My Kitchen My Table

Strawberry Sorbet

I love strawberries and since they are abundant this time of year it is hard to resist buying a flat at the farmer’s market to feed my habit. This week I had a craving for strawberry ice cream but there was no milk in the house and I wasn’t going to the store so sorbet was made instead! It is so easy, just needs to be planned in advance. To dress up and serve for guests drizzle a little reduced aged balsimico over the top and garnish with a lime wedge, strawberry slice, and shortbread cookie on the side.

1 cup sugar
1 cup water

4 cups strawberries
¼ cup freshly squeezed lime juice

Combine the sugar and water in a sauce pan and bring to a boil until sugar dissolves, then simmer for 5 minutes. Pour into a bowl and place in the refrigerator to cool completely.

Puree the strawberries and add lime juice. Combine with the simple syrup and blend until thoroughly mixed.

Pour into an ice cream maker and follow manufacturer’s instructions. Freeze for at least 4 hours before serving.

Wine Country Cooking Cookbook Review

Everyone was excited to cook from Wine Country Cooking. As people started buying their books I began receiving emails with a common theme of “it all looks so good I’m going to have a hard time deciding what to make”. This is truly a cookbook for all seasons, and how lucky are we to live close to the wine country and have so many amazing ingredients readily available.

During the time we were cooking from the book, several serendipitous things happened around Joanne Weir. The first was an invitation from a friend to attend a dinner at the Left Bank in Larkspur. Joanne had provided a menu that Chef Sean Canavan and his crew expertly prepared. All recipes were from Wine Country Cooking and ironically, I had prepared the entrée for dinner with the parents the week before. It would be interesting to compare. The rest of the menu included:

Amuse Bouche ~ Asparagus Cheese Puffs (p.79)
First Course ~ Asparagus Soup with Lemon Crème Fraîche ( p.15)
Entrée ~ Pork Tenderloin with Onion, Orange Marmalade (p. 155) and Grain Pilaf with Nuts and Dried Fruit (p. 178)
Dessert ~ Warm Chocolate-Walnut Tart (p.195)

It was all quite delicious with the stand out dish being the Asparagus Soup. It was the most brilliant shade of green, (Chef Canavan shared his trick for that with the group who ate up every word), But it was really the addition of lemon to the crème fraîche that gave everyone pause after putting the first spoonful in their mouths. The lemon was so subtle but noticeable and turned the soup from good to “wow, that’s really delicious”.

The second came from a friend who I like sharing recipes with. She sent me a couple that she had been making lately and really enjoyed. Guess whose they were; yep, Joanne Weir.

As for the cookbook, the net was that while all of the recipes looked great, there were several that had liquid ingredients that were off, instructions that were unclear or cooking times that were off. We decided that the recipes were better used as guidelines and that if the book had been gifted to a novice who didn’t have the intuition of someone who cooks a lot, there would be trouble in the kitchen. Some of us also found that certain recipes required a lot of active time.

It made me wonder… at the dinner, Joanne said that she writes recipes on her computer without actually making them. She is clearly a professional and has been cooking for decades with her PBS show, teaching classes and running tours near and abroad so of course, she naturally knows what she’s doing in a kitchen, it just seemed that something got lost in translation or perhaps only some of the recipes were tested in the kitchen.

Two things I learned from meeting her – she has a hell of a devoted following of people who watch her on television and attend her classes. In fact, she knew or recognized most of the guests and the man sitting next to me had almost all seventeen of her cookbooks and could actually recall which recipes were in which book and he even threw out a few page numbers as well. I was more frightened than impressed by this knowledge. The second is that Joanne Weir is a shameless self-promoter. I think that every sentence she spoke had a mention of her PBS show, her upcoming culinary tour in Provence, one of her seventeen cookbooks, or the weekend cooking classes she teaches in her house in SF. I wonder how she has a permit for those weekend classes? But I digress and must go back to the book and our cookbook club.

The quote of the night from the table “Damn Joanne, it would have been nice to have better instructions”. We all would have liked more pictures and a couple of us had issues with the cover coming unglued.

