Busy Nothings

In an attempt to lighten my diet a bit after the holiday feasts I attended, I decided to have salad for dinner.  This recipe was very good.  The original can be found here. 

Spinach and Apple Salad with Crispy Almonds

2 T minced onion

1 1/2 T apple cider vinegar

1 1/2 T white wine vinegar

dash paprika

2 1/2 T sugar

1/4 olive oil

1 T butter

1/3 cup blanched slivered almonds

1 10 oz bag fresh spinach

1 apple, diced (peeled if desired)

Combine onion, cider vinegar, white wine vinegar, sesame seeds and paprika in small bowl. Mix in 2 tablespoons sugar. Gradually whisk in olive oil. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper.

Melt butter in heavy large skillet over medium heat. Add almonds. Stir until almonds begin to color, about 2 minutes. Sprinkle remaining 1 tablespoon sugar over. Stir until sugar melts and begins to turn golden, about 2 minutes longer. Transfer almonds to bowl and cool. (Dressing and almonds can be prepared 4 hours ahead. Cover separately and let stand at room temperature.)

Combine spinach and apples in large bowl. Toss with enough dressing to coat. Mix in almonds. Serve salad, passing any remaining dressing separately.

This is a nice, tart salad with the wonderful accent of the sugared almonds.  Really, you could eat the almonds all by themselves.  The apples add a nice crunch as well.  I modified the recipe from the original to reflect the fact that I hate overdressed salads.  To my mind, a salad should be lightly dressed with just enough salad dressing to flavor the salad.  Too much dressing and a salad just becomes too heavy, which destroys the whole point of eating a salad. 

It’s Thursday, so the Meatloaf Sandwich Club met.  Here’s the link to the recipe. 

This recipe is based on the Joy of Cooking’s Classic Italian American Lasagna (1997 edition, pg 314).  I have made that recipe as written at least 3 times to very, very good effect.  The sauce created by the pork and tomatoes is just amazing.  However, there are a few things about the recipe that I didn’t like as written.  First, it asks the cook to layer meatballs into the lasagna.  It’s an inventive idea but I just don’t see the purpose.  Inevitably, the layers will be uneven due to the size and shape of the meatballs, which means empty pockets in the lasagna and that is not a good thing.  Plus, it takes a bit of work to shape all of those meatballs which I am not necessarily opposed to but if you’re going to go whole hog on the thing like I do (i.e. making fresh pasta to go along with it), you’re not really looking for extra things to do.  Second, it asks the cook to layer in Italian sausage “coins” into the pasta.  For me, again, it makes for an uneven lasagna but more importantly, the sausage sort of takes over the dish.  I like Italian sausage but I don’t really like it as the dominant flavor in a lasagna.  Especially after you’ve spent 3-4 hours braising a piece of pork in the sauce.  I’d much rather taste that richly flavored sauce.  Finally, the recipe calls for a pork loin or a beef beef bottom round.  (This will be seem more clear when you read the recipe.)  I’ve never made it with the beef but using a pork loin seems just a poor choice because it’s so lean.  Sure, there’s a bit of fat right on top but that isn’t the same as having the fat and connective tissue that a pork shoulder or pork rib would have.  And since you’re braising it so long anyway, why not take advantage of being able to use a tougher cut of meat that will, in my opinion, add a lot more flavor the party.  So, with those thoughts in mind, here is my modified recipe:

Tony’s Best Lasagna

For the sauce:

2 T extra virgin olive oil

2 1/2 pounds country style pork ribs or pork shoulder (also named Boston Butt)

1 medium yellow onion, diced

6 oz bacon, chopped

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup water

2 28 oz cans whole tomatoes, with juice

1 cup red wine

1/4 cup tomato paste

1 tsp dried basil

For the meat filling:

2 large eggs

3 slices white bread

1 large handful parsley

about 2 oz Parmesan cheese

1/2 tsp salt

Ground black pepper to taste

For the lasagna:

1 lb ricotta cheese

1 pound shredded mozzarella cheese

about 1 lb fresh lasagna noodles, cooked slightly, preferably Fresh All-Egg-Yolk Pasta

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Begin by making the sauce.  Preheat the oven to 300 degrees.  Heat the olive oil over medium heat in a Dutch oven or a pot large enough to hold all of the sauce ingredients.  Season the meat liberally with salt and pepper and deeply sear the pork on all sides, working in batches if needed.  Remove the pork to a plate.  Add the onions, bacon, and garlic.  Sprinkle some salt in the pot as well (to ensure that the onions release their juices).  Saute, stirring often, until the onions are softened and have taken a bit of color.  At this point, your pan should have a “clean” bottom as the onion juice has deglazed the pan.  (Don’t worry if it hasn’t happened, though.)  Put the meat and any accumulated juices back in the pan and then add the water.  Increase the heat to medium high and cook until almost all of the water has evaporated and it looks saucelike in the pan.  Then add the tomatoes, red wine, tomato paste, and basil.  Bring the pot to a boil and then stick the pot into the oven uncovered.  Bake for about 3-4 hours or until the meat is fall apart tender, stirring every hour or so. 

When tender, remove the meat from the sauce and let it cool on a plate.  Take your stick blender to the sauce and puree it.  (Alternatively, process the sauce in the blender or food processor.  If you don’t have any of those, crush the tomatoes in your hands before adding them to the pot or use crushed or diced tomatoes.)  Taste the sauce and adjust any seasonings, even adding a bit of sugar if the sauce is too acidic. 

Then place the meat in a food processor and process until shredded finely.  (Or shred by hand.)  Remove the meat from the food processor and then place the eggs, bread, Parmesan, salt, and pepper in the food processor and process until finely chopped.  Mix everything together.  (Alternatively, chop everything by hand and mix it up.) 

Now you can assemble the lasagna.  Using a large, glass rectangular baking pan, place about 1/2 cup of the sauce on the bottom of the pan.  Then start layering in this order: lasagna smeared with ricotta cheese, meat filling mixture, mozzarella cheese, salt, pepper, and about 1 1/2 cups sauce.  After each layer, using a spatula, even everything out and make sure the sauce reaches everywhere.  The last layer should be simply noodles with ricotta, the remaining sauce, and then the remaining mozzarella cheese and the 1/4 cup Parmesan.  Use your judgment to juggle the amounts as you’re building it.  It’s not an exact science and don’t sweat it if you’re layers are a bit uneven.  It will still be delicious. 

Bake at 375 degrees for 45 minutes or until well-browned and bubbly.  Let is stand for 15 minutes before serving. 

The lasagna can be assembled one day ahead.  Keep in the refrigerator.  However, adjust your baking time if you’re are baking a cold lasagna. 

OK, so that’s a lot of work.  I know it.  It takes at least a half a day to assemble but this is worth it.  And it’s a great thing to make for a special occasion, like making it for Christmas Eve as I did for my family.  Here’s a picture of a piece:

This recipe comes from Jeffrey Steingarten’s The Man Who Ate Everything (pg 264 in the paperback edition).  It is by far the best fresh pasta recipe I have ever used.  It produces a light, eggy, and tender noodle that is out of this world.  Technically, this style of pasta is called Tajarin and comes from the Piedmont area of Italy.  And, according to Steingarten, this style of pasta is to be cut 1/8″ inch wide so as to make tagliarini noodles.  My take, however, is that these noodles are so delicious that I’m just going to use them for everything.  And my first use was for a homemade lasagna.  Anyway, here’s the recipe:

Fresh All-Egg-Yolk Pasta

1 lb unbleached all-purpose flour

about 1/2 T salt

20 yolks from extra-large eggs

Put all but 1 cup of the flour on the counter, sprinkle with the salt, make a depression in the center, and pour in the egg yolks.  Essentially, you’re making a bowl out of the flour.  Stir the yolks with a fork, gradually incorporating all the flour that surrounds them, until you have a sticky mass of dough.  With the reserved cup of flour, heavily flour your hands and work surface, and knead the dough, adding flour as necessary, until you have a smooth, soft ball that no longer sticks to your fingers.  (This will take some work.)  Wrap in plastic wrap and let it relax for 30 minutes. 

