Happy National Hamburger Day

Did you know that the history of the hamburger dates back to the 12th century and Ghengis Kahn, and not Hamburg, Germany, as most people think? Learn the detailed history of the hamburger today, National Hamburger Day.

Happy National Grape Popsicle Day

Yes, another obscure “National” food day. I suggest sitting outside in the sun with a cold grape popsicle.

Happy National Wine Day

My husband and I enjoy wine, attending Napa Valley’s Stag’s Leap District V2V event every year. Our favorite winery is Hartwell Estate Vineyards. For you moms out there, there’s a fun website Moms Who Need Wine, you might want to check out. I’ll be celebrating National Wine Day this evening with a nice cab courtesy of Bob Hartwell himself. I hope you do the same.

Bob Hartwell and Chef Ro at the 2012 V2V event.

Dried Mushroom Risotto with Goat Cheese

Mushroom and goat cheese risotto…perfect for a meatless monday.

This is a great Meatless Monday dinner. I made it this week and everyone loved it (and these are people who supposedly don’t like mushrooms). I originally found the recipe on Food & Wine and it called for porcini mushrooms, but I didn’t have any, so I used shitake. 

Ingredients
1 cup (about 1 ounce) dried mushrooms (shitake, porcini,etc.)  
3 cups hot water, more if needed
3 1/2 cups canned low-sodium chicken broth, more if needed
3 Tbsp olive oil
1 onion, chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups arborio rice
1 1/4 tsp salt
2 Tbsp butter
1/4 tsp black pepper
2 ounces mild goat cheese
parmesan cheese for garnish 
Italian flat leaf parsley for garnish

Directions

1. Put the dried mushrooms in a medium bowl and pour the hot water over them. Soak until softened, about 20 minutes. Remove the mushrooms, reserving the soaking liquid, and chop them. Strain the liquid through a paper-towel-lined sieve into a medium saucepan. Add the broth to the pan and bring to a simmer.
2. In a medium pot, heat the oil over moderately low heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the chopped mushrooms, the rice, and the salt and stir until the rice begins to turn opaque, about 2 minutes.
3. Add about 1/2 cup of the simmering broth to the rice and cook, stirring frequently, until the broth has been completely absorbed. The rice and broth should bubble gently; adjust the heat as needed. Continue cooking the rice, adding broth 1/2 cup at a time and allowing the rice to absorb it before adding the next 1/2 cup. Cook the rice in this way until tender, 25 to 30 minutes in all. The broth that hasn’t been absorbed should be thickened by the starch from the rice. You may not need to use all of the liquid, or you may need more broth or some water.
4. Stir in the butter, pepper, and goat cheese. Serve the risotto with grated Parmesan and chopped parsley.

 

Happy Quiche Lorraine Day

I love a good breakfast for dinner, including a savory quiche. Frankly, anything with a flaky crust is worthy of eating at any time of day. So in celebration of National Quiche Lorraine Day, I’m posting Emeril Lagasse’s recipe.

Ingredients
Flaky Butter Crust, recipe follows
6 ounces thick cut bacon, cut into narrow strips
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
1 1/4 cups half-and-half
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground white pepper
Pinch freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup grated Gruyere or Swiss

Directions
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough to an 11-inch circle. Fit into a 9-inch fluted tart pan with a removable bottom and trim the edges. (Alternatively, a 9-inch pie pan can be used.) Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Line the pastry with parchment paper and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake until the crust is set, 12 to 14 minutes. Remove the paper and weights and bake until golden brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool on a wire rack. Leave the oven on.

In a medium skillet, cook the bacon until crisp and the fat is rendered, about 5 minutes. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Discard the fat or reserve for another use.

Arrange the bacon evenly over the bottom of the baked crust.

In a large bowl, beat the eggs, yolks, and half and half. Add the remaining ingredients and whisk to combine. Pour into the prepared crust and bake until the custard is golden, puffed, and set yet still slightly wiggly in the center, 30 to 35 minutes.

Remove from the oven and let cool on a wire rack for 15 minutes before serving. Serve with Simple Salad.

Flaky Butter Crust:
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
7 tablespoons unsalted butter, chilled and cut into pieces
1 to 2 tablespoons ice water, or more as needed

To make the dough in a food processor, combine the flour, salt, and butter in the processor and process until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs, about 10 seconds. With the machine running, add the ice water through the feed tube and pulse quickly 5 or 6 times, or until the dough comes together and starts to pull away from the sides of the container. Gather the dough into a ball, flatten it into a disk, and wrap in plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

To make the dough by hand, combine the flour, salt, and butter in a medium bowl, and mix with a pastry blender or your fingertips until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Add the water 1 tablespoon at a time and mix until the dough comes together and is no longer dry, being careful not to overmix. Form into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap, and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Roll out the dough on a lightly floured surface according to the recipe, fit it into the pan, and allow to rest again in the refrigerator before baking.

