Participating without really participating!  But first…

Peta, of the blog Peta Eats, was our lovely hostess for the Daring Cook’s September 2011 challenge, “Stock to Soup to Consommé”. We were taught the meaning between the three dishes, how to make a crystal clear Consommé if we so chose to do so, and encouraged to share our own delicious soup recipes!

Ahhhh, soup. We love it.  French Onion Soup in particular.  But honestly, it’s too still hot in Los Angeles to contemplate making soup or even stock, so I was going to forgo this challenge until… I actually read the darn thing.  And one of the parts of the challenge was to make stock into consommé, which is a very clarified soup base (or sometimes eaten by itself).  As I contemplated perhaps getting it together and making a quick chicken stock from some bones we have the freezer, I spied this:

Two quarts of frozen chicken stock!  Well, that ruled out this challenge, because we already have more stock than we know what to do with!  And then, I watched this!

And realized that I could participate just by whacking up the blocks of stock and letting them melt through some cheese cloth in the fridge!  Ok, participate isn’t exactly what I did when compared with these beautiful, bold and daring cooks, but we should have some consummé at the end of it all.  Or at least, I hope we will.  Because after 11 hours of melting, all I’ve got to show so far is this:

Less than an inch of liquid.  My husband comes home tonight and I’m not so sure how thrilled he’s going to be at my rearranging our tiny fridge to accommodate another one of my cooking projects.  Maybe if I bribe him with some soup?

Thanks Peta for a fantastic and educational challenge.  I will definitely be using this clarification method on my stocks – once we get a bigger fridge!

Cheers.

The instructions for making these are very long, so instead of posting them in their entirety, here is a link to a pdf of them.  It is jam-packed full of info and well worth reading if you are interested in making any of these things!

Let’s get down to it!

Steph from Stephfood was our Daring Cooks’ July hostess.  Steph challenged us to make homemade noodles without the help of a motorized pasta machine.  She provided us with recipes for Spätzle and Fresh Egg Pasta as well as a few delicious sauces to pair our noodles with!

So…we’ve made a lot of pasta.  In the fall, it’s an almost once-a-week kind of thing around here.  We love it.  This past winter and spring, we created a sweet potato ravioli to die for.  It’s super yummy.

Even though this challenge is less of a challenge than another excellent excuse to make fresh pasta (and pesto – first of the summer!), I thought I’d throw in a bunch of photos that would have been helpful to me the first time I tried to make pasta, over 20 years ago.  That was a disaster…which, come to think of it, I’m not sure how I got around, since we didn’t have youtube or any other great forum for learning quickly about cooking techniques.  I did, though, for some reason, and sure glad for it!

Steph provided a recipe for us to use (detailed below), but I decided to use the one that I’ve used for quite a while now.  I love it because it is very easy to scale (which I think Steph’s recipe is as well).  For this challenge, I thought it would be interesting to scale it down as small as possible (my husband is working late and won’t be around to help me eat this, so I really only need enough for one) and see if it works.  Ready for the ratio*?

100 grams of flour (I use regular unbleached white all purpose – not sure the weight you’d need if you used 00 or some other flour)

1 large egg

Once the flour is measured into a bowl (hard cord types do this on a board, but I think that’s way too difficult), you stir in some salt (just a pinch) and then make a well in the flour and crack the egg into the center.

And then the theory is…that you sort of scramble the egg and then slowly mix in the flour by adding a little to the egg and then a little more, and then a little more (see how this would be hard on a board?  If you had a really big surface, like a giant table, that might be ok, but not having it in a bowl is going to have most of us with egg running everywhere).  In practice, what I usually end up doing is beating the egg before I put it in the flour and then just kind of mixing it in with a fork.  You can use the fork to really smash the flour into the egg, getting it as thoroughly mixed in as possible.

However you do it, this is the piece of info that I wish I had the first time I made homemade pasta; it’s going to look like hell when you first mix it before it’s kneaded.  It’ll be really shaggy, pretty dry and not look at all like pasta.

I should have fixed the depth of field on this photo, but you get the idea.  When you feel like you have the egg mixed in as much as possible with the fork, use your hand (clean please!) to push it into a ball as much as you can.  It’s still going to be crumbly, but it will mostly stick together.

See how crumbly that is?  There are little flour bits everywhere (many of which didn’t make it into the final ball of dough).  But I just kneaded it and after 10 minutes of working it (yes, for real, 10 minutes.  You can do more but don’t do less, don’t skimp), it looked much more like pasta.

Now it needs to rest.  It needs to rest?  I’m the one who just kneaded it for over 10 minutes!  But it’s tired and needs to set up a bit and get even more pasta-y, so you can wrap some cling film around it or do what I do and throw it in a tupperware kind of container and put it in the fridge.  Leave it there for at least 30 minutes but you could leave it there overnight if you wanted (not much longer or it will turn grey – which doesn’t make it taste bad or kill you, but it looks icky).

Now you’re going to to cut it into wedges (this one is in fourths, but more dough could need sixths or eighths).

Cover the pieces that aren’t being rolled out so they don’t dry out completely.  Roll them out.  Ah, well…

There are a couple of ways to do this.  I use a pasta machine.  It’s not motorized (so it fits in the challenge) but I’ve never hand rolled pasta.  As far as I’m concerned, that’s for beautiful Italian women with massive arms to do.  Maybe someday I’ll get around to trying it.  But for now, I feel that kneading the dough is enough to do by hand…

Either way, you want to roll it out and then cut it or fill it.  I like to let my pasta dry a bit first on a rack (this one in a laundry rack).

This helps keep it from sticking.  Flour helps too.  When the pasta is a little stiff, you can cut it, either with a knife or a pasta cutter of some kind (my machine has a linguine and an angel hair cutter, both of which are very nice).  For this recipe, I like to cut it into squares/rectangles.

I made this recipe with a pesto sauce which works really nice with this pasta shape.  It’s an easy shape to do and it has a wonderful texture and resistance to it when it’s cooked.

Now it’s time to cook the stuff.  Boil water – lots of it with some salt – and then drop the pasta in.  Turn it down a bit so you don’t cook the heck out of it.

Once it’s back up to the boil again, it’s pretty much done, but taste it (not such a bad task) to be sure.  Be careful – it can turn to mush pretty quickly, and that is sad.

