David Crockpott is redeemed

Remember Dave's disastrous maiden voyage?  Believe it or not, I haven't let him into my kitchen since.  But the other weekend when my neeces were visiting (my neeces of course are the twin daughters of my seester), I wanted something ready for dinner when they arrived.

Dave, rise and come forth.

So this isn't a new recipe for pulled pork, it is exactly the same sauce and method as I made with Madame, but wow, the ten hours of cooking time certainly does make a difference.

Serve on potato rolls with bread-and-butter pickles, cole slaw and sweet potato fries.

Die.

Van Harte Gefeliciteerd, lieve Oma!

Today, my husband's grandmother would have been 100 years old. She was born in Oss, Netherlands, and had she been living there today, she certainly would have received a congratulatory letter from Queen Beatrix. However, according to Aunt Mary, Oma would also have received a cake from the Queen.

Isn't that awesome?

Oma credited a lot of her longevity to eating eight almonds a day. And so in honor of her 100th birthday, I made an almond torte for her.

Almond Torte à la Julie Marie Leonie Wübbe Laqueur Dixon

  • 1 1/2 cups plus 1/4 cup sliced almonds
  • 3/4 cup plus 2 tbsp confectioners' sugar
  • 4 large egg whites
  • 1/ tsp salt
  • 3/4 tsp almond extract

Preheat oven to 325. Process 1 1/2 cup almonds with 3/4 cup sugar in a food processor until finely ground. Set aside.

Beat egg whites and salt until soft peaks form. Gradually add remaining 2 tbsp sugar. Beat until peaks are stiff and glossy. Beat in almond extract. With a rubber spatula, gently fold in almond mixture in two additions.

NOW. WATCH AND PAY ATTENTION! Are you watching? Good. Because I didn't. See how this looks below? It looks right but it is in fact bass-ackwards:

You are supposed to spray a 8" cake tin or springform pan with Pam, and then sprinkle 1/4 cup almonds on the bottom of the pan, THEN gently spread the batter on top. I did the reverse: batter first and almonds on top.

Whichever way you do it, bake until golden brown and firm in the center, 40 to 45 minutes. Cool completely in pan and then invert onto rack.

It wasn't in the recipe but we melted some chocolate chips and drizzled the torte with that and served it with whipped cream. And a candle.

Wild Rice Salad

This salad is made with brown and wild rices, and a medley of vegetables. With beans added it can be the main dish. And it's awesome rolled up in a lettuce leaf. I served it tonight with tuna cakes, which Panda alluded to in a culinary conversation with her friends. They are made exactly like meatballs, but using tuna instead of ground meat. Breadcrumbs, minced onion, chopped parsley, a little parmesan, an egg or even mayonnaise to bind it all.  Form into patties and fry in olive oil until golden brown. Done.

Wild Rice Salad

  • 1 1/2 cups cooked wild rice, made according to package directions
  • 3 cups cooked brown rice, made according to package directions
  • 1 yellow bell pepper, diced
  • 1/2 red onion, finely chopped
  • 2 stalks celery, sliced
  • 1/2 seedless cucumber, quartered and sliced
  • 6 oz red cherry tomatoes, halved
  • 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

Place all ingredients in bowl and toss well with any vinaigrette of choice.

Serve.

Vietnamese Chicken Salad

Sunday I tasked myself with sitting down and actually engaging in some menu planning.  To think about the coming week, who was going to be where, when dinner would be eaten, and what to make.  So the plan looked like this:

And I made a shopping list from that, and thus went to DeCicco's determined to stick to the list, the whole list, and nothing but the list. No buying on hope or impulse or "well maybe..." The plan is the plan, the plan shall be the plan, we shall stick to the plan.

Anyway, that was the plan, and so far so good. As planned, we had skirt steak last night with roasted potatoes and asparagus.  Delicious as always, and as always a nice piece of steak left over for my lunch today.

Tonight's plan was the Vietnamese Chicken Salad recipe I'd seen in Martha Stewart Living, with a few cleverly thought-out improvements to save time—one being that I bought a rotisserie chicken to use instead of poaching my own.

