sugarlaw

Sugarlaw(s) Has Moved!

2008-01-10T16:03:00.000-05:00

Sugarlaw is now at http://www.sugarlaws.com !!!

This is my very, very belated notice that this website has moved (a month ago). Those who visited the site directly were automatically transferred to my new site, but I never wrote (this) post for the original blog!

Please update your bookmarks and I hope to hear from you all soon!

Pumpkin Tart

2007-12-02T14:27:00.000-05:00

I was such a huge fan of the chocolate tart I made a few weeks ago that I decided to adapt the recipe to pumpkin for Thanksgiving. And not only was my creation delicious, but it was sturdy too! This little tart managed to survive a frantic cab ride to Grand Central, a crowded train ride to Connecticut, and a car ride to my house in the trunk, all without a single crack. The store-bought pastries I brought to Thanksgiving last year were destroyed within about ten minutes of leaving my apartment. Major improvement.

This was so good. The crust/filling ratio is higher for this tart than it is for pumpkin pie, but otherwise, the recipe is exactly the same. So, if you want to make a pie, just double the filling and it should fit perfectly. You shouldn't have to change any measurements for the crust part of the recipe, it easily makes enough to fit a pie dish. Yum!

Pumpkin Tart

INGREDIENTS:

For crust:
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold and cut into pieces
1 large egg
2 tbsp water

For filling:
1/2 of a 15 ounce can of pumpkin puree
1/2 of a 14 ounce can of sweetened condensed milk
1 egg
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp cloves
Pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place flour, sugar, salt, butter, one egg, and water in a food processor. Pulse until blended into one large ball of dough.
3. Roll dough out on a floured surface, into an approximately 12" circle. Roll the dough up onto the pin and lay it on top of a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom.
4. Press the dough into the pan so it fits into all the edges, particularly on the sides of the tart pan. Trim the excess dough from the edges of the pan.
5. Refrigerate the tart dough for 10 minutes.
6. Remove the tart from the refridgerator, and line the inside of the tart with aluminum foil. Place pie weights (or dried beans, or rice) in the foil.
7. Bake for 30 minutes (the tart is easier to bake if you place the tart shell on a cookie sheet).
8. Remove the tart from the oven and remove the foil and pie weights. Return to the oven and continue to bake for another 3-5 minutes, or until the tart's edges are is golden, but not browned. Place on a counter or table to cool the tart shell.
9. Lower the oven temperature to 325 degrees.
10. In a medium saucepan, on low heat, heat the pumpkin, salt and spices for 2-3 minutes. Add sweetened condensed milk, and heat to a scald (bubbles around the edges of the pan but not boiling).
11. Remove from heat and whisk in egg, until blended.
12. Pour the filling into the cooled tart shell and bake 25 minutes, or until the filling is set but still wobbly. Allow to cool, and serve.

Serves 8.

Cinnamon Muffins

2007-11-29T15:29:00.001-05:00

I don't actually like muffins. To me, they're basically just big greasy, high-calorie cakes that offer zero nutritional value and will leave you hungry again in an hour or two. (I love cupcakes, though. Go figure.) But it's hard for me to dislike anything that I make myself. And don't they look pretty? It's even harder to dislike anything that pretty.

These were my contribution to our breakfast the day after Thanksgiving. I think cinnamon muffins are a southern thing, because I've never really seen them in bakeries in New York. I don't really know what else to day about them. If you like cinnamon, and you like muffins, I feel pretty confident that you'll like these. I didn't particularly care for them. But aren't they pretty?

Cinnamon Muffins

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup unsalted butter
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups sifted, all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
Pinch of salt
1 tablespoon cinnamon
2 eggs
1/2 cup milk
1/8 tsp nutmeg

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Cream together butter and sugar. Beat in eggs. Slowly add flour, baking powder, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg and stir into wet mix. Pour in milk and stir until well combined.
3. Pour into greased muffin pans and bake for 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into one of the muffins comes out dry. Allow to cool before removing from muffin pan. Serve.

Makes 12-14 medium size muffins.

Cipollini Onion Tart

2007-11-29T09:49:00.001-05:00

Remember earlier this week when I said that the squash chowder was my favorite part of Thanksgiving dinner? That was a total lie. This tart was, by far, my favorite part of Thanksgiving dinner, but I couldn't post the recipe until today because it's not on the Williams Sonoma website. My poor mother actually had to scan her Williams Sonoma Thanksgiving recipe booklet and email it to me. Yay technology.

My mom also says that cippolini onions are expensive, but I saw them at the farmer's market on Saturday for $2 a pound, seriously. And since they were the most amazing thing that has ever been a part of our Thanksgiving dinner, they might be popping up in my own dishes in the near future...

Cipollini Onion Tart

INGREDIENTS:
For the dough:
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/4 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp. salt
3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, cut into pieces
6-7 tbsp ice water, or as needed

For the filling:
3 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 lb cipollini onions, peeled and ends trimmed
1/4 cup cabernet sauvingon

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. In a food processor, combine the flour, sugar and salt in the bowl and pulse to blend. Add the butter and pulse. Add the water a little at a time and pulse until the dough just begins to come together in a rough mass.
2. Transfer the dough to a floured work surface and roll into a 13-inch disk, about 1/4" thick. Fold over the edges of the dough, about 1" around, and crimp to seal. Transfer to baking sheet and refrigerate until ready to use.
Preheat an oven to 375°F.
4. To make the filling, melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Add salt and combine, then add onions. Cook for 15-20 minutes, stirring frquently, until carmelized on all sides.
5. Add the wine and reduce until syrupy, about 6-8 minutes.
6. Transfer the pan to the oven and roast for 10 minutes.
7. Remove the pan from the oven and place the dough on top of the onions. Prick the surface to let air escape.
8. Return the pan to the oven and bake until crust is golden brown, about 35 minutes.
9. Remove the pan from the oven and let stand for 5 minutes. Place a serving platter upside down on top of the pan and turn both upside down together. Lift off the pan, leaving the onion tart on the serving dish. Serve immediately!

Serves 4-6 (or one very hungry Katy, who could probably eat this whole thing by herself).

Cinnamon Crème Brûlée

2007-11-27T21:15:00.000-05:00

Crème Brûlée is one of those ubiquitous dessert items that you see on just about every menu in New York. Because of that, I pretty much assumed that it would be easy to make. And it is, for sure, but it takes a while to cook and then chill in the refrigerator. I wouldn't whip this up for myself on a random weeknight, but it's a good dessert if you're having a dinner party, because it requires you to to make it in advance. Just be very, very careful if you're trying to blow-torch the tops after a few glasses of wine!

I own a crème brûlée blowtorch. I'm vaguely puzzled by that fact, because this weekend was the second time I've ever made crème brûlée in my life. But it was on sale, and I was talking to the most persuasive salesperson at Williams Sonoma ever. She was all, "oh, you'll be surprised how much you use this. You can even use it to grill cheese on sandwiches!" And I was all, "oh, that's a great idea! I've always wanted to eat untoasted bread with melted cheese on top, thanks to my blowtorch." So, I bought it.

If you don't have a crème brûlée mini-blowtorch, you can use your oven broiler (or toaster oven, actually). Which is actually how normal people melt cheese on their sandwiches. Sigh.

Cinnamon Crème Brûlée

INGREDIENTS:
2/3 cup heavy cream
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp cinnamon
3 tbsp sugar
2 large egg yolks
Additional sugar, for topping

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.
2. In a medium saucepan, heat the cream, vanilla and cinnamon to a scald (small bubbles around the edge of the pan but not boiling). Remove from the heat and set aside.
3. In a medium bowl, whisk together sugar and the egg yolks until pale in color.
4. Whisk in the cream to the egg yolks a little at a time. Pour the liquid into 2 ramekins.
5. Place the ramekins into a large pan, and fill the pan with warm water halfway up the sides of the ramekins.
6. Bake just until the crème brûlée is set, but still wobbly in the center (about 30 minutes).
7. Refrigerate the ramekins for at least 2 hours and up to 2 days before serving.
8. Before serving, dust sugar on the tops of crème brûlée with sugar, and melt sugar with a crème brûlée torch or over broiler. Serve!

Serves two.

Butternut Squash Chowder

2007-11-27T10:06:00.000-05:00

My mother puts Martha Stewart to shame. Every time I go home, whether it's for Thanksgiving dinner or for a random weekend, when my mother cooks, she goes all out. Beautiful, seasonal, organic ingredients, healthy preparations (mostly), and decorations that are almost as lovely as the food.

This soup was my favorite part of Thanksgiving dinner. And, frankly, I was a little troubled by the bacon ingredient, but when my mother asked me if it was ok, I wasn't going to ruin everyone else's soup just because I happen to be a vegetarian. BUT, you could easily make this soup without the bacon and it would still be delicious. In fact, I might just try to do a veggie-friendly version this week. But it was really, really yummy, and a perfect fall-inspired starter for a traditional Thanksgiving meal!

Butternut Squash Chowder

INGREDIENTS:
4 bacon slices, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 yellow onion, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
1 bay leaf
1 tsp chopped fresh sage, plus small sage
leaves for garnish
4 tsp kosher salt, plus more, to taste
1 tsp freshly ground pepper, plus more, to taste
2 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1/4 cup white wine
3 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 jar (32 oz.) butternut squash puree
1/2 cup heavy cream

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a large Dutch oven over medium heat, cook the bacon, stirring frequently, until crispy, about 5 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon to a paper towellined plate. Set aside.
2. Pour off all but 1 Tbs. of the fat from the pan and return the pan to medium heat. Add the onion, celery, bay leaf, chopped sage, the 4 tsp. salt and the 1 tsp. pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, just until the vegetables are soft, 5 to 6 minutes. Stir in the potatoes, cover and cook, stirring occasionally, for 3 minutes.
3. Add the wine and simmer, stirring to scrape up the browned bits, for 1 to 2 minutes. Add the broth and bring just to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and gently simmer until the potatoes are tender, about 12 minutes.
4. Add the butternut squash puree and bacon and simmer for 5 minutes. Stir in the cream and adjust the seasonings with salt and pepper. Remove the bay leaf and discard.
5. Ladle the chowder into warmed bowls and garnish with sage leaves. Serve immediately.

