for the love of food

Sprout !

i used to sprout- many years ago - and doing it again just reminds me how much i like them. my initial motivation for sprouting was the nutritional value of them - but they are also a great visual & textural addition to salads & sandwiches and as a garnish for lots of dishes.

my favorite website is sproutpeople.org. owned by a couple who started at the farmers market in madison wisconson in 1993 and still going strong. their site is personal and very informative - offering advice & instruction. they sell lots of sprouting supplies and (mostly organic) seed & seed mixes.

easy ways to sprout. glass jars / flat trays / ‘soil free blanket’

sunflower seeds sprouted on a fabric ‘blanket’

tiny radish seeds sprouted in flat trays

*beyond the leafy sprouts - there are the nut - grain & legume sprouts.  what you may not realize is that the soaking and/or sprouting of these removes enzyme inhibitors and makes the amino acids & enzymes readily available for digestion & absorption. it transforms a dormant seed into a living seed. knowing this -why bother eating them without an easy soak or sprout. ?  it’s a huge nutritional jump.

a favorite is the ‘madison market mix’ which includes sunflower, peanut, almond & pumpkin seeds.

everything tastes ( and looks ) better with a few sprouts !

real deal Waffles

i haven’t eaten a waffle in 20 years. why waste the calories on a tasteless flour bomb ?  but….. after sampling the one served at brunch at FINO ( yeah ! i’m biased ) - i  had to indulge in a double stack of my own !

chef jason’s mom shared her recipe with FINO !  thanks june ! the belgian-style waffle batter includes yeast - and is proofed overnight. the result is an incredibly light & airy interior - rich flavor & crispy crust. it comes smothered with whipped orange butter - topped with marcona almonds & served with maple syrup. well worth every calorie !

…or skip the butter & syrup and top with a side order of yogurt-fresh fruit-pistachio & honey

of course these waffles taste great sitting on the patio at FINO - sipping a pomegranate mimosa. but if brunching at home is your thing…….we happily pass on the recipe:

Goodnight Waffles 

The night before:

Combine and let stand 10 minutes…

½ cup warm water

1 tablespoon sugar

1 packet active dry yeast 

Stir in…

2 cups warm whole milk

½ cup melted butter

1 teaspoon salt 

Beat in~~ until smooth…

2 cups flour 

Wrap bowl tightly with plastic wrap, let stand out on the counter overnight. 

~Smiling happily the next morning~

Turn on waffle iron and stir into mixture…

2 eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla

¼ teaspoon baking soda 

Cook until golden brown and delicious. 

~Enjoy~

check out full brunch menu at finoaustin.com.    see you at FINO !

LobsterFest 2011

11th Annual LobsterFest at ASTI Trattoria !     dinner july 7th 8th & 9th !

lobster fra diavolo with spaghetti - spicy lobster-tomato sauce & garlic fried breadcrumbs (my favorite) and lobster risotto with sweet summer corn - chives & lobster oil (of course this is delicious too).

ASTI offers a 3-course ‘family-style dinner for 2’ which starts with a local tomato caprese with housemade mozzarella / choice of spag or rizzo / strawberry-watermelon granita.

350 lbs. of maine lobster shipping out tonight. the lively crustaceans will be picked up at the airport tomorrow - then steamed & picked & ready for LobsterFest starting thursday july 7th and while supply lasts !

check out astiaustin.com for pricing & reservations or call  4 5 1 . 1 2 1 8         and say “lobster please” ! 

summer cherries

there are lots of ways to enjoy cherries. it is my favorite summer fruit - so when i bought this book last winter i bookmarked this recipe for pickled cherries.        have you ever had a pickled cherry?

i am a fan of this cookbook author.  skye gyngell is a chef in london.  her book formats are very personal ( she has 3 ) -recipes are ingredient focused (reminders of classic dishes- nothing cutting edge ) and food presentation is attractive.  a book i would easily cook my way thru.

anyway !  it’s a classic pickling mixture ( red wine vinegar - sugar - bay leaf - peppercorns & clove )  boiled & poured over cherries.

i’m thinking pickled cherries with……..soft fresh goat cheese…….grilled quail or pork chops …….perhaps even in a cocktail ?    for now i am happy just eating them out of the jar !

ah Vongole !

being an east coast girl - i have fond memories of vongole pie - that is - clam pizza.

