redheads gotta eat

best chili recipe, seriously.

2010-10-02T10:13:00.000-07:00

Normally I am very impressed with the Smitten Kitchen blog's recipes and photography, but I saw this recipe for beef chili with sour cream and cheddar biscuits and I thought, gross! Look at those carrots, they shouldn't be sliced like that! Where is the deep red chili color? This is what I imagine gruel to look like! I'm not a victorian-era orphan, why would I want to eat like Oliver Twist?

And then I read the recipe, which was apparently adapted from a super old issue of gourmet, and I thought, wow, I make a much better chili than that. I should blog about it. I don't use chili powder in my chili, I use a ton of ancho chiles and other spices. The base of my chili is one yellow onion, diced, two cloves of garlic, minced, about 1 1/4 cups of seeded and diced ancho chiles (soaked first in warm water to soften), 1 large red bell pepper, diced, 1/2 green bell pepper, diced, and 1 minced jalapeno (I had a habanero this time around and used that instead). Spice-wise I add cumin, crushed coriander, and cayenne pepper. Usually I make this chili vegan, adding pink beans and crushed tomatoes to it after sauteeing the other ingredients, but as I had 2 lbs of ground beef from Marlow and Daughters in my fridge (thanks Jacob!), I added that.

It's best to do all the chopping ahead of time, because the sauteeing part of the chili is really quick. As I mentioned previously, I usually don't use meat, but in this case I browned the beef before adding the chopped vegetables.

The key to the vegetables is sauteeing the onions first in a little bit of oil, then adding garlic, then spices (I use about 2 tbsp cumin, 2 tsp coriander, and 3/4 tsp cayenne at the outset, then add salt + additional spices to taste later). The onions are great at gripping the spices and thus dispersing them evenly throughout the chili as other ingredients are added. After the onions, garlic, and spices have heated until fragrant, I add the ancho chiles, and stir until the reddish color of the chilis has colored the mixture, about a minute or two.

I then add the peppers and cook, stirring, for a few minutes. I added the beef at this point as well. Cook until the peppers start to soften and take on a bit of the deep red color of the chiles.

Then add a 28 oz can of crushed tomatoes (note: I am from Chicago, not Texas, though at least 1 Texan and 1 Arizonan have eaten this chili and declared it delicious), give a thorough stir to the mixture, turn the heat to low and simmer covered for 20-30 minutes. If you're cooking without meat, let it go longer--you won't have to worry about the meat being overcooked. Below is the final product, as you can see you don't need to use chili powder(which quite frankly usually consists mostly of ground dried chiles and the other spices used in this recipe) to obtain that deep red color, and what you'll be left with is a spicy, high-flavor, low-fat(if meatless), thick-consistency chili that is pretty laissez-faire and very nutritious.

Oh also I made those biscuits she wrote about and hot damn, were those things delicious. They were even better when we froze the leftover dough and baked them the next day. Do yourself a favor and whip these up, they take no time at all, I made them from start to finish while the chili was simmering. Though honestly, just serve them alongside chili, that picture with the split biscuit with chili in it just made me depressed.

meatless/cheeseless enchiladas

2010-10-01T10:25:00.001-07:00

Alex Iezzi's mom recently sent him a big package full of hot peppers she grew in her garden in Arizona. He handed them over to me, requesting something spicy. At first I thought I would make a noodle dish of some sort, but Veronica suggested enchiladas and I wholeheartedly agreed. I roasted a mixture of serrano, jalapeno, and habanero peppers with a drizzle of oil until slightly charred and softened, and in the meantime boiled purple and idaho potatoes on the stove. The jalapeno and habanero peppers were minced and added to a sauce of crushed san marzano tomatoes with garlic and a few drizzles of molasses and seasoned with salt; the serrano peppers were roughly chopped and added to the filling.

The filling consisted of a diced onion sauteed with one clove of chopped garlic, 1/2 green bell pepper, 1 red bell pepper, 1 15oz can of pink beans, and the just-tender, drained potatoes. I cooked the filling in a large saute pan and mashed it with a potato masher to break up the potatoes but not so much as to totally homogenize the texture. I spread some sauce over the bottom of a 13x9 roasting pan and dipped tortillas (individually warmed over the stove by Veronica) in the sauce, then filled them, then rolled them up. This is a great and inexpensive way to feed a large group with mixed dietary restrictions, because it is so healthy, filling, and delicious no one will complain, and Alex Craig may even ask, "what kind of meat is in this?"

meat happening

2010-09-30T21:34:00.000-07:00

While Madison is on tour with Coasting, I have two dude roommates, which is a first. It's kinda like the opposite of three's company. I'm always churning out something crazy in the kitchen and Eli is salivating while simultaneously declaring he's done working and mixing us drinks with lemonade and strawberries. Suddenly, Alex Craig comes home and says something ridiculous (cue canned laughter).

We conceived "Meat Happening" some weeks ago and last Sunday actually made it happen. The idea was to have a crazy surplus of meat products and grill/eat them all in one giant meat happening. Naturally, I went to the Meat Hook and spent a completely ludicrous amount of money on "responsible" meat. It was kind of embarrassing--

Me: I'll have a pound of ground chuck and a pound of ground sirloin, please.

Butcher: Anything else?

Me: Yes, three hanger steaks, please.

Butcher #2: Are you being taken care of?

Me: Yes:

Butcher #2: Do you need anything else?

Me: Yes, 10 hot dogs, please.

Butcher: [returning from grinding beef] Is there anything else?

Me: Yes, six thick slices of bacon, please.

I made slightly fancier-than-normal "chili cheese dogs"(pictured above), meatloaf sandwiches with gravy, and grilled hanger steak with poblano peppers and onions. My friend Chris brought a chicken he had brined overnight with shallots and anchovies, among other things.

I will share the chili recipe with you in an upcoming post, because with or without meat it is fantastic. The meatloaf involved 2 lbs of ground beef, chuck and sirloin in my case, mixed with 3 cloves of minced garlic, 1 medium onion finely diced, 1 egg, 1/2 cup breadcrumbs, 1 tsp sea salt, a lot of coarsely ground black pepper, and a few liberal dashes of soy sauce. I mixed these together and formed the loaf in an 8x8 roasting pan, baked it for 15 minutes at 350, and then topped with a mixture of ketchup, sriracha, honey, and soy sauce, the sliced bacon, and after twenty more minutes in the oven, I added additional glaze. It was the hit of the party, especially after I made a gravy from the drippings and dressed the sandwiches with that. This was the meatloaf hot out of the oven:

For dessert, my lovely friend Amy made cupcakes, and may I say it was quite the barbeque.

this was delicious! you've done it again, smitten kitchen!

