Picking the Dessert…with guidance

Back to the potluck pasta of the other night. We needed a dessert. I let my guy pick the dessert…with guidance.

Spinning through recipes over Sunday toast I offered up a choice. German Apple cake, apple pandowdy or apple cranberry oat crumble cake. I personally was sold by the high proportion of crust to filling. He probably just heard most of the same ingredients he eats in his daily granola.

Either way, I will get to the first two recipes without question. That's because “Rustic Fruit Desserts” has never let me down. And it never will. It's like a baking bible for seasonal fruit. But click here for the third recipe, the apple cranberry oat cobbler.

Set this one aside for Thanksgiving! The topping calls for melted butter, making it super simple to assemble and/or make ahead to keep in fridge or freezer. Put it in the oven when you take the turkey out. It will save you the trouble of making pie.

Eat, a la mode if you wish – B

 

No Regrets Potluck Pasta

You know what's better than Sunday night dinner? Sunday night potluck with friends and family! It spreads the work and increases the company. (Also I now have leftover open wine – good for a weekday glass or two!)

Speaking of friends, I met Andrew Carmellini when he visited my radio show. Nicest guy and a very talented chef. I enjoy his restaurants in New York, Locanda Verde and Lafayette among them. But if you can't get to NYC, he shares the same spirit in “Urban Italian”.

Here I share his lamb ragu. (Click here for the recipe). It's NOT an all day cooking affair, but you do need to set aside a couple of hours to be at home. Serve day of, or make ahead!

 

Eat – B

 

Chili…Inside & Out

For my baby boy – not the dogs who I call baby boy, but the real one. He loves chili and so do I. Plus it's just spicy stew so it takes little effort from me. This one is based on a recipe from the mom of my oldest friend. She's from Brazil although I don't think that's why she adds a bottle of beer. I think she just likes beer.

Ingredients

1 lb ground beef or small cubes of beef

1 can or jar of beans, your choice, rinsed. I used cannelini.

1 onion, chopped

3 cloves garlic, chopped

2 tablespoons tomato paste

Bottle of lager

2 tablespoons red chili powder

1 tablespoon cumin

1 tablespoon cornmeal

1/2 tablespoon coriander

1/4 teaspoon cayenne

Bay leaf

Salt & pepper

Veg or olive oil

Drizzle oil in tall sided pot (stock or otherwise) over medium heat. Brown beef (5-10 minutes). Remove beef. Soften onion & garlic with several pinches of salt. Add tomato paste, cook a minute or two. Add beef, beans, beer & spices. Bring to a boil – simmer at least 45 minutes to an hour. Longer is better.

Good with rice, tortillas, sour cream & avocado. Really good on pasta my Cincinnati friends 🙂 minus the cinnamon.

Eat – B

Soup-er & Simple

 

So, I was looking for colorful legumes to use as vase filler (long story) and I bought a 14 ingredient bean soup mix to fit the bill. But it didn't, as I discovered upon opening the bag. Turns out some of its beans and grains were minuscule.

Not to worry – I could actually use it for it's intended purpose – soup. Nothing is easier than soup. Some savory, some solid, some liquid = soup.

Use what you got – I did and now have soup for 50! (Maybe an exaggeration).

Ingredients

17 ounce mixed dried beans with lentils & barley

Large onion, chopped

2 stalks celery, chopped

3 carrots, sliced

3 cloves garlic, chopped

14 -ish oz can chopped or cherry tomatoes

Olive oil

Bay leaf

Salt & pepper

8 cups water or stock

Heat 1-2 tablespoons oil in large stockpot. Soften onion 3-5, add carrots, celery and garlic. Soften 3-5 minutes. Add tomatoes, bean mix, bay leaf and at least 6 cups of water. Being to a boil and simmer for at least 2-3 hours, adjusting salt & pepper & adding water along the way. Mine took 4 hours for the beans to get good & soft with about 8 cups of water. Still, I finished the laundry! Remove bay leaf.

Eat – B

 

Halloween Midday Madness

I made the kids cake for Halloween!

Actually I made myself cake, but I gave some to them too. I needed cake. Knowing Halloween and all its Twix goodness was coming couldn't deter me. I actually went out of my way to buy the mayo to make this cake from Bon Appetit. (Click here for the recipe)

At least I didn't make the chocolate caramel frosting…yet. (I did add chips to the cake though – judiciously, it's a thin batter.)

Eat – B

Tip – I don't use baking spray. I do use butter and cocoa powder instead of flour for chocolate cake.

