David Rubel

Tiramisu

2012-01-30T12:01:00.000-08:00

I spent more than a few years searching for a tiramisu recipe that measured up to restaurant fare. My attempts were either too soggy or too complicated. Then I found this recipe. The only way to mess it up is to use the wrong ingredients. Most importantly, use hard Italian ladyfinger cookies, not the spongy Twinkie-style cakes that supermarket bakeries call ladyfingers. (I buy the Vantia brand.) The rest is easy.

4 c coffee, brewed double-strength
1 c plus 2 Tbs sugar
¼ c rum
4 eggs, separated
16 oz mascarpone
48 hard Italian ladyfinger cookies
3 Tbs cocoa powder

1. Brew the coffee. While the coffee is still hot, stir in 2 tablespoons of the sugar and set aside. When the coffee has cooled, stir in the rum.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg yolks and the remaining sugar on medium-high until the yolks are pale and fluffy, about 4–5 minutes. Add the mascarpone and continue beating until smooth, another 2–3 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a large bowl.

3. Wash and dry the bowl and whisk of the stand mixer thoroughly. Beat the egg whites on medium-high until they form stiff peaks, about 3–4 minutes. Gently fold the beaten egg whites, one large dollop at a time into the mascarpone mixture.

4. Arrange on your countertop the ladyfingers, coffee, and a large Pyrex baking dish (about 10” by 15”). Submerge a ladyfingers in the coffee for 2–3 seconds (see tip below). Then place it neatly in the bottom of the baking dish. Continue until you have formed a complete layer, breaking cookies to fit if necessary. (This should use up half of the cookies.)

5. Spread half of the mascarpone mixture evenly over the ladyfingers. Top with 2 tablespoons of the cocoa powder (see tip below).

6. Using the same method as above, add a second layer of soaked ladyfingers. Top with the remaining mascarpone mixture (but not with any more cocoa powder). Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least two hours.

7. Before serving, top with the remaining tablespoon of cocoa powder.

TIPS
• To brew double-strength coffee, simply brew as you normally would but use twice as much ground coffee. Use an espresso roast if you have it.

• Don't be tempted to oversoak the ladyfingers. They should still be firm when you remove them from the coffee (they will soften considerably as the liquid soaks through them). You'll know you've soaked them long enough if, by the time you finish a layer, the first cookies are spongy. You'll know you've soaked them too long if they fall apart in your hands.

• Instead of a large baking dish, you can use two loaf pans, making three layers in each.

• To apply the cocoa powder evenly, you can use a sifter. But I find sifters cumbersome, so I use a small mesh strainer (the one I use was originally designed to cover a sink drain). I spoon the cocoa into the strainer and then tap it as I move it across the dish.

• The reason for delaying the final dusting of cocoa powder is entirely aesthetic. Cocoa powder tends to “melt” into the mascarpone. so it looks best just after it's added.

• As with all dishes that contain uncooked eggs, you need to be careful with this tiramisu. Use eggs you can trust; don’t let leftovers linger; and if your health is such that a food-borne illness would pose a significant risk, use pasteurized eggs.

Penne with Spinach, Walnuts, and Gorgonzola

2012-01-11T06:08:00.000-08:00

(serves two adults and two children)

If you ever get tired of making penne with broccoli raab (my family's quick, meatless standby), try this simple, comforting recipe. The availability of decent chives, crumbled Gorgonzola, and baby spinach in just about every grocery store these days makes preparation a snap. Not so when I was younger!

½ c chopped walnuts
a handful of chives (to make ¼ c chopped)
1 lb dried penne
1 c heavy cream
3½ oz crumbled Gorgonzola
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
10 oz baby spinach

1. Put on a large pot of salted water to boil.

2. Toast the walnuts on the stovetop or in the oven. Finely chop the chives.

3. Cook the penne in the boiling water until just barely done.

4. Meanwhile, combine the cream and Gorgonzola in a large nonstick skilet. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer over medium-low heat. When the sauce has thickened a little, add the spinach in batches, stirring it as it wilts.

5. When the penne is done, drain it, reserving some of the pasta water. Add the penne to the skillet along with half of the walnuts and chives. Toss to coat with the sauce, adding some of the reserved pasta water if the sauce seems overly thick. Continue to cook until the pasta has absorbed the sauce, about 2 minutes. Serve with the remaining walnuts and chives.

Latkes

2012-01-11T05:53:00.000-08:00

(serves two adults and two children)

The key to crispy latkes is to squeeze out as much moisture as possible from the potatoes. I've found no better method than to wring them out in a kitchel towel, as though you were wringing out a wet rag. You'll be surprised how much water comes out.

2½ lb russet potatoes
1 large onion
canola oil
4 eggs
¼ c flour
kosher salt, to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
cayenne pepper, to taste
sour cream
applesauce

1. Using a food processor fitted with a shredding disc, shred the scrubbed but unpeeled potatoes. Shred the peeled, trimmed onions. Transfer to a large bowl. Cover with cold water for 20 minutes.

2. Heat ½-inch of canola oil (about 1½ cups) in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. Preheat the oven to 225 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with paper towels.

3. In another large bowl, combine the eggs, flour, salt, pepper, and cayenne. Beat with a fork.

4. Drain the potato-onion mixture in a colander. Working in batches, place some of the potato mixture in a clean kitchen towel and twist hard to remove as much moisture as possible. Add thesquuezed potato mixture as you go to the bowl with the egg mixture. When all of the potato mixture has been squeezed, toss to coat evenly with the egg mixture.

5. When the oil begins to shimmer, use tongs to add two clumps of batter to the skillet. Use a spatula to flatten the clumps into pancakes. Reduce the heat to medium. Cook until the bottom of the pancake has become crisp, about 5 minutes. Flip and cook until the second side has crisped, about another 5 minutes. Transfer to the baking sheet and place in the preheated oven. Return the flame to medium-high until the oil shimmers again. Repeat with the remaining batter.

6. Serve with sour cream and applesauce.

TIP
• The temperature of the oil needs to be hot enough to crisp the pancake yet not so hot that the outside of the pancake burns before the inside cooks. That's why it's important to reduce the heat a little after adding the batter. Exacly how much heat to apply differs from stove to stove and skillet to skillet. Adjust as necessary so that the oil is always burbling around the edges of the pancakes.

Black Bean Burritos

2011-09-27T07:05:00.000-07:00

(serves two adults and two children)

The first few times I made this recipe, the burritos came out pretty misshapen. Eventually, I got the hang of rolling,them—but not like they do at my favorite taqueria on Mission in San Francisco.

4 large (ten-inch) flour tortillas
1 can chipotles in adobo sauce
2 Tbs olive oil
1 tsp ground cumin
2 15.5-oz cans black beans
1 pint grape (or cherry) tomatoes
1 lime
1 bunch cilantro
kosher salt
sharp cheddar cheese
baby spinach
sour cream

1. Preheat the oven to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Wrap the tortillas in aluminum foil and warm in the oven.

2. Puree the chipotles in adobo sauce. Reserving about 1 tablespoon, freeze the remainder for future use.

3. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over a medium flame. Add the cumin and the reserved chipotle puree. Saute briefly. Add the beans and bring to a simmer. then reduce the heat to low.

4. Halve the grape tomatoes and place them in a small bowl. (If using cherry tomatoes, quarter them.) Squeeze one-half of the lime over the tomatoes. Pick the leaves from the cilantro stems and coarsely chop them. Add half of the cilantro to the tomatoes along with a pinch of salt. Toss to combine.

5. Grate about 1 cup of the cheese. Squeeze the remaining lime half over the beans. Add the grated cheese and remaining cilantro. Stir until all of the cheese melts.

6. Remove the tortillas from the oven. Working with one at a time, spoon some beans onto the bottom third of the tortillas, leaving a margin at the bottom. Top the beans with some tomatoes, baby spinach, and a few dabs of sour cream. Fold the bottom edge of the tortilla over the filling. Fold over both side edges. Finally, roll up the burrito.

TIPS
• Chipotles, which are smoked jalapeño peppers, go well with almost any Latin bean dish. Because a full can nearly always contains much more than I need, and because I probably won't be needing more for a little while, I puree and freeze the extra. That way, I can easily chip off a tablespoon or so as I need it.

Pasta with Fresh Clams

2011-09-07T09:22:00.000-07:00

(serves two adults and two children)

The quality of this dish depends entirely on the quality of the clams. That’s why I usually make it only when I’m on Cape Cod, where my family vacations in August. If there isn’t a good fish store near you, and all you can get are mangy supermarket clams, you’ve got two choices: Either mail-order the real deal from my friends, Pat and Barbara Woodbury, at woodburyclams.com; or use canned clams to make the lesser but still tasty Spaghetti with Clam Sauce recipe posted elsewhere on this blog. Ordering from Pat and Barbara is a treat, of course, but well worth the cost for a special occasion.

36 littleneck clams (see note below)
2 oz pancetta (or bacon)
6 cloves garlic
1 bunch parsley
1 lb dried pasta (spaghetti or linguine)
¼ c olive oil
1½ c dry white wine
3 Tbs unsalted butter
red pepper flakes, to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste

1. Wash and dry the clams. Dice the pancetta. Coarsely chop the garlic and parsley.

2. Cook the pasta in boiling salted water until just barely done. Drain and set aside.

3. Meanwhile, in a Dutch oven (or a large skillet fitted with a lid), heat the olive oil over a medium-low flame. After a few minutes, add the clams and raise the flame to medium-high. Cover and cook until the first clams open, which means they are done. Transfer the opened clams to a bowl tented with aluminum foil Add the white wine and butter. Continue cooking the remaining clams, covered, until they open, removing them from the pan as they do.

4. When all the clams have been removed, add the garlic, parsley, red pepper flakes, and black pepper. Simmer the sauce for a minute or two, then add the drained pasta. Toss the pasta to coat and continue cooking for another 2–3 minute so that the pasta can absorb the sauce.

5. Serve the pasta topped with the reserved clams and freshly grated parmesan cheese.

A NOTE ABOUT CLAMS
The most commonly available hardshell clams are littlenecks, cherrystones, and quahogs. They’re all the same species; the only difference is size. Of these, littlenecks are the smallest and most tender. These are the ones that you want, though cherrystones will do in a pinch (use half as many). Under no circumstances should you use quahogs, which are chowder clams.

TIPS
• Monitor the clams closely because they become very chewy when overcooked. I lift the lid every minute or two to check for newly opened clams.

• I use a full teaspoon of red pepper flakes because I like my clam sauce to have some kick to it.

• Don’t skimp on the wine or the parmesan because poor grades will ruin the delicate flavor of the clams. I never cook with a wine that I wouldn’t drink with dinner, and I always use imported Parmigiano-Reggiano. Even if you have to pay $16 a pound for the cheese, the couple of ounces you need will only set you back $2.

Chinese Beef with Asparagus

2011-03-16T06:26:00.000-07:00

Other than the obvious vegetable substitution, there really is no difference between this dish and the more familiar beef with broccoli. I just like asparagus better.

(serves two adults and two children)

1 lb New York strip steak
1 lb asparagus
2-inch piece fresh ginger
3 cloves garlic
3 (or more) green onions
2 Tbs peanut oil

The Marinade
1 Tbs rice wine (or dry sherry)
1 Tbs soy sauce
2 Tbs cornstarch
½ tsp sugar

The Sauce
¼ c chicken broth
1 Tbs hoisin sauce
1 Tbs oyster sauce
1 Tbs cornstarch
1 tsp sugar

1. Trim the steak of excess fat. Halve it lengthwise and slice each half thinly to yield bite-size pieces. Combine the ingredients for the marinade in a small bowl, add the beef slices, and mix well. Set aside.

2. Trim the asparagus and slice them into inch-long lengths. Peel and julienne the ginger. Peel the garlic and chop it coarsely. Trim the green onions and slice them into half-inch lengths.

3. Combine the sauce ingredients in a small bowl.

4. Heat the peanut oil in a wok (or large cast-iron skillet) over high heat until it begins to smoke. Add the ginger, garlic, and white parts of the green onions. Stir-fry until the ginger and garlic become fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the beef and stir-fry until it's just cooked through, about another 1-2 minutes depending on the thickness of the beef slices. Remove from the wok.

5. Adding a little more oil if necessary, stir-fry the asparagus until it turns a darker green, about 1 minute. Add a scant ¼ cup of water and cover the wok immediately. Steam the asparagus for 3 minutes, then remove the cover and let the remaining water evaporate.

6. Add the sauce and cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to thicken. Add the green parts of the green onions and return the cooked beef. Toss to combine. Once the beef has reheated, serve immediately.

TIPS
• You can also use flank steak for this dish, but I prefer the tenderness of a nicely marbled strip steak.

• Some people deal with the woody ends of asparagus by peeling them to expose the tender core. I rarely have the patience for this, so I use a more brutal method: snapping off the ends of the spears. Tradition holds that a spear will naturally bend (and, if you apply enough force, break) at the spot where the tender tip of the shoot toughens and becomes woody.

• I cook this dish in a wok, and you should, too. Woks are remarkably easy to use (and clean) once you get the hang of them. But if you don’t have one, you can also use a large cast-iron skillet. Remember to let the pan heat first before adding the oil.

Potato Pizza

2011-03-01T07:57:00.000-08:00

Once I open a package of yeast, I like to use the whole things. That's why this recipe yields two large pies. If you'd like a little variety, halve the potato topping and use something else for the second pie. I recommend caramelized onions, crumbled Gorgonzola, and olive oil steeped with chopped fresh rosemary. Even easier is ricotta cheese flavored with basil pesto.

(serves a crowd)

The Dough
500 grams flour (about 3¾ cups)
1 pkg active dry yeast
¾ tsp sugar
¾ tsp kosher salt
olive oil

The Topping
3 Tbs kosher salt
5 lb potatoes
2 medium onions, chopped
⅔ c olive oil
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 Tbs fresh rosemary

1. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, yeast, sugar, and salt. Add 1⅓ cups room-temperature water. Using a wooden spoon, stir until the dough is well blended. (It will be a little sticky.) Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough rise until it doubles in size, about 2 hours.

2. Dissolve the 3 tablespoons of salt in 2 quarts water to make a brine. Using a food processor fitted with a slicing blade, slice the potatoes thinly. Soak the potato slices in the brine until they wilt, about 1½ hours.

3. Using a spatula to scrape as necessary, transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface. After forming a rough ball, cut the dough in half and separate the two resulting pieces by 3–4 inches. Cover with a moistened kitchen towel and let rise again for 30 minutes.

4. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit.

5. Drain the potatoes in a colander, pressing down with your hands to force out any excess moisture. Transfer to a large bowl. Add the chopped onion, olive oil, and pepper. Toss to combine.

6. Using olive oil, lightly coat two 13- by 18-inch rimmed baking sheets. Remove the kitchen towel from the dough. Place one of the dough pieces in the center of a baking sheet, inverting it as you go so that the moist side of the dough (the one contacting the wet towel) is facing down and the dry, floured side is facing up. Using your fingers, press the dough out to fill the pan. If any holes develop, pinch them closed. Repeat with the second piece of dough and second baking sheet.

7. Spread the potato mixture over the prepared crusts. (Place a little extra around the edges because they cook more quickly.) Sprinkle evenly with the rosemary.

8. Bake until the crusts pull away from the pan sides and the potatoes are golden brown, about 25–30 minutes.

TIPS
• It takes a little practice to get the hang of spreading out the dough to fill the pan. The key is maintaining an even thickness. Fortunately, the stickiness of the dough makes it simple to mend tears.

Beef Tacos

2011-01-10T07:36:00.000-08:00

This is the full-on taco kit experience but fresher and home made (that is, without the MSG). I usually make extra filling so that I can use it later in the week for quesadillas or burritos.

(serves two adults and two children)

The Spice Mix
1 Tbs chili powder
½ tsp ground coriander
½ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp dried oregano
¼ tsp cayenne pepper
kosher salt, to taste

The Beef Filling
1 small onion
3 cloves garlic
1 Tbs canola oil
1 lb ground beef
½ c chicken broth
½ c crushed tomatoes
1 Tbs cider vinegar
1 Tbs brown sugar

The Toppings
iceberg lettuce, shredded
cheddar (or Monterey jack) cheese, shredded
tomatoes, finely diced
avocado, finely diced
red onion, finely chopped
sour cream
hot sauce

1. In a small bowl, combine the ingredients for the spice mix.

2. Chop the onion. Mince the garlic.

3. In a large skillet, heat the oil over a medium-low flame. Add the onion and cook until soft, about 3-4 minutes. Add the garlic and spice mix. Cook, stirring frequently, until the spices become fragrant, about 1 minute. Raise the flame to medium. Add the ground beef and cook until well browned, breaking up clumps with a wooden spoon.

4. When the meat has browned, add the chicken broth, tomatoes, cider vinegar, and brown sugar. Stirring occasionally, simmer until nearly all of the liquid has evaporated but the meet is still moist, about 10-15 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, prepare the toppings. Serve with corn tortillas.

Thai Chicken Soup

2011-01-10T07:24:00.000-08:00

There are two unusual ingredients in this recipe for which there are no acceptable substitutes. Fortunately, you can now find them in most large supermarkets. One is fresh lemongrass, which often hides out near the chile peppers. The other is red (or green) curry paste, which usually lives in the ethnic food aisle next to the Chinese ingredients. Look for the Thai Kitchen brand, which keeps nearly indefinitely.

(serves two adults and two children)

3 stalks lemongrass
3 large shallots
1 bunch cilantro
1 Tbs canola oil
3 Tbs fish sauce (nam pla)
4 c chicken broth
2 14-oz cans coconut milk
¼ lb shiitake mushrooms
1 lb boneless chicken breasts
1 Tbs red curry paste (or green curry paste)
juice of 2 limes
1 Tbs sugar

1. Prepare the lemongrass by removing the coarse outer leaves, trimming the tip, and slicing crosswise to produce thin rings. Peel and coarsely chop the shallots. Coarsely chop two-thirds of the cilantro (including the stems). Pick the leaves from the remaining cilantro and reserve.

2. In a large stock pot, heat the oil over a medium flame. Add the lemongrass, shallots, chopped cilantro, and 1 tablespoon of the fish sauce. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the lemongrass and shallots soften, about 3-4 minutes.

3. Before the vegetables begin to brown, stir in the chicken broth and 1 can of the coconut milk. Raise the heat to high and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes.

4. Meanwhile, trim and slice the mushrooms and thinly slice the chicken. In a small bowl, combine the red curry paste, lime juice, and remaining 2 tablespoons of fish sauce.

5. Once the soup has finished simmering, use a fine-mesh sieve to strain out the solids. Return the soup to the pot and bring to a simmer.

6. Add the sugar and remaining can of coconut milk. Stir in the mushrooms and cook until just tender, about 2-3 minutes. Add the chicken and cook until no longer pink, about another 2-3 minutes. Remove the soup from the heat.

