Recipe: Wilted Salad Frary-Style

Posted on March 15, 2018 by Burnt My Fingers
Wilted Lettuce Saad

Wilted Lettuce Salad as it used to be served at Frary Dining Hall

This salad was served as a weekend lunch in my college dining hall, when staffing was light and most students were too hungover to eat. Accompanying it were sausage links and applesauce, a toothsome and vaguely middle-European meal. Serves 4.

Ingredients:
1/2 head iceberg or Romaine lettuce, shredded
2 slices bacon
2 T apple cider vinegar
3/4 t salt
1/4 t MSG*

Orozco Prometheus

Orozco’s mural of Prometheus’ sufferings always whetted our appetites.

Method: sauté bacon over low heat in a large skillet until crisp; reserve. Add about the same amount of vinegar as the residual bacon fat along with salt and MSG and stir. Turn off heat and add shredded lettuce to the skillet; toss a few times to wilt it slightly then transfer to a serving bowl. Crumble in bacon pieces before serving.

*Optional, but I’m sure dining hall manager Helen Throne added it, along with saltpeter.

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Recipe: Acme Cheese Wheels

Posted on March 13, 2018 by Burnt My Fingers
Cheese Wheels

Acme Cheese Wheels

These are “Acme” Cheese Wheels in the dictionary sense, as in “ultimate” or “peak”. But they’re also very close to the cheese wheels served by Acme Bakery out of their Ferry Plaza shop in San Francisco. Makes a dozen individual rolls.

Ingredients:
250 g whole rye levain @100%*
450 g King Arthur All-Purpose Flour
300 g water
1 1/2 t salt or to taste
300 g (more or less) coarsely grated cheese**

Cheese Wheel Dough

Stretched dough with cheese on top

Method: mix levain and water; add flour and autolyse 30 minutes. Add salt (the amount will vary depending on the saltiness of your cheese) then stretch and fold or knead till you have moderate gluten development (remembering that rye flour doesn’t have gluten) then cover and allow to rise till you have a good amount of lift to the dough, 3-4 hours if your levain is in good shape.

Cheese Wheel Loaf

Cheese wheel loaf, headed for the freezer

Stretch out the dough on a floured surface into a rectangle, as if making a pizza, then sprinkle the cheese over covering the entire surface evenly. Roll it up from one end then wrap in plastic wrap and place in freezer till firm but not frozen, about an hour. Slice into rounds using a serrated knife. Place the rounds on parchment paper or silicone pads on half sheet pans and allow to come up to room temperature and rise a bit, about 1 1/2 hours. Bake in a 425 degree oven till the cheese is melted and exposed bread surface is lightly browned, about 25 minutes. Best if served warm or reheated slightly in the microwave.

Unbaked Cheese Wheels

Unbaked cheese wheels, headed for the oven

*I used rye because I happened to be refreshing my starter, but Tartine’s 80/20 white/whole wheat starter would probably work as well.
**I used 8 oz cheap “Swiss” cheese because I was inspired by the current King Arthur bake along, and 2 oz sharp cheddar. Next time I’d use more cheddar or other sharp cheese and maybe some mozzarella.

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Maple madness at International Restaurant Show

Posted on March 8, 2018 by Burnt My Fingers
Maple Gin

Gin with maple syrup … amazing. RÉDUIT Piger Henricus (at left) and regular Piger Henricus, from Quebec.

This week I was in New York City for the International Restaurant & Foodservice Show. It’s an opportunity for restaurant owners to check out new kitchen equipment, barware, dining room furnishings and such with demos from well-informed manufacturers’ reps. If you’re in the market for a food truck, gyro grill or robo sushi maker, this is your show. It’s also the first conference where I got to pee on the product: the mens’ rooms were sponsored by WizKid, a purveyor of urinal mats and disinfectants.

Food Truck Prototype

Need a new food truck?

But, as always, we were here for the food. Exhibitors included a lot of brown-and-serve bakery products and premade goodies ready to pop into a fryer, as you’d expect. But there were also some mom-and-pop operations which, one suspects, want to get exposure to food influencers without the expense of the much bigger Fancy Food Show.

Gyro Grill

Or maybe a gyro grill?

My favorite discovery was Asarasi, the world’s first organic water. Say what? It turns out that most maple syrup producers have switched to a reverse osmosis system that filters out the sugar-bearing sap at an early stage in the distilling process, leaving a lot of water as a byproduct. Asarasi bottles and sells this water, reducing waste and giving maple producers another income stream. It can legitimately be called organic because it comes from a plant cultivated to organic strictures. And it tastes pretty good, i.e. clean and refreshing with just an (imagined?) hint of sugar. (There are also flavored versions, which didn’t tempt me.) The distributor list includes mostly unfamiliar names but also Unfi and Sysco, so it’s quite possible you can get some if you ask about it.

