Kale Pesto with Fusilli

Summer is many months away, but I find myself dreaming of the bunches of fresh basil I picked from the garden (yes, we have gardens in Brooklyn!) last summer. In an effort to bring a bit of summer sunshine to the kitchen, I made kale pesto instead of classic basil pesto – lacinato kale is one of my favorite fall and winter vegetables. No, it’s not quite basil, but it will do for now, as we wait for the snow to melt and the spring buds to finally open. (Is it just me, or has this winter seemed to last forever?)

I recently had a version of this kale pesto at Franny’s restaurant here in Brooklyn, and of course I got a bug to recreate it in my own kitchen. I think this recipe comes pretty close. I used walnuts because I didn’t have any pine nuts on hand (and I have to admit, they’re not my most favorite of nuts) – but pine nuts could be easily substituted. I would hesitate to use anything but lacinato kale for this recipe – I think curly kale would be far too bitter.

This recipe makes a scant 1/2 cup of pesto or less – you only need a tablespoon or so per serving of pasta. It would also be lovely with grilled chicken or fish.

Ingredients:

1 cup lacinato kale, roughly chopped (about 1 small bunch of kale)
2 cloves garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
2 tablespoons walnuts, lightly crushed
Kosher salt
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (or less)
2 tablespoons Pecorino-Romano cheese
2 tablespoons Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
Extra cheese for serving (if serving with pasta)

Special Equipment: Food processor

Procedure:

1. Add the kale, garlic, walnuts, and a generous pinch of salt to the bowl of the food processor. Pulse a several times to combine.
2. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil through the feed tube of the food processor. Depending on the consistency you like, you may not use all of the oil, so pour slowly. Run the machine continuously for a minute or two to obtain a very smooth consistency. Add more oil if the consistency of the mixture isn’t smooth.
3. Add the cheeses and pulse to combine.
4. Taste and correct for salt.

Pulled Pork

Hi everyone. I’ve missed you. I’ve been gone for a long time. A digital detox is what I’ve been on. Sometimes you have to step back in order to move forward. Right? But I’m back! And with my return I thought I’d share with you a very easy recipe for pulled pork made in a crock pot. Is there a better way for me to celebrate my return to blog-dom than with pork?? I think not!

A few necessary items about pork, to begin. I used a beautiful bone-in pork shoulder from a local farm. I like to eat meat from local farmers because it’s easier to find out about the way the animal was raised. I get really freaked out about factory-farmed meat, and importantly, I think meat from commercial factory farms tastes different (in a bad way). The only problem is that locally-sourced meat tends to be a lot more expensive than commercial meat. My solution is that I just eat less meat! Less meat, but better quality, more delicious meat. It’s a compromise I’ve made in my life despite my abiding love for all things pork. So. That’s that.

You’ll notice that, aside from the spice rub, this recipe has very few ingredients. Essentially, I’m a lazy cook and I gravitate towards recipes that don’t require a huge amount of prep work, especially on week nights.  I call for 1 1/2 cups of “cola” in the recipe – I used China Cola because it doesn’t have high fructose corn syrup, which is another food-like product that I just don’t fancy. (Do I sound neurotic?) In some places, you can get the big-named sodas with sugar, although you’ll probably have to look hard. The same principle holds true for the barbecue sauce. You can make your own (I like the looks of this recipe) or find good quality, high-fructose corn syrup-free (it’s in everything, seriously) sauce, which is what I did. I usually doctor commercial sauce with extra vinegar because I like a combination of ketchup-based sauce and vinegar-based sauce. A sweet-and-sour approach, if you will. (There are so many schools of barbecue out there – all of them delicious….I don’t want to start any wars here. I think of myself as embracing a pan-barbecue outlook, having lived or spent time in many top-notch barbecue states, such as Texas, Kentucky, Tennessee, Kansas, and North Carolina.)  You can also vary the spice rub to your liking – I think fennel and sage would be nice additions.

If you don’t have a crock pot, you can put the pork in a low oven (300°F or so) for 4-5 hours (or more, depending on how big your pork shoulder is). Check the meat after 4 hours – if it’s falls apart easily, it’s ready.

Ingredients:
(Serves 6-8 as sandwiches; slightly less as a platter)

For the Spice Rub:
1/4 cup kosher salt
1 tablespoon dark brown sugar
1 teaspoon maple sugar (or substitute additional brown sugar)
1 teaspoon dried thyme leaves
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

For the Pork:
One 2 1/2 to 3 lb. bone in pork shoulder
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
One 12 oz. bottle cola (1 1/2 cups)
1 cup barbecue sauce (plus extra vinegar to taste, if necessary)
Salt

Special Equipment: a crock-pot that can accommodate the meat

Procedure:

For the Spice Rub:

1. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl.
2. Place pork in a glass or ceramic baking dish.
3. Rub half of the mixture all over the pork, covering all sides evenly. (You’ll have leftover rub mix. Just cover tightly – it will save indefinitely.)
4. Cover the pork and refrigerate for 3 hours or longer, preferably overnight.

