Picadinho de Carne (Brazilian beef stew) from Falling Off The Bone by Jean Anderson

Apr18

Starches like pasta and side dish vegetables like broccoli are easy to improvise recipes for. They cook quickly and are hard to mess up. But preparing a luscious meat dish requires much more finesse, especially when dealing with tougher, wallet-friendly cuts. Fortunately for us home cooks, Jean Anderson (James Beard Award-winning author of over 20 cookbooks) dispels all the mysteries of cooking with less tender cuts of meat in her cook, Falling Off The Bone. In the book, she covers beef, veal, lamb and pork. She describes from which part of the animal each cut comes from and discusses the best methods for cooking them and why.

Here is the first recipe I made from the book. It is a classic Brazilian beef stew, which is the perfect recipe for a tough, virtually un-marbled cut of beef like bottom round (meat from the well-exercised, hind leg area of the cow). Many thanks to Justin Schwartz, the editor of this book, for sending me a copy of the newly released paperback edition!

Recipe from Falling Off The Bone by Jean Anderson (Wiley, 2010)

(Yield: 4 large or 6 small servings)

Ingredients:

3 tbsp corn or peanut oil (I used vegetable)

2 large yellow onions, chopped

2 garlic cloves, chopped

1 1/2 lbs finely diced bottom round or ground lean beef chuck (I used bottom round)

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp dried thyme

1/4 ground ginger

1 14 oz can diced tomatoes

1/2 c finely chopped pimento-stuffed green olives (I skipped these)

1/2 raisins

2 tbsp tomato paste

2 tbsp raw sugar (I used regular granulated)

1 tsp salt + 1 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Procedure: Heat oil in large skillet (I used my Dutch oven) over moderately high heat. Add onion and garlic and saute until softened, 8 to 10 min. Push all to the side and add beef. Brown well, stirring occasionally, for 10 to 12 min. Stir in all remaining ingredients, turn heat to low so that mixture simmers very slowly. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 1 to 1 1/2 hours. Then taste and re-season if necessary. Serve hot.

The spices, sugar and raisins make this a very flavorful, well-balanced beef stew. And because of the long simmering time, the tomato sauce ends up coating the meat like a gravy.

I chose to serve it over pearl cous-cous but Anderson recommends tossing it with pasta, or ladling it over potatoes, hamburger buns as in sloppy Joes, or rice.

Take it from someone who tends to be intimidated by cooking with unknown to me meats, this book is a truly invaluable find. I see myself referring back to it for recipe ideas for years to come.

Lemon Bars from The Brown Betty Cookbook

Mar18

Remember this post where I told you about the incredible Brown Betty Cookbook? Well, when I was looking to bake something in celebration of Women’s Day (I’m Ukrainian and this day is not taken lightly in Eastern European cultures), I returned to its pages in search of another great recipe. I didn’t have to look hard as I’d placed a flag on the page with this lemon bars recipe before and here they are.

Although the bars are, in my opinion, quite festive, they require no fancy ingredients and are relatively simple to make. First a buttery crust is mixed and parbaked. Then a simple custard-like filling is prepared and poured over the crust. And then (the hardest part) they bake for half an hour and you pace back and forth in your kitchen in anticipation.

I scaled the recipe down to two-thirds of its original. I think I should’ve baked the crust at a higher temp but I didn’t. As a result, the crust didn’t completely solidify after its proposed 25-minute bake time and in the end turned out more crispy and less buttery and delicate as was intended by the recipe. They were still incredibly yummy with a super lemony, clean taste, and my mom, sister and I inhaled them nonetheless Below is the original printed recipe. Also, the book suggests using a stand mixer for these – I used a food processor and it worked just as well.

Recipe from The Brown Betty Cookbook (Wiley, 2012)

(Yield: 21 bars)

Crust

1 tbsp plus 2 sticks butter, at room temp

1 1/2 c all-purpose flour

1/2 c white sugar

1/2 c packed light brown sugar

Filling

8 oz cream cheese, at room temp

1/4 tsp salt

1/2 c sugar

2 tbsp all-purpose flour

1/2 tsp baking powder

2 eggs, beaten

3 tbsp fresh lemon juice

2 tsp lemon zest

Procedure: Preheat oven to 350F. Coat 9x13x2″ baking pan with 1 tbsp butter. For the crust, in a medium bowl, whisk together the flour and sugars. Add butter and mix until dough forms. Pat dough into pan and bake until golden brown, about 25 min. Set aside. For the filling, beat together cream cheese and salt until smooth. Gradually add sugar, flour and baking powder and beat until blended. Add eggs, lemon juice and zest and beat until blended. Do not overmix. Pour the filling over crust and bake until a wooden pick inserted into a corner comes out clean, 30 to 35 min. Transfer the pan to wire rack to cool completely. When cool, cut into bars.

