Shrimp Risotto

Every time I make risotto, I make it slightly different - and, somehow, it always seems to come out. More than anything else, it shows just how easy and versatile risotto is. You literally can do anything and have it come out!

Tonight I used the last cup of the kilo bag of Carnaroli rice Victor brought back from London when he was there last January.  It made it all the better.

Shrimp Risotto

  • 1 small onion, chopped
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 cup arborio or other risotto rice
  • splash brandy
  • 1/2 cup white wine
  • 5 cups hot broth (chicken or vegetable)
  • 3/4 pound shrimp
  • 1 cup peas
  • 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
  • chopped parsley
  • salt and pepper, to taste

Saute onion and garlic in a bit of olive oil and butter.  Add rice and cook until translucent, stirring continually.  Add splash of brandy and cook down.  Add wine and cook until almost fully absorbed.

Begin to add broth by the ladle, stirring continually.  Continue adding ladles of broth as the last one is absorbed, until rice is just tender.

At this point, stir in cooked shrimp.  Add peas, parsley, and cheese, stirring well.

Taste for seasoning and add salt and pepper, as desired.

This really is one of the easiest dishes to prepare and it really is difficult to screw it up.

Give it a try.  Your tummy will thank you for it!

 


Lardo-Studded Roast Beef

Cut "X's" in the meat in about a dozen places and stuff with the paste.

I knew when I got up this morning that it was gonna be a beef-for-dinner day.  I could handle leftover turkey soup one more time for lunch, but dinner was gonna be beef.

I went perusing through past issues of La Cucina Italiana magazine and came upon a recipe that sounded extremely intriguing - wrapping a roast in parchment paper.

I decided to give it a try!

Like so many of the La Cucina recipes, the ingredients were few and the cooking style slightly unique.

The basic premise is to make a paste of lardo - a cured meat made from the layer of fat found directly under the pig's skin - garlic, parsley, and a couple other ingredients, rub it onto the roast, wrap the roast in parchment, tie it, and roast it.  Not really very difficult.

Lardo-Studded Roast Beef

  • 3 1/2 ounces lardo or guanciale
  • 2 tsp roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
  • 1 tsp minced garlic
  • 1/2 tsp black pepper
  • 1 tsp paprika
  • 1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
  • 2 tbsp brandy
  • 1 (3 1/2-pound) eye of round beef roast, excess fat trimmed
  • potatoes cut into 1-inch wedges
  • 4 carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • 4 celery stalks, cut into 1-inch pieces
  • olive oil

parchment paper; kitchen string

Heat oven to 400° with racks in upper and lower thirds.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine lardo, parsley, garlic, peppercorns, paprika, cinnamon, and brandy; blend to a smooth paste.

Make about 12 x-shaped incisions about 2-inches deep all over the roast; stuff each with about 1 teaspoon paste. Rub roast all over with remaining paste and season with salt.

Roll roast in a sheet of parchment paper and fold and tuck ends under. Tie up the roast at 1-inch intervals with kitchen string. Place roast in a baking dish and cook in lower third of oven for 30 minutes.

In a roasting pan, toss potatoes, carrots and celery with oil and salt to taste.

Put vegetables in upper third of oven and continue to cook roast and vegetables until an instant-read thermometer inserted into center of roast registers 130° for medium-rare, about 45 minutes more.

Remove roast from oven (leaving vegetables in oven to finish cooking while roast rests) and let rest 15 minutes. Discard string from roast, slice roast into 1/3-inch-thick slices and serve with vegetables.

Spread the remaining paste all over the roast.

I did more pressing than spreading, but it worked.  The goal is to try and cover the meat.

Wrap beef in parchment paper and tie with kitchen twine.

I buy full-sheet parchment paper by the case because I use so much of it.  One full-sized sheet worked perfectly.

The smells wafting through the house were incredible.

The vegetables were total simplicity.

Into the oven with just olive oil, salt, and pepper.

