IS THIS CHINESE FOOD? WHATEVER, IT'S IDEAL FOR WEEKNIGHTS

I'm calling these Chinese, but how could they be, coming from an American Jewish kitchen in Pittsburgh? But ever since Reid and I became enlightened by the broccoli in oyster sauce at Joyce Chen's restaurant near MIT circa 1977 (everyone was rediscovering Chinese food beyond chow mein then) I have been trying to make something at home that at least tastes similar.  I have these two stir-fry recipes on badly stained cards in my old recipe box - they've been used a lot because they're delicious, fresh, and quick though wildly inauthentic - you'll see that they are basically 2 versions of the same thing, which I'm sure would outrage real Chinese cooks.

Before you start, put a pot of plain white rice on to cook alongside.

KUNG PAO CHICKEN (I have no idea if this is really Kung Pao Chicken, or even where it came from, but it's still yummy) (this is for 2 - double for more)

• 3/4 lb. boneless chicken, cut in 1" chunks
• 2 TB soy sauce
• 1 tsp. cornstarch
• splash sherry and sesame oil
• 4 dried hot chiles, wiped clean (or 1/4 - could be more if you like - tsp. red pepper flakes)
• 3 green, red or yellow peppers, cut in 1" squares
• 1/4 cp. shelled peanuts
• 5 scallions, trimmed and sliced 
• Sauce - stir together:
• 3 TB soy sauce
• 1 1/2 tsp. cornstarch, first mixed with 1 TB water
• 1/2 tsp. sesame oil
• 1 TB sherry
• 1 tsp. sugar

(For all dishes like this, you'll want to have this all cut up or stirred together and at hand before you even turn on the stove.  That's actually what takes the most time - after that it's a whirlwind.)

Combine chicken with the soy sauce, cornstarch, sherry and sesame oil and stir until well mixed.  Heat about an inch of vegetable oil (I use canola) until VERY hot in a wok-shaped pan if you have it (uses less oil) but a regular frying pan is fine.  Throw in the chicken and stir fry pretty continuously for just 5 minutes or until cooked through.  Spoon out the chicken with a slotted spoon onto a plate, and discard all the oil except for a few tablespoons.  (If there is stuff stuck to the bottom of the pan, you will probably want to clean it and add fresh oil.)  

Heat the oil again, and first put in the chiles.  In a minute they will turn black - and you can take them out or leave them (but warn people not to eat them! If you use red pepper flakes, wait only a few seconds.)  Add the peppers, peanuts, and scallions and stir until cooked but still crisp, about 2 minutes. Pour on the sauce and bring to a boil while stirring - it will thicken.  Add cooked chicken and heat throughout.  Serve with the rice.  This actually tastes better when eaten with chopsticks.

CHICKEN WITH CABBAGE IN BEAN SAUCE

• 3/4 lb. boneless chicken, cut in 1" chunks
• 2 TB soy sauce
• 1 TB cornstarch
• splash sherry and sesame oil
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and minced
• 1" piece of fresh ginger, peeled and minced
• 3 cps. of thinly sliced green cabbage
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• Sauce - stir together:
• 3 TB soy sauce
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 TB (or less depending on whether it's hot and how you like it) Chinese bean sauce, which you get at a Chinese grocery, but you can probably find at Whole Foods.  The one I use looks like the jar at the top. Hot or not - you choose - I think hot is better in this dish. 
• 1 1/2 tsp. cornstarch dissolve in 1 TB water

(This part same as above.)  Combine chicken with the soy sauce, cornstarch, sherry and sesame oil and stir until well mixed.  Heat about an inch of vegetable oil (I use canola) until VERY hot in a wok-shaped pan if you have it (uses less oil) but a regular frying pan is fine.  Throw in the chicken and stir fry pretty continuously for just 5 minutes or until cooked through.  Spoon out the chicken with a slotted spoon onto a plate, and discard all the oil except for a few tablespoons.  (If there is stuff stuck to the bottom of the pan, you will probably want to clean it and add fresh oil.)  

Heat the oil again, and put in the cabbage, ginger and garlic and stir.  Pour on a little water and cover for a few minutes to move it along without burning.  Uncover and see if the cabbage is just barely cooked. When it is, pour the sauce over and stir until it thickens.  Add the cooked chicken and heat throughout.  Serve with the rice. 

Of course in both of these you can substitute pork for the chicken, or tofu, or use different vegetables, etc. etc.  Then it will be even more inauthentic!  But your own.

One more thing:  as every dinner needs a salad, you can make a simple one of sliced cucumbers with scallions, salt, and a dash of sesame oil - or take a look through this absolutely brilliant and essential compilation of salads by (who else?) Mark Bittman, and pick any Asian one that strikes your fancy.  To the New York Times:  please never take this away!

HOW MANY CHOCOLATE CAKES DO WE NEED? AT LEAST THREE

Cake of enchantment, created by Tamara last week!

Inspired by that, but sticking to our more homely theme, here are three chocolate cake recipes from our family past, which are the home-style fairly fast kids' birthday kind - also lovable.  And maybe if we're lucky Tamara will send hers in too.

DECADENT CAKE:  Go-to birthday cake in the Andrews/Werner family.
(not decadent at all, really, but that's what they called it in the venerable Silver Palate cookbook, which in this house opens automatically to this page.  Slightly amended.)