7. Stir in the curry paste mixture. Serve garnished with the reserved cilantro leaves.

TIPS
• Preparing lemongrass is not unlike preparing leeks. The business part is the thick, tender flesh near the root end.

• This recipe calls for thin slices of chicken breast so that the meat cooks quickly. The easiest way to prepare these is to partially freeze the chicken before slicing it. Ten to fifteen minutes in the freezer usually does the trick..

• Other possible garnishes include sliced jalapeños, sliced green onions, and lime wedges.

Stuffed Acorn Squash

2011-01-04T07:11:00.000-08:00

Because it's just as easy to make more, I often double this recipe so that I'll have plenty of leftovers. The squash halves are easy to reheat in the oven, and on a winter's night they go wonderfully with a hearty soup.

(serves two adults and two children)

¼ c dried porcini mushrooms
1 demibaguette (or half of a standard baguette)
olive oil
kosher salt
2 Tbs crumbled dried herbs (such as thyme, rosemary, or herbes de Provence)
3 acorn squash
freshly ground black pepper
brown sugar
1 medium onion
1 lb sweet sausage

1. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Place the porcinis in a small bowl and cover with 2 cups boiling water.

3. Remove the ends of the demibaguette and cut the remainder (including the crust) into crouton-sized cubes to yield about 4 cups. Toss with a few tablespoons of olive oil, a little salt, and the crumbled dried herbs. Spread on a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil and toast in the oven until crisp, about 6-8 minutes.

4. Halve the acorn squash and use a spoon to scrape out the seeds. Working with one piece at a time, rub with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and sprinkle with brown sugar (about a tablespoon per squash half). Roast in the oven until just cooked through, about 25-30 minutes.

5. While the squash cooks, remove the porcinis from their soaking liquid (reserving the liquid) and chop coarsely, Chop the onion.

6. In a large skillet over medium heat, brown the sausage, breaking up any clumps. Remove the sausage meat with a slotted spoon and set aside. In the same skillet (adding a little olive oil if the pan seems dry), sauté the onion until golden brown, about 4-5 minutes. Return the sausage to the skillet along with any accumulated juices. Add the toasted baguette cubes, the porcinis, and their soaking liquid. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the bread cubes absorb all of the liquid, about 1-2 minutes. Remove from the heat, cover, and let stand for a few minutes as the flavors combine.

7. Distribute the filling evenly among the squash halves and return to the oven. Continue to roast until both the squash and the filling are pleasantly hot. Use the broiler at the end, if you like, to crisp the top.

TIPS
• My method for chopping the baguette is to slice it lengthwise into strips—bisecting the whole into halfs, the halfs into quarters, and the quarters into eighths. Then I cut the strips crosswise into croutons. This way, each crouton has a puff of bread attached to a bit of crust.

• A nice variation is to add a green leafy vegetable (such as kale) to the stuffing. Chop it and sauté it along with the onion.

• As for leftovers, I reheat them in a 300-degree oven for about 45 minutes. The outside layers of squash become hot much more quickly than the core of the stuffing, so I leave the squash in the turned-off oven for about 10-15 minutes while the temperatures equalize.

Stir-fried Tilapia with Black Bean Sauce

2011-01-04T06:57:00.001-08:00

Although tilapia has been a supermarket staple for years, I've generally avoided the fish because it tends to be a little bland and rubbery. But in this recipe, those qualities are actually advantages: the taste of the fish never competes with the sauce, and its texture stands up to the relative rough cooking method.

(serves two adults and two children)

3 Tbs black bean sauce with chili (or black bean garlic sauce)
1 Tbs oyster sauce
1 Tbs soy sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
1 tsp rice vinegar
1 lb tilapia filets
1 bunch green onions
1 Tbs peanut oil

1. In a mixing bowl, combine the black bean sauce, oyster sauce, soy sauce, sesame oil, and rice vinegar. Cut each tilapia filet in half lengthwise, then cut each half into 2-inch slices. Add the slices to the marinade and toss gently to coat. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand for at least 20 minutes. Meanwhile, trim and slice the green onions into 1-inch lengths.

2. in a wok (or large nonstick skillet), heat the peanut oil over a high flame until very hot. (The oil should be shimmering.) Add the fish pieces. Distribute them evenly around the pan but do not stir. After 3 minutes, add the green onions and stir gently, turning the fish pieces over. Cook, stirring occasionally but gently, until the thickest parts of the fish are cooked through, about another 3 minutes. Serve over rice with an Asian chili sauce such as Sriracha.

TIP
• If you don't like black bean sauce, don't worry. Almost any Asian cooking sauce will do. The first time I made this recipe, I was out of black bean sauce, so I substituted chili paste with garlic. The result was a very enjoyable take on Kung Pao fish.

Black Bean Soup

2011-01-04T06:51:00.000-08:00

Because of all the beans, this soup can end up thick, but it dilutes easily with a little chicken stock or water.

1 lb dried black beans
4 oz bacon
3 Tbs canola oil
1 large carrot
1 large onion
4 cloves garlic
4 c chicken broth
1 Tbs sherry
1 Tbs sherry vinegar
1 tsp Tabasco sauce
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper

1. Pick over the beans to remove any stones. Rinse well. Place in a stock pot and add 6 cups cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat. Cook for two minutes, then remove from the heat, cover, and let sit for 1 hour.Transfer the beans and their cooking liquid to a large bowl..

2. Finely dice the bacon. Wipe the stock pot dry with a paper towel. Add the canola oil and sauté the bacon over medium-low heat until the fat has rendered, about 10 minutes. Meanwhile, finely dice the carrot and onion and mince the garlic. Once the bacon fat has rendered, add the carrot, onion, and garlic and sweat for 15 minutes.

3. Add the chicken stock, reserved beans, and bean water (there should be about 4 cups). Bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce the heat and simmer for 1½–2 hours. Remove from the heat.

4. Once the soup has cooled a little, use an immersion blender or a food processor to puree to your desired consistency. Finish with sherry, sherry vinegar, Tabasco, salt, and pepper to taste. (The amounts listed above are merely suggestions.) Serve with garnishes such as chopped onion, cilantro, sour cream, or chopped hard-boiled egg.

TIPS
• Replacing some of the chicken stock with beer or red wine gives the soup a richer flavor.

• To make a vegetarian version, omit the bacon and instead add a bit of dried chipotle pepper and some shaved dark chocolate to give the soup a deep, smoky tang. (Chipotles are smoked jalapeno peppers.)

Fruitcake

2011-01-04T06:40:00.000-08:00

I started making this recipe after buying on a whim a piece of cooking equipment from a company called Nordic Ware. Made out of heavy-duty cast aluminum, it's a baking pan comprised of two 5-cup bundt pans, each of which has a fun decorative design. But even more fun than the pan is what goes in it. Not your mother's fruitcakes, these little gems are tender, flavorful, and make excellent gifts.

4 oz dried apricots
3 oz dried currants
3 oz assorted dried fruit (such as pineapple, apple, or mango)
zest of an orange, grated
¾ c dark rum
5 oz unbleached flour
½ tsp ground allspice
½ tsp ground cinnamon
¼ tsp ground cardamom
¼ tsp freshly grated nutmeg (or slightly less ground nutmeg)
large pinch of ground cloves
10 Tbs unsalted butter
1 c brown sugar
3 eggs, at room temperature
½ tsp vanilla extract
¼ tsp kosher salt
3½ oz crystallized ginger
¼ c dark rum

1. Chop the dried fruit as necessary into small (¼- to ½-inch) pieces. Place in a saucepan with the grated orange zest and rum. Cover and cook over medium heat until the rum has been absorbed, about 2-3 minutes. Remove from the heat and let cool. Refrigerate for at least 24 hours and up to 3 days. Before proceeding, remove from the refrigerator and warm to room temperature.

2. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Using vegetable shortening or a canola-oil spray, grease two 5-cup bundt pans and flour them, knocking out any excess.

3. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, allspice, cinnamon, cardamom, nutmeg, and cloves.

4. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar at medium-high speed until the butter is fluffy and no lumps of sugar remain, pausing to scrape down the bowl as necessary, about 2-3 minutes. Add the eggs, one and a time, scraping down the bowl and beating for 30-60 seconds following each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract and salt.

5. Add 2 tablespoons of the flour mixture and beat to incorporate. Reserving 2 additional tablespoons, add the remaining flour and beat on low speed long enough to moisten the flour (so that it doesn't fly up in your face). Returning the mixer to medium-high speed, beat for 1 minute.

6. Chop the crystallized ginger into small pieces. Combine with the macerated fruit. Remove the paddle attachment and place the fruit on top of the batter. Sprinkle with the reserved flour. Using a spatula, fold the fruit into the batter so that the fruit is evenly distributed. Scrape the batter into the prepared pans, pressing down as you go to eliminate air pockets.

7. Bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees Fahrenheit and continue baking until a knife inserted into the center of each cake comes out clean (or with just a few moist crumbs), about another 1½ hours.

8. Remove the pan from the oven and cool on a rack for at least 30 minutes. Invert the pan and tap gently to remove the cakes. Place each cake on a large piece of plastic wrap and baste with 2 tablespoons dark rum. Cover tightly with the plastic wrap and cover the plastic wrap tightly with aluminum foil. Store at room temperature for at least 2 days before serving with freshly whipped cream.

TIPS
• For obvious reasons, freshly grated nutmeg produces a much better result than the ground variety your grandmother used to keep in that small tin on her spice shelf. (You're not still trying to use that tin up, are you?) Instead, buy your nutmeg whole and grate it as you need it. Microplame rasps make quick work of the task,

• Adding a little flour to the batter before adding the bulk of the flour helps to emulsify and aerate the batter.

• If you plan to store the cakes for longer than a week, you need to continue basting them. Do so once a week, using an additional 1-2 tablespoons of rum and changing the wrappings each time.

Emergency Chicken Rub

2010-12-21T11:34:00.000-08:00

One night, when I had neglected to plan ahead for dinner, I bought several bone-in chickn breasts and threw together this rub. It was a big hit, so I saved the recipe. The name comes from my daughter, Abigail, who believes that no plans for dinner constitutes an emergency.

½ cup brown sugar
¼ cup seasoned salt
2 Tbs paprika
2 Tbs freshly ground black pepper
1 Tbs garlic powder
1 Tbs dry mustard
2 tsp cayenne pepper

1. Combine all of the rub ingredients. Store in a sealed glass jar.

TIP
• Remove the skin from the breast before applying the rub.

Grandma's Rugelach

2010-12-10T05:44:00.001-08:00

I grew up on these Hanukkah cookies and, fortunately, inherited the recipe from my grandmother.

2 c flour
½ c confectioners' sugar
½ tsp fresh lemon juice
½ tsp vanilla extract
2 4-oz sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 8-oz pkg cream cheese (preferably Philadelphia)
granulated sugar
ground cinnamon
1 c small walnut pieces
1 c currants (or raisins)
1 egg, beaten

1. Into the bowl of a food processor fitted with a metal blade, measure the flour, confectioner's sugar, lemon juice, and vanilla extract. Cut each stick of butter into eight pieces and add to the food processor. Cut the block of cream cheese into eight pieces and add to the food processor. Pulse until the dough is well blended and collects in a ball.

2. Remove the dough from the food processor and shape into a ball. (If the dough seems overly sticky, knead in a little more flour.) Seal the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least an hour.

3. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

4. Cut the dough into quarters. Working with one quarter at a time, roll the dough into an 8-inch-by-10-inch rectangle. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon granulated sugar and a few shakes of ground cinnamon over the rectangle. Rub in with the palm of your hand.

5. Spread one-quarter of the walnuts and one-quarter of the currants evenly over the dough, leaving a margin of about one inch on each of the short sides and about three inches on the top. (In other words, the area covered should be about eight inches across by five inches high.) Press the nuts and currants into the dough so that they don't slide around. Beginning at the bottom, roll the dough to create a tight cylinder (as though the dough were a cigar wrapper). Seal by pinching at the seam and at the two ends. Place the log seam-side up on a platter and refrigerate while repeating this procedure with the remaining dough quarters.

6. Brush the top of each log with the beaten egg and sprinkle with additional granulated sugar. Refrigerate for about 15 minutes, then slice each log into 8–10 inch-thick rounds.

7. Place the cookies on baking sheets lined with silicon mats (or parchment paper). Bake until golden brown, about 25–30 minutes.

TIPS
• It's important that the sides of the dough rectangle be roughly parallel. You can achieve this easily by folding any unevenness back into the rectangle.

• Because currants (and raisins) tend to stick together, I microwave them first for 20-30 seconds. This loosens and also plumps them.

Kimchi

2010-12-09T11:57:00.000-08:00

Koreans eat kimchi several times every day because it's such a great digestive. American cuisine is a bit too diversified for that—I wouldn't serve kimchi with spaghetti carbonara, for instance—but I do eat it often as a snack before dinner.

1 large head napa cabbage (about 4 lb)
1 c kosher salt
10 c cold water
1 large daikon (Japanese white radish)
1 lb carrots
1 bunch green onions
½ lb fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
1 large head garlic, peeled and trimmed
1 large apple or pear, peeled and cored
1 large white onion, peeled, trimmed, and quartered
½ c fish sauce (nam pla)
½ c sugar
½–1 c hot red pepper powder

1. Remove any damaged outer leaves from the cabbage and trim the root end. Cut the head lengthwise into quarters. Cut each quarter across its width to create slices about three inches long and a quarter of an inch thick.

2. In a large stockpot or crock, combine the salt and water to make a 10 percent brine. Add the sliced cabbage and soak for 2-3 hours. (The brine should cover the cabbage. If not, make and add more 10 percent brine.)

3. While the cabbage is soaking, peel and trim the daikon and carrots and chop into bite-sized pieces. Trim the green onions and chop into pieces about one inch long. Add the sauce ingredients to the bowl of a food processor and puree. In a large mixing bowl, combine the chopped daikon, carrots, and green onions with the sauce and toss to coat.

4. When the cabbage has soaked sufficiently, rinse it three times with cold water and drain well. Add to the sauced ingredients and mix well. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand overnight. The next day, transfer to storage containers and refrigerate.

TIPS
• Although Asian market typically sell the freshest (and cheapest) kimchi ingredients, you can probably find what you need in your local supermarket—except for the hot red pepper powder that gives kimchi its distinctive zip. Fortunately, the powder keeps forever, so a single trip to an Asian market can keep you in kimchi for a year or more.

• The way the cabbage is sliced has no effect on the kimchi's taste. I find it expedient to use the method described above, but feel free to make the pieces larger or smaller to suit your taste. Similarly, cut the daikon and carrots as you wish. I tend to slice the daikon and julienne the carrots.

• Even after three rinsings, the brined cabbage will still have a slightly salty taste—but only slightly salty.

• I store my kimchi in large Ball jars. Make sure to leave a little headroom so that the juice doesn't overflow onto your refrigerator shelf.

• Kimchi belongs to the same food family (fermented vegetables) as sauerkraut. Thus, if you prefer, you can store your kimchi at room temperature in the same way you would store sauerkraut—that is, with the vegetables completely submerged in the briny juice. This anaerobic ("without air") environment prevents harmful bacteria from growing.

• Although kimchi tastes good (at least to me) on the day that it's made, I recommend waiting about a week for the flavors time to develop.

Penne with Brussels Sprouts and Gorgonzola

2010-10-12T06:05:00.000-07:00

The pecans in this dish add a nice, sweet crunch. Walnuts are another option.

(serves two adults and two children)

2 lb Brussels sprouts
¼ c olive oil
kosher salt, to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
½ c pecans
2 Tbs unsalted butter
1 lb dried penne
2 shallots
¾ c heavy cream
1 c (4 oz) Gorgonzola

1. Place a large rimmed baking sheet in the lower half of the oven. Preheat to 500 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

3. Trim the Brussels sprouts, removing any spoiled outer leaves. Rinse. Using a food processor fitted with a slicing disk, shred the sprouts. Transfer to a mixing bowl. Toss with the olive oil, salt, and pepper. Spread in a single layer over the heated baking sheet and roast until charring just begins, about 10–15 minutes.

4. Coarsely chop the pecans. In a small skillet over medium heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter. Add the pecans and cook, stirring often, until the butter is browned and the pecans are toasted, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat.

5. Cook the penne in the boiling water until al dente, about 8 minutes.

6. Meanwhile, peel and chop the shallots. In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the remaining 1 tablespoon butter. Add the shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 3 minutes. Add the cream and bring to a simmer. Remove from the heat, add the Gorgonzola, and stir until melted.

7. Drain the penne and return to the pot. Add the Brussels sprouts and Gorgonzola sauce. Toss to coat. Sprinkle the pecans on top and serve with grated parmesan(or additional crumbled Gorgonzola.

Pork Satay

2010-10-05T09:46:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend in DC, I served this dish to a group of Habitat for Humanity friends that my wife, Julia, and I made last year at the Carter Work Project in Thailand. Reminded us all of Chiang Mai.

(serves 12 as an appetizer)

2 pork tenderloins (about 2 lb)

The Marinade
2 Tbs coriander seeds
2 tsp cumin seeds
¼ c canola oil
¼ c coconut milk
2 Tbs fish sauce (nam pla)
2-inch piece fresh ginger, grated
6 cloves garlic, grated
2 Tbs sugar
2 tsp turmeric
1 tsp ground cinnamon

The Dipping Sauce
1 14-oz can (less ¼ c) coconut milk
½ c peanut butter (oreferably smooth)
2 Tbs red curry paste (or green curry paste)

1. Place the pork tenderloins in the freezer until they are firm but not frozen, about 30 minutes. Cut each in half crosswise to yield shorter "logs" about 4-5 inches long. With one hand pressing the pork down into a cutting board and the other holding a sharp knife parallel to the board, cut each lengthwise into 1/8-inch-thick slices. ( Each piece should yield about 9 slices, or 36 slices in all.)

2. In a small skillet over medium heat, toast the coriander and cumin seeds until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat. When the spices have cooled a bit, grind them in a spice mill (or crush them with a mortar and pestle).

3. In a mixing bowl, combine the ground spices with the rest of the marinade ingredients. Add the pork and toss to coat. Marinate in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour or up to 1 day.

4, Prepare the dipping sauce (which can also be made in advance and refrigerated). In a small saucepan over low heat, combine the coconut milk, peanut butter, and curry paste. Simmer until the flavors combine and deepen, about 20 minutes.

6. Soak the skewers in water for at least 30 minutes so that they don't burn.

5. Preheat the grill to high. Thread each marinated pork slice onto a skewer. Cook until slightly charred on one side, about 3-4 minutes. Turn and cook until done, about 3 more minutes. Serve with the dipping sauce, which can be either warm or at room temperature.

