I recently happened to be traveling in Australia, where berries were in season and decided to test-drive Kartes’ strawberry galette recipe.  A pastry made from flour, butter, sugar and salt is folded up around a filling of strawberries that have been tossed with sugar, flour and salt, and baked until golden. The dough is almost exactly the recipe for shortbread, and while it was deliciously crumbly, it was very difficult to handle—never before have I worked so hard to encase fruit in pastry. The filling was a bit disappointing: Too much flour and sugar left the strawberries sickly and gummy.

Despite my experience with the galette, I’m sure that Rustic Joyful Food: Generations has a lot to offer many readers, particularly those that experienced a childhood similar to Kartes’. It’s full of memories, and flavors that connect the past to the present. But if, like me, you had a very different upbringing, you might be left wondering how thick those rose-colored glasses really are.

Wendy Underwood tests out cookbooks weekly on Instagram at @kitchenvscookbook.

The following is an excerpt from Rustic Joyful Food: Generations by Danielle Kartes (C) 2020 Reproduced by permission of Sourcebooks. All rights reserved.

Strawberry Galette with Crème Fraîche

PREP TIME: 10 minutes COOK TIME: 30–40 minutes

YIELD: 1 9-inch galette

BUTTER PASTRY
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup butter
¼ cup sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt

STRAWBERRY FILLING
3 cups sliced strawberries
¾ cup sugar
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
Plain crème fraîche for garnish

DIRECTIONS
Preheat the oven to 350°. Place the flour, butter, sugar, and salt into a stand mixer. Mix until it begins to come together.

Turn the crumbles out onto a floured surface, and roll into a 12-inch disk. Gently fold over onto itself, and lay it on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Unfold it, and prepare the filling.

Mix the strawberries with the sugar, flour, and salt; pour into the center of the pastry, and fold the edges up onto itself. Bake for 30 to 40 minutes.

If you fancy a browned and glossy crust, brush an egg wash over the pastry edges, then sprinkle with sugar.

Taco Soup

PREP TIME: 10 minutes

COOK TIME: 30–35 minutes

YIELD: 4 servings

INGREDIENTS
1 pound ground chicken
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 quarts chicken stock
1 (15-ounce) can stewed tomatoes
1 cup brown rice
1 cup dry lentils
1 medium onion, diced (any color preference)
1 bell pepper, diced
3 ribs celery, diced
1 jalapeño pepper, diced
3 cloves fresh garlic, smashed
1 packet taco seasoning (see note)
1 teaspoon dried paprika
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
Salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS
Brown the chicken in the olive oil in a large soup pot. Add the rest of the ingredients. Bring to a simmer, and reduce to low heat. The soup is done when the rice is done, about 35 minutes. It can get a bit mushy if overcooked.

Note: Seasoning packets are an excellent, cost-effective way to get multiple seasonings without purchasing them individually. Make sure to purchase a packet without additional fillers or chemicals.

Old-Fashioned Dill and Mustard Potato Salad

PREP TIME: 5 minutes COOK TIME: 30 minutes, inactive 2–4 hours

YIELD: 4–6 servings

INGREDIENTS
5 white or gold potatoes, peeled
6 eggs, room temperature, shell on
1 cup diced dill pickle
1 cup mayonnaise
½ cup chopped fresh dill
½ cup yellow mustard
¼ cup pickle juice (from the jar)
1 rib celery, diced
¼ white onion, grated

DIRECTIONS
Cover the potatoes with water, and bring to a boil; this will take about 30 minutes. Add the eggs with 10 minutes of cooking time to go. Dice the potatoes and eggs, and put them in a large mixing bowl. You want the potatoes just cooked; overcooked potatoes will get too mushy. Add all the remaining ingredients, mix gently, and taste for salt and pepper. Refrigerate for 2 to 4 hours before serving.

The post COOK THIS: Rustic Joyful Food: Generations by Danielle Kartes appeared first on Modern Farmer.

For a light supper following a big lunch, I made the Falafel Fattoush salad—the twist being that, instead of actual falafel, you include chickpeas seasoned then roasted using similar spices. Chickpeas, onions and garlic are tossed with olive oil, cumin, coriander, cayenne and salt, then roasted. Partway through, torn pita is thrown on top, scattered with sumac, and cooked until crisp. This mix is then tossed with romaine lettuce, cherry tomatoes, parsley and pickles, and topped with a dressing of tahini, lemon juice, water, roasted garlic and salt, and served immediately—before the pita starts to soften. It had all of the flavors of falafel, but without the tedious ball-forming and deep frying.

Cool Beans is filled with proof that beans deserve a standing reservation at the dinner table, whether you’re vegan or not. Eating more legumes is a no-brainer for health, the environment, your wallet and for supporting local farmers. And with so many delicious, creative ways of using them, what’s stopping us? With recipes that are easy to follow and span the globe, Cool Beans is music to our ears.

Wendy Underwood tests out cookbooks weekly on Instagram at @kitchenvscookbook.

Excerpted from Cool Beans by Joe Yonan (Ten Speed Press). Copyright © 2020. Photos by Aubrie Pick, food styling by Lillian Kang, courtesy Ten Speed Press.

FALAFEL FATTOUSH

6 to 8 servings 

This bread salad reminiscent of Middle Eastern fattoush packs all the elements of a falafel sandwich—spiced chickpeas, of course, plus pita, lettuce, parsley, pickles, and tahini sauce—into a bowl. It’s best when freshly made, because the pita chips retain some crunch, so if you want to reserve some for leftovers, separate out the pita chips after roasting and save them in an airtight container at room temperature while you refrigerate the rest, until you’re ready to serve the salad. 

3 1/2 cups cooked or canned no-salt-added chickpeas (from two 15-ounce cans), drained and rinsed
1 yellow onion, cut into large chunks
5 garlic cloves, peeled but left whole
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3/4 teaspoon kosher salt
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
2 large pitas, split and torn into large pieces
1 tablespoon sumac 

DRESSING
Roasted garlic (from above)
1/4 cup fresh lemon juice
1/4 cup tahini
Water
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
6 cups torn romaine lettuce leaves
1 cup lightly packed flat-leaf parsley leaves
1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
4 large sour pickle spears, coarsely chopped 

Preheat the oven to 425 º F.

On a large rimmed baking sheet, toss together the chickpeas, onion, garlic, olive oil, salt, cumin, coriander, and cayenne. Roast until the onion and garlic have started to soften, 15 to 20 minutes.

Scatter the pita pieces on top, sprinkle them with sumac, and continue roasting until the pitas are crisp and the onion and garlic are very soft, 8 to 10 minutes.

Remove from the oven, fish out the garlic to use in the dressing, and let everything cool to room temperature.

While the chickpea mixture is cooling, make the dressing: In a small bowl, mash the reserved roasted garlic with a fork, then whisk in the lemon juice, tahini, 1/4 cup water, and salt. Taste and add more salt if needed.

To assemble the salad, toss the chickpea mixture with the romaine, parsley, tomatoes, and pickles. Drizzle with the dressing and serve immediately. 

CHOCOLATE, RED BEAN, AND ROSE BROWNIES

6 servings

If black bean brownies could be a thing—and believe me, they are a thing—then why not red bean brownies, based on the little adzuki (aka azuki) beans that are so beloved across Asia for their versatility in sweets? I started with a pretty killer gluten-free recipe from Dana Shultz’s Minimalist Baker site and set to tinkering. In went the adzuki beans, out went the black. In went aquafaba—the liquid from a can of chickpeas, not the adzukis, because the flavor is milder—and out went a flax egg. In went a little chickpea flour for extra structure. The master stroke, based on a suggestion from my friend and cookbook author Tess “The Blender Girl” Masters: rose water, which takes these from everyday-American-take-to-work good to special-occasion-Middle-Eastern great. They’re very fudgy and dense on the inside, a little chewy on the outside—and easy enough to make whenever you want.

3 tablespoons vegan or dairy butter or coconut oil, melted, plus more for greasing the muffin tin
1/2 cup plus 1 tablespoon chickpea flour, plus more for dusting (may substitute all-purpose flour)
1 (15-ounce) can no-salt-added adzuki beans, drained and rinsed
2/3 cup aquafaba (the liquid from a shaken can of no-salt-added chickpeas)
3/4 cup Dutch-process cocoa powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon rose water
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
2 tablespoons dairy-free or traditional semisweet chocolate chips (optional)
2 tablespoons chopped walnuts or pistachios (optional)
2 teaspoons crushed dried organic rose petals (optional)

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Lightly grease one 6-muffin (jumbo) tin. Dust with flour and tap out the excess.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine the butter, flour, adzuki beans, aquafaba, cocoa, salt, rose water, vanilla, sugar, and baking powder and process until very smooth, 2 to 3 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.

