Yummiesta

Ten Weeknight Express Recipes eBook

February 27, 2018

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Faire pipi

February 27, 2018

One of the things that affect everybody, whether you’re a local, or a visitor, is that ya gotta go. Or as the French say, “Faire pipi.” Although people readily discuss bodily functions in France, going to the can is something where a little more discretion is called for. It’s not something everyone wants to talk about, but let’s face it, everyone’s gotta do it – except for the French. Or at least it feels that way to me.

(A head’s up: This post refers to bodily functions. The images are taken in public spaces, and they’re things you’d see on the streets in Paris. So for those with delicate sensibilities, you might want to come back in a few days, for the next post.)

For many years, Polly Platt’s book, French or Foe, provided guidance to those of us who were planning on moving, or spending a lot of time in France, deciphering and explaining some of the cultural differences. Topics like smiling, taking up space, and tips on what words will open the magic gates of customer service, were part of her seminal guide.

One that I was most curious about, prior to my departure, was that it wasn’t advisable to use the bathroom when you’re a guest at someone’s home. Times may have changed, but I still seem to be the only one getting up from the table, or making a pit-stop in the loo, before heading home from a party.

I used to drink a lot of water, but I stopped as I learned there are few places to get rid of it. Which possibly the popularity of le café express, rather than a more leisurely, and generous (albeit more costly), café alongé. As I get older, I find myself needing to find more and more for them, without a huge amount of success, which may explain why Frenchmen tend to get a little, uh, creative, with where they go.

I haven’t gone against a métro wall yet, but It’s only a matter of time before I have to resort to a more Depend-able solution to meet my needs. Perhaps that’s because I was never trained to ‘go’ at certain times, like these strict hours posted at a local elementary school. I don’t know about you, but I’m not sure I could hold it from 10:33 am to between 3:50 pm and 4:03 pm.

One of the reasons that it’s not common to use the bathroom in someone’s home is that the French tend to be a little more private regarding their homes, which is why behind an ordinary-looking door in Paris, lies a magnificent courtyard or a resplendent garden. You also don’t get an extensive home tour when you walk into a French person’s house or apartment, whereas in America, the kitchens, bedrooms, and – yup – even the bathrooms, are open for inspection.

I’ve learned to prefer the French way, which means you don’t have to clean your entire home when you’re having guests because no one will be snooping around your place. Unfortunately I have the only partner in France who didn’t get the memo that bedrooms are off-limits, because he likes to take people on the tour, including our bedroom, which I’ve learned to clean up before a dinner party because I don’t want people seeing my pajamas bunched up on the floor, twelve chapsticks on my nightstand (because, God forbid, I wake up in the middle of the night and one isn’t there…) or seeing the galaxy of creams, ointments, pellets, and pills lined up in the medicine cabinet. (Although few are shocked, because I’m not alone.)

In spite of Polly’s warning, I do use the bathroom, because I figure the alternative is more embarrassing than asking. But when you’re out-and-about, you’ve got to plan your pit stops on your way from stop A to stop B, because if there’s too much lag time, you don’t want to find yourself caught in a slippery situation.

VIDEO

Some men take matters into their own hands, in spite of some heavy – and sharp! – discouragement.

And some cities have been painting the spaces between walls and sidewalks with hydrophobic paint, discouraging people by redirecting the stream back to where it came from.

But I’m not there yet (and I like my shoes too much), so do my best to find a proper place to go, rather than resorting to urine sauvage.

However things are often hors service, and I need to scramble for an alternative.

A number of tourists say to me, “I just go into a hotel or café pretend I’m a guest…and waltz right into the bathroom!” Well, I must not look like a tourist anymore because I’ve been scolded for doing that. Living like a local isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, so that’s out of the question.

Out in the countryside, it’s a little easier. (And I don’t mind ducking behind a tree, which is obligatoire for Frenchmen, who get to rekindle their love to nature by using it, as nature attended.) Unlike Paris, even in the smallest of villages, there’s usually a public place to “go” that’s just as bucolic as a stroll through the woods.

In the big city, bathrooms are still such are a commodity that you pay to use them, especially in train stations, at the Louvre shopping center (…€1,50!) and Printemps department store (€1,50), which infuriates the locals, too. One online reviewer called it une scandale.

I guess this is the next generation of Madame Pipi, a profession that is dying out. (This profession may be the reason why it’s also considered mildly impolite to ask people in France what they do for a living.) These women are, or were, responsible for making sure things were clean and papier hygiénique was there if you really needed it. Which, while spendy, we all can agree is not the time to be haggling over the price.