• 1 cp. boiling water
• 3 oz. unsweetened chocolate
• 1 stick unsalted butter, cut into pieces
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• 1/4 tsp. almond extract (optional)
• 2 cps. sugar
• 2 eggs, separated
• 1 tsp. baking soda
• 1/2 cp. yogurt (best if full fat)
• 2 cps. all purpose flour
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp baking powder

Preheat oven to 350.  Grease and flour either a bundt cake pan or a 13x9" pan.

Pour boiling water over butter and chocolate and let stand until melted.  Stir in vanilla, almond extract, and sugar, then whisk in egg yolks, one at a time.  Separately, mix baking soda and yogurt thoroughly, and then whisk this into the chocolate mixture.  Sift flour and baking powder into the batter and mix thoroughly. 

Separately, beat egg whites with the salt until they hold a shape.  Fold them into the batter gently, a quarter at a time.  Pour the batter into the pan and bake for 30 - 45 minutes, checking at 30 minutes to see if the top bounces back when you touch it, and a toothpick or thin wooden skewer inserted in the middle comes out clean.  When it does, it's done - cool in the pan for 15 minutes, then unmold.  Frost when it's perfectly cool.

Frosting:

• 2 TB unsalted butter
• 3/4 cp. semisweet chocolate chips
• 6 TB heavy cream
• 1 1/4 cps. sifted powdered sugar
• 1/4 tsp. almond extract (or 1 tsp. vanilla)

Put all of these in a heavy saucepan over low heat and stir until smooth. Take off the heat and let cool until it thickens somewhat but is still warm and gooey.  Spread over the cake the way you like it.  


Next up:

:

NAN'S CHOCOLATE CAKE

This is the one my Nan always made for us, and always said "it didn't come out right!" and we always loved it of course.  It's here mainly for preservation as is Nan's fear-inspiring handwriting.

• 1/4 lb. sweet butter plus one piece (1 TB?) at room temperature
• 1 1/2 cups sugar scant
• 3 eggs separated (large probably)
• 1 2/3 cp. cake flour
• 3 sq. bitter (unsweetened) chocolate
• 1/2 cp. water
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 tsp. baking soda
• 3/4 tsp. salt

Preheat oven to 350.  Melt chocolate over hot water in double boiler.  Cream butter, add sugar, then egg yolks, and beat until smooth.  Add melted chocolate and stir.  Sift dry ingredients together and stir in, alternating with water.  Add vanilla.  Beat egg whites until just stiff and fold them in.  Bake in a greased tube pan for 40 min.  

Frosting:

• 3 TB butter softened
• 2 cps. confectioner sugar
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 2 squares unsweetened chocolate, melted
• 1 egg

Beat together and frost cake.

(A woman of few words - actually she was a woman of a crazy amount of words, but not about frosting.)

BUT IN THE END, THIS IS THE ONE EVERYONE WANTS:

MY SISTER-IN-LAW ALICE'S KILLER CAKE

• 6 oz. unsalted butter
• 6 oz. unsweetened chocolate chopped
• 6 eggs
• 3 cps. sugar
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 1 TB vanilla
• 1 1/2 cps. flour
• 1 1/2 cps. chocolate chips

Mix the cake by hand.  Preheat oven to 350. Grease 2 9" round cake pans and line bottoms with wax or parchment paper.  

Melt butter and chocolate together over simmering water.  Cool to lukewarm.  In a large bowl, whisk together for one minute the eggs, sugar, salt, and vanilla.  Whisk in the butter-sugar mixture.  Stir in the flour and chocolate chips.  Pour the batter into the pans and bake for 30-35 min. (Do not overbake - actually a cake tester should not come out clean.)  Cool on racks and remove from pans as soon as cooled.  (If you are not using it that day, these freeze well if wrapped closely.)

Frosting:

• 1 1/4 cps. sugar
• 2 TB instant coffee
• 1 cp. heavy cream
• 5 oz. unsweetened chocolate, finely chopped
• 4 oz. unsalted butter
• 1 1/2 tsp. vanilla

Combine the sugar, coffee, and cream in a heavy deep saucepan.  Stirring, bring to a boil.  Reduce heat and simmer 6 minutes without stirring.  Remove from heat and add the chopped chocolate; stir until melted and blended in.  Add butter and vanilla and whisk well.  Chill until it begins to thicken and feels spreadable.  Spread some on top of one layer, cover with the other, and now cover the whole thing. 

At last, decadence.

SUNDAY ROAST CHICKEN

It's Sunday - time to roast the chicken that will fill your house with a delicious smell so classic that its effect is primordial.

So it is important where you get the chicken, because that counts more than technique:  as Nigella Lawson says, it's almost embarrassingly easy to do this.  My go-to place for chickens is the East Liberty Farmer's Market - every Saturday morning - right from the farmers (the valiant Kennedy family) and, more amazing, the most inexpensive chicken in Pittsburgh.  (People complain that they run out early, but if you call and reserve one, you can show up as late as 10 and they'll have it all ready for you.)

• 1 chicken (roaster or fryer), 2 1/2 lbs to 3 1/2 lbs  (smaller one serves 2 - larger serves 4)
• 2 cloves of garlic, smashed
• olive oil or soft butter
• kosher or other coarse salt
• some kind of herb that you like, dried or fresh (I have some rosemary in a pot outside that is somehow alive and well all winter long and has been there for years.)

