Cheese – Grow. Cook. Eat.

April 27, 2011

Totally From Scratch Lasagna

My friend Lydia asked if I would lead a lasagna cooking class as a fundraiser for her non-profit Drop In and Decorate. Though it doesn’t fit into my usual style of teaching cooking of preparing more refined recipes, I love the idea of building lasagna from scratch. Lasagna from scratch can seem like an overwhelming task, but each of its components is pretty straightforward – pasta, ricotta, mozzarella and Bolognese sauce.

This is a perfect example of the whole being greater than the sum of its parts.

Even with 45 minutes of baking, the fresh pasta retains its toothsome texture. Homemade ricotta with fresh basil brightens each bit with its lemony tang. And the mozzarella adds creaminess. The rich Bolognese sauce lends a surprising lightness to the dish, perhaps from the minimal tomato product.

The net result is much lighter than the lasagnas I’ve been served in the past; satisfying without being heavy.

Totally From Scratch Lasagna
I have previously posted recipes for each of the components on my blog. Click on the links for more details.

2 cups ricotta
1 egg
2 tbs. plus ½ cup parmesan
1 tbs. fresh basil
pinch fresh nutmeg
3 tbs. butter
3-6 Sheets Fresh Pasta (use equal parts semolina and flour)
Bolognese Sauce
Fresh Mozzarella, thinly sliced or grated
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper

1.    Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta sheets for 2 minutes. Drain well, and toss with olive oil
2.    Mix ricotta with egg, 2 tbs. parmesan, basil, nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste
3.    Brush the bottom of lasagna pan with butter
4.    Spoon about 1/3 cup sauce on the bottom of pan.
5.    Cover with a layer of pasta, overlapping slightly. Spread a heaping 1/3 cup of ricotta mixture evenly over noodles. Spread ¾ cup sauce evenly over cheese. Spread a layer of mozzarella over this. Layer pasta and then repeat process 2 or 3 more times.
6.    Sprinkle remaining parmesan on top. Bake at 400 for 45 minutes. Let stand for 5 minutes before slicing and serving.

March 12, 2011

Cheese Tuiles

Cheese tuiles add a lovely depth of flavor to soups, salads and roast meats. The process of melting and browning cheese coaxes out nutty flavors and a crunchy texture. And I like to think it also reduces the fat content. But maybe that last point is just wishful thinking.

A tuile is a paper thin cookie (would that be a wafer?). Whether sweet or savory, they are easily molded into fun shapes when they are freshly baked and still warm. The sweet version often accompanies ice cream or mousse. Really fancy chefs make baskets for berries out of them (I’m not that fancy).

Cheese tuiles can be made with almost any hard cheese. I prefer pecorino, parmesan or asiago. Italians use Montassio cheese and call the tuile “frico.”

Though cheese tuiles can be made in the oven, I prefer baking them in a non-stick skillet. I find it much easier to control the heat and cook them evenly.

Sprinkle a thin layer of cheese in a dry, non-stick skillet….

The cheese will melt, but be patient….

Wait until it gets golden brown (and fat will release from the cheese)…

Slide the tuile onto a rolling pin to mold it into a lovely shape…

Use the "taco shell" to hold a lovely spring salad….

July 30, 2010

High Summer (Recipe: Homemade Mozzarella)

At the peak of summer, local tomatoes burst with juicy, sweetness. Their bright acidity calls out for the rich, creamy taste of fresh mozzarella. Now-a-days, you can find so many varieties of heirloom and hybrid tomatoes at the local farmers’ markets and kitchen gardens – and when they are truly vine-ripened, they have a wonderful texture and chin-dripping juiciness. It almost doesn’t matter what variety you pick – they are all delicious! Taste around and pick your favorite. I prefer lower acidity and sweeter flavor.

