Some cities outright own a particular dish.

Boston? Clam Chowder. Austin? BBQ — beef brisket to be specific. Atlanta? Fried chicken. Santa Fe? Green chile stew.

In Charleston, it’s shrimp & grits.

You can order shrimp & grits in any city these days — Southern food is a hot trend — but in Charleston, it’s not a trend. It is breakfast, lunch and dinner, and it is woven into the very fabric of this historical city. There is hoity-toity shrimp & grits, down-home shrimp & grits, and everything in between.

Here is a look at six Charleston restaurants and their version of the dish that defines this gracious Southern city.

1. Husk: Bon Appetit magazine’s Best New Restaurant, Husk, serves their seasonal shrimp & grits (above) in a bowl with a roasted tomato broth ladled over Anson Mills grits, with artisan sausage, lardons, and plump, jumbo shrimp. (here is the recipe in NYT.)

2. Jestine’s Kitchen: Rachael Ray, Anthony Bourdain and Roadfood’s Jane & Michael Stern all had a hand in putting Jestine’s Kitchen on the national radar for home-cooking Southern grub like meatloaf, fried chicken and of course, shrimp & grits (above). Jestine’s version features soupy grits with a meaty tasting brown gravy, onions and roasted red peppers. Very basic and delicious, although the shrimp were a tad overcooked.

3. Southend Brewery’s shrimp and grits (above) is more akin to cheese soup with tomatoes, Tasso ham and oh yes, shrimp and grits. The tomato wedges didn’t add much — it would have been better had they been diced, but the shrimp was perfectly cooked. Pair it with the hoppy Castle Pinckney Pale Ale.

4. Marina Variety Store: (left) There is always a line at this kitschy, seafaring restaurant overlooking the marina, but it moves quickly. Ask to sit in the front room for the marina view. MVS serves up a whopping plate of plain white grits topped with a modest amount of sauteed shrimp, cooked just right.

The fried green tomatoes pictured on the plate are optional. Adding a dash of hot sauce is not.

5. Poogan’s Porch: (right) uses yellow, coarse ground grits, thick and sturdy, along with a generous helping of onions, scallions, ham, sausage and tail-on shrimp, sauced in a blue crab gravy. I loved the rough and firm texture of the grits. I did not love having to take the tails off the shrimp.

6. Hominy Grill: I saved the best for last (below). Nothing fancy about this shrimp and grits plate. But everything in this dish has a purpose. The grits were firm but creamy. The shrimp were spiced and perfectly cooked. Bits of salty, smoky bacon and meaty mushrooms provide the supporting cast. Green scallions and a spritz of lemon, and this dish is everything I could ask from this humble, Lowcountry dish. If you love this dish as much as I did, pick up a copy of the recipe booklet. It includes the recipe.

Details:
All six restaurants are located in the historic district of Charleston.
Husk
76 Queen Street
843-577-2500

Jestine’s Kitchen
251 Meeting Street
843-722-7224

Southend Brewery
161 East Bay Street
843-853-4677

Marina Variety Store
17 Lockwood Drive
843-723-6325

Poogan’s Porch (next door to Husk)
72 Queen Street
843-577-2337

Hominy Grill
207 Rutledge Avenue
843-937-0930

Tags: Charleston dining, grits, Hominy Grill, Husk, Jestine's, Marina Variety Store, Poogan's Porch, recipe, shrimp, shrimp and grits, shrimp and grits in Charleston, Southend Brewery
Posted in Travel Eats | 4 Comments »

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 | 5 Comments »

Editor’s note: Linda Avery returns with a look at Stephanie Izard’s new cookbook, The Girl in the Kitchen. If you are in Scottsdale on October 16, take a look at the Share Our Strength fundraiser with Stephanie at The Accidental Yard. It’s a chance to get up close and personal with Stephanie, support a great cause and take home a signed copy of the cookbook.

Girl in the Kitchen: How a Top Chef Cooks, Thinks, Shops, Eats, and Drinks
by Stephanie Izard with Heather Shouse
photos by Dan Goldberg

Facts: Chronicle Books, 256 pages, $29.95 (or Amazon at $19.77)
Photos: 45
Recipes: 100
Give to: food-loving home cooks; Top Chef fans; cookbook addicts

The big Chicago buzz last summer (2010) was “Have you been to the goat?” … “How’s the food at the goat?” … “Girl & the Goat? That sounds lewd!” … “Is there actually goat on the menu?” And, in short order, a reservation at Stephanie Izard’s Girl & the Goat restaurant was the hot ticket.

