Editor’s note: Linda Avery takes a look at Molly Stevens’ new roasting tome and tests a recipe for rack of lamb with a spiced honey glaze. Read on to see what she thought.

All about Roasting: A New Approach to a Classic Art

by Molly Stevens
photos by Quentin Bacon
wine pairings by Tim Gaiser

Facts: W.W. Norton, 573 pages, $35.00 (or Amazon at $22.63)
Photos: Over 100
Recipes: Over 150
Give to: Carnivores and cooks who want to know the “why”

Roasting is to winter what grilling is to summer.

Most cooks think roasting is the easiest of cooking methods, and sometimes they are right. Who hasn’t slathered olive oil on veggies, tossed with salt and pepper and popped them into a 400-something oven? Easy-peasy and delicious, right?

But Molly Stevens explains, explores and educates us about this technique just as she did about braising in her 2004 IACP and James Beard award winning book All About Braising.  Her newest tome, All About Roasting, is an another amazing book.

It opens with a primer on the role of fat, the effects of basting, when to use a roasting rack and which type to choose, plus various roasting methods i.e., grill or spit. She discusses wet roasting, pan roasting, and the wonder of pre-salting (a la Judy Rodgers’ Zuni Cafe Roast Chicken, where Rodgers suggests seasoning the chicken 1 to 3 days ahead).

Beyond that, the book is organized by category from beef and lamb (which, by the way, includes a nod to goat), to vegetables and fruits. Each chapter begins with a time-saving summary of the recipes in that chapter followed by informational pages on “how to buy” and “how to carve” as well as thoughts on grass-fed and dry-aged meats.

The following recipe is representative of how the educator Molly presents her material. She anticipates your questions and delivers on every count.

This dish would be a stunning centerpiece for a holiday get-together. Complete the total roast meal with a salad of roasted red and golden beets, asparagus bundled in bacon, and roasted pears or apples over ice cream for dessert.

Did I say this book is amazing? Put it on your wish list and be certain you have a sturdy holiday stocking – the book weighs 4.1 pounds.

And if you have an extra minute or two, perhaps while the lamb is roasting, check out Photographer Quentin Bacon’s website for stunning photographs and Master Sommelier Tim Gaiser’s website for more wine pairing information.

Roasted Rack of Lamb with Spiced Honey Glaze

photo © by Quentin Bacon

Serves: 4 to 6
Method: High heat
Time: 25 to 30 minutes
Wine: Concentrated red with dried fruit character, such as an Amarone.

This recipe takes a cue from the Moroccan kitchen and combines honey with a mix of warming spices balanced with fresh mint and a jolt of lemon juice. The resulting glaze provides a beguiling, mildly sweet, somewhat floral background for the rich meat. Also, the glaze caramelizes quickly in the hot oven, creating a beautiful brick-red finish.

This glaze works best with a mild floral honey, such as orange blossom, acacia, or fire-weed. I like to serve the lamb with herb-flecked couscous (mint and parsley are especially good) or rice pilaf.

Ingredients
2 racks of lamb (1 to 1-1/2 pounds and 8 ribs each), trimmed
1/4 cup honey, preferably a mild-tasting variety such as orange blossom, acacia, or fireweed
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon paprika, preferably sweet
1 teaspoon cumin seed, toasted in a dry skillet and finely ground
1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
Pinch of cayenne
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons chopped fresh mint

Method
1. Heat the oven. Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat to 425˚F (400˚F convection). Line a small, low-sided roasting pan or heavy-duty rimmed baking sheet with heavy-duty foil (this makes it easier to clean the glaze from the pan).

2. Trim the lamb. If necessary, trim the lamb so that only a thin layer of fat remains. Arrange the racks meat side up on the foil-lined pan. (You can cover the rib ends with a strip of aluminum foil to protect them from charring if you like; I rarely bother.)

3. Make the glaze. In a small bowl, thoroughly combine the honey, butter, paprika, cumin, ginger, and cayenne. Generously season the rack all over with salt and pepper. Brush the surface with about half the glaze. (A heatproof silicone pastry brush works best here, but any pastry brush will do.) Transfer the remaining glaze to a very small saucepan and set aside.

4. Roast and baste. Roast, brushing the lamb after 10 minutes and then again every 5 minutes with the glaze that has dripped onto the roasting pan, until an instant-read thermometer inserted close to but not touching the bone reads 125 to 130˚F for rare to medium-rare or 135 to 140˚F for medium-rare to medium, 25 to 30 minutes.

