notes from a wineaholic/eggnog

the wineaholic is particularly rummy during the holidays for reasons obvious to most; and yes there is a holiday drink with which to pahty, pahty. my aunt's eggnog recipe is the real deal, baby. a no holds barred, send you over the christmas tree, sugar high infused with rum to knock you right out of your holiday stockings. did i say rum "infused"? well, i don't know if that's really the right term considering that its a potent potable one third of which is rum. i'm off tonite to the first of the holiday family get-togethers, and i wouldn't be properly armed (i mean festive, yeah, that's it, festive) if i wasn't packing a bottle of "the nog". we're talking loaded for bear baby, as my sister in in-law kim will tell you while she chugs it (i mean sips it, yeah that's it, sips it) on the day after christmas morning all by herself in her kitchen. this year there is not only christmas eve at my family's, and christmas day at kim and jimmy's, there will also be a post-christmas family melt-down (i mean gathering, yeah that's it, gathering) at karen and wayne's. it's all good, really. and it is after all another occasion for food and drink.
here's the recipe:
one can of sweetened condensed milk,
one can of evaporated milk,
one raw egg (that's right raw, be a man!)
one sweetened condensed milk can full of rum (because it is the bigger can of the two cans)
one cup of sugar

combine the first four ingredients in a blender and mix. put the sugar in a non-stick pan on high heat and caramelize. the heat should be on high in the beginning but be careful once it starts to caramelize that you don't burn the sugar. it will smoke some so turn off the alarms. with the blender running add the caramelized sugar in to the other ingredients and blend. enjoy!!

a nice sandwich

hey foodies! anybody hungry? i'm guessing your palates are now clean enough to eat off of?! maybe we should start off with something light so it's not such a shock to our systems. it is nice to have lighter fare in the summer, when we want to cool off, and relax outdoors in the warmer temps. one of my favorite memories of this type of lavish relaxation, which this weather just seems to make you crave, is a summer jaunt many years ago on The Barrycuda. HI LOR!!! there's alot to be said of spending a weekend with friends on a houseboat and camping on the beach. on a side note here are three things NOT to do when camping on an open beach:
1. do not have a brown tent.
2. do not use down sleeping bags, and
3. do not set the tent up on a slanted dune.
(i've become a much better camper!)
anyway, our idea of cooling off on the houseboat was doing beer rifle-shots on the roof of the Barrycuda and then jumping off into the waters of the bay. we ate on the houseboat, courtesy of the Barrys, simple summer sandwiches. mr. and mrs. barry were great to put up with all of us crowding things up. the prize for best line of that weekend goes to mr. barry, who, very sadly, recently passed (send your good thoughts out to my friend Lori who misses her dad %^* ). mrs. b said to mr. b "would you like a nice sandwich?", to which mr. b replied..."why do i have to have a NICE sandwich, why can't a have a damn LOUSY sandwich?" that was a great weekend, thanks to the b's for that memory. we later camped out overnight at fire island, and spent the next day on the beach entered in a sand castle competition. classic simple summer food and drink, and fun.
the chance to uncomplicate your life during the hotter temps is instinctual. just look at animals lying on their backs with their legs in the air when it gets hot out. listen to your instinct. relax, damn it. keep it simple, keep it cool...no i'm not gonna say "keep it semi-homemade" i could get sued for that couldn't i, sweetie? anyway, how about a little gazpacho? i'm a big fan and i do add a little complexity to the great debate over the appropriate texture and combination of ingredients by including corn in the recipe. i like the color and the sweetness it adds. so here it is,
GAZPACHO
4 large tomatoes blanched, peeled, deseeded, small rough chop, juice reserved
1 cuke, peeled, unless you use the "burpless", deseeded, small rough chop
4 scallions(white and green parts) or 1 small red onion, small rough chop
couple of handfulls of corn kernels
juice of one lime, or lemon if you prefer
splash of red wine vinegar
quarter cup of extra virgin olive oil
about a cup of tomato juice (use as much of the reserved as you have)
a little green pepper very finely chopped, italian, or roasted jalapeno, or a couple of shots of hot sauce
salt to your taste and add a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil when you serve.
just combine all the ingredients in a large bowl and let chill abit.

