Squash and radicchio risotto

We're ending the blog hiatus with a cooking entry. It is freezing in Boston, well it could be worse; but I should get some slack for coming here from Phoenix. The weather has made stodgy filling comforting dishes in high demand at our household. We're all trying to put on winter "coats" or rather fill out to keep warm. Living way up here in the wilds of New England where there is snow on the ground and positively nothing growing I am acutely aware of the produce in the grocery store. Where on earth are these tomatoes coming from?...And while truly ameliorating this worry would mean eating only roots and tubers, I am happy enough to stick to foods that tolerate a colder growing season. Seems reasonable, right? So here is to starchy wintery food!

6 cups stock

1 cup cooked squash (I used Butternut)

1 head radicchio, cut into wedges 1 to 2 inches wide

evoo

salt and pepper

balsamic vinegar

3 Tbs. butter

1 onion, diced

1 1/2 cup arborio rice

1 cup parmesan

Before I begin I should give credit to Deborah Madison for this wonderful recipe.

Whenever you have the time and the oven is on perhaps for something else, halve the squash, scoop out the seeds, spread oil on the cut side and place it, cutside down on a baking sheet in the oven. The best temps for roasting are anywhere between 325 and 375, with 350 being ideal. It is finished when it is tender to the touch - about 45 min. Scoop out the cooked flesh and mash it with a fork. You only need 1 cup for this recipe so if you have extra put it in a plastic bag and freeze it for the next batch of wonderful risotto. Before beginning the remaining recipe be sure your stock is steaming but not simmering on a neighboring burner. In a warmed skillet, medium heat, with 1 Tbs. of oil sautee the radicchio until it is wilted and just browning. Take it off the heat and splash it with balsamic vinegar, between 2 and 3 Tbs, if you need a measurement. Chop your onion while you melt the butter in a large skillet. Add the onion to the skillet and cook it until it is translucent and wilty. Add the rice to the pan and stir to coat it in the fat.

Here Ms. Madison departs from what I know as conventional risotto making technique. I'm sure both methods would be acceptable. She advises turning the heat on the skillet to high and adding 2 cups of stock. Cook the rice at a boil, stirring occassionally. I turned the heat down at this point and continued at the normal simmer of risotto.

When you are 2/3 the way through your stock it is time to add your mashed squash to the risotto. Simply stir until it is well combined. When the rice has reached the right consistency add your radicchio, turn off the heat, stir in the cheese, and taste then season with pepper and salt (if needed).

You are done, and if you are eating it somewhere cold like I am you will probably enjoy it wrapped in blankets in front of the TV. (Or is that just my terrible habit?)

Seafood Linguini with a Curried Cream Sauce

Oh my goodness! We found this recipe online at epicurious.com, and it is amazing. It always illicits a second helping. It would be a good dinner to roll out at a party and impress your friends. And it has the added bonus of being easy enough to fix on a work night. The flavours, however, are a little unusual and they may not suit everbody's pallette.

Curried Seafood Linguini
2 Tbs. evoo
1/2 cup shallots, small dice (about 4)
3 cloves garlic, peeled and chopped
8 large shrimp, peeled and deveined (20 count)
6 oz crabmeat
1/3 cup dry white wine
1 3/4 cup chicken stock
2 tsp. cornstarch
1 Tbs. curry powder
a pinch of saffron threads
1/2 cup of cream
1 pound linguini or fettucini
salt for the pasta water

Prepare your shrimp and chop your shallots and garlic. Warm your chicken broth and pour 1/2 cup of it into a bowl that contains the 2 tsp cornstarch. Stir well to combine and set aside. Put the pot of water on to boil for the pasta. When it is ready add a generous amount of salt 2 - 3 Tbs. and the pasta. Heat the evoo in a medium to large skillet on medium heat. Begin by sauteeing your shallots and garlic stirring often until they soften. Add the shrimp and cook for a minute. Add the crabmeat and stir to combine then add the white wine. Allow the wine to simmer and boil off until only a few tablespoons of moisture are left in the pan. Add your warm chicken stock and your chicken stock with cornstarch and stir to combine. Bring the sauce to a boil and lower the temperature to a simmer letting the sauce cook for a minute until you notice the cornstarch thickening the sauce. Add the Tbs. of curry powder, the pinch of saffron threads, and the 1/2 cup cream and allow the mixture to warm up. Hopefully, your pasta is ready or almost ready at this point. Drain the cooked pasta in a colander and return it to the large pasta pot off the heat. Add the sauce on top and stir to coat the pasta in the tasty goodness. Voila!