And an hour later...

Roasted and ready.

I actually over-cooked the beef for my liking, but it still was tasty.

I really should have checked it sooner, but I was relying on the clock rather than then thermometer.  Next time I'll pay closer attention.

But I have to tell ya - the cooking method really rocked!  The beef was juicy-tender with tons of flavor. And the whole house smelled great.

Just what I was looking for!


The Last Hurrah

 

It's time to move on.

I have turkey, dressing, and gravy in the freezer, along with a few pumpkin rolls. I also have some cooked, shredded turkey in there for enchiladas or something. This was definitely the bird that kept on giving - and the meal that kept on giving. No complaints, because it was one fantastic dinner and Thanksgiving the next day can be even better for the cook. But after four days - including the soup - it's time for a burger.

My new favorite this year was the corn pudding. I had gotten the recipe from my friend Susan Poston when I sent out my holiday recipe requests and had planned on making it last year but never did. I'm glad I finally did. The stuff rocks!

Corn Pudding

  • 1/2 cup butter, softened
  • 1/2 cup sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 cup (8 oz) sour cream
  • 1 package (8 1/2 oz) corn bread/muffin mix
  • 1/2 cup milk
  • 1 can (15 1/4 oz) whole kernel corn, drained
  • 1 can (14 3/4 oz) cream-style corn

In a large mixing bowl, cream butter and sugar.  Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition.

Beat in sour cream.  Gradually add corn bread/muffin mix alternately with milk.

Fold in the corn.

Pour into greased 3 qt baking dish.

Bake, uncovered, at 325 for 45-50 minutes or until set and lightly browned.

I made my own mix because I'm a contrarian, but there's plenty of mixes out there.

The rest of the dinner - other than the ham steak - was leftovers, as well. Marie's sweet potatoes, my cornbread stuffing, potato pancakes from the leftover mashed potatoes, and Victor's Cranberry Orange Sauce.

I did not clean my plate tonight. The taste-buds were willing but it just wasn't gonna happen.

Another totally successful meal and another totally fun time.

On to next year!


Bacon Wrapped Stuffed Jalapeños

Brad Hart, this is your fault! On the other hand, you're also responsible for me finally fixing the dining room chandelier.

Brad, who lives in Amsterdam, made them and then posted a picture  on his Facebook wall. Victor and I saw them this morning and immediately wanted some. Alas, we had no jalapeños in the house. I figured that as long as I was going to leave the house on a Sunday morning, I'd stop next door to the store and get a new dimmer switch.

In a matter of minutes I had the new switch installed and our festively-decorated chandelier was aglow.

Time to hit the kitchen.

I preheated the oven to 475° and opened the windows for the inevitable smoke. Sadly, if our house ever catches fire, no neighbor will call 911. They're so used to seeing billowing clouds of smoke from my cooking that they would just think I was in the kitchen.

But I digress...

Out came the cream cheese and the bacon. I sliced the jalapeños in half and scraped out the seeds. I then stuffed each half with plain cream cheese. A single slice of thick-sliced bacon was wrapped around each one and onto a rack over a sheet pan they went.

Into the hot oven they went for about 20 minutes.

Oh.My.God.

I cannot even begin to describe these. They are just totally awesome. Chewy-crispy bacon with spicy-cheesy ooey-gooey wonderfulness. I'm sitting here wondering how I have never had them before and trying to figure out how I can have them every day.

Stellar.

I need to work on my wrapping technique a bit, which is good. It means I'm going to have to make more of them. Soon.

I can't wait for more!

 


Pre-Thanksgiving Cookery

It's beginning to look a lot like Thanksgiving!

This is without doubt, my most favorite holiday. Massive quantities of food. No presents, no drama - just food.  Perfect.

We actually started the cooking a couple of days ago with an Egg Nog Cheesecake. Yeah - sounds pretty outrageous, eh?!?  I'll get a picture and the recipe posted this weekend.  It needs the final egg nog and whipped cream topping...  I mean...  I could take a picture right now but...  I'll wait until it's done...

