Gastronomer's Guide

Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Drunken Prunes and Crushed Amaretti

2009-11-09T00:25:00.005-05:00

It seems that every culture has some sort of dumplings. They are a hearty and inexpensive meal that can feed an entire family. And they are an incomparable comfort food. Some dumplings are made out of potatoes, cheese, breadcrumbs, or just flour. Others are filled with meat, fish, or sweets. And some are steamed, boiled, fried or baked. There are hundreds of names all in different languages for

Baked Three-Cheese Pasta with Parsley Pesto and Shrimp

2009-11-05T00:01:00.007-05:00

Who didn't grown up eating macaroni and cheese made right from the blue box? It was one of the many kids' staples I grew up eating, one that I couldn't get enough of. Macaroni and cheese has a homey and cozy feel that almost no dish can come close to. It's probably because it's so rooted in everyone's childhood, that we can never turn up our noses at the blue box. But unfortunately there comes a

Cauliflower Gratin with Orzo

2009-11-04T00:05:00.003-05:00

I am a big fan of gratins or for that matter anything baked and covered in cheese, especially vegetables. And there is no other way I like cauliflower more than when it's baked. I don't particularly like it in soups or boiled or steamed. I like cauliflower encrusted with cheese and breadcrumbs. That's how I grew up eating it. Whenever we had a special Sunday dinner my mom would always make baked

French Onion Soup Gratiné

2009-11-03T00:00:00.005-05:00

There is no soup more classic than the French onion soup. It's famous around the world and here in the United States, no bistro menu is without it. It's a soup that is ultimately comforting, flavorful, and adored by everyone who tries it. The best part is breaking through the irresistible topping of bread and melted cheese. No wonder so many people have claimed to be its inventor.I first came

Chocolate Sandwich Cookies with Peanut Butter Filling

2009-10-29T10:00:00.002-04:00

Chocolate sandwich cookies were my favorites as a kid. Though I haven't had them in years, I still crave them. To settle my sweet tooth this Halloween, I decided to create my own grown-up version with a peanut butter filling. They are far better than the ones I remember eating as a kid. And I'm sure if you give kids a choice between these and the store-bought kind, they will choose these. Don't

Chicken Pot Pie

2009-10-28T00:30:00.004-04:00

I have a special fondness for pot pie. It's one of those all-in-one meals that always hits my comfort spot. And it's a welcome dish to eat on a cold and rainy day like the ones we're having this season. The origins of pot pies can be traced back to the English settlers who brought their love for pies to America. In the States I had never eaten a savory pie. It was always the frozen pies that

Apple Tarte Tatin

2009-10-27T00:05:00.004-04:00

There are plenty of reasons to enjoy apples this season. For me it's because they make the best desserts. With apples so plentiful at farmers' markets and supermarkets this time of year, I love to make tarts. There's just something special about an apple tart particularly apple tarte Tatin, one of the most classic of the French tarts. It's a dessert that can be called both comforting and elegant.

Spice Up the Kitchen with Monica Bhide's Modern Spice

2009-10-22T01:30:00.003-04:00

Many people would agree that Indian food has a certain mystique. Maybe it’s the combination of unique and unusual ingredients and spices or it could be the pungent fragrances that seem to drift for miles. It is in fact the combination of spices so expertly blended that makes Indian food so particular and different from any other cuisine. There are the famous curries, named so by the English, and

Roasted Chicken Breasts with Carrots and Kohlrabi

2009-10-21T00:30:00.002-04:00

For me there is no food more appealing than roast chicken. I'd be happy to subsist on it all the time. Instead of roasting a whole chicken, which can take an hour or more, I prefer roasting chicken in pieces. It's so much faster especially for a weeknight meal. I love roasting chicken breasts, sometimes a whole bunch at one time. This way I have leftovers for dinner the following night or I can

Forty Cloves of Garlic Soup with Pistachio-Crusted Shrimp

2009-10-20T00:30:00.003-04:00

Despite my family of garlic haters, I love garlic. And I love lots of it in all forms. A very close older family friend eats it raw and rubbed on toast, then spread with butter or rendered duck fat. It's now his daily health ritual since he learned garlic has been shown to keep the heart healthy and keep cancer at bay. Maybe he knows a thing or two, because he's going to be 90 next year.

Finding the Right Edge: A Guide to Choosing, Trying, and Buying the Best Chef's Knife

2009-10-15T00:10:00.019-04:00

Buying your first knife can be daunting, but once armed with a bit of know-how, the task becomes much easier. I know I've walked down the knife aisle at many kitchen stores scratching my head. The selections are broad and the features of each knife brand can be confusing at times. When I first began cooking, I used a cheap grocery-store knife that I couldn't even hold properly. Its handle was so

Carrot-Ginger Soup with Pumpernickel Croutons

2009-10-13T00:07:00.001-04:00

On cold days nothing gives me more comfort than hot soup. The flavor combination that I find most comforting in soups is sweet and savory. It's an ideal pairing in many foods that have come to represent autumn. Certain vegetables like sweet potatoes and squashes are all made more flavorful with a touch of sweet, be it from sugar or other sweeteners such as honey or molasses. Carrots also benefit

