How I'm Going to Drink Winter's Milkshake

I'm not going to let Winter push me around. I'm not going to let Winter know how I don't like walking the dog in Winter. I'm going to laugh in Winter's face when Winter tries to smack me upside the head with it's 2-degree days. I'm going to hot yoga. I'm not going to feel shame tromping around in my puffy coat, tall boots, mittens and ski hat. I might even pull out my fleecy poncho and furry boots!  I'm going to cook really warm foods with lots of sides. Last night it was Tacos with Mexican Rice, Guacamole and Black Beans on the side. Only I forgot to pull out my little bottle of hot sauce from De Cero, which Angela, the owner, gave me when I was there last week. I used to buy bottles of hot sauce every time I ate there - it's great on scrambled eggs.

I'm going to eat soup for lunch and have afternoon tea every day.

I'm going to pass out calorie-packed granola bars to all the homeless and hungry people who are getting pushed around by Mister Ten Below (a/k/a Mister Icicle, Mister White Christmas, Mister Snow, Snow Miser), along with info about the City warming centers.

I'm going to be careful about countdowns to spring because my cross country coach always advised against counting down miles on a long run because it was a negative approach, and because life is too short to count down. Instead, I'm going to make sure that every week I have something really super fun planned, even if it's just a low-key lunch with a friend. This week I'm meeting three dear friends at Little Goat and I couldn't be more excited. I popped in last week, emerging with a gorgeous crusty loaf of country sourdough from the bread bakery and an avowal to return for lunch, and possibly one of the Bloody Marys all the hipsters were drinking. While there, I'm going to see if they'll explain their decision to brew Stumptown Coffee (which heralds from Portland, Oregon) and see if it's because they agree with me that Intelligentsia ain't all that.

I'm going to get sucked back into Downton and the Blackhawks. I'm going to play piano and make some progress on Code Academy, and see Lincoln and Argo (Zero Dark and Silver Linings were great). Before I know it, it's going to be March, and I'll unplug my twinkle lights from the tree outside (I'm totally leaving those up until March 1), and tell Winter not to let the door hit it on its way to the Southern Hemisphere.

In the meanwhile, Winter needs to make itself useful and throw down some snow. These flurries are not cutting it.

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Hearty Winter Soup: Pasta e Fagioli

Pasta e Fagioli translates to Pasta and Beans. I haven't had this soup in ages. It was a staple when I was a child but owing to the dictates of the bean-averse in my household I hadn't considered making it myself. Until today. There were two contributing factors. One, I had to do something with the Great Northern Beans I bought last spring. I was planning to make confit but it never got off the ground. Two, my sister fed me some seriously yummy white beans when I was in New York in November and I've had a hankering for white beans ever since.

I consulted three cookbooks before settling on a recipe, ultimately choosing Dean & DeLuca as my guides. I've mentioned this cookbook before. It's a fantastic resource. It has a lot of classics but will also inspire you to try something new, though I have no intention of ever trying the recipe that precedes Pasta e Fagioli: Cabbage Soup with Paprika, Kielbasa, and Raisins. Blechk.

The Dean & DeLuca Cookbook is also good for a little recipe backstory. Of Pasta e Fagioli they say,

"Pasta Fazool, with its bizarre Brooklyn pronunciation, sounds like the ultimate Italian-American dish. And it was a staple for years of Little Italy's checkered-tablecloth restaurants - until the 'upscaling' of the eighties did away with such dishes. Today, of course, a new wave of rustic Italian restaurants in the United States is showing Americans that "pasta fazool" was based on something authentic; pasta e fagioli, or a steaming, satisfying soup of beans and pasta."

What the soup reminds me of most is Ribollita, another rustic Italian soup. Ribollita, which means twice-boiled, could also be called Pane e Fagioli, since it's basically a bean soup with stale bread cooked in. I'm making it sound gross but it's really good. If you want to try that recipe, I recommend going with the recipe in Ruth Rogers and Rose Gray's River Cafe Cookbook, which is sadly out of print, but a version of their recipe is accessible here.

My Pasta e Fagioli was fan-tastic. So perfect for a cold, wintry day. But, at 5pm this evening it was noticeably less dark and dreary. We're on the up and up, people. We have many soups days ahead but fortunately those days are starting to get noticeably longer. And here's that recipe:

Pasta e Fagioli
Print recipe only here

Serves 4 as an entree

INGREDIENTS
1/4 pound (about 1 cup) dried beans - Great Northern or Cannelini
1 T olive oil
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 medium onion, chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Dried herbs: basil, thyme, rosemary, bay leaf
1 quart chicken broth
1 cup water
1 14-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes
1 rind Parmesan (just trim the rind off of whatever size chunk of Parm you have on hand)
1/2 cup dried pasta (2 ounces) - use a small shape like ditali, orzo, elbows, or small shells

METHOD
Pour olive oil into a soup pot and set over medium heat. Add the celery, onion and garlic and saute gently until softened, about 3-5 minutes.

Add broth, water, tomatoes, herbs, Parmesan rind, and beans and bring to a boil. Simmer gently until beans are cooked and soft, about 1-2 hours.

Remove cheese rind and bay leaf and taste for seasoning, adding salt and fresh ground pepper to taste.

Add dried pasta to soup. Boil gently until pasta is cooked thru.

Serve, garnished with fresh basil.

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Bonne Année, Bon Hiver, Bon Appétit!

Whew. 2012 was all about resistance training (a/k/a lifting heavy things). Only a fraction of that activity was based in my neighborhood gym - the rest was all emotional and intellectual. I skidded into the new year on fumes, having exercised every muscle past exhaustion, having stretched every sinew of faith and patience to their max. I spent the week between Christmas and New Years couched, supine, on a diet of ibuprofen to alleviate the literal pain in my neck.

