Category Archives: Photography

March 1, 2014 · 1:46 pm

GRAVLAX AND ELISABET’S MUSTARD AND DILL SAUCE

After lots of travels round California and more problems than I wish to recount with a new wireless router, a laptop that expired without wrning, and many days in the shop for my desktop computer, I am finally back at my desk. This post has been sitting unedited since Christmas, but the food is not just for the holidays, and it’s not just for celebrations.

Two of my children and their families visited us during the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day. Even though they returned home before New Year’s Day, we tried to have some of the family favorites from New Year’s Eve buffets of the past. Gravlax definitely made the cut, although our pregnant daughter opted out for health reasons.

The recipe for gravlax originally came from the volume, Cooking of Scandinavia, from the Time-Life series of Foods of the World published in 1968 and subsequently made it – with revisions – into our family cookbook, Let’s Cook! Let’s Eat!

The sauce is the recipe of a very old and dear friend from Sweden. We first had it as part of a lavish spread at her house celebrating Saint Lucia Day. We had it again years later when Elisabet and her husband visited us in Louisiana. She thought the sauce  would go well with the crawfish boil we prepared in their honor. She was right, and I was lucky enough to talk her out of the recipe. It goes well with many fish dishes, and it will keep for along time in the refrigerator.

Salmon filet
Skin side up
Salmon scales
Remove the tiny little bones with tweezers or fine pliers
Cracking the whole black peppercorns
Cracked black peppercorns, salt, and sugar
Fresh dill
The dill, pepper, salt, and sugar mixture sandwiched between two salmon filets in a non-corrosive dish
Covered with plastic wrap, weighted with a stone, and ready for the refrigerator
Marinade removed and ready to eat
A long salmon slicer is handy but not necessary. A very sharp knife is needed.
Not a very good job of slicing, but you get the idea.
Elisabet’s mustard and dill sauce
The end result on pumpernickel bread

RECIPES

Gravlax

Ingredients

  • 1 salmon filet, skin on (about 1½ to 2 pounds)
  • 1 large bunch fresh dill
  • 2 tablespoons whole black peppercorns, crushed
  • ¼ cup kosher salt
  • ¼ cup sugar

Method

  1. Make sure scales and fine bones have been removed. Just to be sure, rub your finger lightly over the fish. If you find tiny little white bones, remove them with tweezers or fine-nosed pliers. Cut the filet into two pieces of equal length.
  2. Arrange the wider filet, skin-side down,  in the bottom of a glass or ceramic dish that will hold the fish flat. Place the bunch of fresh dill on the filet. Cover with the other half of the fish, skin-side up.
  3. Crush the pepper in a zippered plastic bag, and then combine with the salt and sugar. Sprinkle the mixture over the salmon and dill. Cover the dish tightly with plastic wrap and weight down with a heavy pan, brick or rock, or several cans of food. Place in the refrigerator
  4. Turn the fish two or three times a day for 3 days, replacing the plastic and weight each time before returning to the refrigerator.
  5. A liquid marinade will develop. Spoon over the fish each time that you turn it.
  6. When you are ready to serve, remove from dish and scrape off the dill and any remainders of the salt and peppercorns. Place the salmon on a carving board, skin-side down. With a very sharp, straight-edge knife, slice the salmon into very thin diagonal slices, detaching them from the skin.
  7. Serve with thin slices of rye bread and Elisabet’s mustard  and dill sauce.

Elisabet’s Mustard and Dill Sauce

Ingredients

  • ½ cup prepared mustard
  • 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
  • ¼ cup vinegar
  • ¼ cup sugar
  • ½ cup salad oil
  • finely chopped dill fronds, to taste

Method

  1. In a small bowl, whisk together the mustards, vinegar, and sugar until the sugar is completely dissolved
  2. Whisk continuously while adding the oil gradually in a thin stream.
  3. Add chopped dill fronds to taste. The dill flavor will intensify as the sauce sits for a few minutes before serving.

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January 20, 2014 · 2:40 pm

POSOLE

Posole (po-so-lay) is decidedly Southwestern and maybe even uniquely Northern New Mexican, although it undoubtedly has some kinship to hominy from the American South. The word refers to at least wo different things.

First, it is one of the names used for nixtamalized corn. That’s dry corn treated with lye or an alkaline solution to remove the hard outer husk. It is a process that was developed by the peoples of the New World. You can read more about the process in one of my earlier posts about the history of corn. In other places, posole is called hominy.

Second, the word refers to a soup made with posole. In New Mexico the soup is popular during the Christmas-New Year holidays, but it is really a favorite during all the colder months of winter. For that matter, lots of people eat it all year long, sometimes instead of beans and rice. The soup has as many versions as there are cooks, but some things are constant: (1) posole, (2) chile (either red or green – you could probably even use both, (3) onions, (4) protein (chicken, pork, turkey – maybe even tofu and vegetarian), and (5) herbs and spices (cumin, cilantro, and Mexican oregano). Optional items include grated asadero or Monterrey jack cheese, sliced radishes, and diced avocado.

You can buy posole canned, frozen, partly cooked, and dry. For me the best version of the soup uses dry posole, but if you choose to use it you should be prepared for a long cooking time, much longer than described in most recipes.

