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January 17, 2007 – Masa Harina

It all started last August when I read about some new Latino markets that had opened up in the east Metro area. They caught my interest. I cut the article out - might have even mentioned it to Steve at the time. But circumstances of history kept me from pursuing it and ultimately forgetting about it until, one morning in November, I found the article tucked away in one of my food reference books.

“Oh, let’s go do this today,” I blurt out as I scanned and remembered the article. Steve and I were sitting at the kitchen table on this morning, reading the paper and planning the day. Steve looks up from his paper and says with a straight face, “I’ll go anywhere and do anything with you, honey.” This was, of course, an attempt at humor and in reference to my recent well-humored ribbings about him not wanting to go anywhere. So, off we went - proving, once again, the usefulness of well-humored ribbings.

And it was a grand adventure. Bright colors. Blaring Latino music over the loud speakers. Crammed booths filled with all kinds of products. Latino families crowding the aisles. (We were the only non-Latino faces that I saw.) And then, we came across “the restaurant.” It didn’t even look like a restaurant – more like a corner carved off from the rest of the place. A Latino woman beckoned us in. We watched as another woman prepared these small dishes of something that we later learn are “sopes.” We indicated that we wanted one with pork and one with chicken. We sat down at long community-style tables while we watched some nearby women scrape the spines from tender cactus pads, chop the tender pads up, and bag them. And then the sopes were delivered by a smiling young woman and we dug in.

Let me just tell you right now, those sopes were superb! These little pillowy, succulent, cornmeal “boats” were filled first with a thin layer of mashed beans. Then a layer of chili-spiked braised meat – one chicken and one pork – that was redolent with flavor and extremely tender. On top of that, a layer of crisp julienned lettuce, then sour cream, then cheese. On the side, was a vinegary chili sauce that one could also add to the top. It was heavenly! I knew right then that I wanted to re-create these babies and play with them!

But playing with sopes was again delayed by circumstances of history until later in December when, after only a little research about recipes, I pulled out the big bag of masa harina flour we had bought and made my first stab at them – creating the little “boats” by hand and pan-frying before filling them. They were good, but not great. The flavor was really, really good. I decided that masa harina flour was definitely a keeper. But, the texture was tough. I gave it a second try with about the same results and decided I needed to do some more research.

This led to my education about masa harina flour.

• Masa is Spanish for dough but, in Mexico , it is generally understood of as corn dough. Harina is Spanish for flour. So, with masa harina, what you have is, basically, corn dough flour.
  
  
• So, what kind of corn? According to the website www.mexicanfood.about.com, “There are three types of corn.” This is followed with a description of, well, actually, four types of corn so I’m not actually swearing to this three-type thing but here is what they say. “Flint corn, also known as blue or red corn, has a hard exterior and is used for popping corn and animal feed. The kind you find in the grocery store is “Sweet” which can be eaten off the cob. Dent corn is also known as Field corn and is the best corn to make Masa Dough and Hominy with. It is also widely used in processed foods and also feed for cattle. Flour corn is usually white corn and it is used for making corn flour for baked goods.”
  
  
• Then, let’s get to making the dough. This is the best I can tell as to how it goes. The corn kernels are dried – maybe even sun-dried as some sources claim, but I tend to doubt this. Then they are boiled and soaked in water with slaked lime or “cal” (some sources call it lye). Then, they may or may not be dried at this point but some how made into a dough which is called masa. One uses masa to make fresh tortillas. This stuff does not last a long time. You have to use it within a few days. One can, apparently, buy this stuff from tortilla factories and, if one has a choice of tortilla factories nearby, one should “buy from a tortilla factory that makes the whitest masa, generally indicating that the bitter cal used to treat the corn has been washed off completely.” (According to Rick Bayless’s www.fronterakitchens.com.) You can purchase masa with a smooth consistency for making tortillas, or with a coarser consistency for making tamales.
  
  
• And the masa harina? Well, that’s for the rest of us who don’t happen to have a tortilla factory nearby to purchase from or, for that matter, a choice of tortilla factories. The simplest explanation of masa harina is that it is simply dried masa. But I think, in reality, it is a little more complicated than that. In any event, some version of something that compares to masa is ground, dried, and maybe ground again to create this very light, powdery flour called masa harina. This is what is easily available to most of us and, essentially, this is “instant” masa for the masses. Again, you can get masa harina in a smooth consistency for making tortillas (and sopes) or with a coarser consistencey for making tamales.
  
  
• In either case (masa or masa harina), the lime soaking apparently does something to the final product. Masa Harina is basically corn flour, but you can’t substitute it for what we generally know as corn meal. It acts differently in cooking. Plus, allegedly, “the treatment of soaking by lye or lime water balances the corn’s amino acids, so there is actually more available or usable protein.” (www.purcellmountainfarms.com.)

My studies of masa harina, of course, led me to read about corn tortillas. Now, I have never even thought about making home-made corn tortillas. Furthermore, I get a lot of food magazines and I have never read about anyone making their own corn tortillas in any of these food magazines. I do have recipe books that include this process so that’s where I started. And, as I started reading about this, it didn’t look that hard! Whereas you can make tortillas by just patting them out with your hands, this is, apparently, not easy and most sources recommend using a tortilla press. We didn’t own a tortilla press but, in my research, I had started getting a suspicion that the problem with my sopes was that the little “boats” I had created were not thin enough to make them pillowy and tender. And, remember, this did all start with sopes.

So, once again, last Friday morning over the paper, I suggest to Steve that we head back out to the Latino market to buy a tortilla press. “Well, okay,” he said - even though I knew that he was actually thinking about the possibility of snagging another sope at that restaurant we went to. I know this because that was exactly what I was thinking as well.

Well, we didn’t get a sope (we were there too early), but we did get our tortilla press and two small flat round griddles for cooking tortillas. Total cost – about 18 dollars. And, that afternoon, we tested tortilla-making out (given that the bridge girls were coming over that night and we thought we should maybe make sure we could actually do this beforehand.)

This I can tell you. Making home-made corn tortillas is not hard and they are superbly better than those rubbery corn diskettes you get at the grocery store. If you have had the opportunity to try fresh corn tortillas, (either in Mexico or at a restaurant or food stand that makes their own), you know what I mean. These things are tender, flavorful, pliable wraps for a whole world of possible fillings. Friday night, we lightly filled them with shreds of chili-rubbed, slow-cooked chuck roast; a lime-scented cabbage and radish slaw; an herb salad of cilantro, mint and spinach; a sprinkle of grated aged Mexican cheese; and roasted tomatillo and chili salsas. They were a big hit!

So perfect sopes are still in our future but home-made corn tortillas will now be a regular for us; masa harina is now a staple in our pantry; and our new little tortilla press has an assigned spot in our kitchen cabinets.

Eat well, Enjoy the Small Things, and think about expanding your own pantry and kitchen utensils to include these as well!

Fresh Corn Tortillas
Yield: about 10 tortillas

• 1 ¾ cups masa harina
• 1 cup plus 2 Tbs hot water
• ¼ tsp salt

Mix together all of the ingredients and knead until it forms a ball. It should stick together easily but shouldn’t feel overly sticky and wet. (Don’t worry about over-kneading because, unlike wheat flour, you have no gluten to be concerned about.)

Cut out two squares of thick plastic from one of the plastic bags you fill with produce at the market. These will be used to line the tortilla press. Lay one piece of plastic on the bottom of the press. Take a piece of the masa dough and roll up until about the size of a walnut. Put the rounded masa dough piece in the center of the press. Flatten it somewhat using your hand. Lay second piece of plastic over it. Then use the press to flatten the disc. Lift the press up; turn the disc 180 degrees by rotating the lower plasic lining; and flatten with the press again to even out the sides.