Then I remembered that Redman's swimming lessons had been changed to Monday nights, and part and parcel of swim lessons is going to eat afterward at Red Rooster. Jeeps said he'd wait to eat back at home, then he suddenly remembered that tonight was camp registration night and he might as well go directly there from swimming, so he might as well eat at the Rooster.

What's that expression? "Make a plan and God smiles." So suddenly I was missing 50% of the household. Did I really want to go ahead and make this dish? Well...yes. I knew Panda would eat it. I was really looking forward to eating it. So what the hell, I'd make it. I'd just make less of it.

Here is full recipe with my modifications and smartass commentary. I just halved everything. Except the smartass commentary.

Vietnamese Chicken Salad

For the sauce:

  • 2 tbsp peanut butter
  • 1 tbsp rice-wine vinegar
  • 1 tbsp low-sodium soy sauce
  • 1 tbsp hone
  • 1 tbsp lime juice
  • 1 tsp minced ginger
  • 1 tsp minced garlic

Whisk all ingredients in small bowl until smooth and creamy, set aside.

For the salad:

  • 2 fourteen-and-a-half-ounce cans low-sodium chicken stock. (Fuck you, Martha. Stock does not come in 14 1/2 oz cans. Now I have to do math. 4 oz is 1 cup, 14 1/2 oz times 2 is 29 oz, divided by 4 is 7 cups plus 1 oz. I guess an ounce is a tablespoon? 7 cups plus 1 tablespoon of fucking chicken broth, OK?!)
  • 1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts (or skip all of the above and procure thyself a rotisserie chicken, take the meat off the breast and shred into bite-sized pieces)
  • 1 pound vermicelli (or as they say in the neighborhood, voimicelli)
  • 1 cucumber, seeded and cut into 3" long matchsticks
  • 2 carrots, peeled and cut into 3" long matchsticks (or, if you are clever like me, a handful from a bag of pre-shredded carrots)
  • 1 red pepper, seeded and cut into 3" long matchsticks
  • 1/2 small red onion, peeled and cut as thinly as possible (skip this if you plan to be kissing)

1.  If using fresh chicken, then bring stock to a boil in a large saucepan. Add the chicken and simmer 12-to 15 minutes until chicken is completely cooked. Remove chicken from pan, set aside to cool. When cool, shred into bite-sized pieces.

2.  If you used stock, cook vermicelli in same, adding more water if necessary.  Otherwise start from here and cook vermicelli until al dente. Drain. Return pasta to pot and toss with 1 tbsp lime juice, 2 tbsp rice vinegar, and 1 tsp peanut oil (which I didn't have because peanut oil doesn't seem to come in small bottles and I really don't need a 1/2 gallon of it. I used canola)

3.  To assemble salad, put vegetables, chicken and pasta into a large bowl. Pour peanut sauce over all and toss to combine.

4.  If you are the brilliant Pandagirl, make the observation that this salad would be yummy rolled up in lettuce leaves.

And it was.

Cauliflower Corn Soup

Here's another one from my old recipe book of Martha Stewart clippings. The full name is "Cauliflower and Roasted Corn soup with Chanterelle Mushrooms (or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Fungus)."

The kids were to be sleeping over my mother-in-law's so I was looking forward to making something adult-oriented. Panda came home from a birthday party with a stomach ache and ended up staying home, but she was only interested in saltines and applesauce so I could continue with the menu as planned.

Jeeps was shopping in the vicinity of DeCicco's so I sent him in for a few ingredients, including aforementioned chanterelles, which I was positive DeCicco's would have. Alas, they didn't. After a little debate we figured baby portobellos would probably make a good substitute.  

Jeeps kept sending excited texts, such as, "This place rocks!"  "Un-be-LEEV-able!"  and my favorite, "Did you SEE the beer section?!"  The excitement was warranted. DeCicco's stocks a minimal selection of wine but has an entire long wall devoted to artisan, hand-crafted and locally brewed beer. So home my baby came with his new suit, new shoes, shallots, mushrooms, bay leaves, fresh thyme, and a six-pack of Old Slugger.

