Last Night’s Dinner

Of the many pieces of equipment in our kitchen, there are a few I consider essential. One of these is our cast iron grill pan - it’s a great tool for cooking food quickly, and as much as I love the rich soups, stews and braises we’ve been eating, sometimes it’s nice to have something lighter. I can cook a couple of pieces of fish in the grill pan with just a touch of oil and have our meal ready in a flash.

I seasoned a couple of swordfish steaks with kosher salt and cracked black pepper, then coated them lightly with a bit of extra virgin and placed them into the hot grill pan. The fish cooked for about 5 minutes per side - and as I’ve said before, when it goes into the hot pan, don’t move it around until you’re ready to flip it; you want it to sear and get grill marks so it doesn’t fall apart.

While the swordfish cooked, I put together a salsa verde, which has become one of my favorite accompaniments for fish. I combined about 2 cups of fresh herbs (we had flat-leaf parsley, thyme, sage, dill and fennel fronds on hand, so I used all of those) with two fat cloves of garlic (peeled and smashed), a chopped shallot, and 2-3 tablespoons of capers. All of that went into the mini-chopper with a pinch of salt and a few grindings of pepper, and I pulsed it until it was a chunky paste. In a separate bowl, I whisked together the juice of a lemon with a tablespoon or so of sherry vinegar and a few tablespoons of olive oil, then added the herb-garlic-caper paste to that and mixed it well.

When the swordfish was done, I plated it and topped each steak with a generous spoonful of the salsa verde. The combination of the fresh herbs, briny capers, lemon and vinegar really highlighted the richness of the fish. I served this with a simple salad, but you can certainly cook some rice, couscous, or a vegetable to go alongside in about the same time as it takes to prepare the fish and salsa.

Winter’s short days and blustery weather may keep us from grilling outdoors, but it’s nice to know we can get a taste of warmer days with a grill pan and a hot burner.

Mike and I are big fans of curries and of Indian flavors in general, but despite having a bunch of the requisite spices in our pantry, we really haven’t cooked these types of dishes much at home. There was a strong possibility that I would have to work late Monday night, so when planning our meals for the week, I thought a soup would be a good option.

I had a bag of red lentils in the pantry, as well as some canned chickpeas, and they seemed like natural partners for the curry spices I wanted to use. I started building the soup by toasting and then grinding a tablespoon each of whole cardamom, mustard seeds, allspice, cumin and coriander. I melted two tablespoons of ghee in the Le Creuset and added half a chopped red onion and a bit of kosher salt. The toasted, ground spices went in next, along with a bay leaf and two teaspoons each of ground cinnamon, turmeric, fenugreek, paprika, and powdered piquin chile (you can, of course, substitute your favorite prepared curry powder for this mixture of spices).

I added a cup and a half of red lentils, six cups of my homemade chicken stock (you can substitute vegetable stock or water if you wish), plus about cup and a half of whole peeled tomatoes with their juices. I broke up the tomatoes a bit with my spoon, then covered the pot and let it come to a boil, then reduced the heat to a simmer and cooked it for 20 minutes or so, until the lentils were tender.

At this point, I turned off the heat, fished out the bay leaf, and pureed the soup with my immersion blender. I then turned the heat back on and added one can of drained and rinsed chickpeas and a handful of frozen chopped spinach. I let the soup cook for another 10 minutes, then served it with a dollop of Greek yogurt on top and some purchased naan bread which I had topped with chopped garlic and olive oil before heating briefly in the oven. The soup was a little spicy and a lot savory, really delicious and filling on a snowy night.

Because of my workload, I didn’t have much time or inclination to cook this weekend, so my husband stepped in.

Friday night he made us seared ribeyes with a mushroom pan sauce and salad (yum):

Saturday we had Two Boots pizza delivered to Kettle of Fish, and last night I was treated to a rich and meaty chili which Mike simmered all afternoon and into the evening.

I’m a lucky lady.

I’ll be back in the kitchen tonight and will have a new recipe for you tomorrow.

We eat salmon fairly often, as it is healthy, sustainable, and easy to prepare in a variety of ways. One of my favorite ways to eat it is paired with lentils - there’s something about the way the richness of the fish works with the earthiness of the lentils that is really pleasing. This is a simple but elegant meal that is great to have in your repertoire for nights when you don’t have a lot of time to spend on getting dinner on the table - start to finish it usually takes me a little over half an hour.