You will need two skillets or griddles to cook the tortillas. Heat one pan over low heat and the second on medium-high heat. Peel the top layer of plastic off of your flattened tortilla. Flip and drape the tortilla on to the palm of one hand letting about 1/3 of the disc drape off of your palm (on the little finger side.) Now the other layer of plastic is facing up. Gently peel it off.

Starting with the hanging edge, lay the tortilla on to the lower temperature pan using a sweeping motion to lay evenly. (It will look like your are brushing something away from the top of the griddle as you quickly rotate your palm and flip it around laying the tortilla down perfectly flat.) Cook just until it comes free from the pan – about 15 seconds. Using a spatula, flip the tortilla on to the second, hotter pan. Cook about another 30 seconds. Flip again and cook about another 30 seconds. During this last cooking, the tortilla should puff up slightly. Store the tortilla in a cloth-lined basket to keep warm.

Winter Greens Salad with Oranges , Olives and Tortilla Strips
Yield and Volumes vary depending on your need and tastes

• Slices of left-over homemade corn tortillas about 1inch by 2 inches
• Vegetable oil for frying
• Some finely grated aged hard cheese – parmesan or queso anejo (aged Mexican cheese)
• Some type of winter green or mix of greens including escarole, spinach, or romaine lettuce – washed and torn or sliced into eatable sizes
• A vinaigrette of orange juice, olive oil, stone-ground mustard, and salt and pepper
• Slices of orange – peel, membranes and seeds removed
• Cured black olives – preferably oil cured – seeds removed and sliced in half

Pour the oil into a small skillet to about ¾ inch depth. Heat until the top shimmers. Drop a handful of sliced tortillas into the oil and cook, turning with a spatula, until lightly brown. Transfer the cooked strips to a low bowl lined with paper towels to drain. Sprinkle some of the cheese onto the warm strips. Continue using remaining tortilla strips.

Toss the greens and tortilla strips in a large bowl with the vinaigrette. Transfer portions of greens to individual salad plates. Place the pieces of orange and olives over the top. Serve. Mix together all of the ingredients and knead until it forms a ball. It should stick together easily but shouldn’t feel overly sticky and wet. (Don’t worry about over-kneading because, unlike wheat flour, you have no gluten to be concerned about.)

February 3, 2007 – It's Winter

We are solidly in winter out here in Oregon . Recently visited by chillingly cold but sparkling clear sunny weather, we moved back into just gray and cold and rainy today. I don’t mind. Each season brings its own menu of foods that just seems right for the time. Here’s some of the stuff we’ve been cooking this past month.

Steve walked into the kitchen the other day asking “Whatta ya’ doing?” I reply, “Oh, I’m just going to roast some things and see what happens.” Now that is something you just don’t say in the summer! But in these winter months, I was in search of new ideas for winter salads. For several reasons, mainly inclement weather and external demands, we are not blessed with our own salad greens from the back yard this winter. So we have been improvising with things we can find at the market – cabbage, fennel, escarole, spinach, endive, oranges, avocadoes, olives, toasted nuts, and red onions. But, the other day, the greens just seemed to cost too much, thus prompting some bit of roasting innovation on my part.

In this case, I halved roma tomatoes, drizzled them with olive oil and sprinkled them with thyme, rosemary, and salt and pepper. I took canned garbanzo beans (rinsed and dried) and tossed them with olive oil, salt and pepper. I salvaged an open jar of nicoise olives from the refrigerator (wondering “Now why did we get a jar of nicoise olives ANYWAY since they don’t taste that great in the first place?”) and tossed them with a little olive oil as well. Each of these went onto a jelly roll pan (separated into their own sections using aluminum foil) and put to roast at about 350 degrees. Predictably, the tomatoes turned out great. Roasting even these flavorless winter tomatoes creates rich, deep flavors reminiscent of summer. I was less confident about the garbanzo beans, but they toasted to a nice golden brown and developed a sweet, nutty flavor. Finally, the olives. Yes, the olives got nicely wrinkled and, yes, they did taste better after roasting. But, frankly, just walk right by the jarred nicoise olives if you see them in the store. These little suckers are just a pain. They are tiny; de-seeding them is tedious; and there’s not much meat left after you get done with it. Just walk away from them. Nevertheless, we did enjoy our salad that night of chopped roasted tomatoes with toasted garbanzos and thinly sliced sweet onions in a vinaigrette.

The other night, we were happy to have Pat call as we were preparing dinner and have her unexpectedly join us. Steve introduced another really wonderful winter salad that night using carrots and avocado. I’m including this recipe below. Yes, it does include cilantro which, I know, some people do not like. But, this really is a superb salad! The contrast of textures just makes it.

Then there are winter vegetables. We may have now found our most favorite ways to cook the two most common winter vegetables - broccoli and cauliflower. (Actually, Steve is the one to credit for these as well.) We try other recipes but we keep returning to these two, so I’m including them below as well. These two recipes are EASY and good examples of how technique can make all the difference with simple ingredients!

Finally, it is the winter of broth. We regularly make home-made chicken broth. We freeze any left-over chicken bones and cuttings from vegetables to keep us in supply. But, this winter, we are awash with broths of a variety of types. As we jarred up our latest broth this morning (made from left-over crab shells and court bouillon), Steve remarked “We’re like the broth of the week club.” This was right after he asked, “Now, just where are you going to put this broth?” (Notice the “you” in this question.) As it turned out, we did have room for it in our freezer but it’s clear that there is soup in our future. We are now sitting on a freezer full of turkey broth, smoked turkey broth, duck broth, vegetable broth, crab broth, beef tongue broth and, of course, chicken broth.

So tonight, it’s going to be soup made from smoked turkey broth along with potatoes, spinach, corn, roasted peppers, smoked turkey and andouille sausage. Yum. I love winter!

Eat well, Enjoy the Small Things, and, if any of you guys know any hungry teenage boys with discerning palates, send them over to our house because we are in need of some serious eaters.


Carrot Avocado Salad
Adapted from Epicurious.com
Yield: 4 side dish servings

• 1 lb. medium carrots
• ½ cup chopped cilantro
• ¼ cup finely chopped shallots
• 3 Tbs olive oil
• 2 Tbs fresh lemon juice
• 1 medium garlic clove, finely chopped
• ¾ tsp salt
• ¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper
• 1 ripe Haas avocado

Peel the carrots, cut in half lengthwise, then cut diagonally into one inch pieces. Cook carrots in salted boiling water until just done, about 5-6 minutes. Drain and immediately plunge into iced water to stop the cooking. Once cool, drain, dry and set aside in a bowl. This can be done up to a day ahead before serving.

Just prior to serving, chop the cilantro and whisk together the cilantro, chopped shallots, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper. (It will taste salty but the avocado needs it.) Peel and pit the avocado and slice into ½ inch long pieces. Add to the reserved carrots. Drizzle the dressing over top and toss.


Stir-fried Broccoli
Adapted from Mark Bittman’s How to Cook Everything
Yield: about 4 servings

• About 1 ½ lbs broccoli
• 2 Tbs peanut oil or other type of oil
• Salt to taste
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 cup chicken stock

Cut about an inch off of the end of the broccoli then strip the leaves off. Using a vegetable peeler, peel the tough outer skin off of the lower part. (As Mark Bittman says, do this “without going crazy” about it.) Slice into separate stalks. Separate the florets into small sections. Cut the remaining stalks into thin slices.

