EllenFork

Times Are Changing

2011-11-08T14:07:40-05:00

My partner-in-crime looking into the Pacific Ocean in Muir Beach, CA

One year ago, I was living in the Washington, DC area. I had just quit my advertising job and was working at a restaurant in order to get enough restaurant experience to enroll in culinary school. Since then, I have enrolled at the Culinary Institute of America- Greystone, which is in Napa Valley in California. My boyfriend and I sold his condo, packed and moved all of our belongings across the country into an apartment in San Francisco, and some of my belongings to a dorm room in Saint Helena, CA (down the street from school). I got a part-time job in the tasting room of a fantastic winery. I have completed two semesters of school and am now in New Orleans completing my culinary externship at a big, beautiful, fabulous restaurant, and I will be here til the end of January. I’ve gone from daydreaming and cooking at home to working my ass off in a demanding restaurant, a place that is a different experience than simply enjoying the act of cooking. It’s about speed and efficiency, problem solving and working under the gun. But it’s also about learning how to make the best food you possibly can, no exceptions. Being here is a challenge, but it is very rewarding.

So, there’s that. I’ve missed you my darling blog, and readers. I wonder if any of you still come around? If you do come by, only to be confronted with an obscenely out of date post on the Day of the Dead, I offer you my apologies. But, as you can see I have had a few things going on lately. And they are the kind of things that, if all goes well, will result in many more awesome and exciting posts about food. Perhaps I will have a chance to share something I’ve learned with you on my next day off…when and if that happens soon. I may have to break from my typical blog format of a recipe and photo in order to share some of the amazing things that have been going on in school with you... so stay tuned! For now, I must run to work.

Dead Bread

2010-11-04T23:49:13-04:00

Well, Halloween has FINALLY passed. Everyone gets so whipped into a frenzy over cocktails with eyeballs in them, cookies in the shape of dismembered digits and cupcakes with brain-colored frosting- it's kind of a relief when we can get back to enjoying delicious, non-themed fall food! However before we get entangled in the typical Thanksgiving frenzy, I would like to tell you about another November celebration that I love.

Dia de los Muertos is a Mexican celebration that happens to coincide with the American celebration of Halloween, but has a more "down-to-earth" feel about it (get it?).... On this day, families gather together to pray for the souls of family and friends who have died. The celebration occurs on November 2, which is the Catholic holiday "All Souls Day". On this day families visit cemetaries to clean the graves of loved ones, and build altars to honor the dead. These altars can also be found in many homes, as an incentive to souls to visit and hear the prayers of their families. Altars, or ofrendas, typically include favorite foods of the deceased, including various fruits, beverages such as beer and tequila, marigolds, sugar skulls, candied pumpkin and Pan de Muertos. All of these are gifts to welcome the deceased home, but are also eaten by the living participants. This day is not meant to be a day of mourning, but rather a celebration of life and the return of loved ones- feasting and partying accompanies the praying. (If you'd like to learn more, go here.)

I have always loved Day of the Dead, ever since I learned about it in some long-ago Spanish class. It's a party to celebrate life, and to keep loved ones with you always- plus there is a lot of feasting and fun that goes along with it! And I love the beautiful, colorful Day of the Dead art, like the sugar skulls that are given as gifts. The colorful little skulls in my altar were purchased at an AMAZING store in Austin, TX that was absolutely filled to the brim with Day of the Dead art. Luckily we flew and I had to carry on, or I would have appropriated a LOT more... Last year SW and I even planned to go as Day of the Dead skeletons for Halloween, until I came down with the plague. We ended up just carving some Day of the Dead themed pumpkins instead. The two on the left are clearly the handiwork of SW, as demonstrated by their superior carvings.

However, this year I went on the hunt for some festive Day of the Dead celebrations in my neck of the woods. It was nigh impossible! No one seems to be celebrating sufficiently in the DC/MD/VA area, and if they are they aren't advertising it. I did manage to find a huge, awesome Day of the Dead altar at the Mexican Cultural Institute. I ran right over there to snap some pictures, interrupted some private tequila tasting on the basis that "I came all the way from Virginia!!", then ran back home to build my own ofrenda and begin my preparations for Pan de Muertos or "Dead Bread" (recipes and photos after the jump).

Pan de Muertos

adapted by Rick Sandoval

Pan de Muertos is a sweet-but-not-too-sweet yeast bread, laced with anise seed and injected with lots of delicious butter. It is very similar to brioche, one of my fave breads to bake.