TIPS
• It's nearly impossible to find fresh Thai ingredients in this country (have you ever seen a kaffir lime leaf?), so I don't even try. Instead, I buy the little jars of red and green curry paste sold under the Thai Kitchen brand. These pastes contain kaffir lime leaves, galangal, and a host of other hard-to-find ingredients. Admittedly, it's a convenience food, but I compromise because it's such a great convenience.

• Don't let the coconut milk quantity for the dipping sauce throw you. The point is that I don't want you to open a second can for this recipe. Take 1/4 cup for the marinade and then simply use the rest of the can for the dipping sauce.

Carrot Sambal

2010-09-29T08:33:00.000-07:00

If you’re tired of cole slaw, this slightly spicy side dish goes beautifully with barbecue.

(serves 6–8 as a side dish)

4 cloves garlic
1 jalapeno pepper
¼ c canola oil
¼ c sugar
4 tsp fish sauce
juice of one lime
1 lb organic carrots (see tip below)
2 scallions, trimmed and chopped
a small handful of fresh cilantro, coarsely chopped

1. Smash the garlic with the flat side of a large knife, then peel and trim each clove. Trim the jalapeno, remove the seeds, and mince the flesh.

2. In a skillet set over low heat, cook the garlic and jalapeno in the canola oil until the garlic begins to brown, about 8–10 minutes. Remove from the heat. Stir in the sugar and let cool. Complete the dressing by whisking in the fish sauce and lime juice.

3. Meanwhile, wash, trim, and shred the carrots in a food processor. Add the scallions and cilantro. Toss with the dressing.

TIPS
• I specify organic carrots primarily because you don’t need to peel them. That’s a big plus when recipes like this one call for carrots in quantity.

• Carrot sambal (made with carrots from our garden) has become such a staple in our house that I’ve had to develop a variation, just so we don’t get bored. I add 2 inches of fresh ginger, peeled and minced, along with ½ teaspoon of ground cardamom to the simmering oil. The resulting sambal has a nice, refreshing tang.

Bouillabaisse

2010-09-29T08:05:00.000-07:00

This is a great dish for a crowd. The name may be fancy, but it’s really just a simple seafood stew. Note, however, that the recipe sinks or swims with the freshness of the ingredients, so I make it only when I’m near the ocean.

(serves eight to ten)

The Fish and Seafood
1 lb white steak fish (such as swordfish and halibut)
1 lb bivalves (such as mussels and small clams)
1 lb shrimp
1 lb squid
1 small lobster (optional)

The Stew Base
3 large leeks, white part only
1 medium onion
6 cloves garlic
½ c olive oil
2 c chicken stock
1 c white wine
1 c water
2 28-oz cans diced tomatoes
a large handful of fresh parsley, coarsely chopped
several sprigs of fresh rosemary or thyme
Tabasco sauce, to taste

The Finish
½ c brandy
kosher salt
freshly ground pepper
a small handful of fresh dill, coarsely chopped

1. Prep the fish and shellfish. For the fish, remove any skin and cut the steaks into large chunks. For the bivalves, scrub the shells and debeard the mussels (see tip below). For the shrimp, shell and devein. For the squid, clean and slice the bodies into rings. For the lobster, kill and quarter (see tip below).

2. Rinse the leeks well, slice into thin rings, and rinse again. Peel and coarsely chop the onion and garlic.

3. In a large stockpot over a medium-low flame, heat the oil. Sauté the leeks, onion, and garlic until the leeks and onion have wilted, about 10–15 minutes.

4. Add the chicken stock, wine, water, tomatoes, parsley, rosemary or thyme, and Tabasco. Raise the heat to medium-high and bring to a simmer. Simmer for 10 minutes, adjusting the heat as necessary.

5. Add the fish and seafood, cover, and simmer for another 30 minutes.

6. Uncover. Add the brandy. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the dill. Serve with crusty bread.

TIPS
• It’s important to rinse the leeks after they’re chopped because dirt often gets trapped between the various layers of growth.

• The beard of a mussels is the little bit of algae-like fuzz attached to the concave side of the shell. Commercially raised mussels often don’t have beards, but wild ones do. To remove the beard, simply give it a tug.

• The best way to quarter a live lobster is to get it over with quickly. Start by cutting through the top of its body between its eyes. This kills it instantly. A good description of the process, complete with photos, can be found at HYPERLINK "http://www.cooking-lobster.com/cooking-lobster/lobster-killing.html" http://www.cooking-lobster.com/cooking-lobster/lobster-killing.html.

Green Curry Game Hens

2010-09-29T06:31:00.000-07:00

I use game hens with this Thai-influenced marinade because half a game hen makes a lovely dinner-party serving. But the marinade works equally well with whole chickens.

(serves two adults and two children)

The Marinade
2 tsp coriander seeds
1 tsp cumin seeds
½ tsp white peppercorns
1 bunch cilantro (including the roots and stems)
2 jalapeno peppers, stemmed
2 cloves garlic, trimmed and peeled
1 large shallot, trimmed and peeled
1 stalk lemongrass, trimmed and sliced
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped
large pinch of kosher salt
1 Tbs fish sauce
3 Tbs peanut oil

The Game Hens
2 game hens, butterflied (see tip below)

1. In a small skillet over medium heat, toast the coriander seeds, cumin seeds, and white peppercorns until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Remove from the heat. When the spices have cooled, grind them in a spice mill (or crush them with a mortar and pestle).

2. In the bowl of a food processor, combine the ground spices with the rest of the marinade ingredients. Puree until a paste forms. Rub the paste over the hens and let them marinate, covered, in the refrigerator for at least one hour and up to a full day.

3. Prepare the grill. Arrange the hens skin-side up and cook for 10 minutes before turning and cooking until done, about another 10 minutes.

TIPS
• Butterflying poultry means splitting the bird’s body into two pieces that remain attached but lie flat. If you don’t have a butcher to do this for you, don’t worry; it’s easy. Using poultry shears or a sharp knife, remove the bone that separates the two pieces of breast. Then pry the chest cavity open until you hear the spine crack. The bird should now lie flat on its exposed interior.

• If you don’t have whole spices, you can make do with ground ones. You can also substitute black peppercorns for white (which are milder), but use a little less.

• You can dramatically reduce the spiciness of this dish by discarding some or all of the jalapeno seeds.

• If you’re unfamiliar with lemongrass, don’t be intimidated. Simply remove the brittle, yellowish-greenish outer leaves to expose the dense white core. Then trim both ends so that you use only the bottom four inches or so.

• You can also make this dish in the oven. Place a roasting pan on the middle rack and preheat to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. (The roasting pan should be large enough to hold the hens in a single layer.) When the oven has reached the proper temperature, arrange the hens in the pan skin-side up and roast until done, about 25–30 minutes. For a crispy skin, finish with a few minutes under the broiler.

Macaroni and Cheese

2010-08-06T06:12:00.000-07:00

Don't be afraid to make this casserole in advance because it tastes just as good reheated. Also feel free to experiment with other cheeses.

(serves a crowd)

1 medium onion
4 c milk
1 lb sharp cheddar cheese
half of a baguette
6 Tbs unsalted butter
1 tsp kosher salt
6 Tbs flour
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1 lb macaroni elbows
2 oz Parmigiano-Reggiano (or other grating cheese)
2 Tbs olive oil

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Bring a large pot of salted pasta water to boil.

2. Finely dice the onion. Heat the milk in the microwave until warm. Grate the cheddar. Chop the baguette in a food processor to make about two cups of breadcrumbs.

3. In a large, heavy saucepan, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the onion and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until the onion softens, about 4-5 minutes. Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, until the flour darkens, about 1-2 minutes. Stir in the mustard.

4. Switching to a whisk and raising the heat to medium, add the milk in a slow stream, whisking constantly to form a white sauce. Let the sauce come to a bare simmer and cook, stirring frequently, for 15 minutes, adjusting the heat as necessary to maintain the simmer.

5. Meanwhile, cook the macaroni until al dente. Drain and transfer to a 9- by 13-inch Pyrex baking dish.

6. Add the Worcestershire sauce and grated cheddar to the white sauce, stirring until the cheese melts. Pour the sauce over the macaroni and toss to combine.

7. Grate the Parmigiano-Reggiano and combine it in a medium bowl with the breadcrumbs and olive oil. Season well with salt and freshly ground pepper. Sprinkle this topping over the macaroni.

8. Bake the casserole in the center of the oven until the topping turns golden, about 15 minutes. Let rest for at least 5 minutes before serving.

TIP
• If you like, you can add a dried herb such as thyme or rosemary to the breadcrumb topping.

Eggplant with Mint and Feta

2010-08-04T14:08:00.000-07:00

If you don’t grow your own mint, you can make do with a single bunch from the supermarket. But if you do grow your own, use a lot!

(serves four as a main course or eight as a side dish)

2 cloves garlic
juice of 2 lemons
kosher salt
2 large shallots, peeled and thinly sliced
2 large Italian eggplant
olive oil
6-8 oz feta cheese
1 bunch fresh mint
1 tsp ground cumin
½ tsp cayenne pepper

1. Peel and grate the garlic. Combine in a small bowl with the lemon juice and a large pinch of salt. Add the shallots and stir to coat. Set aside, stirring occasionally to keep the shallots marinating.

2. Trim and slice the eggplant into rounds ¼–½ inch thick. Using a brush, “paint” each slice with olive oil (both sides). At the same time, sprinkle each slice with a little salt.

3. Grill the eggplant until tender, about three minutes per side. Remove and let cool.

4. Crumble the feta. Remove the mint leaves from the stems, roll into cylinders (several at a time), and slice into quarter–inch ribbons.

5. After removing and reserving the shallots, add the cumin, the cayenne and 2 tablespoons olive oil to the lemon juice. Whisk to form a vinaigrette.

6. Line a serving platter with a layer of grilled eggplant. Top with some shallots, some feta, and some mint. Repeat until you have used all of the ingredients to compose a pleasing stack. Drizzle with the vinaigrette and serve.

TIPS
• The easiest way to grate the garlic is with a Microplane rasp-style grater.

Spaghetti Carbonara

2010-08-02T07:51:00.000-07:00

The trick to making this dish properly is to keep the eggs creamy while still cooking them sufficiently. I find that deglazing the skillet with a little pasta waster tempers the heat just the right amount.

(serves two adults and two children)

½ lb. bacon
1 medium onion
2 oz. parmesan cheese (to make about 1 cup grated)
½ bunch fresh parsley
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 eggs
2 egg yolks
¼ cup heavy cream
1 lb. thick spaghetti

1. Bring a large pot of salted pasta water to a boil.

2. Dice the bacon and onion. Grate the cheese, chop the parsley, and combine. seasoning with salt and pepper. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg yolks, and cream.

3. In a heavy skillet large enough to hold the pasta, cook the bacon over medium heat until barely crisp, about 10–12 minutes .Remove and drain on paper towels. Pour off all but 1–2 tablespoons of the bacon fat, reserving the rest. Reduce the heat to medium-low and sauté the onions. If the skillet seems dry, add back more bacon fat.

4. Add the spaghetti to the boiling water and cook until al dente, about 8 minutes. After reserving some of the pasta water, drain the spaghetti.

5. Remove the onions from the heat. Using two or three tablespoons of the pasta water, deglaze the skillet, scraping the bottom to dissolve the stuck-on bits. Add the drained pasta and toss to combine.

6. Add the egg mixture and toss to coat the pasta. Add the bacon and the cheese mixture. Continue tossing until thoroughly combined.

TIPS
• Use good-quality bacon that’s not too fatty or salty. Otherwise, pour off most of the rendered fat before adding the onion.

• I keep bacon in the freezer, which means that I can use part of a package as I need it. Also, frozen bacon is easier to chop than rubbery refrigerated bacon. I cut off what I need while the bacon is still frozen and let the slices separate by themselves as they cook in the pan.

• There are so few ingredients in this dish that you can’t hide bad cheese. The best Parmesan is imported Parmigiano-Reggiano, which is pricey; but even at sixteen dollars a pound, two ounces sets you back just two dollars.

• Because of the danger of salmonella, the Food and Drug Administration recommends that egg yolks be cooked thoroughly until firm. Firmly cooked yolks, however, are antithetical to a good carbonara. If you’re concerned about salmonella, you can keep the flame on underneath the skillet as you add the eggs.

Garlicky Angel Hair with Grape Tomatoes

2010-07-30T07:35:00.000-07:00

This is a great way to use grape and/or cherry tomatoes from the garden. Be sure not to overcook the angel hair!

(serves two adults and two children)

olive oil
1 quart grape tomatoes
kosher salt
8 cloves garlic
1 tsp. red pepper flakes
1 bunch fresh basil
2 oz. parmesan cheese (to make about 1 cup grated)
1 lb. angel hair pasta
freshly ground black pepper

1. Place a rack at the top of the oven and turn the broiler on high. Line a rimmed baking sheet with aluminum foil and rub the foil with a little olive oil.

2. Toss the tomatoes with 1 tablespoon olive oil and a few pinches of salt. Transfer to the lined baking sheet and broil, shaking the pan occasionally, until the tomatoes shrivel and become slightly blackened, about 12 minutes. Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

3. Peel, trim, and coarsely chop the garlic. In a small saucepan, combine the garlic and the red pepper flakes with ½ cup olive oil. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Let simmer for 1 minute and then remove from the heat.

4. Separate the basil leaves from the stems. Roll the leaves, several at a time, into cylinders and slice crosswise to produce ribbons of basil ⅛–¼ inch wide. Grate the parmesan.

5. When the tomatoes are done, cook the angel hair in the boiling water until al dente, about 4 minutes. Drain and return to the cooking pot. Immediately add the garlic oil and toss to prevent sticking. Add freshly ground pepper to taste and continue tossing. Add the tomatoes and basil and continue tossing. Finally, add the grated cheese, toss, and serve.

Braising Greens with Shallots and Crispy Pepperoni

2010-07-14T10:14:00.000-07:00

This side dish is so robust that you could serve it as a (mostly) vegetable main course, paired with either a hearty soup or some bread and cheese. The most important step is the draining of the blanched greens. If they're too wet when you add them to the skillet, the dish will come out unpleasantly watery. For the same reason, don't reheat the greens too long or they will begin to weep moisture.

(serves two adults and two children)

1 large bunch braising greens (such as collard greens or kale)
2 tsp honey
1 tsp. sherry vinegar
2 large shallots
2 oz pepperoni slices
1 Tbs extra-virgin olive oil

1. Prepare the greens by trimming away the stems and tearing the leaves into bite-sized strips. On a baking sheet, spread two layers of paper towels.

2. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Blanch the greens until just tender, about 4-6 minutes. Remove and drain on the paper towels. Set aside.

3. In a small bowl, stir together the honey and sherry vinegar. Set aside.

4. Halve the shallots lengthwise. Peel and cut into thin half-rings. Cut the pepperoni slices into thin strips. (You can stack them and cut several at a time.)

5. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over a medium flame. Sauté the shallots, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon, until well browned, about 5-6 minutes. Remove and set aside.

6. Add the pepperoni to the skillet and sauté, stirring occasionally, until crispy, about 4-5 minutes. Remove and set aside with the shallots.

7. Add the drained kale to the skillet and toss to coat with the rendered fat. When the kale has just reheated, remove the skillet from the heat. Add the reserved shallots, pepperoni, and honey-vinegar mixture. Toss to combine. Serve.

Party Cake

2010-07-14T10:07:00.000-07:00

This light, sweet cake suits any celebration, but I especially like to make it during strawberry season. You can use all-purpose flour, if you like, but using cake flour ensures a soft texture and delicate crumb.

2¼ cups cake flour
1 Tbs baking powder
½ tsp kosher salt
1¼ cups buttermilk (or whole milk)
4 large egg whites
1 stick unsalted butter, at room temperature
1½ cups sugar
1 pint (or more) strawberries
1 pint (or more) heavy cream
confectioners' sugar, to taste

1. Place a rack in the center of the oven. Preheat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Butter two 9-inch round cake pans. Cut circles from parchment paper to fit. Place in the cake pans and butter.

3. In a mixing bowl, sift together the cake flour, baking powder, and salt.

4. In another mixing bowl, whisk togehter the buttermilk and egg whites.

5. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the whisk attachment (or in a large bowl using a hand mixer), beat the butter and sugar at medium speed until the sugar dissolves and the butter becomes pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

6. With the mixer still running, add one-third of the dry ingredients. When these have been incorporated, add one-half of the wet ingredients, again mixing until incorporated. Repeat, alternating between dry ingredients and wet ingredients, until all have been added. Stop the mixer and scrape down the sides of the bowl. Beat for 2 additional minutes to ensure that the batter is smooth and well aerated.

7. Divide the batter evenly between the twio pans. Shake them gently from side to side to spread out the batter. Bake until a knife inserted in the center of each layer comes out clean, about 30–35 minutes. Transfer the pans to a rack and let cool.

8. If the sides of the cooled layers haven't already pulled away from the pans, release them by running a knife around the outside edges of the layers. To unmold, invert the layers onto platters. Remove the parchment liners.

9. Trim and slice the strawberries, reserving a few whole berries for decoration. Whip the heavy cream, adding confectioners' sugar as you go to taste. Frost one of the layers with about half of the whipped cream. Top with the sliced berries. Place the second layer on top of the berries. Use the remaining whipped cream to frost the rest of the cake. Decorate the top with the reserved whole berries.

TIPS
• I measure the parchment circles by placing the pan on top of the parchment paper and marking its outline with a pencil. Then I cut with a scissors just inside the pencil line. Close is good enough; better a little small than a little large.

• Although I think this cake tastes best with strawberries, you can easily substitute any kind of fresh, sweet berry—such as raspberries, blackberries, or blueberries.

• You can make the layers a day in advance and store them at room temperature covered in plastic wrap.

Lemon Chicken Kebabs

2010-06-04T08:27:00.000-07:00

These kebabs pair nicely with a rice pilaf and some quickly braised greens. Remember that metal skewers stay hot for quite a while, so be sure to use oven mitts to handle them.

(serves two adults and two children)

The Kebabs
1½ lb boneless chicken thighs
2 lemons
8 cloves garlic
3 Tbs olive oil
1 tsp brown sugar
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
¼ tsp ground cinnamon
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and sliced
1 Tbs kosher salt
1 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 sweet onions (such as Vidalias), peeled and cut into eighths
2 red (or yellow) bell peppers, seeded and cut into chunks

The Sauce
2 c plain yogurt
1 cucumber, peeled, seeded, and finely diced
1 bunch cilantro, coarsely chopped
kosher salt, to taste

1. Trim any excess fat from the thighs and cut them into golf ball–sized chunks.

2. Cut the lemons lengthwise into quarters. Place them with the peeled and trimmed garlic in a covered microwaveable bowl. Microwave on high until the lemons soften, about 10–15 minutes. Let cool.

3. Strain the juice into the jar of a blender. Transfer the garlic to the blender. Then, using a sharp paring knife, scrape the pulp and as much white pith as possible off the yellow lemon peel. Add the scraped peel to the blender along with the olive oil, brown sugar, cumin, coriander, cinnamon, ginger, salt, and pepper. Puree to make a soft paste.

