Verdant Sides

 Sometimes a Thanksgiving dinner needs some livening up. There should be splashes of color amongst the tans and browns along with a fresh harvest taste. It;s time to add some greens, purples and red to have a vibrant lively table.

Regular contributor Melissa Clark wrote about this and created recipes for her A Good Appetite column in yesterday's New York Times Wednesday Food section. Vegetables are an excellent addition to any table. They add nutrients and vitamins to a starchy, high caloric meal. Their flavor is also a nice change up too, providing afresh from the garden taste amidst all the bread and gravy. The first recipe is a springy green beans with lime and red onions. These have to be made right when you're ready to serve the turkey but  it's not a labor intensive dish.Herbs  such as coriander and lime juice bring them to life. Another Thanksgiving dish that gets a makeover is squash. It's sliced and de -seeded and then glazed with maple syrup. Home chefs can use any combination of squash - delicata, honey nut, butternut and kabocha. Charred lemon give it that zing that goes well with the maple which is also mixed with butter and pepper.  The lemons is first boiled This is spread over the squash and lemons and then pan roasted.

The other dishes are just as bright and tasty.Every Thanksgiving table needs a salad. WHy not have one that features ruby red cabbage highlighted with  walnuts and feta .Cabbage wedges are first roasted to bring out their sweetness. Feta adds creaminess and saltiness, a perfect foil for the cabbage's sweetness. Walnuts are added for crunch, Pomegranate seeds add crunch and more flavor. The dressing is a vinaigrette punched up with Dijon mustard. Another side which would even be great at any holiday party is a giant roasted vegetable platter. THis is perfect for those who like to pick and choose their sides.This is a roasted mix of purple, white or yellow cauliflower and winter squash such as kabocha, delicata butternut or honey nut. There's also broccoli or broccolini fennel and carrots. It requires three parchment lined sheets and the roasting times all vary for the veggies. Broccoli takes takes ten to fifteen minutes fed onions fifteen to twenty, fennel twenty to twenty-five cauliflower twenty-five to thirty-five, squash thirty to thirty-five and carrots thirty to forty minutes(actually airfrying them will be shorter timewise). The dressing is a garlicky yogurt, spiked with lemon juice,THis is drizzled on the veggies along with apple cider vinegar and hot honey (this is mixed with red chili flakes.). It's a pick and choose platter for fussy guests.

Give Thnaksgiving a burst of color with these veggie dishes. They're exciting and tasty. They're the perfect foil for all those tans and browns of the holiday table.

A Fancy Take On Fish

 One of the most glorious dishes anyone could eat is trout almondine. It's a delicate melange of fish , slivered almionds and butter.Once the dish to have atr fancy restaurants it can easily be replicated at home.

Regular contributor Melissa Clark wrote about this amazingly retro fancy dish in her A Good Appetite column in yesterday's New York Times Food section.She puts her spin on this offshoot of sole meuniere. This was another fancy dish, that made Julia Child fall in lovewith French cuisine.It's just a simple lemon butter sauce but it quikly covered such veggies as cucumbers , radishes and beets to even grapes. It's no wonder that the great gastronome book, La Rousse Gastronomique considered these gauche 'declaring that this kind of ornament is quite useless and not at all keeping with the recipe. Yet the fish version can be varied. Ms. Clark roasts the fish instead of sauteing them. This lets you skip the dusting the filets in flour . roasting also is more forgiving. As for the fish, you could use trout for the tradtional route. Try cod or tilapia if you're into them. Flounder and halibut are also good choices along with snapper catifish haddock and grouper.she also adds zest .It makes the flavor brighter and amps up the citrus flavor.

It starts with pan roasting the filets  after seasoning them with just salt and pepper. Cut a tablespoon of butter into small pieces and place on top of each fish>Roast for eleven minutes in a 450 degree Farenheit oven. Keep in mind that thin filets cook faster than thicker ones. while the fish roasts , melt six tablespoons fo butter over a medium heat.Cook, swirling th e pan until the foam subsides and the butter turns nut brown. Add the almonds and turn off the heat. The nuts will brown right away.Toss them in the butter until they turn golden brown about two minutes. Turn the heat back on low. It's time to squeeze in the lemon juice and add the finely grated zest. Add a tabelspoon of minced chives , saving some for plating later. Pour the sauce over the filets and serve. You can add more chives along with t he lemon and the zest if you want a tarter flavor. What to serve with a dish this simply ruch? Ms. Clark recommends roasted or boiled potatoes  next to a mound of steamed broccoli or green beans. Their simplicity  will work well with the nutty sauce.

This is the dish to try. It's rich  and fancy but without any fuss. It's a great way to enjoy any white fish , especially during Lent.

Fired Up Foods

 Setting food on fire is as old as  the flames themselves. There's something dazzling about a dish that comes to the table with a burst of light. This kind of flamboyant coookign is coming back. Best of all it can be replicated in the home kitchen. What better way to enjoy it than for Valentine's Day.

Melissa Clark wrote about this type of cooking in her A Good Appetite column in today's New York Times Food section. Flambeing was a must in so many restuarants in the Fifties and Sixties. The one dish, whcih she also features was cherries jubilee , first created by the great French August Escoffier for Queen Victorti'as Golden Jubilee. Another dessert, New orlean's famed Bananas Foster is another such dish. This si a delcious mix of sliced bananas cooked quickly in a butter, brown sugar and cinnamon saute. Rum is added tableside and the whole flaming sauce is then ladled over vanilla ice cream. Crepes Suzettes are made in a similar vein with the crepes being ignnited tableside to the delight of diners. She also gives the recipe and writes about Cafe Brulot a fancy whipped cream coffee , laced with  cognac and Gran Marnier>Flambeed food goes back to Eighteenth Century Germany when young university students used t ignite their punches. Flaming it tempered the harsher tastes of new alcohol.The 1800's saw a rise in it, especially  with sauces,puddings and even fruit cakes. Charles Dickens wrote them, in  his famed "A Christmas Carol" with  about Mrs. Cratchet's flaming plum pudding alight with brandy and fire.