Have your greens and drink them too.

Mar14

As I previously mentioned, my Parisian cousin is a devout juicer and smoothie-drinker, and is also on her way to full on veganism. During my visit, we spent a lot of time talking about this way of life and its benefits, and she introduced me to a book called Crazy Sexy Diet by Kris Carr (published by Skirt!, 2011). I’ve purchased a copy since my return but unfortunately haven’t found the time to read it cover to cover yet. I have flipped through some of it though and feel smarter already!

The author was diagnosed with a rare and incurable form of cancer some years ago and decided to adopt a healthy lifestyle to help her deal with the condition. The focus of her diet (and here the word Diet refers to a lifetime commitment, not a two-week ritual) is plant-based and her motto is “Make juice not war.” It’s all about making greens your best friend.

Of course we’ve all heard that eating spinach is good (thanks, Popeye) but rarely are we actually explained why. Well, think back to 7th grade science. Remember something called chlorophyll? Chlorophyll is the molecule that makes plants green and Carr calls it liquid sunshine. Chlorophyll is what lets plants absorb sunlight and turn it energy. And just as it is good for plants, it is good for humans. Chlorophyll can heal and detoxify the blood. Specifically, it “increases red blood cell production and enhances the cells’ ability to carry oxygen. It strengthens the immune system, improves circulation, eases inflammation and counteracts harmful free radicals.” What this means is less joint/muscle pain, less colds and less skin imperfections. Sounds pretty good, eh? The author places a bigger emphasis on juicing as opposed to blending greens, as juice instantly alkalizes the blood while a smoothie takes a little time for the body to process. However, smoothies get to keep their fiber and that’s also very important.

I know this may be a shocker to some of you (I mean the pork buns, the Russian doughnuts, the stews!) but I actually don’t indulge as much as this blog may suggest. After all, I only document the memorable, document-worthy meals. And ever since learning of this book, I’ve been cutting down on things like meat and caffeine. But not forcefully – I don’t really miss them! I guess that’s because my body doesn’t need them as much as I previously thought and because I enjoy knowing that I’m paying closer attention to the things my body tells me. And I’ve been drinking smoothies every day! I highly doubt that my love for burgers, pulled pork and otherworldly New York pizzas will ever go away, but making small changes is actually a huge deal.

As much as I believe in the comforting power of poundcake, I now believe in the healing power of this lifestyle, too. I highly recommend that you too read this book, pay closer attention to your body and raise a green glass to your health. Here’s my favorite green creation so far.

(Yield: 1 cup)

Ingredients:

1 c baby arugula

1 handful of parsley

2 tbsp lemon juice

1 ripe kiwi, peeled and chopped

1/2 c water

Procedure: Place all ingredients into a blender and blend until smooth. Serve in a chilled glass.

Talking about green smoothies is just scratching the surface but when I’m finally done reading the book, I plan to share more of her advice with you

…Is anybody out there?

Dec17

I know I’ve been MIA for two weeks but I hope there are people still out there reading this. I am so glad to be back and I hope to never have to be absent for such a long time again. I won’t bore you by recounting the hellish past two weeks of schoolwork but I will tell you about two cool events that I recently attended.

A few weeks ago, I was invited to hear a talk featuring Kim Severson and Julia Moskin – both New York Times food reporters. (You may recall me extending the invite to you in this post?) The two women, who affectionately refer to each other as ‘work-wives’, just wrote a book called Cook Fight. Cook Fight is not your average cookbook – it chronicles the two writers’ contrasting approaches to challenges like the Thanksgiving challenge and the Comfort challenge, just to name a few. With each challenge, the women had to feed six people for $50. Since the women come from distinctly different backgrounds – Severson learned to cook instinctively by way of her large Italian family, while Moskin learned together with her parents using cookbooks – the book has a fresh and interesting take on recipe development and menu planning. Follow this link to purchase your copy.

