Lentil Salad

Easily made vegetarian or vegan by omitting the offending ingredients.

2-3 servings

1/2 cup French lentils (lentils du puy)

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 link Italian sausage, casing removed

1 carrot, diced

1/4-1/2 teaspoon curry powder

3 tablespoons red wine vinegar

2 pinches brown sugar (literal, 2-finger pinches)(optional)

4 ounces feta, crumbled

1 stalk celery, diced

salt and pepper

mixed greens

In a skillet, cook the lentils in salted water until they're as soft as you prefer. I had to add water a couple of times because it boiled off before they were done, but I didn't mind because it eliminated the need to drain them. (No colander = one fewer dish to wash!) Once done, remove the lentils to a bowl, draining if necessary.

Add olive oil to the skillet, swirling to coat. Don't fret if it looks like a little too much; it's the first ingredient of your dressing. Add the sausage and use your cooking utensil to break it up into small chunks as it browns. When the sausage is no longer pink but not yet crispy (i.e. halfway done), throw in the carrot and curry powder. Once the carrot has lost its crunch and the sausage is fully cooked, remove from heat.

While the pan is still hot, pour in the vinegar and scrape up the good stuff that's stuck to the pan. This is also when you would add the sugar, if using.

Tip into the bowl with the lentils and toss together with the feta and celery. Season to taste with salt and pepper. If needed, adjust the amount of dressing with an additional drizzle of olive oil and splash(es) of vinegar. Serve on a pile of mixed greens.

Variations:

Substitute maple syrup for the sugar -OR- balsamic vinegar for 1 tablespoon of red wine vinegar, omitting the sugar.

Dulce de Leche

Sure, you can buy dulce de leche. But then you miss out on that magic that happens when you make it yourself. I'd compare it to the time I wanted to make butter and spent half the afternoon shaking a jar of cream and all I had to show for it was frothy cream. I went ahead and kept shaking it anyway and ended up with, not a minute later, a lump of butter sloshing around in a jar of buttermilk. I couldn't stop grinning about it for the rest of the day. The same fairy dust that requires nothing more than agitating a jar of cream to get butter turns a can of sweetened condensed milk into rich, caramely dulce de leche. Only better. You don't have to shake it for four hours.

This method comes from the Chilean grandmother of a recipe tester for The Essence of Chocolate, a cookbook from chocolate experts John Scharffenberger and Robert Steinberg.
Remove the label from the can. Place the can on its side in a medium saucepan and cover completely with water. Bring the water just to a boil. Keep at a low boil, adding more water as necessary to keep the can covered with at least an inch of water, turning the can from time to time, for four hours. Take care to keep the can covered with water as there's a very slim chance the can could explode if the water boils away. I usually have trouble maintaining a low boil so it ends up being very thick after four hours. A vigorous boil takes only two to three hours.
Carefully remove the can from the water. The dulce de leche can be cooled in the can and stored at room temperature or used right away. If opening the can while it is still warm, open it slowly, because the dulce de leche may spurt slightly.

Cream Puffs

I first got the notion to make these after sampling the Costco offering on a weekly shopping trip and thinking, "I could make these." Making so many things for New Year's, I had to put it off until last week when, abandoned for an afternoon, I needed a break from a break.  I unearthed a recipe for eclairs that I'd pulled from the Oregonian a couple of years ago and set about to craft a surprise for Mom and the kids.

Cream Puffs

Adapted from FOODday


1 cup water
1/4 cup butter (1/2 stick)
1/2 tsp. salt
1 cup flour
3 eggs


Preheat the oven to 400º, placing one rack in the middle. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.


In a medium saucepan, bring the water, butter, and salt to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium and add flour all at once. Using a wooden spoon, stir vigorously to combine. Continue to stir, using a figure-8 motion and smearing the dough against the sides of the pan to cook the flour and work out any lumps, for 2 minutes. The mixture will be thick and look like a firm ball, or balls, of sticky mashed potatoes that pull away from the sides of the pan. During this process, it is normal for a thin layer of dough to stick to the pan and sizzle. Remove the pan from the heat and scrape the dough into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. On low speed, mix until the dough feels merely warm, not hot, to the touch, 3 to 5 minutes.


