Rethinking Cornbread

Servings: 8
Preheat: 400
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Source: Erika Bruce from Cook’s Illustrated, January &February 2005, pages 10-11.

Before preparing the baking dish, measure out the frozen corn and let it stand at room temperature until needed. When corn is in season, fresh corn can be substituted for frozen corn. This recipe was developed with Quaker Yellow Cornmeal. A stone-ground, whole-grained cornmeal will work but will yield a drier, less tender cornbread. We prefer a Pyrex glass baking dish because it yields a nice golden brown crust, but a metal pan will work.

Ingredients: 

8 Tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted and cooled slightly.
1 ½ cups (7 ½ ounces) unbleached all-purpose flour
1 cup (5 ½ ounces) Quaker Yellow Cornmeal
2 tsp. baking powder
¼ tsp. baking soda
¾ tsp. salt
¼ cup (1 ¾ ounces) packed light brown sugar
¾ cup (3 ½ ounces) frozen corn kernels, thawed
1 cup buttermilk
2 large eggs

Directions: 

Adjust oven rack to middle position and heat oven to 400°F. Spray an 8” square baking dish with vegetable oil spray. Whisk the flour, the cornmeal, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in medium bowl until combined. Set bowl aside.

In a food processor or blender, process buttermilk, corn, and sugar until combined, about 5 seconds. Add eggs and process until well combined. Corn lumps will remain about 5 seconds longer.

Use a rubber spatula. Make well in center of dry ingredients. Pour wet ingredients into well. Begin folding dry ingredients into wet, giving mixture only a few turns to barely combine. Add melted butter and continue folding until dry ingredients are just moistened. Pour batter into a prepared baking dish and smooth surface with rubber spatula.

Bake until cornbread is a deep golden brown and a toothpick inserted into center comes out clean, 25-30 minutes. Let cool on a wire rack for 10 minutes, then invert the wire rack. Turn right side up and let cool another 10 minutes. Serve warm.

Strawberry/Eton Mess

Servings: 4 to 6
Preheat: 0
Prep Time: 
Source: Joan Berman

Great summer dessert.

Ingredients: 

3 Cups Strawberries
2 TBS. Sugar
1 TBS. Amaretto or Cointreau

2 Cups Whipped Cream
1 Tsp. Vanilla
1 TBS. Sugar

1 1/2 Cup Crumbled Meringue Cookies

Directions: 

Hull and chop the strawberries. Place them in a bowl with sugar and liquor.
Remove 1/2 cup and macerate with a fork

Whip cream until thick with soft peaks

Crumble the meringue cookies, Need some big pieces to provide texture.

Take 1/2 cup of the macerated strawberries and fold into the whipping cream

Gently fold in the remainder of the strawberries and chopped cookies into whipping cream

Raised Waffles

 

IMG_7599Servings: 4-6
Preheat: 0
Prep Time: 15 minutes + overnight
Source: Smittenkitchen.com

Awesome waffle recipe – custardy, salty, crispy, rich. Mix the batter the night before.

Ingredients: 

1/2 cup warm water (about 105 to 110 degrees, so not too hot)
1 packet (1/4 ounce, 7 grams or 2 1/4 teaspoons) active dry yeast
2 cups milk, warmed (again, not too hot
1 stick (4 ounces or 115 grams) unsalted butter, melted and cooled until lukewarm
1 teaspoon table salt
1 teaspoon granulated sugar
2 cups (250 grams) all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
Oil or melted butter for waffle iron
Powdered sugar, syrup or berries for serving

Directions: 

The night before: Pour warm water in the bottom of a large (larger than you think you’ll need, because the batter will rise a lot) bowl. Sprinkle yeast on top and let it dissolve and foam ever-so-slightly for 15 minutes. Stir in milk, butter, salt, sugar and flour — I do a little bit of wet ingredients then a little bit of dry, back and forth, to avoid forming lumps. If lumps form, you can mostly whisk them out.

Cover bowl with plastic wrap and set out on counter (see Note up top for debate on this) overnight.

The next morning, whisk in eggs and baking soda until smooth. Heat waffle iron** (a thinner one is better than a Belgian-style one, as these will not rise enough to fill a tall one out) and coat lightly with butter or oil. Ladle in 1/2 to 3/4-cup batter per waffle batch. The batter will be very thin and will spread a lot in the pan, so err on the side of underfilled until you figure out the right amount. Repeat with remaining batter.

