Domestic Agenda

What to do with all those toothpicks

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 14:59:00 +0000

This helpful little tip list for toothpicks was passed on to me. I especially like numbers 3 and 9!

Remember Christmas 2010?

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Sun, 02 Jan 2011 14:45:00 +0000

I know this post is sorrily tardy. Let's just think of it as really early for next Christmas! Pictures were taken with my new fancy Canon Rebel Camera. Thanks, Santa!

Every year my Aunt and Uncle bring pastries from Pittsburgh bakery, Prantl's, for Christmas Day Brunch. I was looking forward to this bready, frosted, tree-shaped concoction for weeks. It did not disappoint. Isn't it festive? Prantl's doesn't currently ship this or their similar wreath shape pastry that is stuffed with a sugary nut paste. I may just have to write to Bon Appetit to get the recipe so I can bake it up myself.

Fruitcake gets a bad rap, but this version is altogether lovely. Moist inside with a crisp crust, it tastes wonderfully citrus-y due to the whopping 1oz of lemon extract. One slice with your morning coffee would make a perfect, and perfectly simple winter breakfast. A loaf also makes a very nice holiday hostess gift.

Lollie's Lemon Fruitcake
Adapted from Gourmet

Makes 2 loaves

1 lb golden raisins
4 1/2 cups pecan halves (this can be halved if you prefer your cakes less nutty)
3 cups AP Flour, separated
1/2 tsp. salt
4 sticks unsalted butter, softened
2 cups sugar
6 large eggs, separated
1 tsp baking soda
1 tbsp lukewarm water
1 oz pure lemon extract
2 loaf pans 9x5x3in

1. Put oven rack in the middle position and preheat oven to 250 degrees.

2. Toss raisins and pecans with 1 cup flour until coated well. Set aside.

3. Whisk salt into remaining 2 cups of flour.

4. Beat butter at medium high speed until light and fluffy. Add sugar and beat until light and fluffy again. Add egg yolks and beat until incorporated. Add flour (with salt) and mix at a low speed until just combined.

5. Stir baking soda into lukewarm water in a small bowl until dissolved. Add this to butter mixture along with lemon extract. Stir until smooth. Stir in raisin/nut/flour mixture including any flour that remains in the bowl until raisins and nuts are incorporated and no visible traces of flour remain.

6. Beat egg whites in a clean bowl with dry, well-cleaned beaters until they just hold stiff peaks. Fold into batter until combined. Batter will be thick and lumpy.

7. Spray loaf pans with non-stick spray and divide batter evenly between them. Gently rap pans on counter to eliminate air bubbles.

8. Bake until tops of cakes are golden and a wooden skewer inserted in the center of each comes out clean, about 2 3/4 hours. Cool cakes in pans on racks for 10 minutes. Then turn out cakes onto racks and cool completely, about 3 hours.

Can be kept, wrapped in plastic wrap, in an airtight container at room temperature 2 weeks. Or frozen 1 month. Just sit out to defrost.

Bring us some figgy pudding

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Sun, 12 Dec 2010 23:40:00 +0000

I really enjoyed the quick profile of Christmas Pudding on CBS Sunday Morning today. Long mysterious to many of us stateside, puddings are beloved by the British, especially during the holiday season. I may even have to try Nigella's recipe!

Click here to view the entire segment.

Apple Picking

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Mon, 27 Sep 2010 21:50:00 +0000

Autumn is the most wonderful time of year in the northeast. It's still warm, but not too humid; the leaves have just started to change. It is also, the perfect time to go apple picking. So off a group of urbanites went to the New York countryside, Warwick Valley, to be precise, to eat delicious food, drink delicious cider and, of course, pick too many apples.

I'd been to Warwick once before, on my infamous deer meat procuring adventure, and their bakery which churns out pizzas, sandwiches and salads is truly top notch. Little did I know that it would be such a scene, though: live music, every family within 10 miles picnicking and carousing. It was a veritable fall fest.

Our group's favorite fruits of the day were Jonagolds, the rightfully well-known cross between Jonathan and Golden Delicious, and the less lovely, but perfectly crunchy and tart, Golden Russets. Both good to eat and use in baking, though the skin of the Golden Russet is a little potato-y.

A great way to preserve your apples if, like me, you brought back far too many bushels to your tiny apartment, is making my favorite cranberry applesauce and freezing it in batches.