Lebanese Lamb and Bulgur-Stuffed Acorn Squash

2009-10-12T01:01:00.002-04:00

I love Mediterranean food especially from the eastern region, spanning the countries from Greece through Turkey and all the way down to Lebanon and Egypt in the north of Africa. Just thinking about gyros, kebabs, and a platter of mezze from these countries makes my mouth water. It was in college that I first experienced this culinary culture, trying new things like pita bread, falafel, tabbouleh,

Spaghetti alla Puttanesca

2009-10-07T09:00:00.001-04:00

What's the ultimate comfort food? It can really be anything. But for many, like me, it's pasta tossed in a richly flavored homemade sauce. Dinner can be as easy as boiling pasta and simmering a quick sauce in under thirty minutes. The Italians could not have come up with a better food. I have always been impressed by their culture and mostly by their food. My dream of traveling to Italy has yet

Warm Brussels Sprouts Salad with Asian Pear and Bacon Vinaigrette

2009-10-06T11:30:00.005-04:00

Eat your vegetables! Mom's famous words. Just like everyone else, I too hated many vegetables when I was a kid. Brussels sprouts were at the top of my list with peas not far behind. It was many years later that I realized I couldn't figure out why I hated sprouts. I had never even tasted them, but I was told by other kids that the taste and smell was revolting. But what's the point of hating a

Lemon-Thyme-Marinated Pork Tenderloin with Maple-Roasted Butternut Squash

2009-10-05T12:38:00.004-04:00

What cooking method can be more primal than roasting? When humans discovered fire, it was by roasting over an open pit. Today we simulate this method of indirect cooking in the oven, achieving the best taste by concentrating flavors, retaining interior moisture, and creating a beautiful brown exterior. In gastronomy-speak, this caramelization is known as the Maillard reaction, which is the basic

Dump-and-Stir Banana Bread with Cinnamon Butter

2009-09-30T13:00:00.001-04:00

At one time or another, we've all had overripe bananas sitting on our counter tops waiting to be consumed. Unfortunately, most of the time they end up in the trash. I'm not a big fan of bananas in general, so that happens to me all the time. But I absolutely love using them as a device in baking. I almost purposely let them go brown just to have an excuse to use them for baking. I've made many

Fresh Fig Tart with Honey-Orange Custard

2009-09-29T00:20:00.006-04:00

For a long time, the closest I had ever come to what I thought was a real fig was the dried kind or Fig Newtons. It wasn't until a family friend gave us a fig tree that I learned figs are actually fresh before they are dried. Not only that, but I discovered that fresh figs were worlds apart from the dried ones. We weren't the only family with a fig tree in the neighborhood. Italian and Portuguese

Drunken Mussels with Leek and Lovage

2009-09-28T00:35:00.002-04:00

For me there's nothing more representative of the ocean than shellfish, particularly the beautiful blue mussel. I have always had an affinity for the ocean, and before my foray into marine biology, I was first and foremost a young curious kid who avidly collected shells to learn all about them. As a kid though I wouldn't eat mussels, or any shellfish for that matter; I thought they were just too

Vegetable Frittata

2009-09-24T00:10:00.006-04:00

What do you turn to when it seems like there's nothing to eat and the stack of leftovers in the fridge is way past its prime? I turn to eggs. It's a staple I always have in the fridge. It's great to have on hand for baking and of course for a fast healthy and nutritious breakfast. But eggs can also make a great meal in a pinch. The other day I had nothing to eat and all I could find were some

Pear and Almond Cream Tart

2009-09-23T00:01:00.002-04:00

Today is the first day of autumn, a season that is celebrated for the bounties of late summer and of the harvest. And for many the season is best represented by baking. Bread, pies, and tarts have become synonymous with the season of change. Baking with fall fruit such as apples, pears, plums, and quinces are a perfect way to celebrate. For me the fruit that best represents fall is the pear. Even

Deep-Dish Rectangular Apple Pie

2009-09-21T00:35:00.003-04:00

It's that time of season where the leaves begin to fall and so do the apples. Though seeing summer end is bittersweet, early fall in all its glory is one of my favorite times of the year, mainly because of apple season. Picking apples at this time of year is a tradition in many families, as it is in mine. I always go to Silverman's Farm to pick the most beautiful apples available in a wide array

Gratinéed Cucumbers

2009-09-17T00:18:00.003-04:00

I think it's an American consensus that any dish covered with cheese is better. Steamed broccoli drowned in bright yellow processed cheese comes to mind. But what dinner table in America is without scalloped or gratinéed potatoes? Too bad we Americans can't claim the idea as our own invention. The French came up with gratiné, the method of topping ingredients with breadcrumbs, butter, and cheese

Meatloaf Burgers with Onion Marmalade

2009-09-16T00:30:00.004-04:00

Meatloaf does not have to be limited to the loaf pan shape. If you think about it, meatloaf is just the big brother of the burger and meatball. These personal-size meatloaf burgers are inspired by my mother's Hungarian hamburgers or fasírt (fuh-sheert). When I was a kid, the only way I could explain my mom's fasírt to others kids was by calling them Hungarian hamburgers. I've never been able to

Sautéed Baby Artichokes

2009-09-14T00:12:00.001-04:00

I had always thought of artichokes as an unwieldy vegetable, one that involved too much work to eat. After becoming a fan of the hassle-free jarred artichokes many years ago, I finally built up the courage to try cooking fresh artichokes for the first time. Then I realized that I had been missing out on a very unique and ancient vegetable, actually a flower bud. Artichokes originate from the