Serious Eats: Recipes

Grilling: Butterflied Leg of Lamb

2009-11-07T00:15:00Z

[Photograph: Joshua Bousel]

Between brisket and the forthcoming turkey, I was able to get in a nice big leg of lamb, one of my favorite large cuts of meat.

Seemingly designed for the grill, a butterflied leg of lamb comes out perfectly medium-rare exactly when the outside develops a nice crust over medium-high heat. In addition to the easy cooking technique, this leg of lamb has a smooth lamby flavor with just the right amount of chew, making every bite a pleasure.

It's hard to improve on something already so good, but add mint to the equation and you're talking some seriously, seriously delicious eats. The two come together here as part of a tahini and lemon based marinade, which added a minty tang to the crust, only heightening this leg of lamb into one of the best pieces of meat to come off my grill this year.

Grilled Butterflied Leg of Lamb

Adapted from Martha Stewart

Ingredients

For the marinade:
1/2 cup tahini
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
1/2 cup fresh lemon juice (3 to 4 lemons)
1 cup loosely packed mint leaves
1/2 cup olive oil
4 tablespoons water
1 1/2 teaspoons coarsely ground black pepper
3/4 teaspoon sherry vinegar
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
Salt to taste

3 1/4 pounds shank half of a butterflied leg of lamb
3 lemons, thinly sliced
Fresh mint, for garnish

Procedure

1. Combine all of the ingredients for the marinade in a blender and process until smooth. Place lamb in a large Ziploc bag and pour in marinade. Seal and toss bag to coat the lamb evenly, open and reseal the bag, removing as much air as possible. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour or refrigerate up to overnight. If refrigerated, let lamb return to room temperature before grilling.

2. Light one chimney full of charcoal. When all the charcoal is lit and covered with gray ash, pour out and spread coals evenly over the charcoal grate. Clean and oil the cooking grate. Remove the lamb from the marinade and grill until well browned, 12 to 16 minutes; turn and cook 12 to 16 minutes more, or until an instant-read thermometer registers 140°F in thickest part (for medium rare). Transfer lamb to a cutting board and let rest for 15 minutes.

3. While lamb is resting, grill lemon slices for garnish. Cut lamb into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Serve with grilled lemon and fresh mint.

Time for a Drink: Penicillin Cocktail

2009-11-06T23:30:00Z

Let's start the weekend right—with a cocktail recipe from Paul Clarke (The Cocktail Chronicles). Need more than one? Hit up the archives. Cheers!

It may not be as powerful as a flu shot or have the healing properties of the antibiotic it's named for, but the Penicillin Cocktail is a surefire cure for a chilly autumn night. Originally created by New York bartender Sam Ross, the Penicillin Cocktail takes the warming, soothing flavors of honey, lemon juice and fresh ginger, and fortifies them with a good dose of scotch whisky. And as if that isn't enough, the drink is topped with a thin pour of headily aromatic Islay malt, which gives the drink a fragrance as alluring as any woodsmoke-laced autumn breeze.

Other bartenders have taken Ross's formula and adapted it for drinks made with tequila, gin, and rum, all with great results, but the scotch-based original is always a good place to start. And one note on the preparation: the original drink uses a house-made ginger-honey syrup; since the spark of fresh ginger fades so quickly, home mixologists may be better served by simply muddling a few slices of fresh ginger in the drink, rather than mixing a batch of syrup that will likely lose its luster before the bottle is half gone. This adapted recipe is listed after the jump.

Penicillin Cocktail

Ingredients

2 ounces blended scotch whisky (Famous Grouse works well)
3/4 ounce fresh lemon juice
3/4 ounce honey syrup*
3 slices fresh ginger
1/4 ounce Islay single malt scotch (such as Laphroaig)

* Honey syrup: combine equal parts honey and hot water and stir until well mixed. Let cool before using, and keep refrigerated.

Procedure

Using a wooden muddler or mixing spoon, muddle the fresh ginger in the bottom of a cocktail shaker until it is well mashed. Add the blended scotch, lemon juice, and honey syrup, and shake well with ice. Strain into an ice-filled rocks glass (you may wish to double-strain through a fine tea strainer to remove the small flecks of ginger), and pour the Islay scotch over the back of a bar spoon so that it floats atop the drink.

Dinner Tonight: Pasta with Sauteed Swiss Chard, Golden Raisins, and Capers

2009-11-06T21:00:00Z

[Photograph: Nick Kindelsperger]

My wife swears she's sent me this recipe numerous times before, but I never gave it much thought until I personally found it on the The Daily Green and sent it to her excitedly, like it was the greatest thing ever. I was inspired by the odd culinary pairing of golden raisins and capers, and hoped they would balance each other and bring out the Swiss chard flavors.

But what really sold it for me was the fact that this could be, in the words of the author, a "delicious pasta partner." Considering the size of the chopped chard, I figured farfalle would be that perfect partner, and I'm pretty sure I was right. This was a warming and balanced plate of pasta.

I upped the ante with a little more olive oil and generous gratings of Parmesan. The result is truly satisfying. The briny capers enliven the dish while the sugary raisins help provide some kind of stability.

Pasta with Sauteed Swiss Chard, Golden Raisins, and Capers

- serves 2 to 3 -
Adapted from The Daily Green.

Ingredients

1/2 pound farfalle
1 pound Swiss chard (red or rainbow)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 onion, chopped
3 tablespoons golden raisins
1 tablespoon drained capers
Salt and pepper
Grated Parmesan cheese

Procedure

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, separate the stems of the Swiss chard from the leaves. Chop the stems into 1-inch pieces. Slice the leaves into 2-inch pieces.

2. Pour the olive oil into a large skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the onion, and cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally. Then add the Swiss chard stems, cover, and cook for 5 minutes or so, stirring every minute.

3. Toss in the raisins, then add a handful of the chard leaves. Stir well, and then cover the pot. Once they have wilted, add another handful, cover, and wait until those have wilted. Repeat until all the chard leaves are added. Cook for 7 to 10 minutes, or until the leaves have wilted and the stems are tender. Turn off the heat and add the capers. Stir until well combined.

4. Meanwhile, add a couple tablespoons of salt to the pot of boiling water and cook the pasta according to the directions on the box. Drain and set aside when done.

