Have you read the book Cooking for Mr. Latte?  It is by Amanda Hesser who used to be a food critic for the New York Times.  She has also written a cookbook and is working on an intriguing project called Food 52.  Cooking for Mr. Latte is the story of how she met her now husband (the author Tad Friend) and recipes for the food she cooked along the way.  Sound like a familiar premise?  I know, these food-memoirs-with-recipes seem to be everywhere these days.  I just talked about another one in my last post.  But Hesser’s book is from 2003 – before blogs made a big splash and everyone got a book deal.  It’s my favorite of the food memoirs I have read.

Because she was a food critic, her descriptions of food are expert.  You want to be sitting along side her eating.  And her recipes are terrific.  So much so that I keep this little book on my heavy rotation cookbook shelf.  I love the things I have made from this book.  And this is my favorite of the bunch.

Hesser is the first person who told me about Meyer lemons.  The way she talked about them made me go on a mission to seek them out.  These days they are easy to find in Seattle, but just a few years ago it took a lot more investigative work.  They have become one of those “shoulds” in the cooking world.  You know, you “should” eat seasonally, you “should” always use fresh herbs, you “should” make your own salad dressing, and you “should” always use Meyer lemons if you can find them.  Well, I agree with the first three in that list.  And now that I have used Meyer lemons many many times, I have to say that I’m not sure I agree with that last one.  I love lemons.  Meyer lemons are more orange-y tasting and I don’t love oranges.  So, I’m going against the grain and saying no, in general you “should” use whatever lemons you like.

Except in this recipe.  For me, the Meyer lemons work amazingly well here and regular lemons are too mild.  This is a very simple recipe.  Simple in that “simple is sometimes better” way.  I love making this for dinner when recent meals have been complicated or overly spiced or really rich.  It is such a clean dish but not too spare.  Not to be a food snob, but fresh pasta is practically a must here.  You will taste the pasta and you want that pasta to taste good.  (One of these days, I will make my own and when I do, I’m making this one to go with this dish.)

I should have garnished this dish differently for the photo.  I know it looks like white on white.  But trust me.  It is so delicious in that wonderful simple way.  And it takes next to no time to make.  I can’t wait for spring so I can add some blanched asparagus to this bowl.

One Year Ago:  Tome Yum Soup with Tofu and Mushrooms

Paparadelle with Lemon, Herbs, and Ricotta Salata
Adapted from Cooking for Mr. Latte
Serves 4

I’ve used all different combinations of herbs in this dish – use what you have.  I would keep the amount roughly the same and definitely use the mint.

2 cups vegetable broth
1 clove garlic, peeled and lightly smashed with a  knife
Grated zest of 1 lemon (use a Meyer if possible)
Juice of 1 lemon (ditto)
Sea salt
1 pound paparadelle, broken (or cut) into 2-inch pieces
3 tbsp. chopped mint
2 tbsp. chopped marjoram
1 tbsp. chopped fennel fronds, or tarragon, or chervil
Olive oil
6 ounces ricotta salata, crumbled or shaved
Coarsely ground black pepper

1.  Fill a large pot with water and add enough salt so that you can taste it.  Bring to a boil.  Pour the vegetable broth into a small saucepan, drop in the garlic and bring to a boil.  Reduce by half.  Remove the garlic and shut off the heat.  Stir in the lemon zest and juice.  Season and taste.  It should be full flavored because this will be the sauce for the pasta.  Keep warm.

2.  When the water comes to a boil, add the pasta and cook until soft on the edges but still firm under the tooth.  After a few minutes, ladle out about 1 cup of the cooking liquid and reserve.  Drain the pasta, shake it lightly, then return it to the pot.  Put it over low heat and pour in the broth.  Sprinkle in the mint and other herbs and a little olive oil.  Add some of the reserved cooking liquid and more lemon juice if needed.  Season to taste with salt (keeping in mind that the cheese will add some salt).

3.  Spoon into bowls so that the pasta is lying in a bit of broth.  Scatter the ricotta salata over it, drizzle with a bit more olive oil (DT: I skipped the oil), and grind pepper over the top.

How do you feel about lasagne?  (And do you spell it lasagna?)  I ask because my husband said something surprising the other night when I told him I was making it for a dinner party.  First he made a face and then he said, “It’s kind of like making spaghetti.”  Coming from him, that is basically an insult.  For reasons that aren’t totally clear to me, Randy hates spaghetti.  Give him some kind of delicious sauce on spaghetti and he won’t like it.  Give him the same sauce on fettucine and he will love it.  I don’t understand but I accept and don’t make spaghetti.

