Spoonful

Something different: fashion and cocktails

2011-07-24T22:08:00.000-04:00

This summer has been fast-paced and exciting. In addition to my photography work (which I am still enjoying immensely) my husband and I have been involved with Everything But Water, the largest independent retailer of swim and resortwear in the US. My husband is the Chairman of the company. I am currently acting as Head of Marketing, in addition to my career in photography (yes- it's been quite a year, but all good!).

I have been particularly involved in re-launching the company's brand and developing new content areas. One of my favorite aspects of this is the style section of the website that features our lookbooks, fashion inspiration/trends and great videos from our fashion shoots.

This week's style story is about some our favorite summer looks, perfect for the pool party, getaway and beyond and custom cocktail pairings that Paul Lowe developed exclusively for us.

I'm teasing you with a little snippet - if you are intrigued, hop on over here to read the full story ...

... including the recipes.

While you are there, if you find anything tempting, we're offering a special discount for blog readers, but only for this week (until end of day Friday). Shipping is free. See what tempts you. If you are not in the market for swimwear, check out the gorgeous jewelry, great hats, and fab totes in the accessories section.

Yes - this isn't exactly one of my typical posts - but I did shoot the drinks in this story - and this has been a recent passion of mine, so I thought I'd share.

p.s. You can also follow along on Facebook.

For Sudy

2011-03-16T20:58:00.005-04:00

I certainly don't want to ignore the fact that our friends in Japan are suffering from a horrible environmental disaster and a looming nuclear emergency. It's something that's very much on my mind as I know it is on yours. I hope and pray for the earthquake / tsunami survivors and for those who have lost or are missing a loved one.

I want, however, to focus this post on a very personal tragedy in my own family. While I don't often share personal facts on this blog, it seems somehow impossible to move forward without sharing, the form of a tribute, what happened in our family a few weeks ago.

On February 19th, my mother-in-law, Sudy Reinauer Zane, passed away suddenly. She was a beautiful, loving, vivacious women full of spunk, spirit and adventure. She was game for anything. Death always comes as a shock, but this was beyond shocking. It was without notice. She was healthy and fit with no near-term health issues to worry about. She had more energy than most people I know. She looked and acted many years younger than her already young self. We were not able to say goodbye.

She had so many friends and family who loved her dearly. She was one of those people you could say anything to and you felt like you knew her right away. She could put a roomful of people at ease. She loved children and my son was her special first grand child by blood.

We feel her absence every hour. I know at some point our feelings will turn from shock and grief to fond memories. Right now, however, we are still going over the details in our heads and still in disbelief that we have lost her. She was going to be a great presence in our son's life for sure, and we are equally sad for him that he will not have her with him as he grows up.

It had been an unusually long period of time since we'd seen her (several months). She had scheduled a trip to visit us that would have occurred about a week after she passed away. The last time we saw her, it was for a long weekend in December. In hindsight, it seems so sadly too short.

The last evening she was here, we cooked a big meal in. Something we don't do that often but we somehow decided to. Sudy's husband, Alan, offered to make his famous potato latkes. I decided to make a rack of veal and vegetables to go with them. I remember deciding last minute to run out to Eataly to pick up their wonderful organic, milk-fed, Amish veal. It was a bit of an extravagance but it seemed like an apt occasion. Sudy loved the veal so much she decided to make it for a New Year's dinner she would later host for friends.

Food was something we shared an interest in and talked about often. She commented frequently on this blog and often used the recipes. She's call from some far-off supermarket to get clarification on ingredients or approach. I was always flattered that she liked my recipes and trusted my advice. In turn, she taught me a lot about Southern cooking. She was always interested when I expressed an interest in an authentic dish. I would often get inspired to make a dish I learned about when visiting her and would need her to mail me a critical ingredient that could not be sourced up North. She always obliged, sending me spices or Sorghum or whatever my whimsy required. She also was an amazing salad-maker and spoiled us with her finely-chopped, chock-full salad creations which usually involved lots of craisins and some finely shaved cheese. She always indulged our salad requests: she even once brought produce in her handbag on the plane.

Her New Year's dinner was a typical collaboration. We talked about veal preparation, cooking time, and temperature readings. I suggested she make a verjus-based sauce that I had photographed for the New York Times and she trusted my recommendation even though she had not had the sauce or even heard of verjus (nor had I prior to my shoot). In typical fashion she enthusiastically ran around until she found a bottle of verjus in Houston. She was so excited to make her meal, and I was proud that she took my recommendation.

On New Year's Eve I couldn't help but call to see how it went. They just finished dinner and apparently everyone raved and she was thrilled. Honestly, even if it had been a flop she probably would have reassured me that everything had gone as prescribed.

I cannot describe how much I am going to miss everything about her: from all of the little back and forths we had during a week, to the support and encouragement she gave me in my career and as a new mom, to all of the love I know she would have bestowed upon our son. I hope she knows how much we love her and how much we wish she were still here.

Rack of veal

1 rack of veal or number of ribs desired (un-separated)
Salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 300 degrees F. Very generously season veal with sea salt and freshly ground pepper. Cook for approximately 3 hours (start checking a bit before) until the internal temperature reaches 155 and eventually rises to 160 out of the oven.

Verjus sauce

1 cup chicken stock
5 Tbs verjus (I like Roland)
2 Tbs fresh thyme
2 Tbs dijon mustard

Follow this recipe from the New York Times, starting when with the pan drippings from the veal when cooking is complete, adding the verjus, chicken stock, thyme and mustard as directed. For more information on verjus, please see here.

Tomato couscous

2 cups tomato couscous
2 cups chicken stock plus a little extra
3/4 cup craisins
1/2 cup sliced almonds
Salt and pepper
Olive oil

Combine tomato couscous, chicken stock 1/4 tsp salt, craisins and almonds in the bowl of a rice cooker. Swirl to combine. Add a splash of olive oil. Cook on the regular cycle until done. Fluff with a fork and allow to sit for 5-10 minutes on the keep warm cycle. Adjust seasonings to taste.

Snow and gelato

2011-02-08T17:26:00.002-05:00

We have been literally burried in snow in New York. Well, truthfully, some snow and then a whole lot of slush. I've been wearing boots every day to wade through the water that collects at the street corners. Nothing like what my mom has been experiencing in Boston, however. They have many feet of snow and have had intermitent power and lots of wet, heavy snow to shovel. I am still inspired by winter whites. Despite the inconvenience, the snow is so pretty when it first hits. Waking up to white and quiet is lovely and it makes me want to be in the woods.

Chilly weather doesn't demand cold foods but I enjoy using my gelato maker and perfecting my mixes. I love how forgiving gelato is: you can play with the milk to cream ratio according to your preferences and seem to end up with something wonderful no matter what happens. Gelato sometimes has egg, but I have found it to be unnecessary.

Stracciatella has always been my favorite flavor. It's so pure and you can really appreciate the quality of the ingredients. As such, I stick to fresh farmer's milk, plump vanilla pods and organic raw cane sugar. My only regret is that the capacity of my gelato maker is not very high - but that keeps me making it fresh and also probably helps control the urge to devour a huge batch in one sitting.

Stracciatella gelato
(adjust quantity according to the capacity of your maker)

2 cups good heavy cream
1.5 cups good whole milk
1 vanilla pod, split, seeds scraped
scant 1 1/3 cup organic raw cane sugar
1/3 cup chopped dark chocolate

Combine milk, cream, sugar, and vanilla seeds and pod in a heavy sauce pan and heat gently until sugar dissolves completely. Allow mixture to cool to room texture. Remove vanilla pod and refrigerate mixture until well chilled. Pour into gelato maker and operate according to manufacturer's instructions. During the last five minutes of the cycle, add chopped chocolate and allow to distribute throughout. Put in a freezer-safe container and press a layer of freezer or parchment paper on top of mixture before you seal the container lid. Freeze several hours or overnight.

p.s. what does the chili have to do with all of this? nothing!

Pears, Peter, White

2011-01-24T15:43:00.003-05:00

Peter (AKA Mr. Souvlaki for the Soul) is my flickr/blogging/photographer friend. We met in a flickr photography group years ago and have been chatting over email ever since. He's in Australia, I'm in NY, and neither of us ever had occasion to be in the same part of the world until recently. Despite this, we've had a regular, lovely dialogue over email for years, chatting about blogging, photography, seeking advice on client challenges, photography equipment and of course, gossiping and talking about nothing at all. Even though we never met in person, I felt a real friendship with him. When my son was born, he sent a beautiful baby blanket from Donna Hay's store, knowing what a huge fan of her I am. It was very touching to say the least. A few months ago his "day job" took him to New York. I've never had the experience of having a virtual friend become an in-person one and it could have been incredibly strange to meet face-to-face. But it wasn't - in fact - it was comforting to see that he's exactly the same person live as on email - and exactly who I expected him to be.

Fortunately he's been in town twice since and we've been able to have short visits each time. It's been fun getting to know him better. He does different work than I do, with a different approach and it's been nice learning from each other. I don't know that many photographers, and it's always wonderful to spend time with someone who shares the same passion.

Just after Christmas, Peter was in town and brought gifts not only for me, but also for my husband and son - so sweet. Mine was a copy of Donna Hay's latest. I could not wait to get my hands on it! There are so many simple, great recipes in there that I didn't know where to start. The poached pears grabbed me because they are winter-inspired and also because they are not poached in the typical wine, but rather in a vanilla syrup which preserves their color and makes them a beautiful white-on-white which is always such a nice, graphical aesthetic, isn't it. In fact, maybe it's because the cityscape is a snowy one but I've been loving all things white on white lately. It's soft and comforting, isn't it?

Thanks, Peter, for the book - I am really going to enjoy it!

Poached Pears ("Vanilla Pears") from Donna Hay's Fast Fresh Simple
(serves 4)

2 cups water
1 cup caster (superfine) sugar
1 vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped
4 firm brown pears, peeled, halved and cored
Vanilla ice cream or whipped cream to serve

Place the water, sugar and vanilla bean and seeds in a deep frying pan over medium-high heat and bring to boil. Add pears and simmer for 3 minutes each side or until just tender. Serve with some of the poaching syrup and vanilla ice cream/whipped cream.

In love with sprouts

2011-01-14T16:48:00.002-05:00

I love Brussels sprouts. We've been eating Brussels sprouts in abundance this winter. I have a few recipes that I love: this one using just the leaves is wonderful. I also love shredding them in the Cuisinart, sautéing them quickly in olive oil and garlic, removing them from the heat, squeezing half a lime on them and shaving Parmesan on the top. Just thinking about it makes me hungry!

The fastest, simplest way to prepare them is to trim the brown ends off, cut them in half and then saute them in a cat-iron skillet to really get them to develop wonderful color and flavor. I like to render some thick-cut slab bacon in the pan first to add flavor and kick it up with some crushed red pepper. Last weekend, I made them for my sister-in-law, who is not a huge fan of greens - I think they passed the test.

My camera is having some problems and is in the shop. I feel completely naked without it and rented a replacement until my baby is fixed. I decided to treat myself and rent a better camera than my usual one: this is so much fun! Can you notice a difference? I feel like I can, but maybe it's just my imagination! I'm looking forward to wandering around snowy New York this weekend and clicking away. It's all mine until Monday morning!

Brussels sprouts with slab bacon

1 lb Brussels sprouts, brown end trimmed, sliced in half

1 thick slice slab bacon, cubed

1 Tbs olive oil (chili-infused if you want extra flavor)

1/4 tsp crushed red pepper

Sea salt

Heat oil in a cast-iron skillet over medium-low heat. Sauté bacon until fat renders. Add sprouts, toss them to ensure they are well coated in the bacon fat and oil, season very generously with salt and sauté (turning them only occasionally so they brown nicely), until fork-tender. If they brown more than you would like before tender, simply add a few Tbs of water or chicken stock, cover and allow to steam until tender. Enjoy!

By the way, I couldn't resist picking up persimmons in the store today. I am really not sure what to do with them, although my first thought was jam? What would you do?

Happy new year!

2010-12-31T23:07:00.002-05:00

May 2011 bring all the best to you and your family. Thanks for reading this year.

Best,
Sabra

Custom holiday cards!

2010-12-14T21:06:00.003-05:00

card front

Doing some major holiday card procrastinating? I have the answer for you: custom holiday cards from SABRA KROCK photography! Package of 25, professionally-printed 4x5x5 folded cards with text as shown or custom text, $52. Front image features a white branch with paper snowflakes cut from a vintage encyclopedia (no two flakes are alike!). 25 plain white envelopes included. Packet will arrive tied with a red ribbon. Nice holiday stocking stuffer too! Cards suitable for the year-end holidays, New Years or general greetings. Please allow 5 days to ship. (note: SK photography watermark will not be present on printed cards).

inside, right

Please email me if interested!

Apples, light and sweet

2010-12-06T13:18:00.001-05:00

I shot this as part of a puff pastry and phyllo dough story. This is such a delicious, easy apple dumpling that you can bake while you are having dinner and have it fresh and hot for dessert. Or, if you are feeling particularly decadent, have it for breakfast with some hot coffee or tea - it would be a wonderful weekend treat.

Apple dumpling

(makes 6-8 pieces)

Packaged phyllo dough, defrosted

1 red delicious apple, cut into small dice (remove skin if desired)

1 tablespoon granulated sugar, plus extra for dusting

½ - 1 teaspoon cinnamon as desired

¼ cup chopped walnuts

Sanding sugar

Butter for brushing

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Combine apple, sugar, cinnamon and nuts. Lay phyllo sheet on counter, short side facing you. Brush with butter and dust lightly with granulated sugar. Place ½ apple mixture on phyllo about 2 inches from edge closest to you. Spread evenly across dough leaving 1 inch on both sides. Fold sides of dough in over mixture and roll dough away from you creating cigar-like roll filled with dough. Do not roll too tightly or dough will tear. Place seam-side down on a non-stick baking sheet, brush with butter and sprinkle with sanding sugar. Repeat with remaining filling.

Bake for 10-15 minutes or until phyllo dough is golden. Allow to cool slightly and then cut rolls into slices of desired length.

Tips

Don’t freeze your dough for too long: pay attention to expiration dates
Plan ahead: phyllo dough needs to defrost in the refrigerator for 8 hours to overnight depending on manufacturer’s instructions
Work quickly once dough has defrosted: phyllo dough will begin to dry out instantly: have your ingredients ready to assemble and keep a damp cloth over phyllo dough while working
Brushing pastry with butter or egg wash before putting it in the oven will help to brown the top and lend a sheen to the pastry. Sprinkling with a course (sanding) sugar will add some shine and sweetness to a sweet dish

Pizza for lunch (with spicy chili oil!)

2010-11-28T10:23:00.000-05:00

Is everyone in as big of a tryptophan coma as I am? Pfew - that was a lot of turkey - and leftovers. It was a great holiday (my favorite). Hope you enjoyed yours too. I thought I'd provide a little inspiration to move back into the kitchen with something simple, and not about turkey leftovers: homemade pizza. Have you ever made pizza at home? The trick is buying the dough - it makes cooking a snap. Whole foods sells a wonderful refrigerated dough that comes in several varieties including multi-grain. Unlike the others doughs you find in the market, this one doesn't need to be defrosted - it's fresh and ready to go. Your local pizza store will probably sell you dough - and if they're nice, they'll even sell you one of their rolled out doughs which will save you even more time. Top with some roasted garlic, fresh ricotta, a sprinkling of shredded mozzarella, some fresh grated Parmesan, some fresh shredded basil leaves and tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, and bake at 450 degrees F on a hot pizza stone or the back of a cookie sheet for to minutes until crust is golden and cheese is bubbling. There are a couple of tricks: 1) once you roll out your dough, allow it to sit for 10 minutes sot that it settles and won't bounce back. 2) Pull it out or press it out with your fingers to stretch it back out if it shrinks back after your initial shaping. 3) Do this on parchment paper so that you just slide it into the oven when you are ready and 4) heat your stone for 30-60 minutes before you are going to use it - this will ensure the crust crisps nicely.

And what better to season your pizza than some spicy chili oil? Heat olive oil (needn't be your best) in a pan with dried chilis, allow to cool, and then pour into sterilized jars. It will get better the longer you let it sit. This would make a nice little homemade holiday gift for someone who loves to kick it up a notch.

Happy Thanksgiving!

2010-11-24T16:06:00.000-05:00

I've been cooking all day. Bet you have too! So far, I've made Gourmet's cranberry grappa mould, a pumpkin pie, verjuice dessert bars, made stracciatella gelato, four cranberry-pumpkin loaves (for breakfast the next day - to give to my guests in take-home bags), brined the turkey, prepared the brussels sprouts, sauteed apples for apple crisp and shopped for everything else that's getting prepared tomorrow! Pfew! I was lucky to have my sister-in-law chopping and stirring today, and then my mom arrived and immediately started cooking a stock to be used for the gravy tomorrow (gravy's her specialty). My aunt is uptown in another kitchen cooking sides.

Tomorrow I have potato and onion cakes to make, brussels sprouts, and the turkey, of course. I'll bake the topping on the crisp right before dessert. Looking forward to it all!

My pumpkin pie go-to recipe appeared on realsimple.com today. If you are a last-minute baker, hop on over and check it out.

Happy Thanksgiving!

A date with some cows and a romp in the woods (oh - and apple crisp)

2010-11-20T19:45:00.000-05:00

A couple of weeks ago after a somewhat difficult week, my husband and I decided to treat ourselves with a mid-week drive up to the Hudson river valley for a long walk with our dog and a visit to a local orchard to pick apples. Apple picking is one of my favorite Fall treats and we were just in time to catch the very end of the season and the last of the beautiful Fall foliage. I looked up an orchard I hadn't been to before and we decided to make it the last stop on our drive.

About an hour out of the city the drive becomes beautiful. Toward the end, we pass scenic horse farms and grazing dairy cows. The area is woodsy and the trees are old and majestic. Fall is a wonderful time to visit: the leaves paint the woods a fire-y orange and at high points, the fallen leaves allow for peppered views to the Catskills in the distance.

There's always somewhere fun to stop for lunch. We usually seek out a wholesome sandwich shop and a local coffee shop that takes its individuality (but not much else) seriously. This time, we stopped in Rhinebeck and remembered how much we like the town.

We followed directions to the orchard and were surprised when we found an empty parking lot and happy to smell apple pie wafting out of a barn-like structure in the distance. As we approached we were greeted and told that we had come to the "offices" and that pick your own was several towns away - too far away to enable is to make it back to the city in time for our commitments.

Needless to say I was very disappointed. It was my first and last chance at apples picked (myself) from a tree for the season. I sadly vowed to continue on with at least some of the lofty plans I had for my pick-your-own bounty. Buying apples at the farmer's market is not nearly as personally satisfying - but at least I know that someone else picked them for market from exactly the same area.

This crumble is so delish, it will take the sting out of whatever disappointment you might be facing ...

Apple crumble (serves 4) (adapted from delicious magazine)

5 granny smith apples, peeled, cored and cut into thin wedges
4 Tbs unsalted butter, chopped
1/4 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 cinnamon stick
1 vanilla bean, split and seeded

Crumble

1/3 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1 tsp baking powder
3/4 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup plain flour
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/3 cup sliced almonds
6 Tbs chilled unsalted butter, cubed
pinch salt
confectioner's sugar for dusting, if desired

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Melt butter and brown sugar in a pan over low heat until sugar is dissolved. Stir in apple slices, cinnamon stick, vanilla bean pod and seeds. Partially cover and cook, stirring occasionally until apples are fork-tender. Discard vanilla pod and cinnamon stick. Divide apples among four oven-proof bowls.

