Grow. Cook. Eat. – Page 41 – Julia Shanks Recovering Chef and Urban Gardener

October 17, 2008

Sitting on the Dock of the Bay

This visit to the farm was under the guise of picking up my lamb. Last spring, I had done a lot of office work for Brett and my compensation was a half a lamb – raised by friends Donna and Cameron down the road. Two weeks ago, the lamb was slaughtered. After two-week of aging in the walk-in refrigerator, the meat is tenderized and ready for butchery. The prime cuts – the rack and loin chops are set aside. The stewing meat, from the shoulder and ham, are ground for sausages — chipotle and peachy mama flavored. The leg of lamb is left on the bone and makes for a generous roast. The long bones from the rack still have meat and are destined for barbecued ribs.

I arrived late Wednesday afternoon, and Brett and I promptly trotted over to the Chesapeake Bay, just yards away from the farm (actually we took the tractor, but that’s a another story). The neighbor had built a dock on the edge of his property, which creates a perfect landing for fishing and crabbing. The crab traps dangle from the base of the dock, and the bluefish and perch swim about, striped bass sometimes makes an appearance, but not often. The night before Brett had been fishing with his friend Bob so we used the skin and bones from that catch as bait for our fishing adventure. The left-over bait was put in the crab-traps… drifting on the floor of the bay, crabs meander in, eat the bait and get trapped. We set free the females and take the males. With the dwindling crab population, we want to minimize any long-term damage of harvesting sea creatures.

What did we catch, you ask? Let me put it this way: they call it “fishing,” not “catching”…. We did catch some warm breezes, mesmerizing bay views and a lone male crab – which made a delightful snack.

If we had more crabs, we would have made crab cakes:

Crab Cakes with Warm Frisee and Spinach Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette and Bacon Lardons

Crab Cakes

1 lb. crab meat
2 tbs. chopped celery
2 tbs. chopped scallion
1 tbs. chopped fresh tarragon
1 tbs. chopped fresh parsley
1 tsp. mustard
2 tbs. mayonnaise
2 tbs. bread crumbs
1 tsp. lemon zest
1 tsp. lemon juice
salt and pepper to taste
plain oil

1. Mix everything together except the oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper
2. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Add oil
3. Form mix into 2” crab cakes. Pan fry until crispy on each side. Serve with salad.

Vinaigrette

2 tsp. Dijon mustard
2 tsp. red wine vinegar
2 ½ tbs. extra virgin olive oil
½ tsp. fresh thyme
salt and pepper to taste

Combine mustard and vinegar in a bowl. Whisk in olive oil. Season with thyme, salt and pepper.

Salad

1 pound hardy mesclun or other salad greens such as frisee or spinach
3 slices slab bacon
1 red onion, julienned

1. Cut bacon into cubes. Cook in skillet over medium flame until it is just start to brown (but not fully crispy)
2. Add onions, turn heat to high and continue cooking for 3 minutes or until bacon and onions are crisp.
3. Drain excess fat from bacon, and toss warm bacon over greens. Dress salad with the vinaigrette. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Next week: Lambapalooza!

October 15, 2008

Goodbye Summer

The basil plants are spindily and the leaves small. But the fragrance is pure summer! With the white and purple buds, they make a beautiful bouquet for the kitchen counter.

October 13, 2008

Bouche de Noel

My friend Leslie is teaching a class on Bûche de Noël – the classic French Christmas Treat. In preparation, she wanted to do a trial run to test the timing of the class, and also to get pictures for the class posting.

We all know, I’m not a good baker and more a salt-head, than a sweet tooth. Nonetheless, I have a secret dream of being a star, cake decorator. I even bought a cake turn-table for when the urge strikes. Probably once a year, I make a few pounds of butter cream, a couple of cakes and decorate to my heart’s content. They look like pouffy wedding dresses reminiscent of the 1980’s (read: overdone and not particularly fashionable), and I never eat them, but it’s fun. That being said, I couldn’t miss an opportunity to watch and learn, so I offered to take pictures (just for her, I SWEAR!)