When pressed, he explained that he is used to me making really interesting and unusual things for dinner parties and that lasagne seemed boring and maybe even easy.  I’m sure there are easy ways to make lasagne but for me, it has always been a fairly long and involved process.  Making sauce, making various fillings, roasting vegetables.  Lasagne is not a throw together meal in my world.

What’s more, we were having some friends over for dinner who I don’t know all that well.  Actually, I know the wives well, but I have only met the husbands a handful of times.  I didn’t want to make something really out there (aggressively vegetarian, as I like to call it) and have people not eat it.  I also wanted to make something satisfying so that, if they are used to eating a lot of meat, they didn’t feel like they needed to stop for a hamburger on the way home.  Everyone likes lasagne, right?

In my many cookbooks, I found a number of recipes that looked inticing.  But I decided against a béchamel sauce and that ruled out many of them.  I wanted something filling but I didn’t want a gut bomb and besides, Randy doesn’t do well with cream sauces.  I settled on this one from Deborah Madison’s Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone and I was very happy with how it turned out.  Hearty and flavorful but not too heavy or cheesy.  Eggplant and I are not the best of friends and I thought Madison’s idea to bake it and then chop it was genius.  Trying to saw through an eggplant round in a lasagne is difficult – pieces of eggplant are easy.  Finally, the greens in the ricotta filling are very welcome.  She calls for chard, I used red kale because I had some.  Their texture is welcome, the color makes it more interesting, and the “green” taste keeps it from being too rich.

Here is a silly little story.  I used to make a very good (but very time consuming) lasagne that featured two different vegetable fillings.  Whenever I made it, I would stress about the sauce.  The amount that the recipe yielded was on the skimpy side and I would fret about it all coming out right.  Not once did it occur to me to increase the amount of sauce I made.  I just stuck to the rules and stressed.  Now that I am older and wiser, I do things my way with lasagne.  I like mine saucy so I make extra sauce.  If the worst thing in the world is having too much homemade tomato sauce, then that is a pretty good world.  You can use it another night on another kind of pasta (not spaghetti!) or you can freeze it with beautiful results.  I give my recipe below, you will use ½ – ¾ of it for the recipe.  And if you would like to just use jarred sauce, I won’t tell anyone.

One Year Ago: Pea Salad with Radishes and Feta Cheese

Lasagne with Eggplant and Chard
Adapted from Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone
Serves 6-8

1½ pounds fresh pasta sheets, or 1 box dried
Tomato sauce (about 2 cups, recipe follows)
1½ pounds eggplant, sliced crosswise ¼-inch thick
Olive oil
½ onion, finely diced
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 bunch green chard, leaves removed from the stems
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 dry white wine
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 egg
1 cup grated Pecorino Romano
8 ounces fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced

Prepare the sauce.  If you are using dried pasta, parboil it for a few minutes then drain it and lay out on a sheet pan so it doesn’t stick together.

Preheat the oven to 400°F.  Brush both sides of the eggplant lightly with oil.  Place the slices on a sheet pan and bake, turning once, until browned on both sides, about 30 minutes in all.  Chop coarsely and set aside.  (DT: This step can be done one day ahead.  Cool completely, then cover and refrigerate.)

Heat a large skillet over medium heat.  Add just enough olive oil to coat the bottom, then add the onion and garlic.  Stir frequently for 3 minutes.  Add the chard, sprinkle with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of pepper, and cook until wilted, about 5 minutes.  Add the wine, cover and cook until the chard is tender and the pan is dry, about 10 minutes.  Turn the mixture out onto a cutting board and finely chop.  In a bowl, mix together the ricotta and the egg, then stir in the chard mixture.  Season with salt and pepper.  (DT: This step can be done one day ahead.  Cover and refrigerate.)

Oil a 9- x 13-inch baking dish.  Coat the bottom lightly with sauce and then cover with a layer of pasta.  Scatter a quarter of the Pecorino over the top and add a quarter of the eggplant, ricotta mixture, and mozzarella.  Follow with another layer of pasta and repeat for three more layers.  End with a layer of pasta and top with sauce.  (Sprinkle with more Pecorino if you like.)  Cover with foil.  (DT: The whole lasagne can be made one day ahead.  Keep covered and refrigerate.  It will need another 10 minutes or so of baking time.)

Preheat the oven to 400°F.  Bake 20 to 30 minutes or until heated through.  Remove the foil and bake for another 5 to 10 minutes.  Let stand for 10 minutes before serving.