With your fingers, combine crumble ingredients, rubbing butter into other ingredients until it is evenly distributed and creates pea-sized crumbs. Distribute crumble over bowls. Drizzle with some of the cooking liquid and bake for 8-10 minutes until crumble is golden and apples are bubbling. Dust with confectioner's sugar if desired.

Cranberries!

2010-11-14T12:00:00.003-05:00

The holiday edition of Sweet Paul Magazine is out now. There's so much fun stuff in there, I can't wait to spend some time with it to see what everyone else has contributed (btw: check out Paul's very clever pendant lamp - I am in love with it). My piece is on cranberries and begins on page 104. Paul wrote the cake recipes and I wrote the sugared cranberry recipe.

I adore cranberries and love this time of year when they are available fresh. This year, try dressing your turkey with a raw cranberry "sauce" versus the traditional kind - you will be surprised about how crunch, fresh and flavorful cranberries can be. Paul's version is in the article, and another great, savory one to try from an old post on this blog can be seen here.

Have you ever tried sugared cranberries? They are a delight to the eyes (the perfect decoration for a cranberry mould or a cheese plate) and a surprise to the tongue - they become completely crunchy like a hard candy. They are a cinch to make - just have them ready no more than a day ahead. Humidity is not their friend. Enjoy!

Sugared cranberries

2 cups sugar

2 cups water

2 cups fresh cranberries, rinsed, patted dry and picked over

1 cup+ medium-grained sugar for dusting

Create simple syrup by heating 2 cups sugar with 2 cups water until sugar is completely dissolved. Allow mixture to cool off-heat for a few minutes so that cranberries won’t pop when simple syrup is poured over them. Put cranberries in a large heat-proof bowl and pout simple syrup over them. Allow to cool completely, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

Drain liquid from cranberries. Roll cranberries in sugar (note: one simple way to do this is to pour sugar onto a baking sheet and place a handful of cranberries on sheet and move back and forth to coat. If sugar clumps replace with fresh sugar. Repeat handful by handful until all cranberries are coated. Spread coated cranberries onto two baking sheets and allow to dry for a couple of hours. Sugar will dry and cranberries will turn into a crispy candy.

Best used same day

Babies!

2010-11-06T16:25:00.000-04:00

One of the reasons that I changed the name of my blog was to have a forum for sharing not only my food/still life work and ideas but also my portrait photography work. I've been photographing more and more children/families and have had such a great experience sharing a moment with some wonderful clients.

When you do portrait work, you really develop a relationship of sorts with your subjects (albeit a very short one). There's the hours involved in the sitting where you have an opportunity to talk to and get to know them, and then so many hours involved in processing the images and turning them into family memories and display pieces. I love that the moments captured become a documented part of a family's history. It's rewarding to be able to provide something so important to them. From my experience, the people who spend the time and money to capture and memoralize these moments are truly lovely people.

I thought I'd share a few of my favorite newborn images from this year. There are so many - it's hard to whittle them down to just a few. I have been favoring black and whites lately. They are so quiet and peaceful - there is nothing to distract. If you are interested, more can be seen here.

One very different aspect of my portrait business from my food/still life business is that I turn the images into final products, producing prints, albums, canvasses and other display pieces. I've really developed a point of view about how to display images in a way that you can really appreciate them. I'll share some learnings here soon. I recently went to the PDN photography expo at the Javitz center in NY - it was a huge expo of the different vendors of printing services available to professional photographers. I left with a lot of materials to comb through and a lot of new ideas. It is all very fun and exciting.

Let me know what types of things you might be interested in - it will help me shape posts on this subject.

Mad about pumpkins - happy Halloween!

2010-10-29T19:54:00.000-04:00

I photographed some floral arrangements for Design*Sponge's upcoming book this week. They were absolutely beautiful. Amy Merrick arranged them and she did a wonderful job. I really don't have much of a green thumb, but looking at her arrangements sent me up to the flower district to have a look around. She brought a Cinderella pumpkin (I had never heard of that variety before). It's the most beautiful pumpkin I have ever seen. As far as I'm concerned, there is no reason to buy a conventional pumpkin again!

I've also been loving ghost pumpkins. They seem to be popping up everywhere. I have some out on the table now and they are definitely going to play a role in Thanksgiving decor. They are so subdued and elegant - i just love them.

I found a large one in the floral district today and immediately thought of turning it into a lantern. Not a traditional jack-o'-lantern but something a little more sophisticated. I haven't gotten into Halloween festivities yet - but this seemed like just the right toe in. A knife, a drill, and a few minutes later and I had a little nod to Halloween.

The best part? I now have seeds to roast. I already know just what I want to do with them - more on that later.

Happy Halloween!

A treat: garlic confit

2010-10-26T21:38:00.002-04:00

I am definitely trying to be better about attacking the bread basket when I am out but the one time I simply cannot resist is when there is a garlic confit accompanying it. There is nothing like garlic cooked until it is sweet and mellow and the combination of garlic and olive oil cannot be beat.

I purchased Michael Psilakis' How to Roast a Lamb: New Greek Classic Cooking a while ago and enjoyed flipping through it. There are a number of interesting recipes to try but it's the garlic confit that jumped out as the first to try. It's incredibly simple and keeps in the refrigerator for at least three weeks. It's a fun project and a nice gift idea with a crusty bread or a jar of interesting olives to add with it. I cheated and bought pre-peeled garlic (why not?). The cooking item is about an hour, all of it unattended, so you can just let it do its thing and then enjoy the fruits of (barely any) labor pretty soon thereafter. Enjoy (and just don't worry about the bread basket).

Garlic confit (adapted from How to Roast a Lamb: New Greek Classic Cooking)

(makes 3 cups)

3 cups garlic cloves, peeled

1 fresh bay leaf or 3 dried leaves

8 to 10 sprigs fresh thyme

Kosher salt and whole black peppercorns

Optional: add 1 tsp dried crushed red pepper (or to taste)

About 2 cups blended oil (half/half canola and extra virgin)

Combine cloves and seasonings in a heavy braising pan or Dutch oven. Barely cover with the oil. Cover pan and braise at 300 degrees F for 1 - 1 hour 15 minutes. Cool to room temperature.

Store in sterilized jars with oil to cover. Stored properly, the confit will last for at least 3 weeks.

What's for dinner?

2010-10-21T16:16:00.000-04:00

I have fresh curry leaves, fresh kaffir lime leaves, kaffir limes, lemongrass, and coconut milk. What should I make? Tom yum (minus the curry leaves?). Any ideas?

Apple season!

2010-10-18T12:33:00.000-04:00

We had had a tough weekend. My son, for some inexplicable reason, woke up every night (Fri, Sat, Sun) at 3:45, leaving us all tired and cranky during daylight hours. He's awfully cute, so it's not so bad, but we are really hoping for a full night's sleep tonight. When we have tough weekends it always makes me want to treat myself. Top on the wish list is a drive up north to apple country, to pick some apples and have fun with my camera. I love apples and it's this time of year that apples are in their full splendor. It make a world of difference to have an apple straight (or not long from) the tree versus cold storage.

There are always interesting local varieties in the farmer's market and picking an apple is often like selecting a bottle of wine: crisp, honey undertones, firm flesh, tart ... Did you see my last piece in Sweet Paul Magazine? I wrote a story on apples. This was before apples were actually in season and now it's truly the right time to take advantage. My favorite recipe in the piece is for apple butter. Have a look and give it a try.

Apple butter

(makes 3 cups)

4 pounds all-purpose or saucing apples peeled, cored and cut into 1-inch pieces

2 cups apple cider

1.5 cups granulated sugar

2 tablespoons lemon juice

1 vanilla bean, scraped

1 Tbs cinnamon

¼ tsp allspice

Combine apples and cider in a large heavy-bottomed saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally, then reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until apples are tender.

Stir in sugar, lemon juice vanilla, cinnamon and allspice. Return to a boil, reduce heat, and simmer gently for about 35 minutes. or until mixture is very thick.

Seasonal specialty: fried zucchini blossoms

2010-10-10T17:54:00.003-04:00

The farmer's marketing has had beautiful zucchini blossoms for several weeks now and every time I see them, I make a note to buy them but I am always hesitant to purchase them unless I know I'll have time to make them right away. They are so beautiful (but fragile) and they deserve to be eaten right away while "just picked." If they weren't quite so ephemeral, I'd put them in bud vases and decorate the dinner table with them. My favorite way to eat them is stuffed with some fresh mozzarella and basil and fried in a light batter. It seems to bring out their flavor and still preserve their interesting form. It's also quite a crowd-pleaser.

The recipe is quite simple. Be sure to make them only moments before you plan to eat them: they are quite fragile and won't hold their shape long.

Fried zucchini blossoms

(for ~12 blossoms)

12 zucchini blossoms, pistils removed, stems trimmed, washed well and gently patted dry
2 cups whole milk
4 Tbs all-purpose flour
1 egg, lightly beaten
Generous pinch salt
Mozzarella (small amount)
4 basil leaves, torn into three pieces each
Canola or olive oil for frying

Combine milk, flour and egg. Heat oil in a medium saucepan until a droplet of water crackles vigorously when dropped in. While oil is heating, place a small chunk of mozzarella and a piece of basil in each blossom. Gently twist tops to seal as best you can.

Dredge blossoms in batter a few at a time. Allow excess to drip off. Fry a few at a time for several minutes until blossoms turn golden brown. Cheese will melt on the inside.

Remove gently with a slotted spoon. Drain on paper towels.

Serve immediately.

Artichoke salad and a shortcut

2010-09-15T12:50:00.001-04:00

Eataly just opened in New York to a ton of PR and local excitement. It is a massive indoor space filled with restaurants and a large, mostly Italian dry goods and gourmet items plus local produce, seafood and a local meat counter. A foodie's dream come true. One very interesting feature is a station dedicated to chopping and preparing vegetables to your specifications. Initially I thought "who would ever be so lazy that they couldn't chop their own vegetables?" But then, I realized that there are some vegetables that are so onerous to prepare that I actually avoid buying them: artichokes! Would they pare raw artichokes down the the hearts and shave them on a mandoline so I could make a fresh artichoke salad? I optimistically picked out and weighed a dozen baby artichokes and presented them to the counter. Sure enough, a short while later I had shaved raw artichokes floating in acidulated water, ready for assembly at home.

At home, I sliced fennel thinly on a mandoline, tossed the fennel and the artichokes with some baby arugula and fennel fronds and drizzled it with some nice olive oil and red wine vinegar. An "instant" salad that would have taken me quite some time without the leg up. I was so excited I forgot to shave the 12-year aged Parmesan I had bought to go on top. I can only imagine the other things I can concoct with freshly prepared artichokes! I'm quite sure they didn't see this coming but they were game and I'll be going back.

Where am I? (and apple and crab salad)

2010-08-14T13:28:00.001-04:00

Hi everyone! I hope that you have been enjoying your summer! I've had a great summer with lots of fun work on both the child and food photography fronts. I will share some of what I've been working on soon. Recently I've shot a couple more cookbooks and am in the midst of working on the photography for a single-subject cookbook on lobster. I'm shooting environmental shots of lobstermen and the like now, and will do the plated dishes next spring when the author finishes the manuscript. I've had some a amazing child/parent clients and some really lovely and touching images that have come out of those sessions. I have a great slate of new work coming up that I'm very excited about. If you are interested, I seem to be doing little updates more frequently on my Facebook site than my blog - please feel free to hop on over there.

My family and I just spent 2 weeks in Maine. Both relaxing and enjoying the ocean and the wonderful, quaint towns but conveniently also making some progress on the lobster cookbook. I had the opportunity to meet many lobstermen as a result (and eat many lobsters!). My husband and I were both remarking that it's nice when I have an assignment when we are away because it forces is to interact more with the locals and discover more of the local culture. This time, we certainly were able to do that, and it was wonderful.

So what's been up with this blog? Well, I have been wanting to re-brand for some time. I've felt for a while that Cookbook Catchall is a name that no longer really reflects what I'm writing about. I want to include more of my child photography on this site and wanted a broader name. I also wanted a new look and feel and a custom URL. So all of that was accomplished easily enough but when I went to publish my blog, Blogger managed to throw out all of the comments prior to the change. Years of comments from you that I truly value. If I switch back to the Blogspot URL, I get them back. Go back to the custom domain name, and they are gone. I've looked up this issue and it seems it's a known bug with no fix. I'm so frustrated and disillusioned that it's kept me from doing new updates! Does anyone know anything about this? Any ideas? Should I just switch to Wordpress and start all over again?

I thought I'd share an outtake from the next issue of Sweet Paul which will be out during the first half of September. I contributed an apple story, and the final recipes ended up being sweet. This one, which is delish, is out so I'm sharing it here - enjoy.

Apple and crab salad
(serves 4 as a light side salad or appetizer)

1-2 granny smith apples, sliced 1/8 inch thick on a mandoline
1 lb lump crab meat
1 Tbs mayonaise
1 Tbs+ freshly squeezed lemon
1 Tbs chopped tarragon
1 Tbs chopped chive
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
Sea salt to taste

Drizzle some lemon juice on apple slices to prevent browning
Combine crab meat and seasonings. Adjust seasonings to taste.
Arrange crab meat in layers between apple slices. Serve immediately.

p.s.
I shot a bunch of long exposures of the clear Maine sky while we were there. This was my favorite. No photoshop here - this is straight out of the camera!

Newsworthy: Sweet Paul Magazine Launches

2010-05-06T16:43:00.003-04:00

Sweet Paul magazine launched today. Paul did a wonderful job and I am a proud contributor. Stop on by!

Going East: Indian-spiced fish wrapped in phyllo

2010-05-04T19:02:00.003-04:00

Indian-spiced Halibut in Phyllo
(serves 4)

4 6-8 oz fillets of halibut, skin and bones removed
1 package phyllo dough, defrosted according to package directions
1/2 tsp ground fenugreek seeds
1/2 tsp brown mustard seeds
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp salt
Olive oil spray

I adore fish. When I prepare fish at home, I most often pan fry it in a pan coated with 1/8 inch of oil, allowing one side to crisp. I must share my favorite recipe for salmon prepared this way. One way I occasionally shake things up by wrapping it in phyllo dough and baking it in the oven. It takes no more time and is a nice variation to a more typical preparation. I love Indian spices and think they go particularly well with fish. Halibut is my favorite for its firm but flaky texture and non-fishy taste. Phyllo can be a little temperamental: the trick is to work quickly and keep the phyllo covered with a damp cloth while you are working. This simple recipe is a nice introduction to phyllo if you've never used it before.

Pat fish dry. Working quickly, lay one phyllo sheet on counter with short side facing forward. Spray with olive oil. Top with a second sheet of phyllo dough. Spray with oil. Place one piece of fish horizontally on sheet near start of pastry closest to you, about two inches from the end. Season generously with spice mixture and sprinkle with salt. Fold sides on top of fish and then slowly roll fish away from you to encase completely in dough. Arrange packet seam-side down on a non-stick baking sheet. Spray with olive oil. Repeat with remaining filets. Bake for 15 minutes until phyllo is golden and fish is cooked through. Serve immediately.

Cool and crunchy: vinegary cucumber salad

2010-04-23T16:26:00.004-04:00

Ever notice that sometimes just cutting something differently seems to make it taste better? I'm having a little love affair with my new extra-wide peeler. It's just making my salads much more interesting. Today, a long seedless cucumber, sliced into thin strips, paired with some scallion microgreens from the farmer's market, turned into a fresh, crunch salad with a lot of interest. I have even grander plans for my peeler! Stay tuned. : )

Crunchy vinegary cucumber salad

1 large seedless cucumber, sliced thin lengthwise and rolled decoratively
1 medium shallot, chopped small
3 Tbs champagne vinegar
generous pinch sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Microgreens to garnish, if desired

Combine salt, vinegar and shallot. Set aside and allow to marinate for ten minutes. Slice cucumber. Season with pepper. Drizzle with dressing when ready. Sprinkle with microgreens if desired. Serve cold.

Getting ready for warmer weather: fruit smoothies

2010-04-16T20:45:00.004-04:00

We have had some short bouts of warm weather. Enough to remind me that we are getting toward that time of year where lighter clothes come out of storage and where I have a desire to start eating lighter and more healthfully. I have already vowed to cut out unhealthy snacks and try to eat breakfast more regularly. I'm not giving up my weekend waffles though! Those must stay!

When I do want an effort-free snack or quick meal replacement I love homemade smoothies. In addition, I recently gave in and purchased a Vitamix blender (a major splurge) and now I will jump on any excuse to use it. I have two favorite smoothies: a frozen berry smoothie (raspberry is my favorite) and banana. The banana smoothie requires fresh bananas which I don't always have on hand, but you can buy frozen berries and keep them in the freezer all year long for a smoothie on demand!

Frozen berry smoothie

1 cup frozen berries (raspberries are my favorite)
1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 cup plain yogurt (optional)
1 cup ice
1 scoop vanilla flavored protein powder (you don't need this but adding a sugar-free whey protein powder will turn the smoothie into the perfect snack and keep you full for hours)
Agave to sweeten, if desired

Blend all ingredients in blender until ice is completely crushed and drink is thick and well-blended. I like my smoothies fairly thick, but you can add additional milk or water to loosen if desired.

Banana smoothie

1 ripe fresh banana
1/2 cup skim milk
1/2 cup plain yogurt (optional)
1 cup ice
1 scoop vanilla-flavored protein powder (see note above)
Agave to sweeten, if desired

Blend all ingredients in blender until ice is completely crushed and drink is thick and well-blended.

note: I like my smoothies fairly thick, but you can add additional milk or water to loosen if desired.

Quick and creamy: cauliflower and roasted garlic soup

2010-03-14T17:30:00.004-04:00

Want to have a creamy, seasonal (at least for here) soup with a sunny demeanor that almost cooks itself? We are preparing for a much-needed week-long vacation and I was cleaning out the refrigerator when I spied a head of cauliflower (not purchased long ago, but forgotten). I checked my root vegetable drawer and I had shallots, onions, and garlic - everything needed to turn cauliflower into delicious soup. I roasted the garlic to give it the benefit of rich garlic flavor without the bitterness or bit. One head of cauliflower made enough for two generous bowls.

Cauliflower and roasted garlic soup
(serves two, or double for more)

1 head cauliflower, cut into 1/4 inch slices
1 large shallot or 1/2 medium yellow onion, roughly chopped
1 head garlic
3 cups good vegetable stock
4 Tablespoons olive oil
Olive oil and sea salt

Cut garlic in half through the cloves width-wise. Drizzle each half with 1 Tbs olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Wrap in aluminum foil and roast in a 400 degree oven until cloves are tender, about 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, saute shallots or onion in a saute pan over medium heat until translucent. Add cauliflower and saute until just tender, allowing it to begin to brown. Add vegetable stock and bring to a boil. Season with salt and pepper. Reduce heat and simmer, stirring occasionally, until cauliflower is fork-tender.

Pour cauliflower mixture into a blender or food processor. Squeeze 3-4 cloves roasted garlic into mixture and blend until creamy. Add additional vegetable stock to thin consistency if desired. Adjust seasoning to taste.

Pour into bowls. Garnish with something nice and green. Serve with toasted French bread crostini smeared with remaining garlic and drizzled lightly with olive oil.

Enjoy!

p.s. thanks so much everyone for your nice notes on the cookbook - I really appreciate it!
p.p.s. why won't blogger let me put an accent on saute??

Tomato: a Fresh-from-the-Vine Cookbook

2010-03-09T15:16:00.009-05:00

Just received my copies of a cookbook I shot last summer. It is a cookbook of tomato-based recipes (even desserts!) from wonderful chefs including Alice Waters and Daniel Boulud. It is wonderful to see it in print!