Yield: one 9-inch tart or pie crust

Happy National Apple Pie Day

An apple pie's pie.

Apple pie is my dad’s favorite dessert. My mom usually makes it for him for Christmas and his birthday, although this year Dad told me he might learn how to make it himself. While I applaud his willingness to try to make something new in the kitchen, it made me remember once when my mom was out of town for some reason, Dad was going to make waffles for me and my sister, but only wanted to make a half batch. The recipe called for one egg, so dad cracked it on the counter, Samurai-ed it in half and sent half of the yolk flying across the kitchen. Whatever works, right? I made Alton Brown’s apple pie recipe for Christmas and it was fabulous. I did have to plan ahead to order seeds of pardise online. Alton described it as a pie to celebrate apples. It really was, being more apple-y than cinnamon-y. It takes quite a bit of work, but it’s worth it.

Ingredients

For the crust:
6 ounces unsalted butter, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 ounces vegetable shortening, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
5 to 7 tablespoons applejack
12 ounces all-purpose flour, approximately 2 3/4 cups, plus extra for dusting
1 teaspoon table salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar

For the filling:
3 to 3 1/2 pounds apples, mixture of Granny Smith, Honeycrisp, Braeburn and Golden Delicious, about 6 large apples
1/2 cup sugar, divided
3 tablespoons tapioca flour
2 tablespoons apple jelly
1 tablespoon apple cider
2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lime juice
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground grains of paradise

Directions:

For the crust: Place the butter, shortening and applejack into the refrigerator for 1 hour. In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, salt and sugar by pulsing 3 to 4 times. Add the butter and pulse 5 to 6 times until the texture looks mealy. Add the shortening and pulse another 3 to 4 times until incorporated. Remove the lid of the food processor and sprinkle in 5 tablespoons of the applejack. Replace the lid and pulse 5 times. Add more applejack as needed, and pulse again until the mixture holds together when squeezed. Weigh the dough and divide in half. Shape each half into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to overnight.
For the filling:

Peel and core the apples. Slice into 1/2-inch thick wedges. Toss all of the apples with 1/4 cup of the sugar, place in a colander set over a large bowl and allow to drain for 1 1/2 hours. Transfer the drained liquid to a small saucepan, place over medium heat and reduce to 2 tablespoons. Set aside to cool. Toss the apples with the remaining sugar, tapioca flour, jelly, cider, lime juice, salt and grains of paradise. For assembling and baking the pie: Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Remove one disk of dough from the refrigerator. Place the dough onto a lightly floured piece of waxed paper. Lightly sprinkle the top of the dough with flour and roll out into a 12-inch circle. Place into a 9 1/2 to 10-inch tart pan that is 2-inches deep. Gently press the dough into the sides of the pan, crimping and trimming the edges as necessary. Set a pie bird in the center of the bottom of the pan. Place the apples into the unbaked pie shell in concentric circles starting around the edges, working towards the center and forming a slight mound in the center of the pie. Pour over any liquid that remains in the bowl. Roll out the second pie dough as the first. Place this dough over the apples, pressing the pie bird through the top crust. Press together the edges of the dough around the rim of the pie. Brush the top crust with the reduced juice everywhere except around the edge of pie. Trim any excess dough. Place the pie on a half sheet pan lined with parchment paper and bake on the floor** of the oven for 30 minutes. Transfer to the lower rack of the oven and continue to bake another 20 minutes or until the apples are cooked through but not mushy. Remove to a rack and cool a minimum of 4 hours or until almost room temperature. **If you’re using an electric oven with coils on the bottom of the oven, place the pie on the sheet pan on the lowest rack over the coils, NOT directly on top of them.

Momma Needs Some Wine

Momma’s got a brand new bottle.

I’m writing this blog this evening so all of you who have procrastinated can run out and buy mom a fabulous bottle of wine to go with a fantastic dinner I’m sure you are going to make her. Remember, it is called Mother’s DAY, which means she should be revered and lavished with love all-24-hours-a-day-long (which, frankly should be the rule for the other 364 days of the year too). So in addition to the traditional breakfast in bed, consider keeping her out of the kitchen by making her a favorite meal, or order it to go for that matter and set the table with flowers, candles and her loved ones. In order to give you a leg up on a successful wine pairing, here are some tips from Snooth on how to make sure you are getting the best taste out of your wine. There are some simple mistakes that we often make, from serving a white too cold to serving a red too warm, that really affect how much mom will enjoy the wine. So, do a little homework here, do a little shopping, make a little dinner (If you need recipes, check out some of my favorite recipes.) there and let mom know how much you appreciate her.