New Year Nosh

I never seem to be able to stay awake until midnight on New Year's Eve, but I do enjoy New Year's Eve and New Year's Day nosh and drinks.  Here are a few easy things I'm going to make this year, followed by a few different drinks to try out.

Nosh

1. Dried apricots with goat blue cheese - This is so easy, just slather each apricot with a little goat blue cheese, maybe add a marcona almond on top, and then drizzle with honey if so desired. I use the Blenheim variety of apricots (also known as "slab" apricots) available from Trader Joe's, but most any will do.
2. Sundrops - Purchase a can of artichoke bottoms, rinse and drain.  Fill each bottom with crab meat and coat with hollandaise sauce.  Broil until lightly browned on top. Keep warm in the oven until ready to serve.  This also makes a great first course when you serve it on top of a little marinara sauce. The only key is to get high quality ingredients. These days it is hard to find good canned artichoke bottoms. The only one we can find here in the grocery stores is the "Reese" brand, and it is not very good.  If anyone knows of a good brand, please let me know!  Freshly cooked would be best, of course, but this time of year good, fresh artichokes are hard to get as well.
3. Spinach balls with mustard sauce - these are so good, it's hard not to keep popping one after another into your mouth.

Ingredients

• 10 ounces frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed of all its moisture
• 1 1/2 cup prepared bread stuffing, cooled
• 1 small onion, minced
• 3 eggs
• 1/3 cup melted butter
• 1/4 cup grated parmessan cheese
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
• Mustard for serving (it's nice to have a variety - dijon, sweet, hot)

Preparation

Mix all ingredients together.  Roll into 1" balls and place on a baking sheet.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.  Serve with mustard for dipping.

Drinkies

New Year's Eve drinks naturally revolve around champagne or prosecco. Bubbles are just the thing.  If champagne by itself doesn't do it for you, you might try these:

Korbel: http://www.korbel.com/New_Years_Cocktails.aspx

BakedBree Blog: http://bakedbree.com/cherry-thyme-champagne-cocktail

The other way to go with New Year's Eve cocktails in our house is the brown angle. Sazeracs, Manhattans, Rob Roys, and Old Fashioneds are just a few you can make in a batch and serve.

I'm inspired to try and make it to midnight this year! Wish me luck!

Chilly Morning, Hot Cereal

It was 27 degrees this morning when I took the dog for a walk.  For some of you, you'll scoff at my calling that cold, but here in the south that is cold.  It was wonderful to come home to some hot cereal that my husband put on to cook last night.  This is super easy if you have all the right ingredients and a small crockpot.

Ingredients

• 2 Tablespoons Quinoa
• 2 Tablespoons Bulgar Wheat
• Take a 1 cup measure, put in 4 Tablespoons 10 grain hot cereal mix, fill the rest of the cup with Quaker Oats (not the quick cooking variety)
• 2 1/4 cups water

Optional toppings to accompany -

• Assorted dried fruit or nuts
• Brown sugar or another sweetener
• Milk
• Dash ground cinnamon or allspice

Preparation

Mix all grains and water together in a small crockpot (one that has a 4" or 5" diameter).  Cook for ~3 hours. You'll have to play with the timing to determine how your particular crockpot heats. Some may cook the cereal faster than others. You can also put in different grains such as triticale, red quinoa, barley, etc. If you want to make it the night before, put the crockpot on an electrical timer (like the one you use to turn your lights on/off while on vacation) that will come on about 3 hours before you want to eat it.

Toss whatever dried fruit and/or nuts on top and add sugar to taste. If you like, add milk and/or sprinkle ground cinnamon or allspice over the top before serving.

To clean your crockpot, soak it in cold water until the stuck-on cereal lifts right off.  Then clean with warm soapy water.

Easy Fish and Veg

Ever have the need for a dinner that is healthy and not difficult to put together?  How about roasted vegetables and fish with lemon and herbs in parchment?  For the vegetables take whatever you have (potatoes, onions, zucchini...) and a 13x9 dish with 2 Tablespoons of olive oil in the bottom.  Chop vegetables in 1" or less sized pieces, toss with olive oil, salt and pepper.  Roast at 425 degrees, stir every 1/2 hour until cooked as you like.

For the fish, place on a large piece of parchment - enough to completely enclose and seal.  I like a hearty white fish like cod or halibut for this, but salmon works just as well.  Season the fish with sea salt, a little olive oil and a little white wine or vermouth.  Cover fish with some fresh herbs (e.g, tarragon, italian parsley, or thyme) and slices of lemon - meyer lemon is great as it's sweeter than regular lemon.  Enclose the fish in the parchment and seal. Place on a baking sheet and bake with the roasting vegetables  for the last 10-15 minutes depending on the type and size of the fish.