Ms. Clark offers more romantic fare for a spectacular Valentine's Day at home. There is the classic French bistro dish of Steak Diane along with Cherries Jubilee and Cafe Brulot. Steak Diane has filet mignon or strip steak that's first saiteed in unslated butter.It's then sliced  and kept warm under an inverted bowl. The sauce is made by sautring shallots in grapeseed or safflower oil. Tomato paste is added and cooked untilits' deepened in color. This si when the cognac is added .Light it with a long stick match  and let it cook until the flame burns out. It's then time to add cream, Worcester sauce , mustard and fish sauce .Cook for another three minutes. You could serve it with shoe string fries for  true bistro dinner. For dessert it's Cherries Jubilee!! It's first crearing a sauce of freshly squeezed orange juice, butter and cardamon pods Sweet cherries and sugar is added to this and cooked until the sugar is dissolved.Pur Cognac in a ladle then into the cherries. Ignite and then turn down the flame. Add a pinch of salt and add oiver cake or ice cream (try chocolate instead of vanilla this time) Finish with the Creme Bruyot. It'd cooking Gtand Marner with  orange and lemon zest along with cinnamon sticks. Igniteand then pour in th e coffee. Strain and served piping hot topped with a good head of whipped cream and cinnamon.

A flambeed meal is a special one. Try a French classic Steake Diane and finish with Cherries Jubilee and Creme Bruyot. It' will make for a fiery and delicious Valentine's Day dinner.

Upside Down Goodness

 One of the most classic American desserts is the pineapple upside down cake.It's a cheery, fun dessert that's been around for decades.The thing is it needs to be changed up.How about subbing in other fruits - and nuts for those classic slices.

Regular contributor Melissa Clark thought that in today's New York Times Food section. She takes this decades old recipe and blows it wide open in her A Good Appetite column. For years American home bakers made this cake withit's tropical yellow rings and bright red maraschino cherries. This is nothign new hwoever. The recipe actually started in France based on a very old recipe apple tarte renversee, reinvented into Tarte Tatin by Loire Valley hoteliers Caroline and Stephanie Tatin in the 19th Century. THis still is a popular and lush dessert, with caramelized apples and a buttery puff pastry base. Upside down cakes are also popular in other countries too. 18th and 19th Century americans only had one oan - the skillet. and a stove or open fire. Home chefs  then cooked f their ruit with butter or syrup before adding the batter. The cake was then flipped out of the pan or even served from the skillet . The Germans have something similar apfelfan kuchen, upside down pancakes as do the French with their sanciaux. Americans had something similar with tansy. It wasn't unusual for home bakers to make upside down cakes with prunes or apricots.

Yet it was the pineapple company Dole's 1926 recipe contest that gave us the recipe. There were 60,000 recipes , 2,400 were the upside down cake recipe. It is a classic however Ms. Clark gives a recipe for a pineapple -pecan one for a crunchy difference.She also has variations that include stone fruit like nectarines, plums and apricots alogn with strawberries. There's also a yummy Bananas Foster one made with velvety sliced bananas and coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans. Three cups of fruit and nuts are  caramelized first in unsalted butter  ,light brown sugar and a squeeze of lemon juice.  It's perfect for any fruit. The cake is a rich one, thanks to the addition of sour cream or plain whole milk yogurt and half a cup of unsalted butter. The last is melted and then cooled as it's added with the sugar  lemon zest and yogurt. The dry ingredients  such as baking powder and baking soda.  These are whisked in along with the flour. The batter is  poured into a buttered skilled and on top of the fruit and nuts.Spread it evenly and then bake for thirty-five to forty-five minutes in a 350 Farenheit oven. Let it sit in the skillet for ten to fifteen minutes.Invert on a plate and then let sit another half hour before serving.

An upside down cake with fresh fruit and nuts is a great treat. You can make the traditional pineapple with a twist. You can also change it up with fruits and nuts for a tasty cake.

Back With Meringue

 Foodie Pantry is back open thanks to a reprieve on the gallbladder. With it comes the magic of meringue.It's the elegant topper on citrus pies or  delicate puffs of goodness. Best of all it's not complicated to make as people think it is.

Melissa Clark wrote about it in her Good Appetite column in yesterday's New York Times Food section. Many home bakers shy away from making this classic. Meringue can be tricky to make and bake. When it comes out good it's phenomenal, When it comes out bad, it can be drippy , weepy or just gooey. Meringue is one of the oldest recipes having first been made in the 16th Century. Making it was real chore with bakers of the time using everything from birch branches to knives to bundles of  straw.It only improved with the invention of the wire whisk in the 19th Century. The basic make up of it is just foam. Shake or agitate any liquid and bubbles will appear However the specific proteins in the whites and its' vegan counterpart aquafaba (chickpea water) allow them to turn into a billowing mousse. when beaten these proteins uncoil, trapping in tiny bubbles.The proteins thin out the more they're beaten and they become more and more aerated with each whip. Add sugar or heat or both will help stabilize them by firming up the proteins as their structure remains intact.

There are three different types of meringue. The simplest is commonly called French meringue,It made solely from egg whites and sugar.It's the lightest and most voluminious of the three. It's also the least stable and can break down. It's used to boost sponge cake and macarons and gives those crunchy meringue kisses. The second is Swiss meringue, where the egg whites and sugar are heated in a double boiler until the sugar melts, then beaten until buoyant and creamy.It's the coating on baked Alaska and added to buttercreams for richness. The densest, smoothest and most stable is Italian meringue.It's also the most challenging to work with. The sugar is heated to 240 degrees Farenheit and it's then carefully beaten into a bowl of whites.It's kind of like making candy and it can be used interchangeably with the Swiss version. Ms. Clark gives a wide array of different recipes. You could try her extra lemony meringue pie, made with  sharply bright Meyer lemons or the chocolate meringue raspberry tart. This is a fruit tart  with a meringue zinged up with cocoa powder and frozen dried raspberries. There is also a blood orange pie with a butterscotch meringue made with brown sugar to create that butterscotch flavor.

