Fatteh A Savory Reuse Of Pits

 What do you do with leftover bread? You could go sweet and turn it into a lush bread pudding with caramel sauce . Or you could go savory  and turn it into a tasty baked and puffy dinner. Or for the more adventurous  try a chickpea and herb fatteh. This hot and exotic dish is perfect for using up leftover pita bread.

Famed chef and bread lover Yottem Ottolenghi created this tasty recipe for yesterday's New York Times Food section. It's a popular dish throughout the Mideast but it's hard to define, according to Chef Ottolenghi. It is a layering dish using stale plain or whole wheat pita. There are vegetarian versions like his while others contain lamb. Some versions may have tahini and yogurt. One, fattet djaj, has bread, shredded chicken, whole chicken a, layer of yogurt and then topped off with a layer of pine nuts. In Gaza, a think flatbread called saj or makouk dipped in stock which is often loaded with garlic , chilies, and lemon, Freshly cooked rice and toasted nuts top it. It's then finished off with cook chicken or other meats.However ingredients just aren't limited to those. You can add eggplant or tomatoes , broad beans to different pulses like lentils and green peas.

Chef Ottolenghi's fatteh has chickpeas along with the zingy za'atar along with various greens such as chives, parsley and fresh cilantro. Flavoring also comes from garlic and toasted cumin seeds. It's a bit labor intensive with the chickpeas being soaked with baking soda in cold water overnight.Afterwards they're drained and cooked in water with more baking soda. They're then cooked for twenty minutes after which Kosher salt is added. While the chickpeas are cooking, the pita is tossed with olive oil and the za'atar and pepper.This is laid out on a parchment lined baking sheet until golden and crisp. At this point there tahini to be made which is easy and also the chili oil - another easy make. After puree 2/3 chickpeas with lemon and herbs, garlic and cumin. Sieve into a bowl. Add the remaining  chickpeas and then layer everything, from the tahini to the chili oil. It can be served with extra pita and toasted pita on the side. You could add shredded rotisserie chicken to make it heartier.

Fatteh is a great way of using up any leftover pita. It's also a tasty way of cooking chickpeas with za'atar and tahini, Try it for a different spin on bread pudding.

A Chef In The wild

You can't find many chefs in the wild. Maybe in a controlled grove or two hunting down truffles but never fully in a forest. Yet that's where chef Iliana Regan could be, somewhere in  northern Michigan. Is this usual?  For this unusual chef yes.

Kin Severson went to this beautifully wild area for an interview with chef Regan for today's New York Times Food section. This is an area located on Michigan's Upper peninsula in Hiawatha National Forest. It's not an area associated with fancy or trendy eateries and innovative chefs. Yet it 's a calming force in the chef's sometimes wild life and a quiet escape from her bad girl past. It's also a place where she can forage, something she's been doing since a child on her parents farm in Merrillville , Indiana, a farm region directly south of Gary Indiana, and Chicago. Both foraging and cooking could have been influenced by her parents, her father a steelworker who loved planting vegetables and her mother, a Gourmet magazine fan who made her own pasta. After a strange incident that involved a tornado, her father teaching to hunt for chanterelles and a child molester uncle Chef Regan  was introduced to cooking.She was saved from the uncle by a family friend while the mushrooms remained unharmed. Her father brought her into the kitchen sat her down on a stool and taught her to cook the chanterelles with red wine and butter. That was the deciding point that she go into cooking. She has no formal training. She worked in small town restaurants. Chef Regan did go to college, studying chemistry at Indiana University , Bloomfield but then found it wasn't for her.