5. Simmer the glaze. Meanwhile, add the lemon juice and garlic to the reserved glaze in the small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium-high heat and simmer gently until fragrant and slightly syrupy, 2 to 4 minutes. Keep a close eye on the glaze, as it can thicken and scorch very quickly; if it becomes gummy, add a teaspoon of water. Season with salt and pepper. Keep warm over very low heat.

6. Rest, carve, and serve. Let the lamb rest for 5 to 10 minutes on a cutting board (preferably with a trough). Carve the rack into single or double chops, cutting down between the bones. Add any juices from the carving board to the glaze, along with the fresh mint. Serve the chops with a little glaze drizzled over them.

Posted in Book & Product Reviews, Lamb, Recipes | No Comments »

Steam rose seductively from the pushcart’s top like the smoke from an illicit cigarette. We just had to stop because the tamal lady and her tiny, wrapped bundles of “corn love” might not be there on the way home.

Of course, stopping meant that we would be late picking up my father from work, which had consequences. He was the editor of our hometown newspaper and punctuality, like grammar, was akin to godliness; not so much in the religiousness sense, but in the goodness sense. If you tell someone you are going to be there at noon, by goodness, you’d better be there at noon.

The tamales were a fleeting luxury and one my mother couldn’t pass up. Once spotted, an eager gringo public snapped up the tamales, and the tamal lady might not show up again for months. Dad eventually stopped complaining about the brawny pork smell that permeated our car on these rare occasions, but he never developed mom’s love of homemade tamales.

I suspect Mom wouldn’t have been so enthralled with the tamales either if she’d attempted to make some herself. There is a reason homemade tamales are reserved for special occasions like Christmas, or the birth or baptism of a child, or any number of familial celebrations that bring loved ones together.

A Labor of Love

Making tamales is a time-consuming, tedious endeavor, which is why many families, even in Mexico, says Azucena Tovar, owner of Los Sombreros restaurant in Scottsdale, Arizona, opt for buying tamales from other families instead of making their own.

Cornhusks must be soaked for hours. The masa must be laboriously whipped to perfection with just the right amount of fat and liquid. Tamal fillings must be prepared in advance, some taking a day or two to prepare alone.

Once all the components are assembled, the real work begins. Masa is spread just so on the soaked corn husks. A dab of filling is added, and the masa is gathered up and gently squeezed to encase the filling. The husks are folded and then tied with thin strips of more cornhusks. Finally, the tamales are steamed until they are just done: the masa firm, but not too firm. It’s a process best tackled by multiple hands.

Tovar remembers her own family buying tamales from a neighbor, instead of making them at home. “My mom was very busy, she was an entrepreneur,” says the equally busy and entrepreneurial Tovar, “and she had 11 children, so there was no time to make tamales. But we always had tamales at Christmas, of course. We just bought them from neighbors instead of making them ourselves.”

Tovar’s mother owned a market, selling among other things fresh poultry, artisan cheeses, and milk straight from a nearby farm. Tovar grew up in the Mexican colonial city of San Miguel de Allende with a household cook – drinking fresh squeezed orange juice and nibbling on homemade tortillas – but apparently the cook drew the line at the arduous task of making tamales. With neighbors nearby willing to sell them to other neighbors, it seemed the rationale way to go.

When Tovar opened Los Sombreros with partner Jeffrey Smedstad in 1994, it didn’t take them long figure out that their busy neighborhood residents could also use some handmade tamales. So in 1995, the couple began offering The Twelve Tamales of Christmas during the holiday season. When Tovar bought out Smedstad’s interest in Los Sombreros in 2006, she was determined to keep the twelve tamales tradition alive.

The first year Los Sombreros sold a couple hundred packages, and the next year, as word spread beyond the neighborhood, residents from all over the valley were calling to order the tamales, all beautifully boxed up and decorated with Christmas ornaments. As the restaurant gained national attention from the top food magazines, people from all over the country were calling to order the Christmas tamales.

Tovar says that’s when things got a little crazy, the year they tried incorporating mail order into the mix to satisfy the growing demand. She’s comfortable producing about 2,000 packages during the season these days, and selling them strictly in the valley. Still, 2,000 packages equates to 24,000 tamales. The key to producing that many handcrafted tamales is organization – that, and nimble fingers.