Divide the batter evenly among the prepared muffin cups and smooth the tops with a spoon. If using, sprinkle on the chocolate chips, nuts, and/or rose petals.

Bake until the tops are dry and the edges start to pull away from the sides, 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for 30 minutes before using a fork to remove them from the pan. They are meant to be very fudgy inside, so don’t worry if they seem too moist.

Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

 LENTIL, ZUCCHINI, AND CHERRY TOMATO SLOPPY JOES

In my book Eat Your Vegetables, I wrote about how I don’t tend to use much mock meat, preferring to cook—and eat—vegetables. But I conceded that when it came to a Sloppy Joe, chorizo-spiced seitan was a pretty good fit. Well, now I say to my 2013 self: what were you thinking, when you’ve got lentils around, just waiting to enrich that sauce with protein and earthy goodness? Always changing, always growing. I also know what not to change, namely, the textural interest that zucchini and cherry tomatoes bring and the zing of sour pickles. 

 6 servings
 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 yellow onion, chopped
4 garlic cloves, chopped
1 tablespoon tomato paste
1 teaspoon ground ancho chile
1 teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
2 pints cherry tomatoes, quartered
2 small zucchini, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 cups cooked brown lentils, drained and rinsed
1 teaspoon light or dark brown sugar
6 kaiser rolls or sturdy buns, warmed but not toasted
12 sour pickle slices 

Pour the olive oil into a large skillet over medium heat. When it shimmers, stir in the onion and garlic and sauté until they soften, about 8 minutes. Stir in the tomato paste, ground chile, salt, and red pepper flakes and sauté until fragrant, about 30 seconds. 

Stir in the cherry tomatoes and zucchini and cook until the tomatoes collapse, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the lentils and brown sugar, increase the heat to bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook until the squash is tender but not mushy and a thick sauce has formed. Taste and add more salt if needed. Let cool slightly. 

Divide the bottom buns among six plates. Spoon the warm filling onto the buns, top with the pickles and the top buns, and serve. 

The post COOK THIS: Cool Beans by Joe Yonan appeared first on Modern Farmer.

I opted for a savory recipe: Nacho Cauli Tostadas from the Happy Hour chapter. Finely processed cauliflower meal (squeezed of excess liquid) is mixed with taco seasoning, shredded pepper jack cheese and cilantro, formed into flat patties, and baked in the oven. Topped with salsa and vegan cheese, they were delicious, although not exactly crisp like a tostada. Perhaps I needed to squeeze more moisture from the meal, or maybe I made them too thick; still, as a baked veggie fritter, it hit the spot.

If you’re looking for ways to sneak more veggies past your kids (or spouse) at dinnertime, there’s no question that Cauliflower Power will help you do it—who would have thought to add it to waffles, bagel dough, and caramel pudding? But beyond these novelties, you’ll also find some creative, more-traditional recipes such as soups, pasta dishes and casseroles that make the most of this versatile vegetable.

Wendy Underwood tests out cookbooks weekly on Instagram at @kitchenvscookbook.

Excerpted from Cauliflower Power by Lindsay Grimes Freedman (Artisan Books). Copyright © 2020. Photographs by Lauren Volo. Used with permission from the publisher.

Nacho Cauli Tostadas

Makes 24 tostadas; serves 6

You can top these little tostadas with whatever you’re craving. Add some fresh avocado, some shredded barbecued chicken, or a dollop of salsa for a tasty appetizer. Not in the mood for Southwest flavors? Ditch the pepper Jack and Taco Seasoning and substitute Gruyère and chopped rosemary.

4 cups (540 g) medium cauliflower florets
1½ cups (180 g) cubed pepper Jack cheese
3 tablespoons Taco Seasoning (recipe follows)
¼ cup (10 g) chopped fresh cilantro leaves
½ cup Vegan Queso (recipe follows) or salsa
1 avocado, cut into cubes

Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Set one oven rack in the middle and one beneath the broiler.

Using the chopping blade on your food processor, process a handful of florets at a time for about 30 seconds, until completely chopped into the consistency of meal (see page 19). Transfer the meal to a clean, thin dish towel or piece of cheesecloth and continue this process until all the florets are chopped. Do this in two or three batches; if you put all the florets in the food processor at once, they won’t get evenly grated.

Once all the meal is in the dish towel, gather the corners and, working over the sink, squeeze out as much liquid as you can. Put the squeezed cauliflower in a large bowl.

Quickly rinse out the food processor (it doesn’t have to be perfectly clean) and add the cubed cheese. Process for about 20 seconds, until chopped.

Add the chopped cheese to the bowl of cauliflower meal along with the Taco Seasoning and cilantro (save a little to use as a garnish). Use a rubber spatula to mix everything together.

Work in batches to bake the tostadas. Use a small ice cream scoop (or a tablespoon) to make eight 2-inch (5 cm) balls of the cauliflower mixture and place them on the prepared baking sheets, about 2 inches (5 cm) apart. Use a spatula to flatten the balls. Use your fingers to re-form the flattened balls into circles as needed.

Bake for 18 to 20 minutes, then broil on high for 2 minutes, until golden brown. Remove from the oven and cook the second batch. Allow each batch to cool on the baking sheet for 5 minutes, then transfer to a cooling rack. Use the first baking sheet for the third batch of tostadas and repeat until all three batches are baked.

Top the tostadas with some queso or salsa, avocado, and more cilantro for garnish. Tostadas are best eaten immediately.

Taco Seasoning
Makes about ¼ cup (28 g)

1 tablespoon chili powder
1 ½ teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon sea salt
½ teaspoon paprika
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon onion powder
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes

In a small bowl, mix together the chili powder, cumin, salt, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, oregano, and red pepper flakes. The mixture will keep in an airtight container for up to 1 month in your pantry.

Vegan Queso
Makes 5 cups; serves 10

1 ½ cups (200 g) cauliflower florets
1 cup (262 g) store-bought medium salsa
½ cup (71 g) raw cashews
1/3 cup (27 g) nutritional yeast
2 garlic cloves
2 teaspoons ground cumin
½ teaspoon sea salt
Coarsely chopped cilantro, for garnish

Bring an inch of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Place the cauliflower in a steamer basket set over the boiling water. Cover and steam for about 5 minutes, until the florets are easily pierced with a fork.

Combine the cooked cauliflower, salsa, cashews, nutritional yeast, garlic, cumin, and salt in a high-powered blender. Blend on high until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute.

Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides and blend for another 10 seconds to puree the queso.

Enjoy the dip warm and garnished with chopped cilantro. Leftovers can be kept in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week. Reheat on the stovetop, whisking in some unsweetened almond milk if the queso gets too thick.

Grilled Cauliflower Steaks with Avocado-Cilantro Sauce

Serves 4

Cauliflower steaks allow you to load on the sauce and toppings in a way that traditional florets can’t. This avocado and cilantro sauce with cotija cheese is light and summery, but you could change the toppings with the seasons (see Variations). Serve these steaks alongside salmon or serve two cauliflower steaks per person for a vegetarian meal. 

For the cauliflower steaks
4 cauliflower steaks; cut in ½ inch slices, reserve any additional florets that fall from the head as you slice
3 tablespoons avocado oil
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 ear of corn, shucked
1 teaspoon smoked paprika
2 tablespoons crumbled cotija cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh cilantro leaves, for garnish

For the Avocado-Cilantro Sauce
¼ cup (60 mL) unsweetened coconut cream
1 avocado
Juice of 1 lime
¼ cup (10 g) fresh cilantro leaves
2 garlic cloves
¼ teaspoon sea salt

Prepare a charcoal grill with hot coals or heat a gas grill on high while you prepare the steaks. Alternatively, heat a grill pan on the stovetop over high heat.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Blanch 2 of the cauliflower steaks for about 40 seconds, then transfer to a baking sheet. Repeat with the remaining cauliflower steaks and any extra florets that are left after cutting the steaks. Drizzle the blanched cauliflower with 2 tablespoons of the avocado oil, and season with salt and pepper to taste.

Season the ear of corn with the remaining 1 tablespoon avocado oil, salt, pepper, and paprika.

Set a grill mat or piece of aluminum foil on the grill and place the steaks, florets, and corn on top. Grill the steaks and florets for about 5 minutes per side, until the steaks are browned and charred. Transfer to the baking sheet. Flip the corn every 3 minutes. Once it has char spots and is a brighter yellow, about 9 minutes, remove from the grill and place on the baking sheet.

