April 2005 Archives

I'd forgotten what it's like to go out on a Friday night. Thursday night was always date night for Todd and me pre-baby, so much so that while I was riding in to meet Todd for dinner last night I wondered if I we would show up and not have a reservation because I'd made it for Thursday. Anyway, we had to wait about 10 minutes for a table at The Red Cat, with frequent assurances from the hostess that it would only be a couple of minutes. So nice. And that set the tone for the whole evening. I thought the waiter would be snooty, but he was nice, too.

I took a big risk here and ordered the liver, which I had never had. I figured if I was going to like liver, it would be liver prepared at a place like this, so I went for it. The waiter told me if I didn't like it they'd bring me something else, but you know what? I'm all about appetizers, desserts and sides. Usually the main dish is the most boring part of the meal. So I wasn't too nervous. And even though the unctuous, silky-sweet liver was too much (I liked the crisp edges, though), I really enjoyed the meal.

It helped that it started with a hearty dish, their salad of bitter greens. I know it sounds light, but their salad is served on top of a pool of gruyere fondue, with wonderful wedges of salty potato, diced apples and bacon. I could've stopped there. I saw one table sharing it.

The liver came with broccoli rabe and tomatoes with olives and capers. The bitter greens actually didn't seem to go very well with the sweet liver, but it was yummy. Todd had the most boring-sounding dish, roast chicken, but they literally spice it up with some Thai chiles. I don't know how they did it, but the skin was crispy and the meat was flavorful.

They have some fancy desserts and some wonderfully homey ones. We ended with the rocky road sundae, caramel ice cream with hot fudge, candied walnuts and homemade marshmallows. I wanted the cookie plate, which is served with a mini milkshake. There was also an almond panna cotta that sounded good, but the rhubarb dessert, their special, was rhubarb-raspberry ice cream sandwich, with the bread part made of pistachio meringue. Sounded a little froofy, so we went the comfort-food route.

We ventured out with the baby in his new stroller last weekend, to the Dahesh museum near the IBM atrium in midtown. They have an exhibit of early photography right now, more sociological than artistic, although there were a couple of great photographs by unknown photographers. The permanent collection at the museum is really small and even on a Saturday afternoon there weren't a lot of people there, which made it good for a couple with a stroller child.

On the second floor overlooking Madison Avenue is Cafe Opaline, which serves an afternoon tea as well as sandwiches, pizzas and salads. Some of the dishes seem to have a Mediterranean bent, then there's basic dishes, like my crab salad, which was undressed crab meat arranged on a plate with avocado cubes, capers and mixed greens in radicchio cups. Sounded much better than it ended up being, mainly because there was no seasoning or dressing on the crab or avocado. Looking around the table at others' plates gave me the impression that's common. The banana bread pudding I had, with ice cream, was mushy but delicious, if only the baby had let me enjoy it fully (2 hours in a museum plus 2 hours at lunch was too much to ask of him).

But the setting was beautiful and the teas were fragrant and wonderful. I think I'd like to try their tea service sometime. And off hours there was plenty of space for our stroller, although the service was pretty bad in the late afternoon, too.

Remember the lamb pitas I made with my dad? The other night I turned that recipe into burgers for me and Todd, using whole-wheat rolls, lettuce and the chutney from the recipe as toppings. I mixed coriander, cumin, fennel and cinnamon into the meat and formed them into burgers, then I mixed finely diced red onion, cilantro and fresh mango into prepared mango chutney.

Todd wouldn't touch the chutney but I liked it.

I can't bring myself to call this Indian pudding, although that name does conjure up warm New England winter desserts. It also brings up in me 4 years of p.c. training at a liberal arts college in the '90s. So the more accurate, but much less evocative, cornbread pudding.

This is what I think of when I think of molasses desserts -- actually, first I think of molasses cookies, then gingerbread, then this. But I read about this edition of Sugar High Fridays today and wanted to participate so bad I could taste it. Plus, the baby's turned me into a quickie, shortcut-taking, make-ahead, throw-it-together kind of cook, and this recipe, from Gourmet's 5-ingredient-recipe column (I think), fits my new lifestyle.

So here it is: Cut 1 medium corn muffin into cubes and put in an oven-proof bowl, then mix 2/3 cup milk with 1 tablespoon molasses, 1 egg, 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger and some salt. Pour milk mixture over cubes and let set 5 minutes, then bake in a 275 degree oven for 45 minutes. Top with ice cream or whipped cream (or just cream might be nice, or a drizzle of maple syrup, or some fruit compote).