(BTW, the answers to those questions are yes, I’ve been a couple times; the food is creative in composition with complex flavors and delicious; not lewd but rather clever as Stephanie shares her last name, Izard, with a goat antelope which lives in the Pyrenees; and, yes, there are various choices of goat on the menu: confit, sausage on flatbread, empanadas and more).

Stephanie Izard packs 36 hours into a day. While working at “the goat” (an affectionate reference),  she completed her cookbook, The Girl in the Kitchen, and is in the development process of her second restaurant. Plus she spends a good deal of time doing demos for good causes. How does this self-proclaimed party hearty gal find time to throw back a few?

About the cookbook: The recipes in The Girl in the Kitchen are unique and yet Izard states the book is intended to be a guide where sauces and sides can be mixed and matched as you prefer. It only takes an understanding of the “flavor profile of ingredients and their effect on the overall dish” which she successfully explains in each of her headnotes. At heart she is an educator – she wants you to be able to “use visual clues rather than watch the clock” by knowing your kitchen, your equipment and tools, so she tells you what to watch for as you’re cooking.

Appearing every few pages is the feature Ingredient Spotlight (think ramps, miso paste, tomatillos, Wondra flour, et al) explaining again flavor profile, plus how she uses the ingredient and what to look for when purchasing.

There were a lot of mental “ohs” and “ahs” as I read through the recipe list: Sweet-and-Sour Eggplant with Tomatillos, Grilled Lamb-Stuffed Calamari with Crispy Shallots, Pear-Pistachio-Parsnip Soup, Apple-Pork Ragu with Pappardelle, and how about a side of Roasted Radishes with Blue Cheese, Peanuts, and Cilantro? Even the recipe names convey the dimension and balance of tart, sweet, spicy, salty, crispy, creamy, etc.

JUST A MINUTE! I went through the recipes another time. Where is the infamous Wood Oven Roasted Pig Face? Hmmm, I guess that one is reserved for the restaurant but even so, there is no shortage of inventive recipes in this book. If you want to know Stephanie a bit better, watch the Girl in the Kitchen Book trailer on youtube.

Pan-Roasted New York Steaks with Sautéed Cucumbers and Salted Goat Milk Caramel

photo © by Dan Goldberg

Serves 4

While working on some “goat” ideas for my new restaurant, Girl & the Goat, I played around with goat meat, as well as goat’s milk. My old pastry chef from Scylla, Jessie Oloroso, makes an awesome ice cream with goat’s milk caramel, known as cajeta in Mexico. She added cashews for crunch and a bit of salt, convincing me that salted caramel is the only way to go; otherwise, the caramel is just too sweet. Inspired by Jessie’s ice cream (which she now sells at her shop Black Dog Gelato in Chicago), I decided to try a salted goat’s milk caramel as a sauce for a savory dish. The interesting thing with cajeta is that it’s not a classic caramel sauce, as the sugar is not actually what caramelizes. The liquid never reaches a high enough temperature for the added sugar to caramelize; instead, the fats of the milk caramelize with the help of the added baking soda, which neutralizes the natural acids and also helps the milk solids to turn a rich brown color.

So now that you know everything you’d ever want to know about caramelizing goat’s milk, let me explain why I added fish sauce to it. It might seem strange, but that’s the salty element, with just enough earthy funk to pair perfectly with the equally earthy “browned” flavor of the caramel. Sounds weird, but trust me, you’ll love it.

And finally, because the beef and the sauce are so rich, we need to cut through it a bit with some lightly sautéed cucumbers. I realize it also sounds strange to cook cucumbers, but doing so releases some of their natural juices and allows them to quickly soak up the salt, taking on a great flavor and texture while keeping things perfectly refreshing.

Plan of Attack
Up to 3 days ahead: Make the goat milk caramel. Refrigerate.
The night before: Marinate the steaks.
Cook time: Prepare the steaks. While the meat is resting, sauté the cucumbers and reheat the caramel over low heat in a saucepan.