Why can’t you get a good tomato in February, even if they’re labeled “vine ripened”? Tomatoes go through several phases of development and ripening. Once the fruit has formed behind the flower they go through the green stage, when the tomatoes have a matte sheen and the ripening state when the skin has a more shiny gloss. Tomatoes picked in the green stage will never ripen. On a commercial level, these green tomatoes are treated with ethylene gas to commence the ripening process. Unfortunately, the USDA does not regulate the definition of “vine-ripe” and many commercial producers of tomatoes use the term at their marketing convenience. Because tomatoes are shipped across the country and around the world, producers rely on these tricks to stabilize tomatoes for shipment and increase overall shelf-life. And this is why a February tomato is sometimes referred to as No-mato and can be used in a game of baseball (see video on this page – it’s funny and sad!)

Now that we’re in peak tomato season, I’m savoring them in all sorts of preparations… sauces, pasta and a quintessential summer caprese salad. To do justice to these fine summer jewels, I made my own mozzarella cheese. Sort of. I purchase the curd and then pull it by hand.

Mozzarella curd can be purchased at Armenian markets or through a restaurant wholesale distributor. If purchasing in bulk, I recommend cutting the curd down into 1 pound blocks, wrapping it tightly in plastic and freezing it. The curd will last for 2 years this way.

Mozzarella

mozzarella curd

milk

salt

1. Bring large pot of heavily salted water to a boil

2. Break curd apart into small pieces in a stainless steel bowl.

3. When water is just below a boil (about 190-200F), pour water over curd to cover.

Stir just a little, and let sit for 5-10 minutes. Keep remaining water hot.

4. Meanwhile, fill a bowl with ice, milk and water. The milk bath will be the final storage place for the freshly made mozzarella. The ice will quickly cool the cheese so that it will hold its shape. The milk will keep a balance of flavor in the cheese so that the flavor doesn’t leach out into the storing liquid. The ice bath is all crucial for your hands – to help cool them before stretching the hot curds.

5. Drain water off mozzarella curd. Cover a second time with hot water.

6. Using wooden spoons to grab the curd, pull it out of the water and let it stretch back in… this will smooth out the curds.

7. When there are just a few lumps left in the cheese, grab about a ¼ pound lump and stretch it into a ball. As you’ll be using your hands at this point, it helps to briefly cool your hands in the ice water before grabbing the cheese.

8. When the balls are smooth and round put them in the ice bath to cool and store. Slice and serve.

Thanks to Wes for taking the action shots.

September 24, 2008

Homemade Ricotta

It first occurred to me to make fresh ricotta when I was approached to teach a class at Williams-Sonoma. I was going to demonstrate how to make fresh mozzarella (which I learned at Restaurant Nora ). To give the class a theme, we decided on “Homemade Cheeses.” I had never made ricotta before, but I was a quick learner.

Since then, I’ve revised my theme to “The Ultimate Homemade Lasagne.” With the exception of the parmesan, I can make everything from scratch: pasta, Bolognese, ricotta and mozzarella. I can even use the tomatoes and basil from my garden! It’s truly rewarding to do it! The satisfaction of making a meal entirely from scratch, but also how deliciously amazing lasagna can be… the ultimate homemade is really a different beast.

Ricotta is the simplest recipe of the whole process. And it doesn’t require any special ingredients: just milk, cream, salt and lemon.

Combine ½ gallon of whole milk with 1 pint of cream and 1 tablespoon of salt in a large pot, stainless steel pot. Bring it to a simmer over medium heat.

While the milk is heating, squeeze enough lemon juice to yield ½ cup. Line a colander with cheese cloth or coffee filters.

When milk starts to simmer, stir in lemon juice. Stir just enough to combine. The more you stir, the smaller the curds (which is a bad thing). Let sit for 20 minutes to let the curds separate from the whey. They whey will be a translucent, white liquid.

Scoop out the curds into the colander and let drain for about 1 hour, or until the curds are dry. Keeps for about three days. Yield: 3 cups.