Serves 6 to 8.

This is a Williams Sonoma recipe -- you can find the original recipe here.

Sage Ciabatta Rolls

2007-11-25T11:24:00.001-05:00

As I left to come back into New York the day after Thanksgiving, my mother packed me all her leftover fresh herbs that she had bought for Thanksgiving dinner. Sage was the one I was most excited to experiment with.

So, Saturday morning, when my dogs woke me up and I couldn't get back to sleep (a very regular weekend occurrence), I decided to take advantage of those under-used Saturday morning hours and bake bread. All in all, not a bad idea -- by the time the bread was in the oven, I could smell it all through my apartment. Some people have macaroni and cheese, or chicken soup, as their comfort food. For me, it's bread, all the way.

Sage Ciabatta Rolls

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
1 cup of 100% whole wheat flour
1 cup plus 2 tbsp of hot water (110 degrees)
1 package of instant yeast (11 grams)
2 tablespoons white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 tbsp olive oil
1/2 cup fresh sage leaves

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a food processor, mix white flour, wheat flour, salt, sugar, sage and yeast.
3. Turn on faucet until water is as hot as it gets. Measure a cup of water and add water to the flour mixture and knead until blended. Add olive oil and knead for 2-3 minutes more, or until blended (the dough is very sticky at this stage).
4. Place the dough in a greased bowl, coating all sides of dough. Cover bowl with saran wrap, and let rise somewhere warm for 20 minutes, or until dough has doubled in size.
5. Punch down dough. On a well-floured surface, pull off approximately 3/4 cup of dough and form into a rounded or oval roll shape. Coat roll dough with flour, and place on a greased cookie sheet.
6. Repeat with the remainder of the dough. There should be approximately 12 rolls total.
7. Cover all the rolls with saran wrap, and let rise in a warm place for 40 minutes, or until doubled again.
8. Bake bread for 25 to 30 minutes, or until bottoms of loaves are golden.

Mushroom Stir Fry

2007-11-24T14:58:00.000-05:00

I know what you are thinking... you're thinking, "Katy, aren't those the same ingredients that you used as your dumpling filling last week?" Yes, guilty. These were so good that I wanted them on their own, without the hassle of laying out the wonton wrappers and sealing and steaming the dumplings.

Also, I am newly obsessed with sesame oil. It packs an enormous amount of flavor, and it makes your whole house/apartment smell like toasted sesame seeds. Which is a very, very good smell.

Mushroom Stir Fry

INGREDIENTS:
10 oz baby bella mushrooms
1 medium white onion
1 1/2 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp soy sauce

DIRECTIONS:
1. Cut mushrooms and onion into 1/4" slices.
1. In a medium saute pan, saute onion in sesame oil, until onion is translucent.
2. Add mushrooms and soy sauce to onion and saute an additional 5 minutes, until browned and softened. Serve.

Serves 2-3.

Vanilla Meringues

2007-11-21T13:05:00.000-05:00

I am a little bit of a sugar addict, and not surprisingly, these are one of my favorite desserts. And since I moved to New York, I've been on a quest to find good meringues. I've had an occasional almost-success (the pavlova at Balthazaar is delicious, although not quite what I was looking for), but it's largely been a devastating failure. Too often they're made with some strange flavoring, coloring, or (worst of all) nuts, which is most certainly not what I'm looking for. So I knew I had to learn to make my own.

Unfortunately, I attempted this recipe twice and completely failed. I was attempting to beat the eggs and sugar myself with a whisk, and I think I just don't have the arm power. Rather than being light and fluffy, they were soup-like in the bowl and completely flat on the baking sheet. So, I caved and bought a hand mixer, which I can already tell is going to be a wonderful addition to my little kitchen. If only because now I can make these every single night...

Vanilla Meringues

INGREDIENTS:
2 egg whites
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups sugar

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees.
2. In a glass or metal bowl, whip egg whites and vanilla until foamy.
3. Pour in sugar slowly, while continuing to whip the egg whites.
4. When the mixture becomes stiff, stop mixing (if you can turn the bowl upside down without the meringue mixture falling out, that's stiff enough)!
5. If you have a pastry bag, transfer the egg white mixture into it, and pipe the meringue out onto a baking sheet coated in wax paper. If not, just spoon the meringue out in large dollops.
4. Bake for 1 hour at 200 degrees.

Makes about twelve large meringues.

Caramelized Onion Omelette

2007-11-20T14:28:00.001-05:00

There are so many wonderful things to say about this omelette. First, I made it with eggs from the farmer's market. The average eggs you eat in the supermarket are about two weeks old when you first buy them. If you're buying them at a farmer's market, they're about three days old. Not to mention, they're antibiotic-free, free range, and they're from a farm you're somewhat familiar with. A farm where you know the workers because you see them every week at the market, and where you can at least have some confidence that they're not abusing or mistreating their animals. How can you tell that from looking at an egg carton in a supermarket? As a vegetarian, if I'm going to eat any animal product (and I do eat eggs, butter, milk, etc), I want to have some confidence that the animals didn't suffer for me to eat it.

Second, this omelette is sort of a variation on the flavors of this amazing quiche I made several months ago from Simply Recipes. I made it for a dinner party, and every single one of my guests said it was the best quiche they'd ever had. So, not surprisingly, I have been a caramelized onion fanatic, sticking them in everything from appetizer tarts to risotto. And when I was wondering what to use as the filling for my omelette, guess what came to mind?

A few rules for making an omelette. First, add a teaspoon of water (not milk) for every 2-3 eggs. Second, beat the eggs lightly before pouring them into the pan. Third, throw in at least one egg yolk, because otherwise it really has no flavor. Personally, I'm partial to one egg yolk and three egg whites for a good flavor that's still fairly low-cholesterol. Fourth, when you first pour the omelette into the pan, stir the batter with your spatula for about 30 seconds, or until it starts to solidify (this helps it cook evenly). Fifth, don't flip your omelette. You're not making pancakes. Last, and most important, don't overcook. People are so irrationally terrified of undercooked eggs that they tend to brown omelettes. They should be light and golden -- if you're omelette has brown spots, cook it for a minute or two less next time.

Caramelized Onion Omelette

INGREDIENTS:
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 small or medium white onions, sliced
1 tsp coarse sea salt
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1 egg
2 egg whites
1 tsp water

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a small saute pan, saute the onions in olive oil on medium heat until translucent (it's ok if they look slightly charred). Add salt and balsamic vinegar and saute for an additional 5 minutes on low heat.
2. Remove onions from saucepan and set aside.
3. In another bowl, mix one full egg and two egg whites with 1 tsp water. Whisk to break yolks and lightly beat.
4. Grease another pan with 1 tsp olive oil, and pour eggs in. Stir for 30 seconds, or until eggs start to solidify. Let cook for 3 more minutes without stirring.
5. Pour onions into the center of the omelette. Fold 1/3 of the omelette over the onions, and remove the pan from heat. Tilt the pan so that the omelette comes to the edge, and then flip the omelette out onto a plate. Serve.

Serves 1.

Dumplings

2007-11-19T13:05:00.000-05:00

When I was in China this summer, I tried to eat dumplings every day. Dumplings are one of my favorite foods in the US, so the opportunity to eat vastly superior ones in China was not to be squandered. My favorites of the whole trip were actually from a place right below the hotel I stayed at in Beijing, steamed vegetable dumplings with an almost-clear, thick doughy skin. In Shanghai, I ate xiao long bao for days in a row, despite the fact that I am 99% a vegetarian, before I caved and finally headed to Shanghai's phenomenal european restaurants, solely because of their much-needed air conditioning.

I didn't expect these dumplings to rival my memories of China (a nearly impossible feat), but they were really, really good. Plus, it's so fun to make them myself, which adds a level of satisfaction that you can never get by eating something that's been prepared for you. I will definitely be making these again. And, who knows, maybe as I get more experience, I'll be able to recreate the dumplings I loved in Beijing!

One word of advice, though. The sesame oil in this recipe is crucial. It gives the dumplings such an authentic asian flavor, and makes your whole kitchen smell delicious. I very much discourage substituting any other type of oil, they just wouldn't be nearly as good.

Mushroom Dumplings

INGREDIENTS:
10 oz baby bella mushrooms, minced
1 medium white onion, minced
1 1/2 tbsp sesame oil
24 wonton wrappers

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a medium saute pan, saute onion in sesame oil, until onion is translucent.
2. Add mushrooms to onion and saute until browned and softened.
3. Lay out wonton wrappers on a cutting board. Place 2 tsp of mushroom mixture in the center of each wrapper, and wet edges with water. Fold into a triangle and press edges to seal.
4. Line a steamer basket (metal or bamboo) with wax paper, and place dumplings in the basket. Steam for 3-4 minutes, or until dumplings are warmed through.

Serves 3-4.

Classic Chocolate Tart

2007-11-18T12:09:00.000-05:00

I can't believe I made this! It looks like something I'd buy from a bakery or be served in a restaurant, not something I could actually create, from scratch, in my own kitchen! But this recipe taught me a number of things.

First, I will never buy a frozen pie crust again. Baking a crust isn't hard at all!

Second, buying "pie weights" is totally unnecessary. I knew I would have some adequate substitute in my kitchen, and, not surprisingly, I did. I used uncooked brown rice, but I know (from the Food Network) that you could also use dried beans. Either way, just let them cool down afterwards, and those are your homemade "pie weights" from now on. Excellent!

Third, I blended the dough for the crust in my food processor, and itwas perfect. How much easier can you get? I just stuck the butter, flour, sugar, salt, egg, and water inside the mixer, and two minutes later it was blended into a solid ball of dough. This definitely my mixing method-of-choice from now on!

Anyway, without further adieu, the recipe! But first, here's how the crust looked before baking. Yum!

