From Rome to Munich

I'm back!  Although with a serious vacation hangover, otherwise known as jet lag, that causes me to wake up at midnight thinking I have had a full night's sleep and that it's time to get up because, after all, it's 10 a.m. in Europe.

It's the price I pay for having a fabulous vacation, right?  That and a couple of extra pounds despite walking an average of eight miles a day.  I'm back to the gym in a serious way.

David and I flew from Anchorage to Rome, which is less difficult than you might think--there is a flight that goes straight from Anchorage to Frankfurt in about nine hours, and then we caught a quick flight to Rome.  We stayed in Rome for four days and then gradually worked our way back through Florence, Bologna, Verona, Trento and Bolzano in northern Italy, Innsbruck, Austria and finally Munich before catching a train back to Frankfurt.

I am so happy to have a large supply of clean clothes and my own bed, and lots of material to share here.  To start, let me give you an aperitif.  Literally.

From Rome to Munich, I kept seeing wine glasses containing a slightly fizzy orange drink on every outdoor cafe table.  Either Aperol has a really great advertising budget, or, as I conceded when I finally tried one near the end of our trip, this was a brilliant drink.

Aperol is a liqueur made primarily of oranges, including blood orange, plus unidentified herbs and roots. 

An Aperol Spritz is a drink containing Aperol, sparkling wine and sparkling water.  It is traditionally consumed as an aperitif because it is light, relatively low in alcohol and a totally kick-ass color.  David and I brought a bottle of Aperol back to play with, and I'm hoping that I can find it here locally because it's going to become the drink of the summer.

Don't use your fancy champagne here.  Prosecco is the traditional wine of choice, but we made it with cheap Spanish sparkling wine (cava) and it tasted great.  Also, play with the proportions--David liked his with a little less sparkling wine and a little more water.

Aperol Spritz

3 jiggers Aperol liqueur

2 jiggers sparkling wine

1 jigger sparkling water or club soda

Orange slices for garnish (optional)

Pour the sparkling wine and water into a large wine glass and add a few ice cubes and an orange slice if you have one.  Add the Aperol and give it a very quick stir.

Makes one serving.

In Vacanza

The witching hour is practically upon me...I've been working like an insane person, compiling a packing list, studying my Italian verbs, writing way too many instructions for the cat/housesitters, and all that's standing between me and my vacation is two more (very full) days at work and, you know, the actual packing part. 

David and I have been spending most of our evenings at home this week, both to get more time in with Ingrid and to get ready to go.  Have you ever been so behind on blogging that you stop taking photos of food because you don't need more things to blog?  In the past week I have not photographed a terrific seafood risotto, a marvelous chicken piccata and a zippy fennel salad.  My future blog entries runneth over, though the chicken piccata was both easy and tasty enough that I expect to make it again this summer and will blog it then.

The exception was the cabbage rolls that I made earlier this week out of the head of cabbage that was rolling around in the vegetable drawer begging to be used.  A word of caution on making these:  my sweet little organic head of cabbage made this recipe more difficult--ideally, a cabbage with larger leaves would be better.

I found myself with a lot of leftover filling on my hands, which I made into meatballs and served with pasta last night. 

Finally, a thanks to those who commented on my mention that I had a no good, very bad day last Saturday.  Some of you may recall that I there was a situation with a friend with whom I was very close, who was having lots of issues during a play we were working on last fall and subsequently left the production.  He's said lots of awful things about me, and I've just been trying to be dignified and keep my head up because confronting him would have been pointless.  He has some significant problems and somehow I've become the scapegoat for them.

At a wedding we were both at last weekend, he yelled at David.  At the wedding.  Horrible and humiliating and painful, so of course I burst into tears and David and I left the reception.  This has been going on for six months and it's not getting any easier.

I hate being such an emotional person.  It's hard to write about this, even in kind of a detached manner.  So again, thanks to all who offered their support.