4. Setting aside two tablespoons of the paste (for the sauce), scrape the rest of the marinade into a large, resealable plastic storage bag. Add the chicken pieces and massage until all are coated well. Refrigerator for at least one hour (but not overnight).

5. Meanwhile, start the grill and prep the onions and bell peppers (see tip below). When the chicken has marinated sufficiently, remove from the bag and thread onto metal skewers, alternating chicken pieces with vegetable pieces.

6. Make the sauce by adding the yogurt, diced cucumber, chopped cilantro, and salt to the reserved marinade.

7. Grill the kebabs, turning every 2-3 minutes, until the chicken is cooked through. Serve with the sauce on the side.

TIPS
• You can use chicken breasts, but dark meat grills better because it doesn’t dry out.

* When prepping onions for the grill, it’s useful to cut them through the root end. Keeping just a little bit of the root with each piece. Doing so helps the onion hold together as you skewer it.

• To give the onions and bell peppers a little more flavor, I sometimes roll them in the plastic bag from which I’ve removed the chicken so that they can pick up a little marinade.

• If you use a cucumber from your garden or a local farm stand, there’s no need to peel it. Cucumbers from supermarkets, however, are generally waxed and need to be peeled.

Tandoori Chicken on the Grill

2010-06-04T07:34:00.001-07:00

To make authentic tandoori chicken, you need a tandoor (an Indian clay oven). But this is a pretty fair substitute. The marinade is so easy that you can make it on a weekday morning, add the chicken before you leave for work, and grill it when you get home.

(serves two adults and two children)

The Marinade
6 oz plain yogurt
juice of a lime
1 tsp chili powder
½ tsp ground cumin
½ tsp turmeric
1 tsp kosher salt
6 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
3-inch piece fresh ginger, coarsely chopped
red food coloring (optional)

The Chicken
4 boneless chicken breasts
3 Tbs unsalted butter, melted

The Garnishes
1 sweet onion (such as a Vidalia), peeled and sliced into rings
1-2 fresh jalapenos, trimmed and sliced into rings
1-2 limes, cut into wedges
1 bunch cilantro, coarsely chopped

1. Combine all of the marinade ingredients in a mini–food processor or blender and process until smooth. Scrape into a glass or Pyrex dish large enough to hold the chicken breasts. (I use a loaf pan.) Make a few slits in the chicken breasts to encourage the marinade to penetrate. Add the chicken to the marinade and toss to coat well. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 4–12 hours.

2. When you’re ready to eat, start the grill, melt the butter, and prep the garnishes

3. Cook the chicken over high heat, flipping the breasts after 5 minutes. (The meat should look slightly charred.) Cook for another three minutes, then begin basting with the melted butter. Remove the breasts when they are cooked through.

4. Meanwhile, combine the garnishes on one half of a large sheet of aluminum foil. Fold the foil and crimp it to make a pouch. After turning the chicken for the first time, place the foil pouch on the warming shelf (if you have a gas grill) or in a cooler spot (if you have a charcoal grill). You want to wilt the garnishes, not cook them.

5. Transfer the cooked breasts to a platter, top with the wilted garnishes, and tent with the foil from the pouch. Allow the chicken to rests and the flavors to meld for 5-10 minutes before serving.

TIPS
• I don't bother peeling the ginger, because the mini–food processor pulverizes the skin easily and the marinade is eventually discarded.

• Buy dark green limes because they have more flavor than light green ones.

Grilled Leg of Lamb with Cinnamon-Cardamom Pilaf

2010-06-04T06:41:00.000-07:00

(serves eight)

Because you begin marinating the lamb the night before, this recipe makes an easy weeknight meal. But given the high cost of lamb, I usually reserve it for dinner parties. The ease of preparation is still an important benefit, though, because it allows me to spend more time with my guests. The pilaf—which tastes great with the lamb, picking up its Indian flavors—is another easy, make-ahead recipe.

The Lamb
small butterflied leg of lamb, about 3 pounds

The Marinade
⅓ c canola oil
juice of two limes
1 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp ground coriander
½ tsp cayenne pepper
½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
1 tsp kosher salt
1 bunch cilantro, stems trimmed
2 large shallots, peeled and coarsely chopped
3 cloves garlic, peeled and coarsely chopped
2-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and coarsely chopped

The Pilaf
1 medium onion
4 Tbs olive oil
2 c long-grain white rice
6-inch cinnamon stick, broken into about 6 pieces
10 whole cardamom pods
4 c chicken broth
1 tsp kosher salt

1. The night before, prep the lamb by trimming it of excess fat, connective tissue, and silverskin. Also, if any thick lobes remain, slice them as described in the tip below to create a more even thickness throughout. (Don’t worry if you end with three or four disconnected chunks of meat.) Finally, score the meat with shallow, parallel cuts about an inch apart. (These allow the marinade to penetrate.)

2. Combine the marinade ingredients in the jar of a blender and puree until smooth.

3. Place the lamb in a large glass or Pyrex dish. Rub the marinade into the meat, cover the dish with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight.

4. The next day, as dinnertime approaches, begin the pilaf by chopping the onions and sweating them in the olive oil in a large, heavy saucepan set over medium-low heat. When the onion has softened but not yet begun to brown (about 5 minutes), add the rice, cinnamon, and cardamom. Cook, stirring often, for about a minute.

5. Add the chicken stock and salt. Turn up the heat to high and bring the stock to a boil. Let the stock reduce, uncovered, until it just covers the rice, about 5 minutes.

6. Reduce the heat to low, cover the pot tightly, and simmer for 15 minutes without lifting the lid. Remove the pot from the heat and let the pilaf rest for at least another 5 minutes without disturbing the lid. Fluff the rice4 before serving.

7. Meanwhile, prepare your grill. Sear both sides of the lamb for 2-3 minutes each on the grill’s hottest section. Then move the meat to a cooler section and let it cook until done to your taste (see tip below). You can use whatever marinade is left in the glass dish to baste the meat, if you like, but it’s not necessary.

8. Let the meat rest for about 10 minutes before carving.

TIPS
• The process of butterflying removes the bone from the leg, producing a misshapen cut with many different thicknesses. Note, in particular, the large, thick lobes. The nice thing about the variation in thicknesses is that you end up with a good mix of rare and medium portions. But the variation can often be a little too great, with the thinner parts drying out before the thick lobes are done. To ameliorate this problem, I slice the lobes horizontally and open them up like a book, thereby reducing their thickness by half.

• I monitor doneness with an instant-read thermometer. A reading of 125 degrees Fahrenheit is quite rare. I aim for 135 degrees, which is pinkish rather than red.

• If you don't want to grill the lamb (or you want to make it during wintertime), broil the meat for about 10 minutes per side, basting with the marinade to keep it moist. Then roast it in a 375-degree oven until done to your taste, perhaps another 20 minutes.

Carrot Paté

2010-03-24T07:41:00.001-07:00

This spread tastes even better a day or two after you make it. I like to serve it on garlic toasts, which I make using thin slices of baguette. Just mix pressed garlic with some softened butter, spread the result on the bread, and bake in a moderate oven for 20-30 minutes.

3 large carrots
1 small onion
1 Tbs olive oil
¼ c orange juice
¼ c cold water
½ tsp (or more) curry powder
kosher salt, to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 Tbs mayonnaise
1 tsp coarse-grained mustard

1. Peel the carrots and slice them thinly. Chop the onion.

2. Using a skillet with a tight-fitting lid, heat the oil over a medium flame. When the oil is hot, sauté the onion until soft, about 4-5 minutes.

3. Add the carrots, orange juice, water, curry powder, salt, and pepper. Stir to combine. Reduce the flame to low. Cover and simmer until the carrots become tender, about 20 minutes. (If the liquid evaporates too quickly and the carrots start to burn, add more water and orange juice.)

4. When the carrots have softened, uncover the skillet, raise the flame, and boil off the remaining liquid.

5. Transfer the carrots to the bowl of a food processor. Add the mayonnaise and mustard. Puree.

Cilantro-Mint Chicken Curry

2010-03-24T07:18:00.000-07:00

The reason I recommend making the chutney in two batches is that most food processors can’t hold all the ingredients at once.

(serves two adults and two children with leftovers)

The Cilantro-Mint Chutney
2 bunches fresh cilantro, stems included
1 bunch fresh mint, stems removed
2 jalapeno peppers, trimmed and seeded
1 large red onion, coarsely chopped
2-inch piece fresh ginger, coarsely chopped
1 c cold water

The Curry
2 Tbs cumin seeds
1 Tbs coriander seeds
3 cloves garlic
½ c canola oil
1 c yogurt
1 Tbs kosher salt
2½ lb boneless chicken thighs

1. Using a food processor, puree the chutney ingredients in two batches, using half of each ingredient per batch. Combine the batches and set aside.

2. Measure the cumin and coriander seeds. Peel, trim, and press the garlic.

3. Using a large heavy skillet with a tight-fitting lid, heat the oil over medium heat until it’s hot enough to make a cumin seed sizzle. Add the cumin and coriander seeds and cook for 30 seconds. Add the garlic and cook until it begins to brown, about another 30 seconds. Add the yogurt and salt. Stir well. Then add the chicken thighs in a single layer. Cover and cook for 25 minutes, stirring occasionally.

4. Once the thighs becomes tender, shred them use two forks to pull them apart. Then stir in the cilantro-mint chutney. Simmer, uncovered, for at least 10 minutes. Serve with basmati rice.

TIP
• Wear an apron when adding the yogurt because the oil tends to splatter.

Indonesian Lime and Coconut Chicken

2010-03-17T06:20:00.000-07:00

I love this dish because it tastes great and also because it never fails to impress guests. It seems so complicated; and yet, as you can see, it’s a snap. The trick is that the marinade doubles as a sauce.

(serves two parents and two children)

The Marinade
1 14-oz can coconut milk
3 Tbs peanut oil
2 Tbs soy sauce
2 tsp ground coriander
1 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp curry powder
2 Tbs sugar
2 tsp kosher salt
1 fresh jalapeno, minced
grated zest of a lime
cayenne pepper, to taste

The Chicken
4 boneless chicken breasts

The Garnish
cilantro coarsely chopped
lime wedges

1. Combine the ingredients for the marinade in a bowl or dish large enough to hold the chicken as well.

2. Pound each breast to flatten it into a paillard about ½-inch or ¾-inch thick. (If the breasts are especially plump, consider butterflying them—that is, slicing them across their thickness and opening them up like a book.)

3. Marinate the chicken in the refrigerator for at least an hour but not overnight.

4. Prepare your grill. When very hot, remove the chicken from the marinade, reserving the marinade, and grill the chicken until cooked inside with nice grill marks on the outside.

5. Meanwhile, in a saucepan, boil/simmer the marinade for about five minutes. (This kills whatever harmful bacteria may have migrated from the chicken.) Serve over the grilled chicken with a garnish of chopped cilantro and lime wedges.

TIPS
• You can also make this dish on a stovetop using a large cast-iron skillet. Heat the pan over a high flame, add some peanut oil, let it come to temperature, and sauté the breasts quickly, about 2 minutes per side, until cooked all the way through.

• I use a Pyrex loaf pan to marinate the chicken because its small footprint and high sides ensure that the marinade covers all of the meat.

• If you don't have a specialized meat mallet, a heavy-bottomed saucepan or skillet will do. I recommend placing the chicken between sheets of wax paper to keep down the mess.

• When making this on a weeknight, I make the marinade the night before and add the chicken the next morning before I go to work. This way, the breasts are ready to grill when I get home.

New England Clam Chowder

2010-03-16T07:39:00.000-07:00

The worst thing about commercial chowders is how glutinous they are. The second worst thing is the predominance of potatoes over clams. Fortunately, you can rectify both problems by making the chowder yourself. Any type of hard-shell clam will do, but I use the large ones, sold as “quahogs,” because they’re by far the cheapest. What’s most important is that the clams are fresh.

(serves eight)

8 lb fresh hard-shell clams (about 20 quahogs)
¼ lb pancetta (or bacon)
2 large onions
2 lb potatoes
2 Tbs unsalted butter
¼ c flour
1 tsp dried thyme
freshly ground black pepper
3 c milk
1 c heavy cream
fresh parsley

1. Scrub the clams well to remove all the sand and grit from their shells. Place in a large stockpot. Add two cups cold water. Cover and cook over medium heat until the clams open, about 20-25 minutes. Remove the clams as they open. Allow clams and broth to cool.

2. Remove the clams from their shells and chop coarsely. Strain the broth through a coffee filter or cheesecloth to remove any sand or grit. (You should have 4-5 cups of broth. If not add cold water to make 4 cups.) Clean the stockpot.

3. Dice the pancetta and sauté in the stockpot over medium-low heat until the fat renders, about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, chop the onions and dice the potatoes.

4. Add the butter and onions to the pancetta. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions soften, about 10-12 minutes. Add the flour and cook, stirring often, another 3 minutes.

5. Add the reserved clam broth, potatoes, thyme, and black pepper to taste. Raise the heat to medium-high and bring the soup to a simmer. Adjust the heat to maintain a simmer and cook for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the reserved clams and continue simmering, stirring occasionally, another 7 minutes. (Do not overcook the clams or they will become tough.)

6. Reduce the heat to low. Add the milk and cream. Stirring often, heat the milk and cream but do not bring the soup to a boil. When the soup is suitably hot, add freshly chopped parsley and serve.

TIPS
• This soup is easily made in advance, and it tastes even better reheated the next day. You can also make it in stages. The clams can be steamed and refrigerated separately from the broth. Just let the broth warm to room temperature before adding it to the stockpot.

• I recommend pancetta over bacon for this soups, because I think the strong flavor of bacon tends to obscure the more delicate flavor of the clams.

Kung Pao Chicken

2010-03-09T05:37:00.001-08:00

You’ll probably have to visit an Asian food store before making this dish. However, if you’ve never been to one, you’re in for a treat. The Chinese grocery that I frequent, in addition to being unbelievably inexpensive, has fabulous vegetables and the freshest fish around.

(serves two parents and two children)

The Chicken
2 boneless chicken breasts (about 1¼ lb)
1 egg white
1 Tbs cornstarch
large pinch of kosher salt

The Sauce
1 tsp sugar
1 Tbs cornstarch
2 tsp (or more) chili paste with garlic
2 Tbs soy sauce
1 Tbs rice wine (or dry sherry)
1 tsp rice vinegar
4 Tbs chicken broth
1 tsp sesame oil

The Rest
3 cloves garlic
3 scallions
2 Tbs peanut oil
5 (or more) dried red chile peppers
1 c roasted unsalted peanuts

1. Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces. Place in a bowl with the egg white, cornstarch, and salt. Mix well. Set aside.

2. In another bowl, combine the ingredients for the sauce and mix well. Set aside.

3. Trim and coarsely chop the garlic. Trim and cut the scallions into ½-inch lengths.

4. Heat a wok (or a large heavy skillet) over a high flame. Add the peanut oil and heat until it begins to smoke. Add the chile peppers and stir-fry until blacken, about 1 minute. Add the garlic and scallions and stir-fry until fragrant, about another 30 seconds.

5. Add the chicken and stir-fry until just cooked through, about 3 minutes. Add the peanuts and stir-fry for another minute. Add the sauce and heat thoroughly. Serve over rice.

TIPS
• In Chinese cooking, the technique of coating meat with cornstarch (usually as a prelude to stir-frying) is called velveting. I find that the easiest way to do this is to mix the ingredients with my fingers.

• Because I like my Kung Pao to have a lot of “pao,” I often hold back some of the chicken and stir-fry it separately with a little broccoli for the kids.

Chopped Liver

2010-02-26T06:36:00.000-08:00

When making chopped liver, you have a choice. If you’re looking for a finely grained paté, you should use a food processor to purée the ingredients. But if you prefer (as I do) the traditional method that my grandmother used, then you’ll want to chop the liver by hand. The result is a nicely rustic spread.

3 eggs
1 large onion
1 small onion
1 lb chicken livers
olive oil
kosher salt

1. Hard-boil the eggs (see tip below).

2. Heat two tablespoons of the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Chop the large onion finely and sauté it in the oil until caramelized, about 10 minutes. Remove from the skillet and set aside. Meanwhile, chop the small onion finely and set aside.

3. Rinse and pat-dry the chicken livers. Using the same skillet (and adding a little more oil, if necessary), sauté the livers over medium heat until firm but still a touch pink in the center, about 4 minutes. (Overcooking the livers makes them tough.) Set aside.

4. Once the livers have cooled, chop them coarsely on a large cutting board. Add the hard-boiled eggs and continue chopping. Add the cooked onion and continue chopping, mixing the ingredients together as you go. Add some of the raw onion and continue chopping. Season with salt and taste. To adjust the flavor, add more raw onion or salt. To adjust the texture, add more olive oil. Continue chopping and mixing until the spread reaches a consistency that you like.

TIPS
• Here is a foolproof way to hard-boil eggs: place them in a single layer in a small saucepan with enough cold water to cover them by two inches. Bring the water to a boil over medium heat. Turn off the heat, cover the pan, and let the eggs cook an additional 15 minutes. Then rinse them in cold water to stop the cooking process.

• In the old country (by which I mean the Bronx), chopped liver was made not with olive oil but with schmaltz (rendered chicken fat). Should you be roasting a chicken any time soon, save and refrigerate the fat that collects in the bottom of the roasting pan and use it instead of the olive oil.

Biscotti Rustica

2010-02-25T10:14:00.001-08:00

What I like best about these biscotti is their sophisticated taste. Imagine a lightly, nutty, crunchy fruitcake.

(makes 36 biscotti)

1-2 oz crystallized ginger
1 c mixed dried fruit (such as currants and golden raisins)
grated zest of one lemon
2 Tbs brandy
¾ c slivered almonds
3½ c flour
¼ c cornmeal
2 c sugar
1 Tbs baking powder
¼ tsp kosher salt
3 large eggs
3 large egg yolks
1 tsp vanilla extract
turbinado sugar (see tip below)

1. Chop the crystallized ginger into pea-sized pieces. Combine in a small bowl with the dried fruit, lemon zest, and brandy. Let sit for at least 20 minutes. Meanwhile, toast the almonds.

2. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the flour, cornmeal, sugar, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the eggs, egg yolks, and vanilla extract, reserving an egg white for the glaze.

3. With the mixer on low, pour the wet ingredients into the dry, mixing just enough to combine. Avoid the temptation to continue mixing even though the dough seems crumbly. Add the macerated fruit and toasted almonds. Continue mixing until the dough begins to come together in a ball. Let the dough rest for 15 minutes.

4. Preheat the over to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two baking sheets with silicon mats or parchment paper.

