Friendly Little Dinner

Entertaining isn't something we do as frequently as we used to, probably because we are still making friends here and also because work and life in general is very busy. I remember a time when we had friends over for dinner at least once a week, sometimes for last-minute dinner parties but other times for overly-detailed celebrations. Now, we probably only host two or three times a year, so when we do, you know I pull out every stop; consider the use of every dish, plate, sherbet or goblet; and pour over every recipe that has been waiting in the wings.

When our friends Gab and Kristina came in from Boston, MA and Dallas, TX for a quick trip to Marfa and Fort Davis, I put a lot of thought into each of the six courses (yes, six), not just what I would serve, but also in what I would serve each culinary creation...food photos courtesy of Gab, one of our guests!

To start:
Mustard-marscarpone spread with toasts, sesame sticks, bread sticks, assorted olives and almonds served in the little black lotus bowls with the black tidbit plates.

First course:
Double-baked three-cheese soufflé served in individual cast iron skillets with a white, Rosenthal under plate.

Salad course:
Butter lettuce with a lemon-oregano vinaigrette on white, Rosenthal salad plates.

Main course:
Homemade bucatini with homemade tomato sauce and Parmesan cheese in the oddly shaped pasta bowls.

Intermezzo:
Basil gelato in the chartreuse Russel Wright sherbets.

Dessert:
Easy candy bar tart on the patterned, Rosenthal dessert plates.

If I say so myself, everything was delicious and we had a wonderful time talking and catching up over the course of the meal. The only thing I felt like need some tweaking was the salad dressing, which was a little on the sour side--but the citrus, red pepper and oregano were a great flavor combination and will probably become something else in the kitchen.  The gelato and pomodoro were of my own devising, so there are a couple of recipes for you to try.

Recipe: Basil Gelato

I use corn starch to thicken my gelato, although many recipes use eggs instead. This recipe is the perfect thing to bridge an Italian main course and dessert; its first taste is sweet, which is replaced with a strong herbaceous flavor and ends with the spicy note of basil. Affected? Yes, but effective.

2 cups basil leaves
3 cups milk
3 tbsp corn starch
¾ cup sugar
1 tbsp. lemon zest
¼ tsp. salt

Combine basil, 2 1/2 cups milk, sugar, zest and salt in a blender and puree until smooth. Pour into a two quart saucepan and heat gently until sugar dissolves.  In the meantime, combine the remaining milk with the cornstarch and whisk to form a slurry.  Continuing heating the basil-milk mixture until it begins to steam; stir in the slurry and continue to cook until the mixture has thickened.  Remove from heat and pour through a fine strainer; chill in the refrigerator for several hours, or for best performance with your ice cream maker, overnight.  Pour into an ice cream maker and freeze according to manufacturer's instructions. Serve garnished with fresh basil leaves.

Makes about one quart of gelato.

Recipe: Pasta al Pomodoro

Everyone has a favorite red sauce and it may come from a jar--there are so many good-quality brands out there it is easy to find several you like. Lately, I've been trying to find my own perfect recipe and have tried every trick, idea or suggestion. My version combines slowly cooked onion, garlic, tomato sauce and great canned tomatoes to make a delicious sauce. My secret ingredient? Fennel pollen. My secret tool? Using the immersion blender for a smooth, delicious sauce.

For the sauce:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium onion, finely minced
4 garlic cloves, finely minced
1 pinch crushed red pepper flakes
1 28-ounce can diced tomatoes or whole tomatoes, use a very good brand
1 8-ounce can of tomato sauce
Pinch of fennel pollen
Kosher salt
3 large fresh basil sprigs

To assemble:
12 ounces bucatini or spaghetti
2 tablespoons cubed unsalted butter
1/4 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese, plus more for serving.  You'll want more!

Heat extra-virgin olive oil in a dutch oven over medium-low heat. Add minced onion and cook, stirring, until very soft, about 15 to 20 minutes. Add garlic and cook, stirring, for another 2-4 minutes. Add crushed red pepper flakes; cook for 1 minute more. Increase heat to medium, add tomatoes, sauce and season lightly with kosher salt; cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens a little, about 30 minutes. Remove pan from heat, stir in basil sprigs, cover and set aside for 30 minutes to an hour.  Remove basil, purée with an immersion blender, or in batches in a blender, until very smooth.

When you're ready to serve, bring water to a boil in a large. Season with salt; add spaghetti or bucatini and cook, stirring occasionally, until not quite tender. Reserve 1/4 cup of the pasta water, then drain pasta.