Here is a partial list of some of the dishes we made and comments:

Asparagus, Blood Orange, and Proscuitto Salad p.33 ~ it was labor intensive to segment and peel the oranges and what does “curl the proscuitto like a ribbon” mean? It would have been nice to have a picture. The depth of flavor was good.
Risotto with Lemon Shrimp p.129 ~ a huge hit, although one person ran out of stock before the rice was “chalky” it was really creamy and flavorful.
Little Lemon Cakes p.197 ~ both people who made these said the yield was 10 servings vs. 8 as stated in the book ~ at least the yield wasn’t less! Both cooks also stated it took longer to cook than what the recipe said.
Olive Oil and Orange Essence Cake p.196 ~ orange essence can be difficult to find. It was also unclear when to take the parchment paper off, and as a result, the top of the cake stuck to the parchment and came off in pieces. This was a problem for presentation.
Wine Country Flatbread with Grapes and Walnuts p.98 ~ Easy to make, delicious, and the house smelled great.
Fennel Gratin p.171 ~ Just make sure your guests like fennel!
Gratin of Tomatoes, Zucchini, and Eggplant p.172 ~ The cook said “This is a disaster as far as I’m concerned, there was way too much liquid”.
Roasted Cauliflower Soup p.17 ~ it’s good with a little cheese on top.
White Bean and Ham Soup p.23 ~ Yum!
Polenta with Mushrooms p.88
Citrus Salad with Mint and Red Onions p.44
Gorgonzola and Tomato Pizza p.144 ~ easy and straightforward recipe.
Crostini with Fennel Sausage p.63 ~ (Joann said this is one of her favorite recipes in the book) – and it was delicious but required more cooking time than in the recipe. Definitely a good idea to double the recipe and have on hand.
Italian Mac & Cheese p.124 ~ this needed more time in the oven but what’s not to love about penne + 3 cheeses in a béchamel sauce with toasted breadcrumbs?!
Pineapple Sorbet with Olive Oil & Fleur de Sel p.209 ~ another recipe that Joanne said was a favorite. I guarantee your guests have never had this before. Be sure to use a good olive oil and with a sprinkle of salt your guests are in for a big surprise!
Goat Cheese and Green Onion Galette p.82 ~ Easy to make and yummy
Cool Mint Chocolate Cookies p.202 ~ substituted orange extract for the mint. I think they may be some of the best chocolate cookies I have ever made.

One thing that we all noticed and would have liked to make but lacked the time was the Lemoncello on the last page. It requires a minimum of 80 days of advance timing. If I make some now it will be ready for a hot August night – and how refreshing to sip some Lemoncello on ice! I won’t mention the big typo in the head note – Amalti Coast?!? That’s pretty bad.

In the end, we were all glad that we had cooked from the book and are likely to return to its recipes as the seasons change. Now we know to consider the recipes as guidelines and use our best judgment and intuition when cooking.

Apple-Buttermilk Sherbet

This is the second part of a recipe for Apple Crisp with Apple-Buttermilk Sherbet from Home Cooking with Charlie Trotter. I decided to forgo the crisp and make the sherbet. It stood up on its own and stole the show for dessert. Serve with a nip of Calvados or drizzle some caramel over the top to make extra decadent. I made my own simple syrup and got fresh pressed cider from Apple Farm at the farmer’s market.

¾ cup buttermilk
1 cup apple juice
½ cup simple syrup
1 ½ tablespoons corn syrup

Combine all of the ingredients in a medium bowl and refrigerate until chilled. Follow the directions on your ice cream maker and serve.

Making Simple Syrup is simple. Simply combine 1 cup of water with 1 cup of sugar in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and cool. Keep the extra that you don’t use for this recipe in the refrigerator and use it for something else.

Vegetable "Lasagne" with Roasted Garlic Broth

Vegetable “Lasagna” with Roasted Garlic Broth

For the first time ever, three people made the same thing to bring to the Home Cooking with Charlie Trotter cookbook club. It wasn’t a surprise that each one was different and that none looked like the picture in the book. They were all good in their own way and made for satisfying leftovers the following week.

This was one example of a recipe that required significant prep time – especially if you don’t have a mandoline and advance time if you roast your own red and yellow peppers, make the chicken stock and roast the garlic (both of which have separate recipes in the book). We also found that the baking time was off and the lasagna yielded significant fluid while cooking. One of the three was watery and another took almost twice the amount of baking time before the potatoes were tender. This can be attributed to thick potato slices or an oven temperature that’s off. Whatever the case, this is not a simple, for the everyday home cook recipe.