5. On a lightly floured countertop, shape the rested dough into four equal logs about eight inches long and two inches in diameter. (If the dough is sticky, you can dust it with a little flour, but try to use as little flour as possible.) Flatten each log slightly so that its cross-section is an oval rather than a circle. Place two of the logs on each of the baking sheets.

6. Beat the reserved egg white with a fork. Brush the top of each log with enough beaten white to make it sticky, then sprinkle each with turbinado sugar.

7. Bake the logs until golden brown on the outside and firm in the center, about 30 minutes. (Rotate the sheets every 10-15 minutes to ensure even baking.) Remove from the oven and let cool for 10-15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.

8. Once the logs have cooled, gently slice them crosswise to create biscotti about ¾-inch thick. Return the biscotti to the baking sheets cut-side down and bake for another 20-25 minutes, flipping them and rotating the sheets about halfway through. The biscotti are done when they have turned a rich golden brown on both sides. Remove from the oven and cool completely on the sheets before storing in an airtight container.

TIPS
• Turbinado sugar, also known as “sugar in the raw,” has large crystals that adhere nicely to the tops of the biscotti. They add a nice sweet crunch, in the same way that large sea salt crystals enhance focaccia.

• These biscotti cut easier if you use a serrated knife.

Chocolate Biscotti

2010-02-25T06:40:00.001-08:00

I suspect that, like tomatoes grown to be shipped, commercial biscotti are baked for travel rather than for taste. Even so, the ones I’ve tried have been so brick-hard they could probably scratch glass. They’re also expensive, which is another reason to make them yourself. Depending on your mood, you can bake either these chocolate biscotti or my gingery biscotti rustica (recipe posted separately).

(makes 24 biscotti)

2 large eggs at room temperature
4 Tbs unsalted butter, melted but not hot
1 tsp vanilla extract
1½ c flour
¾ c sugar 1 tsp baking powder
¼ tsp kosher salt
½ c cocoa powder
1 Tbs instant espresso powder
¾ c semisweet chocolate chips
¾ c pine nuts (optional)

1. Preheat the oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with a silicon mat or parchment paper.

2. Using a fork, beat together the eggs, melted butter, and vanilla extract.

3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, combine at a low speed the flour, sugar, baking powder, salt, cocoa powder, and espresso powder. With the paddle still turning, add the chocolate chips and pine nuts (if using), then drizzle in the egg mixture. Continue mixing until a dough ball forms.

4. On a lightly floured countertop, shape the dough into two eight-inch logs. Flatten each slightly so that its cross-section is an oval rather than a circle.

5. Place the logs on the baking sheet and bake until firm, about 35 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for 10-15 minutes. Reduce the oven temperature to 300 degrees Fahrenheit.

6. Once the logs have cooled, gently slice them crosswise to create biscotti about ¾-inch thick. Return the biscotti to the baking sheet cut-side down and bake for 10 minutes. Flip and bake until done, another 5-10 minutes. Cool on a wire rack before storing in an airtight container.

TIPS
• The eggs should be at room temperature so that they don’t cause the melted butter to congeal. (A quick way to warm eggs is to place them in a bowl of warm water.) Similarly, the melted butter should be cool so that it doesn’t cook the eggs.

• If you don’t have a stand mixer, use a whisk to combine the dry ingredients, then form a well in the center of the mixing bowl. Pour in the egg mixture and use your fingers to knead the dough as you would when making fresh pasta. Form the logs and continue as above.

• Handle the once-cooked biscotti logs delicately while slicing them because the dough will still be crumbly.

• Experiment with different nuts. Pecans also work well, but I recommend toasting them first.

Pork Scaloppine with Lemons

2010-02-24T11:08:00.000-08:00

Scaloppine are pieces of meat that have been pounded very thin. You’re probably familiar with veal scaloppine, which are used to make dishes like veal marsala and veal parmesan. Veal scaloppine can be hard to find, however, and they’re usually pricey. That’s why this dish calls for pork scaloppine, which you can make yourself.

(serves two adults and two children)

1 large pork tenderloin (about 1 lb)
2 large lemons
¼ c flour
3 Tbs canola oil
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 Tbs unsalted butter
6 Tbs sweet vermouth
½ c chicken broth

1. Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a baking sheet with paper towels.

2. Cut the tenderloin across its width into six approximately equal pieces. Cover a cutting board with a sheet of wax paper. Working with one piece at a time, place the pork cut-side up on the wax paper and cover with a second sheet of wax paper. Using a wooden mallet or the bottom of a small heavy pan, pound the pork until it forms a quarter-inch-thick scaloppine. Repeat with the remaining pork.

3. Trim the ends off both lemons, revealing the pulp. Cut one of the lemons into eight thin slices. Cut four similarly thin slices from the second lemon. Squeeze the rest of the second lemon, producing 2-3 tablespoons of juice.

4. Measure the flour into a pie plate or shallow bowl.

5. Heat 2 tablespoons of the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Meanwhile, salt and pepper three of the scaloppine and dredge them in the flour, shaking off any excess. Sauté the scaloppine in the oil until lightly browned on both sides and cooked through, about 1-2 minutes per side. Transfer to the baking sheet, which should now be place in the preheated over. Add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the skillet and repeat with the remaining scaloppine.

6. Pour off any excess fat from the skillet and reduce the heat to medium. Add 1 tablespoon of the butter to the skillet. Once it has stopped foaming, add the lemon slices and cook them until well browned on the bottom, about 4 minutes. Turn the slices. Add 2 tablespoons of the vermouth and cook until the vermouth boils down to a glaze, about 2-3 minutes. Transfer the caramelized lemon slices to the oven, placing two on top of each scaloppine.

7. Return the heat to medium-high and use the remaining quarter-cup of vermouth to deglaze the pan (see tip below). Add the reserved lemon juice and the chicken broth, bringing the sauce to a boil. Cook until it reduces to a quarter-cup, about 5 minutes. Stir in the remaining tablespoon of butter and serve over the scaloppine.

TIPS
• The purpose of deglazing the pan is to incorporate into the sauce all of the flavorful bits stuck to the bottom. When deglazing, you should scrape the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon to help the solvent (in this case, the alcohol in the vermouth) do its job.

• Eat the lemon slices, peel and all. Caramelizing them takes the edge off their sourness.

• This dish can easily be fancied up with some fresh sage leaves and a few slices of prosciutto. After you’ve salted and peppered the scaloppine, top each with two sage leaves. Then cover each with a slice of prosciutto, tucking any excess underneath. (The prosciutto will stick to the pork, sealing in the sage leaves.) Finally, dredge all in the flour and proceed as above.

• You can also make this dish with chicken. Simply cut a boneless breast crosswise into three or four pieces and pound them as above.

Lift Ev'ry Voice and Sing

2010-02-12T11:52:00.000-08:00

Last night, as I watched the telecast of a gala White House concert on PBS, my disappointment with Barack Obama and the party that he leads—my party, I’m embarrassed to say—really hit home. Not that I’ve been expecting much from this administration. I voted for President Obama in the primaries because I perceived an arrogance in Hillary Clinton that I considered dangerous. I voted for Obama again in the general election because I perceived a lack of integrity in the Republican party that I considered even more dangerous. Nevertheless, I must admit that on election night, I cried.

The reason I cried is that I have deep feelings about the civil rights movement. I remember it from my childhood (I was six years old when Martin Luther King Jr. was killed), and I’ve studied it carefully ever since. In 2005, I published a history of the movement entitled The Coming Free.

As an author, I’m still drawn to the civil rights movement because it’s the best kind of history to write about. More than just teaching us the ways of the world, the stories of the civil rights movement inspire us with their idealism and emotionality. They encourage us to identify with people who acted courageously and pursued commendable ideals, even if they suffered painful consequences. Speaking for myself, I know that recalling and retelling the stories always makes me feel ennobled.

When Barack Obama appeared on stage in Grant Park last November to accept John McCain’s concession, I felt as though the half-brothers who had murdered Emmett Till, the driver who had kicked Rosa Parks off the Cleveland Avenue bus, the Klansmen who had beaten the Freedom Riders in Montgomery, and the firemen who had turned their high-pressure water hoses on schoolchildren in Birmingham had finally been exorcised from the collective unconscious. And so I cried.

Which brings me to this week’s White House concert of “Songs from the Civil Rights Movement.” As you might expect, I tuned in with great eagerness. But I could tell from the president’s pedestrian opening remarks that neither he nor anyone else in the audience felt much of an emotional connection to the history of the movement.

What followed was, to my mind, a sadly inappropriate revue. The evening opened with gospel singer Yolanda Adams offering a virtuosic rendition of Sam Cooke’s “A Change Is Gonna Come,” followed by Smokey Robinson and Jennifer Hudson singing Curtis Mayfield’s “People Get Ready.” I love both these songs, and I’m always happy to hear them performed well. But they are pop songs, not movement songs. No one sang these songs in churches or at rallies—in fact, no one sang them at all, unless you count singing along with the radio.

It wasn’t until John Mellencamp, of all people, sang “Keep Your Eyes on the Prize” that I finally heard a movement song; and it wasn’t until Joan Baez launched into “We Shall Overcome” that a few people in the audience began joining in, if only by mouthing the words quietly. Didn’t anyone recall that joining in and singing along was the point and purpose of movement songs? Raising one’s voice not only showed solidarity but also boosted morale and released emotions through the catharsis of physical exhortation. If you haven’t experienced this yourself, try listening to Pete Seeger’s We Shall Overcome, the recording of his June 1963 Carnegie Hall concert, and you’ll hear what I mean.

The highlight of the White House concert for me came when Bernice Johnson Reagon, one of the original SNCC Freedom Singers, interrupted her performance of “Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me ’Round” to admonish the audience, “I know this is a show, but you have to actually sing this song. You can never tell when you might need it.”

What a shame that the president had to be told this. What a shame that the history of the civil rights movement rests so lightly, like dandruff, on the shoulders of those in power. I often wonder, despite my cynicism, how the Washington elite can be so oblivious to the struggles of the people whom they ostensibly serve. Surely, after spending their days seeking partisan advantage, they can spare some time for the people’s most pressing business? Surely, after fattening themselves at the public trough, they can show a degree of shame and some measure of respect and compassion for those less privileged than themselves? Unfortunately, the truth is that the people in power have trained themselves to ignore such feelings, even as the weight of history presses down upon them.

Here was Joan Baez—no longer the beautiful folk princess of 1963, now grey and a little hoarse—reprising her performance at the March on Washington, singing “We are not afray-ay-aid/We are not afray-ay-aid/We are not afraid today-ay-ay-ay-ay.” I could see in her eyes that she was fighting back the tears. Not being on stage, I didn’t have to. But the audience of Washington dignitaries seemed not to notice. They just sat there placidly in the East Room of the White House, greeting the end of the song with smiles and polite applause. Didn’t they realize what was happening?

I’m sure they all consider the civil rights movement a highly laudable period in American history, but I don’t think they understand that its recollection presents a rare opportunity for humility. It isn’t every day that one gets the chance to feel genuine empathy with people who felt the lash of injustice, nor awe at the heroics of those who righted the wrongs. Such opportunities should be seized, because they are the wellspring of the emotions that inspire us to lead better lives. All else is temporizing or the pursuit of personal advantage, which is why—after a year of emotionless talk from the White House and Congress—there is still no health care reform and prisoners are still being held without trial at Guantánamo Bay.

I couldn’t help but feel that this concert, intended to celebrate the civil rights movement, cheapened its memory because its organizers and especially its audience failed to connect with what remains vital about the movement: the example that it set of ordinary people accomplishing extraordinary change.

Is it still possible to believe that the party of this milquetoast president can make a similar difference in the world? I think not, and I can no longer suspend my disbelief.

You can watch excerpts from the concert yourself on YouTube. Joan Baez’s performance can be found here, and Bernice Johnson Reagon’s performance here.

Super Bowl Ragu

2010-02-12T06:20:00.001-08:00

My mother began hosting Super Bowl parties when I was in high school so that my stepfather could watch the game with a big crowd. The guests were mostly my friends, though, because my parents’ friends don’t like football. Typically, my mom made spaghetti with meatballs—a dish that I’ve always found a little bland. When I took over the tradition about a dozen years ago, I changed the menu. This is one of my favorite recipes to make for a house full of people when I want to spend time with my guests and not in the kitchen.

(serves twelve)

6 oz pancetta
1 large onion
5 cloves garlic
¼ c olive oil
3 lb ground meat (beef, pork, or sausage removed from its casing)
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 Tbs dried oregano
2 tsp red pepper flakes
1 c dry white wine
1 28-oz can crushed tomatoes
1 12-oz can tomato paste

1. Finely dice the pancetta. Finely chop the onion and garlic.

2. Heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large Dutch oven over a medium flame. Sauté the pancetta and onion, stirring occasionally, until well browned, about 12 minutes. Add the garlic and continue sautéing for another 2 minutes. Remove and set aside.

3. Adding the remaining olive oil, increase the flame under the pan to medium-high, and add half of the ground meat, seasoning it with salt and pepper. As the meat cooks, turn it with a spatula so that it browns well on all sides. Don’t crumble it, however. Merely break it up into pieces about an inch long (about the size of a large gumball). When done, remove and set aside. Repeat with the remaining meat, adding more olive oil if necessary.

4. Return the pancetta-onion mixture and the previously browned meat to the pan. Add the oregano and red pepper flakes, stirring to combine. Add the wine to deglaze the pan, using a wooden spoon to scrape up and dissolve any browned bits. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, and half a cup of water. Stir to combine.

5. Bring the sauce to a boil. Reduce the heat to a simmer. Cook the sauce for at least two hours, stirring occasionally. As the liquid in the sauce evaporates, add more water, half a cup at a time. Serve with penne.

TIPS
• If you’ve never cooked with pancetta, this is a good time to start. Pancetta is an Italian form of bacon that you can buy from any decent butcher. I store large chunks of it in my freezer, but you can also buy it sliced. Because it’s so fatty, pancetta cuts easily, even when frozen. In fact, pancetta is much easier to dice when it is frozen, so don’t defrost it first.

• Don’t forget to put the pasta water on early. I cook three pounds of penne, so I use a big pot and a lot of water, which can take up to an hour to boil.

Grandma's Fruit-Nut Bread

2010-02-12T05:39:00.000-08:00

When my grandmother died twenty years ago, my mother saved her recipe box. This was one of the recipes I was happiest to find inside. It’s a quick bread that Grandma made with dates and apricots. Like most quick breads, it benefits from sitting around, so a loaf made on Sunday tastes great all week. Try it as an afterschool snack for the kids, maybe with a little cream cheese.

6 pitted dates (about 3 oz)
12 dried apricots (about 3 oz)
1 tsp baking soda
1 c walnuts
1¾ c flour
¾ c sugar
1 tsp kosher salt
½ tsp baking powder
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Butter and lightly flour a loaf pan.

3. Chop the dates and apricots into pea-sized pieces. Place in a small bowl. Coat with the baking soda. Add 1 cup boiling water. Stir to separate, then let hydrate while you prepare the dry ingredients.

4. Chop the walnuts. Combine in a mixing bowl with the flour, sugar, salt, and baking powder. Beat the egg with a fork and add it to the dry ingredients. Add the vanilla extract.

5. Add the fruit-and-water mixture and stir to combine thoroughly. Scrape the batter into the prepared loaf pan.

6. Bake until done, testing as you go, about 45 minutes. Allow the bread to cool completely before slicing.

TIPS
• You can use any dried fruit or nuts for this recipe. I usually keep the dates and walnuts, but I've successfully substituted dried cherries and dried cranberries for the apricots.

• I test for doneness using a knife. I insert the blade into the center of the loaf, and if it comes out clean (no gooey batter attached), then I know the bread is done.

Waffles

2010-02-08T07:32:00.001-08:00

If you’ve got only one waffle iron, buy another. Although this recipe allows you to stockpile waffles in the oven, you really need to have two irons going at the same time if you want to feed a family.

(makes about 10 waffles)

1½ c flour
½ c cornstarch
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
2 Tbs sugar
1 tsp kosher salt
1½ c milk
½ c plain yogurt
¼ c canola oil
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat the waffle irons. Preheat the oven to 225 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, cornstarch, baking powder, baking soda, sugar, and salt.

3. In another bowl, whisk together the milk, yogurt, canola oil, eggs, and vanilla extract.

4. Pour the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients. Mix gently with a spatula until all the dry ingredients have been moistened and no pockets of flour remain. Do not overmix.

5. Bake the batter in waffle irons. When the waffles are done, transfer them to the preheated oven and let them crisp, unstacked, for a few minutes before serving.

TIPS
• Most waffle recipes (as most pancake recipes) call for buttermilk, but I don’t generally keep buttermilk around, and I’m not going out for some early on a Sunday morning. That’s why this recipe uses yogurt, which I do keep on hand. If you want to use buttermilk, the proper amounts are 1½ cups buttermilk and ½ cup milk.

• The use of cornstarch makes these waffles nicely crispy. If you don’t have enough, substitute flour.

• Don’t be afraid to add chopped nuts to your waffles. Both walnuts and pecans work well. You can add them to the batter, but my son prefers his waffles nutless. So what I do is put a ladleful of batter into the waffle iron, sprinkle some nuts on top, and cover the nuts with some more batter. This way, those who want nuts can have, and those who don’t need not.

Oatmeal Cookies

2010-02-08T06:58:00.000-08:00

We hosted a skating party for our kids and some of their friends this weekend. About four-thirty, we realized that we’d forgotten about dessert. By five, these cookies were ready. They’re always a big hit—with grownups, too.

(makes 24-30 cookies)

1 c nuts (such as pecans or walnuts)
1 c dried fruit (such as raisins or sour cherries)
1½ c old-fashioned oats
1 c bittersweet chocolate chips
1 c flour
¾ tsp baking powder
½ tsp baking soda
½ tsp kosher salt
12 Tbs unsalted butter, softened
1½ c dark brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla extract

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Line two baking sheets with silicon mats or parchment paper.

2. Toast the nuts. Let them cool, then chop coarsely. Chop the fruit coarsely.

3. In a mixing bowl, combine the nuts and fruit with the oats and chocolate chips. In a second bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.

4. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter and sugar at medium speed until the sugar dissolves, about 1 minute. Reduce the speed to low, add the egg and vanilla. Beat until fully combined, about another 30 seconds.

5. With the mixer still running, gradually add the flour mixture and then the oats mixture. Mix until just combined. Using a spatula, scrape down the sides of the bowl, incorporating any leftover dry ingredients into the batter.

6. Pinch off a golf ball-sized piece of batter and roll it in the palms of your hands to form a tight ball. Flatten slightly and place on a baking sheet. Continue until there is no batter left.

7. Bake until the edge of the cookies have set but the centers are still soft, about 12-15 minutes. Let the cookies cool a little on the baking sheets before transferring them to a rack.

TIPS
• If you don’t have a stand mixer, a hand mixer and large mixing bowl will do.

• Be careful not to overbake these cookies, which should be a little chewy.