As a public service, the city of Paris has taken to putting open-air places to go in places where young people gather, where young people do what they normally do: Drink beer. And to do what people do when they drink a lot of beer. But lest you think they’re sexiste, a French company has come out with a male/female model that may help our lady friends not so reluctant to remain hydrated, too.

In some cases, women do get a pass, which I guess is reason to jump for joy. Cafés will let pregnant women use the restroom. But no matter how hard I try to push my stomach out – and the older I get, the less I have to work that hard to do that – I’ve been banished from using bathrooms unless I have a drink at the bar first. Which starts the cycle all over again.

But with several verts initiatives being implemented by Paris, in a move to make the city lovelier – and greener, a company called Uritroittoir came up with a plan to “civilizez les pipis,” and be ecological at the same time, by providing open air recipients for the pipi sauvage, which composts at the same time.

Personally, I applaud this move. It seems to be working and you’ll find men lined up outside the train stations, making Paris greener, and cleaner. Now I’ve gotta run, because I’ve got a train to catch. But first…

Faire pipi: Finding a bathroom in France

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Not Without Salt

Citrus and Chicory Salad with Candied Pine Nuts and Fried Rosemary

February 27, 2018

Intro

Since the shop opened I’ve kept a running Google Doc of all of the menus we’ve served. I make a few notes so I can remember who was there, any memorable moments and things I want to adjust for the next time. As I was going through the growing doc I noticed several repeated recipes. This Garlic Confit toast has already been featured on three menus. David Tanis’ Mushroom Ragout has been featured at two different dinners as has a simple dessert of spice roasted pears with salted maple caramel (simply reduce maple syrup to a caramel consistency then add salt), creme fraiche and brown butter toasted biscotti crumbs.

The most repeated dish so far has been some iteration of this salad. At this point in the season citrus – blood oranges in particular, are the one thing I will miss about winter. This salad balances sweetness from the citrus with the bitter, crisp leaves of the chicories. Always the heavy hand with the vinegar there is a slight pucker tamed by thinly sliced kumquat and candied pine nuts.

A soft, fragrant and unsuspecting crunch comes by way of fried rosemary. Fried herbs are an unusual delight and not terribly complicated. The hearty winter herbs do particularly well in a hot oil bath. I fry my herbs in a modest amount of olive oil. Heat the oil until the needle-like leaves sputter the instant they hit the pan. Once their frantic sizzling subsides you know they are ready as that alerts you to the fact that all the water in the leaves has evaporated so once cooled they will crisp up just as they should. While they’re still warm add a flurry of fine sea salt to the leaves. This same method works well for sage, thyme, parsley and probably others too. Those are the ones I’ve tried so far.

I hold a firm belief that even in Winter salads need not be boring and this recipe proves that point quite nicely.

VIDEO

Citrus and Chicory Salad with Candied Pine Nuts and Fried Rosemary

Author Ashley Rodriguez

Ingredients

1/4 cup olive oil

2 rosemary sprigs, leaves removed

Sea salt

1/2 cup pine nuts

2 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds

6 cups chopped chicories (Belgian Endive, Endive, Treviso)

3 scallions, thinly sliced

1 recipe Blood Orange Vinaigrette (below)

3 blood oranges, segmented and roughly chopped

5 kumquats, thinly sliced

Flake salt

Blood Orange Vinaigrette

Makes 1/2 cup dressing

2 tablespoons chopped shallot

1 teaspoon honey

2 teaspoons Dijon mustard

2 tablespoons champagne (or other white wine) vinegar

2 tablespoons blood orange juice

1⁄4 cup / 60 ml extra-virgin olive oil

1⁄4 teaspoon sea salt

Instructions

To make the fried rosemary: In a small saucepan heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Carefully drop in the rosemary and fry until the color shifts and the sputtering ceases, this tells us that all the water in the leaves has evaporated and you will be left with a crispy leaf. Carefully remove the rosemary from the oil using a slotted spoon and transfer to a plate. Sprinkle with a pinch of sea salt.

In a small skillet set over medium heat add the pine nuts. Sauté until their color shifts and they start to smell toasty. Add the sugar and cumin and stir until well coated in the sugar and it starts to caramelize. Remove to a plate to cool.

Add the greens and scallions to a large bowl along with the salad dressing and half of the chopped blood oranges and kumquats. Toss well to combine.