Lasagna
2 large potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced lengthwise
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
½ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
4 roasted red bell peppers, roasted and cut into wide strips
2 yellow squash, cut lengthwise into ¼ inch thick slices
4 roasted yellow bell peppers, roasted and cut into wide strips
4 ounces mozzarella cheese

Broth
1 bulb roasted garlic with the cooking oil (see below)
3 cups chicken stock
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon finely minced chives

To prepare the lasagna: Preheat the oven to 350°. Generously butter an 8-inch square baking pan. Using one-third of the potatoes, form a layer in the pan. Season lightly with salt and pepper and sprinkle with some of the Parmesan cheese (how much is some?). Using half of he red bell peppers, form a layer on the potatoes, followed by layers of half the yellow squash, yellow bell pepper, and zucchini, in that order. Top with one-third of the potatoes and layer all of the remaining vegetables in the same order as before. Top with a final layer of potatoes and the mozzarella cheese. Bake uncovered for 1 hour, or until the cheese is golden brown. Remove from the oven and let stand for 15 minutes. Cut 4 3-inch squares from the center of the pan; reserve the edges for another use. (Who knows what this means… for leftovers? to feed to the dog?)

To prepare the broth: Squeeze the garlic from the garlic bulb and purée with the reserved garlic oil until smooth. Slowly add the stock and purée until smooth. Pour he broth into a medium saucepan and cook over medium heat for 5 minutes or until warm. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Place a piece of lasagna in the center of each bowl and ladle in the broth. Top with freshly ground black pepper and drizzle extra virgin olive oil around the dish. Finish with a spray of minced chives.

Serves 4 as an entrée.

Roasted Garlic
4 bulbs garlic, tops cut off
3 cups milk
1/2 olive oil

Preheat oven to 350°. Place the garlic in a small saucepan, cover with milk, and simmer over low heat for 10 minutes. Drain the milk and discard, place the garlic bulbs bottom side down in an ovenproof pan, add the olive oil, and cover. Bake for 1 to 1 1/2 hours, or until the bulbs are soft. Cool the garlic in the oil and then squeeze the soft garlic cloves out of the skins. Use immediately, or refrigerate in the oil for up to 3 days.

Grilled Beef Tenderloin and Blue Cheese Salad

Recently there have been recurring themes and coincidences in my life. When I look back, it seems that they began when the cooking group was cooking from the Charlie Trotter cookbook. The title is definitely deceiving; while this might be Charlie’s dumbed down recipes for the home cook, unless one has a lot of time on one’s hands and is a seasoned home cook, this is the wrong book. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed cooking from it and the group whipped up some wonderful dishes, I just wouldn’t exactly call it “home cooking”.

On the flap the book proclaims that the recipes have been “streamlined” and are “straight forward”. I found myself wondering what they were like before the streamlining. Several recipes required significant prep time, chopping, make ahead, active time and cooking time. Clearly I didn’t make the Crispy Chicken Wontons that supposedly “go from kitchen to table in a mere half hour”. I have doubts about that claim and will need to investigate further.

Despite my griping for the most part we liked the book and I for one continue cooking from it…. It’s just that now I know to make these recipes when I have time to spend in the kitchen.

One of the recipes I made was the Grilled Beef Tenderloin and Blue Cheese Salad. Wow was it tasty. I just love the flavor combinations of Blue Cheese, good balsamic vinegar and juicy filet. The weekend after I made the one for the cookbook club I was in Carmel and ordered one for dinner. The presentation was gorgeous and what a nice touch and texture the onion rings added. Clearly there is lots of room for improvisation with this salad. Here is the recipe from the cookbook. I’d encourage you to make it and let your imagination run wild.

Vinaigrette
1 shallot, minced
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
1 tablespoon chopped Italian Parsley
1 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

12 ounces beef tenderloin
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 cups baby spinach leaves
1 1/3 cups crumbled blue cheese

To prepare the vinaigrette: Place the shallot, lemon juice, chives, and parsley in a small bowl. Slowly whisk in the olive oil and season to taste with salt and pepper.

To prepare the beef: Prepare a medium-hot grill (I used my grill pan). Season with salt and pepper and grill for 4 to 5 minutes on each side, or until cooked to desired doneness. Cool completely and dice into ½ inch pieces. Toss with 3 tablespoons of the vinaigrette and season to taste with salt and pepper.

