Category: Food & Wine

Has My Blog Fallen?

I’ve decided to take the plunge and join “Is My Blog Burning?” - the monthly food blogging event started by Alberto of Il Forno. The idea is simple: On a specified day, bloggers around the world post a recipe - all with the same theme. A host blog (this month it’s Kitchen Chick) compiles and posts links to everyone’s blog entry.

It’s been a huge success, with people around the world with different backgrounds sharing culinary ideas for the same ingredient. It has also stretched people’s cooking repertoire, encouraging them to try new things in the kitchen.

What’s the theme this month? Soufflés!

I’m already dreaming of a lavendar soufflé that uses the last buds from the fragrant plants in my garden. Or perhaps I’ll try one of make-ahead souffles from Cook’s Illustrated. I mean, what could be better than a souffle that goes directly from your freezer to your oven? It sounds like a great way to impress guests without having to spend any time in the kitchen while you are entertaining. Mmmm - the possibilities!

Check back at the end of the month to see the results of our experimenting.

When Life Gives You Lemons…

Fall has arrived, and although Nick and I are enjoying the delicious end-of-summer stone fruits and the crisp sweet-tart apples, I am increasingly looking forward to the winter’s bounty of citrus fruits.

Ruby grapefruits, oranges, and clementines seem right at home next to a slice of Cathy’s homemade Christmas cake and a steaming mug of clove-infused apple cider. It’s when I think of the lemon, though, that I can’t help but be saddened that the taste of summer is at its peak in winter.

After successfully preserving 60+ pounds of plums last year, I wondered about the possibility of capturing the essence of the lemon at its peak for enjoyment later.

That’s when it dawned on me – limoncello, of course! Sicily’s signature liquor (and a favorite at our house) couldn’t be any harder to make than the spiced plum rum we made last year. And oh how good it would taste, straight from the freezer on a hot evening in August.

A search of some of my favorite culinary blogs revealed the following recipe on eGullet.com, given by forum host Katie Loeb. I’m going to give it a try this weekend. You’ll have to check back in a month to see how it turned out!

Limoncello

Time: 30 minutes, plus at least 3 weeks infusing time
Yield: 9 1/4 cups, about 75 shots

12 lemons
1 lime
2 (750-ml) bottles 100-proof vodka, divided
2 cups water
2 cups sugar

1. Remove the peel from the lemons and lime with a sharp peeler or fine grater, carefully avoiding the bitter white pith. If any pith remains on the back of a strip of peel, scrape it off.
2. Put the peels in a jar or bottle, add 1 bottle vodka, and seal tightly. Leave the bottle to steep until the peels lose their color, at least 2 weeks.
3. Put the water and sugar in a saucepan and boil until it turns clear. Let the syrup cool.
4. Strain the vodka through a coffee filter or cheesecloth into a large bottle or jar and press down to remove all the vodka and oils that you can from the peels. Mix it with the remaining bottle of vodka and the syrup. Put the liqueur in bottles, seal tightly and let the components marry for at least 1 week before using. For drinking straight, store the limoncello in the freezer.

Tips gleaned from eGullet.com posters:

• Using a microplane to remove the peel will speed up the initial steeping process. You expose more surface area with the little shreds of peel than you do with strips of peel removed with a vegetable peeler or paring knife.
• Use a vodka whose flavor and smoothness you like before it becomes limoncello.
• Many other recipes call for grain alcohol instead of vodka. It is not recommended, however, because it will yield a harsher end result than high proof vodka. Even grain alcohol that’s diluted with water is harsher than better filtered vodka.
• You can also make similar liqueurs using other citrus fruits. “Lime-cello” is wonderfully flavorful and would be terrific in cocktails and cooking. (Substitute the peel of 15 limes for the lemon peel. Taste the liqueur for the degree of sweetness you want as you add the syrup.) The orange version would be an appealing alternative to triple sec.

Cooking & Love

“Approach cooking and love with reckless abondon.”
- The Dalai Lama

Saag Paneer

It’s a very good thing that my love for eating is equally matched by my love for cooking. A couple weeks ago, Nick and I tried a delicious Indian recipe, created by my co-worker. If you have not yet been initiated into the world of Saag Paneer, you’re in for a treat. It’s nothing pretty to look at - a sloppy green mess punctuated by creamy white blobs - but one bite and you’ll think you’ve died and gone to Indian food heaven.

Saag Paneer
Recipe by David Hiller

Serves 8

Ingredients

1 ½ lbs frozen spinach (thawed and drained)
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
4 teaspoons cumin seeds
6 bay leaves
1 cup roma tomato, chopped
1 cup yellow onion, chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, minced
2 cloves garlic, ground
4 inch fresh ginger, grated
4 tablespoons cilantro, chopped
4 tablespoons cumin
2 tablespoons garam masala
1 tablespoons tumeric
½ teaspoon cayaene pepper
1 tablespoon salt
½ cup chickpea flour
2 cups warm water
2 lbs paneer, in ½ inch cubes

Preparation

1. Defrost the spinach and set it aside.
2. In a large saucepan, heat the oil cumin seeds and bay leaves until fragrant.
3. In the same saucepan, add the tomato, onion, jalapeno, garlic, ginger, corriander leaves, cumin, garam masala, tumeric and cayaene and salt. Saute on medium heat until the onion is clear.
4. Stir in the defrosted spinach. Bring the mixture back up to tempurature.
5. Combine the chickpea flour and water in jar or other sealable container. Shake the mixture vigorously. When the flour/water mixture is smooth, add it to your saucepan. Reduce the heat to low and simmer the mixture, uncovered, for 20 minutes – adding water as necessary to prevent it from becoming too thick.
6. Stir in the cubed paneer (cheese), cover and simmer on low for an additional 10 minutes.
7. Serve over basmati rice.

Broccoli

Today’s lesson, dear readers, is about broccoli. (I know, this is the second post in a row about food. I can’t help it!) Despite Bush Sr’s aversion to this strong-flavored brassica family member, most people find it pretty appealing: It’s available year-round, generally holds up well at home in the refrigerator, has a fun tree shape and tastes pretty good too.

Therein lies the problem, though. It tastes “pretty good” not “dynamite” or “smashing.” Nick and I eat it often enough that I wanted a way to dress it up, so we looked forward to eating it. So it could hold its own against the delicious things we paired it with.

It’s a side dish, though, not worthy of an all-out effort. I was looking for an uncooked dressing that would provide instant flavor - something potent enough to stand up the strong flavor of broccoli.

Cooks Illustrated to the rescue...The results were superb!

Broccoli with Lime-Cumin Dressing
Serves 4

The residual heat from the broccoli tames the raw red onion.

1 1/2 lbs. broccoli (about 1 bunch), rinsed
1 teaspoon grated lime zest
1 tablespoon lime juice from 1 large lime
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
hot pepper sauce to taste
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup minced red onion

1. Separate florets from stalks at points where floret stems meet stalks. Cut off woody bottoms of stalks; trim away 1/8-inch of outer peel. Cut talk in half lengthwise and then into bite-sized pieces. Separate florets into smaller sections; arrange in steam insert or basket.
2. Bring about 1-inch water to boil in deep, wide pot. Lower insert or basket with broccoli into pot so it rests above water; cover and simmer until just tender, 4 1/2 to 5 minutes. Remove broccoli.
3. Whisk first five ingredients in small bowl (lime zest through pepper sauce). Whisk in oil until dressing is smooth; stir in onion.
4. Gently toss steamed broccoli with dressing. Adjust seasonings; serve hot or at room temperature.