Whew.  And now on to the cabbage rolls.

Involtini di Verza in Umido (Stewed Stuffed Cabbage Rolls)

Adapted from the CIA's Italian Cooking at Home

12 large green cabbage leaves

1 lb. lean ground beef

1 lb. loose sausage, preferably a spicy Italian chicken or pork sausage

3/4 cup leftover cooked rice or small pasta (I used leftover couscous)

1 medium yellow onion, coarsely chopped

1 1/2 cups canned Italian whole tomatoes, crushed by hand

1 cup low-sodium chicken broth

2 bay leaves

1/4 cup parsley, chopped

1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, torn by hand or julienned

Kosher salt and fresh-ground black pepper

Start a large pot of salted water on the stove to boil.  When it is ready, add the cabbage leaves and blanch them until they are soft, about two to three minutes.  While you are doing this, start the oven to preheating to 350 degrees.  When the cabbage leaves are done, remove them from the water and place in a colander to drain.

In a large bowl, combine the ground beef, sausage, onion, rice or other pasta, and a little salt and pepper.  Use your hands to make sure everything is blended together.

Spray a large baking dish with nonstick spray or rub it with a little olive oil.

Using your hands again, shape the meat mixture into small rolls and place one in the center of each cabbage leaf.  Tuck the edges of the leaf around the bottom of each roll and place in the baking dish.

Once all the rolls are ready, pour the broth and then the crushed tomatoes over them and sprinkle with the parsley and basil.  Tuck the bay leaves into the pan.

Bake until the rolls are cooked through and very soft, about 45 minutes.

Makes twelve rolls, for about four main-dish servings.  Serve with a green salad and bread.

When Life Gives You Lemons

Have you ever woken up in the morning with a feeling of dread that something bad was going to happen that day?  That was Saturday for me...and as it turns out, I was right.  But that's too long and hard a story to tell right now.  It's Monday, after all, and we all need to think about more cheerful things.

The table looked gorgeous--I had David and a long-unused set of china to thank for that.

Last week was a whirlwind of work and appointments--we leave on vacation in less than a week, and with a cat diagnosed with bronchitis, houseguests (who we were actually terribly happy to see), work up to my ears and a to-do list as long as my arm, I didn't even touch my blog for another week.

Which means that I am behind in telling you about good events, such as the tea party I threw a week ago yesterday.  You may remember that my friend Arlitia started an event called "Tea and Strumpets," which was really an excuse for a fascinating group of women to get together, eat baked goods and drink lots of tea. 

When Arlitia held the first one, she made two varieties of scones, tea sandwiches and set out what must have been twenty teas to choose from--I lacked her tea variety, but I was determined to make what I think of as proper tea accoutrement--whipped cream, lemon curd, berry sauce plus crumpets and scones.

The crumpets discussion will have to wait, because those suckers were finicky.  Let me tell you about the absolute hit of the party.

Lemon curd.

I love lemon curd, but who knew it was so popular?  It's also ridiculously easy to make, a gorgeous color and you should never buy the stuff again.  It would make a perfect holiday gift in beribboned jars.

Lemon Curd

Adapted from Gourmet Magazine, April 2001

2 tbsp. lemon zest, finely grated

Juice of four lemons (about 1 cup)

Pinch of sea salt

1 cup granulated sugar

4 large eggs

1 3/4 sticks unsalted butter, cut into small cubes

In a small, heavy pot, combine the lemon zest and juice, sea salt, sugar and eggs and whisk together thoroughly.  Turn the stove on low and add all the butter in one batch.  Cook, whisking frequently, until all the butter melts and the curd thickens.  Do not let it boil, but when the curd is thick enough that you can see the whisking marks, remove the curd from the heat and strain it through a fine sieve or cheesecloth.

Transfer the strained curd to a small bowl and press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface.  Chill until the curd is thoroughly cooled, about 45 minutes.

Makes about 2 1/2 cups curd.

