winter

Currant Cream Scones

March 8, 2012

Exceptionally easy to make. these scones would be a wonderful weekend treat. Although we understand that many of us are trying to cut calories rather than add them, this is a great recipe and these are so delicious, we think they are worth the occasional splurge. Not too sweet, they are best served warm with a choice of clotted cream, butter, preserves and/or honey.

2 c. unbleached all-purpose flour
2 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 c. sugar
6 oz. dried currants
1 1/3 c. cream
2 Tbls. butter, melted
1 1/2 Tbls. sugar

Makes 8 wedges.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

In a large bowl, combine flour, baking powder, salt, sugar, and currants. Stir in cream. Mix until dough just begins to come together (it will be sticky). Turn it out onto a floured work surface and knead briefly (just enough ot bring dough together). Pat into an 8-inch circle. Brush with melted butter. Sprinkle with sugar. Cut into 8 wedges and place each wedge one inch apart on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper. Bake for 17 minutes, or until just golden brown.

Note: Serve warm. These can be reheated in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes.

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Cooking Habit

February 24, 2012


It is not just dedication and inspiration that keeps us going to the farmers markets during the winter months, it is habit. Twyla Tharp, one of the most famous ballet choreographers has a great book titled The Creative Habit. It is not a new book, but it is noteworthy and packed with the some of the best advice. She says that creativity is not a gift from the god, but rather the product of preparation and effort. This applies to most things in life and is certainly true for cooking. It does take effort to shop at the farmers markets in the winter months and preparation to plan a meal and then cook. But, beginning the cooking process with a ritual, can make it easier to decide what to cook.

From the Farmers Market: Sweet Potato

Recipe: Quinoa, Wild Rice and Sweet Potato
Adapted from Plenty – a hearty, yet healthy dish. Serves 4-6

2 medium sweet potatoes
olive oil
1 c. wild rice
1 c. quinoa
2 cloves garlic
1 Tbls. shredded fresh sage leaves
1 Tbls. shredded fresh oregano leaves
1 lime
2 Tbls. shredded mint
2 green onions, sliced thinly
feta cheese, crumbled, optional

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Peel and dice sweet potatoes into 1-inch pieces. Spread onto a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil, add salt and a little pepper and roast for about 20 minutes. Cook rice according to package, but use olive oil instead of butter if that is what it calls for. Cook quinoa also in accordance with package. Place finished wild rice and quinoa into a bowl. In the pan you used to cook rice, about 3 Tbls. olive oil and sauté garlic, sage and oregano, just for a minute. Pour over rice and quinoa. Add roasted potatoes, chopped mint and onions, a squeeze of fresh lemon juice and mix. Top with feta cheese, optional.

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Winter: Parsley, Radish and Celery Salad with Capers

January 31, 2012

This is such a simple salad, considering how delicious it tastes. We eat so many foods in the winter that are roasted, braised or pureed, that it is nice to have a salad with lots of crunch. And, it is a good way to use up celery, which always seems to wilt in our fridge. You can either start a meal or end it with this salad.

(adapted from Simon Hopkinson’s The Vegetarian Option)

Serves 6
1 lg. bunch Italian (flat leaf) parsley, leaves only, washed, dried and roughly torn
1/2 lb. radishes (preferably the long French ones), trimmed and quartered
2 lg. shallots, peeled and very finely sliced
8-9 heart of celery stalks, cut into matchstick pieces
1 heaping Tbls. capers, along with another Tbls. of caper brine
1 lemon, juiced
Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 c. best-quality extra virgin olive oil
Mix all the ingredients together in a large bowl and turn out onto individual serving plates or one big platter.  Delicious with good crusty bread.

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Cinnamon Cake Doughnuts

December 27, 2011

Jewish or not, homemade doughnuts are a treat. We tried these a couple of years ago with friends on the last night of Hanukkah. The most important thing is to heat the frying oil to a high temperature. If you place the dough into a less-than-hot oil, your doughnuts will sink — as ours did when we first tried this recipe. We have been perfecting it each year.

Makes 24- 30 smaller doughnuts.

For the Cinnamon Sugar:
1/2 c. superfine sugar
3/4 tsp. ground cinnamon
Pinch of ground cardamom
Pinch of fine-grain Kosher salt

For the Doughnuts:
1/2 c. clarified butter (see note)
3 1/2 c. cake flour
1 c. sugar
1 tsp. baking soda
2 tsp. baking powder
3/4 tsp. Kosher salt
1 1/2 tsp. ground cinnmaon
1/2 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg
3/4 c. buttermilk
1 egg
3 egg yolks
Grapeseed or canola oil for frying

In a small bowl, combine first four ingredients to make cinnamon sugar. Set aside.

To Make Clarified Butter: bring butter to a simmer in a saucepan over medium heat. Remove pan from heat and skim off butter bits that rise to the top. Set aside in a warm spot until ready to add to following ingredients. When you are ready to add, gradually pour into recipe without including solids (TIP: a gravy skimmer works well for this).

