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Archive for December, 2011

Puntarelle

Posted in Recipes, Stephen Kolyer, tagged , , , on December 31, 2011 | 2 Comments »

I now make a drive-by through Eataly, the Italian emporium on 23rd Street in Manhattan, (http://www.eatalyny.com) about once a week checking out the produce section to see what new, unusual, hard-to-come-by products might be found there.  And, I always find something that I need to try.  For years, I had known about puntarelle but had only tasted it years ago in Rome (its found almost nowhere else in Italy) but the other day on a walk-about through Eataly I found bunches of it stacked in the produce section so, of course, I had to bring some home to test.
Puntarelle is an Italian chicory that is quite bitter and its preparation can leave a cook with more than a little bitterness at the time it takes to make a simple salad.  You don’t seem to eat the leaves, only the tender shoots which must be split, lengthwise, one at a time, into thin strips.  The strips are then placed in acidulated ice cold water to soak for about an hour.  The icy soaking makes the long straight strips curl up into wiggly shoots.  Apparently, prepared puntarelle curls are now available in Roman markets – even traditional Italian cooks are looking for an easier way to put dinner on the table.
Puntarelle is classically served with an anchovy dressing but since Steve is allergic to fish, I pounded and mashed some sun-dried tomatoes (you’ll need plump, soft tomatoes, not those that are dry and wrinkled) which I frequently use as a replacement for anchovies and made a thick, creamy mix to toss into the puntarelle.  The color didn’t look so hot so Steve refused to photograph the finished salad.  You’ll have to be content with a photo of the whole head.

Sun-dried Tomato Dressing for a Bitter Green Salad

    ½ cup sun-dried tomatoes packed in oil, well-drained and chopped  
    4 large garlic cloves, chopped
    1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice or to taste
    About ½ cup green, grassy extra virgin olive oil
    Salt and pepper to taste

Combine the tomatoes, garlic, and lemon juice in a mortar and work them into a well-blended mash with the pestle.  Season with salt and pepper.  Transfer to a bowl and whisk in the olive oil.  Taste and season with additional lemon juice, salt, and pepper if necessary.  Serve over any bitter green salad.

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Season’s Greetings

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , on December 21, 2011 | 2 Comments »

 

What better way to welcome the holidays than with a tray of homemade and colorfully decorated cookies?  Here we give you drying Christmas cookies made by Laurel, our daughter-in-law, and Clara Grace, our beautiful granddaughter with intermittent help from Alexander, our grandson.  All of us whose work appears on the blog – either in word or design – send to each of our readers best wishes for a holiday season filled with joy and laughter and hope for only goodness to be found in the coming year.  Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, Blessed Kwanza, and Joyous Boxing Day are but a few of our wishes.  For those of you who celebrate none of these holidays may I send a biblical blessing that I believe is nondenominational “unto all people, nations, and languages, that dwell in all of the earth, Peace be multiplied unto you”.

 

Cut-out Cookies for Decorating

 

Makes about 4 dozen, depending upon the size

2 cups sifted all-purpose flour

Small piece of vanilla bean, ground

1½ teaspoons baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

⅓ cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 cup sugar

1 large egg, at room temperature

2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

¼ cup whole milk

Confectioners’ sugar for dusting

Decorative Icing (recipe follows)

 

Combine the sifted flour with the vanilla bean, baking powder, and salt in the sifter.  Set aside.

Combine the butter and sugar in the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with the paddle.  Beat on low to combine; then raise the speed to medium and beat until light and creamy, occasionally scraping the side of the bowl with a rubber spatula.

Add the egg and vanilla and beat to blend.  Alternately add the milk and the flour mixture beating to make a soft dough.

Scrape the dough down and remove the bowl from the stand.  Cover with plastic film and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or until the dough has firmed.

About 20 minutes before ready to bake, preheat the oven to 350ºF.

Line 2 cookie sheets with silicon liners or parchment paper.  Set aside.

Lightly dust a clean, flat, cool work surface with confectioners’ sugar.  (You can use flour, preferably Wondra, but the end result will be a drier cookie).

Working with about one quarter of the dough at a time and using a rolling pin, roll the dough out to circle about ⅛-inch thick.  Cut out into desired shapes using cookie cutters made for this purpose.  If you wish to use the cookies as hanging decorations, use a small skewer to make a small hole about ¼-inch from the top of each cookie.

Using a metal spatula, transfer the cookies to the prepared baking sheets, leaving about ½- inch between each one.

Transfer to the preheated oven and bake for about 12 minutes or until just barely colored around the edges and set in the middle.

Remove from the oven and transfer to wire racks to cool before icing.

Cover and decorate with Decorative Icing as you wish.