For the Pulled Pork:

1. Layer the onion slices on the bottom of the crock pot.
2. Place the pork on top of the onion slices.
3. Pour in the cola.
4. Cover the crock pot. Set the crock pot to “high” and let cook for 4 to 5 hours, or until the meat is falling apart. (Start checking the meat after 4 hours. It should start releasing a lot of liquid fat after a couple of hours.)
5. Once the meat is done, remove it from the crock pot and let cool slightly. Pour off accumulated fat, onions, and liquid and discard. Give the crock pot a quick wipe with paper towels.
6. Once the meat is cool enough to handle, shred into “pulled” pieces using your fingers or a fork, discarding bone and gristle as you go.
7. Return meat to cleaned crock pot. Add the barbecue sauce and optional vinegar, to taste. (Chile flakes would also be nice if you like it spicy.) Set the crock pot to warm.
8. When meat has re-heated, serve on buns or as a platter with collard greens, biscuits, or cornbread.

Notes: This recipe is easily doubled or even tripled – if you have a big enough crock pot!

Christmas Stollen with Marzipan

The title of this post is a bit of a mouthful, I know. But I didn’t want you to think this was just any old stollen. First, I baked this stollen in honor of the Bon Appetit holiday bake-off and party, which I was super thrilled to be asked to participate in. Second, I think that this stollen has lots going for it. Candied fruit, tons of butter, marzipan, and a delicious almond-rum filling. Some of you may be asking, “But what is stollen, anyway??” Well, I’m here to tell you. Stollen is a German yeasted sweetbread-cake thingy that is traditionally served for Christmas. It was apparently invented in Dresden, Germany, and is said to resemble the baby Jesus in his swaddling clothes. (I’m not so sure about how much my stollen resembled the baby Jesus, but it makes me giggle a little bit.)  Sometimes stollen has a yummy rope of marzipan hidden in the center (I loooove marzipan), sometimes not. It almost always has candied citrus peel (e.g., candied orange, lemon, and citron), candied cherries, and raisins. And some form of booze – usually rum, but sometimes brandy or cognac.

Find yourself some high-quality candied and dried fruit – if you can, try not to use supermarket brands of candied fruit (unless you have access to a really, really good supermarket with really, really good candied fruit). This is not to be snobbish but because the candied and dried fruit form the flavor base of the stollen. You could make your own candied peel using this Bon Appetit recipe. You can even make your own marzipan if you’re feeling really ambitious. Also – I didn’t use my stand mixer for the dough; I mixed and kneaded everything by hand. (It doesn’t take very long to make the stollen dough by hand, just a bit more effort in kneading.) I did use a stand mixer for the frangipane filling.

My stollen is based on several recipes all mashed together. The first is from an old-ish German cookbook that I found in a yard sale (and that smells, deliciously, of 50 year old stale cigarettes) from 1969 called The Cooking of Germany. It’s a Time-Life book from their series “Foods of the World,” favorite classics of mine. The second is the Luchow’s German Cookbook, originally printed in 1952. Luchow’s was a famous New York City restaurant opened in 1882. (No, it’s not a Chinese restaurant – there are supposed to be umlauts over the “u”, but I’m too lazy to add them in. I’ve baked a lot of stollen over the last couple of days, OK? I’m tired.) Finally, I used elements of Richard Bertinet’s recipe, which can be found here.

It’s common to “age” stollen, wrapped tightly, for a couple of weeks before Christmas. I think this recipe won’t last for more than 5-6 days at room temperature, wrapped in plastic wrap. You can also freeze your stollen for up to 3 months, but freezing may affect the texture a bit (i.e., it will likely get a bit dry). Stale stollen can be toasted and spread with (even more) butter.

Lastly, just know that making stollen is an all-day project (or at least a half-day project) due to the various risings that the dough needs to go through.

Ingredients:
Makes 4 medium-sized stollen

For the Stollen Dough:
1/2 cup golden raisins
1/2 cup dried currants
1 cup mixed candied citrus peel (I used equal amounts of candied citron, orange, and lemon peel)
1/2 cup candied cherries, quartered (if your cherries are really syrup-y, rinse them in cold water first)
1/2 cup golden rum
1/4 cup lukewarm water
Two 1/4-oz. packages active dry yeast (I used Red Star brand)
1/2 cup plus a pinch of granulated sugar
1 cup whole milk
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon almond extract
1/2 teaspoon finely grated fresh lemon peel
5 1/2 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 large eggs, at room temperature
3/4 cup (one and a half sticks) unsalted butter, cut into small bits and softened
1 cup blanched slivered almonds
1 tablespoon butter, melted

For the Rum Frangipane:
1/2 cup (one stick) unsalted butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
1 cup finely-ground almond meal or almond flour (I used Bob’s Red Mill brand)
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
2 tablespoons golden rum

To Assemble and Fill the Stollen:
Rum Frangipane filling (see above)
14 oz. marzipan, cut into small chunks
1 1/2 tablespoons melted butter

For the Glaze and Topping:
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons golden rum
Confectioners sugar

Procedure:

For the Stollen Dough:

1. At least an hour before you start baking: Combine the raisins, currants, candied citrus peels, and candied cherries in a medium bowl. Pour the rum over the fruit, tossing to coat. Soak for an hour, and up to 2 hours.
2. Pour the lukewarm water into a small bowl and sprinkle with the yeast and a pinch of sugar, stirring gently to combine. Let the mixture stand in a warm place for 5 minutes or so, or until the mixture gets frothy and doubles in volume.
3. Meanwhile, drain the fruit mixture and reserve the rum. Pat the fruit dry using paper towels. Place the fruit into a clean medium bowl and toss evenly with the 2 tablespoons of all-purpose flour. Set aside.
4. In a heavy medium saucepan, combine the milk, 1/2 cup of granulated sugar, and the salt. Heat over medium heat to lukewarm (110-115 degrees), stirring constantly to dissolve the sugar. Remove from heat and stir in the reserved rum, the vanilla extract, the almond extract, and the fresh lemon peel.
5. Add the yeast mixture to the milk mixture, stirring gently to combine.
6. Measure 5 cups of the flour into a large bowl. Stir in the yeast-milk mixture with a fork, about a cup at a time.
7. Beat the eggs with a balloon whisk until frothy. Stir them into the dough.
8. Using a wooden spoon, work in the bits of softened butter several tablespoons at a time. The dough will be very wet and buttery.
9. Spread your counter top or work board with the remaining 1/2 cup of flour. Flour your hands lightly, gather the dough into a loose ball, and place on the floured board. Knead the dough for 15 minutes, flouring your hands from time to time if necessary, until the dough is smooth and elastic. (The dough will be uniform in texture, all of the butter and flour will be incorporated, and it will feel very smooth to the touch.)
10. Add the slivered almonds to the reserved fruit mixture and toss briefly to combine.
11. Flatten the dough into a rectangle shape (the actual size is not important) and press in half of the almond-fruit mixture. Fold the dough over onto itself and again press out into a rectangular shape. Press in the remaining half of the almond-fruit mixture. Knead the dough very briefly to distribute the fruit and almonds. (Don’t knead for too long or the dough will discolor.)
12. Coat a deep bowl or rising container with melted butter. Add the dough to the bowl. Brush the top of the dough with additional melted butter. Drape a kitchen towel (not terry cloth) over the bowl and let rise in a warm spot for about 2 hours, or until the dough has doubled in bulk.

For the Rum Frangipane:

1. Combine butter and sugar in a stand mixer (or using an electric mixer) on medium speed until pale and fluffy.
2. Add the almond meal/flour and mix until incorporated.
3. Mix in all-purpose flour, then add eggs and rum. Mix on medium speed until the mixture is light and creamy.
4. Set mixture aside in a cool spot (do not refrigerate) until ready.

To Assemble and Fill the Stollen:

1. Lightly flour a work board or counter top. Cut the dough into four equal pieces. Let rest for 10 minutes.
2. With your fingertips, shape the dough into rectangles approximately 9 inches by 6 inches.
3. Spread the rum frangipane filling onto each rectangle, leaving an inch border all the way around. Sprinkle each dough rectangle with the bits of marzipan.
4. Fold the stollen: bring one long side of the dough rectangle to the center and press the edge down lightly. Then carefully fold the other side over to the center of the rectangle, overlapping the seam down the center by about an inch. (Like a letter.) Press the edges gently. Lightly flour your hands and taper the ends of each loaf sightly, pinching gently to seal the ends of the dough. Don’t worry if some of the filling seeps out a bit – just wipe off with your fingertips.
5. Brush two 11-by-17 inch sheet pans with 1 tablespoon melted butter. Gently transfer two loaves of stollen to each sheet pan, leaving at least 4 inches between the loaves. Brush the loaves with the remaining 1/2 tablespoon melted butter.
6. Set the loaves aside in a warm place for about an hour, or until almost doubled in bulk. (You do not need to cover the loaves with a towel if you buttered them in step 5, above.)

To Bake, Glaze, and Top the Stollen:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Bake the breads, switching positions of the pans halfway through baking, 35-40 minutes, or until they are golden brown.
2. Make the glaze: Just before the stollen loaves finish baking, melt the butter in a small saucepan. Stir in the rum.
3. Take the stollen out of the oven and immediately brush with the melted butter-rum glaze, then thickly dust with sifted confectioners sugar.
4. Cool stollen completely on a wire wrack.

Starters and Nibbles

Spicy Crock-Pot Apple Butter – Serve with cheddar or brie (or any cheese that is cheddar-or-brie-like) and crackers. Can be made several days in advance. Uses the crock-pot, which frees up your stovetop and oven. Would also be a nice sauce with turkey. And a nice host(-ess) gift.

Spicy Crock-Pot Apple Butter

Chicken Liver Mousse – Quick and easy to make. Can be made several days in advance. Serve with toast squares, crackers, or sliced baguette.

Chicken Liver Mousse on a crunchy little toast square

Manchego Cheese, Quince, and Walnut Crostini – Make the quince jam (or buy it) in advance. Toast the bread in advance. Easy to assemble.

Manchego, Quince, and Walnut Crostini

First Course

Easy Golden Beet Soup with Buttery Croutons - Serve as a first course. Beets can be roasted several days in advance. Soup can be made and refrigerated 1-2 days in advance (without the croutons, of course). Swirl a bit of heavy cream or yogurt on top for an elegant little touch. When I make a large meal like Thanksgiving dinner, I serve creamy soups like this in teacups – it’s just the right amount of soup so your guests aren’t stuffed before the main course.

Golden Beet Soup with Buttery Croutons

Quick Breads

Bacon Muffins – quick and easy to bake. Can be made 1 day in advance.