Chicken with Cashew Nuts

2010-02-05T13:50:00.000-08:00

No doubt because of the high price of cashews, most Chinese restaurants drown this dish in celery. The only fix I could find was to learn how to make it myself.

(serves two parents and two children)

The Chicken
2 boneless chicken breasts (about 1 lb)
1 egg white
1 Tbs cornstarch
kosher salt

The Sauce
3 Tbs hoisin sauce
3 Tbs rice wine (or dry sherry)

The Rest
3 cloves garlic
1 red bell pepper
3 scallions
6 oz cashews
3 Tbs peanut oil
2 tsp sesame oil

1. Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces. Place in a bowl and add the egg white, cornstarch, and a large pinch of salt. Mix thoroughly so that the chicken becomes well coated. Set aside.

2. In a small bowl, combine the hoisin sauce and rice wine. Set aside.

3. Peel and coarsely chop the garlic. Julienne the red pepper. Trim the scallions and cut into one-inch lengths (both white and green parts).

4. Heat a wok (or a heavy skillet) over a high flame. Dry-fry the cashews until toasted, about 1 minute. Stir often to avoid scorching. Remove and set aside.

5. Add 2 tablespoons peanut oil to the wok. When the oil just begins to smoke, add the garlic and stir-fry until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the chicken and red pepper, stir-frying until the chicken is nearly cooked through, about 2 minutes. Remove and set aside.

6. Add the remaining tablespoon of peanut oil to the wok. Wait for the oil to heat, then drop the sauce into it. Stir. After the sauce has thickened a little (about 30 seconds), return the chicken and red pepper to the wok. Stir to combine.

7. Add the cashews, scallions, and sesame oil. Continue to cook until the scallions wilt slightly, about another minute. Serve over rice.

TIPS
• In Chinese cooking, the technique of coating meat with cornstarch (usually as a prelude to stir-frying) is called velveting. I find that the easiest way to do this is to mix the ingredients with my fingers. It’s a gooey delight.

• When I first began making this dish, I simply added the sauce at the end. Then my friend Michael Chesloff, an expert on Chinese regional cooking, told me that the proper way to "build" the sauce was to use a method called gong bao, which I have since adopted. The term refers to the way the hoisin sauce “explodes” when added to the hot oil.

• If you like your food a little spicy, this dish benefits from the addition of a few dried red chile peppers. Add them before the garlic to flavor the oil. Remove after they blacken, about 1 minute.

Thai Green Chicken Curry

2010-02-01T07:30:00.001-08:00

The hardest thing about cooking Thai food at home is getting the right ingredients. Although I can usually find lemongrass at a local specialty store, there’s no grocery within an hour of my home that carries galangal (Asian ginger) or kaffir lime leaves. Fortunately, many supermarkets do carry Thai Kitchen green curry paste, a handy product that blends all of the hard-to-get ingredients together so you don’t have to. It even keeps well in the refrigerator.

(serves two adults and two children)

1 lb boneless chicken thighs
2 c snap peas
1 large red bell pepper
2 large shallots
1 bunch basil
1 Tbs peanut oil
3 Tbs green curry paste
1 14-oz can coconut milk
1 Tbs brown sugar
juice of a lime
2 Tbs fish sauce

1. Cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces about an inch or so long.

2. Trim the peas, removing the strings (if necessary) and cutting the larger ones in half on the diagonal. Slice the red pepper into thin two-inch strips. Peel and slice the shallots thinly. Strip the basil leaves and slice into strips or tear into pieces.

3. In a wok (or a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan), heat the peanut oil over a medium-high flame until very hot. Add the curry pate and stir-fry until fragrant, about 30 seconds.

4. Remove the wok from the heat. Add the chicken, red pepper, shallots, coconut milk, brown sugar, and one cup of water. Stir to combine.

5. Return the wok to the heat. Bring the curry to a simmer, Reduce the heat to medium, cover, and cook until the chicken is done, about 8-10 minutes. After 4-5 minutes of simmering, add the peas.

6. When the chicken is done, stir in the basil, lime juice, and fish sauce. Let the curry rest off the heat for 5 minutes. Serve over rice.

TIP
• The only difference between green chicken curry and red chicken curry is the curry paste. Red curry paste is a little spicier, however, so you might want to use a little less.

Sear-Roasted Salmon with Lemon and Onions

2010-01-29T08:46:00.001-08:00

This recipe—developed by my wife, Julia—minimizes the fishiness associated with some farmed salmon. Like many great inventions, it was born of a mishap (vulcanized rubber also comes to mind). One day, Julia pan-seared a salmon filet, only to discover after she had wiped the skillet clean that the fish wasn’t cooked enough. Because the oven was already on, she put the fish back in the skillet and roasted it for a few more minutes. The result was a dish with a noticeably cleaner taste.

(serves two adults and two children)

1½ lb salmon filet
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 large lemon
1 large onion
olive oil

1. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Wash and dry the salmon. Sprinkle the flesh side with salt and pepper.

3. Wash the lemon and slice it thinly, discarding the pulpless ends. Peel the onion and slice it into rings (or half-rings) that are approximately the same thickness as the lemon slices.

4. Lightly coat a large nonstick ovenproof skillet with olive oil and heat it over a high flame until very hot. Place the salmon in the skillet flesh-side down and sear for 3 minutes.

5. Remove the salmon to a plate lined with paper towels. Meanwhile, use another paper towel to wipe the rendered fat from the skillet. Add a little more olive oil, about a tablespoon. Return the skillet to the high flame.

6. Add the onion slices and sauté for a minute or two, until they begin to wilt. Add the lemon slices and continue to sauté for another minute.

7. Pushing the lemon and onion slices to the side, return the salmon to the skillet, skin—side down. Transfer the skillet to the oven.

8. Roast until the salmon is done and the lemon and onion slices have caramelized, about 10-15 minutes. Serve the salmon topped with the lemon and onion slices.

TIPS
• Sweet onions, such as Vidalias, work especially well in this dish.

• Eat the lemon slices, rind and all; they’re fabulous.

• If your salmon filet is on the thin side, it may finish roasting before the lemon and onion slices are properly caramelized. If so, remove the salmon to a bed of paper towels while the onion and lemon slices finish in the oven.

• To promote even caramelization, I shake the skillet once or twice during the roasting.

• Remember that the skillet handle will be very hot after 15 minutes in the oven. Use two mitts to remove it from the oven and leave one mitt on the handle in case you reach for the skillet without thinking.

Buttermilk Pancakes

2010-01-28T06:20:00.000-08:00

This recipe delivers pancakes on the thick side, which is how I like them. The most important thing to remember is not to overmix the batter. As my daughter, Abigail, demonstrated in a science fair project last year, overmixing the batter will drive off the aeration created by the baking soda and baking powder, leading to flat and rubbery flapjacks. Mix the batter only enough to wet the flour and break up any clumps—but no more!

(serves two parents and two hungry children)

2 c flour
2 Tbs sugar
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp baking soda
½ tsp baking powder
¾ c milk
1 c buttermilk (see tip below)
2 eggs
4 Tbs unsalted butter

1. Preheat a griddle until hot. (Drops of water should sizzle and evaporate instantly.)

2. In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda, and baking powder.

3. In another bowl, combine the milk and buttermilk and microwave briefly until lukewarm. Beat the eggs lightly with a fork and add them to the buttermilk mixture. Melt the butter and add it to the buttermilk mixture. (If you add melted butter to cold milk or buttermilk, it will congeal.)

4. Add the wet ingredients to the dry ingredients, mixing gently with a spatula or wooden spoon to combine. Make sure that all of the flour is wetted and break up any large pockets but leave the batter thick and a little lumpy.

5. Spoon the batter onto the griddle. Cook the pancakes until bubbles begin to appear, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook until done.

TIPS
• I you don't have buttermilk, use plain yogurt. Substitute one cup of yogurt and an additional half-cup of milk for the cup of buttermilk. (The additional milk compensates for the thickness of the yogurt.)

• Many factors, including the type of flour you use and the humidity in your kitchen, will affect the consistency of the batter you produce, even if you measure carefully. As you make this recipe again and again, however, you’ll become familiar with a consistency that works for you. Keep in mind that too thin a batter will yield crepes, while too thick a batter will make it difficult to cook the inside of the pancakes before the outside turns black. To judge whether the consistency of my batter is right, I scoop up some batter in the cupped silicon spatula that I use to mix the batter and transfer it to the griddle. If the batter drools quickly off the spatula, it’s too thin (and I add a little flour). If the batter holds in a clump on the spatula, it’s too thick (and I add a little milk). Just right is a gravity-induced plop-plop-plop back into the bowl.

Butternut Squash Soup

2010-01-27T06:31:00.000-08:00

This soup is nearly rich enough to serve as a dessert, but I use it as the basis for an easy midwinter meal. I make the soup ahead of time, say on a Sunday, and then serve it midweek with a hearty salad (perhaps including pear or some roasted beets), an oven-toasted baguette, and a nice cheese.

(serves two adults and two children)

1 medium butternut squash
1 medium onion
1 sprig fresh rosemary
2 Tbs unsalted butter
4 c chicken stock
ground nutmeg
kosher salt
freshly ground black pepper
heavy cream (optional)

1. Trim and peel the squash (see tip below). Halve it lengthwise and scrape out the seeds. Cut into one-inch dice. Coarsely chop the onion. Strip and coarsely chop the rosemary.

2. In a large stockpot, melt the butter and sauté the onion over medium-low heat until translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the squash, chicken stock, and rosemary. Raise the heat to high and bring the soup to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer until the squash becomes tender, about 25 minutes.

3. Using a slotted spoon or wire skimmer, remove the squash to the bowl of a food processor and puree. Return the squash puree to the stockpot and stir to combine. Season to taste with the nutmeg, salt, and pepper. When serving, consider drizzling a little heavy cream into each portion.

TIPS
• For some reason, peeling butternut squash leaves an unpleasant residue on the hands that can badly dry out the skin. I avoid this by wearing disposable latex gloves (found at any drug store).

• This soup has a lot of body. If you prefer your soup thinner, add more chicken stock at any time.

• If you own an immersion blender and haven’t figured out when to use it, this is your chance. Forget the food processor. Just lower your immersion blender into the stockpot and press PLAY.

Spaghetti with Clam Sauce

2010-01-26T08:05:00.000-08:00

A lot of families rely on spaghetti with butter and cheese when there seems to be nothing else in the pantry, but at our house the default is spaghetti with clam sauce. Because of this recipe, we always keep chopped clams on hand as a staple, and we’re rarely without parsley, either in the garden or in the refrigerator.

(serves two parents and two children)

3 6.5-oz cans chopped clams
4 cloves garlic
1 bunch parsley
1 lb dried spaghetti
¼ c olive oil
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1 tsp (or less) red pepper flakes
Parmesan or Romano cheese (for grating)

1. Bring a large pot of salted pasta water to a boil.

2. Open the cans of clams, retaining the clam juice. Peel and chop the garlic. Trim and chop the parsley.

2. Add the pasta to the boiling water, stirring occasionally to avoid clumping. Cook until nearly but not quite done (limp but still toothy). Drain.

3. Meanwhile, heat a skillet large enough to hold all of the cooked pasta over a medium flame. Add the olive oil. When the oil becomes hot, add the garlic, black pepper, and red pepper flakes. Wait a minute for the garlic to cook, then add the clams and their juice. Stir to combine and bring to a simmer.

4. Add the drained pasta and toss to coat. Add the parsley and continue cooking, tossing occasionally, for two minutes so that the pasta can absorbs the sauce and become thoroughly done. Serve with cheese for grating.

TIPS
• Be sure to use dried pasta rather than fresh, because fresh pasta doesn't have sufficient body to stand up to this cooking method).

• I like my spaghetti with clam sauce to have a little bite, so I use a full teaspoon of red pepper flakes. If you don’t like your food spicy, use half a teaspoon.

• If you're feeling adventurous, try sautéing some finely diced pancetta in the oil before adding the garlic. The robust flavor of the pancetta adds a nice depth to the sauce. (I like to keep a chunk of pancetta in the freezer so that I always have some on hand. It's so fatty that you can cut it without thawing it first.)

Steak au Poivre

2010-01-25T06:31:00.000-08:00

Usually, I grill steaks; but in the dead of winter, this recipe comes in handy. The method is called sear-roasting: you sear the meat on the stovetop, locking in the juices, then roast it in a hot oven. Although the steak tastes great on its won, I like to add an easy pan sauce.

(serves two parents and two children)

2 T-bone steaks (about a pound each)
2 Tbs black peppercorns
kosher salt
olive oil
1 cup red wine
3 Tbs unsalted butter

1. Preheat the over to 500 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Wash the steaks, then pat them dry with paper towels.

3. Use a mortar and pestle (or the side of a heavy knife) to crush the peppercorns.

2. Season both sides of the steaks with the crushed pepper and salt, pressing the seasonings into the meat.

3. Heat a cast-iron skillet large enough to hold both steaks over a high flame. Add a thin film of olive oil.

4. When the oil starts to shimmer, add the steaks and sear for three minutes. Flip the steaks and transfer the skillet to the oven. Roast until done, about ten minutes for medium rare.

5. Transfer the steaks to a platter and tent with aluminum foil to keep them warm while you make the sauce.

6. After pouring off the accumulated fat, place the skillet over a medium-high flame. Add the wine and deglaze, using a whisk to loosen the browned bits stuck to the skillet’s bottom. Bring to a boil, whisking occasionally, until the wine is reduced by three-quarters, about 6 minutes.

7. Add the butter, one tablespoon at a time. As it melts, whisk it into the sauce. When all of the butter has melted, the sauce is done. Serve drizzled over the steaks.

TIPS
• Whenever you cook with wine, use a decent bottle. My rule is, if I wouldn’t drink a wine with dinner, I won’t cook with it, either. There are plenty of decent four- and five-dollar Cabernets to choose from. My favorite is Crane Lake.

• If you lack the hand strength to crush peppercorns, you can always put them in a small plastic freezer bag and crush them with a hammer.

• I test the doneness of meat by pressing it with my fingers. Undercooked meat feels flaccid, while cooked meat feels firm to the touch. Telling the difference takes a little practice, but learning how is worth the effort because cutting into meat while it cooks releases juices, drying the meat out. I suggest probing the steaks every few minutes as they cook so that you can gauge the differences in feel.

• Remember that cast iron stays very hot long after you remove it from the oven. Keep a mitt on the handle at all times while making the sauce.

Penne with Broccoli Raab

2010-01-22T07:20:00.000-08:00

This is one of my family’s favorite easy dinners—a step up from boiling frozen tortellini when we’re feeling rushed or lazy. The recipe also works well as a side for roasted or grilled chicken.

(serves two adults and two children)

a large bunch of broccoli raab
1 lb dried penne
¼ c olive oil
1 tsp red pepper flakes
Parmesan or Romano cheese (for grating)

1. Bring a large pot of salted pasta water to a boil.

2. If you haven’t already done so, trim the ends of the broccoli raab (see tip below). Blanch the broccoli raab in the boiling pasta water for two minutes. Remove and drain.

3. Bring the pasta water back to a boil. Add the penne and cook until done. Drain.

4. Meanwhile, when the penne is nearly done, begin heating the oil and red pepper flakes in a large skillet over a medium flame. Chop the drained broccoli raab into pieces about an inch or so long and add them to the skillet. When the penne is cooked and drained, add it to the skillet and toss to combine. Serve with cheese for grating.

TIP
• The wire that holds the bunch of broccoli raab together in the supermarket promotes spoilage, so I remove it when I get home. Before I do, however, I trim the ends of the broccoli raab, because trimming is much easier when the bunch is still wrapped tightly.

Chocolate Bonbon Cake

2010-01-22T06:49:00.000-08:00

My feeling is that, if you’re going to eat things that are bad for you, those things should taste really, really good. This cake tastes that good, and it’s fancy, too. Some restaurants call it a chocolate mousse cake because its lack of flour makes it seem more like a baked mousse thank a cake. My daughter, Abigail, calls it a chocolate bonbon cake because when she was just learning to read, she confuses bourbon with bonbon, and the name stuck.

12 oz high-quality semisweet chocolate
12 Tbs unsalted butter
6 eggs, separated
¾ c brown sugar
¼ c flour
4 Tbs bourbon
1 tsp vanilla extract
½ tsp kosher salt
confectioner’s sugar

1. Place an oven rack in the middle of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Unlock a nine-inch springform pan so that the bottom separates from the ring (the sides). Cover the bottom with extra-wide, heavy-duty aluminum foil so that there is an outside margin of several inches. Press the foil down to reveal the rim of the bottom but don’t wrap the foil under the bottom. Return the bottom to the ring and relock the pan. Place the pan on a second large piece of foil and fold both foil layers up so that they cover at least half the height of the ring. (This application of foil prevents seepage from the water bath in which the cake is baked.)

3. Butter the inside of the springform pan. Add a parchment-paper liner to the bottom and butter this as well. Set the prepared pan inside a larger roasting pan.

4. Melt the chocolate and the butter (see tip below). Stir to combine.

5. Using a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (or a hand mixer), beat the egg yolks and brown sugar on medium until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes.

6. Reduce the mixer speed to low. Add the melted chocolate and butter and mix until just combined. Add the flour, and mix until just combined. Add the bourbon and vanilla extract and mix until just combined.

7. Transfer the batter to a mixing bowl. Clean and dry the stand mixer, then beat the egg whites and salt on high until the whites form soft peaks, about a minute.

8. After carefully folding the whipped egg whites into the batter, transfer the batter to the springform pan and place the springform pan/roasting pan assembly in the middle of the oven. Before closing the oven door, add enough hot tap water to the roasting pan so that the water covers half the thickness of the cake, about 1½ inches.

9. Bake until the center of the cake is set, about 50-55 minutes. Remove the springform pan from the water bath and let it cool on a rack. When the cake has cooled completely, unlock the ring and, using a suitably flat platter, invert the cake so that the top becomes the bottom. Peel off the parchment paper, and dust the top of the cake with confectioner’s sugar. Serve at room temperature.

TIPS
• The “proper” way to melt the chocolate and butter is in a double-boiler (which can be as simple as a metal bowl set inside a pot of simmering water). But I usually use the microwave, which works fine as long as you’re careful. If you leave the microwave on too long, either you’ll scorch the chocolate, ruining its taste, or the butter will “pop,” sending it all over the inside of your oven. I guard against these unpleasant outcomes by remove the mixtures and stirring it every 15-20 seconds. Whichever method you use, remember that you needn’t heat the chocolate until every last morsel is melted. Residual heat will take care of any graininess.

• For this cake, I like to use Maker’s Mark bourbon, but you can substitute another whiskey (Jack Daniels) or a liqueur (Grand Marnier, Cointreau, Fra Angelico).

• An easy way to cut this cake neatly is to use a long strand of dental floss. Cut wedges by pulling the floss down from the top. Remove it by pulling the floss through the cake horizontally.