Classic Chocolate Tart

INGREDIENTS:

For crust:
1 1/3 cups all-purpose flour
2 tbsp sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup unsalted butter, cold and cut into pieces
1 large egg
2 tbsp water

For filling:
1/2 cup light cream
1/2 cup milk
8 ounces chocolate chips (about 2/3 of one 11.5 oz bag)
1 1/2 tablespoons sugar
1/8 teaspoon salt
1 full egg, plus one egg yolk

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place flour, sugar, salt, butter, one egg, and water in a food processor. Pulse until blended into one large ball of dough.
3. Roll dough out on a floured surface, into an approximately 12" circle. Roll the dough up onto the pin and lay it on top of a 9-inch tart pan with a removable bottom.
4. Press the dough into the pan so it fits into all the edges, particularly on the sides of the tart pan. Trim the excess dough from the edges of the pan.
5. Refrigerate the tart dough for 10 minutes.
6. Remove the tart from the refridgerator, and line the inside of the tart with aluminum foil. Place pie weights (or dried beans, or rice) in the foil.
7. Bake for 30 minutes (the tart is easier to bake if you place the tart shell on a cookie sheet).
8. Remove the tart from the oven and remove the foil and pie weights. Return to the oven and continue to bake for another 3-5 minutes, or until the tart's edges are is golden, but not browned. Place on a counter or table to cool the tart shell.
9. Lower the oven temperature to 325 degrees.
10. In a medium saucepan, heat the cream and milk to a scald, but not a boil, over low heat.
11. Remove from heat and stir in the chocolate chips. Whisk until blended.
12. Whisk in the sugar and salt until blended. Whisk in one full egg and one additional egg yolk, until blended.
13. Pour the filling into the cooled tart shell and bake 25 minutes, or until the filling is set but still wobbly. Allow to cool, and serve.

Serves 8.

Oh, and this is also my entry for Waiter, there's something in my... topless tart!

Thai Lemongrass Soup

2007-11-17T12:25:00.000-05:00

It must be because the weather is getting colder (or maybe because I have a cold that has been prolonged indefinitely since I ran the marathon two weeks ago), but I have been craving soup quite a bit lately.

So, back I went to the Thai market I discovered yesterday, this time in search of fresh lemongrass. Of course, they had it -- seriously, this place is phenomenal. Moreover, the people working there are really friendly and very patient when I ask silly questions like, "this is lemongrass, right?" or "how much of it should I use if I'm making lemongrass soup?"

I literally used every leftover vegetable in my fridge to make this soup, and it turned out great. You could also throw in chicken, tofu, or noodles, if you want to make it more of a meal.

And I was about to write, "If you don't have lemongrass, you can substitute..." But, really, if you don't have lemongrass, why on earth are you trying to make lemongrass soup?

Thai Lemongrass Soup

INGREDIENTS:
6 cups vegetable broth
3 stalks fresh lemongrass
1" square of fresh galangal, grated
1 tbsp nam pla (Thai fish sauce)
1/2 medium white onion, diced
1/2 of a 10 ounce box of baby bella mushrooms, sliced
1 red bell pepper, sliced into thin strips
1/2 can water chestnuts, sliced

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a large saucepan, bring vegetable stock to a simmer.
2. Add onion, lemongrass, galangal, nam pla, and water chestnuts, and simmer 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.
3. Add peppers and mushrooms, simmer 5 minutes. Serve.

Serves 4-6.

Galangal Stir Fry

2007-11-16T10:42:00.000-05:00

I was browsing around on epicurious.com yesterday, and I noticed that they had a small article on a Thai market in chinatown that had a great selection of hard-to-find fresh Thai ingredients. Since I work withing walking distance of Chinatown, I knew I had to check it out.

My first experiment was fresh galangal, which is a root vegetable that has a taste somewhat similar to ginger, but milder and more citrus-y. I used about 1 square inch of fresh galangal, and I just cut it into small pieces, but you could also grate it, which I think I'll try next time. It was delicious, and adds a very unique flavor to a conventional stir-fry dish. Serve this over rice for a vegetarian entree, or add chicken or shrimp for a heartier main dish.

I'm not planning to cook with it again in the next few days, so I washed, peeled and sliced the rest of the galangal and froze it. The owner of the store told me it freezes well, so look for more recipes with fresh galangal from me in the future!

Galangal Stir Fry

INGREDIENTS
2 heads of broccoli, sliced into florets
1 can of water chestnuts, drained and sliced
1" square of fresh galangal, cut into pieces
1/2 white onion, diced
2 large cloves of garlic, minced
3 tbsp soy sauce
1 tbsp sesame oil

DIRECTIONS:
1. Heat a saute pan or small wok for 3-4 minutes.
2. Place onion, galangal, garlic and sesame oil in the pan, and saute until onion is translucent.
3. Add broccoli, water chesnuts, and soy sauce, and saute for 6-8 minutes, or until broccoli is cooked and liquid is mostly absorbed.
4. Divide onto two plates, and serve.

Serves 2.

Croque Mademoiselle

2007-11-15T13:15:00.000-05:00

Think of this as a french grilled cheese.

Except that there is, actually, a french version of a grilled cheese called a croque monsieur (with ham) or a croque madame (with ham and a fried egg on top... oh, the french). So, we're going to call this a croque mademoiselle, because it's a girly version of the others.

These are beautiful, and fancy, and taste like an indulgence, but there's a twist... they're whole wheat crepes. Bet you couldn't tell, could you? Thanks to the milk, they're not dark or grainy like most whole wheat products. Frankly, I couldn't really even taste the difference between these and my usual crepe recipe.

You could use brie in this recipe as well, but you'd probably want to add it to the crepe while it's still in the pan, because it won't melt as easily as the gruyere. Don't use reduced fat cheese. Just don't.

Croque Mademoiselle

INGREDIENTS:
2 eggs
1 cup skim milk
2/3 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon butter
8 oz gruyere cheese, grated

DIRECTIONS:
1. Whisk together eggs, milk, flour and butter. Refrigerate.
2. Coat a skillet or small saute pan with cooking spray, and place on a burner over medium heat. Pour about 1/3 cup of crepe batter into the pan, tilting to coat the pan's surface. Cook 2 minutes, flip, and cook one or two more minutes.
3. Remove crepe from pan, place on a serving plate. Repeat step 3 with the remaining batter, making 6 crepes in total.
5. Put each crepe onto a plate. Sprinkle shredded gruyere over half the crepe, and fold over.

Serves 4.

Red Potato "Chips"

2007-11-14T12:15:00.000-05:00

Last night, I got to try out the newest addition to my little kitchen: a wire baking rack! Now, theoretically, these are supposed to be used for cooling cookies, but they're a phenomenal help in making super-crispy oven-baked foods, too. Because the air can circulate around the food, including underneath, you get a crispy edge on the top and the bottom -- yum! Before I bought this, my oven-baked foods were always a little soggy on the bottom, just from contact with the pan.

You could serve these as a side dish for a twist on a meat-and-potatoes meal, or you could give them to little kids (or big kids) to snack on! I remember my dad making a variation of this for me when I was growing up, and I loved them, and I was a very, very picky child.

Here's what they look like straight out of the oven:
Red Potato "Chips"

INGREDIENTS
4 small red potatoes
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp coarse sea salt
Pinch of black pepper

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Wash and peel potatoes, and slice paper thin
3. In a medium-size bowl, toss potato slices with spices to coat thoroughly
4. Arrange potato slices on a wire rack in a single layer
5. Bake in preheated oven for 12-15 minutes, and serve.

Serves 2.

Husk Cherry and Goat Cheese Salad

2007-11-13T10:25:00.000-05:00

It's not often that I come across a fruit or vegetable that I've never tried, or even heard of, before. In fact, I think the last time it happened was when I discovered that morels were mushrooms, which was at least two years ago. But I had eaten mushrooms before. These, on the other hand, were pretty much completely new.

I noticed a bin labeled "husk cherries" at the Union Square Greenmarket yesterday, and of course, I had to try them. The seller recommended using them raw in a salad or dipping them in chocolate. Since I was already buying lettuce and herbed goat cheese, I went the salad route.

They don't taste like cherries, or really like anything I've eaten before. The insides are full of tiny seeds, kind of like a cross between a strawberry and a tomato. To me, they taste a little bit sweet, and very, very wild, like something you would find growing on a vine somewhere, and hope that they didn't poison you. I'm surprised they haven't popped up in innovative New York restaurants yet, but maybe I'm ahead of the curve?

Here's what the finished salad looks like:

Husk Cherry and Goat Cheese Salad

INGREDIENTS:
1 pound field greens, washed
1/2 pound husk cherries (substitute green grapes for a somewhat similar flavor)
4 ounces herbed goat cheese (I used basil and garlic goat cheese, also from the farmer's market)
1 tbsp dijon mustard
2 tbsp basalmic vinegar
4 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp coarse sea salt (I used pink sea salt)
Pinch of black pepper

DIRECTIONS:
1. Wash lettuce, remove cherries from their husks, and wash. Dry.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together mustard, vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper.
3. Mix together lettuce, husk cherries, and dressing. Divide onto four plates.
4. Thinly slice goat cheese, and distribute slices onto plates (3-4 slices per plate). Serve.

Serves 4.

Carrot Leek Soup

2007-11-12T18:33:00.000-05:00

This would be a great Thanksgiving recipe! I spent about an hour today roaming around the Union Square farmer's market and picking up some fresh, locally-grown vegetables. Not surprisingly, there was an abundance of root vegetables. It's hard to imagine much is growing above-ground this time of year (although several stands did still have tomatoes). But I bought a bunch of carrots because I love them as snacks... and then I saw the leeks. Epiphany!

This turned out even better than I hoped. The saffron and cocoa gave it tons of flavor, and the pepper gave it a subtle spicy aftertaste. You could finish this off with a half-cup of cream stirred in, if you wanted, or a drizzle of olive oil over the top. I just added a teaspoon or so of sour cream, and it was perfect!

Carrot Leek Soup

INGREDIENTS:
1 pound of carrots, peeled
1 small white onion
1 leek, washed with leaves discarded
3 cloves garlic
5 cups vegetable broth
1 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cocoa powder
1/8 tsp chili powder (or more, to your preference)
1 bay leaf
Generous pinch of saffron threads
Pinch of black pepper
Sour cream, to garnish

DIRECTIONS:
1. Slice carrots into 1/4" round pieces. Chop onion into 1/2" pieces.
2. In a large saucepan, bring vegetable broth, carrots, onion, leek, garlic, and spices to a gentle boil.
3. Cover and let cook for 15 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Strain the soup, collecting liquid in a large mixing bowl.
5. Pour solids into a food processor. Discard bay leaf. Puree until smooth.
6. Pour puree from the food processor into the mixing bowl with the broth. Mix until blended.
7. Pour soup into bowls, garnish with sour cream, and serve.