Bacon Muffins

Irish Soda Bread with Brown Butter, Rosemary, and Black Pepper – Quickbread (no yeast) – takes only a few minutes to mix. Can be made 1-2 days in advance.

Irish Soda Bread with Brown Butter, Rosemary, and Black Pepper

Cheddar-Sage Biscuits – Can be made 1 day in advance and re-heated. Sage goes nicely with turkey.

Cheddar Sage Biscuits

Sides

Broccoli Raab with Pecans – can be made 1-2 day in advance and re-heated.

Broccoli Raab with Pecans

Mashed Potatoes - can be made several hours in advance. Hold in a metal bowl over simmering water. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap to prevent drying. Add more cream or milk before serving if the potatoes have dried out a bit.

Mashed Potatoes

Cranberry Sauce with Bourbon – can be made up to a week in advance. Made in the oven so it frees up your stovetop. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Cranberry Sauce with Bourbon

Roasted Romanesco Cauliflower – can be made several hours in advance. Pop back in the oven for a few minutes to re-heat. Grate some Parmesan over the cauliflower for a little more richness.

Roasted Romanesco Cauliflower

Kale and Ricotta Salata Salad – believe it or not, this salad can be made several days in advance. Unlike lettuce, the kale is hearty enough to not get slimy under the weight of the vinaigrette. Flavors actually get better if made a day in advance. Can be served cold or at room temperature.

Raw lacitano kale for Kale and Ricotta Salata Salad

Dessert

Apple Pie with Boiled Cider – pie can be made one day in advance. I usually serve apple pie with this Calvados Ice Cream (it’s heaven). You can omit the boiled cider to save time. Add a bit more sugar to compensate.

Apple Pie with Boiled Cider

Bourbon Milkshakes – can’t really be made in advance, but really easy to make using store-bought ingredients. And a perfect ending to your fabulous Thanksgiving meal. Give yourself a round of (bourbon-y) applause!

Bourbon Milkshake

Spicy Crock-Pot Apple Butter

My family’s farm, Fernwood Springs, in Westampton, New Jersey, has a lovely little apple orchard. The trees go mostly untended now because it’s just my grandma and my uncle working the farm (and my grandma is 87!), but the Red Delicious apples are still…well…delicious, even without much tending. I picked a boatload the other day and decided to make apple butter with them in my shiny new-ish crockpot.

I’m filing this recipe under “Kitchen Projects” because it takes a looooong time to make. Traditionally, apple butter is cooked over an open flame for like, 4 days, but I managed to a) eliminate the open flame (not so legal in Brooklyn) and b) reduce the cooking time to about 12 hours or so. I added a couple of dried chilies to the recipe after being inspired by a friend who put up a billion jars of cayenne-spiced apple sauce this year – the chile/apple combo is a good one. It may seem a little weird to boil apple cores in a bag along with the apple/water/sugar mixture, but the cores contain a ton of pectin which will give your finished butter a nice jam-y consistency.

Ingredients:
(makes about 2 pints)

12 cups apples, chopped (I used Red Delicious, but other varieties of apples will work). Reserve 5-6 apple cores – see below
2 cups raw sugar
2 cups water
1 lemon
5-6 apple cores
2 cinnamon sticks
2 whole cloves
3-4 whole cardamom pods
2-3 small dried chilies
4-5 pods star anise
1/2 vanilla bean, split

Special Equipment: Crock-pot, cheesecloth, kitchen twine, hand blender (optional)

Procedure:

1. Combine the chopped apples, sugar, 2 cups of water, and the juice of 1 lemon in a large crock pot. (Reserve the squeezed lemon.)
2. Wrap the juiced lemon, the apple cores, cinnamon sticks, cloves, cardamom pods, chilies, star anise, and vanilla bean in cheesecloth and tie with kitchen twine. Add to the apple/sugar mixture.
3. Cook the mixture on high in the crockpot for 2 hours. If the water starts evaporating too quickly, add more, 1/4 cup at a time.
4. Reduce heat to low and cook for 10-12 hours. The mixture should turn a dark caramel brown and the apples should start to fall apart.
5. After 10-12 hours in the crockpot, check the mixture for consistency. This will depend on what variety of apple you use,  how hot your crockpot gets, and whether you added additional water to the mixture. The mixture should start looking jam-y, with little to no apple chunks in the mix.
6. If the mixture is too chunky for your liking, remove the cheesecloth bag and blend the mixture using a hand blender until the apple chunks have been incorporated. If the mixture isn’t thick enough for your liking, remove the mixture from the crockpot and add to a medium, heavy-bottomed pot. Cook over medium heat until thickened. (Keep an eye on the mixture at this point – it will splatter everywhere if left unattended. Trust me.) I both blended with a hand blender and continued to cook the mixture on top of the stove to get the consistency I wanted.
7. Once the apple butter is as thick as you’d like it, ladle into jars or another clean, glass container. Cool completely, then refrigerate. You can also can (that sounds kind of weird) the apple butter at this point, but I didn’t want to bother – the mixture will keep in the fridge for at least a couple of weeks without canning.

