Beef Stew for Frightful Weather

When the weather outside is frightful—well, it doesn’t even need to be. Just a bit chilly.

Ingredients:

12-16 oz Grass-fed Beef Stew Meat (Wegmans FYFGA)
1 can Campbell’s Select Harvest Caramelized French Onion Soup
Crusty bread, 4 1/2″ thick slices
Parmesan or romano grated cheese, 2-3 Tbsp to taste
2 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp tomato paste
1 Tbsp Marmite
2 Tbsp Wegman’s Savory Finishing Sauce (see below for homemade substitute)

Substitute for WSF Sauce (above) = 1 Tbsp butter melted whisked with 1 tsp balsamic vinegar and 1 1/2 tsp soy sauce

1 bay leaf
salt and pepper

Pre-heat oven to 350°

In a cast iron Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over a hot burner. Brown the beef in the oil. Sprinkle with salt and pepper while browning.

Remove from heat. Add onion soup, finishing sauce, bay leaf, Marmite and tomato paste. Mix well.

Cover and place into the oven. Cook on medium high heat (350°) for 1 hour.

Reduce heat to 250° and cook for an additional 30 minutes or until stew chunks are tender.

When meat is cooked, remove from oven and change to BROIL setting.

Open the Dutch oven and place the bread slices on top of the stew. Sprinkle grated cheese evenly over the top.

Place stew uncovered under broiler until cheese is melted and bread is lightly browned.

Serve in a rimmed soup plate.

Suggested side dishes:

Broiled stuffed mushrooms
Roasted carrots
Hearty bread

Hot Trout With Some Sweet Saucy

 

Here we have a well seasoned grilled fish with seasonal berries, inspired by the natural bounty of the Pacific Northwest. The berries set up a saucy riff against the savory fish and rosemary.

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook time: 20 minutes

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You will need: a cedar plank meant for the grill (that is, not some shingle from your roof). Put this to soak at least for an hour before you start to cook. Better yet, put it to soak in the morning and let it sit in the water all day. You will be grilling this piece of wood, so you want it good and wet so it doesn’t catch fire. One plank per whole fish.

Before you start, get the grill good and hot.

Ingredients:

1 whole trout, filleted

     1 large trout will serve 2 people. If you have more people, you need more fish.

1 bunch fresh rosemary (per fish)

1 cup Marionberries or huckleberries.
         In the East, you are less likely to find berries labeled Marionberries, although they might well be. 
         Berries labeled “blackberry” will do.    

1 cup blueberries

1/2 tsp dried rosemary, well crushed

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp ground black pepper

4 sprigs fresh basil, chopped

1/2 c. dry white wine (not oaked)

2 Tbsp butter

1/2 cup powdered sugar

2 Tbsp Potlach seasoning (see below)

Salt and pepper to taste

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Pick out a small handful of berries of each kind and set aside for garnish.

Take each berry variety separately and run through the food processor lightly to crush. Don’t over-process.

NOTE: Blackberries and to a lesser extent Marionberries can have rather annoying seeds. To eliminate this, crush these berries well and sieve them before cooking.

In a medium skillet/saucier, melt the butter and add the berries over medium high heat.

When the berry mixture begins to liquefy, add sugar to taste depending on how sweet or sour the berries are.

Add the chili powder, basil, rosemary and black pepper to the berry mixture. Cook this down for a few minutes, then add the wine, bring to a boil briefly (just to boil off the alcohol), then turn the heat down to low and allow to simmer while cooking the fish.

 

The Fish

Lay the soaked cedar plank on the grill. Hold it down with a cast iron pan. Get someone to watch it so it doesn’t catch fire while you prep the fish.

When the plank has grill marks on it, remove it from the grill and place on a serving platter.

Grill the fish

Lay out a piece of wax paper or aluminum foil somewhat longer than your fish.

Carefully coat both sides of the fish well with the Potlatch seasoning.

Grease the grill grates or spray with Pam to prevent the fish from sticking.