Dana’s Tomato Sauce
Makes a lot

Of course you can halve this recipe.

1 onion, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp. dried basil
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 cup good red wine
2- 28 ounce cans whole tomatoes
Salt and freshly ground pepper
Pinch of sugar (optional)

Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat.  Add just enough olive oil to coat the bottom, then add the onion along with a pinch of salt, and sauté until softened, stirring frequently, about 5 minutes.  Add the garlic, stir for another 2 minutes, then add the herbs.  Stir well to combine, then pour in the wine.

Cook, uncovered, until the wine is almost evaporated, then carefully add the two cans of tomatoes.  Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer.  Cook until the sauce has thickened, periodically crushing the tomatoes against the side of the pot with a spoon, about 30 minutes.  Taste, adding salt and pepper as necessary and a pinch of sugar if the taste is metallic.  (In my experience, the better the tomatoes, the less of a need for sugar.)  If you prefer a smoother sauce, you can purée it with an immersion blender, or in a stand blender or food processor.  Let the sauce cool before you use a stand machine.

Along with just about everyone else in the food blogging world, I was sad to hear about the demise of Gourmet.  I had been getting the magazine for 16 years when it went away.  Truth be told, I actually always preferred the recipes in Bon Appétit and Food and Wine, but I still looked forward to receiving my issue each month.  In my four notebooks where I have years of cut-out recipes, there are countless ones with the Gourmet font.  Including this one.

This recipe is on the second page of my “pasta” section which means I cut it out way back in 1993 or so.  Grunge.  Living in a crappy one-bedroom apartment in a crappy building in a great neighborhood.  Just learning to cook for myself.  Working as a singing-dancing waitress on a dinner cruise ship.  Oh yes, I did.  Yes I did.  I did “The Electric Slide” with strangers and got paid for it.

These many years later, I still make this dish and it is one of Randy’s favorites.  If you are a vegetarian, you probably often get the “Do you eat a lot of pasta?” question.  (Or my other favorite, “Do you eat a lot of salad?”)  The truth is that I don’t eat a lot of pasta.  It is often my only choice in a restaurant so I eat it out, but I don’t make a lot of it at home.  Not for any good reason, I love pasta, I just find there are a lot of other interesting things to eat in the vegetarian world.

Here are some really good things I can say about this one.  It’s fast.  The sauce is done in the time it takes to cook the noodles.  It is dead easy – no sautéing – just putting all the ingredients together in a pot and cooking them down a bit.  It is made with pantry staples, you always have Kalamata olives, tomato paste, and garlic on hand, right?  And it’s really tasty.  Kind of like a poor man’s puttanesca (and a vegetarian one at that.)  Lastly, this is a very low-fat and low-calorie dish.  The only fat comes from the olives and that is good fat, the heart-healthy kind.  OK, yes, there is a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese on top, but that is optional and besides, it’s just a sprinkle.  I have changed the recipe quite a bit in the years I have been making it.  It was originally called Bruce’s Pasta Sauce but I’m changing it to Bruce and Dana’s Pasta Sauce.

One Year Ago:  Curried Red Lentil Stew with Vegetables

Bruce and Dana’s Pasta Sauce
Loosely adapted from Gourmet
3-4 servings

This is the kind of sauce that really hugs the noodles so it is best with something short and ridgey, like radiattore.  In this dish, I like it pretty dry, so I usually make one pound of pasta with this much sauce.  This last time, I made 3/4 of a pound and you can see it is a little saucier.  Do what you like best.  Also, if you don’t sprinkle with Parmesan, this dish is vegan.

1/2 cup dry sherry
1/2 cup water
1 6-oz. can tomato paste
1 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and coarsely chopped
3 garlic cloves, minced or pressed
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes (less if you don’t like heat)
1 tsp. dried oregano
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. sugar
2 tbsp. dry red wine
1 tsp. balsamic vinegar

Put all ingredients in a saucepan and bring to a simmer.  Cook, uncovered, until thickened, about 20 minutes.  Boil pasta (3/4 to 1 pound) until al dente.  Scoop the pasta directly into the sauce pan and stir well to combine.  Serve with a sprinkle of Parmesan cheese.

A couple of months ago, I got a call from a guy speaking in a hushed voice.  He said he had locked himself in the bathroom and wanted to arrange something with me.  His name was Gregg and he is the husband of one of my close friends.

