Posts from — April 2009

A rainy spring weekend is a great excuse to stay inside, read, and putter in the kitchen. I picked up my awaited copy of Michael Ruhlman‘s latest book (Ratio, The Simple Codes Behind the Craft of Everyday Cooking) at our local bookstore.  Over about my third cup of coffee, I curled up in a comfy spot and proceeded to read half of the book straight.

***Start of fawning aside about Michael Ruhlman as an author***

I’ve read several of Michael Ruhlman’s previous books about professional chefs and the Culinary Institute of America, and his cookbook collaborations.  Charcuterie is one of my home cookbook Canon.  I like his writing style. He has been through the trenches in cooking school and cooking professionally, and it gives me more confidence in his opinions.  The fact he’s passed Skills and can communicate the details clearly mean more to me than that he’s collaborated with Thomas Keller, though that’s probably why he collaborates with such lofty people in the first place.

Reading his books about chefs and my experience at JPH many moons ago make going to a restaurant like Fore Street even more fun, since I observe and more deeply understand the level of detail in the way the chef and staff work. This made my experience there much more enjoyable as an eater, cooking nerd, and former restaurant employee. Especially since I know that the level of detail is something most of their diners won’t even notice.

*** End of fawning aside, back to Ratio ***

Ratio is a book based in his experiences at CIA, and from his experience as a home cook.  The premise is that if you know the basic ratios of ingredients (by weight) that make up the foundational recipes (for batters, doughs, sauces, stocks), and understand how the ingredients work together, it frees you as a cook/chef.  You have a reliable foundation for the dish, and can improvise at combining flavors or sizing up or down the number of servings, as long as you maintain the ratio of base ingredients.

This is the kind of cooking that appeals to the engineer in me- the hows, the whys the ingredients do what they do, and how your technique of combining the ingredients can change the way the ingredients work together.  And the Harold McGee references are always a plus.

I pulled out a scale and mixed up the basic bread dough (5:3 flour:liquid), giving the new mixer’s dough hook a whirl.  I used part whole wheat flour and part all-purpose, with a little salt and a teaspoon of yeast.  I successfully made a lovely large loaf of bread.  Yes, the ratios work (and despite recent failures, I am still a cook!).  I’m looking forward to exploring them more.  I may need to frame the book jacket, and hang it in the kitchen.  It even goes nicely with the paint on the walls.  Form AND Function.  Love it!

Can you guess what THIS is?

I realize that cooking equipment gets used in our house with greater frequency than in some American households, but it’s hardly America’s Test Kitchen here.  There are only two people, and we don’t have guests for dinner every week, as much fun as that might be.  We seem to be experiencing a fair share of equipment failure this past two weeks.  Is it something in the air?  Am I temporarily insane?  Maybe I don’t want to know the answer to that.

I have sung the praises of enameled cast iron Dutch ovens here many times.  And usually you have the expectation with these expensive tools that they will outlast you.  Unfortunately, that has not been the case for a certain Dutch Oven, as pictured.

The Failed Equipment

The black spot is where the enamel has chipped off, and the black cast iron is visible.  This happened while we were cooking a curry, and I found a rough spot on the bottom while I was stirring.  It was not until I was cleaning out the leftover sauce at the bottom that I discovered the chipping enamel.

My frustration at this occurrence was palpable.  The main reason I had purchased this Dutch Oven was due to its metal knob, and lower cost when compared to the gold standard of ovens, Le Creuset.  This model had received the blessing of America’s Test Kitchen in previous years, and up until this point, I had been pleased.  I must admit, this is the second item I have owned with a celebrity chef’s name on it, which I am a bit embarrassed about.   I am generally skeptical of items that are sold by celebrities, and I’ve freely admitted little respect for Todd English after seeing his website and seeing him in the listings on the Home Shopping Network, despite what culinary chops he may have.

This is NOT a product with TE’s name on it, however, and I will not slander the chef/celebrity who’s name IS on it, but I am distressed.  Should I replace this with a new version of the same item?  Or should I open the wallet and get the gold standard, plus the metal knob?

Hmmmm…

We’ve started a new round of Friendship Circle projects, and this time, we’ve simplified the process.  Each hostess gets to choose a block that she’d like members of the group to make, for at least a portion of a quilt.  As an example, I might decide to make a Baltimore Album quilt, and farm out a block to each member of the Friendship Circle, and give them pieces of two fabrics which must be used, so that all blocks have some common themes.  The following month, when we meet, we turn in the blocks to the previous hostess, and get a new project to work on.