Because Los Sombreros is only open for dinner, the staff takes advantage of early November and December mornings, transforming the tiny kitchen at the corner of Scottsdale Road and Virginia into a virtual tamal factory. Shortly after 6 a.m. each morning, soaked cornhusks are spread out, covering every inch of kitchen counter space. The next eight hours are a Zen-like whirl of masa-spreading, filling topping, rolling, tying, steaming, cooling and packaging.  At 2 p.m., the operation is halted; the kitchen is scrubbed clean and restocked for the evening service.

Tamale Time

For the 16th year in a row, Los Sombreros is taking orders for the 12 Tamales of Christmas between November 16 and December 23. Sometimes the line of customers waiting to pick up their bundles of corn nirvana, stretches a city block.

Avoid the long lines by ordering early (the restaurant needs 48 hours notice and pre-payment anyway). Even though the tamales are fresh, Tovar says you can freeze them for a couple of weeks.

The flavors of the 12 tamales are partially inspired from her hometown of San Miguel de Allende, where six flavors – not a dozen – are more common. Other flavors are gleaned from Tovar’s travels throughout Mexico, like Oaxaca where chocolate tamales are common, and the Yucatan, the inspiration for spicy pork seasoned with a touch of habanero.

There are vegetarian tamales, meat lover tamales, cheese lover tamales and dessert tamales. Traditional tamales, such as beef and pork, are part of the dozen, but these “traditional” tamales are far superior to those street corner tamales my Mom coveted all those years ago.

In essence, there are tamales for every taste among the delectable dozen.

Best of all, they’re already gift wrapped, so to speak.

The Twelve Tamales of Christmas

Fresh Green Corn
Chorizo & Black Bean
Rajas & Cheese
Pineapple & Raisin
Red Chile Beef
Spicy Pork
Chipotle Pork
Beef & Cheese
Smoked Chicken & Chipotle
Tomatillo & Chicken
Dark Chocolate
Canela

photos courtesy of Los Sombreros

Los Sombreros
2534 North Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale
480-994-1799
www.lossombreros.com

Call or visit the website to order.
November 16 through December 23
$29.95 for 12 Tamales of Christmas

Tags: Christmas, Los Sombreros, Scottsdale dining, tamales, Twelve Tamales of Christmas
Posted in Restaurant Journal | 2 Comments »

Me, oh my, pie.

10 celebrity chefs, 10 pies … including this brownie bacon pie.

And I got to judge them all at the 2nd Annual Chow Bella Pie Social.

It’s a tough job. No, really. But I wouldn’t trade it for a minute. We all know I love pie.

Joining me under the judging tent was returning judge and Chow Bella contributor Carol Blonder, restaurateur Matt Poole (along with his cream pie-loving son), Andrea White from Saffron Kitchen, and Barb Harris from Feeding Frenzy.

We all took our jobs very seriously, tasting each of the pies and then tasting them again. And again.

The results will be announced on Monday on Chow Bella, but here is a preview of some of the pies. We tasted blind, so we didn’t know who made which pie.

Who doesn’t love gooey caramel and pecans, especially one dusted with a whisper of glitter?

A simple, but elegant apple crumb. Not too sweet, and the apples retained a touch of crispness. Lovely.

Roasted cashews, caramel, chocolate mousse and cream — a candy bar in a pie.

The crust cutouts were a hint of what was in this apple, mango and pepita pie: jalapeños. Lots going on in this busy pie.

This apple crumb pie also held a surprise — a serious kick of green chile. Absolutely delicious. My favorite, by a crumb.

Now this is what I call a balanced plate.

Thank you Amy Silverman and Shannon Armour from Phoenix New Times Chow Bella for putting on another fabulous Pie Social. And congrats to all the chefs and bakers — you’re all winners.

Now, I think I’ll go have another slice of pie.

Tags: Chow Bella, Phoenix New Times, pie, pie contest, Pie Social
Posted in News & Nibbles | 1 Comment »

Editor’s note: Linda Avery reviews the recently released cookbook by super chef Ferran Adrià, a collection of “family meals” prepared for his staff at the now closed El Bulli restaurant in Spain.