Whatever version you choose, it is well worth the effort. For our family, it is a universal favorite that is required some time during a visit to Santa Fe.  So here’s the recipe for pork green-chile posole.

RECIPE

Pork Green-Chile Posole

Ingredients

  • 12 ounces dry posole
  • water
  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • 1½ pounds boneless pork shoulder, cubed (If you’re feeling festive, you can substitute chops)
  • 1 large yellow onion, chopped
  • 7 ounces fresh-roasted, frozen, or canned New Mexico green chiles
  • 3 tablespoons all-purpose flour
  • 2 pints chicken stock
  • 2 cloves garlic, pressed or chopped finely
  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin
  • 1 tablespoon dried Mexican oregano, crumbled in your hand
  • salt and pepper to taste
  • 2 cups grated asadero or Monterrey jack cheese (optional but highly recommended garnish)
  • 2 cups chopped fresh cilantro leaves (optional but highly recommended garnish)
  • 2 ripe avocados, peeled and diced (optional garnish)
  • ½ cup thinly sliced radishes (optional)
  • sour cream (optional)

Method

  1. Soak the dry posole over night in a large pot of water. Add more water if the posole absorbs it all.
  2. At least 6 hours before you plan to serve the soup, heat the oil over a medium-high flame in a large frying pan. Cast iron works well. Add the pork to the hot oil, being careful not to crowd it so you can get a good brown crust on the meat. Remove the browned meat to a plate with a slotted spoon.  Lower the flame to medium-low. Then add the chopped onion. Add more oil if needed. Cover and let the onions sweat for about 5 minutes, stirring them occasionally. Do not let them brown. Add the green chiles and cook for an additional 2-3 minutes. Stir in the browned meat and pressed garlic. Add the flour and stir to completely coat the meat and vegetables. Cook for an additional 5 minutes to lose the flavor of uncooked flour.
  3. Drain the soaked posole into a large bowl, reserving some of the soaking liquid. Transfer the meat and vegetable mixture to the soaking pot, add the chicken stock and enough of the soaking water to cover.  Bring the mixture to a boil, add the soaked posole, and adjust the liquid so that everything is completely covered.
  4. Add the cumin and crumbled Mexican oregano and reduce to the simmer. Adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper. Add water if necessary.
  5. Cook until the individual posole kernels are soft and “exploded” to resemble (a little bit) popcorn. They should have the consistency of al dente pasta.
  6. When the posole is done, serve it in large bowls. Pass bowls of cheese, cilantro, avocado, radishes, and sour cream for each guest to add to taste.
Packaged dry posole
Browned pork
Pork, onions, and green chiles ready for the posole and cooking liquid
A bowl of posole hidden by all the condiments

Notes:

  • This recipe should serve 6 to 8 people
  • If you think the soup is finished before you are ready to serve it, just turn down the heat or even re-heat it. Posole is one of those things that gets better with time.
  • Some people prefer chicken. Use that instead if you wish. It is every bit as tasty.
  • Piquancy is controlled by the heat of the chile. Food sensitivities in our family dictate mild, but you can always add your own hot sauce if you want your bowl to be spicier.
  • Asadero is a Mexican cheese made with a process similar to that of mozzarella. If you can’t find it, mozzarella or Monterey jack will substitute perfectly.
  • Mexican oregano often comes in a package of leaves, twigs, and flowers. That’s the kind you want. You should crumble the dried pieces between your hands to get the full flavor.

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January 15, 2014 · 11:34 am

DR. D’S LOUISIANA ANDOUILLE AND CHICKEN GUMBO

During this Christmas holiday, we were fortunate to have visits from two of our children and their families. Christmas is always a time to enjoy old family favorites, and since our youngest spent most of her growing-up years in Louisiana, we decided to make gumbo for our first evening. We lived long enough in Louisiana to learn how to make some of its classic dishes. We also benefited from lessons from some great cooks among our friends, some of them Cajuns. Nothing says “Cajun” quite as much as gumbo, and the great thing about the dish is that you can make it with whatever you like: oysters, shrimp, a mixture of seafood, duck, alligator, or whatever. This version, chicken and andouille sausage, is one of the most popular because the ingredients are readily available and taste so good together.

I don’t know where I got this recipe. Certainly it has been influenced by my friends, Reggie Graves and Ronnie George, but over the years I have tuned it and tweaked it so that I feel like it is “mine”.

When our daughter, Sarah, was in cooking school at the French Culinary Institute in Manhattan, as with all of the students she was responsible for preparing one family meal for her classmates. She chose to make this gumbo, and it was so popular that it was included in the official recipe book of the school. They called it, “Dr. D’s Gumbo”, and so here it is. It’s really very simple, but there are a lot of individual steps. You can take shortcuts, but if you do, it just won’t be real Louisiana gumbo.

Chicken stock. First, you make your own chicken stock. Actually, you start out with commercial chicken stock, but with your own vegetables, seasonings, and chicken, it becomes home-made and doubly rich. You will need chicken, commercial chicken stock, yellow onion, carrot, celery, garlic, and fresh tomato along with salt and black peppercorns.

The Cajun Holy Trinity. Second, you need to prepare your vegetables – the so-called Cajun Holy Trinity of onion, green pepper, and celery – before you start to cook. When you make the roux, you will be skating on the edge of disaster. It must be just the right color – as dark as you can make it – but if it burns, you will need to start over. The cut vegetables serve several important parts of the recipe. Of course, flavor is a major purpose, but stopping the roux from further cooking is equally important. That’s why you need to have it at your elbow to dump in the pot just when you think the roux is finished.

