Starting the Year Off Right

One of the best Christmas presents I received this year came completely out of the blue. I have somehow managed to get myself into the good graces of the American Lamb Board, and just before Christmas, a huge packaged showed up on my doorstep. Inside, safely wrapped in a duffel-sized cooler bag, was a beautiful crown roast of lamb - something I've heard of, but I don't think I had ever seen in person. My parents immediately claimed it for our family New Year's Day dinner, and it was packed into the freezer to await its date with the oven.

On the big day, I decided to go with the recipe that had been sent along with the meat (well, mostly - we left out the roasted veggies that the recipe places in the center of the roast). It involved two whole heads of garlic, panko breadcrumbs, and fresh rosemary and thyme. I absolutely loved how it turned out, and I would probably make this coating for other cuts of lamb as well. The only problem I had was that it had to cook much longer than the recipe said, mostly, I think, because I never managed to get the lamb into a circular shape, leaving not enough room in the middle for the hot air to circulate.

Of course, I wanted a side dish that was equally spectacular to go with such a great piece of meat. I turned to an idea that I had been wanting to try for ages - smashed potatoes. If you search for a recipe with that name, though, more often than not you'll end up with a recipe for mashed potatoes. Not the same thing at all. Instead, I cobbled together a few ideas to end up with what are, to me, the ideal potatoes. I would eat these every day, no joke. They're crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside, and topped with plenty of salt (rosemary is optional, but I think it helps). I even tried the same technique with little cipollini onions, and although they didn't crisp up, the flavor was a hit - sweet and unctuous. In fact, the softness of the onions served as a nice contrast to the crispiness of the potatoes. (You can see the onions on the tray better in this picture.)


Festive Lamb Crown Roast (from American Lamb)
2 heads of garlic
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
2 tablespoons butter
1 cup Panko bread crumbs
3 tablespoons chopped herbs (rosemary, basil and thyme) I just used rosemary and thyme
1 American Lamb crown roast, cap removed from ribs
Salt and coarse ground pepper

Cut 1/2 inch off the tops of the garlic. Place in small metal pan and drizzle with 1 tablespoon oil. Roast in 375°F oven for 1 hour. Cool and squeeze soft garlic cloves into small bowl. Mash with remaining 1 tablespoon oil; set aside.

In small skillet, melt butter and add bread crumbs. Stir and cook until browned. Pour into bowl and mix in herbs. Place roast in roasting pan. Rub garlic mixture over outside of roast. Generously season lamb with salt and pepper. Pat on bread crumb mixture. Roast at 375°F for about 45 minutes or until desired degree of doneness. Remove roast from oven, cover and let stand for 10 minutes. Carve and serve 2 to 3 chops per serving.

Smashed Potatoes (or, the only potato recipe you'll need from here on out)
*This also works well with cipollini onions - just cook in the same way as the potatoes.*
small potatoes (1 to 1 1/2 inches in diameter)
olive oil
kosher salt
chopped rosemary (optional)

Place potatoes in a small pot and cover with water (at least 1 inch over the potatoes). Add a good pinch of salt and bring water to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until you can pierce a potato with a fork but there's still a little resistance (too soft and the next step won't go too well). Drain potatoes and let cool slightly.

Preheat oven to 450°. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Drizzle olive oil across the whole baking sheet. Place a potato on the sheet and slowly flatten it with the bottom of a ramekin or a large flat-bottomed glass; repeat with the rest of the potatoes. Drizzle more olive oil on top and sprinkle with salt and rosemary. Roast for 30-40 minutes or until desired crispiness is achieved.

Full Disclosure note: The lamb was sent to me for free by the American Lamb Board.

Kolokithopita

The problem with blogging, as with so many other things, is that the longer you're away from it, the harder it is to get back into it. For literally six weeks, I've come to my computer almost daily with the intent to blog, but every day that passed and it didn't happen, the less likely I was to actually do it. Well, here I am, having had to create a post for a special assignment (you'll read all about it on December 1st), which managed to get me back into the blogging mindset (hopefully).

That doesn't mean that I haven't cooked anything in six weeks. Quite the opposite, in fact, and I kept taking pictures and jotting down recipes with the hope that it would kick-start some writing. In fact, one week I roasted a pumpkin (ok, a buttercup squash, which has more flavor than a sugar pumpkin) and used it in just about everything I made.

That was how I stumbled across the wonder that is kolokithopita. I was searching for pumpkin recipes and came across montcarte's recipe from last fall. Most importantly, it was a savory use of pumpkin puree, which is much less common than sweet uses. Less importantly, but still intriguing to me, it involved feta cheese (really, any cheese would make me happy) and phyllo dough (which always produces impressive results).

I ended up making this twice in one week because it was so good. The first time, I could barely hold myself back from cutting into it - I wanted to wait until dinner, but instead I declared it an appetizer (hours early?) and just dug in. I'm glad I didn't wait - the crispy exterior and the creamy interior, the natural sweetness of the pumpkin and the salty goodness of the cheese made this a pretty perfect pumpkin dish. At the end of the week, I was invited to a housewarming party and thought it would make a good side dish. The kolokithopita travels well and is good warm, room-temperature, or cold out of the fridge. Plus, it's fun to say.