Now, you may be thinking something naughty but what Gregg wanted to arrange with me was a surprise lunch for his lovely bride.  Kelly’s birthday is December 31st – a New Year’s Eve baby – and this year she turns 40.  He wanted to do something special for her and first he asked me if I was free to come to the lunch.  Once I said yes, he sheepishly asked me if I would cater it.  I laughed out loud and said of course.

I have known Kelly since 3rd grade but we really became friends our freshman year in high school.  We have taken road trips together, thrown parties, done lots of laughing, and even lived together for a year.  She has two boys as well and we have enjoyed getting our kids together, although not as often as either of us would like.  Kelly is a quality person, a class act as my dad likes to say.  She deserved to find happiness with a wonderful man and that she did.  Not only did Gregg invite 15 people to their house for lunch, but he is sending her out for some spa treatment so that I can set everything up without being detected.  Can we all stand up and give Gregg a hand?

So, what’s for lunch?  Well, the birthday cake will be this one.  I am making two galettes – the Butternut Squash one and the Roasted Tomato one.  I’m making a Mediterranean chick pea salad.  I plan to have veggies and Buttermilk dip on hand for people to snack on.  And I made this pasta salad.

One of my least favorite words for food is gloppy.  In my book, anything with mayonnaise is gloppy and for some reason most pasta salad, even if it doesn’t star mayo, is gloppy.  Over-dressed, over-cooked pasta, under-seasoned.  If you agree with me, you might want to try this recipe.  It is far from gloppy.  In fact, it is light and bright and very tasty.  Golden beets, almonds, fennel, and radicchio mix together with Orecchiette in a lemony dressing.  It’s one of those wonderful recipes that looks and tastes great.  Happy birthday, Kell!

My little family and I are going to be heading out of town right after lunch for 2 nights away with wonderful friends.  If I could, I would personally wish each and every one of you amazing people who read this blog a Happy New Year, but my super powers only extend so far.  I hope your 2009 was filled with life, love, and good food and I wish you more of the same in 2010!

One Year Ago:  Vegetable Couscous Paella and Manchego Skewers

Orecchiette Salad with Roasted Beets, Fennel, & Toasted Almonds
Adapted from Macrina Bakery and Café Cookbook
Serves 4-6

Do yourself a favor and serve this (and every) pasta salad at room temperature.  It needs some warmth for the flavors to bloom.  Also, don’t be afraid of salt here.  Add enough to make the flavors pop.

2 medium golden beets, washed
4 tbsp. olive oil
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
¾ cup whole almonds
2 cups dry orecchiette pasta
1 cup thinly sliced radicchio
½ cup thinly sliced fennel bulb
¼ cup chopped fennel fronds
½ cup sliced scallions
¼ cup chopped fresh Italian parsley
1/3 cup Lemon Vinaigrette (recipe follows)

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Place washed beets in the center of a large piece of aluminum foil.  Drizzle with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and season with a bit of salt and pepper.  Gather up the edges of the foil and seal the beets inside a pouch.  Bake on center rack of oven for about 1 hour, or until beets are tender when poked with a fork.  Let cool, then peel the beets and chop to a medium dice.  Set aside.  Leave oven on.

Spread almonds on a rimmed baking sheet and toast for 15 minutes, or until golden brown.  (This can be done while the beets are roasting.)  Let almonds cool, then coarsely chop and set aside.

Fill a large saucepan with water.  Add a pinch of kosher salt and bring to a boil.  Drop in pasta and simmer for 10-12 minutes, or until tender.  Drain in a colander, shaking off excess water.  Toss with 2 tablespoons of olive oil to keep pasta from sticking.

Add the diced beets, toasted almonds, radicchio, fennel bulb and fronds, scallions, and parsley.  Drizzle in Lemon Vinaigrette and toss all ingredients together.  Season to taste with kosher salt and pepper.  Cover and store in the refrigerator for up to 2 days.

Lemon Vinaigrette
Makes approximately 1¼ cups

This dressing makes more than you need for the pasta salad, but it’s also delicious used as a green salad dressing.  Go ahead and make the whole amount and use it over the course of a week.

1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
2 tsp. red wine vinegar
1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tsp. honey
1 tbsp. freshly grated lemon zest
1 garlic clove, finely chopped or pressed
1 tsp. kosher salt
½ tsp. freshly ground pepper
¾ cup olive oil

Combine mustard, vinegar, lemon juice, honey, lemon zest, garlic, salt and pepper in a medium bowl.  Mix well with a whisk.  Add olive oil in a slow stream, whisking as you pour in the oil.  Continue whisking until dressing has emulsified, then cover and store in the refrigerator.

