping. Real, dirty, roughing it camping.

Of course the only way for me to really get excited over this weekend was to approach it as I approach most life events - Top Chef Challenge! Cook for 5 friends for a weekend using only what you can carry in 1 cooler cooking everything over a camp fire! Does anyone doubt that I could pull this off?

There was a lot of preparation that went into this weekend, starting with hauling lots of boats.

We invited Lucy and her husband, Jon, and our friend Seth to join us for the weekend. The plan was to row over with 1 canoe and 5 kayaks, 2 of the kayaks being towed so we could paddle around with them on Saturday.

Turns out, we needed every single inch of boat space to haul all our stuff.

We battled some choppy waters but arrived safely on the island. And I had to admit, it was really pretty up there.

While everyone unpacked and assembled tents, I started setting up my kitchen. We picked up a great camp kitchen at REI, on sale for only $30, and my dad had a kitchen setup as well. So we brought both!

Seth happily started a fire while the rest of us started drinking. That's a camp activity I can get behind.

Per usual, I was cooking for a variety of food tastes. Seth is a vegetarian, and I was happy to accommodate him. For our first night, I heated up some of my dad's gumbo over the fire for the carnivores and a very seasonal veggie stew for Seth. I also heated up some cheesy cornbread on the side.

My parents got those camping pots as a wedding present 40 years ago. They're still going strong (the pots and my parents).

A little in-studio shot of the veggie stew

Dessert that night was, for me, the highlight of the trip. Campfire s'mores made with my own homemade graham crackers. God bless Smitten Kitchen for posting this amazing recipe. Unfortunately, we were too busy toasting marshmallows in the dark to take any pictures, but I got some glamour shots at home. Turns out, you can make a mean s'more under the broiler.

Check out these fun marshmallow flavors I ordered from Whimsy & Spice in Brooklyn.

Saturday morning I whipped up our usual weekend breakfast - blueberry pancakes. Lucy picked wild blueberries on the island to add to the pancake batter I made the night before we left. Leveling the griddle over the campfire proved a bit of a challenge, but the boys were up to the task.

Well fed, we suited up and set off for a day of kayaking.

Quite a look, huh? My sunglasses broke just before we left the house, but luckily Seth had these back-ups in his car. They're very Daisy, don't you think?

We spent the day exploring the other little islands on the lake.

And stopped to eat ham and cheese sandwiches on a tiny island Seth declared his own. We called it Blueberry Clam Island. For the blueberries and clams on it.

Then back to the site for more eating and drinking! I'm starting to like this vacation. For Saturday night dinner, I faced a piece of beef shoulder tender that required me to slice off the thin layer "silver skin" on either side. I definitely need to work on my butchery skills.

We grilled some corn over the fire and threw some potatoes wrapped in foil in with the coals. Then grilled the beef with some delicious chipotle-cherry BBQ sauce I made.

Jon taught me the very scientific technique of testing the meat's doneness by poking it with your finger. Well, it worked. The meat was perfect with a nice crust from the sweet and spicy BBQ sauce.

My favorite part of this meal was the delicious panzanella I made by grilling leftover cornbread and tossing it with tomatoes, grilled onions and arugula. Give it a shot!

Cornbread Panzanella

adapted from Epicurious

Dressing:

2 Tbs balsamic vinegar

1 tsp dijon mustard

1 tsp honey

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Salt & pepper

Salad:

1/2 loaf cheesy cornbread

4 large tomatoes, chopped

1 small bunch of arugula, roughly torn

2 medium onions

olive oil for brushing

For Dressing: whisk together, vinegar, mustard and honey. Slowly pour in olive oil while whisking to combine. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Can be made a ahead of time and stored in fridge.
For Salad: Light a grill or get some coals going on a campfire. Halve onions and brush with olive oil. Brush both side of cornbread with olive oil. Grill onions and bread until lightly charred. Be careful not to burn the bread!
Thinly slice onions and toss in large bowl with tomatoes and arugula. Slice cornbread into bite-size pieces and add to bowl. Toss with dressing and serve. Can be made up to an hour ahead time and kept at room (or campsite) temperature.

Dessert was gooey brownies warmed by the fire. And Sunday morning it was time to pack up again! But first I scrambled some eggs and threw in whatever was left in the cooler. One pan scrambled in a little bacon fat with corn, tomatoes, potatoes and steak and the other in olive oil with just the veggies.

Please ignore the day 3 greasy hair.

Lucy and Jon brought this amazing Peanut Butter and Co. Dark Chocolate Dreams. Pure chocolate peanut butter heaven. Then it was time to pack up once again and paddle our way home. Derek stayed hydrated as he towed.

And almost lost one more hat in the lake.

So how was my first real camping experience? Overall, I had a lot of fun. Yes, I accumulated more dirt under my fingernails than I thought possible but I got to share good food with good friends, enjoy some gorgeous scenery, and see more stars than I knew existed. And we most definitely ate well. We even came home with some watermelon-tomato gazpacho that we didn't get to eat! But you definitely should.

This is great for camping because it can be eaten cold (or at whatever temperature your cooler is) and is a wonderful hot weather dish to make at home because no cooking is required.

Watermelon-Tomato Gazpacho

2 cups watermelon cubes

4 large tomatoes, roughly chopped

1 medium cucumber, peeled and chopped

2 medium bell peppers, chopped

1 small sweet onion, diced

2 Tbs red wine vinegar

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

a few dashes of sriracha (or hot sauce of choice)

salt and pepper

Add watermelon to blender and blend until pureed.
divide tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers and onions in half. Place half of vegetables in a large bowl, and add other half of vegetables to blender and blender until pureed.
Add vinegar, olive oil, sriracha and salt and pepper to taste in blender and blend until combined. This dish needs a bit of heat, but don't go overboard on the hot sauce. You can always add more.
Pour blended vegetables into bowl over chopped vegetables, cover and chill for at least 2 hours or overnight. Serve chilled.

All Those Veggies

2010-07-24T11:33:00.000-04:00

What to do with all those summer veggies? I'm already at zucchini overload and we have a long way to go before our weekly surplus starts to diminish. Don't get me wrong - I'm not complaining over here. I'll be fantasizing about all this zucchini come December. But using all these veggies is a particular challenge when its too hot to turn on the oven. We try to use our window AC as little as possible, and our basement apartment generally stays pretty cool. But this summer has been brutal. Out kitchen's been averaging 80º without the oven on (I can't even make ice cream in it!). So I devised a grilled veggie pasta recipe that uses everything that's perfectly in season: eggplant, tomatoes, and summer squash, oh my!

All of these are simply grilled and whirled into a chunky sauce in the food processor. I left some of the eggplant and squash cut into chunks and not blended for a contrast of textures.

Roughly chopped olives and few large caper berries are added for flavor, along with a good handful of sliced basil from my herb garden.

You do need to turn on the stove to boil water for the pasta. But that only raised the temperature in my kitchen to about 82º.

This is a beautiful, fresh dish, perfect for a weeknight summer dinner. You could easily add or substitute any vegetable that holds up well on the grill.

Grilled Vegetable Pasta

serves 2

1 medium Japanese eggplant, halved lengthwise

1 medium summer squash or zucchini, halved lengthwise

2 medium heirloom tomatoes, halved through center

2 Tbs olive oil

salt & pepper

1 Tbs balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese, plus more for serving

2 servings short pasta of your choice (I used farro rigatoni)

good handful pitted olives, roughly chopped

2 Tbs sliced fresh basil

Light grill and heat on medium-high
Brush vegetables with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper
Grill vegetables until lightly charred and softened, about 10 minutes, turning once
Meanwhile, boil water and cook pasta until al dente. Drain and set aside
Remove vegetables from grill and cool slightly. Cut eggplant and squash into bite-sized chunks and core tomatoes
Place tomatoes and and half of eggplant into food processor, and whir until pureed but still chunky. Add balsamic vinegar and parmesan and process until just combined
Return pasta to cooking pot and stir in sauce, remaining chopped vegetables, olives and basil. Heat over low heat if its become a little cool
Serve with additional parmesan cheese sprinkled on top and passed along the side

Sugar, Sugar

2010-07-22T12:29:00.001-04:00

So I've been trying lately to keep this blog just about food, and not as much about me. But my pal Anne over at Your Kind of Salad tagged me for Sugar Doll Blogger Questionnaire and I thought it might be fun. So here are 10 random completely non-food related facts about me.

1. I'm sort of double-jointed in my shoulders. They pop out of place and I can put my arm behind my head way further than I should be able to. I used to freak my mom out with it when I was a kid, and it makes some yoga poses kind of tough. That's my stupid human trick.

2. I'm an only child. Sometimes I act like it. My best friend Lucy is also and only child and we've adopted each other as sisters.

3. I'm kind of a slob and I hate cleaning. Luckily I married Felix Ungar.

4. During my life, my hair has been long, short, really short, blond, red and brown. 2 years ago I discovered my natural color for the first time in 15 years. Its light brown with a little red in it and I like it. I realized I shouldn't need to put chemicals in my hair to be pretty.

I think this is my favorite look. I cut the bangs myself...

I'm so badass.

5. I'm a really bad dancer. But I'm an enthusiastic dancer.

6. I love country music. Boot-scootin, honky tonk, cheesy, sappy country music. I lived down south for a couple years after college, and country music followed this Yankee back home. Country music and shrimp and grits.

Oops, I promised no food.

7. I was a musical theater geek from age 8 through high school. My big break was as Judas in Jesus Christ Superstar my junior year. Those are the kinds of roles you get at an all-girls catholic school.

8. Halloween is my favorite holiday. Partly because its the day after my birthday, but I also love dressing up and coming up with creative costumes.

Lucy & Ethel (and naked guy?)

Margot & Richie Tenenbaum

Ali G & Elle Driver

Carrie & Tippy Hedren

Vampires!

The Bride of Frankenstein & my Zombie Maid of Honor

9. Appropriately, I also love vampires and spiders. Spiders I just think are so cool. I love it when huge ones set up residency on our patio. And when I find one in the house I usually try to catch it and put it outside.

I've had a thing for vampires since my early teens - I think its Brad Pitt's fault.

I was obsessed with the Buffy the Vampire Slayer series and I'm quite pleased at the resurgence of sexy vampires in pop culture. Derek is less than thrilled.

10. Speaking of Derek, on November 25, 2009 I married the love of my life. A few interesting facts about him are that he is very funny, cynical, reliable, pragmatic, watches lots of cycling, once had a mustache for 24 hours, can't watch horror movies, and used to be in a break dancing crew called the Soul City Rockers. His "street" name was Speedy D.

Ok, Jess - tag, you're it!

You too, Carissa! Tag!

I Scream

2010-07-19T21:38:00.000-04:00

Sunday marked National Ice Cream Day. Bastille Day isn't too shabby, but this is a serious holiday. Ice cream may be my favorite thing. Scratch that - yesterday I told Derek that creamy, stinky blue cheese is my favorite thing. Hmmm...blue cheese ice cream? Not this post, don't worry.

When posed with a choice of ice cream flavors, I very rarely pick one that doesn't have chocolate involved. So that seemed like a good starting point when I decided to make ice cream on Sunday. I was thinking I'd go Mexican-style and add some cinnamon, when I realized I had this in my cabinet...

Actual cinnamon-spiked Mexican chocolate, that my mother bought in Mexico last year. Its supposed to be use to make hot chocolate, but of course it would work for ice cream, too.

Mexican chocolate has a very different texture than the chocolate we're used to. Its more grainy, and you can see the sugar crystals in it. I think this is what makes their hot chocolate so frothy when whisked.

So, I was prepared for this to not be a completely smooth ice cream. The chocolate is melted into half and half, and even after its strained its still a bit lumpy.

But the flavor is really unique. The cinnamon really shines, and gives the chocolate a slightly smoky, coffee-like flavor. I didn't add any sugar to this, so it is definitely an adult, subtly sweet dessert. I do have to admit that this ice cream didn't actually churn properly. The reason I'm still posting the recipe is that I'm sure the fail is a result of my kitchen being about 85º. Not ideal ice cream making conditions. I'm confident that if I had the AC on this would have been perfect. And frozen chocolate custard soup was still pretty awesome.