According to Wikipedia:

One popular story behind the creation of this dessert is that Napoleon I of France issued a proclamation requiring households in Paris to keep their chimneys closed during the winter, based on the notion that cold air caused medical problems. This prevented Parisians from being able to use their fireplaces, and, thus, prevented them from engaging in many of the traditions surrounding and involving the hearth in French Christmas tradition. French bakers, according to the theory, invented this dessert as a symbolic replacement around which the family could gather for story-telling and other holiday merriment.

The cake, which ultimately looks like a tree log with mushrooms, can be made with either a vanilla or chocolate sponge cake and filled with chocolate or vanilla buttercream. The cake is lighter than traditional genoise which makes it easy to roll. This cake batter is so light that it can only be used as a sheet-cake and can’t stand up to a layer cake. The mushrooms are made with Italian Meringue.

Before you can even think about assembling the cake, you must assemble all the parts: cake, filling, icing/glaze. For the garnish: rosemary sprigs to look like pine needle covered in ice and meringue mushrooms. The special equipment is limited to a piping bag with a round tip, a “decorating triangle” (used to texturize the icing to look like bark) and a good icing spatula.

For the Cake and the other components:

Cake
6 large eggs, separated
1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
12 tablespoons sugar
1/4 cup cake flour, sifted
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder, sifted

Separate the egg whites from the egg yolks. Whip the egg yolks with sugar until they are thick and pale. In a separate bowl, whip the egg whites sugar to stiff peaks. Fold the whites into the yolks. Sift the cocoa powder and flour onto to the egg mixture and gently fold to combine. Bake on a sheet tray for 15 minutes at 400F.

The filling is less persnickety. You can use a traditional buttercream or a modified version of simply beaten butter with white chocolate. The filling can also be used to glaze the outside of the cake or you can use a chocolate ganache:

Ganache
1/2 cup whipping cream
6 ounces semisweet chocolate, chopped
2 tablespoons light corn syrup
1 tablespoon rum or other favorite liquor

Heat heavy cream over medium heat until bubbles form around the edge. Remove from heat. Stir in remaining ingredients. Continue to stir until chocolate dissolves.

For the mushrooms, make a French meringue.

½ cup egg whites
1 cup sugar
¼ teaspoon cream of tartar.

Dissolve sugar in egg whites over a pot of simmering water, whisking constantly, and heat until 110F degrees. Remove from heat and then whip until stiff peaks. To make the mushrooms pipe out mounds to be the caps, and pipe up 1” stems. Bake at 200F for 45 minutes and the 175 for another 30 minutes to dehydrate. When they are dried, you can brush the bottom of the mushroom caps with melted chocolate. Using a small paring knife, cut a little indentation into the base of the mushroom cap. Use chocolate or icing to glue the stem into the cap.

To make pine needles, dip rosemary sprigs in beaten egg whites, then roll in granulated sugar.

Assembly
Ice the sheet cake. Roll it lengthwise, and roll the seam to the bottom. Slice the cake, 1/3 portion, on a bias to create two pieces – on that is twice as long as the other. Put the longer piece on a serving platter. Take the smaller piece, and align the angled side along the longer piece. This should give you the basic shape of a log. Ice the whole cake to cover the seam, but leave the ends un-iced to show off the roll. Run the decorating triangle along the outside to texturize.

Garnish with mushrooms and pine needles.

To register for Leslie’s class, visit: www.helenrennie.com

October 11, 2008

More Adventures in Smoking: Bluefish

There are several truths in my culinary world: everything fried tastes better and everything smoked tastes better. Obviously, there are exceptions to the rule – thinking about all the fresh vegetables coming out of the garden (good!) and about that smoked oil (bad!).

Bluefish fits perfectly into that rule. Some people enjoy it fresh, but with a strong, oily flavor it’s better suited to smoking and more universally liked that way. I love having little snacks in the fridge for when unexpected guests come over, and smoked bluefish is a great option. Whole Foods sells smoked bluefish pâté but I was wholly disappointed to discover it contains high fructose corn syrup. The only solution is to make my own.