Ingredients

1/2 cup sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon anise seed
1/2 ounce (2 1/4 oz packets) active dry yeast
1/2 cup whole milk
1/2 cup water
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter
4 large eggs
4 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 egg yolk beaten with 2 teaspoons water

Combine sugar, salt, anise seed, and yeast in a small mixing bowl. Heat milk, water, and butter in a small saucepan over medium heat until the butter is just melted; do not allow it to boil. Add the milk mixture to the dry mixture and beat well with a wire whisk.
Stir in the eggs and 1 1/2 cups of the flour and beat well. Add the remaining flour, little by little, stirring well with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured wooden board and knead until it is smooth, elastic, and no longer sticky, about 9 to 10 minutes. Don't worry if the bread seems like it will NEVER become unsticky, just keep kneading patiently and you will be rewarded with a beatuiful lump of dough.
Place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with a clean kitchen towel, and allow the dough to rise in a warm area until it has doubled in size, about 1 1/2 hours.
Heat the oven to 350°F and arrange a rack in the middle. Punch down the dough and divide it into 2 pieces. Cut 3 small (about 1-ounce) balls from each half and mold them into skull-and-bones shapes. Shape the large balls of dough into round loaf shapes and place the skull-and-bones on top. Place the breads on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and let them rise another hour.
Brush the loaves with the egg yolk mixture and bake. Halfway through baking, about 20 minutes, remove the loaves from the oven and brush again with egg wash and sprinkle lightly with granulated sugar. Return to the oven and bake until the loaves are golden brown and sound hollow when tapped, about another 20 minutes.

The Mexican Cultural Institute in Washington, DC.

This year's altar was dedicated to the memory of the Mexican Revolution.

And that's that. Remember to make your Pan de Muertos for next year's celebration or you'll have hell to pay when you meet up with your friends and fam on the other side...

¡Salud!

Summer Taste of Spain

2010-08-06T14:35:29-04:00

When I arrived in Madrid for my Semester Abroad in late August of 2004, it was sizzlin' hot. I mean, fry an egg on the sidewalk hot. After hours of groggy, confused sleep on my international flight, I stepped out onto the blistering pavement of the Arrivals section at the hazy airport to meet my host mother, Maria Elena. She whisked my roommate and I off into the sprawling urban jungle of Madrid in the tiniest car I'd ever seen, all the while speaking to us in rapid-fire Spanish. We just smiled and nodded, sure that we would never, ever understand anything she said. We whirled through space and time, ending up in a beautiful residential neighborhood near Retiro Park. Now, don't judge, but I'm from Nashville where most people I knew lived in houses with at least a little bit of yard. I was not prepared for the tiny, apartment where I would be spending the next few months. Nor was I prepared for the lack of A/C! Maria Elena escorted us to our tiny quarters and threw open the window to let in some (hot) air. Home sweet home!

Above is the view from our window. We overlooked some kind of recreation facility, and sometimes my afternoon siesta was disturbed the the shouts of some bratty children at this cool looking pool. Jealous, much?

Lucky for me, Maria Elena was not of the ilk of host mothers who timed our showers, or forbade us entry to the kitchen. She was friendly and cute and fun- the smallest, blondest Spaniard I'd met to date, who loved to Flamenco dance and was constantly dieting. One of our first meals prepared by this gracious hostess was Gazpacho. First of all, it was wayyy to hot to fire up the deep fryer (Which she had! There is an amazing amount of fried food eaten in Spain!) and second of all, Gazpacho is "más sano", or healthy. At least three times a week (or more) we would sup upon the cool, refreshing liquid food, always accompanied by bread with salt and olive oil and a simple salad. Maria Elena's version was very simple: tomatoes, cucumber, garlic, olive oil (that her friend in Andalucia sent her by the barrel-full) and salt, whirred to liquid perfection in her crazy efficient blender. I think sometimes she added bread to give it more texture. Unlike the Gazpachos back home, there were no chunks, just a silky smooth concoction. I could eat it every day, forever, pretty much.

So, now that we're in the dog days of August here in exotic Norther Virginia, the tomatoes are plentiful and juicy. It's time for some gazpacho. So yesterday, as I perused the market in search of the right 'maters, I came upon a huge pile of fat, ripe yellow heirlooms, which may have been Lemon Boys (there was no sign). Bam. Fate had determined that my gazpacho would be a beautiful yellow variety. I decided to stay true to the simple nature of Maria Elena's Gazpacho, more or less, with the addition of some vinegar. This is also a traditional ingredient in Spanish Gazpacho, and I'm not sure why Maria Elena never used it. Anyway, I would fly back to Spain right now for a bowl of her version if I could. Hopefully you will enjoy my version, below!

