Not so with the books I shoot. I make the hell out of those recipes. It starts because I need to make the recipe for a shot, but inevitably goes beyond that. I often fall in love with those dishes. My husband once accused me of never making the same dish twice; after shooting Dishing Up Washington, that’s about to change. Because now I know how to glaze braised meat.

To be fair, I’ve been braising meat for a while, and I always considered myself pretty successful with it. The meat was delicious and tender. But it never quite had that gorgeous glaze that I’d get in a restaurant. Now I know how, and I’m putting it to pretty amazing use, like with this glazed, braised lamb shank… a little play on Jess’s Beef Bourginon and Glazed Goat Shank recipes from the cookbook. I borrowed a little from one recipe, a little from another, for a dinner that is pretty darn awe inspiring if I do say so myself.

If you are braising, be sure to give yourself plenty of time. It’s not a process you want to rush any part of. You can also do most of the “work” on a lazy Sunday afternoon, and then wrap it all up to finish off just before dinner later in the week, if time is going to be tight.

Start with a really good lamb shank. You aren’t going to get a good braise if your meat isn’t fantastic.

I was lucky enough to be doing a little shoot in New Season’s Market for the Online Food Photography & Styling class that I’m currently teaching, and picked up a hefty shank from Umpqua Valley Lamb Farm in Riddle, Oregon. Umpqua’s lamb is sustainably grown, grass-fed and pasture raised by small farms in oregon. Rumor has it, they even feed their lambs tasty bits like broccoli! This is a farm I’d love to go visit sometime!

Anyway, back to the braising.

Salt and pepper it all over while you get a deep pot heating over medium-high heat with a healthy splash of oil on the stove top. You need a pot, with a lid, that is large enough to allow the shank to lay flat. But you also don’t want a pot that is too big… you need the shank to be submerge in the braising liquid. Trust me on this, find the right sized pot for your braise; it is well worth the trouble.

Once the pot is hot, place the shank in (any side down is fine), and give it a good sear. Leave it in that pot, untouched for a good 2 minutes at least. Then turn it to the next side. Sear all the sides this way. If the meat is still stuck to the pan, give it another minute before trying to turn it. When the meat is braised all over, take it out of the pot, and set it aside on a plate.

Now, you’ll want to add your aromatics & veggies. You can add what you like, but I like the simple combination of onion, garlic, celery and carrot. Pearl onions, leeks or shallots would be good in place of or in addition to the onion. A few sprigs of thyme are a nice addition, or a few stalks of Italian parsley (stems and all). Maybe a bay leaf if you like. It’s not fussy. Just cut some stuff up and toss it in the hot pan that has all the meat drippings (add a bit more oil if there is none on the pan), and turn the heat down to low so all the good stuff slowly cooks and doesn’t burn. Let it go until it’s kind of soft but not mushy. Onions will be translucent and golden rather than brown. Stir often. This will take around 10 minutes.

Get your oven preheating to 325F.

Now add your liquid to the pot and turn the heat back up to medium high. I like to start with wine. About 1/2 cup will usually do it. For lamb you can go with either red or white (I used white this time, but I might try with red, or even a nice dry sherry next go around). When that has reduced, it’s time to add the stock. This can be veggie, chicken or beef broth (home made is best, but the store bought stuff is fine too), depending on how rich you want your braise to be. Add enough to your pot that your lamb shank will be mostly submerged, with just the top 1/4 sticking out the top. The size of your pan will determine the amount, but it’s usually between a pint and 1 quart. Still on the stove top, bring the mixture to a very gentle boil. Once simmering, slide in the meat, and any juices that are on the plate, into the liquid and at top the veggies. Cover, and move the whole pot to the hot oven. Your work for now is done… go find something to do for 2 hours (or a little less, perhaps if you have a really small piece of meat).

When you come back, your meat should be done. It will have contracted and pulled itself off of its bone, and then relaxed again into melty goodness. I always thought braising ended here. In the past, I’d just grab the meat, and the braising liquid as is and serve. I did not know all about glazing. And the glazing is the magic.

So, here’s what you do. You take that meat shank (carefully now because it will be very tender), and set it aside on a plate and cover it with foil.