While the cauliflower and corn are grilling, make the sauce: The coconut cream should be smooth; if it’s not, warm it in a microwave for about 30 seconds and stir it until it appears milky. Alternatively, you can warm it in a small pot over medium heat, whisking until smooth.

Place the coconut cream, avocado, lime juice, cilantro, garlic cloves, and salt in a food processor. Process for 10 seconds. Use a rubber spatula to scrape down the sides, then process for another 5 to 10 seconds, until combined and smooth. Set aside.

Once the corn has cooled, stand the ear upright on a cutting board and use a sharp knife to cut the kernels away from the cob.

Transfer the cauliflower steaks to plates. Place a dollop of the avocado-cilantro sauce on each steak. Top with the extra florets, corn kernels, crumbled cotija, and chopped cilantro. 

Variations
In fall, top cauliflower steaks with pumpkin spice pecan topping (process 1 cup raw pecans, ⅓ cup refined coconut oil, 2 tablespoons agave nectar, ½ teaspoon pumpkin spice, and ¼ teaspoon sea salt in a food processor for about 30 seconds until combined and smooth), toasted pepitas, and dried cranberries.

In colder weather, try the steaks with melted Gruyère cheese, fried prosciutto, toasted hazelnuts, and chopped fresh sage.

For a spring side, top steaks with Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto (page 148), sliced avocado, toasted pine nuts, and Smoked Chickpea Croutons (page 84).

Double-Chocolate Brownies

Makes nine 3-inch brownies

Using cauliflower as a base makes for brownies that are not only supercreamy, moist, and rich-tasting but also dairy- and oil-free. Serve them with a scoop of ice cream and a drizzle of homemade Caramel Sauce to make a brownie sundae.

3 cups (405 g) cauliflower florets
3 large eggs
½ cup (80 g) coconut sugar
¼ cup (83 g) agave nectar, honey, or maple syrup
1 cup (115 g) blanched almond flour (see Note, page 31)
½ cup (48 g) cocoa powder
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon sea salt
¾ cup (131 g) 60% cacao dark chocolate chips

Preheat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Line a 9 by 9-inch (23 by 23 cm) square pan with parchment paper, leaving an overhang on two sides for easy removal.

Bring an inch of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Place the cauliflower in a steamer basket set over the boiling water. Cover and steam the florets for about 5 minutes, until they’re easily pierced with a fork. Remove the steamer basket and set aside for 10 minutes to cool.

Place the eggs, coconut sugar, and agave nectar in a blender. Blend on high for about 10 seconds, until combined. Add the steamed florets and blend again until smooth.

Add the almond flour, cocoa powder, baking soda, and salt to the blender. Blend again until the dry ingredients are completely incorporated. Use a long-handled spatula to fold in ½ cup (87 g) of the chocolate chips.

Pour the brownie batter into the prepared pan. Spread it evenly across the pan and into the corners. Sprinkle the remaining chocolate chips on top.

Bake for 30 minutes, until the edges start to pull away from the pan and the top springs back when lightly pressed. Remove from the oven and allow to sit in the pan for 5 minutes before pulling up both ends of the parchment paper and placing the brownies on a cooling rack. Let cool for another 5 minutes before cutting the brownies into 9 large squares.

The brownies can be stored in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 1 week.

The post COOK THIS: Cauliflower Power by Lindsay Grimes Freedman appeared first on Modern Farmer.

I opted to try the recipe for daikon with white miso and yuzu, in which thick coins of white Japanese radish are simmered with a piece of konbu seaweed, then covered and left overnight. The next day, miso is added to jut the broth, heated very gently, and seasoned with soy, with the daikon then added back just to heat through. Mirin was listed in the ingredients but not in the directions, so I hedged my bets and added it with the soy. To serve, yuzu or lemon zest is grated on top. It was very straightforward, and yet this ungainly, bland vegetable was transformed into something special.

I believe the best cookbooks are more than just a collection of recipes—they give you context for what you’re about to prepare, and The Japanese Table does just that. Even if you’re not about to serve a full Japanese dinner, many of the recipes will make wonderful accompaniments for a more North American meal.

Wendy Underwood tests out cookbooks weekly on Instagram at @kitchenvscookbook.

Excerpted from The Japanese Table by Sofia Hellsten. (C) 2020 Reproduced by permission of Hardie Grant. All rights reserved.

Asparagus & ikura
Serves 4

Even though we eat quite a substantial amount of salmon in Sweden, the roe is not something you’d come in contact with very often. In Japan, it is known as ikura and you often find it both on sushi and or as part of a donburi – a bed of rice covered in heaps of the small orange spheres. I love how they pop in your mouth! They are both fun to eat and beautiful to look at. This combination is a buttery, smoky sensation with the crisp asparagus as a pleasing contrast.

8 asparagus stems
1 spring onion (scallion)
3–4 tablespoons salmon roe
a dash of soy sauce
a pinch of bonito flakes
vegetable oil, for frying

Start by cleaning the asparagus and breaking off the bottom of the stems to get rid of the woody parts – if you try bending them close to the root they will easily snap off at the right place. Cut or break each stem into three pieces and set aside. Wash the spring onion and cut into 2 cm (¾ in) pieces, cutting into shorter pieces as you get closer to the root.

Heat a frying pan (skillet) over a medium–high heat, add a dash of oil and then add the asparagus. Swirl the pan while you fry the pieces for about 2 minutes, making sure they do not burn. Add the spring onion and fry together until the asparagus turns lightly golden but still has a little bite. It should still be firm but without a raw core.

Spoon the vegetables onto plates, add a spoonful of salmon roe, a dash of soy sauce and a pinch of bonito flakes on top. Et voila.

If you want to add another dimension of smokiness, the asparagus can also be charcoal barbecued and the spring onion fried separately.

Spinach ohitashi with shiitake
Serves 4

Spinach ohitashi is a standard at the Japanese table and is almost impossible to mess up. Ohitashi means ‘to steep vegetables in a dashi-based sauce’, so basically this is spinach with an umami-packed sauce. It’s a light, healthy dish, which I tend to return to again and again. It’s also a great dish to make ahead, as the greens benefit from soaking in the dashi.

VEGETABLES
4 shiitake mushrooms, about 25 g (1 oz)
500 g (1 lb 2 oz) spinach, baby or regular

DASHI
100 ml (3½ fl oz/scant ½ cup) water
2 tablespoons sake
4 tablespoons mirin
1 teaspoon dashi powder
2½ tablespoons soy sauce

TO SERVE
violets (or other edible flowers when in season)
irigoma, or toasted sesame seeds (optional)

Clean any dirt off the shiitake mushrooms using paper towels, then cut into small pieces.

Bring the water for the dashi to the boil in a saucepan, then blanch the mushrooms for 45 seconds. Lift them out of the water and rinse under cold running water until cold. Be sure to keep the blanching water.

Add the dashi ingredients to the reserved water and bring to a gentle boil, then set aside to cool.

Bring another large saucepan of water to the boil while you wash and trim the spinach. If you are using violets, blanch them in the water for about 15 seconds, then take out and rinse in cold water. Put the spinach into the same boiling water and blanch for about 40 seconds. Remove and quickly rinse in cold water until completely cool. Use your hands to squeeze out any excess water from the spinach. If using regular spinach, cut the leaves into 4 cm (1½ in) pieces.

Mix the greens with the dashi and set aside to soak in the liquid for at least an hour. They will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

When ready to serve, arrange the vegetables in four small bowls and top with either blanched flowers or toasted, lightly ground sesame seeds.

If you are in a hurry, it’s okay to substitute the dashi with a splash of good-quality soy sauce.

Daikon with white miso & yuzu
Serves 4

A few years ago, I was invited to a culinary event in Tokyo that was wholly dedicated to the Japanese Buddhist cuisine shōjin ryōri, a type of vegan food usually served at temples around the country. It is a way of cooking that reduces waste to an absolute minimum, while the seasoning of dishes is achieved using only products from the vegetable world. During the event, a prominent Kyoto chef cooked a simple vegetable dashi based on the principles of shōjin ryōri. While tasting it, I was stunned to silence – never had I imagined that just a selection of vegetables could bring out such depth of flavour. This recipe came about in a pursuit to explore shōjin ryōri a little further, placing one of my favourite vegetables, daikon, at the centre and then dressing it with a sweet miso. It is a thick, creamy soup, which requires a little more effort and preparation in advance, but the result is beautiful. Placing it on the table almost feels like giving someone a small present with a citrusy perfume.

