Yuppie Kitchen

September 19, 2011

I’d been making average risotto for a while until I decided I could do so much better. (It had to do with trying a ham risotto at The Butcher Shop and having a religious experience while doing so.) My risotto needed to be creamier than I’d made it before, but not mushy. Something that still held its shape.

The answer was to up the amount of water. I used to do a 3:1 ratio of water to rice, but taking it to 3.5:1 made a huge difference. Everything else was just normal risotto-making.

Ingredients: (for two big portions)
1 leek, sliced
2 handfuls of crimini mushrooms, sliced
1/2 lb. pancetta, cubed (can do ham as well)
3 + 1 tbsp. butter
1 c. arborio rice
3.5 c. chicken stock
1/2 c. freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tbsp. heavy cream
salt and pepper

Heat a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Sautée the leeks, mushrooms and pancetta (they’ll cook in the pancetta fat) until vegetables are soft and the pancetta is cooked through (browned). Add the rice and 3 tbsp. of butter and lightly fry the rice. (It’ll start making toasty, snap-crackle-pop sounds but won’t brown— I’d say stir it for about a minute.) Lower the fire to medium-low, and add the stock one half-cup at a time, stirring the rice the entire time. When the liquid is absorbed, add another half-cup and stir again. Continue until all liquid is absorbed. Risotto will be creamy and rice will be soft and easy to chew through. Stir in 1 tbsp. butter, 1 tbsp. cream and the cheese, and season with salt and pepper. Serve immediately.

You can save the leftovers in the fridge and fish them out to make arancini the next day. (I’d have demonstrated, but a friend raided my fridge and ate my risotto!) Just shape the risotto into small balls and fry in hot oil until golden brown.

6:34pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Z_H9ay9izJVi

(Notes: 21)

September 14, 2011

Cottage cheese “cheesecake”

I hesitate to call this a cheesecake even though it is technically a cake made out of cheese. The idea for this came during the weekend when I had plenty of time in my hands to experiment in the kitchen. Traditional cheesecakes are too dense and creamy for me, sickly sweet and extremely heavy on the palate because of all the fat, and so I’ve always favored ricotta cheesecakes over the Philadelphia cheese kind. My local Trader Joe’s was out of full-fat ricotta, but the cottage cheese caught my eye. Surely I could make this work!

I completely improvised for this recipe by adding the ingredients normally found in cheesecake (cheese, eggs, sugar, cream) until I found proportions that worked. This recipe will probably be tweaked in future iterations, but I think that for a first attempt it is truly delicious and very close to what I was going for. Half a cup of sugar sounds like very little, but trust me, it is more than enough! Cheesecake snobs might deem it flawed because it’s “airy” (i.e., it has bubbles!) and a bit chunky, but my friend loved it. OK, I’m done defending my cheesecake, on to the recipe!

Ingredients:

For crust:
12 graham crackers* crumbled, or 1.5 c. graham cracker crumbs
3 tbsp. melted unsalted butter

For custard: (the cheesecakey bit)
2 c. full fat cottage cheese (whizz it in the blender if you want to make the clumps smaller, but I love them!)
4 large whole eggs
1/4 c. sour cream
1/4 c. cream cheese (that’s 1/4 of the bar)
1/2 c. granulated white sugar
1 tbsp. all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. vanilla extract
1/4 tsp. salt

Special tools:
9” springform pan (seriously get this if you’re doing a cheesecake, pie pans don’t work as well!)
electric hand mixer
Roasting pan big enough to hold your springform pan (pretty much anything that will fit it)

To prepare crust:
Preheat the oven to 350 °F. In a bowl, mix the melted butter into the graham cracker crumbs with your hands until coated. Line the bottom of the springform pan with the crumbs in an uniform layer. Bake for 15 minutes.

To prepare custard:
While the crust is in the oven, mix the cottage cheese, cream cheese, and sour cream using the hand mixer until incorporated. Add the eggs and vanilla and mix, and then add the flour, sugar and salt and mix again. Mix at a low speed to avoid putting too much air into the batter.

When the crust is done, pour the batter into the pan. Prepare a bain-Marie (this is fancy French-speak for a water bath) by putting your springform pan inside the bigger roasting pan and pouring about 1” boiling water into the space between both pans. (I was worried the water would leak into my springform pan but it did not happen, so chill.) Bake for 40 minutes at 350 °F, until the top is a light golden brown.

Chill the cake in the fridge for at least 3 hours to let it set. Enjoy!

* I highly, highly recommend getting the cinnamon graham crackers from Trader Joe’s for the crust. They are hands down the perfect crackers for a graham cracker crust.

9:39pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Z_H9ay9XTEhW

(Notes: 4)

Filed under: cottage cheese cheesecake

September 10, 2011

Brevis Pardou

Last Sunday, I brunched at The Butcher Shop with my family and hit up South End Formaggio for some cheese. I took home four cuts, which I’m slowly trying and loving. The first one, the Brevis Pardou, is a goat cheese from the Pyrenees. It’s buttery and a bit tangy, and the rind is deliciously nutty. I got a decent sized cut for about $5, which is a bit pricey but great for what I got.

