Spring Comes to Como Park

To celebrate the blooming of the lilacs, lily of the valley and the crabapple trees I had few people over for lunch the other day.

A huge thank you to my man, the King of Keratoconus, for all of the unsolicited help with the dishes and for forgiving me when I got crabby when he changed my playlist whilst I was having my last minute shower. I do not deserve his amiable nature most of the time, but he is very well fed.

Here are a few of the recipes I served.

First off credit where credit is due, and he will call me on it if I don't. My brother introduced me to this Barefoot Contessa recipe last summer at the cabin. It was the favorite main dish of the day. The runners up were Wild Rice Salad, which I made with half wild rice and half wheat berries and a crustless quiche, the recipe came from Cooking Light, enough said.

Roasted Shrimp and Orzo


Kosher salt
Good olive oil
3/4 pound orzo pasta (rice-shaped pasta)
1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice (3 lemons)
Freshly ground black pepper
2 pounds (16 to 18 count) shrimp, peeled and deveined
1 cup minced scallions, white and green parts
1 cup chopped fresh dill
1 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and medium-diced
1/2 cup small-diced red onion
3/4 pound good feta cheese, large diced

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Fill a large pot with water, add 1 tablespoon of salt and a splash of oil, and bring the water to a boil. Add the orzo and simmer for 9 to 11 minutes, stirring occasionally, until it's cooked al dente. Drain and pour into a large bowl. Whisk together the lemon juice, 1/2 cup olive oil, 2 teaspoons salt and 1 teaspoon of pepper. Pour over the hot pasta and stir well.

Meanwhile, place the shrimp on a sheet pan, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to combine and spread out in a single layer. Roast for 5 to 6 minutes, until the shrimp are cooked through. Don't overcook!

Add the shrimp to the orzo and then add the scallions, dill, parsley, cucumber, onion, 2 teaspoons salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Toss well. Add the feta and stir carefully. Set aside at room temperature for 1 hour to allow the flavors to blend, or refrigerate overnight. If refrigerated, taste again for seasonings and bring back to room temperature before serving.

All three desserts were winners but two have been previously unpublished here. This Rhubarb cake recipe comes from an old church cookbook of my mother's.

Rhubarb Cake

½ cup butter at room temperature, the original calls for shortening but I only use shortening in cookies and pie crusts
1 ½ cups sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 cups flour
½ teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup milk (soured or buttermilk)
2 cups rhubarb (cut fine)

Topping
½ cup sugar
¾ teaspoon cinnamon
The original topping calls for 3/4 cup sugar and 1 teaspoon of sugar

Preheat oven to 350. Grease or spray a 9x13 pan. Cream butter, add sugar, egg and vanilla. Blend flour, baking soda and salt together in a separate bowl. Milk in alternately with milk. Use low speed on mixer. Fold in rhubarb. Pour into pan. Sprinkle topping mixture evenly over the top of the cake. Bake for 45 minutes. Serve with vanilla ice cream or whipping cream.

Jockey Club Cheesecake

This is the first cheesecake that I remember having during the cheesecake extravaganza that swept America in the early 80’s. My sister has adapted it to avoid the unsweetened chocolate from seizing. The ingredient amounts are suspicious. We suspect that it should read ¾ cup of sour cream but neither of us is willing to take a chance with the familiar.


Crust
1 ½ cups crushed Graeme cracker crumbs
1/3 cup sugar
1/3 cup melted butter

Filling
2 8 ounce packages of cream cheese (room temperature)
¾ cup sugar
2 eggs
2 tablespoons fresh orange juice
¾ tablespoon sour cream
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 ½ ounces unsweetened chocolate melted

Topping
½ cup sour cream
1 tablespoon sugar
1 ½ teaspoon vanilla

Preheat oven to 350. Combine the crust ingredients and pat into a 9 inch spring form pan. Surround the outside of the pan with aluminum foil in the event that the pan leaks excess butter.

Cream the cream cheese, mix in the sugar gradually and add the eggs one at a time. Blend in the orange juice, sour cream and vanilla. Pour cream cheese batter into the pan. Pour the melted chocolate evenly over the top of the cake and cut through the batter with a knife several times for a marbled effect. Bake for 45 minutes or until set.

Remove the cake from the oven and allow it to cool slightly. Combine the topping ingredients together in a separate bowl and spread evenly over the top of the cake. Bake 15 minutes longer. Allow the cake cool completely before refrigerating. Raspberry Coulis is a great accompaniment to this cheesecake.

