Monthly Archives: January 2012

Weekend Variety

29 Sunday Jan 2012

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So far the weekend has seen a medley of recipes coming out of my kitchen.  On Friday night, I prepared Portobello Mushroom Lasagna (Ina Garten) before heading to an event so that my girls could bake it when they were ready to eat.  This was to be accompanied by a green salad, which they were responsible for assembling and dressing. On Saturday night both of my teenage daughters were home – a rarity these days – and so a little bit of everything came to the table: grilled filet mignon with sautéed mushrooms, roasted fingerling potatoes with garlic and rosemary, broccoli rabe “salad” (my mother-in-law is from Italy and a fabulous cook and this recipe, below, is adapted from her version) and another Ina Garten side, Scalloped Tomatoes. Today is Sunday and my plan is to keep it light and try Mario Batali’s Grilled Polenta with Spinach and Robiola Cheese from the current issue of Food & Wine (Feb 2012). I have also been contemplating making Julia Child’s Cheese Puffs (Mastering the Art of French Cooking) so we will see what happens with that one.  Finally, I signed up for the new online cooking school from America’s Test Kitchen and I hope to take one “class” today.  We’ll see how much time I really have.

BROCCOLI RABE “SALAD”
Serves 4 persons per bunch of rabe

Ingredients
1 bunch broccoli rabe, ends trimmed and off colored leaves removed
3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
good olive oil
kosher salt
crushed red pepper flakes (optional)

To Make
In a large pot, boil enough water so that the rabe can be submerged.  Once water is boiling, add salt (2-3 tbsp).  Add rabe to pot (I put the stem ends in first, almost so rabe is standing up in pot), and cover with lid.  Cook 2-3 minutes with lid on and then remove lid and watch carefully.  Once rabe is bright green, use tongs and swirl in water to separate.  Cook 2-3 more minutes. Remove rabe from pot by draining in colander.  Put rabe in bowl large enough to hold it and toss easily without getting it all over yourself. Drizzle 2-3 tbsp olive oil on top, add garlic and 1 tsp kosher salt (or to taste).  Sprinkle crushed red pepper if desired. Toss like you would a salad.

To Serve
Broccoli Rabe Salad can be served at any temperature.  You can keep it warm in a 200° oven, serve it at room temperature or eat it cold, right out of the fridge (especially good in the summer)

Morning Options for Tori

26 Thursday Jan 2012

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One of my daughters is simply NOT a morning person.  Did I say NOT A MORNING PERSON?  Contrast this with me, who is “instant on” immediately upon waking as well as the fact that she is also 16 years old and you have a recipe for a terrible start to your day (no pun intended).  I completely understand not feeling like eating early in the morning but at the same time, I also believe that eating in the morning is exceptionally critical to being productive, not to mention jump starting that metabolism (again, while I don’t subscribe to the “diet” thing I do believe in the science behind it).  Tori is a foodie, despite her youth, so “just anything” never suffices which usually leaves me with two options as her mother:

1. Don’t worry about it
2. Make something she will eat

I expect that while this is only my 5th post, you can figure out where I land.  Typically, this means either pancakes or an egg sandwich.  Not so interesting right?  But it works.  The egg sandwich recipe is not so original – egg cooked over easy, american cheese, salt, pepper and some good toast with real butter – recipe not worth the blog real estate.  But the pancakes….. that is a different story.  This is my mother’s recipe.  Delicious, quick, easy and fool proof.  Not to mention a reasonable and appropriate quantity.

GRAMMY’S PANCAKES
Makes 8 medium sized pancakes 

Ingredients
1 1/4 c. sifted flour
3 tsp baking powder
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1 egg, beaten with a fork
1 c milk (I often substitute buttermilk)
2 tbsp vegetable oil (canola oil, bacon fat or whatever you like in the fat category)

Preparing the Batter
Sift together dry ingredients (don’t skip this step, it matters).  Combine egg, milk and oil.  When ready to cook, add to dry ingredients and stir until just combined – batter should be lumpy.  If desired, add chocolate chips or blueberries BUT, if you do this, be sure to coat them with a tablespoon of flour so that they distribute evenly in the batter.