Divide the dough into six roughly equal pieces and roll each one eight or nine times through a pasta machine with the rollers at the widest setting, folding the dough like a letter and turning it after each pass.  Thin each piece of dough at increasingly narrow settings until you reach the desired thickness.  Place the sheets on a very lightly floured surface, dust with a little flour, and let them dry until their surface begins to resemble leather but before they become brittle.  Turn them over to dry the other side.  Total drying time will be 15 to 30 minutes.  At this point, cut the noodles into the shape you want and then let them dry a little more; at least until you can be sure they won’t stick together. 

A couple of pictures.  First, here’s my pasta drying:

And next is some pappardelle style noodles:

Do yourself a favor and try this one at home.  It could be a life changing experience.  I know it’s already changed mine. 

This recipe comes courtesy of Nancy Celis. 

Spinach Balls

2 10 oz packages frozen spinach, cooked and drained

4 eggs, beaten

3/4 cup Parmesan cheese

3/4 cup melted butter

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/4 tsp nutmeg

2 1/2 cups Pepperidge Farms crumb stuffing dressing

Stir all ingredients together and let rest for 20 minutes.  Roll into 1 inch balls.  Bake at 350 degrees on a sheet tray or cookie sheet for about 20 minutes or until heated through.

“Yellow” Mayonnaise 

Mix a bit of mayonnaise, some fresh lemon juice, and some turmeric in a bowl.  There should be enough turmeric to color the mayonnaise slightly yellow.  (Sorry, no amounts given here, that’s the way it was passed on to me.)

These are really wonderful.  A bit crispy on the outside and just flat out tasty on the inside.  There’s a simple richness to them that is undeniable and the spinach pairs beautifully with the Parmesan cheese and the spices.  A great holiday treat!

A couple notes:  1) These balls can be made ahead and frozen.  Of course, if baking them frozen, increase the baking time.  2) Do a good job of draining and drying the spinach.  I just use a whole bunch of paper towels.  If you don’t, the end product will just be too wet and you might have a problem with them retaining their shape.  3)  I don’t use all the butter called for in the recipe.  I usually use 1/2 cup of butter instead of the 3/4 cup asked for in the recipe.  They seem to turn out alright even with the reduced fat content.  4)  I like to mix everything up with my stand mixer.  Even a double recipe fits in the bowl just fine.  5)  With my apologies to Nancy, I just made up the “Yellow” Mayonnaise name.  I’m not sure if it even had a name but I thought naming something turmeric mayonnaise just didn’t sound appetizing.  Maybe there’s a better idea out there.

Paul Carns was kind enough to show me one his new toys.  It’s called a Lagerhead Black and Tan Turtle.  As you can no doubt guess from the name, this handy little tool is used to create a homemade version of a Black and Tan.  In the United States, a Black and Tan is a mixture of two beers: Guinness and and either Harp Lager or Bass.  It is a layered drink that, as Wikipedia explains:

“taking advantage of the fact that Guinness is “carbonated” (nitrogenated) with a nitrogen and carbon dioxide mixture that is less dense than pure carbon dioxide. The density of nitrogen gas (N₂) at STP is 28g/mole but is 44g/mole for carbon dioxide (CO₂).”