Bolognese Sauce with rigatoni

“Bolognese” sauce is a funny thing. The sauce is not just found in Bologna – most towns in the Italian region (Emilia-Romagna) have their own version, some quite different from one another. Even in Bologna there is little agreement on ingredients or a standardization of the recipe – the old joke is that if you asked 100 people in Bologna for their sauce recipe, you’d get 100 different versions. At its essence, Bolognese sauce is a minced- or ground-meat “sauce” (and I use that word loosely, for reasons explained below) cooked with a sofrito (onion, carrots, celery) and usually with some type of wine and some form of tomatoes. I’ve seen recipes with white wine, with red wine. With mostly ground beef, with only ground beef, with mostly ground pork, with a mixture of the two, and with beef, pork, and chicken livers. With whole tomatoes, or with tomato puree. Lots of recipes add milk during the cooking, some tell you to stir in bechamel sauce at the end instead. The only consistent aspect of any Bolognese sauce recipe is that it must, must, must be cooked for a long time – upwards of two hours or more.

“Sauce” is a word used rather loosely here, because Bolognese sauce is not what most of us outside of Italy would consider “saucy”. That is, Bolognese sauce is much “drier” than your typical pasta sauce. In general, Italians use quite a bit less sauce than we do in the U.S., and Bolognese sauce has quite a bit less liquid than other sauces. (You’ll probably just have to make it to see what I’m talking about.) In the pictures above, I’ve actually used a lot more sauce than you’d normally see on pasta in northern Italy, but even in my version the sauce isn’t glopped on top of the pasta, but rather mixed in so that it coats all of the pasta bits equally. Bolognese sauce in northern Italy is served with tagliatelle (a wider, fettuccine-like fresh egg noodle), in lasagna, with tortellini, or with dried pasta such as rigatoni (shown in the picture above) or penne. It is never, ever served with spaghetti (that is a British adaptation). If you use dried pasta, don’t rinse it after cooking. You don’t want to rinse off the starch that clings to the pasta – this is what allows the sauce to adhere to the pasta.

This recipe is a partial adaptation of a recipe I translated from a book I picked up on a recent trip to Bologna – Laura Rangoni’s La Cucina Bolognese, although I made quite a few alterations. If you are fat-phobic, this is not the recipe for you! There is a huge amount of pork fat (and other fats) in this recipe. Using pasture-raised pork and beef (and butter from grass-fed cows) helps reduce the amount of “bad” fat, but still. There is a LOT of fat in this recipe. If you want to stay true to the recipe but reduce the amount of fat in it, you can skim off the fat at the end (it will separate out from the rest of the sauce) or you can refrigerate the sauce overnight and de-fat it after the fat has solidified. Don’t remove all of the fat, though, because the fat is what really coats the pasta and creates a “saucy” feel in the mouth.

A few last words about ingredients: make sure you dice your sofrito (onion, carrot, celery) as finely as possible – you don’t want big chunks of celery or carrots in your final sauce (they’re supposed to sort of melt into the sauce after the long cooking time). This recipe calls for prosciutto cotto and pancetta. Prosciutto cotto: literally, “cooked prosciutto”,  prosciutto cotto is exactly that – prosciutto that has been cooked. It is sold like other deli meats. If you can’t find prosciutto cotto, you could substitute good-quality ham. If you can’t find pancetta (sometimes referred to as Italian bacon – but only because pancetta is made from pork belly – other than that, there is little similarity), omit it. Don’t be tempted to use American (smoked) bacon – you’ll ruin the balance of flavors in the sauce. If you find pancetta, have your deli man (or woman) slice it thinly to facilitate you chopping it into tiny, tiny bits. I used La Quercia pancetta (normally I’d never say “domestic” and “pancetta” in the same breath, but La Quercia’s pancetta is truly delicious and comes from humanely raised pigs).  And finally,  I prefer Bionaturae brand of tomato puree, but if you can’t find a good puree, you can simply open a can of high-quality whole tomatoes and puree them in your food processor or blender. Strain the seeds using a fine-mesh strainer if you like.

Ingredients:
For 6-8 servings

3 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 medium onions, very finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and very finely chopped
2 ribs of celery, very finely chopped
3 ounces pancetta, very finely chopped
4 ounces (1/4 pound) prosciutto cotto, very finely chopped
1 pound grass-fed ground beef
3/4 pound sustainably-raised ground pork
1 cup dry white wine
1 1/4 cups tomato puree
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

1 lb. pasta for serving
Grated Parmigiano-Reggiano for serving

Procedure:

1. In a large, heavy dutch oven, add the butter, olive oil, onions, carrots, and celery. Saute over medium heat until the vegetables have softened (but not browned – turn down the heat if they start browning), about 10 minutes.
2. Add the pancetta, and cook and stir over medium heat for another 5 minutes.
3. Add the prosciutto cotto and cook and stir over medium heat for 5 minutes more.
4. Add the ground beef and the ground pork, breaking up large chunks with a fork. Cover the pot and cook over medium-low heat for 15-20 minutes, or until all the pink is gone from the meat, stirring occasionally.
5. Add the white wine, turn the heat up to medium-high, and let cook until most of the wine has evaporated, 15 minutes or so.
6. Stir in the tomato puree.
7. Turn the heat down to medium low and simmer for 2 hours or longer, stirring occasionally. The fat will separate from the sauce at the end of cooking. If the mixture becomes too dry during cooking, add a bit of water, a few tablespoons at a time. Don’t add salt until the very end, keeping in mind that the cured pork products add quite a bit of salt to the sauce.
8. Cook your pasta of choice, drain, and toss with the sauce, stirring well to coat each piece of pasta. Top with grated Parmigiano-Reggiano.

