A little catching up to do here. The semester ended with our work sleeves rolled up. Our last three recipes were all on the menu for our end of the semester party in late January. It was slightly nerve wrecking piling all our party recipes at the end. A lesson to next semester. My students were great sports through it all though, it seems they have learned to handle parties. No more, “this is boring” after completing two rolls! I even heard a few, “this is really fun.”

Grape Leaves

The grape leaves were great fun to roll. “Leaves?! We’re going to be eating leaves?”

“Sure, you eat lettuce don’t you, that’s a leaf.”

“So this is going to taste like lettuce?”

“Not exactly.”

While most of my older students– third, fourth and fifth graders, really enjoyed these, my younger students weren’t so sure. I think this has to do with a shortened cooking time I decided on to fit this into our 1 hour class schedule. I steamed these for a quick 20 minutes and think an oven-braised approach in a little chicken stock-tomato combo would have been more successful. Ironically, when the K to 2nd graders made their own pomegranate-only grape leaves and ate them uncooked they thought they were right on target. On the other hand, these were a huge success with parents at our end of the semester party. Multiple families followed me to the kitchen to nab some leftovers post-soiree. (Recipes at bottom.)

Arepas

These were more of a success than I was ready for. Okay, I love arepas from the local Venezualan hole-in-the-wall. I love corn and cornmeal. I know kids love corn, but I wasn’t so sure about a cornmeal-like patty slathered in an addictive (according to me) avocado sauce. These were super easy to make. The best part– the kids loved them and they loved making them. While they were mixing they were begging for a taste- “Just a little longer!” I kept saying, “We’ll warm them up in the oven and they’ll be much better.” Still, I caught some pre-cooked dough getting into the mouths.

Once we finished how many times did I have to repeat what we made? “Wait, how do you say these, rapas?”

“A-re-pas.”

“A-rapas.”

Close enough. They all have a cookbook and can review and learn. (Recipes at bottom.)

Brownie Bites

I had two kids that didn’t like these. One didn’t like chocolate. (What?!) The other thought they were cold and he threw his out because he doesn’t like to eat cold things (”Unless it’s ice cream.” “Oh, of course.”). I combined a few recipes I found online then adapted them into something I was happy with. I cut the sugar content and added preserves for a fruity flavor. If they were in season, I would have added fresh fruit too. I had some dehydrated powdered cherries (it looks like pink powdered sugar and tastes like cherries) that we dusted on top the final for our party.

Needless to say, these were beyond a hit at the end of the semester party. I kept receiving phone calls in the kitchen, “Send more brownies up!” I think my kitchen helpers (my 4th and 5th graders) slipped a few more in their mouths then I was aware of– By the end of the night they were so drunk on sugar they got a little sloppy in their presentation going upstairs to the party.

Pomegranate Grape Leaves
Makes about 40 grape leaves

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, crushed
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/2 teaspoon cardamom
2 cups wild rice, rinsed (or 1/2 cup wild rice plus 1/2 cup brown rice)
2 cups low-sodium chicken stock
1 cup pomegranate seeds
1/4 cup pomegranate molasses
2 tablespoons dried mint
1 jar grape leaves, rinsed well and lightly dried
lemon wedges

Heat oil in a sauce pan on medium high heat. Add onions, sauté 3 minutes. Add garlic, salt, cinnamon, pepper and cardamom, sauté 2 minutes more. Add wild rice, mix to coat evenly. Add chicken stock, cover and cook until rice is almost fully cooked, slightly al dente. Stir in pomegranate molasses, pomegranate seeds and mint. Season with more salt to taste if necessary. Cool slightly, 10 minutes.
Spread grape leaves flat on a work surface, veins up. Place one tablespoon rice filling in the center, fold up bottom edges then sides, then roll up tight. Continue with remaining grape leaves and filling.
Bring 2-inches of water to a boil and set a steamer basket inside. Layer grape leaves (can be placed on top of each other). Cover and steam 20 minutes. Serve warm or chilled sprinkled with lemon juice.
NOTE: Replace half to all of the pomegranate seeds with pine nuts. Add ground lamb or beef for extra flavor. Serve as an appetizer or with pita, meze dips and carrot salad, above.

Arepas with Avocado Sauce & Black Beans
Makes about 40 1-inch arepas

Arepa:
1 cup whole milk
4 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup masarepa (pre-cooked corn flour, sometimes called Harina precocida or Masa al instante)
1 cup grated queso fresco
1/2 cup sweet corn kernels (if frozen, thawed)
grape seed or peanut oil for cooking

Avocado Sauce (Guasacaca):
1 avocado, rough chopped
1 cup fresh cilantro, rough chopped
2 cloves garlic
1/2 cup fresh parsley, rough chopped
2 tablespoons mayonnaise
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons lime juice
1 tablespoon honey
1/2 teaspoon salt

1 can black beans, washed and drained

Stir milk, butter, honey, salt and allspice in a small saucepot over medium heat until it simmers. Stir in the masarepa and queso fresco. Stir until very thick, about 5 minutes, remove from heat. Stir in corn kernels until evenly incorporated. Set aside to cool and thicken, about 10 minutes.

While cooling, make the avocado sauce. Blitz avocado, mayonnaise, cilantro, lime juice and salt in a blender until smooth.

Scoop up balls of the arepa batter, slightly smaller than a golf ball. Transfer to a tray, flattening into 1/4-inch disk. Continue with remaining batter, setting on a tray as you finish. Heat about 3 tablespoon of oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Sear arepas in batches, careful not to crowd, until golden, 4 minutes, turn, then cook another 4 minutes. To serve: add a dollop of the avocado sauce then top with a few black beans. Serve warm or at room temperature.
NOTE: You can alternatively brush the arepas with butter or oil and bake about 15 minutes until golden.