Yesterday I made pie dough.  Today we baked pies.  I've been making the same pie dough forever and I find it infinitely easier than trying to unfold or unroll something from the frozen food section of the store.  Any time I've gotten a pre-made crust I've ended up having to do something with them, anyway.  Might as well start off with real butter and go for it.

 

Pie Dough

for a double crust:

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1/3 cup cake flour
  • 1/2 lb butter, frozen
  • pinch salt
  • 2 tbsp sugar
  • 1/4 cup ice water

Using a food processor, add flour, salt, and sugar. Pulse to mix.

Chop up frozen butter and add. Pulse until butter is incorporated and mixture looks grainy.

Slowly add ice water and pulse until mixed.

Turn out onto counter. Press and form mixture into 2 disks . Wrap in plastic and refrigerate about an hour to allow the flour to properly absorb the water and to relax the gluten.

Roll out crust and place in pie plate. Crimp edges and fill.

 

The Pumpkin Pies were our basic add-a-bit-of-maple-syrup recipe.  It really adds a nice touch.

Pumpkin Pie

  • 3/4 cup granulated sugar
  • 1/4 cup maple syrup
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt
  • 2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
  • 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
  • 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
  • 2 large eggs
  • 2 cups - or 1 can (15 oz.) pumpkin
  • 1 can (12 fl. oz.) evaporated milk
  • 1 unbaked 10″ pie shell
  • Whipped cream

Preheat oven to 425°. Beat eggs, sugar, maple syrup, and spices in large bowl. Add pumpkin amd mix well. Gradually stir in evaporated milk.

Pour into pie shell. Bake at 425° F. for 15 minutes. Reduce temperature to 350° F.; bake for 40 to 50 minutes or until knife inserted near center comes out clean. Top with whipped cream before serving.

And then the nut and cranberry pie...

Four Nut Cranberry Pie

  • 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
  • 1/2 cup chopped pecans
  • 1/2 cup chopped almonds
  • 1/2 cup pistachios
  • 3/4 cup packed dark brown sugar
  • 1/2 cup Lyle's syrup - or light corn syrup
  • 3/4 stick butter
  • 3 large eggs
  • 2 tbsp molasses
  • 1 tsp vanilla
  • pinch salt
  • 1 1/2 cups cranberries

Preheat oven to 400°F. Roll out pie crust and place in deep-dish pie plate. Gently press into place. Fold overhang under crust and crimp edges. Freeze until firm, about 15 minutes.

Line pie crust with foil and fill with beans or pie weights. Bake until crust is set, about 15 minutes. Remove foil and beans and continue baking until crust just begins to color, about 10 minutes. Cool.

Meanwhile, toast nuts until just golden, about 10 minutes. Cool.

Mix brown sugar, light corn syrup, butter, eggs, molasses, vanilla and salt. Stir in toasted nuts and cranberries. Pour filing into prepared crust. Bake until center of filling is set, about 45 minutes.

Cool and serve with whipped cream, if desired.

Crostatas are pies that you make on a cookie sheet instead of a pie plate.  They're super-easy because they're free-form. And no matter how they look - it's how they're supposed to look.  I've made variations on a crostata for years.  You can go crazy with it adding nuts, raisins, and such or keep it simple as I did, today.  I did use a splash of Amaro Massagli a liquore from Lucca we brought back from vacation.

Pear Crostata

  • 4 pears, peeled, cored and cubed
  • splash liquore of choice
  • ½ cup packed brown sugar
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • Pinch of nutmeg
  • 2 oz butter, melted
  • 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour

Preheat oven to 400°.

Mix all ingredients together in a bowl.

Roll dough out to about a 13" circle and place on a parchment-lined sheet pan. Pile pear mixture into center of dough and bring dough up over the filling.

Bake about 35 minutes or until bubbly and browned.

