Coffee and Chili Braised Short Ribs; Scalloped Potatoes; Acorn Squash Veloute; Broccoli Rabe

This is my third short rib variation. They have all been delicious. This one was especially flavorful. I made scalloped potatoes because the meat didn't have much sauce, and broccoli rabe as a strong-flavored veggie to hold up to the intense chili flavor of the meat. The acorn squash veloute we began with had the delicate flavor of this interesting squash with a zingy cayenne twist.

My excuse this time for the imperfect pictures is that we just plain forgot to take them until we were halfway through eating. Sorry.

We started with a glass of
St George Absinthe

Acorn Squash Veloute

with a swirl of cream

This recipe is from Epicurious.

You'll need (serves 8):

2 large onions, chopped
2 large acorn squash
2T freshly grated ginger
5c chicken broth
2T tomato paste
cayenne pepper to taste

1T cumin seeds
1T mustard seeds

Peel, clean and chop squash into 1" cubes. This is a pain in the ass.

Saute onion 10 minutes. Add squash and ginger, saute 5 minutes. Add 4c broth. Bring to a boil and simmer until tender, 20-30 minutes. Puree.

Stir in tomato paste and cayenne and simmer 10 more minutes. You can make soup ahead until this point. Add more broth to thin soup when you reheat it.

Saute cumin and mustard seeds in oil about 2 min. Sprinkle on top of soup to serve. (The seeds aren't just decorative-- they add a lot of texture and flavor.)

Coffee and Chili Braised Short Ribs

there was not much left when we
remembered to take a picture...

This is loosely based on a Mark Bittman recipe. You can use whatever kind of chilies you want.

You'll need:

short ribs, either English cut or Flanken cut. You'll need about 1 per person. I normally use English cut; I got Flanken by mistake, but it wasn't a problem. Be sure to cut off all the visible fat; it's unnecessary-- especially the huge layer on Flanken-cut ribs.

1 large onion, diced
1 shallot, diced
6 cloves garlic, minced
2 dried chipotle chilies, seeded and chopped as small as possible
2 dried gaujillo chilies, seeded and chopped as small as possible
1T ancho chili powder
1 1/2c dry red wine
1 1/2c strong coffee (not espresso)

Preheat oven to 300 degrees.

Salt and pepper short ribs. Brown in hot grapeseed oil on all sides. Remove from pot when browned. If necessary, clean out black bits with a paper towel and/or add more oil. Saute onion, shallot, garlic, chilies, and chili powder over medium-low heat, about 20 minutes. Add wine and coffee and reduce by half.

Return browned ribs to sauce. Cover pot and place in oven about 2 hours, turning ribs halfway. There shouldn't be too much liquid left at the end, but make sure the ribs don't dry out while cooking.

Scalloped Potatoes

variation: layer swiss chard leaves between potatoes

You'll need:

3lbs Yukon Gold potatoes, cleaned and sliced into rounds as thin as you possibly can. A mandoline is useful for this; I wish I had one.

1/2 onion, super thinly sliced
2T chopped fresh thyme
2T butter
1/4c parmesan
2 1/2c half & half or cream

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

each layer should look like this

Place potato rounds in a thin layer in the bottom of a well-buttered gratin dish. Top with salt, pepper, onions, thyme, and a spoonful of cheese. Continue layering until you run out of potatoes. Pour half & half on top. Top with more parmesan and any leftover thyme (not onions). Bake, covered with foil, until potatoes are tender, about 1 1/4 hours. Then uncover and put under broiler, or crank up oven heat, to brown top.

Broccoli Rabe

You'll need:

2 bunches broccoli rabe, or broccoli raab, or rapini (it's all the same thing)
2 shallots, thinly sliced
4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1T chili flakes
4T olive oil
grated cheese to top-- I can't remember the name of the cheese I used, but it should be hard and nutty, with enough flavor to hold up to the greens.