I also got to see, and even chat with a little bit, one of my favorite women of the food world – Rachael Ray! And on the evening before my birthday, at that. Rachael will always hold a special place in my heart and here’s why: when I was 12, I discovered the Food Network by accident and began to watch 30 Minute Meals religiously. Soon after the great discovery, I felt confident enough to tackle the kitchen by myself – I wanted to surprise my mom with dinner so that she wouldn’t have to cook after work. Rachael made cooking dinner look so easy and her recipes were so accessible, that I just couldn’t help myself. And I haven’t stopped cooking since that day. On December 6th, Rachael was a part of iBookstore’s Meet-the-Author series at the SoHo Apple Store. She was there to talk about her latest (the 21st, to be exact!) cookbook, My Year in Meals.

I was a little star stuck when she took her seat less than ten feet away from me but Rachael was as sweet, nice and approachable as I’d expected. This book is very special because it documents what Rachael actually cooked for herself, and for friends and family in the course of one whole year. The book also features cocktail recipes from her husband, and all the photography in the book is done by the pair as well. Follow this link to purchase your copy. And follow this link to watch a free podcast of the talk (note: at the 25 minute mark, I ask the first question of the Q&A portion).

Stay tuned for more posts this week, including a recipe for one of my oldest and best pasta dishes, and a recap of my birthday dinner!

Betty’s Buttermilk Pound Cake from The Brown Betty Cookbook

Nov16

A few weeks ago, the editor of this scrumptious cookbook hosted a giveaway on his blog and yours truly won!

The Brown Betty Cookbook (John Wiley & Sons, 2012) is a collection of dessert recipes from the Brown Betty Dessert Boutique in Philadelphia. The boutique was founded by mother-daughter team, Linda Hinton Brown and Norrinda Brown Hayat, and inspired by Linda’s mother Betty’s legacy of weekly biscuit, pie and cake feasts. From the cover art and the photos inside, to the family stories told throughout, and even down to the font choices, this book is absolutely beautiful. It features recipes for cookies, pies and cupcakes, but has a definite accent on their famous layered cakes.

When I first received the book, I hoped that there would be a classic pound cake recipe in it as it is my favorite dessert. Thankfully, there was. Those of you who are familiar with my blog know that I am not by any stretch of the imagination a good baker. I can handle simple cookies and banana bread but I have yet to tackle a layered cake. Hopefully one day I’ll feel confident enough to take on the challenge, and when that day comes, I know where I’ll find the perfect recipe.

This cake was meant to be baked in a round pan and frosted with lemon buttercream, but since I am an amateur (and a minimalist), I scaled the recipe down to one third of its original, baked it in a loaf pan and ate it plain.

Adapted from Betty’s Buttermilk Pound Cake (pg. 31)

(Yield: one medium loaf pan)

Ingredients:

1 ½ c all-purpose flour

1/3 tsp salt

¼ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp baking soda

4 oz butter, at room temperature

1 c sugar

2 eggs + 1 egg yolk

½ tsp vanilla

1 tsp lemon juice

½ tsp lemon zest

1/3 c + 2 tbsp buttermilk

Preheat oven to 350F. In a bowl, whisk together flour, salt, baking powder and soda. Set aside. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, beat the butter until light and fluffy, and add sugar. Beat until smooth. Then add eggs, one at a time, beating until incorporated after each addition. Then beat in vanilla, lemon juice and zest. Then, alternate between adding dry ingredients and buttermilk, starting and ending with dry ingredients, in two additions. Pour batter into greased loaf pan. Bake for 1 hour, or until golden brown and an inserted toothpick comes out clean.

The cake came out dense, moist and rather perfect. I look forward to using this recipe time and time again.

“Paula’s Tomato Grits” from James Villas’ The Glory of Southern Cooking

Nov14

One fine day, I “liked” a fellow blogger’s Instagram photo of this glorious dish and asked for the recipe. The next thing I knew, the entire cookbook wherein the recipe was to be found arrived at my doorstep. Isn’t social media great?!

The Glory of Southern Cooking by James Villas (former food and wine editor of Town & Country magazine and James Beard Award winning food writer) was published several years ago but was just re-released in paperback this September. As is to be expected, this cook contains classic recipes for fried chicken, biscuits and peach cobbler, but it also has a ton of recipes that have managed to avail a yankee like me, including chilled peach and mango soup, curried orange chicken and Ramos gin fizz (with pasteurized egg whites and orange flower water!). Click HERE to purchase your copy.