Serves four.

Parmesan Wheat Bread

2007-11-12T13:11:00.000-05:00

As I was making this bread, I kept thinking to myself, "this is such a pain in the butt. There is no way this will be worth the effort." Then it came out of the oven. Now, I think I'll be making this recipe at least once a week! It was amazing -- light and full of air and not at all grainy. The parmesan taste is really subtle, but it gives the bread's flavor a really nice kick.

Now, let me explain why this recipe was a (worthwhile) pain. Using whole wheat flour alone (as opposed to all purpose flour, or a mix of the two) means that the dough will take a long time to rise. In order to get the dough to rise, I had to crank up the heat in my apartment, while the oven was preheating, and leave them on my kitchen table in the hot sun with the shades open. At one point, my thermometer read 102 degrees on the table! Needless to say, kind of a pain. Plus, the water has to be 120 to 130 degrees when you add it to the dry ingredients -- my sink can't get water that hot, so I had to microwave it and then test the temperature again. Again, annoying. But, I swear, one bite of the finished product was enough to make me swear by this recipe. I've put some tips into the directions to make it easier, if others want to try it!
Parmesan Wheat Bread

INGREDIENTS:

2 1/2 cups of 100% whole wheat flour

1 cup of hot water (120 to 130 degrees)

1 package of yeast (11 grams)

1 tablespoon white sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Mix flour, salt, sugar, and yeast.
3. Turn on faucet until water is as hot as it gets. Measure temperature. If temperature is below 120 degrees, measure a cup of water and pour into a microwaveable bowl. Microwave on high for 40 seconds, and take temperature again. Repeat if water is not 120 degrees.
4. Add water to the flour mixture and knead until blended. Add parmesan cheese and knead for 2-3 minutes more, or until blended.
5. Place the dough in a greased bowl, coating all sides of dough. Cover bowl with saran wrap, and let rise somewhere warm for 30 minutes, or until dough has doubled in size.
6. Punch down dough. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough flat into a 12"x18" rectangle. Cut dough in half to form two 12"x9" rectangles. Roll up each half of dough tightly, creating a 12" log. Continue to roll until log is16" long, and cut in half. Repeat for both halves of dough (creating four 8" rolls).
7. Place each roll 3 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet. Make deep diagonal slashes across loaves every 2 inches. Cover with saran wrap, and let rise in a warm place for 40 minutes, or until doubled again.
8. Pour one cup of water into a second baking dish, and place in preheated oven.
9. Bake bread for 20 to 25 minutes, or until tops of loaves are just starting to brown.

Makes four 8" mini-loaves.

Basil Butter

2007-11-11T14:24:00.000-05:00

I made this to go with my cornbread, but you could use it with regular bread as well. Or, if you want a really rich roasted chicken dish, you could use this under the skin on the breasts and thighs. My favorite brunch place in the city has strawberry butter at breakfast, and garlic butter if you go for dinner. I wake up on Sunday mornings craving it, and I'm not even normally a butter eater!

Basil Butter

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup unsalted butter, softened
10 basil leaves
Salt, to taste

DIRECTIONS:
1. Mince basil leaves.
2. Combine basil, butter and salt. Mix until blended.
3. Roll butter into a log, and wrap in wax paper. Refrigerate for one hour, or until firm.
4. Remove from refrigerator and slice into pats immediately before serving.

Serves eight.

Cornbread

2007-11-10T20:11:00.000-05:00

Here's the thing about cornbread. It's basically just a loaf of corn muffins. Which is probably why it's so good. But that makes me wonder: blueberry bread? Does that exist already? I'll keep pondering. Maybe I'm better off just making muffins, but it might be worth an experiment...

These were great, and SO easy! This is a really, really light recipe -- you can even add a few pats of (forthcoming) basil butter, guilt-free. However, since most of its moistness comes from the milk, and not oil, it won't keep very well. Eat it within a day or two, and make sure it's stored in an airtight container. This would be a great brunch side dish, or you could use it as a dinner appetizer, like I did. Delicious!

Here's what it looked like in the dish -- irresistible!

Cornbread

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 cups cornmeal
2 1/2 cups milk
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1/4 cup canola oil

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. In a medium bowl, combine cornmeal and milk.
3. Grease a medium-size baking dish, or two smaller dishes.
4. In a large bowl, mix flour, baking powder, salt and sugar. Add the cornmeal mixture, eggs and oil and whisk until smooth. Pour batter into prepared pan(s).
3. Bake for 35 minutes, or until a knife inserted into the center comes out clean.

Makes about 24 slices.

Pizza Margherita

2007-11-10T18:27:00.001-05:00

Mmmm... pizza. I have to say, pizza is one of the most wonderful foods to ever be created. I'm pretty sure I ate it every night for most of college. And I'm pretty sure I wasn't particularly unique in that respect. So, last night, I made it! It turned out really well. The sauce was wonderful, but I'm going to keep experimenting with the homemade crust recipe. I like really thin crusts, and no matter how much I rolled this out, I couldn't get it thin enough without the dough tearing. Probably I should eliminate the yeast all together, and I needed something to make it easier to roll. I'm definitely going to keep trying! The sauce, though, was perfect!

Pizza Margherita

INGREDIENTS:

Dough:
3 cups all purpose flour
1 (.25 ounce) package active dry yeast
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon white sugar
1 cup warm water
1 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp oregano

Sauce:
2 6-ounce cans tomato paste
1 1/2 cups warm water
1/4 cup parmesan cheese
1 tbsp sugar
1/2 tsp onion salt
Pinch of paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp oregano
Pinch of ground pepper
8 basil leaves, torn into small pieces

Topping:
12 ounces of mozzarella, shredded or sliced
8 basil leaves, torn into small pieces

DIRECTIONS:

For dough:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Combine water, yeast, and sugar in mixing bowl, and wait until yeast is frothy.
3. Mix flour, salt, olive oil, and spices into yeast mixture (mix salt into the second cup of flour to combine).
4. Place dough in a greased bowl, cover with a damp towel, and allow to rise for 30 minutes, or until doubled in size.
5. Roll dough out into a large pizza peel, or onto two medium-size baking sheets.
6. Bake at 375 degrees for 7 minutes, and set aside.

For sauce:
7. In a medium bowl, combine tomato paste, water, parmesan, sugar, and spices. Mix basil leaves into sauce.

To finish:
8. Spread sauce on pre-baked crust. Top with mozzarella and basil leaves, and bake for 8-10 minutes at 375, or until cheese is browned.

Serves eight.

Baguettes

2007-11-09T13:04:00.000-05:00

When I was in high school, I spent two summers in France and ate a demi-baguette for lunch every day. The bread there was so good, you didn't even need to put anything on it -- although cheese or nutella never hurt anyone.

However, with rare exceptions, the bread in New York just doesn't compare. I have tried every bakery within about 10 blocks of my apartment, without finding a single one that I'm satisfied with. When I lived in the West Village, I used to go to Amy's Bread at least twice a a week, which was wonderful. But so far, no luck in my new neighborhood.

The obvious solution is to learn to bake my own bread, so I figured I would give it a try. And, surprisingly, it's not actually that difficult! It kind of takes a long time, but overall, this recipe is pretty foolproof.

A few bread-baking tips:

Add yeast to warm, but not hot, water, with a tiny amount of sugar, and wait. If it bubbles, your yeast is good.
Do NOT add salt to the water mixture. Blend it with the flour, and add it that way.
Bake the bread with an extra tin of water in the oven for thicker, crustier loaf.

Eat it hot out of the oven. I was supposed to be saving it for tonight, but I couldn't resist! Just look at that crust!

Baguettes

INGREDIENTS:

2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour

1 cup of warm water (110 to 120 degrees)

1 package of yeast (11 grams)

1 tablespoon white sugar
1 teaspoon salt

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Dissolve yeast in sugar and water. Let sit for 10 minutes or until foamy.
3. Mix flour and salt. Add water mixture to the flour and knead until blended.
4. Place the dough in a greased bowl, coating all sides of dough. Cover bowl with saran wrap, and let rise somewhere warm for 30 minutes, or until dough has doubled in size.
5. Punch down dough. On a lightly floured surface, roll dough flat into a 12"x18" rectangle. Cut dough in half to form two 12"x9" rectangles. Roll up each half of dough tightly, creating a 12" log. 6. Place each roll 3 inches apart on a greased cookie sheet. Make deep diagonal slashes across loaves every 2 inches. Cover with saran wrap, and let rise in a warm place for 30 to 40 minutes, or until doubled again.
7. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes, or until tops of loaves are just starting to brown.

Makes 2 12" loaves, or about 24 slices.

Pumpkin Cheesecake

2007-11-09T09:30:00.000-05:00

If this doesn't sound decadent, I don't know what would. But, more importantly, it's a prepare-ahead dessert. So crucial. After appetizers and wine and a full dinner, who wants to put effort into serving dessert? Enter the pumpkin cheesecake, which you cleverly prepared the night before your dinner party. Add some vanilla ice cream, and everyone goes home happy.

I used neufchâtel cheese, rather than cream cheese, because I can't help myself, I have to make everything just a little bit healthier. I guarantee none of my friends will notice. As a bonus, neufchâtel is softer and much easier to cream together with sugar than regular cream cheese.

I haven't tasted this yet, because it's for my guests tonight, but I did try a little of the batter and it was wonderful. One thing you can't see from the picture: it's a double-layer cheesecake. The bottom layer is plain cheesecake filling, and the top layer is the yummy pumpkin cheesecake mixture that you see in the photo above. Hopefully this will look particularly impressive when I cut into it!

Pumpkin Cheesecake

INGREDIENTS:

2 8 ounce containers of neufchâtel cheese

1/2 cup sugar

1 tsp vanilla extract

2 eggs

1/2 cup pumpkin

1 tsp cinnamon

Pinch of nutmeg

Pinch of cloves

Graham-cracker crust (store bought)

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

2. Cream together the neufchâtel cheese, sugar and vanilla. Add the eggs one by one once the cheese is blended.

3. Pour one cup of the cheese mixture into the graham cracker crust, and spread evenly.

4. Blend the pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg and cloves into the remaining batter. Spread in an even layer over the plain-cheesecake mixture.