 

Decorative Icing

1 ½ cups confectioners’ sugar

Pinch salt

1 large egg white

1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice, strained

Food coloring of choice

 

Combine the sugar with the salt in a small mixing bowl.  Add the egg white and lemon juice and, using a hand-held electric mixer, beat until smooth.

If you wish only one icing color, add the food coloring drop by drop until you get the shade you desire.  For a variety of colors, divide the icing as you wish into small bowls and mix each color individually.

Use quickly as the icing will begin to set.  It is a good idea to cover each bowl with plastic film as you work to lessen the chance of a film forming on top.  If the icing does set or get too thick, add cool water, only a drop at a time.

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Yuzu

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , on December 21, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

 

I love ponzu sauce, the wonderful Japanese sauce that is, for want of a better description, a lovely vinaigrette-like sauce used for dipping, scenting, or saucing.  I had been told that you can’t really make a traditional sauce at home ‘cause you needed the juice of the Asian citrus yuzu to authenticate it.  Well, I found fresh yuzu and splurged (it was $8.99 a pound) so I could get a taste of the real thing.  I hunted around my myriad number of cookbooks to see if I could get a hint of how to make the real thing and then went to the internet.  Found too many variations and none that particularly pleased me so I devised my own.  Here is my version should you find fresh yuzu and feel like splurging – or maybe it is now being grown commercially in California and Florida and it will soon be ubiquitous, just like kiwi and we can all have fresh ponzu in our fridges!

 

1 cup fresh yuzu juice

1 cup soy sauce

¼ cup mirin

¼ cup rice wine vinegar

1 tablespoon orange juice concentrate

1 strip dried kombu 

2 tablespoons dried bonito flakes

 

Combine the yuzu juice, soy sauce, mirin, vinegar, and concentrate in a nonreactive container.  When blended add the kombu and bonito flakes and stir.  Cover and set aside to marinate for at least 3 hours before using.

When ready to use, strain through a fine mesh sieve, discarding the solids.  If desired, add a couple of chopped scallions just before using.  Ponzu sauce will keep, covered and refrigerated, for 2 weeks.  It may be frozen.

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Pickled Peaches

Posted in Recipes, tagged , , , , , on December 20, 2011 | 2 Comments »

 

It’s a little late in the season to can peaches but we were looking through some photos of cooking experiences this summer and came across some inviting shots of peaches being pickled and canned.  Once upon a time (and perhaps still in Amish country), pickled peaches were always on the farm dinner table.  My mom and aunts made them by the bushels and in younger days I did too.  Now, I just make a few jars but I still follow my aunt’s advice to use a disposable aluminum roasting pan and cook them in the oven.  This is because the high sugar content always caused scorching when you cooked them in a large pot on top of the stove.  When disposable pans became available my aunt quickly adapted this smart new method – cleaning up after canning is chore enough without having to spend hours (or sometimes days) trying to clean the burned bottom of the cooking pot.

The following recipe should yield about 8 quarts.

 

9 pounds fresh ripe but firm peaches, peeled

3 to 4 whole cloves per peach, optional

5 pounds sugar

2 cups cider vinegar

3 cinnamon sticks, broken into smaller pieces

1 teaspoon ground allspice

Preheat the oven to 300ºF.

If using, stick the cloves into each peach.

Place the peaches in a large disposable aluminum roasting pan.  

Combine the sugar, vinegar, cinnamon sticks, and allspice in a mixing bowl, stirring to dissolve some of the sugar.  If you have chosen to not stick the cloves into the peaches, you might want to add a few whole cloves to this mix. Pour the mixture over the peaches, tossing to mix well.

Cover the entire pan with aluminum foil and place in the preheated oven.  Cook without disturbing for 1 hour.  Remove from the oven, uncovered, and carefully mix so that all of the peaches are coated with syrup.  Recover and return to the oven for an additional hour or until well-flavored and softened.

Turn off the oven and allow the peaches to cool in the oven.

When cool, pack into hot, sterilized jars, cap, and refrigerate until ready to use.  If canning, place the jars in a boiling water bath and process for 10 minutes.  When canned, the peaches can be stored in a cool spot for up to a year.  Refrigerated they will keep for a few weeks.

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Heirloom Tomatoes

Posted in Uncategorized, tagged , , , , on December 13, 2011 | 5 Comments »

 

Don’tcha just wonder where all those heirloom seeds are coming from?  Here it is late fall moving into winter and between the farmers market and the specialty produce stores I’ve come across piles of “heirloom” tomatoes.  Like the sucker I am for beautiful produce, I bought a few – pricey, they are, eh? – and you know what, they were delicious.  I was in the process of cutting one to make Steve a breakfast sandwich of fresh mozzarella, basil, and tomato when he slid by, camera in hand, and shot this big one that I had just sliced – bright red with a tinge of deep green circling the mid-section.  Doesn’t it make you long for an extended tomato season?