Chef Regan wanted to write. She received a creative writing degree from Columbia College in Chicago. She also worked at restaurants between classes, eventually landing at job at Trio for famed Chicago chef, Grant Achatz. In 2008 she began selling food she made , including her butter infused beet pierogies which won her acclaim from Chicago Magazine. Two years later she started an underground restaurant and also in her apartment. Fans urged her to open a legit one, Elizabeth named for a beloved sister that died during a night in jail. Elizabeth is an expensive eatery with themed menus inspired by such shows as "Stranger Things" and "Game Of Thrones" . The last she pored through all five books , highlighting every food reference. She also opened up and then quickly closed Bunny The Micro Bakery and Kitsune, a mash up of Japanese cuisine and the American Midwest. Now there is Milkweed a B&B Chef Regan operates with her wife , Anna. It's limited lodging with only three rooms however visitors can also rent the tiny Airstream trailer that the couple took around the country in 2018 to cook pop up dinners. There's also a platform tent guests can rent too. Of course all food is foraged and cooked by Chef Regan and she was already cooking wall eyed trout at .

Chef Regan is a new kind of chef, incorporating foraging into her cooking. It's an ancient way of connecting the kitchen and land. The result is interesting and fresh dishes in a delicious and innovative way.

Recettes D'Hiver

France in the winter can be a glorious season. Yes, there are endless ski days in the French Alps and Pyrenees Paris sparkles under a crust of snow while the north and western coasts provide a certain gray moodiness. Even the French Riviera gets a bit nippy but still perfect for a walk along the water. It's also a perfect time for hearty French dishes, full of  wine and rich ingredients. You don't have to visit France for them. They can easily be made in your kitchen.

One of the most famous winter dishes is onion soup. This is a lush blend of caramelized onions thyme sprigs, beef stock and dry white wine.It's usually served in piping hot crocks. Thick slices of baguette topped with a blend of shredded Swiss and Gruyere cheeses. The onions are cooked first with garlic until a creamy brown and then beef broth and the wine are added. It's then ladled into individual pots and topped with the bread and cheese. Another hearty and flavorful one is cassoulet. This layered dish has duck legs cooked with cannellini or tarbais beans - which are preferred along with pancetta A pork ragu is added to the stew This is a mix of boneless pork shoulder - Boston butt- along with carrots and crushed tomatoes. Chicken broth and a variety of spices from thyme to bay leaves round out the recipe. More pork sausage,usually Toulouse, made with duck , ground black pepper and pork top it off along  garlic sausage and breadcrumbs . Keep in mind this is a labor intensive dish with the duck confit being made the day before.If you don;'t have the time , the duck legs can be confitted even three weeks before.Then the day of it's cooking the beans and ragu, and then browning the bread crumbs. The whole stew is then baked for half an hour .

For something a bit easier, think raclette. This is a popular ski resort dish  that originated in Switzerland.  Raceltte cheese is used for the dish but if you can't find it then Gruyere or Swiss also works. You can even use cheddar too! Usually a special machine is used to melt the cheese however putting it in a skillet in your broiler also does the trick.It's served with peeled boiled potatoes  along with pickled cornichons and gherkins for some tang.Also have cured meats like ham, prosciutto and slalami. The cheese is melted and then scraped over the pickled veggies and meats. It's a fun, communal dinner, perfect for a Saturday or Sunday night supper.One of the most famous winter dishes is the famed bouef bourguignon. Julia Child had the best recipe for it. This is a combination of cubed lean beef cooked with beef stock, tomato paste and red wine.Thyme, bay leaf and garlic flavor it while two tablespoons of flour thicken it.Ms Child also added braised  pearl onions - an easy make - and  butter sauteed mushrooms to it for more taste. It's the perfect dish for company but also for a Sunday dinner as well. Add hot crusty baguettes with butter and a crisp green salad as sides.

France is  beautiful in the winter. However you don't have to travel there to get tasty and hearty French winter fare. It can be made dans votre cuisine in your kitchen

Sharing

With today being Martin Luther King Day, it's time to think of sharing. It can be our time , gardens , talent, whatever have you. Food , the growing and preparing of it is a great way of keeping his wish for unity alive. It makes us a family, wed together with ingredients and recipes.