• Because chocolate loses flavor as it gets colder, be sure to serve this cake at room temperature. (Think of the difference in taste between a cold chocolate bar and a piece of chocolate melting in your mouth.)

English Currant Scones

2010-01-20T06:03:00.000-08:00

Unlike the doughy lumps sold as “scones” in America, this recipe produce traditional English scones—a sweet, tender teatime (or breakfast) treat.

(yields twelve scones)

⅔ c heavy cream
1 large egg
¼ c sugar
2½ c flour
1 Tbs baking powder
¼ tsp baking soda
½ tsp kosher salt
1 stick unsalted butter, chilled
¾ c dried currants

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the heavy cream, egg, and sugar.

3. Place the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a sharp blade. Pulse to combine.

4. Cut the butter into 16 pieces and add to the dry ingredients. Pulse until the dough reaches the consistency of coarse meal. Add the cream mixture and pulse again until the dough forms a ball.

5. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface and flatten into a disk. Sprinkle with the currants and knead until the currants are evenly distributed.

6. Shape the dough again into a disk about ¾-inch thick. Using a round cookie cutter, form individual scones. Combine and reshape the dough as necessary to form more scones.

7. Set the scones on a baking sheet lined with a silicon mat or parchment paper. Bake until golden brown, about 15-20 minutes. Serve with butter and jam.

TIPS
• For a Sunday brunch, we usually make two batches of these scones—one with currants (for the adults) and one with chocolate chips (for the kids).

• Often before baking the scones, I’ll brush them with a little egg, melted butter, or cream and then sprinkle them with turbinado sugar. Similar in taste and appearance to brown sugar, turbinado sugar has large crystals that stick nicely to the wetted dough.

• If you can't get dried currants, small raisins or another small dried fruit (such as cranberries or blueberries) will also work.

• To form the final scone or two, I just gather up the remaining dough and press it into the cookie cutter.

• An excellent accompaniment to these scones (in place of English clotted cream, which is hard to find in this country) is day-old whipped cream. The night before you make the scones, whip some cream and let it “fall” in the refrigerator overnight. The result is a tasty, thickened spread.

Pasta e Fagioli

2010-01-19T05:30:00.000-08:00

This hearty pasta-and-bean soup makes a fine winter meal with some oven-warmed, crusty bread and a nice soft, sharp cheese like Camembert.

(serves two parents and two children)

½ lb ditalini (or other small pasta)
3 cloves garlic
1 small onion
¼ c olive oil
½ tsp (or more) red pepper flakes
1 tsp (or more) freshly ground black pepper
2 fifteen-oz cans white beans (such as Great Northern or cannellini)
4 c chicken stock
juice of a lemon
handful of fresh parsley, chopped
kosher salt
Parmesan or Romano cheese (for grating)

1. Boil salted water in a pot large enough to hold the pasta. Cook the pasta until just done (al dente). Rinse with cold water and drain.

2. Meanwhile, chop the garlic and onion medium-fine.

3. In a large stockpot, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat until it begins to shimmer. Add the garlic, the red pepper flakes, and the black pepper. Saute for 30 seconds, then add the onion and continue sauteeing until the onion softens and becomes translucent, about 3 minutes.

4. Add the beans (including their liquid) and the chicken stock. Let the soup come to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for 5-10 minutes.

5. Just before serving, stir in the pasta, lemon juice, and the parsley. Season with salt to taste. Serve with cheese for grating on top.

TIP
• When using pasta in soups, I always cook the pasta separately. Otherwise, it soaks up too much stock, resulting in a stew rather than a soup. If there are leftovers, I like to add additional stock to the pot to compensate for the liquid absorbed by the pasta.

Pork Chops with Mustard Sauce

2010-01-15T12:52:00.000-08:00

This recipe involves sear-roasting. First you sear the pork on the stovetop, then you finish it off in the oven. Be sure to use a skillet that's oven safe (for example, no rubber handles).

(serves two adults and two children)

3 thick-cut boneless pork chops (at least an inch thick)
kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
olive oil
½ c dry white wine
½ c chicken stock
¾ c heavy cream
¼ c Dijon mustard

1. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Season both sides of the pork chops with salt and pepper.

3. Heat a large cast-iron skillet (or other heavy, ovenproof skillet) over a high flame, adding a film of olive oil. When the oil is very hot, sear the chops for 3 minutes, then turn them with tongs and place the skillet in the hot oven. Roast until the chops are cooked through but not dry, about 10 minutes.

4. Remove the skillet from the oven. Transfer the chops to a serving dish and tent them with aluminum foil to keep warm. Pour off any excess fat from the skillet and return it to the stovetop over medium-high heat.

5. Add the wine to deglaze the skillet. (Use a wooden spoon to scrape the bottom of the skillet so that the wine dissolves the flavorful browned bits more easily). Reduce the wine by half, about 2-3 minutes. Add the chicken stock, heavy cream, and mustard. Boil, stirring occasionally, until the sauce thickens, about 5 minutes. Season to taste with more salt and pepper. Drizzle over the pork chops and serve.

TIP
• Because the skillet gets quite hot in the oven, you should never touch it with your bare hand. I always keep an oven mitt on the handle, just in case I reach for it without thinking.

Braised Short Ribs

2009-12-15T05:36:00.000-08:00

My friend Mark Hoff made these short ribs for me during one of my family’s semiannual visits to his home in Providence. My daughter, Abigail, liked them so much she insisted that I learn how to make them. This incredibly rich dish goes especially well with fresh fettuccini, which Abigail likes to make, but a good dried penne will do nicely.

(serves a crowd)

olive oil
2 oz pancetta, finely diced
5 lb beef short ribs
3 medium onions, finely diced
1 large carrot, finely diced
1 stalk celery, finely diced
28-oz can whole or diced tomatoes
12-oz can tomato paste
several sprigs of fresh thyme, to taste
kosher salt, to taste
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
beef stock, as necessary (about 4 c)
red wine, as necessary (about 1 bottle)

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

2. In a Dutch oven filmed with olive oil, render the pancetta over medium-low heat, about 8-10 minutes. After moving the pancetta to the outside of the pan and raising the heat to medium-high, sear the short ribs for 3-4 minutes per side. Do this in as many batches as necessary so that the meat isn’t crowded. Remove the ribs and set them aside.

3. Reduce the flame to medium-low. Add more olive oil, if necessary, and sauté the mirepoix (onion, carrot, and celery) until wilted but not browned, about 10-12 minutes.

4. Place the meat on top of the mirepoix. Add the tomatoes, tomato paste, thyme, salt, and pepper. Then add equal parts beef stock and wine until the level of the liquid approaches but doesn’t completely cover the top of the meat.

5. Braise the ribs uncovered in the oven for at least three and up to five hours, adding liquid as necessary to keep up the level.

TIPS
• When the ribs are tender, the bones and spent thyme sprigs can be removed easily with tongs.

Rosemary Focaccia

2009-12-08T09:06:00.000-08:00

The most important ingredient in this recipe is time. There’s not much work involved, but you’ve got to allow several hours for the dough to rise. If you’re tempted to hasten the process, remember that the more time you allow, the better the focaccia will be. After all, you’re not making matzoh here.

2 c warm water
2 Tbs sugar
2 pkg active dry yeast (not rapid-rise)
5 c unbleached flour
2 tsp kosher salt
4 sprigs fresh rosemary, stripped and minced
¾ c good olive oil
1–2 Tbs sea salt

1. Pour the water into the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the dough hook. Stir in the sugar and sprinkle the yeast on top. Let the yeast proof for 5 minutes. (It should foam slightly; if it doesn’t, the yeast is dead, and you should start over with fresh yeast.)

2. Add the flour, salt, half of the rosemary, and ¼ cup of the olive oil. Mix very slowly until the dough forms a ball, about 30 seconds. Increase the speed to medium slow and knead for 3 minutes. Let the dough rest for 5 minutes, then knead again for another 3 minutes.

3. Oil a mixing bowl large enough to handle twice the volume of the dough, pooling about a tablespoon of oil in the bottom. Transfer the dough to the bowl and roll it in the oil so that the dough ball becomes coated. Cover with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature until the dough doubles in volume, about an hour.

4. Line a rimmed cookie sheet (also known as a jelly roll pan) with parchment paper and oil the paper well using another tablespoon or two of the oil. Transfer the dough from the bowl to the pan and drizzle it generously with more oil, about another 2 tablespoons.

5. Spread your fingers and point them downward as though you were preparing to play a piano. Use the tips of your fingers to dimple the dough, starting in the center and pressing down and slightly outward as you go. Your goal is to spread the dough to the edges of the pan. In all likelihood, the dough will begin to resist before you get there. Stop at this point, cover the dough with plastic wrap, and let it rest for 20 minutes. Then drizzle on more olive oil and dimple again until you reach the pan’s edges. Cover again with plastic wrap and let the dough rise at room temperature for another 2-3 hours, or at least until the dough’s volume has increased by half.

5. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.

6. Just before baking, remove the plastic wrap and sprinkle the dough with the remaining rosemary and the sea salt.

7. Bake in the middle of the oven, rotating the pan front to back after 10 minutes. Begin checking the bread after another 7-8 minutes. It’s done when it turns golden brown. Remove the bread from the pan and let it cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes before slicing. Serve with olive oil for dipping.

TIPS
• If you don’t have a stand mixer, you can make do with a stainless steel mixing bowl and a large spoon. Just keep dipping the spoon in warm water so that the dough doesn’t stick to it. Letting the dough rest occasionally also helps make the kneading easier.

• Coating the dough well with oil and covering it with plastic wrap prevents a nasty dry crust from forming during the rising.

• If you get a late start, you can keep the first rise (in the bowl) to an hour and the second rise (in the pan) to whatever time remains. But shortcutting the rise will yield a much denser bread.

• You can’t use too much oil when making focaccia because it’s all absorbed during the baking, imparting a wonderful flavor as long as you use a decent oil.

• I specify sea salt for the topping because the crystals are large and thus make a bright splash on your tongue. Using ordinary table salt would simply make the bread taste generally saltier.

Au Revoir

2009-11-25T11:45:00.001-08:00

A Carter Work Project often feels like summer camp. You leave your daily life behind to spend a week in the company of other like-minded campers. You eat together; you bunk together; you travel from place to place together. Everything is provided for you, so you can focus entirely on the experience.

I didn’t realize how distracting my normal routine was until I left it behind. What a relief it has been to focus on just one thing—building House 2—knowing that everything else is being taken care of. And what a joy it has been to unwind at night with other people enjoying the same difficult, rewarding experience. It’s no wonder that so many people leave these builds with new, close friends. I know I will.

Now that the build is ending, everyone is mingling in the hotel lobby, enacting the usual end-of-summer rituals: tearful embraces, the exchanging of addresses, promises to visit in the months ahead, promises to return next year.

All of us want to keep the moment going as long as possible because we know that we’ll miss not only the fun but also the opportunity we’ve been given to step outside our binding home and work relationships to become, for a short time at least, the kind of adults we wanted to be when we were thirteen, instead of the adults that various circumstances have influenced us to become.

That the build gives us the opportunity to reinvent ourselves is fitting because, in a larger sense, the Carter Work Project reinvents the world. For a week, within the confines of Chiang Mai, Thai and foreign volunteers alike get to live and work in a world characterized by cooperation, generosity, kindness, and compassion. Who wouldn’t want to keep such a world alive? Who wouldn’t want to return to it year after year, as so many volunteers have?

Much came into focus for me during President Carter’s closing remarks. As at the opening ceremonies, the president was greeted with a loud and lengthy standing ovation, conveying the personal devotion that so many Habitat volunteers feel toward him and Mrs. Carter. When they applaud President Carter, they’re not merely acknowledging what he and Mrs. Carter have done for other people; they’re also showing their appreciation for what the Carters have done for them, specifically by creating a meaningful way in which volunteers can share in Habitat’s work of transforming the world.

The exhilaration recedes, of course, especially as the gravitational pull of doctor’s appointments and parent-teacher conferences and family dinners reestablishes itself. But there’s one part of the experience that I know won’t recede, because so many volunteers have told me that it doesn’t.

Many people wish for a better world. Some even conjure up elaborate fantasies of what such a world might look like. We call these imaginations utopias because, like Thomas More’s “no place,” they exist only in the mind. During this last week in Chiang Mai, however, the world in which I lived was, if only fleetingly, a better place; and having been part of it in real time and real space made an indelible impression. I’m in no position to tell you whether what happened here can be repeated or extended beyond the next Carter Work Project, but I can tell you with assurance that better is possible because I’ve seen it.

Jasmin and I Plant a Tree

2009-11-24T11:09:00.001-08:00

I’m usually pretty good at remembering names—I think it’s an important way to show respect—but I admit that I’ve been having trouble all week. We had introductions on Monday, but those were a bit rushed, and there hasn’t been a quiet moment since in which to fix names to faces. Everyone wears a name tag, which should help, but most of the Thais go by nicknames that bear little relation to their given names, so I’m often lost.

Our homeowner, for instance, has a name tag that says Chanida, but she goes by the nickname Jasmin. Initially, because Jasmin is Muslim and wears a hijab that covers much of her face, I thought she and Chanida were two different people, both very shy. By Wednesday, however, with the help of the Thai Amway ladies, I began to recognize Jasmin and also to pick up a little more information about her.

Her sister and her brother are also partner families. In fact, they’ll be occupying the houses on either side of House 2, and their mother will be living with Jasmin. I haven’t found out what Jasmin does for a living yet, but I did learn that she has a digital camera, as well as a little English. I was somewhat surprised to see the camera, but then I remembered that Habitat doesn’t serve the deeply indigent, because they can’t afford even the most modest of mortgage payments. Rather, Habitat serves the working poor: people who have some income but not enough to afford a decent home. Habitat puts up the money to buy building materials for the house and arranges the volunteer labor, but the partner family pays Habitat back over time and contributes its own labor as well.

For most of the week, I wasn’t sure how to relate to Jasmin. I’d heard plenty of stories about the bonds that develop between homeowners and volunteers, and President Carter had explained to me very clearly that the point of Habitat, as far as he was concerned, was to span the chasm between the haves (me) and the have-nots (Jasmin). So by Thursday I was feeling a little guilty that I hadn’t crossed the chasm myself. Even so, I knew that I couldn’t force a relationship, nor should I, because to do so would be patronizing. Instead, I interacted with Jasmin in the same way that I interacted with everyone else: Can you help me with this? Can I help you with that? She probably felt equally at sea; after all, this was her first Habitat build, too.

And so the work proceeded until Friday, when I took a tumble during the afternoon and dislocated the middle joint of my pinkie. Not a big deal, but I had to go to the medical tent and get a temporary splint, which meant no more work on the fascia boards for me. Instead, my wife, Julia, told me that plants for the yard had just arrived and that they needed to be put in the ground immediately. She also told me to make sure that Jasmin had a say in their placement.

I hailed one of the roaming translators and got her to ask Jasmin where she wanted the plants to go. Jasmin replied that she wanted me to decide, because that would be a “symbol of good health.” I wasn’t sure what she meant, but the impression I got was that she thought it would be good luck, or good feng shui, for me to choose the locations. I said I wanted to take a walk around the block to see what other houses were doing—at which point one of the Thai Amway ladies suggested that Jasmin accompany me and help with the planting.

We had fun. She was able to explain to me the growing habits of the plants—big, less big—and, because I’m a gardener at home, I was able to come up with an out-of –the-ordinary plan that she liked. As I watched Jasmin digging the holes and watering the plants into the ground, I got a strong sense that her dreamed-of house was finally becoming terra firma. I really enjoyed being a part of that.

Off-Balance

2009-11-22T14:13:00.000-08:00

I’m so tired that you won’t be reading this today. I’m having difficulty focusing my eyes on the screen of my laptop, and I can’t trust myself any longer to catch typos. More importantly, until I get a little sleep, I can’t be sure that what I’m writing will make any sense.

Here’s what my schedule has been like: I’ve been getting up, along with everyone else, at four-thirty in the morning. Breakfast begins at five, and the first buses leave for the build site at six. By seven, most people are hard at work on their houses. With a short break for lunch, work continues until five.

Because afternoon traffic is a little worse than morning traffic, the buses don’t get back to the hotels until a little after six; and because we’re all filthy with sweat and cement dust, it takes a while to get ready for dinner, which usually begins around seven.

The dinners are a great example of the long and intense planning that goes into a Carter build, especially one held overseas. Last night, all two thousand volunteers in Chiang Mai were bused to a large public square and served a buffet dinner. Then we were treated to a performance of traditional Thai dance and the lighting of enormous paper lanterns that floated high into the night sky, forming shifting constellations as they drifted slowly away in a long chain. Quite a stunning sight.

It took something that dramatic to distract people from their conversations. More than any other time of the day, dinnertime is when volunteers get a chance to process what has been happening to them—and, believe me, there is a lot to process. I’ve written an entire book about what happens on a Habitat build, so I had a pretty good idea what to expect; and yet my expectations could never match the reality of taking part myself, because hearing other people talk about a feeling and feeling it oneself are simply too different.

What Habitat volunteers hope to build is more than a house, of course. They—I mean, we—are hoping to build human relationships as well; and because food and drink are conducive to this, dinners often linger as people share their experiences. I’m as guilty of this as anyone, and I usually don’t get back to my hotel room until ten. The first couple of nights, I powered through my blog posts, but not tonight. The sleep deficit has caught up with me, and it’s not only making me a little loopy; it’s also reducing the separation between my personal and professional worlds to the point that it’s hard for me to tell the difference anymore.

I spent a good part of the morning using a hammer and a nail punch to make identical J-bolt holes in the large, rippled cement-board tiles that will make up the roof of House 2, so I had a little time to ponder my expectations for the build and how these have differed from what has actually taken place. The metaphor that came to mind was a rollercoaster. You can observe people riding a rollercoaster, see them waving their arms excitedly and listen to them screaming as their car takes a dive; you can even talk to them about it afterward; but until you take the ride yourself, you can’t fully understand what it’s like.

For first-timers like myself, the rush of emotion is difficult to manage in any kind of temperate way. As when one’s first child is born, the experience is life-changing, and the world suddenly takes on a different character. Trying to explain (and thus understand) this within the context of a Habitat build is rather easy, because the veterans have all been through it themselves, and they smile bemusedly, remembering their first times and sometimes chuckling at my newbie excitement.

But explaining what has been going on to you is more complicated; and adding to my difficulty has been the fact that I’m feeling a little off-balance, which is unusual for me. It’s an uncomfortable position for me professionally, but personally it seems liberating. I’m so far out of my normal daily routine, I guess, that anything could happen.

Hump Day

2009-11-18T09:51:00.001-08:00

Today was the day we finished the walls on our house and set the roof trusses. These are the triangular frames that span the house’s walls, support the roof, and tie the structure together. They’re twenty feet long and weigh over 350 pounds, so they’re difficult to work with and a little scary, too, because they have to be lifted up ten feet by hand.