Don't let the use of phyllo dough scare you off. I know a lot of people are a bit frightened of using it, as it is known to be a somewhat cantankerous dough. This is a good recipe to learn on, though, since it's got to be roll and twisted. The dough WILL rip in this recipe, but it's not a problem since the focus isn't on laying it perfectly flat (like it is in recipes like baklava). Plus, this recipe uses very little phyllo (less than half a box), so if you screw up a lot, you still have more than enough to get the job done.

Kolokithopita
1 stick butter, melted
2 cups pumpkin puree (I like ambercup or buttercup squash, but canned works just as well)
3/4 cup crumbled feta (about 4 oz)
2 eggs
1 tsp nutmeg
1 Tbsp honey
phyllo dough

Preheat oven to 350°. Brush an 8-inch round cake pan with butter and set aside.

Mix together pumpkin, feta, eggs, nutmeg, and honey. Stir well to combine.

Lay one sheet of phyllo dough on work surface and brush with melted butter. Lay a second sheet of dough directly on top of first sheet and brush with more butter. Lay filling in a thin strip along one of the long sides (but don't go all the way to the edge or the filling will squeeze out). Gently roll the dough away from you, forming a long snake. Arrange the snake inside the baking pan, curving it to fit the curve of the pan. Brush the exterior of the snake with more butter. Repeat with remaining dough and filling until the pan is filled (make sure to brush each curve of the dough with butter as you add it to the pan - the butter is what makes it flaky). Bake for 45 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

Manti, or Armenian Dumplings

Manti is one of those Armenian dishes that I had only a couple times in my childhood, and while I liked it, it was never something I was eager to have again. I think it may be because the traditional way to serve it, the little dumplings floating in a pool of chicken broth, is rather bland and mushy. In college, I experimented with a number of Armenian recipes, and through a whim, found out that I quite like manti, as long is it isn't served in its traditional way.

Manti is an Armenian dumpling, little balls of ground lamb wrapped in a dough to form a tiny little canoe. The meat peeks out on one side, giving you a hint of what's to come. They're great as a meal, a side dish, or just a snack. Just don't give it to me in chicken broth.

When I first started making these, I made my own dough, rolling it out very thin and painstakingly cutting it into little squares. The dough baked up a little thicker and drier than I liked. I used to freeze the baked mantis and toast them in the toaster oven for a little snack - they reminded me a lot of the frozen mini eggrolls my mother used to buy for me from the supermarket when I was a kid.

A few years later, though, my mother had the idea to use premade dough to make the process go quicker. We had already used refrigerated eggroll wrappers to make sou boreg, another Armenian dish with paper-thin noodles, so we thought it might be worth a try with the manti instead.

Lo and behold, the shortcut manti worked! It's quite different than the kind I used to make - I think I got used to the thick and dry dough - but these seem more like what manti should really be.

Manti is easy to make, but incredibly time consuming. Get a friend to help so it will go faster (you'll have someone to share the whole pan with when you're done, too!). I like to eat them straight out of the oven, but my mother still likes the chicken broth, so I've included that as well. You can freeze these after the initial baking if you'd like (make two trays and freeze one - then you won't have to do the work again later), although they reheat better with the chicken broth.

Manti
1/2 package egg roll wrappers
1 pound ground lamb
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1/4 cup finely chopped parsley
1 tsp allspice
1/2 - 1 tsp cayenne pepper (optional)
salt and pepper
small bowl of water
1 can (14.5 oz) chicken broth (optional)

Mix lamb, onion, parsley, and spices together. If you're unsure if it is spiced enough, you can fry up a little bit in a pan to get a taste. Cut each egg roll wrapper into 9 equal square pieces. Roll a pinch of the meat mixture into a ball and place in the center of a piece of dough (pictured above). With your finger, wet along two opposite sides of the dough and pinch together, forming a canoe shape with an open top. (Does this make sense to anyone but me? The wet edge with press against itself, not against the other wet edge.)

Place manti tightly together in a greased glass baking dish, open side up. When you have filled the dish, bake at 350° for 20-30 minutes or until lightly browned (we're not much for setting timers around here, just cooking "until it's done").

For chicken broth preparation, cook as instructed above, then pour chicken broth over manti, cover with tin foil, and bake for another 15-20 minutes.

Cheesy Pan Rolls with Ile de France Chaumes

I think I'm like a lot people - I love cheese, but there are probably millions of varieties out there besides the ones I'm familiar with. I could probably count the types of cheese I buy on both hands. So when Ile de France offered to send me Chaumes, something I'd never heard of, I jumped at the chance.

Chaumes is a bit unique, but it's not wholly unlike other cheeses that I was familiar with. It's soft and creamy, much like brie (a tad harder, though), and has a bit of bite like a sharp cheddar. It has a great nutty flavor and a smell that is harsher than its taste. The orange rind is edible, but I wasn't wild about it.

The package arrived when I was babysitting my nephew and nieces, and they were eager to know what was inside. Luckily, they were more interested in the bubble wrap than the cheese itself, and I quickly stashed my goods in the fridge while they weren't looking.