South End Formaggio
268 Shawmut Avenue
Boston, MA 02118
(617) 350-6996

1:54pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Z_H9ay9McZET

(Notes: 1)

Filed under: cheese brevis pardou

September 8, 2011

Cheese and scallions Yorkshire puddings

I’d never had Yorkshire puddings, but I am seriously considering quitting my day job and taking up campaigning for them to replace rolls at the dinner table. These are insanely savory and custardy, almost soufflé-like in texture. I made them in less than 30 minutes while watching Millionaire Matchmaker on a rainy afternoon. (Adapted from this recipe.)

Ingredients: (makes one dozen cupcake-sized puddings, so get your cupcake tin!)

3 tablespoons bacon drippings (or melted butter)
3 large eggs
1 cup whole milk
1 cup flour
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 scallions, chopped

Preheat oven to 450°F and grease the cupcake tin.

Whisk eggs to blend in large bowl. Add milk and whisk until well blended. Whisk flour and salt in medium bowl to blend. Gradually whisk flour mixture and bacon drippings (or butter) into egg mixture until well blended (some small lumps will remain). Whisk in cheese and scallions; pour batter into cupcake tin.

Place baking dishes on hot baking sheet in oven. Bake until Yorkshire puddings are puffed and begin to brown, about 20 minutes. Transfer Yorkshire puddings to plates. Serve immediately.

4:04pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Z_H9ay9I04vF

(Notes: 16)

Filed under: yorkshire pudding scallions cheese

September 7, 2011

Egg and kale sandwich

It’s official: I am jumping on the kale bandwagon. Everyone started going nuts over kale a few months ago and I, a total veggie hound who hasn’t met a green she didn’t like, had never experienced it. I refused to buy into the hype— every time I try an over-hyped food, I am sorely disappointed. But the kale was dirt cheap at Whole Foods and I couldn’t resist buying a bunch and trying it out. This sandwich, which I had for breakfast and dinner the same day, was delicious and a great way to inject some veggies into my breakfast. I’m not totally converted to the kale cult, but it’s growing on me.

Ingredients: (for one lonely sandwich)

2 slices of hearty bread (I used sourdough and it worked well)
A couple of kale leaves
2 eggs
2 slices of Cheddar cheese
2 scallions, sliced
dijon mustard (get the really pungent kind!)
As much butter as it takes to get the job done

To get started, sautée the kale in about 1 tbsp. butter until it’s wilted and good but not overcooked. You know what I’m talking about. Then take that out, and fry the two eggs. I did mine over easy because I love the yolk dripping when I bite into it. Feel free to break your yolk and cook it if you’re not into the drippy stuff. Put them aside too when they’re done cooking.

To assemble the sandwich, I took a panini-esque approach. I laid both slices of bread on the pan, buttered them, mustarded (??) them and put the cheese on top. When the cheese was melty, I put the eggs on one side and the kale and scallions on the other, and married the two sandwich sides. Lovely. Press that hard and make sure it’s toasty and good and then eat it right at the counter! One half of this was devoured on my way out the door to go to work.

I had the second half of the sandwich for dinner with some edamame and avocado soup I whipped up. I’ll post a recipe to that, although it was so, so simple that I find it hard to give you actual instructions for it. I’ll try, though, because everyone needs some edamame and avocado soup. Something green and aesthetically pleasing and totally healthy that hits the spot just right.

8:01pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Z_H9ay9GIofW

(Notes: 1)

Filed under: sandwich edamame soup avocado egg kale

September 5, 2011

Fresh pasta with heirloom tomatoes and black olives

I made a simple dinner tonight because I didn’t want to miss the Real Housewives of Orange County marathon. (Yes, I’m shameless.) I put this together in less than 15 minutes, including cleanup.

Ingredients: (One lonely portion)

2 oz. pasta (I used fresh pasta I made earlier; if you do dried, this is 1/8 of the pack)
1 small heirloom tomato, chopped
A handful of oil cured black olives, pitted and chopped (sub regular black olives if you can’t get these)
A handful of fresh basil, chopped
1 clove of garlic, chopped
Olive oil, about 2 tbsp.
Salt + pepper
Shredded Parmesan cheese (I buy chunks and shred at home, so much better)

Cook the pasta according to directions on the box. Make sure to salt the water! (Using fresh? Then you only need to cook your pasta in a rolling boil for about 3 minutes.)

Drain the pasta. Cook the garlic and olives in the oil at medium heat until fragrant. Can you smell it? Does it smell good? Then it’s time to throw in the pasta, tomatoes and basil. Stir a few times to combine and let the tomatoes get warm but don’t cook for too long! Serve topped with the cheese and go back to watching TV.