Heat the oil in a wok or deep skillet over medium-high heat. Once the oil begins to shimmer but is not smoking, add the broccoli. Stir fry about five minutes until the broccoli turns bright green and glossy. The edges may begin to brown.

Immediately add the salt, sugar, and stock. DO NOT cover but continue to cook, occasionally stirring, until almost all of the liquid is evaporated and the broccoli is tender, about five minutes more.


Roasted Cauliflower
Adapted from Cook’s Illustrated, January & February 2007
Yield: about 4-6 servings

• 2 lbs cauliflower (or one medium head)
• ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling (good olive oil makes a difference in this recipe)
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Put the oven rack on the lowest level and heat oven to 475 degrees. Trim the cauliflower of leaves and cut the stem approximately flush with the bottom. Place the head on a cutting board, head up. Using a long knife, cut into eight equal sized wedges by cutting first into half, then quarters, then eighths. You will be left with wedges that have core and florets intact.

Cover a jelly roll baking pan with aluminum foil. Place the cauliflower wedges on the pan. Drizzle 2 Tbs of the oil over the wedges. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Using your hands, rub the wedges, flipping as needed, to distribute the oil and seasonings evenly over all. Arrange wedges evenly across the pan. Cover baking sheet tightly with oil and place into the oven. Cook 10 minutes; remove foil; and roast for another 8-12 minutes until the bottoms are golden brown. Flip the wedges and roast another 8-12 minutes until second side is also golden brown. Remove from oven. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Drizzle more olive oil on top as desired.

March 1, 2008 – Starting Again

I’m just going to start right out with an optimistic, can-do-attitude-sounding title of “Starting Again.” Fact is, I’ve been in serious writer’s block. But, reality is, I use the recipes recorded in Food-Doings as a real tool in my kitchen. I refer to them over and over again. And, as a tool, I’ve let it become dull and out-of-date. See, I only put recipes in here that I really like. Because I’ve kept on cooking since the last time I wrote a Food-Doing, that means a lot of great recipes have gone unrecorded. So, now I’m motivated to get this going again and here I go.

I’m retiring, at least, from my paid job. It is time and, fortunately, we can do it. People ask me, “What are you going to do?” I say, “I’m just going to keep on doing what I already do but more of it. I’m going to cook more, walk more, and read more.” Other times I say, “So little time and so many things to cook.” Both sum up my feelings about retirement. Here’s some of the stuff I’ve been doing lately and plan to continue into retirement.

Last weekend, I went over to my niece Kellie’s house and spent the afternoon cooking with her, preparing the dinner meal for her home and our home. What a great way to spend time together! It turns out that she loves to chop things just like I do! (No one ever told me that before!) My Dad once suggested that I get one of those onion-chopping things you used to see on television. Personally, I would not want to be deprived the pleasure of hand-chopping an onion. Kellie feels the same way. We chopped; we browned; we braised and ended up with a superb braised chicken in Riesling wine that was really, really good. I’ve included that recipe below. (Thanks to Bruce, our wine guy, for the superb Riesling. Oregon Riesling is an under-appreciated wine.)

But speaking of onions, I have to tell you about this book I’m reading titled How to Read a French Fry by Russ Parsons. Despite the title, the Introduction is all about onions. So we’re visiting our friends Robin and Monica in Washington D.C. and I’m browsing through this book while waiting for a table in the attached restaurant section of this bookstore we’re at. I’m transfixed! Whoever knew there was so much stuff to know about an onion in terms of its chemistry and application to cooking. I bought the book on the spot and have been slowly making my way through it since. I recommend it for the person who is curious about the science behind food preparation. (The first chapter, which is in fact about French Fries, is like a doctoral dissertation about frying foods and both intimidates me while slyly seducing me toward taking up the challenge. I’m not quite ready.)

Recently, my friend Laurie brought in some brownies to work that, I believe, were made by her partner, Kathleen, who as I understand it, is more the cook in that happy family of three than Laurie. Anyway, they were simply fabulous! So I begged for the recipe which I’ve included below because, if you are a brownie fan (as my friend Joanne is), then you really have to try this one. So, Jo, this is going out for you. I think this one might just beat out your previous favorite brownie recipe. (Was that Bittman’s or Cooks Illustrated?)

Turns out, I had this recipe at hand and didn’t know it because I don’t usually make desserts. It comes from the series of books by Fran McCullough and Suzanne Hamlin titled The Best American Recipes. They started this series in 1999 and the brownie recipe, coincidentally, comes from this 1999 book. They then continued this series until 2006, each year having its own book. What they do is scour every conceivable source of printed recipes for the year (cookbooks, magazines, newpapers, newsletters, Internet, etc.) and pick out the best and print them for the year. Is that a great job or what!!! Unbelievably though, they quit this after their 2006 book, although they did also publish, in 2006, The 150 Best American Recipes, which was a compellation of the “best” from all the previous editions of The Best American Recipes. (By the way, the brownie recipe made it into the 150 best.) If you like simple, straight-forward and just-plain-good recipes, this final book would be an excellent addition to your cookbook collection.

Speaking of Joanne, she and Paul were over here not too long ago for one of our Sunday-Afternoon-To-Watch-Movies events. We had Vietnamese Sub Sandwiches which may sound just a little bit odd to some - but think of it as a Vietnamese-French fusion thing. They are very good and you should really try them. (We had it again the other night when watching the Oscars.) I’ve included that recipe below as well. Again, you don’t need to follow the recipe religiously. Throw in different herbs and vegetables if you want. Try mint and basil instead of cilantro. Finely chop some napa cabbage instead of bean sprouts. Whatever.

Finally, my sister Pat was over last night and I just love having her come over on Friday nights. Well, any night, really, but something about an end of the week thing for somebody who works as hard as she does seems more meaningful. (Actually, I think she works most of the weekend as well so it’s more symbolic than anything.) We just sit around the kitchen table, the three of us; we talk and eat. It’s very nice.

Last night, we had a sort of Tunisian Chickpea, Toasted Bread, Roasted Asparagus, Bacon and Poached Egg Stew with Chicken Broth and Harissa-Harous sauce dribbled over the top. I’m not going to include the recipe here because you should just think about it as a launching pad for your own ideas. The version we did was a variation of a recipe out of Paula Wolfert’s book The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen and can be pretty much adapted to most anything you have on hand. It’s best described as a “composed” stew rather than one in which you cook everything all together at the same time. The ingredients are done separately, then layered in your bowl with broth poured over the top. The broth is an important element – best if home-made and enhanced with further flavors. Cook the beans in the broth along with some added seasonings. (I used bay leaves and smashed garlic cloves.) Use toasted or stale bread torn up as the base in the bowl. Add your other ingredients into the bowl, including the beans now imbued with the broth, and then ladle the broth over it all. Top with flavorful toppings including herbs, olives, capers, or, in our case, a flavorful sauce such as Harissa. Last night we agreed that the Harissa-Harous sauce that came from Wolfert’s book really made it superb, and I would be happy to forward that recipe to whoever wants it. Be forewarned, it’s not difficult, but it does take a while to put it together.

So, in addition to the concept of composed stews, think about using stale or toasted bread in soups or stews. Wolfert talks about how common this is throughout the Mediterranean . Whole books have been written about what to do with stale bread. Think gazpacho and French onion soup. Expand your ideas from that. And, by the way, if you haven’t read Paula Wolfert before, she is definitely worth exploring.

