Fill warm pita wraps with kale or other greens, tofu, mushrooms, and onions for a satisfying vegetarian meal. (The Rowdy Chowgirl)

Meatless Monday: Kale pita wraps

By Christina Masters, The Rowdy Chowgirl / 12.09.12

Yesterday I worked in a room with daylight coming through the window, until twilight and then dark closed in.  I hardly noticed the cold evening outside until I finally got up from my computer, stretched, and drew the curtains.  As soon as I closed the curtains I was struck by how much warmer the room suddenly felt.  The night was shut out, the lamplight seemed brighter and more golden, the room was now a cozy haven from the world outside.  I have pulled those curtains countless times, but in that brief moment I felt the pleasure of it and was grateful.

Whenever I have a run of several rich, complicated meals in a row, I start to hunger for something quick, simple and vegetal. These kale wraps, which could just as well be made with chard or other greens, were created in response to that need for contrast. They are warm and filling and surprisingly umami for such a simple set of ingredients.

Kale Pita Wraps
Makes 5-6 servings 

1 12-ounce container of firm tofu

1 bunch kale, remove spines and tear into pieces

1/2 cup water

1 teaspoon olive oil

8-9 sliced mushrooms

1/2 cup diced onion

1 glove garlic, crushed

Pita slices

Hummus, to taste

Drain tofu and cut into sticks (about 1/4-inch wide).

Lightly coat a sheet pan with oil. 

Place tofu sticks in a single layer on pan and put under broiler for about 5 minutes, or until golden brown.  Turn tofu with a spatula and return to broiler for a few more minutes – just until lightly browned.

Wash kale, remove rigid spines, and tear into pieces. In a large sauté pan or wok, place kale and about 1/2 cup water over medium-high heat and cover.  Steam for about 5 minutes, or until limp. Take off lid and let any remaining water evaporate. Remove kale and heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in wok. Sauté several (8 or 9, or whatever you’ve got) sliced mushrooms along with about 1/4 cup diced onion. Return kale to wok. Add 1 clove of crushed garlic. Add tofu sticks.  Stir gently until combined. Salt to taste.

Serve a heap of the kale mixture on a warmed pita that has been smeared with hummus.

Cherry Blinks are a cheerful Christmas cookie made with cereal, nuts, and topped with maraschino or candied cherries. (Kitchen Report)

Cherry Winks Christmas cookies

By Kendra Nordin, Kitchen Report / 12.08.12

In the middle of the rush to get ready for the holidays, my friend Rebecca stopped by my apartment armed with two shopping bags full of ingredients. As I wrapped presents she worked on these Cherry Blinks for her colleagues at the private school on Beacon Hill where she teaches.

Cherry Winks aren't a part of my Christmas memory index, but they do bring to mind Christmases of times past when our family Christmas tree was festooned with wildly blinking colored lights. (I'm partial to the calmer, classic white lights now.) The unnaturally bright red and green of the maraschino cherry toppers fit right in with all that sparkles and glows this season.

When I finally stretched out in a chair my cat Cricket climbed into my lap and started purring loudly as if to say, “Stay here for awhile,” as the apartment filled with the warmth of baking cookies.

Faster than a wink of an eye, Rebecca handed me a mug of peppermint tea and a plate of warm Cherry Blinks. She changed things up a bit from the traditional recipe, using pecans and dried dates. Crunchy and sweet with their festive cherries, these would make a delicious addition to any Christmas cookie platter.

Cherry Winks

1-3/4  cups cereal (Wheaties, Special K, or cornflakes)

 1/2  cup sugar

1/3  cup shortening

1  tablespoon plus 1-1/2 teaspoons milk

1  teaspoon vanilla

1  egg

1  cup all-purpose flour

1/2  teaspoon baking powder

1/4  teaspoon baking soda

1/4  teaspoon salt

1/2  cup dried dates, chopped

1/2  cup chopped pecans

About 36 candied or maraschino cherries (red and green)

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.