Transfer about half of the salad to a platter then top with half of the pine nuts and rosemary. Add the remaining greens then cap with the rest of the rosemary, pine nuts and citrus. Finish with flake salt. Serve straight away.

For the blood orange vinaigrette:

In a medium bowl whisk together the shallot, mustard, honey, vinegar, and blood orange juice. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while whisking. Add a pinch of salt and taste. Adjust to your liking.

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Baking Bites

Muffin Tin Bread Puddings

February 26, 2018

Bread pudding is classic comfort food and most of these custardy delights are baked – and served – in large casserole dishes. This “family style” format is perfect when you have a big crowd to serve, but it’s not the only way to bake bread pudding. This recipe is for Muffin Tin Bread Puddings, where individual bread puddings are baked in muffin cups. These single-serving puddings are just the right size for an after-dinner treat and they’re very easy to transport if you plan to take your dessert on-the-go.

The recipe starts out like almost any bread pudding, with cubed bread added to a custard mixture flavored with vanilla and cinnamon. I used plain white bread for this particular bread pudding, but richer breads such as challah and brioche are always excellent choices. I also added raisins to the mix. Not only do raisins go well with vanilla and cinnamon, but they plump up and become more tender as bread pudding bakes. If raisins aren’t your thing, however, feel free to leave them out entirely or replace them with another dried fruit, chocolate chips or chopped nuts.

Dividing the mixture into the muffin pans is the trickiest part of this recipe. I recommend using muffin wrappers so that it is easy to remove the puddings from the pan. They will shrink back from the sides of the pan slightly, so don’t worry if that happens. I like to use a large portion scoop or a fairly large spoon to divide the mixture into the cups, ensuring that I get plenty of bread and custard mixture in each one without spilling too much as I go.

The finished puddings are dense and custardy, with a deliciously satisfying blend of vanilla and cinnamon. While I typically serve these for breakfast, I must admit that I really enjoy having leftovers for breakfast. It’s like a custardy muffin – and they pair extremely well with coffee. If I’m having them in the morning, I typically eat them cold, so I can eat them out of hand and not necessarily need to grab a fork. If you’re serving them for dessert, feel free to warm them up or top them with a drizzle of caramel sauce to make them richer.

Muffin Tin Bread Puddings
6 slices white sandwich bread, cut in 1-inch pieces (approx 4 cups)
2/3 cup sugar
3 large eggs
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/2 cups milk
1/2 -2/3 cup raisins (or other mix-ins)

Preheat oven to 325F. Line a 12-cup muffin pan with paper liners.
Cut bread into 1-inch pieces, yielding approximately 4 cups.
In a large bowl, whisk together sugar, eggs, vanilla, cinnamon and milk. Fold in bread cubes and raisins and allow mixture to stand for 15 minutes.
Divide evenly – using a spoon or a large portion scoop to make it neater – into prepared muffin cups.
Bake for about 25 minutes or until puddings are set and spring back slightly when pressed. Allow to cool for at least 15 minutes before serving. Puddings can be served warm or cold. Store leftovers in the refrigerator.

Makes 12

The post Muffin Tin Bread Puddings appeared first on Baking Bites.

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molly yeh

salt & vinegar knishentaschen

February 26, 2018

It’s like the last day of camp, I can’t believe that the Olympics are over :( It’s so sad. I made a list of things to look forward to now so I wouldn’t be tempted to just be a sad couch blob who does nothing but eat dry granola and watch slow motion replays of Jocelyne Lamoureux’s game winning goal over and over while I get nostalgic and cry. (But seriously, if you have the NBC Sports app, go look up their epic slow motion videos, they’re so cool.) Ok, here’s my list of things to look forward to:

Mackenzie’s Baby Shower! Emily and I are throwing Mackenzie a brunchy baby shower next weekend and there’s gonna be so much cute shit like fruit skewers and tiny smoothies and Eggboy’s building a bagel wall for it. You know, like a donut wall, but it will hold bagels.

Eggboy’s Trombone Concert! He’s playing in the town trombone choir for the premiere of a piece by Eric Ewazen, who was both of our music theory teachers at one point. IDK if he’ll remember us but we definitely remember him and his Jell-O impressions. I wanted to make him a Jell-O salad but Eggboy said no because Eggboy is no fun.