5. Bake for 25 minutes, stop while filling is still slightly wobbly.

6. Refrigerate overnight, and serve!

Serves 6-8.

Cinnamon White Chocolate Fudge

2007-11-07T17:34:00.000-05:00

This is my first time making fudge! And I don't own a candy thermometer, so it's a little bit of a cheat recipe. When they first came out of the refrigerator, they tasted a little bit like vanilla caramels, which gave me the idea for wrapping them in wax paper. Either way, they're really good, and very easy to make!

The best moment, by far, of the entire endeavor was watching my dog Coco try to figure out what on earth this concoction was. I couldn't stop myself from taking a picture!

Cinnamon White Chocolate Fudge

INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 cups Ghirardelli white chocolate chips
Almost 1 can sweetened condensed milk (14 ounces) (pour out two tablespoons)
2 tbsp butter
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
Pinch of salt

DIRECTIONS:
1. Place chocolate, condensed milk, and butter in a microwave-safe container.
2. Microwave for two minutes, remove, stir, and add cinnamon, vanilla and salt.
3. Microwave for 90 seconds, remove, and stir.
4. Microwave for90 seconds, remove and stir. Mixture will be bubbling and scary looking. That's ok.
5. Pour mixture into a greased baking dish. Refrigerate until fudge is set.
6. Once fudge is set, cut into one-inch squares.

Optional Step 7: Cut each one-inch square in half, forming a rectangle. Wrap each candy in a 3"x3" square of wax paper, as demonstrated below:

Makes about 20 one-inch squares, or 40 smaller rectangles.

Roasted Purple Cauliflower

2007-11-07T15:48:00.000-05:00

This is sort of a repeat post, because I used almost the same recipe as the golden cauliflower that I made a few weeks ago. However, I adapted it a little bit to suit the purple cauliflower, so I thought I'd show what I did. Changes are in italics.

Roasted Purple Cauliflower

INGREDIENTS:
3 large cloves of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons of red wine
1 medium sized head of purple cauliflower, separated into florets
1/2 tsp coarse sea salt (I used red sea salt this time)
1/4 tsp pepper
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
2. Place cauliflower florets in a large roasting or casserole dish. Add the garlic, olive oil, wine, salt, and pepper; toss thoroughly.
3. Bake for 25 minutes, stirring halfway through.
4. Remove from oven, top with Parmesan cheese. Stir, and serve.

Serves four.

Oven Sweet Potato Fries

2007-11-06T12:39:00.000-05:00

These are so yummy I almost can't believe they're the healthiest food ever! Sweet potatoes are SO good for you, and this is such a better way to prepare them than coating them with butter, sugar, or marshmallows. These make a great late-night snack, and they don't take very long to prepare at all. They look a little like carrot sticks when they're all cut up, but once they're cooked, their color and flavor get so much richer. Leave the skins on if you want less color, more fiber.

Oven Sweet Potato Fries

INGREDIENTS:
2 large sweet potatoes, peeled
1 tsp black coarse sea salt (you thought it was pepper, didn't you?)
1 tsp onion salt
1/2 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp garlic powder
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Slice sweet potatoes lengthwise into thin strips, and place on a baking sheet.
3. Sprinkle olive oil, sea salt, onion salt, paprika and garlic powder, and toss to coat thoroughly.
4. Bake for approximately 20 minutes, or until "fries" are soft and delicious.

Serves 4.

Sauteed Peppers over Parmesan Polenta

2007-11-03T15:48:00.000-04:00

I bought cornmeal a few days ago, attempting to try one of the amazing-looking cornbread recipes in Bon Appetit last month. In the interim, before I attempt it, I figured that polenta was an easy way to get my feet wet. And "easy" was a (mega)understatement! I'm definitely going to experiment with other flavors, because this was so yummy and simple.

Sauteed Peppers over Parmesan Polenta

INGREDIENTS:
2 green bell peppers
1 red bell pepper
1 small onion
2 cloves garlic
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp salt
1/2 cup vegetable stock (1 tsp vegetable bouillon dissolved in 1/2 cup water)
2 cups water
1/2 cup cornmeal
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS:
1. Slice peppers and onion into thin strips. Dice garlic.
2. In a medium saucepan, saute onion and garlic in olive oil until onion is translucent. Add peppers, salt and vegetable stock, and cook, covered, for about 15 minutes, stirring every minute or two.
3. Place cornmeal, water, salt and parmesan cheese in a small saucepan. Cook on medium heat until thickened, about 5 minutes.
4. Divide polenta into two bowls. Top with peppers and onions, and serve.

Serves 2.

Pasta di Verdure Autunno

2007-11-02T20:23:00.000-04:00

When you're training for a marathon, everyone wants to know what you're eating. All the time. And if, oh, say, you mention that you're training for a marathon on a vegetarian diet, they look at you as though you've just told them that you're going to live in Antarctica wearing nothing but socks. Sigh.

However, the New York City Marathon is about 37 hours away, and I am going to make everyone breathe a little easier by eating a big, big bowl of pasta. And I'm going to make myself happy by making up a cool Italian name for it. Of course, I don't actually speak Italian, so if the title of this dish means something other than "Autumn Vegetable Pasta," blame the google translator, not me.

Doesn't it look yummy though?

Pasta di Verdure Autunno

INGREDIENTS:
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 small white onion, diced
3 cloves garlic
28 ounce can whole peeled tomatoes with basil
1 tsp vegetable bouillon
8 ounces white mushrooms, sliced
3-4 stalks broccoli, cut into florets
2 tsp coarse sea salt
1/2 tsp pepper
2 tbsp parmesan cheese, plus extra for garnish
3/4 pound gemelli pasta

DIRECTIONS:
1. Place olive oil, onion and garlic into a medium or large saucepan, and saute on medium heat until onion slices are translucent.
2. Pour about half the tomato sauce from the can of tomatoes into the saucepan, and add all of the whole tomatoes. Break them into pieces with your fingers as you add them to the pan.
3. Add vegetable bouillon, mushrooms, broccoli, salt and pepper. Simmer for 30 minutes, add parmesan, and simmer for five more minutes.
4. While sauce is simmering, cook pasta according to package instructions (approximately 12-15 minutes). Remember to salt the water.
5. Drain pasta, divide into four bowls. Top with about 1 cup of sauce per bowl. Garnish with parmesan cheese if desired, and serve!

Serves 4.

Ginger Crepes with Pumpkin Filling

2007-11-02T08:50:00.000-04:00

We used to make crepes as a special treat in my french class when I was in elementary school. If a classroom full of 9-year-olds could make them successfully, I knew they were pretty foolproof. I think these would make a great brunch recipe -- don't fill the crepes too full, because a little of the pumpkin goes a long way.

The batter might look a little lumpy, but don't worry about it. Once they're cooked, the crepes turn out thin and beautiful!

Ginger Crepes with Pumpkin Filling

INGREDIENTS:

For Crepes:
2 eggs
1 cup skim milk
2/3 cup flour
1 teaspoon butter
1 tsp ground ginger

For Pumpkin Filling:
1 can pumpkin puree (15 ounces)
1/3 cup sugar
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1/3 cup skim milk

Cinnamon and sugar, to garnish

DIRECTIONS:
1. Whisk together eggs, milk, flour, ginger and butter. Refrigerate.
2. In a microwave-safe container, mix pumpkin, sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon and milk. Microwave for approximately 1 minute, until heated through, and stir.
3. Coat a skillet or small saute pan with cooking spray, and place on a burner over medium heat. Pour about 1/4 cup of crepe batter into the pan, tilting to coat the pan's surface. Cook 2 minutes, flip, and cook one or two more minutes.
4. Remove crepe from pan, place on a serving plate. Repeat step 3 with the remaining batter, making 6 crepes in total.
5. Put each crepe onto a plate. Fill the center of the crepe with the pumpkin mixture (a little less than 1/4 cup per crepe), and fold sides over.
6. Sprinkle crepes with cinnamon sugar, and serve.

Serves 6.

Mushroom Canapés

2007-11-01T10:20:00.000-04:00

Mushrooms are the craziest little things. In a package or loose, they seem so dry, but stick them in a saute pan for a few minutes and suddenly they're moist and delicious! The same thing happens when you chop them up in a food processor. I thought I would need to add more sour cream to bind the mushrooms together, but those crazy little mushrooms handled it on their own.

I could happily eat this on toasted french bread every single night. It would be delicious warm, too -- just assemble the canapés and toast them on a low setting for 5 minutes. YUM!

Mushroom Canapés

INGREDIENTS:

8 ounce box of cremini mushrooms (portabella or white mushrooms would also both work)

1 large clove of garlic

1 tablespoon fat free sour cream

2 tablespoons parmesan cheese, plus extra for garnish

1 tsp parsley, finely diced

1 teaspoon coarse sea salt

1/8 tsp black pepper

10 slices of portugese or french bread

DIRECTIONS:

1. Rinse mushrooms briefly under cold water to remove dirt.

2. Place mushrooms and garlic into a food processor, breaking any large mushroom in to pieces. Pulse until mushrooms are finely chopped.

3. Add sour cream, parsley, parmesan, salt and pepper. Process until blended.

4. Spoon mushroom mixture onto slices of bread. Garnish with extra parmesan cheese, and serve.

Serves 4.

Pumpkin Soufflé

2007-10-31T21:35:00.000-04:00

You couldn't imagine a lighter, more delicious fall dessert -- I'm quite proud of these. And I'm excited to keep experimenting with soufflés -- they're so beautiful, and now that I've gotten over the initial intimidation (all that egg-separating! all that whisking!), they're definitely going to become one of my go-to dishes!

A few pieces of advice: First, obviously, do NOT open the oven while the soufflés are baking. Use your oven light, or just trust the clock. If you open the oven, they won't rise, and you'll have airy little underbaked cakes. Not that that's a bad thing! But if you want soufflés, once you open the oven, they're done.