Flash-forward to last night, when I offered to make dinner for my friends who were busy playing Dungeons and Dragons (I've played with them, but I'd rather be cooking than rolling the dice). I knew the group liked bread and cheese, and I was already making a cheesy pasta dish for dinner, so I decided to experiment with the Chaumes I had been sent and make rolls. The resulting bread had everyone clamoring for the extras, and there was discussion of when I could make them again. Fact is, they were so simple, it's only a matter of getting my hands on some more Chaumes!

Cheesy Pan Rolls with Chaumes
1 lb pizza dough (I used the bagged stuff from the supermarket)
8 oz Chaumes cheese
1/3 cup finely chopped parsley
olive oil
Parmesan cheese

Preheat oven to 400°. Brush olive oil onto the bottom and sides of a square baking dish.

Divide dough into 16 equal pieces, and cut cheese into 16 equal pieces. Roll each piece of dough into a ball and flatten slightly in your hand. Sprinkle a few pieces of parsley on the dough, top with a piece of cheese, and wrap the dough around the cheese, pinching the edges to seal. Place the roll seam-side down in the pan. Repeat with remaining ingredients. Brush finished rolls with olive oil and sprinkle remaining parsley over the top. Grate parmesan over the top (as much as you'd like). Bake for 15-20 minutes or until the top is golden brown.

Apple and Butternut Squash Gratin

Like I said, I’ve been trying to use apples in any way possible. I love the combination of apples and cheese (enough so that my regular apple pie recipe uses gruyere in the crust) and figured that a savory dish featuring both ingredients couldn’t be a bad thing. After a quick search, I came up with a Martha Stewart recipe for a butternut squash and apple gratin. There were many things about it that I didn’t like, though, so I changed it around substantially and turned it into a much prettier dish. (The original called for laying down the squash, then the leeks, then the apples, and topping with parmesan. I think it looks much better when the squash, leeks, and apple are all layered together like above, but if you’re pressed for time, you can try it the easier way.)

As I was making the gratin, I kept thinking that there was no way that four of us were going to be able to eat the whole thing in one sitting (as part of a meal that also included a pork tenderloin). But from the first bite, it was clear that this dish was fantastic – we polished the whole thing off first. The apples and the squash cook down until they’re just barely holding onto their shape, and the cheese helps hold the whole thing together (while also adding some much needed saltiness to the sweet fruits). This is definitely a warm and comforting dish that would pair well with just about any fall meal. I wish we had had some leftover, if only so I could see how this did when reheated. You can cut and arrange everything ahead of time, although you might want to brush the apples with a little bit of lemon juice to make sure they don't brown and get dried out.

Apple and Butternut Squash Gratin
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp water
2 medium leeks, white part only, chopped and well washed
Salt and pepper
1/2 cup dry sherry
1 Tbsp chopped fresh sage
1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/8-inch thick slices
3-4 apples, peeled, cored, halved, and cut into 1/8-inch thick slices
8 ounces (or more) cheddar cheese, shredded

Preheat oven to 350°.

In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat. Add leeks and water, and season with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the leeks begin to brown, about 10 minutes. Add sherry and sage, and cook until liquid is reduced to a glaze, about 3 minutes. Set aside.

In a large, shallow baking dish, arrange squash and apple slices in alternating rows, as in the picture above. Add leek glaze between the layers. Cover tightly with aluminum foil, and bake for 45 minutes.

Remove the pan from the oven, and raise the oven temperature to 450°. Uncover the pan and sprinkled the top with cheese. Bake uncovered for about 10 minutes, or until the cheese has melted and begun to brown. Cool slightly before serving.

Herbed Corn from the Grill

So Mother Nature decided to hold up her end of the bargain this weekend, and I in turn took to the grill. And with corn, one of my favorite foods, coming into season, grilled corn was a natural choice. (I also grilled some potatoes, which didn't work quite so well, but were tasty. But then, anything covered in cheese is tasty.)

And since it's still early in the season, I whipped up some herb butter to make the corn a little more interesting (in case it didn't end up very sweet, which was not a problem). The recipe below is enough for 6 ears of corn. I also used some on my potatoes, which added a lot of flavor, and really, this would be good on any veggie or meat fresh off the grill. Because, after all, it's butter.

Herbed Corn on the Cob
6 ears of corn, cleaned
olive oil
1/2 stick butter, softened
2 Tbsp. minced fresh parsley
2 Tbsp. minced fresh chives
1 garlic clove, finely minced
zest of 1/2 a lemon
1 tsp white wine vinegar

Lightly brush corn with olive oil and place on a hot grill. Grill until slightly browned on all sides, turning as needed.

Combine softened butter, parsley, chives, garlic, lemon zest, and vinegar in a small bowl. Using a fork, mash all the ingredients together until well combined. If the butter gets too melted, place in the fridge until needed.

Spread the butter mixture on the hot corn and serve.

Rainbow Colcannon

It's funny, but I feel like every Bostonian has a little bit o' Irish in them, regardless (or should I say irregardless?) of their actual heritage. Everyone celebrates St. Patrick's Day (to some degree), and Danny Boy seemed to make an appearance every year in my school choir's repertoire. And when I went to Ireland, I shouldn't have been so surprised to see badges from police and fire departments from almost every Massachusetts town hanging on the walls of the pubs I visited.