Maple Water

Asarasi booth offered the world’s first organic water, from maple trees.

On the maple theme, there was a lot of alcohol at this show and a lot of it was maple-flavored: bourbons and ryes which spend part of their aging time in barrels that have held maple syrup. I participated in a controlled tasting which I’ll write about separately. I also ran into “Les Subversifs”, a Quebec microdistillery which makes gin with parsnips (!) plus a huge juniper berry component and mixes some of this gin with maple syrup to create a liqueur which according to the proprietress is something her family traditionally drank when they were sugaring. (No reverse osmosis for them, though they’re considering it.) Really delicious stuff. U.S. distribution is spotty at this point but it’s universally available at government liquor stores in Montreal. The gin is Piger Henricus; the maple liqueur is RÉDUIT Piger Henricus.

P.S. Before signing off, I’m going to put on my marketing hat (my day job) and get cranky about something. I usually try to hit trade shows the first day, but because of scheduling issues I attended this one on the last day. The show officially ended at 4 pm Tuesday but well before that fully 2/3 of the exhibitors had packed their booths and departed. There’s no excuse for this because it’s a local show (no planes to catch) and it’s too late to miss rush hour. If you’re not going to stay till the end, just in case that dream prospect shows up at 3:59, you might as well stay home.

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Why Walmart is a canned vegetable wonderland

Posted on March 6, 2018 by Burnt My Fingers

 

Boiled Peanuts

Get yer Margaret Holmes Boiled Peanuts right here!

You can’t buy an assault weapon at my local Walmart, or any kind of gun if you’re under 21, but you can buy three different flavors of Margaret Holmes’ canned boiled peanuts, and that’s good enough for me.

Boiled peanuts are a southern snack which, according to Wikipedia, is made from whole peanuts in their shells that are boiled immediately after they come out of the ground. Margaret Holmes is a North Carolina brand which, among other products, offers Squash with Vidalia Onions and Red Beans with Rice, both in stock at the Wilton Walmart.

Fruit Cocktail

Fruit cocktail in pear juice, recommended.

The canned vegetables selection at my usual supermarket (Price Chopper/Market 32) has been steadily shrinking, and much of what is on display is house brands. By comparison, the canned vegetables aisle at Walmart is a browser’s wonderland. I came in search of garbanzos and found half a dozen brands, before settling on a well-priced import from Italy. I also snared a can of fruit cocktail which is packed in fruit juice (pear), not heavy syrup. It warmed my heart to be able to share this childhood treat with my own kids.

Shin Ramyan… found at Walmart.

The canned vegetables aisle is also home to Walmart’s gourmet Asian foods section (there’s another Asian section on the ethnic aisle, and it’s well stocked) where you’ll find, you guess it, Shin Ramyun from Korea in the heart of this frozen tundra. And at the very end of the aisle, the world’s smallest gluten free section. Sam Walton is surely snickering in his coffin.

Walmart’s Gluten Free section, in its entirety. (It’s at far left, where the shelves change their height.)

Raised-pinky elites tend to poke fun at Walmart customers for a habit of shopping in their underwear (partly true, in my experience) and waiting in their cars for a parking spot to open up near the entrance because they don’t want to walk (definitely true). Who knew they had such rich gourmet tendencies? Walmart also has better prices on many items I buy regularly (cilantro has been 88 cents a bundle vs a ridiculous $1.49-1.99 elsewhere) and pomegranate juice ($3.28 vs $3.99 almost everywhere else). I’m making them part of my regular rotation.

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Recipe: Cashew Coconut Clusters

Posted on March 1, 2018 by Burnt My Fingers
Cashew Coconut Clusters

Cashew Coconut Clusters should be mixed with just enough chocolate to hold them together; the clusters in the back have too much chocolate in my opinion.

This Cashew Coconut Clusters recipe originates with the diabolical Dr. Ludwig, but I am appropriating it because his method for melting the chocolate (just mix it in with the other ingredients on the baking sheet) doesn’t work at all. Makes about 8 clusters. [NOTE: recipe revised 2/19]

Ingredients:
3-4 oz bittersweet baking chocolate or other dark chocolate* with at least 60% cocoa content
2/3 c raw** cashews, halves or large chunks
3 T unsweetened coconut flakes

Method: heat oven to 375 degrees and toast cashews on a baking sheet until barely browned, about 5 minutes, then add coconut and toast 2 minutes longer or until coconut is browned. (Watch carefully to see these ingredients don’t burn!) Melt chocolate in a double boiler and mix in nuts and coconut. Use spoon to form clusters on a silicone sheet or parchment paper, making sure that all nuts are touched by at least a bit of chocolate to hold the candies together. Cool in refrigerator till hard then transfer to a storage tub. They’ll probably stay solid at room temperature but I recommend storing in refrigerator just to be safe.