In a stand mixer with the paddle attachment (or with a wooden spoon and a lot of muscles), sift 1 1/2 cups of cake flour with sugar, baking soda, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg. With the mixer running, gradually add buttermilk, butter, egg, and egg yolks. When the mixture is smooth (but is sticky), fold in remaining 2 cups of flour by hand.

Divide dough in half. Place one-half of the dough onto a well-floured surface. Add a little more flour to the top of the dough pile, pat down and then lightly roll out dough into 1/8-inch thickness. Using a 2-inch cookie cutter or small water glass, cut out rounds. Then, using a small 3/4-inch cutter, cut out the center doughnut holes. (Better yet, but only if you’ve got one: you can, of course, use a doughnut cookie cutter as well). Repeat with second half of dough as well.

Place about 4 inches of oil in a deep saucepan and heat to 375 degrees. Fry doughnuts in batches without crowding. Turn doughnuts so they brown on all sides. Cook until they are evenly browned, about 2 minutes per batch. Drain on paper towels. Roll warm doughnuts in cinnamon sugar mixture.

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List: Winter Menus

December 26, 2011

If you didn’t see this super-helpful inventory of delicious tasting dinner ideas, we don’t want you to miss it! Some of the recipes are from our archive of nearly 1000 recipes while several of them are new for you to try right now. Enjoy the holidays and time with family and friends.

LIGHTER FARE
Lemony Kale Salad with Pignoli, Raisins & Shaved Parmesan
Indoors Pan-Smoked Salmon
Carrot Salad with Seeds
ApplePearSauce Cake

VEGETARIAN CELEBRATION
Celery Root Bruschetta
Warm Sunshine Squash Salad
Charred Turnips and Pole Beans with Smoky Tomatoes
Monica Bhide’s Rice Pudding

QUICK & EASY
Two Terrific Hard Cheeses, Apple Butter and Spiced Chipotle Nuts
Cider Steamed Mussels with Grilled Slab Bacon, Aioli & Grilled Bread
Caesar Side Salad with Homemade Garlic Croutons
So Simple Meyer Lemon Bars

A LAZY DAY BRUNCH
Winter White Soup
Fettunta
Winter Salad with Avocado and Ruby Red Grapefruit
Kitchen Counter Cake

A SUPER-COZY MEAL FOR FRIENDS
Roasted Pork Belly
Hot Apple Chutney
Smashed Potatoes with Rutabaga
Lemon Chiffon Icebox Cake

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Christmas Morning: Cardamom Coffee Cake

December 19, 2011

We plan to make this cardamom coffee cake to pass around while opening presents on Christmas morning. This recipe is from the Moosewood Cookbook by Mollie Katzen. It is our favorite cookbook by her; we have found so many recipes that we love.

Cake:
1 lb. butter, softened
2 c. brown sugar
4 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla extract
4 c. four
2 tsp. baking powder
2 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbls. ground cardamom
2 c. sour cream or plain yogurt

Topping:
1 c. (packed) brown sugar
1 Tbls. cinnamon
1/2 c. finely chopped walnuts, optional

Preheat oven to 350. Butter a 10-inch bundt pan (or a medium-sized cake pan, if you don’t have one). In a large mixing bowl, beat butter with sugar until light and fluffy. Add eggs, one at a time, beating well after each. Stir in vanilla.

Sift together dry cake ingredients in a separate bowl. Add flour mixture a bit at a time to butter mixture, alternating with the sour cream or yogurt. Stir, but don’t mix or overbeat. The batter is thick.

Combine topping ingredients in a separate bowl. Spoon 1/3 of batter into the prepared pan. Sprinkle with half the nut mixture, then add another third of batter. Cover with remaining nut mixture, then add rest of batter.

Bake for about 1 hour or until a knife inserted comes clean. Allow to cool in pan for about 20 minutes before inverting onto a plate or cutting into pieces.

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Inspiration From an Empty Fridge

December 1, 2011

Nothing in the fridge but a cucumber, some ginger and half of a red onion. We remembered a particular salad recipe from Yotam Ottalenghi’s Plenty because of the introductory description in which he describes his habit of always adding sour cream or yogurt to food that has been cooked a long time, is spicy, or is slightly heavy. A salad of cucumber, with smashed garlic and ginger is what he offers as an alternative to go with a variety of hearty dishes. We tried this simple salad for lunch and then made it again, the same day, for dinner as a side to simple seared steak once we finally made it to the store.

Recipe: Easy Salad of Cucumber, Smashed Ginger and Garlic

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Afternoon Snack: Rustic Root Vegetable Soup

November 14, 2011

Instead of satisfying your (or your kids) afternoon hunger with cheese, crackers, various dips, muffins, or cookies, try a cup of vegetable soup. We have started a habit of keeping warm soup on the stove top as an afternoon or after school snack. It curbs the appetite, prevents overeating at dinner and strengthens the fluids in our body that we tend to ignore when the weather starts to cool.

Vegetable soup is one of the easiest to quickly pull together and offers a good way to use up leftover vegetables in the fridge. A soup based on root vegetables is delicious this time of year, but you can always experiment with what you have. Tip and Note: So many recipes call for chicken stock to be added to vegetable soup. You don’t need it. Use water instead. It will taste just as good. Rutabaga tastes like a cross between a potato and a mild radish.