Second, some recipes call for baking soufflés in a water bath. I don't use them, because I don't think it's necessary and also because it's kind of dangerous to use all that hot water when I have dogs that love to get really close to the oven. So feel free to omit that step with my explicit approval. Finally, you could make one big soufflé with this dish too. Just cook it in a larger soufflé dish for an additional two minutes.

Also, I have to say, the portion size for these are small. You could easily double the recipe, use eight-ounce ramekins (instead of four ounce) and have a more satisfying portion. The cooking time can stay the same.

Pumpkin Soufflé

INGREDIENTS:
3/4 cups milk
Pinch of nutmeg
2 large egg yolks
1/2 cup sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/2 cup solid-pack canned pumpkin
4 egg whites
Extra sugar and butter for ramekins

PREPARATION:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Butter 6 4-ounce ramekins, and coat them with sugar.
3. Whisk together egg yolks, pumpkin and 1/4 cup sugar. Whisk in flour until thickened evenly.
4. In a saucepan, bring milk and nutmeg to scalding over medium heat (just until little bubbles form at the edges of the pan), remove from heat.
5. Pour milk into the yolk mixture and whisk until blended.
6. In a metal bowl, whisk egg whites until very foamy. Add 1/4 cup of sugar in a slow stream, whisking constantly. Beat until egg whites form soft peaks.
7. Pour half of the egg whites into the yolk mixture and stir. Pour the new yolk mixture into the remaining egg whites, and fold until blended.
8. Pour batter into ramekins, bake immediately for 12 minutes.

Serves 6.

Almost-Bruschetta

2007-10-25T21:09:00.000-04:00

I'm not sure you can call this bruschetta, since it doesn't have garlic or basil, but it's delicious. It's more of a warm tomato salad, on top of bread slices. Very tasty, and incredibly easy to make.

Almost-Bruschetta

INGREDIENTS:
8 plum tomatoes
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp coarse sea salt (I used pink sea salt, but plain is fine)
Pinch of pepper
12 sourdough bread slices, 1/2" thickness

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat broiler to 500 degrees.
2. Dice the tomatoes into small pieces.
3. In a small bowl, mix tomatoes, olive oil, vinegar, salt and pepper.
4. Top bread slices with about 2 tbsp tomato mixture per slice, and place on baking tray.
5. Broil for 5 minutes, or until tops of tomatoes are slightly charred. Serve.

Serves 3-4.

Broccoli in Oyster Sauce

2007-10-25T20:39:00.000-04:00

After visiting China this summer, the chinese food in New York tastes greasy and flavorless to me, so I'm trying to experiment a little on my own. This dish is really yummy, and actually tastes quite rich, considering there isn't even a teaspoon of butter or oil in the recipe. It only takes a few minutes to make, and it would be a great side to chicken or fish, or you could serve it over rice as a vegetarian main dish.

Broccoli in Oyster Sauce

INGREDIENTS:
3 cups of broccoli florets (or 4-6 small heads of broccoli, with the stems removed)
1 small white onion, sliced
2 tablespoons oyster sauce
2 tablespoons soy sauce

DIRECTIONS:
1. Coat a saute pan with cooking spray. Add broccoli, onions, oyster sauce, and soy sauce once pan is heated.
2. On medium-high heat, cook broccoli and onions, covered, for about 6-8 minutes, or until both are soft and have soaked up the sauce. Serve.

Serves 4.

Roasted Garlic Spread

2007-10-21T19:52:00.000-04:00

Why can't you order this as an appetizer in restaurants? It's so simple and delicious. And good for you! The only downside is that you will definitely have garlic oozing out of your pores the next day...

Roasted Garlic Spread

INGREDIENTS:
1 head of garlic
2 tsp extra virgin olive oil
Pinch of coarse sea salt
6-7 baguette slices

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Slice off the top of the garlic head, leaving each clove slightly exposed.
3. Drizzle garlic with 1 tsp olive oil, and sprinkle with salt.
4. Wrap garlic in tin foil, and roast for 35 minutes.
5. Remove garlic from oven, pick cloves out of their shells, and place them in a small bowl.
6. Mash cloves with a fork, and spread on baguette slices. Drizzle with olive oil, and serve.

Serves 2-3.

African Vegetable Curry

2007-10-21T15:51:00.000-04:00

I'm not a huge fan of curry in restaurants, mostly because it's either too spicy or too rich (or both). But I love this recipe -- it's incredibly healthy and very flavorful. You could use almost any vegetables in this recipe, but mine is based on my purchases at the farmer's market this morning! But you could also put in carrots, spinach, celery, or even cauliflower.

You could make this dish with or without the coconut milk -- without it, the recipe has much less fat, but it's still very tasty from all the spices. With it, it's rich and equally delicious. Also, I didn't use any cayenne pepper, but you could add a teaspoon (or more) if you like your curry spicy. As is, the recipe is very mild.

African Vegetable Curry

INGREDIENTS:
1 small eggplant, cubed
1 green bell pepper, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 white onion, diced
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
3 large cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons curry powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 teaspoons coarse sea salt
1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon ground cloves
1 bay leaf
1 19 ounce can garbanzo beans, drained
1 small zucchini, sliced
1/4 cup golden raisins
1 cup vegetable broth (can replace with chicken stock if desired)
1/2 of an 8 oz can coconut milk (if desired)

DIRECTIONS:
1. In a large saucepan or stock pot, place eggplant, peppers, onion, and one tablespoon olive oil. Saute over medium heat for 5 minutes, or until onions are translucent.
2. In a small saucepan place 1 tablespoon of olive oil, garlic, curry powder, cinnamon, cloves, cumin, and salt (and cayenne pepper, if desired) and saute over medium heat for about 2 minutes.
3. Pour spice mixture into the large pot with the vegetables. Add the chick peas, zucchini, raisins, bay leaf, and vegetable broth. Simmer 25-30 minutes, uncovered, until about half the liquid has reduced.
4. Remove from heat, remove the bay leaf, stir in the coconut milk, and serve.

Serves 4-6.

If you're curious, here's what it looks like without the coconut milk:

Oatmeal Currant Cookies

2007-10-20T14:46:00.000-04:00

This is a great variation on oatmeal raisin cookies. They're so soft that they literally fall apart if you try to eat them straight out of the oven -- that's my kind of cookie. If you want them crispier, just add two minutes to the baking time.

However, unless you have 10-20 hungry people sitting around to eat these, I would cut the recipe in half. It makes a LOT of cookies!

Oatmeal Currant Cookies

INGREDIENTS:
1 stick unsalted butter
1/2 cup brown sugar
3/4 cup white sugar
2 eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups rolled oats
1/2 cup dried black currants

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a large bowl, mix together the butter, brown sugar, white sugar, eggs, and vanilla until smooth.
3. Add the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt to the sugar mixture.
4. Stir in the oats and raisins. Drop onto cookie sheets coated with cooking spray.
5. Bake cookies for 8 minutes until golden around the edges. Let them cool for 2 minutes, then remove from cookie sheets to cool completely.

Makes approximately three dozen cookies.

If you weren't already psyched to make this recipe, here's what the batter looks like:

Braised Carnival Squash

2007-10-20T14:15:00.001-04:00

Personally, I think squash is best all by itself, just cooked plain and served -- it's naturally delicious. But since I had a second squash this week, I figured I would do something a little bit different.

I used a carnival squash, although you could substitute butternut with this recipe. The flesh of the squash was much heartier than acorn, almost more like potatoes. If you wanted, you could also puree this recipe with some chicken stock and have a yummy winter squash soup.

Braised Winter Squash

INGREDIENTS:
1 large carnival squash, or medium butternut squash
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 1/4 cup water
1/4 small red onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic, diced
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp coarse sea salt
Pinch of ground pepper

DIRECTIONS:
1. Cut squash in half, microwave in small bowl with 1/4 cup water for 3 minutes.*
2. Cube squash into 1" pieces, place in saute pan.
3. Add onion, garlic, paprika, salt and pepper. Pour in remaining cup of water.
4. Cook on medium-high until water has evaporated and squash is soft (about 10 min). If the water evaporates but the squash still isn't fully cooked, just add another 1/4 cup until it's done.
5. Remove from heat, let cool, and serve.

Serves 2-3

* Cutting squash has sent me to the emergency room once already. I refuse to let it happen again.

Sweet Dumpling Squash

2007-10-19T09:37:00.000-04:00

This is usually my recipe for acorn squash, but the farmer at the market on Sunday told me I could cook these the same way, and they would taste better. Who am I to argue with that? Sweet dumpling squash is a little milder than acorn, and I thought the flesh was a little heartier, but maybe I just haven't had fresh squash in a while!

I made mine in the microwave (I will do almost anything to avoid slicing up a raw squash), steamed with a little bit of water so it wouldn't dry out. But, you could also roast a pan of 4 of them if you wanted to use them for a bigger group.

Sweet Dumpling Squash

INGREDIENTS:

1 medium sized sweet dumpling (or acorn) squash

2 tbsp water

1 tbsp butter

1/4 tsp coarse sea salt

DIRECTIONS:

1. Poke squash 4 or 5 times with a chef's knife, creating 1" slits in the skin. Cut where you would slice off the top of the squash, but do not cut all the way through.

2. Microwave squash in a small bowl with 2 tbsp of water below it, for about 5 minutes.

3. Remove from microwave. Slice off the top of the squash, using the previous slits as guides. Remove the seeds and discard. Delicately scoop the squash away from the sides, mix with butter and salt, and serve.

Serves one.

Roasted Golden Cauliflower

2007-10-14T18:53:00.000-04:00

This was honestly amazing. Yellow cauliflower tastes almost the same as white cauliflower, but it looks incredibly striking (and it's higher in vitamin A!). Roasted, it's soft and full of flavor. I could eat this entire recipe myself, it's that good.

Roasted Golden Cauliflower

INGREDIENTS
3 large cloves of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon olive oil
3 tablespoons of white wine
1 medium sized head of yellow cauliflower, separated into florets
1/2 tsp coarse sea salt (I used pink sea salt this time)
1/4 tsp pepper
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
2. Place cauliflower florets in a large roasting or casserole dish. Add the garlic, olive oil, wine, salt, and pepper; toss thoroughly.
3. Bake for 25 minutes, stirring halfway through.
4. Remove from oven, top with Parmesan cheese. Stir, and serve.