and while i know most folks in the south find this unusual ( to say the least ) - i have decided after 10 years - that one should make an appearance on the ASTI pizza menu. what ? a pizza without cheese ? that’s right ! -  some will add a bit of shaved pecorino but the ( perhaps snobby ? ) rule of italian cuisine - no cheese with seafood. it throws off the flavor of seafood.

what you will find is a thin crust pizza - topped with a dozen ( shelled) clams that have been steamed in lots of garlic & white wine & olive oil - poured over the dough with some chopped tomatoes- finished with a little of the intense dried sicilian oregano. ( add red chile flakes at your discretion ).

just say “vongole pie please”  !

real deal English Muffin

this recipe is from my days of line cooking - working the “way-to-early-after-saturday-night”  sunday brunch. the pastry chef would make 4 or 5 sweet breads for the basket and english muffins for the benedict. i collected this recipe (yikes !) 20 years ago and it was a real treat to come across it and make it again.

yeasty & chewy with the required “nooks and crannies” !  these are made in a coffee can “loaf” and sliced - which i prefer to the individual skillet muffins.

recipe: yield 2-coffee cans

sift:

3 3/4 c. flour

1 1/4 tsp. salt

mix & cool:

1 1/4 c. + 2 T. scalded milk

1/4 c. cornmeal

proof til foamy:

1 T. + 1 1/2 tsp. yeast

1 T. + 1 1/2 tsp. sugar

3/4 c. warm water

add the flour alternately with the cornmeal/milk mix to the proofed yeast.

using a paddle or dough hook -mix 5 minutes til smooth and elastic.

let proof til double in bulk.

dissolve:

heaping 1/4 tsp. baking soda

1 1/2 T. water

using the paddle or hook - add this mix to the risen dough & mix 5 minutes. hand knead a bit with additional flour so it’s not too sticky. divide into 2 buttered coffee cans ( halfway). let rise til double again. preheat oven 375.

dough will proof over the can a bit - trim edges with scissors if it goes too far. place cans in oven and drop temp to 350. bake til golden brown - about 30-40 minutes. when cooled remove from cans. slice & toast as needed. enjoy !

makes for a special sunday brunch !

destination INDIA

it’s where we celebrate every month ( or two ) with our friends chris and celia -  inviting another couple ( or two ) to join us.  we embarked on this journey last year when we shared our excitement for phaidons latest  cookbook - INDIA.   it’s our supperclub - celebrating cuisine of india !

this is not our first go at a supperclub (see archives / august / silver spoon). supperclubs are a good excuse to explore a type of cuisine - sometimes to explore a single cookbook. we are fans of the phaidon cookbooks - but the problem with these compilations of a 1000 ( or more) recipes - is that something really does get lost in translation.  and it’s rampant in this book ( 1 T. of water mixed with 4 cups of rice flour will not form a pliable dough ! really ?! )  unfortunately we’ve come to use this book as a guideline - having to use other cookbooks for reference.

cooking indian food is fun for us because we know little about it’s ingredients - flavor combinations & techniques. just procuring the spices and making spice blends has been a treat. thankfully we have savory spice shop here in austin to supply even the hard to find stuff like the stinky ! asafetida. we’ve put our mortars & pestles to work ! 

what to drink with indian food ?  there’s always riesling & gewurztraminer & rose. we made up this starter cocktail - granita of hibiscus & rose petal & pomegranate molasses - topped with a shot of tequila.  yum !

bengali samosa stuffed with potato -cauliflower - peas & chiles served with a ginger-tamarind sauce. ( i skipped that crazy dough recipe and googled one ). these are delish. spicy filling with tart sweet dipping sauce.  also served were garam masala spiced cashews - addictive !             a couple of favorites were grilled ground lamb skewers & mint with pineapple raita (yogurt condiment ) and a classic dish -peas with paneer ( easy to make cheese curd ) with cinnamon & cumin. also we made a pulao ( a rice dish ) with coconut & shrimp….and beets with lots of smashed ginger & garlic.

pistachio kulfi - (indian icecream ) frozen mixture - not churned - made with reduced milk - cream & cardamom.  i love this spice.

we look forward to our supperclub dinners - it’s always fun to “visit” INDIA !

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Top 10 from Paris & Provence

3 days in paris with emmett & our friends rick & kim. what a treat ! it’s my first visit to paris so i am excited to see the city and practice my french. we drop our luggage at hotel therese ( **recommended ) and hit the road running…..to lunch ….and our first of many many bottles of rose wine.

1. dinner our first night at l’aoc offered classic bistro favorites - foie gras - lyonnaise salad- bone marrow - somehow all tastes better here.  a good intro into our next weeks consumption of french food.