Mushroom Risotto

I was speaking to Nina last night and she was somehow dubious that dried mushrooms and rice could approximate anything close to Italian food. So I told her I would send her the recipe. Before I post it a few words on risotto. Risotto is actually short grain Italian rice that is cooked by slowly adding liquid rather than the common drown and boil of most rices. There are three kinds of risotto - arborio, carnaroli, and vialone nano. If you are shopping at a regular grocery store you will most likely only encounter arborio rice which is fine. But if you really get into cooking and eating risottos like I have you will want to seek out the other grains at specialty food shops they differ from arborio and each other in firmness and creaminess.

Nigella Lawson's Mushroom Risotto

4 tbs. unsalted butter

2 Tbs. evoo

1/2 an onion, small dice

15 g dried porcini mushrooms (about 3/4 cup)

3/4 cup hot water for soaking mushrooms

1 cup arborio rice

3 cups chicken stock

2 to 3 Tbs. grated parmesan

a handful of Italian parsley rough chopped for garnishing

black pepper

Soak the mushrooms in water for 20 minutes or so. I have never actually sprung for porcinis because they are so expensive (and I am so cheap). I use dried shiitakes that I buy from the Asian grocer for a song. Make your stock and keep it warm on a neighboring burner to this add your leftover mushroom soaking water. Melt 2 Tbs. butter in a large skillet. Add the evoo and the onions and on medium heat saute until translucent. Add the rough chopped mushrooms and the uncooked rice. Stir the rice in the fat until the grains are glistening and become translucent at the tips. To this add a ladel or two of stock and allow the rice to absorb it before adding more. This is how the rice is cooked, slowly, adding moisture a bit at time. The whole process takes about twenty minutes. Be sure to occasionally stir the risotto so that it cooks evenly. When the stock is almost gone taste the risotto for doneness. It should be firm like al dente pasta. You will finish the risotto with the remaining 2 Tbs. of butter and the grated parmesan cheese. Add black pepper as needed for flavour and garnish with fresh Italian parsley.

This portion only serves Tyler and I, but we tend to eat A LOT of risotto and nothing else as a side dish.

Tomato and Cream sauce

I made this sauce last night to go with homemade spinach and ricotta gnocchi. They were awesome - an attempt to use up wilting spinach as well as containers of ricotta cheese lurking in our fridge from previous endeavours into baked ziti. The recipe is from Marcella Hazan's Classic Italian Cooking. It was easy, tasty, and the leftovers can be frozen for those nights when cooking dinner is a desperate task.

1/4 pound unsalted butter, that's one stick, typically 4 ounces. (I know, don't tell my husband.)

3 Tbs. finely chopped onion

1 stalk finely chopped celery

2 carrots, finely chopped

1 28oz can of diced or crushed tomatoes

1/2 cup heavy cream

Salt and pepper

Combine all the ingredients except the cream in a large skillet and cook at the slightest simmer for one hour. Remove from the heat and process in a Cuisanart. Be sure to turn off the machine before the sauce looses all of its texture. Return the sauce to the heat on low and add the cream, taste and adjust seasoning.

The gnocchi recipe was also from her book, and if anybody is interested, I will post that as well. Otherwise I would recommend a tubular pasta for this sauce like penne, or perhaps a broad, flat, noodle like fettucini; but I am sure I am breaking some solemn Italian custom of shape and sauce matching...

My Mother's Chicken Cacciatore

That she found in Craig Claiborne's New York Times Cookbook...