Clean broccoli rabe-- remove thick stems and wash well. Place in boiling, salted water for 2 minutes. Drain well. At this point, you can put the blanched greens in the fridge 'til you want to serve them.

Just before serving, heat oil and saute shallots, garlic, and chili flakes for 2 minutes. Add broccoli rabe and warm through. Top with grated cheese, salt and pepper to taste.

The Cheese

When I went to the Cheeseboard to buy the cheese for the broccoli rabe, I couldn't help getting an oozingly ripe Chatelain Brie, some Montagnolo (I promise: even if you don't like blue cheese, you'll like this one), and some other one whose name I forget. So we had a cheese course, too.

The Wine

This was the first wine. I thought it
went really well with the soup.

This was the second wine. It is as old as I am.
The cork was disintegrating. It was delicious.
If only women aged like wine.

Thanks for the wines, Mr. Anonymous.

Almost Enchiladas: Or, a Spicy, Cheesy Way to use up leftovers

I call these "almost" enchiladas because certain people (you know who you are) might object to calling them "real" enchiladas; these people (actually, one person) have a right to object because they make some of the best "real" enchiladas out there. So, that said, this is simply a spicy, cheesy way to use up leftover meat. I was left with some bits of tongue after the last feast, and tongue-- like any stew meat-- shreds beautifully. You can use any leftover beef, chicken, even fish.

You'll need (serves 1):

1t oil
1 minced shallot
1t flour
1T chili powder
2 chipotles in adobo, chopped (or less if you don't like spicy)
3/4-1c chicken broth
leftover meat
1 tortilla
1/2c grated cheese

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Heat oil; saute shallot 2-3 min. Add flour and chili powder. Stir, cooking, 1-2 min. Add chipotles and some of their adobo sauce. Add broth. Boil to thicken, 2 minutes. Add meat. Cook until most of the liquid is absorbed, about 5 minutes. Place tortilla in baking dish. Pour meat into tortilla, saving a bit of the sauce, top with grated cheese, and roll. Top with the rest of the sauce (it's ok if there's meat in it) and more cheese. Bake until bubbly, 10 min. Serve with lime and fresh tomatoes.

Chicken Liver Spread, Cheese, Olives & Tomatoes

Sometimes all you want is just bread and cheese. In fact, if it were up to me, I'd probably have bread and cheese for every other meal. Luckily for my stomach (and for this blog), I don't. Tonight I did just that-- and added a little liver for variety, olives because they go so well with the liver, and tomatoes because I felt guilty for not having any vegetables. This would also make a good lunch.

Chicken Liver Spread

This is a "low-fat" version of the chicken liver mousse we made last week. Somehow I couldn't justify adding 2 sticks of butter and a cup of cream to my already unhealthy meal. And, although that mousse was incredible, this was damn good.

You'll need:

1/2lb chicken livers, washed, dried, and cleaned (remove all the sinewy stuff)
2 shallots, minced
1 clove garlic, minced
1-2T fresh thyme, minced
1/3c Marsala wine
1T butter
1T olive oil

Salt and pepper the chicken livers. Saute them in the hot oil until browned (5-7 minutes); remove and let drain on a paper towel. Add the shallots, garlic, and thyme; saute until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add wine and reduce until there is only a little liquid left. Toss the livers, shallot mix, and butter in a food processor; process until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. For best flavor, refrigerate a few hours before eating.

Pork Stir Fry with Noodles

This is the same recipe as this post, but with broccoli added, served over some surprisingly delicious fresh chow mein-style noodles. When you make any noodle or pasta dish with sauce, under cook your noodles by about a minute, then finish cooking them in the sauce, so they soak up sauce and become flavorful. I think this stir fry is especially good with noodles because of all the tasty sauce the recipe makes.

Phyllo, Meat, and Veggie Pie

This is a larger, more communal (and non-kosher) version of my grandmother's borekas. It's very easy to make and you can throw in whatever veggies you have lying around.