2010-09-30T21:29:00.000-07:00

concord grape and rosemary focaccia

this is delectably sweet, savory, and herbaceous all at once. (i substituted soymilk, it turned out great)

eggplant is so good

2010-09-30T21:18:00.000-07:00

whenever i've made eggplant dishes for people they usually say "i usually don't like eggplant, but I like this." what the eff? eggplant is delicious and i love when it's in season. let me just say though, that if you don't treat it right it will taste like crap, and that's why people don't think they like it when they really do.

if you decide to buy one before it goes out of season, slice the eggplant and put slices in a colander, salt liberally, and let sit for 30 minutes. then rinse off the salt. that's how you make it tasty. eggplant is a nightshade, it has bitter juices that need to be drawn out. that's what the salt does. after salting and draining eggplant it can be turned into moussaka or caponata, simply roasted with oregano and a medley of seasonal veggies, or lightly breaded and baked on an oiled baking sheet and topped with chopped herbs, olives, veggies, and hummus.

tomatoes pt 3: peas and tomatoes should be seasonally in sync and it's not fair that they're not

2010-09-30T20:53:00.000-07:00

It isn't really fair that the best peas come in spring and the best tomatoes in summer, but frozen organic peas can actually taste nearly as good as the fresh ones and honestly, when combined with tomatoes, oh my god, let's just say it's a match made in heaven. My friend Fiona, who has loyally eaten almost everything I've ever made, remarked about a recent pea and tomato ravioli (details below) that it was the best thing I've ever made. But first the pizza, which was way easier to make and I would absolutely recommend making in your own home next summer.

3) Pizza with mozzarella, pureed peas, tomatoes and pecorino

The key to great pizza at home is allowing the dough you either make or buy to rise in your refrigerator for a couple of days. It really makes for a lighter, crispier end product in a home oven that can only responsibly reach around 500 degrees. I bake mine at 450. Allow the dough to reach room temperature and knead it on a floured surface, begin to roll it out into the shape of whatever pan or stone you have. I use a rectangular baking sheet usually, and apply olive oil to the sheet and spread it around before plopping my stretched dough over that and spreading it out to nearly reach the corners. I then add whatever toppings I desire and add a little extra oil and salt to the outside edges. This pizza involved a puree of peas sauteed with garlic over sliced local mozzarella, sliced heirloom cherry and green tomatoes, and a liberal application of grated percorino romano over top. Peas with pecorino is one of the best flavor combinations I've ever tasted, and combined with garlic, sweet and tart tomatoes, and rich mozzarella, it was absolutely delicious!

4) Minted pea ravioli with slow-roasted cherry tomatoes (vegan)

Peas with mint is also a classic combination, so I decided to stuff eggless ravioli with a puree of peas, mint leaves, toasted pine nuts, and a touch of organic tofu cream cheese and top that with garlicky roasted cherry tomatoes. Note that rolling and punching out individual ravioli takes forever, and that I want a pasta machine for Christmas.

I was cooking for around 10 or more people, so I made a huge pile of ravioli, with about a cup of roasted pine nuts, a very loosely packed half cup of mint leaves, two packages of organic peas, a quarter cup of tofu cream cheese, and salt and pepper in the filling. I used two cartons of local heirloom cherry tomatoes and two cloves of garlic for the topping, slow-roasted with a bit of olive oil to coat at 250 degrees for around an hour. I garnished this with additional mint leaves. Apparently this is the best thing I've ever cooked, and it was a huge hit at Coasting's west coast tour kick-off dinner party. If you have a pasta maker, have at it. If not, you must love your friends as much as I do.

Summer tomatoes pt. 2 (also vegan)

2010-09-30T20:39:00.000-07:00

2) Bread salad with sweet corn, tomatoes, and herbed nut puree

Vegan cooking doesn't have to be boring or incorporate suspicious faux-meats. There is plenty of protein readily available in the plant world, and though it might seem like more effort to season and puree a mixture of cashews and walnuts in a food processor than to simply throw a chicken breast in a pan, it is infinitely more environmentally responsible to buy walnuts than Purdue. That being said, I am a carnivore who delights in all-vegetable-and-nut meals. This is one I came up with while vacationing in Wisconsin.

I had stale bread on hand (many commercially available artisinal breads are vegan) and toasted thick slices of it in a pan, then rubbed the slices with garlic, and cut into cubes. I dressed sliced local tomatoes and freshly-cut sweet corn kernels with white balsamic vinegar, olive oil, dill, a touch of salt and pepper, and topped with a nut puree made of cashews, walnuts, oregano, hot red pepper flakes, and the same white balsamic vinegar. The nut puree I made in advance of assembling the other ingredients, and allowed it to drain over the sink in a strainer to remove excess liquid. The sweetness of the nut puree was an excellent contrast to the salty/vinegary vegetables and the garlicky croutons, and there were several delightful textures at play in this dish. Had I any arugula, I would have thrown that right in the mix.

summer tomato recap, pt. 1

2010-09-30T20:16:00.000-07:00

I don't know if I've told you, but tomatoes are my favorite food. I mean in-season tomatoes. I feel a little sad when I can't have them, which is most of the year, and try to convince myself that parsnips are equally as versatile and delicious. Which simply isn't true.

I got sort of busy this summer, or at least distracted, by rock music and road trips and gardening, which is why I haven't posted in so long. My apologies! I will be vigilant henceforth.

Promises I may not keep aside, the next few posts will serve as a logue of a few of the recipes from this summer's tomato season which has, sadly, come to a close.

1) Heirloom cherry tomato sausage bake with fresh herbs

After a rather awful house party experience here at Pizza Forest, my dear friend and facebook spouse Alex Iezzi owed me an apology. I won't say for what, but he apologized with an a

repa from Caracas and 2+ lbs of heirloom cherry tomatoes, which are surely, if nothing else, the keys to this girl's heart. They were beautiful, and are pictured above.

I tossed the cherry tomatoes in my dutch oven with parsley, oregano, rosemary, thyme, a bay

leaf, salt, pepper, and one chopped clove of garlic with the oven pre-heating to around 350. I put some locally-sourced, sustainable hot Italian sausages atop the tomatoes and roasted in the oven for about 35 minutes, uncovered, turning the sausages once, and giving the tomatoes a little stir a few times, until I had this delightful dish. I made a simple greens salad and had a baguette on hand. This was a spectacularly rustic mid-summer supper.

detox

2010-05-02T20:39:00.000-07:00

You ever have one of those days where you wake up and just feel a bit off? Maybe you didn't sleep right, maybe you're stressed, maybe you just got back from a weekend tour of Vermont with your friends' band during which you might have eaten greasy chinese and drank a lot of domestic beer...

So what do you do? I think there is a lot of truth to the macrobiotic concept that some foods are tiring for the body (Budweiser and MSG, perhaps?). So the first day I was back in Brooklyn after this wonderful but physically taxing weekend, I went over to Mr. Kiwi's, bought a Kombucha to drink instead of coffee, and stocked up on veggies. I made a salad based on a meal my friend Aimee made in Charlotte, NC while we were on tour last September. I remember that meal being the best thing I ate all month!

It's a raw kale salad with diced avocado, cucumber, red onion, rehydrated and sliced nori (seaweed), and tahini over brown rice. Eating this made me feel like a million bucks. And look how pretty!

great dinner, even better dessert

2010-04-21T20:12:00.000-07:00

No, seriously.

roasted salmon with mustard and maple syrup glaze
mashed potatoes with ramps
blanched asparagus with butter, lemon juice and shaved parmiggiano reggiano
roasted mushrooms, carrots, and onions

What are those yellow things on that plate on the far right, you ask? Well, that's sliced pineapple. But what is the pineapple for? Why, it's for THE BEST DESSERT OF ALL TIME.

grilled pineapple with molasses, mint, lime zest and mascarpone

This was actually surprisingly easy to prepare in a short amount of time because 1) madison helped me with the prep work 2) the prep work wasn't difficult 3) cooking these things simultaneously and/or in quick succession is neither confusing nor overwhelming.