Simple and colorful: steamed baby winter vegetables

2010-03-02T12:44:00.003-05:00

Feeling a little down-trodden due to the constant cold, I perused the grocery isle in search of a little color, a little brightness, a little hint of the colors of spring. What jumped out at me was a selection of pint-sized root vegetables: baby turnips, and tiny baby carrots with vibrant greens and sugar snap peas (where are these peas coming from?). I thought: bright, vibrant, crunchy five-minute lunch! I peeled and quartered the baby turnips, peeled the carrots, leaving their stems on and trimmed the peas. The turnips and the carrots went in a bamboo steamer and the snap peas were blanched in some boiling salted water (and then dropped into ice water). I love the way blanching brings out the green, but I could have made even faster work of the dish by adding the peas to the steamer as well. I then drizzled the vegetables with some pure sesame oil, sprinkled them with some black sesame seeds and sea salt and voila! Lunch!

Steam. Season. Serve with some brown rice. Enjoy!

Time for tea: warm, spicy chai

2010-02-16T12:07:00.007-05:00

This week, I have received a few requests for use of a chai tea image I shot some time ago (strange: is there a chai convention going on???). The conversations reminded me of how much I enjoy chai and how fun it is to concoct your own flavors. Chai is such a nice option on a cold winter day: warm, rich and soothing with spices to wake up your senses. It was the perfect afternoon beverage to sip while watching the falling snow today. Follow the basic recipe for chai and then add your own spices to taste, or follow some of my ideas below.

Basic chai

1/2 cup water
1/2 cup skim milk
2 tsp loose black tea
Spices to taste
1 Tbs granulated sugar (or to taste)

Heat water and milk along with spices until liquid boils. Remove from heat, add tea, cover and steep for 2 minutes. Strain out tea and spices. Add sugar to taste.

For every cup of liquid, add:

Eastern Blend

1/2 tsp sumac berries
2 pods green cardamom

Sweet Blend

1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise
2 pieces "Vietnamese or true" cinnamon or 1 stick Cassia

Spicy Blend

1-2 star anise
3 balls allspice
3 black peppercorns

Satsifying a sweet tooth: quick-bake raspberry rolls

2010-02-04T15:53:00.007-05:00

I've been fiddling around with some left over puff pastry from the Sweet Paul piece. It's so fun to work with pre-prepared pastry. It takes just minutes to make something delicious. It's a good thing it's frozen - at least there is some hurdle to baking a hedonistic treat!

Quick-bake raspberry rolls
(makes six, double recipe for 12)

One sheet puff pastry, defrosted according to package instructions
1/4 - 1/2 cup raspberry jam, heated to loosen it (strain seeds if desired but I like them)
Scant handful dried cranberries
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
Melted butter for basting
Granulated sugar and sanding sugar for dusting

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Place defrosted pastry on a lightly floured surface. Lightly dust with granulated sugar. Brush with butter and use a fork to prick pastry in 4 or 5 different places. Spoon on and evenly distribute jam. Scatter walnuts and cranberries on top. Cut pastry into six rectangles and roll each rectangle horizontally. Place on a non-stick baking sheet, seam down. Brush with butter and sprinkle with sanding sugar. Bake for ~15 minutes until pastry is puffed and golden.

Perfect for winter: miso soup

2010-01-29T10:54:00.008-05:00

Do you ever go into a Japanese supermarket and end up with a full shopping basket just because everything looks so beautiful and you just can't leave the store without it? Well, I'm definitely guilty of that. I love browsing through the aisles looking at all of the exotic ingredients and the ones that aren't so exotic but are so beautifully packaged that they seem so.

There's a small but well supplied supermarket in soho that I love visiting when I am in the neighborhood. Earlier this week, I stopped in with the goal of satisfying a soba noodle craving but of course, ended up with enough to make several dishes.

Miso soup is so easy to make and I was reminded how delicious and satisfying it is. I like to short cut the process by buying soup broth concentrate and I like to add whatever strikes my fancy to the soup. This time, some beautiful enoki mushrooms and Japanese garlic chives caught my eye in the produce section. I added tofu to the mix and some chopped scallion and in less than 10 minutes, had lunch. For dinner, I re-heated the leftovers and added some soba noodles and a fried egg on top. It was the perfect light winter meal - protein, vegetables, warm and soothing.With the left over soba noodles, I revisited a favorite recipe I will never tire of, Otsu (pictured above).

Miso soup
(serves 4)

3-4 cups water
Dashi-based soup concentrate to taste (liquid form, ask for a recommendation at the supermarket)
1 package firm, silken tofu, cut into 1/2 inch squares
1 package enoki mushrooms (trim root ends and use amount desired)
3 scallions (white and light green parts), sliced thinly
1/4 cup chopped garlic chives (nira), cut into 1/2 inch pieces
3 tablespoons miso (I like shiro miso)

optional:
6 oz dried soba noodles
4 eggs, over easy

Bring water and soup concentrate to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and add tofu. Simmer for a couple of minutes. Turn off heat. Dissolve miso in a few tablespoons of the hot soup broth in a small container and add into the pot. Add scallions and garlic chives. Add soba noodles if using. Serve in bowls. Top with fried egg if using.

Something fabulous is cooking: sweet paul magazine (and savory phyllo cups!)

2010-01-20T15:17:00.007-05:00

I've blogged about food stylist and master crafter Paul Lowe before. But there's new news: Paul is launching an electronic magazine, Sweet Paul Magazine. The first issue will be out this Spring and it will be chock-full of great recipes and crafts with a pretty impressive group of contributors. And since everything Paul touches ends up fabulous, I'm sure this will be no exception. I'm very excited to be contributing a multi-page story to the first issue. It's a secret: but I'll tell you that it involves sweet and savory pastry. I've been cooking and shooting up a storm. I'll give you a little teaser. This recipe won't be featured, but this will give you a taste of what's to come. Be sure to follow Paul's award-winning blog for more tidbits.

Savory phyllo cups (makes six)

1 package store-bought phyllo dough, defrosted according to manufacturer's directions
8 eggs
18 stalks of asparagus
6 cherry tomatoes
1/3 cup cream cheese at room temperature
1/4 cup milk or half and half
1/2 stick butter, melted plus one pat for scrambled eggs
Some greens to garnish (pea shoots, chopped Italian parsley or whatever you like)
Butter for brushing on dough
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Spread stack of phyllo dough sheets on a cutting board, and working quickly, cut into squares slightly larger than the diameter of a standard muffin tin (you will need six stacks of these squares). Working quickly, brush six muffin tins with butter and gently peel back each layer of phyllo dough on each stack and brush butter in between layers. Gently press buttered stack into muffin tin. Dough will stick out slightly from top. Brush inside of phyllo cup gently with butter. Repeat six times.

Place muffin tin in oven and bake for 10 minutes, checking periodically. Remove when dough is golden brown.

Meanwhile, beat eggs with milk and a generous pinch of salt and then scramble in butter on a non-stick skillet over medium-low heat. Once eggs are loosely set, remove from heat and stir in cream cheese. Egg will finish cooking off-heat.

When phyllo cups are baked, place ~3 inch spears of asparagus and tomatoes on a non-stick cookie sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt. Broil for a few minutes until asparagus is just tender and tomatoes start to pop.

To assemble, spoon a few generous tablespoons of scrambled egg into cups, stick 3 asparagus spears into each cup (you might want to tie them with a piece of kitchen twine to secure them), and top with one tomato in each cup. Season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately. Cups can be made the day ahead.

Re-exploring: Brussels sprouts

2010-01-06T16:34:00.005-05:00

Happy new year everyone! I am back, and already breaking one of my New Year's resolutions, which is to post more of my own recipes versus sharing recipes of others. But this recipe is really worth sharing - it might change the way you think about Brussels sprouts. We cooked in for new year's, making this dish along with lobster grilled with butter, garlic, parsley and lemon zest, the scallop and cabbage recipe I shared at the end of the year, and a basic pasta with olive oil and garlic. It was a low key evening of good food and friends, the perfect way to ring in the new year.

Martha (yes, Martha) recently had chef Jeremy Fox from Ubuntu restaurant in Napa on to share some vegetarian alternatives to typical thanksgiving fare. Among the recipes shared was one for Brussels sprouts that called for just the leaves, discarding the core. While the sprouts take some preparation, the actual cooking time is reduced to mere minutes, and the approach transforms them into a beautiful emerald green color and delicate presentation. He pairs the sprouts with almond oil, chopped almonds and radishes. I have no idea why this works so well but the radish is the perfect complement to the sprouts.

The radishes called for are a mix of varieties you are highly unlikely to find in a grocery store or even typical farmer's market. Instead, I mixed common red radishes and breakfast radishes and for variety, left some whole and quartered / halved or cut the rest into matchsticks, using a mandoline to cut slice them thinly.

You can find the recipe here. Let me know what you think!

Enjoying: scallops

2009-12-29T16:26:00.004-05:00

Scallops are under-appreciated. I rarely buy scallops. Why? I really don't know. They are so quick, easy and versatile - they should be on my menu more often. Raw, they smell just like the sea with a touch of sweetness. They cook in minutes. They don't need much dressing. They have a wonderful, meaty texture. They're easy to portion.

The trick is to avoid over cooking them by cooking them until they are just on the cusp of turning opaque, realizing that they will continue to cook off the heat. The other trick is to give them a nice sear by making sure they are completely dry before they hit the pan. One way to help this is to dust them lightly with Wondra flour.

I made a wonderful, quick meal of seared scallops on top of a raw, shredded red cabbage and kohlrabi salad last week. I dressed the salad in olive oil and yuzu rice vinegar (one of my favorite dressings), and sprinkled some sea salt and freshly ground black pepper on the top along with some black sesame seeds. I put the scallops on top and drizzled a little more of the dressing on the scallops. Couldn't have been easier and it was crunchy, delightful and completely satisfying.

Red cabbage and green kohlrabi salad

1 small head red cabbage
2 small green kohlrabi
2 tbs good olive oil
2-3 tbs yuzu rice vinegar
1/2 tsp sesame oil (optional)
Sea salt and black pepper
Black sesame seeds to garnish

Thinly slice cabbage and kohlrabi or shred in a food processor. Combine dressing ingredients and seasonings. Sprinkly with most of the black sesame seeds, reserving some for scallops. Lightly dress cabbage and kohlrabi. Portion among plates.

Scallops

6-8 jumbo scallops
Wondra flour
Olive oil (approximately 1 tbs)
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Pat scallops dry. Dredge in Wondra flour. Season with salt and pepper. Heat olive oil to coat pan over medium-high heat. Sear scallops in batches on both sides until barely opaque (will take between 1 - 2 minutes per side depending on size and heat, watch closely). Remove from heat. Place 2-3 scallops on each plate. Sprinkle with black sesame seeds.

Happy holidays!

2009-12-24T20:48:00.003-05:00

Happy holidays everyone. May your holiday be filled with good food (and rich hot chocolate!). Back after the holidays with more recipes and photography!

Best,
Sabra

First (annual?) holiday gift guide for foodies

2009-11-23T21:21:00.037-05:00

I am not a big fan of shopping but I love thinking of gifts for people. It's always fun to think about what someone might enjoy and to try to be original at it. As long as I start long enough in advance, and relegate most of the shopping to the internet, I find the experience very enjoyable. A lot of my gift ideas are food-centric. This is partly due to the fact that I am a food-centric person, and partly due to the fact that something related to food gives pleasure to the recipient. In the spirit of the upcoming holidays, I thought I'd share a few thoughts and ideas.

Always reliable: a cookbook

The printed page might be suffering but it's still great to have a beautiful physical cookbook for reference and inspiration. There are many new ones on the market that your foodie likely does not yet own. Here are a few that I've been looking at:

Clockwise from top left: A16: Food + Wine, My Bread: The Revolutionary No-Work, No-Knead Method, Momofuku, Ad Hoc at Home, Pasta Sfoglia, Tender: v. 1: A Cook and His Vegetable Patch

And for the new cook (or anyone who doesn't already have it), a broad reference like Mark Bitman's How to Cook Everything is essential.

For the gourmand (and gourmet), a food delivery

A gift of edibles is always appreciated. You can put together a gift that matches your passion and budget. A gift could be as simple as a nice olive oil and vinegar. Or, consider a few other ideas:

1. Order from an artisanal producer via Foodzie. Foodzie is the Etsy of food and a great way to support small purveyors and artisans.

2. Send a gourmet product directly from one of your favorite producers. Three I've sent from before include Niman Ranch, Salumi (the artisanal salumeria run by Mario Batali's father), and a true favorite, Rancho Gordo (also has a cookbook out that showcases their heirloom beans)

3. Support a local business by giving a gift certificate. In Manhattan, consider Manhattan Milk that sources from local Amish farmers and will accommodate with a gift delivery.

The Treats Truck will deliver an assortment of treats in their cute vehicle.

For your vegan foodie, Babycakes will deliver vegan-appropriate sweets both locally as well as ship.

4. Assemble a gift basket from a favorite retailer like Formaggio Kitchen in New York's Essex market.

For the gift that keeps on giving: a magazine subscription

Support the publishing industry by offering a unique magazine subscription that your recipient is unlikely to have, such as Donna Hay's wonderful, inspirational (albeit costly to order from the U.S.) magazine

or, at the other extreme, for the locavore on your list, a magazine from Edible Communities Publications (which products great local content for ~53 different areas in the United States, Canada, and Europe)

For the person who appreciates design: a beautiful kitchen item

Help someone upgrade basic kitchen items with something more pleasurable to use, like Cuisipro's gorgeous measuring cups and spoons.

Offer rustic luxe in the form of a hand-made wooden spoon from Live Wire Farm that is sure to put their old wooden spoons out of business . . .

. . . or a beautiful Irish linen apron from Teresa Green (she also has beautiful tea towels here)

If she/he already has everything - consider a Salter kitchen scale. I use mine constantly and don't know what I did without it.

For the foodie who has everything: something fun

Not an everyday item but tons of fun and well-priced, Kitchenaid's ice cream maker attachment is sure to broaden a culinary repertoire

For a gift that will allow you to spend time together: a cooking class

You could offer a gift certificate or class for two at your local culinary school, or, to get more extravagant, arrange for a cooking class (and dinner) in your home

For the neat freak: a special treat to clean with

While odd, I've had my eye on these snazzy artful sponges available at Korin trading.

Savon de Marseille's Liquid soap is a staple in my kitchen. Available in scents like grapefruit, fig and olive oil, they will fit right in on your counter.

And of course, how could I not mention:

For the art lover: a beautiful photograph from Sabra Krock photography

A limited offer for the holidays, any print from my portfolio, or photographs you've seen on my site, $55 for 11x17 (please inquire via email).

I hope this gives you some gift-giving "food for thought". I'd love to know what you are gifting this season.

Pomegranate love: PAMA contest

2009-11-19T16:19:00.003-05:00

I'm preparing a fun food-centric holiday gift guide for you. Stay tuned . . .

In the meantime, wanted to share a recipe I submitted to the PAMA pomegranate liqueur recipe and photo contest (grand prize is a trip for two to the food and wine festival in Aspen!). If you have time, please have a look at the submissions and vote for me if you think I deserve it : ) (public vote now until December 15th).

PAMA pomegranate granita

2.5 cups pomegranate juice
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup PAMA pomegranate liqueur
Juice from one lime
Pomegranate seeds and a sprig of mint for garnish (optional)

Heat pomegranate juice and sugar over medium heat in a medium, non-reactive saucepan until sugar is dissolved. Allow to cool to room temperature. Stir in PAMA pomegranate liqueur and lime juice. Pour into a freezer-proof shallow baking dish or other flat, shallow container. Freeze for six hours or overnight, using a fork to break up large crystals every few hours. Garnish as desired, and serve immediately in small, chilled glasses.

Crisp and fresh: radish and celery root salad

2009-11-06T18:51:00.006-05:00

Flipping through a recent Donna Hay magazine, I came across a radish and celery root salad that looked divine. I adore celery root - its crunchy, sweet, essence-of-celery taste is divine. I love it in soups but I'd never tried it raw. Donna's recipe called for a thick, heavy dressing of largely full-fat mayonnaise. Donna - what were you thinking? So I made my own interpretation. This is fresh from the farmer's market - hope you are inspired.

Radish and celery root salad (inspired by Donna Hay)

8 radishes, thinly sliced with a mandoline
One large celery root, peed and cut into pieces a bit larger than matchsticks
Chopped chives (note: you can also used other herbs instead or in addition to the chives, such as chopped Italian parsley and chopped chervil)
One cup plain low fat Greek yogurt
One clove garlic, minced
1 Tbs good olive oil
1 Tbs champagne vinegar
1 wedge of lemon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Combine yogurt, garlic, olive oil and vinegar with a couple of pinches of salt and pepper. Squeeze lemon wedge into mixture. Adjust seasonings as necessary. Set aside.

Put a portion of celery root on each plate and top with radish slices. Drizzle with dressing. Sprinkle with herbs. Serve immediately.

Winter vegetables: kale, white bean and pasta soup

2009-10-16T14:05:00.011-04:00

I just shot the cover for a cookbook on winter vegetables. I created a vegetable still life for the shoot and, in order to do so, bought quite a few vegetables. I always cull through all the options to find just the ones I think will photograph well and then add many for backup - just in case. The result was that after the shoot, I ended up with a refrigerator literally teaming with vegetables including onions, carrots, potatoes, turnips, and winter greens including kale and cabbage. I am always determined not to waste the food I shoot and I quickly devised a list of dishes that could make best use of the hearty photography models. A series of winter soups were obvious candidates. The first creation? A kale, white bean and pasta soup seasoned with Parmesan and spicy Harissa. I have since made a beef stew (a take on this one), and today, a celery root, potato and leek soup - all so delicious and in the spirit of the season. What do I have left? Russet and fingerling potatoes, beets, more cabbage and kale. Any suggestions?

Kale, white bean and pasta soup

1 lb+ Kale, thick center stems removed, chopped roughly
1 lb dried cannellini beans (note: for faster cooking time, soak beans overnight)
1 26 oz can chopped tomatoes (I like Pomi brand)
1 large onion, diced
3 medium-sized carrots, diced
3 turnips, diced
2 stalks celery, chopped
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese, plus rind
1 cup small pasta
1 Tbs Harissa
2 Tbs olive oil
8 cups water (or half water, half vegetable stock)
1 small bunch Italian flat leaf parsley, leaves chopped roughly
Salt and pepper

Sweat carrots, onions and celery in olive oil with a healthy sprinkling of pepper until translucent. Add turnips and saute for a few minutes.

Add water, tomatoes and dried beans and bring to a boil. Reduce temperature to a simmer. Add Parmesan, Parmesan rind and Harissa (note: Harissa is very spicy - if you do not enjoy spicy soup, reduce quantity or omit Harissa).

Simmer for 45 - 90 minutes until beans are just tender (timing will depend on whether you soaked the beans overnight). Add additional water, cup by cup if soup is too thick. Add pasta, kale and sprinkle liberally with salt. Add additional Harissa or pepper to taste.

Cook until pasta is barely tender (it will continue to cook once you have removed the soup from the heat). Again, add additional water if thinner soup is desired. Remove and discard parmesan rind. Add Italian parsley. Serve with some nice, rustic bread.

Photography update

2009-10-07T20:16:00.007-04:00

Wanted to let you know of two new photography offerings: kids portraits and holiday cards. I don't think I've mentioned the former on this blog. Inspired by my friends' children, and most recently, my own child, I have started offering portrait sessions and packages for little ones. You can read more about it on my website here. I am excited about this expansion to my business and hope you will spread the word to anyone who lives in the New York City area.