Mexican Chocolate Ice Cream
1/2 vanilla bean
8 oz. Mexican chocolate (4 discs), coarsely chopped
3 1/2 cups half and half
6 egg yolks
pinch of salt

Scrape seeds from half the vanilla bean into a large saucepan
Add chocolate and half and half and simmer over medium heat until boiling and chocolate is dissolved, whisking constantly. Remove from heat
Whisk egg yolks with salt. Slowly pour a little of the hot chocolate mixture into egg yolks, whisking constantly, to temper yolks.
Pour egg mixture back into saucepan with chocolate mixture and return to low heat. Cook, stirring constantly with wooden spoon, until mixture thickens and coats the back of spoon. If you run your finger over spoon coated in custard, you should form a line.
Strain mixture through a fine sieve into a medium bowl. Place bowl into a larger bowl of ice water to chill, stirring occasionally. Chill longer in fridge to get it really cool.
Pour chilled custard into bowl of ice cream maker and process according to manufacturers instructions. Make sure your kitchen isn't too hot or you'll end up with this....

Vive La France

2010-07-16T20:27:00.000-04:00

So July 4th has come and gone and I obviously didn't acknowledge it here. I did plenty of cooking and eating, but as a shameless Francophile there is another Independence Day that I'm much more interested in celebrating. 14 Julliet is Bastille Day, the French day of independence. Hamburgers and apple pie are all right, but they don't hold a candle (firework?) to ratatouille and clafoutis. And can you really compare Bud Light to a good French wine?

I had plenty of fresh, local produce to work with to create a meal straight from Provence.

I finally got the local duck breast I'd been craving, after several trips to Don Otto's. I seared it in a hot pan and then made a simple red wine-raspberry sauce.

A little cooking tip - try not to splatter hot duck fat on your arm. Do you need to be told that? Apparently I do. Just one of the hazards of being a cook. I've been burned before and I'll be burned again. The french wine might have had something to do with my accident...

Or perhaps I was distracted by gooey, stinky goat cheese.

This Bonne Bouche isn't actually French, its from Vermont Butter & Cheese Company. It has an ash rind, is slightly aged and has a nice tangy but mild flavor.

I thought the perfect French, seasonal accompaniment for the duck would be my roasted eggplant ratatouille. Also a great way to use some of our abundance of zucchini and summer squash.

I'm really in love with ratatouille. Also one of my favorite foodie movies.

Seared Duck Breast with Raspberry-Red Wine Sauce

adapted from Food and Wine

1/2 cup fresh raspberries

1/2 dry red wine

1 tsp olive oil

1 medium duck breast

salt & pepper

1 Tbs butter

1 tsp honey

Score the skin of duck in a cross-hatch pattern, being careful not to pierce the flesh.
In a medium baking dish, mash 1/4 cup raspberries with a fork. Add 1/4 cup red wine and olive oil and whisk together. Add duck breast to the dish skin side down, then turn to coat. With flesh side down, cover and chill 30 minutes.
Remove duck from baking dish and scrape off marinade. Pat dry and season with salt and pepper.
Place duck in medium saute pan skin side down. Heat over medium heat to crisp skin, then reduce heat to medium low until skin is brown and crispy. CAREFULLY flip duck breast and cook an additional 2 - 3 minutes.
Remove duck from pan to a cutting board, tent with foil, and allow to rest for 5 minutes.
Meanwhile, pour duck fat off of pan. Add reserved marinade and additional 1/4 red wine and simmer over medium hit for 1 - 2 minutes until reduced by half. Remove from heat and whisk in butter and honey.
Slice duck on the diagonal, serve and top with sauce and additional raspberries.

For dessert, I wanted something easy and light. And French, of course. A clafoutis seemed like a great idea. I made rhubarb clafoutis around this time last year, and my mom kept calling it a Doug Flutie. Its sort of a baked fruit custard. Traditionally its made with cherries, and those crazy Frenchies don't remove the pits because they think they add flavor. I opted for blueberries. The dish couldn't be easier. You spread fruit in a baking dish, whisk together a custard with a little flour, pour that over the top and bake. Its puffs beautifully like a souffle in the oven.

10 minutes after I pulled it out of the oven I asked Derek to go look at it and he exclaimed "someone stole half the clafoutis!"

It deflates rather quickly! But is still delicious and light and just slightly sweet.

Blueberry Clafoutis

inspired by Dorie Greenspan

1 1/2 cups fresh blueberries

3 eggs

1/2 cup sugar

pinch of salt

1 tsp vanilla

1/2 cup flour

1 cup milk (I used 1% but whole is better)

Preheat oven to 350º
Butter a 2-quart baking dish
Arrange blueberries in an even layer in the bottom of the dish
Whisk together eggs and sugar for 1 minute
Whisk in salt and vanilla
Add flour and whisk to combine
Whisk in milk until well combined
Pour batter over fruit and bake 35 to 40 minutes until puffed and lightly browned
Cool and serve warm or at room temperature

Bon Appétit!

Strawberry Fields Forever

2010-06-27T19:29:00.001-04:00

Its strawberry season! The farmers markets and our CSA are flooded with them. This year, I've really tried not to eat a lot of out of season berries. They're just not worth it and it makes me appreciate the sweet, fresh picked berries of the summer even more.

I want to use these berries in recipes that really make their flavors shine. Berries need to be the star of the show. And since the late-June heat is setting in, I decided to dust off my ice cream maker. I've made strawberry ice cream before, but I was really craving undiluted strawberry flavor so I decided to make a strawberry sorbet, brightened up with some lime juice and zest.

I used Cook's Illustrated recipe, since they never fail and it was incredibly easy. You don't even have to heat the sugar syrup. Just stir sugar into fruit syrup until it dissolves.

The only challenge is waiting for the ice cream maker to do its thing until you can eat the sorbet. In typical Cook's fashion, there's a clever scientific twist in this recipe. You add a little vodka to the syrup (or booze of your choice). Because alcohol doesn't freeze, adding a little to the sorbet keeps it from freezing too solid when stored in the freezer, so it comes out firm but still a bit soft and scoopable.

Strawberry Lime Sorbet

3 1/2 cups quartered strawberries

Juice of 2 limes

zest of 1 lime

3/4 sugar

1 Tbsp vodka

Puree strawberries, lime juice and zest in food processor.
Pour into bowl and stir in vodka and sugar. Let sit for about 5 minutes, stirring frequently until sugar is dissolved.
Pour mixture into bowl of ice cream maker and follow manufacturer's instructions.
Enjoy straight from the machine or freeze for 2 - 3 hours for a firmer texture.

I save old ice cream cartons to store sorbet and ice cream. This sorbet is great straight up...

Or scooped into a cold glass of prosecco...

Currant Affair

2010-06-21T18:54:00.000-04:00

Today marks the official first day of summer. Although I do love the Fall in New England, Summer is absolutely my favorite time of year. The long days and warm weather are nice, but the real reason I love summer is - get ready for a bombshell here - the food! The farmers markets and our CSA are bursting with fresh, crisp, just picked produce and I can't get enough of it. In early summer, you see lots of greens and there seems to be an abundance of red fruit available. My fridge actually looks like Christmas right now. Strawberries, raspberries and cherries are making appearances. We also found some more unusual berries at the farmers market - currants and gooseberries. I've only ever seen currants dried in scones, and I thought gooseberries were something out of Willy Wonka's chocolate factory. So I had to try one of these and find something unique to cook with them. I opted for the currants and I found 2 somethings.

The first was a delicious Saturday breakfast. I started with some ends of stale baguette that I had in the freezer, but you could also use a slightly stale demi baguette. This recipe is based off of Paula Deen's french toast casserole - my go-to breakfast recipe when cooking for a crowd, but rather obscene in its quantities of butter and cream. I slimed this version down a bit. You have to prep it the night before, but the prep is so easy, and its worth it when you can just wake up and throw it in the oven. In between slices of custard-soaked bread, I tucked tart currants and raspberries.

I purposely didn't make this french toast very sweet. Its the perfect vehicle for maple syrup.

Currant and Raspberry French Toast Casserole

Serves 4

1/2 slightly stale baguette or 1 demi baguette, sliced 1/2" thick

2 eggs

2 cups milk

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 Tbsp sugar

pinch of salt

3/4 cup currants, stemmed

1/2 cup raspberries

butter, for coating baking dish

The night before, generously butter a 1.5 quart baking dish. Layer bread slices in dish, overlapping so they fit snuggly.
Whisk together eggs, milk, cinnamon, vanilla, sugar and salt. Pour mixture over bread, pressing on bread to absorb all the liquid. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
The next morning, preheat oven to 350º
Tuck currants and raspberries in between bread slices. They will get slightly smushed, but that's ok.
Bake for about 45 minutes, until custard is set and top is puffed and golden.
Serve with pure maple syrup

I used currants in dinner as well. I wanted to make a slightly sweet sauce and I intended to serve it over duck, but my happy meat source Don Otto's was all out. I have to admit, I've been very into duck lately. Its perhaps my favorite meat that I've tried since falling off the wagon, but I've yet to cook it myself. Don Otto's did have some lovely arctic char, so I pan seared that and served it with a port-currant sauce. I also served some balsamic glazed baby carrots and beets alongside.

It was a very red meal.

Port-Currant Sauce

1/2 cup port or sweet red wine

1 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 small shallots, minced

1/4 cup currants, stemmed

Combine port, balsamic and shallots in a small saucepan and bring to a boil.
Add currants and simmer until reduced by half and slightly thick.
Serve over oily fish, duck, goose or pork.

Quick Fire

2010-06-16T19:00:00.000-04:00

These days, anyone who cooks frequently for friends and family is used to receiving special dietary requests. No red meat, no meat, no animal products, no wheat, no sugar, no dairy, no bread - the possibilities are endless! I've lived most of my adult life as a vegetarian or pescatarian, and still eat very little meat, so I am sympathetic to these requests. I understand what's its like to go to a dinner party or restaurant and only be able to eat the salad. Especially as someone who loves food, its disappointing when there are no interesting options available to you. But you also feel bad about causing extra work for your host, or making them feel guilty because they didn't create a special dish for you. Having lived through this for years, it is very important to me that all of my guests have options when I cook for them. I actually find it to be a fun challenge! My good friend De is a vegan, and its a dietary choice I strongly support. Not only is a plant-based diet much healthier for you, its also better for the planet. And I look at every meal I cook when De is invited like an episode of Top Chef! It plays out like this...Padma strolls into my tiny kitchen looking ridiculously hot and making me feel like an umpa-lumpa...

Then she asks me to draw 2 knives from a block. The first knife says "CARNIVORES." Ok, that's most of my friends coming to dinner. The next knife: "VEGAN." Ah-ha, that's the Top Chef twist. Cook a meal for your carnivorous friends, and then make a vegan version! And maybe even sneak some vegan food by the carnivores. You have 2 hours to prep, 1 hour to cook, and a budget of $4.59. Now get to work!

Over the years I've made vegan versions of risotto, bouillabaisse, Hawaiian plate lunch, peach pie, blueberry pancakes, pizza, ice cream sandwiches, quesadillas and sushi. And they've all been delicious! Even the butter-lovers like me gobbled up the peach pie.

I love the challenge of making delicious dishes without using animal products, and it makes me so happy to see how much De enjoys them. I know its not often that people cook special meals just for her, and one of my favorite parts of cooking is making people happy with my food.

So in honor of the tonight's Top Chef premier, I decided to have my own little quick fire challenge and create a vegan dish using some of our CSA bounty. I flipped through Eat, Drink & Be Vegan for some inspiration and found a recipe for Berry Goodness Muffins that called for the fresh strawberries that just happened to be in my fridge.

When I cook vegan food, I really try not use any fake animal products. Fake butter, fake milk, fake cheese, fake meat - its all highly processed and I feel like its cheating when there are some many delicious real foods out there. The only exception I make is coconut milk ice cream...mmmm. So when this recipe called for non-dairy milk, instead of buying a carton of soy milk I remembered the batches of almond milk I like to prepare for my Green Monsters.

No funky chemicals or preservatives, no extraneous processing and packaging, just raw almonds well blended with water, vanilla, and a couple dates for sweetness. Strain out the pulp and you've got almond milk!

The other great little trick in these muffins is organic applesauce, which replaces the vegan butter found in some other vegan baked goods. Its lower in fat and helps keep the muffins deliciously moist. But the strawberries are really the star of the show here.

Because the point of a veganism really is to eat what grows out of the ground!