Cherry Brownie Bites

5 ounces dark chocolate, broken into 1/2-ounce pieces
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, plus more for coating pan
3 eggs
3 tablespoons sugar
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
3/4 cup seedless cherry preserves
1/4 cup sour cream
2 tablespoons whole wheat flour
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour plus 1 tablespoon for coating pan
2 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt

Preheat oven to 325 degrees F. Coat a 9″x 13″ x 1-1/2″-inch pan with butter. Flour the pan with 1 tablespoon flour, shake out excess.
Melt chocolate pieces and butter over a double boiler (place a heat-proof bowl over a small saucepot with boiling water). Stir periodically to prevent burning, about 4 minutes. Remove from heat when almost totally melted, stir to finish melting, set aside. With an electric mixer on high, whisk eggs, sugar and vanilla until thick, about 2 minutes. Add chocolate mixture, preserves and sour cream, mixing until fully incorporated. Sift in flour, cocoa powder, baking powder and salt. Mix until just combined.
Transfer batter to prepared pan. Bake 30 minutes, until toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Cool at room temperature for 5 minutes then refrigerate 15 to 20 minutes before slicing.
NOTE: Use your favorite preserve here. Raspberry, blueberry, apricot, peach would all taste great!

Holidays and colds have put me a little behind these days but the kids continue to cook. I’ll round up our wonton week here and follow it up later tonight with our holiday cooking from last week and this week.

The first thing one must realize when cooking with kids is that your final dish will probably look nothing like you envisioned. You know those perfectly wrapped wontons that were demonstrated about six times? Not going to happen. What does happen is something much better and something the kids can be proud of. I just provided one rule: Seal the edges. Wonton shapes that came out were fabulous– from cinched up purses to envelopes. Eventually some boys decided their wontons were looking like spaceships, which became an even easier rule: Astronauts cannot be exposed to space! Seal them in!

“Is this correct?”

“Can you see the astronauts?”

“No.”

“Then we’re set for take off.”

Our semester finishes at the end of January with a big party where all the clubs in the after school program show off what they’ve been doing with their time. Ceramics has an art display, dance shows off their dance and cooking provides the food for everyone with the 4th and 5th graders as servers. So far we’ve made butternut squash empanadas and the other week it was the wontons pictured above (our upcoming weeks are all party-centric). Most of the kids were really good sports saying how much fun it was to fill and shape these packets. (I told everyone they had to make at least 20 wontons.) Of course, some tuckered out, “planning for a party is hard work! Two more!” I told them. Some of the students even started setting up production lines: “I just made 10 at once!” My response: “Good job! See if you can now do 15 at once!”

The best part is that not only did the kids find these fun to form, they really enjoyed eating them. I had them grating ingredients by hand and while they were exclaiming how tiring it was, I caught many sneeking nibbles of shredded carrots and edamame. Once cooked, they were clamoring for more than their alloted two– “Sorry! We need to save the rest for the party!”

During the party, we’ll be frying these up and serving them with dipping sauce. In class, we boiled them, put a dash of miso in our water and had an Asian fusion dumpling soup that the kids dug.

Vegetable Wonton Soup
Makes about 60 wontons

Filling:
1 cup edamame beans, shelled
3 cloves garlic
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon ginger
6 scallions, sliced
2 carrots, shredded
2 stalks celery, finely chopped
1/4 head of cabbage, shredded
1/4 cup tablespoons cilantro, chopped
2 teaspoons red pepper flakes

Wonton wrappers

Blitz edamame, garlic, soy sauce, honey and ginger in a blender until smooth. Transfer to a bowl and fold in remaining filling ingredients. Place a wonton wrapper on a work surface. Use your finger to brush the edges with water. Add approximately 1/2 tablespoon to the center of the wonton, fold in half, corner to corner, forming a triangle and sealing edges. Pinch the triangle corners together. Place on a cookie sheet and repeat with remaining wontons. Freeze the wontons overnight on the cookie sheet then transfer to a freezer bag or cook them to eat immediately.

To cook: (Fried) Heat sesame oil over medium high heat. Add in a few wontons. Cook 2-3 minutes each side until lightly browned. Serve with dipping sauce. (Boiled) Bring water to a boil. Drop in a few wontons. Boil 5-6 minutes. Add hot water over 1 teaspoon of miso paste (optional) and a few pieces of seaweed, stir to combine. Add wontons and garnish with chopped scallions and cilantro.

“This isn’t pasta– it’s pillows of heaven!”

I share the same sentiments, but a fifth grader beat me with getting the words out.

Gnocchi week has been the best success yet. Dare I say better than pumpkin muffins?

At the insistence of Kitchen Rule #1, “Try Everything” I was able to nudge skeptical students to try the gnocchi. No joke, not only did most everyone return for seconds, many kept coming back.

My original plan was to make a sage and spinach gnocchi from a recent Saveur. I liked it because it utilized semolina flour and I’m always looking to introduce my students to a new ingredient. My mind eventually wandered as I thought about amping up the fall flavors. I toyed with pumpkin gnocchi and sweet potato gnocchi. I decided against both since we’ve used them recently, or will in weeks to come.

I also wanted to move away from sage because we used it in our empanadas. I switched the herb to rosemary, something we have yet to explore.

In the end I went with beets. I knew the kids would get a kick out of the color– “Pink pasta! This isn’t like any pasta I’ve seen before!” I kept chopped spinach to add some color, along with the semolina flour. (At home, I would have used chopped beet greens instead of spinach, but going with frozen chopped was a little time saver.)

I really liked the semolina flour. It provided great texture and richness to the gnocchi. Both the beets and spinach were subtle flavor enhancers. Infusing the butter in rosemary before browning these pillows of heaven left a truly heavenly aroma in the kitchen and lingering on the pasta.

We browned these gnocchi on a skillet instead of boiling. It gave a great crispness to the pasta and you can’t beat butter infused with rosemary!