Ingredients
For the Salted Goat Milk Caramel
1 quart goat milk
1/2 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1 tablespoon fish sauce
2 teaspoons sambal paste
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper

For the Pan-Roasted New York Strip Steak
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon grainy mustard
1 1/2 teaspoons sambal
4 New York strip steaks (about 12 ounces each)
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon canola oil
1 tablespoon butter

For the Sautéed Cucumbers
2 tablespoons olive oil
One 12-inch English cucumber, sliced into 1/8-inch rounds
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon thinly sliced fresh basil

Method
Make the caramel
1. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, combine the milk and sugar and slowly bring them to a boil over medium-high heat. Dissolve the baking soda in 1/2 teaspoon warm water. Whisk it into the milk mixture, reduce the heat to medium, and let it simmer. Stir often with a whisk until the mixture reduces and begins to thicken and turn a light caramel color, about 1 hour and 10 minutes. As the caramel begins to darken, reduce the heat and continue to stir constantly with a whisk, making sure the caramel doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pot and burn. Continue to cook and whisk constantly, until the caramel darkens and is thick enough to coat the back of a spoon, about 20 minutes more. It will have reduced to about 1/2 cup when finished. Strain the caramel through a fine-mesh sieve into a small pot. Add the fish sauce, sambal, vinegar, soy sauce, and mustard and season with salt and pepper. Cover and keep warm.

Make the steak
1. Whisk together the olive oil, garlic, mustard, and sambal for the marinade, then rub it into the steaks and refrigerate, preferably overnight but for at least 3 hours. Take the steaks out of the fridge about 30 minutes before getting started so they cook more evenly.

2. Salt and pepper both sides of the steaks. Heat a large skillet or sauté pan over high heat until it’s almost smoking. Add the canola oil, then the steaks. (Don’t overcrowd the pan; cook in two batches if you must.) Once the steaks brown on one side, flip them over, then add the butter to the pan. Tilt the pan and spoon the melted butter over the steaks to baste. Once the edges of the steak are nice and brown, make a small slit to the center of the steak to check for doneness.

3. You’re aiming for medium-rare, so the very center should still be red because the meat will continue to “carry-over cook” as it rests. Remove the steaks from the pan and let them rest on a plate for 5 to 10 minutes to allow the steak to retain its juices and to even out the doneness.

Make the Sautéed Cucumbers
1. While the meat rests, heat a large sauté pan over medium heat. Add the oil, then the cucumbers, and cook until the cucumbers just begins to soften, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat and season with salt and pepper. When ready to serve, toss with the basil.

2. To serve, spoon a couple tablespoons of the caramel onto each plate, top with a steak, and place the sautéed cucumbers alongside.

Tags: beef, Girl & The Goat, Linda Avery, recipe, Stephanie Izard, The Girl in The Kitchen
Posted in Beef, Book & Product Reviews, Recipes | No Comments »

Editor’s note: Linda Avery returns with a review of Tessa Kiros’s new Greek cookbook. See what she thought of the book and the get the recipe for papoutsakia, a dish meaning “small shoes” — eggplants stuffed with a savory beef filling.

Food from Many Greek Kitchens
by Tessa Kiros
photos by Manos Chatzikonstantis

Facts: Andrews McMeel Publishing, LLC, 336 pages, $35.00 (or Amazon at $23.10)
Photos: About 150
Recipes: 121
Give to: Greekophiles, cooks who love Greek flavors

When I saw Food from Many Greek Kitchens by Tessa Kiros, it quickly brought to mind Kiros’ 2009 book Falling Cloudberries: A World of Family Recipes. From my first glance at that book, I was totally enamored with its beauty and I fantasized about the experiences of this author. What was it like to be born in London to a Finnish mother and a Greek-Cypriot father? Moving to South Africa, Australia and Mexico before marrying and settling in Tuscany? Ugh. I felt so plain, so inadequate, so my-youth-was-spent-in-a-closet. But my spirits were buoyed when I could share in her experience through tasting her Ricotta Tart with a Chocolate Crust recipe. All was forgiven.

Where “Cloudberries” captured recipes from her heritage and world travels, Food from Many Greek Kitchens focuses on the land of her father. When I pick up a cookbook, I go to contents and get a lay of the land before moving through the book, but not with this one. Photos abound!  There are as many mesmerizing slice of life/travelogue photographs as recipe photos. Even the food shots have wonderfully distracting backgrounds or objects accompanying them.

The structure is interesting. Recipes are divided into traditional foods, fasting foods, Easter foods, shared foods, and so on. Her headnotes are warmly personal whether educational, instructive, or speaking of the friend from whom she received the recipe. There is a mouthwatering photo of a pan of baklava cut ready for serving with a clove in the center of each baklava diamond. Kiros’ headnote begins “I love this Chanel bag-looking thing.” OMG – now I’ll never look at a Chanel bag without craving dessert (as opposed to the money it would take to buy one).