Most of the pain is not even a result of personal circumstance but what I can only describe as heartache over the world as we know it (you know, life, death, illness), especially when people I know are affected, or when kids are involved.  (If you missed it, you might enjoy Maureen Dowd's Christmas column, Why, God?)

Anyway, 2013 finds me focused on rest and restoring the nutrients (pronounced nu-tree-UNTS, in remembrance of an episode in my daughter's first grade classroom too many years ago) needed to rebuild my weary soul.

Faith and patience take the most diligence to restore, but good music (such as the Avett Brothers, whose emotionally declarative hill-billy rock always strikes an uplifting or empathetic chord), the company of friends, and a good night's sleep are all restorative. I usually turn to Jazz in January. It's not the aliteration that drives the genre decision, it's carol-fatigue. I go on a Christmas carol bender each year for which Jazz is an effective hair-of-the-dog cure. Plus, jazz plays well in a room illumined by the bevy of candles I received for Christmas. But I'm not ready for jazz yet. Maybe next month.

Certain foods and beverages do more to rebuild than others. If I were only focused on my biceps/shoulders/triceps/hamstrings I'd be talking about the balance of protein and carbs. In my present case, it's about comfort foods.  I still enjoy my morning Americano, but afternoon tea has been a savior. I've been cooking classic winter foods that emphasize warmth and coziness: Spaghetti and Meatballs, Beef Bourguignon, Pesto Pasta with Haircots Verts, Soupe a l'Oignon. We've been steadily working our way thru a box of Ruby Red Texas grapefruit, a gift from my sister and one of my favorite foods, ever.

Going to the gym helps, too. A solid cardio workout followed by resistance training makes me feel invincible. Running with my insane dog is a good interval workout because of his compulsion to sprint for squirrels. Also, he regularly finds a 5 foot long stick to bring along, firmly gripping one end so that the remaining 4.5 feet travels at his land-speed and at my shin-height, meaning that I get in some plyometrics and laughs, concurrently. Except when I don't see it coming and I get hit. That hurts.

I'll leave you with some lines from the Avett Brother's Salvation Song, playing now on my winter playlist.

We came for salvation
We came for family
We came for all that's good that's how we'll walk away
We came to break the bad
We came to cheer the sad
We came to leave behind the world a better way.

Thank goodness for everyone who adds something better to the world. That alone is a great lot to be thankful for and a great distraction from the people and events that do not.

Happy New Year to you and yours.

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Cassoulet vs. Cassoulet

Winter is wrapping up but it's not going to get warm in Chicago for awhile. It's a great time of year for French Onion Soup, Spring Lamb Stew and a perfect time to make my first Cassoulet. Over the weekend Cassoulet recipes were popping up all over the place. I read Mark Bittman's recipe with great interest until I got to the part where he called for a pound of lamb shoulder. That didn't seem right. The Wall Street Journal also published a Cassoulet recipe last weekend and theirs has no lamb and appears to be a lot simpler to prepare. Plus, the WSJ got Thomas Keller's protégé, Philip Tessier, to write the recipe. Bittman, you've been outdone.

The two recipes reveal the centuries-old désaccord concerning appropriate ingredients for a Cassoulet. D'Artagnan's site quotes Andre Daguin, a famous chef of Gascony, who said, “Cassoulet is not really a recipe, it’s a way to argue among neighboring villages of Gascony.”  Bittman is hardly the lone wolf tossing lamb or something other than duck into the pot. Saveur Magazine posted a recipe that calls for ham hocks and pork shoulder.

Bittman does get credit for writing a very detailed recipe, which includes method for preparing the duck confit and stock. Also, he uses the whole duck. I like the simplicity and economy of that decision. Cassoulet has decidedly peasant origins. Not that I expect anyone's desire to eat Cassoulet has anything to do with wanting to eat like a peasant.

The drawback to the Tessier (no lamb) recipe is that it necessitates consulting another recipe for duck confit and sourcing 8 duck legs. I've seen whole ducks at Whole Foods but not packaged duck legs. When I make my Cassoulet it will be a tidy marriage of  the Tessier and Bittman recipes, using a whole duck and garlic sausage. I'll post that recipe if I'm happy with it.

It's interesting to note that sourcing ingredients for this humble bean stew, which has roots of being a communal dish, a sort of stone soup, will require nothing short of a line of credit at Whole Foods. Also, Cassoulet is not made to serve 4. You make it to serve a gathering of friends (friends who like duck and white beans). As Julia Child said, “Cassoulet, that best of bean feasts, is everyday fare for a peasant but ambrosia for a gastronome, though its ideal consumer is a 300-pound blocking back who has been splitting firewood nonstop for the last twelve hours on a subzero day in Manitoba.”

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Legumes for a Winter's Lunch

I have two favorite winter lunches, beloved for their warmth, simplicity and speed of preparation. They are Black Beans and Curried Lentils. Both are simultaneously light and hearty, have a soupy consistency and cook up in 20 minutes or less. And the leftovers are even better - just boil gently for a few minutes in a small saucepan with an extra splash of water.

To make black beans all you really need is a can of beans, a clove of garlic and some onion. If you've got some cilantro or a jalapeno rolling around your vegetable drawer you can add them but don't abandon the recipe if you've got no green. I don't care for dairy on my legumes and I rarely have cotija on hand, but a smidgen of that is quite delightful. Here's that recipe:

Black Beans
Print recipe only here

Serves 1-2 for lunch

INGREDIENTS
1-2 t canola oil
1 clove garlic, pressed
1/4 to 1/2 medium onion, finely chopped
One can black beans

OPTIONAL:
1 T cilantro, finely chopped
1 T cotija, crumbled or grated or sour cream

METHOD
Heat the canola oil over medium heat in a small-medium saucepan. Add the onion and garlic and gently saute - about 2-3 minutes.  Add the beans and stir to combine. Cook for about 5-7 minutes.  Add cilantro, and salt and pepper to taste.