8 cm (3½  in) piece of daikon
4 cm (1½ in) piece of konbu
200–300 ml (7–10 fl oz/scant 1–1¼ cup) water
2 tablespoons white miso paste
sea salt, to taste
1½ teaspoons soy sauce
2 tablespoons mirin
yuzu or lemon zest

PREPARING THE DASHI

Wash and peel the daikon, then cut it into four 2-cm (¾ -in) thick slices.

Put the daikon, cut-side down, in a heavy-based pan with the konbu.

Add enough of the water just to reach the top of the daikon. Bring slowly to the boil, then reduce the heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Add a little more hot water as it evaporates – the water line should never go below half of the daikon’s thickness.

When the daikon no longer has a white core, and it slides easily off a thin skewer, remove from the heat and add enough water so that it just covers the daikon. Leave the daikon and konbu in the liquid, cover and leave to cool at room temperature, preferably overnight.

BEFORE SERVING

Take out the daikon and set aside. Remove the konbu. Slowly heat up the stock, being careful not to let it boil, stir in the miso and mix until smooth. Carefully season with salt and soy sauce. Add the daikon used for making the stock back in and warm over a low heat, making sure not to boil. Place one piece of daikon in each soup bowl, pour over the soup, then garnish with the yuzu/lemon zest for fragrance.

The daikon is left in the water to cool in order to take up the konbu flavor from the water and vice versa, so that time overnight is worth it. I prefer to use a sweeter white miso for the best result.

The post COOK THIS: The Japanese Table by Sofia Hellsten appeared first on Modern Farmer.

While you might not want to take a chance with a new turkey preparation method, the side dishes are often open to a bit more creativity. I tried the honey and almond hasselback pumpkin with butternut squash (known as butternut pumpkin in Australia). You make ¼ inch slices through your peeled half squash, stopping just short of the bottom, so that it all holds together. Roast this until it’s tender and golden, and then pour over a syrup made of honey, vinegar and bay leaves, wedging the leaves between the slices, and roast a little longer. To serve, sprinkle with toasted almonds. This was delicious, and it also offers a lot of visual appeal for little effort.

This is an Australian book, so there are some cultural differences: There’s a lot of seafood, and dessert pies are replaced with trifle and pavlovas. But much of it is very relevant to the average North American holiday celebrations. If you’re stuck in a holiday rut, hosting for the first time this year, or just looking for ideas that stretch through the whole of the holidays and not just Dec. 25, Christmas Feasts and Treats will provide a lot of festive inspiration.

Wendy Underwood tests out cookbooks weekly on Instagram at @kitchenvscookbook.

Excerpted from Christmas Feasts and Treats (C) 2019 by Donna Hay. Reproduced by permission of Fourth Estate. All rights reserved.

Honey and Almond Hasselback Pumpkin

1 x 1.8kg butternut pumpkin (squash), halved lengthways, peeled and seeds removed
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
½ cup (180g) honey
2 tablespoons malt vinegar
14 bay leaves
½ cup (80g) almonds, toasted and chopped
sea salt and cracked black pepper

Preheat oven to 220°C (425°F). Line a large baking tray with non-stick baking paper. Place half the pumpkin, cut-side down, on a chopping board. Place a chopstick, lengthways, on each side of the pumpkin. Using a very sharp knife, carefully slice through the pumpkin to the chopsticks at 5mm intervals. Repeat with the remaining pumpkin half.

Place the pumpkin on the tray, cut-side down, and drizzle with the oil. Cover tightly with aluminium foil and roast for 1 hour. Uncover and roast for a further 20 minutes or until golden.

Place the honey, vinegar and bay leaves in a small saucepan over high heat. Bring to the boil and cook for 4–5 minutes or until slightly reduced. Spoon half the honey glaze over the pumpkin and place the bay leaves in the incisions. Roast the pumpkin for a further 5–10 minutes or until tender and golden. Sprinkle with the almonds, salt and pepper and drizzle with the remaining honey glaze to serve. Serves 6

Chewy Caramels with Salted Peanuts

3 cups (420g) salted peanuts
1.1kg white (granulated) sugar
1.125 litres single (pouring) cream
1 cup (350g) golden syrup
100g unsalted butter, chopped

Line a 20cm x 30cm slice tin with non-stick baking paper. Sprinkle the base with half the peanuts and set aside.

Place the sugar, cream, golden syrup and butter in a large saucepan over high heat and stir with a metal spoon until the butter and sugar have melted. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring, for 20–25 minutes or until the temperature reaches 122°C (251°F) on a sugar (candy) thermometer. Working quickly, pour the caramel into the tin and carefully sprinkle with the remaining 1½ cups (210g) of peanuts. Allow to cool completely at room temperature for 3–4 hours. Refrigerate for 25–30 minutes or until firm.

Turn the caramel out onto a board and, using a large sharp knife, cut into pieces+. Wrap each caramel in brown wax paper, twisting the ends to seal. Keep refrigerated and bring to room temperature to serve. Makes 50

+ If the caramel becomes too soft to cut, simply return it to the refrigerator for 5 minutes.

Tip: Store caramels, wrapped in paper, in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Prosecco Brined Turkey Breast with Brussels Sprouts and Speck

¼ cup (75g) rock salt
¼ cup (45g) light brown sugar
2 sprigs tarragon
2 bunches thyme (about 12 sprigs)
1 lemon, thinly sliced
1.25 litres water
3 cups (750ml) prosecco
2 x 1.5kg turkey breast fillets, skin on
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
sea salt and cracked black pepper
350g speck or bacon, chopped
500g Brussels sprouts, halved
1 bunch thyme (about 6 sprigs), extra

lemon garlic butter
100g unsalted butter, softened
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon finely grated lemon rind

Place the salt, sugar, tarragon, thyme, lemon and 2 cups (500ml) of the water in a medium saucepan over high heat. Bring to the boil and cook for 4 minutes, stirring to dissolve the salt. Allow to cool slightly. Pour the brining liquid into a large (5-litre-capacity) non-reactive container+. Add the prosecco and another 2 cups (500ml) of the water. Using your hands, carefully loosen the skin from the flesh of the turkey breasts. Lower the turkey, skin-side down, into the brine. Cover and refrigerate for 2 hours (but no longer).

To make the lemon garlic butter, place the butter, garlic and lemon rind in a small bowl and mix to combine.

Remove the turkey from the container, discarding the brine, and pat dry with absorbent kitchen paper. Using your hands, spread the lemon garlic butter under the skin.

Place the oil in a large heavy-based frying pan over medium heat. Sprinkle the turkey with salt and pepper. Add 1 turkey breast to the pan, skin-side down. Cook for 4 minutes each side or until golden brown. Remove from the pan and repeat with the remaining turkey. Return both turkey breasts to the pan, skin-side up. Add the remaining 1 cup (250ml) of water, cover with a tight-fitting lid and cook for 20 minutes or until golden and cooked through. Remove the turkey from the pan, loosely cover with aluminium foil and reserve the cooking liquid.

Wipe the pan out and return to medium heat. Add the speck and cook, stirring, for 4 minutes or until crispy. Remove and set aside. Increase the heat to high, add the Brussels sprouts and cook, stirring, for 1 minute or until lightly charred. Add the extra thyme and reserved liquid and cook for 2 minutes.

Serve turkey with the sprouts and crispy speck. Serves 4–6

Non-reactive materials include glass, plastic and stainless steel.

The post COOK THIS: Christmas Feasts and Treats by Donna Hay appeared first on Modern Farmer.

“Pastry” covers everything that a pastry chef might make, from a humble muffin (including some gluten-free options) through to dinner party showpiece desserts, caramels, and a whole section on bread. It opens with an exceedingly helpful “master techniques” section, and it ends with a chapter of Chang’s master recipes (for various doughs, pastry cream, ganache, etc.). The book is almost a journal with thoughtful notes before each recipe. What pulls it out of textbook territory are enticing recipes such as Eggnog Cheesecake with Gingerbread People, and Apple Cider-Miso Caramels.

I am easily seduced by a breakfast cookie, so I attempted Chang’s Nutty Seedy Breakfast Cookies. Melted butter (quite a lot of it), maple syrup, vanilla, eggs and mashed banana are whisked together in one bowl. In another, pepitas, coconut, sunflower seeds, flax seeds and millet are combined, with some set aside. Walnuts, dried cherries and cranberries, whole wheat flour, baking soda and spices are added, along with the wet ingredients. The dough is rested, rolled into balls, dunked in the reserved seed mixture, and baked in a medium oven. The result was definitely not healthy, but it was delicious and lighter than the usual hockey puck-like breakfast cookie.

Pastry Love is thorough in the way that baking books really need to be, but it’s also kind, comforting and, most of all, approachable. Those new to baking will appreciate Chang’s encouraging and rock-steady voice, while experienced bakers will love getting their hands on her tried-and-true creative recipes.  