Yellow Gazpacho

Ingredients:

3 lbs yellow tomatoes
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
1 seedless cucumber, peeled and chopped (reserve a little bit for garnish)
1/3 cup olive oil
4 tbsp sherry vinegar (sherry is typical, but I used Banyuls)
1 tsp salt (plus more to taste)
Optional garnish: crumbled pancetta or bacon, slice of fresh mozzarella

First, bring a pot of water to boil. Blanch the tomatoes in the boiling water for 30 seconds or so, to loosen their skins. Cool them in some ice water, then slip off their skins with your fingers (this should be really easy, if it's hard they might need a bit more time in the water). Core and then coarsely chop the tomatoes, making sure to reserve any juice.

Peel the cucumber and reserve enough for a few slices, for garnish. Coarsley chop the rest of the cucumber.

Throw all the tomatoes, cucumber, garlic, olive oil, vinegar and salt into the blender and set to "LIQUIFY"!!! Make sure you yell that when you hit the button, too. Taste it. Add more salt, garlic, vinegar, whatever, until it tastes just the way you like it. I like to be able to discern the vinegar a bit, without a whole lot of salt and with a little garlicky bite. It's hard to mess this up, guys.

At this point, some people would strain the soup, but the tomatoes I used were meaty and juicy, with few seeds so I didn't find it necessary. If your soup is too thick, add some ice water. Chill until ice cold!

When cold, ladle into bowls and add garnish, if you like. For the garnish, I decided to add a little American twist: bacon. I crumbled a bit of bacon over a slice of cucumber and a slice of mozzerella and added it to the soup... it sank to the bottom immediately. Instead, I recommend crumbling a bit of the bacon in the center of the bowl, and adding the mozz/cucumber slice on the side, kind of like a lime on the side of your G&T. Whatever, it's your soup.

Lastly, enjoy! And, imagine yourself at a sidewalk café in Madrid, eating soup and drinking Rioja... or at Maria Elena's kitchen table, talking about the Special K diet and teaching her kids dirty words in English. Your choice.

Salud!

This Pudding Has Nothing to Do with Bill Cosby.

2010-07-14T13:50:11-04:00

Hi guys. Yeah, it's me. I've come crawling back to you. But I have a little something for you, something that will hopefully distract you from the fact that my last post was monthssss ago...

Since we are now in the throes of summer, tomatoes are both plentiful and ENORMOUS. On a recent visit home, my mother presented me with some incredible looking heirloom 'maters from the Amish. I'm not completely sure where these Amish live in relation to Nashville, but these tomatoes look like they came from the Land of the Lost, seriously. Anyway, when I caught sight of these monstrous beauties, I knew something had to be done. They had to be sliced into a million pieces and consumed, immediately.

Now, you don't need to get all crazy and fancy with tomatoes like these; their natural tastiness should be able to shine through without a lot of extra flavors. Naturally I turned to Judy Rodgers' Zuni Café Cookbook for a recipe that would do these fruits justice (yeah, tomatoes are FRUITS and don't you forget it). And since I was taking this dish to a potluck at a farm (which I wrote about here), I needed it to be as seasonal and fresh as possible, something for which Ms. Rodgers is renowned. The following recipe brings out the freshness of the tomatoes with a delicious acidic vinaigrette and the most pungent, summery scent of all- tons of fresh basil. And, this dish requires NO HOT OVENS!!! So, run out to your farmer's market RIGHT NOW and get some big, ugly ol' heirloom tomatoes!

Tomato Summer Pudding from Zuni Café Cookbook by Judy Rodgers

Yields about 6 servings

Ingredients:

About 8 ounces day-old, peasant style bread (I used about half a baguette), sliced 1/4 thick
A few cloves of garlic, peeled
Extra-virgin olive oil (for vinaigrette, so use as much as you think is needed)
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar or sherry vinegar (I used red wine)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
About 2 1/2 lbs very ripe tomatoes, preferably a few different varieties of heirlooms (I used purple cherokees and a big yellow one whose name I do not know)
About 1/4 cup fresh basil, parsley or cilantro leaves, very coarsely chopped (obviously I used basil, WHY WOULD YOU USE PARSLEY IN THIS RECIPE?!!??!)
1 medium shallot finely diced, or a scant 1/4 cup thinly sliced red onion (I used shallot)
1/2 small cucumber, peeled and diced
1 cup Sweet 100, Sungold, or currant tomatoes, to garnish (I skipped this, but if I'd had a really pretty branch of these lil guys, I might've included it)

Preheat the broiler. Crisp and brown the bread lightly on one side. Rub the crispy side with the raw garlic, then brush the soft side with water. Stack bread and place in plastic bag to steam and soften.