Roux. Third, you need to find the heaviest pot you have and the biggest metal spoon. Undoubtedly you have made a traditional French roux for béchamel or as thickening for various soups and sauces. That is not Cajun roux. The whole idea is to get the roux as dark as you can so that the rich smokiness flavors the soup. That requires constant stirring in a heavy-bottomed pot until your level of fear overtakes you. Any black bits – in other words, if it burns – you have to start over from the beginning.

Thickening.  As the roux darkens,  the flour loses its thickening power while adding to its flavoring power. As a result, there are two other ingredients used to thicken the soup.

First is okra. In fact the OED says that the word, “gumbo” comes from the Angolan word for okra. Many cooks prefer okra in the gumbo during the growing season. In the winter, when gumbo is guaranteed to take the edge from a cold day, filé becomes the preferred ingredient. There are many Cajuns who prefer filé for thickening all year long.

Filé is ground up dried sassafras leaves. If you live in the US South, you probably know where there is a nearby sassafras tree, and you can make your own filé. Aficionados swear it is by far the best to make your own. For the rest of us, there are several Louisiana food companies that sell filé in bottles. Once you buy your filé, the first thing to do is to transfer it to an empty Old Crow half-pint whiskey bottle to serve as your decanter on the dining room table.  Tightly stoppered, the filé keeps for a long time, but if you notice it has lost some of its thickening power, buy a fresh bottle.

Sausage. Traditionally, gumbo is made with andouille sausage. The Louisiana version is made with pork; the French version is made with chitterlings (I think you know what they are) so be sure you know what you are buying.  These days, most large super markets have andouille in the meat section, but if you have a hard time finding it you can substitute Polish kielbasa.

Spice. Gumbo can be as mild or spicy as you like. most folks from Louisiana like it on the spicy side, but food sensitivities in our family dictate a mild version. Fortunately you can add your favorite chile sauce to give the gumbo you prefer. Traditionally, Tabasco is often favored, but it has a vinegary punch that some don’t like. There are any number of other Louisiana hot sauces you can choose, or you can opt for Cholula from Mexico, or the current popular hot sauce, sriracha.

RECIPE

Louisiana Andouille and Chicken Gumbo

Ingredients

  • 32 ounce container of commercial chicken stock
  • 1 whole chicken, giblets and neck removed
  • 1 large yellow onion, halved
  • 2 ribs celery cut in thirds
  • 1 large carrot, cut in thirds
  • 2 cloves garlic
  • 3 or 4 stems of parsley
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 12 whole black pepper corns
  • water to cover
  • 1 ripe tomato
  • 1½ pounds andouille sausage
  • 1 large yellow onion, chopped
  • 3 ribs celery chopped
  • 2 large green bell peppers, seeds removed and chopped
  • 5 scallions with green tops chopped + more for garnish
  • 2/3 cup vegetable oil (You may use lard if you want to be authentic)
  • 2/3 cup all-purpose flour
  • Louisiana hot sauce (optional)

Method

  1. In a large stock pot, pour in the chicken stock. Add the chicken, onion, celery, carrot, garlic, salt and pepper. Add water to cover the chicken. Then bring to a boil, and reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook until the chicken is done, about 45 minutes. With your hand, squeeze in the tomato, seeds and all. Simmer for an additional 10 minutes. Remove from the heat. Remove the chicken to cool until it is easy to handle. Strain the stock into a large bowl, and set aside.
  2. When the chicken is cool enough to handle, remove the skin. bones, and any veins you might see. Cut the chicken meat into bite sized pieces and set aside.
  3. Cut the andouille sausage into 1 inch sections and then quarter each section. Set aside.
  4. Combine the chopped onion, celery, green pepper, and scallions in a large bowl. Place next to the roux pot so you can add it quickly to the roux before it burns.
  5. Using a very heavy pot and long-handled metal spoon, place the oil over high heat. As the oil begins to shimmer and just before it smokes, sprinkle the flour gradually into the oil while stirring constantly. The flour should sizzle as it hits the hot oil. It will start to darken immediately. Constant stirring is essential, being ure to scrape the corners of the pot. You can stop whenever the roux is colored to your liking, but Cajun moms will push it until it is almost black (ALMOST black – if you get some black flecks, it means that you have burned the roux and need to start over)
  6. Immediately dump in the chopped vegetables to stop the roux from darkening further. Stir. Reduce the heat to medium-low, and continue to cook until the vegetables are soft and translucent.
  7. Stir in enough of the chicken stock to get the consistency you want. Return to the boil. Add the chicken and andouille and simmer for another 30 minutes to meld the flavors.
  8. Correct the seasoning with salt, pepper, and hot sauce.
  9. Serve in a large soup bowl over a heap of cooked white rice. Pass chopped scallions, filé, and more hot sauce so that all can suit themselves.

