Week of January 6

Being home and not working a nine-to-five job has resulted in some nice changes to my schedule. I went shopping on Friday this week (as opposed to the Saturday or Sunday shop I usually do). I don't think I have ever had such a nice time at the supermarket: plenty of parking, no one in the store, no lines at the registers. Wow. Weekday grocery shopping is great.

Per one of my earlier posts, I am gearing up to master Resolution #8: Cooking one recipe from each of my cookbooks. I've set up a separate blog to track recipe completion. You can get to it here or via the Cookbook Challenge link in the sidebar. I'll be noting Cookbook Challenge recipes with a "CC".

On Sunday, I:

• Braised leeks.
• Baked beets.
• Boiled up (simmered really) some beans for minestrone.
• Made Sunday dinner.

Week of January 6
Sunday
Warm shrimp, arugula and radicchio salad with balsamic vinegar (CC)
Tortellini in brodo (CC)
Torta della Befana (CC)

Monday
Alice Water’s winter minestrone (CC)
Cheese toasts

Tuesday
Chicken souvlaki on pita
Greek cherry tomato salad

Wednesday
Fettuccine with mushroom ragout
Beet salad with horseradish

Thursday
Leek, anchovy & egg sandwiches (CC)
Green salad

Friday
Pizza night

Drink of the Week: The Last Word

The Chartreuse explorations continue. The Last Word is made with yellow Chartreuse as opposed to the luscious Hague Cocktail which was made with green Chartreuse.

The Last Word is a little sweet, a little sour, and just strong enough for a Friday night. The proportions are simple: equal amounts gin, yellow Chartreuse, lime juice and maraschino liqueur.

The Last Word

• 1/2 ounce gin (I used Beefeater)
• 1/2 ounce yellow Chartreuse
• 1/2 ounce maraschino liqueur (I used Luxardo)
• 1/2 lime juice

Shake together in an iced shaker. Strain and serve in a chilled cocktail glass.

Baked Millet

Wow. Do I know how to write catchy blog post headers or what? I do apologize, but the original name was too cute for me.

This what my version of Mark Bittman's Autumn Millet Bake (See? Cute.) I harbor no ill -will toward Mr. Bittman. His Minimalist column in the NY Times is a weekly must-read. He's a calm, reassuring voice in the my kitchen and his recipes work. Do yourself a favor and check out his column if you aren't a regular reader.

This recipe is from his new book, How to Cook Everything Vegetarian, and Heidi at 101 Cookbooks has a lovely post about it. I liked the idea of this recipe and thought it might make a really easy side dish. I ended up making a version that was rather unexciting compared to the original, but it was great for dinner tonight served with roasted green beans and fried haloumi cheese.

Go to Heidi's post for the original recipe and her helpful tips. I think this would be fabulous with tomatoes and zucchini with some feta sprinkled over the top at the end. Or puttanesca-style with tomato, black olives, capers and anchovy.

Tonight's version wasn't really exciting, but it was a great, easy method for millet (I could have made it more interesting by going middle-eastern by adding raisins and a little toasted cumin seed). The millet was cooked through perfectly and it was a very hands-off preparation. Here's what I ended up with.

A Pretty Tasty but Not So Exciting Baked Millet Dish

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 3/4 cup millet
• 1 cup chicken broth (may need 1/4 cup more), warmed (should not be refrigerator cold)
  
• 3 cups of cubed butternut squash (3/4" pieces)
• salt and pepper
• 1/2 teaspoon of piment espellette (or hot pepper flakes)
• 1/2 cup shelled pistachios (chopped or halved)

Heat the oven to 375.

Toast the millet in a skillet with the olive oil. This should take about 5 minutes: the millet will not get very brown but will start to smell nutty. Put the millet into an oiled 9"x13" baking dish (It will look like there is nothing there - trust the millet. It will fluff up a lot.).

Top the millet with the squash. Season with salt, pepper and the hot pepper. Pour the broth over everything. Cover the pan with foil and put it in the heated oven for about 45 minutes.

Peel the foil back and taste the millet. If it's still crunchy, add up to another 1/4 cup of broth. Toss the pistachios over the top and put the uncovered pan back into the oven. Raise the temp to 400 degrees and let it bake for another 10 minutes.

Serves 4 as a side dish.

For 2008: Eight Kitchen Resolutions

What are your resolutions for 2008?

I have never been one for resolutions. Some years I spend a few days writing a list of resolutions and then alternate between ignoring them or feeling guilty about ignoring them.

I thought I'd try something different and have produced a list of Kitchen Resolutions for 2008. Some of these items are challenging recipes or techniques. One is an area of skill improvement. One is more housekeeping than anything else. The final one is probably the most challenging, as you'll see ...