Beet and Spinach Gnocchi
8 servings

1 lb russet potatoes (recommended: small potatoes)
1/2 cup pureed beets (about 2 small beets; use pre-cooked or see method below)
1-1/4 cups semolina flour, plus more
4 ounces frozen spinach, thawed and drained (or: chop, sauté and drain your beet greens! The flavor is similar to spinach.)
2 eggs, beaten
1-1/2 teaspoons salt
1 teaspoon nutmeg, plus
freshly ground black pepper to taste
4 tablespoons butter
4 3-inch rosemary sprigs
Parmesan cheese

Special Equipment: Ricer or Food Mill

NOTE: In class, I cooked, peeled and cooled beets and potatoes early in the week. This made assembly of the gnocchi a super fast snap!

Preheat oven to 400F. Snip greens from beets (save for another use), wrap in foil and roast until soft, about 45 minutes. Remove skin under cold running water, set aside to cool. Boil whole potatoes, skin on, until soft, 25-30 minutes. Cool and peel potatoes by slipping the skin between two paper towels.

Pass beets and potatoes through a ricer into a medium bowl. Stir in drained spinach, flour, eggs, nutmeg, salt and a few turns of black pepper until well combined. (NOTE: Drain spinach by pressing the water out.) Batter should hold together when pressed but still be sticky.

Scoop a heaping spoonful of the dough onto a semolina-dusted work surface. Roll into a log, about 1/2-inch thick. Slice into 1/2-inch long pieces, transfer to a semolina-dusted parchment-lined baking sheet. Continue to re-flour (if necessary) scoop and roll dough until done.

Warm butter in a skillet. Add rosemary and sauté 2 minutes until fragrant. Add gnocchi to pan and a pinch of nutmeg, cooking until browned, about 4 minutes each side. Continue until all gnocchi is cooked, adding more butter if needed. Once complete, toss gnocchi together lightly in a serving bowl with any reserved rosemary or butter from pan. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese to serve.

NOTE: Leave out the beets and try sweet potato or winter squash (like pumpkin) gnocchi. Or, add 2 tablespoons tomato paste (red gnocchi), pureed spinach for green, or other veggie for another color. Serve with sautéed mushroom or tomato sauce.

My computer was in the shop for the past two weeks so there were no updates on the kiddies cooking (I didn’t have my recipes or photos available). But I’m back with a jazzy new computer shell (including a super crisp screen I feel like I have new glasses) with the same old hard drive/interior.

Two weeks ago my classes made pizza. Went great, the kids loved it– who doesn’t love pizza?! I heard many, “this is the best pizza I’ve ever tasted.” It helps when you’re buying $6 balls of freshly made mozzarella (and of course, when you make it yourself). I was pleased that many more than I thought were adventurous enough to try our super gourmet fig-arugula-ricotta pie (pictured during assembly above). It was a challenge to get many of them to try fresh fig in the first place, but as I say, “Rule #1 in the kitchen: Try everything. Rule #2: You don’t have to like it.” (That is, of course, unless you’re allergic.)

We made two pies. A classic tomato-mozzarella-fresh basil and the fig-arugula-ricotta. In addition to those, my 4th/5th grade class made a third pie of fresh basil-roasted red pepper-roasted eggplant (no sauce). I found a 1-hour pizza dough recipe I adapted into a whole wheat recipe. It worked great. I made the first batch of dough Monday 1 hour before class. Class arrived and made a batch of dough. We then swapped their dough (which was set aside to rise) for the dough I made and finished pizza assembly. At the end of our hour class time the dough the class made went into the fridge for the next day’s class (brought out to 1 hour before class to come to room temperature). Some admin folk were in the class taking pictures and loved the swap out, “it’s like a cooking show!” My favorite point of class was here too, but it was the students reactions: after the students made their dough I would say, “okay, now we have to wait one hour for your dough to rise, so let’s mop the floors!” “WHAT?!” “Ha! Gotcha! We have some already ready from yesterday!”

1-Hour Whole Wheat Dough
adapted from epicurious.com
Makes 1 14-inch pizza

3/4 cup warm water (105°F to 115°F)
1 envelope active dry yeast
1 cup all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon sugar
3/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons olive oil

Add 3/4 cup warm water to a medium-sized mixing bowl. Stir in yeast and let sit 5 minutes. Brush another medium-sized bowl with olive oil, set aside. Into the bowl with yeast, sift in the flour, sugar and salt and pour in the olive oil. Knead the mixture in the bowl until smooth and sticky, about 1 minute. Transfer the dough to the olive oil coated bowl, turning so the oil covers all surfaces. Cover and let sit in a warm area until doubled in size, about 1 hour. Punch the dough down. (Here you can refrigerate the dough overnight.) Turn the dough onto a floured surface and roll out the dough with a rolling pin from the center out.

Fig & Caramelized Onion Pizza
Makes 1 14-inch pizza

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 onion, sliced thin
1 teaspoon salt
2 sprigs fresh thyme, divided
2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 cups arugula
8 fresh black figs, halved
1/2 large ball mozzarella, sliced
1/2 cup feta, crumbled (Recommended: Dodonis feta)
1 1-Hour Whole Wheat Pizza Dough (recipe above)

Add 2 tablespoons olive oil to a warm medium-sized skillet over medium-low heat. Add onions, salt and the leaves from 1 sprig thyme. Saute for 15 minutes until soft and just beginning to caramelize, stirring every once in a while. Add the balsamic vinegar and sauté another 5-8 minutes. Remove from heat.
Turn the oven to 400F. Roll out the dough and transfer to baking pan. Brush the dough with remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Sprinkle with salt and the leaves of the remaining thyme. Sprinkle the arugula over the dough, assemble the figs. Top with the caramelized onions, top with mozzarella and feta. Bake 15-20 minutes until dough and cheese is golden.
NOTE: Add procuitto to the pizza for an extra special pie.