Whipping up a meringue for any of these recipes is a nice touch. It does practice to make the perfect one. Once mastered the end result is  amazing.

A Baker's Shortcut Puff Pastry

 One of the tastiest and most elegant of dishes to serve is a puff pastry tart. Savory or sweet, it's a nice classy way to have vegetables, meats or fruit. The only problem is making the crust. never fear. That's where the frozen kind comes into play.

Melissa Clark wrote about the joy of it in yesterday's New York Times Food section. Home bakers can make the crust at home. The basic recipe is just a good French or culture butter, cold water  and flour. However making a dough from these can be labor intensive and time consuming. A store bought one is a godsend. It cuts down on everything and you can concentrate on the fillings. Ms. Clark recommends tracking down a good brand (some swear by Trader Joe's). Most packages of it usually comes out around the Christmas holidays so you could stock up on it then for Spring and summer baking. Once out of the freezer it does need to thaw out for about  three six hours in the fridge where it will keep for a week. If you're pressed fro time. let it thaw out on  a metal sheet and turn it over every fifteen minutes. AVOID the microwave..It will melt some areas of the pastry into sticky puddles while other parts rigid and frozen. Cook all the fruits and veggies before topping. This eliminates moisture from seeping onto the buttery layers and remember to spread only two to four cups of them. 

Ms. Clark gives two fillings, The first is a veggie one with your choice of veggies. For a true Gallic one , thinks leeks and onions. You could also skip the leeks and add sliced and cooked  cherry tomatoes.Broccoli and broccolini also are great toppings. One just with eggplant is another yummy choice or you could go with all root vegetables.There is first a layer of creme fraiche mixed with egg, Parmesan, lemon zest or rosemary and garlic. Shredded Gruyere can also be added. Rosemary springs top it and then it's baked for twenty to twenty five minutes in a 425 degree F. oven. The sweet version can have all sorts of toppings from strawberry and rhubarb - in season right now to any kind of berry. Peaches are also good. Roasted Demerara sugar is used as is the granulated kind. This last is mixed in with cornstarch and salt to be added to the cut fruit along with lemon juice honey and vanilla. The dough should be rolled out on the roasted and cooled Demerara sugar. The fruit should be given one final toss to dissolve any honey that may have clumped. Sprinkled Demerara sugar over the entire filled tart The tart should be baked for thirty to forty minutes or until the crust is golden in a 400 degree F oven . 

A puff pastry tart is the perfect dinner or dessert. Just buy a frozen crust to make it easier. The result is a hassle free taste of classiness.

An Aussie Favorite For American Tables

Every country has their comfort foods. We may have our meat loaf and chocolate chip cookies but the Australians have something a bit tastier - sausage rolls. This kid classic is loved  Down Under and with good reason. They are a flavor and texture explosion, perfect to make at home for a fall lunch or dinner.

Regular contributor Melissa Clark dedicated her entire A Good Appetite to them in yesterday's New York Times Food section. Sausage rolls were to Aussie school cafeterias as meat loaf and mashed potatoes were to ours. The school made ones weren't exactly made from the greatest ingredients according to Paul Allam, owner and baker at Bourke Street Bakery. Ms. Clark interviewed him, along with also getting his best recipes for them. Most school cafeteria rolls are composed of cartilage with the more upscale ones adding celery. His are different, a spin of the classic English sausage roll which is a puff pastry filled with sausage and sometimes an egg. His bakery sells ones with such fillings as a fennel scented pork  along with a turkey and cranberry, a riff on our Thanksgiving dinners. There's also a rotating menu of vegan ones stuffed with eggplant and chiles and spinach and feta. As far as the crust, the flakier the better. Mr. Allam uses his own recipe,a daunting feat but one that can be made at home.

What makes a sausage roll delectable is the crust. Ms. Clark found a  good all butter brand of puff pastry (you can use Trader Joe's store brand or Dufour's for this) but you can also use your favorite pie crust recipe or try your hand at making your own puff pastry. The fillings are mouth watering. There is aforementioned pork and fennel, plumped up with classic comfort food veggies like, peas, carrots and onions. You can use ground pork but ground chicken or turkey is just as good, Vegan meat crumbles are also recommended for  hearty vegetarian fare. Fennel seeds are used for flavor and also fro decoration as they're sprinkled on top. For a Middle Eastern spin there is a lamb and almond one, zinged up with harissa paste, a smoky blend of chiles. There's also couscous and currants added, the last to give it a kind of tangine vibe.Poppy seeds decorate the outside. Vegetarians will love the flavorful leek and mushroom roll.Any kind of mushroom is used and two large leeks. Tomato paste is added for more taste and color and almond butter is also included for creaminess and more substance . There's also garlic and soy sauce added too.

Sausage rolls are the perfect meal  for these cool days ahead. They are the perfect comfort food, filled with tasty flavors and textures. They may be Australia's comfort food but they sure' to be America's too.

Easy Bread For The Holidays

There's nothing as comforting or as steady as tradition. That includes matzoh for Passover and breads for Easter. We need them to complete seders and dinners. what better way to carry on tradition than to bake them ourselves. It'sa way to calm ourselves and connect with our pasts.

Melissa Clark knows this and offered a matzoh recipe in her A Good Appetite column in yesterday's New York Times. You can still buy matzoh in the stores, There are boxes of it but you can also make it at home if you don't want to go out or there are shortages in your area. Matzoh is an easy bake because it's just water and flour. Ms. Clark suggests also adding whole wheat flour for an earthier taste along with sprinkling the tops with flaky sea salt. You can also add cracked pepper or other spices.One important ingredient is olive oil  which give a richness in both flavor and body. You'll need about two cup of flour, kosher salt and only a quarter cup of whole wheat flour. A scant quarter cup of olive oil is also blended in along with a half of cup of water. The dough is rolled out to the thinnest possible thickness. You can aim for rounds but if they're too hard, then settle for oblongs. Transfer each to a cookie sheet and prick with a fork.  Sprinkle with the flaky sea salt.The matzohs only take seven to twelve minutes to bake, until they're golden and lightly browned in spots. Roll out  following batches as the first are baking.

