Watercress, Fennel, Endive Salad with Pomegranate

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving and got to eats lots of yummy things. I'm figuring after the feeding fest that people may be craving something pretty light at this point. I actually served this yesterday as part of the Thanksgiving meal to act as sort of a palate cleanser.

Trim a couple inches off the stems of two bunches of watercress. I do this with the rubber band still on to hold it together and then cut it off after trimming. Cut a fennel bulb in half, top to bottom. Trim the end and then slice on a slight diagonal as thinly as possible. The endive can either be chopped up or pulled apart into separate leaves. That’s just an aesthetic choice. All these ingredients can be tossed together in a bowl. Make a dressing of a couple tablespoons of lemon juice and about a tablespoon of honey, salt and pepper and whisk together until the salt dissolves completely. Always do this when making salad dressings because once you add oil the oil covers the grains of salt and prevents them from dissolving and incorporating into the dressing. Now add a light oil like canola to taste, probably around ¼ cup. Drizzle the dressing over the salad mix and toss gently together to cover every leaf. Your hands are the best tool for this. Pile the salad on a plate lightly and in such a way as to create as much height as possible. Sprinkle a few tablespoons of pomegranate seeds over the top. This is easily enough for four, possibly as many as six, people.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Hello all and Happy Thanksgiving. I can't do much this year in the way of actual recipes because I post those here as I do them to make sure my measurements and timing are correct but what I can throw out there is a few tips. Next year I'll post the recipes I do today.

The biggest tip I can give you is this- the secret to moist turkey? A good thermometer! Toward the end of your cooking time check the bird frequently and as soon as it reaches 165 degrees pull it out. You may be using a recipe that says 170 but that's an old measurement that has been revised in recent years. http://www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/Turkey/Techniques.html When you are cooking such a large thing it continues to cook even when taken out of the oven. Check the temp in the thickest part of the breast and thigh, being careful not to touch the bone.

Here's a good article that dispells the long standing myth that you need to rinse the turkey. http://www.nytimes.com/2004/11/24/dining/24WASH.html?_r=1

Just like any other meat, turkey needs a resting time, and because of it's size I would recommend at least 20 minutes. Don't worry, that thing has so much internal heat it's not going to get cold. I usually have ours out for 30 minutes or more.

Prior to roasting I always make a mixture of butter, chopped fresh herbs (sage, thyme, rosemary, with sage being the most prominent), salt and pepper that I massage under the skin of the breast leaving a fairly thick layer. This acts as sort of self basting. Also, when the turkey is finished it leaves behind the herbs trapped beneath the skin which I think, aside from being tasty, looks pretty.

I'll take a moment here to say that I am so thankful for all my wonderful friends and family, who are the inspiration for this blog, and to everyone who takes the time to read it.

Have a wonderful holiday!

Very Easy Pear Tart

This tart requires very little actual cooking. It's more about just assembling the pieces.

The first thing that makes this tart so easy to make is buying premade puff pastry dough. Even my super old school French chef instructor when I was in cooking school told us that the culinary institute would probably be the last place that we would ever make puff pastry (mille feuille) from scratch because the labor involved is just not worth it since companies like Dufour are making very high quality, ready to use, dough. Just look for a dough that uses only butter. That’s key.

Dust surfaces of the dough and the counter with a small amount of flour. Roll the defrosted but cold pastry dough to ¼ inch, or so, thickness. Cut the dough into a rectangle that is about 6 inches wide. The length doesn’t matter. Just be sure it fits on the baking sheet you’ll be using. Cut two lengthwise strips, about 1 inch thick, off the sides. Place the rectangular piece on an ungreased baking sheet and prick it a lot with a fork. This keeps the center from rising.

Cut two ripe and sweet pears in half and remove pits. Slice very thinly lengthwise. Slices should be about 1/8 inch thick. Arrange the pear slices in an overlapping fashion on the rectangle piece leaving an inch of space on either side.

Now using an egg wash (beaten egg with a couple tablespoons of water) brush the bare sides of the rectangle. Then place the inch thick strips you cut off earlier on top of the egg wash. For a decorative touch, and to help seal the two pieces together, you can cut diagonal slices a couple inches apart, ½ inch deep, up both sides of the tart. Now lightly brush egg wash on the top of the strips.

Sprinkle the pears liberally with sugar and lightly with a little cinnamon.

If all of this has taken a long time and your dough has become gooey stick the whole thing in the refrigerator for half and hour. This will help the pastry dough rise better. If things don’t seem to have become too warm then skip this.