Combine olive oil, vinegar and salt and pepper to taste, to make a mild vinaigrette.

Core the tomatoes. Cut in half from stem to blossom end, then slice crosswise into slices about 1/4 inches thick. I did this on a plate, rather than the cutting board, in order to capture all the juice. The juice is added to the vinaigrette. Pick out the shoulders and bottoms of the tomatoes and coarsely chop them. Salt lightly and scrape into a strainer. Set this over the vinaigrette, smash ad press the tomato bits with a spoon and leave to drain.

Build the pudding in a soufflé dish, wide bowl, gratin dish, or other comparable vessel that can hold about 1-1/2 quarts and is at least 3 inches deep. Rub the entire dish with raw garlic. Then, cutting the bread into appropriate shapes, carpet the bottom of the dish with the bread. Try not to overlap the bread, or leave big gaps. Then make a solid double layer of tomatoes. Scatter with a little of the shallot (or red onion) and cucumber and herb. Whisk, then drizzle a few tablespoons of vi over entire thing. Add another layer of bread and press with a spoon to encourage the tomatoes to release their precious juices. Repeat this a few more times, ending with a top layer of tomatoes. Save leftover vinaigrette for garnish. Poke pudding a few times randomly with a skewer, to allow juices to mingle throughout.

Now cover with plastic wrap and find a flat-bottomed dish that will fit just inside the pudding dish. Place on top and press down, weighting it with something heavy from the kitchen (can of tomatoes? brick?). Set this aside at room temp for an hour or so.

After the hour has passed, Judy recommends checking to see if the pudding is juicy enough, but sliding a knife down the side of the dish and prying the pudding away from the side. If it oozes, its juicy enough. I had absolutely no problem with this pudding being juicy enough, due to the nature of the tomatoes and my liberal drizzling of vinaigrette. Make sure you taste the juice of the pudding, so that you can adjust if it is too oily or acidic. Rewrap and press until ready to serve.

I topped my pudding with more shallot/cuke/basil, because I had some leftover and because it's beautiful in contrast with the color of the tomatoes. This pudding is SO GOOD. It IS summertime, in your mouth. And, at the end of the night, there was absolutely NOTHING LEFT. I left the farm (read about that potluck here) with a dirty dish and a smile.

A Half-Baked Serenade

2010-04-27T00:00:18-04:00

Today was a rainy day in Washington, DC. The air was thick with mist, almost obscuring the buildings in the distance from view. Here on the eighth floor of my apartment building, those buildings usually seem so close, despite their distance of a few miles. Today, they appear worlds away.

And in spite of the “miserable weather”, as I so indifferently referred to it earlier, this day was a reprieve. It was a reprieve from the lively, boisterous birth of flora and fauna that comes along with spring. The noisy act of living and the brassy sunlight that we so desperately and recklessly greet with open windows and bared skin- after the quiet of winter it’s a shock to the system.

So, today was a day for calm, and now that night has fallen, it is a peaceful night. The rain is quietly falling outside and the streets are shrouded in fog, faintly glistening in the orange glow of the streetlights. Finally after weeks of hot sun, the false starts of summer and the ups and downs of everyday life, I have a moment to breathe. Sometimes we need a “miserable” rainy day to remember why we rejoice so heartily in the warm breezes of spring- to remember where we’ve come from and where we’re going.

Lately I’ve been forced to reflect on just that- where we’ve come from and where we’re going. Birth, life, death- the marching orders to which we must all adhere. It’s not easy to accept, nor does it become easier as we grow older. With the passing of my grandfather, the lesson that a life well-lived must come to an end did not ease the blow of his absence. Instead, I am busy, busy. Busier than ever, it seems, with the arrangements of death, the care of my family and, now that I am back in D.C., the hectic pace of my own semi-grownup life. And so, in the face of the thousands upon thousands of things I knew I must get done, I began to bake.

And as I baked, I began to realize that life is like the brioche that I was baking (it spoke to me when I came across it in the Silver Palate cookbook). It starts with nothing: raw flour, eggs, sugar. With the addition of yeast, it begins to grow. With the addition of flour, the dough takes shape and with time, it rises. Like in life, this recipe calls for the dough to be punched down. But also like in life, it resiliently rises again. Then, it is formed and allowed to rise once more. Finally, the dough is baked in a warm oven until it becomes something else entirely. It becomes bread.

