A fussy foodie’s adventures beyond comfort food
Dinner last night was a tiny boneless organic leg of lamb (less than 2 lb), roasted with onion, shallot, lemon quarters, prunes, and green olives, after Mario Batali (from Molto Italiano
After getting the lamb going, I put together a panful of Molly Stevens’ braised leeks and bacon (from All About Braising
Yesterday was an incredibly busy evening. We walked home from work, and went right back out with the dog for the better part of an hour. While Jeremy took the pup inside for her chow, I stayed out and did some gardening for about an hour, weeding the herb garden and planting a few of my weekend purchases: chocolate mint, rosemary, variegated marjoram, and tricolor sage. I have plans for some more herbs, and maybe a little annual/lettuce bed, but that’s down the road a few weeks, I think.
Anyway, around 7:30, Jeremy came out begging for dinner, so I packed up the gardening supplies and came inside to clean up and get food going. I decided to make chicken-apple sausages and potato-celeriac latkes. I used the Cuisinart to grate the potato, celeriac and onion in short order, and my ricer to squeeze all the extra moisture from them, which worked great—ideally, really, except that my arms were tired from gardening, so the squeezing was a lot of work. I used my largest serving spoon to scoop and shape the latkes and drop them in the hot oil, and did 3 at a time. Once most of the latkes were fried up and warming in the oven, I grilled up the sausages (which were precooked), and dinner was good to go. Jeremy liked it, I liked it, and the potato cakes went well with the flavor of the sausages. Jeremy gave Freyja a piece of sausage after we finished eating, and she liked it too. 
The latke recipe I used is adapted from one at Epicurious. Even reducing amounts somewhat, we still ended up with a ton of extra latkes; it’s a good thing they reheat well in the oven. I was loose with the amounts, and mostly played it by feel, literally, by mixing it together with just my hands. Unpeeled red potatoes seem to work fine; I also used a few small miscellaneous potatoes (yellow and fingerlings, I think). I’ve never eaten celeriac before, and the flavor was subtle, but I think I could taste it. I’ve got another one, and am thinking of butter-braising it, so I can taste it all by itself. Or a soup would be good…or maybe I should just mash some in with potatoes… hmm…
Celeriac-Potato Latkes
1/2 of a large celeriac, or about 3/4 lb total, peeled with a knife
About 6 large red potatoes
2 T fresh lemon juice
1/2 lb sweet onion, quartered
1/2 C all-purpose flour
4 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 tsp kosher salt
A few grinds of black pepper
About 1 1/2 cups canola oil
Put oven racks in upper and lower thirds of oven and preheat oven to 250°F. Coarsely grate celery root, potatoes, and onions with the grating blade of your food processor (or box grater). Pour lemon juice over all and toss to coat. Strain using a potato ricer (perfect if you have one with a very small screen) or a kitchen towel, to remove as much liquid as you possibly can.
Return grated roots to a clean, dry bowl and mix in salt, pepper, flour (enough to coat everything lightly), and eggs (start with 3, mix them in, and work up from there if necessary until you have an evenly coated mixture that will hold together when pressed). It is easiest to gauge consistency if you mix this together with your hands rather than a spoon.
Heat 1/3″ oil in a 10- or 12-inch cast iron skillet over medium heat until hot but not smoking. Fill a 1/4-cup measure or large serving spoon (not tightly packed) with latke mixture and carefully slide it into the skillet, flattening to about 3 inches in diameter with a slotted spatula. Form 2-3 more latkes in skillet, allowing some space around them, and fry until undersides are deep golden, 1 1/2 to 3 minutes. Turn over very gently and fry until deep golden all over, 1 1/2 to 3 minutes more. (If latkes brown too quickly, lower heat a bit.) Transfer to paper towels to drain briefly, then keep warm in a single layer on a metal rack set in a shallow baking pan in the oven. Make more latkes in the same manner. Latkes can be fried ahead and served at room temp or reheated in the oven. Makes about 16 latkes.
Source: Adapted from Epicurious.
Update 4/26/07: I tried reheating the leftover latkes to go with our dinner, which was a roasted boneless leg of lamb and braised leeks with bacon. I adapted both of those for a 375F oven so I could do them at once, so when the roast came out to rest, I stuck the latkes on a rack under the leeks while the latter finished braising. The timing worked out perfectly for everything, and the latkes tasted just as good the second day; they accompanied the rest of the meal beautifully, and I could also see leftovers on that score reheated with some eggs for a great breakfast of, say, poached eggs on asparagus.
Dinner last night was a roasted chicken cooked very simply according to Thomas Keller’s instructions here. You almost can’t call it a recipe, because it was so simple—4 lb chicken rinsed and dried thoroughly, S&P inside and out, roasted at 450F for 70 minutes until temped out—but it made a fantastically juicy chicken with lovely crisp skin. Totally forgot about the thyme until just now, but we didn’t miss it at all.
While the chicken rested (and released so much juice that it kept spilling off my cutting board and onto the floor, despite my attempts to catch and preserve it… I really need a cutting board with a deeper moat and an unbowed surface), I made pan roasted turnips from Mario Batali’s Molto Italiano
The turnips weren’t that good. I think I just didn’t get quality turnips. I cooked them for quite a bit longer than called for, and they came out looking lovely and dark brown just like the photo. However, despite using very small turnips and cutting them into eighths, some of them were still hard, and fibrous in a really inedible way. The ones that cooked through were nice, though, so I’d consider making turnip dishes in the future if I can find fresh ones at the farmer’s market this summer.