Yesterday during one of August's naps I roasted some mushrooms with olive oil, salt, pepper, onions and thyme. Today I warmed them up and ate them over slices of premade polenta that I broiled then topped with fresh mozzarella. I was afraid it'd be bland which was crazy; every shrunken little mushroom quarter had an intense flavor that paired really well with the bland polenta and creamy cheese. With just a little prep work the day before it was so quick, too.

So often I just end up eating an almond butter sandwich or some yogurt for lunch because I'm so consumed by August's neediness (he's 5 months so it's understandable). It makes me sad, though, when I'm not more conscious about what I'm eating, more thoughtful. It takes a little planning to make it work when you have to steal time from the baby to cook. A sandwich with an interesting flavor combo, a tube of polenta or other convenience food, some make-ahead ingredients, it can work.

Yesterday during one of August's naps I roasted some mushrooms with olive oil, salt, pepper, onions and thyme. Today I warmed them up and ate them over slices of premade polenta that I broiled then topped with fresh mozzarella. I was afraid it'd be bland which was crazy; every shrunken little mushroom quarter had an intense flavor that paired really well with the bland polenta and creamy cheese. With just a little prep work the day before it was so quick, too.

So often I just end up eating an almond butter sandwich or some yogurt for lunch because I'm so consumed by August's neediness (he's 5 months so it's understandable). It makes me sad, though, when I'm not more conscious about what I'm eating, more thoughtful. It takes a little planning to make it work when you have to steal time from the baby to cook. A sandwich with an interesting flavor combo, a tube of polenta or other convenience food, some make-ahead ingredients, it can work.

Todd's been working late and August is going through a fussy phase, so when the baby fell asleep this morning I flew into action and got started on a few dishes (he's not a reliable napper, so I could have had only about 20 minutes; this morning it was closer to 40). I baked off some par-baked rolls for dinner tonight; split a pound of ground lamb in half, using one to start on the ragu Mark Bittman wrote about in his column today and seasoning the other half with cumin, coriander, cinnamon, fennel, salt and pepper and shaping into patties for burgers tonight; washed and quartered some mushrooms then tossed them with chopped onion, salt, pepper, olive oil and a sprig of thyme and popped them in the 400 degree oven; and chopped red onion, cilantro and mango and mixed it with prepared mango chutney to top the burgers tonight. Whew! When's my nap?

It feels good, though, to have some stuff ready to go. The ragu needs to be heated and have the milk added, the mushrooms I'll layer with polenta for a quick lunch for me, and the burgers are ready to go for tonight.

These chocolate figs were part of my Zingerman's order. Chocolate-coated figs with a boozy chocolate ganache center. Not as figgy as I had hoped, but still yum.

I pulled the rest of that pork shoulder out of the freezer this week and made two dinners out of it for the weekend. I threw half of it in the slow cooker for shredded pork tacos again, then made braised pork with orange and fennel with the rest. Actually, not so different from the pork with prunes I made first with this pork shoulder, just different flavors. I think I'd like it to have a more pronounced orange flavor and would add more orange peel next time, or substitute some orange juice for the liquid.

Browned a pound of pork cubes, then removed that to a bowl and sauteed a small chopped onion in the pan. Added a couple 2-inch strips orange peel and a piece of peeled ginger, then a couple tablespoons soy sauce and rice wine vinegar, some fennel seeds, a cinnamon stick and a cup of chicken stock. Braised in 350 degree oven for 1 hour, then add a sliced fennel bulb and braised an additional 30 minutes.

I'm finding that I eat a sandwich just about every day, especially since I'm home at lunch and need something that's easy to make. I try to make them interesting, though. A little chive in my egg salad, some smoked salmon and cream cheese. Kale with balsamic vinegar, which I think did not agree with the baby's stomach. Yesterday I had an open-face sandwich, recipe from Epicurious.