Preheat oven to 425.
Any pan is OK (though not glass), and if you have a roasting rack, that will help - I use a little cheap one which looks like this and is fine.

Wash and dry the chicken, and sprinkle the inside with a tsp. of salt.  Put the smashed garlic and the herbs (either sprigs of fresh ones or a tsp. of dried) inside, and (optional - makes it look better) tie the legs together with string.  With your fingers, spread some olive oil or butter over the skin.

Put the chicken on the rack in the pan on its side, and set the timer for 20 minutes.  Now take it out and turn it on the other side (dishwashing gloves are a big help here) and roast another 20 minutes.  Take it out and turn it again, this time right side up.  (All the turning crisps the skin underneath.)  Put a little more butter or oil on the top side, turn the oven down to 350, and that's pretty much it, so you can go read a book or write a blog entry.   Don't get too involved though, since you will want to baste it every 20 minutes or so with the liquid in the pan. and turn it from back to front at least once.  If the top starts getting too brown, slide a piece of foil or baking parchment over it.  Timing doesn't have to be perfect:  I find 1 1/4 hrs. for the smaller and 2 hrs. for the larger chicken will do if you like it tender and falling apart, like I do.  You can tell it's done if, when you pierce the thigh with a knife (how savage, really) the juices run clear and not pink.  Or, use an instant thermometer - 165 degrees is safe.

Now the end game:  take it out of the oven and lift the chicken onto a plate and loosely cover - it should rest for 15 minutes. While that is happening, spoon off at least some of the liquid chicken fat floating on top of the liquid in the roasting pan, put the whole pan over a burner and pour in about a cup of white wine or chicken broth or a combination. Bring to a simmer and scrape up all the bits stuck to the bottom with a wooden spoon; boil down until it's a little thicker and more concentrated - there's your sauce!  If you're a perfectionist you can strain it.  Cut the chicken up and arrange it any way you like, spoon some sauce over the top and serve the rest on the side.  You are now in your own bistro.

Of course googling roast chicken will give you a million more ideas to jazz this up - but try it this way at least once, for its knockout simplicity.  And for the last 45 minutes, do consider roasting some potatoes alongside, either those tiny ones, or bigger ones cut into 1"cubes - just use another pan that you have spooned some of the chicken fat into (oh alright, olive oil is fine also.)

COCINANDO CON EVITA

In Chicago this weekend for Eve's birthday, and of course much wonderful eating going on, but especially in Eve's kitchen, where she is taking the best advantage of her heritage and of the bodegas in her neighborhood.  So here are some of the recipes she's sharing:


CAMARONES EN SALSA DE CHILE ANCHO

• 4 ancho chiles (dried)
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 3 cloves garlic, chopped
• 1 large can tomatoes
• 2 or 3 lbs. large uncooked peeled and deveined shrimp (depending on # of eaters)
• salt to taste and a pinch of sugar
• chopped cilantro as garnish

Use a large deep saucepan (preferably cast iron) that can hold all the shrimp as well as about a quart of sauce.  On medium heat and with no oil, toast the chiles on both sides until they are aromatic (about 5 minutes.)  Take them out and when they've cooled enough to handle cut them open, take out the seeds, stem and veins, put them in a heatproof bowl, and pour boiling water over them, to barely cover.  

Meanwhile, back in the saucepan, add some olive oil, and then slowly saute the chopped onion and garlic until translucent.  When the chiles have softened (10 minutes?) pour them and the soaking water into a blender or food processor, along with the contents of the can of tomatoes.  Blend until smooth, and pour over the sauteed garlic/onions in the pan.  Simmer for about a half hour until it's a deep rich brown, and add salt and maybe a pinch of sugar to taste.  Throw in the shrimp and simmer about 10 more minutes until the shrimp is just done. Scatter the top with chopped cilantro. ¡Listo!

This goes naturally with black beans and rice (simply cooked, because it will soak up this sauce gorgeously) and an excellent accompaniment is this Mexican-ish "green onion red cabbage slaw" (via Eve's favorite, Smitten Kitchen.)  An ideal winter in Chicago dinner.


But first, some TOMATILLO SALSA with tortilla chips -

• 4 large tomatillos
• 1 jalapeño
• 4 cloves garlic

Broil these until blackened - turn over and do the same.  (Eve did this in a toaster oven.)  Throw into a blender (or a food processor?  will have to try) and blend.  Add salt and maybe some water if it's too thick.  


And for another time - or perhaps a first course?  Eve's invention, made for a monthly potluck with friends event:

GINGERED CARROT AND PEANUT SOUP WITH ANCHO CHILE BUTTER
Makes about 10 cups - 6-8 servings?? (i doubled it for the party)

• 1 TB butter
• 1 TB olive oil
• 2 smallish white or yellow onions, chopped, about 1 1/2 cups
• Roughly 1 1/2 lbs carrots, peeled and chopped into discs
• 1-2 smallish russet potatoes, chopped into 1-inch chunks
• 2-3 TB chopped ginger (depending on your affinity for fresh ginger)
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/2 cup peanuts, toasted and roughly chopped
• 3 cups broth (I used vegetable)
• 2-3 cups water
• 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter
• Salt and black pepper, to taste
• Roasted and finely chopped peanuts, for garnish
• Minced parsley, for garnish

Heat butter and olive oil in large, heavy-bottomed pot until butter is completely melted. Add onions, carrots, potatoes, ginger, and garlic, and sautee for about 7-8 minutes. Add chopped peanuts and sautee for about 2-3 more minutes. Add broth and water, bring to a boil, and simmer for 25 min. Add peanut butter, simmer for 5 more minutes, and remove from heat. Puree in blender or with immersion blender, and season with salt and pepper. Serve with roughly 1-2 tsp ancho chile butter, chopped roasted peanuts, and minced parsley.