 

You can even eat the meyer lemons and their rind along with the fish.  Delicious!

German Baking Tradition

For the last several years, a good friend and I have been baking traditional German holiday sweets in preparation for the festive holiday season.  Why German?  Well, she is German and I love German baked goods such as Lebkuchen, Printen, Christstollen, etc.  It's a great day of baking for hours and hours.

We usually make 3 or 4 different recipes from a German cookbook.  My friend translates them as we go and we're off and baking.  Lebkuchen is always a must. After that we try out a new thing or two each year, and one or two from the past.  This year's new item was Speculaas cookies. I had this wrong when I originally posted this - I had called them Springerle, which is the southern German version.  Speculaas is the northern version. My friend, Nina, had gotten beautiful carved wooden molds to use for them, including this beautiful Saint Nicholas.

This year we also made Printen, one of my favorites from in and around Aachen, Germany.  This recipe calls for a special chunky sugar - see the picture below.  This type of sugar is hard to get in the US, so you can either leave it off or use the more common sugar sprinkles you find in this country that are clear crystals, or perhaps use nuts (almonds or hazelnuts) instead.

 

Aachener Printen

Ingredients

• 250 g. dark honey
• 65 g. brown sugar
• 65 g. butter
• 375 g. flour
• Grated lemon peel of 1 lemon
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon each of cardamom, coriander and cloves
• 3 teaspoons baking soda (original recipe calls for 7 g. Potash, which is not available in the US, but if you get it mix it with a little water until all lumps are gone)
• 100 g. chunky sugar sprinkles, in Germany you'd purchase "grümmel" (see picture above)

Preparation

Melt honey, brown sugar and butter together over low heat in a saucepan. Cool slightly and add rest of ingredients.  If using potash add after dough is mixed and knead into it.  Refrigerate the dough for at least 1 hour.  Roll out dough and press the "grümmel" onto to the top (roll lightly with rolling pin to press in evenly).  Cut into 3x8 cm strips.  Put on a greased baking sheet sugar side up and brush top with a little water.  Bake 15-18 minutes at 175-190c (or in convection oven at 170-180c).  Cover with chocolate, if desired.  These need to sit for several days or more before eating.  You can store them in an air-tight container with a piece of bread, an apple or something that will give off some moisture to soften the cookies if you like them chewier rather than hard. We are still eating them several weeks later and they are wonderful.

Happy baking to all my readers!  Thanks for another great baking year, Nina!

German Baking Tradition

For the last several years, a good friend and I have been baking traditional German holiday sweets in preparation for the festive holiday season.  Why German?  Well, she is German and I love German baked goods such as Lebkuchen, Printen, Christstollen, etc.  It's a great day of baking for hours and hours.

We usually make 3 or 4 different recipes from a German cookbook.  My friend translates them as we go and we're off and baking.  Lebkuchen is always a must. After that we try out a new thing or two each year, and one or two from the past.  This year's new item was Speculaas cookies. I had this wrong when I originally posted this - I had called them Springerle, which is the southern German version.  Speculaas is the northern version. My friend, Nina, had gotten beautiful carved wooden molds to use for them, including this beautiful Saint Nicholas.

This year we also made Printen, one of my favorites from in and around Aachen, Germany.  This recipe calls for a special chunky sugar - see the picture below.  This type of sugar is hard to get in the US, so you can either leave it off or use the more common sugar sprinkles you find in this country that are clear crystals, or perhaps use nuts (almonds or hazelnuts) instead.

 

Aachener Printen

Ingredients

• 250 g. dark honey
• 65 g. brown sugar
• 65 g. butter
• 375 g. flour
• Grated lemon peel of 1 lemon
• 1 teaspoon cinnamon
• 1/2 teaspoon each of cardamom, coriander and cloves
• 3 teaspoons baking soda (original recipe calls for 7 g. Potash, which is not available in the US, but if you get it mix it with a little water until all lumps are gone)
• 100 g. chunky sugar sprinkles, in Germany you'd purchase "grümmel" (see picture above)

Preparation

Melt honey, brown sugar and butter together over low heat in a saucepan. Cool slightly and add rest of ingredients.  If using potash add after dough is mixed and knead into it.  Refrigerate the dough for at least 1 hour.  Roll out dough and press the "grümmel" onto to the top (roll lightly with rolling pin to press in evenly).  Cut into 3x8 cm strips.  Put on a greased baking sheet sugar side up and brush top with a little water.  Bake 15-18 minutes at 175-190c (or in convection oven at 170-180c).  Cover with chocolate, if desired.  These need to sit for several days or more before eating.  You can store them in an air-tight container with a piece of bread, an apple or something that will give off some moisture to soften the cookies if you like them chewier rather than hard. We are still eating them several weeks later and they are wonderful.