Wilted Arugala Salad with Sauteed Pork, Pears and Blue Cheese

How did I miss this recipe the first time I flipped through Fine Cooking Number 77 March, 2006? I know that I tried the a Rice Noodle Stir Fry and was disappointed. I know that my parents swear by one of the Roasted Chicken and Potatoes recipes but somehow the recipe in the pull out section at that back meant nothing to me. Nothing until I learned about the wonderful world of arugala from my friend Chris via the Tri Colore Orzo recipe of this summer.

I made this for the first time on Christmas Eve and I am anxious to make it again. We all loved it and by all I mean Jeff, H and I. G and F had pork tenderloin baked with olive oil, salt and pepper. The only changes I made, dried thyme, plumped cherries and walnuts. In fairness to Fine Cooking magazine this recipe is available for free on their website.

Wilted Arugala Salad with Sauteed Pork, Pears and Blue Cheese

3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
1/2 cup plus 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium shallot, finely diced
1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
6 oz. baby arugula, washed and spun dry (about 8 loosely packed cups)
1 firm-ripe Bosc pear
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1 lb. pork tenderloin, trimmed and sliced 3/8 to 1/2 inch thick
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1/4 lb. blue cheese, crumbled (about 1 cup)
1/4 cup dried cherries


In a medium bowl, whisk together the vinegar and mustard. Slowly whisk in 1/2 cup of the oil. Stir in the shallot and thyme and season with salt and pepper to taste. Put the arugula in a large bowl. Core the pear and cut it into matchsticks.

Put the flour in a pie pan or large plate. Season the pork liberally with salt and pepper and dredge in the flour. Set a heavy 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the remaining 3 Tbs. oil and the butter. When the butter melts and begins to lightly brown, cook the pork (in batches if necessary), flipping after 2 min., until it’s just cooked through, about 3 min. total. Transfer to a large plate. Repeat with the remaining pork.

Discard any fat in the skillet and set over low heat. Add the balsamic-Dijon vinaigrette and cook, stirring to pick up any browned bits on the bottom of the pan, until the sauce is warm, about 1 min. Pour the vinaigrette back into its bowl and whisk to recombine. Toss the arugula with half of the warm vinaigrette. Arrange the arugula on 4 plates. Top with the pork, pear, blue cheese, and dried cherries, and drizzle with the remaining vinaigrette.

From Fine Cooking 77, pp. 82c
March 1, 2006

In Search of the Rustica Bittersweet Cookie: Round 2

We are definitely getting closer. If you want to replicate your favorite cookie recruit Neighbor Sherry to help you. She found this version in The America's Test Kitchen Family Cookbook recently and we each gave it a go. I chose to go with bittersweet chocolate from Trader Joe's for melting and Ghirardelli bittersweet chips. The trouble with this cookie is that it easily trips my rich trigger, which is becoming more sensitive with each week.

Thick and Chewy Triple Chocolate Cookies

2 cups all-purpose flour
½ cup Dutch-processed cocoa powder
2 teaspoons baking powder
¾ teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons instant coffee
10 tablespoons (1 ¼ sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 ½ cups packed light brown sugar
½ cup granulated sugar
16 ounces semisweet chocolate, melted and cooled
1 (12 ounce bag semisweet chocolate chips (2 cups)

Adjust an oven rack to the middle position and heat the oven to 350 degrees. Whisk the flour, cocoa, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl. In a separate bowl, whisk the eggs, vanilla, and instant coffee together until the coffee is dissolved.

Beat the butter and sugars together in a large bowl using an electric mixer on medium speed until light and fluffy, 3 to 6 minutes. Beat in the egg mixture until incorporated, about 30 seconds. Beat in the melted chocolate, about 30 seconds, scraping down the bowl and beaters as needed.

Reduce the mixer speed to low and slowly mix in the flour mixture until combined, about 30 seconds. Stir in the chips until incorporated. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let stand at room temperature until the consistency is scoop-able and fudge-like, about 30 minutes.

Working with 3 tablespoons of dough at a time, scoop the dough into balls, dip the top in granulated sugar and lay on three parchment-lined baking sheets, spaced about 2 inches apart. Bake the cookies, one sheet at a time until the edges are set and the tops are cracked but the centers are still soft and underdone (peek through the cracks to check the centers), 10 to 12 minutes, rotating the baking sheet halfway through baking.

Let the cookies cool on the baking sheet for 10 minutes, then serve warm or transfer to a wire rack and let cool completely.

The America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook

My Thanksgiving Contribution

I love cheesecake. A few years ago I offered to bring pumpkin cheesecake to my sister-in-law's Thanksgiving gathering after my sister raved about this recipe. A few guests accepted a polite sliver while others questioned why pumpkin cheesecake? Why disrupt tradition and pumpkin pie? Most of it came back home with me. The next year two guests sidled up to me and asked, "Did you bring the pumpkin cheesecake again?" and a few more guests accepted a polite sliver of a slice. There was only half of a cheesecake to bring home. Last year I was met at the car with, "You brought the pumpkin cheesecake right?" There were no leftovers.