Crush cereal; set aside.

In large bowl, mix sugar, shortening, milk, vanilla and egg. Stir in flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Stir in dates and pecans.

Drop dough by teaspoonfuls into crushed cereal; roll gently until completely coated. Place cookies about 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Press cherry into each cookie.

Bake 10 to 12 minutes or just until set. Immediately remove from cookie sheet to wire rack.

[Editor's note: The original version of this blog post referred to these cookies as "Cherry Blinks." But then a kind reader wrote to inform us of the true recipe title and shared a history of "Cherry Winks" that we found interesting enough to share: "That recipe has a long history. Ruth Derousseau of Rice Lake, Wisconsin, entered it into the Pillsbury Bake-Off Contest of 1950 as Cherry Winks and won the Junior First Prize. I think pecans and dates were actually part of the original recipe."]

French lentils with creamy goat cheese, toasted pine nuts, and topped with cherry tomatoes and poached salmon makes for a delicious meal on a chilly evening. (Kitchen Report)

Cookbook review: Cowgirl Chef by Ellise Pierce

By Kendra Nordin, Kitchen Report / 12.07.12

France, it has long been known, has the power to ignite a passion for food.

Julia Child overcame prejudice and disdain for Americans to earn her culinary badge from Paris Le Cordon Bleu cooking school in the 1950s. Her memoir, “My Life in France,” details her love affair with the country and its culinary masterpieces. Food writer Amanda Hesser wooed a grumpy peasant caretaker in a walled kitchen garden at Chateau du Fey in Burgundy, France, and wrote about it in “The Cook and the Gardner.” And even food blogger-turned author Molly Wizenburg of Orangette fame traces her food writing epiphany to the streets of France in “A Homemade Life.”

There are countless other Americans who traveled to France and suddenly found a new direction in life centered on food. So revered is French cuisine that its principles are a bedrock in Western culinary schools. In November 2010, French gastronomy was added to UNESCO’s “intangible cultural heritage” world list.

And then there is Ellise Pierce, the Cowgirl Chef, who followed a Frenchman to Paris only to get homesick for Texas. There, in the romantic culinary capital of the world, the former journalist found herself yearning for cornbread, hot chilis, and even – gasp – Milky Way candybars.

Unlike Child who started L’Ecole des Trois Gourmandes, an informal cooking school that taught American expats how to cook French dishes, Ms. Pierce created Cowgirlchef.com and started teaching other homesick expats how to cook Tex-Mex.

“I taught them the differences between jalapeños and habañeros, and explained the importance of corn in Mexican cuisine,” writes Pierce in her cookbook, Cowgirl Chef: Texas cooking with a French accent, (Running Press, 2012, 333 pp.). “We rolled out flour tortillas, pressed corn tortillas, and made enchiladas. We made guacamole and salsa, too.”

The success and friendship from those classes opened her heart and then her eyes to the possibilities found in neighborhood markets and restaurants. Soon she began to meld Southwest and French traditions into one – the raucous and large-portioned with the petite and refined. Think: cornbread madeleines and buckwheat crepes.

Pierce has plenty of traditional French recipes, too, but she always manages to stir in just a little bit of home. Her efforts come at an interesting time in Paris, when Parisians are delicately embracing American food trucks, hamburgers, and even American-chef-run restaurants.

Somehow a Texas girl in cowboy boots, plaid shirt, and a carefully draped silk scarf cooking up a storm in a tiny French apartment works. If anything, you’ll feel like a good gal-pal has told you to pull up a chair and eat. You’ll be glad you did.

I decided to try Pierce’s recipe for Salmon and Lentils. She says they are good anytime, even though in France, lentils “are mostly a winter thing.” I loved this dish with its hearty lentils, creamy goat cheese, topped with poached salmon, roasted pine nuts, and cherry tomatoes. If you’ve prepared your lentils ahead of time, it’s the perfect quick, one-dish meal.