*The bitter taste of bittersweet chocolate is essential to this recipe, but many dark chocolates may not contain have enough cocoa butter to melt smoothly. I used a 9.7 oz Scharffen Berger Bittersweet Baking Bar which worked very well though it wasn’t quite bitter enough for me.

**I prefer raw cashews if you can get them, because they will be more open to absorbing flavors from the other ingredients. If you can’t find raw, roasted snack cashews should work; no need to toast them. Wipe off excess salt before mixing with chocolate and coconut.

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Foraging for my supper at Fin Your Fishmonger

Posted on February 27, 2018 by Burnt My Fingers
Fin Agnolotti

Agnolotti with miso butter, pea sprout garnish

I admire foragers and one day hope to be one. But for now I was lucky enough to participate in the first Sunday Seafood Supper at Fin Your Fishmonger in Guilderland, held on February 18. These events will happen on a monthly basis (and possibly expanded to a Saturday night seating) so check it out if you’re interested in a future event.

Chef Rob Handel is quite a guy. He gathers wild cherries, taps his own maple trees, and forages black walnuts to make noisette. Even in the dead of winter, he was able to turn out a meal in which each course had a local or foraged element.

Fin Salad

Salad with house made peanut miso dressing (the highlighted sprig at right is a wild chive leaf)

We started with hand-rolled agnolotti topped with miso butter and filled with house-made ricotta. The garnish was pea shoots which Rob had grown over the few days prior to the event.  Then, on to cod dumplings floating in a broth made from maple water—the first, not-sweet tapping of this year’s sap harvest—and flavored with juniper twigs. Next arrived a refreshing salad with a dressing featuring house-fermented peanut miso and crowned by a couple of perfectly broiled prawns—Fin definitely knows their fish.

Fin Fish

Branzino with olive tapenade, toasted barley pilaf, blackened green beans

This was followed by my favorite of the courses, a branzino (sea bass) filet coated with tapenade and served over a delicious barley pilaf made with toasted barley cooked in more of the maple water. We finished with a “lime mousse” which was more like a custard, impossibly rich and creamy. Chef Handel says he took a standard pie filling recipe (key lime pie?) and added more cream for a stand-alone dish. It was topped with a syrup made with those sour cherries I mentioned which had been aging in his cellar since last spring.

Fin Lime Mousse

Lime mousse with sour cherry syrup and house-made graham cracker

I found the dishes very comforting and complete and the foraged elements approachable, almost too much so. I realized when I bit into the fish with its intense olive topping that I was looking for more assertive flavors like that. Perhaps at future events the chef will make available some extra amounts of the foraged ingredients for the more adventurous guests to sample on the side. But I’m not complaining. It was a smoothly executed first effort, and the table conversation (most of the diners were State employees who knew Dora of Fin from the stall she runs in the basement of Empire Plaza) was more than enjoyable. I’ll be back.

Fin Your Fishmonger is at 2050 Western Avenue in Guilderland, NY, south and west of the Crossgates Mall. Fresh fish and take-home meals are available Tuesday-Saturday and a limited selection of fried fish rolls, fish tacos and such can be ordered to eat in house. 518-452-4565.

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Recipe: Black Bean Tofu Scramble

Posted on February 20, 2018 by Burnt My Fingers
Black Bean Tofu Scramble

Black Bean Tofu Scramble

A few tweaks, and Dr. Ludwig’s Tofu Hash becomes a versatile, vaguely Mexican vegan entree you can serve without apology to all and sundry. It’s also cheap, and made with ingredients you quite possibly have on hand. What’s not to like? Serves 4-6 as main dish, more as a side.

Ingredients:
l lb firm tofu
15.5 oz can black beans, or 2 c cooked made-from-scratch black beans
1/2 bell pepper (red or green), cut into thin strips
1 jalapeño, cut lengthwise then into thin slices, seeded
1/2 large onion, peeled and cut into thin slices
1 clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped
1 T olive oil or neutral oil
1 T chili powder (generic)
1/2 t ground cumin
1 t Kosher salt
1/4 t ground black pepper
Dash of cayenne pepper
Chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish (optional)

Method: heat oil in a large skillet and add bell pepper, jalapeño and onion; sauté until soft. Add garlic, chili powder and cumin and cook quickly until fragrant. Crumble tofu into the pan; drain the black beans and add to the pan. Allow to heat for a few minutes then add salt, pepper and cayenne. Adjust seasoning as required and serve hot.