Chunky Spiced Applesauce
Adapted from Cooking Light

10 cups cubed peeled apples (about 3 lbs)
1/2 lemon
2 cups fresh cranberries
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup maple syrup
1/3 cup water or apple cider
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
pinch of grated nutmeg
optional pinch of ginger or allspice, or cloves

1. Placed apple in a large bowl; cover with cold water. Squeeze juice from lemon half into bowl; lace lemon half in bowl. Set aside.

2. Combine cranberries and remaining ingredients in a Dutch over; bring to a boil, stirring occasionally. Cook 3 minutes or until cranberries pop.

3. Drain apple; discard lemon. Add apple to pan. Cover, reduce heat, and simmer 25 minutes or until apple is soft. Uncover, bring to a boil, and cook 15 minutes. Mash apple mixture with a potato masher. Pour into serving dish; cover and chill at least 2 hours. Once completely cool, sauce freezes well.

Btw, I'd recommend picking up/borrowing from your local library a copy of Michael Pollan's "The Botany of Desire: A Plant's-Eye View of the World" The first chapter lays out the story of the apple in America: how and why it became ubiquitous and associated with health rather than intoxication. Quick and interesting read.

Sunday at Ruth Reichl's House

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 16:54:00 +0000

There's a delectable little tidbit in today's New York Times. Their regular article "Sunday Routine" features Ruth Reichl, one of my favorite memoirists/recipe authors/restaurant reviewers and, of course, editor of the sadly departed Gourmet magazine. It's a great quick read that may inspire you to start making your own daily bread, or just long to be a guest at her Columbia County retreat.

The Freshest Fish in Venice

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Wed, 04 Aug 2010 20:00:00 +0000

When in Venice last month, my husband and I were up for a lunchtime adventure, and, Rough Guide in hand, went searching the Dorsoduro for Do Farai. Hiding on a tiny street behind Ca' Rezzonico, Do Farai was empty save for some locals sipping espresso at the bar. A good sign!

It was hot. Really hot. So we ordered some cold white wine and the house specialty, carpaccio of sea bass. Little did we know the theatrical experience we were about the experience.

The fish appears, recently caught!

Presented and Gutted.

Filleted.

All that's left. Hopefully this will go into a soup!

The carpaccio slicing begins. Super thin.

Tossed with salt, pepper, prosecco, fresh squeezed lemon and olive oil. Curing before our eyes!

Quite a presentation. The whole process took ten minutes and was admirably professional with lots of care and little waste. The proud proprietor even brought us Prosecco as an accompaniment "because it's the best with this." The essence of Venetian cuisine: seafood: simple and fresh. Delicious and memorable!!

Do Farai Calle Cappeller 3278 near Ca' Rezzonico

Save your leftover coffee!

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Fri, 21 May 2010 14:00:00 +0000

A few months ago, in a fit of frugality, I started pouring whatever morning coffee was left in the pot into a pitcher in the fridge. By Sunday enough had been collected for two large, Leslie-sized, servings of iced coffee. I had no idea how much coffee I was pouring out! Of course, coffee isn't incredibly expensive, still, every bit counts, especially these days. Turning your leftover coffee into iced coffee is a great way to have a cool caffeine delivery system on a hot summer day and to waste none of that amazing brown stuff!

Trout with Herbs

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Thu, 06 May 2010 19:21:00 +0000

Trout is a perfect dish for spring. It's light, tasty and usually super cheap, especially if you can find brook trout. Plus, you can use whatever herbs are currently going to waste in the fridge. I've been seeing whole trout at Fairway lately. Have someone at the fish counter fillet it for you if, like me, your fish butchering skills are not exactly professional.

Trout with Herbs
Adapted from Cooking Light

4 6-ounce trout fillets
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon oil -olive or canola
1 1/2 cups mixed fresh herbs (any combo of chopped fresh chives, tarragon, parsley, dill, oregano, cilantro)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1/8 teaspoon salt

Score skin side of fish. Sprinkle fish with 1/2 teaspoon salt and pepper. Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet. Add fish, skin side down, to pan; cook 4 minutes or until skin is crisp and fish flakes easily when tested with a fork.

Combine herbs, juice, and 1/8 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl; toss gently to coat. Serve salad over fish.

Do I Dare Believe My Eyes?

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 22:47:00 +0000

Rhubarb....Bitters...

Two of my most favorite things. All in one cutie bottle. The heavens have opened!