Well, enough of the cooking and reading. Eat well, Enjoy the Small Things, and, Steve and I are off to do some walking to keep up with all of this eating.



Braised Chicken with Riesling
Adapted from Gourmet, March, 2008
Yield: 4 servings

• 1 whole chicken cut French style into 8 pieces (see note below)
• 1 Tbs vegetable oil & 3 Tbs butter
• Mixture of chopped leeks, shallots, garlic & onions (enough to fill the bottom of your heavy braising pan to about 3/4 inch)
• A bunch of mushrooms, halved if large – enough to make another layer in your braising pan
• Enough carrots to make a spare layer in your braising pan – whole if thin or halved (lengthwise) or quartered if larger
• Chicken Broth
• Bottle of Riesling (use some and drink the rest)
• ½ cup heavy cream or crème fraiche
• Lemon juice to taste
• 1 ½ lb. small red potatoes

Preheat oven to 350 degrees with rack in the middle.

Pat chicken dry and salt and pepper the pieces well. Heat the oil and butter in your braising pan. Add half of the chicken pieces and brown on both sides. Set aside on a plate and repeat with second half of the chicken. Pour off fat from pan.

Melt remaining 2 Tbs butter in pan and sauté the leek, shallots, garlic and onions over a low to medium-low heat until soft and lightly golden. Sprinkle some salt over them while sautéing. Add mushrooms and cook until liquid is released.

Add chicken, skin side up and layer carrots over the top. Pour in a mixture of chicken broth and Riesling to cover the ingredients. (You can make this as liquid as you want. If you want it really liquidy, you can serve the whole thing over rice. Less liquid, you can serve it on its own.) Heat up the liquid until simmering on the top of the stove then place into the oven, covered, 20-25 minutes.

Meanwhile, partially peel the red potatoes leaving a spiral of red peel on the potatoes as decoration. Cook in boiling salted water until just tender. Drain.
Remove chicken from oven when done. Stir in cream or crème fraiche. Squeeze a little lemon juice over it all. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add potatoes to the pot. Serve as is or over rice.

Note: A chicken cut French style is a really good thing to know but you can certainly make this dish using pre-cut chicken pieces. To cut up a chicken French-style, simply cut off the chicken thigh and leg pieces; separate the legs from the thighs; remove the back bone from the remaining carcass; cut the breast piece in half lengthwise (wings remaining attached); then cut each of the breast pieces in half crosswise (wings remaining on two of the pieces.) Then save the backbone in your freezer to make stock with. You then end up with 8 pieces of chicken to use in your dish.


Perfect Brownies
From The Best American Recipes 1999
Yield: 16 squares

• 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
• ½ tsp salt
• ½ tsp baking powder
• 4 oz bittersweet or semisweet chocolate
• 2 oz unsweetened chocolate
• 10 Tbs (1 stick plus 2 Tbs) unsalted butter
• 1 ¼ cups sugar
• 2 tsp vanilla extract
• 3 large eggs
• ¾ cup chopped walnuts, pecans, macadamia nuts or peanuts, toasted (optional)

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees and set the rack on the lower-middle level. Spray and 8 inch square baking pan with vegetable spray. Fit a 16 by 8 inch sheet of foil into the pan and up and over two sides so you can use the foil overhang as handles to pull the cooked brownies from the pan. Spray the foil with vegetable cooking spray.

Whisk together the flour, salt and baking powder in a small bowl. Set aside.

Melt the chocolates and butter in a medium bowl over a pan of simmering water (or in a double boiler). Remove from the heat and whisk in the sugar and vanilla. Whisk in the eggs one at a time fully incorporating each one before adding the next. Continue to whisk until the mixture is completely smooth and glossy. Add the dry ingredients and whisk until just incorporated. Stir in the nuts, if using.

Pour the batter into the prepared pan, smoothing the top. Bake until a cake tester or toothpick inserted into the center comes out with wet crumbs, 35-45 minutes. (Important, if the toothpick comes out clean, the brownies are overcooked.)

Cool the brownies in the pan on a wire rack for 5 minutes. Use the foil handles to pull the one big brownie from the pan and turn it out on the rack upside down to cool completely, at least 3 hours.
Cut the brownies into 16 squares and serve immediately.


Vietnamese Sub Sandwich
From Cuisine at Home, June, 2004
Yield: 4 sandwiches

• ¼ cup rice wine vinegar
• 2 tsp sugar
• Salt to taste
• ¾ cup carrot, julienned
• ¾ cup cucumber, seeded, thinly sliced into half-moons
• ¾ cup fresh bean sprouts
• ¼ cup fresh cilantro, chopped
• 1 lb ground pork
• 1 Tbs fresh ginger, minced
• 3 scallions, chopped
• 2 tsp chili garlic sauce
• 1 24 inch baguette, cut into fourths
• 4 Tbs unsalted butter
• ¼ cup mayonnaise
• 4 oz deli ham or bologna
• Asian chile oil to taste (optional)

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Combine vinegar, sugar and salt in a bowl, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Add carrot, cucumber, bean sprouts and cilantro; chill.

Sauté pork, ginger, scallions, chili garlic sauce and salt in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, breaking up chunks with a spoon. Sauté until cooked through; set aside and keep warm.

Slice each portion of baguette in half along the side; do not cut all the way through. Spread the inside of each with butter and toat in the oven until golden and edges are crisp, about 5 minutes.

Spread some mayonnaise inside each baguette, then line with slices of deli meat (mid-center of meat aligned with mid-center of partially cut baguette.) Add some of the cooked port (reheat briefly if necessary), and top with some of the marinated vegetables. Drizzle with chile oil before serving. Use plenty of napkins to eat.

March 8, 2008 – He Cooks, She Cooks

“So, what should I cook tonight?” he asks, while we sit reading the morning paper. As it currently stands, Steve has the role of cooking dinner on the days I go to work, and this was, in fact, one of those days. Other days, it’s more me than him who decides what we are going to eat and who does the preparations. Still, it’s often a shared planning and doing activity, depending upon what we are cooking, whether there are guests, and whatever else is going on. This conversation of “What should we eat tonight?” is just part of our daily regimen. It goes with our morning crossword puzzle.

Steve has commented to me in the past that he has more difficulty coming up with ideas about what to cook than I do. I’m not sure if that is true or not. It is true that we, like everyone else, both gravitate toward things that are more familiar to us when “on the line” to come up with something. Those days, for us, are when we are busy doing other stuff and haven’t had time to both ponder and cook something more inspired. On those days, I often turn to eggs – scrambled, poached or fried, served on something – a green salad, roasted asparagus, toasted bread, or whatever. We both turn to flour tortillas that have been liberally sprinkled with grated cheese, broiled, then piled high with dressed green salad and folded up to eat. It’s one of my favorite meals!

But, at the best of times, one does have the time to both ponder and cook at leisure and, at those times, I often like to try out new things. Remember the theme – “So little time and so many things to cook!”

So, on this morning, I happen to have a small stack of cookbooks sitting next to me because I was perusing them while waiting for the morning paper to arrive. I pick one up, leaf through it, and offer several suggestions. He notes them, verbally, but, even at the time, I thought he didn’t seem inspired by them. That’s okay, I think. He has his own process going, starting to simmer on its own.

It’s funny how this goes. You read something. You see something at the store, at the market, or a restaurant. You hear somebody talk about something. Or, some combination of these things. And it all comes together with a germ of an idea for something to cook. Something to create. Sometimes, it’s sitting there in the back of your mind, unnoticed. Sometimes, it’s an immediate issue like “Gosh, we have to cook up those collard greens from the garden soon because we need to start planting things.” Often, it’s merely a result of just taking stock of what’s in the refrigerator and pantry.