This year our Thanksgiving plans will bring us elsewhere but I have enough whipping cream and cream cheese to bring one with me and to drop another one off at my sister-in-law's because why disrupt tradition and pumpkin cheesecake?

Spiced Pumpkin Cheesecake

This needs to chill overnight, so plan accordingly.

Crust
9 whole Graeme crackers (about 4 ounces), broken
1/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted

Filling
4 8-ounce packages cream cheese, room temperature
1 1/2 cups sugar
3 large eggs
1 15-ounce can pure pumpkin
1 cup whipping cream
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves

For crust:
Position rack in center of oven and preheat to 350°F. Wrap a double layer of heavy-duty foil around outside of 10-inch-diameter springform pan. Combine Graeme crackers, sugar, and cinnamon in processor. Blend until graham crackers are very finely ground. Drizzle butter over. Using on/off turns, blend until crumbs begin to stick together. Press crumbs onto bottom (not sides) of springform pan. Bake until crust is slightly golden, about 10 minutes. Transfer to rack and cool while preparing filling. Maintain oven temperature.


For filling:
Using electric mixer, beat cream cheese and sugar in large bowl until smooth and fluffy. Beat in eggs 1 at a time. Add pumpkin and remaining 7 ingredients. Beat just until blended. Pour filling into prepared crust. Place springform pan in large roasting pan. Add enough water to come halfway up sides of springform pan. Bake cheesecake until slightly puffed and softly set and top is golden, about 1 1/2 hours. Transfer springform pan to rack and cool. Cover and refrigerate cake overnight. Using knife, cut around sides of pan to loosen cake. Release pan sides. Cut cheesecake into wedges and serve.

Makes 12 to 16 servings.
Bon Appétit October 2002

In Search of the Rustica Bittersweet Cookie

I am a baker on a mission to recreate the Rustica Bittersweet Chocolate Cookie. I first had one last winter when I was suffering from some sort of malady that was not as bad as the full blown flu but sick enough that I had lost my will to live. I snuck in through the back door to drop something off at Yarn! Yarn! Yarn! and there was the cookie. What I tasted through my fever and chills made me want to live to see another day or at least a trip to South Minneapolis for more.

This was my first attempt at recreating that life renewing cookie. I would have to say that it is close, and this cookie is worth making, but my quest will continue. I hate orange in my chocolate so I chickened out and only put in 1 teaspoon grated orange zest. I could not even taste the orange last night but it was the first thing I tasted in my morning cookie. The Rustic cookie is nearly black with chocolate so does that mean I should figure out a way to increase the melted chocolate and omit the cocoa? The bakery cookie is also larger but I could address that issue by making them bigger and baking them longer.

This recipe is from Fine Cooking magazine December, 2007 issue 89. As I have said before I love Fine Cooking magazine. This not a cheap subscription, $29.99 for a seven issue year but it does have some advertising unlike Cook's Illustrated (26.95 for six issues). Here is where I get crabby. Fine Cooking wants subscribers to pay a separate subscription for their website. $9.95 a year to have full access to their archives, it is more for non-subscribers. I know that the internet is a threat to print media and that we are coming to expect them to give away everything for free but really my mother has already paid the hefty subscription price let me access the Dark Chocolate Crackles online if I want to, so that I can forward it to my sister whose subscription expired, especially since that recipe fell within my subscription period. Enough crabbing, I better have another cookie.



Dark Chocolate Crackles

Yields about 5 dozen cookies



11 1/4 oz. (2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon table salt

1 cup unsalted butter, at room temperature

2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar

2 oz. 2/3 cup natural, unsweetened cocoa, sifted if lumpy

2 teaspoons finely grated orange zest

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

3 large eggs

8 oz. bittersweet chocolate, melted and cooled until barely warm

3/4 cup (4 oz.) chopped chocolate (white, bittersweet, or semisweet)

1/3 cup granulated sugar; more as needed



Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350 F. Line three large cookie sheets with parchment or nonstick baking liner.



In a medium mixing bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a large bowl with a hand mixer), beat the butter, brown sugar, cocoa, orange zest and vanilla on medium speed until well combined, about 4 minutes. Add the eggs one at a time, beating briefly between additions. Add the cooled chocolate and mix until blended, about 1 minute. Add the dry ingredients and mix on low speed until almost completely blended, about 1 minute. Add the chopped chocolate and mix until blended, about 15 seconds.



Shape the dough in 1 1/4-inch balls with a small ice-cream scoop or two tablespoons. (The balls of dough can be frozen for 1 month. Thaw them overnight in the refrigerator before proceeding with the recipe.)



