Category: Recipes


Feb
2011

Technique Class Recipes

categories: Recipes

Occasionally I teach technique classes at Williams-Sonoma – here are some of the best recipes from the past 2 classes.

Latin Cooking – Shredded Chicken in Pepper Sauce
Aji de Gallina
Serves 4-6

1 chicken, 4-6 lb; or 4 bone-in, skin on chicken breast halves, 2 lb total
8 cups chicken stock or low-sodium broth
1 tbsp unsalted butter
1 tbsp olive oil
1 lg red onion, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tsp aji amarillo paste**
1/4 cup aji panca paste**
1 (10oz) can evaporated milk
1 cup shredded queso blanco or farmer’s cheese
8 saltine crackers
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup ground walnuts

Place the chicken in a soup pot, pour in the stock, bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to med-lo and simmer, partially covered, until chicken is tender and opaque throughout, about 45 minutes. Transfer to a platter and let cool. Reserve 1 cup of the cooking liquid. Discard the skin and bones of the chicken, shred and set aside.

In a saucepan over med-lo, melt the butter with the olive oil. Add the onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and aji pastes** and cook until fragrant, about 1 min.

Meanwhile in a blender or food processor, combine reserved cooking liquid with evaporated milk, cheese, crackers, and salt. Process until smooth. Transfer to pan with onions and cook until slightly thickened, about 10 min. Add the chicken and ground walnuts and cook 2-3 min more. Serve with cooked rice and walnut halves.

**aji pastes are Peruvian chili pastes that we sell at WS. The amounts called for do not make the dish spicy AT ALL. If you prefer a spicier dish, add more aji amarillo.

I would like to try this recipe with a shredded rotisserie chicken (using a cup of stock for the “cooking liquid”) to cut down on prep time. I would also like to serve it with a soft boiled egg, as is traditional, and maybe double the sauce recipe.

Indian Cooking – Kheer (Rice Pudding)
Serves 6

4 cups milk
4 cups light cream
1/2 cup basmati rice, thoroughly rinsed
3/4 cup light brown sugar
4 cardamom pods, seeds removed and crushed; or 2/3 tsp ground
1/2 tsp saffron threads, crushed
1/2 cup raisins
1/4 cup sliced almonds

In a large pan, bring milk and cream to boil, stirring frequently. Add the rice, reduce to med-lo and cook until reduced to the consistency of custard and the rice is soft and creamy, about 50 min. Add the brown sugar and stir well. Add the cardamom, saffron, raisins, and almonds. Let cool, then cover and refrigerate until chilled.

**This pudding has such a wonderful, delicate flavor. I would love to add a splash of rose water.


Feb
2011

Best Lasagna Ever

categories: Recipes

When Americans think of lasagna, we typically think of the noodles, meat, and melted mozzarella variety. But in many parts of Italy, lasagna is not made with mozzarella. Instead, it uses creamy and fluffy bechamel with Parmesan as the only cheese. This is my favorite type of lasagna, it is much more delicate (and I have a serious bechamel obsession). My favorite recipe (courtesy of Chef Massimiliano Bartoli, Miss Williamsburg Restaurant) also uses ground veal instead of beef, and white wine instead of red – which provides the meat ragu with a really distinctive and tangy flavor. Enjoy the best lasagna recipe ever!

Begin with the Ragu, as it takes several hours to make:

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
6 tablespoons finely chopped onions
6 tablespoons finely chopped carrots
6 tablespoons finely chopped celery
1 pound ground veal
1 cup white wine
1 pound canned or fresh tomatoes (pureed and passed through a strainer)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil over medium in a large pot. Add the onions, carrots, and celery and cook, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender, about 15 minutes. Add the veal and brown, breaking up any big chunks of meat. Add the wine, increase the heat and simmer until the pan is once again dry, about 10 minutes. Add the tomatoes and enough water to cover. Bring the sauce to a simmer then reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, until the sauce is deeply flavored and no longer watery, about 4 hours. Season the ragu with salt and pepper and keep warm or refrigerate until ready to use.

Bechamel Sauce:

3 ounces butter (6tbsp)
3 ounces all-purpose flour (6tbsp)
1 quart milk
Freshly ground nutmeg
Kosher salt

Place the milk in the saucepan, and heat over medium-high until bubbles form at the edges of the pan.

Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in the flour and cook until the mixture is creamy and no longer smells floury.