Which is why, every St. Patrick's Day, I find myself longing for a good ol' Irish meal. I've been craving corned beef for days, but I've had no time to cook it. I decided to go with the quick and easy dish of colcannon instead, just so St. Paddy's wouldn't go by without a heaping of root veggies.

Colcannon is basically mashed potatoes with cabbage or kale. My version is a little fancier, with parsnips and rainbow chard in the mix. For a more traditional version, trade out the parsnips for one more potato and the chard for kale or cabbage. It is also traditionally served on Halloween, with a coin or ring buried somewhere in the mix, but really, it's good at any time throughout the winter months, when you need a hearty side dish.

Rainbow Colcannon
3 potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
2 parsnips, peeled and cut into 3 or 4 large chunks
1 leek, finely chopped
1/2 pound rainbow chard, finely chopped
2 Tbsp butter
1/2 cup milk (whatever you have around is fine, I used skim)
salt and pepper

In a large pot with salted, boiling water, cook potatoes and parsnips for 10-15 minutes, or until tender. Strain with a slotted spoon and place in a large bowl; put pot back on the pot and bring back to a boil. Add leek and chard to the boiling water and cook for about 5 minutes, or until the chard stalks are cooked through. While greens are cooking, add butter and milk to potatoes, and mash until the potatoes are creamy. Drain greens and rinse with cold water; squeeze dry before adding to mashed potatoes. Stir to combine, and add salt and pepper to taste.

Bloggers' Dinner at Fleming's Steakhouse

Steak houses are, to me, a special occasion-type place. My visits are few and far between, and they tend to mark big occasions (like my brother's graduation, although that meal didn't go so well...). When Fleming's Steakhouse invited me and some fellow bloggers to dinner, I was sure we'd be treated to a great meal, but I wasn't sure if Fleming's would be a restaurant I could go to for something other than a special occasion. I'm definitely glad to see that's not the case.

As always, these events are as much (if not more) about getting to know other bloggers as it is about the food. I was happy to see some familiar faces (The Leather District Gourmet, Tales of the Basil Queen, and Megan from Menupages Boston), and even happier to get to know even more bloggers (FoodieMommy, BellyGlad, Grow. Cook. Eat., Forays of a Finance Foodie, and Fork it Over, Boston!). We had a great time talking about food and blogging and why we even bother with it all (not that we actually came up with an answer for that one). We were joined by Michael Dearing (operating partner) and Jason Carron (head chef and partner), who answered our questions and learned a little about bloggers in return.

Now, granted, I know this meal was amazing and plentiful because Jason and his crew were trying to show us what they can do. I would never order everything that they showed off to us. But the quality of everything was fantastic, and the dishes were all plentiful. We started out with the cheese plate, which is given to all customers in place of a bread basket. The specifics change frequently, but the variations we were given were champagne-infused brie and cabernet-infused goat cheese. Um, yes please. Whose brilliant idea was it to combine these flavors, and can they move into my kitchen and do all my cooking from here on out?

Once everyone was settled in their seats, the appetizers began to arrive. The most beautiful was the chilled seafood tower, heaped with shrimp, king crab legs, snow crab claws, and lobster tails. I found myself reaching for seconds and thirds because there was a GIANT TOWER OF SEAFOOD IN FRONT OF ME! How could I not? Each piece was impeccably fresh, and the dish was big enough to share with multiple people as a meal. My other favorite appetizer was the lobster tempura - buttery lobster wrapped in a crispy shell and served with tempura veggies. It was even better than it sounds.

For dinner, we each ordered our own main dish (steak for 90% of the table), and the chef brought out a variety of sides for us to try. I topped my petit filet with Bearnaise sauce (all the while thinking "Don't be saucy with me, Bearnaise") and took little portions of each side.

As much as I enjoy steak (and this was perfectly cooked), I'm more a fan of the sides. Shoestring fries, ginormous onion rings, mashed potatoes (two types - roasted garlic, and parmesan peppercorn), chipotle cheddar macaroni and cheese, sauteed spinach, grilled asparagus, spicy sauteed corn - all delicious.

Dessert was good, but honestly, the savory sides were so good that I was still focused on those. The chocolate lava cake was the stand-out dessert, with a center that was actually molten (unlike in so many restaurants) and served with fantastic pistachio tuille cookies.

This meal showed me that Fleming's can be a typical steakhouse, with finely cooked steaks served with massive side dishes, but it can also be a place to experience 100 different wines by the glass (or in flights) while enjoying your favorite appetizer or side dish, or taking advantage of one of their great deals, such as their Sunday prime rib dinner (prime rib, salad, one side, and dessert, all for $35). Fleming's is also participating in the upcoming Restaurant Week, so if you're feeling like a complete meal, it's a great chance to try the place for little money down.

My Father's Popovers

The snow today left me wanting one thing - popovers. I couldn't help but give in.

For my parents' wedding, they received a Farberware Open Hearth Rotisserie. As far as I know, it has only ever been used to make roast beef for family gatherings. When it comes to cooking on the rotisserie, the task falls firmly in my father's domain, much like the grill. In fact, when I was growing up and we had roast beef for dinner, he would take on even more of the meal and make popovers to go alongside. And although the beef is always juicy and well-cooked, the popovers are my favorite part of that meal.