Ancho chile butter - makes about 1/2 cup

1 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 large dried ancho chile
1/2 tsp sea salt

Toast the dried chile on an iron skillet until the color changes slightly, cool, and remove stem and seeds. Soak in roughly 1/2 cup very hot water for about 10-15 minutes. Remove, drain, and mince into a paste. Cream with softened butter and sea salt until uniformly incorporated.

BEFORE AND AFTER - Gougères et Compote

Dinner always benefits from something before and after.  Allons-nous!

If you want to whip up a quick appetizer (amuse bouche!), gougères are really faster and simpler than you would believe especially since they essentially the same as those intimidating éclairs and profiteroles.

GOUGERES
(This recipe adapted from the captivating French Food at Home) wherein many delights.

• 1/3 cp. plus 1 TB unsalted butter
• ½ tsp. salt and pepper
• 1 cp. all purpose flour
• 3 eggs (large)
• ½ cp. Gruyère (or swiss, or any kind you like) cheese, grated

Preheat oven to 375.  Put the butter in a heavy saucepan with 1 cp. water and salt and pepper.  Bring to a boil and take off the heat.  Add the flour all at once and beat until smooth with a wooden spoon.  The mixture will pull away from the sides of the pan and form a ball.  Put the pan back on low heat and beat for a minute or so to dry the paste somewhat.  Remove from the heat and let cool about 3 minutes.

Add the eggs one at a time, beating vigorously with a wooden spoon after each addition  (It will just make clumps at first, but eventually will become smooth.)  What you want is a smooth, soft, glossy paste that falls easily from the spoon.  Stir in the cheese.  Drop the mixture by spoonfuls onto a buttered baking sheet (or definitely use parchment paper if you have it.)  Brush with some milk. Bake until puffed up and nicely browned, about 20 min.  (But check after 10 to make sure they’re not browning too quickly.)   Put on a plate and eat soon (not a problem.)

COMPOTE  (OK - you might want to have cookies or ice cream on the side - but try it straight too.)

• 1 cp. dried apples
• 1 cp. dried apricots
• 1 cp. dried prunes 
• really any other dried fruit that you like
• water to cover
• 1/4 cp. white wine
• 1 cinnamon stick
• 1/2 cp. sugar

Put all of this in a saucepan and bring to a low simmer.  Let go on for about 1/2 hr., until everything is tender and the liquid is somewhat syrupy.  Cool, and think about adding some bourbon.  Ummm, just add it.

FOOD IS TO LOVE AS SOUP IS TO...

Oh, go ahead, all you smartypants SAT takers.  All I can say is that this particular soup is simply just what you want, especially around Valentine's Day.  It's somewhat like Jesse's soup below, and another one I had put in earlier, so I was going to skip it, but you've probably forgotten them by now - and besides, this deserves a spot.  There is just something about it's complete softness, sweetness, saltiness, hotness, and aroma that is kind of perfect.

SORT OF INDIAN SOUP

• 1 large onion, sliced
• 1 red pepper, sliced
• 1 clove garlic and 1" of fresh ginger, peeled and chopped together
• 2 tsp. of good hot curry powder (or more to taste)**
• 2 cps. of butternut squash, peeled and in 1/2" cubes
• 2 cps. of potato, peeled (if you want) and cut into 1/2" cubes (in the soup, russets will fall apart somewhat; and yukon golds or reds will hold their shape - just pick the kind you like)
• 1 can of garbanzos, drained and rinsed (or better yet, some that you have cooked)
• 1 tsp. or cube or packet of chicken bouillon (have recently discovered Trader Joe's in packets - excellent!) (or better yet, lots of chicken stock)
• 1/2 can of reduced fat coconut milk
• 1 cp. of frozen (try to find leaf and not chopped if you can - Whole Foods has it) spinach (or better yet, a pile of washed and trimmed turnip greens)
• (optional:  if you happen to have some leftover cooked chicken, by all means use it here)
• Juice of 1/2 lime, salt and pepper

First, put the spinach in a bowl so that it defrosts a bit while you do the rest.  Then, in a soup pan, sauté the onion and pepper in canola or vegetable oil over moderate heat until they are quite soft.  Stir in the garlic and ginger, and then the curry powder, and stir for a minute or so.  Add the squash, potato, and garbanzos, stir, and then add water to cover and bring to a simmer.  Stir in the bouillon until dissolved, put a cover on, and simmer until the potato and squash are soft.  (20 min.?)

Now stir in the coconut milk, the spinach, the optional chicken, and simmer for another 5 minutes or so.  Salt/pepper to taste.  Mush up the potatoes just a little, and freshen it up with some lime juice.  Be satisfied.

**there is a terrific recipe for making your own curry powder - and if you have a coffee grinder and a co-op (where they sell spices in bulk) nearby, really a cinch - in the China Moon Cookbook, and I think Google Books gives it to you right here (click on p.7).