HERE'S MY FAVORITE SPANISH CHEF. JOSE ANDRES


or you could just have a nice sandwich.

table etiquette

you've heard it all too, i'm sure. "sit up straight, keep you elbows off the table, don't use your thumb to push your food onto your fork, make sure the napkin is on your lap, don't slurp your soup", blah, blah, blah. the one i always used to get from my mother had to do with using my spoon to eat with. one of my favorite dishes is picadillo, which is a ground meat dish, and one of my favorite combinations with this is to have it with white rice and black beans. i put everything into a bowl, mix it all together and eat it with a spoon. my mother always, and still does, rolls her eyes at me when she sees me doing this. trust me, you would love it. i love making picadillo, and actually think i make it better than anyone. but i wouldn't say this to my grandmother. anyway, here's the recipe for my picadillo, just make sure you don't share it with anybody else.

about 4 slices of bacon, chopped,
about 1 and 1 half pounds of ground beef, or beef/veal/pork mix
1 small onion, chopped
half of one red or green bell pepper chopped,
a few garlic cloves chopped,
a teaspoon of ground cumin
a teaspoon of ground coriander or fresh cilantro,
1/2 teaspoon of turmeric,
1 small can of tomato sauce,
about a dozen green olives sliced in half,
a handfull of raisins,
salt and pepper to taste.

cook the bacon and reserve,
use the bacon fat to cook the onions and pepper,
add the meat and cook completely while breaking down,
add the garlic, cumin, coriander or cilantro and turmeric,
add the tomato sauce and cook thoroughly,
add the olives, raisins, and cooked bacon, and salt and pepper.

serve the picadillo with white rice and black beans.

home is where the tart is

as long as i'm talking about tarts i'll mention a sweet one. John really loves this tart book called "tarts, sweet and savory" and another of the last ones he made was a lemon cheese tart. Maxine Clark is the author of this book and she has a long history as a leading food writer and teacher. the hardest thing about this recipe is the "blind baking" of the crust, which is not really all that difficult. it basically entails first cooking the crust without the filling in it, or "blind", so that it stays crisp after the whole tart is cooked WITH the filling. all you do is cover the tart shell with beans or rice or these special marbles, and cook it before pouring in the filling and baking it again. you fill the shell with these beans or whatever so that the tart shell does not bubble up as it is being baked "blind". this usually has to be done with tarts and its an essential step. one of the first tarts he ever made from this book is an apple one and it is absolutely delish; but the book says its a "french" apple tart and i'm like, what the fuck?! the only thing french about it is the fact that the book author called it "tarte aux pommes" which basically means "apple tart" in french but SO WHAT?! i mean, if i called it "tartaleta de manzanas" (which is just "apple tart" in spanish) would i say it was a spanish apple tart?! fuck no! it's still just a damn apple fucking tart!!! when you're in china they don't call the food there "chinese food" it's just FOOD! WHATEVER! anyway, as i said this is a really easy tart recipe so i'm including it below, plus a picture of how ours came out.

THE RECIPE

1 shortcrust pastry and 9 inch false bottom tart pan
1 lemon
1/3 cup sugar
12oz or 1 and 1/2 cup of cream cheese of cottage cheese
1 large egg plus 3 egg yolks
2 teaspoons of vanilla extract

bring the dough to room temperature, and preheat the oven to 375 degrees

roll out the dough on a lightly floured work surface and use to line the tart pan. prick the base, then chill or freeze for 15 minutes and bake blind (about 10-12 minutes).
peel the zest from the lemon leaving behind any white pith, and squeeze the juice. put the zest and sugar into a food processor or small blender, and blend until the sugar and zest mixture looks damp.
add the lemon juice and blend again-the lemon zest should be completely dissolved into the sugar. add the cheese, egg yolks, whole egg, and vanilla extract. blend until smooth and pour into the baked crust.
bake for about 25 minutes until just set and lightly browned on top. remove from the oven and let cool.