Place the fish on the grill, skin side down to start.

Grill for 2 minutes, then carefully turn.

Grill for 1-2 more minutes or until the fish is cooked.

Carefully remove the cooked fish to the plank and garnish with fresh rosemary sprigs.

Taste the warm berry sauce and adjust seasonings if necessary.

Spoon the sauce over the fish with an attractive drizzle and top with the reserved whole berries. The remaining sauce can be served in a bowl at the table.

Serve with succotash and a Widmer!

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Potlatch Seasoning

1 Tbsp coarse salt

1 tsp paprika

1 tsp. crushed red pepper

1 tsp. chili powder

1/2 tsp. dry crushed rosemary

1/4 tsp. dry crushed basil

1/4 tsp. cumin

1/4 tsp. ground black pepper

Mix well. Can be made in larger batches and stored in a tightly covered container.

Chicken, not muskrat

The fig tree is so full of fruit this year, I don’t know what I’ll do if they all come up ripe. But for now, at least they aren’t turning moldy.

Here is a summer dish of chicken and figs to make when the air is starting to cool off a little, but the daytimes are still plenty hot.

Prep + Cooking Time: 40 minutes

Ingredients:

 1 lb boneless, skinless chicken thighs, cut up into nugget-sized pieces

2 slices of bacon (applewood smoked if you can get it), cut up into 1″ squares

1 dozen fresh figs, halved, stem removed

1/4 cup shelled pistachios

1 egg

1 cup Panko bread crumbs

1 cup oil for frying (coconut oil is good, olive not so much)

2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

1 cup semi-dry white wine (not chardonnay) or substitute orange or apple juice

1 tsp ground mustard

1/2 tsp ground black pepper

1/2 tsp salt

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In a large skillet, heat 2 Tbsp of the oil on high. When near the smoking point, add the chopped-up bacon and fry until brown and crisp. When done, remove the pan from the heat and scoop the bacon out onto a plate lined with paper towels.

Meanwhile:

In a large mixing bowl, whisk the egg together with 2 tsp. water. Add the chicken to the egg mixture and toss to coat thoroughly.

In another large mixing bowl, stir together the bread crumbs, mustard, salt and pepper. Add the chicken pieces and toss very thoroughly to coat.

When the bacon is done:

In the large skillet, heat the rest of the oil on high to near smoking. Add enough coated chicken pieces to fill the bottom of the pan, but do not overcrowd. If not all the chicken will fit, save the rest for a second batch. Add more oil as needed to fry effectively.

Fry all the chicken pieces until well browned and crispy. Turn frequently and avoid under-cooking or burning. When done, transfer to a plate lined with paper towels to drain.

Empty extra bread crumbs and most of the oil from the pan after the chicken is all cooked. Leave a skin of oil in.

De-glaze the pan with the balsamic vinegar and wine (or juice) and allow to boil down for a few minutes. Add the figs and cook gently over medium heat until soft.

Meanwhile, crumble the bacon into bits. This may be done quickly in a small food processor.

Return the chicken to the pan. Combine with fig and sauce mixture. Add more liquid if it seems too dry.

When the chicken is warmed to serving temperature, taste and adjust seasonings, then remove all to a serving platter. Top with crumbled bacon and pistachios.

Serve warm with rice.

Chili Sauce: Sweet, No Pepper

 

Summertime and time for the art of  canning. Farmstands are bursting with tomatoes, so dust off your jars and go get some new lids.

Here is a chili sauce that belies its name: it has no hot peppers and you don’t make chili with it. This is a sweet and sour condiment that my grandmother used to make. Back then, us kids thought this stuff was incredibly scarce and valuable. It was reserved for special occasions only, and when we got some we felt like we hit the jackpot. Little did we know that this sauce was mainly a way to use up all those extra tomatoes that come around late in the summertime.