Classic Cheese with Fresh Basil Pizza
Makes 1 14-inch pizza

1 8 ounce can tomato paste
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup fresh basil
1 large ball mozzarella, sliced
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1-Hour Whole Wheat Pizza Dough (recipe above)

Turn the oven to 400F. Roll out the dough and transfer to baking pan. Spread the tomato sauce over the dough, sprinkle with salt and arrange the basil over the sauce. Arrange the mozzarella over top, drizzle with olive oil. Bake 15-20 minutes until dough and cheese is golden.

Last week was Mushroom Summer Rolls.  I learned that the Vietnamese translation of these rolls (and spring rolls) is technically “mixed fresh vegetables,” or something similar– so summer roll/ spring roll is interchangeable. I like saying summer roll for un-fried/fresh rolls. Spring rolls for the ones you fry. We made summer rolls.

Mixed reviews on these from the students. I laid out all the vegetables for the kids to chose whatever filling they want and I’d say 20% made solely carrot rolls. They declared them delicious though (the fully carrot rolls), so that’s a start. Some made carrot-sugar snap pea rolls. Most adventurous and some mushroom-loving souls chowed down on creativity and filled them with everything on the platter. A few in my Friday class (K/1) started making square, triangular and “people stuffed” rolls. Best not to ask on those.

Everyone enjoyed the challenge of not only rolling these, but also figuring out the correct time to leave the rice paper under water to make it pliable. There was also the aspect of sharing– only 2 bowls of warm water and one rice paper at a time.

One of my K/1 boys told happily declared he doesn’t like vegetables. “Well, what do you like?” “Mashed potatoes, white rice and chicken.” Adventurous eater. “But you ate pizza last week.” “That’s because it was pizza.” “Hmm, touché.” His roll? Rice paper rolled with “invisible” vegetables. I wonder if he’ll eat our upcoming gnocchi.

Mushroom Summer Rolls
Makes approximately 8 rolls

Marinade:
4-6 ounces mushrooms, sautéed 10 minutes in 1 tablespoon sesame oil (Recommended: Enoki or Shiitake)
1 lime, juiced & zested
1/4 cup honey
2 tablespoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons minced garlic
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon grated ginger
1/2 teaspoon sirachi or other hot sauce (optional)*
Filling:
1 packet 10-12 inch rice paper wrap (Available at Specialty markets in their Asian foods section, or Asian markets)
1 bunch fresh mint (or Thai basil)
1 pint bean sprouts
1 red bell pepper, julienned (sliced thin)
1 carrot, julienned (sliced thin)
15 sugar snap peas, julienned (sliced thin)
3 scallions, sliced
1/2 English cucumber, julienned (sliced thin) (Alternatively, remove seeds and slice regular cucumber)

*Note: Ginger opens up the taste buds and has a heat of its own. Be careful adding any additional hot sauce– This gets spicy fast!

Combine ingredients for marinade, mix to combine and set aside for 1 hour, up to overnight. Fill a large mixing bowl with very warm tap water. Lay a damp paper towel in front of you as a work surface (in class we used damp paper plates). Fully submerge rice paper for 20 seconds in the water until slippery and pliable, the warmer the water the less time needed. Remove with both hands, keeping spread apart and lay out on towel. Working in just the center 3-4 inches of the rice paper circle, layer preferred ingredients, including mushrooms and a little marinade, horizontally.  Fold over the right side of the rice paper to just over center. Fold over the left side of the paper to just over center. Fold the bottom side over then push down slightly and roll to complete, keeping the ends tucked in. Continue until remaining ingredients are used.
NOTE: Use the leftover marinade as a dipping sauce!
NOTE: Other fun ingredients include shrimp, beef, lettuce, rice, radish, baby turnips, pickles, cabbage, cilantro. Add 2 tablespoons of peanut butter to marinade for a peanut dipping sauce!

For the past few months, D and I built a mountain of squash by squirreling away our Community-Supported Agriculture (CSA) deliveries. The thinking: we received little winter squash from our CSA last year due to a short harvest and would therefore savor every squash that crossed our path this year. (Last year consisted of many root vegetables because I refused to purchase any greens from the grocery making D quite ornery– For some reason he is unable to purchase these items unless he is told to do so and blames me.) As the squash rolled in (since October), D and I cautiously administered our provisions with a single rule: no squash until the depths of winter– unless rotting was otherwise visible.We appointed similar rulings to the tomatoes I canned: only 3 quarts per month from December to March. And corn: only 2 per month as long as we didn’t die after the first jar (that’s another story to come).

Our bounty grew so great that as fellow members of the CSA came into our home their eyes would pop: are you taking extra squash home? Not at all– we haven’t been eating it.

And then it overflowed.

You can understand that in a proper home this mountain would be no problem– a cool basement, garage or cellar would do the trick for storage. New York City is a different beast. Limited closet space already with a brawl underway between our tomatoes, corn, camping gear and vacuum, no basement, no garage. I piled our squash high in our largest wooden bowl (and then around it) on our dining room table (we’re lucky to have the space for a dining room table) creating a cubist-still-life-quasi-Jenga masterpiece of balance.

It was beautiful. Until rot entered.

First it hit an acorn squash. Just one, but my reaction was to cook up as many as possible to avoid an outbreak. I made a squash ravioli full of butter, nutmeg and sage. Eaten with such hunger no picture was secured.

Then a quick and basic soup with pretty much solely squash and chicken broth.

Another (deconstructed) ravioli followed. Eaten again with such gusto no picture was had. I say deconstructed because this time I was too lazy to stuff the ravioli so I cubed the squash, made linguini and tossed it all together.

The leftover deconstruction turned into a hash of sorts.

We turned to admire our slightly smaller mountain for a little more than a month. Squash no longer flowed beyond the confines of the bowl, but it remained that still life structure of sort.