Vegan Strawberry Muffins

Adapted from Eat, Drink & Be Vegan

2 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour

1/2 cup chickpea flour

1/2 cup sucanat

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp nutmeg

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp baking soda

3/4 cup almond milk

1/4 unsweetened organic applesauce

1/4 pure maple syrup

1 tsp vanilla extract

zest of 1 lemon

3 Tbsp olive oil

1 - 1 1/2 cup fresh strawberries, cut into small pieces

Preheat the oven to 375º
In a large bowl, whisk together flours, sugar, salt, nutmeg, baking powder and baking soda
In a medium bowl, stir together almond milk, applesacue, maple syrup, vanilla, lemon zest and oil
Add wet ingredients to dry, folding until just combined
Gently fold in strawberries
Fit a muffin pan with muffin liners or coat lightly with oil
Spoon batter into muffin cups, just under filling the cups
Bake for about 23 - 25 minutes until knife inserted in center comes out clean
Cool in pan for 10 minutes, then turn onto wire rack and cool completely

Springtime Celebrations

2010-06-09T13:03:00.000-04:00

Ok, so its practically summer and I am just now getting around to sharing with you all my wonderful food celebrations from the Spring. I haven't been posting much lately, but I promise I've still been eating well! One of my favorite events of the Spring is the Kentucky Derby. You may recall last year's derby feast. My mother throws a Derby party on the Cape every year. She lived in Kentucky when she was a kid, so its very sentimental to her. And I spent some time living down South after college, so I love an excuse to eat some Southern food.

No Derby party is complete without mint juleps.

Some of these glasses are very old - we've collected quite a variety over the years. As an appetizer, we served some pimento cheese. If you've never had this stuff, I urge you to give it a shot. Shredded cheddar cheese, mayo, chopped pimentos and a little hot sauce. I know, I was skeptical too when this was first presented to me.

Its great as a dip with crackers, but I love it as a sandwich spread on toasted bread. We also invented this dip for the party.

Sour cream mixed with chopped smoked salmon, lemon zest and chives, served with salt and pepper potato chips. I have since made this with creme fraiche (at our Patio Opening) and liked it even more.

There was also ham and one of my favorite low country specialties, shrimp and grits.

This recipe had bacon and spinach added to it. We order special stone-ground grits from South Carolina. No wimpy instant grits here!

There were lots of stellar desserts, including my mom's rhubarb pie and Cook's Illustrated's perfect chocolate cupcakes. My contribution was a play on the classic Derby Pie, which involves nuts and chocolate. I used this recipe for a caramelized nut tart, and made it with pecans, almonds, macadamia nuts, cashews and hazelnuts. Then I drizzled the whole thing with good melted chocolate. I call it...Nut Job Tart.

This was so rich and decedent, you only needed a sliver. But it was pure heaven.

Our next Spring celebration was Mother's Day dinner at my parent's house. The day before mother's day my friend Heather and I attended a book signing for Thomas Keller's new cookbook, Ad Hoc at Home. This cookbook is beautiful and the recipes are very accessible. Its definitely geared towards the home cook, with lots of tips and detailed instructions. And we got to meet the man himself! I wish I had taken a picture, but at least I have his signature to prove it. He was so friendly and gracious, although I wasn't able to strike up much of a conversation with him. I was all geared up with my question, and asked if he would be visiting any restaurants while in Boston. And he just said, "no, I won't have time." And I was hoping he would invite me out to join him! So for Mother's Day, I just had to make something from his book. I went with the amazing leek bread pudding. So delicious and cheesy. Even my 8 year old cousin ate 3 helpings!

I also sauteed some Spring vegetables. I've never worked with fresh fava beans before. They were delicious. You have to shell them from their lovely pods.

Then you quickly blanch the beans and remove the tough outer skins. I then sauteed these with fiddleheads and asparagus.

Favas and Fiddleheads and Asparagus, oh my!

This weekend is my official start to summer - the beginning of our CSA! More local, seasonal, delicious food to come!

Local Challenge

2010-05-15T18:28:00.000-04:00

This week, Derek and I attended a forum on the economics of local food in Jamaica Plain (my old stomping grounds that I miss every time I visit). It was a thought-provoking, but also somewhat frustrating conversation about the need to go back to a local food economy and the challenges of doing so. They had some great panelists, including Jamey Lionette, former owner of Lionette's market in the South End, now Don Otto's, which mainly focus on selling local, pasture-fed and humanely raised meats, and also has a great selection of local produce and dairy. I've mentioned this place before - its right down the street and one of my favorite shops. There was also a farmer from Allandale Farm, a full scale farm right in Brookline. The owner of City Feed, another shop selling local products in JP, and the founder of Hardwick Beef, which raises natural grass-fed beef, also contributed to the conversation. Rounding out the panel was a woman who started the area's first CSF (community supported fishery), Cape Ann Fresh Catch, and is working to support local fishermen while encouraging sustainable fishing practices. All of these speakers were insightful and inspiring, and it was great to hear what they've done to make local food work. But its also frustrating when we talk about the corporate American food system that we're up against, a system that despite being broken and harmful, is very difficult to change.

The basic problem with our system is that it produces food that's too cheap. And that's what Americans have come to expect, that is their main criteria for buying food. Ridge Shin from Hardwick Beef used as an example the slogans of Shaw's Supermarkets ("Good Food Costs Less") and WalMart ("Always Low Prices" - which he interpreted as "Always Somebody Gets Screwed"). This system has resulted in the mass production of food that has become harmful to consumers, damaging to the planet and impossible to sustain. The food producers can't make a living in the current food system without being government subsidized, or our food gets shipped in from South America where workers are paid $5 a day. 60 years ago, Americans spent 22% of their income on food. Today we are spending less than 10%. And that food from 60 years ago? It was food grown close to home, eaten in season. Eating local is not some impossible feat - its how people have lived and thrived for centuries! In our self-indulgent modern society, we've gotten far too used to having everything we want at any time. And its killing us and killing our planet. We're spending less than ever on food, but yet we're fatter than ever and spending more than any other country on our healthcare. Our food system is broken and its killing us.

Yes, buying local and naturally raised and grown food is often more expensive, but that's not because the food producers are trying to make a big buck. We heard from all the panelists that they are not making money, they're just getting by. You're paying more for food because it was actually raised and grown by a person, not a machine. A person who is paying attention what happens to your food, who cares about what you're putting in your body. A person who is making a fair wage for their work. Cheap food doesn't only hurt the person eating it , but it also hurts the person producing the food because they can't make a living off of it.

I find some hope in forums like this, where people who see that we have a problem get together and discuss how to fix it. The panelists were all shining examples of people who are making a local food system work, and providing that food to our community. The tide is definitely changing. There is so much information out there about the problems with our food system. More farms are being started, more people are shopping at farmer's market and joining CSAs, more restaurants and chefs are cooking with local products. But what I find so frustrating is that it seems like for every person who is making an effort to eat outside of our messed up food system, there are about 10 who have heard all the information about how broken the system is and just don't care. They still want their cheap food.

The reality is, even though people lived off local diets for thousands of years, food habits are hard to change and a eating strictly local diet is not easy. I try very hard at it and its pretty rare that I eat a 100% local meal. We eat mainly local eggs and dairy and try to eat local produce. Its easy in the summer when we get our CSA, but 6 to 7 months out of the year there just aren't as many options in New England. And there's so much more that goes into our food that you don't always think about whether its local or not. Flour, sugar, coffee, tea, chocolate, spices, grains - do you know where all of that is coming from? I took a good look in my pantry and realized I did not. I was very excited to post a seasonal, local rhubarb compote recipe today, then realized I had no idea where the sucanat and ginger came from that I added to the rhubarb. Or the pecans and almonds that I sprinkled on top for serving. Very likely they did not come from New England. But thinking more about it, you can make this with local maple syrup or honey and skip the ginger. It will still be delcious. There are solutions if we take the time to look for them.

Here's where I've come around to - all we can do is our best. We just need to pay attention and think about what we eat. We need to ask, where did this come from? We can all do a better job of that, but we can't beat ourselves (or anyone else) up about it. We need to educate ourselves, our children and our friends. Some people will care and some people won't, but we have to keep talking, keep trying, and keep supporting our farmers!

So, with a little bit of guilt and a lot of deliciousness, enjoy some rhubarb.

Rhubarb is a great Spring treat, a lovely preamble to the sweet, luscious berries and stone fruits of the summer.

Rhubarb is one of those foods that you wonder why anyone ever tried to eat it. Raw and unadaltered it is mouth-puckeringly sour. Who was the first person to discover that if you cook it with some sugar, it makes a pleasantly tart, perfect pie (not my mother, although she makes a mean one)? I have fond memories of childhood summers spent at my neighbor's house, picking rhubard from their garden and eating it raw dipped in a little bowl of sugar. Just a childish excuse to consume sugar, but the thought of it brings me back to long, warm, lazy days running across the grass and splashing in the stream.

Be careful of those fingers!

Spicy grated ginger is a great compliment to the tart rhubarb, but as I mentioned you can leave it out. I love it and am contemplating whether I can grow it on my patio.

Rhubarb Ginger Compote
8 large stalks rhubarb, sliced 1/2" thick
1/2 cup water
1/2 - 3/4 sucanat, honey, maple syrup or sugar (more or less to taste)
1/2" - 1" piece of peeled ginger, finely grated (more or less to taste)

Combine all indregients in a large dutch oven or heavy bottomed pot.
Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce to a low simmer.
Cook until rhubarb has sofented and started to break down, and mixture is thick. Taste as you go and add more sugar or ginger if you like.
Serve warm over ice cream, or chill and spoon over yogurt for breakfast.

Afternoon Snack

2010-05-03T17:12:00.000-04:00

Its 4pm on a Monday. Lunch was a few hours ago and dinner is a long way off. And I'm hungry! Not stomach grumbling, gnaw my left arm off hungry. But I definitely need something. This is probably the most dangerous time of day for me. This is the time when I am most likely to eat something really bad, really sugary, and really fattening. Luckily, I am prepared. I keep in my arsenal (AKA my desk) a hearty supply of afternoon snacking treats that are not only tasty and satisfying, but also healthy.

I always have some good dark chocolate, usually Taza, for an immediate quality sugar fix. A small amount of rich chocolate is great for my immediate, post lunch sugar cravings. But later in the afternoon I need something a bit more substantial. I usually try to have a piece of fruit on hand, and keep some almond butter in my desk for dipping and smearing. Dried fruit and nuts are good staples, too. I often keep hummus and cut up veggies in my work fridge, for more savory cravings. But lately I've been stocked up on an afternoon snack that fills all these requirements. Slightly sweet, very hearty, a little savory and loaded with health granola bars.

The biggest challenge I've found with homemade granola bars is getting them to hold together and making them chewy. In a granola bar or cookie, I always prefer chewy over crispy.

This recipe definitely got it right. Its loosely based on a Smitten Kitchen recipe, but liberally adapted and I think a bit healthier.

Feel free to be just as liberal with your adaptation. The basic proportions of dry to wet are all that really matter, but you can use whatever kinds of fruits and nuts and grains and oils and syrups that you prefer. That's the best thing about granola and granola bars - they can be totally personalized to your taste (or to whatever happens to be in your cupboards!).

Chewy Granola Bars

1 2/3 cups rolled oats

3 Tbl sucanat (or brown sugar)

1/3 cup wheat bran

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

3 cups mixed chopped dried fruit and nuts (I used dried mangoes, cherries, banana chips, crystallized ginger, ground flax seeds, slivered almonds, sunflowers seeds, and unsweetened flaked coconut)

1/4 cup + 1 Tbl grapeseed oil

1/4 cup agave

1 Tbl pure maple syrup

1 Tbl water

1 tsp vanilla

1/4 cup almond butter

Preheat oven to 350º
line a 7" x 11" x 2" baking sheet with parchment paper, so it hangs over the edges. Brush sides of pan and parchment with oil.
Stir together all dry ingredients, through the fruit and nuts, in a large bowl until well incorporated.
In a separate bowl, whisk together wet ingredients through almond butter until just combined.
Pour wet ingredients into dry and mix until all dry ingredients are moist and coated.
Spread mixture into prepared baking pan and use spatula to smooth out the top.
Bake edges are browned and top is golden, about 30 minutes. Center will still seem soft.
Let cool on rack, then pop in the freezer for about 30 minutes. Bars will harden and be easier to cut
Lift out of pan using overhanging parchment and place on cutting board. Cut bars in half, then thirds, then half down middle. You should have a dozen bars.
Store in airtight container at room temperature. If very humid and warm in your kitchen, store in fridge.