Shoulda Coulda Woulda

I meant to post again last Thursday, I really did.  I had the same intent last Friday.

But the weekend?  Forget about it.  Shabbat dinner at a friend's, work, bridal shower, concert, preparing a large tea party that turned raucous and went on for four hours, followed by collapsing in exhaustion.

The reality is that David and I are going on vacation in two weeks, and I don't have enough hours in the day.  And let me tell you, mama needs a vacation.  I'm already dreaming about a cappuccino in a Roman piazza.  And some gelato.  Not to mention wine and pasta.

I can't believe it's been a week since I posted the Thomas Keller "easy" seared scallop recipe, which I served with a vividly colored, lemony, spicy rice.  The rice was the perfect accompaniment, and had the virtues of being both easy and fully flavored.  I happily ate rice leftovers for days.  The one thing I didn't get to do was make it into fried rice with some shrimp, which would have been delicious.

A note about this recipe:  I was not trying to make enough rice for a family of giants, which is about how much it actually made.  You could easily scale it back to half a batch and have enough for four side servings.

It does make brilliant leftovers, though.  I might have scowled a little when I realized David had eaten the last of it.

Lemony Spiced Rice
Adapted from Bon Appetit Magazine,
April 2012

2 tbsp. vegetable oil
1 1/2 tsp. yellow mustard seeds
1 1/2 tsp. ground turmeric
1 small yellow onion, coarsely chopped
2 garlic cloves, slivered
1 small poblano, seeded and sliced into thin rings
2 cups jasmine rice
4 large strips lemon peel, yellow part only
Juice of one large lemon
2 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 cup unsalted roasted cashews, chopped

In a large (and I do mean large!) heavy saucepan over medium heat, heat the oil just until shimmering and immediately add the mustard seeds and turmeric.  Stir until the mustard seeds start to pop and quickly add the onion, garlic and chile before the seeds start to pop out of the pan--not that that happened to me, noooo.

Stir the veggies occasionally until the onion is softened, about seven minutes.  Then add the rice, stirring it into the veggies until it is coated with the oil. 

Add the lemon peel and salt, along with three cups of water.  Bring the mixture to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and cover the pan.  Cook for about 25 minutes and then check the rice for doneness.

Remove the pan from the heat, add the lemon juice and stir it in.  Cover the pan again and let it stand, then fluff the rice and remove the lemon peel.  Just before serving, stir in the cashews.

Makes 8 good size side dish servings.



A Pox on Your House, Thomas Keller

There was a line in the show I just directed:  "Some words are meant to be spelled, not used." 

My adaptation of that line: some recipes are meant to be aspirational, not made.

I read food magazines on the elliptical at the gym, which is a way to pass the time and dream about food that I don't always want to make.  So when I read the article about chef recipes made easy, I was intrigued.  Despite the fact that one of them was by Thomas Keller.

I know I've said this before, but I pretty much never use my Thomas Keller cookbooks.  They're fun to look at, but I have no desire to spend six hours and every pot in my kitchen making dinner.  But what can I say?  The recipe sounded great.

Two hours later and only most of the pots in my kitchen sullied (what did I DO with all that time?), I concluded that even a simplified Thomas Keller recipe was more than I wanted to do for a weeknight dinner.  But hey, it sure looked pretty, and it was quite tasty except for the fact that the recipe had the vegetables finishing way before you're ready to use them.  I've modified the recipe here to hopefully get everything to the table still warm. 

I was unable to find large sea scallops on the day I made this, but I recommend them if they are available.  That gorgeous, spicy rice recipe will come later this week.