Note: this dish is a flavor chameleon that goes with almost anything. Try topping with melted cheese, salsa, guacamole, sour cream or a few slices of avocado.

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The diabolical Dr. Ludwig

Posted on February 15, 2018 by Burnt My Fingers
Dr David Ludwig

Borrowed from Boston Magazine, this is the most diabolical photo I could find of Dr. David Ludwig.

After the excesses of the Fancy Food Show and the Super Bowl, I’m back on Dr. David Ludwig’s low-carb “Always Hungry?” diet. I had previously recommended Dr. Ludwig’s book to readers because it’s full of from-scratch recipes, perfect for the experimental cook. But I’ve become aware of a few eccentricities I feel obligated to pass along.

Watch out for portion size. Some of the recipes make one portion, some two (which is what the daily menus say they’re designed for), some four or more, and Dr. Ludwig doesn’t always tell you plus there’s often no indication how much you are supposed to eat at a sitting. Analyze before you cook and eat, and consider reducing some of the recipes by half (Black Bean Tofu Hash and Shepherd’s Pie are two good examples…. They are tasty but if you make the full recipe you’ll be eating it for weeks).

Follow the daily menus for a couple of days, then go rogue. Dr. Ludwig wants us to eat breakfast, lunch and dinner, two snacks and a bedtime dessert. This is great because you’re constantly eating or thinking about eating. But the actual recipes are of uneven quality so don’t follow the daily recommendations to the letter. I cannot imagine there is a problem if you substitute trail mix (day 1) for cucumber and smoked salmon (day 2).

While you’re actually following the menus, take the long view. A big chicken salad with grapes is on deck for lunch at day two. Well and good, but it’s never mentioned again. What are we supposed to do with the leftovers? I ended up making fewer of the specified dishes and repeating them more often.

Cheat by peeking at the recipes in the back of the book. There are all kinds of preps suitable for Phase One (which is essentially carb-free) that are not included in his menus. Creamy cole slaw dressing, for example. We love our cole slaw and would be very happy to substitute it for one of the leafy sides.

Once you understand the rules, bring in your own players. Vincent’s Garlic Cole Slaw, for example, is fine for this diet as long as you prepare it with a mayo that does not contain sugar (make it from scratch, or buy a sugar-free version at a health food store). You probably have lots of other recipes in your repertoire that, with minor or no modifications, would have Dr. Ludwig doing backflips. Some of his dishes I’d swap out entirely are Eggplant Parmesan (his is like a weak ratatouille; ours is far better), Spinach Omelet (far too much veg causes the prep to fall apart) and Creamy Cauliflower Soup (like weak gruel, but vegan).

I feel better and I’m constantly involved with cooking and eating…. Hardly punishment. (Except for the lack of beer, of course.) Try these mods with your copy of Always Hungry? and I predict you’ll be happy as well.

P.S. Bonus tip: use this experience as an excuse to use all those weird spice blends you’ve been given/accumulated. I have some truly strange seasonings I’ve picked up at Fancy Food Shows, and I am reluctant to use them for everyday cooking because I wouldn’t be able to replicate the recipe. But since most of Dr. Ludwig’s concoctions you won’t be eating again, feel free to season away!

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Recipe: Gluten-Free Paleo Eggplant Parmigiana

Posted on February 13, 2018 by Burnt My Fingers
Gluten Free Paleo Eggplant Parmigiana

Gluten-Free Paleo Eggplant Parmigiana made with almond flour (left) and without

Eggplant parm as it’s made in Italy does not include breadcrumbs, so it’s naturally paleo-friendly and gluten-free. I’ve also included an option using a coating of almond flour to approximate the breadcrumb effect, which is a modification created in American red sauce places. Do not short-cut the drying steps; the whole idea is to turn the eggplant into a non-greasy, non-watery platform for the unctuous umami ingredients. Serves 4-6.

ingredients:
2 medium eggplants, about 2 lb, peeled and cut lengthwise into 3/4 inch slices
Kosher salt
Marinara sauce, about 1 c
Tomato paste, about 2 T (optional)
Mozzarella cheese, fresh or cured, grated, about 1 c
Parmesan cheese, grated, about 1/4 c
Butter

For the almond flour option:
1/2 c almond flour, plus more as needed
1 egg, beaten

Eggplant Slice Comparison

Almond flour-coated eggplant slice after frying on the left, plain on the right. The coating adds bulk but causes it to absorb more oil.