To prepare the salad: Toss the spinach with half of the remaining vinaigrette and half of the blue cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
Place some of the spinach in the center of each plate. Arrange the beef and the remaining blue cheese on the salad and drizzle the remaining vinaigrette around the plates. Top with freshly ground black pepper.

Serves 4

For a richer, more flavored vinaigrette, substitute balsamic vinegar for lemon juice and omit the parsley.

Crab Cakes with Sweet Curry Red Bell Pepper Sauce

Crab Cakes with Sweet Curry Red Bell Pepper Sauce, one of the recipes from Cooking at Home with Charlie Trotter has become a staple in my repertoire lately. I’ve served them as an appetizer for a sit down meal, made them bite sized and served as finger food at a cocktail party and doubled up to serve as an entrée with an embellished salad for lunch. These little numbers are indeed versatile. I’ve been doubling The Sweet Red Bell Pepper Sauce and using it as a dip for potatoes and vegetables and a sauce for halibut.

In the book, there is a recipe for curry oil and an instruction to drizzle 1 teaspoon on the sauce with each serving. The curry oil needs to be made two days in advance. The first time I made the crab cakes I followed the instructions and made the curry oil too. I ended up with a surplus (about 2 cups worth). Sure that there were more recipes in the book that called for it I figured it would be used over the next couple of weeks. After scouring the book for additional uses it was clear that this was the only recipe that called for the oil which I thought was a big miss. Since I don’t feel that the curry oil is vital to the success of the recipe it has been omitted below.

Here’s the adapted version, I hope you enjoy it as much as I have…

Sauce
½ cup mayonnaise
½ roasted red bell pepper (if you can make your own that’s best, otherwise, use your favorite brand)
½ teaspoon minced garlic
½ teaspoon sweet curry powder
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Crab Cakes
¾ cup bread crumbs
1 ½ tablespoons chopped Italian parsley
12 oz lump crabmeat, cleaned
3 tablespoons diced red bell pepper
1 jalapeño, seeded and chopped
2 tablespoons chopped fresh chives
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons canola oil

1 hand full arugula

To make the sauce: Puree the mayonnaise, bell pepper, garlic, and curry powder until smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

To prepare the crab cakes: Combine the bread crumbs and parsley in a small bowl and set aside. Place the crabmeat in a medium bowl. Fold in the bell pepper, jalapeño, chives, and lime juice and season with salt and pepper. Fold in ¼ cup of the bread crumb mixture and tablespoons of the sauce.

Divide the crab mixture into 8 equal portions and form into patties. Dredge the crab cake in the remaining bread crumbs. Cook in the canola oil in a hot sauté pan for 2-3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown and crispy.

To serve, place one-eight of the arugula on a plate, place one cake on top and drizzle sauce. Serve warm. Serves 8.

Wine Country Cooking

The next book we are reading and cooking from for the MKMT Cookbook Club is Joanne Weir’s Wine Country Cooking. I’ve already read most of it and can’t wait to dig in and start cooking! This weekend I plan to make the Winter White Salad With a Hint of Green and the Pork Tenderloin with Onion, Orange, and Raisin Marmalade. How does that sound for the backbone of a rainy winter dinner with the parents? I’ll be sure to report back on how the meal turns out.

“A Latitude and an Attitude” is the title of the forward which begins with a lesson in the geography of the thirty-eight parallel which runs through the regions in Italy, France, Spain, Greece and Turkey that are responsible for the Mediterranean food, wine and lifestyle influence that we enjoy in our fabulous Northern California wine country. I toast the 38th with a big thank you… we are lucky to be aligned.

This appears to be one of those books that will grow worn with wear and quickly become a kitchen staple. I’ll be cooking from it for the next month and after we gather to sample many of the recipes look forward to posting the feedback and sharing the highlights.

Mrs. Francis Toomy’s Fresh Corn and Shrimp Chowder

It has been exceptionally chilly in San Francisco this winter – or at least colder than I remember it being! As a result, I have been spending my time in the kitchen making soup.

This recipe comes from Cooking Up a Storm. I especially love the spirit behind this book. After Hurricane Katrina devastated New Orleans, and thousands of people lost their keepsakes and family treasures forever, The New Orleans Times-Picayune became a post-hurricane swapping place for old recipes that were washed away in the storm. The newspaper has compiled 250 of these delicious, authentic recipes along with the stories about how they came to be and who created them.