This recipe may owe some of its former popularity to The American Woman’s Cookbook, where it appeared circa 1939. It was showing up in newspapers and other cookbooks by the 1940’s; was common on the table in the 1950’s and ’60’s and then, when canning fell out of favor, it almost disappeared. But just like jazz, this sauce never died; it just took a waystop in the hall of old preserves. Now it’s enjoying a bit of a revival thanks to the local food movement and the resurgence of canning.

Serve chilled with anything hot off the grill. Be sure to keep some for wintertime roasts.

You will need: 1/2 bushel very ripe tomatoes for canning. Get them from a farm stand or farmer’s market, not from the grocery store. You want tomatoes that are fully vine-ripened and have never been chilled. It’s OK if they have bad spots. You will be cutting those out.

Cooking Time: Hours. Don’t start this if you don’t have a good half day to get the job done.

Equipment: Canning jars, quart or pint. Lids for jars. Jar lifter tool. Ladle. Funnel. Large kettle to cook the sauce. Large covered pot to process the jars by the boiling water bath method.

Ingredients:

1/2 bushel vine-ripened tomatoes

10 small or 6 large ordinary onions

4 green bell peppers

3 Tbsp ground cinammon

1 Tbsp ground nutmeg

3 pints white vinegar

2 lb white sugar (or more, to taste)

1 Tbsp ground dry mustard

1/2 cup coarse salt, or to taste

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Directions:

Scald, peel, core, and chop the tomatoes to 1/2-1″ cubes.
        Remove any bad spots before scalding

Peel and chop the onions.

Core and chop the green peppers 
         You can peel these also and get a better product, but it’s not absolutely necessary.
         Use the same technique to peel the peppers as the tomatoes

Combine the tomatoes, peppers, and onions in the large kettle and slowly bring to a boil uncovered. Keep to a low boil, stirring frequently to prevent scorching. Keep boiling until thick (as long as 2 hours).

When tomato mixture is thick enough, add spices, vinegar, and salt. Stir thoroughly. Add sugar a cup at a time and stir in thoroughly.

Return to a boil and allow mixture to thicken. Skim off foam periodically. Be careful not to let this mixture scorch.

Mixture is done when it has the consistency of a thin syrup.

Taste and adjust seasonings as desired before canning.

To can, ladle hot mixture into clean hot jars and process using the boiling water bath method.

Shrimp to Die For (the)

A quintessentially LA dish|that most LA of jazzmen.

Make sure you have everything assembled and ready to go before starting to cook.

You will need: bread. A French batard or similar, 1/4-1/2 loaf per person and a colander to serve it in. Some folks like butter.

Be sure to put out a large bowl for the empty shrimp shells, and lots of paper towels for the hands.

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Ingredients

Shrimp: 10 large shrimp per person.

Preferably fresh wild shrimp, size 31-35 or bigger, shell on. If you can get the pink North Carolina shrimp, they are the BEST. Second best are the pink Gulf shrimp. If you can get the shrimp with the head on, even better. But if you can’t get these things don’t despair. Even frozen shrimp will work. Wegman’s FYFGA shrimp from Belize are particularly good. In a pinch, you can use frozen, shell-off shrimp, but the dish will lack a certain je nais se quoi.

Small yellow onion: 1/2, diced (for better texture, lightly grind in a food processor)

Celery: 1 rib, diced

Garlic: 5 cloves, diced (minced jarred garlic is fine; use 1 Tbsp)

Butter: 1/4 lb (1 stick). Under no circumstances can you substitute margarine. If you really and truly are out of butter, use 1 cup olive oil.

Spices: All of these are crucial to the final dish. No subbing and no leaving them out or you will be disappointed.

Rosemary: 2 T dried or equivalent fresh

Thyme: 2 tsp dried

Fennel: 1 T, crushed. Use a mortar and pestle or run a knife over it

Celery seed: 2 tsp

Red pepper flakes, crushed: 2 tsp

Black pepper: 2 tsp

Salt: 2 tsp coarse salt

Broth

1.5 quarts chicken stock (you may sub good fish or shellfish stock for up to half of this)

Clam juice: 2 8 oz bottles or 16 oz homemade

Lemon: 1/2 of a lemon

Tomato paste: 3 oz (1/2 can)

White wine: 1 cup

Cooking

In a large flat pan, such as a Bialetti grande saute, melt the butter and saute the onion, garlic, and celery until soft and fragrant.