Drain the pasta and then sauce it.  I like to put some sauce in the bottom of the pan I used to boil the pasta and then add the drained pasta to it.

This helps keep the pasta from sticking to the pan or itself.  It’s not a bad idea to have the sauce warm, or at least room temperature (like this pesto – you don’t want to actually heat a sauce with this much cheese in it) before you add it.  I used pesto sauce for this challenge.  If you want my recipe, check out this post.

Plate and garnish however you like.

If you’ve managed to get this far, I think you’re going to be amazed and really happy.  There is nothing quite like fresh homemade pasta.  It’s not hard to make, it just takes a little time.  And hey – what else are you doing that could really be much better than that?

Thanks Steph for giving me an excuse to expound on the deliciousness of fresh pasta and being an amazing hostess!

Cheers.

*So because it’s a ratio, it’s really easy to modify.  If you want more pasta, increase both egg and flour by these quantities (ex: for 300 grams of flour, you would use 3 large eggs, for 600 grams of flour, 6 large eggs – and a lot of hungry people!)

Recipes!

Preparation time:
Spätzle – this is a very quick and easy recipe, about 30 minutes total

• preparation of dough –  5 – 10 minutes
• dropping into boiling water – 5 – 10 minutes
• cooking time – about 10 – 15 minutes (for the denser style – thinner variations will take less time to cook)
• sauce preparation – about 5 minutes, and can be done while the Spätzle cooks

Egg Fettuccine – this takes about 2.5 – 3 hours total, in the following stages:

• initial dough creation – about 10 minutes
• dough resting – minimum 15 minutes to a maximum of 2 hours (I let it rest for 30 minutes and prepared the sauce during this time)
• rolling and cutting of noodles – about 1.5 to 2 hours
• boiling the noodle – about 5 minutes

Equipment required:
- 1 pair of clean hands, ready to work!
- 1 sheet of plastic wrap  (for covering Egg Fettuccine dough)
- Large mixing bowl
- A clean, dry surface to lay or hang the cut Fettuccine during preparation
- A fine metal sifter (for sifting flour)
- Measuring cups
- Mixing spoon, preferably wooden
- Large pot (for cooking pasta)
- Two tablespoons (for shaping and dropping Spätzle)
- Manual pasta rollers (for rolling and cutting Egg Fettuccine) OR a rolling pin and a very sharp knife

German Spätzle

Ingredients:

2 large eggs
½ cup (120 ml) milk (any style of milk you what, but I believe buttermilk may be traditional. I’ve always used 1 or 2%.)
1½ cups (360 ml) (210 gm) (7½ oz) all-purpose (plain) flour (approximately – have more on hand, in case)
up to 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of herbs and spices (optional – I added some cayenne and herbes de provence)
1 tablespoon (15 ml) (3 gm) fresh parsley, chopped (optional – I added this for color mostly)

Directions:

1. In a large bowl, whisk together eggs, milk and any herbs and spices that you want to incorporate into the spätzle.
2. Incorporate the flour in small batches, by sifting in a small amount at a time and mixing until the flour is completely integrated. Keep adding flour until the dough becomes elastic, smooth and very hard to stir.
3. Boil a large pot of water. Dip a table spoon into the boiling water to wet it. To form the spätzle, fill the tablespoon about half way with dough, and release into the boiling water.
4. Boil for 15 to 20 minutes.
5. Drain the water from the spätzle. Because it’s full of fun craters where water can hide, you will need to drain it especially well. Toss with the chopped parsley.
6. Plate, and dab a bit of the sauce on each spätzle. Don’t add too much – it’s really more of a light dressing than a sauce.

Butter and Breadcrumb Sauce (for Spätzle):

Ingredients:

½ cup (120 ml) (30 gm) (1 oz) fresh breadcrumbs OR ½ cup (120 gm) (60 gm) (2 oz) dry breadcrumbs (either variety can be used)
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:

1. Melt the butter… this can be done in the microwave, or on the stove.
2. Mix in the breadcrumbs. If needed, gently heat further (especially if you store breadcrumbs in the fridge or freezer).
3. Season to your taste

Handmade Egg Fettuccine:

4 – 6 servings

The following photos show the use of pasta rollers, however, the recipe will include steps for people using a rolling pin and knife instead of rollers. For a visual reference, please see this video of a pasta making demonstration with a rolling pin. His recipe is slightly different, but you can see the shape and thickness the dough should be, and how to cut the noodles. http://www.5min.com/Video/Hand-Made-Pasta-Recipe-179300529

Ingredients:

2 cups (480 ml) (280 gm) (10 oz) all-purpose (plain) flour
3 large eggs, beaten
water, as needed

Directions:

1. Sift the flour into a large mixing bowl.
2. Push the flour out of the very center of the bowl, to make a ‘well’. Pour the beaten egg into the ‘well’.
3. Slowly incorporate the flour into the egg by mixing a small amount of flour into the “well” at a time and mixing until incorporated. Start by mixing in flour around the perimeter of the egg, and gradually widening the mixing to include more and more flour. Mix until all of the egg is mixed into the flour.
4. At this stage, use your hands to try to form a rough ball. If the dough is too dry, add a few drops of water and incorporate. Be careful to not add too much liquid – it’s better to slowly add water as needed, as opposed to trying to add more flour to a sticky dough. My trick is to wet my fingers, instead of pouring water directly into the dough. This ensures a minimal amount of water is added, and is more evenly distributed.
5. Knead the dough for a few minutes, until it is smooth.
6. Roll the dough into a ball, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside to rest. It should be allowed to rest for at least 15 minutes, at most 2 hours. Take this time to set up your pasta roller, and/or to prepare the sauce.
7. Divide dough into 6 equal pieces. Take one piece to start, and put the remaining back into the plastic wrap so that they don’t dry out.
   