One of the best ways to honor Reverend King is donating time. The best is helping out at the soup kitchens in your area. Many just volunteer during Thanksgiving and Christmas yet it shouldn't just end there.  The needy are hungry all the time. Spend these weekends at your local soup kitchen along with Spring and summer ones  too. Suggest cookouts when the weather gets warmer. Urge stores to donate grills , and wood chips along with barbecue grub like dogs and burgers,along with cabbage for cole slaw and potatoes for potato salad. Donate time at the senior centers too and veterans home too. They made need help with events and parties. Another way of helping out is sharing home grown fruits and veggies. Start planning a slightly bigger garden this year. Any overage can be donated to both soup kitchens and food pantries.  Think about planting popular ones like tomatoes which can be used in everything from sauces to salads and lettuce, good for salads and sandwiches.As for fruit, fruit trees do take time to produce fruit. If you do want to donate some, then think about growing melons and strawberries  which can yield large harvests quickly.

Helping to cook also is a big plus to many kitchens. Another idea to promote unity is proposing community dinners where everyone comes and cooks. Grammar or high school gyms can be used for this as the school kitchens have more than ample room for a slew of cooks and bakers. Community dinners are a great way for new families to  mix with the town's veterans. Different dishes reflecting all the many nationalities can be made. It will be exciting as some taste shawarma and za'atar for the first time while others proudly serve  decades old family recipes such as meat loaf ,stuffed peppers and meatballs. A cookbook can even be made up with the featured dishes and sold with benefits going to the school. Bakers can feel good about whipping up a batch of cupcakes and/or cookies. Donate these to senior centers and veterans homes. You can also bake up loaves of healthy artisanal bread and rolls too which make for  healthier lunches and dinners. If there's a birthday , then bake a sheet cake that can be shared by all. You can also make an ice cream sheet cake during the warmer months too at your local centers and shelters.

Reverend King wanted this country to be unified with us blending together as one. What better way than with sharing food.It 's what brings us together.

Alpha Food's A Vegan's Fantasy Come True

The meatless revolution is real. There's another company, Alpha Foods that's adding to it. The company has a wide array of yummy prepared plant based  meals, strips and crumbles that  will make any vegan smile. It may also convert a few meat lovers to herbivores too.

I tried their Buffalo Chick'n pot pie tonight for supper. It's one of many flavors that I want to try.

This southern California company has a wide array of must taste dishes. The pot pies also come in beef and cheddar, feta and spinach, chick'n pesto, chick'n veggie and pizza. There's also tamales  - and burritos with such taste combos as pizza , chick'n fajita, Philly and Mexicali. The company also produces burgers, crumbles , sausage crumbles and chicken nuggets. I want to try all their products now that I've fallen for the pot pies.Another plus is that even their cheese, from the cheddar  in the pot pies and burritos. to the mozzarella on the pizzas  is plant based and not dairy. The products are perfect for the lactose intolerant along with those with milk allergies. They're relatively low in calories. One pot pie is 580 calories.

The pot pie is small - think doll size, but it still packs a flavor punch. What I really loved was the crust with a taste that reminded me of Pillsbury Grands biscuits. The spicing was a bit fiery but what do you expect from Buffalo chicken. It was still delicious and I can see serving it or the other flavors with a salad for a more satisfying meal. The next one on my must try list is the spinach and feta cheese that also has tomato and sausage crumbles. The pizza looks good too and that will be tried soon. 

Alpha Foods is helping us eat better and just be better. Their wide array of plant based meats and meat dishes are not only delicious but helpful in keeping our carbon footprints small. Give them a try for another alternative to plant based products.

International Heat.

There's nothing like a spicy dish, spiked with heat to warm you up on a winter's night . Most cuisines have different spices to warm up any kind of main course and sides.what's great is that you can easily replicate these fire crackers or even create variations of them.

One of the hottest spice mix going these days is harissa. This  sauce took off a few years ago and it's still going strong. It's an easy make that involves a variety of different chilies from the New Mexico kind to chili de arbol to a tomato paste spiked with lemon juice, apple cider vinegar and garlic.Coriander and cumin are also added. Spoon in a dollop to hummus to zing it up or spread on grilled veggies .You could also add it to eggs like the North African recipe shakshouka. This is a tongue zinging poached eggs in a mix of vegetable broth,harissa and feta cheese. This is the perfect brunch dish on a cold wintry Sunday, washed down with a soothing mint tea. A fiery tomato sauce can also be used for a pasta dinner. Pasta arrabiata or angry sauce is another way to warm the palate.It's a rich tomato sauce that can either have oil or butter as its' base and a good dose of red pepper flakes.Most home chefs use a tablespoon of them but you could add a teaspoon more for an angrier sauce. Don't just use it for pasta. It can add an exciting bite to pizza and dipping sauce. Try it with wings and drumsticks too.