This is not only my favourite Cacciatore recipe, it is my favourite way to eat chicken and spaghetti; even though Tyler makes a killer chicken parmesan. It is my mother's secret weapon in her culinary arsenal; and she would often entertain with it. Inevitably, she would rather proudly confide to her guests that the recipe contained vast quantities of alcohol. But don't worry, it boils off during cooking; and you can omit it; but then...

4 pounds chicken, bone in thighs and breasts

1/4 to 1/2 cup all purpose flour for dredging

1/4 cup evoo

2 tbs. shallots, finely chopped

2 cloves of garlic

1/4 cup tomato paste

1/2 cup dry white wine, my mother always used Chablis

1 tsp. salt

1/4 tsp. freshly cracked black pepper

3/4 cup chicken stock

1/2 of a bay leaf

1/8 tsp. dried thyme OR 3 sprigs fresh

1/8 tsp. dried marjoram

1/2 to 1 cup mushrooms, preferably crimini or baby bellas

1/4 cup Brandy

Begin by dredging the chicken in flour and setting it aside. Pour the olive oil into a skillet large enough to accomodate the chicken - you should also have a lid for this skillet. Heat the oil to medium high and begin by browning the chicken. Remove the chicken and add the mushrooms. Again, the mushrooms should be added on a high heat for a good carmelization, so if you don't hear a good sizzle when they are added, raise your temperature. You may also need to add more oil as the mushrooms love to soak it up. When the mushrooms are carmelized with the heat at medium to medium high add the onions and sweat until translucent. Add the garlic at this point. I usually don't chop garlic because it will burn more easily if it is smaller - and burnt garlic is terribly bitter. I will peel the garlic and then crush it under the side of my knife so it breaks open. Once you smell the garlic, add the tomato paste and let it cook for thirty seconds to a minute. At this point add the wine and scrape up the brown bits clinging to the pan. The wine will evaporate. When there seems to be only one or two tablespoons remaining add the rest of the ingredients, return the chicken to the pan, bring the pan to a slow simmer, cover and cook until the chicken is finished 45 to 60 minutes. I prefer a runny sauce and have, at times, cooked the cacciatore with too much heat thereby thickening the sauce. If this happens you can add water or chicken broth, but taste the sauce for saltiness and adjust. This recipe is best served alongside spaghetti dressed with olive oil.

My brother, Sean, recommended I make wine parings for the recipes I list, but I have to admit that he is much better at something like that than I am. Perhaps he'll contribute and I can post it here. But for now I'll tell you that we had a Toad Hollow, Paso Robles red table wine with our dinner that we enjoyed very much.

Bomb A** Pork Chops

This recipe came from Jerry Traunfield's Herbfarm Cookbook, a seredipitous purchase in our household that holds the position of The Cookbook. We always turn to him for fantastic recipes. The recipe is easy enough to make after work - seriously. If you are willing to spend a half hour in the kitchen, you can whip these up. And if you are as talented as Tyler you can produce some mashed potatoes with gorgonzola cheese and collard greens boiled then sauteed with garlic and red pepper flakes. He's such a good wife!

Pork Chops with Sage, Onion, and Proscuitto

2 thick-cut loin or rib pork chops (about 1 1/4 inches thick - he suggests 10 to 12 ounces each, but I think ours were smaller)

salt and freshly ground pepper

2 Tbs. evoo

1 large onion, sliced 1/4 inch thick

1/2 cup coarsely chopped fresh sage

4 ounces thinly sliced proscuitto, cut into 1/4 inch-wide strips

You can substitute bacon for the proscuitto in a pinch.

1 1/2 cups chicken stock

2 tsp. Dijon

Season both sides of the chops with the salt and pepper. Heat the evoo in a large skillet over medium high heat. Brown pork in pan on both sides, about 3 minutes per side. Remove chops from pan and set aside. Reduce heat on skillet to medium-low and add the onions and sage. Cook uncovered stirring often until the onion is softened and lightly browned. Stir in the proscuitto and cook until it loses it's color. Add the stock and mustard. Return the pork to the pan, reduce the heat to low, cover the pan, and gently simmer the chops until they reach 145F to 150F. You can check with a thermometer. We never do. They take about twenty minutes, and seem to stand up to overcooking. Transfer the chops to a warm plate and raise the heat on the skillet. Boil the sauce until it thickens slightly. Taste and adjust the salt and pepper if neccessary. Serve.