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Bok Choy, Shiitakes, and Tofu

Posted in Books, Chefs, Recipes, tagged , , , , , , on December 13, 2011 | Leave a Comment »

 

Some time ago I did a vegan cookbook proposal for a terrific New Zealand chef, Michael Waffelbaker, which you can view under “Cookbook Ideas.”  In it was a recipe that has become one of Steve’s favorite meals.  I’m not a lover of tofu so I usually make it when I am in diet mode with a large salad for myself.  But, since Steve says it is so delicious, I thought we should share the recipe with all of you.

 

3 heads bok choy

1⅓ pounds shiitake mushrooms

1 cup homemade vegetable stock or canned vegetable broth 

1 tablespoon cornstarch

½ cup light soy sauce 

1 tablespoon light brown sugar 

One 1-inch piece ginger, peeled and minced

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 pounds extra firm tofu, well-drained and cut into ¾-inch cubes

1 tablespoon sesame oil

3 small hot chiles such as bird or Serrano, stemmed, seeded, and minced or to 

taste

3 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

 

Wash and dry the bok choy.  Using a sharp knife, cut the root end from each head.  If the leaves are larger than 2-inches wide cut them in half.  Set aside.

Trim the stems from the shiitakes and wipe the mushrooms clean.  (Save the stems for stocks.)  Depending upon their size, cut each one into quarters or halves so that each piece is relatively equal in size.  Set aside.

Combine ½ cup of the stock with the cornstarch in a small bowl, stirring to dissolve.  Set aside.

Combine the remaining ½ cup of the stock with the soy sauce and brown sugar in a medium large saucepan over medium heat.  Stir in the ginger and bring to a boil.  Immediately whisk in the reserved cornstarch mixture and cook, stirring constantly, for about 3 minutes or until thick.  Remove from the heat and set aside.

Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat.  Add the tofu and fry, turning about every 30 seconds, for about 4 minutes or until golden on all sides.  Using a slotted spatula, transfer the tofu to a double layer of paper towel to drain.

With the sauté pan still on medium-high heat, add the sesame oil.  When hot, add the reserved mushrooms and sauté for 2 minutes.  Add the bok choy, chiles, and garlic and sauté for 1 minute.  Stir in the reserved tofu along with the soy-ginger sauce and cook for about 1 minute or just until blended and hot.

Remove from the heat and spoon equal portions into each of six large, shallow soup bowls.  Serve immediately.

 

 

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Eddie’s Apples

Posted in Recipes, Stephen Kolyer, tagged , , , , on December 2, 2011 | 6 Comments »

 

Eddie, my city neighbor and one of the best human beings I’ve ever known brought me a big bag of apples from his farm in upstate New York last week.  He also gifted us with a huge container of homemade applesauce made from these very same apples which I put in the freezer to make an applesauce cake.  I was going to make a pie with the apples, but they were so good we had them as is – oft times with a bit of cheese for dessert.  Then, we took a trip upstate and what did we find but an overload of wild apples hanging from the branches of every tree that nature had brought forth on our friends acres of farmland.  So, we picked more.  I made apple butter (for the recipe see my post of September 29, 2010) as well as cooked some down to make a favorite old-time candy, applets, as I get nearer to my holiday gifting time.  Don’t have a photo to show you how the candy looks but here is the recipe.

 

1 cup grated sweet apples

2 cups granulated sugar

2 tablespoons unflavored gelatin

1 cup finely chopped walnuts

1 tablespoon rose extract or to taste

Confectioners’ sugar to coat

Combine the apples and sugar in a heavy bottomed saucepan over medium heat and bring to a boil, stirring constantly.  Boil for exactly 1 minute.  Then, lower the heat and cook, at a bare simmer, for 30 minutes, stirring frequently.

Generously butter an 8-inch square baking pan.  Set aside.

When the apples have cooked for 30 minutes, remove from the heat.

Dissolve the gelatin in 5 tablespoons cold water.  When completely dissolved, stir the gelatin mixture into the apple mixture.  Stirring constantly, beat in the nuts and extract.

Pour the mixture into the prepared pan, smoothing out the top with an offset spatula.  Set aside to cool and set for 2 hours or until firm and cool.

Place the confectioners’ sugar in a large shallow bowl.

When the candy has cooled, cut into ½ -inch squares, roll in the confectioners’ sugar to coat all sides.  Set aside until completely dry.

When dry, wrap each candy, individually, in plastic film and store, covered, for up to 2 weeks.

 

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