Bring pasta back to a simmer, add pasta and some of the pasta water; cook, stirring, until sauce coats pasta and pasta is al dente, about 2 minutes, adding more pasta water if needed. Remove pan from heat; add butter and cheese; toss until cheese melts. Serve with more cheese, if desired.  It will be desired!

Serves fours.  The sauce can easily be doubled to serve a larger crowd or to have some to save for later.  I added chopped green and kalamata olives, four extra cloves of minced garlic and 1 tsp. of red pepper flakes to my leftovers for a spicy, easy 'puttanesca.' 

Difference

Sometimes, things you think are the same are actually different.  Take for instance, the breakfast taco and breakfast burrito.  Anyone who has ever eaten a breakfast taco and a breakfast burrito can probably tell you: they aren't the same thing.  It's about proportion, scale and sometimes ingredients.  But some people, even Texas Monthly prescribes the difference to regional nomenclature, suggesting a breakfast taco and burrito are identical.  But just about any child (in Texas anyways) can tell you that, besides proportion and scale, a burrito is rolled, whereas a taco is folded.

Which brings me to migas.  And chilaquiles.  ¿Cuál es la diferencia?

The Epicurious Food Dictionary definition says:

chilaquiles [chee-lah-KEE-lehs]
Because it was invented to use leftovers, this Mexican entree is sometimes called "poor man's dish." It consists of corn TORTILLA strips sautéed with other foods such as mild green CHILES, cheese, CHORIZO and shredded chicken or beef. The dish may also be layered like LASAGNA and baked.


The dictionary doesn't define migas, but Wikipedia offers the explanation for the Tex-Mex version, in addition to Spanish and Portuguese iterations:


migas [me-gus]
In Tex-Mex cuisine, migas [me-gus] are a traditional breakfast dish consisting of scrambled eggs mixed with strips of corn tortilla; the meatless version includes diced onions, sliced chile peppers, diced fresh tomatoes, and cheese, plus various spices and condiments (e.g. salsa or pico de gallo). Migas are typically served with refried beans, and corn or flour tortillas are used to enfold all of the ingredients into tacos. The tortilla strips can also be deep-fried until crunchy

And then some places serve chilaquiles with eggs.  So what is what?  Perhaps it doesn't matter, but I tend to think definitions are important.  We have so many words in the English language, many of them borrowed from other countries and cultures, so we have the opportunity to be very specific.  Like the difference between burrito and taco!  Blurring definitions is simply lazy, which probably makes me sound old.  You're probably hearing, "why don't they teach handwriting in the public schools anymore!"

Which brings me to: addiction.  And after my confession, perhaps you can tell me what I'm making?

After moving to West Texas, I quickly became addicted to Rosa's.  Located all across West Texas, and even as far away as Dallas, Rosa's makes pretty delicious fast, Mexican food--there is no reason to go to Taco Bell.  Never.  But, what makes Rosa's special is their tortillas, which are made fresh right there in each and every store.  You can watch.  And, that is how they elevate something as simple as a bean burrito (rolled!) with cheese and delicious salsa into a revelation: bean and cheese and salsa inside a warm, soft flour tortilla probably just pulled off of the line.  Seriously, I start thinking about it and my mouth begins to water.  I pass Rosa's and I start thinking about how long I can keep myself from it.

And their chips.  And their queso!  So good.  But then you end up with a bag full of leftover chips.  Chips that were made fresh in store and don't really keep.  Chips that are pretty stale the next morning.  What to do?  Migas/chilaquiles!

So here is easy, breezy morning migas/chilaquiles when you have leftover or stale chips, some salsa, a couple of eggs...and a little cheese.

Heat some vegetable oil in a non-stick skillet over medium heat.  Add enough chips to cover the bottom of the pan in one layer.  The idea is to fry the chips so they crisp up again, so stir them and turn them until they start to get a little brown.

Meanwhile, crack and beat two eggs with a little salt.  Ready your salsa (I use about 1/3 cup), some garlic and fresh pico, about 1/4 cup if you have  it (at Rosa's, they have it, so I have it.).

Once the chips are lightly brown, take the pan off the heat and add the garlic (enough) and stir until it starts to cook.  Then, dump in the salsa and pico.  It's probably going to sizzle and splatter a little.  Return to the heat and cook until the salsa is reduced a little.  Lower the temperature, add the eggs and cook until they are scrambled right into that mess.

Top with cheese and a little more salsa and voila!  Migas.  Or chilaquiles with eggs.  Or something else, I don't know.  The bottom line is that it's an easy, delicious breakfast on Sunday morning and a perfect way to use up stale chips or tortillas with your favorite salsa.  This serves two!