Smoked Bluefish Pâté
To smoke bluefish: Season ½ pound filet with salt, pepper and a little sugar. Start a charcoal fire on the grill. Meanwhile, soak wood chips in water. When charcoal fire starts to fade, prepare to smoke and move quickly: Drain wood chips and toss on top of the embers. Replace the grate on top of the grill and put the bluefish on the grate… away from the fire. Close the grill and the vents on top – leave the vents on the bottom open. Let fish smoke for 30 minutes or more.

In a food processor fitted with a plastic blade, combine bluefish with 4 ounces cream cheese, 1 tablespoon brandy, 1 teaspoon lemon juice, salt and black pepper. Pulse to combine. Stir in chopped scallions. Serve with crackers.

October 9, 2008

Adventures in Smoking

Welcome to my journey of culinary exploration. What started as a way to incorporate more bacon into my diet, ended in a discovery of a new taste sensation!

It all started with a post by Canary Girl. She wrote about bacon mayonnaise: mayonnaise made with rendered bacon fat instead of the usual vegetable oil. I was beside myself with the genius of this idea. But as I thought about it, the logistics seemed somewhat challenging. Bacon grease solidifies at room temperature which would make it seemingly difficult to emulsify into mayo. The really beauty of the idea, my thought- process continued, is the smoky, salty fat. So if I made “smoked” oil, then I could make mayo without bacon – and have a recipe that my non-pork eating friends would like.

Given my history of setting fires in other people’s kitchen, smoking oil wasn’t one of my better ideas. This is what I did… I lit a charcoal fire (yes, that’s right, open flame) in the Weber grill on the patio. When the embers started to fade, I threw on soaked wood chips. I put the grate on, and on the side without the flame, I put on a pot of canola oil. Oh, and as long as I was smoking, I put a second pan with home grown chilies and more oil. Thank goodness I’m still here to tell the tale, because I could have created a massive fire. But I didn’t and I ended up with some smoky oil and chilies.

With the oil, I made mayonnaise. Unfortunately, it tasted like the bottom of an ashtray. It probably would have been better with equal parts regular oil and smoked oil. As I recounted my tale to my neighbors they mentioned yet another brilliant idea: popcorn in bacon fat! And so the culinary journey continued…….

I rendered bacon over low heat – wanting to release the fat without crisping the bacon.

When enough fat coated the bottom of the pan, I added the corn kernels. While the corn popped, the bacon continued to crisp. After 10 minutes, I had fluffy popcorn mixed with crispy bacon bits. A quick toss with salt… The bacon flavor was good, but very subtle – I had used three slices for 1 cup of popcorn. Next time, I will need to use more bacon.

Since I also had the smoked chili oil, I decided to pop corn in that. Now THAT was delicious. Surprisingly smoky and unexpectedly spicy, it was a great success for pre-dinner cocktail snacks. Thanks to Canary Girl for inspiring this journey!

October 8, 2008

Shameless Self Promotion

Today's Boston Globe featured an article about the locavore banquet and included the recipe for my squash soup. Unfortunately, the on-line version does not include the recipe…

As a side note, my mother says:

Time to think of another tag line. It is not Shameless Self Promotion. It is keeping your family and friends informed. Shameless self-promotion has a negative connotation.

Dina responds:

I agree with your mother

David responds:

Your mom is the best part!

October 7, 2008

All Purpose Autumn – Squash Puree

Acorn and butternut squashes are quintessential autumn. Not only are they delicious and nutritious, the burnt orange color beckons the crisp autumn air. My favorite preparation: pureed. In this form it is so versatile:
– Served as a side dish with pork, skate or duck.
– Thickened with parmesan and bread crumbs for a ravioli or cannelloni filling
– Thinned with chicken stock for a soup

Above, I served the squash puree with fried sage, seared skate, port wine sauce and the first of the season arugula and mizuna from the garden. As a soup, this recipe won second place at the locavore banquet last month. And it couldn’t be easier.