You'll need (3-4 servings):

1 lb ground beef
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 bunch swiss chard, kale, spinach or other cooking green (stems removed, cut into large pieces)
1/2c walnuts
1 bunch carrots, washed & sliced into 1/4" slices
1c grated strong cheese (we used goats' milk cheddar)
1T olive oil
salt, pepper
1T cayenne pepper
1 1/2 T cumin powder
1/4 c minced parsley

8 sheets phyllo dough (1/2 package)
1/2 stick butter, melted

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Heat oil in heavy skillet. Saute onions, about 15 minutes, over medium heat until golden brown. Add walnuts, saute 5 minutes. Add meat, cumin, cayenne, salt & pepper and saute to brown. Add chard, cook 3 minutes to wilt. Add carrots, cook 2 minutes. Salt and pepper to taste. Stir in parsley.

Working quickly, butter a baking (gratin) dish and lay down 1 sheet phyllo dough. Brush with butter; place another sheet; continue, alternating butter & phyllo, for 3-4 sheets. Then pour in meat mixture, and top with grated cheese. Layer phyllo and butter again to top; fold over edges when done, brushing edges with extra butter. Cut into pieces (this is very important to do before cooking!), sprinkle with parmesan, and bake about 30 minutes, until golden brown. Serve with a nice green salad.

All Offal, All the Time

All Offal, All the Time

February 29, 2008

Our offal dinner-- the somewhat belated Winter Feast of the series Katie & I have been doing-- was held, somewhat appropriately, on Leap Day. I think I can wait til the next Leap Day (or bissextile day) to do this again. It was rather rushed, labor-intensive, and (at least partially) kinda gross (yes, even I can't handle prolonged exposure to gooey, goopy brains as I pull the membrane and veins out...).

I didn't help that our old meat standby, Verbrugge's, completely let us down. We were supposed to pick up the brains and kidneys the morning of the feast (they should be eaten as fresh as possible). Verbrugge's decided to call us that morning to let us know that they couldn't get them. After some very frantic phone calls, I located frozen kidneys at Andronico's (who knew? they also have hearts, tripe, and sweetbreads), and beef brains (we wanted lamb or calf) at Mi Ranchito Bayside Market (Berkeley). But when I went to buy the brains, it turned out that all they had was a frozen 5-lb tub. A little too much for this party. So, a few more calls later, we located pig brains at 99 Ranch (Richmond) and I went off in search (thanks for the company, J). 99 Ranch is a simply fantastic asian market, but they don't really speak English, so trying to get something specific is pretty difficult (I once tried to get seafood stock. Don't even try. They don't have it.). But eventually I found the pig brains, below the tocino and next to the pig uterus and bung (intestines)-- here's a good post on those products, fyi. They were fresh, not frozen, which was a little worrisome, but they were only $2, so we decided to give them a try. We had, after all, promised brains to our delighted guests.

Unfortunately, our recipe depended on lamb or calf brain-- the kind that stays together-- and this poor piggy brain fell apart as soon as it left the container. So, instead of making nice fried slices, we fried the few clumps I'd managed to clean and had them as pre-dinner snack. They were as good as anything deep-fried is, but the brains themselves didn't have much flavor. We'll try again though-- stay posted.

Thanks to Karen for the dessert and photos and to Ridwan for coming early to help (and cleaning too)!

So, the menu:

Chicken Liver Mousse
with pickled red onions


Deviled Kidneys


Braised Tongue with
Caper, Cornichon, and Caperberry Sauce
and
Potato-Chard Gratin


Blood Orange Sorbet
with candied peels
and phyllo crisps

Cooking Pictures (view at your own risk):

The Brains

uncooked, uncleaned

uncooked, cleaned

fried up in tasty clumps

The Tongue

looks like a tongue. feels like a tongue.

bubbling away with aromatics
(notice the brand!)

cooked and sliced, soaking up sauce

The Gratin

This was so pretty uncooked,
topped with chopped chard stems
in red, orange, and yellow

The Dessert

beautiful blood oranges, and a lime

candying the peels

Caramelized Onion and Spinach with Poached Egg on Toast

This is quick, easy, and healthy, and you can make it for lunch or brunch by serving two eggs & two pieces of toast per person (the spinach/onion mix is enough for 2).