Method: liberally sprinkle salt on both sides of each slice of eggplant and stand up in a colander in the sink or over a dish. Allow to rest 1 hour or more, until the eggplant has expelled a good amount of liquid. Using clean paper towels, squeeze the remaining moisture out of each slice. Use immediately, or reserve overnight pressed between two layers of paper towels between two half sheet pans in which case the eggplants will lose even more of their moisture.

Heat a generous amount of oil in a medium skillet and heat to about 350 degrees (medium heat) so that when eggplant is added it will sizzle immediately. Add dried eggplant slices one at a time and cook until brown, then turn over and cook on the other side. Drain on paper towels. If the eggplant has been properly prepared, it will absorb very little oil.

Lightly butter a 8-inch square baking pan and start with a layer of eggplant, then ladle on some good marinara sauce (to make it more beefy, mix with tomato paste before using) then a layer of grated mozzarella, then a few teaspoons of parmesan cheese, then a sprinkle of oregano. Maybe some garlic (fresh or powder) too. Finish with a layer of eggplant and add parmesan and a few pats of butter. Bake in a preheated 400 degree oven for 20 minutes, then pour off any juices that have accumulated and continue cooking for another 15 minutes. Serve hot.

Almond flour option: proceed as above, but dredge the eggplant pieces in almond flour, then in egg, then again in almond flour before frying. This does result in a nice coating, but it absorbs considerably more oil than the Italian method.

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Our three favorite products from Trader Joe’s

Posted on February 8, 2018 by Burnt My Fingers
Trader Joe Favorites

These are our favorites from Trader Joe’s. What are your favorites?

Everybody has their go-to products when they finally find a parking place at Trader Joe’s and head into the store. Here are ours.

Marcona almonds with truffles. The musky, mysterious aroma and taste of truffles is unmistakable even in tiny quantities. The Trader slathers it on like baby oil, creating a treat we can’t stop eating. According to their website, “true Marcona Almonds are grown only on the Mediterranean coast of Spain. They’re shorter and flatter than California almonds, with a distinctive sweet, buttery flavor and a light, crunchy texture.” Eat them right out of the bag, or serve on a tapas plate with sharp cheese and olives.

Thousand-Day Gouda. This reminds us of Vella Jack, an intense dried cheese that is perfect for backpacking because it provides a lot of taste in a small bite and it doesn’t get weepy in your pack like cheeses with higher moisture content. According to the Trader, “most Gouda is young, but this cheese is quite mature. It’s crafted in the traditional manner, using fresh milk from the Dutch countryside. It is allowed to ripen on untreated wooden shelves, where it is hand turned by the cheese master to ensure even flavor and consistent texture throughout each wheel. At 1000 days, it becomes a full-flavored, somewhat crumbly cheese replete with fine crystals [calcium citrate] that give it a bit of crunch.” You’ll find it in triangular sections with other cut cheeses, but you may have to look carefully because many stores are timid and stock this in very small quantities.

Oven-Baked Cheese Bites. The same reader who told us about the above Marcona almonds turned us on to these Paleo-friendly morsels. They’re made with funky Gran Padano and other aged cheeses, somehow puffed up for maximum surface area which means maximum taste. You know how good fried Parmesan is, when you let it melt in the skillet and then peel off the lacy coating and pop it in your mouth. Oven-Baked Cheese Bites are like that. They’re not cheap at $2.99 for a little bag, but many specialty cheese treats are much more. They’re usually found attached by clips to the shelves in the chip aisle.

We also like almost any chocolate item from Trader Joe’s, their small but good selection of deli meats (often prepackaged in sliced combos, very handy when you’re on the road and crave a little charcuterie plate) and their ridiculously cheap Botswain Double IPA.

Anything we don’t like? You bet. We picked up some “Italian Butter Cookies and a Few Meringues” this past holiday season and couldn’t finish them. They were tasteless and shapeless, pale forms in a box that looked nothing like the chipper package artwork, and could have use some anise extract and a few colored sugar sprinkles to compete with the Italian Christmas cookies that are so widely available in upstate New York. Also, Mandarin Orange Chicken, a freezer product that appears at the top of most fan lists. What’s up with that? It’s a lot of work to prepare and ends up tasting like Chinese takeout, making you wonder why TJ fans didn’t just order takeout in the first place.

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