Resolution 1: Chinese Soup Dumplings
Soup dumplings are a marvel: a thin dumpling skin (similar to a wonton skin) encasing a hot, flavorful broth. Each is a rich, warming mouthful.

I have read a number of techniques and they don't seem hard to make, just fussy. However, the whole idea of them is fascinating and I can't wait to try to make them. I am also curious to see if I can use the same method with different types of soup and stew. Potato and leek soup dumplings anyone?

Resolution 2: Nancy Silverton's Sourdough Starter
Have you seen this method? Chef Silverton's starter is legendary. It's local: produced in your kitchen, using your local yeasts and the yeasts found on a bunch of grapes (okay, so that part may not be local). It's flavorful: breads made with it are supposed to have a depth of flavor not found in most breads. And, it's insanely fussy: it takes over 10 days to get the starter going and then you have to care and feed for your starter forever after.

I have tried to get this starter going before and haven't ever succeeded. Back up the hill this year ...

Resolution 3: Roast Beef
Cut me a little slack, but after those first two I needed something a little easier. Fact of the matter is I have never prepared a roast beef before. This is mostly because I don't tend to entertain large groups very often. When we do, a good old fashioned roast beef just never seems to fit the bill. However, I feel like this is a major gap in my culinary repertoire and I am looking forward to getting it right: beefy, juicy and delicious.

Resolution 4: Produce an Aged Cheddar
I love cheesemaking. I have limited my cheesemaking to fresh cheeses: ricotta, mozzarella, feta and chevre. I'd like to take this to the next level by aging a cheese. I have selected a cheddar as my first effort. I'll be able to source my cultures from the New England Cheesemaking Company (a great source - try their 30-minute Mozzarella Kit).

Resolution 5: Brew a Batch of Root Beer
Ever since I read an article in Saveur about craft root beers I have been thinking about brewing a batch. I love ginger beer and root beer and birch beer and am looking forward to producing a homebrewed version of my own.

Resolution 6: Improve My Knife Skills
Like most self-taught cooks, I pretty much do what feels logical in the kitchen. My knife skills are pretty much built on what I've learned on my own. I can get done what needs be done while I'm cooking, but I know that I could be better, faster and more accurate in my technique.


Resolution 7: Freezer Management
'Nuff said.






Resolution 8: The Cookbook Challenge
I am going to make one recipe from each cookbook in my library. Woof. I have a lot of cookbooks (this is about half of my collection, not including magazines and "clippings" from the internet). I figure I'll rediscover some old favorites and stretch my boundaries a little. I should also end up with a catalog of just what I have on the bookshelf. Hopefully I'll make it through them all.

Happy New Year!

A gracious welcome to 2008.

Every culture has a New Year's Day food tradition. Many of them are similar in spirit if not in ingredients. A common tradition, and one I heartily endorse, is the eating of lentils (preferably with something porky). The shape of lentils is similar to that of coins (well it is if you squint and suspend disbelief for a moment) and therefore eating them on New Year's Day should lead to a prosperous New Year. They taste good too.

This is the lentil dish we ate for lunch today. In addition to the lentils, it includes sauteed chorizo "coins", shallots and garlic. We ate it with a salad of radicchio and parsley and a whole wheat baguette spread with St. Andre cheese.

New Year Lentils

• 1 cup lentils (lentilles du Puy please)
  
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/2 cup sliced chorizo (I used hard chorizo, but a soft chorizo or another cured pork product can be used)
• 2 shallots, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 2 tablespoons mustard
• 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
• 4 tablespoons olive oil

Rinse the lentils and put them into a 2-3 quart saucepan. Cover with water by 2 inches, toss in the bay leaf, a pinch of salt. Bring the water to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer.

Simmer the lentils under tender (taste one or two to see). Check on them occasionally to make sure they are covered with water, adding more if they get too dry. Depending on the age of your lentils, this could take anywhere from 25 to 50 minutes.

Drain the lentils in a colander or strainer and transfer to a bowl (they do not have to be bone-dry, it's ok to leave them a little damp). Discard the bay leaf.

In a dry skillet, saute the chorizo over medium high heat until it just starts to crisp. Add the shallots to the pan and saute in the fat given off by the chorizo (add some olive oil to the pan if your sausage doesn't render enough fat). After the shallots start to soften (about 5 minutes) , add in the garlic. Saute for another minute and then add the contents of the skillet to the bowl with the lentils (if there's a lot of fat in pan you may want to spoon some of it off first).

Make a quick dressing by whisking the mustard, vinegar and olive oil together. Pour it over the lentil mixture and toss gently. Taste for salt, acid (vinegar) and oil and add more of whatever is needed.

Serve warm or at room temperature. Serves 4 as part of a meal.

Fresh herbs such as thyme, parsley or savory would be great in this.