Stick it in an oven around 375 degrees and bake for 30-40 minutes, rotating it once during that time.
The sides should be a rich brown and cooked through.

Let cool for a few minutes and serve with ice cream or whipped cream. It can also be served completely cooled and it doesn’t necessarily need the cream. It makes a great morning pastry too.

If you want to get really fancy (here comes the trick of the trade) just melt a little apricot jam with a little water and bring just to a boil. Brush the mixture gently over the fruit. This gives it that super glisteny look you see in pastry shops.

Impress Your Guests

T- this one's for you. Thanks for the inspiration. xo.

I get the question often of “How do I make everything come together at the same time?” particularly when someone is getting ready to serve dinner to guests. That’s a tough question because a lot of it is just practice. When you are cooking on a line in a restaurant you have hundreds of opportunities for trial and error, even in just one night, and begin to learn instinctively how long things take and even more importantly what can be done ahead.
I’m going to give you instructions here for an entire meal that is perfect to serve to a dinner party, primarily because everything is brought close to finished long before anyone arrives. Hopefully you will be able to enjoy some time with your guests, slip away for 15 minutes, and reappear with a fabulous plate.

Braised Short Ribs with Potato/Parsnip Puree and Glazed Carrots

Pick out some really nice, large, meaty beef short ribs at a butchers or specialty shop. Whole Foods usually carries really beautiful ones. If you are in New York, Fairway seems to always have really nice ones too.

You'll be starting out with something like this.

First, the day before, or morning of your gathering, prepare braised beef short ribs. This recipe will pretty much follow the exact same as I gave you for beef stew except I would double the red wine. Make sure the liquid only goes a little more than ½way up the meat. Also, be sure to set the oven at 350. The liquid should continue at a low boil when in the oven. If it seems like it’s boiling really heavily adjust the heat down. Turn the ribs over in the liquid about an hour into the cooking time. After you pull the pot from the oven let it sit for an hour while it cools down. Pull out the ribs and set aside. Strain out the vegetables. Skim the fat from the surface of the liquid and set aside. If you are preparing a day ahead you can skip the skimming for now and just put the liquid back with the meat and refrigerate. The next day the fat will have risen to the top and solidified and you can just pull it off.

The meat should be falling off the bone. Being careful to keep the meat intact, pull the bones away. Now you will have a piece of meat with a skin-like tendon covering one side where it was attached to the bone. With a sharp knife carefully remove this (see video). What you have left is a super powerful, rich flavored chunk of meat. You’ll probably use two per person. Set aside the meats.

Boil some carrots. Be sure to use this technique. Put aside or refrigerate depending on how far ahead you’re doing it.

Peel one Yukon Gold potato per person and half as much parsnips (unless you hate parsnips, in which case just do mashed potatoes instead). Cut them up in similar sized chunks and put them in a pot with water and salt and cook until soft. Drain and leave in the pot on the stove covered with a lid. Do this sometime within the hour of guest’s arrival time.

In a small sauce pan boil down (reduce) the liquid from the short ribs until it begins to get syrupy and adjust the seasoning. Leave this, too, in the pan on the stove.

All these things can be done prior to your guests arriving.

Now, here’s where the timing part comes in. You’ll need ready for yourself in the kitchen- the cooked potato/parsnip combo on the stove(not over heat yet). Cooked carrots (or other side you’ve chosen) and a sauté pan for reheating. The trimmed meat and a pan. Some butter. A little chicken broth. The reduced cooking liquid (now your sauce) in the small sauce pan on the stove.
About 15-20 minutes before you want to serve the meal slip away to the kitchen. Spread out all your plates. Pour some milk and cream into the cooked potatoes and parsnips and turn the heat on medium. At the same time turn the heat on low under your sauce. When the milk/cream starts to get hot begin mashing the potato mix until smooth and everything is hot. Throw in a lump of butter, mix in and check salt and pepper level. Turn the heat off ,cover and leave at the back of the stove where it is warmest. Turn heat on under the pan for the meat and place a small bit of butter in it. When hot, place the meat in with top side down and let it sear, should be about two to three minutes. Turn heat on under pan you’ll be reheating carrots (or other side dish) in. Follow the instructions here for glazed carrots. When you put the carrots in the pan turn the meat over in its pan and let sear on other side then turn off heat and leave it there. Finish off the carrots and turn the heat off and leave it there. Check your sauce to make sure it’s ready to go.
Time to plate. If you can keep you plates warm in a very low oven it will help keep the food warm when you are ready to put it on the plate. Just make sure they’re not too hot or they’ll cook the sauce, in a bad way. If this stresses you out just skip it. It's not that big of a deal, especially if you have someone helping you to get things out quickly.