I usually eat my grits boiled in water and combined with Parmesan cheese, alongside my morning eggs. But these grits are unbelievably decadent, addictive and delicious, and I am actually considering serving them on Thanksgiving. Here’s the recipe:

(Yield: 6-8 servings)

2 cups water

1 1/2 cups milk

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup quick-cooking grits

9 tablespooons (1 stick plus 1 tablespoon) butter

2 scallions (white parts only), thinly sliced

1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

2 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

One 10-ounce can diced tomatoes and green chiles, drained

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

In a large saucepan, combine the water, milk and salt and bring to a boil. Gradually add the grits and stir constantly for 1 minute. Reduce the heat to moderately low, cover, and cook for 3 minutes. Add 8 tablespoons of the butter, still till melted, cover, and cook till the grits are thick and creamy, about 4 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat.

In a small skillet, melt the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter over moderate heat, add the scallions, and stir till softened, about 1 minute. Add the scallions to the grits along with the garlic powder and 1 1/2 cups of the cheese and stir till the cheese melts. Add the tomatoes and chiles, stir till well blended, scrape the mixture into a shallow buttered 2-quart baking dish, and bake for 30 minutes. Sprinkle the remaining cheese over the top and continue baking till golden, about 10 minutes. Serve hot.

Alyssa Shelasky’s “Apron Anxiety” and The Neiman Marcus Chocolate Chip Cookies

Nov5

When Apron Anxiety came out earlier this year, all I heard about it was that some chick who dated Top Chef’s adorable Spike Mendelsohn wrote it and that she learned to cook because of him. I expected something Fifty Shades-esque, with a few memorable meals strewn throughout.

Alyssa Shelasky is still practically a girl; she definitely looks like it. What could she know about life? I always assumed that one would have to be old and wrinkly to write a memoir. And, what? She learned to cook for a guy? Bid whoop. Small step for Shelasky, big step backwards for womankind. I didn’t want to like the book. But I was curious, dammit, and after reading the first couple of pages, I knew I was hooked; I laughed, I cried, I cringed and I got hungry.

In her memoir, Shelasky talks about her childhood, her crazy twenties in Manhattan, and her heart wrenching romance with the man to whom she only refers as the Chef. At a time when she was lonely, when her writing career was in the gutter, and when her “relationchef” was being held together by a thread, Alyssa decided to christen that room in the house with the stove in it, to keep busy and be productive. And just like that, she went from “someone who thought sweetbreads were, well… sweet breads”, to someone who gets off on farmer’s markets, restaurant openings, and making people happy with her food. She started a blog to document her kitchen escapades so that Chef could read about them after work – “He is so excited to hear about my culinary adventures that you’d think I was Anthony Bourdain with boobs.” – and that very blog laid the foundation for this book. Shelasky’s life is certainly remarkable. She seems to meet fascinating people everywhere she goes, and her outlook on life is refreshing. It is incredible the way she seems to mature with each chapter.

I realized that it is impossible to not like this book because there is just too much heart in it. It’s also funny and wildly entertaining, with equal parts Carrie Bradshaw, Ruth Reichl and Chelsea Handler. As avid a reader as I am, it is rare that after finishing a book, I feel like I know the author and feel connected to him or her – Shelasky definitely made that happen. I can’t wait to read her next book, and the next one and the one after that. If foodie memoirs are your thing, I strongly suggest you get your hands on a copy of Apron Anxiety.

Each chapter of the book ends with a landmark recipe or two and these cookies are one of them. The Neiman Marcus cookie is somewhat of an urban legend (read the full story here) but the recipe in Apron Anxiety is the real deal. The real recipe calls for espresso powder as the secret ingredient, not blended oats!

Also, click here to read Alyssa Shelasky’s ten things to know if you want to be a food writer via Bon Appetit Mag.

“Blood, Bones & Butter,” and Prune.

Dec24

Months ago, I found myself reading the profile of an acclaimed New York chef, Gabrielle Hamilton, in ELLE magazine. The article mentioned that Hamilton has just published a book, and me being the fan of food memoirs that I am, I ordered a copy right away. Fast forward to now and I’ve finally gotten around to reading it.

I’d say this book is a must-read for foodies and non-foodies alike. Hamilton has a raw, experienced literary voice, so once I picked up the book, I couldn’t put it down. In it, she writes about her childhood and family, her out-of-control teen years, and how she came to be the successful adult – restaurateur, mother, author – she is today.

Having finished the memoir, I’d become quite the fan on this woman and thought it only proper to pay her Lower East Side restaurant a visit.