Note: You can cook the sauce in a crock-pot instead of on the stove – add all ingredients to the crock-pot at step 7. Cook on low heat for 4 hours, stirring occasionally. Add water if the mixture becomes too dry, as discussed in step 7.

Chicken Liver Mousse on a crunchy little toast square

There was a time not too long ago when I was intimidated at the prospect of cooking organ meats.  I have since recovered from my fear – but if you have a bit of an organ-meat-cooking phobia, an easy entree into the world of offal cookery can be had with the making of chicken liver mousse. There aren’t very many ingredients, cooking time is very limited, and even prepping the actual livers isn’t so bad. Seriously. This mousse is a fairly classic recipe that makes for an elegant pre-dinner starter with a glass of white wine, or, dare I say, a glass or two (or seven) of champagne?

This recipe is an amalgamation of recipes from my French Culinary Institute curriculum, Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking, and the Gourmet cookbook. It’s definitely better the next day, after the flavors have had plenty of time to meld. (And, might I add, perfect for a party? You can make it one or two days in advance, no sweat.)  Just make sure you leave the mousse out for 1-2 hours before you want to serve it to make sure it is nice and spreadable.

A word about chicken livers. It’s a bit hard to find pasture-raised chicken livers, but when I stumble upon them I get really excited. The liver functions as a detoxification organ (among other things) in lots of animals (including people), so I get a bit freaked out when I think about liver from a factory-farmed animal. Prepping a chicken liver is easier than you might think. First, trim off large chunks of fat. If the liver is large, you can separate the two lobes and pull off the fat with your fingers. Also check the livers for green spots (this is bile – not good to eat) and large blood vessels – remove with your fingers or trim with a knife. Finally, check the livers for the stringy bits that connect the lobes – remove those with your fingers or a knife as well. Rinse the livers under cold running water and pat dry.  You’re good to go.

I passed my mousse through a fine-meshed sieve because I wanted the texture to be ultra-smooth. You can skip this step – your mousse won’t be chunky, but it won’t have the fine, smooth texture you’d get forcing it through a sieve. (Forcing stuff through sieves is a very French thing to do. The easiest way to pass stuff through a sieve in a home kitchen is to dump the mixture into your fine-mesh strainer, then push it through the sieve using a rubber spatula. It doesn’t take very long if you move the spatula around kinda vigorously.)

I think this mousse is best served with crunchy little toasts or crackers.

Ingredients:
(Makes about 1 cup mousse)

4 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 medium shallot, very finely chopped
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
3/4 pound pastured chicken livers, trimmed, washed, and patted dry (see note above)
1/4 cup brandy
Pinch ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3-4 tablespoons whipping cream

Special Equipment: food processor, fine-mesh sieve (optional)

Procedure:

1. In a 12-inch, heavy bottomed saute pan, heat the butter over medium heat until just foaming.
2. Add the chopped shallot and garlic and cook and stir until the shallot is soft, 5-6 minutes. (Turn the heat down a bit if the butter or shallots start to brown.)
3. Salt and pepper the trimmed chicken livers and add to the pan. Cook the livers, stirring gently from time to time, until they are cooked but still a bit pink in the center, about 5 minutes (cooking time will depend on the size of your livers).
4. Add the brandy. Turn the heat up to medium-high and cook until most of the brandy has evaporated, another 3-4 minutes.
5. Remove from heat and let the mixture cool for a few minutes.
6. Add the slightly-cooled mixture to the bowl of the food processor fitted with the blade attachment. Add the allspice, nutmeg, a few grindings of pepper, a pinch of salt, and the whipping cream.
7. Process until you have a very smooth mixture. Add more cream if you want your mousse a bit looser.
8. If you want a super smooth mixture, force the mousse through a fine mesh strainer (optional – see above).
9. Pack the mousse into a large ramekin or other container and let cool. Once cool, cover surface of the mousse with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 2-3 hours, preferably longer. Bring to room temperature before serving.

Summer Vegetable Frittata

Wow, that was quite a long blogging break I took. I felt guilty every day for not blogging. (I was on vacation in North Carolina with my family. It was fun. I was too busy boogie-boarding to blog.)   I know a frittata isn’t the most super exciting foodstuff I could trot out after a bit of time away, but they are quite easy to make once you’ve got the technique down, and they are quite useful in using up extra summer vegetables. They keep well and can be served hot, at room temperature, or cold, so they make great next-day leftovers. (Frittata sandwiches are good.) Frittatas are just open-faced omelettes – or maybe I should say that omelettes are just folded frittatas? (Although I went to a French culinary school, I tend to side with the Italians on most food-related historical matters.) Like omelettes, frittatas are lovely because you can put all sorts of things in them – stuff you have on hand, interesting stuff you find at the farmer’s market, leftover stuff. In this recipe, I use beet tops – don’t throw them away! They are delicious! (You can cook them like spinach or swiss chard, drizzle with a little extra virgin olive oil and a few drops of red wine vinegar, and eat hot or at room temperature.)