An Easter dinner, no matter, how small , can also have a loaf of bread. Krysten Chambrot, a senior staff editor at the Food section wrote about these also in yesterday's issue. There are different recipes beginning with one for novices, and working all the way up to seasoned bread bakers. Beginners can try their hand at Mark Bittman's no knead bread. It's a simple recipe of bread flour and instant yeast . It's just takes a long while to proof  - about twelve hours or more. If you have trouble with yeast, then try the non yeast type. Food section regular  contributor, Florence Fabricant gives a beer bread one, that's sweet, thanks to the addition of sugar and beer. Make a loaf or two for the holiday and serve with sliced Easter ham. From there go for the enriched breads. These are the loaves that have egg and honey in them, which are the basis of many traditional Easter breads. A good holiday bread is an enriched savory focaccia recipe taken from the famed Zuni Cafe in San Francisco. Olive oil and minced rosemary flavor it.  It's cut into squares - perfect for a family Easter brunch and for the leftovers the next day. You will need a stand mixer and a dough hook to knead the dough.

Baking matzoh and bread is a soothing holiday tradition. Bake some in these stressful times for comfort and to relieve the uneasiness of these uncertain times.

Breakfast Treats

The holidays are still with it and with them, long lazy breakfasts with the family. what better to celebrate this time together with a fun and tasty breakfast dish. Savory or sweet, it's a nice relaxed way to gather with the family.

Melissa Clark knows this and featured tasty breakfast dishes in her Christmas Day A Good Appetite Column  in The New York Times Wednesday Food section. These recipes are perfect for any winter weekend or for a New Year's brunch. There are savory and sweet along with a side that could even see its' way to dessert with a light supper. What is great about all of them is that they're simple enough to put together, especially if you're still fuzzy minded from the night before. The one that intrigues me the most is her take on oatmeal. She turns it into an oatmeal lace cookie with six tablespoons of butter sauteing the oats. Cardamon and cinnamon are added for spice  and then water, heavy cream and salt. This luscious combination is then baked for forty minutes. There's some stirring and more butter (!) is dotted on before baking for another fifteen to twenty minutes.You could serve it with more cream (yes!) and crunchy sugar. Guaranteed, there will not be any leftovers.

Another show stopper is a savory Dutch baby. Usually these giant popovers are sweet, being made with apples and cinnamon. Ms. Clark goes the savory route here. Bacon and Camembert flavor it , a perfect combination. There's also chives and Parmesan for more flavor boost.Many home chefs may have reservations about making the Dutch baby, because it's all about the puffy presentation. Yet it's an easy make with this savory pancake being baked in a skillet. Another savory dish, that could even work for lunch.It's baked eggs with creme fraiche and smoked salmon. It's the classic  two baked eggs in buttered rameklns with the cooked creme fraiche poured over them. The creme fraiche is cooked first with shallots for flavor. Smoked salmon and dill tops off each cup. With these savory dishes Ms. Clark offers a sweet-salty side of broiled grapefruit with flaky  sea salt and brown sugar. This is an easy cook,It's just sliced grapefruit sprinkled with brown sugar along with being drizzled with melted butter and honey. After a quick broil, serve with flaky sea salt. This would be a nice end to light lunch or dinner too.

Breakfasts during this holiday time should be rich and flavorful. It doesn't matter if they're savory or sweet, as long as they're delicious. Try making one or two for family and friends.

Hearty And Hot Meals

This is the type of weather that requires calorie rich meals to keep you warm. There's something about a soup or pasta that's not only comforting but also fortifying . What's great is when they're homemade with familiar ingredients.

Melissa Clark , and Yotam Ottolenghi know this and made  soup and one pot pastas the theme of their columns in yesterday's New York Times Food section. Ms. Clark devoted her A Good Appetite to lentil soup. This is an easy cook, as most soups are.It's minimal and straightforward yet complex with addition of rosemary and garlic. Onions are  first cooked in olive oil in a medium pot. It's then taking any kind of stock, chicken, beef or vegetable along with the lentils and thyme to simmer. The fun part is pureeing it all with an immersion blender until the desired consistency. It can be thick and chunky or thin and satiny. Another fun part is topping it. Ms. Clark  suggests radicchio tossed with some olive oil and parsley.However if greens aren't your thing, then crumble bacon on top. A dollop or sour cream or Greek yogurt would work well. Into crunch? Then try toasted pumpkin seeds, dried seaweed or anything crisp. You can also have browned veggies such as browned leeks or onions. It can be good just left unadorned, with slices of toasty Italian bread and a small green salad on the side.

Another cold weather must eat is Yotam Ottolenghi's one pot wonder dishes. These are recipes that use a roasting pan in a whole new light. His may not be the easiest to make, Chef Ottolenghi wants to create flavor and texture bombs that add components in different stages.It's playing with temperatures, or scattering a garnish or a salsa at the end to liven it up. The recipe is a one pan pasta with harissa bolognese. This combines both North African and classic Italian. Harissa is a combination of tomato paste married to a variety of spices such as cumin, caraway, coriander and hot chiles, It will give the dish a more arrabiata vibe.Chef Ottolenghi adds more cumin and coriander for a really intense taste. Onion, tomatoes, and carrots are blitzed in a food processor and added to the meat , Pecorino Romano  and Parmesan cheeses harissa and tomato paste. The oven is first set at a scorching 475 degrees F for the meat and then it's dropped to 375 F after the first twenty-five minutes.It's then breaking the meat apart with a spoon and adding both chicken broth and heavy cream. The pasta is added. This is coarsely chopped manicotti or canneloni. Push as much pasta as you can under the surface and bake twenty five minutes more , until the pasta is tender. Stir in parsley and  more Parmesan and Pecorino Romano until the top is crisp about eight minutes more.

These frigid times demand hearty and hot dishes. Warm up with a fragrant lentil soup or a spicy harissa pasta bake. They are perfect for chasing away the effects of this polar vortex.