Blueberry Buckle with Lemon Syrup (substitute guinda plums for blueberries)

Blueberry-buckle-with-lemon-syrup-recipe-5
Servings: 9 to 12 – 9 inch square pan
Preheat: 350
Prep Time:
Source: David Lebovitz 8-27-15

Adapted from Rustic Fruit Desserts by Cory Schreiber and Julie Richardson

Adding the lemon syrup is an intriguing idea that was part of the original recipe. It’s tangy but does take some of the spotlight off the berries. If you want to omit it, you might want to increase the amount of cinnamon or nutmeg slightly in the batter to give it a little more pizzazz.

Other fruits can be used, such as sliced or diced plums, nectarines or apricots. Avoid fruits that are extra-juicy, though, as they may interfere with the batter setting. Raspberries or blackberries can be used in place of the blueberries, or mixed with them. (Blackberries are rather seedy, so I’d definitely mix them with other berries.) If you want to swap out other fruits, use the same amount by weight or volume as the blueberries listed in the ingredients. You can use frozen berries if you’d like. Just don’t defrost them first, since they’d get too juicy. Add them frozen, right to the batter.

Ingredients: 

Topping

4 tablespoons (55g) unsalted butter, cubed and chilled
1/2 cup (100g) sugar
1/3 cup (45g) flour
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon

Batter

6 tablespoons (85g) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup (200g) sugar
zest of 2 lemons (use the same lemons for the syrup, below)
1 1/2 cups+2 tablespoons (230g) flour
1 teaspoon baking powder, preferably aluminum-free
1/4 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon or 1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
2 large eggs, at room temperature
1/2 cup (125ml) buttermilk, at room temperature
3 cups (1 1/2 pints, 475g) blueberries

Lemon Syrup

1/3 cup (65g) sugar
juice of 2 medium lemons (about 6 tablespoons, 90ml)

*** ES – only use half of the lemon syrup

Directions: 

1. Preheat the oven to 350ºF (180ºC). Butter a 9-inch (23cm) square cake pan.

2. Make the topping by crumbling together the butter, sugar, flour and cinnamon with your hands or a pastry blender until the pieces of butter are broken up and are about the size of small peas. Set aside.

3. To make the batter, in the bowl of stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or by hand in a bowl using a spatula or wooden spoon, cream the butter, sugar and lemon zest together until light and creamy, about 3 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, stopping the mixer a few moments after you add each egg to scrape down the sides of the bowl.

4. Sift together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon or nutmeg into a medium-sized bowl. With the mixer on low speed, add half the flour mixture, then stir in the buttermilk.

5. Add the remaining flour mixture, mixing just enough so it’s barely incorporated (there will still be dry bits of unincorporated flour), then remove the mixer bowl from the machine and using a flexible spatula to gently fold in the blueberries in, just until they are incorporated. Do not overmix – you don’t want to smash the blueberries and stain the batter.

6. Scrape the batter into the prepared baking pan and smooth the top. Strew the topping over the blueberry batter and bake until the buckle is lightly browned on top and feels just set in the center; it’ll spring back lightly when you touch the center. It’ll take about 55 minutes.

7. When the buckle is almost finished baking, make the syrup by heating the lemon juice and sugar in a small saucepan over medium heat, cooking it until it thickens. It’s done when the bubbles get larger, and when removed from the heat (which you might want to do a couple of times while it’s cooking, to check), the consistency will be like warm maple syrup. It’ll take about 5 minutes.

8. Remove the buckle from the oven and pour the warm lemon syrup over it, letting it soak in. Serve the buckle when it’s cool enough to slice. It’s good warm or at room temperature. Whipped cream, vanilla ice cream, or white chocolate-fresh ginger ice cream make nice accompaniments, although none are really necessary.

Storage: The buckle can be kept for up to three days at room temperature, if well-wrapped. It can be frozen for up to two months. Not sure if I would pour the syrup over the buckle if I was planning on freezing it, though. You could defrost and rewarm it in a low oven, wrapped in foil, then add the syrup before you plan to serve it.