Happy baking to all my readers!  Thanks for another great baking year, Nina!

The Catbird Seat Review

Oh my, oh my, oh my - if you live in Nashville, you finally have an opportunity to partake of an amazing tasting menu.  The Catbird Seat, from the owners of Patterson House, is a new small, 32-seat dining option. Although you might be hard pressed to get reservations within the month, it is an experience.  This isn't going out for dinner, this is truly something different, and we finally have it here in Nashville, with all the southern charm that makes the experience unique to living in the south. The owners, chefs and beverage manager are wonderful. They make delicious, remarkable food and they warmly welcome you and explain each course and matching beverage as they place them in front of you.

The food was great, and the paired drinks/wine were fascinating.  I highly, highly recommend you get the drink/wine pairing rather than just a bottle of wine. For some of the food/drink combinations I truly wondered how they figured out, out of all the beverages and combinations they could make, that that particular combination worked.  Given the unusual creations, they have a very astute and well-drunk (is that really a word that connotes the right message - I'm looking for the equivalent of "well-read") beverage manager.

Timing between the 9 courses was perfect. I was never wondering when the next course was coming and never felt it was there before I was ready. I was satiated when I left, but my runner husband was sad it was over and still wanting more.

Here is a picture catalog of each course:



The second taste was served with a cocktail that included Cocchi Americano, dry Reisling, and carbonated Rhum Agricole.

Served with a E. Dupont Cidre Bouche from Normandy France.  It was so earthy that it paired exceptionally well with the food, but I didn't care for it on its own. However, others at our table loved it both with and without food.

 

The optional fourth taste for those who wouldn't eat eggs - Octopus in its own ink sauce

The kimchi cod was probably my favorite taste.  Kimchi was pureed and dried into a ribbon wrapped around the cod, which was perfectly cooked.  If you read my post on Spanish food trends you will remember my disparaging comments about avocado with fish.  It just didn't work in the dishes we had in Spain, but the dab of avocado here perfectly off-set the spiciness of the kimchi.  This was served with a 2007 Robert Weil Reisling from Rheingau, Germany.

The duck was served with a 2009 Monfiore Gewurztraminer from the Willamette Valley, Oregon.

This was probably my second favorite taste.  The beef had reportedly been cooked for days.  It was incredibly tender, and the little piped dollop of truffle cream was amazing. This was served with a 2006 Domaine de Durban Beaumes-de-Venise, France.  We had visited this very winery last summer and loved their wines.

This was an explosion of flavor with curry, shitake, apricot and parsley in an eye-pleasing presentation.  Who doesn't love that bowl?  This was paired with a Belgian beer.

Another amazing presentation.  The drink on top was a blend of Lucky Bucket Certified Evil, Sherry and Madeira.  I could have been satiated here, but no there was more...

Here were flavors and textures that continued to melt in your mouth.  This was paired with a Royal Tokaji.  Then we finished up as we began - with oreos - this time sweet coffee and cream oreos.

Here is the menu they present us at the end.  Awesomeness!  If I haven't convinced you yet, I would be stunned...make your reservations now!  If you don't live in Nashville and plan to visit - make your reservations well ahead of time!

A Summer Cocktail in Winter

Fall and winter are frequently times of heavy food, deep red wine, and rich desserts.  But, every once in awhile it's nice to have a light meal and summer-like cocktail.  One such combination is Thai Sweet and Sour Shrimp and a "Florida" gin-based cocktail.  The two together evoke the feel of summer on the beach with waves splashing on the shore and sun-drenched fruit in each and every sip and bite.  Here is the recipe for the cocktail from Mr. Boston's.

Florida Cocktail

Ingredients

• 1/2 ounce Gin
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Kirschwasser
• 1 1/2 teaspoons Triple Sec
• 1 ounce Orange Juice
• 1 teaspoon Lemon Juice

Preparation

Shake with ice and strain into a chilled cocktail glass.

Go ahead, have two..'tis the season for indulgence after all.

Cookbook Review: All-Butter, Cream-Filled, Sugar-Packed Baking Book

Who can resist picking up and perusing a book entitled "The Rosie's Bakery All-Butter, Cream-Filled, Sugar-Packed Baking Book"?  Not me, and since its the baking season, bring it on.  There are 17 chapters with over 250 recipes in this tome and every single one looks delicious; however, these are not for the faint of heart. Along with solid advice on cakes, cookies, bars, pies, and puddings, author Julie Rosenberg also classifies cookie types exactly as they should be - just check out these chapter titles: Chewy Crunchy, Crispy Chompy, Cakey Cookies, Sandwiched Together.