Squash puree
1 acorn squash
1 butternut squash
1 tablespoon butter
1 royal gala apple, cored and sliced
1 onion, peeled and sliced
1 teaspoon Madras curry powder
Salt, pepper and lemon juice to taste

1. Slice squash in half from the root to the stem. Put cut side down on a baking sheet with about ½ cup of water. Bake at 375F for 1 hour, or until squash are tender.
2. Meanwhile, heat a skillet over medium heat. Melt the butter and add the apples and onions. Saute until they start to soften and brown, about 5 minutes. Add the curry powder and cook for 2 minutes more.
3. Remove squash from oven, scoop out the seeds and discard. Scoop out the squash flesh and combine with apple/onion mix.
4. Puree in a food processor until smooth. Season to taste with salt, pepper and lemon juice.
5. Adapt as desired.

That Extra Loving Touch:

If making soup, thin with 1 quart chicken stock
If making a filling, thicken with ¼ cup parmesan cheese and ¼ cup bread crumbs
Either way, garnish with Fried Sage

October 5, 2008

Snack Foods – Reading Labels

One of the nice things about visiting my parents is raiding the kitchen. They stock their cupboards so differently than I do… all manner of cookies, chips and crackers. We have on-going debates as to who has a healthier diet – my dad who eats processed ice cream and chips in modest portions, or me who eats mostly made from scratch food with butter and cream. Since I don’t buy these snacks for myself, I tend to only eat them (if at all) when I visit them.

The reason I don’t eat more is that I usually read the label of processed foods before I eat it. I’m generally skeeved out by the number of ingredients I can’t pronounce.

On a recent visit, in my usual habit, I poked in the cupboards looking for a snack and found wheat thins and Fritos. Though I’m not on a diet, I try to make healthy food choices. I thought, “surely the wheat thins are a better choice.” So I read the labels (both had the same serving size in terms of grams):

Fritos Corn Chips
Amount Per Serving –

Calories 160 Calories from Fat 90

Total Fat 10g
Saturated Fat 1.5g
Cholesterol 0mg
Sodium 170mg

Total Carbohydrate 15g
Dietary Fiber 1g
Sugars 1g
Protein 2g

Vitamin A 0% Vitamin C 0%
Calcium 2% Iron 0%

Wheat Thins
Amount Per Serving –

Calories 150 Calories from Fat 50
Total Fat 6g
Saturated Fat 1g
Trans Fat 0g
Cholesterol 0mg
Sodium 260mg
Total Carbohydrate 21g
Dietary Fiber 1g
Sugars 4g
Protein 2g
Vitamin A 0% Vitamin C 0%
Calcium 2% Iron 6%

At first blush, you might say that the Wheat Thins are better for you…. After all, they have less calories (10 less per serving) and less fat calories (50 vs. 90). But, they also have nearly four times the sugar content, and 90 mg. more sodium. Interestingly, they have the same (minimal) fiber and protein content. Then I looked at the ingredient list…

Fritos: INGREDIENTS: Corn, Corn Oil, and Salt

Wheat Thins: INGREDIENTS: Enriched Flour (Wheat Flour, Niacin, Reduced Iron, Thiamine Mononitrate [Vitamin B1], Riboflavin [Vitamin B2], Folic Acid), Soybean Oil, Whole Grain Wheat Flour, Sugar, Defatted Wheat Germ, Cornstarch, High Fructose Corn Syrup, Salt, Corn Syrup, Monoglycerides, Barley Malt Syrup, Leavening (Calcium Phosphate, Baking Soda), Soy Lecithin (Emulsifier), Vegetable Color (Annatto Extract, Turmeric Oleoresin), Onion Powder.

In the laundry list of ingredients, the wheat thins have the beleaguered high-fructose corn syrup. I would argue that the Fritos Corn chips are the lesser of two evils. What do you think?

