Colcannon Soup with Oven-Roasted Kale
This soup is inspired by colcannon, a traditional Irish dish of mashed potatoes and cabbage or kale. Buttery Yukon golds are medium-starch potatoes, which makes them particularly versatile. You could use russets or fingerlings instead. Leeks, too, have a wonderfully complex flavor and are a traditional component in colcannon. If you can’t find them, sub two yellow onions in the recipe. Yellow onions have more intricate flavor than white onions (and they tend to be cheaper). Roasting the kale enhances its flavor and yields a crunchy texture that makes it a pretty garnish for the soup. Use any variety of kale you find, from curly to dinosaur (also known as lacinato).
Continue reading » »All-Purpose Asian Dipping Sauce
Use this as a drizzle or dip for just about any Asian dish. Fumiko’s Gyoza are especially good for dunking.
Continue reading » »Fumiko’s Gyōza
Years back, my mother took a Chinese cooking course and learned this recipe. Our family, including my husband now, has loved it for years. Napa cabbage is terrific this time of year. A vegetarian version is simple to make by subbing the pork with black mushrooms and slivered carrots. And remember, practice makes perfect and imperfect still tastes wonderful, so have fun.
Continue reading » »Thin and Chewy Oatmeal-Flax Cookies
These are just about my favorite cookie in the world. They’re feather light, seemingly suspended together with dark chocolate chips, with a satisfying crisp-chewiness.
Continue reading » »Garlic Parsnip Fries
Parsnips have an earthy sweetness to them, making them an interesting alternative to same-old, same-old potato fries. These, with sliced garlic and Parmesan, are downright addictive.
Continue reading » »Homemade Mayonnaise
Homemade mayonnaise is rich, creamy, and tangy in a way stuff from the jar can’t duplicate. Whipping up your own mayo also is a use of leftover egg yolks from making meringues and other egg-white-based recipes (like our Chocolate Angel Food Cake). I enjoy the satisfaction of whipping the egg yolks by hand, but you could use a blender, food processor, or stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment (a good idea if you decide to double or triple this recipe). The amount of oil you’ll use depends on the size of the yolks and how thick you like your mayonnaise; for a stiff sauce, use more oil. This mayo is great spread on a sandwich, as well as in other recipes, like Bestest Buttermilk-Chive Dressing. To make alioli, substitute extra-virgin olive oil for canola, and add a clove or two of garlic that’s been mashed to a paste.
Continue reading » »Spicy Valentine’s Day Love Potion
Drawing from folklore, nutrition, and the laws of good taste, this invigorating beverage contains calcium-rich milk, zinc-rich pine nuts, and antioxidant-rich spices. A bit of honey lends sweetness. Will it help your love life? Who knows, but it’s a delicious and potent energy-booster nonetheless.
Continue reading » »Chocolate Angel Food Cake with Macerated Strawberries
Use room-temperature eggs, which will be easy to separate and beat to their full volume. (Hang onto the yolks to make Homemade Mayonnaise or Sweet Potato-Kale Bread Pudding.) Angel food cakes are made in an ungreased tube pan, which provides maximum surface area and traction for the cake to climb. The cake is cooled upside-down so it doesn’t lose volume as it cools. Some tube pans have little feet to hold the pan up off the counter while the cake cools. If yours doesn’t, simply invert the pan on the neck of a wine bottle or other bottle that fits into the hole of the tube pan.
Continue reading » »Blood Orange Granita
A granita is a light, simple, refreshing iced treat that doesn’t require an ice cream maker. Stirring the mixture periodically as it freezes gives the granita its characteristic fluffy, granular texture. Blood oranges are in season right now; they have a wonderful ruby flesh and pleasant sweet-tart juice. You can substitute regular fresh orange juice or tangerine juice. This three-ingredient dessert has an added benefit: One serving provides more than 100 percent of your vitamin C needs for the day.
Continue reading » »Fennel and Granny Smith Salad with Blue Cheese
A mandolin makes easy work of this salad. Use the flat blade to thinly slice the fennel and onion as thinly as possible, and the julienne blades to cut the apples; or slice the apple and then cut lengthwise into long planks. I like to use Point Reyes Blue Cheese, which is a farmstead cheese made locally in Marin County.
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