The Pumpkin Cake is a take on the cake I made last week - without the cranberries.  I split the layers and filled them with leftover pumpkin mousse I made for Leah's baby shower.  The Pumpkin Mousse was really just pumpkin, maple syrup, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, and ginger folded into whipped cream.  Really basic but also really yummy.

I know this holiday intimidates the hell out of some people, but I just can't think of a way to have more fun!

Happy Thanksgiving!

 

 


Butternut Squash Risotto

About 3 this afternoon, Victor asked me if I had any plans for the butternut squash that was in the 'fridge. Now, papa didn't raise no fool. It matters not if I had plans for it - if he's asking, that means he's thinking about cooking. I had no plans for it.

It was definitely the correct answer, because I got to sit down to a fabulous Butternut Squash Risotto!

We had a bit of roasted butternut squash left over from the other night - that Victor roasted with maple syrup - and that was mashed into the risotto while he roasted more - with maple syrup - that went into the risotto - with more for the top.

Yumlicious.

It was properly cheesy with the rice cooked to perfection.  The butternut squash was rich and flavorful and added a second layer of creamy goodness.

Did I mention that it rocked?!?

Butternut Squash Risotto

  • 1 small butternut squash, peeled and cubed
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1 cup risotto rice (arborio, carnaroli, vialone nano)
  • 1 cup shredded parmesan cheese
  • 5 cups hot chicken broth
  • salt and pepper

Coat cubed squash with maple syrup and sprinkle with salt and pepper.  Place on sheet-pan in 425° oven for about 25 minutes.  Set aside.

Saute garlic in a bit of olive oil and butter in a risotto-style pan.  Add 1 cup rice and continue sauteing until rice is slightly translucent.

Add 1 cup broth and stir until most of broth is absorbed.  Continue stirring and adding broth until about 3/4 has been added.

Add roasted butternut squash, mashing some with spoon as you stir and holding some back for the top.

Continue adding broth until rice is tender.

Stir in parmesan cheese and taste for seasoning, adding more salt and pepper, if necessary.

Top with remaining squash and slivers of cheese.

Yumlicious.


Steaks and Parmesan

In a magazine once upon a time, I saw a picture of a steak atop a bed of barely-wilted spinach and topped with parmesan cheese that had been melted under a salamander. I don't remember the restaurant, I don't remember the magazine, but I do (kinda) remember the concept. I think it was just a  basic steak that was topped with parmesan cheese and finished under a broiler. If it was more than that, well... such is life. This is pretty much what I remembered - and it worked quite well.

I had a steak ready for dinner and the idea popped right into the ol' noggin just as I was getting ready to cook it.  It's not unusual for me to change course right in the middle of cooking something. I just get an idea and go for it. I'm lucky that Victor is an enthusiastic - and non-fussy - eater.

The next idea was to use up the odd-and-ends of the french fries and onion rings that were in the freezer. Two kinds of fries and onion rings. They were topped with a bit of parmesan, as well.  What the heck.  It was there.

It actually was good.  A bit of the unexpected. The cheese was nice and salty so I didn't need to add any more - just a hefty dose of black pepper. And I used frozen spinach because that's what I had, but I can see how it would be good on a bed of barely-wilted fresh spinach.  Or arugula.

This is another one of those ideas where I can see a lot of possibilities...

::burp::

 


Meatloaf, Mashed Potatoes, and Peas

Victor's favorite meal.  Gotta love a man with simple tastes.

Meatloaf is another of those meals where I don't have a recipe. It's meatloaf. But while I make a pretty standard loaf most of the time, I do like to mix it up now and again. Like tonight.

Tonight I took a couple slices of bacon, a small onion, 2 cloves of garlic, 1 carrot, a handful of mushrooms, some parsley, and a stalk of celery and put them all into the food processor - along the lines of duxelles.  When it was all finely chopped, I sauteed it until the bacon was cooked and the whole shebang was cooked through. I added a bit of salt and pepper because I always add a bit of salt and pepper.