You'll need (for one, for breakfast):

1/2 onion, sliced thinly
2 handfuls fresh spinach, washed well
1 egg
1t vinegar (I used rice vinegar but you can use any clear, mild vinegar)
2T olive oil
1t cream (optional)
a small chunk of strong cheese (I used pepperjack), cut into small pieces
1T capers
1 piece toast, english muffin, bagel, whatever

Heat 1T olive oil in a pan. Add onions, salt, and pepper. Cook, over medium heat, stirring, until caramelized (brown). If you get impatient you can turn up the heat but you'll have to stir constantly to prevent burning. If the pan gets too dry, add a little water.

While the onions are cooking, heat some water, vinegar, and salt in a medium-size pot until boiling.

When the water is boiling, put your toast in the toaster and add spinach to the onions. Stir to wilt; add a splash of cream, salt, and pepper. Turn off heat and add cheese and capers. Stir to melt.

Turn down the heat so water is simmering, not boiling. Crack an egg into a ladle or large spoon and lower it gently into the water. Let cook about 1 minute, then fish it out with a slotted spoon and let sit on a kitchen towel to drain.

Top toast with spinach/onion mix and poached egg to serve.

Fresh Pea and Shrimp Risotto with Gremolata Carrots

... from The Green Kitchen, next door

Apple Banana Breakfast Muffins

This is the only baking post you will ever see on this blog. I do not bake. It just doesn't work for me. There are too many... rules. I can't measure things like flour and baking soda. Most of the recipes on this blog are really approximate measurements, for that matter. Anyway, this recipe came about because I drink a smoothie every day, so I always have bananas on hand, and often two leftover that get too spotty to eat (I think they're too sweet, even for smoothies, when very ripe). I started throwing them into banana bread (my grandma's recipe), but an entire loaf was too intimidating, so I turned them into muffins, and threw in some apples for texture... and then decided to try to make them healthy, and added flax seed meal in varying amounts until I found a balance that still tasted good. Here is the result of many, many batches.

enjoy with earl gray tea with lavender

You'll need (makes 2 trays of muffins):

2 ripe bananas, mashed
1/2c sugar
2 eggs
1/2c applesauce + 1T neutral-flavored oil (canola, grapeseed) OR 1/2c oil
2 large apples, peeled, cored, and diced
1t vanilla
a scant 1/3c buttermilk or yogurt

1 1/2c whole wheat flour
1/4c flax seed meal
1t baking soda
1t salt

Mix wet and dry ingredients separately, then mix them together. Spoon into baking cups (fill only halfway-- 1 heaping tablespoon per muffin). Bake at 375 degrees for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown (test doneness by sticking a thin sharp knife in the middle of a muffin. If it comes out dry, they're done).

Milk-braised Pork Chops with Herbed Spaetzle

Ever since Jesse & I had the braised rabbit spaetzle at The Alembic, we've been craving its luscious dumplingness. Spaetzle, or spatzle with an umlaut over the a (which I can't seem to type here), is a tiny dumpling-like egg noodle. They're surprisingly easy to make, but are usually made with a spaetzle maker, and are named for their characteristic shape (spaetzle means "small sparrow"). But we just used a ricer, and got great results.

There are a lot of recipes floating around the internet; we used this one, adding fresh thyme & sage to the basic batter. (Jesse said he'd add another teaspoon of salt to the batter next time.) We "riced" the batter directly into boiling water, then scooped them out with a slotted spoon into a buttered bowl (they cook pretty instantly-- they'll float to the top when they're done). Before serving, we heated some butter, tossed in 1 large shallot, minced, then added the spaetzle and cooked, stirring, until the pieces were slightly browned. This goes really well with parmesan. Or braised rabbit. It was a good match for the pork, too.