(Fear not, if any of the Friendship Circle is a reader, I am unlikely to choose a Baltimore Album. Though that might not be too difficult for the applique whizzes in the group.)

This month’s block is called Mississippi Wheel of Fortune, and we got two fabrics- one red, one yellow.  I still have a sashing piece that is paper pieced sawteeth, but I’ve finished a pinwheel setting square and the big Wheel of Fortune block.

Mississippi Wheel of Fortune Block

This involved curved piecing, and paper piecing.  I hadn’t done any paper piecing in years, so I needed to re-learn.  I found some videos on YouTube about it, some which didn’t show much of the actual technique.  This one is a good tutorial.  And this one is a scream.  Of course, I didn’t find the first one until now, when I’m writing about it.  The second one was fun, and enough to jog my memory.  I don’t remember the folding bit when I first learned, but in my experience this time, the folding helps a lot.

I like the sharp points you get with paper piecing.  But it does take a while, and you can’t be stingy with your fabric pieces.  The curved piecing was easy, since I used Ruth B. McDowell’s technique with freezer paper templates.  That’s my wheelhouse, as they say.  I can’t wait to see what the others look like.

Yesterday started out as a typical Saturday.  I was cooking, working on two recipes at once.  I was making chocolate ice cream for a dinner we’re hosting on Thursday (It took 30 plus years of cooking until I really understood mise-en-place, and took it to heart.  If you’re lazy, you need to be efficient.).  I was also using the KitchenAid to knead some pain de miei dough  (after I killed the yeast in a previous attempt.  Yes, I do screw things up.  No, I don’t always blog about them.  Do you think I should, oh dear readership?  Or does that ruin your image of me?).

Just to keep it real, here's what my sink looks like

Then it happened.  The thunk, then the whine.  My mixer stopped mixing, and the whining sound got louder.  I swiftly went over and shut the mixer off.  I tried to restart it, and nothing but whining ensued (by the machine, not by me.  Mine was later.).  Next step, unplug, don’t panic.  (Finish ice cream base, get it into the fridge to cool)  I of course, went to the internet and searched.  I found out that I’d blown the transmission.

Heavy sigh.   I had a few moments of panic when I realized (for real) that this means an extended outage without a mixer. I found links to a parts list, and a repair manual.  Soon I discovered that the description “just realign the brushes, and figure out which one is damaged” was going to require an extra degree in mechanics and wiring, which are not currently in my skill set.  I’m a software engineer.  You expect me to deal with a hardware problem that doesn’t involve clicking in a new chip?  Wiring and un-wiring?

I went to my local Food Co-op for the weekly refresher on basic supplies (coffee, milk, spinach), and to talk to B, my favorite cheesemonger.  We discuss the deli dept’s issues with heating elements this morning, and other non-related items.   I mention my blown tranny.  We discuss the large cramp in our normal styles that it would be/is to not have a mixer.  B suggests the small engine repair joint across the street.  After I procure my comestibles, I head over there.  The door is locked.  It’s Saturday morning at 9:30.  Since no hours are posted, I’m thinking this is a dead end.  I’ve already searched for small appliance repair in the normal channels (internet, phone book).

I took the food home, put it away, and continued with the bread, and kept churning away at what to do.  I called my other friend H, who’s lived here longer than I have, and who’s dealt with such issues with his batterie de cuisine.  H always has good equipment and recipe recommendations.  I explained my dilemma, and asked if he had repair recommendations.  He asked how long I have had it.  At least 16 years, I said.  We determined it was out of warranty, and he suggested I buy a new one, given that my mixer does more than just look pretty on the counter in our kitchen.  I did get a new one, at Target. In cherry red.  But now I have a box to send the old one in for servicing, too.  It’s good to have a backup.  I wonder if getting it fixed will cost as much as the new mixer, by the time I pay for shipping, etc.  We shall see.  Did I mention that the new one is 60 Watts more powerful? It’s the beginning of a new era of cooking.. with the red mixer.

Last month we went to Oklahoma to a wedding, and to visit some long time friends of DH’s family.  One of these friends is Adelia H, who has been a foodie much longer than being a foodie has been chic.  I think you could say Adelia’s been at it since they were referred to as gourmands.

Adelia H, foodie and historian

Adelia now considers herself as much a food historian as a foodie, and from the amount of reference work and knowledge I picked up in the few hours we were together, I can tell this is really her passion.

Besides the terrific breakfast she made for us, I learned all about Aunt Bill’s Brown Candy (including tasting), something that Molly Wizenberg of Orangette has written about for Bon Appetit.  I’m sure my Mum would love Aunt Bill’s Brown Candy- it’s like penuche, but more caramelized, and with pecans.