Some recipes require time and others are as simple as watermelon with feta. Moussaka is a favorite of mine but making a recipe for 12 doesn’t work for me. This individual serving recipe was very appealing (I even cut it in half).  So go to the farmers market and grab eggplant, red onion and Italian parsley. Kefalotiri is a rather salty sheep’s milk (hard) cheese. If you can’t find it, Pecorino is a reasonable substitute.

Papoutsakia (Small Shoes)

Serves 8

These are basically the same ingredients as moussaka, but prepared differently and served in individual “shoe servings.”

photo © by Manos Chatzikonstantis

Ingredients

4 long eggplants (about 9 ounces each), all of the same dimensions
About 1/2 cup olive oil

1 large red onion, chopped
14 ounces ground beef
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
1/2 cup red wine
2 14-ounce cans crushed tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped Italian parsley
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the béchamel
3 tablespoons butter
7 tablespoons all-purpose flour
10 1/2 ounces milk, heated
A large pinch of nutmeg
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons shredded Kefalotiri cheese

Method
1. Cut the eggplants in half lengthwise, sprinkle the cut sides with salt and leave them upside-down in a colander for half an hour or so to drain away any bitter juices.

2. Drizzle some oil into a large non-stick skillet over medium heat and when hot, add half the eggplant halves. Fry until deep golden and soft on both sides and when you prick the thickest part with a fork there is no resistance.

3. Remove to a platter and fry the remaining eggplant halves. When cooled, scoop out the flesh using a sharp spoon, leaving a 1/4- to 3/8- inch border. Chop the flesh and put aside. Wipe out the skillet. Add 3 tablespoons of olive oil to it and sauté the onion until golden. Add the beef and fry until browned. Add the garlic, cook for a moment more until it smells good, then add the wine and let it simmer for a minute or two. Add 1 can of tomatoes and the parsley, and season with salt and pepper.

4. Cook, stirring a couple of times, for about 20 minutes, or until thickened. Add the chopped eggplant and simmer for another 10 or 12 minutes, or until most of the liquid has gone.

5. Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Make the béchamel
1. Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed saucepan over low heat and stir in the flour. Whisk the milk in gradually to ensure no lumps. Add the nutmeg and season with salt and a little pepper. Whisk until thick.

Finish the dish
1. Empty the remaining can of tomatoes over the bottom of a 10 1/2 x 13 1/2-inch roasting dish and add a little salt. Line up the eggplant shells on top, cut side up, and sprinkle with salt.

2. Divide the meat mixture among them. Dollop 2 to 3 tablespoons of béchamel on each, scatter some kefalotiri over and pour 1/2 cup of water around them. Bake until roasty (sic) and golden on top, about 30 minutes.

Tags: beef, cookbook review, eggplant, Food from Many Greek Kitchens, Linda Avery, papoutsakia, recipe, Tessa Kiros
Posted in Beef, Book & Product Reviews, Recipes | 1 Comment »

Native to the Southwest, specifically Arizona and New Mexico, blue corn is slightly higher in protein than yellow or white corn.

It is always dried on the cob and usually ground into meal. New Mexican cuisine uses far more blue cornmeal than we do in Arizona, but you’ll find blue corn in some variation at any Southwestern restaurant.

This pancake recipe is from my cookbook Par Fork! The Golf Resort Cookbook. Besides pancakes, I use blue cornmeal in mini corn muffins and as a coating for pan-fried trout. Anything you use yellow cornmeal for, you can use blue cornmeal instead.

This particular pancake recipe isn’t as gritty as other blue cornmeal pancakes I’ve tried, and that’s because there is a higher ratio of flour to cornmeal.

You can experiment with how much cornmeal you use, up to half of the total flour/cornmeal measurement.

If you use equal amounts of flour and cornmeal (1-1/4 cups each), you’ll notice a big texture difference and the pancakes will be less tender, but no less tasty.

Blue Corn Pancakes

Makes 12 (4-inch) pancakes

Ingredients:

2 cups flour
1/2 cup blue cornmeal
1/3 cup sugar
1-1/2 teaspoons baking soda
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
3 eggs
1-1/2 cups buttermilk *
2 tablespoons butter, melted
1-1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries (optional)

Method:

1. Stir the first 5 ingredients (flour through baking powder) together.

2. Beat the eggs with the buttermilk until well blended.  Pour egg mixture over flour mixture and stir until just mixed (small lumps are OK, and for tender cakes, it’s better to under mix than over mix).  Stir in melted butter.  The batter will be very thick.

