Salad Days Part Deux

I believe I mentioned a while back that Epicurious has an iPhone app. I have insomnia and there are nights when I can't sleep that I will page through their application looking for recipes to try.

I love fruit and cheese together. Give me a really tart apple like a granny smith, and a really sharp non-moldy cheese, and I am one happy camper. I grew up in New England, where it is not out of the question to have a big chunk of cheddar with your apple pie.

My sweetie wasn't brought up with this food combination. He does, however, enjoy wine and cheese, and when he lived in Chicago, we went to a lovely place called The Tasting Room a couple of times. Their cheese platters came with nuts and fruit as well as crackers and when I read this recipe, I said, "A-ha! Pears with manchego! He's eaten that at the tasting room, I bet he'll eat it in the salad."

Not only did he eat it, bless his heart, he wrangled the pears when we expanded the recipe to feed twenty. Here goes:

1/3 cup green (hulled) pumpkin seeds (pepitas; not toasted) I switched out the pumpkin seeds for sliced almonds. I definitely wanted the texture, but I don't like pumpkin seeds very much. I was very pleased with the flavor.

1/3 cup plus 1 tablespoon olive oil, divided

3 tablespoons Sherry vinegar I usually get this at Whole Paycheck or Trader Joe's or through Amazon, who has a nice assortment

1 teaspoon mild honey

1 teaspoon grainy mustard There's lots of good grainy mustards out there. Your average grocery store should have some Inglehoffer

4 cups packed spicy salad greens, such as radish greens, watercress, and/or arugula, tough stems discarded

4 cups packed frisée (French curly endive), torn into bite-size pieces The type of greens is especially important in this mix, the cheese is pretty strong, but you don't want it overpowered

1 (1/2-pound) piece Manchego cheese, rind removed and cheese shaved into 32 thin slices (preferably with a cheese plane) if you're not making individual plates, then go ahead and grate it.

8 small red or yellow Bartlett pears (preferably with stems)

Cook seeds in 1 tablespoon oil in a small heavy skillet over medium-low heat, stirring frequently, until puffed and beginning to brown, about 4 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to paper towels and reserve oil. Season seeds with salt and pepper.

I skipped this part, since I skipped the pumpkin seeds.

Whisk together vinegar, honey, mustard, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Add remaining 1/3 cup olive oil and reserved oil from skillet in a slow stream, whisking until emulsified.

Divide greens and cheese among salad plates. Cut off 2 opposite sides of each pear (reserve for another use), leaving a 1/2-inch-thick lengthwise center slice with stem and core. Arrange a pear slice on each plate and drizzle dressing over salads. Sprinkle with seeds.

If muliplying this recipe for more people, then I recommend simply cubing the pears and grating the cheese. This combination is delicous, unique and will get you a second glance if you bring it to a group gathering.

Salad Days part one

It's July, and there is barbequing. While I have some great grilling recipes coming up this summer, I thought it might be fun to toss around some salads.


I am cheerfully omnivorous. I love both meats and vegetables. There are a lot of times when I go to cookouts that I am poking around the pot luck offerings wondering where the hell are the vegetables? My solution? Start providing my own. Sometimes, I put spiced veggies on kabobs, but other times, I bring one of my salads, which has made me the "go-to" person in my social group for salads.


How to make a fun, interesting salad that people will eat? The first thing I suggest is throw away the iceberg lettuce. I did this several years ago because I was sharing space with a small furry rabbit named Blackavar, and later his little brother Nimbus.   

One of the first things the vet told me about being owned by a rabbit is to never feed them iceberg lettuce. The fibers are too tough for their digestive system. A friend of mine refers to iceberg as "crunchy water: and finds it only suitable for topping burgers or sandwiches. Regardless, this led me to explore a variety of greens, and while I don't love them all, I've come up with a few fun combinations.


This week's entry is a few salads I've created on my own, most of them around seven ingredients. They're all of the "toss ingredients together until it looks right" variety. I hope you try them, maybe improve on them. If you do, be sure to let me know!