8. Form the piece of dough into a ball, and then flatten using the palm of your hand.
9. If using pasta rollers: Run this through the pasta roller at its widest setting
   If using a rolling pin: Use a rolling pin to create a thin elongated oval.
10. Place the dough horizontally on your work surface, and fold the long ends into the center, so that they meet. Press down on the edges to seal them. At this stage, you should have a rectangular shape.
11. If using pasta rollers: Run the dough through the pasta roller, open-side first, again at the widest setting
    If using a rolling pin: Roll into a long, thin rectangle. Carefully flip the thin dough over, and dust with flour on both sides.  Skip to step #15.
12. Repeat steps 9 and 10
13. Now run the dough through the roller two more times, again on the widest setting, without folding first. This will help to make the dough very smooth and elastic, for stretching.
14. Now stretch the dough by running through the rollers, each time switching to a narrower setting. After the final setting, you should be able to see the outline of your hand through the dough.
15. If using pasta rollers: Run the stretched dough through the fettuccine-sized cutters. Gently lay or hang your freshly cut pasta, and cover with a clean cloth so that it doesn’t dry out while you roll and cut the rest of your dough.OR, If using a rolling pin: Carefully roll the dough up (like rolling up a yoga mat). Choose how wide your noodle will be, and using a very sharp knife, cut through the rolled up dough. Unroll the noodles as you go, to prevent sticking.
16. Repeat steps 8-15 for the remaining dough.
17. Bring a large pot of water to a boil, gently drop in the freshly cut pasta, and cook for about 5 minutes. Drain and toss with sauce and enjoy immediately!

Aglio, Olio, Peperoncino e Basilico:

This recipe is sort of a cross between alio e olio (garlic and olive oil) and pesto. This doesn’t have the fine processing of basil that pesto does, allowing the oil to do most of the work of coating the pasta.

Should coat about 4 servings of pasta. Very easy to double, if needed.

Ingredients:

1 clove of garlic
¼ teaspoon (1¼ ml) (¾ gm) coarse sea salt, plus more to taste
1 small bunch of basil
¼ teaspoon (1¼ ml) (½ gm) chili flakes
¼ cup (60 ml) extra virgin olive oil
1 cup (240 ml) (150 gm) (5⅓ oz) quartered cherry tomatoes
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

Directions:

1. Using a mortar and pestle, mash the garlic with ¼ teaspoon of sea salt into a fine paste.
2. Add a few basil leaves to the mortar and pestle at a time, and mash until softened (but not pureed). Do this until all of the basil is added.
3. Add the chili flakes.
4. If your mortar is not large enough, transfer the mixture to a bowl. Slowly mix in the olive oil. Add the salt to taste.
5. Set the mixture aside for at least a half and hour to allow the flavors to mingle.
6. When ready, gently toss with warm/hot pasta, adding more olive oil if needed.
7. Add in the cherry tomatoes, and mix well.
8. Add freshly ground pepper, to taste.
9. Serve topped with Parmigiano-Reggiano, and a few more chili flakes.

Freezing/Storage Instructions/Tips:

• The fresh fettuccine can be frozen before cooking. You may wish to lightly coat the pasta with a little bit of flour to prevent sticking. Gently tuck the pasta into a freezer safe bag and freeze flat. After cooking, the pasta may be refrigerated for up to two days.
• The spätzle can be refrigerated after cooking, and will also keep for a couple of days in a properly sealed container.

Howdy bots!

Kathlyn of Bake Like a Ninja was our Daring Cooks’ March 2011 hostess. Kathlyn challenges us to make two classic Peruvian dishes: Ceviche de Pescado from “Peruvian Cooking – Basic Recipes” by Annik Franco Barreau. And Papas Rellenas adapted from a home recipe by Kathlyn’s Spanish teacher, Mayra.

Wait…Kathlyn…that’s me!

I was so honored to host this month’s Daring Cooks challenge.  To be asked was just the tip of the iceberg; putting recipes out there and seeing what this fantastic group of cooks came up with to rise to the challenge was…well, at the risk of sounding corny, it was humbling, but it was also an awful lot of fun!

If you aren’t familiar with Peruvian food, it is some of the best stuff on Earth.  Hearty, flavorful…the food reflects the people of the country, who are warm and generous and lovely to pass some time with, especially if it means eating a meal.

A special thanks to my muy guapa Spanish teacher Mayra who generously typed up recipes for me while I was in Perú in preparation for this challenge.  She is an unforgettable woman who is welcome at my house any time!

And thanks also to Lis for asking me to be a part of this first round of DC hosting – being included in this group of people was really special!

Perú, te hecho de menos, te quiero y espero que volver pronto – tu comida es tan rica, tu país es tan bonito y tu gente es tan amable.  Besitos!!

Saludos!

Cheviche de Pescado (Fish Ceviche):

Serves 6 as a “starter” or lunch portion. Serves 2 as a dinner.

Ingredients

2 lbs. (about 1 kg) firm white fish (scallops or other seafood may be substituted)*
2 garlic cloves, mashed
1 chili pepper, minced (I recommend Aji if you can find it, but Jalapeno or other peppers can sub)
1 cup (240 ml) freshly squeezed lime juice (between 8-12 limes)
Fresh juice only, no bottled. Can use lemons in lieu of limes.
1 tablespoon (15 ml) (4 grams) (1/8 oz) fresh coriander (cilantro), finely chopped
1 red onion, thinly sliced lengthwise
Salt and pepper (to taste)

Garnish:
1 large sweet potato
1 large ear of corn
Lettuce leaves

Directions:

1. Boil sweet potato and corn (separately) if using for garnish. Allow to cool. (Can be done hours or even a day in advance)



2. Wash and trim your fish. Slice into pieces between ½ inch (15 mm) cubes to 2 inch (50mm) pieces, depending on taste.**
3. Place fish in a non-reactive, shallow pan in a thin layer. Season with salt and pepper.



4. Combine lime juice, chili pepper, coriander and garlic. Pour mixture over fish. Stir lightly to expose all the fish to some of the lime juice mixture.





5. Put sliced onion on top of fish as it “cooks”
6. Let fish stand for 10 minutes.*** Lift fish out of the lime juice and plate individual portions ,**** garnishing with lettuce, slices of sweet potato and slices or kernels of corn if using.