Can I say it? Bon appétit, y’all!

From “Cowgirl Chef” by Ellise Pierce
(Running Press, 2012)
Reprinted with permission

Salmon and Lentils

Makes 2 servings

I love this dish best in the summer, served at room temperature, but you may also eat this warm.

1/2 cup/120 ml of dry white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc or Chardonnay [editor's note: substitute cooking wine]

2 5-ounce/150 gram salmon fillets

2 pieces of lemon zest, each about 3 inches/7.5 cm long

1 teaspoon of peppercorns

a sprig of fresh basil, plus a few leaves for serving

sea salt

2 cups/ 470 grams of cooked French Lentils (recipe follows)

a handful of cherry tomatoes, halved

2 tablespoons of fresh goat cheese

a small handful of pine nuts, toasted

balsamic vinegar, for serving (optional)

1. Put your wine, 1/2 cup/115 ml of water, salmon, lemon zest, peppercorns, and basil sprig in a shallow skillet with a big pinch of sea salt. Turn the heat to medium and when it starts to simmer, cover and set the timer for 5 minutes. Check for doneness and if you need it to go a little bit more, just reset your timer for another couple of minutes—this really doesn’t take long. When the salmon’s cooked, remove it from the liquid then pop it in the fridge, let cool, until you’re ready to eat.

2. To serve, get out a couple of soup bowls, and put about a cupful of cold or room temperature lentils in each one. Flake your salmon over the lentils, add the cherry tomatoes and 1 tablespoon of goat cheese to each bowl, tear up a few basil leaves, and sprinkle on the pine nuts. I usually add a little splash of balsamic vinegar too—it goes really nicely with the lentils.

French Lentils

Makes 6 to 8 servings

olive oil

1 onion, diced

2 cloves of garlic, minced

2 carrots, diced

3 cups/720 ml of Save Your Scraps! Veggie Stock (recipe follows), or you may use store-bought

1 pound/500 g of lentils du Puy or small green lentils, rinsed

1 bay leaf

a couple of sprigs of fresh thyme

sea salt and pepper

1. Drizzle a bit of olive oil in your heavy stockpot, add the onions and garlic, and turn the heat to medium-low. Let this cook just until the onions become translucent, just a few minutes, then toss in your carrots. Stir them around and let them cook for a few minutes, too.

2. Add 4 cups/1 liter of water and your veggie stock along with the lentils, the bay leaf, thyme, and a big pinch of salt and pepper. Put the lid on and turn the heat up to medium. When it boils, turn the heat back down to a simmer and cook until the lentils are tender but not mushy, for about an hour. Taste for seasonings and serve hot, cold, or at room temperature.

Save Your Scraps! Veggie Stock

Makes about 4 quarts/4 liters

1 (1 quart/1 liter) plastic bag filled with scraps (carrot peelings, onion skin, celery leaves, zucchini ends, or

whatever you’ve collected)

3 bay leaves

20 peppercorns

a few sprigs of fresh herbs, such as thyme, basil, and parsley

5 quarts/5 liters of water

a big pinch of sea salt

Put everything in a large stockpot and bring this to a boil. Cover, turn the heat down to a simmer, and cook for 4 hours. Taste, and add more salt if needed (or you may simply leave out the salt if you’d rather).

Strain the stock through a piece of cheesecloth placed over a colander on top of a large bowl. Let your stock cool completely and either use right away or freeze.

Cowgirl Tip: I like to freeze my stock in 2 cup/1/2 liter and 4 cup/1 liter containers, since those are the sizes that I use the most when making soups.