First I boiled water to blanch the asparagus, because I like my asparagus at room temperature so I wanted to give it time to cool down after cooking. While that was boiling, I preheated the oven to 375 and tossed some mushrooms, chopped onion, and carrots with olive oil, salt and pepper. I threw those in the oven, and by that time the water was boiling and madison had rinsed the asparagus and trimmed the ends so I threw those in the pot and removed them after they had turned bright green and were flexible but would still snap if stressed. I drained them, put them on a plate, and spread some unsalted butter over the hot asparagus, then sprinkled some lemon juice, salt and pepper on top. I shaved parmiggiano over that and set it aside-- done.

Madison had rinsed, partly peeled, and cubed the potatoes at this point so I threw them in a deep saucepan, covered them with water, and brought that to a boil. In the meantime I trimmed the roots off the ramps and chopped the stems, setting the leaves aside. Madison seasoned the salmon with salt and pepper and spread spicy grain mustard and maple syrup over it. By this time the vegetables were done roasting so I put them on a plate-- done.

We kept the oven at 375 and started to roast the salmon. I then sauteed the chopped ramp stems in a bit of olive oil and salted them as they cooked. The potatoes had been boiling for a few minutes at this point, so I drained them, put them back in the hot pot, and added milk, butter, a bit of sour cream, the sauteed ramp stemps, and the ramp leaves (uncooked, roughly chopped). I even shaved a bit of Jasper Hill cheddar in there. Good god were these some delicious mashed potatoes!!! The smell of the ramps was intoxicating. I had the pot over low heat while I mashed the potatoes so that it would thicken and the ramp flavor could permeate. I then put the potatoes in a big bowl and drank a bit of beer while waiting for the salmon to finish (it was a big piece of salmon--it took nearly 20 minutes to cook).

We enjoyed our meal and then set to work on dessert. Madison had already peeled, sliced, and cored the pineapple, so I just put my grill pan over medium-high heat until it was really hot, then grilled the slices until they were softened and had nice grill marks. I grated some lime zest, made a quick lil' chiffonade of fresh mint, and sprinkled those over the grilled pineapple. I drizzled a bit of molasses over this and added a dollop of mascarpone. We literally FREAKED OUT at how good it tasted. Just imagine it: sweet and warm pineapple, with the intense flavor of molasses, softened with rich mascarpone and brightened by lime and mint. Make this NOW. Just do it. I could eat this every day for the rest of my life. And did you know molasses is actually pretty good for you? It has tons of calcium, iron, and potassium! It is not good for you, however, when it spills out of a giant storage facility.

the great outdoors

2010-04-21T19:30:00.000-07:00

The weather has been so nice recently that we've started grilling outdoors here at 28 Lawton. The other night we made fantastic tilapia tacos with pickled red cabbage and jalapenos, grilled onions, and sour cream (we also had delicious refried beans made by the lovely and vegan Veronica, as well as guacamole prepared jointly by Fiona and Brett). I was, however, too hungry and it was too dark to get a good photo, so you'll just have to use your imagination.

Oh, my dog Phyllis has been enjoying her outdoor time as well...
But I mean really---wouldn't you want to hang out in this backyard all day, too? The grass is coming in, the rose bush is leafy and green, we've got daffodils.....

Yesterday we grilled again in the afternoon, and I grilled a Bavette steak. I was introduced to the Bavette cut by a butcher at Marlow and Daughters a few weeks ago when buying meat for a BBQ at Dead Herring. On that day, my friend Edan cooked it to a perfect medium rare. Unfortunately, due to a charcoal-shortage induced snafu, yesterday's steak was overdone. It was still really tasty, but texturally off.

I also grilled poblano peppers, onions, and a baguette and assembled open-faced steak sandwiches with some Jasper Hill Cheddar. Jacob brought hot dogs, and we all had one of each, except for Gabi, who had like a hundred steak sandwiches, because he was "really hungry."

buy this cheese now!

2010-04-20T14:24:00.000-07:00

moringhello di bufala

aged hard buffalo milk cheese from italy. my new favorite cheese!

roasted marrow bones with parsley salad, sea salt, toast

2010-04-20T13:57:00.000-07:00

Bone marrow, as you may or may not know, was likely the first animal protein our distant ancestors had access to. You see, early proto-humans were scavengers, not hunters, and would obtain animal protein by hiding in the brush waiting for the vicious, threatening carnivores to abandon an animal carcass near the waterhole before venturing out, carefully, and using a crudely chipped river cobblestone to crack open the animal's longbones and scrape away the abandoned proteins inside.

We've come a long way and, for this hominid at least, I consider it a special treat when marrow bones are for sale at Marlow and Daughters. So I went all out.

Parsley salad:

about 1/2 cup roughly chopped parsley (really roughly, I actually just tore it with my hands)

2 or 3 tbsp capers

1 tsp lemon zest

black pepper

For the bones, I just roasted them at 400 for maybe 20 minutes, maybe a little more. They should be the consistency of jello, browned at the top, not pink on the inside anymore.

I toasted some sliced bread with olive oil, spread a bit of bone marrow on the toast, topped it with parsley salad, and sprinkled some fleur de sel over that (sel gris would have been ideal, but whatevs). This was so decadent and delicious!

Oh and when the bones were scraped clean, another species of carnivore in the house reaped the fruits of my labor.....

weekend lunch

2010-04-10T09:02:00.000-07:00

I try to be as frugal with the contents of my refrigerator as possible, and at the end of the week I always end up with some odds and ends that I cobble together to make something moderately good. Today it was especially good! But I think the reason this effort usually succeeds is my basic Grocery Shopping Strategy. Here goes:

1) Keep a pantry with grains, beans, garlic, spices, and canned tomatoes; keep stock in the freezer. This way, you can make a soup, pasta, bean or grain salad with whatever you bring home from the store.

2) Buy lots of onions--I usually use upwards of 5 every week. Not only should you include onions in most things you cook for the health benefits, but caramelized onions are a great way to make a quick, I dunno...sandwich? salad? pasta?

3) Have meals in mind when shopping for produce and protein.

4) Buy ingredients that can be used in multiple meals. A fun way to get creative with this is to buy different fresh herbs each week. Also hard cheeses like parmiggiano, pecorino, and english-style aged cheddar keep for a long time and can add complexity of flavor to dishes which are otherwise simple. Having ingredients on hand that can work together in a myriad of ways also allows for more flexibility...because you never know when three extra dinner guests are coming over (this happened to me the other night...I thought: "better add those white beans to this cauliflower casserole, after all")

5) If you like to cook extravagant meals all the time, go ahead and buy the veal shanks. If you're like most of us, keep it simple, and keep the leftovers. I usually buy sausage, chicken, 6 eggs, and a small amount of bacon for a week, and then a ton of vegetables. Plan on eating meat once a day, or less. It will save you money, you won't have to worry about it spoiling, and it makes you do things like experiment with celery root.

Anyways, today I made this--a mushroom frittata with onion, sage, bacon, and aged cheddar:

I had all these cute little cremini mushrooms, a few sage leaves, a small yellow onion, and one slice of bacon in my fridge along with 5 eggs, milk, and some Jasper Hill clothbound cheddar. I think my thought process was something like "duh, I'll make a frittata."