Adelia was finalizing some details for an exhibit at a local Historical Society on food and cooking in the Depression era in Oklahoma, and she shared lots of interesting information about some of the formidable cooks in Oklahoma’s past, including Aunt Susan, who had a long running column in the Daily Oklahoman, who is mentioned in Wizenberg’s article, and the fascinating story of Cleora Butler, who was raising the bar for gourmet food in Tulsa for several decades, despite humble upbringing.  Adelia had found some artifacts from Aunt Susan’s tenure, and let me look at Cleora’s cookbook.

One of Aunt Susan's Recipe Books

These were going to be part of her exhibit, as well as photographs, recipes, and other information about cooks in Oklahoma in the twenties, thirties, and forties.    She was also planning an appropriate menu for the opening reception.  I sure hope it went well.

Besides the information about the exhibit, and history of cooking in Oklahoma, I also was given several recipes to take with me and try.  As we were walking out to where Adelia has her desk and copier, I saw her gelato maker.  Since one of the recipes she was giving me was for ice cream, the machine caught my eye.  Instantly jealous, I asked about it, and found out she got it for $5 at a yard sale where no one else knew what it was!

I have to admit, that the gelato maker was the reason I’ve been looking at eBay, and ended up bidding on the pasta attachments.  And while it took three tries, I am pleased to say I now have a machine similar to Adelia’s.  It did cost more than $5.  Enough said. So I needed to try it out.

The New to Me Toy

The maiden voyage for Il Gelataio was  with Lucy Baker’s recipe for Cinnamon Ice Cream, modified from a recipe by Gail Gand.  I chose cinnamon as the flavor because it was always one of my favorites at Jordan Pond House, where I worked summers during college.  It’s amazing what kind of taste memories stick with us, isn’t it?

This recipe doesn’t disappoint.  But more on Il Gelataio soon, as I learn the nuances of making the custard base correctly.

Whoopie Pie, singular, from Round 1

A good friend of ours who is a chocolate fiend recently had a birthday.  It’s fun to make her birthday treats because both she and her beloved (a coworker) are so appreciative.  Knowing that C & M both love chocolate treats, but have a small household, I figured lots of small treats that can be frozen would be better than one huge chocolate cake, for example.  (I know it’s harder for me to resist when there’s CAKE sitting on the counter….) That way they can spread the fun over more days (weeks(!?!), if their impulse control is good)

Plural, from Round 2

So, Whoopie Pies (a lovely invention that’s more common in my home state of Maine than out here in the Midwest) came to mind as an indulgent treat that would be good for C’s birthday present.  I’d never made them before, so I did some research.  I found many recipes, many of which use vegetable shortening, and some which use Marshmallow Fluff in the filling, and some which don’t use Fluff.  Of course, Fluff is pretty hard to find outside the northeastern US, so I was forced to opt against the Fluff ones.

My friend W, a Mainer who is known to make Whoopie Pies a fair bit, DOES use Fluff, but he says you can burn out an electric mixer mixing the Fluff filling.  I’m guessing he knows this from personal experience, so I took his word to be true that more viscous Fluff fillings need to be mixed by hand. (Sounds like a cross-training option, perhaps?)

I found a recipe that says it’s adapted from Zingerman’s Bakehouse, of Ann Arbor, MI.  I have great respect for the bakers at Zingerman’s, and have sent their stuff as gifts, so I figured this was going to be fine.   Several hours later, in tasting the results, I found them very salty, and felt that the results were not gift-worthy (Though some of my coworkers got them on Monday).

I decided to make them again, adjusting the leavening, and leaving out the salt(!) that was in the buttercream filling in the recipe.  This version was DELICIOUS.  (This time the goof was accidentally adding two sticks of butter to the cake part of the mix, as I was paying more attention to the radio than to what I was doing.  When I realized, I ended up making a double batch.  So the extras went off to DH’s coworkers).

Props in this go to DH, again, who helped feed pats of butter into the mixer for the filling (round 1), and helped me with the filling and wrapping (rounds 1 & 2).

Whoopie Pies, adapted from a NY Times adaptation from Zingerman’s in Ann Arbor, MI.

Makes 8-10, depending on your dollop-size.