I am the oldest child in my family and I have a lot of the characteristics attributed to being first in the birth order.  One of those traits is being a rule follower, something that I was as a child and I continue to be as an adult.  I stand in line when I am supposed to, I stick to the speed limit, I am always on time.  Over most of my cooking life, I have stuck to the rules i.e. recipes.  I was afraid to branch out and would only make substitutions if desperate – I followed those recipes like a good rule-following oldest child.

I continue to bake in this way because, unless you really know what you are doing, it’s not a good idea to start messing with the science of baking.  But I have gotten less timid about tweaking savory recipes.  Sometimes they work better than others but I think I am a good enough cook, and have enough experience in the kitchen, to trust myself and my style.

I found the idea for this pasta recently on a lovely blog called Food & Style.  Viviane’s photo of a tangle of olive flecked pasta topped with goat cheese had me putting it on my “make immediately” list.  I am a sucker for olives, especially oil cured black wrinkly ones, and I also deeply appreciate a meal that can be made from things I always have on hand.  But as this dish began to come together, I started to improvise.  I threw in some cherry tomatoes I had in my fruit basket, I added more capers, I made it spicy by sprinkling in a healthy dose of red pepper flakes, I added the goat cheese (and a decent amount of pasta cooking water) directly to the cooked pasta so a kind of cream sauce emerged.  In other words, I took a good idea and ran with it.

On first bite Randy said, “Oh wow, this is yum.”  That is very high praise from my husband for whom food is still fuel, no matter how hard I try to sway him otherwise.  To my taste buds, this is a once a week dish.  Very savory from both the salty olives and capers, creamy and tangy at the same time from the goat cheese, the hit of acid and sweetness from the tomatoes making it more than just a one-note salty dish.  Using fresh pasta (which I often have in my freezer) just makes it sublime but you can, of course, use dried.

A note on how I prepared this and other pastas.  I never use a colander anymore to drain my noodles.  It’s just an extra dish to wash and I am on a lifelong quest to reduce the number of dishes in my sink at any given time.  I place the pasta pot and the skillet in which I have my sauce right next to each other.  When the pasta is done, I take either tongs (if I am using a long noodle like spaghetti), or a slotted spoon (for short noodles like penne) and transfer the pasta directly to the sauce.  That way, some of the starchy water comes along for the ride and if you need more of that goodness (as you will in this recipe), the whole pot is there for the taking instead of being poured down the drain.

Fettucine with Oil Cured Olives, Tomatoes, and Goat Cheese
With Thanks to Food & Style
Serves 3

If you are not using fresh pasta here, I would use 3/4 pound of dried for this amount of sauce.  If you are not a fan of spice, cut the red pepper flakes to 1/4 teaspoon, or don’t add them at all. Both the olives and capers are quite salty here, so definitely taste before you season.

1/4 cup olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp. dried oregano
1/2 tsp. red pepper flakes
3/4 cup oil cured black olives, pitted and chopped
2 tbsp. capers, rinsed and drained
1/2 pint cherry tomatoes, halved if large
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, torn, plus more for garnish
1 lb. fresh fettucine
4 oz. soft goat cheese, such as Montrachet
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat.

Meanwhile, in a large skillet (large enough to hold all the pasta once it is cooked), heat the olive oil over medium heat.  Add the garlic and stir until starting to brown, about 2 minutes.  Add the oregano and red pepper flakes, stir, then add the olives, capers and tomatoes.  Reduce heat to medium-low and cook until the tomatoes just start to fall apart.  Add the basil, stir, and turn the heat as low as it will go.

Once the pasta is al dente, using tongs, add it directly to the skillet with the sauce.  Break the goat cheese into small lumps and start to toss it into the pasta coating the noodles with sauce and cheese.  Keep adding pasta water in 1/4 cups-full until the pasta has a cream sauce-like consistency.  Taste for salt and add freshly ground black pepper.

I don’t know when I first tasted arugula.  Maybe it was in the early 90’s when fancy lettuces starting making appearances in restaurant salads.  Whenever it was, it was a revelation for me.  How could something so green taste so peppery?  How could lettuce have so much flavor?

In the years since, I have learned to use arugula as much as possible in as many ways as possible.  I love it in salads of course, but I also love it in pasta and on top of pizza.  These days it seems that arugula comes in two varieties – baby leaves in a bag or large leaves in a bunch.  I find the large leaves almost too peppery for a salad (unless it was paired with something sweet like beets) and the small leaves are too delicate for cooked dishes.  If anyone out there knows of a medium arugula leaf, I’d sure like to hear about it.