Then, you run the braising liquid through a fine sieve (careful it’s hot), retaining all the yummy juices and discarding the solids. They are just mush at this point anyway. Put the liquid back in the pot and over medium low heat, start to reduce it. You want it to reduce by a lot, until it starts to have this lovely sheen. This will probably take 10 to 15 minutes. Keep a close eye on it because it’s easy for it to suddenly get nice and glossy and then move past that point the moment you walk over to the other side of the house because nothing is happening. Once the glaze is done, you can put the meat back in, give it a turn to coat, and warm it back up over low heat while you finish preparing the rest of your meal.

You can also wrap up the whole thing at this point for dinner another night. When you serve, pour the glaze all over the meat, or place the glaze in a gravy dish and let folks glaze their own. Delicious!

So, for lunch today, a little spring take on a salad nicoise… no tuna, but plenty of potatoes, an egg, pea vines, and some fresh spring peas with the simplest vinaigrette.

If your pea vines are a little tough, you could lightly blanch them first; I just used mine raw.

Ever since I started telling people that I was going to write a cookbook on doughnuts, I’ve gotten questions about whether it was going to include any savory recipes. Like me, many of you out there love your doughnuts, but also tend to crave salty over sweet. I’ve been promising some savory doughnut recipes ever since, and I must say, I wish I had gotten around to it much, much sooner.

Since I basically started my whole doughnut obsession around Cinco de Mayo with margarita doughnuts, what better way to jump into savory doughnuts than this: green chile and chicken doughnuts! Oh, sure, it’s more of a New Mexican flavor combination than a true Mexican one, but then again, it seems that it is the US that has turned the 5th of May into a new reason to party. And really, can you ever go wrong with green chile?

You can do these doughnuts a couple of ways. If you want easy, just make raised doughnuts as usual (either with  one of the recipes in Doughnuts or one of the ones on the site), but use 1/2 of the sugar and twice the salt. I subbed in 25% whole wheat flour in these, and loved it. Cut them out as doughnuts (they’ll just fry easier that way!) And then, load up a couple with warmed up green chile with shredded chicken, a little diced onion, maybe some cilantro, definitely a fried egg, a sprinkle of cojita, and a good dollop of sour cream. Oh my. Breakfast fit for a Donut King.

Or, you can get fancy. And by fancy I mean stuffed. Roll out your dough a bit thinner than normal and cut out rounds (without holes), and then place a bit of the shredded chicken, green chile, cojita, onion and whatever else you like in the center. Be careful not to overfill though… you want it to be less than 2 tablespoons all in. Then, top with another round, and crimp closed (I use the same cutter, which trims off any extra and pinches the edges together well). Proof, fry and you have what I will call with no shame an Empanut. Sort of like a doughnut, sort of like an empanada, all kinds of delicious. You could, of course, then proceed as above and smother in more green chile and cojita. Or, you can simply take a bite.

Or, if you really want to get crazy… cut out a ton of holes, fry them up, and use them in place of the chips in your favorite chilaqueles recipe.

Oh savory doughnuts… what in the world took me so long!

Happy Cinco de Mayo everyone!

Mostly, at this time of year, the box includes some sort of salad greens and braising greens. Local apples that tend to store well. Onions are always a big part of the box. And then, there are the California fruits: oranges, a mango and kiwi. The oranges are always nice to have; the mango, just one, is perfect for a smoothie each week; and then there are the kiwis. Each week, 4 kiwis. This has been going on now for quite some time, and I’m telling you, I’m getting a bit behind on my kiwi usage. I do like kiwi fruit, but seriously, other than the occasional juicing or chopping for a salad, what are you supposed to do with them?*

Enter kiwi jelly. I’m not saying this is going to be the new lime curd. When you cook a kiwi, the bright green fades to a more olive tone; the delicate berry flavor gets a little crushed. But kiwi jelly is still a nice way to go if the kiwi fruit has started to take over your kitchen. Toss in some chopped rhubarb from the garden (especially if you have the kind that stubbornly comes up green even though it is supposed to be the bright red kind!) for some tang and to help thicken the jelly. Some juice from a lemon and a teaspoon of apple cider vinegar to brighten the flavor. A pinch of salt and a few cardamom pods add just a little something special. And, suddenly you have a lovely little jelly that goes terrifically with hard cheeses, nuts and crackers. It is reminiscent of pepper jelly, without the heat.

The same goes for her new book. Between the pages of relaxed and comforting light filled photos, are recipes that call softly to you. Even before I got the book, I was dreaming of the biscuits with their thousands of flakey layers. I can’t wait to make the soba, the oat cakes, the granola, the not so potato salad. Not to mention the book contains one of the best head notes for a recipe that I’ve ever read… the turnip chips that Heidi admits are “the least perfect chips you’ll ever make.” (but, of course, they are well worth it anyway).