I used a parbaked whole-wheat roll from Fresh Direct, baked it up and sliced it in half. Drizzled the halves with olive oil then toasted them under the broiler. Then I spread them with apple butter and Dijon mustard and layered ham and Cheddar cheese on top. Broiled again. This is so obvious, obvious, OBVIOUS, but I burned the edges of the roll and the top of the cheese because I didn't keep an eye on the sandwich. After two minutes the cheese was started to melt but not brown, but a minute later the taste sensation was cinders. After scraping off the burnt, it was a pretty good sandwich. The sweetness of the apple butter may seem like overkill with the ham, but it contributes more than just sweetness, an apple flavor, that makes the whole thing more interesting. I think without the mustard it would be too sweet.

I'm finding that I eat a sandwich just about every day, especially since I'm home at lunch and need something that's easy to make. I try to make them interesting, though. A little chive in my egg salad, some smoked salmon and cream cheese. Kale with balsamic vinegar, which I think did not agree with the baby's stomach. Yesterday I had an open-face sandwich, recipe from Epicurious.

I used a parbaked whole-wheat roll from Fresh Direct, baked it up and sliced it in half. Drizzled the halves with olive oil then toasted them under the broiler. Then I spread them with apple butter and Dijon mustard and layered ham and Cheddar cheese on top. Broiled again. This is so obvious, obvious, OBVIOUS, but I burned the edges of the roll and the top of the cheese because I didn't keep an eye on the sandwich. After two minutes the cheese was started to melt but not brown, but a minute later the taste sensation was cinders. After scraping off the burnt, it was a pretty good sandwich. The sweetness of the apple butter may seem like overkill with the ham, but it contributes more than just sweetness, an apple flavor, that makes the whole thing more interesting. I think without the mustard it would be too sweet.

I had lots of kale left over after the chorizo soup, so I found a recipe in The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen that's basically braised kale over bruschetta. Saute chopped kale in olive oil with a garlic clove for 10 minutes, until it starts to wilt. Then add some water, salt, pepper and pepper flakes and steam covered for another half an hour (the liquid was gone from mine at this point). Drizzle the kale with balsamic vinegar (which reminded me of the spinach with vinegar we used to have when I was a kid, only better), then toast some bread, drizzle it with olive oil and scrape a garlic clove on it, put the kale on top, then top that with shavings of pecorino romano.

I had lots of kale left over after the chorizo soup, so I found a recipe in The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen that's basically braised kale over bruschetta. Saute chopped kale in olive oil with a garlic clove for 10 minutes, until it starts to wilt. Then add some water, salt, pepper and pepper flakes and steam covered for another half an hour (the liquid was gone from mine at this point). Drizzle the kale with balsamic vinegar (which reminded me of the spinach with vinegar we used to have when I was a kid, only better), then toast some bread, drizzle it with olive oil and scrape a garlic clove on it, put the kale on top, then top that with shavings of pecorino romano.

After about three days the crust on the raisin and pecan bread I ordered from Zingerman's was getting pretty tough to bite through. (Though I tried valiantly, I failed to consume the whole thing. Todd wasn't much help since the loaf was loaded with raisins and he's not a big fan.) Zingerman's also sells chips made from their leftover bread, so I thought I'd take a cue from them and bake up some of my own.

It was easy: I sliced the leftover bread pretty thin, then baked the slices flat on a baking sheet in a 300 degree oven until they were crispy (maybe 15 or 20 minutes?). Their a good snack on their own or dipped in some cream cheese or almond butter. The bread's not sweet, but there are so many raisins and pecans that the overall impression is a sweet snack.

After about three days the crust on the raisin and pecan bread I ordered from Zingerman's was getting pretty tough to bite through. (Though I tried valiantly, I failed to consume the whole thing. Todd wasn't much help since the loaf was loaded with raisins and he's not a big fan.) Zingerman's also sells chips made from their leftover bread, so I thought I'd take a cue from them and bake up some of my own.

It was easy: I sliced the leftover bread pretty thin, then baked the slices flat on a baking sheet in a 300 degree oven until they were crispy (maybe 15 or 20 minutes?). Their a good snack on their own or dipped in some cream cheese or almond butter. The bread's not sweet, but there are so many raisins and pecans that the overall impression is a sweet snack.

OK. I'm reading a review of The Red Cat, where I've always wanted to go, on Words to Eat By, and I'm suddenly desperate. Are there any wonderfully interesting restaurants in NYC where I won't get dirty looks for bringing a stroller? I just had lunch at California Pizza Kitchen, and while I love their chopped salads, with the perfect distribution of ingredients and dressing (and available in half sizes!), it's certainly nothing to brag on. I hear Schiller's is very kid-friendly, and I read a review of Lupa written by a man who always takes his young daughter there, but what about babies? Anyone recommend someplace?