 

Pumpkins For Your Pumpkins

A 17 year tradition! Use an open cookie cutter wiped with veggie oil or baking spray and fill it right on the griddle. You might need to run a knife around the edge after you flip, but it's worth it.

This is an amended Martha recipe. (Click here for the recipe) I added another tablespoon of sugar, 1/4 teaspoon vanilla and 1/4 teaspoon of cinnamon (a pumpkin spice blend would be great too).

Happy Halloween – B

 

 

The Pasta My Mother Would Never Make

…I say that with love as I had a tasty and healthy upbringing. But never, not in million years, would my mother lace pasta with bacon and cream for an everyday, weekday dinner. What you do with this Bon Appetit recipe is up to you and your cardiologist. (Click here for the recipe)

However, if you need an excuse, invite friends over on a Friday. It's that simple to put together at the end of a work week. Really.

Notes: I switched out the pasta for what I had and reduced the quantity by a quarter. I also subbed dried thyme for fresh and cut the amount in half.

 

Mangia – B

 

No Recipe, Just Roasted Veggies

Incredibly flexible, super simple…big batch roasted vegetables help compensate for the loss of summer.

These babies all spent time in a 400 degree oven, with tougher stuff like squash, peppers and onions hitting the racks first, tomatoes going in last- 10-15 minutes til bursting. Prep time 10 minutes, cooking time for 1/2-3/4 inch chunks up to half an hour. Adding cloves of garlic in their skin add to flavor when you squeeze out the caramel goodness later.

While this veg batch is nearly naked (a quick toss with olive oil and salt), lots of other herbs could doll up the final result (cumin, coriander, cayenne anyone?).

Then have fun. An ez side dish. Serve with rice and hot sauce. Toss with pasta, fresh mozzarella & basil. Layer on your fave crusty bread with chicken and/or cheese . A little balsamic on the hot vegetables adds zip. Works for leftover lunches. If you purée with stock (and choose type and quantity of onion wisely) you've got soup!

My list:

Eggplant

Zucchini

Yellow & red pepper

Red onion

1 quart cherry tomatoes

*roast new or chunks of Idaho potato too – serve with fried or poached egg

Eat-B

 

Getting Closer Carrots

A couple of years ago, my radio producer and I ate the best roasted carrots ever from The Little Owl – cooked with olive oil, almost black in color, we couldn't stop talking about them.

Since then (actually before), I've been working on my glazed carrot technique (don't laugh). And while this recipe can't compare, it was damn good. As an added bonus Рmy non-carrot eating youngest, claims these were the carrots he likes. **Note: Not knowing his newfound affinity to carrots, I made a small batch. Feel free to double down. I may for apr̬s thanksgiving.

Ingredients

1/2 pound carrots, peeled & chunked (or whittled carrots)

Nub of unsalted butter (tablespoon-ish)

Tablespoon-ish of light brown sugar

A few sprigs fresh thyme, or 2 pinches dried

Salt & pepper if desired

Use pan wide enough for carrots to spread across the bottom. Add enough water to just below covering carrots. Add butter & thyme. Cover, bring to a boil, then lower heat to small bubble away. Crack the lid after a few minutes to evaporate the water.

The goal is to get water to evaporate while cooking carrots through – play with heat and lid, you can always add more water (slim carrots cooked through in about 10 minutes). Add sugar and let dissolve over medium or lower heat – let most moisture disappear and allow carrots to caramelize. Sugar can bubble a little. Toss about to prevent burning sugar. Serve when desired color is reached. Remove any thyme stems.

Eat – B

 

Best Corn Dish So Far

One of my kids won't eat corn on the cob. (An aside – she didn't eat ice cream for the first 5-ish years either and only recently learned to appreciate. Where are the genetics?!)

So, I spend my knife skills cutting corn from the cob. And though it's not as good this time of year as in late August, global sourcing means year round corn availability.

This dish will cover long travelled corn's shortfalls…with BACON!

Ingredients

3-4 slices of bacon, crisped & crumbled (more if you're snacking)

1 small or 1/2 large onion, any color

1/2 bell pepper, any color

Kernels from 4 ears of corn or a couple of cups frozen kernels

4 scallions chopped

Salt & pepper

Crisp bacon, mostly drain the fat (or not – I didn't) and cook onion 3-4 minutes. Add bell pepper and cook veg until a bit softened, 3-ish minutes. Add corn. Cook 2-3 minutes, longer if using frozen corn. Add scallions & bacon. Stir, season & serve.

Eat – B

Add-ons: 1 chopped jalape̱o (add w bell pepper) or pinch of cayenne. A dash of cream Рadd off the heat at the end, give a stir. And/or sprinkle of your fave melt able cheese.