2. un dimanche a paris.  this fairly new restaurant was getting rave reviews. we liked the contemporary notion of pairing chocolate with savory. excellent choice ! we recognized owner pierre cluizel as he entered the restaurant and flagged him to our table to give kudos. the son of a well regarded chocolatiere - he left the family biz to open this dream restaurant ( and adjoining lounge /salon/bar - exhibition kitchen and fine chocolate boutique)- which he proceeded to tell us about. the restaurant was built around this two story tower from the 1200’s - we looked down at our table in the meals aftermath.

3. musee de l’orangerie. monet’s famous water lily ( and willow tree) paintings (8) are showcased  360 degrees in four panels each - in two oval rooms. these paintings are his final 12 years work which he painted for this space. ( you are silenced upon entering these rooms)  it is magical !

downstairs houses the impressionist / post impressionist collection of paul guillaume.  cezanne…renoir…rousseau…soutine….matisse….modigliani…picasso….some of my longtime favorite artists. this museum is such a treat.  rodin’s  ‘kiss’ sculpture stands barely noticeable at the entrance of this museum.

4. sights of the city. ( no i did not climb the tower). the louvre at night was spectacular - a stroll thru tuileries gardens. so much to see - so little time.

5. racines wine bar. (no website ) this restaurant was on our ‘list’ - then confirmed ‘a must ’ by our friend greg - who we were meeting for dinner. ( i love it when friends from the states can meet up in another country for dinner ) ! this place is well known for it’s organic-only french wine list ( or wine wall i should say - as you peruse it with the wine guru to choose your bottles). the food is local organic also. white asparagus was everywhere as it was in season. this dish of cod with leek & spinach i barely shared because it was so delicious. the vegetables were insanely flavorful. the kitchen crew of two worked just above us in this tiny restaurant. we gave kudos to them & our server & wine guru !

6.  eygalieres. we bid adieu to paris and took the TGV to avignon in southern france -where we rented a car. our friend rented this property in the lovely village of eygalieres and invited 10 ( grateful ! ) friends to join him. merci brian !

door & windowscapes in town.

location location location ! this village was a 5 minute walk from our house. butchershop - produce shop - cheese & charcuterie - a handful of great restaurants & bars - wine shops -a patisserie & boulangerie. they knew our group well by day 2 ! market day on friday - though we followed it around to neighboring villages. we day-tripped to avignon - st. remy - les baux  &  aix. the lavender was not in bloom but the landscape was full of olive & vineyards - wild purple iris & red poppy - rosemary & bay - fig trees & fields of artichokes.

some of our best meals were cooked ( and drunk ) ! at home.

9. town of cassis. a drive to the coast for bouillabaisse. we opted for this small town vs the big city of marseille. there is a ‘marseille bouillabaisse chapter’ detailing the traditional bouillabaisse recipe including how to make the soup base - the correct number (7) & specific types of fish and of course the crouton & rouille    (which i could slather on just about everything). also delish was this mackerel over ratatouille & rocket.

9.  roussillon. this cliff town is one of the picturesque villages in the luberon. it boasts 17 shades of orange - pink - red & yellow from the ochre quarry nearby.

10. arles. here are 2 of the 9 locations on the van gogh walk - another of my favorites !  we headed out on this tour - but got side tracked with shopping ( go kim ! ) and of course lunch. here he painted ‘cafe at night’ and here is the hospital he stayed at and also painted. (it was in arles that gauguin visited him for 2 months only to leave quickly after vincent went crazy and cut off his ear.)

11. ok !  one extra !  i  had to picture a few of my favorite desserts. i have never eaten so many desserts - but hey - it’s france !    merci et au revoir !

Stay Tuned……….

off to france…..stay tuned for reports from paris & provence !

Inspired Supper

it’s always a treat when emmett gets inspired to cook (who doesn’t like being cooked for). this time it was a monday night supper - the inspiration from the cookbook ‘Cook Italy’ with a recipe for boned chicken stuffed with rosemary & garlic. yum.

a chicken version of porchetta - chichetta ?

a technique that seems forgotten for chicken. bone out the entire chicken & season liberally. at this point you could stuff with anything ! emmett opted to keep with the recipe with garlic & rosemary - rolled and tied. he made a pan sauce from the bones.

pan seared and oven roasted over veggies for about 1 hour 15 min.

this is a recipe we’ll “practice” for a while. who says chicken is boring ?!