Spring has Sprung

2010-04-23T14:46:00.001-04:00

Spring has most definitely arrived in Boston. How can I tell? From the food that's in season, of course! Oh, and the butterflies.

As a thank-you to Lucy and her mother for throwing me such a wonderful bride-to-be-tea back in September, my mother and I brought them to the Butterfly Place in Westford, MA last weekend. Its basically a greenhouse filled with all different types of butterflies. They all around you and its pretty cool!

These pretty blue ones were my favorite, but they are very elusive. When you can actually get them to land, they close up their wings so you only see the brown outside.

Some of us were lucky enough to have passengers. This guy took a ride on my mother's shoulder for quite awhile.

We think he was looking for a friend.

My mother is kind of obsessed with butterflies, and we all apparently know it. For this outing she wore this pin that Lucy had given her, butterfly earrings that were a gift from me, and a butterfly purse that Lucy's mother had given her. I had a friend too!

After a couple hours with the butterflies, we went for tea (again!) at the Stonehedge Inn. It was quite a feast of scones, beautiful tea sandwiches and sweet treats.

After our busy day of butterflying and eating I stopped at Russo's to pick up groceries and found the first true signs of Spring - ramps and morels!

You may recall me swooning over ramps about a year ago around this time. They are so special and delicious. Ramps grow wild, and are sweet, tiny green onions that are only in season for 3 - 4 weeks in the early Spring. They are very precious and not cheap. The same is true for wild morel mushrooms, also available for a limited time in the Spring. But, if you are using them as the focus of your meal, its really not any pricier than buying a nice piece of meat for dinner. And so much more worth it, in my opinion. Plus, a little goes a long way.

A simple presentation and minimal cooking time is the best way to highlight these ingredients. I sauteed them lightly with white wine and olive oil and tossed them with bucatini, a hallow type of spaghetti.

I still had evidence of my butterfly excursion.

Ramps and Morels with Bucatini

serves 2

4 oz. ramps, bulbs thinly sliced and green leaves left whole

4 oz. morels, washed and halved or quartered

1 Tbl unsalted butter

1 Tbl olive oil

2 cloves crushed garlic

6 oz. bucatini pasta

grated parmesan cheese

Cook bucatini in large pot of salted water until just tender. Drain and set aside, reserving some of the cooking water.
Heat olive oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add butter and swirl until melted. Add ramp bulbs and saute a couple minutes until slightly softened. Add mushrooms and saute a couple minutes more. Add crush garlic and saute another minute.
Add ramp leaves and saute another minute.
Toss cooked pasta with vegetables, adding a little pasta water if needed to coat.
Serve and top with grated parmesan.

Relish the Thought

2010-04-08T17:39:00.000-04:00

We've received a lot of gifts lately. One of the perks of getting married, that and getting an everlasting soul mate. But let's talk about the presents. My best friend Lucy threw me an amazing shower where we received an abundance of gorgeous kitchen supplies.

Since we didn't actually invite anyone to our wedding, wonderful gifts have trickled in over the past few months, our favorite being an amazing collage made by our good friend Seth. Its really too special to show here (I need to keep some things private, you know?), and I wouldn't want to risk copyright infringement with the artist. Seth makes collages out of tiny pieces cut from magazines, basically using the pieces as brush strokes for a picture. Seth and I have had a deal going for years where he gets me subscriptions to fashion magazines and I give them to him once I've read them. His work incredibly detailed and takes a very long time. We feel so honored to have a piece made just for us.

And of course, we will accept any and all food gifts. That's really what you're here to read about. We've gotten lots of fancy champagne and chocolate, but the tastiest gift we've received has been pickles! Our friend De is friends with the makers of Moon Brine Pickles. She gave us huge jars of their Super Dill and Pretty Hot pickles, and they are out of this world. I love a good pickle, especially when they have the right amount of tang and crunch. These dills are right up my alley, and Derek really likes the hots. The best part about these pickles is the brine. Its great to use in salad dressings, marinades - or to just drink straight from the jar! De also asked her friend to make us a special tub of their dill relish.

Also great by the spoonful, but I've found lots of tasty uses for it. Like on crabcakes.

Or homemade veggie burgers!

I made these burgers last week as one of those "what's in the fridge and what can I make with it?" meals. What we had were some beautiful red lentils.

And kale. I always have kale.

And a big old garnet yam.

All of this cooked, mixed together and fried in a hot pan made a pretty tasty burger. A little on the mushy side, but still a great vehicle for the relish. As is a spoon.

Lentil Yam Burgers

1 cup red lentils

2 bay leaves

1 large garnet yam or sweet potato

half a bunch of kale, about 6 large leaves, center ribs removed and leaves chopped into small pieces

1 small onion, finely copped

1 Tbl olive oil

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/2 tsp smoked paprika

salt and pepper to taste

1/2 cup (or more) panko bread crumbs

3 Tbls peanut oil

Pre-heat oven to 400º
Pierce sweet potato a few times with fork, wrap in foil, then bake until very tender, about 1 hour.
Meanwhile, boil 4 cups of water in a medium saucepan. Stir in lentils and bay leaves, reduce to a simmer, and cook until lentils are tender, about 15 minutes. Drain lentils and set aside.
Heat a large saute pan over medium heat. Add olive oil to heat. Add onions and saute until softened. Add kale, toss and cover. Cook until kale is just tender.
Scoop cooked yam from skin into a medium bowl. Add lentils and cooked kale mixture and stir to combine. Sprinkle in cumin, paprika and salt and pepper to taste. Mix in panko, adding more if mixture seems to wet.
Form into patties (it will make about 4 large or 8 small patties). Chill for 30 minutes.
Heat peanut oil over medium-high heat in large saute pan. Add patties, and cook on each side until browned, about 4 minutes per side.
Serve on their own or in a bun with Moon Brine relish.

Pizza Poser

2010-03-21T18:31:00.002-04:00

I wonder what the Italians think of all the different forms of "pizza" we seem to have invented in the United States. Remember English Muffin pizzas? The name alone is almost blasphemous - an English pizza? I used to make these a lot as a kid, because they were a tasty snack I could make myself out of items we always seemed to have in the kitchen, even when we were out of food. An English muffin, a jar of sauce, some shredded mozzarella (this was before fresh mozzarella was common and readily available in the grocery stores and we had to settle for that gummy, yellow stuff. It was tough growing up in the 80s). There was also the French bread pizza (now French pizza?!). French bread was also something we always seemed to have in the freezer, before the low-carb diet craze made my mother afraid for bread. Then of course, there was the California pizza phenomenon, popularized by Wolfgang Puck and brought to the masses by California Pizza Kitchen, which used ingredients never before imagined on a pizza, like smoked salmon and barbecued chicken.

One of my favorite pizzas served at CPK is the shrimp scampi pizza. There's no red sauce and its super garlicky. I decided to try out my own version of the recipe using yet another unusual dough replacement - store-bought Naan (Indian pizza!). Now I firmly believe that nothing is better than good, homemade pizza dough, but sometimes I just don't have the time or energy for the kneading, rising, flouring and stretching that it requires. I've found that packages of Naan are a great easy replacement. They're perfectly portioned, thin, and much closer to what pizza dough should be than an English muffin or big hunk of bread. But let's not call them pizza - how about flatbread?

A note about shrimp - harvesting of shrimp can cause huge environmental damage. Huge nets trawl the oceans and bays for shrimp. They scoop up whatever lies in their path, and anything that is picked up besides shrimp (fish, turtles and other marine life) is thrown back into the ocean dead. It causes great disruption to the delicate underwater ecosystem. Farmed shrimp - particularly in Asian countries - produces huge amounts of waste and fertilizers that run back into the waterways, so its really not a better option. Your best bet? Wild pink shrimp from Oregon, where they use bycatch reduction devices to limit what they pick up. Hard to find, but worth it. And if its impossible for you to find, the next best choice is U.S. farmed shrimp. Most U.S. shrimp is farmed inland in closed tanks, so it reduces the waste going back into the oceans. Check out the Monterey Bay Aquarium's Seafood Watch for more information on sustainable seafood.

Shrimp Scampi Flatbread
serves 2
2 pieces packaged Naan (I used whole wheat)
3 oz. fresh mozzarella (preferably buffalo), thinly sliced
2 Tbl olive oil
1 large shallot, halved and thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
8 oz. shrimp, peeled, deveined, and patted dry
juice of half a lemon
1/2 cup white wine
salt and pepper
1/2 Tbl unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 500º
In a large saute pan, heat oil over medium-low heat. Add shallots and cook, stirring occaisionally, until lightly golden and carmelized, about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, spread mozzarella evenly over each Naan. Place on baking sheet and cook in oven until cheese is melted and bubbly. Remove from oven and set aside.
When shallots are carmelized, add garlic to pan and turn heat up to medium. Saute another minute.
Add shrimp and cook about a minute until shrimp just starts to turn pink. Add lemon juice and white wine, and season with salt and pepper. Simmer until liquid is mostly reduced.
Add butter to pan and stir until melted, then remove from heat.
Divide shrimp mixture evenly over each Naan. Return to oven and heat another 2 - 3 minutes. Remove from oven and let stand a few minutes before cutting into quarters.

For a light Saturday supper, serve with a mixed green salad tossed with a vinaigrette made from lemon juice, dijon mustard and olive oil.

Irish Eyes

2010-03-17T18:04:00.000-04:00

Happy St. Patrick's Day! I hope everyone is wearing their green and drinking a Guiness. We celebrated St. Patrick's a little early last night and went to see my friend Lucy's father's band perform, The Boys of the Town. They're an Irish trio and they are great! Lucy is also in a band that performed last night, and she rocked it out on lead vocals singing a couple Cranberries songs.

In honor of St. Patrick's Day, I also made a traditional Irish meal. I usually make Irish Soda Bread for this holiday, but I've always made the Americanized version, which is slightly sweet with raisins and caraway seeds. But in Ireland, soda bread is a heartier brown bread. This month's Bon Appetit featured this recipe that I decided to try.

Mrs. O'Callaghan's Soda Bread

adapted from from Bon Appetit, March 2010

olive oil for brushing pan

3 cups all purpose flour

3 cups whole wheat flour

1/2 cup packed brown sugar

1 tsp baking soda

1/2 stick chilled butter, cut into 1/2" cubes

2 cups buttermilk

Preheat oven to 425º
Brush a heavy nonstick baking sheet with olive oil
Whisk together both flours, sugar and baking soda in a medium bowl
Cut in butter until its reduced to pea-sized pieces
Add buttermilk and stir until a shaggy dough forms
Turn dough onto lightly floured surface and knead 10 times until dough holds together.
Shape into a 7" round
Transfer to prepared baking sheet and cut an "x" in the center
Bake about 45 minutes, until deeply browned and bottom sounds hallow when tapped
Transfer to baking rack to cool

This bread called for something soupy to sop up. A traditional Irish stew is made with lamb and root vegetables, so I decided to make a vegetarian version. It was very hearty soup that made great use of all the winter vegetables we still have tucked away.

Irish Vegetable Stew

3 Tbl olive oil

1 Tbl unsalted butter

1 medium onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3 sprigs thyme, leaves removed and chopped

1 sprig rosemary, leaves removed and chopped

1 large leek, well washed, halved and thinly sliced

1/2 cup pearled barley

2 1/2 pounds assorted root vegetables, such as potatoes, sweet potatoes, turnips, parsnips and carrots, peeled and cut into 1" pieces

1 cup dark beer (like Guiness!)

1 quart vegetables broth

1/2 medium cabbage, thinly sliced

salt and pepper to taste

Melt butter in olive oil in a large dutch oven or heavy pot over medium heat
Add onions, garlic and herbs and cook for 1 minute until fragrant
Add leeks and cook for about 10 minutes until softened
Add barley and stir until grains are coated
Add root vegetables and cook 2 more minutes
Pour in beer and cook 2 minutes
Add vegetable broth and bring to a boil
Reduce to a simmer and cook for about 15 minutes hour
Add cabbage and simmer another 30 minutes until vegetables are tender
Season with salt and pepper to taste

Hey There, Pudding

2010-03-07T17:13:00.007-05:00

The weather this weekend has been teasingly Springlike, but that has not stopped me from craving homey, Winter comfort food. I've been thinking about rice pudding for weeks. The super creamy texture, the warm scent of cinnamon and vanilla just begs to be enjoyed on a cold evening wrapped up in a warm blanket. Or maybe on an early Spring day with the windows open. Oh heck, I could eat rice pudding any time!