~Whistler~ I’m busily getting all of my ducks in a row for my Passover cooking demos at Pesach on the Mountain, and also trying to put together some fun skiing lewks so that when I suck at skiing, I’ll at least look stylish.

World Ice Skating Championships! Haha! You didn’t think that ice skating was over for the season right???? I’m looking forward to a Nathan Chen short program repeat of his Skate America magic, and just being able to watch Papadakis and Cizeron again.

Yogurt Book Launch! In the last week we’ve gone from planning one local event to three! Two of them are in Fargo, one is yoga related (because who else occasionally calls yoga “yogurt?”) and all three are going to be so much fun. Keep an eye out on my events page for details.

Purim!!! I love a good Purim celebration and also I love Hamantaschen because they are like dumpling cookies and just so darn pretty. And I love seeing all of your sprinkletaschen this year!!! Keep the pics coming, please.

This year I have gone savory!!! And combined my Hamantaschen with a Knish to make a Knishentaschen. I mainly just wanted an excuse to make knishes because it’s been too long since I strolled the Upper West Side eating a Zabar’s sweet potato knish and I couldn’t stop looking at these Zak the Baker beauties on Instagram. And with both a knish and a hamantasch being filled baked goodies, the combination of the two was inevitable, right??

In my knish dough research, I came across a super easy dough in The Gefilte Manifesto, originally from Mrs. Stahl’s knishery in Brooklyn. Flour, oil, salt, water, essentially the same as the simple and satisfying Amy Thielen-inspired cracker crust pizza dough that we make all the time for Friday pizza. So guess what I did? I doubled the dough, made knishes for lunch and pizza for dinner. 2 in 1 dough, what more could you ask for?

The filling here is salt and vinegar potatoes for an acidic twist on your basic potato knish. Love an acidic twist. If salt and vinegar is not your flavor, first of all, gtfo, but also know that you can forego the vinegar here and still get a mighty tasty mashed potato knish. A heavy pile of parmesan rounds all of this out, but you can definitely switch up the cheese or omit it for a dairy-free option. If you omit, sprinkle some flaky salt or other herbs and seasonings (everything bagel seasoning???) on the outside to give it an extra somethin. The bottom line is, these aren’t rocket science and you can play with these fillings as you see fit, you can even add spinach. In the end you will have a hearty, carby handful of delight with soft potato innards and a chewy satisfying crust.

And I like these with ketchup. Obviously.

salt & vinegar knishentaschen

makes 12

dough adapted from mrs. stahl's knishery, by way of the gefilte manifesto

potatoes adapted from epicurious

ingredients

for the dough:

1 3/4 c (224g) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting

2 tsp sugar

1 tsp kosher salt

1/4 c (50g) vegetable oil

1/2 c (118g) water

for the filling:

1 1/2 lb (680g) russet potatoes, diced (3/4”)

1 c + 2 tb distilled white vinegar

Kosher salt

2 tb (28g) butter or olive oil or vegetable oil

1 large yellow onion, thinly sliced

Black pepper

1 large egg, lightly beaten

4 oz (113g) shredded parmesan

Fresh chopped chives, for topping

Ketchup, optional, for serving

clues

Preheat the oven to 400º. Line two baking sheets with parchment and set them aside.

To make the dough, combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Add the oil and water and stir to combine. Turn onto a work surface and knead for 5-7 minutes, dusting with flour as needed, until smooth and slightly sticky. Cover with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and let rest at room temp while you prepare the filling.

To make the filling, place the potatoes in a large pot with 1 cup of the vinegar and 1 tablespoon salt. Add enough water to cover the potatoes by an inch. Bring to a boil and cook for 30-40 minutes, or until very soft. Drain and pat dry. Meanwhile heat the butter or oil in a skillet over medium heat, add onion and a good pinch of salt, and cook, stirring, until softened and browned. In a large bowl, combine the potatoes, onions, additional salt to taste, a bunch of black pepper, and remaining 2 tablespoons vinegar in a bowl and mash coarsely.

On a work surface, divide the dough into 12 balls. Roll them out into 4" circles and brush them with a thin layer of egg. Top with a pile of cheese (leaving some to go on top of the knishes) and a big scoop of potato filling. Fold the edges up and over the filling to form a triangle shape, overlapping the corners and pinching them to seal. Transfer to the baking sheets an inch or so apart, brush the outsides with egg wash, sprinkle with remaining cheese, more black pepper, and a few chives, and bake until lightly golden; begin checking for doneness at 20 minutes.