3. Heat a griddle or nonstick skillet over medium heat.  Brush with butter or spray with nonstick spray.

4. Ladle 1/4 cup of batter for each pancake onto hot surface.  (Sprinkle with a few blueberries if using.)  Cook until edges start to dry and bubbles burst on surface, about 2 to 3 minutes.

5. Flip and cook on the other side until brown, about another minute or so.  Keep warm in a 200°F oven until all the cakes are cooked.  Serve with your favorite syrup.

*I keep a container of dried buttermilk powder in my refrigerator (find it on the baking aisle), but I do prefer using fresh buttermilk in pancakes that call for it. I just don’t always have it on hand, so I will use the powdered buttermilk in a pinch.

Tags: blue cornmeal, blueberries, breakfast, pancakes, recipe
Posted in Breakfast, Breads & Muffins, Recipes | 2 Comments »

Sometimes you’re just in the mood for potato skins.

This recipe is from my Par Fork! The Golf Resort Cookbook, but I have to warn you, they’re spa potato skins — meaning they’re made with low fat cheddar cheese and low fat sour cream.

There’s nothing wrong with trying to trim a few calories here and there.

There’s also nothing wrong with replacing the low fat ingredients in this recipe with the real stuff, and topping the skins with crumbled bacon.

Either way, it’s an easy recipe that hits the spot when you’re craving potato skins.

Spa (or not) Potato Skins

Serves 4

Ingredients:

2 baking potatoes (about 1-1/4 pounds)
1/4 cup shredded low fat (or not) cheddar cheese
2 tablespoons low fat (or not) sour cream
2 tablespoons thinly sliced green onions (cut on the diagonal)
1/4 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 slices thick bacon, fried crisp and crumbled (optional…or not)

Method:

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees F. Prick potatoes with a fork a few times. Bake until almost done, about 40 minutes. Cool potatoes.

2. Slice potatoes lengthwise and scoop out flesh, leaving about 1/4-inch flesh on skins. Reserve potato flesh for another recipe (such as hash browns).

3. Cut each skin in half crosswise, to yield 4 pieces per potato.

4. Reheat oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet (or spray with nonstick spray). Place skins on baking sheet and bake until crisp and golden brown, about 20 to 25 minutes.

5. Remove skins from oven and top each skin with 1 tablespoon of cheese. Return to oven to melt cheese, about 2 to 3 minutes.

6. Remove from oven and top each skin with 1-1/2 teaspoons sour cream and sprinkle with smoked paprika, green onions and bacon (if using) and serve immediately.

Tags: bacon, Par Fork Cookbook, potato skins, potatoes, recipe, spa potato skins
Posted in Appetizers, Recipes | 16 Comments »

Editor’s note: Victoria Corrigan writes about classic cookbooks for Pen & Fork, books that as she says are “worth their salt” and deserve a fresh, new look. Today, Victoria takes another look at the award-winning Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone by Deborah Madison, perhaps the definitive cookbook on vegetarian cooking — and not just for vegetarians, but for, well, everyone.

Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone

by Deborah Madison

photos by Laurie Smith / illustrations by Catherine Kirkwood

Facts: Broadway Books (1997); Clarkson Potter for 10th Anniversary Ed. 2007); 742 pages, hardcover $40 (or Amazon.com for $23.80)

Awards: 1998 IACP Cookbook of the Year; James Beard Award of Excellence

Recipes: 1,400 (yep … 1,400)

Suitable for: Anyone seeking vegetable inspiration (best-of-class information) on selection/storing/cooking with vegetables.

Here’s the thing: I’m a carnivore. I don’t eat a lot of meat, but I require a semi-annual rib-eye gilded with béarnaise sauce, and have found few aromas to rival roasting pork (or chicken, for that matter).

So, why don’t I review the critter-cuisine classic Cutting Up in the Kitchen by celeb-butcher Merle Ellis? Here’s the (other) thing: I really do like vegetables (and legumes and grains), and I’ve been trying to up my intake (good for me, good for the planet).

What I lacked was encouragement, which I found on every page of Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone.

The 411 on Deborah Madison is this: Trail-blazing chef — respected teacher — award-winning author and columnist — passionate patron of farmers’ markets and community-based agriculture.

You won’t have to read far to find her essence. Madison’s writing rings with her devotion to the farmer, to the ingredients, and to both the cook and the diner.

Yes, the veggies are here — from acorn squash to zebra-striped tomatoes. So, why don’t we see the “vegetable” chapter until page 327?  Mystery solved:  This is not a veggiepedia.