When it all had cooled, I added it, a cup of cooked oatmeal, and 2 eggs to the ground beef, shaped it into a loaf, and baked it off for an hour at 375°.

I have to say it came out pretty good.  Victor seemed to enjoy it, as well.  Lots of monosyllabic sounds coming from him as he ate!

There's plenty left for meatloaf sandwiches tomorrow, too.


Chicken Soup and Ciabatta

Tonight's dinner was brought to you by a magazine ad for an Italian Soup.  I looked at it and realized I had a chicken, a package of tortellini, and a better grasp of Italian cooking than the folks who came up with the ad.

I follow guidelines for certain soups, as when I make Mulligatawny, but really...  soup is throwing stuff in a pot.  It ain't brain surgery and it ain't difficult.

Canned and packaged soups rely on chemicals and flavor-enhancers for taste.  Unfortunately, a lot of people only relate to the trickery that food manufacturers use in their products and feel underwhelmed when they make things at home - not understanding that real food without additives tastes different - and better.  It becomes a retraining of the taste buds to learn how good individual foods taste and how well different foods blend together.

That being said, soup is still throwing stuff into a pot.  As much or as little as you like.

Bread - and baking - takes a bit more science.

I've actually never made a ciabatta bread before and was glad my first attempt was from a trusted source. I used a recipe from The Italian Baker by Carol Field. The dough is quite unlike most bread doughs and she stresses several times not to succumb and add more flour than called for.  It was good advice that I'm sure I would not have followed from other cook books.  But I've been baking breads from her book for years and know when to pay attention.

The dough is quite wet and sticky so it does not translate to making by hand.  Use a mixer.  And really resist adding more flour.  Really.

The biga needs to set out for 12 hours, so start the day before you want the bread.

Ciabatta Bread

for biga:

  • 1/8 tsp active dry yeast
  • 1 cup water at room temp
  • 1 1/4 cup all purpose flour

Dissolve yeast in water, add the flour and form a sticky dough. Leave it covered at room temperature for 16 to 24 hours.

for the final dough:

  • 3 tbsp warm milk
  • 1 tsp active dry yeast
  • 2/3 cup water
  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 cup biga
  • 2 cups all-purpose flour
  • 1/2 tbsp salt

Using a mixer, stir the yeast in the milk and let it stand for a couple of minutes in the bowl. Add the water, oil, the biga, and mix to incorporate, dissolving the biga in the liquid. Add the flour and salt, and mix at low speed for a couple of minutes. Change to the dough hook and knead 2 minutes at low speed, and 2 minutes at medium speed. Finish kneading by hand on a well-floured surface, but adding as little extra flour as possible.

Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover, and leave at room temperature for about 1 hour and 15 minutes. Divide the dough, which will be very soft and bubbly, in two equal pieces. Place each half on a well floured piece of parchment paper, and shape each as a cylinder, keeping the seam side down. Stretch it gently to give the ciabatta overall shape (a rectangle of 10 x 4 inches), and use the tip of your fingers to make deep dimples all over the dough. Cover with a damp towel and let them rise for about 1 1/2  hours - not quite doubled in size.

Preheat oven to 425° with a baking stone. Right before placing the dough in, dust the stone with cornmeal. Gently roll the breads from the parchment onto the stone. Bake until the breads are golden brown, about 25 minutes, spraying them with water a few times during the first 10 minutes. Cool on racks.

I made chicken salad sandwiches with one of the loaves.  You can get quite a few meals with a chicken and a bit of flour...

 


Sunday Breakfast

Breakfast is one of the best meals in the world.  Sunday breakfast is one of the best meals in the world times two.

Professionally, I've cooked or otherwise worked more breakfasts than most people in the world.  I cooked eggs to order on a 6' grill on an aircraft carrier - maybe 75 eggs at a time - in the Gulf of Tonkin. (Happy Veteran's Day to me.)  Sunday Brunch at the Riviera Dinner House where I closed the bar as bartender at 2am and then was back in at 7am to cook.  Sweet youth.