So I cooked the bacon in a pan and in the meanwhile, sliced the onion and mushrooms and chopped the sage roughly. When the bacon was done I put it on a paper towel and drained the fat, then added some olive oil and the onions to the same hot pan and cooked them for a few minutes. I added the mushrooms, and as they started to brown I sprinkled the sage over top. While this was cooking I whisked together the eggs with some milk, salt, and pepper, and grated some of the cheddar into the egg mixture. I broke the bacon into small pieces and scattered it around the pan, then poured the egg mixture over top and baked in a 350 degree oven for about 15 minutes.

It turned out wonderfully, and I just wished I hadn't had to use all of my spinach on those three extra dinner guests, because a spinach salad would have really rounded this out, but whatevs. I used up all my groceries! Let's see what next week has in store...

healthy celery root soup!

2010-04-08T05:21:00.000-07:00

Why does every recipe for celery root soup you come across call for tons of butter and heavy cream and stuff? I dunno, I kinda like the taste of celery root....I don't really need it to be bogged down by dairy. It has so much flavor on its own, and is so good for you, that it's really a shame celery root isn't getting the treatment I think it deserves. With this in mind, I made a light celery root soup with a couple flavorful garnishes to complement, not distort, the flavor of one of my all time fave foods.

Ingredients:

1 celery root, peeled and chopped into 1/2 inch-ish cubes

1 leek, roughly chopped

2 cloves garlic, chopped and 1 clove, thinly sliced

3-4 cups vegetable stock (chicken would be fine, I just happened to have veggie stock)

1/2 cup whole milk (I used whole because I had it, use whatever--or don't use it at all!)

Parmiggiano reggiano

I sauteed the garlic and leeks in a tbsp of butter, then added the chopped celery root. I let this cook together in the pot, stirring occasionally, until it got really fragrant and the celery root began to soften. I added between 3 and 4 cups of vegetable stock and let that simmer away for a bit. I then pureed everything in a blender, tasted it and adjusted the seasoning, transfered it back to the pot, stirred in the milk, and let it cool.

Meanwhile, I heated some olive oil in a skillet until hot but not smoking, and placed the sliced garlic in the hot oil. I watched very carefully, occasionally turning the slices, and removed them from the oil when they were brown and crisp but had not yet burned. I placed them on a paper towel to drain and seasoned with salt.

I grated parmiggiano over the top of the soup when serving it and sprinkled garlic chips over that. This soup was incredibly filling and delicious, a great dinner. It was even better the next day, not hot but just above room temperature.

orecchiette with pork sausage, mustard greens, and parmiggiano

2010-04-08T05:01:00.000-07:00

I did my week's worth of local grocery shopping at Marlow and Daughters on Monday, and Fiona and Brett happened to be having lunch at Miss Favela nearby, so they picked me up in the Brettmobile and we went to Cafe Grumpy to get a Flat White. This was my first Flat White, and the reason I am being so meticulous about capitalizing it is that it was wonderful.

Apparently, this is just how coffee is in New Zealand. And New Zealand, as far as I can tell, is a magical land where ponies run wild in the mountains, wine flows freely and delectably, they play good music on the radio, eating local foods is common, healthcare is nationalized and effective, and coffee is made with a big foamy layer of milk on top that is so rich and thick that when you put sugar in it you really have to stir it in cuz that shit's not sinking to the bottom.Later we picked Madison up and headed back to 28 Lawton where we wrote 2 new songs, making that 7 SONGS IN 7 DAYS. I also used some of my newly acquired local fare to cook dinner for the band, and was thereby appointed lead singer AND chef of Cybelle Blood. I browned some pork sausage, finished cooking it in my homemade chicken stock, and added it to some handmade orecchiette (sold in bulk! i'm in love) and stirred in a bunch of parmiggiano and some mustard greens left over from vegan brunch. A little bit of black pepper to finish was the only seasoning.

totally vegan #4

2010-04-08T04:31:00.000-07:00

Whoa, vegan feast at the house last weekend! In what is now and hopefully will remain a weekly tradition, my friend Veronica and I are teaming up in the kitchen to make vegan food basically with the intention of it being all real food with no weird food-substitutes or fake-meatless-versions-of-meat-food. No BBQ seitan sandwiches here!This weekend we perfected a recipe (basically by being concerned about presentation even the slightest bit--as opposed to last weekend, where we baked flatbreads and kinda just spread some stuff on them) for a savory vegan tart with olive oil crust, spiced lentil puree and a minted cashew creme. Here's how to make it:

for the crust:

1 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup whole wheat flour

1 tsp salt

1 tsp garlic powder (totally optional, season it however you like)

1/3 cup olive oil

1 cup soy/almond milk + 1 tbsp lemon juice

Sift together dry ingredients, stir in oil, combine soy or almond milk + lemon juice (to curdle), mix in enough milk to form a slightly wet dough ball, shape into a ball with your hands, let it rest for 20 minutes, cut into 8 pieces, roll each piece out and press into a small fluted tart pan, bake at 350 for 10 minutes, let cool before removing from pan.

for the filling:

1 1/2 cups (approximately? leftovers are good!) lentils

vegetable stock

1/3 cup chopped fresh mint

1 tbsp whole coriander seeds

1 leek, roughly chopped

salt, pepper, and red pepper flakes to taste

basically you simmer all of these things together until the lentils are done, then puree with an immersion blender or food processor. I think a good ratio of lentils:stock is 1:2, and it takes 20 or 30 minutes for the lentils to be finished cooking. Seasoning with salt/pepper/red pepper is best done after cooking the lentils, and adjusted after pureeing.

for the creme:

1 cup raw cashews soaked in water 20 minutes

1/3-1/2 medium onion

1-2 garlic cloves

fresh mint

This is something that is done completely in a blender, and the proportions of onion/garlic/mint:cashew is totally up to you. Just puree it all together in a blender with water until a creamy consistency, like thick yogurt, is achieved.

We also made white gazpacho, with cucumber, garlic, green onion, lemon juice, veggie stock, and almond milk, as well as a mustard greens salad with sliced pickled beets. Veronica baked vegan chocolate doughnut-cakes and we made this crazy glaze using an obscure citrus fruit, agave nectar, ginger powder, and powdered sugar.

Later that night I played my first show withmy new band, which at that point had only existed for 5 days. And I came home to find that Josie and Sharp had done all the dishes! Incredible.

pizza, pizza

2010-04-06T09:00:00.000-07:00

I went to see my friend Ariel's show on Bedford ave last week and it was wonderful as usual. As I did not have any ID on me, I was denied a beer at Rosemary's Greenpoint Tavern and just said "screw it, I'm going home to make pizza." I went across the street to Fornino and bought 2 large balls of uncooked dough, then walked a few blocks to the nearest grocery store and bought dandelion greens (finally in season again!), an onion, goat cheese, mozzarella, and some aged balsamic. Oh, also a sixer of Peroni....

I returned home to 28 Lawton to find two hungry-ish roommates about to watch Lost, so I figured I'd better get to cooking so we could have a fancy TV dinner. I made pizza with caramelized onions, dandelion greens, and goat cheese with a balsamic reduction. Here's a photo...