For the lentils, I start by sauteeing a chopped shallot with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Once the shallot is softened, add a cup of lentils (I use the tiny green puy lentils, but you can use whatever variety you like - with the possible exception of red lentils, which won’t hold their shape), plus two cups of water and a sprig of fresh thyme. Cover the pot and let it simmer for 25-30 minutes, until the lentils are tender but still have a little bite to them. Once they are cooked, stir through about a tablespoon each of sherry vinegar and olive oil.

The salmon is even easier to prepare, and takes just minutes to cook while the lentils are simmering away. Coat the inside of a cast iron skillet with a thin layer of olive oil and heat it until it is almost smoking, then reduce the heat to medium. Season the salmon filets with kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper, and place them into the hot pan skin side down. Cook the filets for about five or six minutes on the first side, then flip them and allow them to finish cooking on the other side for another 3 minutes. (The most important thing to remember with the salmon is once it goes into the pan, don’t move it around before you flip it - you want the skin to get really crispy so the fish won’t fall apart when you flip it, and allowing it to cook undisturbed will make that happen.)

Using a slotted spoon, place the lentils in a shallow bowl and lay a salmon filet on top. Toss a simple salad, pour a glass of Cotes du Rhone, and enjoy.

I’m a bit pressed for time today, so for now you just get the recipe.

Two Cheese, Mushroom & Chard Bread Pudding

6 cups bread, cubed (I used a potato and onion fendu from Balthazar Bakery)
1 bunch swiss chard
1.5 cups fresh mushrooms, sliced or chopped if large (I used small whole Yellowfoot mushrooms)
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter, plus more to grease the baking dish
6 large eggs
1.5 cups whole milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/2 tsp. Colemans mustard powder
Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper
2 tbsp. each chopped fresh thyme and sage
4 oz. soft fresh goat cheese
1 cup grated gruyere

Preheat oven to 400. Add bread cubes to a buttered baking dish and set aside. Add 1 tbsp. of butter and 1 tbsp. olive oil to a pan set over medium heat. When the butter has melted, add mushrooms and a pinch of salt and cook until softened. Add cleaned and chopped chard, another pinch of salt and pepper and saute until the chard is wilted.

Combine eggs, milk, cream, mustard, thyme and sage in a large mixing bowl and whisk well. Season with salt and pepper. Add cooked chard and mushrooms to the egg mixture and stir to combine. Crumble goat cheese into the mixture and pour over bread cubes. Using your hands, gently toss the ingredients together until well combined, pressing down the bread cubes so they are fully moistened with the egg mixture.

Place the baking dish into the oven and bake uncovered for 20 minutes. Remove, add gruyere to the top in an even layer, and return to the oven for another 10 minutes, until the cheese is melted and golden.

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We had this with salad and Joseph Kaetzel Pinot Gris.

I haven’t been to New Orleans in over ten years, but I think of her often, especially during Mardi Gras season. Cooking up a proper gumbo is a bit much for a midweek meal, so I decided to go with something a bit lighter and easier which still incorporated some of the flavors of New Orleans cuisine. Mike started us off with a round of Sazerac cocktails and fried oysters, and then I got to work on the rest of our meal.

To make a quick version of red beans and rice, I softened a cup of onion in some olive oil, then added a dab of tomato paste and stirred in a half-teaspoon each of cayenne, thyme, marjoram and smoked paprika. A pint of my homemade chicken stock went into the pan next, along with a can of red beans, drained and rinsed. I added a bay leaf and a healthy pinch of kosher salt, then covered the pot and let it simmer for 15 minutes. I stirred in half a cup of white rice and a bit of water, re-covered the pan, and let it cook about another 20 minutes until the rice was cooked.

While the rice and beans were cooking, I steam-sauteed some chopped collards in a bit of olive oil, placing them into a hot pan with a pinch of salt, and (again - it’s my new favorite ingredient) a bit of smoked paprika, allowing a little bit of water from rinsing to cling to the greens. I gave them a stir and let them soften while I turned my attention to our fish.