My perusal resulted in a desire to hop on a plane to head to Boston to visit her bakery in person.

Since I don't have that opportunity, I am going to start baking from this book today. First up - Ginger Shortbread from her Crispy Chompy chapter. After the initial crispy chomp, I expect a melt-in-the-mouth experience coupled with a pungent sweetness from the two kinds (!) of ginger. My expectations were right on. One thing to note, if you can find baker's cut crystallized ginger about 3mm size, this will make the recipe even easier since you won't have to chop the cyrstallized ginger, which can be tedious since it always wants to stick to the knife. One thing I might do post-baking is to dip them in chocolate - who wouldn't love that?

Here is the recipe:

Ginger Shortbread

Ingredients

• 2 cups plus 2 tablespoons 
all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon baking powder
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 2 sticks (8 ounces) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 2/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon 
(lightly packed) light brown sugar
• 3/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
• 3 tablespoons ground ginger
• 1 cup coarsely chopped candied ginger

Preparation

• Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together into a small bowl and set aside.
• Cream the butter, brown sugar, vanilla, and ground ginger together in a medium-size mixing bowl with an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, about 2 minutes. Stop the mixer once or twice to scrape the bowl with a rubber spatula.
• Add the flour mixture and mix on low speed until the mixture is fluffy again, about 
45 seconds. Scrape the bowl.
• Remove the dough from the bowl and place it on a work surface. Work the candied ginger into the dough with your hands.
• Divide the dough in half. Place two 16-inch lengths of waxed paper or plastic wrap on a work surface. Shape each half of the dough into a rough log about 10 inches long and 1K inches in diameter, and place it along one long side of the paper. Roll the log up in the paper and twist the ends like a hard-candy wrapper.
• Refrigerate the log for 1 to 2 hours.
• Remove the dough from the refrigerator. Using your hands, gently roll the wrapped dough back and forth on the work surface to smooth out the logs. Refrigerate again for 4 to 6 hours.
• Fifteen minutes before baking, preheat the oven to 350°F. Line several baking sheets with parchment paper.
• Remove the dough from the refrigerator, unwrap the logs, and cut them into slices that are a generous L inch thick. Place the cookies 1 inch apart on the prepared baking sheets. Bake the cookies until they are golden and firm to the touch, 28 to 30 minutes. Let them cool on the baking sheets.

Makes 60 cookies

It's the holidays - if you need new inspiration for your holiday baking - pick up a copy.  Go ahead, give yourself an early Christmas present!

The Rosie’s Bakery All-Butter, Cream-Filled, Sugar-Packed Baking Book (Workman Publishing; December 2011).

Spain - beautiful food

The Spaniards know how to create beautiful things and plated food is no exception.  Here were a few of our plated dishes. The fig sauce on the first picture was amazing.  Hadn't thought of doing something like that, but I'm going to have to try it!
 

Spain - food trends

There were two food trends in Spain that I just have to remark on.  First, the cupcake craze has made it there.  Sigh.  Cupcakes have never been part of the baking culture in Europe.  They are a distinctively American innovation.  Both Barcelona and Valencia had cupcake shops, very similar to those found in the US.  What is it about cupcakes?  I have somehow missed the appeal of this now dated sensation.  Maybe its the fussy liners you have to peel off or that the frosting to cake ratio is just wrong for my taste.  I'm sure Spain is welcome to our American food culture, after all McDonald's and Starbuck's are on every corner throughout Europe, but I so value what makes their cuisine unique that I always find it jarring to discover American cultural trends infiltrating their country.

The second seeming trend was avocado with fish.  We found this to be a weird combination.  The first time we encountered it was seared tuna with guacamole and soy sauce.  The second time was an avocado and prawn bake.  Neither was pleasing.  I'm not sure why it doesn't work, but I know it's not one I'm going to try out in my kitchen.

They haven't given up on all of their culinary identity, though. Paella, jamon, manchego, and tapas abounded.  Yay for tradition!

Spain - the land of Jamón

Thanks for all your inquiries about our trip to Spain.  It was fantastic!  I had the opportunity to visit two markets, one in Barcelona and one in Valencia.  They were both amazing.  The Barcelona La Boqueria market, right off grand "Ramblas" boulevard was filled with typical products from the region - mouth-watering cheeses, fruits and vegetables - as well as jamón and more jamón.  Jamón is the spanish version of ham and nothing like the american version. Jamón Iberico is the most famous of them all and well worth the effort to find it.  Of course, with a little chorizo (a spicy cured meat from Spain) and manchego, one of the most common (and delicious!) sheep cheeses from Spain, you're good to go.  The perfect wine for jamón?  A rioja, of course.  One of our favorites is the Bodegas Lan Rioja Crianza.