Making the Pancakes
Heat nonstick skillet over medium heat.  When drop of water sizzles if put on pan, it is ready. Put a pat of butter in the pan and swirl to coat.  Using a large ice-cream scoop, drop batter into pan.  When holes begin to form on top, flip pancakes.  (check to see if browned though – once browned on bottom, even if holes have not formed, flip pancakes).  Let cook for 30 seconds and remove from pan.

To Serve
Once cooked, serve immediately.  But, if you need to “hold” them, put them on a wire rack, set over a baking pan, in a 200 degree oven until ready to serve.  Once cooled, you can keep them in the fridge and toast them in the toaster the  next day! Don’t forget the pure Vermont maple syrup!

Oozing Chocolate

24 Tuesday Jan 2012

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So, my family LOVES chocolate molten cakes.  I had been making them and trying to perfect a recipe for years and then, back in 2005, I went to Italy for one of those big birthdays.  As part of the trip, I took a cooking class and oddly enough, one of the recipes that was part of the class was for chocolate  molten cakes.  It seemed a bit odd to me since I never had associated Italy with purely chocolate desserts (and we are of Italian heritage).  Regardless, this became the base for my now perfected recipe.  What follows is my version, adapted to my family’s tastes.  It works every time and the best part is that they can be made in advance (hours, days or months)!

SUSAN’S MOLTEN CAKES
Makes 6 individual cakes – be sure to make ahead 

Ingredients

  • 150g (approx. 5.5 oz) bittersweet or semisweet chocolate (I use Callebaut, typically a mixture of both kinds)
  • 150 g (3/4 c) sugar
  • 150 g (10 tbsp) unsalted butter
  • 20-30 g (2-4 tbsp) flour, sifted
  • 3 eggs, whisked and set aside

Butter and flour (6) 4 oz ramekins.  (Note: You can use other sized ramekins but the recipe will make different numbers; 6 oz ramekins will yield 4 molten cakes, 5 oz ramekins yield 5 but I find the portion of the 4 oz to be just right).

Making the Cakes
In a double boiler (or a heat proof bowl set over simmering water), melt chocolate, sugar and butter together.  Once melted, off heat, add flour and whisk rapidly until incorporated.   Add eggs and whisk rapidly again until mixture is shiny and glossy (go fast so that you do not end up with scrambled eggs in the cakes – adding the flour before the eggs is critical to avoiding this fiasco).  Pour into ramekins and cover with plastic wrap (push wrap onto chocolate) and set in freezer for a minimum of 2 hours but up to 2 months!

When Ready to Cook
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Remove ramekins from freezer and place however many you are baking onto a cookie sheet. Bake for 20-22 minutes.  Watch carefully towards the end of the baking time.  The top should be puffed and cracked but slightly underdone when you look at it in the center. (Note: if you are using 6 oz ramekins, it will take a little more time)

To Serve
Turn ramekin onto plate and slide out cake (it will be upside down).  I typically insert a knife into the center to let the chocolate ooze out for presentation.  You could, of course, eat the molten cake directly out of the ramekin but I prefer it turned out onto a plate because you can then add ice cream, raspberry sauce or whatever you choose.

Enjoy being the star of the evening!

When Dinner is a Pipe Dream

24 Tuesday Jan 2012

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It was not my intent to post every day, but here I am, at 11:03 with something to say. Monday evenings, at least at the moment, are nights when dinner is simply a pipe dream for all of us.  A full day of work and an evening obligation teaching grad school result in me nowhere near the kitchen at the dinner hour, even though in our house that isn’t until at least 8:00.  This means two things:

1. There had better be leftovers for my family to eat or at a minimum something that one of my teenagers can assemble quickly (we are not a very good take out family)

2. I am usually hungry when I get home

Which brings me to my point.  I do not believe in going hungry if possible.  And, while I don’t count calories, I do not believe in wasting them on something that simply does not taste good.  And so at the risk of repeating many others’ wise counsel, my advice is to always have good ingredients on hand.  Fresh salad greens, good grape tomatoes, a bell pepper, a little bit of goat cheese, good bread, toasted, garlic salt (my secret ingredient to great salad) and some extra virgin olive oil and vinegar.  Magically, a bistro quality salad with some “crostini” on the side (if you squint and don’t look too closely at the toasted bread) appear and I will not go to bed hungry.  Suddenly I hear footsteps.  It’s never fun to eat alone.

