Forest Food

This is the kind of dish to make for your earthy friend. The incredibly nutty pesto is softened with a velvety Bechamel sauce and used as a base for blanched asparagus and oyster mushrooms creating a woodsy, satisfying Spring lasagna.

For the Pesto:

1 1/2 cup hazelnuts (about 4 1/2 ounces), toasted lightly and skinned
2 cups packed fresh flat-leafed parsley leaves (about 1 large bunch), washed and dried
3 medium garlic cloves
3/4 cup olive oil
freshly ground black pepper

In a food processor blend together first three ingredients while slowly incorporating the olive oil

p.s. to toast and skin the hazelnuts just bake them on a cookie sheet for 15 minutes at 350 degrees and then roll them around in a kitchen towel until skins come off toast



For the Bechamel from Mario Batali:

5 tablespoons butter
4 tablespoons all-purpose flour
4 cups milk
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

In a medium saucepan, heat the butter over medium-low heat until melted. Add the flour and stir until smooth. Over medium heat, cook until the mixture turns a light, golden sandy color, about 6 to 7 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the milk in a separate pan until just about to boil. Add the hot milk to the butter mixture 1 cup at a time, whisking continuously until very smooth. Bring to a boil. Cook 10 minutes, stirring constantly, then remove from heat. Season with salt and nutmeg, and set aside until ready to use.


For the lasagna:

1 box of no boil lasagna noodles
1 lb of button mushrooms, sliced
1/2 lb of dried oyster mushrooms (reconstitute in simmering stock and wine)
1 1/2 bundles of asparagus, blanched and sliced into two inch pieces
1 cup of freshly grated Pecorino Romano
black pepper and salt
a glass lasagna pan

Preheat the oven to 350
cover the bottom of the pan with bechamel sauce
layer with noodles
add a layer of pesto and bechamel
add button mushrooms
layer with noodles
add a layer of bechamel
add asparagus
layer with noodles
add a layer of pesto
add oyster mushrooms
layer with noodles
add bechamel, pesto, pecorino and pepper to top

bake for 45 minutes covered with foil, remove foil and bake for 15 minutes, let sit for 10 and enjoy!

Weird food in Austin, Tx

I do not like to be disturbed in the morning. Sleep has always been important to me and despite my love of food, breakfast has never had a strong spot in my daily agenda. Alas, times have changed. For this, I will awake into the cold morning and force myself to the nearest stand in order to obtain the only breakfast that is worth waking for: The Breakfast Taco.
During my stay a friend demanded that I try one of these ubiquitous morning meals before I leave Texas. I wasn't hard pressed to find one, thinking the taco would be much like heuvos rancheros which I can easily find in Cincinnati. Later that evening, when I mentioned to my host, "Someone told me to try this thing, a breakfast taco..." her face dropped as if I had asked what in the world is this apple thing everyone's talking about, "You've never had a breakfast taco?!" she exclaimed. "In Texas we don't bring donuts to the office, we bring breakfast tacos!" And so it was at 8:30 the next morning at a little stand that I stood in line with a growing hoard of Texans and waited for my very first breakfast taco. The menu was straight forward and inexpensive:



I ordered one of each, of course, and slowly ate them all. The bean taco was refried pintos, eggs, and cheese; soft and salty. Next I had the chorizo, the greasiest of all, and then the sausage which tasted exactly like a sausage omelet in a tortilla. The potato and eggs were light and almost my favorite until the migas. The best! Corn was the overpowering flavor but I also tasted onions and peppers wrapped in hot eggs and cheese. Divine. I soon found out a migas is a delicious mixture of day old tortilla strips sauteed with scrambled eggs, chopped onions, peppers. Once one has added the house made pico de gallo and bitten into the hot and savory migas taco, donuts seem like a sad way to start the morning.







Breakfast tacos were the tastiest food I encountered in Austin but the weirdest definitely goes to the Frito Pie at The Shady Grove The Frito Pie is a questionable thing. It isn't really a pie, although it is layered. The Shady Grove has taken the popular combination of Fritos on top of Texas style chili and reversed the placement. So the crunchy, corny Fritos are on the bottom of a pile of The Shady Grove's spicy sirloin chili, cheese, onions, and jalapeno peppers, dutifully soaking up the mess. Like eating nachos with a spoon the odd and junky Frito Pie is one of my Austin favorites.