Secondly, I am offering three sets of "sweet" holiday cards this year. Cards are 4x6, professionally printed on thick card stock, and come in packages of 25 for $55. The outside features adorable sugar cookies and the inside of the card can be printed with the default greeting of "May your holiday season be sweet" or another greeting of your choice. This is a great value for a custom card and hope many of you will take advantage. Please email me at skrockodile [at] gmail [dot] com to place your order.

Hope all of you are well. Thanks so much for your continued readership and support!

Second life: banana bread

2009-09-30T13:11:00.002-04:00

When I don't finish a bunch of bananas before they turn mushy and limp I welcome the lucky opportunity to give the spoils a new life in banana bread. I have a tried an true recipe that I recently started dressing up with an idea from Donna Hay: placing sliced bananas on the top, brushing with melted butter and sprinkling with sanding sugar (my tweak). Because it's always hard to devour an entire loaf (well, at least without guilt), I like baking several in smaller paper loaf pans. That way, I can keep one for breakfast and gift the others. I've had this recipe for ages and have no idea where it came from!

No fail banana bread

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1 cup sugar or brown sugar
2 eggs
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
3 mashed bananas
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup chopped nuts (optional)

Optional garnish (one large banana, melted butter to brush on top and sanding sugar to finish)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Beat butter and sugar until light and creamy. Add eggs, one at a time and blend thoroughly.

In a separate bowl combine dry ingredients (except nuts).

Gradually combine butter mixture and dry ingredients. Stir in bananas. Stir in vanilla extract. Add nuts, if using.

Pour into 2 large loaf pan or thee small loaf pans (greased or non-stick). If desired, arrange banana slices on top, brush with melted butter and sprinkle with sanding sugar (note that topping will only "keep" for a day or so).

Bake for 1 hour, ten minutes if using a large loaf pan and 50 minutes if using small pans (or until a cake tester comes out clean). Let cool before serving.

Sexy fruit: figs

2009-09-21T15:32:00.003-04:00

Don't you think figs are the sexiest fruit out there? I love figs and it's a treat when they are finally in season. I recently bought a fig tree for my apartment. I might be over-confident in thinking I can grow a healthy fig tree in a Manhattan apartment, but it's worth a try, no?

Figs are here and will be gone soon. While they're around, I'm taking advantage. I recently made a batch of David Lebovitz's fig ice cream. David is the master of frozen desserts so I figured I couldn't go wrong with his fig ice cream recipe. The ice cream has a lovely fig flavor and a deep purple color. It such an unusual flavor for ice cream that it is worth the effort to make a fresh batch while figs are in season.

For other fig dessert ideas, see my friend Jennifer Davick's recipe for Fresh Fig Frozen Yogurt here on her blog, and her feature on Design*Sponge with a recipe for
Fresh Mini Fig Pies with Honey Mascarpone Cream, here.

Fig ice cream (from Perfect Scoop: Ice Creams, Sorbets, Granitas, and Sweet Accompaniments by David Lebovitz)

2 pounds fresh figs
1/2 cup water
1 lemon
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp freshly squeezed lemon juice or more to taste

Remove the hard stem ends from the figs, then cut each fig into 8 pieces. Place the figs and water in a medium saucepan. Zest the lemon directly into the pan. Cover and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally until the figs are tender (8 to 10 minutes).

Remove the lid, add the sugar, and continue to cook, stirring frequently, until the figs reach a jam-like consistency. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature. Once cool, puree figs in a blender with the cream and lemon juice (puree quickly so as not to whip the cream). Taste and add more lemon juice as desired.

Chill thoroughly, then freeze the mixture in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's directions.

Hearty and healthy: farro salad

2009-09-10T17:19:00.007-04:00

I have been loving whole grain salads lately. One new favorite is farro. It is nutty and has a wonderful, firm texture. Load it up with finely chopped vegetables, some cheese and a drizzle of olive oil and vinegar and it's a beautiful, perfect salad. The specific ingredients are up to you. Lately, I've added diced ricotta salata, some micro greens, scallions (thinly sliced diagonally). I've also been known to add fresh fava beans and / or avocado. I like to add olive oil, vinegar (red wine or balsamic), juice from 1/2 lemon, salt and pepper while the farro is still warm so that it is soaked up by the grains, and then the other ingredients when the farro is at room temperature so they retain their crunch). Serve for lunch or as a side for dinner.

On another note, I still have a few sets of folded greeting cards remaining from my print run earlier this summer. There are 5x5 egg and feather cards as well as 5x7 fruit cards. Both sets are blank on the inside and come in sets of 12 for $24. They are professionally printed on thick card stock. Please email me if interested!

Tomatoes: summer salads

2009-09-02T12:36:00.008-04:00

August is certainly a celebration of tomatoes. It is such a treat to have sweet, farm-fresh tomatoes to enjoy. All of the colors and varieties are eye candy as well as a feast for the taste buds!

Heirloom cherry tomato, feta and red onion salad with oregano

I have just finished shooting images for a cookbook of tomato-oriented recipes - due out this winter. One would think three weeks of shopping for, styling and shooting tomato recipes would turn me off of tomatoes for a while. On the contrary, it has inspired me to think about ways to incorporate fresh tomatoes in foods that allow them to shine.

Caprese with mozzarella balls, heirloom tomatoes and chives

Lately, I've been playing with small heirloom tomatoes - cherry tomatoes and other varieties and incorporating them in salads that play with their scale and color. No need for recipes - just fresh tomatoes, perhaps some cheese, a sprinkling of herbs or some onions, a splash of olive oil and vinegar and a sprinkling of pepper and sea salt.

Enjoy!

"Miniature" Caprese with tiny mozzarella balls, currant-sized cherry tomatoes and a chiffonade of basil

Berry summery: berry ripple mousse

2009-07-29T22:14:00.010-04:00

I’ve been slowly getting back to cooking. The markets are teaming with wonderful, fresh fruits. Berries have been calling my name. I've had my eye on a recipe for a blackberry ripple mousse from Michel Roux’s Eggs. When I saw fresh blackberries, raspberries and black raspberries in the Union Square farmer’s market I decided it was finally time to try the recipe. The recipe takes a bit of time as you first need to make a crème pâtissière (pastry cream) and both the crème pâtissière and the berry coulis need to be cool before the dessert is assembled. The assembled dessert then rests in the refrigerator for 2-3 hours before served. None of the components is difficult to make, however, and the result is delightful. The recipe calls for blackberries but you can certainly use any berries you like – just adjust the sugar according to the sweetness of the berries.

Crème pâtissière (adapted from Eggs)

6 egg yolks
½ cup plus 2 tbsp (125 g) superfine sugar
¼ cup all purpose flour
generous 2 cups milk
1 vanilla bean, split lengthwise

Combine egg yolks and one-third of the sugar in a bowl and whisk to a light ribbon consistency. Whisk in the flour.

Heat the milk and remaining sugar along with the vanilla bean in a pan. Once it comes to boil, pour it into the egg yolk mixture, stirring constantly. Mix well and then return the mixture to the pan.

Bring mixture to a boil over medium heat, whisking constantly. Allow mixture to bubble, still stirring, for 2 minutes. Remove the vanilla bean.

Pour onto a half sheet pan and cover with foil (touching the crème pâtissière to prevent a skin from forming). Cool in the refrigerator.

Berry ripple mousse (from Eggs)

¾ lb blackberries or other berry (plus extra to serve if desired)
2/3 cup superfine sugar
juice of 1 lemon
generous 1/3 cup heavy cream
1/3 quantity crème pâtissière
2 egg whites

Put the berries in a pan with ½ cup sugar and heat gently, stirring occasionally. When the mixture comes to a simmer, cook gently for another 10 minutes and then puree in a food processor or blender. Strain through a fine-holed sieve or a colander lined with cheesecloth. Let coulis cool, stirring occasionally. Add lemon juice.

Whip cream to a ribbon consistency, then fold into the cooled crème pâtissière.

Whisk the egg whites in a clean bowl to a thick foam, then add the remaining sugar and whisk to soft peaks. Gently fold in the pastry cream mixture, without overworking.

Very delicately, mix in the cold berry coulis to create a ripple effect (note: you will likely need only a portion of the coulis.). Divide the mouse between 6 glass dishes and refrigerate for 2 to 3 hours before serving. Ideally serve the same day the mousse is made – the mousse does not hold up well.

Just in time for summer: apricot tea cakes

2009-06-24T15:59:00.010-04:00

Enjoying some quiet time with Max. Be back soon. In the meantime, wanted to share part 3 of the design*sponge "In the Kitchen With" features. The piece came out the day Max was born. Thanks again Grace for having me! You can see the photos and a great recipe for an apricot tea cake on design*sponge here.

I'll also post the recipe below.

In addition, wanted to let you know that I am selling two sets of limited edition greeting cards. Both contain 12 folded cards (2 copies of six different images). The first set is a pairing of eggs and feathers from the bird that laid them (5x5). The second is a set of summer fruit images (5x7). Each set sells for $24. I am accepting pre-orders for the next two weeks. Please contact me if you are interested! See here for a larger view.

Note: My recipe calls for baking the cakes in disposable tartlet cups (approximately 4 inches in diameter and ¾ inch high). The cups are just the right size to ensure that the pretty fruit pokes out of the top at the end.

Apricot tea cakes (heavily adapted from Oven-Roasted Plum Cakes in Baking with Julia)
(makes approximately six cakes using cups described above)

1 stick unsalted butter, room temperature
2 Tbs light brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp minced lemon zest
½ tsp pure vanilla extract
¾ cup all purpose flour
¼ cup almond meal
¾ tsp baking soda
¼ cup buttermilk
3 ripe apricots, halved and pitted
Sanding or sparkling sugar (for dusting the tops)

Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees.

Using an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream butter and sugars at medium/medium-high speed until light and fluffy and sugar is dissolved. Beat in eggs, one at a time. Add lemon zest and vanilla and beat until incorporated. Reduce mixer speed to low and add in flours and baking soda until just combined, taking care not to over-mix. Add buttermilk. Stir a few times with a rubber spatula, scraping the sides and bottom of the bowl, to ensure all ingredients are well combined.

Place six tartlet cups on a baking sheet and fill half way with batter. Press an apricot half, cut side up, into the center of the cup. Sprinkle batter and fruit with sanding sugar. Bake for 25 minutes or until tops are golden brown and batter is just set (springs back to the touch). Enjoy with tea!

Not food: Max B is born

2009-06-15T22:14:00.004-04:00

The reason why I have been neglecting this space:

Max B
Born June 12
7.5 lb, 20 inches

We are so thrilled!

Be back soon.

-S.

The delectable word: noteworthy cookbooks

2009-05-21T15:57:00.014-04:00

I’ve been a bit lazy about cooking lately. Partially driven by heavy dietary restrictions as I round corner on the last month of pregnancy, and partially driven by being very busy styling and shooting for others (all good!). I thought that instead of going radio silent, I’d share some great inspiration from cookbooks I’ve been enjoying recently.

My stash of cookbooks is ever growing. Lately I’ve been more interested in cookbooks with high visual appeal than ones that simply offer great recipes. I love flipping through photos and leaving books out on the table as display pieces. I need that extra special something to draw me in to a new purchase. Here’s what I’m enjoying right now.

Tartine by Elizabeth Prueitt and Chad Robertson (from the San Francisco bakery)

I love the recipes in this book – every one I’ve tried is fool proof and special. But in addition to the recipes, the book itself is a pleasure. It is printed on thick, matte paper and the images it has inside are artful (wish there were more). Every time I browse through the book I get the urge to bake! (note: try the pots de creme!)

Hot Sour Salty Sweet by Jeffrey Alford and Naomi Duguid

This one is a “culinary journey through southeast Asia” by a husband and wife team of cooks, travelers, writers and photographers. It is as much a coffee table book as it is a cookbook. It is about an inch thick and printed on a beautiful semi-gloss paper. It is choc full of images, some which span two pages. It is part travel log, part cookbook and inspires one to be more adventurous with spices and flavors.

The Book of New Israeli Food: a Culinary Journey by Jana Gur

An Israeli friend gave this book to me long before I had ever been to the country. The book is a beautiful, modern, over-sized cookbook with vibrant photos and lots of background information. Having now been to Israel I am motivated to go through this book and try to re-create some of the absolutely wonderful cuisine we had there. I only wish our fruits and vegetables were as fresh and flavorful as what is available there.

Turquoise: A Chef's Travels in Turkey by Greg and Lucy Malouf with photos by William Meppen and Lisa Cohen

I don't own this one but I’ve given it as a gift twice. It’s a gorgeous coffee table book presented in a photo journalistic style that talks about food, culture and history. It is breathtakingly beautiful. I have been following Lisa and William’s work with great admiration and the combination of the two makes for a stunning book.

Ottolenghi: the Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi

This is a cookbook from London-based restaurateurs Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi. It is fully of fresh recipes with a middle-eastern influence. The focus is on the ingredients and the food is unfussy and full of flavor. Lots of healthy salads as well as decadent desserts – but all rustic and street-food influenced: nothing overly complicated or precious. Just the way I love to eat! Note: order this from Amazon UK, not U.S. or you might be in for a long wait (I know from experience!).

Eggs by Michel Roux

Last, but not least - a highly specialized cookbook: Eggs. It's virtually an encyclopedia of what to do with eggs. It ventures well beyond egg-centric dishes to desserts containing eggs. Roux is a master of explaining recipes in great technical detail so that recipes are fool-proof and you learn a ton in the process. This is a great reference book from basic to sophisticated preparations. Definitely worth a spot on the shelf.

In addition to these, there are many others I am tempted by – particularly foreign cookbooks with a different aesthetic point of view. I saw this one written up recently. Looks beautiful.

What are you reading / cooking from?

All about artichokes (and photography of course!)

2009-05-06T22:00:00.006-04:00

Last week was a very fun week. I had another feature on one of my favorite blogs, design*sponge, and found out I placed third in this month's DMBLGIT with this image - thanks Grace, Regine and judges for a great week!

The recipe I developed for design*sponge was inspired by spring and all of the new herbs and vegetables appearing in the markets, including one of my very favorites, artichokes. The secret to this dish is using frozen artichoke hearts, which greatly speeds up prep time and makes the dish a breeze! I've found some great frozen artichokes at Trader Joe's. Feel free to experiment with cheeses in this dish. You want something with good flavor (and meltability), but not something that will over-power the artichokes. Here's to spring!

On an unrelated note, a photographer friend, Steve Adams, asked me to remind everyone that the International Conference on Food Styling and Photography: Style without Borders is being held this year from June 12-15, 2009 at Boston University. Full details and a downloadable registration form are available here. Unfortunately, registration has now passed but if you are really interested perhaps there's something you can do. . .

Artichoke casserole
(serves 6)

1 pound frozen artichoke hearts
1 3/4 cups whole milk
1 3/4 cups aged Fontina cheese, freshly grated
1/2 cup fresh ricotta
1 1/2 cups fresh spinach, julienned
1 leek, white and light green parts only, well washed and cut into rounds
1 extra large egg, lightly beaten
3 Tbs fresh tarragon leaves, chopped
3 Tbs fresh Italian flat leaf parsley, chopped
2 Tbs all purpose flour
1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper (plus more to taste)
1/2 tsp good sea salt (plus more to taste)
Olive oil

Pre-heat oven to 350˚ F. Cook artichokes according to package directions. Meanwhile, heat a few tablespoons of oil in a heavy-bottomed sauté pan and sauté leeks until translucent.

Drain water from artichokes and add artichokes, salt and pepper to pan and sauté for a couple of minutes. Add herbs, and sauté for 30 seconds. Add milk and flour, mix well and simmer for ~10 minutes until mixture thickens a bit and flavors are infused throughout. Slowly add a few tablespoons of the hot milk mixture to the lightly beaten egg in a separate bowl to temper the egg.

Remove pan from heat. Add the egg mixture to the pan, followed by the spinach and the cheeses. Stir until cheese melts and ingredients are well combined. Add additional salt and pepper if desired.

Pour into a 7×10 casserole dish. Cover loosely with foil and bake for 35-45 minutes or until casserole is set (check after 35 minutes). Allow to cool for 5-10 minutes before serving. Garnish with parsley.

Peppery beef tenderloin and some news

2009-04-20T17:28:00.006-04:00

I guest posted on design*sponge last week. It’s one of my very favorite blogs and I was completely honored to have a feature (and such great feedback on my photography)! Thanks Grace for all of the fun – I’m looking forward to the next one.

Judd Pilossof, one of my all-time favorite food photographers, is teaching a studio still life class at the Maine Media workshops this summer. You can find out more about the class here.

Last, a bit odd to announce but I feel like it's time . . . I am 7+ months pregnant! All very exciting. Lots of changes ahead. Inspiring some simpler recipes right now : ).

Now on to the post . . .

A post and a few updates. Will start with the fun updates first.

I’ve been trying to eat a higher protein diet and have been incorporating more meat than I would usually be inclined to. When I do eat meats, I tend to love tender meats and braises. Braises are a bit of a cooking commitment, so one of my favorite quick and easy cuts is beef tenderloin, which is always fork-tender, buttery and delicious. While certainly not the most cost-conscious of cuts, I find we get a number of meals out of a one pound portion. We usually have the first serving hot and then have leftovers cold, served on a bed of herb-y salad. Then it turns into lunch and snacks. Several meals later it’s done but we’re still not tired of it.

Here’s the way I prepare it, although I measure absolutely nothing and it’s always great. So don’t worry too much about being literal here.

Peppered beef tenderloin

1 lb beef tenderloin
½ cup Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbs prepared horseradish
2 garlic cloves, crushed
1-2 Tbs each whole green peppercorns, black peppercorns, pink peppercorns and white peppercorns, crushed with a mortar and pestle (or under a heavy skillet)
Coarse sea salt (I love grey sea salt for this)
2 Tbs olive oil
Italian flat leaf parsley, for garnish

Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees F.

Place beef in a baking dish, pour Worcestershire sauce over it, slather with garlic and horseradish. Sprinkle heavily with peppercorn mixture and sea salt. I don’t usually marinate it, but you certainly could.

Heat oil in a heavy bottomed skillet (not non-stick) over medium heat. Brown beef on all sides (~2 minutes per side) to give it a nice color and texture.

Return beef to the baking dish and cook for ~30-40 minutes until done to your liking. Don’t over-cook, that would be a crime!

Place on a cutting board or serving platter, cover with foil and allow to sit for 10 minutes. Drizzle with any remaining marinade. Sprinkle with more salt and pepper. Garnish with chopped parsley.

Easy appetizer: white bean dip

2009-04-15T21:43:00.004-04:00

I’ve had a package of large dried white beans in the pantry for a little while and have been thinking about making a bean salad with them. That was until I saw a package of hand-made artisanal crackers at the specialty store and couldn't resist them. And they were calling for a white bean dip.

I love dips and spreads. If I had my choice I’d have a mezze platter every day of the week with hummus, babaganouj, some cured meats, some olives, and a maybe and artichoke or bean dip!

Making a dip doesn’t take much time – most of the time is inactive time. Make sure you buy dried beans from somewhere that has a reasonably high turnover – you don’t want old beans, which will take longer to cook and yield a less pleasing result.

White bean dip

1 lb dried white beans such as cannellini beans
1 medium yellow onion, coarsely chopped
2 cloves garlic, crushed
2 sprigs fresh thyme
Olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
Sea salt
Italian flat leaf parsley for garnish

Soak beans overnight in a generous amount of cold water. Rinse and pick out any debris. In a large, heavy-bottomed pot, sauté onion and garlic with thyme in a few tablespoons of olive oil until onions are translucent. Add beans and cold water to cover beans by a few inches. Bring to a full boil and then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook until beans are tender 1-2 hours. Remove thyme.

