I’m tired of winter.  Today is a bit warmer, but it is pouring buckets.  This, after a weekend blizzard upstate, that left us digging out of 20 inches of snow.  I want sunny days and light meals but instead I’m still making soups and braises and rich desserts.  Trying to finish off the beans I brought back from San Francisco (see a February post and ranchogordo.com), I decided to prepare an old winter favorite in the soup category, black bean.

Years ago, this soup was a specialty of the Coach House, a venerated New York restaurant owned by Leon Lianides (don’t ask me how I remember his name) that was “the” place to go when you wanted to celebrate.  (I also remember an occasion there where my children’s father asked the waiter for a “chateaubriand for two for three” which remains a family dining out joke).  The Coach House closed in the early 90s and its space is now the home of Mario Batali’s much-admired Babbo, but serious diners of a certain age will always mention black bean soup when remembering the restaurant.

Don’t know why I’ve gone on about it ‘cause my recipe is not the Coach House recipe but comes straight from one of my now out of print books The Rediscovered Bean.  It is, however, a good one and will serve you well throughout the year as it is delicious, chilled, with a dollop of crème frâiche or plain yogurt and a sprinkle of candied orange zest or crystallized ginger.  The soup will keep for a few days in the fridge or it can easily be frozen for another day.

My Black Bean Soup

Serves 8

1 ½ cups dried black beans

2 medium carrots, peeled and chopped

Peel of 1 orange (preferably organic)

1 cup chopped winter squash or pumpkin

1 cup chopped onions

1 cup chopped celery, leaves included

2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat leaf parsley

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 small smoked ham bone, optional

½ pound pancetta, optional

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1 tablespoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

Salt and pepper to taste

½ cup dry sherry wine

⅓ cup finely chopped or sieved hard boiled egg whites, optional

Lemon slices or chopped chives or whatever garnish you like

Place the beans in cold water to cover by 1-inch and set aside to soak for 8 hours or overnight.

Drain the beans and transfer to a large, heavy bottom saucepan.  Add water to cover by 3-inches along with the carrots, orange peel, squash, onions, celery, parsley, and garlic.  Place over medium-high heat, stirring to blend.  If using, add the ham bone and bring to a boil.  Lower the heat and cook, at a gentle simmer, for 2 hours or until the beans are very soft.  If necessary, add additional water to keep the mixture from drying out.

If using the pancetta about a half hour or so before the beans are done,

place the cubed meat in a cold frying pan over medium-low heat.  Fry, turning frequently, for about 12 minutes or until the fat has rendered out and the meat is nicely browned.  Using a slotted spoon, transfer the meat to a double layer of paper towel to drain.

When the beans are very soft, remove and discard the orange peel and, if used,

the ham bone (or give it to the dog).  Stir in the lemon juice, cumin, and thyme.  Taste and season with salt (if necessary) and pepper.  Return to medium heat and simmer for another 30 minutes.

Remove from the heat.  Transfer to a blender – in batches, if necessary – or food processor fitted with the metal blade and process to a smooth puree.

Return the puree to a clean saucepan.  Stir in the sherry and place over medium heat.  Cook just until heated through.

Remove from the heat and stir in the pancetta.  Taste and, if necessary, adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.

Ladle into hot shallow soup bowls.  If desired, garnish the top with the egg white and a lemon slice or minced chives or a dollop of crème frâiche or plain yogurt or whatever you have on hand that will look spectacular against the lovely soft black soup.

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The other day I bought a batch of sweet mangoes that were just this side of far gone and very cheap so decided to make this marinade and pop it into the freezer for later use.  (I tripled the recipe).  It is a delicious marinade for pork tenderloin, chicken breasts, or fatty fish such as salmon. (It would also do very nicely paired with a fresh fruit salad).  Once the meat has been marinated and roasted, reheat the marinade for use as the accompanying sauce.

Although quite ready to freeze the whole batch, I decided to marinate some salmon to take a lunch to my buddies at Loupe Digital.  (Who, I say with modesty, said the end result was “killer”).  I cooked up some for SOS (sauce on the side) and still had enough left to freeze for another day.

You can use canned Indian mangoes in place of the, usually, more expensive fresh mangoes and, if you can find them, black sesame seeds (in place of the usual pale ones) add an unusual accent.

Makes about 1¼ cup

1 cup puréed mango

Juice of 1 lime

1 serrano chile, seeded, membrane removed, and minced or to taste

2 tablespoons rice wine vinegar

2 teaspoons nam pla or other Asian fish sauce

2 teaspoons toasted sesame oil

¾ teaspoon Dijon mustard

¼ teaspoon fresh ginger juice

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

1 tablespoon chopped fresh mint

Combine the mango purée with the lime juice, chile, vinegar, nam pla, sesame oil, mustard, and ginger juice in a small, nonreactive saucepan over medium heat.  Bring to a simmer and immediately remove from the heat and set aside to cool before using as a marinade.  When cool, add the sesame seeds and mint.

If not using immediately, do not add the seeds and mint.  Pour the marinade into a nonreactive container and refrigerate for up to one week.  Add the seeds and mint before using.

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Cleaning out my kitchen cabinets the other day, I found that I had managed to hoard a number of packages of various types of rice.  I tidied them up and then decided to reinvent some of them for taking along as hostess/host gifts when invited to dinner or to give to friends who are suffering from the kitchen blahs.  These mixes are pulled from my 60s memories when I spent an awful lot of time being Helen Homemaker.  The cooking time for each rice remains unchanged from that given on whatever brand of rice you choose to use.  The cooking liquid may be water or any stock or broth (if using canned, select lowfat/low sodium) or a combination of both.