This chicken recipe couldn't be more simple. It's sure to become a new favorite in your weeknight repertoire. Be sure to serve it with a side that will sop up the glaze. (Whipped, The Blog)

Orange maple glazed rosemary chicken

By Caroline Lubbers, Whipped, The Blog / 12.07.12

I enjoyed a rare treat the other day. For over an hour, I was alone in the kitchen without any distraction. Baby Whipped’s unexpectedly long nap allowed me the freedom to experiment and create a few new recipes. Because I was tied to the house, I had to make do with what was in the pantry. And, because we indulged throughout our Thanksgiving break, I wanted to keep it lean.

Sometimes when spending creative time in the kitchen, I like to choose a few key ingredients and make my own version of the show “Chopped.” What can I create with the featured items I find on hand? For this recent challenge, I dug a bag of pearl barley from the very back of my cupboard. I rarely have juice in my house but remembered that I had some leftover fresh squeezed orange juice.

A quick peek in the crisper drawer revealed no fresh veggies or herbs. A visit to my outdoor herb garden led to my discovery of some robust rosemary. So, the first three things on the counter were barley, orange juice, and freshly snipped rosemary. Let the experimentations begin!

A barley salad was my initial concoction. While the barley was cooking in broth, I made a rosemary citrus vinaigrette. To add a little texture and excitement, I peeled the clementines on my counter and tossed in the sections. The recipe was good but I want to make a few slight adjustments and will share it with you in a future post. The chicken was a quick add-on keeping with my rosemary orange theme.

This new chicken recipe is super simple and will become a new favorite in my weeknight repertoire. The sauce was the best part and when it seeped over onto the barley, it made the salad even better! Serve the chicken with something to “sop” up the glaze.

Orange maple glazed rosemary chicken
Inspired by this recipe from allrecipes.com

3/4 cup orange juice

1/2 cup dry white wine (editor's note: may substitute cooking wine) 

1/2 cup pure maple syrup

2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon ground pepper

4  boneless chicken breasts

1 tablespoons butter

1 tablespoons olive oil

In a small pan, bring orange juice and wine to a boil. Reduce the heat and let it simmer for about 10 minutes. While it is cooking, in a small bowl, combine the rosemary, salt and pepper. Rub the spice mixture into the chicken breasts and set it aside.

Stir the maple syrup into the juice mixture and continue to cook for about 10 minutes.

Heat butter and oil in a large skillet over medium high heat. Add the chicken breasts and cook on both sides for about 5 minutes each to brown the outside. Pour the sauce over the top, reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 5-10 more minutes until chicken is cooked through and sauce is slightly thickened.

This light and fluffy gingerbread cake is amazing with just the cinnamon cream cheese frosting. But to really dazzle, add a scoop of pumpkin or vanilla ice cream, and a sprig of holly for a garnish. (Eat. Run. Read.)

Gingerbread cake with cinnamon cream cheese frosting

By Mollie Zapata, Eat. Run. Read. / 12.06.12

When my friend Jess and I get together, some sort of baking is almost inevitably going to occur.

We contemplated our choices and pondered the possibilities – coconut or chocolate? Maybe something fruity? Or how about something spicy? We settled on a gingerbread cake with cinnamon cream cheese frosting because (a) ‘tis the season (b) Jess has never had gingerbread before, which is compounded by (c) nor has she cooked with molasses – one of my favorite ingredients!!!

We found our recipe on Gojee (oh the wide, wide world of food/recipe apps) and it turned out quite well. The original recipe was for cupcakes, but we made it in cake form and it worked perfectly. Unlike many gingerbreads, this isn’t dense at all – it truly is a gingerbread cake recipe. And the frosting, oh the frosting. Cinnamon cream cheese need I say more? Swoon.

I usually prefer to bake solo (as in, other people can watch, but only one cook at a time!), but Jess is one of the few (only?) people I can actually bake with. We work well together, trading off measuring and mixing and sticking our fingers in the batter and cleaning up as we go. She likes mixing the frosting, while I prefer full control over the frosting process.