I made this pasta dish the other night with some arugula that came in our CSA box.  As I was making it, I wondered whether I would post about it.  Is this the kind of thing that you really need a recipe for?  Doesn’t it seem kind of obvious?  I visit so many sites where the food is incredible and original and I wasn’t sure my humble pasta could keep up.  But then I realized that sometimes we food  bloggers can kind of live in a bubble.  Just a few years ago, I would have needed a written recipe to make something this good.  I couldn’t have come up with it on my own.  The years I spent being a personal chef have made me a better, more adventurous, and creative cook.  And having this CSA box come each week has been a big challenge.  So here you go.

Pasta with Tomato Sauce and Arugula
Dana Treat Original
Serves 3-4

If you like your pasta saucy, use the 12 ounces of dried pasta suggested here.  If you like it a little drier (or you have big eaters in your family), use a full pound.

Olive oil
2 large garlic cloves, minced
28 oz. can crushed Italian tomatoes
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced
Half a bunch of large arugula leaves, stems discarded and torn into roughly 2-inch pieces
2 small handfuls grated mozzarella cheese
12 oz. short pasta, such as rigatoni
Parmesan cheese, for garnish

Put a large skillet on the stove over medium heat.  Add just enough olive oil to coat the bottom and then add the garlic.  Stir constantly until starting to brown, then add the tomatoes (they will splatter a bit).  Sprinkle with a pinch of salt and a few turns of pepper.  Turn the heat down to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 20 minutes.  Add the basil about halfway through the cooking time.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.  Add the pasta and cook until al dente.  Using a large slotted spoon, transfer the cooked pasta to the skillet with the sauce.  Add the arugula and mozzarella cheese then toss carefully toss everything together.  You will want the noodles coated with sauce, the arugula to wilt, and the cheese to melt slightly.  Serve in shallow bowls with a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese.

Chard. It’s not the sexiest of vegetables. But if are part of a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture), chances are you have gotten it in your produce box. Or if you are a vegetarian looking to boost your iron (dark leafy greens are a known source of iron), chances are you have bought it. Now what to do with it?

I’ve used chard a number of ways and I can’t say that I love it. I actually like kale better, as long as it is cooked way down. But in this dish the chard actually added to the overall flavor instead of just being a guest invited for nutritional purposes only. So often you will see recipes that call for the leaves only – what to do with those colorful stems? This recipe uses both the leaves and the stems brilliantly.

Here is what this dinner is not:

1) A “stick to your ribs” meal
2) Something eat on those days when you can’t seem to feel full, no matter what you eat
3) A meal to serve to non-adventurous eaters

Here is what this dinner is:

1) Healthy and very tasty
2) Something to make when you may have overindulged over the course of a day or two
3) Food that you can eat to your heart’s content without feeling like you need to loosen your belt

Because I am an oldest child and a rule follower, I tend to follow recipes the first time I try them. After that I take liberties. I made this once before for my clients and found it a little…lacking. This time I added just a bit of small pasta to give it more body and a sprinkling of Parmesan cheese just before serving. A little more substantial and a lot more yum.

Chickpeas and Chard with Cilantro and Cumin
Adapted from Vegetarian Suppers from Deborah Madison’s Kitchen
Serves 3-4

If you don’t want to add the pasta, you might consider serving this over rice. You can use any type of chard here, but the red will give you that gorgeous color.

Olive oil
1 large onion, finely diced
Pinch or 2 of saffron threads
3 ounces small pasta such as orzo or diatilini
2 garlic cloves
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup cilantro leaves
1/4 cup parsley leaves
1/2 tsp. ground cumin, or more to taste
2 tsp. tomato paste
14 chard leaves with stems
2 15-ounce cans chickpeas, drained
Parmesan cheese, for serving

1. Heat a wide skillet over medium heat. Add just enough olive oil to coat the bottom, then add the onion and the saffron. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 12-15 minutes. Meanwhile, pound garlic with 1/2 tsp. salt, the cilantro, parsley, and cumin to make a rough paste. (DT: I used a mortar and pestle for this.) When the onions are golden and soft, add the paste to the pan along with the tomato paste and work it into the onions.

2. Bring a small pot of salted water to a boil. Add pasta and cook until very al dente. (Pasta will cook a little more when added to the mix.) Drain and reserve.

3. Slice the chard leaves off their stems. Put them in a wide pot with 2 cups of water and cook, covered, until wilted and tender, about 5 minutes. Set the leaves aside ina colander, reserving cooking water.