When I moved out of my parents' house, this was one recipe I made sure to have with me. Popovers are definitely a comfort food for me - the edges are crunchy, the inside is soft, and the whole thing is amazingly buttery and delicious. Sometimes I use the batter in a large glass dish and sprinkle in chopped apples, but for this snowy day, I opted for the traditionally large and billowy popovers, baked in individual ramekins.

My Father's Popovers
6 eggs
2 cups milk
6 Tbsp butter, melted
2 cups flour
1 tsp salt

Preheat oven to 375°. Grease 6 8-ounce ramekins (you can also use a muffin pan, but you'll get smaller popovers) and arrange on a baking sheet; set aside.

In large bowl with mixer on low speed, beat eggs until frothy. Add milk and butter and beat until combined. Add flour and salt and continue to mix until there are no lumps. Pour batter into ramekins, filling until 3/4 full.

Bake for 60 minutes, then make a small slit in the top of each popover for steam and bake for another 10 minutes. Serve immediately.

Tourshi, or How It's So Easy to Always Have Salty, Crunchy, Healthy Snacks on Hand

Yes, I know canning is something that's usually done in the late summer/early fall, but when am I ever together enough to do something like that on time? As soon as classes ended last semester, I started in on making some gifts for friends and family, and the first thing I thought of was tourshi.

Tourshi is an Armenian recipe for pickled vegetables, traditionally with carrots, celery, cabbage, and cauliflower. My father used to tell me about the giant vat of the stuff that his parents kept on their back deck and how cold the brine would get in the winter when he went to sneak a snack. When I was a kid, it was something we only had occasionally, usually after a visit to the church bazaar. And tourshi was probably the first time I had cauliflower, and for many years, it was the only way I would eat it. A few years ago, when I got into a kick of basically opening the church cookbook up to a random page and making whatever sounded good, I finally tried my hand at tourshi - and it was so stupidly easy, I couldn't help but wonder why we hadn't been making our own all along. The hardest part to the whole process is cutting the vegetables into chunks and arranging them in the jar (and looking at my pictures here, it's clear that I didn't do the best job with packing).


Tourshi
1 lb carrots, peeled and cut into sticks
1 lb celery, cut into sticks
1 cauliflower, cut into bite-size florets
1 lb sugar snap peas, ends trimmed
1/2 large cabbage, cut into wedges
12 cloves garlic, peeled
1 bunch fresh dill
whole black peppercorns
2 quarts water
1 quart cider vinegar
1/2 cup Kosher salt
2 Tbsp sugar


Arrange 6 quart-size (wide-mouth preferable) canning jars on the counter or table. Place two garlic cloves in each (more if the cloves are small) along with a few sprigs of dill and a few peppercorns. In each jar, tightly pack in cleaned and cut vegetables until the jar is full. Top with more dill sprigs and a few more peppercorns.

In a large pot, bring water, vinegar, salt, and sugar to a boil, stirring to dissolve the salt and sugar. Carefully ladle the brine into each jar (a small funnel is very helpful in this) and seal with clean lids. Store in a cool place for at least two weeks, and refrigerate before serving.

Also, once you've eaten everything in the jar, you can just throw in a few more veggies to get a second life out of the brine - they won't be as intense as the first round, but they'll still be delicious and salty with very little work.

Addictive Roasted Parsnips

I fell in love with parsnips last fall and haven't been able to get enough of them since. A relative of the carrot, parsnips are sweet like their cousins but are not quite as enjoyable raw. They're perfect roasted or in soups and were probably introduced to many people (myself included) via Terra Chips.

So as much as I love chopping parsnips into cubes and roasting, I wanted something a little more crunchy this time. Something a little more sweet and starchy, like what you find in that Terra Chips bag, but - you know - a little less fried.

Due to crowding on my roasting pan, some slices ended up very crispy while others were cooked through but not crunchy at all. I actually ended up liking this better than if they had been uniformly crispy. This would serve better as a side dish than a snack, especially alongside the turkey this Thursday.


Addictive Roasted Parsnips
1 pound parsnips (the fatter the better)
3 Tbsp butter, melted
1 Tbsp brown sugar, packed
1/2 Tbsp kosher salt
1/2 Tbsp Penzey's Tsardust Memories (or a blend of salt, garlic, cinnamon, pepper, nutmeg, and marjoram)

Preheat oven to 400°.

Using a carrot peeler, peel off skin of parsnips and discard. Peel the rest of the parsnips into strips using the peeler (you will be left with a small stub that is too hard to peel). In a large bowl, toss parsnip strips with the rest of the ingredients until coated. Arrange strips on a foil-lined baking sheet in a thin and even layer. Roast for about 30 minutes, tossing the parsnips occasionally to ensure uniform browning. Remove from oven when most of the strips are at least golden on the edges and they are all cooked all the way through.

Bacon Cheddar Scallion Scones

I've been playing with a cream scone recipe for a while, but I've gotten tired of sweet scones. So after a little research online, I've put together a few recipes to form one damn good savory scone. Using the near-perfect triumvirate of bacon-cheddar-scallions, these are a nice alternative to biscuits. I'm planning on making mini versions of these to take with me to Thanksgiving next week.