I got a shallow layer of canola oil heating in the cast iron skillet while I prepped a couple of beautiful catfish filets. I poured a couple of cups of fine cornmeal onto a plate and seasoned it with salt and cayenne pepper. I coated each of the filets with the cornmeal mixture, pressing it into the flesh lightly, and then placed them into the hot skillet, cooking them on the first side several minutes until they were golden brown, and turning them very carefully with two spatulas to finish them on the other side for a couple more minutes. Once the filets were cooked, I removed them from the pan and sprinkled a little bit of smoked paprika over the tops before serving.

We cracked open a couple of Abita Restoration Ales and dug in. I’m sure our dining experience would have been improved had we been sitting on a covered balcony, overlooking the French Market and the river beyond, but I can’t complain… good food and good company makes every meal a celebration.

The beauty of having a well-stocked pantry is being able to change things up at the last minute if necessary and still get something good on the table. Our original plan, since Mike and I both had Monday off from work and could spend a bit more time cooking, was to do a series of New Orleans inspired dishes and nosh all day long. After running around in the cold all morning, then coming home and making three and a half quarts of homemade chicken stock, I was tired and achy, and the last thing I wanted to do was prepare an involved meal. We scrapped our original plan and decided to go simple.

One of our favorite pantry staple meals is a pasta dish inspired by Giada De Laurentiis’ Fusilli with Tuna and Tomato Sauce. Her recipe provides a good jumping off point, but I like to add a little more kick to it with chile flakes and extra capers.

I got a big pot of water boiling for the pasta, and then got to work on the sauce. I didn’t have any of my basic tomato sauce on hand, so I had to build a quick version first. I sauteed a chopped shallot in some olive oil, then added half a can of whole peeled San Marzanos with their juice and crushed them with a potato masher. I added a splash of white wine, some dried marjoram and chile flakes, and seasoned the sauce with kosher salt.

We always have jars of oil-packed Italian tuna on hand, so I pulled the meat from one jar (leaving behind the oil) and added it to the sauce, breaking it up a bit with a fork. I added about 1/4 cup of nonpareil capers and a generous grating of lemon zest, and let it simmer away while my cavatappi cooked (I used half a box). When the pasta was just short of al dente, I added a small ladleful of the pasta water to the sauce, then added the pasta right into the sauce and tossed it through. Once the pasta had finished cooking in the sauce, I spooned it into serving bowls and finished it with some fresh flat-leaf parsley and more lemon zest.

This dish has such a wonderful combination of flavors, and you just can’t beat a recipe that you can put together from things you’ve always got on hand, in just about half an hour.

Wine Note: We drank Borgo Nuovo Nero d’Avola, which went really nicely with the meaty tuna, spicy chiles and hit of citrus in this dish.

It’s still frigid outside, and we had nowhere to be yesterday, so after brunch, Mike read comics and cocktail books, and I thawed some lamb neck slices and curled up with the cats to watch Tony Bourdain eat warthog anus in Namibia. Much to my surprise, this did not kill my appetite permanently.

My plan for dinner was to make a lamb stew, but my usual preparation (red wine, root vegetables, herbes de provence) wasn’t really sending me. We still had Meyer lemons on hand, so I decided to use those, along with some olives, tomato, and warm spices like coriander, cumin and cinnamon.

I seasoned the lamb slices with salt and pepper, then dredged them in a bit of flour before adding them two at a time to the Le Creuset to brown in olive oil. I set the lamb slices aside, and added half a red onion, chopped, to the pan, sprinkled on a pinch of kosher salt, and allowed it to soften. I added three smashed peeled garlic cloves next, along with a tablespoon or so of tomato paste. I let the tomato paste begin to caramelize before mixing it into the onion and garlic. Next came the spices - a tablespoon of coriander seeds, half a tablespoon of ground cinnamon, and two tablespoons of ground cumin, which were stirred into the onion mixture.

I poured in a cup of red wine and a cup of crushed tomatoes, then added two Meyer lemons, seeded and chopped, plus one bay leaf. The lamb went back into the pot, and I added about 1/4 cup of water - just enough to bring the level of the liquid up to the tops of the lamb pieces. I placed the lid on the pan and let it come to a boil, then reduced the heat and let it simmer away for two hours, stirring it from time to time.