It was really good. The only problem was that, even though I put the dandelion greens on the top just at the very end of baking, some of them got a little too dried out and crispy in the heat. They still tasted good, but not as good as I knew they could have tasted. But I'm not one to be super hard on myself about cooking--there's no point! It's too fun! And there are infinite do-overs! Anyways, when I make pizza at home I like to bake it at 400 on an oiled cookie sheet. I also like to brush a bit of oil over the crust and salt it because....salt = yummy.

You know what else was yummy? The pizza I made a few days later! It was a white pizza with caramelized onions, mozzarella, and dandelion greens. Holy crap! I'm just sayin'....it was sorta insane. Pretty decadent, kinda perfect for a Friday night dinner kinda thing.

I made a bechamel sauce (equal parts flour + melted butter, whisk together over lowish heat in a saucepan, add scalded milk, whisk til it thickens) and put a bunch of parmiggiano reggiano in it, then spread that over the rolled-out dough, topped it with mozzarella, then added the onions. After the pizza was nearly cooked, I put the dandelion greens (tossed, this time, with a bit of oil to avoid the aforementioned crispiness problem) over top and let them wilt in the oven as the pizza finished baking. This photo doesn't really do it justice, but it evidences how great the pizza turned out since I didn't even have the wherewithal to, say, put it on a plate before photographing it.

meatball mania

2010-03-28T07:09:00.000-07:00

a couple of weeks ago, on a cold and rainy night, I cooked beef meatballs for natalie thrall and myself to eat for dinner (along with a caramelized cauliflower gratin and roasted brussels sprouts...just sayin') because Josie and Josiah had cooked Grandma Wolfson's meatball recipe the night before and it looked so good (it had raisins in it! wtf?!). I apparently need to read more food blogs, however, because I was enough of a rube to think that Josie and I were out here in Bushwick makin' meatballs and therefore blazing some kind of new culinary trail in the comfort-foodie world, but Annie put me in my place by informing me that meatballs are already trendy.

Undaunted, I bought a pound of ground veal at Marlow and Daughters last weekend and made some really simple, really delicious meatballs in a red wine-tomato sauce the other night. I just mixed the (local, sustainable) veal with parsley, garlic, onion, salt, pepper, breadcrumbs, and eggs. I don't feel I need to explain this in great detail to you, like give you measurements, because I certainly didn't use any, and if you really don't know how to make a meatball maybe you should email me and we can start with the basics, like, what a stove is, how to turn it on, etc.

I browned the meatballs over medium-high heat and then put them aside on a plate, let the pan cool down a little, then sauteed some garlic and onion in the drippings until tender. I added some sliced (local!) cremini mushrooms and let them brown up, then added some red wine and let it reduce, scraping up any brown bits from the bottom of the pan, added canned tomatoes and a bit of local ricotta, brought it to a simmer, put the meatballs back in there, and cooked covered and at a low simmer until they were still pink in the middle but well heated through. I served them over polenta, which is so easy to make it's kind of ridiculous, as Mark Bittman can explain to you.

Madison made a delightful mixed-greens salad with avocado, diced raw beet, cucumber, red pepper, gorgonzola, and a lemon vinaigrette.

But what to do with all those leftover meatballs? I think we here at 28 lawton made the right decision, which was to hang out the next night and make meatball subs and watch 21 jump street. Not kidding.

pappardelle with roasted butternut squash puree, bacon, and gorgonzola

2010-03-27T09:00:00.000-07:00

so my roommate madison came home earlier this week from her long sojurn to the sxsw and mtymx festivals, and I advised her to return hungry. I made this pasta that was really tasty and chock full of butternut squash goodness and bacon/cheese evil! It was pretty simple...

1) peel and remove seeds from a butternut squash

2) preheat oven to 375

3) chop squash into small, similarly-sized pieces

4) toss squash with olive oil, salt and pepper

5) roast until tender

6) while squash roasts, cook pasta and fry bacon

7) puree roasted squash with chicken stock until roughly smooth (some lumps are good)

8) drain pasta just before aldente, cook with puree, add bacon and gorgonzola before serving

But I'm gonna come clean, this post is really a back-handed attempt to get you to make your own chicken stock, and tell you how easy it is.

I made chicken stock while I was making chicken salad the other day. I had some chicken bones and fat, leeks, and thyme in my freezer just waiting to be made into stock (left over from that time I made the whole roasted chicken). So I let them thaw and threw them into a hot le creuset, browned everything for awhile, then added enough water to nearly fill the pot, salt (not a lot), and smashed garlic cloves and simmered away until it tasted satisfactory (about an hour, hour and a half). Then I let it cool and skimmed the fat from the top, put it in a ziploc freezer bag, and I have so much chicken stock to put to various uses, like making a butternut squash puree! It really is simple, you don't have to stir it or watch it or anything, just let it simmer uncovered until it has a nice color, aroma, and flavor. this shit is way better than you would buy in a box or (eek!) a can.

And it allows you to put to good use all those chicken bones you have lying around the....oh wait, no one probably has that but me. Next time you feel like chicken, cook a whole one and save the bones. k?

chicken salad; or, the Perfect Food?

2010-03-22T11:35:00.000-07:00

Josie and I had a discussion regarding chicken salad the other day when we got sandwiches at our neighborhood cafe, Athom on Broadway. They make a damn good chicken salad, with parsley, carrot, red onion, celery, and a bit of mayo. We decided that chicken salad is kind of the Perfect Food. It's easy to make, and relatively inexpensive. Also, you can put whatever the hell you want in it and keep in line with the eccentricities (or cliches) of your personal taste. You can put fruit in it! Nuts! Mayo! No mayo! Mustard! Herbs! Spices! Root vegetables! Tomatoes! Cheeses! Vegan fake chicken instead of real chicken! The possibilities are endless, the limits only those of your imagination....

That being said, I made a fairly simple chicken salad from a half-chicken I bought this weekend with my cousin Annie, for whom I had purchased a gift certificate to Marlow and Daughters as a Christmas gift. Needless to say, we spent forever in there (and quite a bit of time sipping cocktails beforehand at Diner) drooling over various meats, both raw and cured. I also purchased a red onion, some parsley, pea shoots, and fresh spinach (among other things...details forthcoming). I ended up having this for dinner last night:

I made a simple chicken salad, mixing the chicken with parsley, red onion, and a bit of mayo, and then wrapped chicken salad and pea shoots in individual spinach leaves taco-style. So delicious! Maybe pea shoots are actually the perfect food...

Oh right, I'm getting off track.... but the key to making the chicken so deliciously tender is to roast it, skin-on, bone-in. I had basically a breast and a leg, so I rubbed a little olive oil, salt and pepper over it and roasted it skin side up at 375 for 30 minutes. It was perfectly done. When it cooled I removed the skin and any extra fat and then shredded it. I stirred in about a tablespoon of mayo with some chopped parsley and red onion, then plated a bit in between some spinach and pea shoots. And guess what I'm having for lunch today and tomorrow?

what's for breakfast?

2010-03-22T11:10:00.000-07:00

1) Sunday Brunch

I bought some buttermilk at Marlow and Daughters awhile back, and googled until I found the perfect recipe for buttermilk scones. We had a brunch at our place a few weeks ago that was "breakfast smorgasbord" themed, and included tangerine mimosas, breakfast sausages, buttermilk scones with jam, minted fruit salad, and two types of deviled eggs!

Madison has a cookbook that is exclusively deviled egg recipes, by the way. (also, our hash browns ended up an epic fail for some reason, so I'm not going to talk about them because it makes me depressed.)