Michelle and I went for lunch. I ordered the ratatouille open-faced sandwich ($14). Ratatouille is a Niçoise dish of stewed eggplant, zucchini and tomatoes. This one, atop crusty, toasted ciabatta bread, was flavored with olives, capers and a variety of herbs; it was topped with an unbelievably delicious, silky garlic aoli and toasted poppy seeds. The flavors were well-developed and pretty intense. The dish was simple and, for being meatless, surprisingly filling.

Courtesy of Appetude

As we were eating, Ms. Hamilton herself hurriedly walked into her restaurant and straight into the kitchen. I was going to get up, shake her hand and praise her in person, but besides the inconvenient seating arrangement, to be honest, I was kinda starstruck…

Have you read any great food memoirs?

Medium Raw, yet so well done

Jun24

Remember my exciting encounter with Tony last month? Well, I finally got around to finishing his book, Medium Raw. If you love to cook and eat, are interested in food writing, or are curious about the restaurant industry, this is a must-read.

In the book, he picks up where he left off in Kitchen Confidential (the book that brought him unexpected fame, a fantastic read). He devotes entire chapters to his culinary heroes, such as David Chang, and nemeses like Ronald McDonald. He also includes stories of his personal life and speaks about his new role as a father. His passion for food and the development of the industry is clear, as well as very inspiring.

There are some things that I don’t agree with him on though. For instance, in the second to last chapter of the book, entitled “The Fish-on-Monday Thing,” he writes, “I watch Mark Bittman enjoy a perfectly and authentically prepared Spanish paella on TV, after which he demonstrates how his viewers can do it at home – in an aluminum saucepot – and I want to shove my head through the glass of my TV screen and take a giant bite out of his skull…” (267) But why, Tony, why? Not everyone has the chance to go to Spain and eat authentic paella, and you should know that better than anyone! There is nothing wrong with attempting to recreate some thing at home if one cannot go to the said thing’s origin and experience it firsthand. Surely an aluminum saucepot-made paella will be nearly incomparable to the real thing, but it’s okay to try. This chapter makes him sound like a bitter, middle-aged man….I still love him though.

Also, he should have explained the significance and history of people like Thomas Keller, and restaurants like Per Se, since he spoke about them so much. Eluding such details excludes a potentially larger audience. But it is Tony I speak of…something tells me he doesn’t care to expand his audience.

Anthony Bourdain’s ‘Medium Raw’-signing!!!

May25

As some of you may know from this previous post, I have a huge crush on Anthony Bourdain, about which I’m clearly very vocal. A few days ago I was informed that he will be in the Union Square Barnes & Noble on May 24th (which was yesterday) to commemorate the release of his newest book, Medium Raw, in paperback. You can imagine my delight…no, my ecstasy, upon hearing this news! Thank God I only had a few days to wait – living in that kind of anticipation for any time longer would have been miserable. For those of you nearly as crazy about him as I am, I will try to recreate some highlights the event.

We arrived early and waited several hours for Tony to grace us with his presence and it was so worth it! I was smiling so hard the whole time, my face started to hurt!

With a bottle of Brooklyn Lager in his hand, he began by announcing that he will not “read from the damn book,” that he has run out of d**k jokes, and Sandra Lee jokes, and that he is ready to take questions from the audience. In true Bourdain style, the questions elicited some honest, crude and absolutely hilarious answers. Some of these were:

Question: “What’s the best hangover cure?”

Tony: “Ideally, a joint. That really helps with the self-loathing and projectile vomiting. Then a cold Coke and some spicy, greasy food. Kung Pow Chicken?”

Question: “I know you’re a big music fan, so what would you say is the best thing to listen to while consuming a whole roasted pig?”

Tony: *absolutely loving this question* “Well, I’m not a big fan but Lynyrd Skynyrd? Or maybe ZZ Top. I don’t know… Hick music is what I’m trying to say.”

Question: “Screw, marry, kill: Tyler Florence, Guy Fieri, Bobby Flay.”

Tony: “I gotta admit, that Tyler is cute. I’d put a wig on him.” *audience roars in delight* “Marry? Guy Fieri. He can bring home the bacon. That guy works hard! How many shows does he have, like four? And I’d kill Bobby Flay. I just don’t trust him.”

Of course, I was totally starstruck when my turn came to face him, though I did manage to blurt out something like, “I love your show, you inspire me, and you’re the sexiest man alive.” To which he responded, “You are much too kind…”