My first rice pudding was made a few years ago for Christmas. I used Ina Garten's recipe for Rum Raisin Rice Pudding. And I expected it to be a humble addition to the dessert table, passed over in favor of chocolate cakes and apple pies, but the rice pudding was the hit of the day. Yes, everyone loves rice pudding.

This weekend I decided do something a little different with my rice pudding. I always have some Taza chocolate in the pantry, and I've been trying to come up with the perfect vehicle for the discs of Cinnamon Chocolate Mexicano. Definitely the right match for a cinnamon -scented rice pudding.

I used arborio rice for this recipe. It makes creamy risotto, it makes creamy pudding. And I know they're pricey, but using a whole vanilla bean is very important. The extract is just not the same.

Be sure to cook this over really low heat for a long time. Low and slow is always the key to creaminess. You could use another good quality bittersweet chocolate for this recipe, but I highly recommend Taza if you can find it.

Mexican Chocolate Rice Pudding
serves 4 - 6
1/2 cup arobrio rice
4 cups whole milk
1/4 cup sugar
1 vanilla bean, halved and beans scraped
1 cinnamon stick, halved
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 x 2.7 oz. package Taza Cinnamon Chocolate Mexicano chocolate, or 2.7 - 3 oz. good quality bittersweet chocolate, chopped

Stir together rice, milk and sugar in a heavy medium saucepan. Stir in vanilla beans and pods, and add cinnamon stick.
Bring rice mixture just to a boil over medium heat, stirring frequently.
Reduce heat to low and simmer for 30 - 40 minutes, stirring occasionally.
When rice is thick and creamy, remove from heat. Add a spoonful of rice mixture to a bowl with beaten egg to coddle. Stir egg into pot with rice, return to heat and cook 2 - 3 more minutes.
Stir in chocolate until melted and well combined.
Serve warm or chilled.

Celebration

2010-02-28T17:17:00.009-05:00

This weekend we celebrated Derek's mother's birthday. Normally when we get together with his family, we all go over his parent's house and his mother cooks. So, we decided to give her the night off for her special day. Both Derek's brothers have young kids, so going out to a restaurant is not the best option. Instead, my sister-in-law Christina and I made dinner for the whole clan. Derek's mother is a pretty adventurous eater, she'll try (and appreciate) just about anything. Derek's father and his brothers are a different story, and none of them eat seafood. So, with Derek's mother in mind, I made a big pot of cioppino. For the boys (big and little), Christina made pasta and meatballs. She also made garlic bread and salad to round out the meal.

Cioppino is a fish stew created by Italian immigrants in San Francisco. Its sort of an Italian Bouillabaisse (my favorite). I started with chopped onion and leeks.

I sauteed these then added chopped garlic and thinly sliced fennel.

With one finger kept out of the way. Then I mixed in tomatoes, clam juice and vegetable broth. Its all simmered for a bit, then cooked with fish, shrimp, clams and mussels - or whatever seafood you prefer!

Cioppino
1/2 olive oil, divided
1 large onion, chopped
2 large leeks, white and light green parts thinly sliced and washed in a bowl of cold water
1 fennel bulb, quartered, cored, and thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 cup white wine
2 x 28 oz. cans whole tomatoes (preferably San Marzano)
1 bottle clam juice
2 cups vegetable broth
salt & pepper
1/2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 lb cod or other firm white fish
1 lb cleaned shrimp
1 lb littleneck clams, scrubbed
2 lbs mussels, scrubbed
1 large handful of basil
2 cloves garlic, peeled

Heat 1/4 olive oil in a large dutch oven or heavy pot over medium heat. Add onions, leeks, and fennel and saute until softened, about 10 minutes. Add garlic and saute 2 more minutes. Pour in white wine and simmer until liquid is mostly cooked off. Add tomatoes and crush with potato masher until tomatoes are mostly crushed with some chunks. Pour in clam juice in vegetable broth. Season with salt and pepper and add red pepper flakes. Bring to a simmer, then reduce heat to medium-low and simmer for 20- 30 minutes to allow flavors to meld. Add fish, shrimp and clams to pot. Simmer about 10 minutes until clams start to open. Add mussels and cook about 5 minutes more until seafood is cooked through.
While soup cooks, puree basil and garlic in a good processor. Add olive oil in a slow stream.
To serve, pour soup into bowls with a little of each seafood. Top with a drizzle of basil oil.

Of course, what is a birthday party without a birthday cake. I made Dorie Greenspan's Perfect Party Cake from Baking for this occasion. Its a beautiful cake. Light, lemony cake layered with raspberry jam and a fantastic butter cream.

This was a part of the meal that everyone enjoyed!

Concertina

2010-02-25T12:58:00.000-05:00

I was in need of inspiration last weekend. Food inspiration. I think last week's cocktail party cooking extravaganza tapped out my food creativity. I had some trouble reviving it. I received new issues of Bon Appetit, Food & Wine, and Cooking Light this week, usually the highlight of the month for me, but none of the recipes popped out to me. I scanned the food blogs, but nobody had anything new that sounded particularly delicious. So, I kicked it old school. I turned to my cookbook collection.

I don't have a huge collection of cookbooks, but I don't use them nearly as much as I should, especially when I don't have anything particular in mind to cook. I have some great baking cookbooks, my favorite being Dori Greenspan's Baking, that I turn to when looking for a good dessert. And my old copy of Joy of Cooking gets a lot of use when I have some classic dish in mind but don't know exactly how to make it, like a beurre blanc or chocolate mousse. But when I just need to find something delicious and fun to cook, I always find myself turning to my good friend Jamie Oliver. I have several of his cook book, but my favorite is Jamie at Home, which has a corresponding TV show on Food Network. I love Jamie's cooking style. Lots of fresh, seasonal ingredients in simple preparations. Jamie at Home is divided by season, which is so convenient. I won't waste time scanning through recipes calling for asparagus and fresh corn in the middle of February. And he takes a very casual approach to cooking, calling for a good glug of this or a handful of that. Not a cookbook for someone who needs exact measurements. I have horrible kitchen envy from watching his TV show, more for what's outside the kitchen than the kitchen itself. His huge garden and greenhouse, big outdoor stone oven, chickens pecking across the lawn, and a forest and stream out back where he forages mushrooms. This all makes me long for a cottage in the English countryside. Cooking from his book transports me from my tiny kitchen in a basement apartment in a noisy city.

In the winter section of Jamie at Home, he has several recipes for one of my favorite vegetables, leeks.

I'm not a huge onion fan, but I love the sweet oniony-ness of leeks, especially when soft and braised and practically melting in your mouth. Jamie's flavors are simple, but they are bold. In his recipe for Concertina Squid, he combines the mild leeks with the sharp flavors of radicchio and fennel, and tops the roasted squid with a bold chorizo dressing. Yes, I'm starting to cook with a little bit of meat. I like using it more as a flavor cue than the star of the show.

I adjusted Jamie's recipe a bit. He called for grilling the vegetables but I brought them inside and roasted them instead. In a very hot oven, they still got the nice charred effect of a grill, just maybe lose the smokiness.

I can't take full credit for cooking this meal. Derek had to take over when this happened...

The tip of my left index finger had a run-in with a very sharp knife while chopping garlic. It is not pretty, folks. I guarantee I will always remember this meal from the scar left behind. Inspiration, indeed. Luckily, Derek is very good at following instructions. The dinner was excellent. My secret boyfriend - I mean, Jamie would be proud.

Concertina Squid with Roasted Leeks and Chorizo Dressing
adapted from Jamie Oliver
serves 2
4 small - medium prepared squid, tentacles removed and reserved
2 large leeks, white and light green parts only, halved and washed well
1 bulb fennel, cut in thin wedges, fronds reserved
1 radicchio, cut into wedges
Olive oil
1 lemon, halved
1 small chorizo sausage, cut into small pieces
1 sprig of rosemary, leaves chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped (careful of your fingers)
1 Tbl balsamic vinegar

Preheat oven to 450º
Toss vegetables in a large baking pan with a good glug of olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and roast for 20 - 25 minutes, until softened and browned in spots. Check half way through cooking and remove radicchio is soft.
Meanwhile, heat a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Add a small amount of olive oil, then add chorizo and cook for about 1 minute. Add rosemary and garlic and cook for 30 seconds. Remove from heat, then pour in balsamic vinegar and juice from half a lemon. When vegetables are cook, toss with chorizo dressing in large bowl.
Turn oven up to full heat.
Prepare squid bodies by inserting a knife into body, then running a second knife over the top to create 1 inch slits in half the squid.
Season squid with salt and pepper and toss with a little olive oil.
Heat an oven proof skillet over medium-high heat. Add a good glug of olive oil. Add squid tentacles and cook 1 minute. Add squid bodies and transfer pan to oven. Cook about 4 minutes until squid are just cooked and lightly browned.
Mound vegetables on 2 plates and top with squid. Squeeze the other half of lemon over each plate and topped with chopped fennel fronds.

Happy Blogiversary!

2010-02-23T18:18:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday to Clean Green Cuisine! Today marks the 1 year anniversary of my blog. Its hard to believe, the year sure has gone by so fast. In honor of this special day, I've been reviewing my old posts and looking back through some of my favorite recipes. Its fun to see how my blogging style and even my eating style has changed. In the beginning, I blogged everything I ate. I decided at some point that that was a little intense, so I started posting only when I made a really delicious dish that I wanted to share. I don't like to play favorites, but here are a few of the recipes I liked the best. Just don't tell the others.

My very first recipe was a roasted vegetable gratin.

This cherry buttermilk cake was outstanding.

This was one of Derek's favorites, linguine with clam sauce. Very spicy and garlicky. It was also the last meal I cooked before the disastrous Raw Week.

These crab cakes and remoulade have been very popular, several friends have enjoyed this recipe.

The granola is a staple. Very important to have some made at all times.

Kale chip s! Gotta love kale chips.

I made zucchini fritters all summer long. Can't wait to see these again.

And these slow roasted tomatoes were perfect for summer picnics.

My first ratatouille was huge success.

A recent favorite - outstanding buttermilk biscuits.

I love playing with different whole grains. They are the stars of the show in these risottos.
Wheatberry risotto with beets and greens

Barley with brussel sprouts and carrots

How could we forget the green monsters?

Blue cheese souffle was decadent and perfect.

And for dessert...rich chocolate mouse made with locally made, stone ground Taza chocolate.

I also chronicled lots of fun events this year.

My Stowe 8-Miler was a huge accomplishment for me. I had so much fun run this race.

Our Labor Day celebration was quite a food extravaganza.

Lisa's carnival was a memorable and sticky birthday celebration.

Oh, yeah. I also got married this year.

Thank you so much to all of you who have been reading, eating, and laughing with me this past year. I hope to continue to bring you even more delicious food in the future!

Love and Cocktails

2010-02-15T17:58:00.026-05:00

Among some of our friends, we have a tradition of throwing cocktail parties. Colucci was the cocktail party pioneer, when he unexpectedly invited us all over on a Sunday afternoon and served us drinks and snacks. We all had so much fun that we decided to make it a tradition, and rotate hosting cocktail parties once a month. Well, getting a busy group of friends together that often proved to be a bit more of a challenge, but I was happy to pick up the torch and throw the next cocktail party a few months later. I love a party with a theme, so I hosted on Chinese New Year's.

This was followed by a Cinco de Mayo cocktail party (technically hosted by Derek, I was just the caterer), the setting of the infamous "pinata incident."

Then we had a luau shortly after returning from a trip to Hawaii. So when we were deciding the best way to celebrate our recent nuptials with some of our friends, in a small, casual setting that didn't require too much fuss, a cocktail party sounded like the perfect solution. And what better day to celebrate love than Valentine's Day? It also happened to be Chinese New Year's so it was the 3 year anniversary of my first cocktail party!

This party had a couple of themes. For the cocktails, I was inspired by this article in Food & Wine to encourage people to create their own cocktails. I set up a table dividing all the drink ingredients into 6 categories: Strong (booze, obviously), Sweet (simple syrup, grenadine, sweet vermouth, cherry liqueur, sugar cubes), Sour (lemon and lime juices), Bitter (bitters, olives), Floral (mint, violet liqueur), and Spicy (cayenne pepper, black pepper). Every good cocktail is a mixture of Strong and 2 or 3 of the other components.

I let our guests be adventurous and create their own drinks, but also wrote recipes on Valentine's to give some direction. The Aviation and Blood and Sand were a couple of very popular drinks. Also made this killer Kill Devil Punch.