A (long) note about frying pans: I have my own method of making frittatas that may or may not be Italian-approved. I use a non-stick frying pan – I realize that a lot of people are wary of using non-stick because of the chemicals involved in making the pans, so if you’re one of those people, you can use a non-non-stick frying pan. Just note that you’ll have to use extra oil or cooking spray to keep the frittata from sticking to the bottom of your pan. (I have it in my mind that as long as I don’t cook food in non-stick pans over super-high heat or in a super-high oven, I’ll be OK. This may or may not be scientifically accurate, but it’s what I tell myself.)  You also must make sure that you pan is oven-proof – that is, that the handles are metal with no plastic whatsoever. Otherwise you’ll destroy both your pan and your oven, probably. And the smell of burning plastic is not yummy, not at all. You don’t need a special $90 frittata pan with hinges, or any other special equipment. In fact, I don’t even turn my frittatas, but you can if you like. (This will all become clear in a moment.) I prefer a thinner frittata, but if you like your frittatas a bit thicker, you can use a smaller-sized frying pan. You’ll have to cook your frittata a bit longer.

Last little note. Get yourself some good eggs. See in the picture how yellow the frittata is? That’s not photoshopped, my friends! It’s just the fine quality of the eggs, which I bought from a New Jersey farmer at my local farmer’s market. You will notice a huge difference in taste, color, and texture. I swear. Also – you don’t have to use the vegetables I did. Use whatever you want – spinach or chard instead of beet greens, heirloom tomatoes instead of cherry, any herb mix that tickles your fancy, peas…pretty much anything in season is good in a frittata. I used baby patty-pan squash that I sauteed first with a bit of oil and Thai chili-garlic sauce – I’ve shared the method with you below. Zucchini or yellow squash would be an excellent substitute.

Ingredients:
(For one 10-inch diameter frittata – serves 4 for breakfast, lunch, or dinner)

For the sauteed patty-pan squash:
1/2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil or coconut oil
2-3 baby patty-pan squash, sliced thinly
1 teaspoon (or more) Thai chili-garlic sauce (you can use smooth Sriracha, but I prefer the thicker chili-garlic sauce) or other hot sauce with 1/2 clove of finely chopped garlic

For the frittata:
6 fresh eggs
1 tablespoon milk (skim milk is OK)
3-4 large beet green leaves, tough stems discarded, washed and chopped
3/4 cup cherry or grape tomatoes
1-2 tablespoons mixed chopped herbs – I used a combination of basil, mint, parsley, and chives
Sauteed patty-pan squash (see above)
Other vegetables or greens, as desired (I threw in some arugula flowers from my garden) (optional)
1 tablespoon Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (optional)
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil (or more, see note above about pans)
Kosher salt and freshly-ground pepper

Special Equipment: 10-inch diameter non-stick oven-proof frying pan (see note about pans above), a rubber spatula

Procedure:

For the sauteed patty-pan squash:

1. Heat the oil in a small, heavy sauté pan over very high heat until hot, but not smoking.
2. Add the patty-pan squash and sauté over high heat until the squash is browned in spots, but still a bit firm – 1-2 minutes.
3. Turn the heat down to medium and stir in the chili-garlic sauce (or add the garlic clove and the hot sauce), stir for 30 seconds, then immediately remove from heat.
4. Cool before adding to the frittata “batter”.

For the frittata:

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
2. In a large bowl, beat the eggs with the milk and a generous pinch of salt until the eggs are uniform (i.e., you can’t distinguish between the yolks and the whites).
3. Stir in the beet greens, tomatoes, herbs, cooled squash, any other vegetable your heart desires, and the optional cheese. Add a few grindings of black pepper. Stir gently to combine evenly. (Some of the heavier vege like the tomatoes will sink to the bottom. This is OK.)
4. Heat the olive oil over medium heat in your skillet. When hot (but not smoking – never smoking) add the egg mixture.
5. Stir the mixture with a rubber spatula until the mixture starts to set, taking care to distribute the vegetables evenly if they’ve migrated to one side of the pan or another. Stop stirring when you see the edges of the eggs start to set. This will take a varying amount of time depending on your pan and your heat source.
6. When the eggs have set 3-4 inches in from the edge of the pan (i.e., the eggs are set around the outside, but there is still a round jiggly bit in the middle), remove from the stovetop and stick in the oven. At this point, if you’re using a smaller pan, you might want to consider flipping the frittata. (I never do because it’s a pain and the egg mixture sets up just fine without flipping, but it’s up to you.)
7. Cook the frittata in the oven until the center is set. This will also take a varying amount of time – start checking after 5 minutes. When you shake the pan, you should see absolutely no jiggle action in the center of the egg mixture.
8. Carefully remove the pan from the oven (remember the handle will be super hot) and immediately slide the frittata from the pan onto a cutting board or plate. (This is where using a non-stick pan is useful.) If not using non-stick, you may need to loosen the edges of the frittata with your rubber spatula.
9. Cut the frittata into wedges and serve hot or at room temperature. Extra hot sauce on the side is nice.