I know I've been writing a lot about the foods I bought and less about what I've made lately, but Zingerman's web site has one of the best features I've seen on an e-commerce site. When you're placing your order and get to the shipping charges, the site tells you how much more you can spend while paying the same shipping charges (the shipping charges always feel shocking to me when I purchase food that way, so I'm glad to pile more goodies on, get more for my money). When you click on the hyperlinked text, you get a list of what you can afford to add to your order. I added some Spanish chorizo to my order of ganache-filled figs and pecan-raisin bread.

So far I've made scrambled eggs with chorizo and a chorizo, kale and potato soup. For the soup I sauteed a diced onion with some diced chorizo, then added two cut-up red potatoes and a huge pile of kale. Poured in some water and added chicken soup base from Penzey's, a bay leaf, a couple sprigs of thyme, salt, pepper and some red pepper flakes. Boiled until the potatoes were cooked then removed the bay leaf and thyme.

With the rest of it I think I'm going to simply made skewers of chorizo served with a chimichurri-type sauce.

This recipe is a find for someone like me, who is home all day but doesn't have a lot of time to devote hands-on to stirring polenta. It's from Paula Wolfert's The Slow Mediterranean Kitchen. I always make my polenta with regular cornmeal but this recipe comes out so silky I'd like to try it with a courser meal, maybe even something marketed as polenta. It was a great bland base for the extra-spicy sausage and broccolini I served over the top, although it might have been too bland. There's a point at which Woflert adds more salt that I forgot to add.

You just combine 1 cup cornmeal with 4 cups water, a teaspoon of salt and a tablespoon of olive oil or melted butter in a casserole dish, then bake for 1 hour 20 minutes in a 350 degree oven, then stir (add more salt to taste) and bake for 10 minutes longer. Simple!

We had our first supper club since August was born so I chose something easy to make in case the babe needed my attention. Good thing, too, because Todd ended up not coming at all, which left the childcare to David, the other husband who rarely brings something to make. He was completely willing and a great babysitter even though I gather he hasn't had much experience with babies. The host's husband, Eric, also spent some time with August on his knee while I chopped. It's good for these guys.

Anyway, I made rau thom com ga, mint rice with chicken. I had wanted to make a sticky-rice dish, but this is more of a fluffy-rice dish. I wasn't going to make my own stock so I poached a whole chicken breast in a panful of water with some peppercorns, star anise and ginger (not sure the flavor translated). Then I added Penzey's chicken soup base to 2 3/4 cups of the strained poaching liquid and cooked 2 cups jasmine rice in it (put stock and rice in a pot, bring to a boil, cover and reduce to a simmer for 20 minutes, then let sit another 10). Once the rice was done I mixed in a finely diced small red onion, a cup of julienned mint leaves and the chicken, shredded. Served with nuoc cham, which is a mixture of 5 tablespoons sugar, 3 tablespoons water, 1/3 cup fish sauce, 1/2 cup lemon or lime juice, 1 minced garlic clove and 1 minced Thai chile (this is the recipe in my cookbook; on Saturday Lisa made the nuoc cham for her dish, bun, and I just used some of hers).

We also had Lisa's bun with pork (a salad of greens, basil, mint, cucumber, sprouts, noodles and peanuts), Julie's canh ca nau dua (fish and pineapple soup, which she used a fish head for), and a very bizarre coconut and banana dessert with tapioca (which I'm not a big fan of anyway) and sweet potato noodles.

Julie and Lisa both said they had fun shopping for the more unusual ingredients (the guy at the fish shop almost seemed excited when Julie asked for the fish head), but all the ingredients for my recipe were available, as Rachael Ray would say, right in the regular grocery store. August and I'll have to do more fun shopping for the next supper club, which I think we decided would be recipes with alcohol.

Todd had some of my rau thom com ga warmed up when I got home and said he liked it, even without the dipping sauce. It was better, with more flavor, than I thought it would be, but I liked it drizzled with the sauce. The fragrant jasmine rice really helped boost the flavor.

so in honor of their anniversary I used one of their top-10 commented-on recipes for our supper club last night. I took some liberties with it, though, which I'll post soon.

They're also hosting a recipe contest and have articles looking back at www.epicurious.com/features/ten.