* It is important to use high quality, really fresh fish. You can use previously frozen (I’ve been using it because I am too cheap to buy this much sashimi grade fish), but it’s not as good. The better your fish, the better your ceviche.
** The fish is going to “cook” in the lime juice – how thick you make the pieces will determine how much the fish cooks, so keep your own preference in mind when you are cutting the fish up.
*** I have looked at recipes all over the interwebs for ceviche, and they all have different “cooking” times – I am going with 10 minutes because that’s what my Peruvian cookbook says. While I was in Lima, all the ceviche I ate was just barely white, and basically raw. I may cause a raging debate about ceviche by saying this, but I think that is most traditional. However, you can thoroughly cook the fish by letting it sit much longer – a few hours or even overnight. When I did this, it made the fish taste of nothing but lime and it was a bit rubbery, so it’s not what I would recommend.
**** The portions can vary; personally I prefer to have ceviche as I mostly ate it in Lima – as a starter, in a fairly small portion. It’s very light and a lovely way to start off before eating something else. You can also eat a full meal portion of it if you want – I think that’s too much, but if you love it, don’t let my taste stop you!

Here is a photo of a full plate of ceviche I ate in Lima – you can both see the size of the portion (it was all I had for lunch and dinner that day) and how “cooked” the fish is – this is typical of Peruvian ceviche (in my experience). The fish is just slightly white around the edges, while most of it is essentially raw.

Papas Rellenas (de carne):

Makes 6

Ingredients

For the dough:
2¼ lb (1 kg) russet potatoes
1 large egg

For the filling:
2 tablespoon (30 ml) of a light flavored oil
½ lb (250 grams) ground (minced) beef
6 black olives, pitted and chopped (use more if you love olives)
3 hard boiled large eggs, chopped
1 small onion, finely diced (about 1 cup (240 ml))
½ cup (120 ml) (90 gm) (3 oz) raisins, soaked in 1 cup (240 ml) boiling water for 10 minutes, then minced
1 finely diced aji pepper (ok to sub jalapeño or other pepper – if you are shy about heat, use less)
2 cloves garlic, minced or passed through a press (if you love garlic, add more)
1 teaspoon (5 ml) (4 gm) (1/8 oz) ground cumin (use more if you like cumin)
½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) (2 gm) (1/16 oz) sweet paprika
¼ c. white wine, water or beef stock for deglazing
Salt and pepper to taste

For the final preparation:
1 large egg, beaten
1 cup (240 ml) (140 gm) (5 oz) all-purpose flour
Dash cayenne pepper
Dash salt
1 cup dry (240 ml) (110 gm) (4 oz) or fresh (240 ml) (60 gm) (2 oz) bread crumbs (you can use regular, panko, make your own or use store-bought)

Oil for frying (enough for 2” (50 mm) in a heavy pan like a medium sized dutch oven)

Directions:

In order to save time, you can boil the potatoes, and while they are cooling, you can make the filling. While that is cooling, you can make the potato “dough.” In this way, little time is spent waiting for anything to cool.

For the dough:

1. Boil the potatoes until they pierce easily with a fork. Remove them from the water and cool.
2. Once the potatoes have cooled, peel them and mash them with a potato masher or force them through a potato ricer (preferred).



3. Add egg, salt and pepper and knead “dough” thoroughly to ensure that ingredients are well combined and uniformly distributed.

While the potatoes cool down before finishing the dough, you can make the filling:

1. Gently brown onion and garlic in oil (about 5 minutes).



2. Add the chili pepper and sauté for a couple more minutes.



3. Add ground beef and brown.



4. Add raisins, cumin and paprika and cook briefly (a few seconds).
5. Deglaze the pan with white wine.
6. Add olives and cook for a few moments longer.
7. Add hard boiled eggs and fold in off heat.
8. Allow filling to cool before forming “papas.”

Forming and frying the papas:

1. Use three small bowls to prepare the papas. In one, combine flour, cayenne and salt. In the second, a beaten egg with a tiny bit of water. Put bread crumbs in the third
2. Flour your hands and scoop up 1/6 of the total dough to make a round pancake with your hands. Make a slight indentation in the middle for the filling.



3. Spoon a generous amount of filling into the center and then roll the potato closed, forming a smooth, potato-shaped casing around the filling. Repeat with all dough (you should have about 6 papas).



4. Heat 1 ½ – 2 inches (4 – 5 cm) of oil in a pan to about 350 – 375° F (175 – 190°C).
5. Dip each papa in the three bowls to coat: first roll in flour, then dip in egg, then roll in bread crumbs.
6. Fry the papas (in batches if necessary) about 2-3 minutes until golden brown. Flip once in the middle of frying to brown both sides.



7. Drain on paper towel and store in a 200ºF (95ºC) (gas mark ¼) oven if frying in batches.
8. Serve with salsa criolla (or other sauce of preference) immediately.

Papas Rellenas (vegetarian/vegan):

Makes 6

Ingredients

For the dough:
5 pounds (2¼ kg) (3 large – 4 medium) russet potatoes
½ cup (120 ml) (75 gm) (2 ⅔ oz) cornstarch (called corn flour in some countries)
1 teaspoon (5 ml) (6 gm) (1/5 oz) salt, or to taste
Lots of pepper

For the filling:
1 cup (240 ml) (150 gm) (5⅓ oz) diced onion (any color)
4 cloves garlic
½ chili pepper (Aji recommended)
1 teaspoon (5 ml) (4 gm) (1/8 oz) ground cumin
½ teaspoon (2.5 ml) (2 gm) (1/16 oz) sweet paprika
1 cup (240 ml) (115 gm) (4 oz) cremini mushrooms, small dice
½ package tempeh, thin cut and quasi crumbled (Or you can use cooked black beans)
½ cup (120 ml) (90 gm) (3 oz) raisins, soaked in 1 cup (240 ml) boiling water for 10 minutes, then minced
1 handful spinach
1 cup (240 ml) (185 gm) (6½ oz) quinoa (Or you can use another cooked grain, like buckwheat)
¼ c. white wine, water or beef stock for deglazing
Salt and pepper to taste

For the final preparation:
1 large egg, beaten (for vegetarian version) OR egg replacer equivalent to one large egg (for vegan version)
1 cup (240 ml) (140 gm) (5 oz) all-purpose flour
Dash cayenne pepper
Dash salt
1 cup dry (240 ml) (110 gm) (4 oz) or fresh (240 ml) (60 gm) (2 oz) bread crumbs (you can use regular, panko, make your own or use store-bought)

Oil for frying (enough for 2” (50 mm) in a heavy pan like a medium sized dutch oven)

Directions:

For the dough:

1. Boil unpeeled potatoes whole until tender when stuck with a fork. Let potatoes cool.
2. When potatoes are cooled, peel them and either mash them with a potato masher or force them through a potato ricer (preferred).
3. Add cornstarch, salt and pepper and knead “dough” thoroughly to ensure that ingredients are well combined and uniformly distributed.