October 2, 2008

Dina’s Concord Grape Tart

I spent the Jewish New Year with Dina and her family. Dina, living up to her usual standard, created an impressive and delicious Concord Grape Tart. The recipe comes courtesy of Martha Stewart… but the decorative flourishes are all Dina.

Ingredients
Makes one 9-inch pie
• All-purpose flour, for work surface
• 7 1/2 to 8 cups Concord grapes, rinsed
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 4 1/2 to 5 teaspoons cornstarch
• 1 large egg

Directions

1. On a lightly floured work surface, roll 1 piece of pate brisee into a 15-inch round. With a dry pastry brush, sweep off the excess flour; fit dough into a 9-inch pie plate, pressing it into the edges. Trim to a 1-inch overhang all around. Crimp edge as desired. Cover with plastic wrap; chill pie shell until firm, about 30 minutes. Repeat process for rolling out dough. Using a 4-inch grape leaf cookie cutter, cut out 4 leaves from dough. Transfer to a baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.

2. Remove skins from grapes by pinching the ends of each grape, reserving both the pulp and skins separately, discarding any accumulated liquid.

3. Place pulp in a saucepan; bring to a boil. Cook until the seeds separate from the pulp and the pulp breaks down, about 6 minutes. Strain mixture through a sieve into the bowl with the reserved skins; discard solids. Let cool to room temperature before placing in the refrigerator for 2 hours.

4. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Remove grape mixture from refrigerator. Stir in sugar and cornstarch. Pour into prepared pie shell. Beat egg with 1 tablespoon water. Brush edge of pie shell with egg mixture, reserving any remaining mixture. Transfer pie to oven; bake 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees, and continue baking until filling jiggles when shaken, about 30 minutes. Transfer pie to a wire cooling rack; let cool overnight.

5. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Remove reserved grape leaves from refrigerator and brush with remaining egg and water mixture. Bake until golden brown, 15 to 20 minutes. Transfer to a wire cooling rack; let cool.

6. Before serving, place grape leaves on top of filling.

September 30, 2008

Challah Cravings

I woke up the other day with a phantom scent of Challah in the air – that sweet, yeasty aroma. And while drinking my coffee, I could practically taste it. Have you ever had that feeling before? I have… it was a few months ago when I was visiting the farm. Lucky for me, Brett had all the ingredients in the pantry: bread flour, yeast, oil and sugar. Eggs were out in the chicken coup. The two loaves of challah had barely come out of the oven before I began tearing into. I pretended to have made only one loaf because when Brett and Chris returned, that’s all that was left. It was so, so good that when I got home, I immediately stocked my pantry with bread flour and yeast.

Challah is not an easy craving to satisfy quickly. The dough itself only takes about 20 minutes to pull together, but then it must rise twice: first in a big mass of dough and then a second rising after the loaves are formed.

My patience paid off…. And those aromas wafting through my house are real. Mmmm….

Challah
1 package dry yeast
3 ½ cups bread flour
½ cup oil
¾ cup warm water
1 tsp. salt
¼ cup sugar
3 eggs
Poppy or sesame seeds

Combine water, yeast and ½ cup of flour in a mixing bowl (use the bowl of a kitchen aid if you have one). Mix to combine. Let sit for 20 minutes or until the slurry gets frothy.

Meanwhile, combine the oil, 2 eggs, sugar and salt. Add this to the flour/water/yeast mix and combine. Add the remaining flour and knead in a machine with a dough hook (10 minutes) or by hand (15 minutes).

Let rise for 4 hours on the counter, covered with plastic wrap, or in the refrigerator.

Divide the dough into 8 balls and roll out into strands. Make two loaves with 4 strands each. For tips on braiding challah, go here. You can also watch YouTube videos. My mnemonic device is "over two, under one."

Make an egg wash with the remaining egg, and brush on top of the loaves. Sprinkle with seeds on top. Let rise for 1 hour.

Bake at 350 for 45 minutes. Ideally, you should let it cool before eating, but you don’t have to.