With the mixer still on low speed, beat in the eggs, one at a time. After each egg is added, the dough will separate into small lumps and then come back together. After the dough pulls back together, briefly (about 20 seconds) increase the speed to medium-low to mix the dough well. Reduce the speed to low before adding the next egg. After the addition of the last egg, scrape the bowl well and beat on medium-low for a final 30 seconds.

Scrape the dough into a pastry bag fitted with a 1/2-inch tip. Twist the top of the bag to push the dough toward the tip. Pipe little mounds, about the size of a chocolate truffle, onto the parchment-lined pan, leaving 1/2-inch spaces between them. The first time I used this recipe, I MacGyver-ed a pastry bag, making a tip out of a circle of a cereal box and taping it to the corner of a gallon ziploc bag. It worked, but I was glad that I'd upgraded by the time I finally got around to these. Alternately, you can spoon the dough onto the pan like drop cookies, but the dough will be very sticky. Having wet hands helped corral the cream puff shells. Bake them on the center rack for about 25 minutes, until they're lightly browned. (The original recipe says golden brown, but I don't like that phrase.)

To finish: Scoop filling into a pastry bag fitted with a 1/4 inch tip (give or take). Poke the tip through the side of each cream puff, squeezing the pastry bag until the cream puff looks like it's about to explode. You'll probably have to manually encourage the filling to stay near the tip as you go along. Dunk them one by one in the glaze to coat their tops and place them on a serving plate. Or your mouth.

Below are the filling and topping recipes that I used. Additional ones can be found here.

Kahlúa Cream Filling
1/4 cup Kahlúa
1/2 cup mascarpone cheese
1 cup whipping cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 tablespoons powdered sugar
pinch salt

Stir Kahlúa into mascarpone until smooth; set aside. If you happen to be fresh out of mascarpone, as I was, you can sub cream cheese, but you'll have to beat it in with a mixer or it won't get past being cream cheese curds swimming in creamy Kahlúa. In a large bowl, whip the cream until slightly thickened. Add the vanilla, powdered sugar, and salt and continue whipping until stiff peaks form. You want the cream to have a lot of body, but don't over-mix or the cream will be "curdy."
Using a rubber spatula, mix about a quarter of the whipped cream into the mascarpone, stirring until smooth. Fold the mixture into the whipped cream until smooth. Whip on low speed for 5 to 10 seconds (no longer) to give the mixture body. Refrigerate until ready to fill the pastry shells.

Chocolate-Kahlúa Ganache Topping
1/2 cup whipping cream
1 cup chopped bittersweet chocolate (5 ounces) I use chocolate chips; they're pre-chopped!
1 teaspoon light corn syrup
1 tablespoon Kahlúa

In a small saucepan, heat the cream over medium heat until it is hot and bubbles form around the edges of the pan. Remove from heat and add the chocolate, corn syrup, and Kahlúa. Let stand for 4 to 5 minutes and then stir until smooth. Let cool slightly before dipping filled cream puffs.

Apricot Bacon Jalapeno Bites

Skeptical? Wait, at least, until you try them. I promise you that if you like any of the three ingredients (without having an extreme animosity for either of the other two), you will not be able to resist these perfect little cocktail appetizers.

Simplicity and flexibility are both points in their favor. They also defy sharing. I first made these back in September and have had a draft of this post in progress since November. But the tasty little things refuse to conform to a recipe! Also, if you happen to make these while you're home alone, there may be fewer to share than you intended by the time anyone shows up. So here is some semblance of a recipe. It just takes a little math.

Apricot Bacon Jalapeno Bites
1 jalapeno or other hot pepper
as many dried apricots as hot pepper pieces
half as many slices of bacon as hot pepper pieces

Slice off the top of the jalapeno, then in half lengthwise. Cut out and discard the seeds and membrane (the white part). Cut it into pieces about the size of the last digit of your thumb. The number you get will vary depending on the size of the pepper...and the size of your thumb. I usually get 12-16 by slicing each half lengthwise and dividing each spear into 3 or 4 pieces.

Roll up an apricot and a pepper piece in half a slice of bacon and pin it together with a toothpick, making sure it goes through some apricot and pepper on the way to the other side. Repeat until all your ingredients are vanquished (James told me to say that.), arranging them on a baking pan.