Cauliflower and Roasted Corn Soup

  • 4 dried bay leaves
  • 6 sprigs fresh thyme
  • 2 ears fresh corn, kernels shaved from the cob (and no, I did not shave. I had a bag of Trader Joe's sweet roasted corn. I measured out 1 1/2 cups for the soup and 1 cup to roast for garnish, more on this later)
  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter
  • 1 shallot, finely diced
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 medium onion, diced
  • 4 ounces fresh chanterelle mushrooms, wiped clean (I used half my 8-oz box of mushrooms, wiped clean and quartered. At the end of the day, the mushrooms were so delicious in the soup that I wished I'd used the entire box)
  • 1 1/2 pounds cauliflower, cut into florets.
  • 4 cups chicken stock
  • Cayenne pepper to taste

The recipe starts off with you roasting the kernels from one of the ears of corn at 400 for 5 minutes. I had my one cup of reserved corn and decided to use a trick that my friend Cyd taught me, which is to toast the kernels on the stove with salt and spice. Drain the corn and pat dry as much as possible before putting the kernels in a dry, non-stick skillet on medium-low heat. Sprinkle with salt and a pinch of paprika. As with caramelized onions, low heat and long time is the trick. Just babysit them and shake the pan every now and again. Once they are nice and browned and crunchy, set aside.

Melt butter in your soup pot over medium heat, add shallots, garlic, onion. Cook until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add mushrooms, continue to cook until mushrooms soften, another 4 minutes. Remove mushrooms from pot and set aside.

Add unroasted corn, cauliflower, stock, bay leaves and thyme (Ms. Stewart advises to tie up the bay and thyme in cheesecloth to make a bouquet garni; if you have cheesecloth, go right ahead, but don't sweat it—at the end you just pick out the leaves and stems by hand). Bring to boil. Reduce heat to low and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes, until cauliflower is tender.

Remove bay leaves and thyme stems and discard. Working in batches in blender, or with immersion blender, puree soup until smooth. Return soup to pot over medium-low heat. Stir in reserved mushrooms. Add cayenne and salt to taste.  

Serve garnished with toasted kernels and fresh chopped parsley.

To go with the soup, I had a tube of Trader Joe's crescent biscuit dough. I haven't had these babies in years. They can't possibly be good for you but they are sooooo good.

The soup was delicious.  Even the invalid had a little bit in a ramekin, without the mushrooms.  I am not a mushroom aficionado at all so I don't know what kind of difference the chanterelles would have made, but if I ever see them in the store, I know I'll be giving this soup another go.

Creamed Spinach

At the famed Smith & Wollensky's steakhouse in New York, the creamed spinach is to die for. The steak almost becomes an after thought. Almost.

This is one of the few instances where I make a side dish for the precise reason that the kids will not eat any of it, which makes more for Jeeps and I. It's great not only as a side dish, but as an interesting appetizer. Make a big dish of it and serve with slices of bread, toasted or plain. Creamed spinach on toast is a treat.

Creamed Spinach

  • 1 bag baby spinach (seems like overkill but trust me)
  • 1 cup milk (any kind—whole is naughty, skim works fine, anywhere in between is inconsequential)
  • 1 tsp peppercorns (black, white, red, melange—whatever you have. I had white)
  • 2 dried bay leaves
  • 4 whole cloves
  • 2 tbsp unsalted butter
  • 2 tbsp flour
  • 1/2 tsp kosher salt
  • 1/4 tsp white pepper
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg (this is the essential ingredient, don't skip it)
  • 2 tbsp half-and-half
  • 1 medium onion, diced

Combine milk, peppercorns, bay leaves and cloves in small saucepan. Warm over medium heat until hot but not boiling. Remove from heat, cover, and let sit for 20 minutes. Strain into small bowl or measuring cup, set aside. Discard solids.

Melt 1 tbsp butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Whisk in flour; cook for 1 minute, whisking constantly. Gradually whisk in milk mixture. Whisk another 3 minutes until sauce thickens. Stir in salt, white pepper, nutmeg, and half-and-half. Set aside, covered.

Heat remaining butter and a splash of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add onion, saute until tender, about 5 minutes. Add 1/2 bag of spinach; cover skillet momentarily until leaves wilt. Add the other half bag. Turn with tongs until all leaves are wilted. Pour sauce over spinach, stir to combine.  