Drain beans and place in blender with ¼ cup olive oil and a generous sprinkling of salt and pepper. Purée, adding additional olive oil slowly to adjust texture as desired. Finish with a sprinkling of chopped parsley, sea salt and pepper and a drizzle of olive oil.

When the market gives you beautiful lemons: make lemonade!

2009-04-03T00:01:00.007-04:00

I've been keeping things simple lately - have you noticed? A bit short on time but busy in a good way. I am incredibly excited that the weather is turning. The farmer's market is bustling again. Produce is edging away from root vegetables. Herbs are in now. I've been buying what's available and planting them in my little city garden. So far I've found oregano, parsley, dill, chive and thyme. Waiting for basil and chervil.

Last week, I found some incredible lemons with stems and leaves still intact. I couldn't believe my luck and bought quite a few. More than one would ever need but I had photos, not cooking in mind. And then I had to figure out how to make use of them. First use? Lemonade! Freshly squeezed lemons with a little sugar and sparkling water over ice. Maybe a little sanding sugar along the rim of the glass. So refreshing, natural and no fuss. Give it a try!

Inspiration: waldorf salad

2009-03-24T18:42:00.007-04:00

I found this idea in a recent Donna Hay Magazine (my photo above). A fresh idea of a Waldorf salad: thinly sliced apple sprinkled with walnuts, arugula, blue cheese, and a creamy dressing. Takes 5 minutes to make but looks fresh, fun, and new - what do you think?

On another note, my FIL has just launched an Etsy store with his "wish dish necklaces" made out of ceramic, glass and leather (or beads). Check it out.

Importing a taste of the south: crawfish étouffée

2009-03-16T12:45:00.007-04:00

My husband is from the South and as I think I’ve mentioned in a previous post or two, he goes nuts whenever he gets access to real southern cooking. Last month, we traveled to New Orleans to attend the wedding of a good friend of ours. At the Sunday brunch, our friend’s father-in-law served homemade crawfish étouffée. My husband nearly started doing back flips. We, of course, asked for the recipe, but the cook insisted he doesn’t follow a recipe and improvises each time. I wasn’t sure if he wasn’t willing to give the recipe up, or if he really couldn't describe what he does.

Upon return to the cold North, I started researching crawfish étouffée recipes. Actually, I took the lazy route and asked my mother-in-law for her favorite recipe and she promptly responded with outbound inquiries to various family members. What’s interesting is that no one has a firm recipe – they have ingredients and seasonings they like but they mainly cook by rote, sight and taste, improvising a little each time. There must be something to making this dish by feel!

The most specific “recipe” I received came from my husband’s cousin, who, I'm told, is a very good cook. I was a little worried about following a loose recipe without really knowing what the end result should taste like but ultimately it worked beautifully and apparently the finished dish was “just like it should be.” Of course, I couldn't leave well enough alone so the next day, I turned the leftovers from our big pot of étouffée into small individually sized pot pies – what a fun way to make a second meal out of them.

Crawfish étouffée (adapted from Richman)

2 pounds crawfish, peeled (fresh or frozen) and / or shrimp or lobster meat (I made mine with a pound of crawfish and a pound of lobster plus shrimp)
6 cups good fish stock (Richman likes shrimp juice or clam juice and chicken stock if needed. I used a high quality fish stock with great results)
1 cup all purpose flour
2/3 cup canola oil
1/3 cup butter
1 large Spanish onion, chopped
4-5 stalks celery, chopped
½ large bell pepper, chopped
1-2+ Tbs soy sauce
1-2 Tbs Worcestershire sauce
Red pepper flakes (1/2 tsp – 1 tsp as desired)
Tabasco to taste
Bay leaf
Salt and Pepper
Parsley for garnish

Heat a heavy-bottomed pan such as a Dutch oven over medium heat and add oil and flour. Reduce heat to low and cook, stirring constantly, until mixture has reached a dark caramel color and develops a nutty flavor. Will take approximately 20 minutes. Take care not to burn the flour – if you do, you must start again.

Add vegetables (should measure approximately 3 cups in total). Add a bay leaf, a generous sprinkling of salt and pepper, and red pepper flakes. Cook until vegetables are tender.

Add 3 cups liquid and reserve the rest. Add Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, soy sauce. Stew should have some heat. Simmer until mixture thickens (one to two hours, stirring occasionally and adding additional stock as necessary).

Add fish, making sure to include all of the liquid from the crawfish if using. Simmer until fish is cooked through. Taste and adjust seasonings

Serve over rice with parsley sprinkled on top

For pot pie leftovers

Spoon leftover étouffée into ramekins. Brush top with butter. Cut defrosted store-bought puff pastry sheets to fit over ramekins. Gently press pastry onto tops of ramekins. Brush with melted butter. Cook in a 350 degree oven for ~20 minutes or as directed by instructions on pastry package.

Double decadent: double chocolate dulce de leche cookies

2009-03-06T14:47:00.005-05:00

I’ve been a bit of a delinquent blogger. I’ve been felled by a particularly nasty winter cold that has kept me out of the kitchen and mostly in bed (or moping around at best!). I am finally feeling better and have been dreaming about a host of new recipes to try. These chocolate dulce de leche cookies have been on the forefront of my mind (doesn’t a cold always like something sweet?). I tried them a few different ways and I think I’ve found the way I like them best. They are inspired by alfajores, a traditional Latin American cookie.

Thanks so much for all of your comments on older posts over the past few weeks. I’ve enjoyed reading them and will try my best to respond.

Double chocolate dulce de leche cookies
(makes about 20 sandwich cookies)

Dulce de leche
1 can sweetened condensed milk

Cookies
¼ cup caster sugar
3 cups all purpose flour
4 tbs chilled unsalted butter, chopped
1/8 cup high quality cocoa powder (I love Valhrona)
1 egg plus 1 egg yolk
1 tbs espresso powder
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
½ cup plus 2 tbs milk
Melted high-quality chocolate such as Valhrona, for coating the outside

To make the dulce de leche, place the unopened can of sweetened condensed milk on a perforated insert inside a large pot (such as a cake cooling rack or a pasta or steamer insert) and cover with water. Bring to a simmer, and simmer over medium high heat, for 2 hours, turning the can twice during cooking. Make sure the can is always covered by water. Remove can from water and let cool before opening. Be careful when opening it, as the contents will squirt out. If contents are not thick enough, continue to boil until desired consistence is reached (making sure water does not get into can).

For the cookies, combine ingredients until a ball forms. Shape into a disk, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours. Roll out to ¼ inch thickness and cut circles out of dough using a 2-3 inch cookie cutter. Bake in a 350 degree oven for 10-12 minutes. Cool completely on a wire rack.

Set cooling rack over a lined half sheet pan. Spoon melted chocolate over cookies. Spread chocolate out to an even, thin layer over tops and sides using the back of a spoon (can use the spoon to make a design in the chocolate). Refrigerate until chocolate hardens.

Spread about 1 teaspoon of duce de leche onto cookies. Sandwich.

Going, going gone: passion fruit soufflé

2009-02-20T13:42:00.008-05:00

I had a sudden urge to try something I’ve never baked before: a soufflé! I don’t know where the urge came from – it might have been Daniel Boulud’s great-sounding passion fruit soufflé recipe – or perhaps it was the fact that the wonderful Italian store in Chelsea market sells fruit purees that I have been looking for an excuse to try. In any event – I undertook what seemed like an ambitious task to bake a soufflé but it turned out to be rather easy. I had a perfectly tall soufflé out of the oven and then the real challenge – getting a photograph I liked before it was completely deflated. I had thought I might have 5 minutes or more to complete the task but I only had a few minutes – and the walk from my oven to the studio consumed at least one of those. Flicking through the images on my computer was almost like watching a flip book movie of soufflé deflation: going, going, going gone! The funny thing is that the very same week I tried this and posted the results to my flickr food photography group, two others also made soufflés and we had fun comparing results and sharing tips for how to get a good photography. Certainly, baking the soufflés in rounds so I had a number of fresh ones to work with was helpful. I am sure that there are many other tricks to employ. The soufflé discussions also lead me to an article that Helen of Tartelette wrote on soufflés for Desserts Magazine (click here and then see the article that begins on p. 104). Look how gorgeous and tantalizing her photos are! Wouldn't you like to know her mom’s recipe for cheese soufflé?
Passion fruit souffle with caramelized pear-passion sauce (by Daniel Boulud of Daniel)
(makes 4 servings)

For the sauce:
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/2 cup sugar
2 ripe pears, peeled, cored and cut into small pieces
1/4 cup passion fruit purée

For the soufflé:
4 large egg yolks, at room temperature
1/4 cup passion fruit purée
3/4 cup egg whites (about 4 large), at room temperature
1/4 cup plus 1 tablespoon sugar
Confectioners' sugar, for dusting

To make the sauce:
1. Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the sugar, a few tablespoons at a time, stirring after each addition, until it melts. Continue to cook until the sugar syrup turns a light golden brown.

2. Add the pear and continue to cook, while stirring, until the pears are tender and nicely caramelized, about 10 minutes. Stir in the passion fruit purée and heat for a minute or two. Remove from the heat and keep warm while preparing the soufflés.

3. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 375°F. Generously butter the inside and rims of four 6-ounce soufflé dishes. Dust the insides and rims with sugar, making certain that they are thoroughly coated. Tap out the excess sugar and put the dishes on a baking sheet.

4. Whisk together the egg yolks and passion fruit purée in a large bowl until well blended; set aside.

5. Put the egg whites in the bowl of a mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium-low speed just until foamy. Increase the speed to medium-high and gradually add the sugar, beating until the whites form glossy medium-stiff peaks. Using a large rubber spatula and a light touch, fold the meringue into the yolk mixture in three additions until well incorporated but not overmixed.

6. Fit a pastry bag with a large plain round tip and fill with the soufflé mixture. Pipe (or if you prefer spoon) the mixture into the dishes up to their rims. Run your thumb along the outside edge of the dishes to remove any excess butter and sugar. Bake the soufflés for 15 to 20 minutes, until puffed and lightly golden. If you touch the tops of the soufflés, they should be firm with centers that are still a bit jiggly.

7. Meanwhile, transfer the sauce to a warm sauceboat; keep warm.

8. When the soufflés are done, carefully pull the baking sheet from the oven. Dust the tops of the soufflés with confectioners' sugar and serve immediately with the pear-passion sauce.

Originally appeared in: Daniel's Dish: Entertaining at Home with a Four Star Chef, Daniel Boulud, Filipacchi Publishing, 2003

Sweetie sweets take 2: fleur de sel caramels

2009-02-07T11:59:00.008-05:00

It’s that time again – Valentine’s Day. It’s either a holiday that you love or hate. I’m in the love camp. It’s such a great excuse to be a little silly and of course, to cook some sweets! Last year I made truffles in the spirit of the holiday. This year I was taken with a recipe for fleur de sel caramels that I saw in House Beautiful. It’s an Ina Garten recipe. This is just a perfect occasion to employ one of Ina’s buttery, creamy, sugary fattening best! The fleur de sel is the perfect complement to the sweet caramel and pretty to look at as well. Homemade caramels are completely different from the dry, overly tacky caramels that we think of from

I was a bit wary as I’d never made caramels before but they were quite simple and quick. I followed Ina’s recipe to a “t” until I got to the very last step: forming the individual caramels. I’ve adjusted the recipe below to reflect my changes.

p.s. A couple of photography notes: my photo of homemade cinnamon buns won the "aesthetics" award in last month's DMBLGIT - thanks so much Zorra and judges!
Lou Manna is having a photo contest to help find inspiration for the cover of his next book. Read more about it here.

Fleur de sel caramels (by the Barefoot Contessa, adapted from recipe printed in HouseBeautiful)
(Makes 30 caramels)

Vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1 cup heavy cream
5 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 teaspoon fleur de sel, plus extra for sprinkling
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

1. Line the bottom of an 8-inch-square baking pan with parchment paper, then brush the paper lightly with oil, allowing the paper to drape over two sides.

2. In a deep saucepan (89 diameter by 4 1/2" deep), stir together 1/4 cup water with the sugar and corn syrup and bring them to a boil over medium-high heat. Continue to boil until the mixture is a warm golden brown color. Don't stir — just swirl the pan to mix. Watch carefully, as it will burn quickly at the end!

3. In the meantime, in a small pan, bring the cream, butter, and 1 teaspoon of fleur de sel to a simmer over medium heat. Turn off the heat and set aside.

4. When the sugar mixture is a warm golden color, turn off the heat and slowly add the cream mixture to the sugar mixture. Be careful! It will bubble up violently. Stir in the vanilla with a wooden spoon and cook over medium-low heat for about 10 minutes, until the mixture reaches 248°F (firm ball) on a candy thermometer. Very carefully (because it's hot!) pour the caramel into the prepared pan and refrigerate until firm.

5. When the caramels are cold, use the parchment paper to pry the sheet from the pan onto a cutting board (note: the caramels will still be supple and easy to handle – if too stiff, allow to sit at room temperature for 10 minutes). Using the parchment and starting from the long side, tightly roll the caramel up until you have rolled 1/3 of it. Cut along the edge and repeat two more times. Use the parchment to gently roll each log to even out the thickness and smooth out the seam from the cut side. Cut each roll into 8-10 pieces, taking care not to touch the caramel with your finger. Sprinkle each piece with fleur de sel and wrap individually in glassine or parchment paper. Store in the refrigerator and serve the caramels chilled.

Sweet (and cute): chocolate-coffee cupcakes with mocha ganache

2009-01-29T09:55:00.006-05:00

I have a bit of a love-hate relationship with Daniel Boulud. Love because his creations are amazing – hate because the recipes he publishes for the “peeps” are sometimes not so friendly or “tight” – like the trifle he published in Elle Décor that called for a pan much too small for the cake batter and led to a rather unpleasant explosion in my oven. Or the fact that he sometimes chooses baking dishes that are entirely uncommon and require a trip to a specialty baking store (like the soufflé recipe I am hoping to attempt today). This one, however, is a keeper. It’s a recipe for chocolate coffee cupcakes that has been making its way around the blogsphere and that is simply divine. Yes, it requires a few more steps than one would like but they are all worth it! The cupcakes are served with a mocha ganache and a mascarpone cream that will make you swear off buttercream forever! The fun part about this recipe is finding fun alternatives to cupcake wrappers. I’ve used paper coffee cups, colored ramekins and see-through espresso cups. The recipe makes 30 cupcakes so you can try styling them a few different ways.

Chocolate coffee cupcakes with mocha ganache and mascarpone cream
(Recipe By Daniel Boulud)

1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons milk
6 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 cup instant coffee powder
1 1/2 cups cake flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
12 tablespoons unsalted butter -- at room temperature
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
3 large eggs
3 cups heavy cream
1/3 cup coffee beans -- crushed
8 ounces milk chocolate -- finely chopped
2 cups mascarpone cheese
1/4 cup confectioners' sugar -- sifted

To make the chocolate-coffee cupcakes

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 30 standard muffin cups with paper liners.

Combine the milk, cocoa, coffee and 1/4 cup water in a small saucepan and bring to a boil, constantly whisking, until the cocoa and coffee have dissolved. Let cool and pour into a liquid measure.

Sift together the flour, baking soda, and salt. In the bowl of a mixer, cream the butter, sugar, and vanilla on medium speed until light and fluffy. Add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition. With the mixer on low speed, add the dry ingredients alternately with the milk mixture in three batches, ending with the liquid. Fill each muffin cup halfway with the batter. Bake 18 to 20 minutes until a toothpick inserted into the center comes out clean. Remove the cupcakes from the pan and let cool completely on a wire rack.

To make the mocha ganache and mascarpone cream

Combine 1 cup of the heavy cream and coffee beans in a small saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat. Remove from the heat, cover, and let infuse for 10 minutes. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean sauce-pan and bring back to a boil. Put the chocolate in a medium bowl and pour the hot cream over it, stirring slowly, until the ganache is smooth. Spoon enough ganache over each cupcake to fill the liners to the rim.

Using a whisk or in the bowl of a mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whip the remaining 2 cups of heavy cream to stiff peaks. Add the mascarpone and confectioners sugar and whisk until smooth. Spoon the mascarpone cream into a pastry bag fitted with a medium round tip and pipe the cream on top of the ganache in a circle.

To take the chill off: beef and barley stew

2009-01-17T11:15:00.004-05:00

Leemei Tan from My Cooking Hut invited me to do a "guest post" about food and photography with a winter recipe. She has posted both today - hop over and see. What fun to be invited to participate in someone else's blog!

For the post, I developed a recipe for a hearty beef and barley stew. It took several tries to get it the way I wanted it but all of the rejects were delicious so no complaining here! I'm posting the recipe below. See Leemei's blog for the rest of the story.

Hearty winter beef and barley stew
(makes 3-4 servings)

1 – 1¼ pounds chuck roast, chopped into ~1 inch cubes
5 cups cold water
A few springs Italian flat leaf parsley plus chopped parsley to garnish
2 sprigs fresh thyme
1 medium yellow onion, halved
4-5 medium carrots
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 cup frozen pearl onions
2-3 smallish waxy potatoes: blue make for a nice color contrast with the other ingredients but any waxy potato will do
2 medium Jerusalem artichokes or parsnips
¼ cup pearled barley
Vegetable oil for cooking
Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

Season beef generously with salt and pepper on all sides. Heat 1-2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet and brown beef on all sides.

Transfer beef to a 5-6 quart Dutch oven or other heavy-bottomed sauce pan. Add water, thyme sprigs, 1-2 sprigs Italian flat leaf parsley, Worcestershire sauce, vinegar, half of the yellow onion (skin on is fine) and a whole carrot (skin on is fine). Bring to a boil and then reduce heat and simmer, partially covered, for 30-40 minutes. Remove thyme, onion and carrot.

Meanwhile, cut potatoes and Jerusalem artichokes or parsnips into 3/4 inch cubes and peel and chop remaining carrots into 1 each pieces. Re-heat pan used to brown the beef (add a little additional oil if necessary) and cook cut vegetables plus whole pearl onions for several minutes until they begin to brown. Take care not to crowd the pan. If your pan is not big enough, brown in batches.

After beef mixture has cooked 30 minutes per the above, add the barley and browned vegetables plus a generous sprinkling of kosher salt and pepper. Bring temperature back up to a boil, and then reduce to a simmer. Simmer, partially covered for an additional 30-40 minutes. At this point,the sauce will have thickened and the beef will be fork-tender. If sauce is not thick enough for your liking, remove cover, raise temperature and cook a little longer. If too thick, add cold water in ¼ cup increments until consistency is as desired. Adjust seasonings to taste. Serve with a sprinkling of chopped flat leaf parsley.

Absolutely out of season: Vietnamese iced coffee pops

2009-01-12T17:37:00.003-05:00

Here’s a break from hearty winter fare, if only for a post. I have an absolutely out-of-season recipe to share (well, that is if you are in the Northern hemisphere): Vietnamese iced coffee popsicles.

Have you had Vietnamese iced coffee? I love the strong but sweet flavor and the thickness of it. It’s dessert in a drink – and even more dessert-like in a pop.

I love the way the different layers of color look as the coffee blends with sweetened condensed milk. I worked to replicate this in the pop and am happy with the way it turned out (it took a bunch of attempts, believe it or not!). The pops pack a refreshing punch after dinner, or would be perfect served as a pick-me-up at the pool. Try them and see!