After baking and cooling and frosting, we let our glorious cake solidify in the fridge for a grand total of 30 minutes before we couldn’t wait anymore … cake time! A serving suggestion: scoop some pumpkin ice cream on top (not pictured ... we ate it too fast). Trust me.

This cake would be great to bring to a holiday party, maybe decorated with some red and green sprinkles or a sprig of holly?

Gingerbread cake with cinnamon cream cheese frosting
Printable recipe from Eat. Run. Read.

Cake Ingredients

2-3/4 cups flour

3 tablespoons ground ginger

2 teaspoons baking soda

1-1/2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1/2 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg

1/2 teaspoon salt

10 tablespoons butter at room temperature

1 cup packed dark brown sugar

3 large eggs, room temperature

1-1/4 cups molasses

1 cup hot water

Frosting ingredients

4 tablespoons butter at room temperature

3 cups powdered sugar, sifted

1 teaspoon maple syrup

8 ounces cream cheese at room temperature

2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Spray and flour (very thoroughly! Our cakes stuck) three 8-inch round cake pans. 

2. Mix together the dry ingredients except for the brown sugar and set aside.

3. Cream the brown sugar and butter together in a mixer for 3-5 minutes or until light and fluffy.

4. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Add the molasses, mixing until well-incorporated.

5. Alternately add one third of the dry ingredients, one third of the water, etc, mixing after each addition. The batter will be thin. 

6. Evenly divide batter between pans. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until a toothpick or knife inserted into the center comes out clean. Transfer to a rack to cool for 10 minutes, then run a knife around the edge, tip the cakes out, and finish cooling on wire racks.

To make frosting

Place all ingredients in a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and beat until well-combined. Then, when your cake is completely cooled, frost it one layer at a time and enjoy!

This is a nifty twist on a classic recipe, a combination of black bottom cupcakes, and red velvet cupcakes. The 'surprise' is the cream cheese layer that substitutes frosting. (The Runaway Spoon)

Red velvet surprise cupcakes

By Perre Coleman Magness, The Runaway Spoon / 12.06.12

Last year, I posted a recipe for peppermint black bottom cupcakes, a nifty seasonal twist on a classic recipe and family favorite. Well, as I started to think about Christmas treats for this season, I decided to take that classic recipe and try another twist – fun, rich, colorful red velvet. Red velvet black bottom is not a great name, so I call these surprise cupcakes because of the creamy white chocolate bits hidden in the center. A delicious, prettily wrapped Christmas present.

Yes, you really do need the whole bottle of food coloring to get the vivid red, otherwise it will be a muddy, dull shade. Be careful of a fresh manicure with the food coloring though, it is hard to get off. And yes, these may turn your tongue a little crimson, but that’s half the fun.

Kids and adults alike love these festive treats, and they are a perfect make-ahead, portable party delight. Stored in an airtight container, they will last for days. I can see these as a lovely gift, wrapped in cellophane, tied with a green ribbon. The cupcakes are pretty enough to serve as decoration on their own.

Red velvet surprise cupcakes
Makes 16 cupcakes 

8 ounces cream cheese, softened

1-1/3 cups sugar, divided

1 large egg

1 cup white chocolate morsels

1-1/2 cup flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder

1 cup water

1/3 cup vegetable oil

1 tablespoon white vinegar

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 (1-ounce) bottle red food coloring

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Line 16 muffin cups with paper liners.

Beat the cream cheese with an electric mixer until creamy and smooth. Gradually beat in 1/3 cup sugar until thoroughly combined. Add the egg and beat until smooth. Fold in the white chocolate morsels. Set aside

In a large bowl, combine the remaining 1 cup of sugar, the flour, baking soda, salt, and cocoa powder. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients. Stir together the water, oil, vinegar and vanilla and red food coloring in a measuring jug, then pour into the well. Stir just until the batter is mixed. Spoon the batter evenly between the 16 muffin cups, filling each half-full. Spoon a heaping tablespoon of the cream cheese filling over the batter in the cups.