Following the recipe, I kneaded the dough until was smooth and perfect and waited for it to rise for the final time, anticipating the moment when it would be brown and perfect and fluffy, ready for me to eat. But as I waited for that moment, I realized that the stirring and kneading and waiting is what life is about. I mean, isn’t it? Like our lives, bread goes through so much to reach that subliminal stage wherein it is devoured with butter and jam- the realization of the bread’s purpose, the point we are all trying to reach. Whether it’s career or family or status, we are ALL trying to become fully baked, but every moment until that point is just as important as the day we are pulled steaming and perfect from the oven.

Whether or not you agree with my tiny bread-life epiphany, there is something therapeutic and good about making bread. You’re all working together to make something delicious and new- you, the yeasts, the eggs and butter and sugar…it takes time and it pays off. I invite you to make this brioche on a rainy day and feed it to someone you love (or remember someone you love), like I did. Perhaps to you this bread is nothing like life…but I guarantee it will be delicious either way.

Bake on, friends.

Brioche

2 cups milk
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter
1/4 cup sugar
2 packages active dry yeast
4 tsp salt
3 eggs, at room temp
8 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2-3 tbsp vegetable oil

First, combine milk, butter and sugar in a medium saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and pour into a large mixing bowl to cool. When mixture is lukewarm (105-115 F) stir in the yeast. Let it get all yeasty and foamy in there for about 10 minutes. Then, stir in the salt.

Beat eggs thoroughly in a small bowl and add to milk mixture. Stir in 7 cups of flour, 1 cup at a time til the dough becomes sticky. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface. Now wash and dry the bowl since you'll need it a little bit later.

Sprinkle more flour over the dough and knead it, adding flour as necessary until you achieve a smooth, elastic dough. Silver Palate recommends about 10 minutes of kneading.

Pour about 2 tablespoons vegetable oil into the freshly washed bowl. Put your nice little doughball into the bowl, rolling it around to coat well in the oil. Cover with a towel and set dough aside to rise for about 2 hours, until it has tripled in bulk. Now, punch down the dough, turn onto floured work surface and knead for about 2 more minutes. Return to bowl, cover and let rise again- until doubled this time.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

If you are baking in loaf pans, use 2 pans that have been lightly buttered. For traditional brioche, use buttered muffin tinsor actual brioche molds.

Bake until golden brown about 30-40 minutes. I let my loaf bake for about 35, which seemed to work out well. Cool slightly before turning out of loaf pan, and cool completely before wrapping it up.

When it's cooled a bit, slice off a warm, thick slice. Slather it with butter and if you're lucky enough to have some blackberry preserves from the Loveless Cafe on hand, load that baby up and savor every bite.

Taste of the Nation: DC

2010-04-19T23:46:54-04:00

Almost a week ago (yeah, yeah, I'm late) I had the serious pleasure of attending Taste of the Nation DC, a charity event supporting the eradication of childhood hunger. Originally I had signed up to be a volunteer at the event, but some unforeseen circumstances prevented me from making the mandatory orientation session. At the last minute I entered to win two tickets through Foodbuzz, the online food community (see the ad banners to the right?) and lo and behold, the food gods answered my prayers! I put on my roomiest all black outfit and set out for a night of gluttony in downtown DC, all for a good cause of course....

(pictured below: Georgetown Cupcake cupcakes and Bryan Voltaggio of VOLT)

The event was held at the National Building Museum, which was a very dramatic setting. Huge Corinthian columns set the stage for DC's best restaurants to dole out some extremely flavorful treats. Oh, and let's not forget the beverages- DC's best mixologists were shaking, stirring and pouring up a storm. Below are Rachel Sergi and JP Caceres of Againn, followed by Owen Thomsen and an unidentified member of the DC Bartender's Guild (dedicated to the preservation of classic cocktails).

There were far too many amazing things eaten at an alarming rate for me to fully describe them, but I did take note of some of the highlights of the evening. I think I would be a decent reporter, except when food is involved- unfortunately my notepad and Nikon got way less use than I had intended.I did manage to stalk down a few "cheftestants" from the last season of Top Chef. Bryan Voltaggio of VOLT and Mike Isabella of Zaytinya were both in attendance- Bryan was cooking and Mike seemed to be just hanging out. Either way, their presence was a great way to draw attention to the night and get some press going. Anyway- on to the dishes!