Food: Tomato Paste

Admit it: you are a tomato paste waster. You know you are. I know, I know, you have the best of intentions. Here is what happens: you are at the store and buy a small can of tomato paste for a recipe you are making that calls for the use of one tablespoon. You open the can and use the one tablespoon and then throw the rest into the trash. You know you do.

Of course, you read those tips in Real Simple or Martha Stewart Living that say, "freeze unused portions of tomato paste in ice cube trays for easy use in soups and stews." You think, "that's clever, I can do that." But you don't. You put the opened can in the refrigerator, planning to divide the unused tomato paste later only to arrive at that later four weeks into the future when your tinfoil covered can of tomato paste has developed a layer of green fuzz. Or, you do actually get the paste into some ice cube trays and said cubes of tomato paste into a labeled freezer-safe bag, but completely forget about them until the next time you are scooping tomato paste into ice cube trays and realize you have enough frozen ice cubes of tomato paste to make spaghetti sauce for Attila's horde.

Admit it.

What is tomato paste anyways? And why do you need those little cans of it? Tomato paste is a a highly concentrated version of tomato sauce. It's adds depth and flavor to sauces, soup, stews and anything that is tomato based. But you only need a little. But you knew that, didn't you?

The solution? Tomato paste in a tube. It's like toothpaste and absolute genius. You squeeze out just the right amount and place the rest in the fridge: no ice cube tray needed. The only problem is that most of the tomato paste available in tubes in imported from Italy and comparatively expensive to a little can of Hunt's brand. But, do the math: you can spend $3.50 on a tube of paste you are going to use every last bit of or you can spend $.49 on a seven cans of it, most of which you are going to put in the trash. Admit it, you know you will.

New solution: tomato paste from Whole Foods. Yes, I've heard the 'whole paycheck' references and know the reputation of Whole Foods as being very expensive. But, they have some great values and prices on many items, especially on their house brand. You just have to be a savvy shopper. Tomato paste from the 365 brand and imported from Italy? $1.49. Seriously, buy several and use them as stocking stuffers. Everyone in your family will appreciate the gesture and thank you as the person who saved them from throwing away half-empty cans of tomato paste.

Simple, Delicious Pasta

I created this recipe a while back, inspired by what was left in the pantry. The sauce is creamy, nutty and delicious.

Recipe: Pasta with Tomatoes and Garbanzo Sauce

1 16-oz can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drained
1 24-oz can diced tomatoes, do not drain
2 cloves garlic, crushed or coarsely chopped
1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper
2 tbsp. olive oil (lemon, if you have it)
1/4 cup slivered almonds
Salt and Pepper to taste.
12 oz. penne or rotinni
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, grated

Heat a large pot of boiling water and cook the pasta according to the package directions.

In a food processor, combine the garbanzo beans, garlic, red pepper, olive oil and almonds. Drain the tomato liquid into the processor. Process for 2-3 minutes or until a creamy, sauce-like consistency is reached. Add additional water if necessary, but you can wait and add more water when you toss it with the pasta.

Put the sauce in a large bowl and add the diced tomatoes and Parmesan cheese. Toss to combine. Drain the pasta, reserving 1/4 cup of the pasta water. Add the pasta to the sauce and tomatoes, tossing with reserved pasta water if necessary to thin the sauce. Top each plate with additional Parmesan cheese at the table.

Serves 4-6 people.

Kitchen Altar

My kitchen altar is all decked out with goodies from the farm. From the left: garlic that arrived fresh and is now nice and dried, ready to eat; big, juicy, sweet tomatoes; Ganesha, the Indian god invoked to overcome obstacles and therefore perfect in the kitchen; sweet, little purple-y tomatoes; little red tomatoes; basil and more basil. Delish.

Do You Say Tomato?

....I say tomatoes and eggs! We saw our friends Molly and David on Friday night and they have chickens! Yes, we have lots of friends with chickens and that, my dutiful readers, is a very good thing. I sliced the tomatoes, added a little salt and pepper and just enjoyed them. The eggs will be consumed very soon.

Thanks guys!

You Say Tomato...

It arrived. The first tomato of summer from the farm. Big and purplish, slightly sweet and the perfect texture I should have sliced it, sprinkled it with salt and gobbled it up as quickly as possible. But there was only one. One beautiful specimen.

So I diced it up and scattered it over port and mushroom tortellini which was served on top of spinach pesto, also from farm. Delicious. Point, counterpoint.

I also made a summery cucumber salad for the side. A simple combination of English cucumbers sliced pretty thick, some onions sliced pretty thin (also from the farm), a little sour cream, a little sherry vinegar and the best dried dill you can buy from Penzey's spices. All it needs is a little salt, and perfection. More on cucumber salad later...

Mangez!