Vietnamese iced coffee pops
(makes six rocket-pop sized popsicles. Easily adjusts as necessary)

3-4+ tablespoons dark roast coffee, medium ground (see link below for additional information)
2 cups boiling water
Vietnamese coffee filter (can be easily and inexpensively found on-line at stores such as this one)
One can sweetened condensed milk (typically comes in a 14 oz can)
½ cup whole milk

Place ~3 tablespoons coffee in between filter layers. Screw top down until firmly in place. Set over a heat-proof glass. Pour boiling water into filter in batches so that you end up with approximately 2 cups coffee. If coffee weakens significantly as you go along, remove grinds and replace with fresh ones.

Add sweetened condensed milk to coffee by the teaspoonful until coffee lightens a bit and is sweet enough to your taste (take care to add enough condensed milk so that the end result is more creamy than icy). This will be the first layer. You will add more condensed milk to create a sweeter and lighter layer next.

Pour enough coffee into each pop to fill the pop ~1/3 full. Place popsicle sticks in pops and freeze for a couple of hours until firm.

Meanwhile, cover and refrigerated remaining coffee and condensed milk.

Add a few more teaspoonfuls of condensed milk to coffee until coffee reaches a noticeably lighter shade.

Fill pops to ¾ or a little less full, as desired. Freeze again until solid.

Mix several tablespoons condensed milk into whole milk until milk is thick and sweet. Top popsicles off with the mixture, leaving an inch or so of popsicle stick sticking out from the top, and freeze one last time.

Unmold pops by running under warm water for a minute or two. Enjoy before they melt!

Hearty winter soup: beans, cabbage and farro

2009-01-01T18:52:00.005-05:00

I hope you all enjoyed a fun New Year’s Eve and relaxing New Year’s Day. Ours was pretty low key. We had dinner at home and then popped into a friend’s party later on. We were back well before midnight. Today we ran errands and did a lot of long overdue organizing. Not too exciting, but satisfying to get done.

The weather here has turned particularly cold and blustery. It’s the time of year that’s best suited to nesting at home, keeping warm, and eating comfort foods. I’m turning to some of my winter favorites – beans and cabbage.

I’ve written about Rancho Gordo heirloom beans before. They have become a cult favorite among those who love beans and who love artisanal products and not without good reason: they are unusual, full of flavor and cook well. I’ve often found that typical store-bought have been sitting on the shelf so long they take a long time to cook and shrivel up when re-hydrated. These are produced in small quantities and turn over quickly, thereby having none of those problems.

A terrific hearty soup using one of their varieties appeared in Metropolitan Home in November. As soon as I read it, I knew I had to make it. Conveniently I had all of the shelf-stable ingredients on hand and only had to supplement them with the few additional fresh ingredients. Farro is a new favorite of mine and I was excited to try it in a soup. The soup is thick, hearty and filling and sings of all of the good things about winter.

p.s. Rancho Gordo has a new cookbook out. I have not had a chance to take a look yet.

Heirloom bean and farro soup with savoy cabbage

1 pound dried borlotti beans
1 cup farro
3/4 pound savoy cabbage, coarsely chopped
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 oz. pancetta, minced
1 large yellow onion,minced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 1/2 teaspoon fresh rosemary, minced
2 Tbsp Italian parsley, minced plus more for garnish
1/4 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
1 cup finely chopped can (San Marzano, preferred) tomatoes
2 teaspoons kosher salt

Soak beans overnight in water to cover generously.the next day,drain the beans and put them in an 8-qt pot with 3 quarts cold water. Bring to a boil over moderate heat, skimming any foam. Cover partially and adjust the heat to maintain a gentle simmer. Cook until the beans are beginning to soften, about 45 minutes.

Stir in the farro and the cabbage. Return the soup to a simmer, partly covered, 30-45 minutes more.

While the beans and farro cook, heat the olive oil and pancetta in a skillet over moderate heat. Let the pancetta sizzle and render some of its fat, but do not let it brown. Stir in the onion, garlic, rosemary, parsley and hot pepper flakes. Cook, stirring until the onion is soft, about 10 minutes.

Stir in the tomatoes, raise the heat to moderately high, and cook, stirring constantly, until the sauce is thick and the tomatoes have softened, about 5 minutes.

Stir the contents of the skillet into the soup pot and simmer, partially covered, for 15 minutes. Season with salt. Garnish with more minced Italian parsley before serving.

Plump and sweet: homemade cinnamon buns

2008-12-23T10:40:00.013-05:00

I’ve had some extra time this week and have put it toward catching up on some cooking “to dos” that have been languishing on my list. Among them, the Daring Bakers’ cinnamon buns have been calling out my name, begging for first dibs.

The Daring Bakers made cinnamon buns right before I joined and I regretted missing such a fun challenge. I’ve been known to get sucked in by the intoxicating aroma of cinnamon buns in many a Midwestern airport, and I figured it would be fun to be able to make such a winning treat from scratch.

I thought I would offer this up as a great Christmas day breakfast treat. It turns out they are very simple to make – just a bit time-consuming as the dough needs to rise and then proof for several hours. But the actual active time is minimal and the dough is made easily with a dough hook in a stand mixer.

The buns can be made into cinnamon buns or sticky buns with a change of glaze and topping. The dough, in either case, is identical. There’s nothing more fun than watching the buns grow in size and squish together on the baking sheet, promising a sweet-tooth satisfying, decadent cinnamon experience that can only be delivered by a cinnamon bun!

The recipe for both cinnamon and sticky buns can be found here, on Pip in the City's blog, the sponsor of the event.

On another note, I wanted to let you know that I am experimenting with selling selected images on ImageKind. You can purchase both prints (framed or unframed) and greeting cards on the site. Both would make a nice belated holiday gift for a cooking enthusiast. Hop on over and have a look - let me know what you think.

Satisfying a meat craving: rack of lamb with mustard-thyme crust

2008-12-16T12:29:00.004-05:00

Those of you who have been following this blog know that it’s a rare occasion that I blog about red meat. It’s not that I don’t enjoy meat every once and a while, I just don’t eat it often enough to buy it and cook it at home. As a result, I'm not the world's most confident meat cook. That said, there are a few reliable (and satisfying) meat dishes that I make over and over again when meat cravings take over: one of them is rack of lamb baked with a mustard-garlic-thyme-bread-crumb crust.

The recipe is an old stand-by from Gourmet 1999 if you can believe it. It works equally well on beef tenderloin. It’s quite simple: essentially you slather on the mustard mixture and cook away. The mustard mellows out during the cooking process and the seasonings permeate the meat. When done you are left with delicious, flavorful meat coated with a satisfying crust. It is a great choice for dinner guests. A rack of lamb (or beef tenderloin) is unfussy, serves many, and is a crowd-pleaser (especially with a nice potato side). It also looks impressive, even though it's quite simple to prepare.

Rack of lamb with mustard-thyme crust (adapted from Bon Appetit, 1997 via epicurious.com)

1/3 cup Dijon mustard
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
1 1/4-pound rack of lamb, well trimmed
1 cup plain bread crumbs (variation: Matzo meal)
Fresh thyme sprigs (optional)

Preheat oven to 425°F. Whisk mustard, garlic and chopped thyme in small bowl to blend. Sprinkle lamb with salt and pepper. Place lamb on a roasting rack, rounded side up. Spread mustard mixture evenly over lamb. (Lamb can be prepared up to 6 hours ahead. Refrigerate uncovered.)

Press bread crumbs onto mustard coating on lamb. Roast lamb until thermometer inserted into center registers 130 to 140 degrees F for medium rare or 140 to 150 degrees F for medium. Will take 30-45 minutes: check periodically. Garnish with thyme sprigs, if desired, and serve.

Appreciating fellow bloggers: Gourmet Girl's flourless chocolate cake

2008-12-04T14:40:00.006-05:00

Bringing you this flourless chocolate cake was a labor of love. I made this as one of two Thanksgiving desserts with the ulterior motive of photographing it and posting the recipe for you, but of course, I ran out of time and never photographed it. Determined to share this wonderful recipe, I made it again a few days later but I thought I’d second-guess the instructions and cook it for five minutes less. When I unmolded the cake from the springform pan, it spread out into a chocolaty puddle of $25 Valrhona – becoming un-photographable and teaching me a lesson: do not second-guess the recipe (note: it still tasted great!).

A little annoyed but nevertheless still determined, I set off to make it again yesterday. This time I took my time and followed the tried and true recipe. It churned out the best version of the cake I have made yet: rich, dense and moist with a light crust on the top. It’s very sinful dessert, and one that looks more impressive than it is hard to make.

Where did I find this gem? On Gourmet Girl’s (Louisiana-based Katia Mangham) great site. It takes a lot for me to get motivated to make something I read about. I read dozens of blogs and many cooking-related magazines and have a treasure trove of recipe books. With that much fodder for culinary creativity I need to really be impressed by a new recipe for it to actually get to the top of my “to try” list. Gourmet Girl’s site always gets me. She has wonderful, unusual original recipes that are sure to be crowd pleasers. I also tried her wonderful Torta di Risso - faboo.

The only things I altered in the recipe were to remove the brandy, increase the quantity of vanilla extract to one tablespoon, and use semi-sweet chocolate for the garnish (I'm a monochromatic girl). See her original post here.

Flourless chocolate cake (from Gourmet Girl)

24 oz. dark or semi-sweet chocolate, chopped
3/4 lb butter (3 sticks)
1/2 cup sugar
8 eggs
1/4 cup Brandy
1 teaspoon vanilla
4 oz. white chocolate, melted after cake cools- for garnish

1. butter a 9" springform pan, line bottom with parchment and butter parchment. Wrap pan in aluminum foil and set aside. Preheat oven to 350 F. (Cookbook Catchall note: at this point, I fill my roasting pan half full of water and allow it to preheat in the oven so that the bain marie water mentioned in step 4 is hot by the time I put the cake into it).

2. Over a bain marie, melt chocolate and butter. whisk together until smooth, then set aside to cool for a bit.

3. In a mixer bowl, beat eggs and sugar until light and fluffy- about 10 minutes on high speed. Lower speed to low and gradually add chocolate mixture to eggs. Add brandy and vanilla, and mix until just incorporated. Remove bowl from mixer stand, with a rubber spatula lighlty fold batter just to be sure it's homogenized. (sometimes there is chocolate at the bottom of the bowl which has not mixed in).

4. Pour batter into springform, then place pan in a roasting pan. Fill roasting pan with hot water (I use the water use the already warm bain marie water), fill pan to half way up the saide of the springform pan. Carefully place in the oven and bake 45 minutes. Cool on a wire rack, unmold, drizzle white chocolate on top and serve with whipped cream and berries.

Appreciating old favorites: linguine vongole

2008-11-25T17:45:00.003-05:00

I've been revisiting an old favorite lately: Martha's linguine with clams. It's an old stand-by, and one that I posted about when I first started blogging. I'm still making it, but I've adjusted it with little tweaks that I've come to prefer along the way. I thought I'd share my adapted version, and the updated photos I've shot of the dish that are much more consistent with my current photography style.

I'm elbow deep in Thanksgiving preparations - I'm sure you are too. I have a wonderful flourless chocolate cake recipe from a fellow blogger to share and perhaps a couple other goodies from the feast. Would love to hear about what you are cooking!

Linguine vongole (adapted from Martha Stewart Living)
Serves 4 to 6

Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 pound linguine
1/4 pound slab bacon, cut 3/8 inch thick
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
3/4 cup loosely packed flat-leaf parsley leaves, coarsely chopped
1/8 - 1/4 cup dry white wine
3 pounds Manila clams or cockles, scrubbed and rinsed
2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Place bacon on a single layer on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Bake for ~20 minutes until fat renders. Remove from oven and drain on paper towels. Cut into 1/8 inch strips or small cubes.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add salt and pasta, and cook until just shy of al dente (note: it is important to not fully cook the pasta as it will continue to cook in later steps). Drain, reserving 1/2 cup cooking water.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and red pepper flakes, and cook, stirring, for 30 seconds; do not let garlic brown. Stir in 1/8 teaspoon salt, and a pinch of black pepper; cook for 30 seconds. Add wine, and simmer for 1 minute. Add clams and bacon; increase heat to medium-high, and cook, covered, until clams begin to open, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in butter until incorporated. Stir in parsley. Add pasta to skillet, and toss to coat, adding reserved cooking water a tablespoon at a time to loosen, if desired. Transfer to a large serving bowl, and serve immediately.

Chicken soup reimagined

2008-11-06T10:39:00.008-05:00

Chicken soup is not my favorite. It always reminds me of being, well, sick. It’s often a little too chicken-y and uni-dimensional for my taste. There’s not typically a lot of imagination that goes into it. The way I see it, either you love the familiar, comforting taste of the typical chicken soup, or you are like me, and are a little tired of it.

That’s until my aunt introduced me to an amazing stock that comes from an old Italian cookbook. It’s made with brisket, veal and chicken and has a deep, hearty, sophisticated flavor that is intensely satisfying and anything but boring. The downside is it requires a large quantity of different meat - the upside is the leftovers provide a sandwich feast for some time.

My aunt usually makes it for Passover and adds some wonderful chicken dumplings from the same cookbook. I made a big batch recently and experimented with the add-ins, making an Asian-inspired chicken, pork and rice ball in one version and chicken and pork dumplings in wonton wrappers in the other. Both were hits. I had planned to freeze the remaining broth in muffin tins (a great way to freeze individual portions), but we ate our way through the entire batch of stock before I had time to even consider freezing it for a later use!

Brodo delle Feste (holiday broth) (from The Classic Cuisine of the Italian Jews, I: Traditional Recipes and Menus and a Memoir of a Vanished Way of Life by Edda Servi Machlin) (serves 12)

1 small fowl (about 3 pounds, or 2 pounds turkey legs and wings
1 pound brisket of beef
1 pound breast of veal
1 pound spongy beef bones
1/2 medium onion
1 small carrot, peeled
1 small stalk celery
3 or 4 stalks Italian parsley
4 quarts cold water
1 1/2 tablespoons salt
3 whole peppercorns

Carefully remove all the breast from fowl and save for another use. Place the remainder of the chicken or turkey legs and wings in a large stockpot with the other meats, the bones, and all the vegetables. Add 4 quarts of cold water and bring to a boil. Remove the scum and add salt and pepper. Lower heat and simmer, covered, for 2 to 3 hours. Strain and refrigerate several hours. Remove and discard all coagulated fat before using.

Chicken and pork rice balls or wontons

For the filling:

½ pound ground chicken
½ pound ground pork
1/4-1/3 cup chopped fresh basil
1/4-1/3 cup chopped fresh chives
One egg, lightly beaten
Generous sprinkling sea salt and freshly ground pepper
Generous sprinkling of grated parmesan cheese

For the exterior:

Wonton wrappers (for the wontons. Available in Whole Foods or your Asian grocery)
1 cup rice (for the rice balls)

For the garnish:

Chopped Italian flat leaf parsley
One carrot, peeled and steamed per bowl, if desired
Grated parmesan cheese, if desired

Wontons:

Combine all filling ingredients. Adjust seasonings if desired. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. One by one, carefully place 1 scant teaspoon of filling on top of wonton wrapper. Brush sides of wrapper lightly with water. Place another wrapper on top and gently press along sides to seal. Place in a single layer on top of parchment paper until you are done filling the rest of the wrappers. Boil a large pot of salted water. Cook wontons for ~4 minutes and gently remove with a slotted spoon (note: cook only enough for what you need. Freeze the rest in a Ziplock bag). Place 3 or 4 in a bowl of hot broth. Garnish with a sprinkling of flat leaf parsley, one carrot, and grated parmesan if desired. Serve immediately.

Rice balls:

Soak one cup of rice for two hours. Drain. Combine all filling ingredients. Adjust seasonings if desired. Line a bamboo steamer and a baking sheet with parchment paper. Use a small ice cream scoop or melon baller to form tablespoon-sized balls of the mixture. Store in one layer on baking sheet. Pour rice onto a large plate or other flat surface. Roll balls in rice so that rice covers all sides. Place balls in one layer in bamboo steamer and steam for 15 minutes. Rice will fluff up and balls will cook through. Place ~3 balls in each bowl of hot broth, garnish with a sprinkling of flat leaf parsley, one carrot, and grated parmesan if desired. Serve immediately.

Beyond food: a brief personal indulgence

2008-10-20T18:42:00.005-04:00

A quick word beyond the usual subject here - please excuse the indulgent deviation! I have been meaning to share (but couldn't quite figure out how to fit it in) the launch of my new pet product company, Greedy Pup. Yes, pets and product design are other passions of mine!

We are a functionally-oriented dog product company focused on providing effective solutions to pet and pet owner needs with great quality, value, and beautiful design. Our first product is the Eat Slow Bowl, a bowl designed to slow down the pace at which dogs eat. It provides a solution to a common concern among pet owners in a safe, gentle and effective way. Eating rapidly, and gulping air (in case you don't know) can result in issue ranging from irksome (choking, coughing, vomiting) to serious (gastric dilatation). It's a beautiful bowl that has been selling well - I am very proud of the start we have gotten.

If you live in Manhattan, you can find it at some of my favorite pet stores including Beasty Feast and the Barking Zoo. If you are elsewhere, you can find it at sitstay.com (an amazing site) or our company site, greedypup.com. I hate to self promote but please keep us in mind as you think about holiday gifts for your furry friends! Thanks for the indulgence . . .

Poha revisited: eggs poha

2008-10-13T15:23:00.005-04:00

Do you remember the cooking session I had with my friends Devesh and Tara during which they shared their recipe for classic Indian poha (a flattened rice dish served at breakfast)? Well I had the enormous treat of getting together again to cook with Devesh and Tara recently, but this time it was with Devesh’s mom who shared her recipes. She made a number of different Indian breads – parathas - plain and stuffed with all sorts of fillings (alu paratha (stuffed with mashed potatoes), gobi paratha (stuffed with grated cauliflower), and dal paratha (stuffed with mung bean)). It was absolutely amazing, and we all sat around the kitchen island watching her churn out hot breads and ate them while standing, like complete gluttons, before they even had a chance to cool on a plate.

I have been thinking about sharing some of the recipes and techniques but - well, I am not sure I could replicate those breads – particularly given that Devesh said that after years of watching, he still doesn’t have the technique down.

So rather than frustrate you, I thought I’d share a spin on poha that is eminently doable by the layperson – I’m calling it eggs poha. Ever since I had poha the first time I envisioned it going well with eggs. My enthusiasm for Indian flavors and spices was rekindled during the bread making session and I was eager for more.

The simplest way to combine poha and eggs would be to put a fried egg on top of a bowl of poha. But, to take it one step further (of course), I mixed a lightly beaten egg into the poha mixture, greased 4-5 ring molds with vegetable oil and packed poha into them. I baked the ring molds in a 350º oven for ~15 minutes until the egg had set and the poha had turned into a cake. Meanwhile, I used ring molds (I have Ateco molds that are 3” high and 1.75” tall) of the same size to fry eggs (again, greasing them – this time with butter) so that they would fit perfectly on top of the poha cakes. I ran a knife around the insides of the molds, turned the cakes onto a plate, and topped them with the egg and a sprinkling of rock salt, pepper, and flat leaf parsley (or cilantro). I could maybe see a drizzle of spiced yogurt on the top but I don’t think it needs it.

Appreciating Mark Bittman: perfect pancakes

2008-10-01T19:35:00.006-04:00

I love Mark Bittman. His recipes are always straight-forward and just work. I’m so glad he’s blogging for the New York Times – you can never have enough Bittman. A while back he did a piece on the perfect pancake. Four different fool-proof versions to try. I love the fluffy rendition that features ricotta. He’s right – why do so many people buy pancake mix when it’s almost as quick to whip up your own batch?