Grilled Shishito Peppers

I’m not afraid to go out on a limb and say that shishito peppers are the most delicious peppers ever in the history of peppers. They are so good I had to cook them up two different ways. The first: a classic method for cooking shishito peppers – toss them in a bit of oil, drop them on a hot grill pan or cast-iron skillet, and cook until hot and blackened in spots. Then toss with a bit of kosher or sea salt. (Wait! I just gave the recipe away! Do I really need to type it up now?) The second method involves a bit of frying. I use a very simple batter to fry up various summer produce, shishito peppers being a recent favorite. The batter results in a crispy exterior that won’t fall off. (Contrary to popular wisdom, I fry in extra virgin olive oil. It tastes good.)  Try the batter for squash blossoms, zucchini rounds, patty pan squash slices, jalepenos…pretty much any kind of summer produce that you can get your hands on.

Shishito peppers are not spicy, so I like to add just a tiny bit of cayenne to the salt after grilling or frying – I like spicy. Of course, this step is entirely optional. Also, you can strain the olive oil after frying and re-use it so as not to waste perfectly good extra-virgin olive oil.

Ingredients:
(Serves 2-3 as an appetizer)

For the pan-roasted peppers:
1 cup (or more) shishito peppers
1 tablespoon (or more) extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
Cayenne (optional)

For the fried peppers:
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 cup water
1 cup (or more) shishito peppers
Extra virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
Cayenne (optional)

Lemon or lime wedges for serving

Special Equipment: Grill pan, cast-iron skillet, or heavy-bottomed pan

Fried Shishito Peppers

Procedure:

For the pan-roasted peppers:

1. Heat your grill pan, cast-iron skillet, or heavy-bottomed pan over very high heat.
2. Toss the peppers with a bit of extra virgin olive oil. Drop the peppers on the hot skillet, and cook, turning occationally, until the peppers have softened and are charred in spots.
3. Remove from heat and sprinkle kosher salt and the optional pinch of cayenne over the peppers. Eat piping hot.

For the fried peppers:

1. Put the water in a small bowl. Sift the flour into the water, stirring with a fork or a small whisk until the flour has been entirely incorporated into the water. You should have a mixture as thick as skim yogurt. (If your mixture is too thick or too thin, add a bit more water or flour as needed.)
2. In a medium, heavy-bottomed skillet, add extra virgin olive oil to come about an inch up from the bottom of the pan. Heat over medium-high heat until the oil is very hot (drop a bit of the batter into the oil – it should immediately turn a golden brown color and start to float to the top of the oil).
3. Dunk the peppers into the batter, letting the excess batter drip back into the bowl. Add the battered peppers to the oil and fry until golden brown, turning halfway through cooking. Depending on the size of your pan, you may need to cook the peppers in batches. (Don’t crowd the pan: it will immediately lower the temperature of the oil and will result in a soggy, not crisp, crust.)
4. Drain on a paper towels and sprinkle with kosher salt and the optional cayenne while still hot.
5. Serve very hot with lemon or lime wedges on the side.

Fresh Cranberry Beans

It took me a while to catch on to the beauty and deliciousness of fresh shelling beans. I think I had always been unsure of the best way to cook them, my primary bean experiences having been with the dried and canned varieties. Then I found fresh cranberry beans at my local farmer’s market. I don’t know about you guys, but sometimes I get a little emotional about my food – I mean, these beans were just so beautiful, both in the pod and out. I shed a little tear. (Unfortunately, the beautiful mottled cranberry color of the fresh, uncooked beans gets cooked out, leaving you with a rather boring-looking greyish-cream bean. But the memory of the raw bean lingers on.)

I made a super-simple salad with a bit of arugula, but think of this post as a fresh bean primer – you can alter this recipe in so many ways. Experiment with different types of greens (finely shredded kale would be nice, or chopped endive). Add a chopped fresh chile. Experiment with the types of herbs you use. Add a pinch of cumin and a squeeze of lime juice. Or a squashed anchovy. Pile up on toasted bread rubbed with a clove of garlic. Serve the salad while the beans are still a bit warm, or at room temperature. The possibilities, as they say, are endless.

If you can’t find fresh beans, dried or canned are an acceptable substitution, but I implore you to try to find fresh beans at least once this summer. There is a tremendous difference in texture and I think you’ll like it. Marcella Hazan taught me how to cook fresh beans in her awesome Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. This recipe is loosely based on several of her recipes.

Fresh Cranberry Bean and Arugula Salad

Ingredients:
(Serves 3-4 as an appetizer or side dish)

1 pound fresh cranberry or other fresh beans in the shell
1/2 clove garlic, finely chopped
2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
The juice of 1/2 a lemon or lime
1/2 to 1 teaspoon fresh herbs, finely chopped (either rosemary, sage, chives, parsley, or cilantro)
1 cup baby arugula leaves
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper

Procedure:

1. Shell the fresh beans. Put the beans in a medium, heavy pot and cover with water by about 2 inches. Bring to a boil over high heat, then cover and simmer gently for about an hour, or until the beans are tender. (Note: do not salt the water.)
2. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together the garlic, olive oil, lemon or lime juice and a pinch of salt. Set aside.
3. Drain the beans and gently rinse under cold water to stop the cooking.
4. Toss the beans in the dressing. Taste and correct for salt – you will probably need to add quite a bit more salt at this point. Add the fresh herbs to taste and the baby arugula leaves. Toss very gently to combine. Add a few grindings of black pepper. Serve warm or at room temperature.