But, at the end of it all, you come up with a plan of what you are going to cook. Or, more inspirationally, you think, “I’m going to take (name your ingredient, concept, or idea) and change it in this way (name your ingredient, concept, or idea) and combine it with (name your ingredient, concept, or idea.) And, then you start the next level of thinking such as what gets added when; what needs to be prepped first; and “Oh, wouldn’t that be good in there!” or, maybe, “I’ve got to be careful with this because I totally screwed this up last time.” And, you’ve got to keep open to changing things as they go depending on how it evolves.

That night, I came home to a fabulous lasagna with asparagus, proscuitto, and cheese crafted by Steve. Now, that was inspired and not like anything I had suggested that morning! Some background on this evolution of an idea. First off, Steve and I were strolling through Trader Joe’s the other day and he was taken by their lasagna noodles and said something about “Maybe we should try a lasagna sometime.” Secondly, he’s been commenting about asparagus being recently on sale. Finally, when I came home, there was a printed recipe for Asparagus Lasagna from Food Network sitting on the counter, but, as Steve said, “Well, you can look at that but it doesn’t really match what I did.” So, for the guy who says he has a tougher time coming up with things to cook, all I can say is it looks like he had something percolating in the back of his brain, maybe inspired by something he saw at the store, taking account of what’s currently available, then took a recipe he sought out and changed it to his vision. And, in the process, created something great.

So, I’m including three of Steve’s recipes today. One is, of course, his version of Asparagus Lasagna. The second is an excellent Spaghetti with Collard Greens and Bacon (because we really did have to use up those collards in order to plant new stuff and his version is really, really good.) The third is more of a technique that he found on the Internet rather than a recipe and can be used for cooking any type of dried bean that you have. It dispels the notions that you have to soak dried beans overnight before cooking and that you shouldn’t salt beans before cooking. And, it’s mostly done in the oven so there’s no hovering over the stove testing and re-testing the beans to see if they are done. The technique below is just the basics. Feel free to be creative with it. Use some type of stock instead of water. Add onions, shallots, or leeks. Throw in fresh or dried herbs – rosemary, thyme, bay leaves, oregano, marjoram, cilantro, parsley, mint, basil, etc. Throw in some hot peppers to get some heat. And, of course, there is always pork products – a little chopped salt pork, bacon, or ham hock.

Eat well. Enjoy the Small Things. And, ask yourself “What should I cook tonight?”



Asparagus & Proscuitto Lasagna
Yield: 8-10 servings

• 1 lb asparagus, trimmed
• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 15-20 crimini mushrooms, trimmed and sliced
• 5 Tbs unsalted butter
• Instant (no-boil) lasagna noodles – enough to make three layers in your baking dish
• 3 Tbs all-purpose flour
• ¾ cup chicken or vegetable broth
• ¼ cup water
• 6-8 ounces ricotta cheese
• 1 tsp freshly grated lemon zest
• Juice of ½ lemon
• 1 pkg basil, stems removed, torn up or chopped
• 2 oz thinly sliced prosciutto, cut into rough 2 by 2 inch squares
• 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan

Preheat oven to 500 degrees with rack in the middle.

In a large, shallow baking dish, toss the asparagus stalks with the oil, coating them well. Roast, shaking the pan occasionally, for 5-10 minutes until crisp-tender. Remove from oven. Salt to taste. Cut into ½ inch lengths and reserve.

Reduce oven heat to 375 degrees.

Saute the mushrooms in 1 Tbs of butter along with a sprinkling of salt until just barely soft and liquid has evaporated.

Meanwhile, soak the sheets of lasagna in a large bowl of cold water for 15 minutes.

Melt remaining 4 Tbs of the butter in a saucepan; add the flour; and cook the roux over medium low heat, whisking constantly, for 3 minutes. Add the broth and the water continuing to whisk while adding and simmer for 5 minutes. Whisk in the ricotta cheese, lemon zest, lemon juice and salt to taste. Continue cooking, whisking, until sauce is smooth. Set aside.

Drain the pasta well. Ladle ¼ of the sauce into bottom of an 8 by 12 inch baking dish. Layer 1/3 of the pasta sheets over the sauce to create the next layer. Ladle another ¼ of the sauce on top of the pasta. Strew ½ of the asparagus pieces, ½ of the mushrooms, ½ of the basil, ½ of the prosciutto, and 1/3 of the parmesan over the sauce. Repeat with another layer of pasta, ¼ of the sauce, ½ of the asparagus, ½ of the mushrooms, ½ of the basil, ½ of the prosciutto and 1/3 of the parmesan. Add your last layer of pasta and top with remaining sauce and parmesan.

Bake for 45-60 minutes until golden and bubbling. Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.


Spaghetti with Collard Greens and Bacon
Adapted from Gourmet, July, 2003
Yield: 4-6 main course servings

• ½ lb bacon, sliced into ½ inch pieces
• ¾ cup pine nuts
• ¾ cup finely chopped shallots
• 6 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 tsp dried hot red pepper flakes
• 2 Tbs olive oil
• 1 ½ lbs collard greens, stems and center ribs removed and leaves chopped
• ¼ tsp salt
• 1 cps water
• 1 lb dried spaghetti or other pasta of your choice
• 1 lb grape or cherry tomatoes
• 1 cp Parmesan cheese shavings (made with a vegetable peeler)

Saute bacon in heavy Dutch Oven pan over moderate heat until crisp, about 5 minutes, then drain on paper towels. Pour off all but 3 Tbs bacon fat from pot.

Add pine nuts to pot and cook over medium low heat, stirring, until golden, about 2 minutes. Transfer to paper towels to drain.

Add shallots to pot and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until softened, about 4 minutes. Add garlic and red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, 1 minute.

Add oil and half of the greens and cook, stirring, until slightly wilted, about 1 minute. Add remaining greens and salt and continue to cook, stirring, until greens are crisp-tender, about 2 minutes more. Add water and cover pot, then simmer greens, stirring occasionally until just tender, about 15 minutes.

While collards are simmering, cook pasta in a 6-8 quart pot of boiling salted water until al dente. Drain pasta, and add it to the collards along with the tomatoes. Cook over moderately high heat, stirring constantly, 1 minute. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve topped with bacon, pine nuts and cheese shavings.



Oven Cooked Dried Beans: A Technique

• Dried beans
• Water
• Salt (1 Tbs water for every 1.75 lb of beans)
• Pot with tight-fitting lid

Preheat oven to 250 degrees.

Put beans into pot and do a quick visual inspection of the beans. (No need to rinse or sort with our modern packed beans.) Add enough cold water to cover beans by about 1 ½ inches. If any “unfortunate, misshapen or broken beans” float to the top, throw them out. Salt the water. Cover and bring to a boil on top of the stove.

Transfer the whole pot, still covered, into the oven. After about 40 minutes, inspect the beans to check for whether they need additional water. If so, add boiling water. Cook for a total oven time of 75 minutes then check to see whether they are done. Most of the time they are unless you have really, really old beans. There you go, perfect beans.

March 15, 2008 – Mr. Bertinet

Maybe the first hint of an idea came from my brother, Mike, when he e-mailed me in response to a recent Food-Doing saying, “You know what might be real fun too, would be to start including some digital pictures of the food, preparation, and final plating.” Yes, I thought, seeing things does help sometimes. I shared this thought with Steve as he, not me, has the technical skills to actually accomplish this and maybe this will happen here someday. One problem is I don’t always know I’m going to write about something until it, the food, is long gone. But, we’ll work on this.