The pork chops were inspired by this recipe. I browned the pork chops in some of their own fat that I'd trimmed off, rendered with the heating oil & butter, then removed before adding the meat. I also seasoned the flour with cayenne, onion powder, and some other spices I had lying around... they were very good but I think brined are better. Also, this might be the most unkosher recipe I've ever seen.

Roasted Salmon with Zesty Relish, French Fingerling Potatoes, and Brussels Sprouts

I am now the proud subscriber of Cook's Illustrated, possibly the best cooking-basics magazine out there. The current issue discusses the roasted salmon dilemma: either you go for crispy outside or soft, silky insides. Their solution gives you both. Here's my take on it (well, the relish is my take-- the recipe is theirs).

You'll need:

1 salmon fillet per person-- skin on, pin bones removed with tweezers
salt
pepper
olive oil

for the relish:

1 lemon
2T capers
6 olives, Greek mix

Preheat oven to 500 degrees with the baking sheet inside that you'll use for the salmon. This is the key to the crispy skin part. In the meantime, wash and dry the fish, remove the bones, and slit the skin diagonally with a sharp pointy knife (about 5 slits, 1 inch apart from each other). Be sure not to cut into the fish itself. Rub the fish all over with oil, and season generously with salt and pepper. Place on heated baking sheet, turn oven down to 275 (this is the key to the silky interior), and put the salmon on the lowest possible oven rack. It'll cook for about 10 minutes. While it's cooking, make the relish.

Chop capers and olives finely. Grate lemon zest, preferably with a microplane. Mix.

Serve salmon topped with relish. I ate my salmon with roasted Fingerlings and balsamic brussels sprouts (as you can see above in the rather crappy picture). Enjoy!

Walnut Chicken with Creamy Pasta, Take Two

This is essentially the other night's dinner, but I'm posting it 'cause all mixed up, it was sooo good. I took the leftover walnut chicken, chopped it very fine, and mixed it with the pasta in a frying pan (be sure to add a little water whenever you reheat pasta). Then I covered to steam, stirring occasionally, and, with a little help from parmesan, ended up with the delicious lunch you see above.

Kohlrabi: From Greens to Bulb

I bought some beautiful purple kohlrabi at the Farmers' Market last Saturday, only to find that most people have never heard of it, which is a shame. It is not only purple, it is delicious and generous: you can cook the greens like kale, eat the bulb in salad (like radish-meets-apple), or cut the bulb into chunks and roast it like any roasted winter veggie.


Here (above), I've peeled a bulb (the purple part is only on the outside-- the inside is light green) and julienned the flesh, then mixed it with purple savoy cabbage and red radishes, dressed with red wine vinegar and Bariani olive oil, for a quick salad.


Here, I heated some olive oil in a pan and sauteed some sliced garlic and a couple anchovies; then I added the kohlrabi greens (remove the stems, as you would with kale) and sauteed until bright green (about 5 minutes). These would be delicious plain, but I had some leftover pasta, so I put that in as well, with a little water, and steamed it all until the flavors had combined.

Walnut Chicken with Creamy Roasted Garlic Black Pepper Rosemary Pasta

I must admit that 1. marinating chicken in buttermilk & 2. using Phoenix Pastificio pasta, you basically can't help making something delicious. I did both here. It was kinda like cheating.


Walnut Chicken

You'll need:

chicken breasts (I used 3 for 2 people + leftovers)
1/4c buttermilk
1T allspice, freshly ground if possible
1T coriander, freshly ground if possible
1T cayenne pepper
1/2c walnuts, roasted for more intense flavor
1/4c grated parmesan
1.5T paprika
salt
pepper

Slice chicken across the grain into 1/2" thick slices (or make them however big or small you want-- I like a high crispy nut coating-to-chicken ratio). Place chicken in tupperware or bowl; add allspice, coriander, cayenne, salt, pepper, and buttermilk just to cover. Let sit 8-24 hours, refrigerated, of course.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Grind walnuts, parmesan, paprika, salt and pepper in a food processor until the mixture is the consistency of fine dry breadcrumbs. Pour out onto a plate. Take the marinated chicken, letting marinade drip away, and dredge in walnut mixture, then place directly on an oiled baking sheet. Bake about 20 minutes, until chicken is cooked through and coating is golden brown. IF you don't care about the fat content, fry the chicken pieces in a little oil instead of baking them and serve immediately.