Bacon Cheddar Scallion Scones

3 cups flour
1 Tbsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
1/4 tsp cayenne pepper
1 stick butter, cut into small pieces
about 5 ounces of cheddar, grated
4 green onions
10 slices bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
3/4 cup buttermilk
1 large egg

Preheat oven to 400°.

Combine dry ingredients (flour through cayenne). Add in butter and work with your hands to combine - press butter between your fingers to form thin sheets. Add cheese, green onions, and buttermilk, and mix together. Add bacon and egg and mix until all the ingredients are incorporated.

Turn dough out onto a flat surface and knead a few times to smooth out the dough. Form dough into a ball, then flatten into a 1/2-inch thick disk. Cut the disk into wedges. Spread wedges across a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving a little room around them. Bake for 16-18 minutes, or until the bottom of the scones start to brown and the cheese in the scone begins to turn golden. Best served warm.

*And don't forget to vote for me (Pam Aghababian) for the Blogging Scholarship! I'm the only food blogger on the list. Voting ends Thursday (11/20) at 11:59pm!

Pumpkin and Spicy Cheddar Souffle

I'm not usually one to make recipes found in advertisements for brand-name products. But when I saw the ad for Cabot's Pumpkin and Habanero Cheddar Souffles in a magazine, I couldn't wait to give them a shot. Nothing says Fall quite like pumpkins, and these seemed like the perfect way to start the season. Luckily, I already had some of Cabot's 50% Light Jalapeno Cheddar at home, so all I had to do was pick up some mini pumpkins.

Before finding this recipe, I would never had thought to cook with mini pumpkins. We're talking about the tiny little things that can be found with the other small ornamental squashes. I didn't even consider how much flesh was actually in them. But each pumpkin has about half a cup of meat to it - good eats! And very easy to deal with!

Pumpkin and Spicy Cheddar Souffle
4 mini pumpkins
2 eggs, yolks and whites separated
2 tsp flour
1/8 tsp baking powder
2 ounces spicy cheddar (I like Cabot's 50% Light Jalapeno Cheddar), finely chopped

Preheat oven to 350°. Place pumpkins in shallow baking dish and add water about halfway up the sides of the pumpkins. Cover tightly with foil and bake for 40 minutes. Let cool.

Reheat oven to 375°. With a paring knife, remove tops from pumpkins. Remove seeds and scoop out flesh, leaving about 1/4-inch-thick walls. Place pumpkin meat in a bowl. Add egg yolks, flour, baking powder, and cheese, and mix well. Whip egg whites into stiff peaks, then fold gently into the pumpkin mixture. Spoon mixture into the pumpkin shells. Place on baking sheet and bake for 12-15 minutes, or until puffed and starting to brown.

Asparagus Ricotta Tart

"Something creamy."

That was the direction we were given for dinner last night. None of us could really decide what we wanted, so the challenge of "creamy" was thrown out there. Ann and I spent quite a while perusing Tastespotting, various blogs, and saved recipes to see what we could find. Eventually, I found this recipe from Bon Appetit, and we all agreed that it sounded fantastic.

It wasn't until we were actually eating it that we realized just how creamy and delicious it was. The puff pastry was light and airy, the ricotta and asparagus puree tasted like spring, and the Comté cheese (which smelled like feet while it was being grated) added a nice saltiness and just a hint of tang. The recipe, with our revisions, is below.

And of course, as I've mentioned before, it irks me that puff pastry comes two to a package, making it necessary to use both. Ann devised a raspberry chocolate tart with the second half that was just amazing. I'm pretty sure we'll be hanging on to both of these recipes for a while.

Asparagus Ricotta Tart, adapted from Bon Appetit
1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed
1 egg, beaten
1 pound slender asparagus spears, trimmed
1/2 cup whole-milk ricotta cheese
3 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/8 teaspoon salt
3 slices of proscuitto, cut into 1/3 inch pieces
2/3 cup grated Comté cheese, divided

Preheat oven to 400°. Roll out dough slightly, to mend creases. Cut a half-inch-wide strip from each side. Brush the edges of the dough with egg, then top with the strips to form a raised border. Brush the border with egg; reserve rest of the egg. Transfer to a baking sheet and set in the fridge to chill.

Blanch asparagus until tender, about 3 minutes. Immediately move to an ice water bath to stop the cooking. Drain, and snap the tips off the stalks and reserve. In a food processor, puree the asparagus stalks with the remaining egg. Mix in the ricotta, oil, salt, and 1/3 cup of the Comté. Remove pastry from fridge. Layer the proscuitto pieces along the pastry, then top with ricotta mixture. Lay the asparagus tips over the top of the ricotta, then sprinkle with the remaining 1/3 cup Comté.

Bake until the puff pastry is browned and the filling is set, about 25 minutes.

I Have a New Love

The rain was beating down last week when I finally made it to the farmers market. I made my choices quickly, moving from booth to booth and picking what looked best. I really had my hopes up for some zucchini flowers, but there were none in sight. One booth had bunches of pea tendrils, something I've heard a lot about, but never tried.