While potatoes are cooling, make filling:

1. Caramelize onions in olive oil for about 5 minutes.
2. Add the garlic and chili pepper and cook.
3. Add the cumin and paprika and cook briefly (a few seconds).
4. Add the mushrooms and cook until soft.
5. Add tempeh and raisins.
6. Deglaze the pan with white wine. Add spinach and wilt.
7. Add the quinoa and season with salt and pepper.
8. Allow filling to cool before forming “papas.”

Finishing the dough and forming the papas:

1. Use three small bowls (or other shallow containers) to prepare the papas. In one, combine flour, cayenne and salt. In the second, combine the egg replacer and water. Put bread crumbs in the third
2. Flour your hands and scoop up 1/6 of the total dough to make a round pancake with your hands. Make a slight indentation in the middle for the filling.
3. Spoon a generous amount of filling into the center and then roll the potato closed, forming a smooth, potato-shaped casing around the filling. Repeat will all dough (you should have 6 papas)
4. Heat 1 ½ – 2 inches (4 – 5 cm) of oil in a pan to about 350 – 375° F (175 – 190°C).
5. Dip each papa in the three bowls to coat: first roll in flour, then dip in egg replacer, then roll in bread crumbs
6. Fry the papas (in batches if necessary) about 2-3 minutes until golden brown. Flip once in the middle of frying to get both sides
7. Drain on paper towel and store in a cool oven 200°F (95°C) (gas mark ¼) if frying in batches
8. Serve with salsa criolla (or other sauce of preference) immediately

Salsa Criolla:

Ingredients

2 medium red onions, cut in half and very thinly sliced (as half-circles)
1/2 chili pepper (your preference)
1 tablespoon vinegar
Juice from 1 lime
Salt and pepper to taste

1. Soak the onions in cold salt water for about 10 minutes to remove bitterness. Drain.
2. In a medium bowl, combine the onions with the rest of the ingredients, season with salt and pepper.
3. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes for the onions to macerate and the flavors to combine

Pisco sour:

Serves 1

Ingredients

3 ounces (90 ml) Pisco puro
1 ounce (30 ml) cane syrup, OR 1 tablespoon (15 ml) (8 gm) (¼ oz) powdered sugar
1 ounce (30 ml) freshly squeezed lime juice
1 large egg white
4 ice cubes, crushed

Garnish:
4 drops of Angostura bitters or a pinch of cinnamon (not necessary, but tasty and pretty)

Directions:

1. Blend egg white in blender until really foamy (not stiff)
2. Add all ingredients except bitters/cinnamon and blend until smooth (ice chunks disappear)
3. Taste and add additional sugar or lime juice as desired
4. Pour into glass and top with bitters or cinnamon*

* I like to let the foam settle a bit and rise up to the top. This is more like what I had in Lima, with a layer of foam on top and the “drink” at the bottom. But you can drink it right away if you’re impatient – cheers!

Best. Dinner. Ever.

For the bots (hi bots!):

Our January 2011 Challenge comes from Jenni of The Gingered Whisk and Lisa from Parsley, Sage, Desserts and Line Drives. They have challenged the Daring Cooks to learn how to make a confit and use it within the traditional French dish of Cassoulet. They have chosen a traditional recipe from Anthony Bourdain and Michael Ruhlman.

[An aside - I am in Perú right now and in an overzealous "let's get rid of crap!" moment, I deleted all the photos on my camera to make room for more of the delightful city of Lima...and this included my cassoulet photos.  In truth, they weren't very good, so we're not missing much here, but that's the reason there aren't at least a couple of pics to give you an idea of what this strange-yet-mouth-watering taste of heaven looked like.  Sorry friends - next time]

This is seriously one of the best things I’ve ever eaten. I’m not actually one to love anything that I cook; I love it when other people cook for me, but usually, the things that I cook tend to fall short of my expectations (I’ll work on that in 2011). This dish, however, far surpassed my hopes. It did have a running start – there is more pork in it than…in a lot of pork. That’s hard not to love. But one of the other things that was a surprise treat was the confit.  This is a process of slow poaching something – virtually anything – in fat – virtually any kind of fat.  This challenge required us to incorporate a confit into a cassolet; vegetarians, despair not!  Prepare some leeks, cover in olive oil, and bake at low temp for a few hours and you will have a lovely, lovely confit.  In fact, with some modification, this whole dish would be quite lovely as a vegetarian option.

But I digress.  Ours was a meat extravaganza, including chicken drumsticks (instead of duck full leg, with the thigh attached), spicy sausage (the spice made a nice extra kick), pork belly (lordy is there a lot of fat there!) and bacon (instead of pork rind, which our local Asian market somehow did not have).  Oh, and there’s beans.  Which normally would be an afterthought, but with all that meat in the mix, the beans are actually the star of the show.  We can’t stop eating them…which is going to make for an interesting night.

A few side notes – I didn’t have pork rind, so for the sauteed onion mixture I added a bit of extra salt to compensate.  I highly recommend sauteing the onions for the puree after cooking the sausages (per the recipe).  Also, as I mentioned I didn’t have the pork rind so I used bacon instead to line the pan.  I think it did add overall to the dish, so I would recommend putting some kind of salty pork goodness around the dish as it cooks.  Oh!  And I halved this thing and it made enough for at least four people.  I love Anthony Bourdain, but he must have been hitting the drugs again to think that twice this much food is the appropriate size for four…

This dish is a bit of work, but gets a whole-hearted, no-holds-barred, ninja thumbs up.  Please make it.

Cheers.

p.s. Normally I would try to link to a few other DC challenges, but being in Perú my time is limited (please come here, the food is amazing!). To see more challenges from this talented group, check out the Daring Kitchen – and join us if you’re so inclined!

p.p.s. A HUGE “happy birthday” shoutout to the husband – I am sorry not to be with you today, but give thanks and celebrate your journey every day of the year.:) Te amo querida.

Cassoulet (from Anthony Bourdain à Lisa Marie and Jenni)

This recipe freezes well, so if you need to make several small batches, go for it!
Preparation Time:

For Duck (or Chicken) Confit: 2 Days.
First day, 15 minutes.
Second Day, 2 hours.