Transfer to a bowl and top with cotjia or a small dollop of light sour cream if you must.

Now, the curried lentils. I'm sure this hinges on a good curry powder. I use the sweet (mild) curry powder from the Spice House.  And I add a dash of chili flakes which don't add heat, just a bit of excitement. I use chili flakes like salt and pepper - just for the slightest kick - adding them to a saute pan along with garlic or onions.  As for the legume part, I've been buying the beautiful red lentils from the bulk bins at Whole Foods. This is a great description of the differences between lentil colors/varieties, pulled from the Mayo Clinic's nutrition pages:

Brown lentils. The least expensive, they soften when cooked and can become mushy. Use for soups.
Green lentils. Also called French lentils, these have a nuttier flavor and stay firm when cooked. Green lentils are the best choice for salads.
Red lentils. The fastest cooking, these lose their shape and turn golden when cooked. They taste milder and sweeter than green lentils. Use them for purees and Indian dals.

Anyhoo, the red are a great choice for lunch since they're ready in 15-20 minutes. Here's that recipe:

Masoor Dal, or Curried Lentils
Print recipe only here

Serves 1-2 for lunch

INGREDIENTS
3 ounces red lentils (about 1/3 cup)
1/2 medium onion, thinly sliced
1/2 t salt
1-2 t canola oil
pinch of chili flakes
2 t sweet curry powder
1 1/2 cups water

METHOD
In a small or medium saucepan, heat the oil. When hot, add the chili flakes. When the pepper darkens, add the curry powder and the onion. Saute for 1-2 minutes. Add water, lentils and salt to the pan and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a simmer, and cover. Cook for 10-15 minutes. Taste for seasoning, adding more curry or salt as necessary.

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Aequalitate, Veritas et Citrus

The beginning of the citrus season is one of my favorite things about the tide between Thanksgiving and trimming the Christmas tree. Some people like to move from one holiday right to the next. I prefer when time moves more slowly. Sure, we bring out the advent calendar and some greens for our planters outside, but we've also set out in-shell nuts and big bowls of Cuties or satsumas. The dark afternoons are a lovely time for candles and jazz. In the ten days before Christmas and for the twelve days post we are pretty festive. But for now it's more about the pure change of season.

Citrus are not created equal. The individual varieties have not gotten the marketing blitz or branding that the apple enjoys. More than that though, it's the supply of sub-par citrus that surprises me. A generic clementine (and most tangerines) generally amounts to a sour mouthful of pulp waiting to sit stagnant in your gut and make you bloated. To be fair, even a perfect Cutie clementine will act similarly but will first skip merrily down your throat and make you forget all your troubles for at least five minutes post-mastication. Even the lowly lemon can disappoint, especially when you were counting on one to be juicy but the whole weight of it was in the skin.

Some citrus truths:

1. A good satsuma is hard to come by in Chicago. I used to get great ones when we lived in the Pacific Northwest. Not so much anymore. Whole Foods has them sometimes but they're not dependably excellent.
2. Cuties are the best clementine. Nothing Compares 2 Cuties.
3. Florida should stop sending forth its nasty grapefruit. They could use the the crop for bocce.
4. Ruby Red grapefruit from Texas is the only grapefruit worth eating. Last year the best foodie gift of Christmas (or perhaps tied with the case of Dave's Albacore Tuna) was a generous box of deep red Rubies from Bell's Farm. They were just perfect.
5. What's the best way to pick citrus? Weight and smell. Generally, it's heft you're looking for. A higher water weight generally means a more succulent piece of fruit. Get comfortable smelling your produce. If it smells delicious it's not going to disappoint. If it smells bland move on.


Finally, don't let another winter pass you by without trying something new. Not sure what to do with a Blood orange or a Meyer lemon? Start simply: Squeeze blood oranges and serve the juice or make a cocktail. Make a Meyer lemon curd and serve alongside a simple cake. It's citrus season! Enjoy it.

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On Steve Jobs and Potato and Maui Onion Soup

I've been thinking about making this soup since last week when Steve Jobs died. The link? Kona Village Resort, where my husband and I honeymooned (sixteen years ago this week!) and spent several subsequent family vacations. Jobs was a frequent visitor there and we saw him once or twice.

There were strict but unstated rules about technology at Kona Village: no phones, devices or laptops allowed on the beach (or really in the public areas). There were no telephones or televisions in the hales (thatch roofed bungalows). Being at KVR meant unplugging. Relaxing. But no one ever bothered Steve, who I recall on one particular morning, plunking away on his laptop on the lanai, as other guests mingled between tables and the outdoor breakfast buffet.

The food there was good. Entrees were not usually anything to write home about but the fresh fruit, local veggies and fish were always wonderful. Two things were my favorite on the menu: the French Toast, which I ate with ying-yang puddles of maple and coconut syrup, and the Cream of Potato and Maui Onion soup. Both contained enough dairy fat to sink an outrigger canoe.

KVR made other food introductions for me. Thanks to the generosity of my west coast family for whom a trip to Hawaiʻi is just a hop, skip and a jump, I almost always have a bottle of coconut syrup and a jar of Volcano Island White Honey in my pantry.

Kona Village suffered substantial damages as a result of the March 2011 tsunami and has been closed since. I do hope they reopen. Where else can you wake to the delicate but relentless chirping of a thousand birds? Where else can you watch a donkey picking its way over a hardened mass of black lava? Where else is the air is scented by plumeria? Next door at the Four Seasons Hualalai? Death first!