8:05pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Z_H9ay9BWmns

(Notes: 4)

Filed under: pasta heirloom tomatoes olives

September 5, 2011

Bacon!

I made my own bacon this weekend for the first time. It’s rather easy, at least the way I made it— I cured pork belly with a lot of rock salt and sugar (about a 1:1 ratio) for about a day and a half. I’m talking like, BURY THE BACON IN SALT AND SUGAR. That’s how you properly cure stuff. Apparently this is called “fresh bacon” and regular grocery store bacon also gets smoked or something. Pretty tasty nonetheless, although I didn’t rinse it too well and it got a bit salty for me. (I used this to my advantage by cooking it into some mashed potatoes and cauliflower and just holding back on the salt. Incredibly flavorful!) Still, I picked up a pound of fresh, cut to order pork belly at the butcher for less than $3 a pound, which means I get to make bacon for about half the price of buying it at the supermarket. Totally fresh, I get to cut it as thick or thin as I want, and no possibly-carcinogenic nitrites! Everybody wins, and by everybody I mean everybody who cures at home.

I also hand-rolled some pasta today and I wish I had taken photos so you could see how amazing it turned out. I’m really enjoying having my own kitchen to spend hours in.

4:55pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Z_H9ay9B0Fhi

(Notes: 19)

Filed under: bacon curing

September 5, 2011

Anybody out there?

I’m going to try (yet again) to retake blogging on here instead of being a lazy bum and posting my recipes to my other tumblog. I’ve renamed this “Yuppie Kitchen” to reflect the changes in my life— no longer a college student, now a corporate-employed Bostonian yuppie!

4:41pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Z_H9ay9Azt9q

(Notes: 5)

March 3, 2011

Creamy tomato soup with shrimp

Two nights ago, I satisfied the huge craving I’d had for steak by purchasing and cooking an $11 ribeye at Whole Foods and eating it with a potato gratin. But because I’d been eating lighter fare for a month (mostly seafood and chicken), I felt really heavy and groggy the next day. I had this tomato soup for (late) breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and it was just what I needed to feel better.

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cups canned tomato (diced, ground, doesn’t matter)
1 1/2 cups chicken (or vegetable) stock
1 small carrot, chopped
1 celery rib, chopped
1 small onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic
olive oil
1/4 cup heavy cream
1 rosemary sprig
1 bay leaf
salt and pepper

Cook the garlic, onion, celery, and carrots in a little bit of olive oil until soft (about 5 minutes at med-high heat). Add the rosemary leaves and the bay leaf and stir, then add the tomatoes and the chicken stock. Simmer for about 10 minutes. Purée in a blender until smooth and return to saucepan. Add cream and salt and pepper to taste, and simmer for another 10-15 minutes.

I cooked up a few shrimp for my soup and sprinkled it with some chopped cilantro and crumbled cotija cheese. Pretty filling!

6:05pm | URL: http://tmblr.co/Z_H9ay3OEfh2

(Notes: 7)

Filed under: soup tomato soup shrimp

March 1, 2011

Chai-spiced pistachio cookies

I baked these for my dad to thank him for fronting the deposit to lock down my new apartment and for filling out my taxes. The man sure wants to help his daughter be a grownup! I’d have bought him something cool, but I am pretty broke and I know everybody loves baked goods, especially him. So I decided to dream up a cookie involving two things he really likes: chai tea and pistachio nuts.

The recipe for these was adapted from my favorite cookie recipe, Alton Brown’s The Chewy. I baked about 2,000 of these last year for a dorm-wide event and they were such a success that I adopted the recipe as my standard cookie recipe. I’ve altered it here because my dad is diabetic and into eating healthy, so I cut back on the sugar just a bit and used a mix of whole wheat and white flours.

Yields about 4 dozen small cookies (about 1.5” diameter)

Ingredients:
* 2 sticks unsalted butter
* 1 1/4 cups all-purpose white flour
* 1 cup whole wheat flour
* 1 teaspoon kosher salt
* 1 teaspoon baking soda
* 1/4 cup honey
* 1 cup brown sugar
* 1 egg
* 1 egg yolk
* 2 tablespoons milk
* 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract
* 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
* 1 tbsp. freshly grated ginger
* 1 tsp. ground cardamom
* 1/2 tsp. ground nutmeg
* 1/2 tsp. ground cloves
* 2 cups chopped pistachio nuts (de-shelled)

Heat oven to 375 degrees F.

Melt the butter in a heavy-bottom medium saucepan over low heat. Sift together the flour, salt, ground spices and baking soda and set aside.

Pour the melted butter in the mixer’s work bowl. Add the honey and brown sugar. Cream on medium speed. Add the egg, yolk, 2 tablespoons milk, ginger and vanilla extract and mix until well combined. Slowly incorporate the flour mixture until thoroughly combined. Stir in the pistachio nuts.

Chill the dough, then scoop onto baking sheets, 12 cookies per sheet. Bake for 12 minutes or until golden brown.