2) Buckwheat Buttermilk-Ricotta Pancakes with Ginger-infused Maple Syrup

My sister Kate, another redhead who's gotta eat, came in town to visit me for my birthday. We were hungry, and I had some buttermilk left, so we made pancakes. I had some organic

buckwheat pancake mix in the pantry, so we just jazzed it up with ricotta (made in Brooklyn from New York State milk!) and used buttermilk instead of water or regular milk. We heated some local maple syrup with some sliced ginger to sweeten the deal. Oh yeah, we also cooked Marlow and Daughters breakfast sausages.

Good god, did these end up tasty. So perfect and fluffy were they, in fact, that Kate made me get a "cross-section" photo to post here.

totally vegan #2, #3

2010-03-22T10:23:00.000-07:00

Whoa! I haven't posted in soooo long. But I've been busy, and cooking a lot!

As I am still unemployed, I now claim my occupation to be "homemaker," as my days are filled with gardening, fixing up my new apartment, playing with my dog, and cooking. These next couple posts are going to be a game of catch-up and I thought I'd start with the vegan food...

TOTALLY VEGAN #2

Spicy Chickpea-Lemon Faux Stew

I like this recipe because it's so flexible, you can adjust it based on what's in season, what's in your pantry, etc. In the summer I like to use red pepper puree instead of canned tomatoes, but this turned out great, and kept really well to be eaten by my lovely vegan friend Veronica the next day.

I started by sauteeing some garlic (2 cloves, chopped sort of finely, who cares? this is a rustic dish) in olive oil until tender and aromatic, then added my canned whole tomatoes (big-sized can, san marzano, duh). Using my spatula I broke the tomatoes up into smaller-than-bite-sized chunks.

I then added the juice of 1/2 lemon, and maybe 1/4 cup of roughly chopped fresh dill. I thinly sliced the reserved 1/2 lemon and threw the slices in there after removing the seeds. Then I added one 15oz can of drained chickpeas, seasoned the stew with salt, pepper, 1/2 tsp red pepper flakes, and about a teaspoon of turmeric, and then simmered, covered, for 15-20 minutes until the chickpeas were super tender and had absorbed the flavor of the liquid. Yum! Madison and I ate this with crackers while we watched an episode (or two...) of Daria on YouTube. Because we are adults.

TOTALLY VEGAN #3

Roasted Root Vegetables with Quinoa and Lemon-Parsley Vinaigrette

I made this as a light vegan dinner before we all went to a Coasting show at this birthday party which actually just was a 1-year anniversary party for this band called the Honey dos. This recipe could not be any easier...or any tastier...or any healthier. I kid you not.

This is it:

Get an assortment of root vegetables. I had carrot, parsnip, turnip, celery root, red cippolini onion, and rutabaga that I had purchased at my fave store, Marlow and Daughters. Peel the vegetables and cut them into similarly-sized pieces, drizzle with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and roast at 375 until tender. Like, 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook some quinoa, and prepare the vinaigrette, which is just lemon juice, finely chopped parsley, spicy mustard, salt, and pepper. When the vegetables are done, toss everything together. DONE. I also added a bit of local sheep's milk feta to mine because, ahem, I'm not vegan.

Veronica also made these really unbelievable vegan cupcakes that night, so pretty, and soooo delicious. Girl can bake!

roasted chicken: i'm not fuckin around

2010-02-19T10:16:00.000-08:00

While I despise pretty much everything about the catholic church, I do very much like the self-punishment aspect of catholicism. That is why I usually observe lent, and this year my goal is to eat only local and organic as much as possible. I also am a little bit late to the party on reading the omnivore's dilemma...and while a lot of the info in there comes as old news, a good amount just scares the bejeezus out of me.

So I'm taking this farm-raised new york state chicken very seriously, and here's photographic evidence. Isn't it a beaut? I insisted it was "cute" and Madison insisted I've been away from my dog too long. Probably true.

I started with a whole chicken and butterflied it myself, then brined it for a few hours in rosemary, garlic, juniper berries, black peppercorns, salt, and olive oil that I ground with a pestle into a paste. I chopped up some long-island-grown potatoes, a leek from a farm upstate, and some stale organic bread and mixed these with olive oil, then stuffed the chicken with this mixture and secured it with twine.

I set the oven to 350 and set a timer for 1 hr 45 minutes. In the meanwhile Madison had finished her workday and we made fresh whisky sours from some organic meyer lemons I had purchased. When my friend Ariel arrived for dinner, he juiced some organic blood oranges and mixed in some vodka and simple syrup for our second round of drinks.

For an appetizer I made what had been my lunch, sliced bread topped with honey, black pepper, shaved raw beet and some cow's milk bleu from upstate.

And sure enough when that timer went off and I pulled the chicken from the oven it was perfect! Breast juicy, skin crispy and delicious, herb flavor permeated the meat, stuffing absorbed the juices....and I saved all these bones and fat trimmings in the freezer to make stock.

I didn't even mention the best part of the whole dinner, which was that after I returned from a night out, all the leftover dishes had miraculously been done! It was all thanks to a different friend named Ariel, whose band had been practicing in the basement and washed the dishes and glasses and scrubbed the baked-on mess from my le creuset (!) as a thank-you. Unbelievable. It's a lenten miracle.

grilled chanterelle mushrooms

2010-02-06T07:31:00.000-08:00

it's been so long since I cooked. as you may or may not know, I broke my ankle and have been hobbling around for the last month or so, unable to lift pots and pans or stand over the stove. recently i've been feeling much better, and, faced with the threat of a snowstorm (which would have severely limited my movements about brooklyn had it been a legitimate threat...stupid fearmongering meteorologists) I decided to stock up on some good groceries and cook for the first time in what seemed like forever.

I went to whole foods on the lower east side and discovered they were selling chanterelle mushrooms for 29.99/lb. so i bought two--total cost: $6. it was worth it, trust me. I made grilled chanterelle mushrooms with fleur de sel over wilted spinach, and sourdough toast with oregano butter.

I used the same pan for everything! all i did was brush the mushrooms with a mild olive oil, heat a grill pan over medium-high, and grilled a slice of bread and the mushrooms simultaneously. When the mushrooms were tender and juicy and the bread was nicely toasted, I removed each from the heat and briefly threw on some spinach to wilt. I then spread the toast with butter mixed with oregano and salt, and sprinkled some fleur de sel de guerande over the mushrooms and spinach. the chanterelles were great! they are so delicious and mild and benefited from the slight caramelization brought on by grilling.

also, eat more oregano, and less jimsonweed.

just a note on the salt: get some good salt, people. just do it. i think a lot of people who are "bad cooks" just don't really know how to use salt (and other seasonings), so get acquainted with it! try different kinds... there are so many great varieties with marked differences in flavor. and yeah, "fancy salt" costs a lot, but it lasts a long time.

I drank a delicious glass of soave with this and then went to see teengirl fantasy and neon indian because it didn't snow until way later, and even then not very much.

also...soon I will be able to make my own sourdough bread, as I am taking a class at the Brooklyn Kitchen with Annie in two weeks. details forthcoming.

merry foodie x-mas

2009-12-29T18:53:00.001-08:00

Let's just talk about my family's christmas eve party this year.