Well, soup first, anyway. Now is a good time of year to pick up a sweet onion. I got a fairly generic one at Trader Joes. Other varieties of sweet onions include Vidalia, from Georgia, and Walla Walla, from Washington State. Just pick up a big one. I use a scale for this soup to make sure the proportions are right, though I did include rough estimates so you can make the soup without a scale.

Potato and Maui Onion Soup
Print recipe only here

INGREDIENTS
2 T olive oil (or 1 T oil and 1 T unsalted butter)
1 large sweet onion - Maui, Vidalia - trimmed and chopped (250 g)
4 medium-large Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and chopped (500 g)
32 ounces Imagine Organic chicken broth
1/2 cup water
Salt and fresh ground white pepper (if you have it, otherwise use black)

METHOD
Set a medium-large soup pan over a medium flame and add the olive oil (or combination with butter). Add the onion and turn down the flame a bit. Sauté for 4-5 minutes until softened. Add the potatoes and stir to combine. Sauté for 2 minutes. Add the broth and water and bring to a low boil. Turn down flame and simmer, uncovered, for about 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked through. Turn off heat and allow to cool. If you are in a rush, transfer it to a bowl and set that bowl in a bigger bowl filled with ice. Stir until the soup is at room temperature.

Blend the soup, working in batches, and strain through your finest mesh strainer into a clean soup pot. Reheat and taste for seasoning. If it's too think you can add more stock or dairy (nonfat, lowfat, heavy cream - your choice, but please no that the soup is plenty cream without the addition of any dairy). But if you deem it too thick you can add up to a cup of liquid.

Serve and enjoy.

If you want to fancy it up a bit, you could add one of three accoutrements:

1. Sautéed leek - Trim white park of leek into 3 inch pieces, then cut in half so you have two half circles. Separate the leaves a bit, then slice very thin strips. Sauté gently in a bit of olive oil until just softened, then spoon them into a light, floating puddle in the center of the soup.

2. Chives - finely chopped and scattered in the center of the bowl.

3. Old school dollop of sour cream or creme fraiche, in the center.

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Beef Bourguignon as Antidote to Winter

February did not pace itself in Chicago. Groundhog = Woodchuck Day* was overshadowed by an epic storm that afforded us two glorious snow days and enough leaden snow mimic a winter in Tahoe. Not that I've spent a winter in Tahoe.  But that's ancient history. It hit 50 the other day and is poised for a repeat performance later this week. We've even seen squirrels. While we rather enjoyed tonight's Beef Bourguignon I clearly should have made it last week.

I adapted the recipe from the old but good New Basics Cookbook. Rick Bayless taught me to use a water-Worcestershire combo if you find yourself without beef broth. This works well here. I usually keep a solid beef base in my fridge but I'm out and can't remember where I sourced it.

Other sourcing notes: Salt pork isn't available everywhere, but many traditional grocers will carry it. In Chicago I've picked up a Hormel one at Dominick's and Treasure Island. I only use an ounce at a time, so I wrap the rest and freeze it. It sautés up just fine right out of the freezer. And with it nice and solid it's easy to remove the fat. That said, I try to select the hunk with the least amount of fat, since it just goes in the trash.

Everything else can be picked up at Trader Joe's. I'm a broken record on this point, but it's wonderful to be able to pick out meat and have the nutrition data right there for you to see. The one I got for us tonight had 2 ounces of saturated fat per four ounces.

* It's true: a groundhog is the same thing as a woodchuck. I always thought groundhogs were feral guinea pigs and woodchucks were beavers or gophers. The plurality of burrowing rodents endemic to North America might explain my inability to remember that Caddyshack is called Caddyshack and not Groundhog Day.

Beef Bourguingnon
Print recipe only here

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS
1 ounce salt pork, trimmed of fat and cut into small dice
1 1/2 pounds beef chuck or stew meat, trimmed of fat and cut into 2-inch cubes
1 onion, chopped
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
1 sprig rosemary, leaves only, finely chopped
1 1/2 T flour
2 cups Burgundy wine
1 cup water
1 T Worcestershire sauce**
1/4 cup crushed tomatoes (I use Muir Glen Fire Roasted)
2 carrots, peeled and chopped diagonally into chunks
6-8 button mushrooms (four ounces), quartered - or chanterelles
2 T parsley, finely chopped

Also: 8 ounces pappardelle pasta (Trader Joe's sells a nice one)

** If you have it, use 1 cup beef broth instead of water and Worcestershire

METHOD
Preheat oven to 350

In a 3-quart Dutch oven set over a medium flame, sauté the pork until browned and slightly crisp. Remove and reserve.

Using same pot, adding a tablespoon of canola oil since not much fat was rendered from the pork. Add the beef - a few pieces at a time - and brown all over. Remove and reserve until all the beef is browned.

Turn up flame to medium-high, add the onions and stir to combine. Add the flour, salt and pepper and cook, stirring frequently, for about five minutes.

Add wine, water, Worcestershire, reserved pork, tomatoes, and rosemary and bring to a boil. Cover and transfer to the oven ad cook for about 2 1/2 hours.

Meanwhile, prep the carrots and mushrooms.

In a small sauté pan, heat 1 T olive oil. Add 1 clove of garlic and a pinch of chili flakes. When the garlic begins smelling wonderfully fragrant, add the quartered mushrooms and sauté until a bit soft, about 3-4 minutes. Remove from pan and reserve.

Add another T of olive oil (or a pat of butter) and about 1/4 cup of water to the pan. Add the chopped carrots cover loosely and steam-sauté for about 3-4 minutes. Remove lid and reserve.