Then, I came across a short blurb in our local newspaper’s weekly food section about online cooking videos. I thought that might be fun to explore sometime and put it aside.

But THEN, Richard Bertinet entered my life. I confess, Mr. Bertinet (pronounced in a very charming accent as “Bear-ti-nay”) doesn’t know he entered my life, but, in fact, he did. And he did so via the March, 2008 Gourmet magazine in which Richard Bertinet, the master baker from Brittany who also has a cooking school in Bath , England , shares his perfect recipe for versatile sweet dough.

Normally, a “sweet dough” recipe would not cause me to pause. However, in this case, it was one of the adaptations of his basic sweet dough recipe (which, turns out, is not that sweet) that caused me to stop and re-look at the whole thing. This was a recipe for “Bacon Pastry Slices.” (Think of it as a savory pastry reminiscent of croque-monsieurs). I had a brunch coming up that I needed to bring something to so I thought “Maybe this is it.”

The magazine article about this basic dough recipe does discuss that this is a very wet dough that you don’t want to incorporate extra flour into it, and that it requires a special technique for working it. In fact, it says, “We can’t emphasize enough that you shouldn’t be alarmed by the wetness of the dough.” I have to say, when they start talking about “being alarmed” in a cooking discussion, my curiosity gets piqued. The article included some pictures of how to work the dough but also referenced a video about it that was available on Gourmet.com.

So, I went to the video and I came away with several convictions. First, those magazine pictures don’t do justice as to just how wet this dough really is. Second, Richard Bertinet is one very cute guy. And, third, I’ve never seen anyone make bread-making look both so sexy and a physical work out all at the same time!

I’m not going to ruin your first look at this video. (I’ve now seen it about eight times!) Just be prepared for him really slapping and stretching that dough around. And statements like, “Be sure you relax while you do it. Use your whole body from your toes to the top of your head.” And, best of all, him blowing a little “puff” of flour at you at the end while saying “Come to Bath . It would be a pleasure for me to share my passion with you.” (All this, of course, in a very sexy accent.)

Seriously, though, if you do proceed with making this dough and its adaptations (recipes included below), DO watch this video first because it IS a little alarming how wet and sticky this dough is to begin with and how miraculously it changes with a bit of manual labor applied to it. In this case, seeing things helped considerably in allaying that sense of alarm and keeping us from adding more flour. The Bacon Pastry Slices are to die for. I took them to the brunch I went to. (And, let me take this opportunity to welcome to Food-Doings those regular attendees of this monthly brunch: Mary Anne, Quince, Faith, Marilyn & Deb.) We had the rest of them with Joanne and Paul for a Sunday movie-watching.

We made the Orange and Mint loaves next. One loaf went to work and was immediately scarfed up. Half of the other loaf went to our neighbor, Shirley, who also loved it. I think it is best toasted and slathered with butter or used for a ham or turkey sandwich.

But, back to Richard Bertinet. I was truly impressed and inspired by how helpful this video was in terms of conveying technique in a way that words and mere pictures could never do, at least for me. So, Steve and I launched an exploration of other videos available on the Internet to see what was out there.

Mr. Bertinet is at http://www.gourmet.com/magazine/video/2008/03/bertinet_sweetdough I’d skip the rest of the videos at Gourmet’s site. You get stuff about esoteric ingredients like Sake Lees, Geoduck clams, and cardoons; plus a bunch of rather tedious “Diaries of a Foodie.” But I couldn’t find any other good videos that would actually help my cooking outside of Bertinet’s.

Both Finecooking.com and Cooksillustrated.com have a few good videos but both limit full access to their website unless you pay a fee. Fine Cooking’s site has several free videos with Peter Rinehart (another master baker and producer of really good bread-making books) showing how to shape pizza dough, and make calzone and stromboli with pizza dough. Cooks Illustrated’s site includes some free videos about how to chop greens; how to frost a layer cake; and how to make sticky rice.

Skip Bonappetit.com completely unless you want to hear Eric Ripert (chef) talk about how to buy fresh seafood, which is the only video I could locate and not worth the time.

Youtube.com has an array of interesting videos (search “Cooking) but none that really met my goal of advancing knowledge or technique. It does have an amusing “Cooking with Dave: Fish and Chips.” And it certainly wins in the breadth of topics category. You have “Cooking with Marijuana,” “Cooking with a Goth,” “Cooking Methamphetamines,” “Cooking Worms in Hanoi ,” and, a somewhat funny “Trailer Park Cooking” series.

But the hands-down winner is a Canadian site that was cited in that earlier newspaper article I saved, http://rouxbe.com . As the article said, “The videos are beautifully shot, very informative, and extremely detailed.” It is clearly worth seeking out. You can sign up for a free 30 day trial period. After that, you can either pay a fee for ongoing access that is advertisement-free ($4 per month or $49 per year, of which a percent goes to feeding hungry children in developing countries) or continue free access but have advertisements that go with it.

In addition to Bertinet’s recipes, I’m including one for Roasted-Garlic Soufflé below. This turned out wonderfully and, Mike, it would have been a great picture coming out of the oven. Out of the oven, it had puffed up to about 1 ½ inches above the pan. (It deflated to pan level pretty soon but it was still very light and airy.) Having a video about how to make it would have been helpful – specifically about how to fold the stiff egg whites into the batter. I wasn’t sure I was doing it right and, when I put it into the oven, I said to Steve, “I don’t think that’s going to make it.” But it did, so it seems to be pretty forgiving. It would make a great side dish for roast chicken or beef or a main vegetarian dish.

Eat well. Enjoy the Small Things. And go watch Mr. Bertinet do his thing!.


Sweet Dough
Adapted from Gourmet, March, 2008
Yield: Makes enough for 2 large loaves or 12 individual pastries

• 1 cup plus 2 Tbs whole milk
• ¼ ounce package active dry yeast or ¼ ounce instant yeast (3-1/2 tsp)
• 18 ounces bread flour (about 3 ¾ cups)
• 3 Tbs granulated sugar, sifted through a strainer
• 1/2 stick unsalted butter
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 large eggs

Heat milk to 120 – 130 degrees.

Rub yeast into flour in a large bowl, then rub in butter. Stir in sugar and salt. Fold in milk and eggs with flexible plastic bowl scraper or large spatula, rotating bowl, until liquid is absorbed and a wet, sticky dough forms. Scrape dough out onto an unfloured surface.

Following the technique on the video, slide your fingers underneath both sides of dough with your thumbs on top. Lift dough up (to about chest level) with your thumbs toward you, letting dough hang slightly. In a continuous motion, swing dough down, slapping bottom of dough onto surface, then stretch dough up and back over itself in an arc to trap in air. Repeat lifting, slapping, and stretching, scraping surface with flat side of scraper as needed, until dough is supple, cohesive, and starts to bounce slightly off of surface without sticking, about 8 minutes.

Transfer dough to a lightly floured clean surface. Form into a ball by folding each edge, in turn, into center of dough and pressing down well with your thumb, rotating ball as you go. Turn ball over and transfer to a lightly floured bowl, then cover with a kitchen towel (not terry cloth). Let rise in a draft-free place at warm room temperature until doubled, about 1 hour.