I decorated the tables with conversation hearts to bring in the Valentine's theme. And the food - oh, the food! I tired to bring in some influences from New Zealand, along with some classic finger food.

I made 2 dips that I served with pita chips, carrot sticks and endive spears. The pea and sundried tomato dip is so easy, and people are always surprised by what's in it.

Peas and Sundried Tomatoes
1 lb bag frozen peas, thawed
1 8 oz. jar sundried tomatoes in oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
1/4 or more olive oil

Puree peas, sundried tomatoes in oil and garlic in food processor. With motor running, add olive oil until desired consistency is reached.

White Bean and Roasted Garlic Hummus
1 x 14 oz can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
5 - 6 large cloves garlic, unpeeled
2 Tbls tahini
1/4 or more olive oil

Preheat oven to 400º
Roast garlic until very soft and brown, then remove from oven and cool slightly
Peel garlic and add to food processor with beans and tahini. Puree until well blended. With motor running, pour in olive oil until dip is smooth and blended.

I also served some spiced cashews, inspired by these cashews they served at Herzog on our wedding night...

For my version, I tossed unsalted cashews with a little olive oil and sprinkled them with cinnamon, cumin, coriander, chipotle and smoked paprika, then roasted them until until fragrant and one shade darker.

Another New Zealand inspiration was pumpernickel toasts topped with blue cheese, chopped toasted hazelnuts, and manuka honey from New Zealand that we brought all the way home with us. This honey is believed to have a wide range of medicinal properties.

For my vegan and vegetarian friends I made polenta squares with sauteed mushrooms.

Polenta Squares with Mushrooms
1 cup stone ground polenta
2 cups water
salt
olive oil
1 large shallot, finely diced
2 cloves garlic, finely diced
1.5 lbs cremini mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup dry red wine

Boil water in a medium saucepan with 1 tsp salt. Stir in polenta and reduce heat to low. Cook until very thick, stirring frequently, about 20 - 30 minutes. Brush a baking pan with oil, and spread polenta over it in a think layer. Chill until firm, about 1 hour, then cut into 1.5" squares.
Preheat oven to 350º
Spread polenta squares on an oiled baking sheet and bake until lightly browned, about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, heat a large saute pan over medium heat. Add a glug of olive oil, then saute onions and garlic until softened. Add mushrooms and saute until most of the liquid has evaporated and mushrooms start to brown. Pour in red wine and saute until mostly absorbed. Spoon mushrooms onto polenta squares and serve.

The seafood snacks included crab-stuffed deviled eggs and potato and parsnip pancakes with smoked salmon.

Add something for the meat eaters!

Mini Meatball Subs
1/2 lb ground lamb (from New Zealand!)
1/2 lb ground veal
1/2 pound ground
1/2 cup panko
1/2 cup water
4 - 5 Tbl grated parmesan cheese
small handful chopped parsley
1 egg, beaten
salt and pepper
2 x 28 oz. cans whole peeled tomatoes
olive oil
1 onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, finely diced
1 tsp sugar or sucanat
1 Tbl balsamic vinegar
mini sub rolls, toasted

Mix together ground meat, panko, water, parmesan, parsley and egg and season with salt and pepper. Roll into small balls.
Heat a large skillet over medium - high heat and add a glug of olive oil. Add meatballs to pan in batches, and cook until browned on all sides, about 3 minutes. Set aside and pour off excess oil from pan. Return pan to medium heat. Puree 1 can of tomatoes in blender. Add onion and garlic to pan and cook until softened. Add pureed tomatoes and whole tomatoes, and smash whole tomatoes with potato masher until crushed. Bring to a simmer and reduce heat. Add sugar and balsamic vinegar. Add meatballs to sauce and simmer until meatballs are cooked through, about 30 minutes. Scoop 2 meatballs into each sub roll and top with additional sauce.

I also made some sweet potato falafels for the veg and popped those in a sub roll with some store-bought (gasp!) tabbouleh.

And, for the highlight of the night, my first foray into meat cooking. I seared and roasted racks of lamb from New Zealand.

After much research and recipe reviewing, I decided to listen to the guru, Martha Stewart, and use a recipe from her Cooking School cookbook. The Rack of Lamb with Herb Crusted was quickly seared in a hot pan, then coated with greek yogurt and crusted with a mixture of parsely, mint, bread crumbs, lemon zest and garlic. It was a huge hit!

I served it with this delicious warm brussel sprout and apple salad.

And to top it all off, I made a dessert invented in New Zealand - a beautiful pavlova. I used this recipe, which tops the pavlova with lemon curd, but instead of berries I used kiwi and mango mixed with a little simple syrup and chopped mint.

What a wonderful evening. We were showered with love from some of our favorite people, shared good food and drinks and lots of smiles. We were also bestowed with lots of wine, chocolate, amazing pickles and peanut butter cookies (they are delicious, Reuter!). I can't thank all of our wonderful friends enough for celebrating with us now and always. We're lucky kids. With silly hats.

p.s. thanks to Daisy and De for the photo contributions

Ok, you asked for it. ONE MORE HAT!

Soup's On!

2010-02-07T17:17:00.010-05:00

Its freezing outside! The perfect weather for a warm bowl of soup. I've made 2 delicious pots of soup in the past couple weeks, and both happen to be orange. The first was my Cleaned-up version of potato-leek soup. It starts with lots of sliced leeks.

But instead of potatoes, I used red-skinned yams, which are more nutrient-packed than white potatoes. They're high in vitamin C and B6 and have a lower glycemic index than white potatoes. Despite frequent mis-labeling, yams and sweet potatoes are not the same thing, but they can be used interchangeably in this recipe.

Yam and Leek Soup
3 large leeks, whites and light-green parts halved, thinly sliced and washed well, dark green parts halved, cut into 2" pieces and washed well
3 cups vegetable broth
2 cups water
2 Tbls unsalted butter
1/2 cup white wine
2 lbs red-skinned yams, peeled and cut into 1" pieces
1 bay leaf
1 sprig thyme
1/4 cup heavy cream (optional)

Combine vegetable broth, water and dark green parts of leeks in a large pot. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce to a simmer and simmer for 20 minutes. Strain broth into a large bowl and discard dark green leeks.
Wipe out pot, add butter and heat over medium heat. When butter starts to foam, add leeks and stir to coat with butter. Cook for 2-3 minutes until leeks are slightly softened, then add white wine and 2 more minutes until most of the liquid has cooked off. Cover and cook until leeks are softened, about 5 more minutes.
Add reserved broth back to pot with yams, bay leaf and thyme. Simmer over medium-low heat for about 15 minutes, until yams are very soft. Remove bay leaf and thyme and discard. Working in batches, puree soup in blender or puree in put with immersion blender. Return soup to pot, stir in cream (if using) and heat until very warm. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve.

Last weekend we had a little family wedding celebration at my parent's house. We invited Derek's parents and his brothers and their families over for a delicious lunch of paninis and soup. We broke out the panini maker I got as a shower gift, which I think has now been permanently adopted by my father. He made cubans and reubens and I made some brie and pear paninis. We also had a crab and broccoli bisque, chicken gumbo, white bean soup and I contributed with a roasted tomato soup. Roasting tomatoes is a delicious way to bring out flavor and sweetness from the usually hard and mealy tomatoes you get in the grocery store this time of year. But I bet this soup would be even better with tasty summer tomatoes. I also added some roasted red peppers. This recipe has cream, but you could definitely do without it for a healthier vegan version.

Roasted Tomato and Red Pepper Soup
adapted from 101 Cookbooks
4 pounds tomatoes, cored and quartered
2 large red bell peppers, seeded and quartered
1 large sweet onion, peeled and quartered
EVOO
6 cloves garlic, unpeeled
salt & pepper
3 cups light vegetable broth or water
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/4 cup heavy cream

Preheat oven to 375º
Line 2 large baking pans with foil or parchment
arrange tomatoes, skin sides down on one pan and peppers and onions on another. Cover both with a good glug of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Add garlic to pans.
Roast until tomatoes start to collapse and onions and browned and caramelized, about 45 minutes. Check garlic about 15 minutes in and remove from pan once softened.
Peel garlic and add to blender with vegetables, working in batches. Puree until mostly smooth, with some chunks still. Add to large saucepan over medium heat. Add vegetables broth or water until desired consistency is reached, add paprika and season with salt and pepper. Heat until simmering, then stir in cream. Serve and enjoy.

My mother topped the celebration off with a beautiful chocolate raspberry wedding cake she made and our families got to see us officially cut the cake!

Breakfast and Biscuits

2010-01-30T09:44:00.012-05:00

Happy Saturday morning! As you may have noticed, I love making big breakfasts on the weekends. Usually its fluffy pancakes one morning, eggs the next. I think weekend breakfasts should be hearty and a little indulgent. Usually they end up being more like brunch for us, holding us over through Saturday errands and Sunday football. One of our favorite breakfasts - and one of the few meals my husband actually taught me how to cook perfectly - is egg sandwiches, preferably on a good buttermilk biscuit. But, I must admit, my biscuits usually come from the bakery section of the grocery store. For years, my mother and I have been searching for the perfect buttermilk biscuit recipe. But no matter what combination of flours, fats and techniques we've tried, we always ended up with dry, tough, hockey pucks. Until now! Ladies and Gentlemen, I present to you...

The Best Buttermilk Biscuit Recipe

From who else but Martha Stewart? And surprisingly, this recipe is very easy. The key steps seem to be very cold fat, in this case a mixture of butter and vegetable shortening.

And well sifted dry ingredients. This recipe uses all purpose flour and cake flour, which keeps the biscuits light and fluffy.

A good floured biscuit cutter is also important. You need to cut straight down the edges of the dough, so the biscuits will rise properly.

My mother and I both happened to give each other biscuit cutters for Christmas, so I was covered here.

Its amazing what a difference these little tweaks made. The biscuits were golden, flaky perfection. And way better than store bought.

Best Buttermilk Biscuits
Adapted from Martha Stewart
makes 12
3 cups all purpose flour, plus more for work surface and biscuit cutter
1 cup cake flour
1 Tbl baking powder
1 tsp baking soda
1 1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbl plus 1 tsp sugar
1 stick (1/2 cup) very cold unsalted butter, cut into small pieces plus 2 Tbl melted butter for brushing tops
1/2 cup non-hydrogenated, trans fat free vegetable shortening, chilled and cut into small pieces
1 1/2 cup well-shaken buttermilk

Preheat oven to 400º
Sift together flours, baking powder, baking soda, salt and sugar. Sift again.
Using a pastry cutter or 2 forks, cut butter and shortening into dry ingredients until mixture resembles a coarse meal. Make a well in center, and pour in buttermilk. Stir with a wooden spoon until dough just holds together.
Turn dough onto a well floured work surface, and need into itself 3 or 4 times. Pat dough into 1" disc. Using a well floured 3" biscuit cutter, cut round from dough. Place rounds 2" apart on a parchment lined baking sheet. Gather scraps, pat back into disc, and continue cutting rounds until all dough is used. Brush tops of biscuits with melted butter.
Bake until puffed and golden brown, and 15 - 18 minutes. Serve warm or cool completely and store in an airtight container at room temperature up to 3 days, or freeze.

The biscuits pulled apart easily to fill with a fried egg, Gruyere, and a perfect slice of tomato.

This is obviously a particularly indulgent breakfast that should be saved for the weekends. During the week, I prefer breakfasts that are filling but not too heavy, and packed with as many healthy ingredients as I can cram in to kick start my brain and body for my busy work days. My breakfasts also need to be portable and easily eaten at my desk. Green Monsters are perfect for this, a smoothie packed with kale, almond milk, banana and flax seeds. I also frequently include yogurt with fruit and granola or oatmeal cooked with banana and topped with yogurt, nuts and fruit in my routine. Oatmeal is a traditional breakfast cereal, but there are so many other grains out there that make a great morning meal. This week I made a big batch of breakfast quinoa, which I kept in the fridge at work and heated up a serving every morning. Quinoa is the highest protein grain out there, so it makes an ideal breakfast. And its delicious, nutty flavor pairs well with fruit and nuts. Just like oatmeal, you can experiment with a huge variety of mix-ins.

This recipe makes a week-long batch. To re-heat, I scoop a single serving into a bowl with sliced bananas, and pop in the microwave at work for 1 minute, 30 seconds. The bananas melt into the quinoa, making it sweeter and bulking it up a bit. I then top it with a little milk and some dried fruit. But thrown in whatever you like!