It’s a whole cookbook, which opens with valuable insights on how food works, what it means to become a cook, and the critical role of seasonings. (An inspired start to a book seeking broad appeal.)

Next, Madison entices the veggie-wary with a suite of sauces and condiments, uniquely suited to vegetable dishes, all versatile and intriguing. Now the veggie-lore? Hold on, what’s the rush?

First, sample tasty appetizers (fried green olives), hearty sandwiches (grilled cheddar on rye), and fresh salads (carrot with parsley & mint), then try appetizing soups (sweet corn), comforting stews (cashew curry), quick stir-fries, and soul-satisfying gratins and casseroles (butternut squash) that deliciously bring veggies to the center of the plate.

Now that Madison has your attention, it’s on to the ABCs of asparagus, broccoli, and cauliflower (and mushrooms, potatoes, and squash and…).

But she keeps the veggie-pointers to the point, moving on to pasta (see recipe below), noodles, and dumplings (both hot and cold), savory tarts and pies (tomato tart), grain cookery (barley risotto), dishes featuring eggs and cheese (goat cheese flan), and a chapter devoted to “The Soy Pantry.”

Madison finishes this marvelous book with breakfast foods (good from morning to night), handmade breads, and desserts to delight everyone (brown sugar tart, polenta pound cake).

Clusters of gorgeous photos are included, and the text is enhanced by elegant line drawings of vegetables, kitchen equipment, and special ingredients. (I love the sweet pea tendrils.) Conversational sidebars provide tips, variations, and beverage pairings. (Wine with vegetables?  And how!)

Madison’s desire is to get us all into the kitchen, whether we are vegetarian, vegan, or (as she says) “you don’t attach a title to your eating style.” Truly a book for all cooks, this is your passport to a world of food worth visiting.

With asparagus bursting at the seams in the markets, we tested Madison’s linguine with asparagus, lemon and spring herbs. We did cut the cooking time for the asparagus from 3 to 4 minutes to 2 minutes, fearing we’d cut the asparagus thinner than she might have. Either way, the whole dish comes together in about 30 minutes and it’s full of flavor. We didn’t even miss the meat.

Linguine with Asparagus, Lemon, and Spring Herbs

[Deborah’s sidebar:  A minimal but true pasta primavera.  Should they come your way, stew a handful of peas or fava beans with the scallions as well.  This dish can be made with butter or olive oil or a mixture.]

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 large bunch scallions, including half of the greens, thinly sliced
2 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1 tablespoon finely chopped thyme, sage, or tarragon
Salt and freshly milled pepper
2 pounds asparagus, tough ends removed
1 pound linguine
4 tablespoons pine nuts, toasted in a small skillet
3 tablespoons chopped parsley
2 tablespoons snipped chives, plus blossoms if available
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, optional

Method
1. While water is heating for the pasta, heat half the oil and butter in a wide skillet over low heat.  Add the scallions, lemon zest, thyme, and a few pinches salt and cool slowly, stirring occasionally.

2. Meanwhile, slice 3-inch tips off the asparagus, then slice the remaining stalks diagonally or make a roll cut.

3. When the water boils, salt it, add the asparagus, and cook until partially tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Scoop it out, add it to the scallions, and continue cooking.

4. Cook the pasta, then add it to the pan with some of the water clinging to the strands. Raise the heat and stir in the remaining oil, the pine nuts, parsley, chives, pepper to taste, and a few tablespoons of cheese.

5. Divide among pasta plates, grate a little cheese over each portion, and garnish with the chive blossoms.

Tags: asparagus, Classic Cookbooks, cookbook review, Deborah Madison, linguine, pasta, recipe, Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone, Victoria Corrigan
Posted in Book & Product Reviews, Pasta, Recipes | 4 Comments »

Food Trucks: Dispatches and Recipes from the Best Kitchens on Wheels
by Heather Shouse
photos by Leo Gong and Heather Shouse

Facts: Ten Speed Press, 208 pages, $20.00 (or Amazon at $11.65)
Photos: Of cooks and trucks, patrons and food: too many to count
Recipes: About 50
Give to: Road Warriors

I feel like a food truck info magnet. Days after I received Food Trucks by Heather Shouse, I received notice of a free street food app: Roaming Hunger iPhone. (You can check out the app at Roaming Hunger).