In other words, the Guinness is lighter than the lighter colored beer and will hence sit atop it.  However, to get this effect, you have to be a wee bit careful how you pour in the Guinness.  (Obviously, you start making the drink by pouring in the Bass or Harp first.)  Pour too fast and the beers will mix thus ending any hope you might have of creating a layered drink.  The solution is to add the Guinness slowly and that is what the Lagerhead Black and Tan Turtle does.  You pour the Guinness on top of turtle which then gently and evenly pours the Guinness into the glass.  Here’s what Paul did with the turtle:

And here’s the end result:

Had a really nice, simple recipe last night.  Mushrooms and wine really make a nice sauce for steak.  There is just such a beautifully sweet deepness of flavor.  Mushrooms, of course, make almost any savory dish taste deeper and tastier (umami) and the combination of wine and port created an sweet, sophisticated sauce.  It was a perfect pairing for the steak.  Here’s the recipe (from Epicurious here):

Sirloin Steak with a Port and Zinfandel Mushroom Sauce

1 T butter

2 large shallots, sliced

1 1/2 pounds mushrooms, thickly sliced

1 T flour

1 cup Zinfandel

1/2 cup ruby Port

1/2 cup low-salt chicken broth

1 1/4 pound top sirloin steak

3/4 tsp ground black pepper

1/2 tsp salt

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in heavy large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add shallots; sauté 2 minutes. Add mushrooms; cover and cook 5 minutes. Uncover and sauté until mushrooms are browned, about 10 minutes. Add flour and stir 1 minute. Add Zinfandel, Port, and broth. Boil until sauce thickens enough to coat spoon thinly, stirring occasionally, about 10 minutes. Season sauce to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Meanwhile, place steak between sheets of waxed paper. Using mallet or rolling pin, pound steak to 1/2-inch thickness. Coat both sides of steak with 3/4 teaspoon pepper and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Melt remaining 1 tablespoon butter in another heavy large skillet over medium-high heat. Add steak to skillet and cook to desired doneness, about 2 minutes per side for medium-rare. Transfer steak to work surface; do not clean skillet. Add mushroom sauce to skillet; bring to simmer, scraping up any browned bits.

Thinly slice steak; transfer to platter. Spoon mushroom sauce over and serve.

The recipe can be followed as is but I find that it was pretty much useless to pound the steak first.  I like thick steak.  Plus, you get to cook the steak longer in the pan, which gives you more time to create some flavor through browning on the side of the meat.  You can also use tawny instead of Ruby port in this recipe; that’s what I did.  I served it with Home Fries. 

You can see it here. 

Here’s my Christmas Cookie spread for this year, which I brought in to share at work.  I made just about as many as I had time for.  I wish I would have had time for a chocolate mint cookie but it just didn’t happen this year.  You will probably notice that some of the cookies have been made previously by this blogger.  It’s true but I think someone should really make cookies they like for Christmas.  Here’s a list of the recipes:

Almond Bars

Buckeyes

Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies

Dream Bars

Giant Chocolate Toffee Cookies

Grandma Gert’s Sour Cream Sugar Cookies

Magic Cookie Bars

These bars are really good.  They’re buttery and crisp and nutty.  But they also have a “wow” ingredient-cinnamon.  It seems to elevate the whole bar by giving it a “what is that taste” quality.  They’re also really easy to make as there is no rolling out or cutting or shaping or filling.  Try this one at home.

Almond Bars

Recipe courtesy Bridget Carns

1 1/4 cups flour

3/4 cup sugar, divided

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 cup cold unsalted butter

1 egg, separated

1/2 cup sliced, unblanched almonds

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  In a bowl, combine flour, 1/2 cup sugar, and cinnamon.  Cut butter into small chunks and then add to the flour.  Cut in the butter with fingertips until small crumbs form.  Add egg yolk and work until well-blended.  Shape dough into a ball and then press evenly into a well-greased 13X9X2 inch metal baking pan.  Brush with slightly beaten egg white and then sprinkle with remaining sugar and almonds, pressing them into the dough. 

Bake for 18-20 minutes or until lightly browned.  Cool a few minutes, then cut into bars.