Wendy Underwood tests out cookbooks weekly on Instagram at @kitchenvscookbook.

The following is an excerpt from Pastry Love: A Baker’s Journal of Favorite Recipes (C) 2019 by Joanne Chang and reproduced with permission from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. All rights reserved.

Nutty Seedy Breakfast Cookies
MAKES 18 TO 20 COOKIES

Eating cookies for breakfast might seem like a ruse your kids try to pull on you to get out of eating their Wheaties. But when we created this recipe, we made sure it was full of whole grains and seeds and fruits and nuts and that it was wholesome enough for you to feel good about how you were starting off your morning. Don’t be daunted by the number of ingredients. While it most likely will require a trip to the grocery store, you’ll end up with a pantry nicely stocked with useful staples to encourage your whole grain baking even further. This cookie has become one of my favorite ways to start the morning, and I think it will become one of yours, too.

3/4 cup/90 grams walnuts, roughly chopped
1 cup/2 sticks/225 grams unsalted butter
1/2 cup/170 grams maple syrup
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3 large eggs (about 150 grams), at room temperature
1 ripe banana, thoroughly mashed (about 1/3 cup/100 grams)
3/4 cup/100 grams raw unsalted pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds)
3/4 cup/40 grams unsweetened flaked coconut
1/2 cup/45 grams raw shelled sunflower seeds
1/2 cup/50 grams flaxseeds
1/4 cup/50 grams millet
11/2 cups/150 grams rolled oats
1 cup/120 grams dried cranberries
2/3 cup/100 grams whole wheat flour
1/2 cup/100 grams dried cherries
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

Preheat the oven to 350°F and place a rack in the center of the oven. Place the walnuts on a baking sheet and toast for 6 to 8 minutes, until they are light golden brown and fragrant. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.

Melt the butter, then place it in a medium bowl. Whisk in the maple syrup and vanilla until well combined. Whisk in the eggs and banana until the mixture is totally homogeneous. (The banana needs to be completely mashed so it whisks in smoothly.)

In a large bowl, stir together the pepitas, coconut, sunflower seeds, flaxseeds, and millet. Remove 1/2 cup/about 50 grams of the mixture and set it aside for topping the cookies. Add the walnuts, oats, cranberries, flour, cherries, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and nutmeg to the bowl and stir well to combine. Make a well in the center and pour in the butter mixture. Stir well to combine — the dough will be more like a soft batter than a stiff cookie dough. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes or up to overnight, to allow the grains to absorb the liquid and firm up the batter.

When ready to bake the cookies, preheat the oven to 350°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or butter it.

Wet your hands and use them to scoop about 1/4 cup of the dough from the bowl. Roll the dough into a rough ball, dip the top of the ball into the reserved seed mixture, and plop it seed side up on the prepared baking sheet. Repeat to form the remaining dough. Press the cookies down with the palm of your hand to make them flat. Bake for 20 to 22 minutes, rotating the baking sheet midway through the baking time, until the cookies are golden brown on the edges and firm when you press them in the middle.

Remove from the oven and let cool on the baking sheet on a wire rack.

Cookies can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days.

Orange-Almond Pudding Cake with Chocolate Ganache
MAKES ONE 8-INCH CAKE, TO SERVE 8 TO 10

I first fell in love with this cake while spending an unforgettable weekend in the Ottolenghi pastry kitchens in London with two of my pastry chefs. Yotam Ottolenghi’s talented army of pastry cooks churned out endless platters of stunning pastries, each of which looked more delectable than the last. This supremely moist and orangey cake was sitting on a counter half eaten, and Paula, one of the pastry chefs, saw me eyeing it. “Oh my, eat it, eat it all!” She grabbed a few forks for me and my team, we descended on this cake, and it disappeared in seconds. Not only is this cake gluten-free, but it’s also made without any butter or oil. Yotam generously shared his recipe; I dress it up by double-glazing it with an orange-infused chocolate ganache to create a shiny mirrored surface.

Candied Oranges (page 318)
5 large eggs (about 250 grams), at room temperature
1 cup/200 grams sugar
1/2 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
21/4 cups/225 grams almond flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Chocolate-Orange Ganache (page 318), melted and cooled but still pourable

Make and drain the candied oranges. Set aside 2 or 3 pretty slices for garnish on the cake. Finely chop the rest and set aside separately.

Preheat the oven to 300°F and place a rack in the center of the oven. Line the bottom of an 8-inch cake pan with a parchment paper circle (see page 23), or butter the pan liberally. Set it aside.

In a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, whip the eggs and sugar on medium-high speed until frothy, about 2 minutes. Add the chopped candied oranges and vanilla and whip to combine. Stop the mixer and scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl, as well as the whisk. Whip again for a few seconds. Add the almond flour, baking powder, and salt and whip on low to combine. Stop the mixer and scrape again. Continue to mix until the batter is homogeneous.

Scrape the batter into the prepared pan. Bake for 1 hour 20 minutes to 1 hour 30 minutes, rotating the cake pan midway through the baking time, until the cake springs back when you poke it in the middle and is firm to the touch, and a cake tester inserted into the middle of the cake comes out clean. Remove the cake from the oven and place the pan on a wire rack to cool.

While the cake is baking, make the ganache and set it aside to cool.

When the cake is entirely cool, run a knife around the edges of the cake, pop the cake out of the pan onto a flat plate, and remove the parchment. Turn the cake right side up on a wire rack placed over a baking sheet. Pour about half the ganache over the entire cake, using an offset spatula to coat the sides evenly. Place the cake in the fridge, still on the wire rack, to allow the ganache t set for at least 15 minutes.

Pour a second coat of ganache over the cake. Let the ganache set for at least 30 minutes. Place the cake on a serving platter. Cut into the orange slices and twist them into spirals; decorate the center of the cake with them. Serve.

The cake can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 3 days.

Candied Oranges
MAKES ABOUT 1½  CUPS/340 GRAMS
2 navel oranges
3 cups/600 grams sugar

Slice the ends off the oranges, then slice the oranges crosswise about 1/4 inch thick.

In a medium saucepan, combine the sugar and 4 cups/960 grams water and bring to a boil. Add the orange slices to the sugar syrup and reduce the heat to very low.

Let the oranges simmer in the syrup for 2 to 3 hours, until they are translucent and the syrup has the consistency of maple syrup, gently stirring occasionally to move the top slices to the bottom of the syrup. Test for doneness by removing an orange slice from the syrup and biting into it; careful — it will be hot! The rind should be completely soft and sweet and the syrup should be very thick. Remove the saucepan from the heat and let the oranges cool completely in their syrup.

The oranges can be stored in their syrup in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks. Drain before using.

Chocolate-Orange Ganache
MAKES ABOUT 1¼  CUPS
3/4 cup/180 grams heavy cream
1 tablespoon grated orange zest (about 1 large orange)
6 ounces /170 grams semisweet or bittersweet chocolate, roughly chopped

In a small saucepan, heat the cream and orange zest over medium-high heat until just before it comes to a boil, when small bubbles collect along the sides of the pan. Turn off the heat and let the cream sit for 30 minutes to allow the orange to infuse into it.

Place the chocolate in a medium metal or heatproof glass bowl. Return the cream to just under a boil, then strain it through a fine-mesh strainer directly over the chocolate. Let it stand for 30 seconds. Slowly whisk the chocolate and cream together until the chocolate is completely melted and the ganache is smooth.

The ganache can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

Cranberry-Pecan Bread
MAKES 2 LOAVES

For ten months of the year we make a barely sweet raisin-pecan bread that is an homage to the nutty, hearty raisin-pecan bread from Amy’s Bread in New York City. I spent a very short time at Amy’s early in my career, learning the very basics of mixing, shaping, proofing, and baking bread. The owner, Amy Scherber, was — and still is — an inspiration to me, not only because of her fabulous bread that is beloved across New York, but also because she is kind, gracious, direct, and as generous a person as you’ll ever meet. When I’m in New York I always stop by one of her bakeries to get a few loaves to bring back to Boston. During the winter holidays we change up our standard raisin-pecan for a cranberry-pecan to celebrate the arrival of cranberry season. We knead dried cranberries into the dough and also throw in a generous handful of fresh cranberries. The combination of the sweet chewy dried with the tart juicy fresh makes this a loaf we look forward to all year long.

Note that this takes two days to make, so be sure to plan ahead.