Let the rhubarb manhattans commence.

Cilantro: It loves me, it loves me not.

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Wed, 14 Apr 2010 19:26:00 +0000

Love cilantro? Hate it with a passion? Few people fall in between. A charming article in today's New York Times Dining section examines why cilantro aversion exists and suggests a possible cure...immersion.

Passover Rolls !?!

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 23:54:00 +0000

I know what you're thinking. "How can a roll (read: leavened?) be kosher for passover (read: unleavened)?" And, "I guess you could make them, but they must taste baaad." Well, the dough for these rolls is made kind of like a gougere so it doesn't need yeast, but still bakes up fluffy -thanks to a generous amount of eggs. They're definitely tasty enough to deserve a place at your seder table, or make them post-seder to use up extra matzo meal from your matzo ball soup. One cooled, they keep frozen up to one month!

Herbed Passover Rolls
Adapted from Cooking Light Magazine
Makes 12-14

1 1/4 cups water
1/3 cup canola oil
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 cups matzo meal
4 large eggs
1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
1 teaspoons finely chopped fresh thyme

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line baking sheet with silpat. Combine water, oil, sugar and salt in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to low. Ad matzo meal stirring well with a spatula until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the pan (about 30 seconds.) Remove from heat and transfer dough to stand mixture fitted with paddle attachment. Let cool about 5 minutes. Start beating a low speed. Add eggs one at a time, beating until fully incorporated. Stir in chives and thyme. Use water or cooking spray to keep fingers moist and un-sticky and shape dough into 12-14 mounds. Place mounds on silpat and bake for 55 minutes or until browned and crisp. Cool on a wire rack.

Dogfish Head + Batali = Awesomeness

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Tue, 23 Feb 2010 14:36:00 +0000

I'm pretty excited about this news! NYC is always in need of more rooftop options in the sweltering summertime and I can't wait to taste what the alchemists at Dogfish Head come up with. Can they beat my current beer obsession, Dogfish Head 90 minute IPA? We shall see!

Entire Bag of Chips = 5 million calories

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:49:00 +0000

Interesting article in the New York Times over the weekend about cracking the serving size code on packaged foods. Seeing how counter-intuitive and frustrating labels, I'd say it's about time that serving size represented the amount an actual full sized human consumes in a sitting. The Obama administration has been vocal in its support for healthy local eating, so fingers crossed that the FDA can get this overhaul done.

Super Bowl Treats from the Today Show

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Thu, 04 Feb 2010 18:37:00 +0000

Check out my buddy, Chef Edwin Bellanco (of New York City's Morrell Wine Bar and Cafe) cooking up Super Bowl treats on the Today Show.

Way to go, Ed! Clevelanders Represent!

Lentil Soup with Spicy Sausage

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 15:15:00 +0000

This is a delicious one pot meal for winter. It makes A LOT of hearty soup and keeps wonderfully in the refrigerator so you can enjoy leftovers all week long as the snow falls outside. If you cannot finish the entire pot in your first sitting (and unless you have 8 friends to help you, or that many stomachs you won't ) make sure to place the spinach in each individual bowl instead of in the entire pot or the leaves will wilt too much.

Lentil Soup with Spicy Sausage
Adapted from Bon Appetit

1 tablespoon olive oil
1 pound hot turkey sausage
1 large onion, chopped
2 large carrots, peeled, chopped
2 large parsnips, peeled, chopped
2 large celery stalks, chopped
2 1/2 teaspoons dried Italian seasoning blend (or a combination of any suitable dried herbs you have on hand: sage, oregano, basil)
1 pound lentils
3 quarts low-salt chicken broth
1 5 ounce package spinach leaves

Heat oil in dutch oven over medium high heat. Remove sausage from casings in small bits and cook until browned, stirring occasionally. Add onion, carrots, parsnips, celery and herbs. Cook until onion is translucent and vegetables begin to soften, stirring often. Add lentils; stir to coat. Add broth and bring to boil. Reduce heat to medium and simmer until lentils are tender, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

If serving entire soup immediately, add spinach to dutch oven and stir in before ladling into bowl. If not, add spinach to each bowl and stir in to each serving.

Eat and enjoy!

Breakfast for Dinner: Tomato Poached Eggs

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Tue, 12 Jan 2010 14:33:00 +0000

I found inspiration for this dish from a recipe in my "to-make" file one night when I wanted to use only items I had in the fridge and pantry. It's simple, rustic and will warm you up on these cold winter nights!