Add the broth ingredients: chicken (fish) stock, clam juice, tomato paste, and wine. Bring to a boil. Add the spices and lemon and reduce heat to simmer for 30 minutes. Remove the lemon. Simmer for another 15 minutes at a minimum.

10 minutes prior to serving, slice the bread thick, put it into a colander  to serve (cover with a cloth to prevent drying).

5 minutes prior to serving, toss the shrimp into the broth and cook for 2 minutes or until pink and opaque.

Remove the shrimp with a slotted spoon.

Ladle broth into rimmed soup bowls, then add 10 shrimp per person. Place onto a dinner plate to serve.

Eat the shrimp with your fingers. Dunk the bread into the broth. Not necessarily in that order.

This is how it’s served in LA. Some folks (generally tourists) will ask for this to be served over noodles or rice. Resist that temptation, whatever you do.

Don’t wear fancy clothes to eat it in.

And oh yeah: There is a special secret ingredient I have left out. I can’t tell you what it is or I’d have to shoot you. If you prepare these shrimp as directed above, you will have a very enjoyable meal. If you are from LA, it will be very close to something you may have experienced in a certain restaurant, but it won’t be exactly the same.

Popping Sprouts

No ordinary braised brussels sprouts. You know they are done when the pepitas start jumping out of your pan! Just put a lid on it.

Cooking Time: 15 minutes

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1 qt fresh brussels sprouts

2 Tbsp butter or olive oil

1 tsp minced garlic

2 Tbsp toasted, seasoned pepitas

Pinch of nutmeg

Salt and pepper.

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Wash brussels sprouts in cold water and remove any loose outer leaves. Trim stem ends and halve the brussels sprouts.

Please sprouts in a glass or plastic bowl, add 1/2 c. water, cover, and microwave on high for 4 minutes. Drain.

Melt butter or oil on medium high heat in a large skillet and saute garlic until fragrant.

Add drained brussels sprouts and saute, stirring frequently, until well browned and caramelized. Stir in pepitas and nutmeg and heat through. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Serve with a hearty dish like roast beef, lamb chops, or cassoulet.

Crab Cakes: The Battle

[I get that it’s not jazz. The video|it has battling crabs.]

Hot spicy crab cakes with dueling sauces. Your mouth won’t know what to think.

Smoky and spicy thanks to the adobo sauced chipotle peppers. Quick Rémoulade combines cooling mayonnaise with a shot of hot. It’s a duel all by itself. But let’s pile on some more heat|Busha Browne’s Spicy Tomato Love-Apple Sauce (that’s the red stuff in the pic) from Jamaica.

Crab Cakes

10-16 oz fresh crab meat (backfin is fine)

1 egg

2 slices of bread, preferably a little coarse, crusts removed.

3.5 oz (1/2 can) canned chipotle peppers in adobo sauce.

1 Tbsp mayonnaise (regular or light).

Cilantro (2 tsp dried or 3/4 cup fresh leaves)

Salt and pepper to taste.

In a mixing bowl, whisk the egg lightly. Crumb the bread into the egg and combine. Fold in the mayonnaise.

Place the chipotle peppers and adobo sauce into a food processor, and puree them together. If using fresh cilantro, add to the food processor and process lightly until chopped.

Add 2 Tbsp of the puree to the egg/bread crumb/mayonnaise mixture in the mixing bowl and combine well. [If using dried cilantro, add it to the bowl and blend lightly.]

Add the crab meat to the mixing bowl and gently combine. Add salt and pepper lightly to taste.

Gently form crab cakes into patties 3″ in diameter and 3/4″ in height.