Bacon Pastry Slices
Adapted from Gourmet, March, 2008
Yield: 12 pastries

• Sweet dough (see recipe above) risen
• 2 Tbs unsalted butter
• 2 ½ Tbs all-purpose flour
• 1 cup whole milk
• Pinch of grated nutmeg
• ¼ lb Gruyere cheese, grated
• 12 thin slices pancetta
• 1 large egg beaten with a pinch of salt

Make béchamel while dough is rising. Heat butter in a small heavy saucepan until melted and bubbling. Remove from heat and whisk in flour. Slowly whisk in milk until smooth. Return to medium low heat and bring to a gentle simmer, whisking. Cook, whisking, 1 minute. Stir in nutmeg and the cheese. Whisk, until melted, and remove from heat. Season with salt and pepper if needed. Cover surface with waxed paper and set aside.

Gently release dough from bowl with scraper onto a lightly floured surface (do not punch down.) Roll out into a rectangle slightly larger than 20 by 15 inches. You can trim the edges to make them straight, or do as I did, leave the minor irregularities. Cut into 12 (5 inch) squares by cutting dough crosswise into 4 strips and lengthwise into 3 strips.

Spoon about a heaping Tbs of Béchamel sauce into the center of each square and fold 2 opposite corners over it, overlapping them slightly. Place a pancetta slice on top and transfer with a spatula to a baking sheet. Assemble remaining pastries, dividing them between 2 baking sheets. Cover with wax paper and a kitchen towel and let rise in a draft-free warm place until puffy, about 45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees with racks in upper and lower thirds. Lightly brush dough with egg wash and bake, switching position of sheets halfway through baking, until deep golden, about 15 minutes. Cool to warm on a rack.

NOTE: Bacon squares can be assembled and let to rise 1-2 days ahead, then chilled, covered: they can be baked chilled.


Orange and Mint Loaves
Adapted from Gourmet, March, 2008
Yield: 2 large loaves

• 1 recipe Sweet Dough made with mint-infused milk (see directions below)
• 1 bunch mint
• 1 Tbs grated orange zest
• 1 Tbs Cointreau or other orange-flavored liqueur
• 1 large egg beaten with a pinch of salt

Make mint infused milk for Sweet Dough. Bring milk (1 cup plus 2 Tbs) and 1 bunch mint to a simmer in a small saucepan then remove from heat. Let stand, covered, 1 hour. Strain through a sieve, discard mint, and return milk to saucepan. Reheat before using for Sweet Dough recipe.

While Sweet Dough is rising, stir together zest and liqueur. Once risen, gently release risen dough from bowl with scraper onto a lightly floured surface, then flatten slightly and spread with zest mixture. Fold dough in half several times, then work, slapping and stretching dough as described in sweet-dough recipe, until zest mixture is incorporated. Form into a ball and transfer to a lightly floured bowl. Cover with a kitchen towel (not terry cloth) and let rise again in a draft-free warm place for about an hour.

Again, gently release dough from bowl with scraper onto a lightly floured surface (do not punch down) and divide into 2 pieces. Form each piece into a ball. Flatten 1 ball with heel of your hand into a rectangle about 8 by 6 inches. Fold a long edge into center and press seam down with heel of your hand. Fold opposite edge over to meet in center, pressing seam. Fold in half along seam, pressing edges to seal. Put, seam side down, on a lightly buttered large baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough.

Brush tops of loaves with egg wash (chill remainder) and let stand a few minutes until egg feels dry. Cover with kitchen towel and let rise in a draft-free place at warm room temperature until almost doubled and feels springy when gently prodded, about 1 ½ hours.
Preheat oven to 425 degrees with rack in middle.

Brush top of each loaf again with egg wash. Holding a pair of scissors at a 45 degree angle, make snips along top in a line down the center of each loaf. Transfer to oven and immediately reduce temperature to 400 degrees. Bake until loaves are dark golden brown, 20-30 minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool.

NOTE: We refrigerated the dough overnight after the last rising, brought it out to sit at room temperature for a little bit in the morning, then baked it for 30 minutes.


Roasted Garlic Soufflé
Adapted from Gourmet, March, 2008
Note: original recipe used more cheese than I used as noted below so feel free to cheese-up if you want
Yield: 8-10 side dish servings

• 3 large heads garlic, left whole, plus 3 garlic cloves, smashed
• 1 Tbs olive oil
• 2 ½ cups whole milk
• 1 medium onion, sliced
• 4 large thyme sprigs
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 whole clove
• 1/8 tsp black peppercorns
• 7 Tbs unsalted butter
• 1 ½ Tbs fine dry bread crumbs
• 5 Tbs all-purpose flour
• 4 large eggs separated, plus 4 additional egg whites
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• ¼ tsp grated nutmeg
• ½ cup grated Gruyere

Preheat oven to 400 degrees with rack in the middle.

Trim ¼ inch from tops of whole heads of garlic. Place on a large sheet of foil and drizzle each with the olive oil. Wrap them all up together in the foil, seams on top, and roast until very tender 50 minutes to an hour. Cool until you can handle them then squeeze garlic from the skins. Place into a bowl and smash into smooth using a pestle.

Meanwhile, bring milk, smashed garlic cloves, onion, thyme, bay, clove and peppercorns just to a boil in a medium saucepan. Remove from heat, cover, and let steep for 30 minutes.

Using 1 Tbs of the butter, butter an 8-by-12 inch rectangular baking dish or 12-inch oval baking dish. Sprinkle bottom and side with bread crumbs. Chill until ready to use.

Melt remaining 6 Tbs butter in a heavy medium saucepan and whisk in flour. Cook roux over low heat, whisking constantly, 5 minutes.

Strain milk mixture through a fine-mesh sieve, then add to roux, whisking until smooth. Bring to a boil, whisking, then simmer bechamel, whisking, 3 minutes. Remove from heat and vigorously whisk in yolks, 1 at a time. Wisk in mashed roasted garlic, parmesan, nutmeg, ¾ tsp salt, and ¼ tsp pepper and transfer to a bowl.

Beat egg whites with a pinch of salt using an electric mixture until they just hold stiff peak. Using a big, wide rubber spatula, fold in one third of the egg whites into the béchamel. (Note: folding is different from stirring. Lift deep into the pan, then sweep around the side, then drag across the surface. It’s like blending with a palette knife.) Fold in gruyere then fold in remaining egg whites. Transfer mixture to baking dish smoothing over the top. Bake soufflé until set and browned at on top, 20-25 minutes.

March 30, 2008 – March is Going Out Like a Lion

Two days ago, Steve and I were sitting at the kitchen table in the morning, reading the paper, and pondering the day. He glances up out the window and says, “It’s snowing!” I, too, am a little startled. Not only is snow rare here in general, it is extremely rare for this time of the year. And, that morning, it snowed for HOURS - not that any of it stuck after hitting the ground. Still, as Steve says, “It’s almost baseball season! What’s it doing snowing?” Then he laments, “None of my vegetables will be growing!” because, you see, he has already put some early spring seeds into the ground in eager anticipation of the growing season.

Yesterday morning as I prepared to go out for a walk alone (because Steve had already announced that it was too cold and wet for him), I glance out the window and it is sleeting. I wander into the office and say to Steve, “I don’t suppose I should delay this walk just because it is sleeting.” (Actually, I went anyway. It’s all about layers.)

Late yesterday afternoon, I’m in the kitchen chopping stuff up, prepping for dinner and I look out and it is hailing. Some minutes later, it is snowing. More minutes later, it is sleeting. Back to hail, then to snow, then to sleet – and this, too, goes on for about 1 ½ hours. This time, it does accumulate on our cars.

Oh, and guess what, as I sit here writing this, another wet, slushy snow is falling from the sky outside my window. This is all highly unusual.