So yesterday, with purpose to make the mountain more a mole hill, with an uncertain ending in mind, I roasted two butternut and the last two acorn squash. (I really was planning to keep the acorn squash for a coconut squash custard, bought all the ingredients, but was never in the mood.) I toyed with more ravioli, then with actually making squash-based noodles. I eventually grew hungry and settled on more soup.

The resulting dish wasn’t so much soup as a thick base that can go a step further. I think D was thinking this when he smelled the soup warming and whipped up some Basmati rice with saffron, pine nuts, raisins, and goji berries (a gift from my mom picked up at a recent food show)

I realize that most of my squash soup recipes contain some curry (because it’s a combination I love) and recently I’ve even added coconut milk. This recipe differs in the its final consistency- it’s much thicker. I also amped up the curry and D started tossing in ingredients as well. We used an ingredient called Coconut Smiles (another ingredient my mom sent me a while back). It’s simply dried coconut pieces, unsweetened. This ingredient is really what altered the consistency into more of a sauce because once blitzed, the coconut bits turn into a sort of coconut cream.

While we ate the dish as a soup last night and again for lunch, I can’t help but think slow roasting some lamb or chicken in it would be amazing, using it more as a sauce. This is why I am not calling it a soup. The ending is up to you. Blitzing it with some garbanzo or white beans as a spread would be delicious. Or simply heat some garbanzo beans in it for a great curry.

As an aside, when D’s rice was complete he excitedly created the rice domes while plating and dubbed the dish Utopia. Or maybe this is also a tribute to its many possibilities.

Curry Coconut Winter Squash
Serving size= 6. Active time= 20 minutes. Cook time= 30 minutes.
3-4 small-sized winter squash, roasted (acorn and small butternut are a good combination)
2 tablespoons butter or olive oil
6 cloves garlic, lightly crush
1 tart apple (like granny smith), roughly chopped
1/2 yellow onion, roughly chopped
1 loose cup (about 5 ounces) dried, unsweetened coconut slices (alternatively, you can use 1/4 cup unsweetened coconut flakes or even 1 can coconut cream)
1-1/2 tablespoons curry powder
2 teaspoons coriander powder
1 thai orange hot pepper (or other hot pepper or pepper flakes)
1 whole clove
2 whole allspice
2 quarts chicken or vegetable broth
salt/ pepper to taste
cilantro for garnish (optional)

(Preheat oven to 400F. Slice squash in half, remove pulp and seeds, place skin up and roast until soft, aproximately 45 minutes. Allow to cool.)

Heat a stock pot over medium-high heat with olive oil. Add garlic, apple, onion and coconut. Saute for 4 minutes until onions are slighlty translucent. Add curry powder, coriander, hot pepper, clove and allspice, stir to coat evenly and saute 4 minutes more. Use a spoon to scoop out squash flesh and add to pot. Add chicken or vegetable broth, cover and bring to a boil. Carefully in batches puree the soup using a strong blender (the coconut will still be fairly firm) until a smooth, even texture is reached. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve as soup, sauce, spread, etc with rice, protein or both. Garnish with cilantro.

Note: D made the rice in the above picture. It is basmati rice with a pinch of saffron, toasted pine nuts (almonds would be delicious too), a handful of raisins and a few goji berries stired in when the rice was finished cooking. He seasoned it with salt and pepper (a sprinkle of ground cardamom would also be good).

I have made paella in the past, but dare I say I have (nearly) perfected my paella prowess. Nearly because I must work on “the crust” and perfected because after a recent dinner with a Spanish friend, who claims all food in America is horrible (no matter the origin or chef), had to concede that my paella was in fact, “just as good, maybe better, than some in Spain.” Because of her limited English skills I will simply understand that in her translation she actually meant “best ever.”

The key to perfection that was missing in my first paella was the paella pan. With a plethora of paella now under my belt, I realize this is key to near perfect paella. It may be difficult to justify purchasing a pan with one purpose, but if your goal is perfect paella, get the pan (a fairly inexpensive one can be purchased through Despana). (In fairness, a delicious rice dish is still possible without it, though it will not be true paella.)

After a good cooking vessel, it’s all about the ingredients. While I don’t think short grain rice is necessary– unless authenticity is your goal, using the proper stock builds flavor to an incredible degree. This, and the willingness to part with far more saffron than your pocketbook deems sane (look at this as a one-time splurge since most of us rarely use saffron).

A fish paella needs a fish stock. If your paella will have meat, a chicken stock will work. To build that perfect stock, I bought a cod fish head for about $2 at the fish monger. After purchase, I questioned my Spanish friend: What kind of fish should stock be made from? “Cod, of course.” Of course.

Pointer: fish stock is easy to make, but it is important to use non-fatty fish. Salmon is bad. Cod is good. One can also use shrimp shells or lobster shells. Another great thing about fish stock is that it takes about 15 minutes to make. Any longer will produce a bitter stock. Easy: Saute rough chopped onion and garlic, add fish head, bay leaf, add water, bring to a boil, reduce heat, simmer for 10 minutes, strain and set aside. In a pinch, bottles of oyster stock are okay, though overly salted, or some fish mongers have pre-made stock.

With the fish stock done, consider the types of fish to use. Again, nothing too fatty or oily as the flavor will overtake the dish. Nothing too flaky, as it will fall apart. With this in mind, you can play with sustainability issues in your neck of the woods. If you cannot afford lobster, monkfish is a good substitute (with okay sustainability). Neither is important in your final dish, but will add a nice meatiness to the final paella. Others to mix and match include shrimp, calamari, clams, mussels and scallops.

Now, nothing left to do but make paella. It is not as time consuming as it seems, nor as overwhelming, and the road to perfection is well worth the effort. D and I make a pan loaded with $30 worth of fish (approximately 1 pound of everything) and it lasts us a solid 5 days (10 meals). Price wise, you can’t beat that.