Serves four.

Apple Carrot Salad

2007-10-14T18:31:00.000-04:00

I think serving carrots as ribbons is prettier than just chopping them up. It takes quite a while to make them with a vegetable peeler, but if you're using them in salads, there's no other way to go.

You could make this salad with a mayonnaise-based dressing, but I thought a tart dressing would be more appropriate for fall. This would be a good starter for a fall-themed dinner, or just a very healthy afternoon snack!

Apple Carrot Salad

INGREDIENTS:
1 large granny smith apple
2 peeled carrots
2 tablespoons lemon juice
2 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
1/4 tsp poppy seeds
1 tablespoon sugar

DIRECTIONS:
1. Using a vegetable peeler, peel carrots into ribbons in a large bowl.
2. Cut the apple into wedges and dice into 1/2"-3/4" pieces, and add to the carrots.
3. In a small dish, mix lemon juice, vinegar, poppy seeds, and sugar.
4. Pour dressing onto salad, toss. Season with salt as desired, and serve.

Serves four to six.

Farmer's Market

2007-10-14T18:22:00.000-04:00

This morning I dragged myself out of bed at 9 am to visit the 92nd street greenmarket, and it was totally worth it. Unlike the Union Square farmer's market, the smaller ones get cleaned out by mid-morning -- by 11 a.m., there's very little left. But, get there early and you can go home with...

Golden Raisin and Almond Biscotti

2007-10-13T19:39:00.000-04:00

I was never a big fan of biscotti until I made these. Freshly baked biscotti are about a million times better than those packaged versions you buy at Starbucks. As far as I can tell, the main differences between biscotti and regular cookies are 1) the fact that you use olive oil (not butter or shortening) as the wet ingredient, and 2) that you bake them twice at a much lower heat, as opposed to popping them in the oven for a few minutes at a high heat, like regular cookies. That means that making these is a 1.5 or 2 hour endeavor, but they're worth it.

These would be great drizzled with dark chocolate, if you want them a little sweeter!

Golden Raisin and Almond Biscotti

INGREDIENTS:
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, plus 1 tablespoon for the almonds
3/4 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 eggs
1 3/4 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup golden raisins
3/4 cup raw unsalted almonds

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.
2. Chop almonds into small pieces.

3. In a saute pan, on medium heat, toast almond pieces in one tablespoon of olive oil for approximately 3 minutes, like this:

4. In a large bowl, mix together oil and sugar. Mix in the vanilla and eggs.
5. Add 1 cup of flour, then salt, and baking powder, then final 3/4 flour.
6. Mix raisins and toasted nuts into batter.
7. Divide dough in half. Form two logs on a parchment-lined cookie sheet (Note: Wetting your hands helps make molding the dough easier).
8. Bake for 35 minutes, or until logs are slightly golden. Remove from oven, cool for 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 275 degrees.

9. Cut logs at a diagonal angle (approximately 30 degrees) into 3/4" thick slices, like this photo:

10. Lay on sides on parchment cookie sheet. Bake approximately 9 more minutes, cool, and serve.

Makes approximately two dozen biscotti.

Greek Salad

2007-10-13T19:03:00.000-04:00

To me, a greek salad done right is the epitome of healthy eating. And "done right" means no lettuce, no croutons. A greek salad shouldn't be some greek-inspired toppings added to a standard salad, it should be a totally different creation.

Greek Salad

INGREDIENTS:
5 medium or large plum tomatoes
2 cucumbers
1/2 small red onion
16 black olives, pitted and sliced
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese*
1/4 cup olive oil
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 tsp Coarse Sea Salt
1/8 tsp Pepper

DIRECTIONS:
1. Peel cucumbers in alternating strips at 1/2 inch intervals, leaving about half the peel intact, like this:
2. Dice tomatoes and cucumbers into 1/2" wedges.
3. Dice onion into 1/4" pieces.
3. In large bowl, combine tomatoes, cucumber, onion and olives. Toss with olive oil, lemon juice, and salt and pepper. Sprinkle feta cheese over salad, toss again lightly, and serve.

Yum!

Butternut Squash Toasts

2007-10-12T09:34:00.000-04:00

This should have been the first recipe I put up. Every single time I make it, someone asks me for the recipe. Which ends up being embarrassing, because I have to admit that it's basically the simplest, easiest thing in the world.

At the beginning of the summer, I was in the grocery store shopping for ingredients for a dinner party, and I realized that all I had as appetizers was cheese, bread, and nuts. I wanted something a little more special that required very little extra work. So, I thought I'd make an extra dip. And what better base to use than butternut squash? It's incredibly healthy, and one of my absolute favorite vegetables. The recipe has now evolved into a spead for appetizer toasts, but you could also serve the dip alone.

You could use fresh squash in this recipe, but it would be a huge hassle without much added benefit (plus, it would require a decent food processor, which I have but hate to use because it's a pain to clean). Frozen squash tastes great, and since it's frozen at the peak of freshness, it's often actually more nutritious than the fresh foods you buy in the grocery store, which may have been in transit for days or weeks. Unfortunately, frozen butternut squash is only available as a puree, so it's fine for soups and dips, but if you want roasted squash, you need to use fresh.

It's also fat free! So you don't even have to feel guilty if your guests go home and you polish off the leftovers...

Butternut Squash Toasts

INGREDIENTS:
4 multigrain rolls*
10 oz box of frozen butternut squash
1/2 cup fat free sour cream
1/2 tsp salt (use regular salt, not sea salt, for this recipe, otherwise it can be grainy)
Pinch of ground pepper
1-2 Radicchio leaves

DIRECTIONS:
1. Microwave squash for approximately 5 minutes, stirring once
2. Spoon squash into a mixing bowl, add sour cream, salt and pepper
3. Slice each roll into slices approximately 1/4" thich and toast on "light" setting (this should create about 20 slices)
4. Finely dice radicchio leaves as small as you can -- 1/8" at largest
5. Spread one heaping tablespoon of squash spread onto each toast, garnish with radicchio, and serve.

*You want the kind where you can see all the grains and seeds in the bread -- they're worth going to a bakery for if they're not available in your grocery store. But, if you don't feel like it, baguette slices would be fine too.

You could also serve just the squash portion as a stand-alone dip. It goes well with pretzels, bread slices, or carrots and sliced peppers.

Extra Healthy Spinach and Mushrooms

2007-10-11T09:42:00.000-04:00

Can you call it a saute if you don't use any oil? This dish is probably closer to steamed vegetables, although it's made without a steamer. This is a super low-calorie vegetable side dish that would work really well if you're serving a rich entree and want something really light to serve with it. Or you could mix this into risotto, or use it to top pasta with tomato sauce. Either way, it's definitely packed with vitamins and the parmesan adds a lot of flavor.

I "created" this recipe last night as I was about to eat some leftover spinach and mushroom salad, and I realized that raw spinach leaves are actually kind of gross as a salad base. Baby spinach is fine, and just as healthy, but regular spinach really needs to be wilted to taste any good. So I figured that rather than add dressing, I would just throw it in my saute pan. It was about a hundred times better.

Steamed Spinach and Mushrooms

INGREDIENTS:

1 10 oz bag spinach

8 oz mushrooms (1 box), sliced paper thin

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

1/4 cup water

Coarse sea salt

Additional parmesan, to garnish

DIRECTIONS:

1. Wash spinach. Rub mushrooms with a damp cloth to clean, immediately before using them.

2. Pour water into the bottom of a saucepan, add spinach, mushrooms, salt and parmesan (if the spinach doesn't fit into the pan, wait until some has wilted and put in the rest).
3. Let steam for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Remove from pan. Garnish with extra parmesan and serve.

Mushroom and Carmelized Onion Tart

2007-10-10T11:59:00.000-04:00

This is another deceptively easy recipe, and I love that it isn't quite as delicate looking as the Asparagus Tart. You can drop the goat cheese on top of the tart in clumps, or you could saute it in with the mushrooms and onions. Either way, the flavor is so intense it just bursts in your mouth.

Mushroom and Carmelized Onion Tart

INGREDIENTS:
Flour, for rolling the puff pastry
1 sheet frozen puff pastry
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cloves garlic, diced
2 large white onions, sliced into wedges
1 pound button mushrooms
Coarse sea salt
3 oz goat cheese (I used Chavrie Basil and Roasted Garlic Goat's Milk Cheese)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. On a floured surface, roll the puff pastry into a 16-by-10-inch rectangle. Trim uneven edges. and place the pastry onto a baking sheet.
3. Using a fork, prick the dough at 1/2-inch intervals. Do not prick the border of the dough, approximately 1" from the edges.
4. Pre-bake the crust for about 15 minutes.
5. While the crust is baking, heat a pan with about 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Saute onions and garlic on medium heat until translucent and browned, stirring every minute or so (about 25 minutes total). Add mushrooms and sea salt, saute an additional ten minutes, or until mushrooms have lost their raw quality.
6. Pour mushroom and onion mixture onto prebaked tart, and drop dollops of goat cheese at approximately 3 inch intervals.
7. Bake for an additional 10 minutes, allow to cool, and serve.

Paprika Crusted Cod

2007-10-10T11:25:00.000-04:00

I love cod. Some people say whitefish lacks flavor, and I think those people must have something wrong with their taste buds. Cod is a beautiful, delicate fish, and it works with almost any seasoning or preparation method. Case in point: Cod adapts beautifully to this healthy, light summer recipe, but fry it up and pair it with some french fries, and you have the British staple, fish and chips.

This is a great one-dish meal if you're having one or two people over -- just pair it with some toasted baguette slices, and you're ready to go.

Paprika Crusted Cod

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 lb cod filet
2 tbsp parmesan cheese
1 tsp paprika
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1/2 lb sliced button mushrooms
1 zucchini, sliced
1 can whole peeled tomatoes (15 oz), drained
2 cloves garlic
Coarse sea salt

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Place the cod filet in the dish, surrounded by the squash, mushrooms, garlic and tomatoes. Break the tomatoes into pieces with your hands and discard some of the juice.
3. Drizzle with olive oil and salt, toss to coat evenly.
4. Sprinkle the parmesan cheese and paprika on the cod.
5. Tent the dish with tin foil, and bake for 30-35 minutes or until fish is opaque and flakes easily with a fork.