Of course I’m on high alert and this all drives me crazy because my hometown, Chicago, is so far behind the ball in this arena. A city, which holds food in such esteem that there is a Director of Culinary Affairs position in its city government, has thrown stones in the path of this culinary cavalcade.

I say “hey, it’s Chicago” (thinking that sometimes it takes a while for the grease to hit the skids – if you know what I mean) but Tom Acox is more eloquent in expressing the situation in Sanitation and Regulation: The Case for Food Trucks.

Heather Shouse (a senior food and drink correspondent for Time Out Chicago as well as Chicago reporter for Food and Wine magazine) may have roved the country in search of food trucks having been spurred by the frustration she experienced in Chicago. I envision friends commiserating with her over a few cocktails, and in a moment of inspiration Heather holds up her glass and yells “ROAD TRIP!!!” And what a road trip it was.

This book belongs in both cookbook and travel sections. If you travel on business, put it on your iPad or Kindle for quick reference.

Shouse features 19 major metropolitan areas with over 60 food trucks, and throws in a few maps and websites “to keep up with” these mobile muncheries.

The photos of the trucks and food are indicative of the creativity that abounds in this arena. Here is just one I fell for. How cute is this???

Maximus/Minimus is at 2nd Ave. and Pike St., Seattle, Washington.

Note: Coincidental with the release of this book,  Chicago’s first ever Food Truck Summit will convene on April 19th

Maximus/Minimus Pulled Pork

Serves 6-8

Ingredients
3 1/2 pounds pork shoulder
1 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 cup dried oregano
1/2 cup chili powder
2 tablespoons garlic powder
1 tablespoon cayenne pepper
4 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt
Prepared barbecue sauce, for serving
6 to 8 sandwich buns, toasted

Method
1. Trim the fat from the pork, leaving 1/2-inch fat cap.

2. In a small bowl, combine the brown sugar, oregano, chili powder, garlic powder, cayenne pepper and salt. Rub the entire roast with the mixture, massaging it into the meat. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

3. Prepare a charcoal or gas grill for direct cooking over high heat. Preheat the oven to 325°F.

4. When the grill is as hot as possible, place the roast in the center. If you are using a charcoal grill, place the roast on the grill directly over the white-hot coals. Cook each side of the roast just until it is well browned but not burned, moving the meat to a new spot on the grill each time you turn it, 10 to 15 minutes total.

5. Remove the roast from the grill and place in a large Dutch oven or heavy pot. Cover and place it in the oven. Cook until the pork pulls apart easily with a fork, about 3 hours.

6. Break the meat into small chunks using two forks. Mix with your favorite barbecue sauce and divide the pork among the sandwich buns.

Tags: cookbook review, Food Trucks, Heather Shouse, Linda Avery, Maximus Minimus pulled pork, pork, recipe
Posted in Book & Product Reviews, Pork, Recipes | 4 Comments »

Editor’s note: Linda Avery returns with a look at David Tanis’ second cookbook, including a simple recipe perfect for spring: asparagus-scrambled eggs. Take a look for yourself.

The Heart of the Artichoke and Other Kitchen Journeys
by David Tanis
Photos by Christopher Hirsheimer
Facts: Artisan, 344 pages, $35.00  (or $19.02 at Amazon)
Photos: 115
Recipes: Hundreds
Give to: Chez Panisse fans, avid home cooks, Slow Food members

The Heart of the Artichoke has been nominated for 2011 James Beard award in the category of “general cookbook.” The book will be competing against two strong contenders: Amanda Hesser’s The Essential New York Times Cook Book: Classic Recipes for a New Century (reviewed here in December); and Radically Simple: Brilliant Flavors with Breathtaking Ease by Rozanne Gold. (Note to self: find Radically Simple).

David Tanis, Chez Panisse’ head chef for six months a year, penned his second book “Artichoke” following the 2008 very popular and successful book A Platter of Figs. Don’t be mistaken and think the new effort is about cooking artichokes. There are only two simple recipes for this prickly thistle (yes, not a vegetable — it’s a flower) included in the book but the metaphor is poetic: “The artichoke is ripe with metaphor and parable possibilities. Getting past the thorns to the sweet center… Not at all like reaching up and harvesting a sweet peach, eating an artichoke requires a bit of work.”

Surprisingly, most of his recipes require just a little bit of work or planning – there aren’t columns of ingredients or special equipment necessary, just good home cooking. The yield of most recipes is for 4 to 6 people though his last chapter of festive occasion menus are for 12-20 and is dubbed “Simple Feasts for a Long Table”.

