Category Archives: Recipes

Passover Macaroons

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It’s Passover week! Passover is absolutely my favorite Jewish holiday. I find the Exodus story spiritually nourishing, and you can get really creative in how you choose to tell the story during the Seder — it’s the epitome of do-it-yourself spirituality. Social justice is a big theme at many of the seders I attend. I’m slowly building my own Haggadah collection, and plan to eventually put together my own Haggadah.

In April of 2006, I attended an “Exotic Sephardic Seder” cooking class taught by Jennifer Abadi at the JCC in Manhattan. The class was great — we learned to make a variety of dishes that didn’t at all resemble the typical Eastern European Jewish (also known as Ashkenazi) holiday table that I grew up with. I’m not knocking Ashkenazi cooking at all, but variety, as they say, is the spice of life. I’m going to a potluck seder Monday night, and I’ve decided to bring cookies for a few reasons: they’re easy to make in large batches, they’re always a crowd pleaser, and I love this recipe!

Technically this cookie is a macaroon — all that means is that this is a drop cookie made of egg whites, sugar and almonds. No flour, which means it’s a perfect recipe for those observing Passover — which involves strict dietary restrictions involving grains and leavening.

I’ve made some minor adaptations to this recipe. Namely, I replaced vanilla extract with vanilla beans, and not because I was trying to be fancy. Kosher for Passover vanilla extract is difficult to come by for a few reasons. It’s usually made from grain alcohol, which is one of the restricted food items during Passover. Also, some brands of vanilla extract contain corn syrup, and the consumption of corn products is prohibited amongst Ashkenazi Jews (see: Kosher for Passover Coca Cola®). And, for me, imitation vanilla flavor is absolutely out of the question. Hence, vanilla bean. Shuna Lydon, the pastry chef at Peels restaurant in New York City, talks about how to most effectively use vanilla beans here and here.

For this recipe, I used the oily interior of the vanilla bean to make vanilla sugar. I also have a jar of vanilla sugar that I made using the ground-up pod (as per Ms. Lydon’s suggestion). You can also use the empty pods for making your own vanilla extract (which I also have a jar of in my kitchen cupboard — alas, it’s made with vodka, so I couldn’t use it for Passover purposes).

And then there’s the issue of confectioner’s sugar. Confectioner’s sugar often has cornstarch mixed in with it to prevent caking. As mentioned above, corn products are a no-no for many observant Jews. Luckily, I happened to have Trader Joe’s ® organic powdered sugar, which contains tapioca starch. This satisfied my Passover needs (I’m not a strict observer, meaning I didn’t look for the “Kosher for Passover” label). In the past, however, I have ground granulated sugar in a food processor for this recipe.

So, without further ado, I present to you the recipe for . . .

Italian Macaroons with Almonds and Pignoli

Adapted from Jennifer Abadi’s “Exotic Sephardic Seder” cooking class, April 3, 2006

Serves 15-20 people (approximately 6 dozen macaroons)

Ingredients:

  • 1 vanilla bean
  • ¾ cup granulated sugar
  • 1 ½ cups whole blanched almonds (You can also use the same amount of ground almonds.)
  • 2 ½ cups pine nuts
  • 1 cup confectioner’s sugar
  • 3 teaspoons almond extract (I used an all-natural, alcohol-free almond flavoring.)
  • egg whites from 6 large eggs

Special Equipment: Food Processor

Procedure:

  1. Preheat oven to 325ºF.
  2. Make vanilla sugar. Split the vanilla bean top to bottom, vertically, into two distinct halves. Lay on a flat surface and scrape interior out with a small sharp knife. Knock the oily interior into the sugar. “Smush” seeds into sugar with thumb, forefinger and middle finger.
  3. Combine almonds (ground or whole) with pine nuts in a food processor until finely ground and well combined.
  4. Add vanilla sugar and confectioner’s sugar and pulse together until a soft meal is formed.
  5. Add almond extract and egg whites and pulse mixture once again until a soft paste is formed.
  6. Drop one heaping teaspoon at a time onto a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, leaving one inch between cookies. Decorate each mound of cookie dough with three or four pine nuts or a whole almond. Do not press down the cookie dough.
  7. Bake the macaroons until a light golden brown on bottom and edges, around 15-17 minutes. Allow to cool slightly, then transfer to a wire cooling rack to cool completely.
  8. Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to one week. These cookies can also be frozen.

Comfort Food

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I’ve decided to take my posts in a new direction. I’m focusing on comfort foods from around the globe.

