C H E W I N G T H E F A T

Lamb Osso Buco Ragu

2012-02-16T09:18:00.000-05:00

I love a good Osso Buco. It’s a wonderful weeknight dinner party dish because you can make it one night and serve it the next and it will only improve with its overnight rest. But I had never heard of a lamb version of this classic Veal dish. Then on our pre-holiday Costco run, I saw Lamb Osso Buco in the meat case. I’ve had great luck with all the Australian lamb at the

Ottolenghi’s Salmon Steaks with Spicy Tomato Sauce

2012-02-13T10:08:00.000-05:00

Last summer, our great friend Michael came over to our house with a cookbook given to him by one of his favorite customers at the Bridgehampton Florist, which he co-owns with his husband, Jim. (Yes, that Bridgehampton Florist...viewers of the Barefoot Contessa take note). “Plenty”(Ebury Press 2010) is the work of London’s Yotam Ottolenghi with a great assist from his Chef/

They may look like brownies to you... but they're Dark Shadows to me.

2012-02-09T10:10:00.000-05:00

Since Valentine's Day is fast approaching, here's a perfect Valentine to give your amour. It's chocolate, of course, because chocolate is said to have aphrodisiac properties. Going back to the Aztecs, there’s been a link drawn between the cocoa bean and desire. But even if you're cynical about that connection, see if you don't find this description irresistible: " The

Sausages and Potato Ragout a la Jacques Pepin

2012-02-06T09:25:00.000-05:00

I wish you had seen the look on Andrew’s face when he asked what was for dinner and I told him “Sausages and Potatoes”. Was that a sneer or a recoiling? Was he horrified or merely surprised? You see, I had just that day received my copy of “Essential Pepin” (Houghton Mifflin 2011), the 700 recipe volume that caps the illustrious career of one the great ‘pioneers’ of good

Asian Spiced Flank Steak With Basmati Rice and Mango Salad

2012-02-02T09:50:00.000-05:00

You can serve the steak atop the salad... Or make the salad all by itself...either way, these dishes are terrific! If there is a first for everything, today’s Chewing the Fat qualifies. The first in this case was my discovery that one of my go-to heroes of the kitchen seriously let me down. I went to his well-thumbed cookbook. I found a chicken recipe that had a lot going

White Bean and Roasted Shrimp Salad with Cherry Tomato Vinaigrette

2012-01-30T10:11:00.000-05:00

If ever a cookbook cover said it all, it’s this: Brilliant Simple Food to Make Anytime. That’s what Tyler Florence’s “Tyler’s Ultimate” (Clarkson Potter 2006) says and it couldn’t be more true. Take for instance this deliciously satisfying dinner salad. It would be appropriate to serve in the dead of summer but it was a wonderful treat in January. It could be the centerpiece

David Chang’s Bo Ssam, slow-roasted Pork with Ginger-Scallion Sauce, Ssam Sauce, Kimchi and Rice

2012-01-26T10:13:00.000-05:00

Center this dish on your dining table and stand back. David Chang is everyone’s favorite renegade chef. His tiny Momofuku Ssam Bar, on a decidedly unfashionable strip of lower Second Avenue (207 2nd avenue new york, NY 10003), is perpetually packed. David is a particular favorite of ours and not only because he loves one of our absolute favorite Montreal restaurants --Joe

Celebrate the year of the Dragon with Chinese Roast Chicken, Baby Bok Choy with Oyster Sauce and Rice with Almonds.

2012-01-23T10:47:00.001-05:00

Chinese Symbol for theYear of the Dragon January 23rd is the start of Year of the Dragon, which, according to the Chinese Zodiac, is an extremely auspicious sign. Coming along once every twelve years, it is the ultimate symbol signifying success and happiness. And if that isn’t a reason to celebrate its arrival, I don’t know what is. In China, it is a 15-day celebration,

Nantucket Bay Scallops in Tabasco Butter with Parmesan Cheese and Croutons

2012-01-19T10:37:00.000-05:00

The American Hotel. A must stop in Sag Harbor whether forBay Scallops or not I can’t tell you how proud I am of this recipe. It is really one time when I can genuinely claim authorship of a dish. I’d tried a recipe for something similar several weeks ago. It was a way of using the absolutely delectable tiny scallops that are native to the waters around the Hamptons on

Moroccan Beef Meatball Tajine

2012-01-16T09:11:00.000-05:00

My cousin Bubbles and I have a running dialog about what we’re making for dinner. The other day she mentioned meatballs and then told me that she seldom makes them anymore because she has a friend who, while claiming not to be a cook, makes the most superb rendition of this true comfort food. I, on the other hand, am a huge fan of these lovely little pillows of meat, almost

Chicken with Prosciutto, Chard and Pine Nuts

2012-01-12T10:07:00.001-05:00

It's easy to see why it is called Rainbow Chard I have significant lapses in my culinary adventures. Before I made this perfect weeknight dinner with its amazing range of delicious tastes and textures, I had never cooked Chard. I will not go so far as to say I had never eaten Chard but it certainly has never been something I actively sought out of any menu I can remember. I

Spicy Pork Chops with Green Chiles, Roasted Red Peppers and Onions Adapted from Fine Cooking Magazine