 

A bowl of chicken and andouille gumbo

A bowl of chicken and andouille gumbo

 

File in the obligate Old Crow bottle

File in the obligate Old Crow bottle

 

Your choice of Louisiana hot sauces

Your choice of Louisiana hot sauces

 

Apot of gumbo ready to be served over rice

Apot of gumbo ready to be served over rice

 

Cooked chicken ready for the gumbo pot

Cooked chicken ready for the gumbo pot

 

Andouille sausage

Andouille sausage

 

Gumbo base simmering

Gumbo base simmering

 

The Cajun Holy Trinity stirred in to stop the roux from darkening too mucn

The Cajun Holy Trinity stirred in to stop the roux from darkening too mucn

 

Roux beginning to cook but it needs to get a lot darker than this

Roux beginning to cook but it needs to get a lot darker than this

 

You need the biggest metal spoon you can find to keep you from getting burned with Cajun napalm

You need the biggest metal spoon you can find to keep you from getting burned with Cajun napalm

 

The bowl of chopped vegetables ready to be dumped into the roux

The bowl of chopped vegetables ready to be dumped into the roux

 

Chopped vegetables

Chopped vegetables

 

The Cajun Holy Trinity

The Cajun Holy Trinity

 

Cooking the chicken to also make a double-rich chicken stock

Cooking the chicken to also make a double-rich chicken stock

This recipe should easily serve 8 to 12 hungry people

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January 1, 2014 · 4:19 pm

CHUNK O’CHEESE BREAD

One of our family’s favorite breads is Chunk o’Cheese.  The original recipe was developed by Mrs. Richard W. Ojakangas from Duluth, Minnesota. With it she won Second Grand Prize in the ninth annual Pillsbury Grand National Bake-Off. The recipe was published in Best of the Bake-Off Collection, Book Publishing Industries, Inc., 1959, page 21. Since then, the recipe has been reprinted numerous times in various cookbooks and recipe collections as well as on the internet.

Chunk o'cheese loaves fresh out of the oven

Chunk o’cheese loaves fresh out of the oven

During a recent visit to Los Angeles, I made the bread with my grandson, who had a great time pushing the little chunks of cheese into the dough. That is a very important step, because cheese on the surface of the dough melts in the oven. It can make a big mess. For that reason, be sure to line your baking pans with aluminum foil Also be sure to remove the foil from the finished loaves while they are still cooling. Otherwise you will wind up with pieces of aluminum foil stuck in the cracks of the firmed-up bread.

All it needs is some butter

All it needs is some butter

The basic recipe is really the very old-time American classic, anadama bread, but the cheese sets it apart.  The original recipe called for American cheese. (That and Velveeta were the kinds of cheese found in most American kitchens in the 1950s.) I prefer to use sharp Cheddar, but you can choose your favorite so long as it melts easily. Monterey jack, Muenster, Swiss, mozzarella, or provolone will also work. You can even try a mixture of cheeses. I have also added a little whole wheat flour to make the loaf even more flavorful and crunchy.

RECIPE

Chunk o’Cheese Bread

Ingredients

  • 2¼ cups lukewarm water (110°F)
  • ½ cup cornmeal + more for shaping loaves
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • ½ cup molasses
  • 2 tablespoons butter or vegetable shortening
  • 1 package dry yeast
  • ½ cup whole wheat flour
  • 4½ cups unbleached all-purpose flour
  • 1 pound cheddar cheese, cut into ¼ to ½ inch cubes

Method

  1. In a 2 quart saucepan, combine 1 3/4 cups of the warm water, cornmeal, and salt. Stir until smooth. Then place over medium heat. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. Continue to stir until thickened, about 5 minutes after it comes to the boil. Remove from the heat.
  2. Stir in molasses and butter or shortening. Cool to lukewarm.
  3. In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in the remaining ½ cup of warm water. Add the cornmeal mixture and blend thoroughly.
  4. Stir in the whole wheat flour until well combined. Then, one cup at a time, stir in 3½ cups of the all-purpose flour to form a sticky dough.
  5. Spread the remaining 1 cup of flour onto a clean work surface. Place the dough on the flour and knead until the flour is completely incorporated and the dough is smooth and elastic.
  6. Return the dough to the washed, dried, and greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or a clean cloth, and let rise in a warm, draft-free place until the dough has doubled in volume.
  7. Turn the risen dough onto a work surface sprinkled with cornmeal, and work the cheese cubes into the dough by flattening the dough, sprinkling with about ¼ of the cubes, and folding over the dough, then repeating the process until all of the cheese cubes are incorporated.  Make sure that all of the cheese cubes are covered.
  8. Divide the dough into two equal pieces.
  9. Shape into two round loaves. Place in two 8 or 9 inch cake pans tightly lined with well-greased aluminum foil. Make sure the cheese cubes are well covered. Otherwise they will melt during baking and make cleanup difficult.  Cover the shaped loaves with a clean cloth and let rise until doubled.
  10. Bake in a preheated oven at 350°F for 1 hour. Test for doneness.  When the loaves are baked, remove from the oven and cool in the pans for 5 minutes before transferring to a cooling rack. Remove any bits of aluminum foil that cling to the loaves while they are still warm. Otherwise you will have a hard time removing the foil.
  11. Cool completely before slicing. although you will be tempted to try an early sample.