You know, we’re supposed to be getting out of what I call the braising season, working into the sauté-with-spring-vegetables season, as we head into the summer season of sliced ripe tomatoes, green beans and corn. Doesn’t feel like it lately, though.

It will come, though. But before we leave our cold weather, I do want to pass on a few recipes that are just perfect for these times. First, I’ve included a superb French Onion soup that is simple to prepare (because it is mostly done in the oven instead of standing over the stove for hours stirring and cooking down those onions) and so very much better than what you usually get in restaurants. Long, slow cooking of onions is essential for meltingly great French Onion soup. Plus, cutting the onion in the correct manner and multiple deglazings of the pan in the end are key techniques. Although not traditional, I like it made with all chicken broth. (Steve likes a mixture of chicken and beef.) Also not traditional, I like to put my pre-broiled cheese toast in the bottom of the bowl, then pour the hot soup over it rather that floating it on the top and running it under the broiler before serving. Finally, I like thicker slices of chewier bread than the traditional thinner sliced French baguette for the cheese toasts. But, do what you like. (It’s hard to imagine making it bad.)

Second, I’ve included an improved version of what is often referred to as “Kneadless Bread.” This version comes from Cooks Illustrated and is more accurately called “Almost Kneadless Bread.” But, don’t worry, it just takes about 10-15 kneads to get this dough to come together at the end. And the addition of some lager beer and a bit of vinegar to the batter brings out a great yeasty smell, some tang, and a higher rise. While this recipe takes a while from start to finished product, it is mostly untended so you can go on about your regular life while great bread is being created, growing away on your counter.

Finally, a simple salad dressing that goes really well with winter greens like escarole. Throw in some orange or grapefruit sections (both easily available over the winter months) for a more dressed up version, add some kalamata olives and sliced avocado, or some goat cheese and toasted nuts for a more substantial salad. This dressing can also be used over sautéed fish like snapper or tilapia (in this case, at room temperature.)


Eat well. Enjoy the Small Things. And Begone, March, you Lion!.



French Onion Soup
Adapted from Cooks Illustrated, January-February, 2008
Yield: Serves 6

• 3 Tbs unsalted butter, cut into 3 pieces
• 4 lbs yellow onions, halved and cut pole to pole into ¼ inch slices
• Salt
• 1-3 cups water
• ½ cup dry sherry
• 6 cups chicken broth (preferably home-made or, alternatively Swansons) or 4 cups chicken and 2 cups beef broth (if not home-made, Pacific Beef Broth is preferred)
• 6 sprigs fresh thyme, tied with kitchen twine
• 1 bay leaf
• Ground black pepper
• Rustic country bread, cut into ¾ inch slices and cut down, if needed to fit inside individual serving bowls.
• Gruyere cheese, coarsely shredded

Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and heat oven to 400 degrees. Generously spray inside of heavy-bottomed at least 7 quart Dutch oven with nonstick cooking spray. Place butter in pot and add onions and 1 tsp salt. (They will nearly fill the pot.) Cook, covered, 1 hour until onions are moist and slightly reduced in volume. Remove pot from oven and stir onions, scraping bottom and sides of pot with flat-ended wooden spatula. Return pot to oven with lid slightly ajar and continue to cook until onions are very soft and golden brown, 1 ½ - 1 ¾ hours longer, stirring onions and scraping bottom and sides of pot after 1 hour.

Remove pot from oven and place over medium-high heat. Cook onions, stirring frequently and scraping bottom and sides of pot, until liquid evaporates and onions brown, 15-20 minutes, reducing heat to medium if onions are browning too quickly. Continue cooking and stirring, but apply less pressure to the bottom of the pot while stirring so that a dark crust, or fond, begins to accumulate, 6-8 minutes adjusting heat as needed. Then add ¼ cup water and scrape up the fond stirring it back into the onions until water evaporates. Let another fond form while stirring lightly and deglaze that with ¼ cup water. Do this step again for the third time, and perhaps fourth, until onions are deeply browned. Stir in sherry and cook, stirring, until sherry evaporates, about 5 minutes.

Stir in broth and 1 cup water, reserving another 1 cup water to add later if, after tasting, it seems desirable to add. Add thyme, bay leaf, and ½ tsp salt, scraping up any final bits of browned crust on bottom and sides of pot. Increase heat to high and bring to simmer. Reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer 30 minutes. Taste, mid-ways, and decide if you want to add any remaining water. Remove and discard herbs and check for seasoning with salt and pepper.

Meanwhile, spread out slices of bread on a sheet and lightly toast under the broiler. Turn over and lightly toast second side. Remove from oven, cover with ¼ - 3/8 inch thick layer of grated cheese, put back under broiler until melted.

Place cheese toast into bottom of individual serving bowls and ladle warm soup over the top.

Almost No-Knead Bread
Adapted from Cooks Illustrated, January-February, 2008
Yield: 1 large round loaf

• 3 cups (15 ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour plus additional for dusting work surface
• ¼ tsp instant yeast
• 1 ½ tsps kosher salt
• ¾ cup plus 2 Tbs water (7 oz) at room temperature
• ¼ cup plus 2 Tbs (3 oz) mild-flavored lager beer (We used Henry Weinhards)
• 1 Tbs white vinegar

Whisk flour, yeast, and salt in large bowl. Add water, beer and vinegar, Using rubber spatula, fold mixture, scraping up dry flour from bottom of bowl until shaggy ball forms. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 8-18 hours.

Lay 12 by 18 inch sheet of parchment paper inside 10 inch skillet and spray with nonstick cooking spray. Transfer dough to lightly floured work surface and knead 10 to 15 times until it becomes smooth and pliable. Shape dough into a ball by pulling edges into middle. Transfer dough seam-side down to parchment lined skilled and spray surface of dough with nonstick cooking spray. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature until dough has doubled in size and does not readily spring back when poked with a finger, about 2 hours.

About 30 minutes before baking, adjust oven rack to lowest position, place 6-8 quart heavy bottomed Dutch oven (with lid) on rack, and heat oven to 500 degrees. Lightly flour top of the dough and, using razor blade or sharp knife, make one 6 inch long, ½ inch deep slit along top of dough. Carefully remove hot pot from the oven and remove the lid. Pick up dough by lifting parchment overhang (one hand grasping each of the two overhangs cradling the dough in the middle) and carefully lower it into the hot pot. Let excess parchment hang over pot edge. Cover pot and place in oven. Reduce oven temperature to 425 degrees and bake covered for 30 minutes. Remove lid and continue to bake until loaf is deep brown and instant-read thermometer inserted into center registers 210 degrees, 20-30 minutes longer. (NOTE: if you don’t want a hole in the top of your loaf from the thermometer, lift the loaf out of the pan, flip over, and insert it into the bottom.) When done, transfer to wire rack and cool.


Orange, Cumin and Cilantro Dressing
Adapted from rouxbe.com
Yield: 1 ¼ cups dressing

• 2 cups freshly squeezed orange juice, seeds removed but pulp remaining
• 1 tsp cumin seeds
• 1 cup coarsely chopped cilantro
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 pinches cayenne
• ¼ cup oil

Put orange juice in sauce pan over medium high heat and reduce by half. When reduced, pour out of hot dish to cool.

Toast cumin seed in medium frying pa over medium heat until slightly brown and aromatic. Set aside to cool. When cool, grind to a medium fine grain in a coffee grinder.

Place cooled orange juice, cumin seed, and all remaining ingredients in a food processor and blend until smooth.

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© 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008 Deborah Young