Let cool slightly and enjoy with ketchup, if desired. Leftovers can be kept in the fridge for a few days and then reheated in the microwave or oven.

-yeh!

P.S.

Have you pre-ordered Short Stack Yogurt yet?? Get to it!

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RecipeGirl

Dutch Oven Bread

February 26, 2018

This herbed Dutch Oven Bread is crusty on the outside, and so soft on the inside. It has a little bit of an Italian flair with the added spices and garlic flavors and it’s the perfect dipping bread for dinner.

Dutch Oven Bread

This recipe for Dutch Oven Bread is one of those recipes that I come back to over and over. Partly because it’s so easy to make and partly because of how perfectly it turns out every time.

Now I know yeast can be a turn-off in a recipe to some people. I get it. It can be a temperamental ingredient. But believe me when I tell you that you can’t mess this recipe up! If you follow the easy instructions, it will rise every time, and you will feel like a pro at bread baking!

How to Make Dutch Oven Bread

Combine all of the ingredients in one bowl, and let it rise. You should let it rise for at least 12 hours, but honestly, I’ve left it on my counter as long as 24 hours and it turns out just fine.
Pre-heat the oven and the pot together.
Pat the dough into a rounded ball and place it in the hot pot. Put the lid on top and bake!
Uncover the pot toward the end of baking to let the bread get nice and golden. That’s it!

One of the great things about this herbed dutch oven bread is that you don’t need to babysit it, do a 2nd rise, or knead the dough (hallelujah!). There is a slight downside though. You have to make the dough in advance. Don’t let that hold you back though. I promise it’s worth it. Plus you get to smell the dough rising on your counter all day long! I usually make it either the night before or early in the morning and have it ready for dinner.

There are a lot of recipes out there for “no knead bread,” and they all have 3 cups of flour. I’ve tried to half my recipe a few times down to 3 cups and, unless you use a teeny tiny dutch oven, your bread will just spread in the bottom of the pan and not rise up the sides. So I know this seems like a lot of flour but I promise you, it’s worth it. Even with this much flour, I still only use a 3.5 quart oval dutch oven. You can actually use any oven-proof pot that has a lid.

Here are a few more bread recipes you might enjoy:

Brioche Loaf Bread from Recipe Girl
Cinnamon Crunch Banana Bread from Coco and Ash
White Sandwich Bread by Recipe Girl
Homemade English Muffins from Cincy Shopper
Rich Egg and Butter Bread by Recipe Girl

PrintRecipe

Prep Time: 12 hours

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Dutch Oven Bread

Ingredients:

6 cups all-purpose flour
1 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon dried Italian seasoning
1 tablespoon garlic powder
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons active dry yeast
3 cups warm water (lukewarm from the faucet is fine)

Directions:

In a large bowl, combine all of the ingredients except the warm water. Stir to combine
Add the warm water and mix together until a dough forms. The dough will be sticky.
Cover the bowl and allow to rise for at least 12 hours and no more than 24 hours.
When you are ready to bake the bread, place your dutch oven pot and lid in the oven and pre-heat the pot and the oven at the same time to 450 degrees.
While the oven is heating, sprinkle some flour on a board or counter and spill out the dough onto the flour. Sprinkle the top of the dough ball with a little bit of flour as well to keep your hands from sticking to it.
The dough will be very soft so do your best to form it into a circle
Once the pot and oven are heated, remove the pot from the oven and gently place the dough into the heated pot. (It doesn't need to be perfect as the dough will take the shape of the pot)
Using oven mitts (and I say this because I've forgotten before OUCH), place the lid back on the pot and put the pot back into the oven.
Cook for 30 minutes covered.
After the 30 minutes, uncover the pot, and cook for another 15 minutes until the top is golden and crispy.
Let cool until it's safe to touch before slicing.

SOURCE: RecipeGirl.com

The post Dutch Oven Bread appeared first on RecipeGirl.

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Ten Weeknight Express Recipes eBook

Faire pipi

Citrus and Chicory Salad with Candied Pine Nuts and Fried Rosemary

Intro

Citrus and Chicory Salad with Candied Pine Nuts and Fried Rosemary

Ingredients

Instructions

Muffin Tin Bread Puddings

salt & vinegar knishentaschen

Dutch Oven Bread

Dutch Oven Bread

How to Make Dutch Oven Bread

Here are a few more bread recipes you might enjoy:

Dutch Oven Bread

Ingredients:

Directions:

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