Archive for September, 2008

By Jessica | September 30, 2008 | Recipes | 5 Comments

I saw this beautiful and humongous copper frying pan at Housing Works and because it was so damn cheap, I just had to have it. I felt so french, I wanted to ride home with a baguette in the basket of my bike. It also gave me a legit excuse to drink half a bottle of red wine at 2pm. Holla. The whole frenchie thing was making me hungry for crepes. But none of that silly fruity stuff, mines was packed with cheese and pork. Check it check it out.

Crepe with Prosciutto and Gruyere

1 egg
1/2 cup of milk
1/2 cup and 3 tbs of water
the zest of 1/2 of lemon
pinch of salt
1 tbs of melted butter
1 cup of flour
butter for frying
prosciutto for draping
1/2 cup of gruyere, shredded

This serves 2. Take about 30 minutes total.

Combine the egg, milk, water, zest, salt, and melted butter. Wisk in the flour slowly and continue to beat until the batter is smooth. Let the batter chill for about 10 minutes while you shred the cheese and heat your pan. Add butter to your heated pan. Use a very wide and shallow frying pan, non-stick would be awesome but not essential – obvi I used copper. If your pan is less than 13 inches in diameter, you’re going to want to make 2 separate smaller crepes.

When the butter is melted in the pan, pour the batter and spread thin by tilting the pan. With the heat on medium to almost highish, the crepe will cook for about 2 minutes on each side. When the crepe starts to get little holes and you can slide the crepe around the pan, it’s time flip (yeah good luck with that, mine ripped in like, 4 different parts – smaller crepes will def be easier to flip).

So flip it foreal. Let it cook for 2 minutes. Sprinkle on the cheese. When it melts, slide you crepe onto a plate and roll a fatty. Drape your prosciutto along the top of the crepe. Share with your man with some wine on a rainy afternoon. (PS, this would be great served with a side salad of greens with fresh lemon juice.)

By Jessica | September 27, 2008 | Main Courses, Recipes | No comments

I guess I been getting my asian on lately. Got a wok. Now, usually, I am mo patient in the kitchen and I enjoy the projects. But when seasoning my new wok, I thought I would chuck the fiery ass iron out the window onto someone’s cabesa. Lucky R came to my rescue and finished it up for me. Basically, when seasoning a wok, after the initial washing and drying, you wanna wipe a thin coat of veg oil and over a low flame, and heat the metal so it absorbs the oil. First of all, you got to do this 4 times before using. Second of all, if you want an even browning, you have to hold it over the flame to get the sides, I swear you have to be freakin brooke hogan to do that shiv. But you know what? It was worth it, sore arms and all cause shortly after the seasoning debackle, we made some very serious fried rice.

Fried Rice with Carrots, Snow Peas, Chicken and Egg

3 cups cooked white rice (I dare you to try it with brown rice)
handful of snow peas, knotty bits at the end chopped off
1 chicken breast, cubed
1 carrot, sliced
1/2 cup white onion, chopped
2 eggs
1/4 cup tamari sauce (or more if you are into salty)
1/8 cup sesame oil (or more if you are obsessed with that flavor like I am)
sirachi to taste
veg oil for frying
This serves two.

Have all your ingredients cut, ready and accessible cause this shiv is going to go fast like a girl gone wild.

Heat your wok. When the veg oil starts to smoke, throw in your onion and stir like a madman. After 30 seconds, throw in your chicken. It will start to turn white immediately. After 1 minute, add your carrots. One minute later, the snow peas, all the while stirring furiously. When the heat gets back up, toss in your rice. Add tamari, sesame sauce and sirachi. When everything seems to be tasting delicious, make a hole in the middle of the pan and drop your eggs directly onto the wok. Left them fry a bit by continuously giving them real estate on the pan. As the egg hardens, scrape and add to the rice and veg in the pan. Do this until the egg is fully cooked.

Serve immediately in a big ol’ bowl. Offer your guests extra sirachi just in case they like fire mouth.

The key is to have very high heat, so you cook quickly, sear the outside, mainstain crispy veg and make hot food. That’s why the wok is so dope. Hey China, thanks for the wok (you can keep the milk).

By Jessica | September 23, 2008 | Recipes, Snackin, Salads and Apps | 1 Comment

So, remember when I made the steak with the risotto and y’all got jealous? With the left over risotto, I made some banging balls, in the style of my italian brethren. Next time you’re making risotto, or fug it, rice? Do yourself a flavor and make some leftovers to concoct, what I feel, was a delish bite size side/snack/hors d’oeuvre. Guess what else? There was a special little treat in each and everyone one of them.

First, check this recipe for the leftover risotto.