TWIN PIZZAS

I know I said that all this was going to be simple, and Reid is getting after me about the briskets taking MUCH longer than an hour (though really the work involved is about 30 minutes - and then they're just idly sitting in the oven.)

So the pizzas are superfast - but you will need a pizza stone and one of those paddles to slide the dough onto it with - which really, if you like pizza you should just go ahead and get them.  Otherwise, you may think you are making a pizza, but really it's just a flat bread disk with some stuff on it (come to think of it, that's still pretty good!)  A pizza stone (mine is similar to this one) can also be used for bread, scones and biscuits - and keeps warm for a long time afterwards which can come in handy in midwinter when your spouse likes to keep the heat at 57.

I totally recommend watching a video on YouTube on pizza technique for dough spreading and sliding onto a stone!  One of the 21st century's greatest gifts to mankind was the cooking video.

So, the pizzas - which make lovely dinners with a substantial salad - or else cut into squares as appetizers.

SUMMER PIZZA - THE SIMPLE MARGHERITA  (Basically this serves 2 at most, so you will probably want to double everything, and have another one ready to go in after you take this out.  They take so little time to cook that the first can sit until the 2nd is ready.)

• 1 ball of pizza dough (I use Trader Joe's - just as good as homemade - but recipe to follow for diehards)
• 3 TB (about) medium cornmeal
• 1/2 cup simple tomato sauce (your favorite - or recipe to follow)
• 1/2 lb. fresh mozzarella  (really fresh, the kind stored in water) cut into slices 1/8" thick
• 3 TB freshly grated parmesan
• 15 or so large fresh basil leaves (obviously you will make this in the summer)

Preheat oven with pizza stone in it to 500 or as hot as you can.
Roll or press out dough to about a 15" circle, pretty thin, on a lightly floured surface.  You may have to do this a few times until it stops shrinking back to a smaller size - the dough needs to stretch out and lose some elasticity.

Sprinkle a generous amount of cornmeal on the paddle to cover the whole surface, and lay the dough circle on top.  Spread the sauce over the top.  Place the pieces of mozzarella evenly on top of that and sprinkle with parmesan.  

Slide onto the hot pizza stone.  Bake for 5 minutes, and then grab the side towards you and spin it around on the stone (front to back.)  Bake another 3 to 5 minutes until the cheese is bubbling and the bottom is browned - watch carefully because a minute makes a big difference.  

Take it out and immediately place the basil leaves, one by one, over the top and they will soften and wilt fragrantly.  Ready.  


WINTER PIZZA - NOT SO SIMPLE BUT WORTH IT (ditto the above about amounts.  This is more filling, but people eat even more in winter.)

• 1 ball of pizza dough (I use Trader Joe's - just as good as homemade - but recipe to follow for diehards)
• 3 TB (about) medium cornmeal
• 1/2 lb. fresh mozzarella  (really fresh, the kind stored in water) cut into slices 1/8" thick
• 3 TB freshly grated parmesan
• 1 large onion sliced
• 1 large clove garlic, chopped
• 2 cps of butternut squash, peeled and cut into 1/2" dice
• 5 slices of crispy cooked bacon crumbled OR about 10 very thin slices of prosciutto cut into ribbons OR about 15 very thin slices of sopressata also ribboned OR cured meat of your choice
• (if by some chance you have some torn leaves of fresh sage, this could be nice)

Preheat oven with the pizza stone to 500 or as hot as you can.  Put another oven rack in above it.  Pour a seriously generous coating of olive oil over the bottom of a roasting pan, and scatter the slices of onion and cubes of squash onto it.  While the oven is preheating, put this on the rack in the oven to roast the vegetables.

When the vegetables are done - browned on the edges and nice and soft -  take them out of the oven - you may need to move that oven rack out of the way to have room to slide the pizza in later.  Mix the chopped garlic into the hot vegetables and season to taste with salt and pepper.  

Roll out dough to about a 15" circle, pretty thin, on a lightly floured surface.  You may have to do this a few times until it stops shrinking back to a smaller size - the dough needs to stretch out and lose some elasticity.  Sprinkle a generous amount of cornmeal on the paddle to cover the whole surface, and lay the dough circle on top. Scrape all the onions and squash and accompanying olive oil onto the top and position the pieces strategically (use your hands - it's easiest).  

Place the pieces of mozzarella evenly on top of that and sprinkle with parmesan.  Slide onto the hot pizza stone.  Bake for 5 minutes, and then grab the side towards you and spin it around on the stone (front to back.)  Bake another 3 to 5 minutes until the cheese is bubbling and the bottom is browned - watch carefully because a minute makes a big difference.  

Take it out and immediately scatter and lightly press the crumbs or shreds of salty cured pork items into the melting cheese (and also pieces of sage leaves also if you have them) so that they just barely heat up. Done.

Addendum:

Pizza dough at home

This makes dough for one pizza - can be multiplied -

• 2 cps. bread flour (could be all-purpose, no big deal)
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. dry yeast
• pinch sugar
• 1 cp. water
• 2 TB olive oil

Proof the yeast:  mix 1/4 cp. lukewarm water, a pinch of sugar, and the yeast until it dissolves.  It's fastest if you do this in a Pyrex measuring cup.  Let it sit in a warm place until you see bubbles at the top (about 10 minutes.)