After about 2 hours, 15 minutes of cooking time, set a large pot of heavily salted water to boil.

Remove the stew from the oven and stir in the mushrooms, carrots and parsley. Taste for seasoning and correct as needed. Turn the oven down to 200. Cover the stew and return it to the oven.

Cook the pappardelle until al dente. Drain, then toss with 1 T olive oil and a pinch of the chopped parsley.

Portion the pasta into bowls and top with stew. Serve and enjoy.

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Top Notch Ramen in Five Easy Steps

I based this recipe on one from my Wagamama Cookbook. Those Brits do good ramen. You simply must pick up these ingredients first thing tomorrow. Soup lovers will love you for it.

The five steps all take place in the grocery store. The title is a little disingenuous. The ingredients should not be too hard to procure. Most grocery stores have a decent array of Asian sauces. Here's what you need:

1. Produce: fresh ginger, garlic, green onions, a red onion, bean sprouts, one lime, cilantro. If you see them and you're brave, a fresh red chili. Otherwise dried chili flakes are just fine.

2. Chicken broth (I only use Imagine Organic - it's so perfectly flavored, just needs a bit of reduction time). Pick up two 32-ounce boxes.

3. Ramen noodles. You can, of course, use a thin spaghetti, but I really don't like to. My new favorite noodle is from KA-ME - the Chinese egg noodle. They cook up very nicely and are the right length and texture. KA-ME's curly Japanese noodles look great, too, tho I have not yet tried them.

4. Chicken, though you could substitute steak, shrimp, pork or tofu. One breast per person.

5. Bottled stuff: sweet chili sauce (Mae Ploy is my first choice - I buy it in Chicago at Dominick's). Thai Kitchen also makes a nice one, tho it costs more for a much smaller bottle), malt vinegar (tho cider vinegar or rice wine vinegar make excellent substitutes), and fish sauce (Thai Kitchen is what I buy).

Back at home, all you need is about a half and hour to put it all together.

Chicken Chili Ramen
Print recipe only here

Serves 2, generously

INGREDIENTS
4-6 ounces ramen noodles
2 chicken breasts, boneless and skinless

6 cups chicken broth
1-inch piece ginger, peeled and sliced
2 cloves garlic, sliced
Pinch chili flakes (or a seeded and sliced fresh red chili)
2 T sweet chili sauce (I like Mae Ploy)
2 T fish sauce
2 t malt vinegar (cider or rice wine vinegar are fine substitutes)
1 t sugar

3 green onions, sliced thinly on a diagonal
¼ red onion, sliced thinly
2-4 T cilantro, chopped
1 cup bean sprouts
½ lime, quartered


Preheat grill or oven. Rinse and dry chicken. Rub with a little oil, salt and pepper and cook. When done, bush with a bit of bottled chili sauce (or teriyaki) and set aside to cool before slicing.

Bring a pot of water to boil for the ramen.

To a separate pot, add chicken broth, garlic, ginger and chili flakes and bring to a boil. Simmer on lowest setting for about 20 minutes.

In a small bowl, combine sugar, malt vinegar and sweet chili sauce.

Cook ramen according to instructions.

Prep veggies and reserve.

Slice chicken and reserve.

Add chili sauce/vinegar mixture to the chicken broth and stir in. Allow to simmer 1-2 more minutes. Taste for seasoning, adding salt and pepper as desired.

Divide noodles between two bowls. Top with broth, then chicken, then the cilantro, piece of lime, sprouts and onion. Serve and enjoy.

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RealTime Lunch: Mexican Pork Tenderloin Stew

In Mexican Everyday, Rick introduces this recipe (he calls it Pork Tenderloin a la Mexicana) with the advice, "Make it a staple in your kitchen." Not to be one to disregard a trusted authority, I immediately procured a pork tenderloin and a couple of poblano peppers and made my new favorite stew. Trouble is, we didn't love it so much when we had it the other night.

Soups and stewy things always tend to be better the next day when flavors have had more time, and a second round of cooking, to emerge. I'm enjoying my leftovers immensely. And so it comes to be that, today, on a gorgeous and snowy Chicago winter day, Mexican Pork Stew is being offered on Pinch.

It's hearty and lean and not unlike a fancy chili. The cooking time really is short. I'm reluctant to provide timing on recipes because people work at different comfort/skill levels and with a variety of distractions. But it took me less than 30 minutes, for sure. Next time I'll start making it at around 3 and let it sit for a few hours, then reheat at dinnertime. That would probably deliver the dish to its more flavorful 'leftover' state. Oh, and it wasn't spicy. Not even a teeny bit.

Mexican Pork Stew

Print recipe only here

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS
2 poblano peppers
1 to 1 1/2 pounds pork loin or tenderloin, trimmed of all fat and cut into 1-inch cubes
2 T canola oil
1 onion, sliced
3 garlic cloves, pressed
one 15-ounce can crushed fire-roasted tomatoes (I like Muir Glen)
3/4 cup beef broth (or 2/3 cup water plus 2 T Worcestershire sauce)
1/2 cup chopped cilantro

METHOD
Roast or broil the poblanos, turning until blackened all over (allow 5 minutes over an open flame, or 10 minutes in the broiler). When done, transfer to a bowl, cover with a plate or towel, and allow to cool.

Trim and cube the pork and dry with paper towels. Don't skip this! Sprinkle with kosher salt. Heat the oil in a large skillet and, working in batches if necessary, add the pork and brown all over, about 4 minutes. Transfer to a plate and reserve.

Using the same skillet, add the sliced onion and cook over medium heat, stirring frequently.

Meanwhile, rub the blackened skins off the chilis and pull off the stems and seed pods. Rinse and cut into strips. Add the peppers and pressed garlic to the skillet with the onions and cook for another few minutes.