Serve.

Die.

Those kids don't know what they're missing. And I'm glad to keep it that way.

Fish Tacos

As with so many things, I was late to the fish taco party. For a long time they just didn't sound appealing at all, or my inner 13-year-old would giggle. Then one night I was watching one of my favorite Food Network shows, Guy Fieri's Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, and one of the segments was this place in California where the specialty is fish tacos. I saw how they were prepared and thought I can do that.

Oddly enough, the first time I made them at home was when I had no kitchen. We were renovating, the kitchen was gutted down to the studs, and we had temporary digs set up in the living room. Working with my two butane burners, I tried to approximate what I'd seen on TV by sauteing chunks of roughy in butter and lime juice, then serving with a lot of fixings: quartered cherry tomatoes, chopped scallions, and prepared broccoli slaw. Broccoli slaw is an awesome invention and I always have a bag of it on hand, especially in summer.

And wow, were they good.  I couldn't believe I'd lived this long without trying them.

So I made these the other night but as I had no filet fish on hand, I reached instead for a box of Trader Joe's mahi-mahi burgers. These are great on the grill in summer time, they make a nice alternative to hamburgers. I figured they'd work for tacos. I just fried them up 5 minutes on a side then cut them into rough chunks. I made the broccoli slaw again although I had it in the back of my mind that the celery-fennel slaw would be amazing with fish tacos. Baby spinach, and halved cherry tomatoes and sliced cucumbers.

Everyone fix 'em up, roll 'em up, come and get 'em.  I can't wait to eat these outside on my deck.

Olympic Onion Tart

So we had a little party on Saturday night. I love to have people over for dinner but I don't like being so busy with dinner that I don't get any time with the people. So the key is to find lots of wonderful things that make themselves, or can be made ahead of time, and appeal to a wide variety of people and ages. A soup party is ideal.

The kids got chicken soup. For the adults, I made a huge pot of butternut squash soup, and my Olympic Onion Tart. I always make it during an Olympic year, to eat while we watch the opening ceremonies. Funny how these traditions get started. 

Anyway, guys, I LOVE this recipe. I got it out of Gourmet magazine two years ago. They called it a tart. It's really pizza. I make it all the time. It's great for an appetizer, with soup, and it's awesome cold the next day for breakfast. Or lunch.

This is one of those things you make according to the recipe twice, and after that you kind of wing it until it becomes something your own.

Make this. Make it your own.

Onion Tart

  • 1 package frozen pizza dough (click here if you want my pizza dough recipe)
  • 3 lbs yellow onions, halved and thinly sliced (you can do just white, or just red. Or combo red and white. You could also do a combo of onion and fennel, which is quite nice.)
  • 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard (I sometimes use a combination of Dijon and honey mustard. In the pictures below I tried whole-grain which was a mistake. Way too overpowering. Don't.)
  • 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese (or any shredded cheese you wish. Literally whatever I have is what I use and it always comes out good)
  • 1/2 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
  • Fresh (or dried) chopped parsley or any herbs of your choice. If you use fennel, chop the fronds fine and use them.

Heat olive oil in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions (and fennel if using), 1 tsp salt, and a few grounds of the pepper grinder. Saute for 5 minutes until well-coated, then lower heat. Low heat and long time is the name of the game when it comes to caramelizing onions. You're going to cook these a good 45 minutes to an hour until they are very tender and golden-brown. The good news is you can do this step up to two days ahead of time, and store the onions in the fridge until it's time to make the tart.

Preheat oven to 450 with rack in the middle.

Oil or spray with Pam a baking sheet. Stretch pizza dough out, into a rectangle if you can but I never seem to manage more than a lopsided circle. Doesn't matter, it's supposed to look rustic. Spread mustard evenly over dough, leaving a 1/2" border around edge.

Spread onions evenly over mustard, then sprinkle cheese, then herbs over all. 

Bake tart 10-12 minutes until crust is golden brown.

Slice.

Serve.

Die.

Your guests will love it.

I had a great time. I'm so glad you came.