Arugula and Goat Cheese with fig vinegar


This combination came from three sources. One was a Greek dish in a restaurant in Atlanta--a lovely roast pork loin served with goat cheese and fig jam. The second was a pizzeria in Danbury, CT that made an arugula and goat cheese pizza, which they served with balsamic. The piece d' resistance came from my friend Scott who gifted me with a bottle of fig vinegar on my birthday.


Arugula
Goat Cheese
Chopped Walnuts
Black Pepper
Olive Oil
Fig Vinegar.


Caprese Pasta Salad
I love fresh mozzarella and fresh basil together. Pasta makes it hearty. I use rotini because it holds dressing  and herbs better than say, penne.


One 16 oz box rotini pasta
fresh mozzarella
grape or cherry tomatoes cut in half (so the dressing will soak in)
fresh basil
dried oregano
Olive Oil
Balsamic Vinegar


Turkey Avocado Club Salad
This works with bacon and swiss instead of the smoked gouda. It also makes a great main dish on a really hot day, or can be stuffed in a pita.


Spring Mix  or your favorite lettuce blend
1/2 pound of sliced turkey (I like Trader Joe's) chopped
Smoked gouda, cut into cubes
One avocado, cubed (about twice as big as diced)
Olive Oil and red wine vinegar or your favorite mild creamy dressing


Mediterranean Herbed Salad
leafy romaine or your favorite lettuce blend
provolone or feta cheese
toasted pine nuts
fresh oregano
fresh flat-leaf parsely chopped
OPTIONAL:  sundried tomatoes in oil, cut into strips
lemon-infused oil
white wine vinegar


Got a favorite salad? I'd love to see it. Ditto if you have a recipe you'd like to try, or comments on any of the above.  Have a great long weekend!

Sweet Potato Hash

When a lot of people think sweet potato, they think of a mash with brown sugar and marshmallows on top at Thanksgiving. I've tried that, and while I might enjoy a bite or two, I really never wanted any more than that.

Then at a restaurant I forget the name of, I was served sweet potato chips as a side item. I tasted one and my taste buds jumped up and said, "I gotta get me more of these!"

At my current favorite diner, which is the Bedford Street Diner, I typically get sweet potato fries as a side. Yes, I know, fried foods are not that great for you, but I hope the general goodness that's in a sweet potato somehow makes up for it.

I'm not skinny, and occasionally research diet programs online. A friend of mine is having a lot of success on the Paleo Diet, and I thought I'd investigate. I've done variations of low-carb and dairy to some success before, but I find it really hard to maintain. I love bread, I love cheese and these are big no-nos on a paleo diet.


Sweet potatoes are a bone of contention. On this food list, they are on the do not eat list. Yet on another site I found this recipe.

Something fried may seem contraindicated on a diet, but if you've done any reading about diets, you've probably seen several articles like this one that talk about the differences between good fats and bad fats.

Anyway, just a couple ingredients in this recipe. I made one for me with just potato and onions, and one for my sweetie with the added green peppers.

• 1 medium sweet potato or yam, diced into small cubes I bought sweet potatoes, which are distinct from  yams
• 1/2 cup chopped onions
• 1/2 cup chopped bell peppers (optional) 
• 2 tsp olive oil
• fresh ground pepper

The biggest amount of time was spent peeling cubing the sweet potatoes. The recipe is really pretty easy, but it was not easy to manage two pans at a time that needed constant stirring. 
Add the onions and saute for 2-3 minutes.

1. Add the sweet potatoes and bell peppers, and 1 Tbsp of water.
2. Cover and cook for 15 minutes or until the potatoes are soft.
3. So to not burn, turn and toss frequently.
4. Serve, sprinkling with fresh ground pepper 

What's interesting here is the pan on the left is non-stick and the pan on the right is not. The onions caramelized much more quickly in the left-hand pan.   

I ended up adding an additional teaspoon of oil to each pan because I didn't want anything to burn.
While these were cooking, I had pork chops in the over and veggies in the microwave. 


Both versions were delicious. I liked it better without the green peppers, Ken preferred it with.


Next week salad days!
Have a recipe you'd like me to try? Let's hear it!

Oh *&^%$#@! I'm out of. . .