Add the tomatoes, broth or water/Worcestershire to a pot (I used a 3-quart Dutch oven) and bring to a boil. Add the peppers and onions, lower the heat and simmer for about 5-10 minutes.

Add the pork and chopped cilantro to the pot and cook for about five minutes. Season to taste and serve, or cover and let rest. Reheat for 3-5 minutes before serving.

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How to End a Cooking Slump

I've been in a bit of a slump in the kitchen. A few factors got me here, mainly a lapse of creativity and a shortage of time to plan and shop. But I'm turning a new leaf. Aren't seasons wonderful? I'm slamming the door on January but full of anticipation for the longer days in the coming months.

How do you restart your kitchen fire? I hit the books. Earlier I spent some time scrolling thru some favorite cookbooks (The Wagamama Cookbook and Mexican Everyday) and picked several new recipes to try out. The foods I was looking for are all winter foods - slow cooked, often with some chili peppers. Mexican and Asian are great year-round but I love adding more heat to the winter plate. It warms you from within.

Recipes I'm going to try:

From the Wagamama Cookbook:

Chili Beef Ramen
Salmon Ramen
Yaki Soba (stir fried chicken, shrimp and soba noodles)



Courtesy of Bayless:
Slow Cooked Chicken with Tomatillos, Potatoes and Jalapenos
Guajillo Pork and Potatoes
Mexican Pork Tenderloin
Jalisco Braised Lamb


A third resource for finding recipes was a oldie from the NY Times that Kate reminded me about - The Minimalist's 101 Meals. It's a summer list, but I found ten recipes that I'd enjoy eating while Jack Frost is in town. Here they are, Pinched slightly:

1. Taco salad: Toss together Romaine lettuce, chopped tomato, chopped red onion, sliced avocado, a bit of canned corn and a half can black beans, rinsed. Dress with olive oil, fresh lime, salt, pepper and chopped cilantro leaves. Top with thinly sliced freshly sauteed corn tortillas.

2. Not takeout: Stir-fry onions with cut-up broccoli. Add cubed tofu, chicken or shrimp, or sliced beef or pork, along with a tablespoon each minced garlic and ginger. When almost done, add half cup of water, two tablespoons soy sauce and plenty of black pepper. Heat through and serve over fresh Chinese noodles.

3. Southeast Asia steak salad: Pan- or oven-grill skirt or flank steak. Slice and serve on a pile of greens with a sauce of one tablespoon each of nam pla and lime juice, black pepper, a teaspoon each of sugar and garlic, crushed red chili flakes and Thai basil.

4. Salmon (or just about anything else) teriyaki: Sear salmon steaks on both sides for a couple of minutes; remove. To the skillet, add a splash of water, sake, a little sugar and soy sauce; when mixture is thick, return steaks to pan and turn in sauce until done. Serve hot or at room temperature.

5. Cook chopped tomatillos with a little water or stock, cilantro and a little minced fresh chili; serve over grilled, broiled or sautéed chicken breasts, with corn tortillas.

6. Dredge thinly sliced chicken breasts in flour or cornmeal; cook about two minutes a side in hot olive oil. Place on bread with lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise.

7. Thai-style beef: Thinly slice one and a half pounds of flank steak, pork shoulder or boneless chicken; heat canola oil in a skillet, add meat and stir. A minute later, add a tablespoon minced garlic and some red chili flakes. Add 30 thinly sliced basil leaves, a quarter cup of water and a tablespoon or two of soy sauce or nam pla. Serve with lime juice and more chili flakes, over rice or salad.

8. Rub not-too-thick pork or lamb chops with olive oil; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Broil about three minutes a side and drizzle with good balsamic vinegar.

9. Heat a quarter-inch of olive oil in a skillet. Dredge flounder or sole fillets in flour and fry until crisp, about two minutes a side. Serve on good bread with tartar sauce.

10. Pan-grill a skirt steak for three or four minutes a side. Sprinkle with salt and pepper, slice and serve over romaine or any other green salad, drizzled with olive oil and lemon.

Happy February!

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Chicken Cacciatore Down on Sullivan Street

We had Chicken Cacciatore tonight. It was in regular rotation in my youth, much like The Stranger. Billy Joel's line from the Movin' Out/Anthony's Song really goes, "He works at Mister Cacciatore's down on Sullivan Street, across from the medical center..." The next part has the bit with the Cadillacacacacacac.

Anyway, the flavor of Chicken Cacciatore (pron. Catch-a-tory) is great, but I always hated the look of the blubbery chicken skin and bony stew. I use split breasts for this - the dish demands some bone, but they're kept in check. Remove the skin from the breast before cooking, but leave the meat on the bone to add flavor to the stewing sauce. You can easily remove the meat from the bone before plating. The resulting dish is an easy, healthy weeknight meal. Serve it atop pappardelle pasta. It rounds out the plate nicely.

Chicken Cacciatore
Print recipe only here

Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
4 chicken breasts, on ribs
1-2 T extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion, halved and sliced
3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 cup white wine
One 14-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes

Pappardelle - about 8-12 ounces

METHOD
Remove skin from chicken breasts, rinse well and pat dry. Heat olive oil in a large stockpot (I used a 4-quart Le Creuset Dutch oven) over low-medium heat. Add the onions and cook for 2-3 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic and chicken pieces, flesh side down. Brown slightly, then turn over and brown on the other side.

Season chicken with salt and pepper. Add the white wine and simmer until reduced by half. Add the tomatoes, lower the heat and cover the skillet with the lid slightly ajar.

Cook the chicken in the simmering liquid, turning, basting, and smashing up tomatoes from time to time. Cook until the chicken is very tender, about 45 minutes.