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December 22, 2013 · 5:04 am

RED VELVET CAKE AKA WALDORF ASTORIA CAKE

We were in Los Angeles to celebrate Thanksgiving as well as my oldest grand-daughter’s thirteenth birthday. Among her food requests was a red velvet cake for her birthday cake. Red velvet cake is a family favorite, making appearances at weddings, birthdays and other celebrations. It is also a Southern favorite for festive occasions. In our family it is also known as Waldorf Astoria cake, based upon an apocryphal story about one of my wife’s favorite aunts.

Supposedly a friend of this aunt was in New York City and happened to dine at the Waldorf Astoria Hotel where she was served this delicious cake. At the end of the meal, the lady asked the waiter if she might have the recipe for the cake. Bowing deeply, the waiter excused himself and then returned a short time later with a sheet of paper inscribed with the recipe. Thrilled, the woman took the recipe back to her home in Delaware and wowed all of her friends with her new, secret, delicious recipe. A short time later, she received a letter from the hotel. When she opened it she found a bill for some absurd amount to cover the cost of providing the recipe.

Enraged, the woman immediately made copies of the recipe and distributed it to all of her friends. Supposedly, my wife’s aunt was one of the luck recipients of the now-not-so-secret recipe. Not likely to be true, but it makes a good family legend.

To be made properly, the cake requires a large amount of red food coloring. In this day and time, some bakers are worried about potential hazards of food coloring. In the USA, commercial red food colorings are either or both Allura Red AC (US FD&C Red 40) and Erythrosine (US FD&C Red 3). There is some concern about Allura as it is an azo dye made from petroleum. It has been associated with hyperactivity  in children, although data are conflicting. Nevertheless, it is banned in Denmark, Belgium, France, and Switzerland. There are no restrictions on Erythrosine. Early studies suggested that in high doses it might cause cancer in rats, but more recent studies have not shown it to be a mutagen.

Still, some bakers would like to avoid the potential risk of these synthesized dyes. The most commonly used “organic” alternatives are beet juice and carmine (also called Natural Red 4), made from powdered female cochineal, scale insects from Mexico and South America that parasitize prickly pear cactuses and their relatives. A common use for carmine is to color lipstick. There is concern that these “more natural” coloring agents may add an undesirable flavor and even cause allergic reactions. Neglected in much of the discussion is that the extraction process for carmine. The substance producing the red color is extracted from ground insects with either ammonia or sodium carbonate. Then it is precipitated as an aluminum salt by adding alum. Stannous chloride, citric acid, borax, and/or gelatin may be added as stabilizers. This raises the obvious question as to what is “natural”?

One of my daughters wanted red velvet cake for her wedding. The vegetarian baker tried repeatedly to use beet juice, but it just wouldn’t work, so my daughter had to choose another cake flavor.

For all of these reasons, if you are worried about food additives, you may not be able to bake – or eat – this cake. That would be too bad, because it is delicious.

There is a final decision: what do you want to use for icing? The family recipe  uses a simple milk and flour base for the frosting while most Southern cooks insist that the only icing that will do is cream cheese icing. I’ve given you both recipes

RECIPES

Red Velvet Cake

Ingredients

  • ½ cup vegetable shortening
  • 2 eggs
  • 1½ cups sugar
  • 3/4 cup red food coloring
  • 2 tablespoons cocoa
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 2¼ cups flour
  • 1 cup buttermilk
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
  • 1 teaspoon baking soda
  • 1 teaspoon white vinegar

Method

  1. Using a stand mixer, cream the shortening and sugar until light and fluffy. Then add the eggs, one at a time, mixing well after each addition
  2. In a small bowl, mix the red food coloring and cocoa together to make a paste. Then add to the shortening, sugar, and egg mixture
  3. Sift together the salt and flour. Add in thirds to the batter, alternating with the buttermilk until all combined. Mix well but do not overbeat. Then stir in the vanilla extract.
  4. In a small bowl, mix together the soda and vinegar. They will foam up. Don’t be alarmed, but make sure you have a big enough bowl so that the foam doesn’t overflow. Stir the mixture into the batter until well combined
  5. Pour into two cake pans prepared with baking parchment, greased, and floured.
  6. Bake in the middle of a preheated oven at 350°F (177°C) for 30 minutes. Test for doneness with a toothpick. If the toothpick comes out clean, remove from the oven, cool in the pans for 5 minutes, and then turn out onto a baking rack to cool completely before frosting.

Waldorf Astoria Frosting

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • 1 cup milk
  • 1 cup butter
  • 1 cup sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

  • Combine the flour and milk in a heavy saucepan over medium heat. Stir constantly until thick and smooth. Set aside
  • With an electric mixer, cream together the butter and sugar until fluffy. Beat in the cooled milk mixture along with vanilla extract. Refrigerate until ready to ice the cake.

Cream Cheese Icing

Ingredients

  • 8 ounces cream cheese, softened
  • 1 box (16 ounces, 2 cups)  powdered sugar
  • ½ cup butter
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Method

  1. With an electric mixer, cream together the cream cheese, powdered sugar, butter, and vanilla extract. Beat until smooth and fluffy
  2. Ice the cake, Make certain the cake layers are completely cooled
Cutting an aluminum foil non-stick liner for the cake pan
Liner in place before greasing and flouring the pan
Really red cake batter
Filling the cake pans
Batter evenly divided between two pans
Ready for the oven
Out of the oven and ready to be turned out on the cooling rack
Happy Birthday!
Ready for the first bite.