Equipment:

• sheet pans
• parchment paper for sheet pans (you could grease the pans instead, I guess, but I didn’t)
• mixing bowls
• heavy duty electric mixer with paddle (for cakes) and whisk attachments (for filling)
• rubber or silicon spatula
• measuring cups (for liquid and dry ingredients)
• measuring spoons
• whisk
• spoon or ice cream scoop for portioning dollops
• cooling racks
• instant read thermometer
• double boiler, or saucepan and metal bowl large enough to sit over saucepan as double boiler.
• plastic wrap

Ingredients for Cakes:

• 1 stick (1/4 lb) unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 1 cup light brown sugar
• 1 large egg
• 1 tsp. vanilla extract
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/2 cup cocoa
• 1 cup buttermilk

Ingredients for Buttercream Filling:

• 3 large egg whites
• 3/4 cup sugar (white, granulated)
• 2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
• 3/4 tsp. vanilla

Cake Process:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.  Line the baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. Add the flour, cocoa, baking powder, baking soda, and salt to a mixing bowl and whisk them together.
3. In mixing bowl, cream together the butter and brown sugar.  Add the egg and vanilla extract and beat until light and creamy.
4. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture in three parts, alternating with the buttermilk (in two parts), combining well after each addition.
5. Using an ice cream scoop or a spoon, scoop out 1/4 cup mounds of batter and place them 2-3 inches apart on parchment lined baking sheets.  Bake one pan at a time, until the cakes are puffed, and they spring back when touched, about 12-14 minutes.  Remove the parchment sheet to a cooling rack, and cool  before peeling the cakes off the parchment.  Cool the cakes completely before filling them. Don’t worry, making the filling now will give them plenty of time to cool.

Whoopie Pie cakes, cooling before filling

Buttercream Filling Process:

1. Put 2 inches of water in the saucepan (or bottom of double boiler), and bring to just under a boil (the furious simmer).
2. Clean and dry the bowl for the mixer, if you used it for the cakes.  Make sure it is very clean and very dry, for height when whipping the filling.
3. Cut butter into 1/2 Tbs. pats. (approx 1/4 inch thick)
4. Add the egg whites and sugar to the metal bowl (or top of double boiler), and whisk them together.  Place the bowl over the simmering water, and keep whisking until the sugar is dissolved and the temperature reaches 180 degrees F on your instant-read thermometer.  The whites will get pretty glossy at this point.
5. Take the bowl off the heat, and scrape the whites and sugar mixture into the bowl on the heavy duty mixer. Whisk the egg whites and sugar on high until they double in volume and become thick and shiny.  Continue to whisk until cool.  This can take a while.
6. Reduce the speed to medium, and add the butter, one pat at a time, mixing between pats until all the butter is incorporated.  This can take a longer while.
7. Add the vanilla.  Increase the speed to high, and whisk for one more minute.

Whisking action of sugar and egg whites

Patiently adding the butter, pat by pat

Whoopie Pie Assembly Process (Whoopeeeeeee!):

1. Match up your cakes in pairs, putting like sizes together.
2. Using a spoon, plop 1/4 cup of buttercream on the flat side of one cake.  Spread the filling to the edges.
3. Top with another cake, flat side toward filling.
4. Repeat with the rest of the cakes and filling.
5. Store in an airtight container for up to 3 days at room temperature, or wrap individually in plastic wrap and freeze for up to 3 months.

Like any of us will have these around for three days if we don’t freeze them and use amazing amounts of self-control. Honestly.  I like to wrap them individually anyway, even if I don’t freeze them, so the filling doesn’t leak out, and the (moist!) cakes don’t get stuck together.

Home made pasta with quick tomato sauce and Parmigiano-Reggiano

To accompany our homemade pasta this weekend, we tried out a new recipe from Cook’s Illustrated (May & June, 2009 issue).  According to Keith Dresser, who wrote the article and did the recipe testing, high quality canned tomatoes are the key to this recipe.  I used Muir Glen’s Fire Roasted tomatoes in ours, and like the result. It certainly is EASY.

Quick Tomato Sauce, modified from Cook’s Illustrated, May & June, 2009

Equipment:

• medium saucepan
• can opener
• grater with large holes
• cutting board
• chef’s knife or paring knife
• spoon for stirring
• measuring spoons & cups
• garlic press

Ingredients:

• 2 Tbs. unsalted butter
• 1 medium onion
• 1/4 tsp. dried oregano
• table salt
• 2 medium garlic cloves
• 1 (28 oz.) can crushed tomatoes
• 1/4 tsp. sugar
• 2 Tbs. coarsely chopped fresh basil leaves
• 1 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil
• ground black pepper

Prep:

1. Peel, then grate the onion on a large-holed box grater until you have 1/4 cup.
2. Peel and mince or press the garlic.
3. Chop the basil and set aside.