So enthused am I by this book, that I didn’t want to take the time to go to the store to make something from it. Nor did I need to. I had a bag of pita bread left over from a party that sorely needed to be used, and what do you know, the recipe right next to the turnip chips was a recipe for pita chips. As someone who is really not allowed to sit within 2 feet of an open bag of pita chips (or else there will no longer be a bag of pita chips), this recipe is a blessing and a curse. For now, I’m sticking with blessing. At least until I’ve gorged myself on them. This recipe is definitely going to be dangerous.

Heidi’s recipe calls for garlic, olive oil, butter and sea salt, but that’s really just to get you started with creating your own flavors. Like most of the book, the recipes are there as a framework and inspiration for you to make to suit your own tastes (like I think all good cookbooks should). Having been completely garliced out a week ago after making a very potent chimichurri sauce, I skipped the garlic and made one batch with freshly chopped cilantro and salt, and another with sumac and chile powder. I used store bought pita (the thicker, fluffier kind rather than the almost all pocket kind) for my chips, but I think next time I’ll make the pita from scratch again.

Baked up in a 350F oven 10 to 15 minutes until crisp, they are fantastic with hummus or other dip of your choice, or for that matter just on their own. Do watch carefully on the baking… there is a very fine line between crisp and a brick. I preferred the chips that were just a bit golden around the edges rather than dark throughout. Three full sized pitas make enough for 4 as a snack, unless, of course, I am in the house.

By the way, Heidi will be in Seattle at the end of April for a book signing at my studio! I hope you’ll be able to join us to celebrate this gorgeous book.

They started out beautifully enough. I used a ratio of 2:1 buckwheat to bread flour with salt and water. The rested dough, once rolled a little bit, fed through the past roller to yield fine sheets of pasta.

It even cut into beautiful long threads instead of crumbling as I feared it might.

Kind of gorgeous aren’t they? Just think of them floating in dashi. What could go wrong?

Well, apparently, even a slight move in the warm broth, and they turned into sludge.

So sad. Obviously, no recipe until I get it right. I always do like a good challenge…

Has anyone made their own soba before? What’s your trick?

Just like yesterday, these are pretty quick to come together if you do a little bit of pre-planning. Make the crepe batter the night before, and keep it chilled up until you need to use it (do give it a good stir before you start making the crepes). Pull out the cream cheese too, if you are using it, so it warms a bit and is easier to spread. Make the balsamic syrup, and set it aside. Chop the kale and the pears. Place the pears in some slightly acidic cold water (a squeeze of lemon will do) to keep them from browning. Make the crepes and set aside while you saute the kale (just a touch of oil and a very hot pan). I like to finish the kale with a squeeze of lemon juice and a little salt. To assemble, smear a small amount of cream cheese on a crepe, top with the kale and a sprinkling of pears and drizzle with the syrup.

By the way, the balsamic syrup is a great addition to all kinds of things, and it’s really easy to make. Just combine 1/2 cup balsamic with a tablespoon of sugar, and heat to your desired consistency… actually, just a tiny bit thinner than what you’d like because it will thicken a smidge as it cools. It’s also the subject of my next Still Life With remake challenge… so stay tuned!

That is, until this year, and the little summer that couldn’t. I sadly pulled up my remaining tomato plants after the rains weren’t stopping, and picked the remaining green fruits. It was around this same time, I got a little treat in the mail… “Gifts Cooks Love: Recipes for Giving” (Sur La Table, Diane Morgan) from the publisher. Call it kismet, but there I was with a bucket full of green tomatoes and a beautiful book with a recipe to use them.

Before jumping to the recipe, I want to tell you a bit about Gifts Cooks Love. This is a beautiful book. And why wouldn’t it be? It’s packed with Sara Remington’s stunning photography, and charming styling by Kim Kissling, Tina Stamos, Kerrie Sherrel Walsh and Lori Engels. There are jars and ribbons, boxes and bags, and most of all beautiful, giftable food. There are recipes for candies, crackers, preserves, sauces, liqueurs and even cured meats. But most of all, I find the book inspiring to take dishes I already love and make them into something special to give, even if you aren’t all that crafty.