 

Now that we're back in the States I'm going to have to spend some time drying out from all the jamón.  Next post I will share with you some of the beautiful and delicious meals we had, including some very artistic plating of food!

Pear Versatility

Pears come in many sizes and varieties and fall is peak season for them. Bartletts are probably the most common ones encountered in the grocery store and they are wonderful.  However, if you can find ripe Comice pears you will experience something completely different and even more wonderful.  I first came across these in Europe and after many years have now found them at peak season in our grocery stores.  They are fleeting, though, so if you find them, buy them.  The Comice pears I found yesterday at the store were labeled "French Butter" pears (the sticker still said "comice") - they are somewhat squatter, sometimes smaller, and have less of a neck than other types.  At peak ripeness they will have a greener skin than a Bartlett, but they will also have a yellow hue, give ever so slightly when touched, and smell like a pear.  They have a beautiful perfume that accompanies a very juicy, soft fruit - all of which are more pronounced than with any other variety I have eaten.  The best things to do with these pears are to eat them alone or with a piquant goat cheese that complements their perfume and juiciness.

If you have Bartletts on hand, here is a delicious dessert or breakfast dish to make, taken from an old Food & Wine article (circa 1996).

Maple Pear Pancake

Ingredients

• 1 cup milk
• 1 egg
• 3 Tablespoons butter
• 1 cup all-purpose flour (or 1/4 whole wheat, 3/4 all-purpose)
• 2 teaspoons baking powder
• 2 Tablespoons sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 2 Bartlett pears, peeled and sliced
• 1/2 cup maple syrup (use real maple syrup)
• 2 teaspoons lemon juice

Preparation

Heat oven to 350 ° F.

Mix the milk and egg together, and then whisk in 2 Tablespoons melted butter.  Sift the flour, baking powder, and salt together and whisk into the milk mixture.  Let stand for 10 minutes. Letting it stand is important to the final texture of the pancake as it allows the flour to fully incorporate with the liquid.

In a non-reactive oven-proof skillet, cook the pears, 1 Tablespoon of the butter, and 1/4 cup of syrup over high heat until caramelized.  Remove from heat and add 2 teaspoons lemon juice and the remaining 1/4 cup syrup.

Whisk the batter once or twice and pour it over pears.  Bake for 15 minutes, or until a tester inserted in the center comes out clean.  Invert pancake onto a platter and serve with additional maple syrup.

Serves 4.

San Francisco Oct 2011

I just spent a week in San Francisco and had so many amazing meals accompanied by great friends that I felt the need to share with you all.  I can honestly say that it was a good thing San Francisco is such a walkable city and that our flat was over a mile away from the conference I was attending. With only one morning of hard rain I was at least able to walk off a few calories.

I can't think of anything better than spending time enjoying good food with good friends.  Ame, a Michelin one-star restaurant, at the St. Regis hotel was our first stop.  I had a squash soup with padron peppers - the in-season local area peppers. They're wrinkly, green and about the size of my thumb. The soup was smooth as silk, subtly flavored with the slightly hot piquant padron pepper every couple of bites.  The other dishes were fabulous, but my favorite was the soup. I just have to try and recreate this dish since I won't be going back to San Francisco soon, and I can't imagine not having something akin to it again while squash are readily accessible at our farmer's markets.

The Ferry Building farmer's market was our second stop, and what a stop it was. Between the fresh vegetables, fruits, meats, shops and restaurants I had found paradise. While I still hold the Pike Place Market in Seattle dear to my heart, the Ferry Building was slightly heavier on the ratio of farmers and food stalls to permanent shops.  It's also smaller in size and easier to navigate.  Not to say the place was small - we spent about three hours browsing - we loved the "Praise the Lard" t-shirts and the spits of roasting meats with fingerling potatoes roasting below the spits catching all the good drippings.  A little rosemary sea salt sprinkled on top and those potatoes were to die for.  The roast pork sandwich with arugula was delightful as well.

Dosa on Fillmore was our third stop.  Again, the food was outstanding, but the cocktails were even more amazing. I'm not usually one to order off the "speciality" drink menu because they are often too cloyingly sweet or just plain weird, but at Dosa they turned out drinks that were unique, perfectly balanced, and full of flavors that were bright and complex. The key to my Pink City was green cardamom infused gin and raspberry nectar - perhaps a play on a Cosmo, but beyond the color and glass shape the comparison stopped there.  The Plymouth Gin infused with green cardamom pods was inspired. The bartender showed us the glass bottle they use when infusing and while it started out clear - it has a green tinge that they say no matter how much they wash it, it's still green.  Their inventiveness made me want to come home and start infusing gins and vodkas with all kinds of spices!