For Cassoulet: 3 Days
First Day: 10 minutes, if that
Second Day: Approximately 3 ½ hours, most of which is oven time
Third Day: 1 ½ hours, all oven time

For Garlic Confit: 1 ½ hours

Equipment Needed:

Shallow Dish
Plastic Wrap
Saucepan
Ovenproof Casserole Dish
Foil
large bowl
large pot
strainer or colander
sauté pan
paper towels
blender
large (about 6-8 quarts) ovenproof earthenware dish, or another non-reactive ovenproof container. Or you can use several smaller containers, if need be.
measuring cup
kitchen spoon

Cassoulet
Cassoulet by Anthony Bourdain and Michael Ruhlman (as featured on the Travel Channel’s “No Reservations”)
Serves 4 – 8 (unless you’re Lisa Michele)

Ingredients for Duck Confit

4 whole duck legs (leg and thigh), size does not matter
sea salt, for the overnight (at least 6-8 hours) dry rub (the amount varies depending on the size of your legs, so just know that you need to have enough on hand for a good coating.)
2 cups/480 ml/450 gm/16 oz duck fat
a healthy pinch or grind of black pepper
4 sprigs of fresh thyme
1 sprig of fresh rosemary
1 garlic clove

Day One

1.Rub the duck legs fairly generously with sea salt, place in the shallow dish, cover with plastic and refrigerate overnight. At all times, keep your work area clean and your ingredients free of contamination – meaning don’t allow any other food, like bread crumbs or scraps, to get into your duck, duck fat or confit, as they will make an otherwise nearly non-perishable preparation suddenly perishable.

Day Two

1.Preheat the oven to moderately hot 375ºF/190ºC/gas mark 5.
2.Render (melt) the duck fat in the saucepan until clear.
3.After seasoning with the black pepper, place the duck legs in the clean, ovenproof casserole.
4.Nestle the thyme, rosemary and garlic in with the duck legs, and pour the melted duck fat over the legs to just cover.

5. Cover the dish with foil and put in the oven. Cook for about an hour, or until the skin at the “ankle” of each leg pulls away from the “knuckle.” The meat should be tender.
6. Allow to cool and then store as is in the refrigerator, sealed under the fat. When you need the confit, you can either warm the whole dish, in which case removing the legs will be easy, or dig them out of the cold fat and scrape off the excess. I highly recommend the former. A nice touch at this point is to twist out the thighbone from the cold confit. Just place one hand on the drumstick, pinioning the leg to the table, and with the other hand, twist out the thighbone, plucking it from the flesh without mangling the thigh meat. Think of someone you hate when you do it.

Ingredients for Cassoulet

5 cups/1200 ml/1100 g/39 oz dried Tarbais beans or white beans such as Great Northern or Cannelini (if you use canned beans be aware that you will need double this amount!)
2 pounds/900 gm fresh pork belly
1 onion, cut into 4 pieces
1 pound/450 gm pork rind
1 bouquet garni (tie together two sprigs parsley, 2 sprigs thyme and one bay leaf)
salt and pepper
1/4 cup/60 ml/55 gm duck fat
6 pork sausages
3 onions, thinly sliced
1 garlic clove, thinly sliced
4 confit duck legs

Day One

1.Place the beans in the large bowl and cover with cold water so that there are at least 2 or 3 inches (50mm or 75mm) of water above the top of the beans. Soak overnight. That was hard, right?  (Beans will double in size upon soaking, so use a big bowl!)

Day Two

1. Drain and rinse the beans and place in the large pot.
2. Add the pork belly, the quartered onion, 1/4 pound/115 gm of the pork rind, and the bouquet garni.
3. Cover with water, and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook for about 30 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste and continue to simmer until the beans are tender, about 30 minutes more.

4. Let cool for 20 minutes, then discard the onion and the bouquet garni.
5. Remove the pork belly, cut it into 2-inch/5-cm squares, and set aside. (If you plan to wait another day before finishing the dish, wait to cut the pork belly until then.)
6. Strain the beans and the rind and set aside, reserving the cooking liquid separately.
7. In the sauté pan, heat all but 1 tablespoon/15 ml/15 gm of the duck fat over medium-high heat until it shimmers and becomes transparent.
8. Carefully add the sausages and brown on all sides.

9. Remove sausages and set aside, draining on paper towels.

10. In the same pan, over medium-high heat, brown the sliced onions, the garlic and the reserved squares of pork rind from the beans (not the unused pork rind; you’ll need that later).
11. Once browned, remove from the heat and transfer to the blender. Add 1 tablespoon//15 ml/15 gm of the remaining duck fat and purée until smooth. Set aside.

12. Preheat the oven to moderate 350ºF/180ºC/gas mark 4.

13.Place the uncooked pork rind in the bottom of a deep ovenproof non-reactive dish. You’re looking to line the inside, almost like a pie crust. Arrange all your ingredients in alternating layers, beginning with a layer of beans, then sausages, then more beans, then pork belly, beans, duck confit and finally more beans, adding a dab of the onion and pork rind purée between each layer.

14. Add enough of the bean cooking liquid to just cover the beans, reserving 1 cup/240 ml in the refrigerator for later use.
15. Cook the cassoulet in the oven for 1 hour, then reduce the heat to very slow 250ºF/130ºC/gas mark ½ and cook for another hour.
16. Remove from the oven and allow to cool. Refrigerate overnight.

Day Three

1. Preheat the oven to moderate 350ºF/180ºC/gas mark 4 again.
2. Cook the cassoulet for an hour.
3. Break the crust on the top with the spoon and add 1/4 cup/60 ml of the reserved cooking liquid. (Don’t get fancy. Just pile, dab, stack and pile. It doesn’t have to be pretty.)
4. Reduce the heat to very slow 250ºF/130ºC/gas mark ½ and continue cooking another 15 minutes, or until screamingly hot through and through. Then serve.