This recipe is adapted from a recipe found in the Cuisines of Spain cookbook by, Teresa Barrenechea. After the third paella, I stopped opening the book, but credit where credit due, no doubt.

(Perfected) Seafood Paella
Serving Size= 8 persons. Active time= aprx 45 minutes. Inactive time= 12 minutes.
1 dozen littleneck clams
2 tablespoons coarse salt
4 cups fish stock (see recipe above)
3 pinches + saffron
3-4 tablespoons olive oil (the Spanish love their olive oil)
1 Spanish onion, sliced thin
6 large cloves garlic, crushed
1 large red or orange bell pepper, seeded and cut lengthwise into narrow strips
1 pound monkfish, cut into 2 inch pieces
2-1/2 cups Spanish, short grain, rice
3/4 pound calamari, whole or rings
3/4 pound medium or large shrimp
2 pounds mussels, scrubbed and de-bearded
salt to taste
1/4 cup parsley plus more for garnish
juice of 1 lemon, plus more for garnish

Clean clams under cold water. Discard any open clams, or those that do not close when touched. Place clams in a large bowl with the coarse salt and let stand for 30 minutes as you prep remaining ingredients. (Clams will release sand trapped in shells.) Keep stock at a simmer In a small sauce pot, keep stock at a simmer, add saffron and stir to dissolve. Add saffron and decrease the heat retain simmer.

Preheat oven to 500F. Heat olive oil in a large paella pan on medium heat. Add onion, garlic and bell pepper, stirring occasionally, 10 minutes, until everything is soft. Turn heat to high, add monkfish and cook 2 minutes each side, until lightly browned and opaque. Add rice and saute for 5 minutes, stirring. Add 1 cup hot stock, scraping up any brown bits attached to the bottom of pan, and stir until soaked up. Fold in shrimp and calamari, add remaining stock, stir to incorporate, and bring dish a boil. Drain clams. Arrange the clams and mussels over top of dish, without pushing them too far under the liquid. Transfer uncovered pan to oven for 12-15 minutes, until rice has absorbed all liquid and clams and mussels have opened. Remove from oven and discard any clams that do not open. Fold in parsley and sprinkle lemon juice over top. Cover with a towel and let sit for 7 minutes. Serve with more lemon and parsley over top as garnish

The other week I mentioned my search for wontons in Chinatown that brought me to the treasured mangosteen. My desire for wonton soup must have been fate to find my true fruit love. But this pull must also mean that these little dumplings are truly blessed and a perfect treat for the Chinese New Year that started this past Thursday.

Where did this sudden desire for wontons come if not from the pull of the mangosteen?

A few weeks ago I was talking with a friend in my Community Supported Agriculture group. Many of the members are currently in a winter share, comprised of storage vegetables like beets, celeriac, carrots and cabbage. It is amazing to have the opportunity to buy local and in season in the winter, but the real challenge is finding unique ways through 25 pounds of 5 or 6 kinds of vegetables! So when this friend mentioned she was making wontons, without asking what she put in them, my mind was working and I knew they were too good to pass up. Off I ran to pick up some no-hassle wonton wrappers.

These days, wonton wrappers are available in many specialty supermarkets in the refrigerated section. I go to Chinatown because they have a larger selection from various producers, as well as shapes (circular or square). For these wonton wrappers, I found a local New York City producer that only uses flour, water and eggs to make the noodle (no MSG or other hard to pronounce additives). In addition, I picked up a young ginger and some scallions to complete the flavor profile I was after.

While most supermarkets carry fresh ginger rhizomes (not roots), young ginger is harder to find, but well worth the effort. The taste is sweeter, less bitter and has less of an astringent bite compared to regular ginger. It is also less fibrous and can be slivered into soups or salads for an extra kick. Young ginger has a smoother skin and a pinkish hue (not to be fooled with the pickled ginger you get with your sushi). Regular ginger (non-powdered) you find in most supermarkets will work in this recipe.

I made these wontons with ground pork, but you can make them vegetarian or with beef just as tasty. For a first time go I think these turned out fabulous. 50 wonton wrappers come in (most) packs so as I made them I assembled them on a cookie sheet to freeze and store for later. Now, whenever D wants some wonton soup he boils these wontons for 10 minutes, adds a little miso paste and dried seawood and voila, instant hearty wonton soup!

This soup is totally no-hassle as long as you have a few key ingredients.

Instead of a chicken stock base (which would be equally delicious) I used organic red miso paste, available at most Asian markets and health stores. Miso paste is made from fermented rice, barley or most often, soybeans. 1-2 teaspoons per cup of water makes a great fast soup base, but you can also use it to pickle vegetables! Red miso paste has a stronger flavor than white (which is used in most miso soup at Japanese restaurants). It is great to have around for fast soups, but also because it seems to last forever. But again, chicken or vegetable stock would taste equally delicious.

When you buy miso paste, don’t forget to pick up some dried (or fresh) seaweed. Experiment with different types, some are better for sushi rolls, others are meant to be re-hydrated in soups or for salads. My local health store carries all sorts of Wikame Eden brand. One package has lasted as long as the miso! If you don’t like seaweed, try bok choi, or stir spinach or even lettuce in there before serving (hey, why not).

As for the wontons, I wanted to use some of my winter storage vegetables so this was a key ingredient. All the recipes I found for wontons contained a basic meat, ginger and garlic trio, most added some soy sauce. Play around and find a flavor combination that works for you.

Wonton Soup
Serving Size= 2. Active time= 5 minutes. Inactive time= 12 minutes.