I added half a cup of pitted mixed olives about half an hour before the stew was done so they would add their flavor but not break down. I figured the olives would add some saltiness to the stew, so I waited to adjust the seasoning until the olives had cooked for a bit (and as it turned out, it didn’t need to be re-salted at all). I served the stew over couscous, and finished it with a bit of chopped flat-leaf parsley and a grating of lemon zest.

I was really pleased with the combination of flavors here - the sweet-tart taste of the lemon and the tang of the tomatoes and olives were a nice bright counterpoint to the rich lamb, and the spices were warm and heady. I’m definitely going to make this again soon.

Wine Note: We drank 2004 Ey Vigne Las Collas Grenache, an old vines Grenache with delicious smoke, pepper, and spice notes.

Weekend brunches at home are usually pretty straightforward - eggs, bacon or sausage, toast or potatoes, that sort of thing. I recently ordered a set of PoachPods and was eager to test them out, and I have also been eager to try a spin on Ina Garten’s Basil Chicken Hash, so this seemed like a good opportunity to do both.

We had four thick-cut slices of bacon in the fridge, so I chunked those up into about 1 inch pieces and began to cook them in in the cast iron skillet. I added two large shallots (chopped) and a pinch of salt and let the shallots begin to caramelize, then I added about two cups of boiled fingerlings, cut into chunks, and about a cup and a half of cubed roasted chicken left over from last night. I seasoned this again with salt and pepper and let it all brown. I chopped up a couple of fire-roasted red peppers and added those to the mix, along with lots of fresh thyme and basil (chiffonade).

Poaching the eggs was ridiculously easy - you just bring a pan of water to a boil, crack an egg into each of the PoachPods (to which you’ve added a tiny amount of oil), then gently place them into the water, lid up the pan and let the eggs cook to the desired doneness. In about five minutes, I had perfectly poached eggs (with no messy pan to clean up), which I loosened from the pods with a spoon and placed on top of the hash. Mike said this was easily as good as similar dishes we’ve had out, and I have to agree. Plus, it’s always nice to be able to eat in your pajamas.

I’ve been craving roast chicken for weeks now, and since I wanted to buy a whole bird to make stock this weekend anyway, we decided to go ahead and get two - one to poach for stock and the other to roast for dinner.

We caught the Myrtle Avenue bus down to Fort Greene, had brunch and headed over to the Greenmarket. We grabbed two fat little chickens from Dines Farms, ducked into Thirst Wine Merchants for a couple of bottles, then got back on the bus to take our goodies home before heading out again for more errands.

We returned home and snacked on some pate de campagne, baguette and cheese, then Mike mixed us a cocktail and I began prepping dinner. I seasoned the bird inside and out with lots of kosher salt and black pepper, then placed it into a shallow roasting pan. I loosened the skin over the breasts and stuffed thin slices of lemon, fresh sage leaves and fresh thyme under the skin, then stuffed more lemon, thyme and sage inside the cavity. I tied the legs then rubbed the whole bird with extra virgin olive oil, and I placed it into a preheated 400 degree oven.

Is it ready yet?

When the chicken was about half an hour short of being done, I basted it with some of the juices that had accumulated in the pan, rubbed some unsalted butter over the skin and let it finish cooking. I then boiled some fingerling potatoes (with the skins on) and four large peeled garlic cloves. When the potatoes were tender, I seasoned them with salt and pepper and added some olive oil to the pan, then smashed the potatoes and garlic with a potato masher, leaving them a bit chunky.

I set the chicken on a platter once it was cooked and poured the pan juices and a little of the fat into a saute pan. I whisked in a little bit of flour, brought it to a boil, then added an ounce and a half of cognac, fresh thyme, and lots of black pepper. When the mixture was smooth and slightly reduced, I finished it with a quarter cup or so of heavy cream. I carved the bird and served it on a mound of potatoes with a little of the gravy poured over. It was a perfect meal, except for the part where I got so distracted by how good the chicken was that I forgot to make a salad. Whoops.

Wine Note: Thirst carries one of my absolute favorite reds, the Kermit Lynch Cotes du Rhone. I don’t know what it is about this wine, but it always knocks my socks off - the color, the smell of it, the fruit and smoke and pepper - it’s absolutely perfect with a simple meal like this or all by itself.