Tomato Poached Eggs
4 servings

2 tablespoons olive oil
1/3 cup sliced green onions (yellow onions would be fine here too)
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
1 28 oz can (or 2 14.5 oz cans) whole plum tomatoes, undrained and coarsely chopped
4 large eggs
4 thick slices of crusty bread
1/2 cup of hard cheese (pecornio or parmesan)
optional (if you have it) : 2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Heat oil in large skillet over medium heat until it shimmers. Add onions and garlic to the oil, cook 3 minutes or until fragrant. Stir in 1/4 tsp salt and 1/4 tsp pepper and tomatoes. Bring to boil.

Reduce heat and simmer for 15 minutes. Stir occasionally.

Reduce heat to low. Crack one egg at a time over tomato mixture, spacing about 1 inch apart. Sprinkle eggs with remaining salt and pepper. Cover pan and cook 5 minutes or until eggs are cooked to desired doneness.

Place one slice of bread in each of 4 bowls. Spoon about 3/4 cup of sauce over each serving. Top each with one egg, approximately 2 tablespoons grated cheese and 1 1/2 teaspoons basil.

Eat and enjoy!

Santa keeps me cooking

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Tue, 29 Dec 2009 20:08:00 +0000

I must have been good this year because Santa brought me lots of cooking accessories, implements, and appliances!

Looks like homemade waffles are on the menu for New Year's Day!!

This is an old timey cookie mold. It's almost too pretty to use, though, and will be just kitchen decoration at least for now.

I asked for these tools. The peeler because my old one is just too dull. I discovered that while attempting to peel a pile of potatoes for latkes earlier this month. Uf. The sharp grater is perfect for harder things, like nutmeg. And since, after tasting the intense flavor of fresh grated nutmeg earlier this month I vowed to never purchase ground nutmeg again, I desperately needed this to stick to that promise.

Isn't this cute? Since I often have to wear an apron when we're hosting friends for dinner, it's wonderful to get one that's just as pretty as a party frock. Detail of the front pocket below. Thanks, Mom!

I was so excited to unwrap Thomas Keller's "Ad Hoc At Home." It's a surprisingly large tome for a casual, family style cookbook, but since having the Heirloom Tomato Salad and Buttermilk Fried Chicken at Ad Hoc restaurant in Napa (while dining next to Mr. Keller himself!) I've been dying to recreate them at home. Coming up on New Year's Eve, Fried Chicken!!

Lastly, my mother gifted me her very own, well loved copy of Julia Child and Simone Beck's "The Art of French Cooking." I was most touched by this hand-me-down since Christmas is all about family traditions, particularly of the edible kind. My mother is an excellent cook and hostess. I continue to learn from her and will treasure her cookbook treasures!

Spicy Sweet Potato Casserole

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Tue, 22 Dec 2009 14:24:00 +0000

These sweet potatoes have a spicy thai twist that had all our Thanksgiving guests happily licking their lips and guessing what the tasty magical flavorings were. I'm making them again this week to go with our Christmas ham.

Fiery Sweet Potatoes
Adapted from the New York Times

Time: About 2 hours

5 pounds sweet potatoes

1 cup lite coconut milk

1 tablespoon Thai red curry paste

1/2 cup brown sugar -dark or light

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 teaspoon salt.

Heat oven to 375 degrees. Bake potatoes on a baking sheet until very soft, about 1 hour. When cool enough to handle, peel and mash.

Heat coconut milk with curry paste over in a heat proof bowl in microwave until warm. Stir until combined. Mix coconut milk mixture, half the sugar, half the butter, and salt into potatoes. Keep warm until ready to serve, or cover and refrigerate up to two days.

At least 30 minutes before serving, heat oven to 425 degrees. Put potatoes in a baking dish, cover with foil and bake for 20 minutes. Uncover potatoes, dot with remaining butter and sugar and broil until brown and crusty on top, checking often to prevent scorching.

Yield: 10 to 12 servings.

Pear Upside Down Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 02:59:00 +0000

When I saw this Mark Bittman recipe for Pear Upside Down Cake in last week's New York Times, I knew I had to try it even though the other resident of my home dislikes (hates?) pears. Bittman wrote that he meant this dessert to be a cross between tarte tatin and upside-down cake, which it is, though, for me, it's simply a more fancy, more adult, more complex version of the traditional (and my dad's personal favorite) pineapple upside down cake in all its caramelized sweetness.