The Sichuan province in China has given the world some of the best - and most hottest dishes. This south central province is known for its many tear inducing recipes. It may clear your sinuses but it will also delight your palate.Many home chefs are a bit scared of the recipes, fearing they may be too complicated but they're actually not. Try the tasty ants climbing a tree. This nature sounding recipe is a cellophane noodle stir fry with vermicelli noodles and freshly grated ginger for heat. For more tingliness try the mix called mala wei. This is a combination of Sichuan peppercorns and dried chilies. Ginger garlic and chopped scallions are also added to round out the blend. The cuisine is really not all fire , but a combination of it along with sweet, sour and salty although many of the dishes are eye watering. Closer to home there is Mexican cuisine.Fajitas are a snap to make at home. Bring the fire by adding a spicy mix of different peppers, from jalapenos to Ahaheims to steak and chicken ones. End with the sweet flames of Mexican hot chocolate.It's the classic drink with an added kick of both cinnamon and cayenne pepper. It's the perfect way to end a fiery meal.

It's cold outside. Time to warm the palate up with different spices from different countries. They're a tasty way to bring on the heat during a frosty season.

A Crispy Tasty Chicken

A roast chicken is always delicious but imagine if you can make it more so. How? By creating a crispier , tastier skin that only adds to the flavor. There are several different ways but one that stands out.

Melissa Clark delved into this in yesterday's New York Times Food issue. She devoted her  A Good Appetite to creating the perfect skin for a roasted chicken.Like most of us, she prefers a crispy skin, with the crackle and crunch of potato chips.There are all sorts of strategies to achieve this. Some are crazy as in blasting it with a hair dryer (seriously???) to traditional like leaving the bird in the fridge overnight. Professional and home chefs also swear by rubbing down the chicken with salt and even baking powder or a combo of both. Others painstakingly separate the flesh from the fat or poking holes to release the fat. All these methods do work to varying degrees. Yet Ms. Clark wanted a sure fire method. She turns to her own recipe of Parmesan fried eggs and J. Kenji Lopez-Alt's one for frico roast potatoes.It's relying on Parmesan cheese  to create a crust. The cheese needed should be a finely ground one. Timing is everything. Ms Clark has found out that adding it early  and it burns a little. This leaves the meat with a scorched flavor. Sprinkle it on too late and you wind up with a leathery skin. It has to be added on halfway through for the perfect texture.

It's an easy recipe otherwise that comes with a light sauce made from the chicken's drippings. It starts with other flavorings such as lemon zest and fresh rosemary, the last used because to her it seemed like a natural fit with the chicken and Parmesan. She also added plenty of freshly ground black pepper and a pinch of red pepper flakes to add heat and the astringency necessity to cut some of the richness. All of this should be rubbed inside and out of the chicken.It should then be left to sit for twenty minutes at room temperature. If you have the time then set the chicken, uncovered, in the fridge overnight. The bird is roasted in a high oven of 425 degrees F and it can be roasted in a skillet , roasting pan or a sheet pan. The chicken's cavity should be stuffed with rosemary sprigs and then drizzled with olive oil. It's roast for thirty minutes and then the Parmesan is sprinkled all over the bird. Continue roasting until the birds juice run clear (pierce the flash with a knife for this) about thirty minutes more. As for the sauce, use the drippings and the juice from the zested lemon, seasoning with more red pepper flakes and salt. You could serve this with grilled veggies or crispy potato wedges.

A crispy roasted chicken is delight. Imagine making it better with even crispier skin. It can be done, thanks to the addition of Parmesan cheese.