It happens to just about everyone. You're halfway through making a recipe and you realize, "Oh, expletive, I'm out of x!" You have a few choices at this point.

• Stop what you're doing and go get the ingredients in question. This usually isn't too practical, as most recipes call for certain amounts of multitasking. You may also be too close to the end of the recipe to stop.
• Ask a household member to go acquire the ingredient. This may get you some grumbles and resentment, especially if the game is on, or they're about to finally conquer the planet Traal.
• Find a substitute and move on.

In this week's recipe, when I started, I was quite sure I had everything in the house. This will teach me to physically verify everything before starting, no matter how well I feel I know my kitchen.

Sautee'd chicken breasts in creamy chive sauce:

•     4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, (about 1 pound), trimmed of fat
•     1 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
•     1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon all-purpose flour, divided
•     3 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
•     2 large shallots, finely chopped
•     1/2 cup dry white wine I could have sworn we had some white wine in the house, but as it turns out, we did not. I could have used more chicken broth, I considered using more chicken broth with a touch of lemon juice. Instead, I decided on beer. The beer in question was LandShark lager.
•     1 14-ounce can reduced-sodium chicken broth
•     1/3 cup reduced-fat sour cream
•     1 tablespoon Dijon mustard Another thing I could have sworn I had in the fridge. We have stone-ground mustard, and we have a Polish mustard. I think Austin has the dijon. We also have hot Chinese mustard powder, but that wasn't appropriate here. I went with the Polish, which would go well with the beer. I wasn't sorry at all.
•     1/2 cup chopped chives, (about 1 bunch) 

 1.  Place chicken between sheets of plastic wrap and pound with a meat mallet or heavy skillet until flattened to an even thickness, about 1/2 inch. Season both sides of the chicken with 1/2 teaspoon salt. Place 1/4 cup flour in a shallow glass baking dish and dredge the chicken in it. Discard the excess flour.

I love my meat mallet. Be warned, you may scare other members of your household if you cackle madly while pounding your chicken.

   2. Heat 2 teaspoons oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the chicken and cook until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate, cover and keep warm.

I'm never sure what they mean by "keep warm" in recipes. With precious little fat and liquid, keeping it in the oven at even 200 would dry it out. I covered it with aluminum foil.

   3. Heat the remaining 1 teaspoon oil in the pan over medium-high heat. Add shallots and cook, stirring constantly and scraping up any browned bits, until golden brown, 1 to 2 minutes. Sprinkle with the remaining 1 tablespoon flour; stir to coat. Add wine, broth and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon salt; bring to a boil, stirring often.

If you end up using beer like I did, it'll start out a little foamy. It will resolve itself.

   4. Return the chicken and any accumulated juices to the pan, reduce heat to a simmer, and cook until heated through and no longer pink in the center, about 6 minutes. Stir in sour cream and mustard until smooth; turn the chicken to coat with the sauce. Stir in chives and serve immediately.

This came out delicious, a very velvety sauce, with fresh chives. I plan to try it with the wine and the dijon, so look for that later this summer! This was served with roasted cauliflower, which I'll write about in a future entry!

Next week, I explore one of the controversial foods on the popular Paleo diet and make sweet potato hash!

Questions? Comments? Have a recipe you want me to try? Let's hear it!

In which Kate's boyfriend goes off on a tangent. Or Essential Cheap Cooking Equipment

Hi everyone. If you recall, my sweetie (and frequent guinea pig) Ken, was the one who named this blog Knives, Fire and Fun. Last week, I mentioned oven thermometers, and he thought he'd do a guest blog discussing the importance of them. Ten bucks can make all the difference in the world: 

Importance of Oven Thermometers

Why can't appliance manufacturers build ovens with decent temperature controls? In making my baked custards, I've used many, many ovens, both gas-fired and electric, ranging from cheap ones that I might find in low-end apartments, to ones labelled "professional", costing many thousands of dollars.

I've found the Better Homes and Gardens cookbook  provides a really good starting point for custards. However, it is very sensitive to the oven temperature. It has been my experience that the oven thermostat is extremely inconsistent, and a given oven will drift from day to day.