Birch Island Pork Shoulder Rub and Sauce (plus ribs)

Servings: 8
Preheat: 225
Prep Time: Overnight brine, then 6 hours on the grill
Source: Birch Island Friends of Norman and Carol

One 7 lb pork shoulder butt feeds ~12 people. The bone-in cut is best.

Spare ribs come from the the belly of the pig – where bacon comes from. Because they’re larger and tougher than baby backs they take longer and are more of a challenge to cook. However, they also have more meat than baby backs and more fat marbling which makes them more flavorful. The fact that they’re a greater test of grillmanship and they deliver more flavor makes them the rib of choice with people on the profession barbecue circuit. St. Louis cut ribs – also known as Kansas City cut ribs – are merely spare ribs with the rib tips cut off. Removal of the tips makes the rib slab more attractive and helps it to cook more evenly.

Place 4-5 coals on each side of grill for indirect cooking. Place a drip pan under the grate between the mounds of coals. Add fresh charcoal every hour or as needed to maintain 225 degrees. Grill slowly, or the rub will burn.

Ingredients: 

Brine:
1/2 cup molasses
1/2 cup kosher salt
4 quarts water

Rub (makes enough for several butts or ribs):
1 Cup Brown Sugar
1/4 Cup Paprika
3 TBS Salt
2 TBS Coarse Black Pepper
2 TBS Granulated Garlic (1 TBS if powdered)
2 TBS Granulated Onion (1 TBS if powdered)
2 TBS Chili Powder
2 tsp Chipotle Powder
1 tsp Cumin
1 tsp Coriander
1 tsp Thyme
1 tsp Ground Mustard

Sauce:
1 Cup Ketchup
1/2 Cup Brown Sugar
2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Ground Pepper
1/4 Cup Cider Vinegar
2 TBS Lemon Juice
4 TBS Worcestershire
2 tsp Mustard
1 tsp Chili Powder
1 TBS Oil
1 tsp Paprika
1/2 tsp Red Pepper – (optional)

6 to 8 pound pork shoulder or 3 racks of spare ribs

Directions: 

Pork Shoulder: Plan for overnight brining and 1 hour grilling per pound. But always allow more time than you think you’ll need.

Heat 1 quart of water and add molasses and salt, stirring until completely dissolved. Add remaining 3 quarts of water and let cool before submerging meat in large stock pot or brine bag. Add pork and brine 12-24 hours.

Remove meat from brine and pat dry. Sift the rub evenly over the shoulder and then pat onto the meat making sure as much of the rub as possible adheres. More rub will adhere to the meat if you are wearing latex gloves during the application. Keep meat away from coals, or the sugar in the rub will burn.

If your intention is to serve the pork sliced, you can remove it from the grill when it reaches an internal temperature of 170 to 180 degrees F. If you want to chop or “pull” the pork (tear it into meaty shreds), the internal temperature must be between 190 and 200 degrees F. Anything less, and the collagen and connective tissue will not have broken down sufficiently. Insert the temperature probe of an instant-read meat thermometer in several places to ensure doneness. Shred pork when cool enough to handle, discarding skin, fat, and charred meat. Before serving, heat sauce and mix into pork.

Pork Ribs: Plan for 4 1/2 to 5 hours.

Grill ribs for 3 hours bone-side down if you can keep the grill at 225°, or 2 hours at higher temperatures.

Wrap them in foil and grill, bone-side up, for 30 to 60 minutes. You can an extra special touch here by pouring a cup of apple cider or juice into the foil packet.

Unwrap them and grill for 30 more minutes bone-side down.

Finally, add your sauce and move the ribs to the hottest part of the grill and remove when the sugars have caramelized and you have a nice pasty coating with crisp spots – not more than 20 minutes

Cumin Roasted Carrots and Meyer Lemon

Servings: 6
Preheat: 400
Prep Time: 1-hour
Source: http://www.athoughtforfood.net/blog/roasted-carrots-with-cumin-and-meyer-lemon

Ingredients: 

1 1/2 – 2 lbs of carrots (or approximately 10 medium-sized), peeled
1 Meyer lemon cut crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick slices, seeds removed
6 tablespoons olive oil
2 teaspoons ground cumin
1 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
Kosher salt and black pepper
1 tablespoon fresh parsley, chopped

Directions: 

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking pan with parchment paper.

2. In a bowl, toss the carrots with four tablespoons of olive oil, cumin, paprika, and cayenne pepper. Add the sliced Meyer lemon and toss with the carrots.