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December 18, 2013 · 6:17 pm

BLT+ARO

One of our family traditions – probably a tradition in your family, too – is that for birthdays, the honoree gets to select the menu for the whole day. While we were in Los Angeles, my grand-daughter celebrated her thirteenth birthday. That was a momentous occasion not only for her, but also for her younger brother and her parents. Officially, she became a teenager, but these days that is only semantics. Fortunately, she is not driving yet, but the birthday was a stark reminder that the day for that is not far away.

Included in my grand-daughter’s food selections for the day was bacon, lettuce, and tomato sandwiches for breakfast. Of course, she got to sleep late on a weekend so it was closer to brunch than breakfast. Still, a little odd for my elderly clock, but I freely admit that they were delicious.

These were not your usual BLTs. Challah was the preferred bread. That seemed to be an odd companion to bacon, but nobody blinked.

No one in the family likes mayonnaise, so there was none. How can you have a BLT without mayonnaise?  They allowed me my own. The bacon was crisped in the oven, and the lettuce was the tender butter kind. The tomatoes were beautiful heirlooms, almost purple in color.

Everyone in the family is averse to onion as well, but they accommodated me with thick slices of red onion. They don’t like avocados, either, so they sliced a perfectly ripe avocado just for me.

We gathered around a buffet to assemble our personal creations. Mine was an elaborate BLT+ARO. Then we enjoyed a beautiful Southern California morning on the back patio.  Gifts  were opened, including a new iPhone – every California teenager needs one, I was told.

Crispy bacon
Butter lettuce
Heirloom tomatoes
Challah
My special BLT with avocado and red onion

All in all a great way to start a day of celebration.

BLT+ARO

Ingredients

  • 2 slices challah
  • mayonnaise
  • 3 strips bacon, fried crisp
  • 2 large slices, heirloom tomatoes
  • 2 leaves butter lettuce
  • ½ ripe avocado, sliced
  • 1 slice red onion
  • salt and pepper

Method

  1. Spread the slices of challah with mayonnaise
  2. Arrange the bacon, lettuce, tomatoes,  avocado, and red onion on one slice of bread. You may need extra mayonnaise between layers.
  3. Season with salt and pepper
  4. Top with the remaining slice of bread for a thick sandwich.
  5. Eat with plenty of napkins handy or over the kitchen sink.

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December 13, 2013 · 2:36 pm

CROQUE MONSIEUR AND CROQUE MADAME

I have been away from my blog for awhile. First, I spent some time with family at Thanksgiving. That was a lot fun. What has not been fun is frustration in uploading my images to Word Press. Over the last several days, I have worked closely with the folks at Word Press. They demonstrated remarkable knowledge and incredible patience. Together, we were unable to solve the problem. Then I changed to an old wireless router I had replaced a while back and everything – well, nearly everything – worked again. Frustration over.

Recently I wrote about baking pain de mie for the express purpose of making croque monsieur and croque madame sandwiches. That is exactly what I did with the bread. If you are a big fan of these sandwiches, you already know that there are many, many recipes  some of them not much more than an American grilled cheese and others very elaborate

There are, however, some absolute essentials: good bread (hence the pain de mie), the best sliced ham you can find, and Gruyère cheese. Of course for the croque madame, you will need a perfectly fried egg.

You can sauté the sandwiches  in a pan, broil them, toast them in a panini press, or use a traditional French sandwich mold that makes them look a bit like a giant madeleine.  Then you have to decide whether or not you want to go to the trouble of making a béchamel to moisten the contents and provide a topping  – with more Gruyère, of course – that can be browned under a broiler.

Inside patterns of the French sandwich toaster
Sandwich toaster in the closed position
Toasted croque monsieur
Croque monsieur with béchamel and broiled Gruyére

This, then, is only one version, but it was fun to make. I chose to use the French sandwich press that has been hanging for years on our kitchen wall as a sort of decoration. I also added some béchamel.

Frying eggs for the croque madames
Croque madame

RECIPES

Béchamel

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons butter
  • 2 tablespoons flour
  • 1 cup whipping cream
  • salt and white pepper

Method

  1. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter and then stir in the flour. Cook for a few minutes, stirring constantly, to make a light roux. Be careful not to brown.
  2. Stir in the cream and bring to a simmer. Stir until the sauce is thickened. Remove from heat.
  3. Adjust seasoning with slat and white pepper.  Set aside.

Croque monsieur

Ingredients

  • 4 slices pain de mie
  • 4 tablespoons béchamel
  • 4 thin slices ham
  • 2 slices Gruyère
  • 4 tablespoons butter, melted
  • béchamel
  • sliced Gruyère

Method

  1. Spread béchamel on one side of each slice of bread
  2. Arrange one slice of ham on each slice of bread. Then place a slice of Gruyère on two of the slices. Form into two sandwiches.
  3. With a pastry brush, paint both sides of both sandwiches with the melted butter and arrange the sandwiches in the sandwich mold.
  4. Close the sandwich mold and heat over an open flame on your range, turning once or twice until the sandwiches are well-toasted on both sides.
  5. Place the finished sandwiches on oven-proof plates, top with more béchamel and Gruyère, and place briefly under a broiler until the sauce is bubbling and the cheese is lightly browned. Serve immediately.