Breakfast Quinoa
makes 5 servings
1 cup milk
1 cup water
1 cup quinoa, rinsed
1 tsp cinnamon
dash of nutmeg
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 Tbl sucanat, or honey or agave nectar to taste

Combine milk, water and quinoa in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium heat, then reduce heat and cover. Simmer on low until liquid is mostly absorbed, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat and let stand 5 minutes. Stir in cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and sucanat. Enjoy warm or chill and reheat later.

And because I'm always thinking about my next meal, I'd also like to share with you my lunches this week - a Delicious and colorful Udon Soup with Mushroom Broth, Cabbage, and Yams.

Bon Appetit!

Get it on the plate, girl

2010-01-21T10:21:00.008-05:00

Chilly January weather calls for chili! While a traditional chili is usually based around ground beef, there are so many vegetarian variations you can make using different combinations of beans, vegetables, and grains. My latest version was inspired by this recipe in Food & Wine for Winter Vegetable Chili that uses hominy to bulk it up. I wondered why I had the Tori Amos song "Little Amsterdam" running through my head all day Monday, since its been years since I've listened to it. I realized as I was cooking it was because of this lyric:

"Little Amsterdam/In a Southern town/Hominy/get it on the plate, girl"

That's my job - get it on the plate! Hominy is corn that has been treated with lye, and you can buy it canned. This is also the base for corn tortillas, but the corn is finely ground after its treated to make a flour. The hominy in the can is whole, soft kernels.

This recipe is a delicious way to use seasonal vegetables. It came out a little spicy for my taste, but if you remove the seeds from the chipotles that would cut down the heat a lot. This recipe also makes a huge pot of chili! Derek has been eating it for lunch all week, but the leftovers will also freeze well.

Winter Vegetable Chili
liberally adapted from Food & Wine February, 2010
4 Tbls olive oil, divided
1 1/2 - 2 lb butternut squash, peeled, seeded
1 medium onion, chopped
3 - 4 cloves of garlic, chopped
1 large red bell pepper, cut into 1/2" pieces
3 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1/2" pieces
1 large sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/2"pieces
1 Tbl chile powder
1 Tbl ground cumin
salt & pepper
2 Tbls unsweetened cocoa powder
1 x 28 oz. can peeled whole tomatoes, preferably San Marzano
2 - 3 canned chipotle peppers (with or without seeds depending on heat preference), plus 2 Tbls adobo sauce
2 cups water
1 x 14 oz can hominy, drained
1 x 14 oz can red kidney beans, drianed
chopped cilantro and sour cream or greek yogurt for serving

Preheat oven to 400º

Toss butternut squash with 2 Tbls olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and roast in a baking pan until just tender and lightly browned, about 20 - 25 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat remaining 2 Tbls olive oil in a large dutch oven over medium heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until softened, about 3 minutes. Add red pepper, carrots, and sweet potato and saute until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Stir in chile powder, cumin, and cocoa powder and season with salt and pepper. Cook 1 minute more.

Meanwhile, puree tomatoes with juices, chipotles and adobo and water in blender until smooth. Add mixture to dutch oven along with hominy and beans and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer over medium-low heat until thickened and vegetables are tender.

Serve topped with chopped cilantro and sour cream or greek yogurt.

I usually like to serve cornbread with chili, and this time decided to spice my cornbread up a bit. I got a madeline pan for Christmas, and since I don't make little tea cakes too often, I thought it would be the perfect vehicle for individual cornbread madelines. I also added some chopped green onion and chipotles for a little kick.

Green Onion Chipotle Cornbread Madelines
1 cup cornmeal (I like Bob's Red Mill course ground cornmeal)
1 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
4 tsp baking powder
2 tsp sucanat (or sugar)
1 egg, lightly beaten
1 cup milk
3 Tbls unsalted butter, melted and cooled
3 green onions, chopped
3 chipotles in adobo, seeds and sauce scraped, finely chopped

Preheat oven to 400º

Whisk together cornmeal, flour, salt, baking powder and sugar in a medium bowl. Add egg, milk and butter and stir until just combined. Stir in green onion and chipotles.

Fill a greased Madeline pan with batter, filling each cup not quite to the top. Or, fill a greased 9" square baking pan with batter. Bake for about 15 minutes, until tester inserted in center comes out clean. Watch carefully as these cook fast! Let cool in pan for about 5 minutes, then transfer to wire rack to cool completely or slightly warm.

Renewal

2010-01-17T17:27:00.012-05:00

Now is the time of year when we all look towards change. We take a look at ourselves - inside and out, for better or worse - and think about what we would like to make better, make smaller, make firmer, make happier. And we resolve to achieve those things before this time next year. My resolution for this year is to try to be tidier in our tiny apartment, and not leave my crap all over the place. Derek was very excited to hear this, although he has yet to see any results. But I'm working on it.

I'm also working on making up for the gluttony of the holiday season by returning my focus to healthful eating. The 3 cookie a day habit I developed around Christmas must be kicked. And the intake of vegetables and whole grains must be dialed up! I'm back on my Green Monster kick, using my brand new shower-gift blender to make almond milk and liquify kale. Its so much easier to get your healthy greens in when you have them at breakfast. It also helps when you can make delicious, healthy meals that don't taste like health food. That just taste delicious. That is this recipe, for a warm, comforting risotto made with hearty, heart-healthy barely and delicious roasted vegetables.

I used brussel sprouts and some beautiful orange, purple and white carrots because they were local, in season, and I can't get enough brussel sprouts.

You can easily use this base risotto recipe to create lots of different combinations, adding different vegetables and crumbling in cheeses to boost the flavor. Root vegetables and hearty greens are perfect for the winter and young asparagus and peas would really shine in the spring. Nuts and dried fruit would make this a creative side dish. I made this dish once with beets and marscapone cheese to amp up the creaminess, and it was a pink beauty.

You could also experiment with different grains here. The whole grains in one's diet should go way beyond whole wheat pasta and bread. There are so many out there to explore with a variety of flavors and textures. I love the chewy, nuttiness of barely, but you could also try this with farro, wheatberries, or more adventurous grains like amaranth.

Barley Risotto with Brussel Sprouts and Carrots

serves 4
4 Tbls olive oil, divided
1 small onion, diced
2 - 3 cloves garlic, crushed or minced
5 cups vegetable broth
1 cup pearl barley
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 pound brussel sprouts, trimmed and halved
1/2 pound carrots, chopped into 1" pieces
1/4 freshly grated parmesan cheese (omit for vegan recipe)
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 400º.
Pour vegetable broth into a medium saucepan, and heat until warm but not boiling. Reduce heat to low.
Toss vegetables with 2 Tbls of olive oil in large roasting pan and sprinkle liberally with salt and pepper. Roast until lightly browned and tender, about 20 - 25 minutes, while barely cooks. Set aside when roasted.
Heat a large skillet or dutch oven over medium heat. Add onions and saute until softened, about 8 minutes. Add garlic and saute 2 more minutes. Add pearl and saute until fragrant and slightly toasted, about 3 more minutes. Add white wine and cook until wine is absorbed. Add 1 - 2 ladles of broth, reduce heat to medium-low and cook until broth is mostly absorbed, stirring frequently. Continue adding broth by the ladle-full until barley is tender but still slightly chewy.
Toss cooked barley with parmesan cheese, than stir in brussel sprouts and carrots. Pass additional parmesan on the side.

We ate this dinner on our brand new plates, also a shower gift. We got his and her's plates - mine have subtle white flowers and Derek's have bicycles. Very fitting...

'Tis the Season

2009-12-29T12:08:00.019-05:00

And now back to our regularly scheduled blogging...

After too long a hiatus, my new year's resolution is to recommit myself to this blog and post more wonderful recipes and photos than I have been over the past few months. Between a crazy work schedule and little things like getting married, I just have not had the time lately. But I heard from so many of you after my New Zealand post telling me how excited you were to see me post again and how much you've missed the blog, that you have all really inspired me to get back to it. Thank you all so much for supporting me. I plan to give you more delicious treats in 2010.

But first, a recap of the holiday season! This Christmas came at us fast and furious, descending as soon as we got off the plane from our trip in the form of a huge snow storm. And this was just the beginning, as we got dumped with another foot the following weekend. But being trapped in the house for the weekend was the perfect excuse to spend it cooking and baking!

Cranberries seemed to be my inspiration and theme this year. Cranberries and eggnog! I started the weekend with our Saturday morning tradition of pancakes. But I mixed it up a bit and made them with eggnog.

I also added a handful of chopped, toasted pecans.

I topped the pancakes off with cranberry maple syrup. Festive fuel to get us ready for battling the crowds and tackle our last minute Christmas shopping.

Eggnog Pancakes with Cranberry Maple Syrup
serves 2
1 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
1 Tbl sugar or sucanat
pinch of salt
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
pinch of nutmeg
1 1/2 cups eggnog
1 egg, lightly beaten
1/4 to 1/2 cup lightly toasted pecans, chopped
butter, for griddle
1/2 cup fresh cranberries
1/2 cup pure maple syrup (preferably grade b)

Whisk together flour, baking soda, baking powder, sugar, salt, cinnamon and nutmeg in a medium bowl.
Slowly pour in eggnog and whisk until just combined. Add beaten egg and whisk until combined, but batter should still be lumpy. Stir in chopped pecans.
Heat griddle or non-stick pan over medium-low heat. Grease pan with a bit of butter. Add ladle-fulls of batter to hot pan, and cook until bubbles on the top start to burst. Flip pancakes and cook 1 - 2 more minutes. Keep cooked pancakes warm in 150º oven cover in foil.
While pancakes cook, heat cranberries and maple syrup in a small saucepan over medium-low heat. Cook until cranberries just begin to burst. Let cool slightly and pour over warm pancakes.

Dinner that night came from a great article in January's Food & Wine. Gail Simmons went through each season of Top Chef, and fixed all worst dish disasters. We're big Top Chef fans - although we're still not caught up on last season! Our DVR misses us. I was totally won over by Gail's recipe for Carla's roquefort souffle that curdled in the oven and was never served to the judges in the season 5 finals. I've been on a major blue cheese kick lately, and found a great hunk of really creamy, stinky cheese at Lionette's Market that was perfect for this recipe. Lionette's is one of my new obsessions. Its a little shop in the South End that sells local produce, eggs, dairy, cheese, bread and meat. This will definitely be the place I'll be sourcing meat from if I ever decide to cook it. The staff knows all the farmers and can tell you exactly where the meat came from and how it was raised. No mystery meat here.

The individual souffles rose beautifully in the oven, and were a nice golden brown.

They did sink a bit by the time they made it to the table! It was a perfect light meal served with a salad of arugula and shaved fennel and some grilled bread.

I adapted the recipe for 2 - but ended up having enough batter for a third little souffle. You could probably make 2 with slightly bigger ramekins.

Blue Cheese Souffles
adapted from Gail Simmons for Food & Wine Magazine
serves 2
1 Tbl unsalted butter, plus more for buttering ramekins
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan
1 Tbl all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole milk
pinch of salt
pinch of cayenne pepper
1 1/2 ounces good quality blue cheese
3 eggs, seperated
1 Tbl snipped chives

Preheat oven to 375º. Butter 2 or 3 1 cup ramekins and coat the inside with 1 Tbl of parmesan each.
In a small saucepan, melt 1 Tbl butter. Sprinkle flour over butter and cook for about 1 minute, whisking constantly. Pour in milk, salt and cayenne and cook until very thick and bubbly, whisking frequently.
Scrape milk mixture into a large bowl. Stir in crumbled blue cheese and remaining parmesan. Whisk in egg yolks and snipped chives.
In a large bowl, beat egg white until stiff peaks form. Gently fold whites into the milk and cheese mixture until no white streaks remain. Pour mixture into ramekins, filling about 3/4 of the way full. Place ramekins on baking sheet and back until puffed and golden, about 20 minutes. Serve immediately.

We woke up Sunday morning buried in snow. Perfect baking weather! I started with these Eggnog Cranberry Muffins from Annie's Eats.

I brought these to work and everyone loved the crumb topping.

I also made mini black and white cookies. I've never made these before and they are one of my favorite cookies. I like the chocolate side the best, and this icing was really chocolaty. I used a toothpick to divide the frosting and smooth it out.

Delicious alongside LA Burdick's Dark Hot Chocolate.

For dinner I made another recipe from January's Food & Wine. There was a feature on the best vegetarian recipes. This one was very hearty and seasonal - Baked Butternut Squash and Cheese Polenta .