Seared Scallops with Peanut Sauce

Adapted from Food & Wine Magazine, January 2012

2 tsp. hot curry powder

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 tbsp. fresh-squeezed lime juice

1/2 lb. cauliflower, cut into small pieces

6 oz. snow peas, trimmed

2 tbsp. panko crumbs

1/4 cup plus 2 tbsp. crunchy peanut butter, preferably natural

1 1/2 pounds sea scallops, preferably large

Kosher salt and fresh-ground pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  In a small jar or bowl, shake or whisk together the curry powder and olive oil.  Let this sit for at least 15 minutes, or until the curry settles at the bottom.  Then strain through a coffee filter so the curry is removed, leaving you with just the oil.  Stir in the lime juice and add salt and pepper to taste.

Arrange the cauliflower on a baking sheet and drizzle evenly with two tablespoons of the olive oil.  Meanwhile, bring a small pot of water to a boil for the peas.

In a small skillet, warm one tablespoon of the olive oil.  When it is shimmering, add the panko crumbs and stir until they are slightly toasted, about three minutes.

Pat the scallops dry and season them with salt and pepper.  Place the cauliflower in the oven and bake until it is brown in spots, about fifteen minutes.  Place a large, oven-safe saucepan over high heat and add the remaining olive oil.

While the oil is heating, combine the panko crumbs with the peanut butter and stir to combine. 

When the oil is shimmering, add the scallops and sear them on one side for approximately four minutes.  Then turn the scallops over and lightly sear for another minute;  then remove the pan from the heat and top each scallop with a dollop of the peanut sauce.

Place the saucepan in the oven for approximately two minutes, which should melt the peanut sauce.  Boil the snow peas for approximately one minute, then immediately drain and rinse in cold water.

Remove the scallops and cauliflower from the oven and plate immediately on a bed of the cauliflower and snow peas.  Once the scallops, cauliflower and snow peas are on the plate, drizzle with a little of the curry oil.  Serve immediately.

Serves 4 as a light main dish.



Better than Starbucks

Yesterday I flew to St. Louis to attend my parents' retirement reception from the small university where they work.  They didn't know I was coming.

I am not normally given to springing huge surprises on people--but in this case it seems to have been very effective, particularly since I walked into the party accompanied by a six foot tall purple and white griffin, presumably beet red.  Did I also mention that despite my theatrical background, I am not given to grand entrances?

Before I rushed off on the redeye Wednesday night, I finished the cake for this month's Cake Slice bakers.  Reader, I have a confession:  I didn't even eat a full slice of it.  Not because the cake was bad, but because I failed to cut a slice and tuck it into my bag, where it would have been most welcome at 3 a.m. somewhere over Canada.

Although I loathe Starbucks on general principles, I will admit to a weakness for their reduced-fat cinnamon coffee cake.  It's tender with a big cinnamon streusel stripe through the middle of it.  This cake one-ups that by adding cardamom and orange zest.  It smelled heavenly out of the oven, and my lucky husband tells me that his colleagues ate this cake in a hot second yesterday. 

Cinnamon Swirl Buttermilk Pound Cake

Adapted from The Cake Book by Tish Boyle

For the streusel:

1/2 cup all-purpose flour

1/2 cup packed dark brown sugar

1/2 tsp. ground cinnamon

3 tbsp. salted butter, melted

For the cake:

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup cake flour

1 tsp. baking powder

1/4 tsp. baking soda

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1/4 tsp. cardamom, preferably freshly ground

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

1 3/4 cups granulated sugar

3 large eggs

2 tsp. vanilla extract

1 tbsp. orange zest

1 cup buttermilk

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.  Prepare a bundt pan by spraying it liberally with baking spray.

In a small bowl, combine the dry ingredients for the streusel with a fork.  Then add the melted butter--I found it worked easiest to mix it in with my fingers until it formed small clumps.

In a medium bowl, sift together the two flours, baking powder and soda, salt and cardamom. 

Using a stand mixer with the paddle attachment, beat the butter on medium speed until it is creamy and paler in color.  Add the granulated sugar in three installments, continuously beating on medium speed until all the sugar is incorporated.  Then add the eggs one at a time, beating well between each one.  Scrape down the bowl and then add the vanilla and orange zest.  Finally, turn the mixer to low and then add the flour mixture in three installments, alternating with the buttermilk.  Beat until just incorporated.