Check it out.

Styling super talent: Paul Lowe

2008-09-25T13:15:00.011-04:00

"Black fig shoot." Styling by Paul Lowe. Photography by Colin Cooke

Have you heard of Paul Lowe? He’s a brilliant food and interiors stylist who captures his styling adventures and inspirations on his blog, Sweet Paul. I find Paul’s work completely inspirational. He has a wonderful modern aesthetic in the very best sense: beautiful, natural, warm, clever, clean, soulful and crisp. Quite hard to describe so you will have to see for yourself.

Paul started out as a florist, and when a photographer friend of his suggested that he would be quite good at styling, he gave it a try. A few jobs and rave reviews later, Paul was hooked. Even though Paul only moved to the U.S. (from Oslo) a few years ago, his amazing artistry has already attracted the attention of an impressive array of talented U.S. photographers: Ellen Silverman, Gemma Comas, Colin Cooke and Frances Janisch to name a few.

"Black fig shoot." Styling by Paul Lowe. Photography by Colin Cooke

I spent a couple of hours with Paul last week as he styled for a shoot for European magazine, Interior Magasinet, for photographer by Colin Cooke. The theme of the shoot was “Christmas desserts” and I fully expected to see a lot of red, green, tinsel, evergreen and all of the other clichés. Not so in the world of Paul Lowe: it was a beautiful rustic-natural shoot with white the only inkling of a winter-holiday connection. He integrated flowers and knits into the shoot and everything had an “effortlessly casual” style that is so difficult to create.

"Black fig shoot." Styling by Paul Lowe. Photography by Colin Cooke

I was amazed to see Paul in action: there were eight or nine different shots captured. Paul had developed all of the recipes for the shoot himself (which he did on little notice, and only a few days before the shoot) and was not only in charge of the food styling but also the prop styling. He created the sets and styled the food quickly and effortlessly. While I sat there mesmerized for two hours, I saw three complete shoots from start to finish. There was no over-manipulating the props or undue set adjusting. Colin shot tripodless, un-tethered and with natural light and breezed in and out of the set capturing a number of different angles for each shot swiftly and confidently – a perfect match for Paul’s own approach. Paul swooped in, did his magic, and swooped out. Everything created was entirely edible, and in fact, when done, Paul and Colin sat down to a healthy helping of fondant spice cake and orange vanilla cake.

Styling comes completely naturally to Paul: so much so that it’s difficult for him to articulate how he does what he does other than to say that he just tries “to create beautiful things” but I did get to talk to him about his inspirations, approach, and general advice to budding stylists (and ahem, certain avid food photographers who fancy themselves as “do-it-alls”):

"Christmas dessert shoot for Interior Magasinet" Styling by Paul Lowe. Photography by Colin Cooke

What is your approach to developing the look of a shoot?
I often use neutral colors as they are timeless. I want the food to pop. The overall image needs to be pretty. That’s hard to describe but I want people to want to tear my image out of a magazine and tape it to the wall because it’s pretty and inspirational. I hate mediocrity.

Are there any tips or tricks you regularly employ?
I don’t do anything “fake” except use Cool Whip instead of whipped cream. It’s important to not cook certain things through, like pasta. It’s also important not to overly fuss over the food. I like to keep it simple and keep it real.

What has changed over the years that you’ve been in the business?
On aesthetics, everything is moving toward a “natural” look and a “green” direction: natural, organic, fresh, high-quality. Food is no longer plastic looking. The day of the painted, plump, shellacked, monster Thanksgiving turkey is over. Even commercial shoots are beginning to take on a much more natural, “editorial” feel. On the business side, one key change is that more and more companies and magazines are hiring and using photographers in-house. That has changed the landscape for freelancers and the economics of the business. On the technology side, the digital age has changed the business tremendously. Not only is it easier because you can immediately see the images you are producing, but it also makes fixing issues much more possible.

Where do you find inspiration?
Many different ways. While eating a meal at a restaurant. At the grocery store looking at ingredients. At the flower market. On Ebay. Another way is reading blogs. You can get such quick information from so many different sources with unique perspectives. I also find inspiration in the Sunday New York Times. I keep an idea file with photographs, illustrations and other things that generate ideas. The hard thing is to come up with an idea, the easy thing is to execute on the idea.

What blogs inspire you?
The Bedlam of Beefy
Notcot
Decor8
Hoping for Happy Accidents
Design*Sponge
Cannelle et Vanille
Souvlaki for the Soul

What magazines do you find inspirational in the food world?
Donna Hay, Côté Sud, Vogue Entertaining (Australian), Delicious (Australian)

"Christmas dessert shoot for Interior Magasinet" Styling by Paul Lowe. Photography by Colin Cooke

What are your favorite types of shoots?
Editorial shoots where there is a lot of leeway to envision the image and make it my own. Commercial shoots are much different since a room full of people often drives them and it might take all day to produce one shot that everyone can agree on. I do my own prop styling in addition to food styling, which is somewhat unusual in the business. I prefer when I am hired to do both. My work is 70% editorial and 30% commercial.

What is some tactical advice you would give to budding stylists?
Test, test. Experiment. Fail. Work with photographers to practice. Begin to develop a sense for what works and what types of foods are photogenic. Try to develop a unique style. Work whenever you can. Meet people and gain exposure and experience. Be alert. Look out for ideas and props.

Any “watch-outs?”
1. If you don’t feel comfortable, you shouldn’t take the job. I have gotten into trouble with that in the past. Once I had to do a pizza shoot and it was way over my head at the time. It was a commercial shoot and required an enormous amount of control over the food.
2. Don’t take too long styling. Just go with your gut. Don’t second guess. You have to move on and you have to teach yourself to work quickly.

"Christmas dessert shoot for Interior Magasinet" Styling by Paul Lowe. Photography by Colin Cooke

Healthy start: quinoa breakfast porridge

2008-09-15T20:16:00.008-04:00

Thanks so much for your empathy and commiseration about my computer failure! It turns out that both my hard drive and logic board died, and when I returned to pick up my computer, they handed me a completely revamped device void of any programs or data. It was one of those stereotypical computer repair experiences: they looked at me blankly, informed me of what had happened and then gave me that judgmental: “that’s why you should always back up”. Luckily, I have been backing up automatically regularly – to two different hard drives, but I have never tested the back ups. So I was still slightly panicked when I left the repair shop and dreaded having to re-load and re-set up everything from the operating system to email. To my great surprise, when I restored my computer absolutely everything re-loaded, settings, passwords, software, everything – restored to the minute my computer crashed – how wonderful is that? Please back up your computer – mine is only a year old and I never imagined something this catastrophic would happen!

Last week had one great piece of news despite the computer saga: I placed first in last month’s DMBLGIT for my jam jar muffin image. Thanks so much Andreea for hosting and to Alessandro and Simone for judging. You guys made my week – thanks again. See here for the roundup and all the other amazing images that placed.
I also wanted to share that a few weeks ago I had my first “cook and style” shoot for the New York Times Dining Section. It was featured on Wednesday, August 26 and was for the Feed Me column by Alex Witchel. This particular article was about burritos – and I cooked, styled, and shot the image. It was terrifically fun and I hope that there will be more of the same to come in the future.
The fresh air and wild blueberries of Maine inspired the recipe for this week (see throughout for some memories from the trip). Actually, it’s been on my “to-cook list“ since it was featured on 101cookooks. It’s from Chef MD's Big Book of Culinary Medicine: A Food Lover's Road Map to Losing Weight, Preventing Disease, and Getting Really Healthy by John La Puma, M.D., a book I most likely never would have taken notice of had Heidi not written about it on her blog.
The book sounded so compelling I bought it and true to promise it is chock full of wonderful advice on healthful eating. What I like most about it is the detailed discussion about the health benefits of different ingredients. What’s least effective is that it has absolutely no photos to accompany the recipes which I’m sure was an important cost consideration but it certainly gives the book little visual food appeal. Fortunately, Heidi’s photo of the breakfast quinoa recipe and her review of the dish drew me in.

Quinoa is a grain that I am just learning about. It has wonderful health benefits including cholesterol lowering benefits and has a high protein content for a grain. It comes in blond and red varieties (the red being very pretty in this dish). Regarding preparation, it seems most prefer to rinse the grain, let it dry, and then toast it in a dry skillet to bring out its nutty flavor and remove the bitter-tasting saponins that coat it. I cooked the porridge this way and was not disappointed. The porridge is a cross between oatmeal, grape nuts, and wheat germ in consistency and flavor.
It’s cinnamon-y and fruity and has just he right toothsome texture. You can add whatever nuts or berries most appeal to you and can substitute honey for agave although the latter is quite nice in this. If you rinse the grain the night before and allow it to dry in a strainer, the dish is very quick to prepare in the morning and easier than oatmeal since you don’t have to worry about scorching. Give it a try.
Quinoa breakfast porridge (from Chef MD's Big Book of Culinary Medicine: A Food Lover's Road Map to Losing Weight, Preventing Disease, and Getting Really Healthy, reprinted from 101cookbooks)

1 cup organic 1% low fat milk
1 cup water
1 cup organic quinoa (rinsed. can also toast the dry grains to bring out their nutty flavor)
2 cups fresh blackberries, organic preferred (I used a combination of blackberries and blueberries)
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/3 cup chopped pecans, toasted* (or other nut - I used sliced almonds)
4 teaspoons organic agave nectar (can substitute honey)

Combine milk, water and quinoa in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat to medium-low; cover and simmer 15 minutes or until most of the liquid is absorbed. Turn off heat; let stand covered 5 minutes. Stir in blackberries and cinnamon; transfer to four bowls and top with pecans. Drizzle 1 teaspoon agave nectar over each serving.

Serves 4.

*While the quinoa cooks, roast the pecans in a 350F degree toaster oven for 5 to 6 minutes or in a dry skillet over medium heat for about 3 minutes.

Perfect portion: chioggia beet and goat cheese tartlets

2008-09-09T15:03:00.004-04:00

I had the nightmare experience of trying to turn my computer on yesterday only to find that no matter what I did, the screen remained black. Two computer repair places and several hours later, I accepted the fact that it needed to be sent out for repair, and that I would be without my lifeline for four days. Luckily I have a backup system that would make Bill Gates proud, and am not worried about my files. That said, it has taken a while for me to get set up so that I can access my critical files from a borrowed computer and be able to write this week’s post. I’ll save what I was going to share from Maine for next week when I have my own computer back, and in the meantime have a bright lunch idea for this rainy weather.

I love anything cooked in individual portions. Somehow, everything looks and tastes better served that way. Tartlets are no exception – they are even easier to make than full-sized tarts since forming the dough size is simpler. Inspired by the beautiful Chioggia beets in the farmer’s market, I set off to make beet and goat cheese tartlets for lunch and served them with wonderful farmer’s market greens. I love Chioggia beets – they are even more exotic-looking raw and can be eaten that way. I like thinly slicing them in salad: they are a beautiful contrast to greens. Cooked, their concentric rings lose some of their punch but they become beautifully mottled with pink, white and orange colors.

These tartlets (with a great green side salad) are the perfect light, highly civilized lunch.

Beet and goat cheese tartlets

For the dough, use any basic pâte brisée such as this one (dough for one 9 inch pie will make 4-5 tartlets)

For the filling

4-5 beets (Chioggia are beautiful but standard beets would be nice too), drizzled with olive oil, wrapped in foil and roasted in the oven at 350˚ for ~45 minutes or until a knife easily passes through them)
5 oz goat cheese
2 leeks, white and light green parts only, well washed
1 Tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme plus one spring thyme to garnish each tart
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Press dough inside fluted mini tart pans (~4.5 inch diameter) with removable bottoms. Roll rolling pin over tops of tarts to cut off any dough above the edges. Prick dough with a fork in several places. Allow to rest in the refrigerator for 15-20 minutes. Place parchment paper inside tart pans, covering sides and fill with pie weights. Blind bake for 25 minutes until dough is a golden brown. Remove from oven and set aside.

While tart shells are blind baking, slice leeks into thin rounds and sauté over medium/medium low heat with a splash of olive oil, small pat of butter and sprinkle of salt and pepper until they are soft and translucent. Mix ~1 tablespoon chopped thyme leaves, and a sprinkle of pepper into goat cheese. Stir to soften the cheese.

When beets are cool enough to handle, remove skins and slice very thinly and evenly, ideally using a mandolin.

When tart shells come out of oven, fill bottoms with sautéed leeks and then dot goat cheese evenly on top, using your finger or a fork to gently distribute the cheese.

Bake tarts for ~10 minutes until cheese has softened. Remove from oven and neatly place beet slices on the top, drizzle with a little olive oil, sprinkle with remaining teaspoon chopped thyme leaves and heat in oven until warm, ~5-7 minutes, taking care to ensure beets do not dry out.

Remove from pie pans, garnish with a spring of thyme and serve with a green salad.

p.s. I'm entering the top-down image in this month's "click" event

Soaking up the last of the summer produce: Vietnamese summer rolls

2008-08-31T18:30:00.004-04:00

Apologies for the posting lapse! I had intended to post one last recipe before our long vacation in Maine but time got away from me and I unfortunately left without putting my post up.

We had a wonderful time in Maine. I am going through photos and will have some to share next week. It was great to get away to a completely different environment, and I’ve come back with all sorts of recipe and photography ideas that I’m excited to get to!

Before we left, I revisited an old recipe for Vietnamese summer rolls that is so perfect for lazy summer lunches or light dinners. It does light duty of cooking and makes use of fresh produce. I always feel healthy and light on my toes after a meal of these!

The recipe is informal; you can stuff the rolls with whatever you like or have on hand. It takes a little practice to wrap a nice-looking roll: the trick is to wrap them tightly, folding the ends down over your ingredients and starting with the insides placed off-center toward the long side you begin rolling from. As you go, place the ingredients you want to peak through the outside toward the end of the roll so they are visible when fully wrapped.

You can stuff the rolls with whatever appeals to you: there is no need for a formal recipe. Some favorite fillings include cellophane (rice) noodles (seasoned with a little lime juice and sesame oil), steamed, room-temperature shrimp or chicken, chives, bean sprouts, cucumber, red and yellow peppers sliced lengthwise, avocado, cilantro and mint. The vegetables are added raw and lend a fresh, satisfying crunch.

The classic way to serve these is with a dipping sauce and some nice crunchy lettuce to wrap on the outside along with the mint and cilantro.

Vietnamese summer rolls

To prepare the rice paper wrapper, dip wrapper in a bowl of warm water for five seconds, then transfer to your work area and wrap the roll. Keeping a wet towel or paper towel draped over the rolls will keep them from drying out as you finish the others. Serve rolls immediately when done.

Vietnamese dipping sauce (from Cooking Light)

½ cup freshly squeezed lime juice
¼ cup fish sauce
¼ cup rice wine vinegar
2 teaspoons sugar
1 green chile pepper, very thinly sliced

Stir to combine and serve alongside rolls for dipping.

Purple reign: stuffed baby eggplant

2008-08-08T12:05:00.006-04:00

I completely adore eggplant and have been feasting on it lately. In Chelsea market, there’s a green grocer that currently has many different varieties including Japanese, Spanish, Italian, Zebra, and baby eggplant. They are as beautiful to look at as they are delicious.

I couldn’t resist picking up some beautiful neon Japanese eggplants and some adorable, plump baby eggplants. The Japanese eggplant got steamed and served with a spicy soy-based sauce. I wanted to use the baby eggplants in a recipe that would preserve their form and found a wonderful recipe for Geek-style stuffed eggplants with an eggplant-lamb-feta filling on the food network website of all places! I wish I could say that I added a stunningly original twist to the recipe but all I did was use baby eggplants instead of larger ones and add in some sautéed red pepper to the recipe.

The recipe sounded amazing and I knew it would hit the spot. It’s a great summer main dish. I served it with Israeli couscous which is a new favorite. The next day, I took leftover couscous, put it in ramekins, topped it with the remaining lamb-eggplant stuffing, sprinkled fresh feta on the top and broiled it in the oven for a great individually-proportioned leftover feast!

Greek-Style Stuffed Eggplant
(From Sara’s Secrets as printed on the Food Network website, adapted from Gourmet Magazine)

3 (1/2-pound) eggplants
1 teaspoon salt, plus 1 teaspoon
1 tablespoon olive oil, plus 3 tablespoons
2 cups chopped onion
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound lean ground lamb
1/3 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
3 tablespoons minced fresh mint leaves
3 plum tomatoes, halved lengthwise, seeded, and cut into julienne strips
1 cup crumbled feta
(optional: one red bell pepper)

Halve 2 of the eggplants lengthwise, score their pulp deeply with a sharp knife, being careful not to pierce the skins, and with a grapefruit knife scoop out the pulp, reserving it and leaving 1/2-inch-thick shells. Sprinkle the shells with 1 teaspoon salt and invert them on paper towels to drain for 15 to 30 minutes. Cut the reserved pulp and the remaining whole eggplant into 1/2-inch pieces, in a colander toss the pieces with the remaining salt, and let them drain for 15 to 30 minutes.

Pat the shells dry with paper towels, brush them with 1 tablespoon of the oil, and broil them on the rack of a broiler pan, skin side down, under a preheated broiler about 4 inches from the heat until they are tender, about 5 minutes.

In a skillet, heat the remaining 3 tablespoons oil over moderately high heat until it is hot but not smoking. Saute the onion and the garlic until translucent (add ~ 1/2 diced red bell pepper if using). Add the ground lamb and the eggplant pieces, patted dry, stirring, until meat loses all color and eggplant is tender.

Remove the skillet from the heat, stir in the parsley, mint, tomatoes, feta, and salt and pepper to taste, and divide the filling among the shells, mounding it. Broil the stuffed eggplants in a large flameproof baking dish for 5 minutes, or until the filling is bubbling and golden.

Perfect for a picnic: jam jar muffins

2008-07-31T13:32:00.004-04:00

A friend of mine who founded my favorite flickr food photography group, the food photography club, posted an image of little cakes baked in preserving jars. I thought the idea was so cute and would work well with an adapted muffin recipe. Thorsten’s cakes are made with cream cheese and egg whites and apparently can be kept in the jars for up to two weeks. I would be afraid to represent that my recipe would fare equally well (and afraid to poison you!) – but the good thing is that these delicious little lemon poppy seed muffins will not last that long anyway! I used little jam jars with a tad less than 1 cup capacity. Baked in these jars with a little spoon tied to the outside, they make the perfect summer picnic accompaniment. They’re self-contained, won’t squish in the picnic basket and are simply adorable!

My muffins have a little surprise at the bottom: a tablespoon of jam that comes out of the oven molten and delicious. When you cut or spoon into the muffin you end up with a dollop of jam in each bite. Strawberry jam is perfect with the lemon poppy seed muffins – I could easily see it working equally well with corn muffins.

Jam jar muffins
(yield: six large muffins)

3 lemons, scrubbed and patted dry
½ cup butter, room temperature
1 cup plus 2 Tbs sugar
2 large eggs
1 tsp baking soda
1 cup plain yogurt or buttermilk
2 cups flour
2 Tbs poppy seeds
¼ cup plus 4 Tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice
6 tablespoons strawberry jam

Heat oven to 375. Grease inside of jam jars. Lightly spread one tablespoon of jam into the bottom of each jar. Finely grate lemon peel to yield 2 Tbs.

In a large bowl, beat butter and 1 cup sugar until pale and fluffy. Beat in eggs one at a time. Add lemon peel.

In a separate bowl, stir baking soda into yogurt (it will bubble).