Best Dish of the Night:

Vanilla infused pork belly with date puree and bay leaf crumble from Trummer's on Main

This was the best thing I ate all night. I told the chef that it was my favorite thing and he explained that the belly was braised for 72 hours and injected with vanilla... then I told him it was so good that it hurt my feelings, and he seemed amused and kind of confused. The point is, it was GOOD.

Honorable Mentions:

Meatball with polenta from Central

Beet macaron with foie gras dust and fennel pollen from VOLT (pictured below)

Braised short rib with pickled ramp and porcini puree from Charlie Palmer Steakhouse

Seared scallop with mini spanikopita roll from Kellari Taverna

Rock Shrimp Roll with Saffron Mayo and fennel from Occidental Grill & Seafood

Espellette Spiced Wagyu Flank Steak from BLT Steak

Something amazing with "garlic glass" on top from Vidalia (I believe it was sous vide flank steak?)

Salted Caramel Cupcake from Georgetown Cupcakes

Best Cocktails:

The Buried Life from Chantal Tseng of Tabard Inn

This concoction was a mixture of heradura reposada tequila, black tea soda infused with roasted rosemary, agave syrup, fresh lemon juice and black lava salt. Yeah. Really. It was DELICIOUS.

The Gilded Tigerlilly from Rachel Sergi (and JP Caceres) of Againn

As far as I can tell, this was Plymouth Gin, Chambord, gingerbeer, gingersnap(?) and GOLD DUST. Yeah, GOLD DUST. It tasted expensive, and that's how I like it. Honestly I don't know any more than that, but I don't think this really needs explanation.

Overall, this was a very well-organized event. Stations did not start running out of food until a couple hours in (unlike many similar events I've attended) and there was a great variety of restaurants and cocktails to choose from.Overall, I had a great time- next year I'll buy a ticket and you should too!

For more information about future events in your area, see some of the information below or visit the website at www.tasteofthenation.org

(pictured below: Mike Isabella of Zaytinya and Top Chef and friend...thanks for letting me interrupt your conversation to take this pic. You guys rule!)

From the Press Release:

With nearly 17 million children nationally and 23,887 children in Washington, D.C. struggling
with hunger, Taste of the Nation promotes awareness of Share Our Strength’s efforts. Since
1988, Taste of the Nation has raised more than $73 million for organizations in the United
States, Canada and abroad, including more than $1.5 million in Washington, D.C. Local
beneficiaries include Capital Area Food Bank, D.C. Hunger Solutions and Mary’s Center.

About Taste of the Nation®
Share Our Strength’s Taste of the Nation® is the nation’s premier culinary benefit
dedicated to making sure no kid grows up hungry. Each spring and summer, the nation's
hottest chefs and mixologists donate their time, talent and passion at nearly 40 events
across the United States and Canada, with one goal in mind: to raise the critical funds
needed to end childhood hunger. Taste of the Nation is nationally sponsored by American
Express, Sysco, Food Network, Brown-Forman Corporation, S.Pellegrino Sparkling Natural
Mineral Water and Stella Artois. Since 1988, Taste of the Nation has raised more than $73
million. Funds raised in 2009 supported 135 organizations in the United States, Canada and
abroad. To purchase tickets or to get involved, visit TasteOfTheNation.org.

About Share Our Strength®
Share Our Strength is a national organization working to make sure no kid in the U.S. grows
up hungry. We weave together a net of community groups, activists and food programs
to catch children at risk of hunger, and surround them with nutritious food where they live,
learn and play. We work with the culinary industry to create engaging, pioneering
programs like Taste of the Nation, The Great American Bake Sale, Operation Frontline and
A Tasteful Pursuit. For more information, please visit Strength.org.

A Good Morel is Hard to Find

2010-04-07T23:25:30-04:00

Well, hello my little dumplings. I hope this spring weather has been treating you kindly, wherever you are! The daffodils are blooming, the bradford pears are shedding petals everywhere and the pollen is flying about in huge, sneezy clouds here in DC. Everything has a fine layer of yellow pollen covering it, including the interior of my sinuses. Yay spring!!!