...and the queen said "off with his head"

John made a really great tart yesterday, mushrooms with stilton cheese. the apartment had that really pungent smell of the stilton while he was making it and it tasted delish. tart making can be very different depending on whether you're doing sweet or savory. and even among the sweet there are very different methods. the biggest difference between baking and other types of cooking is that with some forms of baking it's all about measuring. sometimes its an exact science, just the right amount of wet to dry ingredients or you could wind up with an inedible mess. with cooking other things it really can be a pinch of this or a dash of that, or leave in one thing or substitute for something else you might prefer; but not with certain forms of baking. people who always follow recipes will argue about my cooking methods but i understand that some people like to follow a recipe every single time so that the dish always comes out the same. they've even quantified the "pinch" and "dash" method! no really, you can find actual measurements in cookbooks that will specify what a "pinch" or a "dash" should actually be! that's a little too OCD even for me. you can check out the measurement conversions over there if your're interested. it is actually a valuable tool for some of those old recipes that someone wrote down for you and will at least give you a starting point from which you can create your own preferences.
ok, so the title, tarts always remind me of alice in wonderland and the part where the jack of hearts steals the tarts and the queen of hearts says "off with his head" which she seemed to say alot. and the recipe, well, it belongs to michael chiarello so the link to his web site is over there under "mushroom tart" and the recipe is below too if you want to try it. i think you should, or it's OFF WITH YOUR HEAD!






HERE'S THE RECIPE

2 lb cleaned, mixedmushrooms, (sliced or quartered depending on variety)
1/3 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
4 cloves garlic, minced
2-3 shallots, minced
1 1/2 tablespoons freshly chopped thyme
2 tablespoons minced parsley
1 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
Juice from 1/2 lemon
1 egg-well beaten
8 oz crumbled blue cheese
1 sheet frozen puff pastry-thawed
Flour for dusting work surface

1 lb dry beans for baking crostata shell


Directions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.

Heat two large saute pans over high heat. Working in batches divide the olive oilbetween the two pans. When the oil is hot but not quite smoking, add themushrooms, season with gray salt and pepper, add the butter to each pan andallow to caramelize. Once mushrooms havecooked down to half their volume, transfer all mushrroms to one pan. Add the shallots and garlic and cook untilthe light brown and fragrant. Add thethyme until it crackles. Add the cream and bring up to a simmer. Reduce thecream by about half and stir in the grated parmesan, and the lemon juice. Shutoff the flame and quickly stir in the beaten egg. Remove from the stove and letcool to room temperature. Add parsleyand stir.

While mushroom mixture is cooling, roll out the pastry doughon a floured surface. Roll the dough out so that it will line a 10ý removablebottom tart pan. Line the dough with parchment paper and fill with the drybeans. Bake for 10-12 minutes, remove from the oven and let cool to roomtemperature.

Lower oven temperature to 400 degrees F.

When both the filling and shell have cooled to roomtemperature fill the shell with the mushroom mixture and top with the crumbledblue cheese. Arrange the tart mold on a cookie sheet and bake for 20-30minutes. Remove from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature beforeserving. Slice in wedges and serve.