*If substituting bacon for the proscuitto add it to the skillet after the chops are removed. Render the fat on a low heat and cook the bacon until it begins to brown. Now add the onions and sage to brown.

Anniversary Orzo

Tyler and I went away last weekend to celebrate our first wedding anniversary. We ate dinner one night at a fun local, woodsy eatery that had been frozen in time in the 1970's, "Would you like Thousand Island with that?" And the next night we cooked Cornish Game Hens on the grill at the cabin we were renting. Here is the sidedish we made to go with the hen. I have to give a little warning about this recipe. This is something I made up on the spot, five days ago. My memory of quantities could be effected by time.

Anniversary Orzo
2 Tbs. oil
6 oz. mushrooms sliced
1/3 cup diced red onion
3 cloves garlic
2/3 cup orzo
1 1/2 cup chicken broth
3 bay leaves
1 Tbs. dried oregano
1 12oz. can fire roasted tomatoes
1/4 cup chopped Kalamata olives

I am particular about mushrooms. I liked them cooked on a high heat so they are deeply carmelized and flavourful. I hate spongy, moist, insipid mushrooms and spend most of my time picking them out of food. So begin this dish by heating the oil to medium high in a dutch oven. Saute the mushrooms first. You want to hear an angry sizzle when you add them to the pot. If you don't, it's not hot enough. Once the mushrooms have a good color on them, reduce the heat to medium, add the onion and sweat until translucent. To this add the garlic and uncooked orzo. Have your chicken broth ready and warming on very low heat on an adjoining burner. You will cook the orzo like a risotto. Once the orzo is covered with oil and you can smell the garlic, begin slowly adding the chicken stock a ladelful at a time waiting for it to absorb between additions. This is where my quantities could be a little rusty. You should test the orzo throughout cooking. Once it is almost done stop adding broth. During the addition of broth add the dried herbs. When the orzo is still a touch firm add the tomatoes and their water. This additional moisture will help to cook the orzo completely - you can always add more broth if I'm lying. Lastly add the olives and serve the dish once they are heated through.

Sea bass and Fennel Tagine

While Tyler and I are sometimes adventurous enough to "wing it" in the kitchen we often use recipes in cookbooks. This stew comes from Meditteranean by Joanna Farrow and Jacqueline Clarke.

stew

1 1/2 pounds sea bass or other whitefish

8 oz. shrimp

2 Tbs. olive oil

1 bulb fennel

1 onion

2 cups fish broth or weak chicken stock

8 oz. new or waxy potatoes cut into large pieces

chermoula

4 tsp. paprika

4 tsp. ground cumin

3 Tbs. white vinegar

1 Tbs. lemon juice

2 cloves of garlic crushed

2 Tbs. chopped fresh cilantro

2 Tbs. chopped fresh Italian parsley

Assemble the chermoula first. Shell, tail, and devein the shrimp. Cut the whitefish into large bitesize pieces. Place the seafood in separate shallow containers and coat each in half of the chermoula mixture. Cover fish and place in refrigerator for at least 30 minutes and up to 2 hours. In a large dutch oven heat the olive oil on medium. Add the onion sauteing for 2 minutes. To this add the fennel and cook until the vegetables begin to catch the bottom of the pot and brown. Add the stock and scrape up the yummy brown bits on the bottom of the pot. To this add the potatoes, cover and simmer until they are tender - about 15 minutes. Uncover pot, test the potatoes, if they are just about cooked, add the whitefish taking care to also add all the chermoula. Make sure the pot is at a low simmer so the fish doesn't fall apart too much. After about 4 minutes add the shrimp which will take an additional 2 minutes to cook. Serve with a crusty baguette, good quality olive oil (for drizzling) and kosher salt.