Spanish Rice

4 cups uncooked long-grain rice

½ cup dried red bell pepper flakes

½ cup dried green bell pepper flakes

¼ cup dried onion flakes

2 tablespoons dried parsley

2-1/2 teaspoons coarse salt or to taste

1 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

½ teaspoon crushed saffron threads

Combine the rice with the bell pepper and onion flakes, parsley, salt, pepper and saffron in a large resealable plastic bag.  Toss and turn until the mixture is very well blended.  (You can replace the saffron threads with saffron powder but check for flavor as the powder has often been adulterated with other ingredients and is not as strong as the threads).

Divide the rice blend equally between four containers, each of which will cook up to serve 4 to 6 people.  Seal tightly, label and store in a cool, dry spot for up to 1 month.

Lemon-Curry Rice

2 tablespoons freshly grated lemon zest

4 cups uncooked jasmine, basmati, or Green Jade rice

1 cup yellow raisins

1 cup pistachios

1 tablespoon curry powder

2 teaspoons dried curry leaves

2½ teaspoons coarse salt or to taste

1 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper

½ teaspoon ground cumin

½ teaspoon dried red pepper flakes

Place the lemon zest on a plate, spreading it out in as near a single layer as you can.  Set aside to dry for 1 hour.  (You can use dried lemon zest but it won’t be as fresh tasting.)

Combine the rice, raisins, pistachios, curry powder, curry leaves, salt, pepper, cumin and pepper flakes with the slightly dried lemon zest in a large, resealable plastic bag.  Toss and turn until the mixture is very well blended.

Divide the rice blend equally between four containers, each of which will cook up to serve 4 to 6 people.  Seal tightly, label and store in a cool, dry spot for up to 1 month.

Sweet Rice and Lentil Mix

4 cups basmati, jasmine, Texmati, wehani, or brown rice

1 cup lentils

16 whole cloves

8 black peppercorns

2 cinnamon sticks, broken in half

¼ cup finely minced candied ginger

2 teaspoons toasted cumin seeds

2 teaspoons coarse salt or to taste

1 teaspoon toasted cardamom seeds

1 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper

Place one cup of the rice into each of four containers.  Add ¼ cup of the lentils along with 4 cloves, 2 peppercorns, one piece of the cinnamon stick, 1 tablespoon ginger, ½ teaspoon each cumin seeds and salt and  ¼ teaspoon cardamom seeds and white pepper to each container, stirring or shaking to blend well.

When well-blended, seal tightly, label and store in a cool, dry spot for up to 1 month. Each container will cook up to serve 4 to 6 people.

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Some years ago I wrote a book called Cooking with Yogurt which can probably still be found online.  I tried to reinvent recipes using yogurt in place of fattier ingredients.  It sold relatively well but not enough to complete my retirement fund.  I was so into yogurt for awhile that I had 3 or 4 yogurt makers and was determined to make the best homemade yogurt to be found – this was before the now ubiquitous Greek yogurt was on the supermarket shelves.  I never make yogurt anymore.  Like most others, I rely on either the dairies at the farmers market or one of the Greek-style yogurts from the supermarket.

Cleaning out the files the other day, I came across some of the yogurt manuscript remains and decided to make yogurt cheese, a long-time favorite of mine, and something I could add to the snack table while I watched the Oscars with friends.  I had almost forgotten how tasty it is.

Yogurt cheese isn’t really cheese.  It is simply yogurt that has been drained of most of its liquid, resulting in a soft, spreadable hybrid not unlike cream cheese.  If you use Greek-style yogurt the draining time will be shortened and the yield will be a bit more, due to its thickness.  One cup of yogurt will yield approximately ⅓ cup yogurt cheese.

Marinated Yogurt Cheese

Makes about 2 cups

6 cups plain fine quality yogurt

¾ cup extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons sliced garlic

1 tablespoon minced shallot

2 tablespoons chopped fresh basil leaves

1 tablespoon fresh rosemary needles

1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme

1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage

1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest

Sea salt to taste

Cracked black pepper or dried red pepper flakes to taste

Olives for garnish, optional

Line a large sieve or colander (or two small ones) with a piece of damp muslin, a triple layer of damp cheesecloth or any other clean, moist, white cotton cloth.

Pour the yogurt into the prepared sieve or colander and place it over a bowl large enough to hold it without the bottom of the sieve touching the bottom of the bowl.  Cover lightly with plastic film.  Set aside to drain for 12 hours for a very firm cheese (8 hours will yield a soft cheese).  This should yield about 2 cups of “cheese”.

When the yogurt has firmed, remove it from the sieve and form it into a log shape.  Wrap in plastic film and refrigerate for at least 3 hours or up to 24 hours.

Remove the yogurt cheese from the refrigerator, unwrap and cut, crosswise, into disks.  Place the disks in a shallow baking dish.

Combine the olive oil with the garlic and shallot in a small bowl.  Add the basil, rosemary, thyme, sage, lemon zest, salt and pepper flakes, stirring to blend.  When well-blended, pour the mixture over the cheese disks.  Cover with plastic film and refrigerate for 12 hours.

When ready to serve, remove the cheese from the fridge and allow to come to room temperature.  Add some olives, if desired, and serve at room temperature with toast, croutons or baguette slices.  If not using immediately, pack the cheese disks into a shallow container.  Pour in the marinating oil, cover, and refrigerate until ready to use.  Will keep, covered and refrigerated, for up to one week.

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