Fold flour into butter mix 1/3 of the time alternating with the yogurt mix. Stir in poppy seeds. Stir in 4 tablespoons lemon juice. When well blended, scoop into jam jars until ~2/3 to ¾ full (muffins may pop up beyond the top of the jar when baked but will easily compress when the lid is closed). Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a cake tester inserted into the middle comes out clean. Cool on a rack. Combine remaining ¼ cup with 2 tablespoons sugar. Spoon mixture evenly over the top of each muffin.

Chinese street food in your kitchen: Zha Ziang Mian

2008-07-21T14:44:00.009-04:00

Even before I lived in Beijing I loved Chinese food. Living there only increased my fondness for the cuisine as it is so much more varied and interesting than what we are used to being served in American-adapted Chinese restaurants in this country. Chinese food is far more flavorful and vegetable-filled and far less heavy, fried and saucy than we are led to believe based on what is available here.

Up until recently, I seldom cooked Chinese food for lack of a good cookbook. I now have one that I love thanks to my dad who found The Seventh Daughter: My Culinary Journey from Beijing to San Francisco by Cecilia Chiang (complete with an Alice Waters foreword). The cookbook is full of stories from the author’s childhood, which, I will admit, I’ve only skimmed, as I have been completely focused on the wonderful recipes and beautiful photos that accompany them. The recipes are well written with clear explanations of any out-of-the-ordinary ingredients or procedures that make them virtually foolproof. The book covers all of the expected categories including soups and noodles. There’s a great chapter on street food that contains one of my personal favorites: Zha Ziang Mian.

Zha Ziang Mian is a noodle dish topped with ground pork cooked in a soy-bean-hoisin-garlic sauce. It’s completely irresistible if not too photogenic. I made a little adaptation and used thinly sliced pork tenderloin instead of ground pork and added a few extra toppings for color. But if you stick to the original, you can’t go wrong either.

Zha Ziang Mian (adapted from The Seventh Daughter: My Culinary Journey from Beijing to San Francisco by Cecilia Chiang)
(serves 4)

Sauce
2 Tbs bean sauce
2 Tbs hoisin sauce
2 Tbs soy sauce

3 Tbs peanut oil
1 Tsp minced garlic
½ lb coarsely ground pork shoulder (pork butt) or ½ lb pork tenderloin, sliced thinly
1 Tbs Shaoxing wine
1 Tsp peeled, minced fresh ginger
1 Tbs minced green onions
½ pound fresh 1/8-inch-wide Chinese noodles
½ English cucumber, partially peeled, cut into 2-inch-long julienne pieces (about ½ cup)

Combine sauce ingredients in a small bowl.

Have remaining ingredients pre-measured and standing by as cooking the pork takes just a few minutes.

Boil water for the noodles.

Heat a large wok over high heat, add oil and swirl to coat pan. Add garlic and cook until fragrant and slightly golden, about 10 seconds. Add pork and stir constantly to break the meat apart. Cook pork until just a bit of pink remains and it begins to brown (about 2 minutes). Add wine and ginger and continue to stir for a few second more. Pour in the reserved sauce, bring the liquid to a boil, and stir to thoroughly coat the pork. Add the green onions and toss to combine well. Remove pan from the heat.

Cook the noodles until tender (about 2 minutes). Immediately drain. I like to put the noodles in individual serving dishes, top with the sauce, and garnish with the cucumber, allowing each person to toss their own noodles to combine them with the sauce.

Serve warm, cold or at room temperature as desired.

Udon noodle soup your way

2008-07-10T12:21:00.005-04:00

When I worked in midtown Manhattan, there was a Korean deli that, while typical in all other ways, had one special feature: make-your-own udon. At a little station, a cook would fill an enormous styrofoam cup (the size of a super-sized soda from a fast food restaurant) with plump noodles and broth, and then you would select your add-ins from a wide variety of vegetables, meats, tofu and garnishes. It cost $6.50 and was incredibly filling and satisfying. I used to walk all the way across town in search of the soup, which was only available during the winter months.

I was reminded of my love of Udon (and making it just they way you like it) recently when seeing a couple of posts pop up with udon recipes. One was on Just Hungry, and the other on Cook and Eat. I started with the Just Hungry recipe and some Japanese flour which was labeled "Hakuriki ko flower nisshin" and although it didn’t appear to be high gluten, I was assured by the store it was appropriate. Other than having to add quite a bit more water than suggested (in total, I used 2/3 - 3/4 cup water), the recipe worked perfectly. I tried it once in the Kitchenaid with the dough hook, and once in the Cuisinart with the normal blade attachment – both worked fine. Making the noodles was amazingly simple: no egg, no rolling through a pasta machine – just kneading, resting, rolling and cutting. If I said I spent more than 10 minutes of active time on the noodles, I would be exaggerating.

The broth was a little trickier. I found the Just Hungry recipe way too strong. Cook and Eat used Harumi’s recipe (for the udon noodles as well, which call for a mixture of all purpose and bread flours), and I have had great luck with hers in the past. Depending on your taste, you might want to dilute the broth. You can also buy a pre-made concentrated soup base and dilute it to your taste.

The fun part is adding your own mix-ins. I went with thinly sliced, sautéed pork shoulder, spinach, shiitake and enoki mushrooms, scallions and a healthy pinch of Japanese shichimi togarashi. You could add anything: broccoli, carrots, onions and chicken to name a few. Delicate greens like spinach need not be cooked – they wilt in the hot broth and are ready to eat by the time the soup gets to the table.

Udon noodles

See here or here.

For the soup (adapted from Harumi's Japanese Home Cooking: Simple, Elegant Recipes for Contemporary Tastes):

1 2/3-2 cups homemade udon noodles
1 cup dashi stock
1/3 cup basic mentsuyu sauce (see below)
finely chopped spring onions to taste
Add-ins to taste including: enoki mushrooms, fresh spinach leaves, shiitake mushrooms, egg, thinly sliced pork shoulder sautéed with a little garlic and ginger
chili powder or sichimi togarashi to taste

Metsuyu sauce:

4-inch piece dried kombu seaweed
1 cup water
1 3/4 cup soy sauce
1 1/4 cup mirin
2 tbs superfine sugar
4 1/2 tbs dried fish flakes

Heat noodles by pouring boiling water over them in a colander. Drain well and place in individual serving bowls.

Mix three parts dashi stock with one part Metsuyu sauce and heat in a pan. As it comes to a boil, turn the heat off and pour over the udon. Add in additional toppings. Sprinkle with spring onions and chili powder or shichimi togarashi to taste.

Fresh pea soup and a little news

2008-07-03T11:24:00.006-04:00

I'll start with the news! I placed second in last month's DMBGIT awards with my tapioca pudding image. Thank you so so much Helen and the other judges, Jen, Graeme, Nadia and Alyson! I love this monthly event because it's a great way to see what everyone else is up to and get caught up on posts you might have missed. See the roundup and the other wonderful images here. I have been focusing much more on food photography lately. I hope to broaden my focus beyond my own little world, and as as such have set up an on-line portfolio (a work in progress) that you can see here. If you know anyone looking for a one-stop shop photographer, cook, and stylist, please send them my way! Now, on to the post . . .

There are beautiful, fresh peas of all kinds everywhere right now. I’ve been eating them in salads, raw and cooked, and snacking on English peas right out of the pod.

I love fresh pea soup, and I’d like to think I have the patience to shell the peas myself, but that never seems to happen. Luckily, the farmer’s market has been selling freshly shelled peas by the half pint and I feel like that’s close enough to shelling them myself.

Taking advantage of this short pea season, I made pea soup and served it with fun garnishes and a radish and ricotta tartine on the side. It’s the perfect lunch or light dinner and can be served both hot or cold.

I learned a tip from Alice Waters that takes a little more time but makes a difference: after puréeing the soup, place it in an ice bath and stir it until cooled. This helps to maintain the soup’s bright green color.

Fresh pea soup

4 cups freshly shelled peas
1 quart chicken stock
One onion, diced
1 carrot, diced
1 cup plain yogurt
2-3 cloves garlic, roasted and peeled
1 sprig thyme
1/2 teaspoon dried tarragon
1/4 teaspoon celery seeds
2 tablespoons olive oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Garnishes (optional):

Chopped chive
Thinly sliced radish
Pea pods
Pea shoots

Sauté carrot and onion in olive oil until translucent. Add chicken stock, garlic, thyme, tarragon and celery seeds. Bring to a boil, simmer, uncovered for 15 minutes. Remove one cup of stock from the pot and reserve.

Add the peas, simmer until soft (5-10 minutes maximum). Purée soup in a blender or with an immersion blender and then pour into an ice bath (a heat proof bowl placed on top of a bowl filled with ice). Stir until cooled to room temperature and then remove from the ice. Stir in one cup plain yogurt. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Check soup for desired consistency. If too thick, slowly add in reserved stock until it is as thick as you like it.

Reheat or keep at room temperature to serve. Garnish with chopped chive, pea pods, and radish or as desired.

Burst of color and seasonal flavor: beet bruschetta

2008-06-23T17:37:00.007-04:00

A completely lovely friend went to Israel to visit her family recently and came back with an Israeli cookbook for me. She selected the most perfect cookbook – it is beautifully laid out on large, glossy paper, the photography is colorful and gorgeous, and it is very modern and young. It is full of stories and history related to food. Israeli food is a cuisine I am largely unfamiliar with: this book is the perfect seduction into Israeli cooking.

Having coincidentally picked up both beets and pomegranate seeds at the market, I was intrigued to find the perfect use for my acquisitions: a beetroot and pomegranate salad. Strange coincidence to spot a recipe that makes use of both, no?

I have had bruschetta on the brain recently and decided to morph the salad into a bruschetta topping, and of course, make my own little adjustments, namely swapping out the cilantro and replacing it with chopped Italian flat leaf parsley and chives, and adding some crumbled ricotta salata to the top. Perfection. I love the contrast of the dark, dense beets with the translucent seeds, and the green of the herbs adds wonderful color and freshness.

Beet and pomegranate seed bruschetta (heavily adapted from Beetroot and Pomegranate Salad from The Book of New Israeli Food: A Culinary Journey)

3-4 medium beetroots, stem ends trimmed to ~1 inch length, washed lightly
2 tablespoons pomegranate concentrate
2-3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2-3 dried chili peppers, crushed
2 tablespoons fresh chopped chives
1 cup pomegranate seeds
¼ - ½ cup coarsely chopped Italian flat leaf parsley
¼ cup delicate olive oil
Crumbled ricotta salata to top
Coarse sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 fresh baguette, sliced diagonally into ~1/2 inch rounds

Sprinkle beets with olive oil, wrap individually in aluminum foil packets, and roast in a 375º degree oven for ~45 minutes or until tender. Let cool. Peel and chop into small dice.

Mix with pomegranate concentrate, lemon juice, peppers, sea salt and pepper. Set aside for 15 minutes. Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary.

Spoon mixture onto bread rounds. Sprinkle with parsley and ricotta salata. Serve immediately.

The best of the berry: strawberry frozen yogurt

2008-06-17T11:26:00.007-04:00

I promise to get off frozen desserts soon, but I’m having so much fun experimenting with all of the fresh fruit that’s in the market now, I have to slip one more recipe in.

I recently gave in and purchased David Lebovitz’s Perfect Scoop: Ice Creams, Sorbets, Granitas, and Sweet Accompaniments cookbook. I usually limit the cookbooks I buy on a single topic because they don’t get enough play, but this one is going to be an exception: there are so many wonderful and refreshing sounding desserts in it that I am sure it will quickly become a regular in the rotation.

Strawberries are everywhere right now. We brought home a few pints of beautiful fresh picked ones from Long Island last weekend. Wanting to use them all up while they were at their freshest, I flipped through the Perfect Scoop for ideas. There were several great-sounding recipes: strawberry frozen yogurt, strawberry-sour ice cream, and strawberry granita, to name a few. I started with the frozen yogurt, and it was such a hit I went on to make the strawberry-sour ice cream the next day!

The frozen yogurt is particularly great because it only requires five ingredients (one of which is optional) and is made without cooking. No pots and pans to clean up and no custard to cook. The color of the frozen yogurt is a gorgeous hot pink, and the taste? Amazing, deep, fresh strawberry flavor that will make you swear off store-bought frozen yogurt forever.

Strawberry frozen yogurt (from the Perfect Scoop: Ice Creams, Sorbets, Granitas, and Sweet Accompaniments by David Lebovitz)
(makes about 1 quart)

1 pound fresh strawberries, rinsed and hulled
2/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons vodka or kirsch (optional)
1 cup plain whole milk yogurt
1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

Slice the strawberries into small pieces. Toss in a bowl with the sugar and vodka or kirsch, if using, stirring until the sugar begins to dissolve. Cover and let stand at room temperature for 1 hour, stirring every so often.

Puree the strawberries and their liquid with the yogurt and lemon juice in a blender or food processor until smooth. If you wish, press the mixture through a mesh strainer to remove any seeds.

Refrigerate for 1 hour then freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.

Crisp and refreshing: fresh fava bean salad

2008-06-10T22:20:00.012-04:00

If you are like me, you’re probably not feeling like cooking over a hot stove right now. Hopefully you are not exactly like me and your air conditioning hasn’t conveniently decided to break down on the hottest day of the year.

I’m sticking to salads, sushi and frosty desserts right now. I’m revisiting some old favorites, like spinach couscous salad, and exploring some new salads. I’m giving my ice cream maker a run for its money (a frozen yogurt to share soon).

In the markets now, are beautiful, plump fava beans. They are a bit of a pain to shell, but it’s a mindless task and well worth the effort to uncover the glossy green gems. We had a simple fava bean side salad this week. I shelled a heap of fava beans and swore I wouldn’t do that again for a while. And then I ate the salad. And changed my mind.

P.s. I'm thrilled my great green salad photo won this month's aesthetics category in the "Does my blog look good in this" competition. Thanks so much judges, I really appreciate it!

Fresh fava bean salad

Fava beans, in pod
Olive oil
Champagne vinegar
1-2 chopped shallots
1 small wedge Pecorino Romano
1 tbs freshly squeezed lemon juice plus zest of 1 lemon
~1 tsp crushed pink peppercorns
Good sea salt

To shell the favas, remove the beans from the pods and blanch them in salted boiling water for two minutes. Remove beans and plunge into an ice bath. When cool, remove the whitish outer covering of the beans by puncturing one end with your fingernail (or a knife) and gently squeezing the green bean out. It takes a bit of practice, but will go quickly once you get the hang out of it. Toss beans with a few splashes of olive oil, a few splashes of champagne vinegar, the chopped shallots, lemon juice and zest. Sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Shave Pecorino Romano on top. Taste and adjust seasonings as necessary. Serve cold or at room temperature.

Refreshing and sweet: plum wine granita

2008-06-02T16:36:00.014-04:00

It was a funny weather weekend here – alternately sunny, warm and beautiful and rainy, cold and foggy. We were back at the beach and rolled with the punches, getting caught in a torrential downpour on Saturday night that caused us to run home, camera tucked under my sweater. It was nice to be away despite having to hole up inside on occasion. We took the opportunity to visit a local winery and indulge in a tasting. Rosé is apparently in vogue right now – and I will admit to being a bit wooed by the lovely pink color, and the girly-ness of it all. The combination of summer, wine, and pink inspired me to concoct a granita recipe loosely modeled after a little after dinner treat served at our local Japanese restaurant: plum wine granita.

The first time I had it I was amazed at how flavorful and refreshing it was. I asked for the recipe but apparently it’s a well-guarded secret, so I set off to tinker with the likely ingredients and came up with a version that is highly pleasing. It’s the perfect cooling summer treat: light, refreshing, and mildly alcoholic! As with any granita, you don’t need any special equipment – just a fork and a freezer-safe container – ideally one with a wide surface area for even freezing, like an 8 x 12 Pyrex with 2 or 3 inch sides.

Granitas with a high an alcohol content like this take a while to freeze and don’t stay frozen long so it’s best to plan a day ahead, stick your glasses in the freezer to chill for a while, fill them with the finished granita and then serve them directly from the freezer. The granita itself may take a half a day or longer to completely freeze, but the good news is you only have to check in on it every couple of hours while its doing so.

Plum wine granita (serves 4-6)

2 cups Japanese plum wine*
2.5 cups water
½ cup plus 1 Tbs sugar
1.5 Tbs freshly squeezed lime juice
4 Tbs crème de cassis (adds another flavor note and color – can be omitted).

Combine water and sugar in a small saucepan and heat until sugar dissolves completely. Remove from the heat. Combine with plum wine, cassis and lime juice. Taste and add additional sugar or lime juice if you like. Pour into a freezer-safe container (8x12 with 2 to 3 inch sides works well). Begin checking after two hours. As ice crystals form, use a fork to break them into smaller crystals taking care to scrape along the sides where the crystals will first form. Check and repeat every 1.5 - 2 hours until frozen.

*Note: Plum is ume in Japanese. I used this one. In general, look for a wine you'd be happy to drink but it need not be of the highest quality. The color of plum wine varies: Kikkoman, for example, produces an amber-colored plum wine that will result in a darker colored granita.

In celebration of summer: coffee ice cream

2008-05-27T20:39:00.009-04:00

We spent memorial day weekend at the beach (with everyone else in Manhattan). Luckily, the weather was glorious and we were staying within walking distance of a town and didn't need to get in a car and sit in traffic much.

Our dog enjoyed long walks on the beach and we explored the local restaurants and shops. I stumbled upon a wonderful little antique store full of treasures for the food stylist at heart and ended up with a treasure trove of random flatware pieces, bowls and odds and ends and along with them, some new photo ideas.

My one major desire for the weekend was to indulge in some local ice cream. Believe-it-or-not, the "best" ice cream parlor in town (according to the locals) was constantly packed and it wasn't until Monday evening that the line died down to a tolerable wait. I guess I wasn't the only person who had ice cream on the brain. I was reminded of an amazing ice cream recipe that I took straight from Martha last fall and have been saving sharing for a more appropriate season. In celebration of the coming of summer, here it is: coffee ice cream.

Coffee is my favorite flavor (with mint chocolate chip and cookie dough close runners up). I used to think making your own ice cream was a bit over the top but it turns out (I guess as with most other things) that fresh, homemade ice cream is so sublimely superior to store-bought that short of going to a local dairy, it's pretty hard to beat.

What was particularly wonderful about the ice cream I made, is that I got the brewed espresso from my favorite artisanal coffee shop. The gave me a slightly puzzled look when I asked for the espresso to be measured in a measuring cup I brought and then put into a ziploc storage container - but they obliged and it served as the critical flavoring component of the ice cream. If you don't know how to make a good cup of espresso (or don't have the beans / equipment on hand) don't take a shortcut with instant - the real thing makes all the difference.

Coffee ice cream (from Martha Stewart Living)
(Makes 6 cups)

2 cups whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
1 cup sugar
1/2 cup brewed espresso
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
8 large egg yolks

Prepare an ice-water bath. Combine milk, cream, 1/2 cup sugar, the espresso, and vanilla in a saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat.

Meanwhile, whisk together egg yolks and remaining 1/2 cup sugar in a bowl.

Gradually whisk half the hot milk mixture into the egg-yolk mixture. Pour egg-yolk mixture into saucepan, and whisk. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.

Pour through a fine sieve into a heatproof bowl set in ice-water bath. Let cool, stirring occasionally. Place plastic wrap on surface of custard to prevent a skin from forming, and refrigerate 2 hours.

Freeze in an ice cream maker according to manufacturer's instructions. Transfer to an airtight container, and freeze for at least 1 hour before serving.