Menu:

Cocktails - apple cider, ginger beer, and gin with muddled cranberries and lemon juice

Appetizer - Assorted bruschetta, provided by my lovely cousin Margaret, which included this bacon-butternut squash concoction...

(She also prepared a classic tomato-basil-balsamic topping and a white bean puree, none of which lasted very long)

First Course - Mixed green salad with gorgonzola, candied pecans, and balsamic vinaigrette with poached pear prepared by Uncle Terry and Aunt Judy in tandem with their daughter, my cousin Annie

Main Course - 'Surf n Turf'; warm salad with polenta cake; cousin Dena's famous green beans with mushroom and roasted slivered almonds

For the surf n turf, my mother made filet mignon and baked sea scallops marinated in a roasted tomato pesto over sliced coppa. Baking sea scallops is an ingenious way to prepare them for a large group, and the marinade! and the ham! My mom made her mixed-mushroom gravy to top the filet, which is super low-fat and delicious and is such a christmas institution in our family that Annie remarked, "Mushroom gravy just tastes like christmas to me."

I guess the story is that Linda J felt pressured to provide gravy when first hosting christmas eve for the Conways, but ever health-conscious, she invented a mushroom gravy with reduced beef stock, garlic, chopped portobello and cremini mushrooms, plenty of black pepper, and thickened with a touch of corn starch that was still full-flavor but low in fat. Vegans--use veggie stock instead!

I prepared the warm salad with polenta cake; the warm salad consisted of swiss chard sauteed with crispy pancetta and chopped walnuts, I then arranged it over individual grilled polenta cakes and topped those with grated gruyere and heated them in the oven to melt the cheese. It was way festive in terms of color scheme...here's an action shot: polenta cakes about to go in the oven, cousin Annie slicing her poached pears...

Dessert - by this time I guess I was too drunk to get a photo, but my sister Kate made mini molten chocolate cakes with mascarpone cream and brandied cherries. O...M...F...G...

Here's a shot of the "bad manners table" aka the younger generation's table...you can see that we've moved on from bad table manners to an inappropriate volume of wine consumption. In the words of Tiny Tim, and what has become a family joke, "I want some more!" [in cockney accent]

grilled whole baby octopus

2009-12-29T18:20:00.000-08:00

I am currently living the high (culinary) life at my parents' house...my mom loves to cook and excels at it (my dad, who may enjoy good food, has no idea how to cook--god bless 'im--and is more of the order-italian-food-when-my-wife's-outta-town-type). Linda J, as my mom is more commonly known, has a kitchen complete with fancy stainless steel appliances, marble countertops, and every cooking gadget known to man (except a stand mixer, which she just bought me for christmas! i'm gonna make so much sausage...)

I went grocery shopping today and to my delight whole foods had whole baby octopus for $10/lb, so I bought one on a whim and it cost about $4. I freaked my sister Judy out by holding it up and making it dance because I am a very mature and composed adult and I take cooking very seriously. Honestly it did look a little creepy raw--

After trimming off the thin tentacle-ends, I marinated the octopus in a puree of 1/4 cup sage (so into sage right now) with the juice of 1 lemon, 1/4 cup olive oil, 2 cloves garlic, salt, black pepper, and crushed red pepper flakes.

While it was marinating I brushed a grill pan with oil and heated it on the stove until it was really, really hot. Then I grilled the octopus and it kinda looked like it was coming back to life because it puffed up and the legs curled! It looked a little scary but it smelled SO good.

The octopus is done when it is firm. Octopus anatomy is, strangely enough, perfect for grilling whole without overcooking, and here's why: the thickest part of the octopus is where the tentacles join together, and as the head firms and the tentacles curl up as they cook through, you can just plop the octopus down as though it is sitting on your (grill) pan to finish.

I had prepared some quinoa in advance and tossed it with arugula, crumbled ricotta salata, and a white wine vinaigrette for a simple salad. I deconstructed the octopus and plated it in bite-sized pieces next to the arugula salad.

My little sister was too weirded out by the octopus to try it, and I was super pissed because it was so delicious and I had no one to share it with! I'll have to cook this for a dinner party in Brooklyn some time. I couldn't believe how easy it was, and how inexpensive!

'tis the season...for soup

2009-12-15T14:54:00.000-08:00

I am not a religious person. However, the parmiggiano broth I recently had for lunch at Marlow and Sons could very well be the nectar of the gods. I felt compelled to re-create it and finally put those saved parmiggiano rinds in my fridge to good use. I ended up with parmiggiano broth with pasta shells and roasted cherry tomatoes.

Making a good broth takes time but it's truly laissez-faire if you are like me and cheat. I started with store-bought low-sodium stock, which saves a lot of time and effort (who wants to have a shitload of animal bones boiling away for hours in their home kitchen? I'll let you handle that one, restaurants) and allows you to have control over how much sodium ends up in your broth. Kitchen Basics makes a good stock.

Anyway, I put one large carton of chicken stock into a big pot and added almost as much water, 4 parmiggiano rinds, a few smashed garlic cloves, and a few sage leaves. After bringing it to a boil I simmered it for about an hour, occasionally tasting it and adding salt and finely ground pepper as I felt necessary. In the meanwhile, I walked my dog and did a bunch of dishes that had been piling up and cramping my style. The broth reduced by a little over 1/3, and after a final seasoning adjustment, I strained it to remove the solids.

The parmiggiano rinds give this incredibly rich nutty cheese flavor to the broth, without heaviness. As for the garlic, my mom always told me "you can never have enough" (debatable, but delicious in this instance, where "enough" was 3 small cloves), and I'm just really into sage right now.

The great thing about making big batches of stock is that you can save it and make soup in minutes whenever you feel like it with whatever you have lying around the house. I happened to have cherry tomatoes and pasta shells, and figured the tartness of the tomatoes would be a nice contrast to the richness of the broth (I was right). I garnished it with a sprig of rosemary to add aroma and color. Let me tell you, this was tasty.

For vegans out there, use low-sodium vegetable stock, add water and crushed garlic, and make a bouquet garni with fresh herbs to simmer in your broth and add depth. Add whatever you want to finish it off. There are no rules!

More soup recipes will follow...

totally vegan #1

2009-12-14T23:50:00.000-08:00

I was invited by my friend Madison to cook dinner for a group of 6 friends who have a tradition of vegan dinner parties followed by watching "gossip girl." Though I've only seen one episode-- ever -- and we didn't even end up watching it, I think it went pretty well. I made a very healthy and delicious vegan meal that hits pretty much every major food group...

let's call it bean and quinoa salad with sage, green onion, roasted cherry tomato and arugula. It's just slightly more involved than that, but seriously SO simple. I love cooking vegan; I think more people should (a couple nights a week maybe, just think about it. and it will save you $$$).

I told my friend Jacob that, as an omnivore, when I come up with vegan recipes i think "what would I cook shrimp with, except instead of shrimp I'll use beans?" This recipe is something I came up with when cooking for my family over thanksgiving weekend, and vegans totally dig it, if this photo is any indication:

I boiled a mixture of red and white quinoa (2 cups) in a saucepan with salted water. In a saute pan, I heated some olive oil and cooked some minced garlic until soft, then added sliced scallion (I was cooking for 7, and used 6 scallions-- white + green parts) and roughly-chopped sage (8 large leaves). Then I added cannellini beans, a few dashes of crushed red pepper flakes, and some oven-roasted cherry tomatoes I had prepared in advance (olive oil, salt, pepper, 300 degree oven for 30 minutes=done).