Fish And Couscous

What do you do about midweek cooking. It doesn;t have the exciting ring of weekend dinner parties with friends.There's none of the breezy casualness of a Friday take out or quick bake pizza. The answer is liven it up by one classic yet literally eye opening recipe and a traditional one with an ingredient popular in another country.

Thank Melissa Clark and David Tanis for their takes on fish and couscous respectively in yesterday's New York Times Food section. Ms/ Clark goes old school with cooking red snapper with its' head intact. This may cause some squeamishness in some, yet it is popular in European and Asian cooking.  Her column, A Good Appetite is an argument about using the entire body because it leads to a more flavorful meal. It also makes it impossible to overcook it  along with drying out the meat. Many home chefs find it difficult to cut . Ms. Clark suggests diners go at the fish from one side, namely the belly. All that will be left are the head , spine and tail ,looking like a cartoon cat devoured it.. Also to make it more desirable is the glaze. It's combining three citrus fruits, lemon, lime, and orange with tamari  and butter  The fruit is placed inside the fish cavity, infusing it with a tropical , tart flavor and more lime juice is added for the sauce. Ms. Clark suggests serving it with cilantro sprigs but you can try any green as a light salad on the side.

If you would rather go the vegetarian route,then the recipe from David Tanis' A City Kitchen. His is a take on the classic Middle Eastern dish, updating it with feta. It's the perfect meal for a cold day. Pearl couscous,more  similar to pasta than semolina, is cooked with the always fun grape  tomatoes and chickpeas. The last gives this vegan dish a boost of protein while the tomatoes add color and flavor. The addition of balsamic vinegar , garlic and scallions give the tomatoes a savory and sweet taste. Updating it with feta gives the dish a creaminess and tang.The last depends on what kind you buy. The Greek tends to be the saltiest and most intense in flavor.. If you want to go milder, Mr , Tanis suggests trying feta from France or Bulgaria. Taste it first , before you add it to the pan. If' its' too salty then just give it a quick rinse to rid it of the salinity. There's also cumin and lemon zest for more of a Middle Eastern vibe. It can be topped with a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar along with more herbs and a dusting of Parmesan cheese.

Whatever one you choose, they're great for livening up a weekday meal. Try a glazed snapper for a warm sunny flavor. For a warm cozy  and exotic dish, whip up a bowl of vegan couscous. Both add zing to meal time.

A Thoughtful Month Of Eating

November is that moment of quiet between two wild months. It starts off with All Soul's and All Saint's Days , which call for reflection and prayer and ends with Thanksgiving - a day where all give thanks for what they have. It's a month of eating simple as we ease into chillier weather and shorter days.

One of the simplest and delicious meals to make is chicken. Allison Roman gives us a good recipe for it in yesterday's New York Times Food section.It only takes an hour to cook a tender falling off the bone bird. She uses the thighs, always the friend of a home chef who work  long hours.It's braised in a Dutch oven.The thighs are then taken out to allow smashed garlic and sliced onion to cook with the chicken fat and skin bits. To give it a spicier bite, Ms. Roman adds tomatillo instead of tomatoes.Using them creates more of a sticky, soupy consistency thanks to the pectin in it. Fresh jalapeno also adds zing giving it some resemblance to the Mexican stew pozole where pork and red chiles or chicken with tomatillos are cooked for a long time.The chicken is returned to the pot where it's simmered with the veggies for twenty-five minutes to half an hour.It can be topped with a mixture of radish, the remaining onions and tomatillos. Lime juice is added for zest. Hominy is used as side to absorb the sauce but red beans or rice can also be used too.

Another easy and relatively simple dish is Melissa Clark's stir fried green beans with pork and chiles for her weekly column, A Good Appetite.Like Ms. Roman's recipe, it's a snap to make, inspired by Sichuan dry fried beans.It's dialed down a notch with the omission of the Sichuan peppercorns and preserved mustard greens. Instead coriander seeds and cilantro are subbed in to give the dish complexity. A big splash of rice wine vinegar gives it more layers of flavor. The dish can be cooked in a skillet or wok.The meat is cooked first, for only six to eight minutes until the pieces are browned and crispy. It's then transferring them to a plate and then cooking the green beans until they're tender and bright green. Chiles,  and ginger are added for fire and bite along with the coriander seeds and cilantro The pork is returned to this and cooked as soy sauce and half a teaspoon  of sugar is added. ( could dark honey be subbed in here instead?) Ms. Clark suggests serving it with a sliced tomato and rice but cellophane noodles wouldn't go amiss with it nor would vermicelli if you have it.

November is a month of just quiet and simplicity. Make these simple  - yet complex with flavor dishes. They're perfect for the long nights ahead.

A Whiff Of Citrus

This is the time of year when pumpkin spice and maple reign supreme flavorwise. However we're all overdosing on them right now  as the two saturate everything from coffee to even butter!. A summery whiff of citrus would be good right now. Luckily we can still get lemons, limes, and oranges and create refreshing sweet and savory dishes.

The inspiration came from Melissa Clark's A Good Appetite column in Wednesday's New York Times Food section. Her take on lemon cake has almonds plus a glaze. No mace or cinnamon or cup of maple syrup inn sight.What is truly interesting about this recipe is that the lemons are boiled not zested or juiced. However she missed the zest's light flavor so she added it.There is also a lemon glaze, made with more fresh lemon juice. She has made it with a combination of lemon and lime juice.A lime cake is another breezy choice.It's an easy mix of a regular scratch cake with the addition of fresh limes and fresh lime juice.Some lime cakes also have the addition of lime gelatin to enhance the flavor as well as the color. You can use these recipes however a more natural recipe is the one with just the fruit itself.Lime cookies utilize the fruit's juice and these are a refreshing change up from the usual fall cookie .Oranges are another citrus that add to any dessert. Make a refreshing mousse  with them , perfect after a heavy Sunday roast.Orange buttercream icing will liven up plain vanilla cake or cupcakes.An orange pound cake is a great fall bake, perfect to take as a holiday dessert.