Surprisingly, it got raves from my pear-hating husband, who compared it's moist sweetness to tres leches cake, and our bridge buddies. It's easy enough to make on a weeknight if you have some time to spare and would be perfect to serve for brunch as well as dessert. And speaking of, it would be a very good substitute for pie at your Thanksgiving table for any crust-phobic amongst you. Make sure to use the best pears and highest quality maple syrup you can get your hands on. Happy fall baking!

Maple Pear Upside Down Cake

Time: About 90 minutes

11 tablespoons butter

3/4 cup maple syrup

1/4 cup packed brown sugar

3 medium sized pears (I used a mix of bartlett and bosc) peeled, cored and thinly sliced

3/4 cup granulated sugar

1 teaspoon vanilla

2 large eggs

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 cup milk (skim is fine)

1. Heat oven to 350 degrees. Melt 3 tablespoons butter in a small pan over medium heat; add maple syrup and brown sugar and cook, stirring, until sugar dissolves. Bring to a boil and cook for another 2 minutes; remove from heat and set aside. When mixture has cooled a bit, pour it into a 9-inch baking pan and arrange pear slices in an overlapping circle on top (a double layer of pears is fine!)

2. In a mixer, beat remaining 8 tablespoons butter and the sugar until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs, one egg at a time, continuing to mix until smooth. In a separate bowl, combine flour, baking powder and salt.

3. Add flour mixture to butter mixture in three batches, alternating with milk; do not overmix. Carefully spread batter over pears, using a spatula to make sure it is evenly distributed. Bake until top of cake is golden brown and edges begin to pull away from sides of pan, about 45 to 50 minutes; a toothpick inserted into center should come out clean. Let cake cool for 5 minutes.

4. Run a knife around edge of pan; put a plate on top of cake and carefully flip it so plate is on bottom and pan is on top. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Yield: 8 to 10 servings.

Pear in the raw

Use a melon baller for quick and easy core removal

Mmmmm browny sugary

Pear slices pinwheeled

Not so pretty right side up

Quite nice upside down!

Rules for Restaurant Servers

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Mon, 02 Nov 2009 15:15:00 +0000

There's an interesting what not to do for waitstaff on the New York Times' "You're the Boss" blog.

As a lover of New York City tap water and also of saving a few $$, my favorite has to be #6 Do not lead the witness with, “Bottled water or just tap?” Both are fine. Remain neutral.

Candy Day

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 13:50:00 +0000

Happy Halloween from DA! In New York City, many children trick or treat in their own apartment building instead of outside. We're thrilled to finally live in a large enough building that we can expect a fair amount of little ones in costume. We will be handing out Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Twix, Snickers and M&Ms all of which were chosen because I'd be happy to eat any leftovers. Let the sugar induced coma begin!

Mom's Banana Bread slightly healthier

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Tue, 20 Oct 2009 14:16:00 +0000

Last week I did a little baking experimentation (always an iffy proposition) with my mother's recipe for banana bread. It didn't NEED any improvement at all. It's moist and tender with a crusty top. But I did want to see if I could healthy it up a little bit without negatively impacting the taste and texture. And...success! I cut down fat by removing an egg yolk and 2 tablespoons of butter and by using reduced fat sour cream. I also added nutrients and a great nutty taste by using whole wheat flour instead of all purpose. Voila: new, improved banana bread. It's my favorite thing to have on hand for nibbling house guests. Perfect for breakfast or snacking.

Mom's healthified banana bread

6 tablespoons butter
1 1/3 cup sugar
1 egg plus 1 egg white, beaten
1/4 cup reduced fat sour cream
2 cups whole wheat flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
3 medium bananas, mashed
2 tbsp rum
1 tsp almond extract

Preheat over to 350 degrees. Spray PAM into a standard loaf pan.

Cream butter and sugar using an electric mixer (hand or stand). Add eggs and sour cream. Mix to incorporate. Combine dry ingredients and add alternately with mashed bananas, mixing. Incorporate rum and extract. Pour into loaf pan. Bake for 60-70 minutes or until cake tester inserted in middle comes out clean.

Top Chef Redux

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 20:35:00 +0000

If you're a fan of Top Chef and haven't been reading Max Silvestri's Top Chef episode recaps at Eater, you are really missing out. (Disclosure Max and I have met socially and I have instructed him on making his own butter in order to impress chicks). Go there, get your laugh on, and watch out for comments by Colicchio.