Perhaps he was in his home kitchen reflecting on his past when he jotted notes like Pasta for One, Eating Oatmeal or Hooray for Ziplock Bags. The recipes’ headnotes are wonderfully personal and help us know this accomplished but seemingly down-to-earth man who spends the time he’s not working at Chez Panisse in Paris hosting dinners and otherwise enjoying life.

By the time I got my hands on this book wild mushroom season was over but Tanis’ recipe called Wild Mushroom Ragout with Ziti continues to call to me – I’ll be patient and look forward to trying it in 6 months or so.

In the meantime, I thought I’d try a dish more appropriate for spring: Asparagus-Scrambled Eggs. Tanis tells us that he found the dish in Spain.

I grew up in an Italian-American household, and when my mother made asparagus and eggs I’d whine “you ruined it, ick, why not just eggs?” I didn’t mind potatoes and eggs or tomatoes and eggs, it was just the green stuff that was off-putting. Fortunately, my palate matured as did my appreciation for what I thought of as “old country” recipes. In our speedy-global-travel-and-internet-easy-access world, these simple recipes have now become everyday foods.

We had this dish on meatless-Fridays, but Tanis uses it in a menu with spring lamb, mashed potatoes, dandelion salad and strawberries for dessert — sounds as colorful as it would be delicious.

DAVID TANIS’ ASPARAGUS-SCRAMBLED EGGS

The French often begin a meal with soft scrambled eggs, oeufs brouilles. (In its ultimate rendition, the eggs are scrambled with black truffles.) But I actually discovered this dish in Spain, where it was made with wild asparagus. I love the combination of the bite of asparagus with the soft egg. Use skinny asparagus, or wild if you can find them. Cook this just before you sit down to eat: it’ll be ready in minutes.

Serves 4-6

Ingredients
2 pounds asparagus
4 tablespoons butter
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
Salt and pepper
9 eggs, beaten
Several springs of mint and basil, leaves chopped

Method
1. Snap off the tough ends of the asparagus. Cut the stalks into 1-inch lengths; if your asparagus are thick, halve the stalks lengthwise before cutting them. In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the butter over medium heat. Add the asparagus and chopped garlic, season with salt and pepper, and cook until just done, about 2 minutes.

2. Remove the asparagus from the skillet and set aside. Heat the remaining butter in the same pan. Season the eggs with salt and pepper and add them to the pan. Stir gently until the eggs are barely set.

3. Fold in the asparagus, then spoon onto a warmed platter. Scatter chopped mint and basil on top.

Tags: asparagus, cookbook review, David Tanis, Heart of the Artichoke, Linda Avery, recipe, scrambled eggs
Posted in Book & Product Reviews, Recipes, Side Dishes | No Comments »

I hadn’t planned on posting this follow-up to my roasted rutabaga post the other day, but I was pretty please with the results (although the pictures are less than perfect, shot with my iPhone while in the process of making dinner).

I had some leftover mashed rutabaga and some leftover sage-date pistou, and I wanted to do something creative with the leftovers.

Enter rutabaga cakes. Fried, of course. Who doesn’t love fried food?

It’s fairly simple and took less than 30 minutes.

First, mix 1/2 cup of panko bread crumbs with 1/2 cup ground, toasted walnuts (walnuts are a perfect partner for sage and dates). Season the crumbs with salt and pepper and toss.

Next, scoop the mashed rutabaga and form into a patty. (I used a #30 ice cream scoop.)

Using a scoop ensures the patties are all the same size, which means they’ll cook evenly, not to mention look better.

Coat the cakes with the seasoned crumbs. Next, heat about 1/8-inch peanut oil (it has a higher smoking point than olive oil, but you can use canola oil instead) in a skillet over medium-high heat.

When the oil is hot, gently lay the rutabaga cakes into the pan and fry until golden on the first side, about 2 to 3 minutes.

Flip the cakes to the other side and cook until golden again on that side. That’s it.

I served the warm cakes, garnished with the sage-date pistou, on top of a spinach salad dressed with a sherry vinaigrette (you need a sharp counter point to the sweet rutabaga and pistou).

Of course, all this assumes you have leftover, mashed rutabaga and sage-date pistou. And if you don’t, well then, never mind.

Tags: leftovers, recipe, rutabaga, rutabaga cakes, spinach salad
Posted in Recipes, Vegetarian | No Comments »

The Great Ranch Cookbook

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Culinary Expedition Through World Class Golf Resort Kitchens

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A Gourmet Guide to Winter Retreats