Boil a large pot of water for the pappardelle and cook.

Taste the chicken for seasoning, adding more salt or pepper as needed. You can add some freshly chopped parsley, too. I didn't, but only because I seem to always have to justify parsley at my dinner table and it didn't seem worth the trouble.

Drain and toss pasta with olive oil, then portion on plates. Separate the chicken breasts from the rib bones if you like, and plate, topping with a generous ladleful of sauce. Serve and enjoy.

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Winter Citrus: It's 80 degrees Somewhere

Citrus is one of my favorite things about winter. In addition to having no less than six different citrus fruits rolling about my kitchen (big naval oranges, Ruby Red grapefruit, Meyer lemons, clementine Cuties, and some garden-variety lemons and limes), I have a nice supply of citrusy essential oils (bergamot, neroli, sweet orange). And, yes, Virginia, that is a lemon tree in the background of the photo. And it's flowering!!

Just saying "tropical fruit" takes me away, Calgon-style, in a nanosecond. I may be sitting at my kitchen counter tucking into a Ruby Red grapefruit wearing a merino sweater, cozy corduroy and plush knee-highs, but there's sand between my toes and the sun is on my back, filtered through a canopy of palms.

I do some baking and cooking with citrus - fresh lime goes into guacamole and marinades, fresh lemon goes into salad dressings, aioli, hummus, and sauteed baby broccoli. And everyone under my roof loves lemon cake with a dollop of lemon curd on the side. Everything else goes into lunch bags or consumed in the morning, as a snack or sometimes as dessert. Lately, it's the Ruby Reds that are at their prime. A grocer once advised me on how to select a grapefruit with these words: weight. Pick the ones that are the most density for their size. Some might think he was shrewdly running up my bill. But the heaviest grapefruit is the juiciest one, and nothing beats squeezing the empty half into your bowl and drinking the fresh juice. Nothing.

For those inclined to think about it being 80 degrees and five o'clock somewhere, the fresh-squeezed grapefruit-vodka cocktail is a formidable challenger to the as-yet uncontested supremacy of the gimlet.

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A Must Have Kitchen Tool for Winter Baking

The last must-have tool I promoted was the lime/lemon squeezer. That has been positively indispensable. I use that thing almost every day. I just love the efficiency and the output.

This tool, a nutmeg grinder, won't get nearly as much use as the citrus squeezer only because nutmeg doesn't go into as many foods as lemon or lime. But it has been a welcome addition to my spice cabinet.

Any cook worth their salt will insist that you use freshly grated nutmeg instead of the bland, pre-ground grocery store alternative. And although you certainly can scrape a nutmeg across a grater manually, doing so is really cumbersome.

It bears mentioning that the grinder I bought has some design flaws - it doesn't store seeds easily. I could store them, but only one seed fits under the prongy-thing at a time. Positioning a new seed requires you to empty any stored seeds first, position a new whole seed and then return the stored seeds while trying to engage the spring loaded top. I'm won't bother to replace it, but I'd recommend getting one that's easier to refill, such as this one.

I've been happily grinding nutmeg atop lattes, into Pinched Potatoes au Gratin, blueberry scones, holiday pies and muffins. When I host my Caribbean-themed party, my grinder will come in handy for rum punch and jerk sauce.

So get a grinder, or get one for the gourmet in your life.

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5 Entree Salads for the New Year

This caught my eye today: After Holiday Gluttony, a Perfect Time for Entree Salads from the New York Times Recipes for Health column. I don't get a ton of recipes from this source - Martha's food never gets me excited - but I do like the idea she presents here. Naturally, the recipe that follows her great idea of a title is something I don't want to eat as a main course or otherwise, Curried Rice and Quinoa Salad.

It's very possible to eat light but still be totally satisfied with a entree salad just top a salad with grilled fish, chicken or steak, even a good canned tuna in a pinch. If you've grilled your protein, you want to let it rest for a minimum of five minutes after grilling/cooking, to lock in the juices - so it's not like you're going to wilt your greens. In my world, an entree salad is only really an entree is you've got some form of protein. Without protein, a big salad too closely resembles a refreshing glass of water.

1. Asian Grilled Salmon Salad (substitute steak, chicken or pork for the salmon)
2. Salad Nicoise
3. Skirt or Flank Steak Salad
4. Mixed Greens with Warm Goat Cheese and Roasted Beets
5. Chicken Salad on Greens. When I make this, I toss my greens with apple cider vinegar, olive oil, and pinches of salt, sugar and pepper. Mound the greens on a plate and top with chicken salad.

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Heathly Winter Baking: Rosemary Raisin Bread

Decidedly Provencal Rosemary Raisin Bread, underway in the Pinch kitchen as I write, is one of my favorite things to bake in the winter months. Some years I gift loaves along with a jar of good apricot jam. A slice of this bread, toasted and slathered with apricot jam really hits the spot at tea time.

I'm not sure how far this year's loaves will travel. They freeze quite well, and slice easily when frozen. Hoarding is a natural consequence of this discovery. If you want some and don't feel like making it yourself, just show up on my doorstep at tea time (4pm Central).

One caveat - only use extra virgin olive oil here. Nothing else will cut it.

Rosemary Raisin Bread
Print recipe only here

Makes 2 loaves plus a smaller one

INGREDIENTS
1 ½ cup plus 2 T warm water
1 ½ T yeast
>¼ cup plus 1 T sugar (divided)
1 ¼ cups extra virgin olive oil
3-5 sprigs rosemary (divided)
3 # flour (10 1/2 cups)
1 T salt
¼ cup sugar
6 eggs
3 yolks
8-12 ounces yellow raisins

METHOD
Combine yeast, water and 1 tablespoon sugar in a small mixing bowl or measuring cup.