Bake for 25 – 30 minutes or until a tester inserted in the middle of a cake comes out clean and the cream cheese filling is set. Cool for 5 minutes in the tins, then remove to cool completely on a wire rack.

Keep this recipe simple with store-bought pizza crust and frozen pre-fried eggplant. Or tie on an apron and make a homemade crust and learn to salt your own eggplant. (The Gourmand Mom)

Eggplant Parmesan pizza

By Amy Deline, The Gourmand Mom / 12.05.12

Yikes! Where has the time gone? Once the dishes were cleaned from our Thanksgiving dessert, I felt myself melt into an unproductive pile of mush. I just needed a little time to recover from the rush of Thanksgiving and gear up for the holiday rush. I’m ready now. Mostly.

It wasn’t a completely unproductive week though. I decided to try my hand at making one of those adorable yarn wreaths I’ve seen pictured online. I made one, admired it for a bit, then got sucked into a major crafting time warp. I awoke covered in bits of yarn and a web of those stringy glue gun remnants. I made sixteen yarn wreaths, complete with handcrafted felt flowers and tiny green leaves, over the course of six days. I barely remember making them. They just sort of appeared in a pretty pile on my dining room table. It’s kinda weird. Almost everyone I know is getting a wreath for Christmas.

On top of manic crafting, I’ve been overfilling my calendar with holiday events, shopping lists, and cookie baking schedules. Suffice it to say, this is gonna be a busy month. And busy months require easy dinners – the sort of stuff you can easily prepare by throwing together a few basic ingredients, while still resulting in a tummy-warming winter meal. This eggplant parmesan pizza fits the bill perfectly.

You could even make it with frozen pre-fried eggplant, if you wanted to keep it super, super simple, though frying your own eggplant takes minimal effort. That crisp fried eggplant gets scattered on a pizza shell (make your own or buy pre-made, like I did) along with pizza sauce, ricotta cheese, parmesan, and melty mozzarella for a simple, satisfying meal.

Today’s focus on technique – salting eggplant

It is often recommended to salt eggplant prior to frying it. This technique is best applied to larger eggplants which have been sitting in the grocery case for a bit. Baby eggplants or those that have been freshly picked will most likely be wonderful without salting. The purpose of salting the eggplant is to draw out some of the bitter liquid which collects in larger, older eggplants. The end result is better tasting, firmer eggplant which will absorb less oil as it’s fried.

To salt your eggplant, start by cutting or slicing your eggplant, as desired. Arrange the pieces or slices in a single layer on a baking sheet. Sprinkle the eggplant slices with a good amount of salt. Allow it to rest for approximately 20-25 minutes. Beads of liquid will begin appearing on the surface. Thoroughly rinse the eggplant and pat dry.

Eggplant Parmesan pizza

1 eggplant, sliced into 1/4-inch slices

Salt

1/2 cup flour

2 eggs, lightly beaten

2 cups seasoned bread crumbs

Vegetable or olive oil, for frying

1 pizza crust (store-bought or homemade)

1/2 cup ricotta cheese

1/2 cup pizza sauce

1/4 cup parmesan cheese

1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded

*All measurements are approximate. Actual measurements will vary depending on the size of your pizza crust. I used a 12-inch store-bought crust.

Arrange the eggplant slices in a single layer. Sprinkle with a good amount of salt. Allow to rest for about 20 minutes. Rinse thoroughly, then pat dry.

Dredge each slice in the flour, then dip in egg, then dredge in the bread crumbs. Press the bread crumbs into the eggplant so that it is thoroughly covered. Heat a thin layer (about 1/8-inch) of oil in a large fry pan over medium/medium-high heat. Fry the eggplant slices for a minute or two on each side, until golden brown and crispy. Adjust the heat, as necessary, to prevent burning. Drain the fried slices on paper towels. Chop into small pieces.