Put 2 cps. flour and the salt in a mixer with a dough hook (or in a bowl.) In the measuring cup with the proofed yeast, add water up to the 1-cup mark (or just mix the yeast with water to make one liquid cup.)  Stir in 2 TB olive oil.  Pour this gradually into flour mixture while the mixer is on low (or while stirring in the bowl) and continue to knead - either by  mixer or by hand - until it's totally smooth and soft - about 10 minutes.   

In a bowl at least twice the size of the dough ball, put about 1 tsp. olive oil, and then roll the dough around in it until it's all covered.  Put in a warm place until doubled in size - about an hour.  Then use it right away, or punch down and refrigerate in a covered container until you want it, or freeze it - great to have on hand!

( Tomato sauce another time...)

MOTHER AND DAUGHTER BRISKETS

Doesn't every Jewish woman have her own brisket recipe?  My mom has one, and so do I - mom's (as you'll see) is clearly from the Mad Men era, with a sweet/sour effect.  Mine probably evolved from some Julia Child snobbery, concerning red wine and less processed foods, later on.  Though you may have noticed that the current barbecue craze has a lot of ketchup involved; so, as everything comes around again, I'm reconsidering.

Now we await:  Lena's, Eve's, Tamara's, ???

or

BARBSIE'S BRISKET:

• a 3 lb. single cut brisket (most briskets smaller than 5 lbs. are single cut - it means they don't have a thick horizontal layer of fat in the middle.)
• 1 pkg. Lipton onion soup mix (actually now it says 
• 1/2 cp. ketchup
• 2 TB Worcestershire sauce
• 1/4 cp. brown sugar
• juice of one lemon

Preheat oven to 325. Mix the last 5 ingredients together. Place brisket on a large piece of heavy duty foil in a roasting pan.  Sprinkle with salt and pepper and pour the mixture over the top.  Bring foil to cover and seal edges tightly.  

Bake for 2 1/2 hours.  Turn off the oven and leave the brisket in for another half hour.  It's best if you serve it hours or up to 2 days later, so slice it and let it sit in the sauce until you're ready.  Can be frozen also.  Reheat covered at 350 for about a half hour, until your thermometer (aka your finger) tells you it's hot enough.  

MY BRISKET:

• a 3 lb. single cut brisket
• 1 cp. red wine (some will tell you it needs to be really good, but I can't really tell.)
• 1 small can (8 oz.) ordinary tomato sauce
• 1/2 cp. beef broth (can be from concentrate - not too salty) or water
• 3 onions, sliced
• 2 large carrots, peeled and cut into 2" pieces
• 1/4 tsp. dried thyme

Preheat oven to 325.  Season the brisket with salt and pepper.  Put a glug of olive oil in a large saucepan, heat to medium, and brown the brisket on both sides.  Put it in an oven-proof casserole or pan slightly larger - better if it has a lid, but you can cover with parchment paper and aluminum foil otherwise.  

Back to the saucepan, put in the sliced onions and sauté them for a few minutes.  Then pour in the wine, tomato sauce and beef broth, and let simmer for 5 minutes.  Pour all this over the meat in the casserole, tuck in the carrots, sprinkle on the thyme, and cover with the lid - or else a layer of parchment paper with foil sealing the top.  (I don't like the food to make contact with the foil - which nobody worried about in the 60's - so you can adjust Mom's recipe accordingly if you agree.)  

Bake for 2 1/2 hours (if it's not tightly sealed, you may want to check the liquid level half through); turn off the oven and leave in for another half hour.  Put it on the counter and when it's cool enough, take the brisket out of the sauce and slice it as thick as you like it.  The liquid you can either leave as is, thin but tasty with the soft and savory onions and carrots alongside, or you can puree it all together in a food processor to make an actual sauce - or be indecisive and go half and half!  Now you can store it all together in the refrigerator, as above, for several hours or a few days, or freeze it, and then reheat it covered when you're ready, as above.  It's very forgiving, and can wait quite a long time in the oven as long as you don't let it dry out. 

ANOTHER REASON TO THANK OUR PRESIDENT

There are a million reasons to be inspired by President Obama's re-election; most have global implications, but here's one that will affect my kitchen at least.  Will whoever makes the Red Potato Horseradish Cakes first please report?

FLAN, CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES: NO GLUTEN IN SIGHT

2 gluten-free desserts (for Shaina and Kim)

The quickest flan you'll ever make, courtesy of my Tia Chelo.  It does require some equipment:  a pressure cooker, and a stainless steel bowl that fits inside it.

Caramel (this is a somewhat tricky part, but really just the first time)

• 1/2 cp. sugar

Have the stainless steel bowl at your side, and ideally some rubber dishwashing gloves on, just in case.  Put the sugar in a heavy-bottomed smallish saucepan on the stove over medium heat and WATCH it carefully.  Let it start to melt, and then shake the pan from time to time until it is all melted and just golden brown. (It will get brown on the edges first, which is why you need to shake it, to try to get a uniform color.) This should take about 5 minutes if that. When it gets to be all golden brown, quickly take off the heat and immediately pour into the bowl, and then swirl the bowl around until it coats the bottom and about halfway up the sides.  This is super hot! so do not swirl with carefree abandon - and do use the gloves or oven mitts.  