Put a large spoonful of the potato mixture slightly off center on the plate (do each step for all plates at the same time, production line style, this is the most efficient way). Try to create as much height as possible by pulling spoon upward after placing puree on the plate. Stack carrots on the plate next to the potatoes (a pair of tongs work best). Create a small pool of sauce in the empty spot on the plate and then place two pieces of the meat crisscrossed and propped up against the potatoes. Drizzle a little more sauce over top the meat. For a little added decoration you can stick a sprig of rosemary and thyme in the potatoes.

Serve!

Some ideas for sides other than the carrots.
Asparagus. – Prepare ahead. Be careful not to overcook! When ready to serve heat up in sauté pan with a little butter. You can add a crushed clove of garlic too, if you’d like.
Baby Bok Choy – Split the bok choy in half, salt it generously, and place flat side down in a sauté pan over high heat with a little boiling water or broth and a bit of butter. Cover pan and let the bok choy steam for a few minutes. Remove lid and let moisture evaporate and the side facing down to get brown.

Pomegranate Martini

It's Friday and five O'clock somewhere.



You'll need simple syrup for this. It's a handy thing in general for cocktail making. Put 2 parts sugar together with 1 part water and heat over medium heat just until the sugar disolves. Cool and put in a container for future use.

1/4 cup vodka

1/4 cup pomegranate juice (POM for example)

1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1/2 tablespoon of the simple syrup

Shake over ice. Strain into martini glass and float a thin slice of lemon on top.

Warm Artichoke and Spinach Dip

Always a huge hit at a party.

This recipe is so easy and you’ll notice a recurring theme- the number “ one”. It makes it very easy to remember. Of course, if you like things a little more creamy you can add more sour cream or cream cheese. This recipe is pretty veggie heavy.

Chop one medium onion. Sauté onion in ½ stick of butter until soft. Stir in one block of cream cheese and one 16oz container of sour cream. Squeeze water out of a thawed box of frozen chopped spinach and either 2 cans or 1 frozen package of quartered or chopped artichoke hearts and stir that in. Stir in ½ cup of parmesan cheese. Salt and pepper to taste. Spread in a small casserole dish and sprinkle a layer of parmesan cheese on top. Put in a 400 degree oven until browned.

Serve warm with pita chips or crackers.

To make pita chips cut up pita breads into wedges. Coat a baking sheet with olive oil and squeeze one clove of garlic through a garlic press onto the baking sheet and sprinkle the whole sheet with a bit of salt. Scatter the pita wedges on the baking sheet and swirl around so they get coated (at least partially). Put in a 400 degree oven and watch for browning. Swirl around once and let brown a little more.

Tomato Sauce

I never buy ready made tomato spaghetti sauce for one major reason, it’s always so SWEET! On some brands I believe corn syrup is the number two ingredient. Even good ole Newman’s Own has added sugar. I just don’t get it. Tomatoes are sweet to begin with. Anyway,another big reason I don't buy pre-made stuff is that making your own sauce can be so incredibly simple and it tastes so good. The biggest secret is time. That and really good olive oil.


Finely chop one medium onion, put it in a pot with ¼ cup of olive oil and two crushed cloves of garlic and salt. Cook over low-medium heat until soft, but do not let it brown. Add one 28oz can of crushed tomatoes with basil and one 28oz can of whole tomatoes, liquid and all. I just squeeze the whole tomatoes with my hands to break them up as I put them in but you can also dump them in whole a smash them up with your spoon. Now just let it simmer for at least one hour, stirring occasionally. If you can let it go longer, then even better. That’s it. If you have fresh basil you can add some when you’re adding the tomato. If you’re a fan of oregano you can add that too. I don’t bother with any of that anymore as I find this basic version very satisfying.



You may be thinking, doesn’t all spaghetti taste the same? I mean, it is just wheat and water. Well, I don’t believe that anymore and this brand, Bionaturae, is the reason why. It’s so good! Italian, organic, delicious...give it a try and see if you taste a difference.

Of course, fresh pasta is as good as it gets. If you happen to live in Park Slope Brooklyn or the East Village in Manhattan, then I recommend checking out Russo’s. Fantastic pastas made fresh and a mozzarella so fresh it’s sometimes still warm when you buy it.