4. Trim the chard stems so that you’re left with planklike pieces of even width. Cut the planks into strips, then into fine dice and drop them into the reserved chard water. Simmer until tender, about 10 minutes, then turn off the heat. Scoop out the stems, set aside. Reserve the cooking water.

5. Add the chickpeas to the onion along with the chard cooking water. Add the cooked pasta. Coarsely chop the chard leaves and add it as well. Simmer for 10 minutes, then add the stems. Taste for salt and season with pepper. Serve dusted with Parmesan cheese.

Let’s say you’re having a party.  Let’s say between 40 and 50 hungry people are coming.  Let’s say you decided that you were going to make all finger food because you a) wanted to challenge yourself a bit, b) you like finger food, and c) you just can’t bear to put out Costco plastic forks for people to use only to be thrown away en masse at the end of the evening.  (We can put paper plates and napkins in our yard waste containers here in Seattle.)  Let’s say you needed at least one dish that was easy, looked pretty, and you knew people would gobble up.  Enter tortellini skewers.

This is not rocket science.  You boil up storebought tortellini and skewer it with a stick.  The secret here is two fold.  That little leaf of basil you see tucked between each noodle adds color and a burst of flavor (this was my touch – you’re welcome, Martha.)  And the sauce, which is not pictured, is one of those that taste far better than it’s components would suggest (although they are good components.)  Yes, the tortellini needs to be cooked and skewered just before serving but the sauce can be made the day before, the boiling takes no brain power, and you can let your mom do the assembling.  Thanks Mom!

One Year Ago: Chilled Roasted Tomato Red Pepper Soup with Mint

Skewered Tortellini
Adapted from Martha Stewart’s Hors d’Oeurvres Handbook
Makes 3 1/2 dozen

Parmesan – Lemon Dip
1 cup crème fraiche
2 ounce Parmesan cheese, grated on the small wholes if a box cheese grater
Grated zest of one lemon and juice of 1 large lemon
5 cloves roasted garlic
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 pounds tortellini
Basil leaves (opal and green basil look especially nice)
Olive oil

1.  In a small mixing bowl, combine the crème fraiche, Parmesan cheese, lemon zest, lemon juice, garlic cloves, and salt and pepper to taste.  Set the dip aside until ready to use.  (DT: Can be one day ahead.  Cover and refrigerate.  Bring to room temperature before using.)

2.  Bring a large pot of salted water to boil and cook the tortellini until just tender.  Drain the pasta and sprinkle with olive oil to prevent sticking.

3.  Put 2 tortellini on small, 6-inch skewers with one leaf small leaf or one large folded leaf basil.  Serve with dipping sauce.

Here is something I must tell you…I love vegetables.  I know, big confession from a vegetarian, right?  But there is no rule that says you must love vegetables if you are a vegetarian.  After all, cheese is vegetarian – as is bread, pasta, chocolate, french fries…you get the picture.  But I am a card carrying member of the vegetarians-who-love-vegetables club.  The only one I don’t like is okra.

Once in a while, I want to make something really heavy on the veg.  Summer time is when it usually hits me.  I’m in the mood for something flavorful, but don’t want anything too heavy.  It just doesn’t feel right to eat a big dish of something rich when the sun is shining, the temperatures are soaring, and it’s light until 10.  On of those days, vegetables are where it’s at.

This recipe comes from one of my all-time favorite cookbooks, Vegetarian Suppers from Deborah Madison’s Kitchen.  It is a slim and modest volume, but there are incredible treasure inside.  I’ve used this book so much that some of the pages have torn away from the spine.  I made this dish a few years ago, made some notes in my book about changes I made, and was glad to have those notes last night.  At first glance, this may seem like an overly fussy recipe.  Lots of chopping and cooking things separately.  I actually streamlined a few things from the original and the recipe below reflects that.  Please trust Ms. Madison and trust me – any fuss is worth it.  What you will get is a perfectly cooked and perfectly seasoned bowl of seasonal and healthy goodness.