AND HERE'S WHAT OURS LOOKS LIKE

The Incredible Edible Egg

i love eggs. they're one of my favourite foods and one thing i love to make with them is a spanish tortilla. the traditional recipe is just onions, potatoes and, of course, the eggs. this is what's usually called a "tortilla espanola" but like so many peasant foods, it just depends on what you have on hand, as long as there are eggs. my grandmother used to make them for dinner with sardines and that was delish! this is my mother's mother who is going to be 93 this year and going strong. she cooks and cleans and reads everything and curses like i sailor. i lived with her, and my grandfather, most of my young adult life. as i said before, i'm latin, and alot of us believe in living in the extended family system. i'm grateful that happened, it really helped me to get to know my mom's parents well. my grandfather, the maternal one, died about 11 years ago at the age of 92. he and my grandmother were inseperable, they couldn't even get dressed without each other. he used to cook too, but not so much. although he did have a specialty, chatinos, also known as tostones, and nobody could make them as crunchy and perfectly fried as he could. anyway, the tortilla can be eaten for breakfast, brunch, dinner whatever. alot of times i just make one so i can have something quick to nuke for breakfast for a couple of days. traditionally they are also supposed to be fried on the stove top, which entails having to flip it somewhere along the way. this step takes a steady hand 'cause you could easily lose the whole thing but it's do-able. you could also just cook it in the oven, especially if your ingredients are leftovers (or as my family calls them "recyclables"), and then avoid the flipping step. i just made one with leftover spinach and potatoes. the recipe and pictures are below.

THE INGREDIENTS:
This was a small one, only 6 eggs; but with a 9 or 10 inch pan you can use 8 eggs.
there's also the wilted, fresh spinach (a leftover)
and the broiled potatoes (also leftover)
just scramble the eggs in a large bowl, add a little milk; but you don't have to (or cream or whatever dairy you like),
then just stir the leftovers into the eggs,
don't forget to salt the eggs, my grandfather used to say that anyone that ate eggs without salt would eat their own mother. nice, right?


put everything into an oiled/buttered/or non-stick pan and put into a pre-heated 350 degree oven. check it after 20 minutes if it's a small one like this, or it may take 30 minutes if it's larger. you can serve it just like this for the rustic feel or slide/flip it out onto a plate. just leave the pretty side up. enjoy!

ginger, simple syrup and thighs (chicken thighs that is)

No, not THAT ginger...

That's right, THAT one!

so one of the other things that Ming does on this one episode is using the ginger simple syrup in a chicken recipe. he uses thighs which are sweeter and juicier than some other parts of the bird; but obviously you use whatever parts you like best, or use a variety of parts or the entire bird. i'm a leg man so i'm good with the thighs. he does alot with the process of starting out with a master recipe and then making alot of things from that. i think it's a great way to develop a menu. invariably when i'm thinking of chicken recipes i'm reminded of that great Julia Child episode where she drops the bird on the floor then just picks it up and sort of dusts it off and says that no-one knows what goes on in the kitchen but you. Julia was an amazing chef and really fun to watch on tv. it's hard to keep from imitating her when you do. check out the link with her name on it my "peeps"!


anybody thirsty besides me at this point? how about that ginger-tini?

Ice
3 ounces vodka, any flavor but i like a citrus flavor for this
1/2 to 1 ounce ginger syrup, recipe follows
1/2 teaspoon freshly squeezed lime juice
Twist of lemon or lime

Fill a cocktail shaker or small pitcher with ice. Add the vodka, ginger syrup, and lime juice. Cover and shake vigorously, or stir, until combined and chilled, about 30 seconds. (In general, by the time the shaker mists up the drink is ready.) Strain into a chilled cocktail glass. Add twist and serve.

ginger, simple syrup and cocktails (with florence)

so last time i mentioned how i had gotten this great idea from watching Simply Ming on tv. Ming Tsai is this really cool chef and you can check him out on the video below giving a "ginger 101" lesson. on this one show he makes the ginger simple syrup and uses that for cocktails. he makes a ginger ale with it, which i've tried and it's really good, but my favorite thing to make with it is a ginger martini. you can also use it for mojitos, which i've also done, and it's a nice twist to add the ginger symple syrup instead of plain when you make them. ginger is a great spice; it has alot of anti-oxidants but because it's very fragrant alot of people don't really care for it. it can also be a bit spicy, like hot spicy; but depending on the cooking process it can mellow out alot. the crystallized ginger is really great for cooking, cocktails and for desserts. my friend Florence ( love you Florence! ) is a really good cook and she's very middle and far eastern inspired in her recipes. she does alot with ginger and i've borrowed alot of techniques and recipes from her, including her ginger cookies. i'll never forget the first time i met her. i was invited to her place for dinner and by the time my partner John and i got there Florence was smashed from drinking boxed wine. halfway through the dinner Florence is having a hard time keeping her eyes open and she's doing this blinking thing and next thing you know she's praying to the porcelain god and we're keeping her from winding up head first in the toilet. anyway, she's a really cool person and i hope i get invited to dinner again soon. she lives on the lower east side of manhattan with a great view of the river and brooklyn from her 21st floor apartment. she's also a great collector of beads, and she has some beautiful african trade beads, and venetian beads.