The first time I heard that people ate pea tendrils, I was amazed. I would never think to eat the part of the plant that helps the peas climb. I thought they would be too tough, despite the thin curls, because the plant would need strength to climb. I was all wrong. The leaves and the vines were very tender with just a little bit of bite.

I didn't get around to cooking these until tonight, and I was afraid they wouldn't be any good after 4 days in the fridge. There were a few bad pieces, but there was more than enough left after I culled them from the bunch. I heated some oil in a wok on high, then added the tendrils for about 10 seconds. They wilted immediately, and with that, they were ready to eat.

My first bite made me smile. The flavor was still bright and fresh, even after so many days. It tasted like a wonderful combination of fresh peas and asparagus - not quite as sweet as good peas, with a little of the woodsy quality of asparagus. Just cooking it in oil let the real flavors shine through, but now I'm looking forward to trying new flavors with it. My Chinese five-spice peeked its head out of the cabinet as I reached for the oil, so I may had to give it a try next time. I'm so pleased that I finally tried these, and I can't wait to pick some more up at the farmers market this week.

The Geekiest Salad in the Universe

I've never been a big Star Trek fan. Well, ok, there were a few years when I was growing up when I thought Deanna Troi was the coolest woman on TV. But besides that, never a big fan. I think I might have seen one of the movies... once. So I was slightly disturbed when the first thought that came to mind while I chopped my farmer's market-fresh fennel was "That looks just like the Star Trek logo!"




And that's not even a good picture of it. It was kind of eerie... More eerie was that this proved that I'm a big geek. I mean, I've known it for a long time, but this really solidified the fact.

Anyway, when I shook myself out of my geeky stupor and finished cutting the fennel bulbs, I was at a bit of a loss for what to make with said fennel. This recent Chowhound post had given me some good ideas, but I was short on supplies. I already had some corn boiling, intending it as a snack for work the next day. Instead, I cleaned all the kernels off and threw them in with the fennel.

With a little more tweaking, I was left with a very brightly flavored salad. The fennel, still raw, is the focus with its vibrant anise flavor. I liked the texture combination from using both the fennel bulb and stalks. The corn brought a sweet burst of flavor to balance out the savory fennel. Adding lime juice incorporated a tart burst to each bite. This salad is simple to make, but it tastes so complex. It would be a great side dish for some grilled meat or fish.



Fennel and Corn Salad

2 small fennel bulbs, sliced thinly, plus 3 or 4 fronds, chopped
2 ears of corn, cooked, kernels scraped off
juice of 1 lime
pinch of sugar
pinch of salt

Toss all ingredients in a bowl. Make sure everything is coated in the lime juice. Season with sugar and salt to taste.

Food for a Summer Cold

Out of the blue yesterday afternoon, my throat started to hurt. I knew what was coming - the most fun of all the different kind of colds, the summer cold. It's that cold you get when the air conditioners first get turned on strong, and it's that cold that is impossible to ameliorate with tea and soup because it's so friggin' hot outside.

So I stayed home from work, and all I could think about was diet Sprite and soup. Yes, steaming hot soup. I scoured my cookbooks and the internet for a while, but all I could find were recipes involving whole chickens and hours and hours of simmering time. Finally, I found something in Cooking Light magazine that looked doable.



This recipe probably took me longer than it would have if I hadn't been sick. Shredding the chicken was an especially difficult task that took more coordination than I actually had at the time, and I wasn't coherent enough to notice that the burner the soup was on wasn't actually heating up. The results were good; this is tasty soup, and I can feel myself getting better already (ah, placebo effect). I really don't think you need the 3 pounds of chicken in the recipe, though; 1 pound of chicken breasts and 1 pound of thighs would have been plenty. The recipe also suggested using the same pot to cook the noodles, then the soup, to save clean up time, hence the noodles cooked well ahead of time. I now have enough soup to last me roughly three weeks.

Cooking Light Rosemary Chicken Noodle Soup

4 cups cooked wide egg noodles
1 Tbsp olive oil
8 cups water
4 cups chicken broth
1 large onion, chopped
1 cup chopped celery
2 Tbsp dried rosemary
1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken thighs
1 1/2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breast
1 10 ounce package petite-cut carrots (or 1 1/2 cups chopped carrots)
1 6 ounce package fresh baby spinach
juice of 1 lemon
black pepper and salt to taste

After cooking noodles, toss with olive oil and set aside.

Combine water, broth, onion, celery, rosemary, and chicken pieces in a large pot. Bring to a boil, then cover, reduce heat and simmer for 30 minutes. Remove chicken, cool slightly, and shred with 2 forks. Add carrot to the soup and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer 6 minutes or until carrot is tender. Add shredded chicken and spinach and cook until spinach is wilted. Stir in noodles, lemon juice and salt and pepper.



Since I was so with it while I made the soup, I cooked all my noodles instead of the 4 cups I would need for the soup. What to do with the leftovers? Cover them in cheese! (In my head, that sounded like "I'm covered in bees!!" ) There's nothing better than egg noodles covered in mozzarella, dotted with butter, and baked to form a wonderful crunchy, gooey, oily mess.



Think I was done there? No way. I needed some more comfort food, and while I was at the market, the baking section spoke to me. Quite literally, I think, since I wasn't completely with it after walking to the store. Lemon cake mix and lemon pudding mix combine to the tastiest, moistest cake. Even my roommate approved.