Sponge for Cranberry-Pecan Bread (page 148), at room temperature

1 cup plus 2 tablespoons/270 grams water, at body temperature (when you stick your finger in it, it does not register as either warm or cold)
2 cups/280 grams all-purpose flour
11/2 cups/225 grams high-gluten bread flour
1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
1/4 cup/85 grams honey
21/4 teaspoons kosher salt
1 cup/100 grams pecan halves, toasted (see page 29)
3/4 cup/90 grams dried cranberries
1 cup/100 grams fresh cranberries, roughly chopped
1/4 to 1/2 cup cornmeal, for the baking sheet

The day before you will be making this bread, make the sponge. Two hours before making the bread, remove the sponge from the fridge.

In a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook attachment or by hand in a large bowl with a wooden spoon, mix the water, all-purpose flour, bread flour, yeast, and sponge for about 2 minutes, until all the ingredients are combined and you have a shaggy, stiff dough. (To prevent the flour from flying out of the mixer bowl, turn the mixer on and off several times until the flour is mixed into the liquid and then keep it on low speed.) Cover the bowl with a piece of plastic wrap and let sit for about 10 minutes. (This is called an autolyse; it allows the water to hydrate the flour, which makes for better mixing down the road.)

Add the honey and salt to the dough and mix on medium-low for 6 to 8 minutes, until the dough is smooth. If it does not come together, let it sit for a few minutes to allow the flour to be absorbed into the dough more, then mix again for a few minutes. The dough should be somewhat sticky but still smooth, and have the texture of an earlobe (as strange as that sounds). If it’s stiffer than this, add a few tablespoons water, or if it’s looser than this add a few tablespoons all purpose flour, and mix until incorporated. Don’t add more flour unless it’s really soupy. If you’re mixing by hand this process will take at least 15 minutes of active kneading. Constantly knead, push, and fold the dough over itself, picking it up from time to time and slapping it onto the counter to incorporate all the ingredients and help develop the dough’s structure.

Add the pecans, dried cranberries, and fresh cranberries and mix on low for another 3 to 4 minutes, until the nuts and cranberries are all completely and evenly distributed within the dough. You may need to stop the mixer a few times to pull off any dough that has gathered around the hook or on the sides of the bowl. If you are mixing and kneading by hand, it will take at least 10 minutes to incorporate these ingredients.

Lightly oil a clean large bowl, remove the dough from the mixer bowl, and place it in the oiled bowl.

Cover it with an oiled piece of plastic wrap or a damp lint-free towel. Place it in a draft-free warm place (78° to 82°F is ideal; an area near the stove or an oven with only the pilot light on is good) for 2 to 3 hours. The dough will rise a little bit but not a lot, and will feel a little loose and relaxed and somewhat sticky.

Generously flour your hands and work surface and turn the dough out of the bowl. Divide the dough in half with a sharp chef’s knife or bench scraper. Shape each half into a rough square. Working with one half at a time, bring the upper right and left corners of the dough to the center of the square and then fold over the top of the dough to meet the corners in the center. Now hold the top part of the dough in both hands, cradling the folded-over part with your fingers, and line up your thumbs in the center of the dough along the seams in the middle. Push at the center of the dough at the seam, nudging away from you with your thumbs to create a taut surface at the outside of the dough. Cup the outer part of the dough in your fingers again and bring your thumbs against the seam again as you nudge the dough away from you. Roll your hands toward you to create more surface tension on the dough as you roll it down to the bottom of the square. Continue nudging and rolling until you have a long loaf that is fat in the middle and tapered at the ends like a football. (At this point you can store the shaped loaves on a baking sheet or flat plate, covered lightly with plastic or a lint-free towel, in the fridge overnight. Remove the next day and proceed as directed.)

Generously sprinkle a baking sheet with cornmeal to keep the loaves from sticking to it. Place the shaped loaves seam side down on the baking sheet, at least 3 inches apart. Cover them loosely and completely with plastic wrap or a lint-free towel and let them sit at room temperature for 2 to 3 hours, until the dough has loosened up and seems relaxed. It won’t pouf up too much but it will seem much softer.

Preheat the oven to 400°F and place racks in the center and bottom third of the oven. (It’s very important to make sure the oven comes to temperature before you place the bread inside! The heat from the oven ensures that your loaves will get enough oomph to rise and grow.) Sprinkle the tops of the loaves with 2 to 3 tablespoons flour. Slash the loaves on top with a knife, lame, or razor blade (see page 27) and place the baking sheet on the center rack. Place a rimmed baking sheet or shallow baking pan filled with about 2 cups water on the rack underneath the bread. (The steam from the water will create a nice moist atmosphere, allowing your bread to grow.) Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, rotating the baking sheet with the bread midway through the baking time, until the bread is dark golden brown on top and makes a hollow sound when you thump it on the bottom.

Let cool for at least 1 hour, directly on a wire rack.

The bread can be stored in a paper bag at room temperature for 2 to 3 days. (Plastic seals the air out and keeps the bread from breathing, so it can get too soft.)

Sponge for Cranberry-Pecan Bread

MAKES ABOUT 11/4 CUPS/380 GRAMS

1 cup/140 grams all-purpose flour
1/8 teaspoon active dry yeast

Stir together the flour, 1 cup/240 grams room temperature water, and the yeast until well mixed and sloshy. Cover and leave out at room temperature for at least 4 hours or up to 8 hours.

Stir the sponge, cover, and refrigerate overnight. Pull it out of the fridge 2 hours before using to bring it back to room temperature.

The post COOK THIS: Pastry Love by Joanne Chang appeared first on Modern Farmer.

The recipe for Cranberry Jewelled Rice caught my eye; it’s listed as a main course, but it would actually make a very festive side dish. Onions and carrots are cooked in butter until soft, before being joined by cardamom, cinnamon and nuts. Basmati rice and dried cranberries are added, along with hot water and orange blossom water that has had saffron soaking in it. It’s cooked for about 15 minutes, and briefly blasted with heat at the end to develop a crust on the bottom. This was delicious—delicately spiced with the bright acidity of the cranberries bringing everything together.

Sour offers the best of both worlds, with easy projects to get you started on some home fermenting, but also offering some very creative, exciting dishes for indulging your sour tooth. Unlike many books that include fermentation, the recipes themselves are very straightforward, and dare I say, a treasure trove of homemade gifts for the holidays as well.

Wendy Underwood tests out cookbooks weekly on Instagram at @kitchenvscookbook.

Excerpted from Sour/the magical element that will transform your cooking. (C) 2019 by Mark Diacono. Reproduced by permission of Quadrille. All rights reserved.

CRANBERRY JEWELLED RICE
Serves 4

Saffron is a funny thing. Mostly it reminds me of that time I sucked the end of the fountain pen I used for all of a fortnight at school, only to find it was leaking its turquoise (classy) Quink all over my mouth. Happy days. Saffron gives me hope that perhaps there is nothing to which a delicious end cannot be found. Here, its generous nasal bitterness is what creates the alchemy. Sour fruit and nuts are so fine together too, and I think this shows that happy alliance at its best. I’m as likely to eat this as it is – a joyously satisfying bowlful, fork pecking away – as I am to bother with a bright salad to accompany.

300g (10oz) basmati rice large pinch of saffron (or use ground turmeric)
50ml (2fl oz) orange blossom water
3 tbsp butter, ghee or olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
2 carrots, peeled and finely chopped
½ tsp ground cardamom
1 cinnamon stick
100g (3½oz) shelled pistachios (or use flaked almonds or pine nuts, or a mix)
100g (3½oz) dried cranberries (or use dried sour cherries)
sea salt and freshly ground
black pepper

Wash the rice thoroughly and drain well. Soak the saffron in the orange blossom water.

Heat the butter, ghee or oil in a large pan, add the onion and carrots and cook over a medium heat until soft – this will take 10–15 minutes or so. Add the spices, nuts and 1 teaspoon of salt and cook for 1 minute more.

Add the drained rice and cranberries and cook for a minute to toast the rice, then add the orange blossom saffron water plus another 400ml (14fl oz) hot water and cover. Turn the heat down to low and continue cooking for 15 minutes until all the liquid has evaporated and the rice is tender. Turn the heat up to medium and cook for 5 minutes to develop a crust at the base.

Turn off the heat. Place a clean tea towel between the pan and its lid and let the pan sit and rest for 5 minutes in about 3cm (1¼in) cold water in the sink to help loosen the crust.

Turn the rice out on to a large platter to serve.

TAMARIND PORK RIBS
Serves 2–3 (or just me watching a game)

It’s 8.07am and I’m writing about tamarind ribs and now all I want for second breakfast is tamarind ribs. And all I’ll want for lunch and dinner is tamarind ribs. They may take a while in the oven, but the only attention you need to pay here is in softening the onions slowly: after that, you just have to come back in a couple of hours with an appetite.