Asparagus Gruyere Tart

2007-10-10T10:43:00.000-04:00

This is such a beautiful recipe. And delicious, too! Blanching the asparagus is important, because you don't want the edges of the tart to burn in order to get the asparagus fully cooked!

Also, an easy trick to grate cheese (particularly hard cheese like parmesan and gruyere) is to use your zester. When I was growing up, my mother had an larger cheese grater that she used to use, but the zester works just as well. If you keep rubbing back and forth without breaking contact with the cheese, you end up with beautiful long ribbons of gruyere. In this recipe, that didn't matter too much, but if you were using it to top a salad, it would be really lovely.

Finally, a word of wisdom: This recipe calls for puff pastry. That's not the same thing as phyllo dough. Phyllo dough is impossible to work with, has to be defrosted overnight before you even touch it, and requires a lot of extra egg/butter/olive oil to bind the sheets together. Puff pastry, on the other hand, can be bought pre-made in the grocery store (I used Pepperidge Farm), defrosted at room temperature for 45 minutes, and then rolled into the appropriate size. It's incredible easy. Some of you might be wondering if *I* might have accidentally bought phyllo dough the first time I tried to make this recipe. I'm going to plead the fifth...

Asparagus Gruyere Tart

INGREDIENTS:
Flour, for rolling the puff pastry
1 sheet frozen puff pastry
2 cups Gruyere cheese, shredded
1 pound asparagus
Coarse sea salt

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. On a floured surface, roll the puff pastry into a 16-by-10-inch rectangle. Trim uneven edges. and place the pastry onto a baking sheet.

3. Using a fork, prick the dough at 1/2-inch intervals. Do not prick the border of the dough, approximately 1" from the edges.

4. Pre-bake the crust for about 15 minutes.

5. While the crust is baking, bring a put of water to a boil. Blanche the asparagus for 3-4 minutes, until it has turned bright green but has not cooked all the way through. Trim the bottoms of the asparagus (they should snap off in your hands when bent).
6. Remove pastry shell from oven, and sprinkle with Gruyere. Arrange the asparagus over the Gruyere, alternating ends and tips. Sprinkle with sea salt.

7. Bake for an additional 20 minutes, allow to cool, and serve.

I should note that this is a very slightly adapted version of a Martha Stewart recipe that appears in her book, Everyday Food.

Chicpkea Salad

2007-10-10T09:35:00.000-04:00

A creation all my own! This is almost too easy to make, and since the main ingredient is chickpeas, it's both vegetarian and very inexpensive! It looks so pretty though, and it's so simple to throw together. A great addition to any summer dinner. You could garnish it with parmesan cheese or a drizzle of olive oil -- I just left it plain.

Chickpea Salad

INGREDIENTS
1 can chickpeas (15 ounces), drained
2 plum tomatoes, cut into sections
1/2 green pepper, diced
1/2 tsp coarse sea salt
1/4 tsp paprika
2 tbsp lemon juice
2 tbsp olive oil

DIRECTIONS
Mix all ingredients in a medium bowl. Garnish and serve.

Presentation

2007-10-09T16:29:00.000-04:00

Yes, I will admit that cooking for me has not always meant visiting farmer's markets or making multiple course meals from scratch. In fact, there was a not-so-far-off time when I was quite please to have people over for (gasp!) desserts from packaged mixes! But I do want to write a quick note to mention an important rule of thumb:

Just because something is easy to make, does not mean it can't look elegant.

Case(s) in point:

"Recipe" One.
First, this is a picture of a Peppermint Brownie "Recipe" that I made a year ago. Yes, I used boxed brownie mix. But I baked a crust of peppermint sticks (from real candy canes, crushed into pieces) onto the top, and suddenly they look interesting.

"Recipe" Two.
Buy a bundt cake pan. Below is *literally* nothing more than regular yellow cake from a box, and look how beautiful it is? I bought a bundt cake pan, and a cupcake pan, both from Williams Sonoma, for about $10 each on sale. That $10 has saved me SO much hassle in prepping for parties. Cupcakes are great, but rose-shaped cupcakes? Suddenly you have something beautiful to serve for no added effort.

Snickerdoodles

2007-10-09T16:05:00.000-04:00

These are my boyfriend's *favorites.* I have probably made them two dozen times. Snickerdoodles are basically just sugar cookies with a cinnamon and sugar topping, so it's a great sugar cookie recipe too. The only "trick" I can think of is to use a small tupperware bowl to dust the cookies with cinnamon and sugar. Rather than just sprinkling it on top, roll the cookies into balls and roll them in the cinnamon/sugar mixture, and then sprinkle some more on top. That way the cinnamon flavor permeates the whole cookie.

Snickerdoodles

INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1/2 cup shortening
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla
2 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt

Additional white sugar and cinnamon for topping

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
2. Mix together the butter, Crisco, 1 1/2 cups sugar, eggs and the vanilla. Blend in the flour, lemon juice, baking soda and salt. Shape dough by rounded spoonfuls into balls.
3. Mix the sugar and cinnamon for the topping in a separate small bowl. Roll balls of dough in the mixture.
4. Coat a baking sheet with cooking spray, and place the balls about two inches apart. Sprinkle with additional cinnamon and sugar mixture.
4. Bake for 8 minutes. Let them cook for one minute on the baking sheet, and then transfer to tin foil to cool completely.

Adapted from a recipe at allrecipes.com.

Saffron-Buttered Toast

2007-10-08T15:56:00.000-04:00

I bought saffron a month or two ago for a paella recipe that I never ended up trying (for lack of a paella pan, *whoops*). But I figured that I'd have other uses for it -- this is my first attempt. I don't cook with butter usually, but I really like spreading it on bread, and flavored butter especially. So I thought this was a perfect match. Putting saffron in anything makes me feel kind of decadent -- I can almost imagine Donald Trump eating this for breakfast, with a fork made of diamonds...

Saffron-Buttered Toast

INGREDIENTS:

6-8 slices of italian bread

1/2 cup butter, softened

1 generous pinch of saffron

DIRECTIONS:

1. In a small bowl, blend together saffron and butter (if you use unsalted butter, add a pinch of salt at this step).

2. Spread butter generously on slices of bread.

3. Toast on low heat in a toaster oven, or broil for 3-5 minutes.

Serves four.

Pita Paninis

2007-10-05T10:05:00.000-04:00

Combine goat cheese, mushrooms, tomatoes, onions, olive oil and bread, and what do you get? A really delicious dinner. I used whole wheat pitas, but you could make this sandwich on a thick sourdough bread for a traditional panini, or on plain or flavored flatbread. Serve it with a salad or soup, and you have a light, healthy, vegetarian meal.

You could make this with brie cheese, too, just toast them a little longer on the cheese-side of the sandwich.

Pita Paninis

INGREDIENTS:

2 whole wheat Pitas, cut in half and sliced open

6-8 large button mushrooms

1 small or medium onion

1 tbsp olive oil

2 vine-ripened tomatoes (use plum tomatoes if you can't find them)

4 oz goat cheese

DIRECTIONS:

1. Cut mushrooms and tomatoes into thin slices; cut onion in half and then slice it.

2. Saute mushrooms and onion in 1 tbsp olive oil for about 5 minutes on medium-high heat, or until onion slices are translucent. Add tomato slices and sautee for an additional 2 minutes.

3. Spread goat cheese on 4 of the pita slices. Spoon vegetable mixture over the cheese, and top with remaining pita halves.

4. Wipe down the saute pan with a paper towel. Coat with cooking spray, and place two of the sandwiches into the pan, using a spatula. Heat for 3-5 minutes, and flip. Repeat for the two remaining sandwiches.

Serves four.

Raspberry Squares

2007-10-03T15:20:00.000-04:00

These were actually a little tricky for me, but they taste amazing. As my sister exclaimed after she ate one, "the crust tastes salty!" That 1/2 teaspoon goes a long way, but they're delicious.
I actually had to make the crust twice when I tried this originally, because I didn't read the recipe and tried to press it into the baking dish before adding the milk and eggs. Needless to say, that didn't work very well (flour + butter = lumpy mess before you add something to bind it together). Also, to "cut in" the butter, I literally pinched off pieces of butter from a stick until it was fully added. Yum.

Raspberry Squares

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup butter
1 egg, beaten
1 tablespoon milk
3/4 cup raspberry jam

1 cup sugar
1/4 cup butter
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups flaked coconut

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Stir together the flour, baking powder and salt. Cut in the butter until the lumps are smaller than peas. Mix in the egg and milk to form a dough.

3. Coat a 9x13 inch glass baking dish with cooking spray, and press the dough into the bottom. Spread a layer of jam over the crust.

4. In another bowl, cream together the sugar and remaining butter. Beat in the egg and vanilla then stir in the coconut. Spread evenly over the layer of jam.
3. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes in the preheated oven, or until top is lightly browned. Cool before cutting into squares.

This recipe is adapted from a version I looked at on allrecipes.com.

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies

2007-10-01T15:05:00.000-04:00

I made these cookies for my birthday party last summer, when I hadn't really mastered cooking, but was a great baker (I'm still trying to remember the hybrid oreo sugar cookie recipe I mastered when I was eleven). This isn't my recipe -- I found it on allrecipes.com -- but it is my photograph. These cookies are delicious. Very thin and crispy, and not too sweet but very rich. If you're a serious chocolate person, give these a try.

One quick note: Hardly any single person owns one of those big electronic mixers. That can make baking really difficult, since it's nearly impossible to cream butter and sugar together with a spoon. My solution: wash your hands really, really well, and dig them right in there. A minute or two of kneading the sugar/butter mixture with your fingers will bind it perfectly. And then don't tell anyone that's how you did it!

Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies

INGREDIENTS:
1 cup butter, softened
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
2/3 cup cocoa powder
3/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups semisweet chocolate chips

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. In large bowl, beat butter, sugar, eggs, and vanilla. Combine the flour, cocoa, baking soda, and salt; stir into the butter mixture until well blended. Mix in the chocolate chips. Drop by rounded teaspoonfuls onto ungreased cookie sheets.
3. Bake for 8 minutes in the preheated oven, or just until set. Cool for one minute on the cookie sheets before removing to cool completely.