My journals, before I bought my first oven thermometer (the most expensive one the local grocery store carried, probably less than $10 at the time), read something like this:

1. 350°, 75 mins
2. 400°, 80 mins ???
3. 450°, 45 mins, burnt
4. 425°, 75 mins ???
5. 400°, 45 mins, really, really good.

At first, I thought I mistimed the custard times, but when I started finding that much inconsistency, I knew I had to do something. On a whim, I purchased the most expensive oven thermometer I could find in my local grocery store, by less than $2. This is, after all, a grocery store.

Immediately, I could see the reason. Not only was the oven not calibrated correctly, but it seemed not calibrated at all. The thermometer showed 100° fluctuations for the same setting. This simple, inexpensive change has made my life a lot easier when trying to perfect my recipe, and has made it more portable -- all I needed to do was to bring my trusty little thermometer.

In Which Kate Puts the Calories back in a recipe

Thank you for your patience this week. Over the weekend, the sweetie and I joined a couple of friends at Newport's Annual Chowder Cookoff. For several hours, we sampled about twenty kinds of chowder (clam, seafood and "creative"), and I also indulged in a couple of clam cakes and some strawberry shortcake. I also had lobster for dinner--grilled, which was a delicious experience.

I was going to cook dinner when we came home on Sunday, but after all the chowder and a brunch that ended with key lime pie, I decided not to cook. I could have put up an entry, but I really wanted to try this week's recipe a second time before I blogged about it.

I like pasta a lot, in all shapes and sizes, though not all grains. I would have to be dying to eat whole-wheat pasta, for example, but I like Barilla's multigrain line. Anyway  I've always considered it more of a main dish than a side. Woe to my hips, but anyway. I looked at the recipe, and saw that it made four servings, I figured this had to be a side dish. I thought I could simply make it as is and it would work for two main dish meals. Let's look at the ingredients:

    *   8  ounces  uncooked cavatappi pasta The first time I made the recipe, I only had Angel Hair in the house. The second time, I bought some celetani, because I could not find cavatappi.

    * 1  pound  asparagus, trimmed and cut diagonally into 1 1/2-inch pieces

    * 1  teaspoon  minced garlic 

    * 3  tablespoons  pine nuts I reduced this to 2 Tbsp the second time. 1 tbsp pine nuts per person seems to work as a rule of thumb. My thumb, anyhow.

    * 2  ounces  diced pancetta I know Cooking Light is about saving calories, but this little meat for a dish meant for four people? I'd be embarassed to serve something that basically has a "tease" of a meat taste. 

    * 2  tablespoons  fresh lemon juice I ran a little short the first time. The freshness it adds is fabulous and really made the dish something special the second time.

    * 2  teaspoons  extra-virgin olive oil

    * 1/2  teaspoon  kosher salt

    * 1/4  teaspoon  freshly ground black pepper

    * 1/4  cup   (1 ounce) crumbled Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese I cut this in half for round two

1. Preheat oven to 400°.

2. Cook pasta according to package directions, omitting salt and fat; add asparagus to pan during last 3 minutes of cooking. Drain. Sprinkle pasta mixture with garlic; return to pan, and toss well.

This is a question of style where I disagree. Instead, I started the pasta while the pancetta was in the oven (below). It's not that difficult to multitask one dish in an oven and one on the stove.

3. Arrange pine nuts in a single layer on a jelly-roll pan. Bake at 400° for 3 minutes or until golden and fragrant, stirring occasionally. Place in a small bowl.

I find it takes a little longer than three minutes, your mileage and oven may vary.

4. Increase oven temperature to 475°.

5. Arrange pancetta on jelly-roll pan. Bake at 475° for 6 minutes or until crisp.

This took a little longer than stated as well. If you don't have an oven thermometer, its a good gadget to have.  

6. Combine lemon juice, olive oil, salt, and pepper, stirring with a whisk. Drizzle over pasta mixture; toss well to coat. Sprinkle with pine nuts, pancetta, and cheese.