Spaetzle with Arugula Pesto

The sun is out again here in Boston, and pesto sounded like a great idea... but basic basil pesto seemed a little too pedestrian for today. What better green to use than my favorite, arugula?

I was working off the cuff on this one, but I think it turned out pretty well. I also tried to cut down on the oil, so it's a little more pasty than a typical pesto.

Arugula, about 4 oz. or half a bag
Olive oil, about 1/3 cup
2 garlic cloves
Zest of half a lemon
Shaved Pecorino Romano, to taste

Combine ingredients in a food processor and pulse until blended. Add more of whichever ingredient seems lacking, especially oil if it's too dry or not moving around the blade. This made about 3/4 cup. Obviously, you can adjust the amounts to produce more.

I was very happy with this combination. Arugula, olive oil and Pecorino are naturals together. The lemon added a very sharp, fresh taste that intrigued me; it gave the whole recipe a different twist. (Ouch. No pun intended.)



Now, I needed something to put the pesto on. I really wanted fresh pasta, but I don't know where to buy it near me, and I didn't have the patience to make any tonight. Instead, I decided to try my hand at the spaetzle recipe I received a few weeks ago from Paul Turano.

1/4 cup water
2 eggs
3 T melted butter
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp pepper
1 cup flour

Mix all ingredients except flour together. Add flour once everything else is incorporated. Over a pot of heavily salted, boiling water, push spaetzle dough through the holes of a colander. Work in batches. As soon as the spaetzle float, transfer to cold water to halt the cooking.

I really wanted to take pictures of the spaetzle-making process, but I had to work so quickly, and the potential for bodily injury was growing by the second, so I had to pass. Instead, you get this amazing photo of my naked spaetzle.



I could never imagine the need for a spaetzle maker before. Now I understand. The holes in my colander were just too small, making it almost impossible to get the dough through. The pieces that did make their way through were tiny... almost a joke. And the way they were swimming around in the water was a little obscene... The steam was pouring up through the colander holes that weren't plugged up by dough, and I had to resort to awkwardly holding kitchen towels over my arm in order to keep all my skin intact.

But I soldiered on. After all the spaetzle was cooking, I heated some oil in a pan and sauteed some chopped peapods. Then I added the spaetzle and allowed the dumplings to brown slightly, tossing occasionally.

After cooking, I added a few chopped tomato pieces and a big spoonful of the arugula pesto (about 1/4 of what I had made). I had intended to keep some leftovers for lunch tomorrow, but the small amount of spaetzle didn't stretch as far as I thought it would.



Overall, this wasn't a total disaster. I mean, yes, the spaetzle was more difficult than I expected. So what if I almost scalded my hand off making it? And so what if said spaetzle looked like giant sperm? At least the pesto was great, and at least it still tasted good!

Mojito Cucumber Salad

Mojito Cucumber Salad screams summer. Here in Boston, it's been alternating hot and muggy days with cold and clammy days, so I've been needing something to make me feel like summer has actually arrived (um, we'll gloss over the fact that it won't actually be summer for another 19 days...).

This recipe couldn't be easier, and the hardest part is waiting for a while to let the cucumbers pickle slightly. These cukes are a great snack by themselves, touching the bases of sweet, tart and spicy, all in crispy little bites.

Mojito Cucumber Salad

1 English cucumber
10-15 fresh mint leaves
1/4 cup sugar (I actually prefer Splenda for this)
1/4 cup rice vinegar
1-inch fresh ginger, chopped
1 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

Slice the cucumber into paper-thin slices (a mandoline works perfectly). Put slices in a large bowl and set aside.

In a blender, puree the rest of the ingredients. Pour over the cucumbers, tossing to cover with the dressing. Refridgerate for at least half an hour to let the flavors meld. I would imagine this keeps for quite a while, but I usually eat it before day 2 is over.



Yes, I know there's no lime or rum in this, making for a pretty strange mojito. But the acidity in the rice vinegar really makes up for the lack of lime. The rum, on the other hand... I guess you could always add a splash!

How I Met My Eggplant

I was never a fan of vegetables as a kid. They were usually overcooked and bland, and they weren't something I wanted to waste my time on. One veggie, though, always had a place on my plate - eggplant. And this was primarily because it was always covered in cheese.

My mother's eggplant recipe is easy - so easy, it shouldn't even be called a recipe. Simply slice an eggplant into 1/8-inch thick rounds and soak in salted water to draw out the bitterness. Once the water turns brown (yum!), drain and lay the slices on an oiled baking sheet (I use an oil mister, then spray the tops of the slices too).





Top with grated Parmesan cheese (it wasn't until I had already bought the Parm that I realized my mother uses mozzarella, which is even tastier) and bake at 400 degrees until the cheese bubbles and browns. Try not to burn your fingers as you greedily peel the slices off the pan.



And of course, a girl can't live on eggplant and cheese alone (wait a minute...). I also made some chicken, quickly marinated in some olive oil, balsamic vinegar, chopped garlic and oregano flakes. All I can say is "Wow". The balsamic gave it a lovely brown tone that concerned me while it cooked... it looked burned. Luckily, it was tasty and very juicy.