Chicken Confit Using Olive Oil
Chicken Confit by Emeril Lagasse, via Food Network

Ingredients:

4 chicken leg portions with thighs attached, excess fat trimmed and reserved (about 2 pounds/ about 1 kg total)
1 tablespoon plus 1/8 teaspoon (15.6 ml) kosher salt (**note: if using table salt, use ½ the amount)
1/2 teaspoon (2½ ml) (3 gm) freshly ground black pepper
10 garlic cloves
4 dried bay leaves
4 sprigs fresh thyme
1 1/2 teaspoons (7½ ml) (6 gm) black peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon ( 2½ ml) (3 gm) table salt
4 cups (1 liter) olive oil

Directions:

1. Lay the leg portions on a platter, skin side down. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon (15 ml) of the kosher salt and black pepper. Place the garlic cloves, bay leaves, and sprigs of thyme on each of 2 leg portions. Lay the remaining 2 leg portions, flesh to flesh, on top. Put the reserved fat from the chicken in the bottom of a glass or plastic container. Top with the sandwiched leg portions. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/8 teaspoon kosher salt. Cover and refrigerate for 12 hours.
2 .Preheat the oven to cool 200°F/90°C/gas mark ¼.
3. Remove the chicken from the refrigerator. Remove the garlic, bay leaves, thyme, and chicken fat and reserve. Rinse the chicken with cool water, rubbing off some of the salt and pepper. Pat dry with paper towels.
4. Put the reserved garlic, bay leaves, thyme, and chicken fat in the bottom of an enameled cast iron pot. Sprinkle evenly with the peppercorns and salt. Lay the chicken on top, skin side down. Add the olive oil. Cover and bake for 12 to 14 hours, or until the meat pulls away from the bone.

Garlic Confit
Garlic Confit from Saveur, Issue #129

Ingredients:

1½ cup (360 ml) Olive Oil
1½ tsp (7½ ml) (4 gm) kosher salt (**Note: if using table salt, use ½ the amount)
10 whole black peppercorns
5 sprigs fresh thyme
65 garlic cloves, peeled (about 1 ½ cups/360 ml)
1 dried bay leaf

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to slow 300°F/150°C/gas mark 2. Put ingredients in a 1 quart (950 ml) pot, making sure all the garlic is submerged in the oil. Cover pot. Bake until garlic is golden brown and tender, about 1 hour. Let cool.
2. Transfer mixture to a glass jar; cover surface of oil with plastic wrap. Cover jar and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks. Makes 2 cups/480 ml.

Leek Confit
Leek Confit by Molly Wizenberg, as seen in Bon Appetit
Makes 2 cups/480 ml.

Ingredients:

¼ cup (60 ml) (1/2 stick) (60 gm) unsalted butter
4 large leeks, white and pale green parts only, halved lengthwise, cut crosswise into ¼ inch (6½ mm) thick slices (about 5 cups/1200 ml)
2 tbsp (30 ml) water
½ tsp (2½ ml) (3½ gm) salt

Directions:

1. Melt butter in a large pot over medium-low heat.
2. Add leeks, stir to coat.
3. Stir in water and salt.
4. Cover pot and reduce heat to low.
5. Cook leeks until tender, stirring often, about 25 minutes.
6. Uncover and cook to evaporate excess water, 2-3 minutes.

Vegetarian/Vegan Cassoulet
Vegetarian Cassoulet by Gourmet Magazine, March 2008

(Note: we didn’t actually make this recipe, but we’re sure it’s a good one!)

Ingredients:

3 medium leeks (white and pale green parts only)
4 medium carrots, halved lengthwise and cut into 1-inch-wide (25 mm) pieces
3 celery ribs, cut into 1-inch-wide (25 mm) pieces
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1/4 cup (60 ml) olive oil
4 thyme sprigs
2 parsley sprigs
1 Turkish or 1/2 California bay leaf
1/8 teaspoon (2/3 ml) (1 gm) ground cloves
3 (19-oz/540 gm) cans cannellini or Great Northern beans, rinsed and drained
1 qt (4 cups/960 ml) water
4 cups (960 ml) (300 gm) coarse fresh bread crumbs from a baguette
1/3 cup (80 ml) olive oil
1 tablespoon (15 ml) (12 gm) chopped garlic
1/4 cup (60 ml) (80 gm) chopped parsley

Directions:

1. Halve leeks lengthwise and cut crosswise into 1/2-inch (13 mm) pieces, then wash well (see cooks’ note, below) and pat dry.
2. Cook leeks, carrots, celery, and garlic in oil with herb sprigs, bay leaf, cloves, and 1/2 teaspoon (2½ mm) each of salt and pepper in a large heavy pot over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until softened and golden, about 15 minutes. Stir in beans, then water, and simmer, partially covered, stirring occasionally, until carrots are tender but not falling apart, about 30 minutes.
3. Preheat oven to moderate 350°F/180°C/gas mark 4 with rack in middle.
4. Toss bread crumbs with oil, garlic, and 1/4 teaspoon (1¼ ml) each of salt and pepper in a bowl until well coated.
5. Spread in a baking pan and toast in oven, stirring once halfway through, until crisp and golden, 12 to 15 minutes.
6. Cool crumbs in pan, then return to bowl and stir in parsley.
7. Discard herb sprigs and bay leaf. Mash some of beans in pot with a potato masher or back of a spoon to thicken broth.
8. Season with salt and pepper. Just before serving, sprinkle with garlic crumbs.

Thirty Minute Cassoulet
Thirty Minute Cassoulet by Jacques Pepin’s Fast Food My Way, KQED
Serves: 4-6

Ingredients:

1 tablespoon (15 ml) good olive oil
About 1 pound (500 gm) rolled shoulder ham (also called a daisy ham or Boston Butt), tough outer skin removed
About 3/4 pound (350 gm) hot Italian sausages, cut into 3-inch (75 mm) pieces (about 6 pieces)
4 bratwurst sausages (about 1 pound/500 gm)
1 cup (240 ml)diced (1/2 inch/15 mm) whole button mushrooms (about 3 ounces/85 gm)
3/4 cup (180 ml) diced (1/2-inch/15 mm)) onion
2 tablespoons (30 ml) crushed garlic (about 4 large cloves)
1/2 teaspoon (2½ ml) (4 gm) dried thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
2 (15½ ounces/440 gm each) cans cannellini beans, drained and rinsed under warm running water
3/4 cup (180 ml) (about 7 oz/200 gm) diced (1-inch/25 mm) tomato (1 large plump tomato)
1/2 cup (120 ml) water
1/4 teaspoon (1¼ ml) (1½ gm) freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons (45 ml) (30 grams)coarsely chopped fresh parsley

For Serving
Tabasco sauce
Dijon-style mustard

Directions:

1. Heat the oil in a large skillet and add the ham and Italian sausage.
2. Cover and cook over high heat for 7 to 8 minutes, turning occasionally.
3. Add the bratwurst, mushrooms, onion, garlic, thyme, and bay leaf. Mix well and cook for another 5 to 6 minutes.
4. Add the beans, tomato, water, and pepper, bring back to a boil, reduce the heat to low, cover, and boil gently for 5 minutes.
5. At serving time, discard the bay leaf, cut the ham into slices and the sausage pieces in half, and arrange the meat on a platter with the beans.
6. Sprinkle the parsley on top. Serve with the Tabasco and mustard.