3. Spread in an even layer on the baking sheet and sprinkle 2 teaspoons of Kosher salt over the carrots and lemon slices.

4. Roast for 20 minutes.

5. Rotate carrots and flip lemon slices, and season with another sprinkle of salt. Roast for another 10-15 minutes, or until carrots are golden brown.

6. Transfer to a serving plate and drizzle the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil over them. Finish with Kosher salt, ground black pepper, and chopped parsley.

Lemony Almond Macaroons

Servings: 25 cookies
Preheat: 325
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Source: Real Simple, April 2009

A delicious light cookie
Great for Passover

Ingredients: 

1 14-ounce package sweetened shredded coconut
1 cup sliced almonds
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
4 large egg whites

Directions: 

Heat oven to 325° F.
In a large bowl, combine the coconut, almonds, sugar, lemon zest, and salt.
Mix in the egg whites- (whisk them- per Carol).
Drop mounds of the mixture (each equal to 2 tablespoons) onto 2 parchment-lined baking sheets, spacing them 1½ inches apart.
Bake, switching the baking sheets halfway through, until the edges begin to brown, 20 to 25 minutes.
Cool slightly on baking sheets, then transfer to wire racks to cool completely.
Store in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week.

Tomato and Watermelon Salad with Feta

Servings: 4
Preheat: 0
Prep Time: 
Source: Fine Cooking, Issue 118

Great summer salad

Ingredients: 

2 oz. lightly packed baby arugula (about 2 cups)
2 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
1-1/2 cups large-diced seedless watermelon
1 medium or 3 mini unwaxed cucumbers, halved or quartered lengthwise, seeded if necessary, and cut into 3/4-inch pieces (about 2 cups)
3 oz. feta, cut into 1/2-inch cubes (about 3/4 cup)
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, torn
1 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
1 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Directions: 

Put the arugula, tomatoes, watermelon, cucumber, feta, and basil in a large bowl.

In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, 1/4 tsp. salt, and 1/4 tsp. pepper. Drizzle the dressing over the salad and toss gently to coat.

Chocolate and Raisin-Walnut Babka

babka

Servings: Makes 2 – 9 inch Babkas
Preheat: 375
Prep Time: ACTIVE: 1 HR 15 MIN TOTAL TIME: 6 HR ( Overnight Resting)
Source: Food and Wine, January 2016

These babkas are from pastry chef Melissa Weller at Sadelle’s in New York City. You can split the dough in two and make one as chocolate and the other as raisin-walnut but be sure to halve each of the filling recipes. The babkas are sweet enough without the glazes.

Note that the raisin-walnut babka may need more time in the over than does the chocolate recipe, as the filling is moist.

Ingredients: 

INGREDIENTS

DOUGH
4 cups all-purpose flour, preferably King Arthur
1/3 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1 cup whole milk, warmed
1 packet dry active yeast
1 large egg plus 1 large egg yolk
1 stick plus 2 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into tablespoons, at room temperature

CHOCOLATE FILLING
9 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped
3 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, cubed
1 1/2 cups finely ground chocolate wafer cookies
3 tablespoons honey

RAISIN-WALNUT FILLING
3 cups golden raisins, soaked in warm water for 10 minutes and drained
3/4 cup granulated sugar
6 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened
1 tablespoon ground cinnamon
1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1/2 cup dark raisins, soaked in warm water for 10 minutes and drained
3/4 cup walnuts, toasted and coarsely chopped

CHOCOLATE GLAZE
12 ounces bittersweet chocolate, finely chopped
4 ounces milk chocolate, finely chopped
1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter, cubed
2 tablespoons light corn syrup

RAISIN-WALNUT GLAZE
1 stick unsalted butter
6 tablespoons whole milk
2 tablespoons ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon fine sea salt
1 1/2 cups confectioners’ sugar

Directions: 

MAKE THE DOUGH In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the sugar and salt. In a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine the milk with the yeast and let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Add the egg and egg yolk and sprinkle the dry ingredients on top. Mix at low speed for 2 minutes. Scrape down the side of the bowl and mix at medium speed until all of the dry ingredients are incorporated and the dough is smooth, about 5 minutes. Add all of the butter at once and mix at low speed until it is fully incorporated and a tacky dough forms, about 3 minutes; scrape down the side of the bowl as needed during mixing. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let the dough stand at room temperature for 1 hour.