To assemble the pizza: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Spread the ricotta cheese in an even layer over the pizza crust. Spread the pizza sauce on top of the ricotta (I like to use a smooth and thick tomato-paste based pizza sauce.) Sprinkle about 1/2 of the mozzarella cheese over the sauce. Arrange some of the eggplant pieces around the pizza. (You may have extra eggplant remaining.) Sprinkle with the parmesan cheese and remaining mozzarella cheese. Bake for about 15-18 minutes, until hot and melty.

This dish is just fun to cook. Put something in the pan and cook it for a bit, then add the next ingredient. The recipe was so simple and rustic, I was expecting good but basic. What I got was transcendent. (Blue Kitchen)

Cookbook review: Lidia’s Favorite Recipes

By Terry Boyd, Blue Kitchen / 12.04.12

When does Lidia Matticchio Bastianich sleep? The star of PBS’s popular "Lidia’s Italy," she is also chef/owner of restaurants in New York, Pittsburgh, and Kansas City. She’s a partner (with son Joe, Mario Batali and Oscar Farinetti) in New York’s wildly successful Eataly. She and son Joe have a winery in Italy. Lidia and her daughter Tanya design a line of cookware (they’ve also launched a line of pastas and sauces). Oh. And in her spare time, she writes cookbooks.

Her most recent is "Lidia’s Favorite Recipes: 100 Foolproof Italian Dishes, from Basic Sauces to Irresistible Entrees," published in October 2012. She calls it her “most accessible cookbook to date, a gathering of recipes that have become her go-to meals for her very own family.” These are not the deconstructed or re-imagined recipes you’ll find in some chefs’ cookbooks (not that there’s anything wrong with that approach). The recipes here reflect yet another of Lidia’s roles, one she takes great pride in – that of Italian grandmother or nonna.

Much as grand-mères are responsible for the simple, perfect meals that I most cherish in French cuisine, nonnas have long been the source for the best of traditional Italian food. They get meals on the family table and pass their culinary skills and techniques on to daughters and granddaughters, keeping classic recipes alive. You’ll find many of them here, from veal osso buco to escarole and white bean soup, olive oil mashed potatoes, eggplant Parmigiana and savory seafood stew. "Lidia’s Favorite Recipes" is particularly rich in pasta dishes. That’s where I decided to start exploring.

I love when recipes teach me something. When I first started cooking, once something went into the pan, it was in there. Period. Then one day, I came across a recipe that had you brown an ingredient – probably meat of some sort – and remove it from the pan while you completed other steps, then return it to the pan for finishing. It was a revelation. Now it’s standard operating procedure to me, of course. Well, this recipe uses my earlier cooking style, layering flavor upon flavor as you keep adding ingredients to the pan. And it does it in a way that nonnas have always done, I think.

Besides being fairly quick and easy to prepare, this dish is just fun to cook. You put something in the pan and cook it for a bit, then make a hole in the center of the pan and add the next ingredient. After that cooks for a minute or two, you mix everything together and then make a hole for the next ingredient. The recipe was so simple and rustic, I was expecting good but basic. What I got was transcendent.

Ziti with sausage and fennel
 

Serves three as a main course, four or five as a primi course

1/2 pound ziti (see Kitchen Notes)

Salt

1/2 pound mild Italian sausage

1 fennel bulb, 1 pound or slightly less

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 medium onion, halved lengthwise and sliced into half moons

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper

1/4 cup tomato paste

3 tablespoons finely chopped fennel fronds

1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Salt generously and add ziti. Cook until not quite al dente, about 2 minutes less than recommended cooking time. Drain, reserving 2 cups of pasta water. Do not rinse (see Kitchen Notes). Set aside.