Croque madame

Ingredients

  • 1 croque monsieur sandwich
  • 1 fried egg

Method

  1. Top the sandwich with the fried egg.
  2. Serve immediately

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November 20, 2013 · 10:45 am

PAIN DE MIE

For some now forgotten reason I decided that I wanted to make croque monsieur and croque madame sandwiches. I realized that I didn’t have the right bread. American white sandwich bread is such a lump of dough that it wouldn’t hold up to the other ingredients. Artisanal breads also didn’t sound right. The only thing that would really work is French sandwich bread – pain de mie (“soft-in-the middle bread”). It also goes by the name of a Pullman loaf in the USA. I grabbed onto that idea, because my pain de mie pan, complete with lid, had been gathering dust. There really is no bread that will substitute for pain de mie: if has a fine crumb, the crust is soft and brown, it cuts so easily that you can turn it into thin Melba toasts,  it toasts beautifully, and it has a delicious flavor not remotely the same as American sandwich bread.

Besides all that, it is a kitchen gadgeteer’s dream because of the special bread pan with a lid. Of course, if you don’t have such an implement, you can fashion your own with a regular bread pan and some sort of lid – a tile or small metal pan that can serve as a lid. You will also need a weight. I used a piece of flagstone from our yard.

If you want to make the investment in the pan, you may have a hard time finding it at your local kitchen store. Fortunately the pans are readily available by mail order or on the internet. I bought mine from King Arthur Flour . They sell two sizes of the pain de mie pans complete with lids. The smaller size measures 9 x 4 x 4 inches and sells for $29.95. The larger pan measures 13 x 4 x 4 inches and sells for $34.95. This recipe is designed for the larger sized pan.

Notes:

The crumb of this bread is amazingly soft. At the same time, the crust is brown and, well, crusty. All of this is due to the ingredients::

You should use a flour with lower protein content. Don’t use bread flour. All-purpose flour will work, but Southern lower-protein flours like White Lily, Martha White or Gladiola, are even better.

Potato flour, made from ground dried potatoes and also called potato starch, adds moisture.

Powdered milk also adds moisture along with a little sweetness, but it may prevent the dough from rising as fully.

Butter should be unsalted, and it should be softened to room temperature so that it can be readily incorporated into the dough.

Be sure to pre-heat the weight so that baking of the bread is even.

Classic pain de mie pan complete with lid
Improvised pain de mie pan with aluminum-foil-wrapped oven-proof ceramic tile for a lid
Milk
Softened unsalted butter
Yeast
Potato flour for moistness
Incorporating flour into the wet ingredients
Dough kneaded and ready for the first rise
Kneaded dough
Risen dough
Dough deflated, patted out and ready for the bread pan
Dough in the well-greased pan, ready for the final rise
Lid opened just enough so that you can observe the bread rising
Ready for the oven
Bread in the oven complete with the weight
Remove the lid and finish the baking
The finished loaf cooling on a rack

 

RECIPE

Pain de Mie

Ingredients

  • 2/3 cup milk (110° F, 43°C)
  • 1 cup water (110° F, 43°C)
  • 6 tablespoons butter, softened at room temperature
  • 2¼ teaspoons salt
  • 1½ tablespoons sugar
  • ¼ cup dry milk
  • 2 tablespoons potato flour
  • 1 package instant dry yeast
  • 4¾ cups unbleached all-purpose flour

Method

  1. In a large bowl, combine the milk, water, butter, salt, and sugar. Then add the dry milk, potato flour, and yeast, stirring with a whisk until well mixed. Add 4 cups of the flour, one cup at a time, stirring until the flour is completely incorporated and the batter pulls away from the side of the bowl.
  2. Turn the dough onto a clean work surface dusted with the remaining ¾ cup of flour. Knead until the dough is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes. Then place the dough in a greased bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1½ to 2 hours.
  3. After it has risen, turn the dough onto a lightly oiled surface, deflating it gently. Let rest for 10 minutes. With the palm of your hand, flatten the dough into a rectangle that is the length of the pan and about twice as wide. Fold in half lengthwise, and pinch the seam closed tightly. Place the dough, seam side down, in the well-greased pan. Also, make sure the under-surface of the lid is well-greased.  The dough should come up to no more than 1/3 of the height of the pan. Place the lid on the pan, leaving it open several inches. Cover the opening with oiled plastic wrap and let rise for the second time until the dough comes to about ¼ inch below the lip of the pan, about 1½ hours.
  4. In the meantime, pre-heat the oven and the lid weight to 375°F
  5. Remove the plastic wrap, carefully close the lid, and let rest for another 10 minutes. Be very careful not to deflate the dough with the lid.
  6. Bake for 30 minutes in the middle of the oven at 375°F with the weight placed on the lid. After 30 minutes, remove the weight and lid, and bake for an additional 15 minutes. The loaf should register 190°F with an instant read thermometer. Remove from the oven, let rest for 10 minutes, and then turn onto a cooling rack. Cover with a clean cloth and let cool completely.

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November 13, 2013 · 11:23 am

QUINOA, MUSHROOM, CORN AND THREE-BEAN SALAD

In my last post, I mentioned that I had been charged with salad for a dinner party. The main course was going to be barbecued ribs. Potato salad seemed out as too heavy. Besides I wasn’t sure if someone else would bring that. It’s also no longer the season for pasta salad, so I thought about one of my old favorites, three-bean salad. Someone reminded me that it seemed sort of old-fashioned, but it still sounded good to me. Then I thought about quinoa. Light, refreshing, and a little bit unusual. I usually make it with gandules or pigeon peas, but they were nowhere to be found in the local markets, so I reconsidered the three-bean salad and decided to combine my two top options.