ps
you can click on the link under Ming Tsai and it leads to another short video of his where you can watch him do more with ginger.
enjoy. or just copy and paste the url from below.

http://simplyming.dreamhosters.com/rss/media/simplyming_3-05.mp4




to make the simple syrup all you have to do is put equal parts water and sugar into a pan and bring to a boil, lower the heat to simmer until the sugar is dissolved and let cool. to make the ginger simple syrup you simply add a whole stem of peeled and thinly sliced ginger to the pan with the sugar and water. you can then make the crystallized ginger by taking the slices of ginger from the simple syrup and coating them with regular sugar and laying them out on a baking sheet. put the slices in a 250 degree for about an hour or until they have dried out. store them in an airtight container and they will keep for months.

carrot soup, snow day, and firemen

this past friday i was lucky enough to have a day off while the snow fell outside. one of my favourite things to make is soup, especially on a day like that, so i made a cream of carrot soup with ginger that really hit the spot. it's a really simple recipe from one of my oldest cookbooks, the better homes and garden cookbook. this book has been so used and abused that the spine is all cracked and split and there are burn marks on the cover where i've let it get too close to the stove (my current kitchen is really tiny and it takes some creative maneuvering to work in it). anyway, i've changed the recipe a little to accomodate for the ginger, which i add fresh to the soup in the process and then i sprinkle some chopped crystallized ginger over the top when i serve it. you would kill yourself for this soup! really! i make the crystallized ginger myself; it's a process that starts out with making a ginger simple syrup and you go from there. it's this whole synergistic cooking thing that i picked up from watching Ming on tv. you start out with one recipe that leads to all these other things. i'll talk more about that at some other time. anyway, one of the first times i ever made this recipe was about 15 years ago for my friend Colleen ( Hi Col! ) who at the time was strictly vegetarian. i haven't seen her in a while, although we keep in touch, because she's been back in school too and has a new job. she lives in rockville center and hosts a great bbq on her rooftop deck every 4th of july. it's totally cool 'cause the fireworks done by the town of rockville center are set off in a field right next to her building so they literally go off over your head. afterwards the town firemen come on the roof to make sure there are no fires from the falling ash. so you get to see great fireworks and cute firemen too!
well, hope you all enjoyed this entry and touch base again. i invite your comments if you're so inclined.

THE RECIPE

3 cups veg. or chicken stock/
1 cup chopped onion/
4 cups peeled, chopped carrots/
2 tablespoons fresh or 2/3 tablespoon dried parsley/
3 tablespoons fresh or 1 teaspoon dried basil /
1 and 1/2 inch piece peeled, chopped fresh ginger/
4 tablespoons softened butter/
4 tablespoons flour/
2 cups of milk/
1 teaspoon salt or more to taste/
a couple of dashed of white pepper/

in a saucepan combine the first six ingredients and bring to boil, then reduce heat, cover and simmer for about 15 minutes or 'til the carrots are tender. while this is happening make a roux by mixing the softened butter and flour together thoroughly, no lumps. when the carrots are tender you can use an immersion blender to puree the mixture or a regular blender. BE CAREFUL WITH THE HOT LIQUID IN THE BLENDER! do not overfill the container of the blender and make sure the lid is secure. the hot contents will expand. add the milk, salt and pepper, and the roux to the blended mixture in the saucepan and simmer, stirring constantly until the roux is completely dissoved and the soup begins to thicken. that's it, your soup is ready to enjoy. if you have some crystallized ginger you can chop some and add to the top of each serving. i recommend it.

tom.

FOOD SHOULD BE BETTER THAN THIS...