Flipping eggs at The Old Post Office in Carnelian Bay.  The tiniest kitchen in the world and busybusybusy.  Sunday Brunch at the Hyatt Lake Tahoe or cooking omelettes to order in the dining room at the Old Hyatt House in Burlingame.  And then the spectacular Sunday Brunch at the Hyatt Regency Cambridge.

I worked in a lot of hotels and they all had their Sunday Brunches, but Hyatt really did go the extravagant route back in the day - and Cambridge took it even further.  Presentation was always over the top. It was great  fun. A lot of work, but great fun.

And we won't even bother with the tens of thousands of hospital breakfasts over the course of 14 years...

One of my most favorite outings for Brunch was with a little old lady I knew in San Francisco in my youth. Her name was Alice Dean LaCroix. She was a customer at Pirro's when I worked there and for years called her my "sensuous grandmother." She was a little roly-poly white woman originally from Tarrytown, New York who drove a 1957 Volkswagen bug and wrote black poetry.  She was also a graphoanalyst who was often called to be an expert witness  in criminal cases. Interesting doesn't even begin to describe her.   Breakfast was one of her favorite meals and one year for her birthday I gave her a year of breakfasts with me.  The first one was the Champagne Brunch at the Garden Court of the Palace Hotel.  The Garden Court is still one of the most spectacular public spaces in San Francisco, although brunch has gone from a then-outrageous $25.00 per person to $75.00 today.

But the breakfasts I cherish the most are the ones my father cooked.  Fried ham and french bread toast will always be a favorite of mine, but it is his fried eggs in bacon grease that will go down in gastronomic history.  He would fry eggs in so much bacon grease they were almost deep-fried.  They would get crispy around the edges but still have runny yolks.  The man was a genius.  I couldn't fry an egg like that if my life depended upon it.  Damn, they were good.

I planned on having a nice breakfast this morning and Victor started everything - bacon in the oven, pancake batter with cranberries and pecans -  but when I suggested a fried egg on top of the pancakes Victor let me finish.  A perfect team effort. And a perfect morning to travel down Memory Lane.

 


Chicken and Chevre

Tonight's dinner concept came about because I wanted chicken and cheese for dinner.

All day I toyed with different ideas - stuffing breasts with sausage and cheese, wrapping them in filo dough...  There were ideas involving bacon... I even considered a chicken cheese-steak.  I finally decided on wrapping the breasts in puff pastry after topping them with chevre.  It was a good choice.  And simple.  Sometimes the most simple really is the best.

I cooked the chicken on top of the stove until it was about 90% done and let cool.  I cut a puff pastry sheet in half and rolled it out a bit.  I placed a hefty 1 ounce of herb chevre in the middle of each piece of dough, placed the chicken on top, and then folded everything together.  It then went into a 425° oven for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, I made a simple mushroom sauce with fresh mushrooms and a bit of beef broth and heavy cream.  Cooked arugula and rice finished off the plate.  There were lots of contrasts in flavors and textures and not a lot of need for more herbs and spices because of the chevre and the sauce.  Fun food.

 


Pasta Bake

I just love coming home from work and finding Victor in the kitchen!  Since I had to work late, Victor said he would take care of dinner - and after 17 years and 352 days, I still marvel at what a great cook he is. This was a throw-together, clean-out-the-'fridge dish that had me going back for more.

It was pasta and meat sauce with roasted butternut squash and fresh mozzarella.  And under all that were two boneless pork chops that were fall-apart tender.

It rocked.

No big recipe secret.  It was like a standard baked ziti with chunks of fresh mozzarella and roasted squash added for fun.  I almost had it for dinner again, tonight, but decided it would make a couple of great lunches, instead.

We both pretty much work under the same premise - if you put things together that you like, it's bound to come out good.

And it did.