Gradually add the milk to the roux a ladle at a time, working with a wooden spoon after each addition until the mixture is smooth. After all of the milk is incorporated, continue to cook over medium-high, whisking constantly. As the sauce returns to a boil, simmer until it thickens sufficiently to coat the back of a spoon, about 5 min. Season the bechamel with the nutmeg and salt; cover and keep warm until ready to use.

Ingredients

* Fresh Lasagna, recipe follows (**I use store bought no-boil sheets most of the time**)
* Kosher salt
* Bechamel Sauce
* Ragu
* 3 cups freshly grated Parmesan

Directions

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Cook the pasta, boiling salted water until just tender, drain and refresh in ice water. (**if using no-boil sheets, skip this step**)

Put a thin layer of bechamel in the bottom of a shallow baking dish or a jelly-roll pan. Cover the bechamel with a thin layer of ragu and a little cheese. Top the sauces and cheese with a layer of lasagna noodles. Repeat 6 times ending with a layer of bechamel, ragu and cheese. Bake the lasagna until it is warm at the center and the cheese topping golden brown, about 45 minutes (cover with some aluminum foil if the lasagna browns before it is fully heated).

*EDIT* Fresh Lasagna:

2 cups flour
3 eggs
pinch salt
pinch nutmeg

Pulse the flour, salt, and nutmeg in a food processor to evenly distribute and aerate. Add the eggs. Process until the dough forms a rough ball, about 30 seconds. (If the dough resembles small pebbles, add water or olive oil 1/2 tsp at a time; if it sticks to the side of the bowl, add flour 1 tbsp at a time.)

Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface and knead until smooth, about 1 minute. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside for at least 15 minutes or up to 2 hours.

Cut the dough into quarters and roll out one at a time, flouring as needed. Start at the widest setting, then fold the dough into thirds and pass through 2 more times. After that, decrease the width one setting at a time, running the dough through twice for each setting. I like to stop at setting 3 on a 6 level roller for lasagna noodles – a medium thickness. Cut the rolled out pasta in half and either hang on a pasta rack til needed, or layer between parchment paper and plenty of flour on a baking sheet.

To cook – bring a large pot of salted water to a boil, have a large bowl of ice water ready. Cook the noodles in 2 batches for about 1 minute (it doesn’t take long), then transfer with tongs to the ice water. Remove, pat dry with a clean towel, and layer between parchment until needed. You can brush with olive oil if you are having problems with sticking.


Feb
2011

Moussaka

categories: Recipes

I love Greek food, and one of my all-time favorite dishes is Moussaka (Greek lasagna). It is hearty and comforting and perfect for winter. I adapted this recipe from Diane Kochilas (prominent Greek cookbook author). Traditionally the eggplant and potato are fried, but in my version I bake them in order to be a little healthier. Also, I like to mix in beef with the traditional lamb. Also, you may notice that the Greek version of bechamel sauce is a little different than the Italian or French version- involving egg yolks and lemon zest.

Moussaka
serves 8-10

2lb potato, scrubbed and thinly sliced
3lb eggplant, peeled and thinly sliced
2 onions
2lb any combination of ground beef and lamb (I prefer a lb each)
1/2 cup white wine
3 cups (1 28oz can) whole plum tomatoes, chopped, with juice
3 tbsp tomato paste
3 cloves garlic, minced
3/4 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp ground cinnamon
2 bay leaves
pinch allspice
pinch nutmeg
3 cups milk
1 cup cream
8 tbsp unsalted butter
8 tbsp all-purpose flour
pinch nutmeg
1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese
2 egg yolks
zest of 1 lemon
1/2 cup bread crumbs
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Place the eggplant slices in a bowl, douse with salt, let sit for 45 min. Lay the potato slices on a baking sheet, brush both sides with oil, bake 15 min. Set aside on paper towels. Rinse the eggplant slices, pat dry, lay on a baking sheet and brush with oil. Turn oven down to 350 deg and bake 15 min. Set aside on paper towels.

Meat sauce: In a large saute pan, heat 1-2 tbsp olive oil. Add onion and saute until soft and translucent. Add the ground meat and brown. Add the white wine and cook until mostly evaporated. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic, and spices. Cover, turn heat to low, and simmer 45 min. Season with salt and pepper.

Bechamel sauce: Heat the cream and milk together until bubbles form at the edge of the pan, remove from heat. Meanwhile, melt the butter in a large sauce pan. Add the flour and cook until it no longer smells raw, 3-4 min. Gradually add the hot milk, stirring with a wooden spoon after each addition until smooth. After the last addition, cook for 5 min. The sauce should coat the back of a spoon. Remove from the heat and season with salt and pepper, nutmeg. Stir in the feta cheese. Allow to cool slightly, mix in the egg yolks and lemon zest. Cover to keep warm and set aside.