Pour half the batter into the bundt pan, then cover with the cinnamon streusel--it doesn't matter if the streusel layer is precisely even.  Then pour the remaining batter in, smoothing the top.

Bake until a skewer poked into the cake comes out clean, about 65 minutes.  Turn the cake out onto a baker's rack and allow to cool, or in my case, snap a quick picture and then run out the door for the airport.

Makes 12-16 small slices.

Welcome Back, Carbs

The weekend started with promise:  theatre, friends and all day Sunday with nothing on the schedule.  Nothing.  It was the strangest thing, but I drew up a to-do list and we plunged in. 

Cue:  Monday morning with most of the to-do list left undone.  I swear we did not sit around the house yesterday.  Really.

Passover ended at sundown on Friday, and I even waited until 9 p.m. to eat my first slice of bread.  That's really restraint on my part.  It also means that bread, pasta and rice re-entered our house in a big way over the weekend.  Exhibit one:  this hunter's pasta.

This recipe isn't perfect;  I added the peas according to the recipe, but they really could have waited until closer to the end of the process, so I've modified that in the directions below.  This isn't the pasta equivalent of haute couture--think of it as the pasta equivalent of a favorite pair of sweats--comforting and easy to make and eat.  I used a mixture of mushrooms, but you could easily go with just one type, probably the cremini or portobellos.  The more expensive shiitakes can't be tasted enough to justify the expense.

Welcome back, carbs.  How I have missed you.

Also, without being too cute about it, my beloved cat Ingrid was seventeen yesterday.  Here she is is "helping" David make pasta.  I promise this pasta was solely consumed by David and I, as I would not let the cat sit that close to pasta I was making for guests.

 Rigatoni, Woodsman Style

Adapted from Lidia's Italy in America by Lidia Bastianich

1 tsp. sea salt

1 pound dried rigatoni

3 tsp. extra-virgin olive oil

1 medium yellow onion, coarsely chopped

1 lb. Italian chicken sausage, removed from casings

1/2 lb. cremini mushrooms, sliced thickly

4 oz. shiitake mushrooms, sliced thickly

1 large portabello mushroom cap, sliced thickly

6 fresh sage leaves

28 oz. can whole Italian plum tomatoes

1 cup frozen peas

1 bunch green onions, white and dark green parts only, chopped

1/2 cup heavy cream

1 cup good-quality Parmesan cheese, grated

In a medium bowl, crush the tomatoes by hand into small chunks and set aside.

Put on a large pot of water for the pasta and add a pinch of salt. 

Using a large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat.  When the oil is shimmering, add the onion and cook until the onion is slightly translucent, about three minutes.  Then add the sausage and cook thoroughly, using a wooden spoon to further crumble the meat.

Add all the mushrooms at once to the skillet, and cook for an additional two minutes.  Add the sage and tomatoes and bring the mixture to a simmer.  If the sauce is too thick, add a cup of water and return to a simmer.

Hopefully by this time your pasta water is at a boil;  add the rigatoni and cook according to the package until the pasta is al dente.  This should take about ten minutes.  Drain the pasta, reserving up to a cup of the pasta water in case the sauce needs thinning.

Cook the sauce uncovered for approximately ten minutes, then add the green onions and cook until they wilt into the sauce.  Add the cream and stir the sauce thoroughly to incorporate.  If the sauce is too thick, then add the pasta water bit by bit.  When the sauce is almost finished, add the peas and cook just until they are firm but not mushy.

Transfer the pasta to a warmed serving bowl, then add the sauce and toss thoroughly to coat.  Sprinkle some of the Parmesan over the bowl and serve the remainder on the side.

Makes 6 to 8 main-course servings;  could make up to 10 to 12 pasta course servings.