The sauce is hugely adaptable: when I couldn’t get good pork ribs, I tried it with a rack of lamb – cooked hard at 200°C/400°F/gas mark 6 for 15 minutes, before being slathered on the sauce and cooked for another 25 minutes at 160°C/325°F/gas mark 3 – and it was extraordinary.

4 tbsp olive oil
2 onions, finely diced
10 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
15g (½oz) fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
1½ tsp fennel seeds
1 star anise
1½ tsp Aleppo pepper
5 tbsp dark soy sauce
3 tbsp tomato ketchup
3 tbsp maple syrup
60g (2¼oz) soft dark brown sugar
5 tbsp tamarind paste (ideally made from tamarind block, see page 18)
1kg (2lb 4oz) pork ribs
sea salt and freshly ground
black pepper

Preheat the oven to 150°C/300°F/gas mark 2.

Warm the oil in a frying pan over low-medium heat, add the onions and fry slowly, stirring often – we are after sweet softness, without burning, so expect it to take 15–25 minutes. Add the garlic and ginger and cook for a few minutes more. Add the spices, stir and cook for a couple of minutes. Add the soy sauce, ketchup, maple syrup, sugar and tamarind paste and stir to incorporate thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper. Cook just for a minute or two.

Place the ribs into a roasting tray large enough to accommodate them in a single layer, close-ish but not jammed in. Spoon the spicy paste over the ribs.

Cover the tray in foil and cook for 2 hours. Turn the heat up to 180°C/350°F/ gas mark 4. Uncover the ribs and taste the paste, seasoning more if needed. Spoon some of the paste from the tin over the ribs. Replace the foil, and return to the oven for 20 minutes more – be careful; you are after dark and sweet– sour gooey rather than black and burnt.

Remove from the oven and allow the ribs to cool a little, before serving with pea shoots and a sharp dressing, or just a cold beer.

Tamarind
I’ve come to tamarind rather too recently, and it is one of those flavours that can make you enter a slightly daydreamy state, imagining how it might suit this or complement that. Once you start cooking with tamarind, it is as if you have discovered a special music or favourite author previously unknown to you. The weeks following may easily be lost in enthusiastic exploration, and that ‘what else can I do with this?’ feeling never quite leaves you when it comes to tamarind.

Tamarind comes from a tropical tree of the same name, likely to originate from Madagascar. Its brown pods look not unlike broad beans after a long weekend and in need of a shower and a glass of water; they contain a dark sour pulp that is extracted from the desiccated pods when ripe and squeezed into blocks, or strained of seeds to make a paste. In either form, it is used in curries, stews, drinks, chutneys and more throughout the Middle East and Asia, as well as Worcestershire sauce and brown sauce in the UK. As much as it is used for its distinctive and complex flavour – perfectly described by Niki Segnit in Lateral Cooking as ‘like a lemon that’s sucked a date’ – tamarind brings a distinctly characterful souring that just works in so many dishes.

The concentrated paste is pretty good and widely available; the block version is superb and available online and from Asian food shops. Tamarind block involves the tiny faff of adding a little boiling water and encouraging it to dissolve, for which – as is usual for a little culinary effort – you are more than proportionately rewarded in flavour.

Although tamarind adds a unique spicy-sour tone, if you are without, then use vinegar or lime juice in a similar quantity (and then amend to taste) to add the required sourness.

MANGO SALAD
Serves 4

If ever I tire of the home-worker’s high-carb, quick-grab lunches and crave a cold shower of freshness, this is one I turn to. It’s a waltz, a cha cha cha and a tango in the mouth, all at once. I tend to leave the herbs large-leaved and barely shredded, to give a big hit of independent flavour from each, and I use red (rather than green) chillies for looks, but the recipe is really a blueprint to play with as you like. The mango should be unripe and sour, but if yours has sweetened, consider upping the lime for balance. And, if you can find them, small green mangoes are perfect here.

2 bird’s-eye chillies, deseeded and finely chopped
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
juice of 2 limes
50ml (2fl oz) fish sauce
2 tbsp sesame oil
2–3 tsp soft light brown sugar
1 unripe mango, peeled and julienned
2–3 shallots, thinly sliced
60g (2¼oz) unsalted peanuts, roughly chopped
small handful of coriander leaves, barely chopped
small handful of mint leaves, barely chopped
3 tbsp toasted sesame seeds
sea salt and freshly ground
black pepper

Stir together the chillies, garlic, lime juice, fish sauce, sesame oil, sugar and plenty of black pepper – this dressing should be a jumble of flavours more than a complete amalgamation.

Combine the mango, shallots, two-thirds of the peanuts, coriander, mint, sesame seeds and the dressing in a large bowl, season with salt to taste and serve immediately with more nuts to the side and a cold beer.

The post COOK THIS: Sour by Mark Diacono appeared first on Modern Farmer.

A spontaneous Saturday night with friends was the perfect opportunity to try out Roman’s Spicy Pork Meatballs in Brothy Tomatoes and Toasted Fennel. The meatballs are made from ground pork (I also used some turkey), garlic, fresh herbs, Greek yogurt, fennel seeds, smoked paprika and red pepper flakes. They’re browned before being simmered in a broth of fresh tomatoes and shallots spiked with a little vinegar. We served the lot over some steamed kale and mopped up all of that delicious broth with chunks of baguette. These were simple, tender and so satisfying!

We’re coming to a time of year full of opportunities (and expectations) for “having people over,” and most of us could do with some inspiration. Flipping through Roman’s book, I was hard-pressed to find something I didn’t want to make, although it is a little short on vegetarian main course options. Her breezy, encouraging and no-apologies-required approach paired with creative recipes makes Nothing Fancy a winner.

Wendy Underwood tests out cookbooks weekly on Instagram at @kitchenvscookbook.

Reprinted from Nothing Fancy. Copyright © 2019 by Alison Roman. Photographs copyright © 2019 by Michael Graydon and Nikole Herriott Published by Clarkson Potter, an imprint of Penguin Random House, LLC.


Creamy Sesame Turmeric Dip
makes about 2 cups

8 ounces cream cheese or ricotta, preferably room temperature
¾ cup sour cream or labne
¼ cup tahini
2 tablespoons water
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
¼ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons white sesame seeds
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
Flaky sea salt

1. Combine the cream cheese, sour cream, tahini, and water in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse until well blended and creamy (alternatively, use a fork or spoon; there might just be a few lumps, which is actually fine). Season with salt and pepper.

2. Heat the olive oil and sesame seeds in a small skillet or pot over medium heat. Cook, swirling occasionally, until the sesame seeds are toasted and fragrant, 2 to 3 minutes. Add the turmeric and remove from heat.

3. Transfer the cream cheese mixture to a cute serving bowl and top with the sesame-turmeric oil. Finish with flaky salt and more pepper before serving.

Spicy Pork Meatballs in Brothy Tomatoes and Toasted Fennel
Serves 4 to 6

6 garlic cloves (2 grated, 4 thinly sliced)
½ cup finely chopped fresh chives
½ cup finely chopped fresh parsley, tender leaves and stems, plus more for garnish
½ cup full-fat Greek yogurt
2 teaspoons fennel seeds, plus more for garnish
2 teaspoons hot smoked paprika
1½ teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes, plus more for serving
1½ pounds ground pork, lamb, beef, and/or turkey (feel free to mix!)
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for drizzling
1 large shallot, thinly sliced
2 pints Sungold or cherry tomatoes (about 1½ pounds), halved
¼ cup distilled white vinegar or white wine vinegar
3 cups water
1 cup fresh mint leaves
Piece of pecorino or parmesan, for grating
Toast or crusty bread, for serving

1. Place the grated garlic in a medium bowl along with the chives, parsley, yogurt, fennel seeds, paprika, salt, and crushed red pepper flakes. Mix until well combined.

2. Add the meat, season with pepper, and, using your hands, mix until well combined. Roll the mixture into balls about 1½ inches in diameter (about the size of a plum; I like these meatballs on the smaller side). Place on a baking sheet or large plate.

3. Heat the olive oil in a large, heavy-bottomed Dutch oven over medium-high heat. Add a few meatballs at a time, taking care not to crowd the pot. Cook, using tongs or a spatula to occasionally gently rotate them, until they are all golden brown all over (they may not hold their perfectly round shape, but that is more than okay), 8 to 10 minutes. As the meatballs are browned, transfer them to a large serving platter or plate. Leave the remaining bits and fat in the pot.