Things Fall Apart

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Thu, 15 Oct 2009 15:04:00 +0000

As Yeats wrote, "Things Fall Apart. The centre cannot hold." Well, in this case it was the potatoes. Despite a handy step by step guide aptly titled "How to Wrap Fish with Potatoes", the darn tubers just wouldn't stay around the halibut and instead of ending up with this:

I got this:

Still very tasty, but it'd get an F in presentation.

I've included the recipe (from March '09 Bon Appetit) but I've concluded that next time I'll cook the 'chips' separately from the fish, then use them as artful garnish. Same flavor result, less headache. The spinach accompaniment was easy, tasty and not at all obstinate, I'll admit. Enjoy the photo essay chronicling my ill-fated effort to keep the fillets wrapped sans the curse words uttered during the actual cooking process.

Potato-Wrapped Halibut
Bon Appetit March 2009
Recipe by Greg Atkinson
Photograph by Levi Brown
6 servings

6 4-ounce halibut fillets (each about 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick)

4 3-inch-long unpeeled Yukon Gold potatoes, scrubbed
8 tablespoons olive oil, divided
6 garlic cloves, very thinly sliced
10 ounces fresh baby spinach leaves (about 16 cups loosely packed)

Pat fish dry; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place large sheet of parchment on work surface. Halve each potato lengthwise. Using V-slicer or mandoline, slice each potato half very thinly. Set 5 to 6 slices on parchment in row, overlapping long sides. Make another row that overlaps short ends of first row, forming 6x5-inch rectangle. Sprinkle rectangle with salt and pepper. Set 1 fillet across overlapped short ends of slices. Fold sides of rectangle over fish, forming packet. Press to adhere. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Repeat with remaining potato slices and fish fillets.

Heat 3 tablespoons oil in each of 2 large skillets over medium-high heat. Set 3 wrapped fish fillets, seam side down, in each skillet. Cook until golden on bottom, about 3 minutes. Turn; cook until fish is opaque in center, 2 to 3 minutes longer. Transfer to plates; cover to keep warm.

Add 2 tablespoons oil to 1 skillet. Add garlic; stir 1 minute. Add 1/3 of spinach; toss with tongs until spinach begins to wilt. Add remaining spinach in 2 additions; stir just until beginning to wilt. Season with salt and pepper. Divide spinach among plates with fish and serve.

I suspect my potato slices were just not thin enough despite the mandolin being on the thinnest level that would actually slice.

Halibut pre-portioning

Hopes are high!

It stays as long as I'm holding it together!

But then they go in to the pan

Stay, darnit!

I said stay!

Ugh. Browned and crispy, but not pretty

Time for Plan B. I crisped up the remaining potato slices in the pan and sprinkled them with salt, pepper and fresh thyme. They tasted better than anything in the actual recipe.

Yum. Spinach with garlic. The sole triumph of the meal

Chana Masala Dip

noreply@blogger.com (Leslie Klug) — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 01:02:00 +0000

My husband and I have recently taken up bridge. We're aware that it's a nerdy, old-timey pursuit, yet we really like it...maybe exactly because it is so dusty and grandma-esque. On Friday night we had our bridge buddies over, and since I had an extremely ripe tomato, cilantro and garbanzo beans I thought I'd make a hummus-like dip version of the Indian dish Chana Masala to nibble on between tricks.

I was shocked at my guests effusiveness and the quickness with which the bowl of dip was emptied. This healthy, flavorful vegetarian dip is a great, make-ahead appetizer for any party or for your own personal snacking.

1 14.5 ounce can garbanzo beans
2 teaspoons olive oil
1 cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1 garlic clove, minced
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/8 teaspoon ground cumin
1/8 teaspoon ground red pepper
3/4 cup water
1/2 cup chopped seeded tomato
2 tablespoons good quality olive oil
1/8 teaspoon garam masala
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro

Drain garbanzo beans.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion, ginger, and garlic to pan; cook 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in salt, cumin, and pepper; cook 1 minute. Add chickpeas, water, and tomato; cook 5 minutes or until liquid almost evaporates. Remove from heat; stir in garam masala, cool.

Transfer to bowl or food processor. Puree garbanzo bean mixture and incorporate olive oil with immersion blender in bowl or in food processor. Fold in cilantro. Serve with pita chips.