Risotto Balls Stuffed With Steak

2 cups of cooked and cooled risotto
1/4 grated parmesan
a few inches of cooked and rare steak, chopped (If you aren’t bashful and finished that shiv, you can skip it)
1/4 kalamata olives, roughly chopped
1/8 cup of italian parsley, roughly chopped
pine nuts to your liking
salt and pepper
1 cup of panko flakes
fresh lemon juice for garnish
This makes 15-ish.

Mix all ingredients together except the steak, panko flakes and lemon juice, and form little balls about the size of golf balls. Grab a piece of steak and smoosh it right in the middle. Don’t be scared, this is still fancy. Throw the ball a bit between your hands to form a sweet, sweet roundness. Dredge through the panko flakes which have been salted and peppered. When evenly coated, lay on a cooking sheet lined with parchment paper. Continue to ball till there aint no mo. This should yield about 15. Bake at 300 for 20 minutes. You are looking to heat through, melt the cheese, and crisp the bread crumbs. When done, serve with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

One other thing, you can obvi make this with any leftover risotto or rice and throw in your favorite ingredients – just make sure they are small pieces. Try asparagus, mushrooms, bacon, shreemps, etc.

By Jessica | September 22, 2008 | Projects, Recipes | 3 Comments

So we like to eat pork, wanna fight about it? We also like to eat bite-sized. I think it’s cuter that way. Pretty sure R just thinks it’s more fun to eat with his fingers. I got a steamer recently, and since we like dumplings around here, and pork is our heart, we churned out some pork dumplings like we were a tiny little dumpling-eating factory.

All the ones that look like dumplings, R made. My anal ass (ha, didn’t even think about that when I was typing but it stays) liked the straight lines of the stars, so those are mine. Also see the lone tortalli I made. :( Not sure why I did that.

I’m not going to lie to you, R’s were better and I would recommend that shape with this recipe. Something about the bunchy dough at the top that was mmm mmm good.

Steamed Pork Dumplings

1 lb of ground pork
1/4 cup tamari
3 tbs of sesame oil
2 tbs of sirachi
one small splash of vinegar
1 shallot, finely chopped
wanton wrappers (as I said before, shut up)
salt and pepper
Makes about 24 dumplings. Perfectly serves 2 as an entre if you’re fat.

Combine all the ingredients in a bowl. Mix with your fingers (please wash them first, gross). Drop one scoop of pork, roughly the diameter of a quarter in the middle of the wanton wrapper. Brush water on the exposed parts of the wrapper to act as a adhesive. Gather the corners and edges and pull to the top. Smoosh together. Keep uncooked dumplings beneath a damp paper towel while finishing up. Wet the steamer a bit before putting the dumplings in or they will stick to the wood after cooking. Put the steamer on top of a pot of boiling water and let the dumplings steam for 20 minutes. If there are two stacked baskets, as most steamers are, switch the order halfway through.

For dipping, serve with individual bowls of tamari sauce, sirachi sauce, and sesame oil with red pepper flakes. I hear duck sauce would do yourself good, as well. Again, if you’re going to use your fingers, please wash them?

By Jessica | September 16, 2008 | Main Courses, Recipes, Snackin, Salads and Apps | 3 Comments

I don’t usually buy cookbooks but I was given one as a gift (thanks mom) and I’m sho glad about it. Cree lefavor’s the new steak offers 55 recipes for steaks with sides, grouped by region. Last night, R and I tore up some strip steak. Pretty sure I saw a tear in his eye at his first bite. Check this recipe. You’ll wanna be cree’s bff after this but because she is more famous than my ass, you can just try to be mines and maybe I’ll cook you a steak. But you have to buy them shivs – 2 strip steaks cost 23 schmacks at my dudes. One more thing before I get on with it. How much do you want to call this chick cree mcflavor? Why hasn’t she changed her name yet? I think I’ll write a letter.

I almost followed the recipe exact except I made 2 steaks instead of 4, as the recipe calls (you know R was sad) and I did not use oregano cause one time? I put oil of oregano on my tongue? and I gagged for 10 minutes and couldn’t eat pizza for 3 years. I should also say, before cree comes to my house and beats me with a heirloom tomato from her garden, I typed her recipe below in a much less professional and flowery way cause I’m lazy. Just didn’t want you think cree is as crass and unspecific as me. Her writing is soft and cookbooky, just as you would imagine.

Risotto and Strip Steak Scattered with Olives, Parsely, Pine Nuts, Lemon Peel, and Parmesan

Risotto first cause that takes the longest.