Until today, the male Thai volunteers had worked on the back wall of the house and the attached bathroom, constructing these parts largely on their own using their own methodology. Or, viewing the situation another way, the Americans worked on the front and side walls, constructing these parts of the house largely on their own using their own methodology.

In setting the roof trusses, East met West, literally. That is, the walls that had been built independently by the Thai men and the Americans had to be fit together. Also, there was no way that any of us could set the trusses without the help of all the available manpower.

The sense of apprehension was fueled by a couple of mistakes that, I think, had undermined some of the Thais’ confidence in the efficacy of the project’s American leadership. In other words, rather than coming together, the people on our job site seemed to be feeling frayed.

Although we didn’t set the trusses until two o’clock, the hour felt a little like high noon. As it approached, one of the Thai Amway ladies who has been translating for us in between filling mortar holes asked me privately (and somewhat nervously), “Do you have a manual for this?” I think she wanted to be reassured that we weren’t making things up as we went along, but that was difficult for me because, for my part, I was.

When the time finally came to set the trusses, my fellow countryman Greg and I discussed staging a dry run, pretending to have the truss in hand and rehearsing its placement, as the house next door had. We abandoned that plan, however, quickly realizing the difficulty we would have describing the process to the Thai men and their likely preference for work over pantomime.

When we started to lift the trusses, I knew the first name of only one of the four Thais who have been working on the house since Monday. By the time we finished bolting in the purlins (the horizontal bars that tie the trusses together), I knew all four of their names, and I even had an idea of what each did for a living.

I don’t know whether they were just pulling my leg or not, but two of the guys told me their “nicknames” were Bert and Jack. Bert had been working hard all week, but today he really shined.

There were two small purlins that were supposed to connect the middle truss to the front and back trusses, respectively. They were supposed to be bolted in early; and by the time we realized our mistake, we had already installed and tightened most of the other purlins. When we finally put in the short purlins, we found that they didn’t reach the far end of the house because of a bow in the front wall. The only way to fix this, we were told, was to loosen all of the purlins we’d installed and try to pull in the bow.

The prospect of loosening all those recently tightened nuts and moving the heavy purlins back onto the ground was highly demoralizing, but then we rallied.

Bert, who is stronger than a speeding locomotive, leaped onto the scaffolding beneath the troubled purlin, grabbed it, and somehow pulled the house together, allowing the most troublesome bolt to be hammered into place. I really wanted him to know how much I appreciated what he had just done.

“Superman!” I cried, hoping, he would get the reference; and he did, smiling broadly. So did all of the other Thais on the job site. I think we all knew then that we were going to get our house done.

A Matter of Mortar

2009-11-17T08:50:00.000-08:00

Mixing mortar is like mixing pancake batter. The most important thing is the consistency, which should be neither too wet nor too dry.

On the houses we’re building in Chiang Mai, we’re using mortar made of three parts aggregate to one part cement. Its purpose is to bind together the courses of LEGO-like interlocking blocks that we’ve been laying.

When you’re building with LEGO, even cement LEGO, you need something permanent to bind the blocks together. If the holes in the blocks were perfectly round and perfectly aligned, you could perhaps use metal rods. But the holes are square and irregular, and the blocks aren’t perfectly aligned, so you need a plastic material like mortar that can take the shape of the holes before curing in place.

The small rocks in the aggregate give the mortar strength, but they also make it difficult to pour the mortar down the inch-and-a-half-square holes where it needs to go. On the first day, we struggled to force the mortar (using a funnel and rebar) down several courses at a time.

Because the method of construction we’re using requires so much mortaring, coming up with a better method was an important priority. Once I had a little quiet time last night, I analyzed the problem and decided that, because I couldn’t think of any better way to cram the mortar down the holes, the solution must be to make the mortar wetter so that it would pour easier. The mix couldn’t be too wet, however, or else it would seep out of the walls.

Next, I needed a way to explain this new method to the Thai ladies who were doing most of the mortaring. I ruled out a lecture about the physics of surface tension and decided instead on a show and tell. First, I mixed up a bucket of mortar; then I loaded some into a funnel. I showed the ladies that the mortar was dry enough to hold in the funnel yet wet enough so that if I tapped the funnel end, globs or mortar would flow out. Finally, I demonstrated how using a piece of rebar to break the surface tension at the funnel end would allow them to release mortar easily into the holes.

All of this left me feeling rather pleased with myself. I had made effective use of my tenth-grade chemistry, and afterward the mortaring went noticeable faster than it had before.

How else could I improve things around the job site, I wondered. Then I overheard one of our crew chiefs, Jason, a staff member from Habitat Newark talking to Greg, a chief information officer from Hong Kong. Their conversation went something like this:

“The cement we’re using here is much weaker than the cement in the states.”

“Oh, really.”

“Yeah, you know the tensile strength of American cement, right?”

“Sure, three thousand pounds.”

“Well, the tensile strength of this stuff is only fifteen hundred pounds.”

“You don’t say.”

After hearing that exchange, I decided to take a break from saving the work project and found some plastic mortar buckets that needed a good washing.

There Are Many Ways To Build a House

2009-11-16T07:34:00.000-08:00

The Carter Work Project volunteers are building eighty-two houses in a field outside Chiang Mai. All have identical building plans. All are being built out of identical materials with identical tools. But don’t let that fool you: there are still many ways to build a house.

Some homes are being built by groups of volunteers who know one another well, such as the employees of a sponsor company or the members of a particular Habitat affiliate. These crews are organized, they have established chains of leadership, and they communicate easily. As a result, their work is relatively well coordinated and efficient.

Then there is my house. Along with the homeowner, our crew includes half a dozen Americans, half a dozen ladies from Amway Thailand (a principal sponsor of the build), and half a dozen Thai men. The Americans speak no Thai, and the Thai men speak little or no English. Fortunately, the Amway ladies speak enough English to translate the occasional query, such as, “Have you seen the rubber mallet lately?”

First thing this morning (after a 5 a.m. breakfast and a 6 a.m. bus ride), the Americans caucused. We wanted to make a plan. What was the day’s goal? What resources were available? How should those resources be deployed? The Amway ladies waited eagerly to be shown what to do. Meanwhile, the Thai men simply began to work. Without talking to anyone else, they began laying courses of the interlocking cement blocks (an adult version of LEGO) that make up the house’s walls.

The proper way to do this, our American house leader explained, was to put up a string line, level it, and then use it to run a single course of blocks all the way around the house. No new course should be added until the preceding course had been completed and checked.

It quickly became clear, however, that the Thai men were utilizing a different method. By the time we Americans had gotten our bearings, the Thai men had already put up half of the back wall. They were using a string and tapping blocks gently into place, but they weren’t using a level, and they certainly weren’t on board with the one-course-at-a-time plan.

So for the next few hours, as the Amway ladies got busy pointing the blocks (that is, filling in the seams with mortar), all three of our house’s constituencies worked if not at cross purposes then certainly without coordination. It was a little frustrating, because everyone was motivated and working hard—the basis for some real camaraderie was clearly there—but we weren’t yet able to overcome the language and cultural barriers that separated us. And by we, I mean especially the men.

We needed a bridge, and it was the Amway ladies who provided it. Contributing both energy and goodwill, they engaged the American women and provided at least some cross-cultural communication. By lunchtime, the American men had realized that, although not necessarily skilled tradespeople, the Thai men were more experienced than we were in this type of construction. The walls they were building looked good and indeed were good.

For the rest of the day, we worked on some walls, and they worked on some walls, and the women pointed more blocks. B y the end of the day, we had reached the top of the windows on three of the house’s four sides, just one side short of our goal.

I felt pretty good about what we had accomplished, especially as I walked off the job site and saw that quite a few houses were three or four courses behind ours. I will be pointing this out to the Thai guys tomorrow—to my Thai guys tomorrow. If they don’t understand what I’m saying, I’ll ask one of the Amway ladies to translate for me.

The Rehearsal Dinner

2009-11-15T08:36:00.001-08:00

More than two thousand people from thirty countries attended the opening ceremonies of the 2009 Carter Work Project, held tonight in a lush botanical gardens outside Chiang Mai. The crowd trailed back so far from the stage that most people had to watch the welcoming speeches on large video screens, but the reception was hardly an impersonal event. In fact, it was almost like a wedding—a truly enormous wedding.

One reason it felt this way is that a lot of people already know one another from previous Carter builds. Some have been taking part for ten or twenty years, so there’s a lot of familiarity. Exclamations of recognition followed by hugs of greeting are commonplace, and people seem always to be catching up. The interesting part is that , as at a wedding, the spirit of inclusiveness extends to everyone.

At a good wedding, the guests are pleased, not because the food is good or the liquor is plentiful, but because everyone is happy for the bride and the groom; and the commonality of feeling binds the group together. No matter whom you may encounter at a wedding, there really are no strangers, because you know instinctively that everyone you meet shares your delight at being part of the celebration.

The same is true of the Carter Work Project. When you’re standing next to someone on a breakfast line or waiting for an elevator, it’s natural to introduce oneself and begin chatting, because you know that you and the other person are joined by a special, common enterprise. At least that’s what I think is going on. In the moment, it feels as though all of us are distant cousins (which is a little strange, because I never knew that I had so many relations in, for example, New Zealand).

The opening ceremonies had some lovely pageantry, of course, highlighted by traditional Thai drumming and a spectacular fireworks display over a beautifully lit temple that looked like a Siamese version of Cinderella’s palace. But I doubt that many people will write home about what they saw, because they were too deeply engaged in conversation—some with people they’ve know for years, others with people who just happened to occupy a nearby chair.

One gets the strong impression that a lot of these people have experimented with several different philanthropies before settling on Habitat. Now, they’ve finally found something that works for them, and the fact that you’ve found it, too, suggests to them that you’re a fellow traveler on the same road. So why not relax a little and enjoy some camaraderie as the miles roll by?

Except the opening ceremonies aren’t entirely like a wedding, and here’s why: The work isn’t over—in fact, it hasn’t even begun—and tomorrow’s wake-up call is scheduled for 4:30 a.m. So perhaps tonight was more like the rehearsal dinner.

Not the Same River

2009-11-14T17:26:00.000-08:00

Like most people, I suffer from mild travel anxiety. So when I woke up this morning at about four o’clock, knowing that I had a twenty-four-hour flight to Chiang Mai ahead of me, I had a little trouble getting back to sleep. As I flipped and flopped, I got to thinking about something I had read on the Internet the night before.

A Google News Alert had tipped me off to a blog post relating to my new book, If I Had a Hammer. Its author wondered why I hadn’t recounted any negative experiences people have had with Habitat for Humanity. Surely I must have heard of some.

The truth is, I heard fewer complaints than one might think; and of those I did hear, nearly all went like this: I called up the local affiliate several times to volunteer and never got a call back. Whether the snub was due to ineptness or cliquishness—I’ve heard stories of both—or whether it was simply the result of a lack of follow-through on the part of overworked volutneers, the experience was, I’m sure, unpleasant and frustrating. I’ve made several offers myself over the years to local nonprofits, only to be similarly rebuffed, so I know how it feels.

But are such complaints a fair criticism of Habitat for Humanity International? And, more importantly to me, should I have included those stories in my book? I had, of course, thought about these questions before; but the blog post made me think about them again.

The most important thing to understand about the way Habitat works is that it’s highly decentralized. With few exceptions, volunteers have little direct contact with the international headquarters in Americus, Georgia. Instead, they work with locally chartered affiliates that raise and control their own money, make their own decisions, and create their own group cultures. Some of these cultures are, regrettably, less welcoming than others.

I chose not to include the occasional griping about local affiliates in my book because I think there is a distinction to be made between the ideas espoused by Habitat and the ways in which those ideas are sometimes applied (or ignored). Human nature being what it is—imperfect—there can hardly be good without blemishes. Is this a reality worth noting? I didn’t think so.

What I really wanted to write about was the wisdom and cleverness of the mechanism—what President Carter calls a bridge—that Millard Fuller and Clarence Jordan created four decades ago. Fuller and Jordan actually figured out a way to channel people’s natural aspirations into productive activity—and I’m not merely speaking of the partner families here. Fuller and Jordan believed—with good reason, I think—that the path to personal redemption for all people lies in making some meaningful connection to other humans.

So what if a few of the twenty-three hundred Habitat affiliates aren’t run as well as they could be? It seems to me that the important lesson to teach our children isn’t that great ideas don’t always produce great results; rather, it’s that great ideas sometimes do transform people’s lives—a lot of people’s lives.

Among my favorite Bob Dylan lyrics is the last verse of “Stuck Inside of Mobile with the Memphis Blues Again.” (That’s the song with the chorus, “Aw, mama, can this really be the end?”) It goes, “And here I sit so patiently, waiting to find out what price you have to pay to get out of going through all these things twice.” Yes, it’s a cynical refrain. But now as I sit here on this Korean Air Lines 777 atop the world on my way to my first Habitat build, Mr. Zimmerman isn’t speaking to me quite so strongly. Instead, I hear Mao Zedong talking about rivers. You never step in the same one twice, he said.

Pad Thai

2009-11-04T12:00:00.000-08:00

I made this for the family last night, and it was a big hit. As with any stir-fried meal, it’s really important to get all the prep work done in advance. Those small Pyrex bowls really come in handy.

(serves two parents and two children)

1 7-oz pkg rice noodles (stir-fry style)
peanut oil
juice of a lime
2 Tbs fish sauce (nam pla)
1 Tbs soy sauce
1 Tbs oyster sauce
2 Tbs sugar
4 cloves garlic, chopped
2 shallots, thinly sliced
1 tsp red pepper flakes
½ lb shrimp
1 lb firm tofu
3 large scallions
2 c bean sprouts
½ c peanuts, chopped
a handful of cilantro, chopped
4 large eggs
Asian hot sauce (such as Sriracha)

1. Cover the rice noodles with very hot water. Let stand until they soften but still remain a little chewy (al dente). Rinse with cold water, drain well, and coat with a little peanut oil. Set aside.

2. Combine the lime juice, fish sauce, soy sauce, oyster sauce, and sugar to make the sauce. Set aside.

3. Combine the garlic, shallots, and red pepper flakes. Set aside.

4. Shell and devein the shrimp. Dice the tofu.

5. Slice the scallions (both the white and green parts) into half-inch lengths. Combine the scallions with half of the sprouts. Place the remaining sprouts on the table as a garnish, along with the chopped peanuts and chopped cilantro.

6. Beat the eggs with a little salt.

7. Heat a wok (or a large skillet) over a high flame until very hot. Add 2 Tbs peanut oil. Let the oil come up to temperature and pour in the eggs. Stir-fry the eggs until they set, about 1 minute. Remove to a cutting board and chop.

8. Add 2 Tbs more oil to the hot wok and let the oil come to temperature. Add the aromatics and stir-fry until the garlic becomes fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add the shrimp and stir-fry until opaque, about 1 minute. Add the tofu, and continue stir-frying until the tofu becomes hot, about another 2 minutes. Remove from the wok and set aside.

9. Add 2 Tbs more oil to the hot wok and let the oil come to temperature. Add the noodles. Stir-fry briefly, then add the sauce. Continue stir-frying until the noodles become hot and most of the sauce is absorbed, about 2-3 minutes. Toss with the reserved eggs, shrimp-and-tofu mixture, and scallions-and sprouts mixture. Serve immediately with hot sauce on the side.

TIPS
• Make sure that you monitor the soaking noodles carefully so that they don’t become limp. One way I manage this is to use hot tap water instead of the boiling water that most recipes recommend. The reduced heat slows down the hydration process so there is less change of overcooking them. I use Thai Kitchen–brand noodles, which are available in most supermarkets.

• If you don't already buy frozen shrimp, start doing so. As it turns out, nearly all shrimp are frozen at sea as soon as they're caught. The shrimp that are sold unfrozen in fish stores and supermarkets have merely been thawed in advance. Better to keep the shrimp frozen and defrost them as needed. It takes only a few minutes in a cold water bath.

• I usually use raw peanuts in my Asian cooking, but for this dish, roasted salted peanuts seem to work better.

The Way I Write Recipes

2009-11-04T11:49:00.000-08:00

I can be lazy when reading recipes. Sometimes I'll just scan a recipe before beginning to cook, only to find myself a few minutes later standing over a hot skillet, having only just realized that I need to add a tomato that isn't yet diced. For this reason, I strive in all my recipes to include the preparation work as a step. That way, people following the recipe won't get too far ahead of themselves, as I sometimes do.

I also try to keep in mind the quantities in which ingredients are sold. Although most of my recipes yield enough for two adults and two growing children, when a special ingredient is called for, I try to adjust the yield so that all of a package gets used. Coconut milk, for instance, comes in 14-ounce cans. I don't see the point in using just 10 ounces and letting the rest get moldy in the refrigerator. So I'll adjust the yield of a recipe that calls for part of a can in order to make use of the entire can.

Finally, and most importantly, I try to be explicit about what steps really make a difference in the preparation of a dish. Generally, I have a scientific bent of mind. I really try to understand what makes things work, including good food; so I pay a lot of attention to what makes a dish go right and what can make it go wrong. Some things are okay to fudge; others aren't. I'll always try to let you know which is which (often in the Tips section that follow a recipe, so please don't skip it!).

My Hope for this Blog

2009-11-04T10:11:00.000-08:00

The purpose of a blog, as I understand it, is to share thoughts and information with readers. Of course, as an author, I get to do this in the books that I write. But a year or more can pass between the time I start a book and the time you get to read it. I hope this blog will give me the opportunity to speed up that cycle and write about subjects that, while not worthy of book-length treatment, are nonetheless interesting to me and also to you.

I expect that many of my posts will relate to my work. I've often found it ironic that, by the time my latest book reaches the bookstores, I've already moved on to a new project. So, while I'm making appearances in support of a newly published book, I'm really most eager to talk about the book I'm currently writing. With this blog, I hope to pass on some of what I learn as I learn it and thus allow you to share in the creative process, especially the joys of discovery and the aha! moments.

Other posts will, from time to time, relate to current events. My background as a historian gives me a helpful perspective, I think, in untangling much of what we hear on the news. When I believe I have something useful to offer, I'll post it here, especially if the mass media seems to be missing the boat. (But this will not be a political blog.)

Some posts will, of course, simply be fun. At my house, I do most of the cooking, and—as in all things—I like to share what I've learned. For five years, I had a fortnightly cooking show on Northeast Public Radio called "What's for Dinner." That show is no more, but I'm still cooking and still developing recipes, which I'll begin posting here for your culinary enlightenment. My repertoire, which I call family cuisine, is an eclectic mix of ethnic and comfort foods. What all of my recipes have in common, however, is that they're simple to execute and healthful to eat. I'm just a dad who cooks; if I can make it, you can, too.