Serving suggestions:

Mix with basil and serve with crackers as an hors d’œuvres
Use as a filling for raviolis or cannelloni’s
Use as a filling for cannolis
Make a sweet ricotta tart

CROSTATA di RICOTTA

Crust
1 cup sifted all purpose flour, plus extra for “dusting”
6 tbs. butter, room temp
2 egg yolks
4 tbs. sugar
4 tsp. Marsala
1/2 tsp. freshly grated lemon peel
1/4 tsp. salt

Ricotta filling

2 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
1/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 tsp. flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/2 tsp. freshly grated orange peel
2 egg yolks
3 tbs. raisins, rinsed and drained
2 tbs. slivered, blanched almonds or pine nuts

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

2. Make the crust: In a large mixing bowl make a well in the flour. Drop in the butter, egg yolks, sugar, Marsala, lemon peel and salt. Mix the ingredients together, but don't overwork the dough. Roll out the dough on a floured surface until it is about 1” around wider than the pan, and about 1/8" thick.

4. Lightly butter the sides and bottom of a 9 1/2" false bottom pan. Carefully, press the pastry into the bottom of the pan and around the sides. Be careful not to stretch it. Trim excess.

5. Combine cheese with sugar, flour, salt, vanilla, grated orange peel and egg yolks; beat until they are thoroughly mixed. Stir in the raisins. Spoon the filling into the pastry shell and smooth with a rubber spatula. Sprinkle the top with slivered almonds or pine nuts. Bake in the middle of the oven for about 1/2 hour, or until the crust is golden and the filling firm. Remove from oven and let the pie cool before serving. Garnish with fresh strawberries, if you like.

May 27, 2008

The Great Scone Caper

My friend asked me the other day, “Why can’t I find a good savory scone?” It’s not even a question of finding a good savory scone; it’s really finding any savory scone. The usual suspects of bakery-cafes – 1369, Diesel, Carberry’s – are all lacking. Rumor has it that Panera sometimes offers savory varieties, but they are not conveniently located, and on principle I try to avoid national chains in favor of supporting the local store owners.

The only true resolution is to make the scones myself.

I thumbed through my favorite (and most trusted) cookbooks for foolproof recipes – Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook

— only to find one or two recipes… for sweet scones. When I lived in San Francisco, I recall having a fabulous scone – in fact my first ever scone – at Greens Restaurant and bakery in Fort Mason. It was a cheddar-scallion scone, and I have never seen it since. Much to my dismay, their cookbook was devoid of any scone recipe, too. A search on Epicurious yielded quite a few, but based on the recipe reviews, none seemed perfect – one was deemed bland, another didn’t have the butter cut into it, and so on… I piece-mealed together the “best practices” of each recipe.

I opted for bacon, cheddar and scallions. Feel free to omit the bacon or the scallions.

Bacon, Cheddar and Scallion Scones
2 cups all purpose flour
1 tablespoon baking powder
2 teaspoons sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup (1 stick) chilled unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 cup (packed) coarsely grated extra-sharp white cheddar cheese (about 4 ounces)
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
3 scallions, washed and cut into rings.
3/4 cup chilled whipping cream (or combination of milk and cream)
1 large egg

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Put bacon in a skillet, and cook over medium heat until the fat is rendered and the bacon is crispy. Drain bacon on a paper towel.

Combine flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt in a bowl. Cut in butter using your fingers until mixture resembles coarse meal. Add cheese. Whisk cream, mustard and egg in small bowl, and add the scallions and the bacon. Add cream mixture to flour mixture and gently knead until just combined.

Turn dough out onto lightly floured work surface. Gather dough together; divide in half. Pat each half into 6-inch round. Cut each round into 6 wedges. Transfer to ungreased baking sheet, spacing 2 inches apart.

Bake scones until golden and tester inserted into center comes out clean, about 20 minutes.
Transfer scones to rack and cool at least 10 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature. They can be made 8 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature. If desired, rewarm in 350°F oven about 5 minutes.)