This chicken can be served with a dipping sauce, but I served it with a creamy, saucy pasta instead for more of a complete meal.

Creamy Roasted Garlic Pasta

You'll need:

wide pasta-- I used Phoenix Pastificio's Black Pepper Rosemary Pappardelle
1 head garlic, roasted
2c milk
2T butter
2T flour
1/2t dijon mustard
1/4c grated parmesan
1/4c grated sharp cheddar-- or really any cheeses you have lying around

Melt butter in saucepan. Add flour and cook, whisking, until paste bubbles up and doubles in size. Add garlic and stir. Add milk, slowly, stirring. Bring milk to a boil; it should start to thicken. When it's on its way, you can pause for a minute to attack it with an immersion blender to get rid of any chunks of garlic, but this is totally optional. Cook, simmering and stirring often, until it's almost the right thickness; then add cheeses and mustard, salt and pepper, stir to melt, and remove from heat. Serve with more parmesan on top.

Cheddar Stuffed Chipotle Turkey Burgers

Ground turkey is very healthy but usually tastes kinda like sawdust. A few preparations, like my mom's turkey meatloaf and certain turkey chilis, actually make it taste pretty good. Normally turkey burgers are dry; the idea here is for the cheese to ooze into the surrounding turkey as the burgers cook, keeping everything moist and tasty. You can easily tweak this recipe for different flavor combinations: season the turkey with cumin and stuff with roasted peppers and feta, for example.

You'll need (3 servings):

1.25 lbs ground turkey
4 chipotle in adobo, chopped
1T adobo sauce (from the "chipotle in adobo" can)
1/3c grated cheddar cheese
3 green onions, chopped
1T Worcestershire sauce
2T miso paste
salt
pepper
1T grapeseed oil

for the chipotle mayo:

1/4c mayo
1T adobo sauce
1 chopped chipotle in adobo

buns (I used honey whole wheat)

any condiments-- we just had a spinach salad on the side.

Mix turkey well with chipotles, adobo sauce, Worcestershire, miso, salt and pepper. Fry a little bit to taste; adjust seasoning accordingly. Form 6 flat patties. Top 3 patties with green onions and cheddar; place remaining patties on top and pinch edges to form stuffed burgers.


Heat oil in cast-iron or non stick skillet. When hot, add burgers. Cook about 10 min/side, until fully cooked through (remember, this is poultry). If they're not cooking, cover the pan briefly (thanks, Catherine) and they should be done very soon.

Serve on toasted buns with chipotle mayo (adjust the mayo ingredients, depending on how spicy you like it). These are surprisingly delicious.

Oliveto's Whole Hog Dinner, 2008

This post has absolutely nothing to do with my cooking (though this meal will be an inspiration for next month's Winter Feast). It also has no pictures. But read on anyway if you like pig.

Every year Oliveto's hosts a "whole hog dinner" in which the entire meal features pig parts in various forms-- potted, braised, stuffed, fried, etc. Last night, our intrepid Team Pig (Jesse, Katie, Ridwan, Gabe, Angela, and I) ventured out into bougie Rockridge to begin our attack.

After a half-hour wait, we were treated to two comped appetizers-- paper-thin slices of pickled pig ear terrine and an incredibly flavorful kidney salad. The chef also sent a dish of lardo-- essentially lard with salt and herbs. We actually took it home, though I doubt I can face it again. Then we split the potted & formed pork-- the stars were the mortadella, the ciccioli (like rillettes), and-- by far the winner-- the liver pate.