In a small saucepan, heat olive oil and 1 ½ sprigs rosemary until fragrant and crispy.

Remove pan from heat and allow to cool.

Sift together flour, salt and remaining ¼ cup sugar.

Whisk together eggs and egg yolks in a mixing bowl (preferably the bowl from a stand mixer), then strain olive oil into eggs and whisk well to combine.

Add the proofed yeast to the eggs and oil and mix well.

Add the flour mixture, yellow raisins and 1/4 cup finely chopped fresh rosemary to the mixing bowl and mix using dough hook. When it comes together, turn out onto floured work surface and knead until smooth.

Place in an oiled bowl (use the same olive oil), turning it to coat the top of the dough. Cover the bowl well with plastic wrap and allow to rise until doubled.

Punch down, knead, and portion into two loaves, each weighing about 2.5 pounds. You will have a small amount leftover - this recipe yields 2 full size loaves and one much smaller one. I usually bake the extra one as a small round loaf on a flat baking sheet.

Kneed each dough ball into a smooth, oblong shape and place in a regular loaf pan (mine measure 9x5x3 on the outside) sprayed with baking release and cover with plastic. Allow to rise again until nicely rounded above the rim of the loaf pan. Don't skimp on this rise. If you do the loaves will rise too quickly in the oven and burst at the sides - bread's version of stretch-marks.

Brush the tops of the loaves with egg wash, score and bake in a preheated 350° oven for about 20-30 minutes. Loaves are done when the bottom sounds hollow when tapped. Allow to cool.

To serve, slice with a serrated knife and serve, toasted or not, with apricot jam. The bread freezes well - just wrap tightly with plastic wrap.

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Quick and Hearty Mexican Beef You Won't Want to Share

I always feel just a little bad when I won’t share with my dog. He got up from his nap only because I was reheating leftover Poblano Beef. He even followed me upstairs (he rarely does the stairs anymore) so I would take pity on him and toss him a bite. It just doesn't seem right to try poblanos on him at this point in the game.

The recipe below is (slightly) adapted from Rick Bayless' great cookbook, Mexican Everyday. It's quick, easy, healthy (if you use a nice lean beef) and incredibly flavorful. And amazingly enough, even though I wasn't planning on making it this week, I had the critical ingredients on hand: three poblano peppers and two lean sirloin steaks from Trader Joe's. The steaks were supposed to be used for Coriander Dry-Rubbed Steaks with Avocado Salsa later in the week, but the timing of my ripening avocados wasn’t going to be right.

Anyway, you simply must try the Poblano Beef sometime - if only for the possibility of leftovers for lunch. As good as it was for dinner, it was even better for lunch the next day.

Poblano Beef
Print recipe only here

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS
3 fresh poblano peppers
1 T canola oil
1# lean sirloin steak, cubed
1 medium onion, sliced
3-4 medium potatoes, cubed
4 cloves garlic, pressed
½ cup water, beer, beef broth or white wine
2 T Worcestershire sauce
1/3 cup cilantro, chopped

METHOD
First, roast the poblanos. I did this on my stovetop - just put them right on the burner over the flame and turn them with tongs. You could also broil them. You want them nice and charred - it’ll take at least 5 minutes. When they’re done, place them in a bowl, cover them with a plate or towel and reserve until cooled.

Get all your veggies prepped, the onions, garlic and potatoes. And cube the beef. Don’t forget to dry it with paper towels.

Heat the oil in a large skillet. Sprinkle the beef with salt and add to the skillet, browning it all over. Transfer the beef to a plate once browned.

Add the onions and potatoes to the skillet and cook over medium heat for about 6-8 minutes. Then add the garlic. Sauté together for another minute, then add the water/stock/beer and Worcestershire.

Reduce heat to low and cook about 7-8 minutes.

Meanwhile, rub the blackened skin off the poblanos and peel off the inside membrane and remove the seeds and tops of the peppers. Rinse to remove the remaining bits of seeds and skin, and then cut into strips, about ¼-inch wide. Add the poblano strips to the skillet and continue to cook for a few more minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Return the beef to the skillet and heat thru. Sprinkle with cilantro and add more salt if necessary. Serve and enjoy.

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Roasting on an Open Fire

This morning as Cold November Rain simultaneously fell and played on my iPhod I happily realized it won't be long until my mix of Holiday Classics takes to the home airwaves. It has been suggested to me that caroling is really only welcome between Thanksgiving and New Year's day. But it's November now. Soon Jack Frost will be nipping at my nose and I'll be cleared for caroling.

I love Christmas carols (the nose-nipping not so much). Christmas carols are the most appropriate way to express holiday cheer. Most carols, anyway. There's nothing appropriate about "Santa Baby," though love it I do.

If the market appearance of eggnog did not sufficiently herald the coming holiday season, then the availability of chestnuts at the market last week surely did. I nearly broke into yuletide song right there among the farmers.

I loved chestnuts as a kid. There was a chestnut tree on the property of the church and we used to huck the burr-encased nuts at each other after Sunday school. Good times. Back at home, my dad oven-roasted them (as far as I know he did not harvest them from the church grounds) and hooked me for life.

Scoring prior to roasting is absolutely essential. Even if they did not explode (the meat expands when roasted) they'd be impossible to peel (twice! Chestnuts have an inner and outer peel) without a starting place. I'm out of practice scoring and my knives are sorely in need of good sharpening so scoring was more difficult than I remembered. I ended up using a serrated utility knife and sawing a small X in each nut.

Roast them in a preheated oven at 350° for about 20 minutes. Allow to cool for 10 minutes or so. Peel the inner and outer layers away to reveal the brainy-looking nut and enjoy.

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