Boulevard Restaurant near the Ferry Building was fourth. With a James Beard award-winning chef, it also showed off the local padron peppers in several dishes. What was my favorite, though, was a starter Pear and Arugula salad with goat cheese, figs, and pistachios.  Each element of the dish brought out the best flavors in the rest.  My main course of lamb prime-rib was nothing to sneeze at either, but the starter was perfect in every way.

I was truly lucky to be invited along to Chez Panisse for a friend's birthday dinner. Alice Waters was one of the first chefs I followed. What she believed in was the then future, but now current, farm to table movement. I consider her the grandmother of it all. I hope she doesn't find that offensive. The four-course dinner that night consisted of a fresh bean salad with chanterelles and bacon; french fish soup; grilled grass-fed ribeye with potatoes and yellow wax beans; buckwheat crepes with quince, figs and anise ice cream. Our waitress selected a Navarro Vineyards (Anderson Valley) Pinot Noir to accompany our meal, and it was a very good selection. The restaurant ambiance and wait staff were outstanding.  The craftsman-style dining room sits just off the kitchen. I had one of the best seats in the house without being in the kitchen.  I could watch them cooking and plating food all the while staring at the big basket of beautiful breads off to the right. The wait staff were unobtrusive, there when we needed them and not there when we didn't. They also offered up a moment of hilarity - as they cleared the beef dish - we were assured that the cow had had a happy life. The waiter's comment cracked me up - only in Berkeley would they feel the need to let us know that the cow had been happy. I loved it!

Tony's Pizza Napoletana in North Beach was our last evening's meal in San Francisco. Their claim to fame is winning the World Pizza Championship 9 times. Their menu was intimidating - ten different styles/temperatures/ovens.  Would one choose from the five different options in the Sicilian Style (550 degree gas oven) or one of the Coal-Fired (1000 degree) pizzas?  Luckily we had a table with six of us, so we selected six different pizzas.  My favorite was the Barcelona - mozzarella, smoked paprika chorizo, tomato sauce, jamon, manchego, nora peppers, and scrambled farm eggs.

We also hit two breakfast places and a pastry shop worth mentioning - Kate's Kitchen and Brenda's French Soul Food were both delicious places for a big breakfast.  Kate's, in the Haight Ashbury neighborhood, had an amazing selection of pancakes and other mouth-watering breakfast dishes - including a corned-beef hash that reportedly is awesome and, which unfortunately, I didn't have room for after filling up at Dosa the night before. Brenda's, near City Hall, is a New Orlean's style place - with perfectly cooked beignets stuffed with either savory (crawfish) or sweet (apple, chocolate) or just served plain.  The pastry shop was Le Boulange Bakery.  Yes, it's a small local chain, but I had one of the best almond croissants since my summer vacation in Provence. My mouth is watering just thinking of it. I got a chocolate hazelnut one for the road, and 10 hours later it was still delicious.

That's a chronicle of eating our way through San Francisco. Although, I neglected to tell you about Suppenkuche, Absinthe or the Top of the Mark - all notables as well. I would go back to every single place we visited, but it would be hard not to try the dozens of other places I've read about.  Sigh, guess I'll have to go back often.

Spicy Chicken and Cucumber Salad

A friend brought us the most wonderful cucumbers out of her garden and in return only asked that I let her know of ways to put her bounty to use.  Besides the usual suspects - cucumber soup, cucumber salad, and raita, here is one my favorite salads that highlights the refreshing nature of cucumbers.  This is from my days at Le Cordon Bleu and I sadly forget to make it often enough.

Spicy Chicken and Cucumber Salad

Ingredients

• 1.5 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1 teaspoon yellow mustard (e.g., Coleman's)
• 1/2 teaspoon turmeric
• 1/2 teaspoon curry powder
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 1 medium zucchini (~8 ounces)
• 1 medium cucumber
• 1 red pepper
• 8 ounces snow peas, blanched

Preparation

Slice chicken thinly.  Mix all the spices together and mix with the chicken.  Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Cut the zucchini in half lengthwise and then into 1/4" slices crosswise. Heat the oil in a sauté pan and lightly sauté the zucchini until slightly softened, about 2-3 minutes.  Remove to a large bowl to cool.  Add a little more oil to the pan if necessary and sauté chicken over medium heat in small batches, 5-7 minutes per batch or until cooked.  Cool.

Cut the cucumber into sticks and toss with the zucchini.  Julienne the red pepper and add it and the snow peas to the cucumber and zucchini.  Add the cooked and cooled chicken and toss lightly.  Serve or refrigerate until ready to serve.  I prefer to make this 1-2 hours ahead so that the spice on the chicken has time to flavor the vegetables.