We also split the zampone braised in saba, a whole pig's trotter (about the size of my forearm), "glove-boned" (deboned) and then stuffed with sausage, so that the trotter skin, which was delicious, acts as the sausage casing. The whole thing is then braised in saba, a wine reduction, and served with surprisingly tasty lentil puree. This was so, so good.

Then the individual appetizers (which we pretty much all shared anyway). I had the fried pig's trotter and brains-- the trotter was very good but the brains were delicious and had a soft brainy texture that made me very excited for the fried brains we will make for our Winter Feast. There were also two tongue salads-- tender and absolutely delicious with our wine (we started with a Pinot Noir and then had a 2005 Crozes Hermitage). There were two fantastically rich soups-- velloutatas of roasted butternut squash with fried pancetta, proscuitto and cracklings (possibly the meatiest soup I've ever had). And finally, Ridwan did what we were all too timid to do, and had the blood pudding. I have to say, it was one of my favorite dishes of the entire night. I expected a gelatinous minerally blob-- instead it resembled a mound of flavorful, moist pulled pork. Mmmmm.

On to the main courses: There were two Tofejas-- to quote from the menu, a "Piedmontese Peasant-Style Braise of Pork Shoulder, Little cotechino Sausages, Wild Boar Spare Ribs, and Pork Skin rollattini with ‘borlotti’ Beans". These platters were pretty much a medieval feast in and of themselves. There was also tiny spinach-stuffed gnocchi with tiny pork meatballs-- by far the best gnocchi I have ever had. And a pappardelle di sangue with pork heart and wild mushroom ragu-- firm, chewy bites of heart and mushroom in a thin, rich sauce that covered the dark pasta. And, finally, the spit-roasted pork belly-- I agonized over whether to order this, but am so glad I did. It was unlike any pork belly I've had or made-- it wasn't fat/meat, but a uniform, custardy, tangy, sweet concoction dressed with green olives (that did not, oddly enough, taste like olives), chestnut honey, and small chunks of almond. Needless to say, this was fantastic.

Of course, being the piggies we are, we had dessert. I managed to get (thanks to our wonderful waiter) a piece of candied pancetta. Bacon candy, much discussed online (probably due to its presence on Oliveto's Hog menus), is quite simply delicious. Smoky, tangy, sweet, and crispy. We also had a quince budino (an intense little pudding) served with candied pancetta strips; bergamot-prosecco sherbet with candied lavender blossoms; and a blood orange spongecake.

I did not feel very well after this meal. About 10 hours later, I feel better, though I might pass on the Chinese New Year feast I had planned to attend tonight. But don't get me wrong-- this was worth it. In fact, if in some horrible parallel universe, I could only eat one meal a week, it would probably be this one.

If you want to go next year, they've already started taking reservations.

Here's the menu, for reference: http://www.oliveto.com/wholehog08.pdf

P.S. Kudos to Jesse for being way more adventurous than he thought possible :)

Spicy-Sweet Pork Stir Fry with Cabbage and Mushrooms

I made this with pork, because I had a pork tenderloin lying around, but you could easily use sliced chicken breast or a tender cut of beef. Serve with steamed or brown rice.

You'll need:

1 pork tenderloin (they're usually about 1 lb)

Marinade/Sauce:
4T hoisin sauce
2T dark soy sauce
2T light soy sauce
2T rice vinegar
1T chili-garlic sauce (or Sriracha & 1t crushed garlic)
a splash of Mirin wine, if you have it
1t corn starch

1 onion, thinly sliced
shiitake mushrooms, thinly sliced
1/2 chinese cabbage, thinly sliced
1T grated ginger
5-6 cloves chopped garlic
1 sliced serrano chili
1/2c peanuts, partially crushed
2 green onions, sliced
1T grapeseed oil

Remove silver skin and any fat from pork. Slice into thin rounds-- this is easier to do if you freeze the pork for 30 minutes. Combine marinade ingredients in a bowl; taste and add more chili-garlic sauce if too sweet, or more Mirin or hoisin if too spicy. Add pork and marinate 15 minutes, while you cook the veggies.