Game Day

22 Sunday Jan 2012

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Official blog post #2.  Given this afternoon’s football extravaganza, my day has been focused around game day food and in our house, this means CHILI!  Years ago (maybe 20?), my husband and I would attend a party hosted by some work colleagues where the main focus was a chili cook off.  It took me four years to create a batch of chili that was awarded first place by that crowd and I have successfully used my optimized recipe to please others ever since, especially my family, when comfort food is in order.  My recipe results in a chili that tends towards the sweeter side (because that is what always won the contest).  It can be made with as much or as little heat as you like and certainly gets better the longer it sits. It can be done on the stove or in the oven and is also excellent made in a slow cooker.  Serves many!

SUSAN’S FIRST PLACE CHILI

Ingredients
olive oil (for sautéing)
4-6 oz diced pancetta
1 lb Italian sausage (approx. 6 links – I use 3 hot and 3 sweet)
1 lb ground turkey
2 lbs ground beef (I use 90% lean)
1 large onion, chopped
10 cloves garlic, minced
1 can tomato puree (28 oz)
1/2 c light brown sugar
1/2 c ketchup
2 tbsp cider vinegar
1 can red kidney beans
1 can lima beans
1 can butter beans
1 can black beans
3 cans Boston Baked Beans (I use Bush’s)
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder (more or less to taste)
1 tsp cumin (more or less to taste)
1 dried chili (optional)

Making the Chili
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil in large skillet. Sauté pancetta until crisp, remove with slotted spoon, drain and set aside. Remove most of fat from pan and add onion and garlic and sauté until translucent. Remove and set aside. Add sausage (casings removed) and sauté until cooked through. Add ground beef and turkey and sauté until cooked. Remove meat to large bottomed dutch oven, add wet mixture and mix to combine.

Meanwhile, combine tomato puree, brown sugar, ketchup and vinegar. Combine dry spices together, mix and add to wet ingredients.

Drain beans, reserving liquid. Add drained beans to meat and mix well. Add as much of the reserved liquid from canned beans as needed to create desired consistency. Mix again and turn heat onto low. Bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally (do not let mixture burn on bottom of pan). At this point, you can either continue to simmer for 2-3 hours on the stove (you will need to stir every 10-15 minutes) or put the dutch oven in a 350 degree oven for 2-3 hours (or use a slow cooker).

To Serve
Ladle chili into bowls and serve with sour cream. I often provide tortilla chips or corn chips on the side!

Food for Thought

21 Saturday Jan 2012

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For me, food and cooking are the perfect mixture of art and science, bringing families together, love to the table and an opportunity for the cook to express herself.  On this blog, I hope to capture my favorite recipes, tuned to my family’s tastes and my time constraints as well as my thoughts on food, wine or whatever I am focused on learning and creating for my family to enjoy.

I have been cooking since I was in graduate school.  My grandmother is an unbelievable cook and baker and my mother is no slouch either, although she was much more reluctant to have me in her kitchen.  However, my grandfather was a dairy farmer and my Mum had a big vegetable garden so she always had fresh ingredients from which to make even the simplest dishes taste delicious.  When I  moved to England to attend business school, the take out food available to me on my budget was terrible and so I resorted to cooking.  The problem was that my fridge was smaller than the one I had in my college dorm room and my recipe repertoire was minimal so I learned two things very quickly: where the closest outdoor market was and how to follow a recipe.  In the early stages, my phone bill outpaced my food bill because I called my Mum so frequently for her recipes.  But gradually, I bought a few cookbooks and learned to experiment.  25 years later, I have a wonderful kitchen that is my favorite space in the house, a family who loves to eat good food, two teenage daughters who are becoming great cooks themselves and now this blog where I can share my experiences.  I should add that for me, cooking is a passion and a hobby.  I have a “day job” that I love – multiple in fact.  So, bear with me as I figure out how to blog and post and enjoy!