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper and coat the paper generously with nonstick baking spray. Scrape the dough out onto the parchment paper and cut the dough in half. Pat each piece into a neat square. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

MAKE THE FILLING (see note about halving above)
Chocolate: In a large heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, melt both chocolates with the butter, stirring occasionally, until smooth. Let cool to room temperature, then stir in the cookie crumbs and honey.
Raisin-Walnut: Combine all of the ingredients except the dark raisins and walnuts in a food processor and puree until smooth.

ASSEMBLE, RISE, AND BAKE
Coat two 9-by-4-inch loaf pans with nonstick baking spray and line with parchment paper, allowing 2 inches of overhang on each of the long sides.

Roll out each square of dough to a 16-inch square. Using an offset spatula, spread all but 1/2 (or 1/4 if halving) cup of the filling in an even layer over the dough squares to within 1/2 inch of the edges. If making the raisin-walnut, sprinkle the dough evenly with the dark raisins and toasted walnuts. Starting at the long edge nearest you, tightly roll up each dough square jelly roll–style into a tight log.

Using a sharp knife, cut the logs in half crosswise. Using an offset spatula, spread 1/4 cup of the reserved filling on the top and sides of 2 of the halves. Set the other halves on top in the opposite direction to form a cross. Twist to form spirals and transfer to the prepared pans. Cover the with a towel and let stand in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 2 hours.

Preheat the oven to 375°. Bake the loaves in the center of the oven for about 45 minutes, until puffed and well browned. Let cool slightly, then use the parchment paper to lift the babkas out of the pans and onto a rack set over a baking sheet. Discard the paper.

MAKE THE GLAZE
Chocolate: In a heatproof bowl set over a saucepan of simmering water, melt both chocolates with the butter; stir until smooth. Stir in the corn syrup. Spread the glaze on top of the warm babkas and let stand until set, about 30 minutes.
Raisin-walnut: In a small saucepan, melt the butter in the milk. Whisk in the remaining ingredients. Spread the glaze on the warm babkas and let stand until set, about 30 minutes.

Meatballs (Polpettine)

Servings: 4
Preheat: 0
Prep Time: 45 minutes
Source: The Classic Italian Cookbook, Marcella Hazan

NOTE
The meatballs can be prepared entirely ahead of time and refrigerated for several days.

Ingredients: 

1/3 cup milk
1 slice firm, fine-quality white bread, crust removed
1 pound lean beef, preferably from the neck, ground
1 tablespoon finely chopped yellow onion
1 tablespoon chopped parsley
1 egg
A tiny pinch of nutmeg or marjoram
3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Vegetable oil
Salt
Freshly ground pepper, 3 to 4 twists of the mill
Fine, dry unflavored bread crumbs
1 cup canned Italian tomatoes, cut up, with their juice

Directions: 

Put the milk and the bread in a saucepan and bring to a boil. Mash the bread with a fork and blend it uniformly into the milk. Set aside and let cool before proceeding with the next step.

In a mixing bowl put the chopped meat, onion, parsley, egg, nutmeg or marjoram, grated Parmesan, 1 tablespoon of oil, the bread and milk mush, 1 teaspoon of salt, and the pepper. Mix everything thoroughly but gently by hand.

Gently, without squeezing, shape the mixture into small round balls about 1 inch in diameter. Roll the meatballs lightly in the bread crumbs.

Choose a skillet, large enough to hold all the meatballs in a single layer, with a cover. Pour in oil until it is ¼ inch deep. Turn on the heat to medium high, and when the oil is quite hot slip in the meatballs. (Sliding them in with a broad spatula is a good way of doing it. Dropping them in will splatter hot oil over you and your kitchen floor.) Brown the meatballs on all sides, turning them carefully so that they don’t break up or stick to the pan.

When well browned turn off the heat, tip the pan slightly, and remove as much of the fat that floats to the surface as you can with a spoon. Turn on the heat to medium, add the chopped tomatoes with their juice and 34 teaspoon of salt, and turn the meatballs over once or twice with care, so that they don’t break up. Cover the skillet and cook until the tomato has thickened into sauce, about 25 minutes. While cooking, turn the meatballs over from time to time, and taste for salt.