5. Combine the pasta and Swiss chard mixture in a large bowl. Toss well. Grate some Parmesan cheese on top and drizzle with a bit more olive oil. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Seriously Asian: Thai Curries, Part One: Yellow

2009-11-06T18:30:00Z

[Photographs: Chichi Wang]

Taking a hiatus from my usual spoilsport-y self, I caved into the pressure of Halloween and served a menu built around orange foodstuffs. To start, a persimmon and daikon salad. To end, a kabocha cheesecake. The entrée was considerably more difficult to settle. What meat or fish, besides the obvious choice of salmon, comes in hues of orange? Deliberative indecision turned to panic—the persimmons had been peeled, the cheesecake was biding its time in the fridge, and still no orange entrée of which to speak! Sometimes the best ideas are right under one's nose.

I reached into the freezer and grabbed a few packs of my Thai yellow curry paste, the mildest of the curry pastes stored in my refrigerator. Traditionally, curry paste is made by pounding together aromatics like garlic, shallots, chiles, ginger, galangal, lemongrass, and kaffir lime, with ground spices like coriander and cumin. With fewer chilies and more garlic than either the red or green variety, yellow curry paste is gentler on the tongue. In place of the assertive galangal root, ginger is used. And, unlike the red and green, yellow curry paste takes a sizeable dose of ground cinnamon.

Turmeric is responsible for the color of the resulting curry sauce. (While the paste is called yellow, the color actually corresponds to the resulting broth rather than the paste itself, which is ruddy in tone.) We generally find the plant in its ground form, yet turmeric is a root. The interior of the turmeric root is a brilliant shade of orange; the outside looks remarkably similar to the more commonly found ginger. (This comes as no surprise given that turmeric is a member of the ginger family.) Coriander, also known as cilantro, produces the round, beige-colored seeds that are ground and used in many Thai curry pastes. Yellow curry paste happens to employ ground coriander in greater proportions.

Breaking the Coconut

Elementary school sensibilities suggested that mixing my yellow curry paste with enough coconut milk and a touch of red paprika, would produce the Halloween-ready hue. Prior to adding the paste, I performed the all-important act of "cracking the coconut," a process so integral to Thai curries and cuisine in general, that a book by that name has been penned by Thai cooking authority Su-mei Yu.

Coconut milk, made by the repeated boiling and straining of fresh coconut meat with water, serves as both fuel and liquid when cooking Thai curries. The fatty coconut cream that rises to the top of the milk is used along with oil to sauté the curry paste. This process of boiling off the water content in the coconut cream, thereby isolating the fat, is known as "breaking" or "cracking" the coconut. When the curry paste has been sufficiently toasted in the oil and fatty coconut cream, the thinner, more uniform coconut milk is poured into the pot.

More Curry-Making Tips

While curry pastes are traditionally pounded out in a mortar and pestle, using a blender yields a stellar version. The number and kind of ingredients required may seem daunting at first sight, but be flexible in your approach. For instance, if shrimp paste made from fermented shrimp or small fish is not available, use anchovies.

Make the paste in large batches and freeze what you don't use in cubes or little plastic bags. I can toss the chunks of curry paste straight from the freezer into the pot, which makes a Thai curry dish executable in well under half an hour. In fact, Madhur Jaffrey describes having Thai curry paste on hand like storing money in the culinary bank—probably one of the truer observations of kitchen life, next to the "fat is flavor" mantra. (If I've not made my point adequately, consider this: In the time that it takes you to travel to and wait in a Thai restaurant, you could be eating your own curry dish if you have the paste on hand!)

Just Add Lobster

After toasting my yellow curry paste in vegetable oil and coconut cream, I thinned out the sauce with coconut milk and water. Preparing the lobsters was simply a matter of twisting off the tails to quickly dispense with the crustaceans, then removing the gills and chopping each part into smaller sections. As the sections of lobster simmered in the pot of curry broth, I added the tomalley to further enrich the sauce.

The lobster meat, just cooked through with the gentle heat of the liquid, was succulent and tender. Still, it was the powerful flavor of the curry broth that bewitched my senses. The tomalley, along with the shells left intact on the meat, had infused the sauce with the heady perfume of lobster. Sipping the broth, my guests and I groaned audibly for the sheer pleasure of it all.

Yellow Curry Paste

Adapted from From Curries to Kebabs by Madhur Jaffrey.

Ingredients

7 dried hot red chilies, about 2 to 3 inches in length
1 cup chopped shallots or onions
2 tablespoons fresh lemongrass, thinly sliced
8 cloves of garlic, chopped
1-inch piece of ginger, peeled and chopped
1/2 teaspoon white pepper powder
1 teaspoon curry powder (a blend of cumin, coriander, red chilies, mustard, and fenugreek)
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
4 canned anchovies or 1/2 teaspoon shrimp paste
1 teaspoon ground turmeric

Procedure

1. Place the chilies in a small bowl with approximately 1/4 cup of hot water. Microwave the chilies in the water for 2 to 3 minutes, then let sit for 30 minutes.

2. Place the softened chilies, along with the soaking liquid, in a blender with the rest of the ingredients. Blend, pushing down with a spoon or rubber spatula, until you have a smooth paste. Use immediately, or freeze in portioned chunks.

Lobster in Yellow Curry Sauce

- serves 3-4 -

Adapted from From Curries to Kebabs by Madhur Jaffrey.

Ingredients

14-ounce can of coconut milk, left undisturbed for several hours
4 tablespoons vegetable oil
6 tablespoons yellow curry paste
1 teaspoon hot curry powder, or 1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Salt to taste, about 1 teaspoon
2 live lobsters, about 1 1/2 pounds each
3 to 4 kaffir lime leaves, or 6 basil leaves as a garnish

Procedure

1. To form the sauce: Open the can of coconut milk and skim off the top layer of thick cream, about 4 tablespoons worth. Stir the remaining milk to reincorporate the coconut cream.

2. Pour the oil into a large, nonstick lidded pan and set over medium heat. When the oil is hot but not smoking, add the coconut cream and the yellow curry paste. Stir the paste around until it is lightly browned and the oil has separated from the coconut in the cream. You have just cracked the coconut. Now, add the curry powder and stir a few times.