Now back to the green tomatoes and the chutney. Once you get through all the chopping, the chutney is easy to make. The ingredients stew for about 1 hour until the flavors meld. The flavors get even deeper and richer after storing for a week or so (I stored mine in the fridge rather than truly canning it). The chutney is sweet and savory, with a nice little kick from the jalapenos. Serve it up with some crackers or flat bread, and you have a fantastic appetizer.

]]> http://www.laraferroni.com/2010/10/19/green-tomato-chutney/feed/ 12 http://www.laraferroni.com/2010/09/03/scallion-salsa-verde/ http://www.laraferroni.com/2010/09/03/scallion-salsa-verde/#comments Fri, 03 Sep 2010 17:55:58 +0000 L http://www.laraferroni.com/2010/09/03/scallion-salsa-verde/ I was recently at a potluck and learned an important lesson about myself. I shouldn’t be allowed to stand next to the salsa verde. At least, not if anyone else wants to have any. Not only did I eat more than my fair share on whatever bread was around, I also had a bit more on the sausage, the veggies or anything else I could get my hands on. I might have picked up the dish and licked it clean. Except that I’m pretty sure that would have been a serious party foul.

The good news is that my garden is full of good stuff for salsa verde right now. I have a mini forest of scallions and herbs, so I was quick to make the Bobby Flay scallion vinaigrette recipe in the August Food & Wine. Green onions, cilantro and jalepeño with a healthy splash of sherry vinegar and dribble of honey. Sounds delicious, doesn’t it? It is. Hot, sour, salty, sweet. It’s great on fresh veggies, baguette, grilled chicken, my fingers.

It’s also easily adaptable. Yesterday, I made a variation with the addition of fresh shiso, padrons and agave instead of the honey. Yum.

Scallion Salsa Verde
adapted from Bobby Flay’s Scallion Vinaigrette in Food & Wine August 2010

6 scallions, pale and dark green parts only, coarsely chopped
1 or 2 peppers
3 tablespoons sherry vinegar
1 teaspoon agave nectar
3 tablespoons chopped cilantro
2 or 3 shiso leaves, chopped
3 tablespoon olive oil
Salt & pepper to taste

Place all the ingredients except the oil in a blender, and pulse until well blended but a little chunky. Stream in the oil while blending, and season to taste.

Makes about 1 cup

From South Africa, I came home with more than a couple of recipes, but I’ve been very eager to share these two with you. Of course, arriving home after two weeks away meant that things got very busy, but this week has pleasantly returned to a more leisurely pace. Time for cooking and shooting and sharing.

First off, when we were in Durban, it was all about the Bunny Chow, a hearty dish of knock-your-socks-off curry that is served in a bread bowl that is a half loaf of bread. Bunny chow doesn’t have anything to do with rabbits, but rather the dishes Indian heritage, from a vegetarian immigrant group known as the Bania. The original vegetarian curry was served up in a loaf of bread, which allowed it to easily be transported to eat in the streets, at work or wherever (depending on whose history you believe). Over the years, the curry has changed and is more often a lamb or mutton curry made with a very spicy red curry spice. But it’s still eaten without utensils, using the bread to scoop out bites of the curry.

The day after the race, Cam and I stopped in to a cute cafe in Durban, Bean Bag Bohemia, to sample our first bunny chow, although there it was called Durban Stuff. And stuffed it was, with chicken and prawns and one of the spiciest curries I’ve ever had. Good thing there were also cocktails!

There were really only two challenges to making bunny chow when I got home… first, I really should have bought some Durban curry powder which goes by some great names like Mother-in-Law-Hell-Fire. If you don’t happen to be in Durban, try this homemade substitute. Secondly, is finding unsliced sandwich bread! Of course, I could have made my own, but to be true bunny chow, you need the super fluffy light stuff. Not rustic, country loaves. You really want unsliced Wonder bread. But, I was able to find a not-too-rustic white bread loaf at the little bakery just up the hill from me. The rest of the dish was a breeze.

Buttermilk rusks are kind of the opposite of Bunny Chow.

When I tried my first rusk, my first though was why? Imagine scones, without any additional flavorings like fruit or spice, baked until they are hard and crumbly. There’s not much flavor and they are very, very dry. Almost rock like. Do people really want to eat these? And then, for no apparent reason, I took another nibble. And another. The subtle sweetness kind of grew on me. A dunk into a cup of sweet tea, and the rusks soften and become oddly addictive. I’m not saying that they are going to replace doughnuts or anything, but they are kind of a neat snack to have around.

I can’t wait till we get to go back to South Africa again, next time to see some of Cape Town with perhaps a wine tour or two.

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