Flan (this is a piece of cake - well, piece of custard)  If you really want to make people happy, also have ready some sweetened whipped cream; if you want them delirious, some dulce de leche.

• 1 can sweetened condensed milk
• 1 can's worth whole milk
• 4 eggs
• 1 tsp. vanilla

Whisk this together until well blended, and pour into the now caramel-coated steel bowl.  Put about an inch of water in the bottom of the pressure cooker, and place the bowl inside.  Put the top on, turn on the burner and when the button pops up, cook at medium pressure for exactly 15 minutes.  Turn off the heat and let it cool another 15 minutes without opening it.  Then open it up and take out the bowl.  When it cools completely, put it in the refrigerator.  

To serve, put a plate with a little ridge on it (like a pie plate) over the top and turn upside down - it should plop out as a cute little half-sphere with a nice coating of caramel.  There will still be some delicious caramel sauce on the inside of the bowl, and since that is really the best part, you'll want to scrape as much of it as you can around the flan.  Pass around the whipped cream and optimally the dulce de leche too.  Now you are transported to Buenos Aires.


Peanut butter chocolate chip cookies  (OK, basically a Whole Foods recipe but here I'm telling you about it with a few changes).  These are much better than the peanut butter cookies you make with butter and flour - cleaner tasting and a chewier texture.

• 1 large egg
• 3/4 cp. sugar
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1 cp. unsweetened peanut butter (I use Trader Joe's, creamy or crunchy is fine.  If it doesn't have salt, then you'll need to add some.)
• 1/2 tsp. vanilla
• 1/2 cp. chocolate chips
• another 1/4 cp. sugar in a bowl

Preheat oven to 350 and line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.  With an electric mixer, beat together the egg, sugar, baking powder, vanilla, and peanut butter until well blended.  Mix in the chocolate chips.  Roll into 1" balls and dip into the sugar, then put on the parchment paper and flatten slightly - about 2 " apart.  Bake for 10-12 minutes until they start to crack and look done.  Cool on a rack.

TWO DINNER-WORTHY FISH SOUPS, VINTAGE

MADE-UP SCALED-DOWN BOUILLABAISE (serves around 4).  Invented around 1989

(Here we have a perfect example and photo both created by Tamara.)

• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 small onion
• 1/4 bulb of fennel
• grated rind of one orange
• pinch of saffron
• 2 TB tomato paste
• salt and a tiny pinch of cayenne
• 3 cps. strained fish stock (definitely worth it to have made your own, so when you buy the fish, get them whole and ask the fishmonger to fillet them and save you the bones, which you just simmer for 30 minutes in water to cover, a sliced onion and some celery, and a little salt.  Sorry - that's another recipe.  But a quick one.  And probably using a good fish bouillon will be just fine.)
• 2 large potatoes, peeled and sliced into half rounds
• 2 lbs. fish fillets, in combination - whatever looks good! Could have shrimp, squid, or scallops too.
• chopped fresh parsley

Put everything above the fish stock in a food processor until finely chopped.  Heat olive oil in a large pot or casserole and add this mixture - sauté for a few minutes.  Add the fish stock and the potatoes and simmer until they are tender.  Add the fish at the end and simmer again just until it's done.  Sprinkle with parsley.  Voilá!

ANDY'S AUNT SALLY'S (from Lawrence, MA) FISH CHOWDER  (serves around 6).  Have been making this since 1976.

• 1/4 lb. salt pork (this is the only time I ever use salt pork, but it's part of the authenticity)
• 3 lg. onions sliced
• 3 TB flour
• 2 cps. water (or fish stock if you're lucky enough to have some)
• 1 cp. milk
• 3 lg. potatoes, peeled and diced
• 3 lb. thick white fillets of fish - haddock, scrod, cod, you could try something else - cut into pieces
• 1 cp. light cream
• 3 TB butter
• salt and pepper

Cut the salt pork into fairly large dice and put in a large pot on the stove, until most of it is melted.  In it, sauté the onions for about 5 minutes, until soft.  Add the flour and stir for another 2 minutes or so.  Pour in the water (or stock) and milk, and add the diced potatoes.  Bring to a simmer and cook 15 minutes or until the potato is tender.  (At this point, unless you love salt pork, you'll want to remove the pieces with a slotted spoon - they'll be floating on top.) Now add the fish and simmer 10 more minutes or until cooked through.  Add the cream, the butter, and salt and pepper to taste, and wait until the butter is melted and it's heated through.  It's that simple.

APPLE PIE FOR YOM KIPPUR AND 2 OTHER PIES FOR GOOD LUCK

These are just homey American-style pies - not to be confused with the chic and delicate tarts in the French cookbooks.  Also, much silliness has been devoted to what is the best thickener (so the inside doesn't become a soupy mess) - tapioca, arrowroot, cassava...oh, really.  I think flour is fine, but do experiment if you like.
This apple pie is made every Yom Kippur, to be ready when the fasting is over.  Thereby hangs a tale, as Reid's mother used to say - get Reid to tell it to you.
Preheat oven to 350, and get out a 9" pie plate, deeper is better. 
(I think this photo is of a strawberry-rhubarb pie - to follow - but you get the picture.) 