3. Add the liquids: the coconut milk and about 1/2 cup of water to thin it out. You can add more or less water, depending on your preference for the consistency. Add salt to taste. Stir and bring to a simmer.

4. Cover the pot and simmer for another 5 minutes or so over low heat. This may all be done in advance and kept covered for 2 to 3 hours.

5. To prepare the lobster: Twist off the tail from the head of the body. Then twist off the legs and set aside. Twist off the front claws. Using a cleaver or a heavy knife, hack the claws into 3 sections and set aside. Do the same for the tail, cutting it into 3 or 4 sections. For the head, reach inside and remove the stomach sac. Now split the head into two, lengthwise. Reserve the tomalley in a small bowl.

6. When you are ready to serve, bring the curry sauce back to a simmer. Put in all the lobster pieces and stir gently. Bring the curry sauce to a simmer and cover the pot, cooking gently for 10 minutes. Occasionally, stir the lobster around and spoon the sauce over the lobster. Simmer just until the lobster meat is cooked through, taking care not to overcook the meat. Towards the last two minutes of cooking, add the tomalley and stir gently.

7. Chop the kaffir or basil leaves, and add to the pot. Serve immediately.

Cook the Book: Cornmeal-Crusted Pan-Fried Trout

2009-11-06T17:45:00Z

After a week of labor-intensive recipes from New Classic Family Dinners by Mark Peel, I was ready for something that required a little less work. I had originally picked up some trout to make Peel's take on matelote, a fish stew braised in red wine. But after the two-day bolognese project, I was ready for a meal that came together in under an hour.

In Peel's recipe for Cornmeal-Crusted Pan-Fried Trout, the trout is fileted with the skin left intact. The flesh side of the fish is dredged in a cornmeal and flour mixture while the skin side is left naked, aside from some salt and pepper. Pan-frying both sides leaves you with a duo of distinctly crunchy textures: the crispy skin and the toothsome cornmeal-coated crust.

The fish fried up golden brown in a matter of minutes and I used the rest of the ingredients for the matelote to improvise some sides. I sauteed the wild mushrooms with the butter, chicken stock, pearl onions, and herbs called for in the recipe, and served the bottle of wine meant for braising the fish along with the meal. I'm still intrigued by a red wine braised fish stew but these cornmeal-crusted trout filets were just what I needed after a week of serious cooking.

As always with our Cook the Book feature, we have five (5) copies of New Classic Family Dinners to give away this week. Enter to win here »

Cornmeal-Crusted Pan-Fried Trout

- makes 4 servings -

Adapted from New Classic Family Dinners by Mark Peel.

Ingredients

4 small trout, scaled, heads removed, boned, and butterflied, pinbones removed (The fish department should do this. Make sure that the tail and skins are intact, and the two filets are joined at the tail.)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 tablespoons fine cornmeal (if you only have polenta or coarse cornmeal, you can grind it to a fine powder in a clean spice mill)
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1/4 cup canola oil
1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon butter
Lemon wedges, for serving

Procedure

1. Heat a large, heavy cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat.

2. Open up the trout, pat dry, and season with salt and pepper. Mix together the cornmeal, flour, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and the parsley in a wide bowl.

3. Dip the trout into the cornmeal mix on the cut side only. Make sure it is thoroughly coated. If not cooking right away, place the fish on a platter in one layer, uncovered, in the refrigerator.

4. Add 2 tablespoons of canola oil to the hot pan and when it is just below smoking, carefully add 1 or 2 trout-however many will fit in your pan-skin side up. After 1 minute, add 2 teaspoons of butter to the pan. Watch the skin, and when you see it begin to dimple and curl (this will take about 2 minutes), turn the fish. Cook on the skin side for 30 seconds to a minute, just until the fish begins to curl. Remove from the pan and keep warm in a low oven while you repeat with the remaining oil, butter, and fish. Serve hot, with lemon wedges.

French in a Flash: Chouquettes

2009-11-05T22:15:00Z

[Photographs: Kerry Saretsky]

Previously

Bouillabaisse Pasta »
All French in a Flash recipes »

Pâte à choux, or choux pastry, is the Madonna of doughs. It is always reinventing itself. It can be fried into beignets; boiled into Parisian gnocchi; piped into éclairs; piped with cheese and roasted in gougères; sliced and sandwiched into profiteroles. But the most simple and perfect of them all is when they're crusted in sugar and baked into the little-known (Stateside) chouquettes.

Chouquettes loosely translates to "little bits of choux." They are usually sold in baskets perched atop the glass pastry cases of bakeries and pastry shops in France. A sort of afterthought, they are just profiteroles shells—crisp, airy, and hollow, crusted in lumps of pearl sugar. They are just a bit sweet, and slightly rich and eggy from the pastry. They make the perfect snack: unassuming, unextravagant, unfilling. But yet they add that touch of afternoon sweetness to the day, and take the edge off a rumbling belly.

Choux pastry, which is composed of one French word and "pastry," another intimidating word, sounds like it might not be worth the trouble. But in reality, it is one of the easiest doughs to make, and unusual in process too, so that you feel accomplished and chef-y. And once you've mastered choux, you can make any of the things I enumerated above.

The basic method to making choux pastry is to boil together one cup of water and one stick of butter, with some salt or sugar or both. Take it off the heat, and dump in one cup of flour. You don't even need a recipe! Then put it back on the heat, stir for 30 seconds, dump it into a bowl, add some eggs, and you're done. I don't even pipe these; I just scoop them onto a sheet and bake them, topped in that iconic pearl sugar like a crusty snow crown.

Chouquettes are snowflake festive in the winter, and perfect for all the holiday teas, breakfasts, brunches, and desserts we all make or attend over the next few months. It is the kind of cooking I call therapy cooking: a process that always turns out the same, requires minimal work, but a bit of attention, and coaxes you back to sanity after a workday. Eating them is a just reward.

About the author: Kerry Saretsky is the creator of French Revolution Food, where she reinvents her family's classic French recipes in a fresh, chic, modern way. She also writes the The Secret Ingredient series for Serious Eats.