• 6-8 wontons (see recipe below)
• 4 teaspoons miso paste (available at most Asian or health markets)
• 2 strands dried Wikame seaweed
• 1-2 scallions

1) Bring 4 cups unsalted water to a boil. While the water is coming up to temperature, prepare the bowls.
2) Slice scallion into 1/4 inch slivers and cut seaweed into 1 inch pieces. Divide the scallion and seaweed between the two bowls. Add 2 teaspoons miso paste to each bowl.
3) When water is boiling, remove 1/2 cup of the liquid and set aside. Add wontons to the boiling water, cover, and boil for 8-10 minutes. Divide the 1/2 cup liquid between the two bowls and use a spoon to help break down the miso paste. Make sure the seaweed is covered. Set aside.
4) When the wontons are done, divide them between the bowls and add the boiling water over top. Serve hot.

Pork and Vegetable Wontons
Serving Size= 50 wontons. Active time= 1 hour.
This was my first time making wontons and I found once I developed a rhythm I could stuff them a little plumper and work a littler faster. I followed a technique similar to the one in this YouTube video, but you can make them by a simple one fold method and not worry about getting fancy.

• 2 carrots, shredded
• 1 celeriac, shredded
• 1/4 head of cabbage, shredded
• 4 scallions, sliced into 1/4 inch pieces
• 1 pound lean ground pork
• 2 teaspoons minced ginger
• 3-4 cloves minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 teaspoons chili flakes (optional, or what you think is best)
• 50 wonton wrappers

1) Peel the celeriac and carrot and use a food processor to shred these and the cabbage. Transfer to a large bowl and add the remaining ingredients. Mix the ingredients with your hands to evenly incorporate.
2) Assemble a cutting board in front of you, the wonton wrappers, a small dish of water and a cookie sheet (if you plan to freeze the wontons).
3) Assemble wontons: Place one wrapper on the cutting board. Dip your fingers in the water and rim the edges with a little water. Place one heaping teaspoon of filling in the middle of the wrapper, fold in half once and push out the air and seal. Finish there, or push the center filling in slightly and fold two corners onto each other to form a sort of hat. Continue until all the wrappers are used, assembling them on a cookie sheet to freeze (eat remaining filling in a small burger!). Once the cookie sheet is filled, cover and freeze. Once frozen, transfer to a freezer storage bag for a tasty wonton treat (steamed or boiled) whenever you’re in a pinch for time!
Note:See the YouTube video link above for a step-by-step video of the process (not mine), but it is easier to visualize- sorry, I didn’t have additional un-porked hands to handle the camera!

Here again, is that lovely beet gnocchi. Its magenta hue is so stunning that in any application, it creates a dish worth discussing. This dish looks like all the care in the world went into making it, but it is really, well, it’s as simple as making gnocchi (which really is too simple for something so delicious). When I mention it, peoples’ eyes light up, Oh, really?! Will you bring some over?

Sorry to say, it has all deliciously departed. We had the gnocchi as shown above, with a simple grating of Parmesan and cardamom, and tossed gently with olive oil, salt and pepper. I can also imagine tossing these in an olive tapenade, an herbed pesto, or with a medley of colorful summer squash.

The beet brings out a wonderful earthiness in the dish that really deserves highlighting. Of all the dishes, this was my favorite. The mushrooms, cooked down in rosemary, added a great forest bramble quality to the dish. The goat cheese added a grassy compliment. Together, this dish was like the marriage of forest and pastoral life.

The sauce can easily be replicated for any pasta dish, but I think really, a colored pasta will highlight it best– which is great because there are many on the market. (Although you will be hard pressed to find any as fabulously pink as the beet.)

Beet Gnocchi with Goat Cheese Mushroom Sauce
Serving size= 4 persons. Active time=8 minutes. Cook time= 20 minutes.
1 medium sized white onion
5-6 cloves garlic
1 quart button mushrooms (mixture, or favorite work too)
1 tablespoon fresh chopped rosemary
4 ounces goat cheese
1 pint heavy cream
4 servings beet gnocchi or pasta1) Put salted water on high heat and bring to a boil. While warming, in a large skillet set over medium-high heat, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil.
2) Add onion and saute 3 minutes. Add garlic and mushrooms, saute 10 minutes, until mushrooms brown, release liquid and reduce slightly. Add rosemary and a pinch of salt, allow flavors to emerge.
3) Cook pasta. Gnocchi just takes a few minutes and is ready when it begins to float on the surface.
4) Add goat cheese and heavy cream to the mushrooms. Stir to warm and break down goat cheese. When just boiling, turn heat to medium-low and keep warm until pasta is ready. Serve.

What is with me and beets? You ask.
What is this recent obsession with using them in strange applications? You wonder.
An early start on Valentine’s Day?

I wanted pink pasta. No, truthfully I am still looking to use up my beets in interesting ways. I have eaten them plain, braised, pickled, in chocolate cake, and now beets have fallen into gnocchi. I really wanted to utilize that unique coloring that I love into something that would be truly fabulous. I think this takes the cake. How fabulous they are, both taste and visually. Look at them! Lovely magenta dumplings! So bold on a plate, screaming to say, look at me at eat me!

With my new food mill a willing collaborator, I had to give these babies a try.

Step back. Food mill?

I know, it sounds very old fashion, right? Even D was a doubter (and now newly converted). For months I have been looking into purchasing a new potato masher. No joke, months. I take my kitchen purchases very seriously. I have been using an old pastry blender with wires that just don’t stick in place. (Poorly constructed.)

Debating between hand-held mashers, I could not bring myself to make the buy. Not enough uses for a single instrument that can cost a good deal for the style I wanted. Potato ricers are great, but they ultimately feel like giant garlic presses to me (they also do a lousy job pushing celeriac through I recently found out borrowing a friend’s). So after much contemplation I went with a food mill. Good not only for mashing or ricing potatoes, but will bring sauces and soups smooth, make applesauce, and somewhere down the road can make baby food or grandparent food (zing!).