To assemble the moussaka: Spread the bread crumbs into the bottom of a 9×13 lasagna or casserole dish. Arrange the potatoes in a layer on top, arrange the eggplant on top of the potatoes. Spread the meat mixture evenly over the eggplant, and top with the bechamel sauce. Sprinkle the top with Parmesan cheese and bake at 350 deg for 45 min- 1 hour. Cover with foil if it gets dark too fast.


Jan
2011

Winter Cooking

categories: Recipes

As a bit of a departure from the norm, I am going to talk a little bit about home cooking. I LOVE the fall/winter food season – butternut and acorn squash, pumpkin, hearty stews – all that heavy, creamy, comforting goodness. Last October (as in 2009) it started to get chilly and I was ready for fall baking so I hit the grocery store, but (disaster of disasters!) there was no pumpkin puree to be found. I tried 5 different stores with no success – I was rather upset. So when that Libby’s finally hit the shelves, I bought somewhere near 20 cans in a pumpkin induced panic. Over a year and 2 Thanksgivings later, I still had several cans leftover. Which brings me to the inspiration for this week’s meals: get rid of that pumpkin!

I saw this recipe in my store and snatched it up: Spice Pumpkin and Lamb Tagine
I made some changes based on what I had on hand – the most important being the substitution of canned pumpkin for fresh roasted (the point of this week being to get rid of canned pumpkin). I also didn’t have tagine spice of harissa on hand. The WS brand tagine consists of paprika, tumeric, ginger and black pepper – but I found an excellent recipe for a more complex tagine blend, as follows:

2 tsp paprika
1/4 tsp tumeric
1/2 tsp cumin
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tsp cinnamon
1/4 tsp cloves
1/2 tsp cardamom
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ginger
pinch of saffron
3/4 tsp garlic powder
3/4 tsp coriander

Let me tell you – that mix smells fantastic. I added another 2 tsp of cinnamon to match the recipe, and I think I will leave it as is next time. I love the combination of cinnamon and meat in savory dishes, but it overpowered that lovely and complex tagine blend I had made. I also added a touch of honey to make up for the lack of powdered honey used in the recipe on the roasted pumpkin. The tagine ended up being really tasty, I will definitely keep it in the recipe box. I recommend serving it with couscous, rice, or (like I did) quinoa.

The next pumpkin recipe I made was a Thai pumpkin soup – recipe courtesy of my Vitamix recipe book (Jasper bought me a Vitamix 500 for Christmas, best present ever!) The soup is creamy and a little sweet. I would recommend pairing it with something savory to balance the sweetness. Alternatively you could omit the coconut cream and use twice the coconut milk to make it less sweet. I did not have any green chilies on hand, so I used a dash of cayenne pepper.

Thai Pumpkin Soup

2 tbsp olive oil
1 lg onion, chopped
1 tbsp tomato paste
2.5 cups canned pumpkin
2 tbsp ginger paste or chopped ginger
1 clove garlic, chopped
3 cups chicken broth
1 tbsp green chilies, chopped
3/4 cup coconut cream
3/4 cup coconut milk
1 tbsp lemon juice

Saute the onions in olive oil until soft. Add tomato paste, pumpkin, ginger, garlic, and broth. Heat through. Place in blender with remaining ingredients and puree. Season w/ salt and pepper. Garnish with sour cream, peanuts, and cilantro. Makes 8 cups.

I often have the problem of leftover produce and not knowing what to do with it. For instance, many recipes call for 1 carrot – but it is more difficult (and more expensive) to buy 1 carrot. I often end up buying a 1 lb pack and having a ton of extra carrots. Sometimes I chop them finely and freeze them to be used in various soups and stews. This method, unfortunately, does not work with celery – the ice crystals destroy the cellular structure and it ends up as brown mush. If anyone has any strategies for leftover celery, i would love to hear them.

Anyway, I found a recipe at the store for a spiced carrot soup and decided to use my extra carrots from the lamb tagine to make it. The soup is creamy (without the use of cream), spiced with curry, and topped w/ crunchy bits of salty prosciutto. I used madras curry instead of vadouvan – which I have yet to try but is a green french curry. The madras curry blend is my favorite of the ones we sell – traditional with great flavors but not spicy. It took me forever to learn that curries did not have to be spicy by nature, and what a marvelous discovery that was for someone who loves bold flavors but can’t handle spicy foods. But that is a story for another time. I hope you enjoy this small collection of winter comfort food.