Chouquettes

- makes 30 chouquettes -

Ingredients

1 stick unsalted butter
1 cup water
1 tablespoon sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 cup flour
3 eggs
1 to 2 tablespoon milk, half and half, or heavy cream
2 to 4 tablespoons pearl sugar

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Choux Pastry: Step 1

Choux Pastry: Step 2

Choux Pastry: Step 3

Choux Pastry: Step 4

2. To make choux pastry, place the butter, water, sugar, and salt in a saucepan, cover, and bring to a boil. Take the pan off the heat when it boils, and dump in the flour. Stir to incorporate with a wooden spoon. Return to the pan to medium-low heat, and stir constantly for about 30 seconds, until the dough comes away from the pan. Scoop the dough out of the pan and into a bowl to cool down for just a couple minutes. You'll want to put that pan to soak right now. Then, add one egg at a time, stirring for all you're worth with that wooden spoon. When all three eggs are absorbed, you'll have a thick, smooth, and sticky dough. Voilà! Choux pastry.

3. Use two tablespoons to drop tablespoon-sized mounds of choux pastry onto a Silpat-lined baking sheet. Brush lightly with the milk/half and half/cream, and sprinkle with pearl sugar, remembering that these chouquettes will puff up and be much larger later than now, and so can probably handle more sugar than you think.

4. Bake for 10 minutes at 400°F. Lower the heat to 350°F, and bake for 35 to 40 minutes, until the chouquettes are puffed, golden, and hard to the touch. Cool on a rack. Eat them as is, or drizzle with honey or smother with jam.

Dinner Tonight: Creamy Corn Soup with Roasted Poblano Chile

2009-11-05T21:30:00Z

[Photograph: Blake Royer]

Comforting as ever, corn chowder is a food for the fall as the weather gets cooler. And though it's easy enough to make a delicious corn chowder with lots of heavy cream and flour, I was more interested to see how this recipe—more of a soup than a chowder—from Rick Bayless would turn out. Instead of cream and flour, it's thickened with corn starch and the starch from the puréed corn kernels. It works—while the recipe is made with just milk, it has the silky mouthfeel of something with a lot more fat in it.

The Mexican twist here is also interesting, which is the addition of roasted poblano chiles. They pair well with the relatively bland taste of creamy corn, adding some needed kick and smokiness. To make this a full meal, Bayless calls for cubes of chicken breast or shrimp; I used some leftover shredded chicken and it worked wonderfully. And though Bayless doesn't mention it at all, I couldn't help but eat it next to buttered, freshly baked cornbread.

About the author: Blake Royer founded The Paupered Chef with Nick Kindelsperger, where he writes about food and occasional travels. After a year in Estonia, he's now living in Chicago.

Creamy Corn Soup

- serves 4 -

Adapted from Mexican Everyday by Rick Bayless.

Ingredients

1 large fresh poblano chile
1 tablespoon vegetable or olive oil
1 small white onion, sliced 1/4-inch thick
2 cloves garlic, peeled
3 cups corn kernels, cut from about 5 cobs or frozen
1 tablespoon corn starch
1 quart milk
2 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, or about 3/4 pound leftover chicken
Salt to taste
Cilantro for garnish
Avocado pieces (optional)

Procedure

1. Roast the poblano directly on the open flame of a stovetop or under a broiler until charred and blackened all over, 5-10 minutes depending on method. Transfer to a bowl and cover with a kitchen towel until cool enough to handle.

2. In the meantime, heat the oil over medium heat in a 3-quart saucepan and add the garlic and onion. Cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and golden. Transfer to a food processor along with the corn, cornstarch, and 1 1/2 cups of the milk. Process into a purée and transfer back to the saucepan, straining out the corn kernel skins if desired. Bring to a simmer, whisking frequently.

3. When the chile is cooled somewhat, rub off the blackened skins, pull out the stem and seeds, and rinse to complete the job. Cut into 1/4-inch strips or pieces, then stir into the simmering soup along with the chicken and remaining milk. Simmer until the chicken is cooked through, if necessary, stirring as you go. Serve with sprinkled cilantro and avocado, if desired.

Cook the Book: Bolognese Sauce

2009-11-05T17:45:00Z

Bolognese is my favorite sauce for pasta, and from fall until spring I'll always have a batch on hand. It's an all day project that involves lots of chopping, browning, and slow simmering, but it's one that I enjoy immensely. When I decided to make this bolognese from New Classic Family Dinners by Mark Peel I was under the impression that I would be spending all day in the kitchen, but this version of bolognese is another story.

I must confess that I didn't really read through all of the instructions before setting out to make this beast of a sauce. Once I had all of my ingredients assembled I sat down at the kitchen table and read the recipe. It was then that I realized that this wasn't any ordinary Bolognese—this was the three day Bolognese. That's quite an investment of time for a pasta sauce, but my interest was piqued, and I had the whole weekend ahead of me.

I chopped all of the vegetables, cubed the brisket, doused the whole thing with plenty of red wine, and stuck it in the fridge to marinate overnight. The next day marked the beginning of the tedious tasks that go into making this incredible bolognese. First, I had to pick out every last piece of brisket, drain and reserve the red wine, and painstakingly dry off the vegetables. Then I separated the canned tomatoes from their purée and put the tomatoes in the oven to roast, reduce, and bring out their flavors. After searing the meat in several batches, I removed it from the pan and added pancetta and the vegetables from the marinade. Once the vegetables were softened, the meat went back in with the roasted tomatoes. The whole mixture was left to simmer for two hours.

You might be thinking that this is the end of the story, but there's more, so much more.

After two hours of simmering, the meat had to once again be taken out of the sauce. To do this, I devised a system that involved a wire-mesh spider and a pair of tongs. It took a while, but it got the job done. At this point you can either cool the meat and sauce overnight, or go ahead and shred the brisket by hand. Impatience got the best of me and I opted for (somewhat) instant gratification: I shredded the meat into tiny pieces and moved on to the next step of the recipe. The tomato sauce, now dark red and enriched with all sorts of meat and vegetable juices, was put through a food mill, and placed back on the stove with the shredded brisket. This was one of those times that I dearly wished I had a food processor and not just a hand-cranked food mill.

The sauce looked and tasted pretty great at this point. I was more than tempted to forgo the last portion of the recipe, but my personal integrity made me soldier on. I sautéed 1/4-inch diced carrots, onions, and celery and added them back into the sauce along with a bouquet garni, then simmered the sauce for another hour.