Pour the granulated sugar in to a shallow dish. Dip the top of each ball in the sugar and set the balls sugar side up about 1 1/2 inches apart on the prepared cookie sheets. Bake one sheet at a time until the cookies are puffed and cracked on top, 11 to 12 minutes. These cookies are fragile when hot, so be sure to let them cool on the cookie sheet for 5 minutes.

Winter Storm Warning = Beef and Barley Soup for Dinner

When the first winter storm advisory went out for our area on Tuesday morning I became determined to make this recipe. Even if it meant waiting in my car outside of the local liquor store at 8:50 am.

The recipe comes from The Best Make Ahead Recipe from the editors of Cook's Illustrated, another cookbook that I frequently check out of the library but never get around to making anything from. I cooked my soup on high for about 5 1/2 hours and it was perfect. My only regret is that I spent up and bought the chuck steak when I should have just bought the chuck roast for a dollar a pound less. I just am not very confident in my meat substitutions. Kind of like my yarn substitutions, right Sarah?

Beef and Barley Soup in the Crock Pot

2 tablespoons vegetable oil
3 medium onions, minced
2 carrots, chopped medium
1/4 cup tomato paste
Salt
1/2 cup dry red wine
2 pounds blade steak, aka as chuck state in these parts, trimmed and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
1 (28 ounce) can diced tomatoes, pureed with their juice until smooth in a blender for food processor
2 cups low-sodium beef broth
2 cups low sodium chicken broth
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup pearled barley
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
Ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium heat until shimmering but not smoking. Add the onions, carrots, tomato paste and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook until the vegetables are softened and lightly browned, 10 to 15 minutes. Stir in the wine, scraping up any browned bits.

Transfer the vegetable mixture into the slow cooker insert and stir in the meat, pureed tomatoes, broths, soy sauce, barley and thyme until evenly combined. Cover and cook on low until the meat is tender, 9 to 11 hours. (Alternatively, cover and cook on high for 5 to 7 hours.)

Gently tilt the slow cooker insert and degrease as much fat as possible off the surface of the soup using a large flat spoon. Stir in the parsley, season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve.

Upon Request: Island Pork Tenderloin

Last week Ms. Meghan asked a a student to assist her in an "illegal act", getting past the school's blog blocking softwear to access A Dish To Pass (On) for the Island Pork Tenderloin recipe. The student was able to unblock the site but then I did not even have this favorite posted. So here it is. It is easy, quick ,very good and very popular. It was was in the epicurious.com Buzz Box for years. When I prepare it I tend to skip their salad and make my own spinach salad.

ISLAND PORK TENDERLOIN SALAD
Gourmet May 2003
Yield: Makes 6 to 8 main-course servings

For pork:
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon cinnamon
2 pork tenderloins (2 1/4 to 2 1/2 pounds total)
2 tablespoons olive oil

For glaze:
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic
1 tablespoon Tabasco

For vinaigrette:
3 tablespoons fresh lime juice
1 tablespoon fresh orange juice
1 tablespoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon curry powder, toasted
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/2 cup olive oil

For salad:
3 navel oranges
5 ounces baby spinach, trimmed (6 cups leaves)
4 cups thinly sliced Napa cabbage (from 1 medium head)
1 red bell pepper, cut lengthwise into thin strips
1/2 cup golden raisins
2 firm-ripe California avocados

Special equipment: an instant-read thermometer

Prepare pork:

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Stir together salt, pepper, cumin, chili powder, and cinnamon, then coat pork with spice rub.
Heat oil in an ovenproof 12-inch heavy skillet over moderately high heat until just beginning to smoke, then brown pork, turning, about 4 minutes total. Leave pork in skillet.

Make glaze and roast pork:

Stir together brown sugar, garlic, and Tabasco and pat onto top of each tenderloin. Roast in middle of oven until thermometer inserted diagonally in center of each tenderloin registers 140°F, about 20 minutes. Let pork stand in skillet at room temperature 10 minutes. (Temperature will rise to about 155°F while standing.)

Make vinaigrette while pork roasts:

Whisk together juices, mustard, curry powder, salt, and pepper, then add oil in a stream, whisking until emulsified.

Prepare salad ingredients while pork stands:

Cut peel, including white pith, from oranges with a sharp knife, then cut oranges crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Toss spinach, cabbage, bell pepper, and raisins in a large bowl with about 1/4 cup vinaigrette. Halve, pit, and peel avocados, then cut diagonally into 1/4-inch-thick slices.

Assemble salad:

Cut pork at a 45-degree angle into 1/2-inch-thick slices. Line a large platter with dressed salad and arrange sliced pork, oranges, and avocados in rows on top. Drizzle some vinaigrette over avocados and oranges. Pour any juices from skillet over pork.