The Frito pie is served in its original casing.





And in minutes...




There was lots of other food namely smoky beef BBQ and homemade tamales but they will have to wait for another edition of Dinnerella. Let me know what you eat in Austin!


P.S. For a chicken tortilla soup free of heavy cheese and blessed with a clear, lime infused broth full of avacados and tender chicken, head to Reata Grill at the Dallas Fort Worth airport.

Food for a week

There's no escaping it. We are in a recession and we must tighten our fraying belts. So, in the vein of eating like a king and not paying for it, this recipe is solid and delightful. Adapted from Gourmet's BBQ Bean Soup, I have substituted mushroom stock and crushed tomatoes for the beef stock, added some other items. It's vegetarian, very filling, and makes about thirteen cups. Fabulous with jalapeno corn bread and some Greek yogurt for dinner. Or in the morning with an over-easy egg placed lovingly on top; spicy breakfast. Enjoy these all week long.

Vegetarian BBQ Bean Soup

2 1/2 cups chopped onion
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup vegetable oil
3 tablespoons chili powder
3 tablespoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1 32-ounce can whole tomatoes including the juice, chopped
1 32-ounce can crushed tomatoes
three 16-ounce cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed
two 7-ounce bottles roasted red peppers, rinsed, drained, and chopped
1 1/2 cups mushroom stock
1/4 cup molasses
1 1/2 tablespoon Tabasco
1 16-ounce can golden hominy
2 teaspoons cider vinegar, or to taste


In a kettle cook the onion and the garlic in the oil over moderate heat, stirring, until the onion is softened, stir in the chili powder, the cumin, the allspice, and the cloves, and simmer the mixture for 1 minute. Add the tomatoes with the juice, the beans, the hominy, the roasted peppers, the broth, the molasses, the Tabasco, and salt and pepper to taste and simmer the soup, covered partially and stirring occasionally, for 1 1/2 hours. Stir the vinegar into the soup and simmer the soup until it is heated through.

Serve with a little bit of Greek yogurt on top and diced jalapenos, Enjoy!

So rich, no dairy!

For dinner this week, we threw off our dairy shackles and went sans butter into the kitchen, not a huge ascetic movement I know, but we've been using a lot of butter lately and it was refreshing to remind ourselves of the richness and cleanliness of olive oil. The entree was baked cod, first slathered with young olive oil and then breaded with a panko, dill, sea salt mixture. Baked to a perfect flaky texture the cod's delicate herby crust paired wonderfully with Springy baby peas cooked with olive oil, mint, and onions. And because we've been eating so many biscuits lately, this time with asiago cheese baked in, we had another vegetable to ease our consciences; asparagus sauteed in olive oil and finished with lemon and salt. A simple supper, yes but a fabulous reminder that Spring is on the way and the days of beef stew and dark beers are melting away. Soon it will be all sun, salads, avocados, fish tacos, vino verde, and cookouts galore. So, put on Joao Gilberto while you cook, try to ignore the snow and have fun with this taste of Spring.




The cod was the star of the evening so here is the recipe, but the peas can be found in the link above.

Four pieces of wild caught cod
1 cup or more or Panko (depends on how much breading you like)
2 tbs of dried dill
4 pinches of sea salt
olive oil

a large shallow bowl
a large plate
glass casserole dish

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees
mix the panko, dill, and sea salt into a large shallow bowl
pour olive oil into a large plate

take each piece of cod and dip it into the olive oil then into the panko mixture
try to coat all sides evenly

place in the glass casserole dish

bake for about 30 min until flaky when pierced with a fork

Enjoy! Thanks for the idea Sabrina!