The sun had set long before the sauce was finished and it was too late to serve it for dinner. I sampled a few spoonfuls before I packed it away into the refrigerator. It was like no other sauce that I had made before. The shreds of beef melted into the rich tomato sauce and the flavor can only be described as boeuf bourguignon meets bolognese. The caramelized beef and vegetables were apparent and it had a depth of flavor that none of the other versions of this sauce had managed to reach.

So, was all of the time worth it? Yes, especially because although the recipe claims that it makes three cups, my version left me with more than double that. I'll be eating this three day bolognese for a long time.

As always with our Cook the Book feature, we have five (5) copies of New Classic Family Dinners to give away this week. Enter to win here »

Bolognese Sauce

- makes 3 cups -

Adapted from New Classic Family Dinners by Mark Peel.

Ingredients

Marinade

3 pounds beef chuck or brisket, in 1 piece
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
1 large carrot, peel and coarsely chopped
2 stalks celery, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup coarsely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 cups red wine
1 1/2 teaspoons cracked black peppercorns

Sauce

5 pounds tomatoes, or four 28-ounce cans plus 1 cup of liquid from the cans
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
4 fat garlic cloves, halved, green shoots removed, and minced
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Canola oil
3 ounces pancetta, diced
2 cups homemade chicken stock (or 1 cup of canned broth and 1 cup of water)
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 large carrot, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice
2 large celery stalks, cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 medium onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice
4 fat garlic cloves, halved, green shoots removed, and thinly sliced
A bouquet garni made with a handful each of parsley and thyme sprigs, and 2 bay leaves
1 6-ounce can tomato paste, dissolved in 1/2 cup water (if using fresh tomatoes only)

Procedure

1. Cut the meat across the grain into roughly 2-inch pieces. Toss with the coarsely chopped onion, carrot, celery, parsley, 1 cup of the red wine, and 1 teaspoon of the cracked pepper in a large bowl. Cover and refrigerate for 12 to 24 hours, stirring once after a few hours.

2. The next day, preheat the oven to 400°F. If using fresh tomatoes, cut the tomatoes in half at the equator. If using canned whole tomatoes, remove the liquid from the cans (do not discard the liquid in the cans), but do not cut. Toss either fresh or canned tomatoes in a large bowl with 3 tablespoons olive oil, 4 minced garlic cloves, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Place on a baking sheets and pour on the juice from the bowl, but not from the can. Fresh tomatoes should be cut side down. Roast for 45 minutes to an hour, until the tomatoes are soft and beginning to blister (45 minutes for canned tomatoes). Remove from the heat.

3. Remove the meat from the marinade, wipe off the chopped vegetables, pat dry, and season with 1 teaspoon salt. Heat 1 tablespoon canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until the oil is rippling, then put the meat in the pan in one layer. Sear the meat on all sides, working in batches so you don't crowd the pan. Each batch should take about 5 minutes. Transfer to a large Dutch oven or casserole.

4. When all the meat has been seared, reduce the heat to medium and add the pancetta to the pan. Stir for a couple of minutes, then add the vegetables and wine from the marinade and stir, scraping down the bottom of the pan to deglaze. Cook for 5 minutes, then add the remaining cup of red wine and bring to a boil. Reduce the mixture to half it's volume, which should take 5 to 10 minutes. Scrape into the Dutch oven with the meat and add the chicken stock, the roasted tomatoes with their juice, 1 cup of the liquid from the canned tomatoes if using canned, and 1 teaspoon salt. Return to the heat and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 2 hours, stirring occasionally. The meat should be fork-tender and the broth fragrant.

5. Using tongs, remove the meat from the stew and allow to cool until you can handle it. Shred the meat, using your fingers or 2 forks. Do not shred too finely.

6. If possible, refrigerate the meat in a covered bowl and the stew in its pot over night. The next day, lift off the fat from the top of the stew and discard. If you do not have the extra day, use a ladle to skim off the fat from the top of the liquid in the pot and discard. Put the contents of the pot through a food mill fitted with a medium or fine screen (fine enough to keep out the tomato seeds) and return to the pot. Stir the meat back into the sauce and bring to a simmer over medium-low heat.

7. Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat and add the finely diced carrot, celery, and onion, along with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper. Cook, stirring often, 5 minutes and add the sliced garlic. Continue to cook for another 5 minutes, or until the mixture is tender and very fragrant. Stir into the sauce. Add the bouquet garni and the dissolved tomato paste. Simmer for 30 minutes to an hour, until thick and aromatic, stirring often to make sure the stew doesn't stick on the bottom. If it becomes too thick, add water, a tablespoon at a time. Remove the bouquet garni. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Use as a sauce or filling for pasta. Freeze what you don't use in 2-cup containers.

Green Bean Salad with Walnuts

2009-11-04T22:00:00Z

The following recipe is from the November 4 edition of our weekly recipe newsletter. To receive this newsletter in your inbox, sign up here!

The recipes in New Classic Family Dinners by Mark Peel are, at their heart, restaurant recipes adapted for the ease of home cooks. They range in difficulty levels from beginner to very advanced. But even the most simple recipe includes a few extra steps that prove to be infinitely beneficial to home cooks.

This recipe for Green Bean Salad with Walnuts is nothing more than blanched green beans with a lemony vinaigrette, but hidden in the instructions are a few tips that only someone with years of kitchen experience can bring to the table. Peel recommends that you blanch the lemon zest to counter any bitterness that it might bring to the vinaigrette. Freshly shelled walnuts taste pretty good on their own, but toasting them and adding the smallest amount of walnut oil brings out their nuttiness. Finally, and probably my newest and most favorite trick that I've learned from Peel, briefly soaking raw onions does wonders to eliminate any overly pungent onion aromas in dishes that call for raw onions.

Combining all of these chef-worthy techniques makes for a green bean salad that might take a little longer than you are used to, but is well worth it. These few extra steps ensure that all of the flavors are not only balanced but heightened to new levels.

Green Bean Salad with Walnuts

- makes 6 servings -

Adapted from New Classic Family Dinners by Mark Peel.