Cook:

1. Heat butter in saucepan over medium heat until the butter melts.  Add the onion, oregano, and 1/2 tsp. salt.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid has evaporated and the onion is golden brown, about 5 minutes.
2. Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about half a minute.  Stir in the tomatoes and sugar, increase the heat to high, and bring to a simmer.
3. Lower heat to medium-lo and simmer until thickened slightly, about 10 minutes.
4. Off heat, stir in basil and olive oil.  Taste, and season with salt and pepper.  Serve.

According to Cook’s, this is enough sauce for 1 pound of pasta.  We found it enough for two pounds of pasta, since we don’t like ours too saucy.

I’m sure we’ll be doing this one again.  I bet we could whip it up while the pasta dough is resting.

Photo credit to DH, copyright 2009

I am the type of person who would like to move to Emilia Romagna for a month to have some elderly woman teach me the proper way to make homemade fresh pasta by hand, and to spend a month or so making it at least once a day to be sure I can actually do it correctly.  While I have a passport, and can speak Italian, the likelihood of this happening soon in my life is remote.

I do, however, have good cookbooks, access to eBay, and some lovely KitchenAid appliances at my disposal.

First, the cookbook:  Marcella Says…, by Marcella Hazan.  Marcella has made a career teaching Italian cooking to Americans and others, in the USA and in Italy.  This book is one of the first cookbooks I bought when I moved to the midwest.  I read through Marcella’s description of making homemade pasta, and I read that she herself, in her advanced age, no longer uses the hand crank pasta machines one often sees.  She uses the pasta roller and cutter attachments made in Italy for Kitchen Aid.  So, the pasta attachments became a wish-list item for me.

Five Years Later….

I was  perusing eBay looking for a used ice cream maker (thanks to a wonderful visit with Adelia and Burt in Stillwater, OK), and ended up bidding on the KitchenAid pasta rollers.  I’m pleased to say I won the auction, and got them for less than retail.

Pasta Roller on Mixer

This weekend, I took the lovely rollers out of their box, and checked it all out.  It was time to refer back to Marcella for the basic recipe.  She doesn’t tell you how easy it is, as Jamie Oliver does, and show you how much fun it is to energetically mix it with your hands.  She’s much more direct.  I will paraphrase/embellish the directions here.  For enough pasta for 2-4 people (2 as a generous main dish or 4  primi piatti (first course), IMHO):

1. Put your metal blade in your food processor.  Add a heaping cup of all-purpose flour and two eggs.  Process until it clumps together.  If it’s sticky, add flour by the tablespoon, pulsing between until it isn’t sticky.  If it’s too dry, add water by the tablespoon until it comes together in big clumps.
2. Gather the dough into a ball and knead it for one minute, pushing it away with the heel of your hand against the worksurface.  Turn, fold, and repeat.  The heat of your hands and the pressure will make the dough smooth.  Cover the dough with plastic wrap or foil and let rest (15 min. to 1 hr.)
3. Roll and cut with the pasta roller and cutter, according to the manufacturer’s directions.  Either cook the pasta immediately in boiling water (2-4 minutes), or let the pasta air dry on tea towels, and store for later.

Doesn't this dough look well rested?

Okay, so there’s none of the romance of making it completely by hand, of a special skill gained learning to roll the pasta with a dowel.  But it is fast, easy, and delicious in the way that dried pasta can never be.  It’s tender, tasty, and has a texture all it’s own.  You can understand why this has a special place in the hearts of Italians by taste alone.  The fact that it’s made with love by mamma, well, books have been written about that.

We made this pasta twice this weekend.  (First to try out the tools and a quick sauce recipe, and the second time to avoid the mistakes of our first effort, cutting too-sticky pasta by hand. And to use up the sauce.  And because we were hungry.)

Roller in Action

Honestly, it IS possible to go from eggs and flour to cooked pasta in about 35 minutes (15 min. of resting time) with the food processor and the KitchenAid pasta roller and cutter. If you add another 20 minutes on the front making a quick tomato sauce, in an hour it’s a really great dinner.  OK, we’re aided by some sophisticated machinery.  But it does pass Michael Pollan’s test for real food.  We can identify all ingredients, and we combined them together at home.  And Michael Pollan never said sophisticated cooking machinery was not allowed. (Imagine the backlash…)

I can see why this might be too much effort for some people.  But I am pretty sure this is not a flash in the pan gadget for us.  Tonight, while we were cooking the pasta pictured here, DH mentioned that this might be a great first course at a dinner we’re cooking for a silent auction.  Or that we might want to do this at another dinner party.  Marcella would be proud.  I’ve introduced another person to the joys of homemade pasta all’uova, and he can tell how good it is.