Cover and refrigerate the crab patties for at least 45 minutes. [Do not skip this step or the crab cakes will not firm up when cooked.]

While the crab is sitting, prepare Quick Remoulade (below).

To cook the crab cakes:

Coat a dark-colored baking tray with cooking spray. Place the patties on the tray and broil for 5-7 minutes per side or until moderately browned. Do not overcook!

Remove from tray with a spatula and serve immediately with Quick Rémoulade on the side.

Quick Rémoulade

1 cup mayonnaise

2 Tbsp hot sauce, any style.

2 tsp sweet pickle relish.

1/4 tsp ground celery seed (or to taste).

Salt and pepper to taste.

Blend ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Refrigerate until serving. Garnish with fresh parsley or cilantro.

Baba Ga-who?

Like Monk plays the Duke, this dish is a variation on a classic. No garlic or tahini here, this dish takes baba ganouj from hot to cool.

Prep time: 40 minutes to fix. Chill for at least an hour.

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1 large purple eggplant

2-3 Tbsp creamy nut butter (almond butter is best but peanut butter or any other nut butter can be used) at room temperature.

3-4 ripe figs, stems removed and cut in half.

What, no figs on hand? Try soaked dried figs, raisins or apricots.
Oh hell, throw jam in there if that’s all you’ve got.

1 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1/4 tsp spice (nutmeg, cinammon, or allspice)

salt and pepper to taste.

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Pre-heat oven to 350­ deg. F.

Line a baking pan with tinfoil.

Cut the stem end of the eggplant off, then cut the eggplant in half lengthwise. Place the eggplant halves in the baking pan and score a cross-hatch pattern on the eggplant flesh to promote even baking.

Brush the eggplant with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Bake 30 min. or until soft and moderately browned. Remove from oven and allow to cool.

In a food processor, place the figs (or other fruit) and the nut butter and process for a few seconds. Scoop out one half of the eggplant flesh and add to the processor and process until well blended. Add the other half of the eggplant and the spices and finish blending*.

With a soft spatula, remove the mixture from the food processor to a shallow rimmed bowl, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour before serving. Garnish with cilantro or parsley sprigs.

Serve with bread for dipping, such as Middle Eastern flatbread, pita bread, or plain naan.

*Do not over-process, as this can break up the eggplant seeds and make the dip bitter.

Le Shrimp Hot & Cool

These shrimp get the heat from a good dose of hot sauce and red pepper, as much as you care to put in. The coconut milk cools it off…some.

Cooking time: 20-25 minutes

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Ingredients

1 lb fresh or frozen shrimp 31-35 count UNCOOKED, shell on.

(You can use pre-peeled shrimp, but any shrimp dish that involves broth will taste better if you use shrimp with the shell still on.)

1 can coconut milk

1 cup Thai culinary stock*.

1/3 cup butter or coconut oil

1 Tbsp minced garlic

2 tsp Sriracha or other hot sauce

If you’re listening to the music, you might want to add a little more heat here!

1 tsp red pepper flakes, or 2 dried red pepper pods

dried or fresh cilantro (1 tsp dried or 1 handful fresh)

dried or fresh lemon grass (1 tsp chopped dried or 1 stalk fresh)

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Put on a pot of 3 or more quarts or water to boil for cooking noodles.

Melt butter or coconut oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add minced garlic and cook until fragrant. When the garlic has turned brown, add shrimp and cook until just pink. Add broth and herbs, peppers and pepper sauce. Bring to a bubbling low boil and allow to boil down for 10 min. Add coconut milk and cook for 5 more min on medium-low.

When the noodle water is boiling, add noodles and cook to time indicated on package. When finished, drain noodles into a colander.

Ladle a serving of noodles  into a shallow bowl, then spoon out 10 shrimp from sauce mix with a slotted spoon and spoon over noodles. Top up with broth and serve.

* For a quick homemade Thai stock, add dried lemon grass and basil to a cup of chicken, vegetable, or fish stock (not beef), bring to a boil and then simmer for 5 minutes.