4. Add the shallot and sliced garlic to the pot and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the shallot is tender and the garlic starts to brown a bit, 2 to 3 minutes.

5. Add the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until they burst and start to become all saucy and caramelize a bit on the bottom of the pot, 5 to 8 minutes. Add the vinegar and water, scraping up any bits along the bottom. Bring to a strong simmer and reduce the sauce by about one-fourth, just until it thickens slightly (it should still be relatively brothy), 5 to 7 minutes.

6. Return the meatballs to the pot and reduce the heat to medium-low. Simmer until the meatballs are cooked through and the flavors have melded, 10 to 15 minutes.

7. Remove from the heat. To serve, top the meatballs (either in individual bowls or right in the pot) with the mint and more crushed red pepper flakes and fennel seeds, if you like. Drizzle with some olive oil and serve with the cheese for grating and some toast for dipping.

DO AHEAD
The meatball mixture can be made up to 1 day ahead (either kept in a bowl or shaped into meatballs), wrapped, and refrigerated (or up to 1 month in the freezer). The whole dish can be made up to 2 days ahead, covered, and refrigerated.

NOTE
These meatballs and their tomato-y broth really want something to dip in, like simple crusty bread, or perhaps very good garlic bread. They also want some bitter green, which can actually be eaten out of the same bowl, the leaves taking a brief dip in the broth to soften slightly—wow, yes please.

tiny, salty, chocolatey cookies
I am not a chocolate person, but there are some occasions when I want a lightly sweet, definitely salty, chocolatey little something. In those moments, there is nothing better than this something, which I can best describe as the edges of a chewy brownie but in cookie form. No special equipment, fancy techniques, or chilling time are needed, which means that even if you only bake cookies once a year, you can still make these. Perfect for the end of a meal, when you, too, have decided you’ve just got to have a chocolatey little something.

makes 24 cookies

6 tablespoons (¾ stick) unsalted butter
2½ cups confectioners’ sugar
¾ cup unsweetened cocoa powder (see Note)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 large egg whites
1 large egg
8 ounces bittersweet chocolate (at least 67% cacao), chopped
½ cup finely chopped hazelnuts, almonds, pistachios, pecans, or walnuts (optional)
Flaky sea salt, such as Maldon or Jacobsen

NOTE
This is the time to invest in some high-quality unsweetened cocoa powder, since that’s mostly what you’ll be tasting here (that, and browned butter).

1. Preheat the oven to 350°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment.

2. Melt the butter in a small pot over medium heat, swirling, until starting to foam and brown, 3 to 4 minutes (whisk the butter from time to time so that the solids don’t stick to the bottom of the pot). Let cool.

3. Whisk the confectioners’ sugar, cocoa powder, and salt in a medium bowl, ridding it of as many lumps as possible (if you really want to, feel free to sift everything).

4. Using a spatula, mix in the egg whites, whole egg, and browned butter, stirring until you’ve got a good, smoothish mixture (any small lumps will take care of themselves), followed by the chocolate and any nuts you may want to add.

5. Using a spoon, drop quarter-sized blobs of dough (the texture is really somewhere between a dough and a batter), spacing about 2 inches apart on the baking sheet (they spread a lot). Sprinkle with flaky salt and bake until the cookies have flattened considerably and look baked through and a little wrinkled, 6 to 8 minutes. Let cool before eating so they can firm up.

DO AHEAD
Cookies can be baked up to 2 days ahead, wrapped tightly, and stored at room temperature.

The post COOK THIS: Nothing Fancy by Alison Roman appeared first on Modern Farmer.

The need for a quick and tasty Sunday dinner before heading out seemed like a good excuse to try Slater’s recipe for Mushrooms, Chickpeas, Tahini—stuffed and baked Portobello mushroom caps. The filling is made by grinding together garlic, chickpeas, olive oil, salt, lemon juice and sumac, then stirring through tahini, thyme and sesame seeds. The caps are filled with this, topped with more chickpeas and sesame seeds and baked for 30 minutes. My mushrooms deflated, leading to some of the filling cascading onto the tray around it, but there’s no denying that this was a delicious, low-effort dinner.

On the face of it, Slater’s “handful-of-this, bake-’til-golden” style is best suited to sure-footed cooks with experience to make those judgment calls in the kitchen, but this casualness also takes the pressure off a new cook to get everything perfect. But perhaps the best reason to get Greenfeast: autumn, winter is that it might actually get you excited for our cold-weather harvest.

Wendy Underwood tests out cookbooks weekly on Instagram at @kitchenvscookbook.

Excerpted from Greenfeast: autumn, winter © 2019 by Nigel Slater. Photos © Jonathan Lovekin. Reproduced with permission of 4th Estate. All rights reserved.

MUSHROOMS, CHICKPEAS, TAHINI
A mushroom as thick as beefsteak. A silky puree.

Serves 2

large ‘portobello’ mushrooms 2
olive oil 8 tablespoons
garlic 2 cloves, peeled
ground sumac 2 teaspoons
juice of half a lemon
chickpeas x 400g can
tahini 2 tablespoons
thyme leaves tablespoon
black sesame seeds tablespoon
white sesame seeds tablespoon

Set the oven at 200°C/Gas 6. Cut out the stalks from the mushrooms, then place the mushrooms gill side up on a baking tray. Score the inside of each mushroom with the tip of a knife—it will allow the oil to penetrate—then pour one tablespoon of olive oil into each.

Use a pestle and mortar to crush the garlic, then pound in four table­spoons of the olive oil, the sumac, lemon juice and a little salt. Drain the chickpeas, then mash half into the oil and garlic paste. Stir in the tahini, thyme leaves and half of both the sesame seeds.

Fill the mushrooms with the chickpea paste, then cover each with the reserved whole chickpeas. Finally, trickle over the last of the olive oil and scatter with the reserved sesame seeds. Bake for about 30 minutes.

The best mushrooms for these are the very large portobello mushrooms with upturned edges to hold the filling.

RED CABBAGE, CARROTS, SMOKED ALMONDS
Crisp, crunchy, sour and smoky. A cabbage salad for a winter’s day.

Serves 4

a red onion
malt vinegar 50ml
cider vinegar 75ml
yellow mustard seeds teaspoon
red cabbage 450g
carrots 250g
a pear
smoked almonds a handful or two

For the dressing:
soured cream 150ml
pickling liquor from the onion 4 tablespoons
Dijon mustard teaspoon
grain mustard teaspoon
poppy seeds tablespoon

Peel the onion and finely slice into rings. Warm the vinegars, 120ml of water and the mustard seeds in a small saucepan, add half a teaspoon of salt and the onion. Bring to the boil, then remove from the heat, cover and leave for 35 minutes.

Finely shred the red cabbage. Peel the carrots, then slice them into long shavings with a vegetable peeler. Halve, core and slice the pear. Toss the cabbage, carrots and pear with a little of the onion pickling liquid.

Make the dressing: Lightly beat the soured cream, onion pickling liquor, mustards and poppy seeds. Fold the dressing into the shredded cabbage, carrots and pear. Finally, add the smoked almonds and the pickled onions, drained of their remaining pickling liquor.

Should smoked almonds prove elusive, make your own by mixing smoked salt with a little paprika and groundnut oil, then toast in a dry pan, before adding the whole almonds.

PEARL BARLEY, KALE, GOAT’S CHEESE
Nutty grains, melting cheese, tender greens.

Serves 2

vegetable stock 800ml
pearl barley 200g
smoked garlic head
curly kale 150g
olive oil 4 tablespoons
goat’s cheese 200g

Heat the stock in a deep pan and tip in the pearl barley. Cut the smoked garlic in half horizontally, slicing through the skin and cloves, drop into the stock and simmer for 35 minutes until the barley is tender.

Cut the stems from the kale, setting the leaves aside. Roughly chop the stems. Pile the leaves on top of each other and finely shred into ribbons. Remove the smoked garlic, scoop out the flesh with a knife and crush to a paste. Discard the skins. (Any cloves that have fallen in the barley during cooking can be left in.)

Heat the olive oil in a large, shallow pan, add the chopped kale stems and cook for a few minutes until tender and bright. Stir in the crushed smoked garlic, then add the shredded kale leaves. Sizzle for a couple of minutes, then fold into the pearl barley, together with crumbled goat’s cheese.

I have suggested kale because of its stridency against the soft, smoky grain, but almost any brassica is applicable here.

Mozzarella would add strings of cheesy joy to the barley, as would Fontina.

I like the nutty quality of pearl barley, but this recipe could also be made with orzo pasta for a softer consistency.

The post COOK THIS: Greenfeast: autumn, winter by Nigel Slater appeared first on Modern Farmer.