1 cup of italian arborio rice
2 tbl unsalted butter
2 tbs of chicken juices (I didn’t use this cause I wasn’t about to roast a chicken to get its juices. I just used a bit of chicken stock here, I’m sure it woulda been dope though.)
1/2 tsp of salt
2 1/2 – 3 cups of chicken stock at room temp (I’m haven’t fully jumped on the organic bandwagon yet – lemme get some chairs in my kitchen that aren’t plastic first. But, what I always do is buy products from chickens that are free range only. To me, it’s worth it.)
1 tbs freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano, plus more for garnish
2 tbs of your best olive oil
fresh black pepper

In a heavy pot, combine the rice and butter over medium heat. Stir constantly for 2 to 3 minutes until the rice is coated with the butter. Add the chicken juices (or stock) and salt, still stirring. Once it’s hot, add 1 cup of your chicken stock. Stir more, scraping the bottom as you go.

Reduce your heat to low and allow your risotto to absorb all the liquid. No need to stand over the stove like a sweaty obsessive – just keep an eye on it. When it starts to stick and most the liquid has been absorbed, add another 1/3 cup of stock . Keep doing this until you have added 2 cups of stock.

At this point, taste your risotto. It should be chewy, but you should definitely taste and feel the grain of the rice. But don’t get it twisted – it should not crunch in your mouth. Since the risotto is almost done, add even smaller increments of stock and let it absorb. Repeat until it’s the texture you want. When you have added the last of the stock, grate the lemon zest, parmigiano and olive oil. When you put it on the plate, finish with more cheese, olive oil and pepper.

At about half way through this process, you need to get your steak on.

2 strip steaks
1 tsp salt
1 clove of garlic, cut in half
olive oil for rubbing on your shteck
1/4 cup of pine nuts, toasted and salted
1/2 tsp of whole fennel, toasted and ground
1 or 2 tsp of peanut oil for frying (I didn’t use this)
2 tbs of chopped parsley (I used italian)
1 tbs of chopped oregano (ew)
1 lemon, zested
1/3 cup of kalamata olives, roughly chopped
1/3 cup of fresh parmigiano-reggiano, grated
fresh black pepper
1 tbs of your best olive oi

Prepare your steak by salting it and rubbing the garlic halves over it. When the steaks come to room temperature, rub em with olive oil. During this time, you should be gathering the rest of your ingredients cause this process goes really quickly. Cree gave detailed instructions for grilling over coals or pan frying with peanut oil, or even finishing them in the oven. But… I kinda crudely just slapped them on my stove-top grill when I thought it was hot enough. You know what? They turned out in a way cree would have been proud. Swear.

What I will include is, to check the doneness of your steak, jab a meat thermometer in the thickest part. Once it reaches 110/115 degrees, take them shivs off and cover with a loose tent of foil and let sit for 5 minutes. They will continue to cook to a lovely medium rare.

After they have sat, plate your steaks and your risotto and “scatter” your olives, parsley, oregano if using, pine nuts, and fennel. Grate your lemon and parmigiano, add your salt and pepper, and drizzle your olive oil.

One more thing, just because I typed this recipe here, doesn’t mean you don’t need the book. There are interesting bits before each recipe and lists of useful items that “everyone needs in a pantry.” I may differ on some of these items, but her list is ite. For a pro cook with a garden and a pantry.

By Jessica | September 15, 2008 | In The News, Restaurants | 2 Comments

So, Pickle Fest 2008 in the house.

In some year at some point, the Lower East Side BID started closing one street in LES to host picklers from around the world. Under big tents with big barrels, farmers and hipsters alike are workin it for your pickle pleasure. Most picklin artists are kind enough to offer samples. At least the smart ones do. Those that were giving it away had crowds that led around the block. Damn, I never knew New Yorkers were so gotdamn cheap. Cheap and aggressive, sucking the life out of the crafterman and their pickles. But hey, I shoved with the best of em.

These chicks were offering rice with their kimchi. Thank. You.

Kimchi, but it was too mild for my fire mouth. Next time, ladies.

Are pickles the only thing foodies will eat out of barrel?

I bought some pickled green tomatoes from these billies. We ate them tonight. Yum.

My one criticism of the festival was that it was marketed as “international,” so I was sort of expecting some exotic pickles or something. Gimme some pickled papaya. I wanted to taste lamb chops in a spicy brine. Feed me some pickled tiger toe nails on a freakin cracker. Just one acidic pork nipple for my martini please. But no. Dill, sweet, spicy, blah, blah, blah. At least last year, I heard, they served pickled hot dogs. I should be on the committee next year. Then I’ll put into play my ignorant ass ideas.

Stay tuned for my recipe for homemade kimchi. It’ll knock you on your ass.