Now, as I mentioned in my recent post about fiddlehead ferns, Spring offers a variety of special delicacies that can be foraged. Today, we will be discussing Morel Mushrooms, the bizarre looking little beasties that pop up in random spots in the woods. My Aunt Julia in Cookville, TN reports that these little gems can be found hiding randomly at the trunks of trees or under a log on her property. The locals call them "Dry Land Fishes", because of their preferred cooking method. Like catfish (wet water fishes, naturally), morels in Eastern Tennessee are breaded in cornmeal and fried. This actually sounds incredibly delicious, especially if there is any bacon grease involved, and I suspect that there is.

Anyhow, I have not had much contact with morels on my own terms, dried or fresh. I have eaten them in a few different formats at restaurants, most recently on a wood-fired pizza, which was DELICIOUS. So when I came across the opportunity to enter a morel recipe contest, of course I signed up right away! Not only would I have the chance to try out a recipe with 1 oz of dried morels, provided by the contest sponsors, I had the chance to WIN TWO POUNDS OF FRESH MORELS!!! What would I even do with such booty?!?! Wouldn't you like to know?!

The contest is sponsored by the fine folks at Marx Foods, who besides seeming very cool, sell a plethora of goodies such as Tahitian Vanilla Beans, some crazy hot dried chilies, fresh oysters, pate, spices and more! Our instructions were simply: make the most delicious, original morel recipe you can muster! We will be judged on how delicious our recipe appears. Unfortunately, I fear that I may already be facing a disadvantage... I unexpectedly returned home to Nashville, TN last weekend, right as the deadline for this contest approached. Luckily I took my dried mushies with me, and forced my family to eat a fancy morel-centric dish on Saturday night. I missed the last rays of sunshine, and was forced to snap some indoor pics in a rush right before- you don't mess around when you have a hungry dad stomping around in the background. So, while this photo may not be as appetizing as usual, please believe me when I say this recipe was VERY, VERY TASTY! Everyone ate it all up, and then went back for seconds! Without further ado, I'd like to introduce you to my potentially award-winning morel recipe!

Morel Benedict

Black Pepper Biscuit topped with Asparagus, Poached Egg and Morel Cream

This dish was inspired by the earthy flavors of springtime, as well as my Southern roots. Southerners loooooove biscuits, so eggs benedict with a biscuit is one of my favorite things. The asparagus replaces the meat, and the morel cream takes the place of hollandaise- a tasty spring take on a brunch (or dinner) favorite. Morels have this meaty, rich flavor and they just love to be bathed in cream and butter. Love it.

Because this dish has several components, it should be timed just right. Start with heating water for the dried morels, as they will need time to reconstitute (see below). Then begin the biscuits, but don't put them in the oven until you've started the morel cream. Then put on two pots of water to heat, one for asparagus and one for the poached eggs. Once the biscuits are about to be taken out of the oven and the cream looks thick, start steaming and poaching. Hopefully this will allow all items to come out relatively close to one another, and arrive at the table piping hot!

Overall, this dish serves 4-6 people.

Black Pepper Biscuits

2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cut into small cubes
3/4 cups cold buttermilk
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 tablespoons coarsely ground black pepper

Preheat oven to 450 degrees F. In the bowl of your food processor, combine flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Pulse a couple times to to distribute the ingredients, then add butter over the top of the flour mixture and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse meal. Add the buttermilk and pulse until the mixture just begins to come together.

Flour a clean surface and dump out the dough. Pat the dough into a large rectangle, about 1 in thick. I finished with a rolling pin, just because I like to make sure it is even thickness throughout. Use a 3-inch round cutter to stamp out your biscuits. Place them on a baking pan covered with parchment. At this point I ground black pepper onto the biscuits and lightly patted it in. Then press together the remaining scraps of dough, and repeat process. Lightly brush the tops with cream and sprinkle with more black pepper. Bake the biscuits for 12 to 15 minutes or until lightly golden brown. You’ll know when they look ready!

Morel Cream

1 oz dried morels, reconstituted
1 cup boiling water
2 shallots, finely minced
1/2 tbsp fresh thyme, finely chopped
2 tbsp unsalted butter
3/4 heavy cream
1 dash cayenne pepper

Bring water to a boil. In a bowl, combine mushrooms and water. Let sit for about 15 minutes. When mushrooms have become plump and moist, remove them with a slotted spoon and coarsely chop. Reserve mushroom water.

Heat a saucepan over medium heat and melt butter. Add shallots and saute until translucent. Add morels and thyme, and saute together for about 3 minutes. Now add 1/2 cup of reserved mushroom water, carefully to make sure that none of the grit that may have accumulated in the bottom of the water gets into your sauce. Let simmer until it has reduced by at least 1/3 and then add heavy cream. Let simmer until it becomes thick. Add a dash of cayenne (just a bit, you don't want to really taste it, just experience a bit of a kick!)