So with my new food mill I pushed potatoes and beets through and out came what D exclaimed as the “Sweeney Todd Special.” Pot pies anyone? I am ecstatic I have this instrument.
Really, the beet in this recipe is so faint it is difficult to detect. Another great way to slip beets to the haters. I also think it’s a great way to get kids interested in vegetables. Forget slipping it into their food, how about letting them make pink pasta, black pasta (with sepia), brown (chocolate), you get it. I had fun, I’m sure a child would have even more. (And how rewarding to make something delicious the whole family can enjoy).

This recipe made a good deal of gnocchi, enough for two portions and plenty to freeze for later. The best part of gnocchi is that once it’s frozen, it just takes an extra minute or so in boiling water to bring to temperature. Easy, delicious and easy on the eyes. Make the beets a day before to cut some time off.

To make regular gnocchi, just remove the beets from the process and reduce the flour amount (or follow this link). Beets have so much moisture that a good amount of flour is needed to counteract the stickiness of the dough Alternatively, I could have used less beet, but I love how this gnocchi radiates (really, sort of radioactive).

Beet Gnocchi
Serving Size= 8-10 portions
Special equipment: box grater, potato ricer or food mill
2 large (I used 8 small) russet potatoes
2-3 beets
2-3 cups flour
2 eggs
2 teaspoons salt
pepper to taste

1) Snip greens from beets and boil until soft, 30-45 minutes. Remove skin under cold running water, set aside. Boil whole potatoes, skin on, until soft (do not puncture initially with fork). Work carefully and quickly with two towels to slip potato skin off (you want to rice the potatoes while still warm).
2) Working in batches, place potatoes and beets through the ricer and spread gratings over a cookie sheet to dry out as you work.
3) Create a mound with the potato and beet shavings. Add the flour, salt and pepper to the center and create a moat, cracking the eggs inside. Work and knead the dough together, adding more flour as necessary, until dough is no longer sticking to fingers. (As D said, until it looks like a giant pancreas, see photo left).
4) Working in batches on a lightly floured surface, roll the dough into snakes a little thicker than the width of your thumb. Slice into 1-inch pieces. Finish shaping on a lightly floured cutting board and imprint with a fork (this helps hold the sauce and cook more evenly). Assemble, slightly apart, on a cookie sheet and freeze if saving some for later use (this keeps the gnocchi from forming one giant gnocchi). Transfer to freezer bag once frozen through.
To Cook: Boil salted water. Add gnocchi and cook 3-4 minutes, until gnocchi float to top, remove with slotted spoon.
Note: Use your gnocchi just like regular pasta, though in my opinion, stay away from tomato based sauces as this will just be a large bowl of reds. Light olive oil and Parmesan, cream sauces or pesto, work very nicely with these. More in the days to come.

In the fading hours of December 17th, a big happy birthday goes out to D. His very decadent chocolate cake layered with chocolate and peanut butter mousse will find his belly on Wednesday. Until then, he must survive on the lemon curd, brandy butter, and clotted cream rations I gifted him. Oh the pains!

It is when you partake in those lightest of sweets mentioned above that a meal like this one pictured is necessary. Remember that braised pork belly way back when? It seems like a dream. But the meal above was an equally delicious dream that came out of that meal.

It is difficult for me to make just enough food for one night’s meal. Extra mashed potatoes from dinner can find their way into breakfast patties, extra pork belly can take a whole new turn, extra rice can inspire something totally unlinked to the original intent.

A few weeks back I was in our local fish monger asking for sepia ink. As an aside, I have now turned into the local loon asking for esoteric food items. In the butcher, I am constantly asked why I don’t buy any more foie gras. I keep telling the staff if they are offering me their employee discount I am happy to buy them out. Instead, they tell me they can get me truffles and if I’m still interested in buying grass-fed beef they will order me a cow.

So back at the fish monger, I asked for sepia ink (also known as cuttlefish), which they happily sold me a frozen sac of. When I returned a few days ago asking for fish roe I was told I was in the wrong neighborhood. Sepia ink yes. Fish roe no. But fish roe goes into taramosalata, a Greek spread?! No luck.

I bought the sepia ink out of curiosity with no ideas of how it would be used. I knew I wanted to use it, but no inspiration had yet found me. When an excess of rice found its way to the plate, I knew I had my use.

If I was making black rice I needed something that would look striking against it. Black rice seems so sophisticated, elegant– snooty even. Back at the fish monger scallops jumped out. Seared until golden, I knew they would be equally stunning on the plate. (Okay, my first choice of lobster really would have been a hit, but we make sacrifices.) With the leftover rice, this dish was a snap to throw together. It looks totally impressive and utilizes an ingredient that many probably wouldn’t consider using.

Ask your fish monger for sepia or cuttlefish ink. It should not be too expensive (I paid $3 for 2 sacs of ink) and it is simple to use– just let it thaw, cut it open, then invert and remove ink. The ink has a slightly grainy texture and will dye anything it touches so beware. If you cannot bring yourself to use it, you can always make some ink for your quill drawings.

Black Rice with Seared Scallops
Serving Size= 2 persons. Active time= 10 minutes. Inactive time= 10-40 (if rice is not cooked and depending on white or brown rice)
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 onion, sliced thinly
1 tomato, sliced into chunks
2 sepia ink sacs
2 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro plus extra for garnish
1.5 cups cooked white or brown rice
2 tablespoons butter
6 scallops
salt/ pepper to taste

1) Warm the olive oil in a medium-sized sauce pot over medium-high heat. Add onion, sweat for 3 minutes. Add tomato and sepia ink, cook for 2 minutes more.
2) Add cilantro and rice, stir to combine, cover and reduce heat to medium. Allow to warm through.
3) Warm the butter on a skillet over medium-high heat. Salt/ pepper scallops. Once bubbles have subsided, sear scallops 2-3 minutes each side, depending on size of scallops, until nicely browned and firm to the touch.
4) Plate a scoop of rice, top with scallops and garnish with cilantro.