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, comfort food is “food prepared in a traditional style having a usually nostalgic or sentimental appeal.” I like this definition a lot. Not everybody craves Mac & Cheese when they need to be comforted. Some people crave calf liver with sautéed onions and mashed potatoes (that’s what you get when you’re raised in an Eastern European household). My personal comfort foods change with my moods and the seasons. Yes, sometimes it’s liver and mashed potatoes, but other times a Macrobiotic platter of brown rice, steamed vegetables and sea vegetables really hit home for me. Granted, I did not grow up eating brown rice and steamed veggies, but there is kind of a sentimental, old-school health nut, my-body-is-a-temple vibe to that kind of meal.

I’m going to be asking around a lot about people’s favorite comfort foods. Hopefully, I’ll be able to pull a variety of people into my kitchen to teach me how to prepare their favorite childhood meals. And, of course, this is a great opportunity for me to delve into my cookbooks — Madhur Jaffrey, Ramin Ganeshram, Mai Pham, I’m looking at you!

I began the comfort food kick Thursday evening when cooking some meals for the upcoming week. I did make the sautéed liver with caramelized onions, yes. But, I also made pork chops. I procured a pair of Aberdeen Hill Farms pork chops at the Park Slope Food Co-op. These chops are quite good — tender, juicy (as long as you don’t overcook them) and flavorful. The whole process is pretty quick, and . . . a bit messy!

Some people like to marinate their chops in milk to tenderize them. These chops are thin (only about a half-inch) and quite tender on their own, so I decided bypass that step.

First, you set up your work station. Line up three shallow bowls (pie plates work really well for this) consisting, respectively, of unbleached all-purpose flour, 1 beaten egg, and bread crumbs (you can jazz this up by using panko breadcrumbs)

Generously season each pork chop on both sides with salt and pepper.

Place a 10- or 12-inch frying pan with steep sides (I prefer a cast-iron skillet) over medium heat. When the pan is hot, add about 1/4 cup of cooking oil to the pan (I used organic sunflower seed oil, but you can use peanut oil, lard, canola oil, or any oil you have that’s suitable for frying).

While the pan is heating up dip your first pork chop in the flour. Be sure to coat all surfaces, then shake off excess flour by gently tossing the chop from hand to hand. You want a very thin layer of flour to adhere to the meat. Next, dip chop in the beaten egg. Again, be sure to coat all surfaces. Finally, press the pork chop into the breadcrumbs on all sides. Place the chop in the hot oil, and repeat with the second pork chop.

Since these pork chops were pretty thin, I fried them until they were golden brown on each side. I don’t mind a little pink inside my chop, but the FDA frowns upon this practice — they say your meat should be cooked all the way through. If you find that your breading is burning before you’ve reached desired doneness in your meat, you can finish off the meat in a 350ºF oven.

The process is pretty simple, and you end up with delightfully crispy pork chops that make for awesome leftovers, too!

Variations: You can use the same exact method with chicken and veal — in which case, all of the above are known as Wiener Schnitzel or, south of the Alps, Cotoletta Milanese. If you do this with a steak, I believe it’s referred to as chicken-fried steak. I’m guessing you can even try this with a veggie burger if you must 🙂

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Flour --> Egg --> Breadcrumbs

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Fry on side 1.

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Fry on side 2.

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Devour.

Ghee-licious

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One of my favorite cooking fats is ghee, which is a kind of clarified butter. It’s commonly used in Indian cooking, and it has a “golden” flavor (as described by a West Indian friend of mine). Since the water and milk solids get cooked out, it withstands higher temperatures than butter, has a long shelf life, and is easier to digest for people with dairy sensitivities. It’s really easy to make at home.

Ghee

from Myra Kornfeld’s The Healthy Hedonist: More Than 200 Delectable Flexitarian Recipes for Relaxed Daily Feasts

1 pound butter, preferably organic

Warm butter in a small saucepan over medium-low heat until it has melted completely, about 5 minutes. The butter will start to gurgle as the water evaporates, and the top will be covered with foam. Simmer uncovered over low heat until the milk solids start to brown on the bottom of the pot, 10 to 15 minutes. (Check after 10 minutes and then frequently after that, by pushing aside the foam and tilting the pan to see if the solids have browned.) As soon as the solids turn brown, remove the pan from the heat and let the residue settle to the bottom. Then carefully pour the clear liquid through a strainer lined with a double layer of cheesecloth into a heat-resistant container. Discard the solids.

Ghee will stay fresh on the kitchen counter 4 to 6 weeks; in the refrigerator for 4 months; and indefinitely in the freezer.

The Obligatory Ramp Post

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Always label your pickles!

Always label your pickles!

In case you haven’t heard, it’s ramp season. Ramps are generally celebrated for their aromatic, garlicky flavor and short season. Pickled ramps are on many menus these days, and I decided to give them a try myself. I got this recipe from Food52, and I have to say I’m quite happy with it. I didn’t have fresh thyme on hand, so I substituted with a half-teaspoon of dried thyme, and it worked out just fine. This recipe only uses the white and purple bulb/stem portion of the ramps. I reserved the leaves for sautéing. In fact, I pan-seared a pork chop from my butcher shop, and sautéed a few handfuls of ramp greens in a bit of the reserved fat rendered off from the chop with a sprinkle of salt. It was perfect.