The polenta is mixed with roasted and mashed butternut squash, smoked gouda and pine nuts, then baked until the top and sides get golden and crispy. I served it topped with tomato sauce mixed with sauteed mushrooms.

Tomato Sauce with Mushrooms
2 Tbls olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 - 3 cloves garlic, finely diced
1 28 oz. can whole tomatoes (preferably San Marzano)
salt and pepper to taste
1 - 2 Tbl balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup red wine
1 lb cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 Tbl olive oil
1 Tbl unsalted butter

Empty tomatoes with juices into a large bowl and mash with a potato masher or squeeze with hands (its messy but fun!). In a large pot, heat 2 Tbl olive oil over medium heat. Add onions and saute until lightly softened. Add garlic and saute until just beginning to brown. And crushed tomatoes. Reduce heat to low and simmer until bubbling. Add salt and pepper to taste. Stir in balsamic vinegar and simmer a few minutes. Stir in red wine and simmer for about 10 - 20 more minutes, adjusting seasoning as needed.
While sauce is simmering, heat 1 Tbl olive oil in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add 1 Tbl butter and stir until melted. add mushrooms and saute until all the liquid is released, about 10 minutes. Continue to saute until lightly browned on edges. Stir mushrooms in tomato sauce.

I roasted a huge butternut squash for the polenta, and used the leftovers for the Butternut Squash and Kale Bread Pudding I made for Christmas dinner. I also made a batch of brussel sprouts with buttered pecans.

Roasted Brussel Sprouts with Buttered Pecans
serves 10 - 12
4 pounds brussel sprouts, trimmed and halved
1/4 cup olive oil
1 cups sliced pecans
6 Tbls unsalted butter, softened
1/2 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 400º. Spread pecans on a rimmed baking sheet and toast in oven until one shade darker and fragrant, about 8 minutes. Pour pecans into small bowl and mix with softened butter and salt. Set aside.
Spread brussel sprouts in a large pan. Toss with olive oil and season generously with salt and pepper. Roast until tender and browned, 20 - 30 minutes. Toss with buttered pecans and serve.

My holiday sides were delicious, my father was the true star chef on Christmas day. He roasted a goose and made a rich port gravy, and he made beef wellington.

I had tastes of both of them and they were very good! He did an amazing job.

The holidays are almost over and we are going on yet another vacation! Our good friends Lisa and Marc invited us to join them in Bimini for New Year's. We can't wait to escape the cold and snow with a little island sunshine. See you in 2010 with a tan!

New Zealand Wedding

2009-12-17T14:29:00.068-05:00

First off, let me apologize to my loyal readers (my mom and Lizzy) for my extended absence from the blog world. But I have a good excuse - I got married in New Zealand! On 25 November, 2009 Derek and I became husband and wife. We still haven't gotten used to calling each other that. And New Zealand was just the most amazing setting. We would not have done it any differently. And it was so hard to come home after 3 weeks there.

We started the "premoon" flying into Auckland and drove straight North to the Bay of Islands, where we spent a couple nights in Paihia, a cute beach town. The highlight of the stay was a chartered sailboat tour given by a really interesting couple. He was the captain and she cooked us a delicious lunch of asparagus quiche, homemade bread, pumpkin soup and almond cookies. All cooked from scratch in her little boat kitchen!

We left the beach in our rental car, and I tested my skills at driving stick shift on the wrong side of the road. It was a bit nerve wracking for both of us.

We headed to the Waitomo caves, where we stayed in the world's only Hobbit Hotel.

At the caves we took a tour where they suited us up in wetsuits and and sent us through the caves in inner tubes.

The ceilings of the caves were quite cool, all covered with glow worms. From there we drove to the Tongariro Alpine Crossing where we took a gorgeous day-long hike.

That's Mt. Doom from Lord of the Rings!

Our last stop on the North Island was Wellington, the capital of NZ. Its a very cool, artsy city. This is where we decided we would live if we moved here. We took the trolley up to the botanic gardens and had a great view of the city.

We checked out parliament, where Derek was a statue.

We had some very good meals in Wellington, including a stop at La Tartine Gourmand recommended Capitol. We ate a yummy lunch of cheese and fries at The Tasting Room.

And breakfast both days was at Fidel's Cafe, described in the "the book" (Lonely Planet NZ was our bible) as the place for left wing radicals. Derek thought he would fit right in.

On both our trips I had the Fidel's Kickstarter, a juice made with apple, lemon, ginger and wheatgrass.

The food was great throughout the trip. They're very into seasonal, local eating there (partly because its an island) which is obviously right up my alley. And because it was late Spring in NZ, all of the delicious foods that recently went out of season back home were just becoming available. We ate a lot of asparagus!

From Wellington we took the ferry over to Picton on the south island, and feasted on these gigantic greenlip mussels.

Then it was off to Marlborough wine country, where we would be getting married! The day before our wedding we took a bike tour around the vineyards and had lots of wine tastings, a gift from my darling Lucy.

It got a little tough to stay on the bike towards the end! Then we checked into our cottage at Hans Herzog vineyard, where we would be staying and having the ceremony. It was absolutely amazing! We stayed in their little rose cottage, which was totally adorable.

For dinner the night before the wedding, they brought us the vinter's platter to eat in our cottage. We were expecting bread and cheese - but it was so much more! There were dishes of poached shrimp, scallops, smoked salmon, cured whitefish and an onion tart. All out of this world!

The morning of our wedding, we had a special delivery - the camper van that would be our honeymoon suite!

It was also Derek's dressing room as I got ready in the cottage.

We held the ceremony in the little garden behind the cottage. Our witnesses were our photographer and wedding planner, and other than that it was just the 2 of us.

Our friend Colucci wrote a piece for the ceremony which had us in hysterics and tears.

Everything was absolutely perfect and the setting could not have been more gorgeous. It was so romantic, special, and unique. And fun and relaxed, unlike the typical wedding! It was exactly what we wanted.

We followed the ceremony with a lavish 7 course dinner with wine pairings at Hans Herzog's gourmet restaurant. This was a big part of the reason I chose to have our wedding here - they are supposed to have the best restaurant in New Zealand.

And now, I have a confession to make. Throughout our trip, I ate meat! For the first time in 13 years! I wasn't suddenly ordering huge steaks, but I tried bites of meat whenever Derek ordered it. Most of the meat in New Zealand is grass-fed - we saw sheep and cows happily grazing all over the country. This is how animals are really meant to be raised, and I have much less of an issue with eating meat when its treated humanely and given a good a life. And I've also recently started to get uncomfortable with the restrictions I've placed on myself by not allowing myself to eat meat. Its become more like "I can't eat meat" as opposed to "I choose not to eat meat," which is really how it should be. I'm not expecting to really change my diet significantly, but I like having the option to try meat if I feel like it. Its actually quite liberating! Although overall, I wasn't crazy about any of the meat I tried. It all just seemed so chewy to me, when I'm used to eating fish. The exception was our wedding night meal. There was not a lot of meat in the seven courses. We started with a couple glasses of bubbles and some hors d'oeuvres.

We were served parmesan marshmallows, a little lemongrass coconut soup, and smoked salmon rolled in dukka. Then we moved on to a scallop carpaccio, followed by a vegetable salad, and poached shrimp topped with pig's snout.

Yes, I ate the confit pig's snout. But the highlight of the meal was the beef carbonara. Thin, perfectly seared slices of beef alongside an onion marmalade, with a coil of clear "pasta" topped with a runny poached egg. Yes, I ate just about every bite. I left a little piece for Derek so that I didn't eat ALL the meat.

Dessert was carrot-inspired, which sounds a little odd but was quite tasty.

A little carrot sorbet accompanied a cake with carrot, ginger and meringue. We also had a cheese course and petit fours at the end of the meal. And wine with every course! We were most definitely satisfied. It was the perfect celebration meal. Then we took the short, windy walk back to our cottage.

The next morning I cooked a lovely last breakfast in our cottage. The restaurant brought us fresh farm eggs, smoked salmon and home baked bread for us to prepare ourselves. I fried eggs and laid them on toast and smoked salmon.

Then it was time to move into the OCV - we called her Lamdchop.

Our travel around the South Island in little Lambchop was easily the best part of our trip (except getting married, of course). The van had everything we needed - kitchen, bathroom, dining room, bed - even a TV with DVD player. And it was pretty compact for being a little house on wheels. Derek loved driving it. I, on the other hand, cried the entire time I was driving it, which was only for about 30 minutes. New Zealand is a very camper friendly country. As long as there were no postings, we could park for the night in any spot we found, and there were trailer parks we could stay at in even the tiniest towns. The first night in the OCV was our best camping spot. We found a little road off the main highway (which was also a little road) that led right down to a little parking area on the beach.

I cooked the first of many delicious meals here. Pan seared king fish, broccoli, and mashed purple kumara, which is a New Zealand sweet potato.

We also snacked on some cherries we picked up at a farm stand, and dessert was a delicious chocolate mousse cake they made for us at Herzog.

From here we headed to the Franz Josef and Fox glaciers. There is such a variety of terrain in NZ, we could go from the beach to glaciers in just a few hours. We spent 2 days at Franz Josef trying to get a helicopter trip up to the top, but the weather was too rainy and cloudy the whole time to go up.

It was a little better at the Fox glacier.

We had another delicious OCV dinner while camping at the glaciers, of broiled salmon, asparagus and more kumara.

Then we made our way down to Queenstown, spending the night at another great camp spot by a river on the way.
We also stopped at a beach where penguins were nesting!

Can't you see them? Yeah, they were pretty far away, but luckily we had binoculars and got a pretty good view of 2 of them playing in the waves. They were pretty cute.

We made it to Queenstown, the extreme sport capital of New Zealand. This is the place for bungee jumping, sky diving, and parasailing. But we passed on these activities in favor of my favorite sport - ice cream eating!

We discovered Patagonia Chocolates in Queesntown, and went there 3 times! They had all kinds of interesting truffles, including wasabi and lemon pepper, and amazing thick and rich hot chocolate, which came flavored with chili, fresh ginger, or lavender.

We also did a little horse back riding at Moonlight Farms set in the mountains.

The raised deer on the farm, which we assumed was for venison since they seem to raise a lot of that here. But Haley, our Scottish ride guide, told us they actually raise the deer for their antlers, which they scrape the velvet off of and sell to the Chinese for medicine. And it doesn't hurt the deer, and they grow right back. Its supposed to be an aphrodisiac!

That afternoon we had lunch back in Queenstown. Fish and chips were pretty popular here - the English food influence.

We had some local beer with lunch - I got a pint and Derek had a liter.

But he still finished before me.

After we sobered up a bit, we drove down to Glenorchy, an adorable little town at the end of the road South of Queenstown.

After we left Queenstown we had a long drive to Christchurch, where we would drop off the OCV and end our trip. This was the point where I finally got behind the wheel...and cried more than at our wedding. Driving the big van, on the wrong side of the road, with a stick shift - it was just too nerve-wracking for me!

Before Christchurch we stopped at the Banks Peninsula, which was formed by 2 volcanoes. We drove along the edge of the summit and stopped to hike up Gibralter Rock.

I made tuna melts in the OCV for lunch.

We parked at a beautiful campground by the beach that night. Our last night in the OCV!

It was sad to say goodbye. I had been traveling with my wedding bouquet for the past week, but it this point it was time to toss it. Unfortunately, I only had a trash can to catch it.

With tears in our eyes, we dropped off the OCV in Christchurch. We became so attached, it was really starting to feel like home.

We did have an excellent last meal in Christchurch, at the Clarendon.

I started with roasted asparagus over ciabatta with a poached egg. My last asparagus for a long time!

And roasted monkfish topped with fried whitebait, which are tiny white fish that are only in season for about a month and considered quite a delicacy here.

And then, we embarked on our 35 hour trip home. We've been back for 2 weeks now and still wish we had never left! New Zealand was the most amazing, beautiful country and we had such a special time there. We're already planning our trip back for our anniversary!

Tying the Knot

2009-11-13T12:26:00.003-05:00

I know I haven't been much of a blogger lately, but I have an excuse - I'm getting married! Derek and I leave tomorrow to fly to New Zealand to get hitched! I promise to return with lots of pictures.

Happy Birthday to Me!

2009-10-30T11:37:00.005-04:00

29 years ago today a special girl was brought into the world to bring pies and pasta and pizza and PUMPKINS to all!