Citrus can play a huge part in livening up savory dishes. Lemon chicken is one of the most famous savory dishes that is boosted by citrus.It only requires a tablespoon of lemon juice. Roasted chicken can also get jazzed up by stuffing a lemon inside the cavity and brushing a mix of lemon and garlic on the skin. Potatoes can also get zinged up with the fruit. Mix it with mustard for a fun shake up to a classic side. A squeeze of fresh lemon juice  makes broccoli and green beans sparkle with flavor and is a nice change up from the usual butter and cheese sauces. Lime is always associated with Mexican cooking.It livens up chicken and beef fajitas and can take guacamole to a whole new level. It's also great with seafood. Think grilled shrimp with chili and lime for an eye opening combo. For a low calorie , yet flavorful meal, grill salmon with a basting of lime ,cilantro and honey. If you want a sweeter flavor, think oranges. The most famous is orange chicken is the Chinese version, spiked with ginger, vodka and the Chinese wine Shaoxing, Of course the most famous is duck a l'orange which is a melange of flavors from fresh orange juice to coriander and cumin. Scallops are also good with an orange marinade. The bright citrus flavor enhances the fish's inherent sweetness.

Use any citrus fruit as the antidote to all that cinnamon and maple. A dash of lemon, a squeeze of lime, and a squirt of orange presents a refreshing change up to sweet and savory dishes. Try them today for a zestier , breezier taste.

Summer's Bounty Still Going Strong

Even though everyone is talking about fall,getting ready for school and Halloween (!) it is still summer.  There  is still time to cook outside and enjoy what's left of the warm weather bounty.Put away anything fallish  - at least for a few weeks.

Tomatoes are the most popular foods of the summer.. With the way our weather is nowadays, the red gems will be growing until October.Take advantage of them in any cooking method possible.One of the easiest and most delicious is pasta crudo. This is simply cut  fresh tomatoes mixed with olive oil, balsamic vinegar, and olive oil. It's a raw sauce that's "cooked'  when added to hot pasta.Another summer dish that's perfect for this transition period is ratatouille. This Provencale treat is making good use of tomatoes as well as any bumper crop zucchini and onions. Melissa Clark has elevated this recipe to resemble a prettily colored pie in her column A Good Appetite In Wednesday's New York Times' Food section.. Her take was a Southern tomato pie but amped up with caramelized onions and sliced eggplants. It's more of  rich quiche thanks to the egg and Gruyere cheese added.If you just like tomatoes, then make them Provencale . This is a skillet full of sliced tomatoes  sauteed in garlic and olive oil. The tomatoes have generous mounds of spiced breadcrumbs on them.There is also tomato jam for those who want a spicy condiment to their meats and veggies. It's an easy cook, with boiling and simmering Roma tomatoes with such spices as cumin, cinnamon, ginger, and cloves.

Many home gardeners are also reaping those ripe squashes and zucchini right now too. One of the easiest recipe is sauteed squash coins that make a great side to grilled chicken and fish.It's just simply slicing the gourds into half inch thick rounds and sauteing them in a mix of olive oil,butter and minced garlic. Kids will love zucchini boats, the perfect meal after an exhausting first day of school. Make them really fun by adding a lasagna filling with a ready made tomato sauce.It's just scooping out the squash's middle after they've been cut in half, leaving a quarter of an inch of flesh on all sides. After brushing the boats with olive oil. it;'s just layering on the cheese,store bought sauce and ground beef or tofu. The boats can also have a Mexican twist by subbing in the sauce with such spices as chili powder, cilantro and cumin. There may be some peppers growing yet in your garden. These make great snacks, when they're sliced and  deseeded however they're great stuffed with rice and ground beef.Hollow them out , and also add tomato sauce along with Worcester sauce.Garlic and onion powder are added to give it zing.

Don't follow the rest of the crowd.It's still summer. There's still time to enjoy the bounty of this glorious season.

The Most Perfect Pop

What's movie night without popcorn, especially popcorn that's been made on a stove top?There's nothing like it, with the fluffy kernels buttered and salted to perfection.Now it can be made even better - if that's at all possible.

Melissa Clark tackled this in her A Good Appetite column in yesterday's New York Times Wednesday Food section, She had been making stove top corn the way everyone has for decades, cook them in oil and then coat them in melted butter and salt. That changed when she had Jessica Koslow's recipe.Ms. Koslow is the owner and chef of the trendy Los Angeles eatery, Sqirl, She has a knack for taking the familiar and turning it into the extraordinary. Her toast is what put her on the map. Slices of brioche are toasted until burnt then  slathered with creamy ricotta and served in a puddle of homemade jam. Her tweaks are not for the faint of heart home chef - or family popcorn popper .She uses two to three times the amount of oil for cooking the kernels. Think half a cup of oil for one third of a cup of popcorn kernels.That much oil gives the corn a richness and the fluffy whites a sturdy extra crunchiness, what Chef Koslow calls "potato chip sturdiness"/Her way of seasoning is also different. Toss the kernels in dry ones before cooking. That way the fluffy whites aren't sogged down by the  seasonings .

What kind of popcorn and what kind of oil should be used? Ms. Clark doesn't give suggestions on the first. Some food blogs recommend Amish Country which you can buy on Amazon. An easier buy is Orville Redenbacher .from your local grocery store. As for the oil, Chef Koslow recommends grapeseed for its' high smoke point and clean flavor, but you can use another other oil such as sunflower, safflower, canola and corn. Ghee can also be used.Ms. Clark pops hers in a mixture of oil and butter for a buttery taste without the sogginess. She has also combined oils with low smoke point fats such as duck(!) and bacon (!).If you want flavored corn, then stick with dried seasonings such as ground spices, seeds, chiles, nutritional yeast,seasoned salts and dehydrated herbs. Stay away from anything with a high moisture content such as Parmesan cheese lemon zest and fresh herbs.They'll turn the popped kernels into mush. The recipes included are a spicy Pimenton or smoked paprika, a vegan cheesy one that has nutritional yeast filling in for the real thing, and one that's combines cane sugar with turmeric for a unique take on kettle corn. Any of the three is the perfect snack for movie night or or even as an appetizer at a barbecue.