This recipe comes from one of Sue Baker’s columns, which appeared in the Dixie-Roto magazine, probably in the late 1960s or early 1970s. Dixie-Roto was a Sunday supplement to the newspaper.

The day the Times-Picayune received a request for it, they also received the recipe from someone who thought it should be included in the book! Several such coincidences have punctuated the recipe restoration efforts.

Makes 6 to 8 servings

1/2 cup (1 stick) margarine or butter
1/2 cup chopped green onions (white and green parts)
1/2 cup chopped celery, including the tops
1/2 cup chopped fresh parsley
1/4 chopped green bell peppers
2 pounds medium fresh shrimp, peeled and deveined
2 cups fresh corn kernels
1 (17-ounce) can cream-style corn
4 cups water or fish stock
1/2 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Salt and black pepper

Dash of ground nutmeg

Melt the margarine in a Dutch oven or large heavy pot over medium heat. Add the green onions, celery, parsley, and bell peppers. Cook, stirring, until the vegetables are softened. Add the shrimp and cook over low heat until they turn pink. Add the fresh corn and simmer for 5 minutes. Add the cream-style corn, water, Worcestershire, salt, and pepper. Simmer for 30 minutes, and serve.

Cooking Up a Storm
copyright 2008 Chronicle Books

Rosemary and Lemon Sea Salt

I got crafty in the kitchen this year and made some gifts for the cooks in my life. For years I have cooked with sea salt rubs. I love how they pack that extra flavor and turn an average dish into something special.

A simple and versatile flavor combo of rosemary, lemon, salt and pepper was selected. And knowing my limitations in the craft department I wanted to make sure that I could make a presentable looking package.

Here is the result. Not only did it look pretty good but the rub received raves from the giftees who used it in their holiday cooking!

1/3 cup fresh rosemary leaves
¼ cup grated lemon zest
2 Tbsp freshly ground black pepper
1 ½ cups coarse sea salt

Combine rosemary and lemon in a food processor and process until finely chopped. Add pepper and combine. Pour in salt and pulse until all ingredients are combined.

Pour mixture evenly into spice jars or canisters with tight fitting lids. Attach ribbon or gift message with serving instructions. Mine said Delicious as a rub for pork, lamb & chicken or to sprinkle on eggs & veggies.

New Year's Breakfast Strata

My friend Tori Ritchie, Tuesday Recipe, recently posted this fabulous and easy to make Breakfast Strata recipe to her website as well as to my friend, Amie O’Shaughnessy’s Ciao Bambino blog.

I can vouch that the strata is a winner. I made it for Christmas brunch and plan a repeat performance with a few different ingredients to serve New Year’s morning. Since it is made the night before, in the morning all that is left to do is to roll out of bed, pop in the oven, and an hour later when delicious aromas fill the air, plate it up and enjoy.

Ham & Cheese Breakfast Strata
Serves 6

room temperature butter for greasing dish
1 pound loaf soft French or Italian bread (not sourdough), such as Pugliese
12 ounces thick-cut baked ham or ham steak, fat trimmed off, cut into cubes
1-1/2 cups (about 6 ounces) grated Monterey jack cheese
freshly ground black pepper
6 eggs
2 cups whole milk
3 green onions, finely chopped
1/2 cup shredded Asiago or Parmesan cheese

The night before, rub the bottom and sides of a 13×9×2–inch baking dish with butter. Cut the bread in half crosswise, then again lengthwise to give you open-faced quarters. Tear out the insides of the bread and tear into small pieces, getting every last bit of white from the crusts (save the crusts to make breadcrumbs in the food processor for another time).

Spread half the bread in the bottom of the buttered dish. In a food processor, pulse the ham until finely minced (or finely chop by hand). Sprinkle half the ham and half the cheese over the bread, then repeat with remaining bread, ham, and cheese. Grind fresh pepper over the top. In a bowl, whisk the eggs and milk together, then whisk in the green onions. Pour over the bread-ham mixture, then with a large rubber spatula, fold ingredients gently until bread is moistened. Spread the mixture evenly in the dish. Cover dish tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

In the morning, remove the plastic wrap. Sprinkle the top of the strata with the Asiago or Parmesan cheese, then cover dish tightly with foil. Slide into a cold oven and turn the oven to 350°F. Bake until the strata starts to puff and eggs look set, about 35 minutes. Remove foil and continue to bake until golden, crusty, and delicious smelling, about 25 minutes more. Serve at once.