If you have never cooked with quinoa, you will find it to be an amazing ingredient. It is a seed that comes from plants originally grown in South America but now cultivated throughout the world. It is used like a grain, but it is not a grain so it does not have the gluten that so many people worry about these days. It is rich in protein and reportedly has all of the essential amino acids, so it certainly sounds healthy. You do need to be aware that it is also loaded with saponins. These are naturally occurring detergents that make the quinoa taste soapy if you don’t wash them off. Many pre-packaged quinoa products have had the saponin removed, but the detergent may still be present in bulk quinoa. In either case, it is probably a good idea to rinse the quinoa before you cook it. You can do this easily by placing the amount you plan to use in a fine-mesh strainer and rinse it under a spray of cold water until all of the foam subsides – maybe a minute or so. Drain it well and get ready to cook it.  Besides being tasty, cooked quinoa is also beautiful. The seeds burst open and reveal a delicate little curl. My wife, the botanist, is not sure but thinks the curl is probably the endosperm.

Except for cooking the quinoa and preparing pickled mushrooms (as I described in my last post) this is pretty much a chop and dump recipe, so it is very easy to prepare.

Raw quinoa
Cooked quinoa
Black, white, and red beans
Beans mixed with quinoa
Pickled mushrooms
Red onion
Green, red, orange, and yellow bell peppers
Diced bell peppers
Mixed diced bell peppers
Corn kernels
Cherry tomato halves
Finished salad

 

RECIPES

Quinoa, Mushroom, Corn and Three-Bean Salad

Ingredients

  • 1 cup washed quinoa
  • 2 cups water
  • salt and white pepper
  • 1 batch pickled mushrooms (see recipe in previous post)
  • ½ red onion, diced
  • ¼ cup each, green, red, yellow, and orange bell peppers, diced
  • ½ cup corn kernels, fresh or frozen, cooked and drained
  • 14.5 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed
  • 14.5 ounce can red or pinto beans, drained and rinsed
  • 14.5 ounce can cannellini beans, drained and rinsed
  • 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
  • vinaigrette (recipe below)

Method

  1. In a small saucepan, bring the water to a boil and stir in the quinoa. Return to the boil, cover, and reduce heat to the simmer. Simmer for 15 minutes. The seeds should have absorbed all of the water, burst open, and tender. If they are not cooked, remove the lid and boil gently until all of the water is absorbed. Season with salt and white pepper, drain, cool, and place in a large bowl.
  2. Stir in the mushrooms, red onion, diced bell peppers,  canned beans, corn, and cherry tomatoes.
  3. Dress the salad to taste with 4 to 6 tablespoons of vinaigrette. Chill until ready to serve.

Vinaigrette

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons cider vinegar
  • ¼ teaspoon dry mustard
  • ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
  • salt and pepper
  • 6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Method

  1. In a small bowl, whisk together the vinegar, mustard, garlic powder, and salt and pepper
  2. Very slowly, a few drops at a time, whisk in the olive oil to form an emulsion.
  3. If the sauce separates, whisk it together again before dressing the salad.

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November 8, 2013 · 8:31 pm

PICKLED MUSHROOMS

For a recent dinner we shared with friends, I was tasked with the salad. I decided to make a quinoa and three-bean salad. One of the ingredients was these pickled mushrooms. I was concerned that a single post with all of the food and preparation would be too much, so here is the mushroom recipe. The quinoa and three-bean salad will follow shortly.

This is a very old recipe that is based on one I got from the wife of an office colleague nearly forty years ago. It is – for sure – straight out of the 70s. On the other hand some things that are old never lose their luster if they are good to begin with. I think this recipe qualifies.

Originally, the mushrooms served as a bite to go along with cocktails. You can use them that way if you like, but you can also put them in salads or as a garnish for vegetables and side dishes.

One of the most important tricks of the dish is to buy the smallest mushrooms you can find. Even though they shrink when you boil them, you don’t want a giant mushroom hanging off the end of a cocktail pick. If you can’t find small mushrooms, halve or quarter the ones you do find.

Pickled mushrooms

Pickled mushrooms

RECIPE

Pickled Mushrooms

Ingredients

  • 2 quarts water
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 1 pound button mushrooms, trimmed and cleaned
  • 1 cup wine vinegar
  • ½ cup extra virgin olive oil
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 1½ teaspoons sugar
  • 1 tablespoon pickling spices
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 2 teaspoons minced chives
  • 2 teaspoons minced parsley
  • 1 bay leaf

Method

  1. In a large pot, bring the water to the boil, add the lemon juice and then add the mushrooms. Return to the boil and boil for 3 minutes. Drain, cool, and set aside.
  2. Meanwhile, prepare the pickling mixture by combining all of the remaining ingredients in a large bowl.
  3. Stir  the mushrooms into the pickling mixture. Marinate in the refrigerator overnight, stirring from time to time.
  4. Drain. Rinse off the pickling spices with a brief spray of water.
  5. Serve as an appetizer or use in another recipe.

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