As the quinoa finished absorbing the salted water and the bean mixture heated through, I put some arugula in a bowl and made a simple dressing (my favorite dressing) of the juice of one lemon with olive oil, salt and pepper.

I tossed the quinoa with the bean mixture and set aside to cool. We might have indulged in a few bottles of bubbles and some cab sauv, but who's counting? When ready to serve, I tossed the arugula with the lemon vinaigrette and portioned that out in the bottom of each bowl, topped with the quinoa-bean mixture. I also provided some feta cheese for the non-vegans in attendance to add an extra salty bite.

So healthy, so hearty, so simple, so cheap! And I felt happy to leave our lovely host Caroline with some totally rad leftovers. Oh by the way, she has the cutest dogs, who had a great time too I think:

great make-ahead lunch for you working-types

2009-12-14T11:28:00.000-08:00

Cannelloni beans with parmiggiano, bacon and sage

What did I do with the bacon I had left over from the bread pudding? Well, some of it is still in the fridge, and will be put to use tomorrow when I make a soup based on this great warm bean dish.

I brought this as a side dish to my good friend Natalie Thrall's birthday dinner party, hosted by her wonderful boyfriend Andy (they are both wonderful cooks) at his place in greenpoint. Which reminds me, I have to pick up my pyrex and those champagne flutes...

This is one of the easiest things to make that I can think of. Fry 2 strips of bacon in a saute pan, and in the meanwhile drain a can of cannelloni beans, roughly chop 6 or so good-sized sage leaves, and grate around 1/2 cup of parmiggiano. When the bacon is done, let it cool before chopping, and drain most of the fat from the saute pan. Keep the pan on medium-low heat and add sage, cook until aromatic, then add the beans, chopped bacon and parmiggiano. Stir together as the mixture heats up, being careful not to mash up the beans too badly.

This goes nicely over mixed greens, or just paired with a couple slices of good crusty bread, and is delicious hot or room-temperature. Throw that shit in a tupperware, wrap up a slice of bread and brown-bag it with style for lunch tomorrow.

Oh, and have I told you how into Sicilian Nero D'Avola/Syrah blends I am? This one is worth a try:

NOT HEALTHY: savory bread pudding

2009-12-09T15:54:00.000-08:00

I've really been wanting to make savory bread pudding recently. I thought, what would taste great all mashed up in a baking dish with bread, milk and eggs? Why not bacon, caramelized onion, rosemary, and gruyere? Duh...

So I made it in both muffin

and loaf form.

and may I say, it is delicious. I brought a few muffins to the Silent Barn last Thursday night where my friends Coasting were playing, and both the band and the muffins were praised highly that night.

This is a little time-intensive, and a lot unhealthy. I like the idea of bread pudding muffins, because it is a pretty heavy food item and the standard muffin size is a perfect portion.

So here's how you make it--and note that the proportions will vary, based on the size of your baking dish/dinner party/appetite:

If you don't already have stale bread, just leave some good crusty bread, cut (or torn) into approximately 1/2 inch cubes, out in a large bowl overnight to stale. When you're ready to cook, slice an onion and caramelize in a saute pan with a little oil, salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, roughly chop some rosemary and set aside. I really mean roughly, because presentation-wise larger flecks of green are more attractive than tiny, and you want the herb, onion and bacon to equally compete with each other in each bite. When the onions are done, set these aside as well, and mix the rosemary in using the heat from the cooked onion to release the fragrance of the herb. Fry bacon and drain on paper towels before chopping into small pieces.

In a medium bowl, whisk eggs and combine with whole milk, seasoning well with salt and pepper. I used 2 1/2 cups whole milk and 4 eggs, but honestly this is really flexible, so adjust depending on how much you're making. The idea is to be able to soak your bread into a wet dough/batter consistency. Toss onion, rosemary, and bacon with the dried-out bread, then add the egg-milk mixture and mix well.

Allow the mixture to sit for around ten minutes so that the liquid is absorbed by the bread. Toss the mixture a few times as the liquid will tend to settle toward the bottom of the bowl. Transfer either to muffin tins lined with baking cups, or a buttered casserole dish (you don't want it to stick!). Top with grated gruyere. Muffins will bake at 375 for about 30-35 minutes (do check on them); loaf needs around 45-50 minutes.

For serving, may I recommend a small amount of this extraordinarily rich main dish with arugula salad, lightly dressed with lemon juice, olive oil, and parmiggiano?

Simple, quick dinner on the cheap

2009-12-08T17:13:00.000-08:00

You ever have one of those days where you wake up late, have a bunch of shit to do, and get home around 5, wanting to have 5 o'clock ginsies (your ritual 5 o'clock gin and tonic) but are afraid to, as you haven't eaten all day? Actually you probably haven't, but that's exactly what happened to me today!

I returned home from a day of errands wanting to eat something simple, quick, and nutritious. Of course, I knew exactly what to make, a dish consisting almost entirely of pantry items that I regularly keep on hand (and you should, too). In fact, this entire meal involves only 6 ingredients:

Those are of course, canned tomatoes, tuna, capers, orzo, parmiggiano, and garlic. And in just a little more than the time it takes to cook the orzo, the entire thing is finished.

First boil water (don't forget to salt it!) for the orzo. In the meantime, chop two cloves of garlic and saute in a saucepan with a bit of extra virgin olive oil. After the garlic has softened, add canned tomatoes, capers, and tuna, and simmer on low heat to thicken. Salt and black pepper to taste, of course.

Add orzo to the boiling salted water, and cook the sauce and orzo simultaneously. Grate some parmiggiano, set it aside and wait for the orzo to finish cooking.

When the orzo is almost done, drain it and add it to the sauce. Stir in some of your grated parmiggiano, save some to sprinkle over top before serving. Turn off the heat, and let it cool.

Serve in a bowl and top with your reserved parmiggiano. Yum!

This dish is deceptively simple-- in 30 minutes or so you will have created a harmonious combination of flavors: the fresh sweetness of canned tomatoes, the salty-acidic bite of jarred capers, the nuttiness of parmiggiano. It's healthy, substantial, inexpensive, and delicious. And you'll totally have leftovers for tomorrow.

if you can't stand the cold, get into the kitchen

2009-12-05T13:40:00.000-08:00

Today the apartment was cold. The weather is, how do you say...not great, and the heat apparently is not on. Josie suggested tea, which was an excellent idea, but I had bigger plans. You see, I have just become the recipient of a beautiful, refurbished vintage copper gratin pan from the brooklyn kitchen (thanks, mom).

I purchased zucchini, half and half, and gruyere yesterday, there was parmiggiano in the fridge, and luckily Josie had some nutmeg. And what would warm the apartment better than a hot oven?

After sauteeing the zucchini (3 small zucchini) in olive oil with salt and pepper, allowing them to caramelize slightly, I let them cool and then arranged them in the gratin dish. I sprinkled grated gruyere and parmiggiano reggiano between the layers of zucchini slices, and poured over top a mixture of half and half whisked with one egg and seasoned with salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Then i sprinkled a bit more cheese on top and threw it in a 375-degree oven until the liquid was firm, at which point I raised the temp to 500 until the top was nicely browned (only a few minutes).

It turned out quite well, I think. Perfect for a cold late-autumn day!