Additional Resources:

Quick video montage of Bourdain’s cassoulet

Watch a video on making Duck Confit

Video of Jacques Pepin making his “quick version” of Cassoulet

Ideas on where to find Duck Fat and Tarbais Beans online:

Williams Sonoma – Rougie’ Duck Fat, $10.95 for 11.2 ounces/315 gm (US Dollars)
D’artagnan – Duck Fat – $5.99 for 7 ounces/200 gm (US Dollars) Tarbais Beans - $11.99 per lb.
French Feast - Rougié · Duck fat, glass jar · 320g (11.3 oz) · $8.40, Tarbais Beans – 500g (17.6 oz) · $19.00 · Available end of December

Also check your local butchers, meat markets, and gourmet food stores.

I’m sure this must be some kind of pun in French, and it’s probably either makes zero sense or is really awful, but then – it goes perfectly with my November DC challenge!

Hey, I snuck in a DC challenge!!

Dave and Linda from Monkeyshines in the Kitchen chose Soufflés as our November 2010 Daring Cooks’ Challenge! Dave and Linda provided two of their own delicious recipes plus a sinfully decadent chocolate soufflé recipe adapted from Gordon Ramsay’s recipe found at the BBC Good Food website.

I was very excited for this challenge for three reasons: one, it involves cheese, two, it is French and three, I managed to steal home to LA for about two seconds with perfect timing to make this for the husband! Hooray!!

Well – hooray for the minibreak with the husband but the soufflé definitely goes on the “fail” list (including the photo – soufflé is hard to photograph!). But it’s not on the “failI’mneverdoingthisagainneverevernever” list, it’s going on the “manIdon’tknowwhatIdidbutsomethingwasn’tright” list, which means it’ll get made again. We started out on the right path – basic crab and artichoke soufflé recipe provided (and painstakingly researched) by Dave and Linda, but even though the directions were followed, the thing just tasted like eggs. Kind of like a tough omlette. I’m pretty sure this has nothing to do with the recipe and much more to do with something I did (maybe I was distracted by the husband? Absence really does make the heart grow fonder), but neither of us was overly impressed with my effort. It wasn’t just that it tasted of egg – it was like an overcooked omlette or a bad version of quiche, which made it edible, but definitely not delicious.

On the upside – these things are fairly inexpensive to make and I am fairly sure that if you do whatever I did wrong, right, you’ll come out with some spectacular results. In fact I am confident, because many other brave and daring cooks managed to pull this off spectacularly. (I know I link to Adaux a lot, but his dissertation on soufflés is remarkable, and if you’re interested in making them, I highly recommend his post).

Thanks to Dave and Linda for a great challenge – I think that Julia Child once said that her strawberry soufflé gave her trouble the first 21 times she made it, so at least I am in good company. We’ll conquer this…eventually.

Cheers.

Crab and Artichoke Soufflé

A Monkeyshines in the Kitchen recipe

Ingredients

1 cup (250 ml) 4 oz/120g crab meat, flaked and lightly-packed
½ cup (125 ml) 2 oz/60 g finely chopped cooked artichoke hearts (frozen, fresh or from a jar is OK, but please don’t use the marinated-in-oil style), Alternatively, lightly sautéed leeks would be nice here too.
2 large egg yolks
3 large egg whites
½ tsp (2½ ml) (3 gm) (.1 oz) salt
¼ tsp (1¼ ml) (1½ gm) (0.05 oz) cream of tartar*
1 cup (250 ml) 2 ½ oz (75g) Gruyere cheese, shredded
½ tsp (2½ ml) (2 gm) (0.07 oz) white pepper
1 Tbsp (15 ml) (14 gm) (½ oz) butter
1 Tbsp (15 ml) (9 gm) (1/3 oz) flour
1 tsp (5 ml) (3 gm) (.1 oz) dried chives or tarragon
1 cup 8 fluid oz (250ml) milk
Salt and pepper to taste
Additional butter and bread crumbs for preparing the dishes
* If you can’t find cream of tartar, a dash (~ ½ tsp) of lemon juice can be substituted

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to moderate 375 ˚F/190 ˚C/gas mark 5
2. Prepare dishes – you can use one 2-quart (US)/1.9 litre or six 1-cup/240 ml soufflé dishes – by buttering the dish, then coating with bread crumbs. (You may have some left over soufflé mixture if you go with the smaller soufflé dishes.)
3. Chop the artichoke hearts into ¼”/0.5cm dice. If you use frozen or from a jar, then there’s no need to cook them. If you are using fresh, then steam gently until just softened, about 5 minutes or sauté over low heat until just ever so lightly browned.
4. In a medium saucepan, melt the butter, then stir in the flour to make a roux. – you just want to get the flour evenly blended to a paste, not cook the roux for any length of time. Gradually stir in the milk, mixing all the time. Add herbs, then the cheese. Stir until the cheese is melted and you have a thick sauce. Remove from heat.
5. Beat the egg yolks well and gently warm them, either according to the instructions for watercress soufflé (above) or by adding some of the cheese sauce. Gradually stir the egg yolks into the cheese sauce until well blended.
6. Add the artichoke and flaked crab meat to the cheese sauce.
7. Beat the egg whites until at the stiff peak stage
8. Fold the whites in thirds into the sauce.
9. Spoon the mixture into your baking dish and level the tops using a spatula. Be sure to wipe up any spills and make sure the edge is clean.
10. Bake for 40 min if you’re using a large soufflé dish or 25 min if using smaller dishes – the soufflé should be richly browned.