The second time I made the recipe was miles more successful than the first, though it completely killed the whole "light" concept. The meat was definitely in attendance at the party, not just a wallflower cowering in the corner. Also, the pasta held up against the asparagus. As much as I like my angel hair, the asparagus totally overwhelmed it in the first time I tried the dish.

If you have to omit any ingredients for whatever reason, don't make it the lemon juice in this one. My audience (this would be Ken the sweetie) thought the first incarnation a little blah, but really enjoyed the second one.

Questions? Comments? Have a recipe for me to try? I'd love to hear from you!

How to Make Mushroom Soup like a Polish Granddaughter (swag method)

I mentioned the Polish Deli in Norwalk in an earlier post. It's still in business and better than ever. Ken and I went there  a few weekends ago for lunch, and I noticed that they had dried crepe mushrooms on sale. 

Growing up, Christmas Eve was traditionally spent at my Polish Grandparents, and one of my favorite food items was the mushroom soup. It was very rich in flavor, and served over thick mashed potatoes. Good hearty peasant food bursting with mushroom flavor, and filling without being too heavy. I'd thought about making it for a while, then my aunt told me I needed a source for dried mushrooms. Bingo!

I saw the mushrooms and asked the proprietor if she knew a good recipe for mushroom soup. She laughed and went on to ring up the next customer. Then, while we were eating, she motioned me over, "Come here, quick lesson." I left with a .7-oz package of dried crepe (also known as porcini) mushrooms  and a head full of advice. (Martha would have you use shitake and buttons as well, but a) this isn't a Japanese recipe and b) my sweetie doesn't like cooked button shrooms)

First off, I reconstituted the shrooms in boiling water. I had about a cup of dried mushrooms, which were very fragrant when I opened the package. I figured 2 cups of boiling water would work.  I covered the shrooms with the water and let them soak for a couple hours. I have no scientific basis for doing so in this proportion, bear in mind. A quick taste of the mushroom liquor told me I was on the right track. Delicious. 

Next up, a little richness but not too much, and a little aromatic. I sautéed one finely minced garlic clove in about a tablespoon of unsalted butter. Normally, I consider garlic a vegetable, but I'm (slowly) learning to back off a bit and use it as an enhancement in some dishes, like this one.


To this pot, I added 1.5 cups of organic beef broth. I actually goofed at the store and did not get the low-sodium version, so I decided no more salt was to be added. I poured in the mushrooms and the mushroom broth. Next, about six grinds of black pepper (the Lithuanian grandmother is responsible for my love of black pepper, but I digress). I hoped this amount of beef broth wouldn't overwhelm the mushrooms, and my SWAG (aka some wild-assed guessing) was right on the money. I added about a tablespoon of freshly chopped parsley, that may have been a bit too much, and because I wanted a little more freshness, a pinch of thyme. I simmered for about an hour to let the flavors blend. 


Next up, preparing the rest of dinner. Mashed potatoes for the soup to go over. I used small reds, and left the skins on for reasons of texture, taste and laziness. I hate peeling potatoes. In retrospect, next time I make this, I'm going to go for potatoes I peel. Maybe some Yukon Gold.


Some protein as well. Out of my fridge came some very nice pork chops. I lightly brushed them with olive oil and covered them with a 50/50 mix of panko and a spice blend called, of all things, Gobs of Garlic, which you can purchase here. Be warned, their blends run a little salty, hence the panko to cut it. Bake chops at 375 F for about thirty minutes, turning over halfway through.


For greens, a fresh salad, heavy on the frisee, dressed with a little olive oil and some white wine vinegar.


I stirred in half a cup of heavy whipping cream into the soup before serving it over the mashed potatoes. I wanted a bit more thyme, Ken thought it was delicious as it was, so I just added it to my bowl. I was really happy with the flavor. Without the cream, the soup was earthier than a bad Bordeaux, but with it, there was the earthiness of the mushrooms and the smoothness of the cream, plus the thyme and parsley.


Then, if you're me, forget, once again to take photos of the finished product. I'll get better, I promise. I served this with some hard cider, but I think beer or a full-bodied white would work just fine as well.



Now here's a question: do I enter this into Epicurious' recipe contest? Or do I use my chili recipe? Let's hear from you!