Today’s Soup: Rutabaga, Potato & Baby Kale

2 Tbls. butter or olive oil
1/2 onion
1 clove garlic
1 lg. rutabaga
3 med. organic russet potatoes
3 med. carrots
1 Tbls. kosher or coarse salt

Finely chop onion and garlic. Add to soup pot with butter. Cook onions to soften, about 5 minutes. Peel and cut rutabaga, potatoes and carrots into spoon-size pieces of the same shape and size. Add to pot. Add salt and about 7-8 cups of water. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to simmer for about 15 minutes, until vegetables are just soft, but do not overcook. Add a large handful of baby or chopped kale. Stir. Turn off the heat, cover and let cool for just a few minutes before eating. Taste and adjust with salt and pepper as needed (soup should taste a bit salty). It can be left on the stove top and reheated as needed throughout the afternoon.

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Ajiaco – a Colombian Chicken and Potato Soup

November 1, 2011

For anyone in the northeast, it was a pretty unusual weekend — to have a proper snowy day in October is really a bit crazy. Yet, in Washington, DC it wasn’t actually a very pleasant snowfall; it was more like intense, wet sleet with some spurts of big, meaty flakes – but mostly rain. With a highschool football game to cheer on, one incredible family cooked up a huge pot of gourmet comfort food to warm up the fans and to add to the school’s concession sales. We loved it and decided to try it on Sunday with the family.

Potatoes originate from the Andes and this soup is traditionally made with papas criollas – a small, yellow, creamy, buttery variety. The Delgados used five different potato varieties they found at Whole Foods including Yellow Finn, Purple Peruvian and Russet. While this simple soup is simmering away, the starch from the potatoes breaks down and thickens the soup to a creamy consistency. Delicious and easy enough for a weekday meal; the hardest part is peeling the potatoes.

Recipe: Ajiaco

Serves 4-6

2 qts. chicken stock (preferably low-sodium or homemade)
2 split-half bone-in, skin on chicken breasts
l lg. yellow onion
2 bay leaves
5 lbs. of a variety of potatoes (see above), cut into 1″ cubes
1 sm. bunch flat-leaf parsley leaves, finely chopped
2-3 ears corn, shucked and cut into 2-in. rounds (we like them in smaller pieces than the photographer’s photo but you can decide!)

For the aji:
1 sm. onion
1/2 bunch cilantro leaves, chopped
1/2 jalapeno, finely chopped
Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the table cream:
You can simply use heavy cream, or you can combine 1/2 c. sour cream with 1 Tbls. milk.

Additional toppings:
1/2 c. capers
1-2 ripe avocado, halved and cubed into 1 in. pieces

In a big soup pot, combine chicken broth, chicken, onion, bay leaves, potatoes, and parsley. Add more water, if necessary to make sure that all the solids are covered. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook for 10 minutes. Remove chicken to a plate and set aside.

Continue simmering the soup for another 35 minutes. Then discard onion halves and bay leaves. Mash the potatoes somewhat in the pot, leaving enough chunky pieces for texture. Add corn cob pieces and cook another 15 minutes. Remove from heat.

Meanwhile make the aji by combining the chopped onion, cilantro and jalapeno in a small serving bowl, then add water to cover. Season with salt and set aside.

Also, discard the skin and bones from the chicken pieces and then shred the chicken into bite-size bits and place on a serving plate or in a bowl.

When the soup is finished cooking, season with salt and pepper to taste. Ladle into big soup bowls and add a handful of chicken, a dollop of aji, a teaspoon of capers, a spoonful of table cream (either version) and a healthy serving of avocado to each bowl. Eat right away!

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Gingered Cauliflower with Parmigiano-Reggiano

September 20, 2011

This recipe is from Madhur Jaffrey’s Cookbook/ Easy East/West Menus for Family and Friends, a book which is out-of-print but worth tracking down, is a wonderful blend of flavors perfectly complimenting this cruciferous vegetable – which has folks on both sides the the fence. We love this recipe.

Serves 4-6

1/4 c. olive oil
1 tsp. whole cumin seeds
2 tsp. fresh ginger, minced
Pinch of cayenne
1 rounded Tbls. ground coriander
1/4 tsp. ground turmeric
1 head cauliflower, cut into small florets
Kosher or sea salt, to taste
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1/4 c. freshly grated good-quality Parmigiano-Reggiano

Have all ingredients prepared and ready — (Mise en place, literally translated from the French, means “setting in place”. The term is used to describe preparation done before starting the actual cooking process.)

In a large pan, heat oil over a high heat. When hot, put in cumin seeds. Stir quickly. Add ginger. Stir quickly again. Add cayenne, coriander, and turmeric. Stir again, then add cauliflower and salt, to taste. Stir for one minute. Add 1/2 cup water, cover, and continue to cook on medium-high heat for about 5 minutes, or until cauliflower is just cooked though.

Remove from heat. Add lemon juice. Stir and taste for seasonings. Add cheese and toss. Serve immediately.

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