To bake:
Preheat the oven to 350. Cook until the bacon is done, maybe 20 minutes. Give or take. This method gets them really hot in the center so it's a great way to do it if you know it will be a while before they'll be eaten.

To broil:
Preheat the broiler. Cook on one side until the bacon is done. 5 minutes? Turn them over and stick them back in to finish the bacon. The apricots might get their ends a bit scorched, but do not fear. They are still delicious.

Macaroni & Cheese

As many recipes as I've tried for macaroni and cheese, I finally decided that the only one that I ever want to make is the one I first made with my mom. No baking, no crumbs, no fancy cheeses...and no trying to make it better for you! Just good, classic mac & cheese.

Macaroni & Cheese

1 lb. elbow macaroni (other short pastas work also, but I've tried them all, and macaroni is the best!)
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
2 cups milk
pinch cayenne (optional)
pinch or two salt
pinch white pepper or black pepper
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese (In a pinch, when I've had only mild cheddar, I subbed out some of the cheddar for parmesan or swiss.)

Set a big pot of water on to boil. Enlist an assistant to grate the cheese while you measure the other ingredients. In making the sauce, it really helps to have the milk warm, or even hot, but at least room temperature. I usually stick it in the microwave for that.

Okay, once the water has boiled, throw in a big tablespoon of salt and the macaroni, stirring so that they don't stick to each other or the bottom of the pot. Set a timer for however long the package says so you can pay attention to the sauce. Do stir it occasionally, though, to make sure they're not sticking.

Right. Now that the pasta is cooking, melt the butter in a saucepan over medium heat. Sprinkle the flour over the butter and stir to incorporate the two, smoothing out any lumps. Before the roux (butter/flour mixture) has a chance to get brown, drizzle in the warm milk, stirring constantly, giving the roux a chance to absorb the milk as you add it. As soon as all the milk has been added, dump (or sprinkle, whichever you like better) in your seasonings. Simmer until it thickens a bit. Turn off the burner and add the cheese, stirring to melt. I've made my sauce a little grainy sometimes, I think by either cooking the roux too much or accidentally letting the cheese boil in the sauce or maybe from using too much cheese. I don't really know. You probably won't have this problem.

Meanwhile, your macaroni's probably done by now. Drain it and dump it back in the pot. If you drain it by putting the lid on so that there's a space for water, but not noodles, to escape, then you can skip this step. Scrape the sauce over the macaroni and stir to coat. At this point, my family considers it perfect mac and cheese. Divide evenly between bowls, counting the number of noodles so that no one gets less than anyone else.

Linguine alla Carbonara

I'd never heard of carbonara until I cracked open jamie's italy when I received it last Christmas, but it immediately appealed to me.  Eggs and pasta...what's not to love?  In the ten months between the initial inspiration and finally making an opportunity to whip it up, I had a couple of chances to try some other renditions of pasta alla carbonara.  I was not impressed.  But I was confident that Jamie and I could turn out a more appetizing product than the bland, sticky versions that didn't do much to recommend themselves.

That said...I didn't follow Jamie's instructions to the letter.  In fact, I drastically, and accidentally, altered the sauce/pasta ratio by failing to notice, when doubling the recipe to serve eight, that the original called for a whole pound of pasta rather than the eight ounces that I assumed would feed four people.  But really, this was not too much sauce and I seriously wonder why anyone would make it with less.  In addition to the inadvertent reduction of linguine, I ended up making a few substitutions due to not having shopped with this dish in mind, most notably, using bacon instead of pancetta and a mixture of half and half and milk instead of heavy cream.

Overall, I found the changes wholly successful and would make this again without any curiosity as to how it is supposed to turn out...with one final tweak: I would completely omit the lemon zest.  You may like the bright citrus zing, (as my mom does) in which case, you should definitely leave it in, but my tongue considers the addition of lemon in savory dishes out of place.  I would compare it to finding a banana in a box of books.