Ingredients

1 pound green beans
12 walnuts in the shells
2 teaspoons coarse mustard
1/4 cup Basic Lemon Vinaigrette (recipe follows)
1 tablespoon walnut oil
1 tablespoon chopped chives
Fleur de sel

Procedure

1. Pick over the beans, but don't trim them until after they've been blanched. Bring a large pot of generously salted water to a boil and add the beans. Boil for 4 to 5 minutes and transfer to a bowl of ice water. Cool in the ice water, then drain and dry on paper towels. Trim off the stem ends.

2. Crack the walnuts, holding the seamed sides against the nutcracker. Remove the meat from the shells, trying to keep the halves intact. If you crack the shell on the rounded side (as opposed to the seamed side), you might crush the meat and won't be able to extract neat halves. Toast the nuts lightly in a 350°F
oven, or in a pan on the stove, for 4 to 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. Separate out 6 halves and set aside. Coarsely chop the rest.

3. Whisk the mustard into the lemon vinaigrette. Set aside 1 teaspoon of the dressing. Make sure the beans are dry, and toss with the remaining vinaigrette and chopped walnuts. Toss the halves with the teaspoon you set aside. Arrange the beans on a platter or in a wide bowl. Arrange the walnut halves over the top. Drizzle on the walnut oil and sprinkle with the chives. Sprinkle a few pinches of fleur de sel over the top and serve.

Note: The reason you don't trim the beans until after you blanch them is that, like cut flowers, they will absorb water at the broken or cut ends. They'll have a better texture and a more vivid flavor if left intact until after they've been cooked.

Lemon Vinaigrette

Ingredients

Zest of 1/2 large lemon
1 small or 1/2 medium shallot, minced, rinsed with cold water, and drained on paper towels
2 tablespoons strained freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 1/2 teaspoons white wine vinegar or champagne vinegar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon cracked black peppercorns
1/4 cup canola oil
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

Procedure

1. Bring a small pan of water to a boil and add the lemon zest. Blanch for 45 seconds, drain, and dry on paper towels. Chop fine and transfer to a medium bowl, along with the shallot. (Blanching reduces the bitterness in the lemon zest, which is important here, but not in other recipes.)

2. Pour the lemon juice over the shallot and lemon peel. Add the vinegar, salt, and pepper. Stir together. Whisk in the canola oil and the olive oil. Taste by dipping a piece of lettuce into the dressing, and adjust the seasoning.

Dinner Tonight: Baked Potatoes with Broccoli and Cheddar

2009-11-04T21:15:00Z

[Photograph: Nick Kindelsperger]

I've experimented with baked potato toppings before but was feeling a little uninspired this time around. Looking for ideas, I turned to Twitter. As it turns out, people are awfully passionate about baked potato toppings.

One surprising tweet response came from the wonderful Chicago restaurant, The Publican (@thepublican2008).

@nickdk bacon and chives would be our cooks normal faves, but broccoli and cheddar rules!

If you've ever managed to eat there, you know it's best to follow any advice they give you. No matter what. I've had many bacon-and-chive-loaded potatoes in my day, so I decided to take a chance with this broccoli and cheddar version. I'd probably never attempt a broccoli and cheese dish had the Publican not recommended it, but that's just how much I trust them.

The restaurant indeed gave me inspiration, but what I really needed was a recipe. Thus began my tortured search for a simple and delicious broccoli and cheese recipe. Most queries either took me to broccoli and cheddar soup or were too fancy, deconstructing the dish beyond recognition. Thankfully this recipe from Whole Foods is both accessible and inspired.

Baked Potatoes with Broccoli and Cheddar

- serves 4 -
Adapted from Whole Foods.

Ingredients

4 potatoes
Canola oil
6 cups broccoli florets
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons flour
1/4 teaspoon dry mustard powder
1 cup milk
1 1/2 cups sharp cheddar cheese, grated
Salt
White or black pepper

Procedure

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Coat the potatoes in a little canola oil and sprinkle with salt. Toss in the oven and cook for about an hour, until tender.

2. When the potatoes are about ten minutes from being done, pour one inch of water into a large pot. Bring to a boil. Place the broccoli in a steamer basket and place it over the boiling water. Cover the pot and steam for about four minutes, until the broccoli are bright green and tender.

3. Meanwhile, toss the butter in to a saucepan over medium-low heat. When melted, add the flour and mustard powder. Whisk until there are no more lumps, which should take about a minute. Slowly pour in the milk, whisking until it thickens up. Add the cheese, and stir until it has melted. Season sauce with salt and pepper.

4. Dump the broccoli into the cheese sauce, and stir until well coated.

5. Slice open the baked potatoes, and add as much broccoli and cheese as you'd like. Season with more salt and pepper to taste.

Seriously Meatless: Tahina

2009-11-04T19:30:00Z

Note: Michael Natkin of the vegetarian blog Herbivoracious drops by every Wednesday to share a delicious recipe to expand our vegetarian repertoire.

[Photograph: Michael Natkin]

If you just looked at the picture and didn't read the title, you probably just thought this was hummus, right? Wrong! While they look superficially similar, hummus is made primarily of chickpeas, while tahina is a puree of sesame seeds seasoned with lemon juice and garlic.

Hummus is well-known in the west, inspiring frightful variations with textures comparable to drywall cement, while tahina's praises go unsung. Which is a shame, because it is easy to throw together, delicious, and very nutritious.

To make matters more confusing, tahina can also be spelled tehineh or tehina, and its main ingredient is tahini. All you have to keep in mind is that tahini is just the pureed raw sesame seeds, while tahina is the prepared sauce.

Once you've made it, which takes all of five minutes, serve your tahina as a simple appetizer with toasted pita and olives, as a sauce with mujadara or falafel, or as one component of a larger meze.

Tahina

- serves 8 -

Ingredients

1 cup raw sesame tahini
2 cloves garlic, completely crushed into a paste
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cumin
Juice of 3 lemons (or more as needed)

Optional garnishes (pick any or all): extra virgin olive oil, sumac, paprika, toasted pine nuts, parsley, olives

Procedure

1. If the oil has separated in your tahini, stir it back together, then measure 1 cup into a good sized bowl.

2. Mix the garlic, salt, cumin and lemon juice into the tahini.

3. Start vigorously beating in cold water, 1/4 cup or so at a time, until the mixture becomes smooth and creamy. You'll see it start to emulsify, lighten in color and become easier to stir. It will probably take about 3/4 cup of water total.