A good movie deserves good popcorn. Pop them this new way with more oil for the ultimate snack experience. Just remember to make a lot. This flavorful new corn will be more of a hit than the movie.

Whole Grain Pancakes Tasty And Fun

Even though it's summer , you still can make a hot breakfast.One of the most popular and easiest is a plate of pancakes. On their own or paired with bacon and eggs, they make a great start to a beach  day or a jaunt in the woods. Add . whole grains and they're even better.

Melissa Clark wrote about them  in her column, A Good Appetite, in yesterday's New York Times Food section. She reminisces when her mother made them - for them a rare occasion.The elder added cottage cheese(!) to give the pancakes a tang . The texture was airy thanks to the eggs being separated and the whites being beaten into a frothy meringue.Ms. Clark's are the opposite  - dense and buttery, hearty and rich in flavor. This comes from combining whole grains such as whole wheat flour, cornmeal and and oat. Regular white flour anchors the whole recipe. Like any other pancake recipe, add ins are welcome. Use the fruits of the season, blueberries and strawberries. Chocolate chips can also be added in.Ms Clark recommends waiting until the cakes are semi cooked before to toss in the extras, as opposed to putting them in the batter.Wait until tiny bubbles appear on the surface and then drop the fruit or chips on to cakes before flipping. They'll set without running.It also allows the home chef  to create neat smiley faces on them without any smears.

The recipe is the basic pancake one. The batter is adaptable. Home chefs can adjust the ratios of flours being used. You can also sub in rye or buckwheat flour for the whole wheat. The liquid is buttermilk or plain yogurt (Ms Clark advises against using the Greek kind). It can be made with coconut milk and oil for vegetarians and the lactose intolerant. Three large eggs give it body and fullness.They don't have to be separated. What really makes it rich is the quarter cup of melted butter.along with the tablespoon of honey (for an earthier flavor use the dark variety.Also try sage , orange blossom, or wildflower honey to infuse their flavor). Use a griddle or cast iron pan for cooking them - although a regular one will do just fine. Cook the cakes in butter, flipping them when bubbles appear on the surface and start to burst. Flip and then cook for three more minutes, util the surface is golden brown. Go old school with a stack graced by a large pat of melting and a puddle of maple syrup.

A hot breakfast is still a desirable one despite the temps. Nothing beats a stack of buttery , whole grain pancakes. They're the perfect way to start a summer's day.

Calm Yourself With Risotto

Kitchen work is soothing work to some. There's something zen about stirring polenta or grating chocolate. The same is true with risotto. The constant stirring, usually in a figure eight  is both calming and comforting.It's one of the most relaxing tasks for a home chef.

Melissa Clark wrote about this in yesterday's New York Times Food section. Her A Good Appetite column was devoted to it and the woman who inspired the piece.  Ruth Rogers, chef and owner of the River Cafe in London loves to stir her rice.The motions and rhythms soothe anxiety - and Ms Clark was anxious about creating Chef Rogers' recipe for nettles risotto. The recipe is part of a brand new cookbook River Cafe London which salutes the restaurant's thirtieth anniversary. It also celebrates the eatery's classic recipes updated for a new generation of home chefs.The nettles risotto is one of the trickiest to make. nettles are those sharp stingers that hurt when touched with bare hands. Dealing with them in a home kitchen means the rubber gloves have to come out. Luckily spinach can be subbed in  They have a rich mineral taste  like the other and taste wise they can easily be interchanged. No one will know the difference.

Ms. Clark's accompanying recipe reflects this change. There are eight packed cups of spinach involved. These are stemless because it could make the risotto stringy.Another reason why she wanted to make the rice dish is the taleggio. This is a creamy, sharp cheese from the Alpine region of Lombardy that's added last to the dish. Like most arborio dishes this one is also labor intensive. The spinach has to be placed in a colander and has to have boiling hot water poured over it to wilt the leaves.Then the water has to be squeezed out with a dishtowel before the leaves are being transferred to a food processor.There is also celery , onion and garlic that need to be cooked too.The rice is added to this as is three quarters of a cup of dry white wine and either vegetable or chicken stock.It will take fifteen to twenty minutes for it to be ready. The spinach puree and taleggio chunks are them added and stirred into it.If you want it a bit simpler then cut out the cheese and serve it with a sprinkling of Parmesan.Just remember to keep stirring or the rice will stick.

If you're looking for good food and relaxation then go for spinach risotto with taleggio. It's a soothing dish to make if you;re stressed. Even if you'e not , it's still a great dish to make on a cool Spring night.

Monkeying Around With Bread

One of the items on my New Year's must bake list is bread. I haven't baked a loaf or roll since high school -yikes - and would like to start up again./One recipe in yesterday's New York Times intrigued me. Monkey bread. It looks like a fun bake for when friends stop over.

Julia Moskin wrote about this popular loaf that is only about thirty or thirty-five years old. It was Nancy Reagan, former First lady of the nation and California that made this Golden State creation popular. Mrs. Reagan's recipe called for a dinner roll recipe in which two layers of  butter dipped dough balls were placed in a pan and baked. Beaten egg was brushed over the surface to give the top layer a burnished brown color.This version could be used for breakfast with the rolls slathered with butter or jam or a Sunday lunch or weeknight dinner where the rolls could be dipped in gravy. Thirty years later extra's have been added . One of the first combinations were sugar and cinnamon, taken from Hungarian coffee cake that many bakeries made at the time.American home bakers have gone crazy and creative with the recipe. There are savory versions that feature pepperoni in one recipe, while peanut butter figures prominently in another. There's even a gorilla bread that includes cream cheese and canned buttermilk biscuits/ Pastry chef Claudia Fleming of  The North Fork Table and Inn  on Long Island's North Fork gilds her with a maple bacon glaze.