One final note: After we finished eating and got our plates put away, Jeremy gave Freyja a few bites of chicken. It was her first people food, and she absolutely loved it. A few minutes later she came back over to Jeremy and barked at him to ask for more. We didn’t oblige because we don’t want to encourage her begging, but it was awfully cute.
Nope, it’s a chocolate bread pudding I made for dessert a few days ago. I first made this recipe while Jeremy was away at school, and though I am not a fan of soggy bread, I actually really liked it. Well, we had a partial loaf of honey wheat sandwich bread going stale in the fridge, so I took the opportunity to use it up in another bread pudding.
The recipe I’ve used on both occasions can be found here. As mentioned, I used some rather stale honey wheat sandwich bread, cut into cubes of probably around 3/4″. Rather than straight whipping cream, I used what I had on hand, which was about 1/2 cup of whipping cream and 1 1/2 cups of whole milk, and it came out perfectly.
I especially like the crisp sugar topping on this bread pudding, and the fact that it tastes equally good hot from the oven or cold from the fridge. A dollop of whipped cream is a nice garnish, but not strictly necessary.
…are too good not to share. An example of this is the lamb kefthedes I made for dinner last week, which came out to be the best meatballs I’ve ever eaten, bar none. Wait… those Sardinian meatballs are pretty fantastic too, but in a very different, soft and saucy way.
The photo doesn’t do them justice: They were perfect fresh from the skillet (crisp and golden outside and succulently moist inside with a touch of pink), tasted just as good at room temperature, and held up admirably in the form of reheated leftovers, warmed in a 350F oven for 15-20 minutes. I served them with a mound of sauteed spinach and Greek roasted potatoes (which also reheated nicely in the oven).
A few more specific notes: There was no mint in the house, so I didn’t use any, and we didn’t miss it. I used my “coarse” microplane paddle, and the (unpeeled) potato came out closer to pureed, so I didn’t use as much as called for. I also started out with one slice of bread and added a second once I saw how much liquid the potato added to the mix. Playing it by ear can be a good thing.
I made the lamb mixture first and put it in the fridge, then started the potatoes. When they were down to the last 15 minutes of allotted cook time, I started heating the oil and shaping/dredging meatballs. I got the first meatballs in the oil about when the timer went off for the potatoes, so they stayed in the oven an extra 15 minutes or so. I did the meatballs in three batches, and started the spinach once I had dropped the last batch in the oil. (Spinach was olive oil and some minced garlic heated until starting to brown, as much baby spinach as would fit in my skillet, tossed on med heat with a bit of kosher salt just until wilted, then a splash of lemon juice just before serving.)
Lamb Kefthedes
1 lb ground lamb
1 tsp dried mint (optional)
1 tsp dried oregano
Freshly ground pepper
2 tsp kosher salt
1 large red potato, grated very finely
2 slices day-old sourdough bread, crusts removed
1 egg
2 tablespoons red-wine vinegar
1 small onion, finely chopped
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour for dredging
canola oil for frying
Dip the bread in water briefly, then squeeze out the excess and crumble it. Mix together with the remaining ingredients, lamb through onion, working with your hands. All the ingredients should be well combined and equally distributed, but do not overwork the meat. Leave mixture to rest for an hour or more in the fridge, to allow flavors to meld.
To form, spread out the flour on a large plate; have a second, clean plate ready. Take a tablespoonful at a time of the meat mixture and form into a small ball, about 1 1/2 inches in diameter. Roll in the flour and shake in the palm of your hand to remove the excess flour. Place the dredged meatball on the clean plate. Continue with the remaining mixture until all the meatballs are shaped.
To fry, heat about 1/2-inch of canola or extra-virgin olive oil in a 12″ cast-iron skillet over medium heat. Using a tablespoon or small spatula, gently place as many meatballs as will fit in the pan without crowding. Fry them, turning once or twice so that all sides are nicely browned. Remove, drain slightly on paper towels, and serve, either hot or at room temperature. The meatballs will be crunchy on the outside, and velvety smooth on the inside.
Patates Riganates
Roasted Potatoes with Garlic, Lemon and Oregano
2 pounds red potatoes, cut into 1 1/2-inch cubes
1/4 cup olive oil
4 garlic cloves, minced
1 teaspoons dried oregano, crumbled
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup chicken stock
1/3 cup (freshly squeezed) lemon juice
2-3 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano, optional
Preheat oven to 400°F. Place the potatoes in a single layer in a 13-x-9-inch baking dish and pour the oil over them. Add the garlic, dried oregano, salt and pepper to taste and toss well to coat with the oil.
Bake the potatoes for 15 minutes. Add the stock, toss and bake for 10 minutes more. Add the lemon juice, toss and bake for 15 to 30 minutes more, or until the potatoes are cooked through. If you like, preheat the broiler and broil the potatoes for 2 to 3 minutes, or until golden brown.
Sprinkle with the fresh oregano and serve at once. Makes 4 to 6 servings.
Variation: Dissolve 1 tablespoon tomato paste in the stock, and reduce the amount of lemon juice to taste. Substitute Aleppo pepper or crushed red pepper flakes for the black pepper.
Source: Epicurious