Go out! Lavomatic, eat local in style

Lavomatic is a Jean Robert group restaurant, the newest, on Vine street. Although some people, were skeptical about Lavomatic being on the OTR side of Vine street, both times I've been there since its recent opening the restaurant has been packed. Set in an old laundromat the french Lavomatic is very casual, cute, and intimate. A long bar, decorated with broken wine glass sculptures, is on the north side of the restaurant while the south side holds benches and tables for larger groups, and there is a rooftop patio for seasonal dining!
Another plus, and this is a huge deal, is the high number of locally sourced menu items. At the bar, I enjoyed the local organically raised Rabbit Stew with Herbed Dumplings which was divine and saucy, the meat was tender and the dumplings were so comforting I almost slumped over in relief. I pulled myself together and moved on to the Snail Skewers with Dijon-Red Wine sauce, these darlings consisted of two snails per skewer flanked by grilled vegetables and drizzled with tangy, dark sauce that complimented the escargot while allowing their true flavor to permeate the palette. In the same evening I tried the Grilled Cheese Du Jour and at $4.50 it is the perfect snack with a glass of wine, on this day the sandwich was Gorgonzola and pear melted between slices of buttery white bread, it was my dining companion's favorite dish.

I went home. I thought about that grilled cheese and the wine and the adorable wall art and I went back.

My second time in I sat at a table, which is only three feet from the bar so not a hugely different experience but I had a great view of the bustling kitchen which in turn drove me to order insane amounts of food.

I started with the Three Little Pigs. A triage of pork preparations lovingly wrapped in pastry dough and enhanced with a red wine reduction it was lilting. I had to keep going so I also had the Olives and the Cheese Plate. Those are two separate dishes that are fabulous together. The olives are a mix and dressed with an orange vinaigrette, the cheese plate came with five different cheeses, candied walnuts, toasted baguette slices, and a type of quince or other fruit gelatin used to cleanse the palette between each cheese. I also had the snails again. My neighbor ordered the Cold Salad Trio which is an enormous dish of lentil salad, curried couscous, and vietnamese picked cucumbers. All of the trio participants were delicious but the vietnamese cucumbers stood out for their thin slices and sour, refreshing taste. Alas, I made it to desert and tried the Chocolate...? I was a little tipsy this point but I recall the chocolate was rich and accompanied by berries

So...go out! Even if you've never been downtown before and especially if you've never been to OTR, go out and enjoy yourself. Let me know what you had and thought at Lavomatic!

Little Pillows of Buttermilk and Joy

So, I suppose I am on a Southern kick but I finally got my mom's recipe for buttermilk biscuits. This is one of those blessed recipes that are simple to prepare and make you look like some sort of alimentary goddess. For instance, if you say spent the night at someone's house whom you were very much in love/lust/like with and got up early to make these biscuits there WILL be a future for you two. Buttermilk biscuits like these are superb right out of the oven and fabulous cooled and made into ham and butter or veggie and cheese sandwiches, a winner in any setting. Here is the recipe: Go forth and bake!

Buttermilk Biscuits

2 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
1tbs and 1tsp of baking powder (aluminum free)
1/2 tsp baking soda
3/4 tsp salt
6tbs of unsalted butter
1 cup of butter milk

pastry cutter (for cutting butter into four)
biscuit cuter
metal mixing bowl
wooden spoon
cookie sheet

if no buttermilk add 1tbs vinegar to a scant cup of milk


Preheat your oven to 450

Mix, very well, the dry ingredients into a metal mixing bowl

Slice the butter (cold) into pats over the bowl and then cut the pats into fourths, little pieces, let them drop into the dry ingredients

With your hands pinch the little pieces of butter into the flour, be careful not to heat up the butter in any way and try to have cold hands

With a pastry cutter cut the butter into the flour until the entire surface is coarse with little butter pieces

Add the milk and fold in into the dry ingredients with a wooden spoon

Sprinkle your work surface with a bit of flour

When the mixture is mostly stuck together dump it out on your work surface

With the heels of your palms push the dough forward until it looks like a bicycle seat and then fold it into itself, do this around 10 or 12 times until dough is smooth, add flour to your work surface as needed

When dough is ready pat it into a round form and roll it out to about an inch and a fourth, cut the dough into circles and place on your cookie sheet

repeat until all the dough has been formed into biscuits

place on the middle rack and bake for 10 minutes

Enjoy!

Cooking Tips

I recently learned, although I already kind of knew this, that when "sweating" vegetables or "blooming" herbs in olive oil you should start with a cold pan. The oil and herbs/veggies go in together and then heat is gently added, the reason being: starting with a cold pan slowly coaxes the aromatics and juices from the items cooking In stark contrast to this is throwing the herbs/veggies into hot oil which instantly sears the outside of the vegetables insuring that their juices stay inside! So....now you know.