While the water comes to a boil and the pasta cooks, assemble the other ingredients. If the sausage is not bulk, remove from casings and break the meat up with your fingers. Using a sharp knife, slice off the root end of the fennel bulb and the stalks with the fronds. Reserve the stalks and fronds. Slice the bulb in half lengthwise and peel off the tough outer layer. Cut out the inner core and slice the bulb halves lengthwise into about 1/4-inch slices. You’ll probably end up with more than the 2 cups you need. You can save it for another use or go ahead and have a little more fennel in this dish.

Heat the olive oil in a large nonstick skillet with high sides – I used a sauté pan – over medium flame. Add the sausage and cook for 1-1/2 to 2 minutes, breaking the meat up more with a wooden spoon. Push the sausage to the sides of the pan and add the onion in the center. Cook, stirring, for about 2 minutes, then mix the onion and the sausage together. Create a hole in the middle again and add the fennel. Cook for a minute or so, stirring occasionally, then mix with the meat and onions. Season lightly with salt and then clear yet another hole. Add the crushed red pepper and toast for about 30 seconds. Toss to combine and make one final hole. Add the tomato paste and cook until just sizzling, 1 or 2 minutes, mashing it with the back of a wooden spoon.

Ladle in 1-1/2 cups of the reserved pasta water. Stir well and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer the sauce for 5 to 6 minutes. Flavors will develop, the sauce will thicken slightly and the fennel will soften a bit (you want it to remain slightly crunchy, so don’t overcook).

Add the pasta to the pan. It will be sticking together, but don’t be alarmed. As you gently toss it with the sauce, much of it will loosen up on its own. With the more stubborn pairs of tubes, insinuate the edge of a spatula between them, and they will separate. Cook for 2 minutes or so to let the pasta absorb some of the sauce and finish cooking. Add the fennel fronds and toss to combine. If the dish is seeming a bit too dry, drizzle on a little more pasta water and mix it in.

Remove the pan from the heat, sprinkle the grated cheese over the pasta and toss it in. Serve immediately in shallow pasta bowls.

Kitchen Notes

I like ziti. For years, our go-to tubular pasta has been penne. But with its ridged sides, it can be thick and chewy. This recipe is the first time I’ve cooked with ziti, and I have to say, I love its thinner walls.

Starch is good. You often hear the reason to not rinse pasta is that the starch from the cooking water helps the sauce stick to it. That’s the case with this dish in letters five miles high. When you plate the pasta, there will be no sauce to speak of left in the skillet. It’s all clinging to the pasta, sausage and vegetables, not so much a sauce as a flavorful coating.

Edible Books December selection: Toast by Nigel Slater

By Christina Masters and Natalie Beevers, Edible Books / 12.04.12

The Edible Books selection for December is Toast: The Story of a Boy’s Hunger by Nigel Slater.

Nigel Slater is well-known for several cookbooks filled with stories and sumptuous photos, his BBC series "Simple Cooking," and his food column in The Observer.  And "Toast" is now a BBC movie starring Helena Bonham Carter.

Before Slater was a famous author and broadcaster he was a young boy who dealt with the loss of his mother, a new housekeeper, and his father’s uncertain temper.

"Toast" is a memoir of Slater’s childhood and growing culinary talents, told through food.  Get ready to learn more about the boy who became the famous man.

Happy Reading! ~ Christina & Natalie

Below is the December discussion schedule:

This month’s reading schedule requires some explanation: We have divided the book into four roughly equal weekly sections as usual. Toast is written in 118 very short chapters – some less than a page long – that are titled but not numbered.  The page numbers listed below are accurate for the Kindle Edition but vary slightly for the paper editions and are therefore intended only as a guide.

December 1-7: Discuss Chapters Toast 1-Jelly 1 (approx pp. 1-57)
December 8-14:  Discuss Chapters Jelly 2-Fray Bentos Steak & Kidney Pie (approx pp. 58-109)
December 15-21:  Discuss Chapters Smoked Haddock-Coffee and Walnut Cake (approx pp. 110-159)
December 22-31:  Discuss Chapters Candyfloss-Toast 3 (approx pp. 160-247)

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