4. Taste and adjust the seasoning with more salt, lemon juice, or cumin as needed.

5. The traditional way to serve tahina is in a large, flat bowl. Form a swirl with the back of a spoon, and then apply any of the garnishes listed above.

Cook the Book: Mashed Potatoes, Finally Revealed

2009-11-04T17:25:00Z

"I have never seen smoother potatoes."

Homemade mashed potatoes can be great, but oftentimes lumpy, dry, and underseasoned—or even worse, mealy. Then there are restaurant mashed potatoes. Those ethereal white mounds of creamy potatoey deliciousness are perfectly salted, without a lump in sight.

So, what are the secrets to amazing restaurant quality mashed potatoes? Mark Peel, author of New Classic Family Dinners has graciously shared the secrets of these lumpless wonders in his new book.

They involve, as you might have suspected, a very healthy amount of butter and cream, which helps the texture and flavor, but the real creaminess comes from the technique.

Until I tried this recipe, I always peeled and boiled my potatoes—my first mistake. Peel steams his, which prevents the potatoes from becoming water-logged and in turn, slimy and sticky.

I used a rice cooker to steam the potatoes and garlic and it worked like a charm. The next step is to pass the potatoes and garlic through a food mill or ricer, which will keep them light, airy, and lump-free. Then the cream and butter gets added, and another pass through the stainer, which elevates the spuds from simple mashed potatoes to pommes purée.

I have never seen smoother potatoes. Truthfully, you could stop right there. They taste pretty great without even adding the remaining 3/4 cup of butter, but why not? That extra butter certainly didn't hurt the flavor and lent the faintest and most appealing hint of buttery yellow. While eating these, I couldn't help but think that this is one recipe that Paula Deen and Joël Robuchon could both agree on.

As always with our Cook the Book feature, we have five (5) copies of New Classic Family Dinners to give away this week. Enter to win here »

Mashed Potatoes, Finally Revealed

- makes 4 to 6 servings -

Adapted from New Classic Family Dinners by Mark Peel.

Ingredients

2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 2-inch chunks (1 3/4 pounds peeled)
4 fat garlic cloves, cut in half, green shoots removed
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
1 1/2 cups (3 sticks) unsalted butter
1 teaspoon kosher salt

Procedure

1. Place the potatoes and garlic in a steamer basket above boiling water; cover, and steam for 25 minutes, until very tender.

2. Meanwhile, combine the cream, 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) of the butter; and the salt in a medium saucepan and heat until the cream simmers and the butter melts.

3. When the potatoes are tender, put them through a ricer or the medium blade of a food mill. Add the cream mixture and mix together well. Then press through a flat tamis or a large strainer, using a rubber spatula or pestle to press the mixture into a stainless steel bowl the will rest in a saucepan without touching the bottom.

4. Make a double boiler by filling the saucepan with 1 inch of water and placing the bowl in it. The bottom of the bowl should not touch the water. Bring the water to a simmer over medium heat. Stir the potatoes as they heat. Cut the remaining 3/4 cup butter into pieces and, using a whisk or rubber spatula, beat into the hot puree until combined. Continue to heat the potatoes over simmering water, stirring often, until hot and silky. Taste, adjust the seasoning, and serve.

Cakespy: Cherry Almond Osgood Pie

2009-11-04T15:45:00Z

Note: We love pie. And so does Jessie Oleson (aka Cakespy). She will drop by with a delicious pie recipe every Wednesday in November.

[Original artwork and photographs: Jessie Oleson]

First things first: what is Osgood Pie, anyway? Said to have taken its name from the phrase "Oh So Good Pie," it's an old-time recipe in the tradition of chess and vinegar pies, comprised of a thick, custardy filling made of eggs, vinegar, sugar, raisins and spices.

Though it enjoyed some popularity in the earlier half of the 1900s, it's virtually unseen today. I'd never even heard of it until it was on Not Martha, and quite frankly I'm not surprised. How delicious does raisin and vinegar pie sound, after all? So I set myself to modernizing the pie a bit, swapping the raisins for dried cherries and adding almonds.

My apologies to purists and raisin lovers everywhere, but if the original is good, I respectfully offer that this version might be even better: the tart cherries contrast nicely with the slight tang from the vinegar, and the almonds add a rich flavor contrast to the sweet filling.

Cherry Almond Osgood Pie

- makes one ten-inch pie -

Ingredients

For filling:
4 eggs
1 cup dried cherries
2 cups sugar
3 tablespoons vinegar
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon cloves
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1 teaspoon nutmeg
1/2 cup slivered almonds (optional)

For pie crust:
- makes one rather thick pie crust -

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling
1 cup unsalted butter, very cold, cut into 3/4 inch cubes
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
4 to 8 tablespoons ice water

Procedure

1. Prepare the pie crust. Put the flour, salt and sugar into a food processor and pulse once or twice. Add the butter and process until the mixture looks grainy. Then slowly, while pulsing, add the water until you can form the dough by pressing it between your fingers (Note: if you don't have a food processor, this can all be done by hand as well).

2. Put the loose dough onto a piece of plastic wrap. Using the wrap, fold the loose dough towards the middle and press with the back of your hands to form dough. Wrap and chill for at least 4 hours before using.

3. When you're ready, roll it out with a rolling pin to an approximately 12-inch circle; transfer this to a pie plate and trim the edges and shape them in any way you'd like.

Note: If you like a thinner pie crust, you could either divide this pie dough into two parts and get two pie crusts out of it, or you could use the extra dough to make pie dough cookies.

4. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

5. Line the bottom of the (unbaked) pie crust with the dried cherries.

6. Separate the yolks and whites of the eggs. To the yolks add the sugar, butter, spices, and vinegar; mix thoroughly and then add to this mixture the well-beaten egg whites. Mix well and pour into the crust, directly on top of the cherries. If you're using the almonds, you can apply them directly on top of the custard; you can configure them in a pretty design (if you want a circle design like I did, start by lining the almonds from the outside in) or simply crush them and sprinkle them on top.

7. Bake for 45 minutes to an hour; because the top will start to brown lightly early on in the baking process, you will want to test that the inside has set by inserting a pick; if it comes out clean, it's done. Let cool for at least two hours so that filling can set before serving. This pie tastes even better the day after it's baked.