Heat oil in non-stick skillet. Saute onions until golden brown; add mushrooms, and saute until browned. Add cabbage, ginger, garlic, and serrano chili. Stir to combine; cook until cabbage begins to wilt. Add pork and marinade; simmer, stirring, until pork is cooked through and tender. Remove from heat and stir in peanuts and green onions.

Creamy Eggplant & Wild Mushroom Pasta

Besides having a bag full of wild mushrooms in the fridge, I made this because I had leftover eggplant bechamel. It's not essential to the recipe, though-- you can make some bechamel from scratch (super easy) or just use cream.

You'll need:

lots of wild mushrooms-- they really cook down, so overestimate. More delicate ones are better for this recipe, though I usually advocate shiitake.
1-2 large shallots
1 T crushed red pepper
1T butter
pasta (I like the corkscrew kind with this recipe)
leftover bechamel-- or make a new one; or use 1/4c heavy cream
grated Asiago or other semi-strong hard cheese


Boil water and cook the pasta as you make the sauce.

Clean the mushrooms really well-- you don't want sticks and stones in your pasta. If the ends are dry, cut them off. Then dry the mushrooms well. Slice the shallot(s). Heat the butter and add shallots; saute 2 minutes on medium heat, then add mushrooms, red pepper, and salt & pepper. The mushrooms should release water; cook until almost dry.

Add cooked pasta with a little of the cooking water. Stir in the bechamel and cook to heat through, or cream (if using) and cook until thick, 2-3 minutes.

Top with lots of grated cheese on serve on warmed plates.

Winter Salad with Spiced Turbot and Caramelized Sweet Potatoes

This is insanely good. Don't take my word for it-- make it yourself. It's satisfying, tasty, and light. Because you can't eat short ribs every night.

You'll need (serves 2):

mixed greens-- we used baby spinach and arugula
4 small sweet potatoes (use the orange-fleshed kind; I like Garnet), peeled, cut in half lengthwise, and sliced into 1/4"-thick half-moons
toasted sliced almonds (any toasted nut would be good)
1 avocado, cubed
fresh thyme
good olive oil
2 filets of Turbot, or any white-fleshed fish
whatever spices you want to put on the fish

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Toss potato slices with olive oil, thyme, salt and pepper. Roast until caramelized, about 20 minutes. The smaller your slices are, the faster they'll cook (duh).

Preheat broiler. Coat fish in spices (cayenne pepper, cumin, etc). Rub with olive oil. Place under broiler for 5 minutes per side, until just opaque. Do not overcook!

Toss greens with vinaigrette of your choice (preferably balsamic-Dijon), salt, and pepper. Add cooked potatoes with the oil and thyme left on the baking sheet. Add almonds.

Serve, topped with avocado and fish filet.

Balsamic-Glazed Brussel Sprouts

Brussel sprouts are very good halved & roasted, but for more complex flavor, here I glaze them with balsamic vinegar. You end up with brussel sprout wedges that are soft on the inside, crispy outside, and bursting with balsamic sweetness.

You'll need:

Brussel sprouts-- the smaller, the better
1T butter
1T olive oil
good balsamic vinegar
salt

Clean sprouts (cut off the ends and remove any dark loose leaves). Slice in half lengthwise, then half again-- each quarter should be held together by stem.

Blanch the sprouts in salted boiling water for 30 seconds, then drain well and dry with paper towels.

Heat butter and oil in a not-non-stick pan. When foam subsides, add brussel sprouts. Use a pan big enough for them to fit in one layer. Don't stir too much or they won't brown. Instead, let one side brown, then shake the pan to give the other sides some pan surface time.

Pour in some balsamic vinegar-- about 2T, or enough to absorb the browned surface of the pan. Shake until balsamic forms a sticky glaze on the sprouts. Serve hot.