Note:  This can be made with turkey breasts instead of chicken breasts for a nice variety. Also, you can cut back the sugar to a 1/2 teaspoon, but you need a little to bring out the rest of the flavors.  The original recipe had 2 teaspoons, but I think that is a little too much.

Horseradish and Mustard Roasted Potatoes

We are big fans of roasted root vegetables, as you've probably already ascertained. At the top of the list are usually potatoes. We have a distinct fondness for roasted potato recipes - this one is second only to rosemary roasted potatoes.  It originally came from Bon Appetit and you can still find it on the epicurious website.  Now, if you're thinking that horseradish is way too potent and you wouldn't like this dish, you will be in for a big surprise. Roasting horseradish takes away that pungent, eye-watering flavor.  It becomes mild and all the heat goes out of it.  Fair warning, though, if you buy a horseradish root and are grating it - it will probably be eye watering!  It affects me in the same way onions do, but it is so worth it that I don't mind shedding a few tears.


Horseradish and Mustard Roasted Potatoes

Ingredients

• 3 pounds red potatoes, cut into 3/4" cubes (you can leave the skin on)
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• 1/2 cup coarse-grain mustard (you want one where the mustard seeds are  almost whole)
• 1/4 cup butter
• 2/3 cup grated fresh horseradish

If you can't get fresh horseradish, you could substitute the bottled stuff, but it won't be nearly as good.  If you are using the bottled stuff make sure you get the bottle that only contains horseradish, sometimes called "extra-strong".  Do not get the "creamed" verison whatever you do.  Fresh horseradish root has to be peeled before grating.  I grate it on a medium-sized cheese grater with a few gratings from the large-sized portion of the cheese grater for variety.

If you like sweet potatoes - substitute 1/2 or 1/3 of the red potatoes with sweet potatoes.  You will love it.

Preparation

Choose small potatoes or cut larger ones into 3/4" dice.  Toss potatoes with oil, season with salt and pepper, and roast at 400 degrees for 30 minutes. If you prefer your potatoes crisp - make sure you have plenty of room in the roasting pan.  If they are all piled on top of each other they will not crisp well. I use a heavy-gauge baking sheet (known as a half-sheet pan in the industry - you can get these at any restaurant supply store). If you were only making half the recipe they will fit into a 13x9 baking dish.

Combine horseradish, mustard, and butter.  Take potatoes out after 1/2 hour and pour half the horseradish mixture over.  Stir and roast for 15 minutes.  Pour the rest of horseradish mixture over potatoes, stir and roast 15 minutes more (or more if you like crispier potatoes).  Serve immediately and try not to eat the entire dish.  It's supposed to serve 8, but in our house it probably only serves 4.

Whole Wheat Waffles with Ginger

Waffles to the third power!  I decided that our weekend waffles needed a kick in the pants.  So, what could be better than whole wheat and ginger?

Whole Wheat Waffles with Ginger

Ingredients

• 1/4 cup canola oil
• 1 cup gingerale (diet or regular, no matter) or ginger beer
• 1 egg
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 3 Tablespoons cornmeal
• 1 Tablespoon baking powder
• 1/8 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon (optional)
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated ginger root (use more if you want more ginger flavor)

Preparation

Blender method: Put wet ingredients into a blender then add all the dry ingredients and blend.  Scrap down sides as necessary and blend until it's smooth.

Bowl method:  Put all dry ingredients into bowl, make a well and pour in the wet ingredients.  Whisk until all lumps are gone.

Let stand 10 minutes.  It should be the thickness of heavy cream.  If it's too thick add a little water and blend or mix briefly again.  Ready, set, make waffles!

Makes 3-4 waffles depending on your waffle maker.

Grating Ginger

If you've seen a recipe that calls for "grated" ginger and don't have any implement that grates other than a cheese grater, here is what you need: a ginger grater.  Now, I don't often go in for implements that have only one use, but for this it's totally worth it.

There are more varieties than one would guess for a sole-use implement.  I picked up a lovely painted ceramic one at a market in Aix-en-Provence last year as a gift for a friend.  I so wished I had gotten myself one that I went hunting for one when I returned.  I found a very utiltarian one at our local Asian market for around $5.  It's not pretty like the one I brought my friend, but it does a superb job of producing pulpy "grated" ginger.

Why would you want grated ginger versus minced or chopped?  There are times when you need it to blend into a liquid and not leave chunks that even the finest mince would leave.  Grating also releases more juice and results in a slightly milder flavor than mincing or chopping. That means the effect on a dish is different and can be taken into account when deciding which method to use. The three methods line up in order of intensity from least (grated) to most (chopped). I think about using grating if I want the flavor of ginger, but mincing or chopping if I want the taste to jump out.