Dinner Tonight: Pork Patties with Lime Leaves and Cilantro

2009-11-03T20:30:00Z

[Photo: Blake Royer]

I love how universal meatballs are. The world over, almost every cuisine has realized the merits of grinding meat and mixing it with spices and herbs. This is a characteristic recipe from Nigel Slater: no one would recognize the preparation, but somehow it seems like it's always been there. It's a combination that plays a bit with authenticity, but doesn't seem like a major departure. The left-field ingredient here is lime leaves, an integral part of Thai cooking. They could be left out, as they're hard to find, but the unmistakable flavor adds something extra.

Slate calls these pork "burgers," but eats them without a bun (the man should be told that without a bun, it doesn't qualify). But when I hear about anything with chunks of bacon food-processed into a "coarse mush" and mixed into a patty, I'm on board. Big Asian flavors like chili, ginger, garlic, cilantro, and scallions round out the rest of the recipe. These pair well with a crisp salad and plain white rice.

Pork Patties with Lime Leaves and Cilantro

-serves 4-

Adapted from The Kitchen Diaries

Ingredients

4 scallions
1-3 fresh red chiles, depending on taste
4 cloves garlic, peeled
1 small bunch cilantro
1 thumb-sized piece of ginger, peeled
6 kaffir lime leaves
1/4 pound bacon
1 1/4 pound ground pork
3 tablespoons peanut oil

Procedure

1. Chop the scallions, chiles, garlic, cilantro, and ginger. Stack the lime leaves on top of each other and roll them up, then finely shred them cross-wise. Transfer everything to a food processor and process until well-mixed into a paste. Scrape out into a bowl and set aside.

2. Cut up the bacon into small pieces and process it into a coarse mush. Scrape out into the same bowl with the herb mixture and add the ground pork. Add a pinch of salt and fresh pepper and mix the ingredients together. If possible, refrigerate for 30 minutes to allow the flavors to mingle.

3. Divide the pork into 12 or so balls of meat, then flatten into patties. Heat the oil in a large, heavy pan over medium-high heat. Add the patties when the oil is very hot and cook over high heat, turning once, until brown and cooked through. Serve with white rice and a crisp iceberg salad.

Eat for Eight Bucks: Sesame Scallion Tofu

2009-11-03T19:00:00Z

[Photograph: Robin Bellinger]

Shopping List

Heaping 1/3 cup arame (bulk): $0.60
1/2 bunch scallions (pro-rated): $0.50
12-ounce package firm tofu: $2.20
1/2 Savoy cabbage: $1.35
1 carrot: $0.25
Cilantro: $1.00

Pantry items: Panko or bread crumbs, sesame seeds, soy sauce, sesame oil, salt, pepper, oil, mayonnaise, rice vinegar, sugar, rice.

Total cost (for 4 portions): $5.90

Mark Bittman calls this dish "Tofu Burgers, Asian-style," but since I can't really imagine eating these sesame scallion tofu patties on a bun I have re-christened them. Tofu is usually not greeted warmly at my house, and while I can't say I've received requests for a repeat of this meal, it was at least acknowledged to be better than plain old sautéed bean curd. Me, I thought it was quite yummy, especially over white rice with extra soy sauce.

Even my tofu skeptics could not resist the seaweed-laced slaw, which was deemed excellent by all. I bought my arame in bulk and can't say how much more expensive an entire bag would have been, but if you end up with a bunch of extra seaweed and don't want to make these dishes again, Bittman says you can simply toss it into other salads—even without soaking, if you have time to let it sit and absorb some dressing. I didn't have any cilantro but wished I had. Don't skip it unless you have to.

Sesame Scallion Tofu Patties

-serves 4

Adapted from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian

Ingredients

2 tablespoons arame or other dark sea green, such as kombu or wakame
1/2 bunch scallions, trimmed
12 ounces firm tofu, patted dry
2 tablespoons panko or fresh bread crumbs
2 tablespoons sesame seeds
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 teaspoon dark sesame oil
Salt and pepper
2 tablespoons peanut oil or neutral oil

Procedure

1. Pour boiling water over the arame and soak for a minute or two. Drain well.

2. Put the scallions in a food processor and pulse a few times, until minced. Transfer to a large mixing bowl. Put about half the tofu and all the arame in the processor (no need to wash it out) and pulse a couple of times, until crumbled. Add to the mixing bowl.

3. Put the remaining tofu in the processor and let it run until the tofu is smooth. Add it to the mixing bowl, along with the panko, sesame seeds, soy sauce, and sesame oil. Sprinkle with a little salt and lots of pepper and stir well to combine. Form into 4 patties, and let rest if you have time. (You can make the mixture and even shape the patties up to a day or so in advance. Just cover rightly and refrigerate, then bring everything back to room temperature before cooking.)

4. Heat the oil in a large nonstick or well-seasoned cast-iron skillet over a medium flame. (I found that a nonstick skillet worked much better than cast-iron.) When hot, slip the patties into the pan. Cook, undisturbed, until they turn golden and release easily, about 5 minutes. Flip carefully and cook until done, another 3 to 4 minutes.

5. Bittman says you can use this like ground "meat," too: Just prepare the mix without forming into patties and then cook in heated oil in a large, deep skillet. Resist the urge to stir until it's crisp and brown; then stir and break the pieces apart and continue to cook until it's as done as you like. I have not tried it yet, but think this would be delicious over Asian noodles or mixed into fried rice.

Sea Slaw

-serves 4
Adapted from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian

Ingredients

1/4 cup mayonnaise
2 tablespoons rice vinegar (I used white wine vinegar, and it was okay)
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon sugar
1/4 instant wakame or other dried seaweed (I used arame, soaked and drained as for the scallion tofu)
2 cups chopped cabbage (I used 1/2 head Savoy, shredded in food processor)
1 carrot, shredded
1 cup fresh cilantro leaves
Salt and pepper

Procedure

Whisk the mayonnaise, vinegar, soy sauce, and peanuts together in a large bowl. Add the seaweed, cabbage, and carrot and toss to coat. If possible, refrigerate for an hour or so before serving (or cover and refrigerate for up to 24 hours). To serve, add the cilantro, salt, and pepper and toss again.