Piecrust:

• 13 TB butter, cold
• 2 cps. flour
• pinch of salt
• 1 TB sugar
• 3 TB cold water

Combine everything but the water, either using a food processor, or pinching it and rubbing it together with your fingers, until it’s pretty well blended ("the texture of coarse cornmeal" as all the recipes say.)  Add the water I TB at a time and blend it together (use pulse if processing) until it just barely forms a ball.  Wrap it up in wax paper and put it in the refrigerator.

Filling:

• 9 large apples
• ½ cp. brown sugar
• ¼ cp. flour
• 1 tsp. cinnamon
• ½ tsp. nutmeg
• ¼ tsp cardamom (optional)
• 2 TB heavy cream or one beaten egg
• sugar, cinnamon sugar, or if you're feeling trendy, turbinado

Peel and slice the apples (whatever is in season and flavorful at the time – really I've never gone wrong.)  Put in a bowl with the sugar, flour, and spices, and stir it all together until the slices are all coated.

Take the pie crust out of the refrigerator and cut it in half (actually a little more than half.) If it’s become really hard by this time, let it soften a bit.  On a lightly floured surface, roll that piece out to a circle somewhat larger than the pie plate (when I started out, I found that rolling this out between sheets of wax paper made it easier.  You keep flipping it over and removing the wrinkled wax paper and then put it back on top. Also you can keep using some flour to keep it from sticking.)  Roll the circle of dough lightly around the rolling pin and then unroll onto the pie plate.

Pour all the apple slices and their seasoning into the crust, mounding it in the middle. You may need to press the fruit together a bit so the mound isn't too high and the sides of the crust still show.  Alternatively, if there isn’t enough fruit to make a mound in the center, slice some more and put it on.  Dip your finger in water and slightly wet the edges of the pie crust.  Now roll out the other crust and do the same thing with the rolling pin to unroll it over the top. Trim the edges and crimp them together.  Use a pastry brush to paint the top with heavy cream (or beaten egg, if you'd rather.)  Sprinkle the top with plain or cinnamon sugar.  Cut a few holes or lines in it to let out the steam.

Bake at 350 for about an hour, turning it around once, and checking from time to time after about ½ hour to see if it’s browning on top too quickly. If it is, lay a piece of aluminum foil lightly over it. Also at this point you might want to put a pan or some foil on a rack below the pie, because it often spills over and is a mess to clean.  It’s done when you see some liquid inside bubbling (that dissolves the flour in the filling) and it starts to smell delicious.

MORE PIES:
Strawberry-rhubarb: must be made when you see the rhubarb in the spring in the farmer's markets! 
Do the same as above as regards the piecrust.
Filling:

• scant 3 cps. washed and sliced (1/2") rhubarb
• scant 3 cps. washed and sliced strawberries
• 1 cp. sugar
• 1/3 cp. flour

Mix this all together, and just do the same thing it says to do above with the apples, including the baking.

Blueberry: there are a few weeks in the summer when these are super cheap - take advantage!  Blueberries are now considered to add several decades to your life.  Pies will too.  For this I just follow Mark Bittman - as one should do always.
filling:

• 5 cps. blueberries, picked over and rinsed and dried a bit
• 3/4 cp. sugar
• 2 TB cornstarch
• some cinnamon, maybe allspice or nutmeg

Mix this all together, and ditto the above.

INSPIRED BY LOTUS: CHINESE EGGPLANT WITH TOFU

A trip to Lotus Foods in the Strip always leads to this dish, because of those elegant svelte purple eggplants (which you never have to salt and drain) cook so beautifully.  And the tofu is so fresh it is still steaming.

This makes about enough for 2 or 3.

• Tofu (whatever kind you like) - cube and saute in nonstick pan (or in metal pan in oven at 450) until brown and crunchy on the outside - put aside and sprinkle with soy sauce - will add at the end.  You can cook this in the oven when you put in the other pan of vegetables. 
• 5 of this kind of eggplant - cube or slice in half rounds
• 2 red and/or green peppers - just cut them up 
• 1 jalapeño, seeded and chopped finely
• Garlic and fresh ginger - peel both (about an inch of ginger) and chop finely
• You will want to cook some rice at the same time to have with this. 
• Have some chopped cilantro and scallion ready to throw on at the end

Sauce (double this if you love sauce, which I do):  

• 1/4 cp. soy sauce
• 1 tsp. cornstarch mixed with 1 1/2 TB water
• few shakes of sesame oil (get hot sesame oil if you like it a bit spicy)
• 1/4 cp. chicken broth (bouillon from a cube or jar is fine but watch the saltiness)
• splash of dry sherry
• 1 tsp. sugar
• optional: 1 tsp. Chinese chili paste or any other spicy Asian sauce that you like

Mix these all together.

I do this in the oven (most likely to the horror of good Asian cooks) so preheat to 450.  Put several TB of vegetable or canola oil in a pan, let it heat up, and then add all the vegetables (save the garlic and ginger for later.) They are usually done in about 20 minutes - the eggplant takes longest. Shake the pan from time to time.  (If you want to keep the pepper more crunchy, you can add 5 minutes later.)  So fast!  

When done, stir in the garlic/ginger, and then pour over the sauce and put back in the oven.  Let it boil (so that it thickens) - you can add some TB of water if it's too thick or too salty.  I like to throw in a few sprinkles of rice vinegar at the end, but that's not necessary.  The cilantro and scallion are more necessary but not absolutely essential.