NOTE: Unfortunately for me, this never reached a thickness that pleased me, and I was out of any thickening agents that might have helped. In hindsight, it might have been advisable to make a roux to begin with... we'll just have to give the recipe another whirl to find out a better method. It did taste fabulous though, so at least those directions should work for you.

Asparagus

One bundle of fresh asparagus should be more than enough. You want medium-thick stalks- not too fat, but not skinny little guys either. Snap the ends off a few inches from the bottom. Heat a couple inches of water to a boil in a pot, and set your steaming colander inside. Salt the water and add asparagus, steaming until crisp-tender. Shock them in a bowl of cold water to keep their green color and remove to dry. Trim to the size of your biscuit.

Poached Egg

We used farm eggs from Summerton, TN and they were very good. To poach them, heat a pot of water to a simmer. Add a splash of white vinegar, which will help the eggs to coagulate better. Gently crack an egg into a large spoon or ladle and lower into the water. Let simmer for 2 minutes or so for a runny egg, 3-4 more for firm. Remove from water using a slotted spoon.

TO PLATE:

Slice open warm biscuit. Place trimmed asparagus on bottom half and top with poached egg. Generously ladle morel cream alllllll over it! Seriously, don't be stingy because that stuff is goooooood. You'll fight your dining companions for more.

The next morning I got up and used the 5 or 6 morels I'd squirreled away, the bottoms of the asparagus spears leftover from the night before and some leeks to make a savory frittata. It's the perfect ending to an extended feast of morels and I recommend it to you all.

Enjoy!

Morels

A Tasty Tomato Tart

2010-03-29T00:26:10-04:00

Last summer was the Summer of the Cherry Tomato. My CSA delivered buckets and buckets of them, overflowing from their containers in rays of orange, yellow and red (see above photo). I made sauce, I made kebabs, I made jam, I made everything I could think of with those dang tomatoes. At the end of the summer, I felt that cherry tomatoes had overstayed their welcome with me, those clingy little SOBs. Yet, now that spring has shown its face, that memory has faded. A winter devoid of those little orbs has erased the exhaustion of the cherry 'mater onslaught. And now, against all odds, I crave them.

It's really more a matter of craving sunlight and green things growing and fresh things to eat! I love you, root vegetables, but you gotta GO!!! Make way for the basil and tomatoes and squash! Move it or lose it you mangy winter veggies! Except for you, 'taters. You can stay.

Anyway, when the new issue of Food and Wine arrived with this lovely, hilariously simple savory tart recipe, I knew what I had to do. I know, I know, cherry tomatoes aren't really a spring vegetable... but sometimes you must simply partake of the bounty in the aisles before you, when a recipe like this presents itself. So, for better I worse I hitched my wagon to this tart and I am NOT SORRY. If you make this tart, you will not be sorry either. Enjoy!

Cherry Tomato Tart with Basil

Recipe by Alix de montille and Jean-Marc Roulot, Food and Wine April 2010

Ingredients

· 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

· Salt

· 7 tablespoons cold unsalted butter, cubed

· 1/2 cup cold heavy cream

· 2 pints cherry or grape tomatoes

· 2 tablespoons shredded basil leaves

Butter a 9-inch tart pan. I just used a pie pan because that's what I have. We're in a recession, ok?! Make do. In a food processor, pulse the flour with a pinch of salt and the butter until the mixture resembles coarse meal. (Make sure you have a big enough food processor, because my adorable little 2.5 cup Cuisinart did not appreciate what I was trying to do. It was a near disaster)

Add the cream and pulse until the dough nearly comes together. Turn the dough out onto a floured work surface and knead a few times. Cover and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or overnight.

Preheat the oven to 325°. Roll out the dough to a 14-inch round. Press the round into the tart pan; trim off any excess. Mound the tomatoes in the shell. Bake for about 1 hour and 40 minutes, until the dough is evenly browned. Let cool.

Season with sea salt, and chopped basil. I also added some grated parmesan, a grind or two of black pepper and a drizzle of olive oil for true perfection. When I reheated a slice in the oven the next day, I threw a few mozzarella pearls in amongst the tomatoes to melt. Next time, I may do this the first time around...it would alter the simplistic nature of the tart, but fresh mozz is SO good. Just a thought...

Note: I almost felt that the tart dough was a bit too dense...not sure how to remedy this, but if I try it again, I might add a leavening agent to give it a bit lighter feel.