2012-01-09T10:02:00.002-05:00

Usually, I soft-pedal the whole issue of heat in the recipes I share with you. That’s because I think a lot of people are uneasy about any food that’s described as spicy. I do get it. What’s the pleasure in having your mouth feel like it’s on fire? Or breaking out in a cold sweat after a bite or two? Usually when I do share a spicier dish, I tell you that cutting back on

James Beard’s Roast Beef Hash

2012-01-05T10:51:00.000-05:00

I just wish this looked as good as it tastes Joe Beef's Veal Pojarski This week, the New York Times’ Dining Section featured a front-page article entitled “Lucky to Be a Leftover”. In it were some remarkable ideas from people all over who made meatballs from holiday hams (no recipe on that one and boy, did I want it!), to Veal Pojarski, made from diced roasted veal, pork or beef and

Aromatic Braised Chicken with Fried Onions

2012-01-03T09:30:00.000-05:00

Kerala, Land of Coconuts Talk about a recipe that lives it to its name! This glorious chicken dish perfumes the house with a wonderful aroma of spices—ginger, curry, cloves and cinnamon. And then, when you bring it to the table and serve it over some cardamom-scented Basmati rice, it proves to be as delicious a taste as it is an aroma. Its Indian pedigree is fascinating. It

New Year’s Day Black Eyed Peas, a delicious way to bring good luck and prosperity for 2012

2011-12-31T11:01:00.000-05:00

When I was first learning my way around the kitchen, The New York Times Cookbook (Harper and Row, 1st published 1961) was my constant companion. Its editor was an immensely talented writer and cook named Craig Claiborne. So you can imagine my excitement when, quite a few years and many successful New York Times recipes later, I spied an open seat next to Mr. Claiborne on a Manhattan-bound

Quebec’s Gift to the Holiday Table: Tourtiere du Porc Adapted from Martin Picard of Montreal’s Au Pied de Cochon

2011-12-30T13:47:00.000-05:00

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Monte’s Ham and Cheese Strata

2011-12-27T12:19:00.000-05:00

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Joe Beef’s Big Beautiful Roasted Mushrooms

2011-12-23T15:24:00.000-05:00

I’ve already waxed poetic over Joe Beef, that phenomenal Montreal restaurant where we craved everything we ate. Almost everything we tried was truly over the top. And Andrew and I were not the least bit surprised to see that “The World According to Joe Beef: A Cookbook of sorts” tops most Top Ten Cookbooks of 2011 lists. The book is just a delight and just as

Doughnut Muffins, our most popular post ever!

2011-12-21T09:25:00.000-05:00

As part of our 12 days of Christmas recipes, we really could not let the season pass without sending you this wonderful recipe. It is by far the most viewed page out of all 250 recipes we've published. Nothing we've shared with you comes close. And with the most comments we've ever gotten on any post, this is clearly a winner. It is off the charts in another way too. These muffins are

Eric Ripert's Red Snapper with Sofrito

2011-12-20T09:48:00.000-05:00

Chef Eric Ripert The weeknights leading up to Christmas are a time challenge to any home cook. We all want to minimize the time it takes to get dinner on the table so that we can take care of everything else that's going on--shopping, wrapping, decorating. And with our menus leaning towards rich foods and lots of them, I thought it would a great idea to introduce a fish dish to

Black Forest Chocolate Cookies

2011-12-19T14:10:00.000-05:00

To add to the growing list of great cookies to bake this Christmas, I almost overlooked these beauties. They are so luscious and deeply chocolate tasting. And that's before you get to the secret ingredient inside. Put these on your must-bake list. Here's the whole post: When is a cookie more than a cookie? I’m tempted to say, this one truly takes the cake. Or at least beats

Rustic French Pate

2011-12-18T16:26:00.001-05:00

I discovered this wonderfully different pate almost by accident as you will read in this story. But in casting about for our 12 days of Christmas recipes, I realized it's just the kind of dish that has Holiday written all over it. A pate that you can put on a buffet table at a holiday party and watch disappear. And wonder of wonders, it's not a pate riddled fat. In fact the

“Baked” Brownies

2011-12-17T10:37:00.000-05:00

Renato (left) and Matt I would have to say that Andrew is not ‘a gusher’. He is not a person who cares much about celebrity. And because we live around an awful lot of them, a Seinfeld sighting or showing a property to a colossal media star is water off his back. (I, meanwhile, have gone practically catatonic at the sight of Martha Stewart at our local nursery.) So you can

A really easy way to brighten up the Holiday Cocktail Hour

2011-12-16T10:42:00.000-05:00

Tonight, our friends David, Carrington and Mitch will hold a Holiday Cocktail Party. As much as I am looking forward to seeing each of them, what I am really hoping we'll find is that David has once again made this wonderful hors d'oeuvre. David has a terrific New Year’s Day Party. And a year ago while ushering in the New Year, David introduced us to a gorgeous dish I’d

Ina Garten's Roasted Shrimp Cocktail with Spicy Cocktail Sauce

2011-12-15T10:36:00.000-05:00

Flowers from the fabulousBridgehampton Florist..where else? These shrimp are the center of attention on our Holiday Open House Buffett. Ina Garten is a goddess around here. She lives in the next town over and has for years and years. Before becoming the TV star and author, she had a local food shop and catering service which endeared her to hundreds of customers. Now, with seven