Linguine alla Carbonara
adapted from Jamie Oliver's linguine alla carbonara di salsiccia
serves 4-8, depending on how much you like pasta, how hungry you are, and whether the moon is waxing or waning (not really on the moon bit)

4 Italian sausages
8 slices of bacon, sliced
salt and pepper
1 lb. linguine
8 large egg yolks
1 cup half and half
7 oz. freshly grated parmesan, divided
zest of 1 lemon (like I said, not a fan. middle sister and little brother agree)
a sprig of fresh flat-leaf parsley, chopped (I admit it. I didn't want to go out in the rain to harvest a sprig of parsley, so I left it out. No one noticed, but it would certainly bring a fresh scent, especially if you decide to forego the lemon)

Strip the sausages from their casings and, with wet hands, shape them into marble-sized meatballs.  Set a large pot of salted water to boil.  Heat a large frying pan and cook the bacon until most of the fat has rendered out and the bacon is at the pleasantly chewy stage.  Scoop it out and set it aside, leaving enough fat in the pan to fry the meatballs, and draining the rest.  Gently fry the meatballs in a single layer, in batches if necessary, removing cooked meatballs to be set aside with the bacon.  If subsequent batches start sticking, you can add a little olive oil.  Add the linguine to the boiling water and cook according to package directions.

In a large bowl, whip up the egg yolks, half and half, half the parmesan, lemon zest, and parsley.  At this point I scooped out some of the pasta water and drizzled into the egg mixture, whisking it as I poured, the idea being to slightly temper the eggs and lessen the chance of scrambling the eggs when they get tossed with the pasta.  Not sure if it did anything.  You can skip that if you want.  When the pasta is cooked, drain it in a colander, reserving a little of the cooking water, and immediately toss it quickly with the egg mixture back in the pasta pot.  Add the hot sausage meatballs and toss everything together.  The egg will cook delicately from the heat of the linguine, just enough for it to thicken and not scramble.  The sauce should be smooth and silky.  If the pasta becomes a little sticky add a few spoonfuls of the reserved cooking water to loosen it slightly.  Sprinkle over the rest of the parmesan, season if necessary, and eat immediately!  Plates optional.

Banana Coconut Bread

"Can you make banana bread?"

"Sure, but not till we get the secret ingredient."

"What's the secret ingredient?"

"Coconut."

"But, I don't like coconut."

This exchange that I had with my little sister a few weeks ago can be partially explained by mentioning that our mother isn't a great fan of coconut and the number of times in my lifetime that I remember her buying it is exactly two: the first, I have no memory of what we used it for, and the second, I tossed it in the cart specifically to make this bread.  I first made this recipe for Vanessa from a recipe she had gotten from Mrs. Nutter...while I polished off the end of the previous loaf.  Toasted.  With butter.  I'd never eaten banana bread at home before (another of Mom's aversions), but I just knew that it was because she hadn't been introduced to this perfect pairing.  Knowing that the worst thing that could happen would be my eating the whole loaf, I set out to change their minds.  I think it worked; I only got to eat half of it.

Banana Coconut Bread
2 1/2 cups flour
1 cup sugar (I've also used evaporated cane juice crystals with equal success)
1 1/2 cup coconut
3 1/2 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
3 Tbsp. canola oil
3/4 cup milk
1 cup mashed banana
1 egg

Preheat the oven to 350.  Stir together the first five ingredients (flour through salt).  In a separate bowl (or your measuring pitcher, if it's big enough), blend together the last four ingredients (oil through egg).  Combine wet and dry together, making sure the dry gets well-hydrated, but taking care not to over-stir.  Scrape into a greased 9"x5" loaf pan and bake for 55-65 minutes.

 Today was crazy!  Mandy Novotny was making coffee for everybody after lunch and I had a mocha and she gave me one of the biggest mugs that we have and I was on edge the rest of the afternoon!  I kept thinking, "Why am I so anxious? Am I just stressed about all the special meals we're having this week?"  I didn't realize it was the coffee until almost 4:00.  I think that's probably the most coffee I've had at one time in my entire life.

 Of course for dinner we had one of my favorite meals that is also one of the most involved meals I make!  I always remember the time Mr. and Mrs. Nutter took me out to Indian food for my birthday this year.  And after the caffeine wearing off and me not stuffing myself with chicken tikka masala and naan, I went to choir practice.

--
Real gold fears no fire.