Oh…and that gorgeous Olive Bread off to the side in the photo?  You can find the recipe here.
One Year Ago:  Those amazing New York Times chocolate chip cookies

Asparagus Ragout
Adapted (with many changes) from Vegetarian Suppers from Deborah Madison’s Kitchen
Serves 4

The Beurre Blanc
1/4 cup white wine vinegar or Champagne vinegar
1/4 cup dry white wine or Champagne
2 tbsp. finely diced shallot
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
4 tbsp. cold butter, cut into small pieces

The Ragout
1 bunch rainbow chard, with stems
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Olive oil
1 small onion, finely diced
4 medium carrots, peeled and thinly sliced on a diagonal
1/2 cup dry white wine
1 1/2 pound asparagus, tough ends snapped off, cut into 2 inch lengths
1/2 pound snap or snow peas, trimmed
3/4 cup freshly shelled English peas
1 pound cremini mushrooms, wiped clean, and cut into quarters
8 ounces cheese tortellini, cooked according to package directions, and drained
2 tbsp. minced chervil, or a mixture of parsley and tarragon
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for serving

1.  To make the beurre blanc, put the vinegar, wine, shallot, and a pinch of salt in a small saucepan and simmer until only 2 tablespoons remain.  Turn off the heat and whisk in the butter piece by piece until it is all incorporated.  The sauce should be thick.  Season with a little pepper and set aside.  (This can be made several hours ahead and covered, at room temperature.)

2.  To make the ragout, slice the leaves off the chard stems, wash well, then cut into ribbons about an inch wide.  Trim the ends of the stems, then thinly slice.  Heat a large skillet over medium heat.  Add about 2 tbsp. olive oil, then the stems with a pinch of salt.  Sauté, stirring occasionally, for 4 minutes.  Lay the leaves on top (it may seem crowded at first) and continue stirring until the leaves wilt, about 4 more minutes.  Scrape out the pan into a large bowl and set aside.

3.  Return the same pan to the heat.  Add another few tablespoons of olive oil, then add the mushrooms.  Sauté until the mushrooms have browned nicely, then released and partially reabsorbed their juices, about 8 minutes.  Season to taste with salt and pepper and add to the bowl with the chard.

4.  Return the same pan to the heat.  Add another few tablespoons of olive oil.  Add the onion and carrots.  Cook over medium-high heat for a few minutes just to brown things a bit, then reduce the heat to medium.  Add the wine, let most of it sizzle away, then add 1 cup water and the asparagus.  Season with a pinch of salt, then lower the heat even more, cover, and cook until the asparagus and carrots are nearly tender, about 6 minutes.  Add the snap and English peas, cover, cook for another 3 minutes.  Add the tortellini, mushrooms, and chard.  Stir to heat through.

5.  Carefully stir in the beurre blanc and the herbs.  Serve the ragout in shallow bowls, garnished with a dusting of Parmesan cheese.

Lots of cookbooks these days seem to start with a chapter on pantry staples.  These are things that you want to always have on hand so you can – voilà! – cook up an amazing meal without a trip to the store.  I agree with this theory and I have a pantry and I have a lot of pantry staples.  I am not, however, turning out incredible meals with what I have on hand.  Produce figures in strongly in most of my meals and if you buy a lot of produce you know, it doesn’t last long.

That said, I think this was a great meal and it could easily become a go-to recipe for me.  There are two only perishable things in this pasta.  One is parsley which I always seem to have in my refrigerator and the other is feta cheese.  Feta has an incredibly long refrigerator life span so next time you see it on sale, buy a few.  Do yourself a favor and buy good feta – one that comes in a block and not in a tub.  The pre-crumbled stuff tastes like sawdust to me.

One Year Ago:  Niçoise Tartines with Peperonata

Greek Pasta Casserole
Adapted from Vegetarian Classics
Serves 4-6

1/4 cup olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 pound small pasta shells
1 (15 oz.) can ready-cut diced tomatoes with their juice
1 (7 oz.) jar roasted red peppers, well drained and diced
1/4 cup pitted and roughly chopped black olives (DT: I used Kalamata)
2 tbsp. red wine
1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
1 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
1 cup (about 5 oz – but use more if you like!) crumbled feta cheese

1.  Bring a large quantity of water to boil in a stockpot.

2.  Meanwhile, heat the oil in a small saucepan over medium-low heat.  Add the garlic and cook 30 seconds; do not let it get at all colored.  Remove the pan from the heat and set aside.

3.  Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until very al dente, soft but not quite cooked through.  It will continue to cook in the oven.  Drain thoroughly in a colander and place back in the pot.  Pour on the garlic oil and toss well.  Let cool to room temperature, tossing occasionally to prevent sticking.

4.  Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

5.  Mix in all the remaining ingredients.  Place in a shallow 3-quart casserole (such as a 13×9 inch pan).  Cover with foil.  (The pasta can be assembled and refrigerated up to 24 hours in advance.  Bring to room temperature before baking.)

6.  Bake, covered, for 25 minutes or until hot and bubbly.  Remove the foil and bake another 5 minutes to lightly brown the top of the casserole.