The Family Meal: Home Cooking with Ferran Adrià
by Ferran Adrià
photos by Francese Guillamet

Facts: Phaidon Press Inc. 384 pages, $29.95 (or Amazon at $17.15)
Photos: Grab a calculator and do the math (see 4th paragraph below: Open the Book)
Recipes: 93 plus basic recipes
Give to: Gourmet home cooks, professional chefs, cookbook collectors

The name Ferran Adrià immediately summons thoughts of molecular gastronomy: his famous spherical olives which appear as jellied green blobs jiggling on a spoon but burst to fill the mouth with the flavor of intense olive juice. Or the frozen Gorgonzola balloon, a hollow white sphere, about eight inches across and the color of fresh ricotta, topped with a grate of nutmeg meant to be broken (with your fist?) and eaten in shards.

photo © by Francese Guillamet

Ferran Adrià is the father and inspiration of a creative culinary era of deconstructing the dish and reassembling in a way you’ve never seen. His three Michelin star restaurant El Bulli closed last July after 24 years. He will reopen as the El Bulli Foundation in two years, most likely transforming the space as he transforms food.

When I first saw The Family Meal: Home Cooking with Ferran Adrià, I wondered if I need buy a chemistry set or cylinder of liquid nitrogen.

No, this truly is home cooking, the maestro demonstrating in detail how a dish should be done. You see, “family meals” are the repasts of his restaurant family; the menus of dinners prepared and eaten daily by his staff of 75.

He insisted on good food, easy-to-find ingredients that are mostly fresh and the aggregate couldn’t be expensive. (I think I read that the cost could not exceed €6/person but I can’t confirm).

Open the Book. There are 31 meals within. Each meal has a starter, a main, and a dessert. Recipe ingredients are listed for 2, 6, 20 or 75 and carefully calculated (not mathematically but via testing at each level) for each group. So using a bit of math, we know that 31 meals x 3 recipes equals 93 recipes.

photo © by Francese Guillamet

Each recipe has photos showing every step — about 15 photos per recipe. That’s almost 1,400 photos not counting the photo stack of appetizer, main and dessert preceding the meal, photos of utensils, types of fish and more.

It’s a blog but on paper: each step of every recipe is a photo with instructions superimposed. One almost doesn’t need to read English.

Aside: is this some sort of Bizarro world? Maybe the first caveman recipes were chiseled into a rock wall. Then the Egyptians invented paper and recipes were portable and accompanied by illustrations and later photos. Fast-forward to the internet: food blogs have photos of every step of the recipe. Is this where the world turns around? Now photos of every step put back on paper? Should we be sharpening our chisels?

Here is the entrée from Meal 24 which consists of Garbanzo Beans with Spinach & Egg, Glazed Teriyaki Pork Belly, and Sweet Potato with Honey & Cream.

Glazed Teriyaki Pork Belly

Teriyaki is a sweet Japanese sauce used for marinating before roasting or broiling. You can make the teriyaki sauce yourself or use a good-quality, store-bought sauce.

photo © by Francese Guillamet

Serves 6
Ingredients
For the teriyaki sauce
(Makes 4 1/3 cups)
1/3 cup lemongrass, chopped
2 tablespoons fresh ginger, chopped
1 3/4 cups chicken stock
3 cups sugar
1 3/4 cups soy sauce
1 3/4 honey

For the pork belly
2 1/2 pounds pork belly
10 1/2 cups water
2 teaspoons salt
12 black peppercorns
3 garlic cloves
1 onion, roughly chopped
2 1/2 cups teriyaki sauce

Method
For the teriyaki sauce
1. Using a rolling pin or other heavy utensil, crush the lemongrass and ginger.

2. Put the chicken stock, sugar, and soy sauce into a large saucepan.

3. Add the honey.

4. Add the crushed lemongrass and ginger. Put the pan over medium heat, bring to a boil, then boil for 15 minutes.

5. Strain and reserve.

Make the pork belly
1. Put the pork into a large pan with the water. The pork should be well covered, so add more (water) if necessary. Add the salt and peppercorns.

2. Coarsely chop the onions and add to the pan with the garlic.

3. Bring the water to a simmer.

4. Cook the pork covered, for 1 1/2 hours, until cooked through, adding more water if necessary to cover. Remove and place on a cutting board.

5. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

6. Cut the pork into strips about 3/4 inch thick.

7. Place the pork in a roasting pan in a single layer, then cover with the teriyaki sauce.

8. Roast the pork for 30 minutes, regularly basting with teriyaki sauce to glaze.

9. Serve the pork with spoonfuls of the teriyaki sauce.

Tags: cookbook review, El Bulli, Glazed Teriyaki Pork Belly, Linda Avery, pork, recipe, The Family Meal: Home Cooking with Ferran Adria
Posted in Book & Product Reviews, Pork, Recipes | 4 Comments »

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