I hope you have an excuse to use grated ginger and find yourself a ginger grater!

Duxelles

I've been thinking about bruschetta toppings for a dinner party and remembered an old favorite - mushrooms.  While one could just sauté up some mushrooms and use that as a serviceable topping, I am more inclined to make a version of a duxelles sauce.  This one is thicker than the traditional since I'll be using it as a topping rather than a sauce.  I like to add sherry to my duxelles as well.  Sherry and mushrooms go well together. The sherry brings out the earthiness of the mushrooms and adds another savory note of its own.

Duxelles

• 10 ounces cremini mushrooms or large portobellos, finely chopped (you need a flavorful mushroom - don't make this with white mushrooms)
• 1/4 cup shallots, minced
• 1 Tablespoons butter
• 1 Tablespoon olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons Sherry
• 1 1/2 Tablespoons flour
• 2 Tablespoon mixed herbs (parsley, thyme, rosemary, sage), minced
• 1/2 cup chicken stock, cold
• 1 Tablespoon whipping or heavy cream
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• Salt and pepper, to taste

Preparation 

Finely chop mushrooms and mince shallots. In a skillet add butter and oil and heat over medium flame until butter is melted. Turn heat to low and add shallots, cooking until they are translucent - be careful not to let them brown.  Turn up heat to medium and add mushrooms.  Cook until they release their water and it is mostly cooked off.  Add herbs and sherry and cook for 1 minute.  Add flour and stir until incorporated.  Stir in cold chicken stock and cook until mixture is thick.  Add cream and lemon juice.  Taste and adjust salt and add freshly ground pepper.  Spread onto slices of toasted baguette and top with a herb sprig for garnish.

You can also put the same topping into pre-baked pastry tartlets and serve warm, which is how we are having them this time, since our starter course will be served with a slice of baguette.  Rather not have baguette twice in a row.

Serve with sherry or perhaps bubbles.  We'll be serving it with bubbles this time.

Tuscan Kale Salad

I had never had a kale salad until reading Melissa Clark's New York Times article. If you have access to NYT archives look this recipe up and read her description!  I won't be able to do it justice.  It was posted on Oct 24, 2007 in the Dining section.  Her eloquent description made me immediately go out and buy the ingredients and make it. She also writes a blog @ http://www.melissaclark.net/blog/.  I continue to make this often with a few minor adjustments from the original recipe, but mostly the same.

Tuscan Kale Salad with Pecorino

Ingredients

• 1 bunch Lacinato kale (also known as Tuscan or Black Kale)
• 1/2 garlic clove crushed with a pinch of kosher salt
• 1/4 cup finely grated pecorino cheese, plus more for garnish
• 1/4 cup high-quality, extra virgin olive oil, plus more for garnish
• Freshly squeezed juice from 1 lemon
• Freshly ground black pepper and sea salt, to taste

Preparation

Trim bottom 2 inches off kale stems and discard. Slice kale, including ribs, into 3/4-inch-wide ribbons.  You should have 4 to 5 cups.  Place kale in a large bowl.

Juice lemon - you want at least 2 Tablespoons of juice, so juice another lemon if you don't get enough from one.  Using a mortar and pestle, or with the back of a knife, pound garlic with salt into a paste.  Transfer garlic into a small bowl.  Add ¼ cup cheese, a 1/4 cup olive oil, lemon juice, salt, pepper flakes, and black pepper, and whisk to combine.  Pour dressing over kale and toss very well to thoroughly combine (dressing will be thick and needs lots of tossing to coat leaves).

Let salad sit 5 minutes, then serve topped with additional cheese and a drizzle of olive oil.

Serves 2-4.

Simple Dinner

A simple delicious dinner.  Not sure what to call this amalgamation of soft, creamy, peppery, crunchy, onion-y, lemony-goodness, but it was divine, especially with the accompanying Spanish Rioja wine.  The one we had tonight was "Lan".  Mmmm.

The meal consisted of:

Grilled multi-grain sourdough bread (brushed with olive oil previous to grilling). After grilling, I slathered it with pesto (freshly made with almonds rather than pine nuts and pecorino rather than parmesan).  The pesto-covered bread was then topped with grilled asparagus (tossed with olive oil, sea salt and freshly ground pepper before grilling), a poached egg, and arugula salad (which had been tossed in a lemon vinaigrette - 1 part lemon to 2 parts olive oil, salt, pepper and a pinch of Coleman's mustard powder).  This collection was then garnished with chèvre, garlic chives and freshly ground pepper.  The flavors burst in every bite and the yolk gushed just enough to add creaminess to a bite here and there.  We followed it up with a little dark chocolate as we sipped the last bit of the wine -- complete satiation.