Pickled Ramps Makes about 1 pint pickled ramps

Ingredients

  • 3 bunches ramps (about 1 pound), green tops and root ends trimmed off
  • 2 dried red chilies
  • ½ teaspoon dried thyme
  • 3 slices fresh ginger
  • 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
  • ½ cup sugar
  • 3 teaspoons kosher salt
  • ¾ cups red wine vinegar
  • ¾ cups water

Ramps

Leaves and Bulbs

Procedure
Bring a medium pot of generously salted water to a boil. Add the ramps and cook for 1 minute. Drain and run cold water over the ramps to stop the cooking. Drain again. Place the ramps in a medium bowl or mason jar. Add the chilies, thyme, ginger, and fennel seeds.

ramp bulbs ramps in a jar

In a small saucepan, combine the sugar, salt, red wine vinegar and water. Bring to a boil and pour this mixture over the ramps. As soon as they’re cool, you can serve them, or just cover and refrigerate.

A Culinary Ode to Spring. SPRING!

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To celebrate Spring, I’d like to start out this blog with a recipe that highlights three harbingers of the season: morels, asparagus and leeks. I was poking around on Epicurious looking for promising seasonal vegetarian entrees for one of my clients, and I came upon this gem — Lasagna with Asparagus, Leeks and Morels. I had seen fresh morels at Whole Foods the week before, but I just knew that I wouldn’t have the time to make something wonderful with them, so I had to pass that day. When I was ready to make this recipe, I couldn’t find the morels, so I substituted with a mix of trumpets, shiitakes and criminis, which are also delicious. I’m still hoping it’s not too late to try it again with the morels.

a black morel

The original recipe is for individual lasagnas, but I’ve written it as one whole lasagna. Also, I wasn’t satisfied with how the recipe instructed its followers to make a béchamel sauce, so I’ve included instructions on how to make the sauce starting with a roux. Enjoy!

Lasagna with Asparagus, Leeks and Morels

Ingredients

  • 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter, divided
  • 1 pound thick asparagus spears, trimmed, cut on diagonal into 1-inch pieces
  • 4 ounces fresh morel mushrooms, rinsed, coarsely chopped, or 5 ounces fresh shiitake mushrooms, stemmed, coarsely chopped
  • 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
  • 2 medium leeks (white and pale green parts only), halved lengthwise, thinly sliced (about 2 cups)
  • 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
  • 3 1/2 cups vegetable broth
  • 1 1/2 cups heavy whipping cream
  • 1 bay leaf
  • 3/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
  • 1 9-ounce package no-cook lasagna noodles (12 noodles)
  • 1 1/4 cups (about) finely grated Parmesan cheese, divided

Equipment

9″ x 13″ lasagna pan

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350ºF.

Melt 1 tablespoon butter in a large, heavy sauté pan over medium heat. Add asparagus, mushrooms and thyme. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, and sauté, stirring often, until asparagus is slightly tender and bright green, about 5 minutes. Transfer the asparagus mixture to a bowl, and melt remaining 1 tablespoon of butter in the same sauté pan.  Add leeks; cook until wilted, stirring often, about 3 minutes.

Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly and scraping the bottom of the sauté pan to prevent burning, for one minute. Add broth, cream, bay leaf, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Raise the heat to high and bring to a boil, stirring constantly. Then reduce the heat to maintain a brisk simmer and cook, stirring occasionally, until the mixture has thickened enough to coat the back of a spoon, 6-8 minutes. Remove from heat and discard bay leaf. Taste the sauce and adjust seasoning if necessary.

Spread 1 cup of sauce on the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch lasagna pan. Place four lasagna noodles on top of the sauce. Scatter 1 cup of the vegetable mixture over, spreading in an even layer. Drizzle ½ cup sauce over. Sprinkle ¼ cup cheese evenly over the vegetables. Repeat layering two more times: noodles, vegetables, sauce, and cheese. Drizze the remaining sauce over the lasagna. Cover the dish tightly with aluminum foil and place on a rimmed baking sheet (to catch any spills). Bake until noodles are tender, about 40 minutes. Uncover and bake until sauce is bubbling and cheese begins to brown, about 6 minutes. Let stand at room temperature 5 minutes before serving.

Ingredient Tip: If fresh morel mushrooms are unavailable, pour 2 cups boiling water over 1 ounce of dried morel mushrooms and let stand until the mushrooms are soft, about 30 minutes. Drain the mushrooms and squeeze dry before chopping.