Ms. Moskin  prefers a simple version, opting for the modern classic. Hers is one with  the sandy sweet filling of a cinnamon roll and the coating of pecans and caramel of a sticky bun. It also has the plump majesty of a Bundt cake, resembling an edible crown. It will also be a scratch bread. She advises not using those buns such as Pilsbury's.. It may be an easy and convenient way to make the bread however keep in mind that there will be  that salty flavor, a dough loaded with preservatives and a funny chemical aftertaste. Ms. Moskin uses fellow Food writer, Melissa Clark's, of  A Good
Appetite column bread recipe. It seems simple enough  It's a basic white bread dough. There's no need to go on a hunt for a starter. There are no long risings or unfamiliar flours. It can even be transformed into a pull apart garlic bread with melted garlic butter for the coating and Parmesan cheese and parsley for the filling.As with any bread recipe , it is a labor intensive one.that involves a lot of kneading and proofing. The caramel sauce Ms Moskin gives looks like a fun and tasty one, especially with the addition of a  lot of heavy cream and butter.

Monkey bread is definitely on my radar in the New Year. A sweet version would be great for breakfast or brunch. A savory version would be great alongside pasta or homemade soup. Either way it'll be an interesting bake,

Outside The Thanksgiving Box

Everyone expects the ususal Thanksgiving main meal and sides. Yet sometimes, it pays to cook outside the proverbial holiday box of recipes. It could mean experimentation. It could be a meatless day. It could be falling back on family recipes and the exotic ingredients that come with them. It could be a welcomed break from the usual , too.

Everybody has turkey on Thanksgiving.Or do they? What do vegans and vegetarians eat? Or those averse to the taste of gamy bird? Many vegans turn to Tofurkey , a soy substitute that sort of tastes like the real thing.A better idea is making the loaf yourself. Try a stuffed seitan loaf which is basically wheat glutens mixed with nutritional yeast to create a kind of meat loaf . Soy sauce is added to give it a nice brown color, similar to turkey.It can be stuffed, usually with a mix of firm tofu blended with cut carrots, onions and celery, Another idea is wild rice and mushroom casserole that was the topic of Melissa Clark's  A Good Appetite column in yesterday's New York Times Food section.It is also chock full of white beans and spinach too.Fennel and leeks are added to give it a sweet ,flavor and it's topped with  a mix of Panko bread crumbs, rosemary, lemon zest and garlic. Parmesan cheese can also be sprinkled on top if wanted. Ms. Clark also suggests variations to suit the crowd. Brown rice can be subbed in for the wild, Cilantro is used for color and taste but home chefs can also use basil. The bread crumbs can be nixed if guests have celiac disease.

What about those sides? Most will insist on having the usual bread stuffing , along with yams turned into candy  and some kind of green veggie. Yet if that's not part of the anyone's  culinary heritage, don't make them. They'd probably just sit there on the table and then just sit there in the fridge.Ask any Southern Italian or  Greek family who has served manicotti or dolmades with the bird.If your family has kim chi at every holiday , then serve it .If your family likes river weed, a popular green used in Vietnamese cuisine, then put that on the table instead of Brussels sprouts.The same goes for spicing. If you're hosting a multicultural dinner, then think outside the usual salt and pepper. Zing up greens and salads with various ones such as garam masala or paprika.  The last adds color to every dish and can make the ordinary extraordinary. As for bread, the usual is a prim, little roll on a plate Serve warm , crusty baguettes instead. French and Italian bread is excellent for soaking up thick turkey gravy and wonderful for creating sandwiches afterwards. If the family is used to naan or pita, then serve that. The same goes for dessert. Not everyone likes pumpkin pie. Serve fresh fruit or puddings if you want.

Think outside the Thanksgiving box. It's not writtten in stone what you have to cook and bake. Be true to your heritage.Or be different. The end result is a different holiday meal everyone will enjoy.

Dhosas A Tasty Spin On Crepes

Dosas are one of the fun foods in Indian cuisine. They're light and crispy, without the heaviness of say a curry or paneer. These crepes can be filled with anything and make for a perfect dinner or even a snack.

Melissa Clark wrote about them and tested out a recipe in her A Good Appetite Column.They are a variation on the FRench crepe, being made with lmetils and rice. Unlike them, there's no special pan to create them. Any cast iron  skillet or griddle will do. Dosas do require a lot of prep time and devotion.There will be a trip to the local Indian market to purchase white urad dal  - a type of black lentil that's been split and husked along with Ragi flour or malted finger millet flour. Home chefs will also need frozen shredded coconut and curry leaves also available at Indian market. It's then soaking, grinding and fermenting for twenty-four hours.It's basically rinsing the rice and urad dal in cold water and then transferring it to a large bowl or container. Fenugreek is added and then cold filtered water . The grains are left to soak at room temperature for twenty-four hours  before cooking.It's then drained afterwards, then transferred to a powerful blender or food processor and blended with filtered water until a thin runny batter is formed. Rice flour or ragi millet flour is whisked in until the mixture is the consistency of pancake batter. The fermented batter will bubble and rise up..

Making dosas is exactly like making crepes. The first few won't come out perfect. There's an old saying about throwing the first few crepes to the dog. It does take a knack according to Anita Jaisinghani of the famed Indian restaurant Pondicheri in New York City. She recommends not using too much oil to fry them along with setting them on the griddle for a heartbeat before spreading the batter out to the pan's edges.Use a measuring cup's bottom and not a spoon for spreading. This creates, golden, crunchy exteriors. Don't worry if they're not thin,. The thicker they are the better to taste the rich  lentil flavor. Ms. Clark fills her with  a pumpkin seed chutney and flavored mustard greens. The chutney is super easy to make. It's cooking the frozen shredded coconut and onion in coconut oil.. Mustard seeds and curry leaves are also added for intense flavor. Ginger and cayenne are also added for the classic Indian heat we all know so well.Pumpkin seeds are add for crunch .

Dosas are a traditional Indian dish that's tasty and traditional. They are labor intensive but worth it.l Try them for a taste of the fiery yet delicious./