Mussels with Fennel and Saffron

I love cooking and eating Italian food and was sure I already knew quite a lot about it. But, every time I read a cookbook, I find there’s always more to learn. And, who better to learn from about Italian cooking that Lidia Bastianich? Her latest book is Lidia's Celebrate Like an Italian: 220 Foolproof Recipes That Make Every Meal a Party: A Cookbook, and I received a review copy. It’s full of recipes and suggestions for serving crowds big to small at any time of day and in any season. The chapters include Aperitivi, Appetizers, Salads, Soups, Vegetables and Sides, Polenta Risotto and Pasta, Fish and Seafood, Poultry and Meat, and Desserts. Lidia shares how she likes to entertain with a spread of appetizers or stuzzichini from which guests can help themselves before the main meal begins. She makes suggestions for options with and without meat to suit any budget and season as well as any guest’s preferred diet. In the Appetizers chapter, I learned about a type of frico I’d never encountered before. I previously knew frico as a crisp, little round of browned, shredded parmesan cheese that is great on top of a salad or as a snack with a cocktail. Here, Lidia gives a couple of recipes for a larger, layered frico. This Friulian version involves par-cooking potatoes and then slicing them. Then, a mixture of polenta and grated cheese is spread in a large heated skillet; that’s then topped with some of the sliced potatoes; depressions are made and an egg is cracked into each; the remaining potatoes are added on top of the eggs; it’s then topped with more polenta and cheese. This frico is cooked like a Spanish tortilla to brown both sides in the skillet until the eggs are set. It’s cut into slices to serve. There’s also a second similar frico made with ditalini pasta, prosciutto, tomato paste, and peas. I can’t wait to try this kind of frico. Some other dishes that caught my eye include the Polenta Torta with Gorgonzola and Savoy Cabbage. It’s a layered savory cake with melted, lovely cheese within the stacked polenta. In the Vegetables chapter, Lentils with Butternut Squash and Portobellos Stuffed with Quinoa and Kale are on my to-try list. It’s clear that Lidia’s party guests never leave hungry. I had some local fennel and was in the mood for something a little lighter, so the Mussels with Fennel and Saffron was the first thing I tried. 

To begin, you want to make sure your mussels are clean. This time, the mussels I bought needed some debearding, but they often come completely clean. I soaked them in salt water while prepping the other ingredients. The saffron was bloomed by adding it to warming stock. I used a vegetable stock, but chicken stock is suggested. Then, in a Dutch oven, olive oil was heated and finely chopped onion and diced fennel were added. They were left to cook for a few minutes. I had an organic Italian Trebbiano d'Abruzzo I had heard good things about and was excited to use. So, that white wine, salt, and red pepper flakes were added followed by the mussels and hot stock with saffron. The pot was covered, and the mussels were cooked for a few minutes until opened. The mussels were served with the broth with fennel and topped with chopped parsley. 

I have a thing for saffron and always love a broth or sauce perfumed with it. It was delicious with the mussels and fennel. I served the mussels with big slices of focaccia to dip into the broth. For this meal, it was just the two of us. But, I’ll be looking back to this book for ideas and recipes for entertaining bigger groups throughout the year. 

Mussels with Fennel and Saffron 
Cozze con Finocchio e Zafferano 
From the book Lidia's Celebrate Like an Italian: 220 Foolproof Recipes That Make Every Meal a Party: A Cookbook by Lidia Mattichhio Bastianich and Tanya Bastianich Manuali, copyright 2017 by Tutti a Tavola, LLC. Published by arrangement with Alfred A. Knopf, an imprint of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC. 

You can serve this fun yet elegant dish in individual portions, piling the mussels high on each plate with a ladle. Make sure you distribute the sauce evenly and have plenty of grilled bread on the table, as well as some bowls to collect the shells. Even without the saffron, this is a delicious dish, but the saffron adds a luxuriousness that I love. This recipe is easily scaled up; plan on a pound of mussels per person for a first course, 1 1/2 to 2 pounds for an entree. 

Serves 4 as an appetizer 

1 cup chicken stock 
1 teaspoon saffron threads 
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling 
1 small onion, thinly sliced 
1 medium fennel bulb, trimmed, halved, cored, and thinly sliced lengthwise, 1/4 cup chopped tender fronds reserved 
1 cup dry white wine 
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 
Pinch crushed red pepper flakes 
4 pounds mussels, scrubbed and debearded if necessary 
1/4 cup chopped fresh Italian parsley 
Crusty country bread, for serving 

In a small saucepan, heat the chicken stock to a bare simmer. Add the saffron, and let steep 5 minutes. Keep hot. 

In a large Dutch oven, heat the olive oil over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the onion and fennel. Cook and stir until wilted, about 3 to 4 minutes. 

Add the white wine, salt, and red pepper flakes. Simmer until reduced by half, about 3 minutes. Add the mussels and hot stock. Bring to a simmer, cover, and cook about 3 to 4 minutes, until the mussels are done; discard any that haven’t opened. Stir in the parsley and reserved chopped fennel fronds, stir, and serve with bread. 

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Yellow Coconut Rice Cakes with Scallions and Black Sesame Seeds

I’m an admitted tree hugger and have been for ages. And, my interest in protecting the environment has a direct effect on my food choices. It all started on the campus of the University of Illinois during my first year. There was an Earth Day event at which I learned about how much land around the world was being used for cattle ranching for beef and how much water is used to raise cattle for beef and how negatively the environment is affected by the growing demand for beef. That was the day I made the choice to not eat red meat. Today, there are more food sourcing options. Local, pastured, grass-fed, humanely-raised animals for meat are a much better option than factory-farmed, standard, grocery store fare. Still, growing vegetables is far easier on the earth than raising animals. I continue to not eat red meat, but when I buy it to serve to others, I go with the local, pastured variety. Since I’ve been thinking this way for so long, I was delighted to see a new book about taking some simple steps to reduce our meat intake and improve our health and the planet at the same time. The Reducetarian Solution: How the Surprisingly Simple Act of Reducing the Amount of Meat in Your Diet Can Transform Your Health and the Planet, of which I received a review copy, takes a gentle approach. It doesn’t hit the reader over the head with demands for an end to meat eating. Instead, through a collection of several short essays, the idea of finding easy ways to cut back are presented. My favorite essay was by environmentalist and co-founder of 350.org, Bill McKibben, in which he writes: “reducing factory farming of animals would help a lot in the fight against global warming. The Reducetarian movement meets most people on our planet more or less at their level—they enjoy the taste of meat and yet also worry about our planet’s future.” He goes on to explain how reducing rather than eliminating meat could be very effective. Currently, about 0.5 percent of the American population is vegan. It would be very difficult to convince a significant percent of the population to convert to eating only plants. But, if a third or more Americans would cut their meat intake by a third or half, it would make an undeniable difference in the amount of meat being purchased and in many peoples’ quality of health. After reading the book, I’ve been cooking even more vegetarian meals than usual and cutting our dairy more often as well. This has been easy with books like In My Kitchen because I've already placed flags on several pages for meatless recipes to try.

One of the pages I marked was for the Yellow Coconut Rice with Scallions and Black Sesame Seeds recipe. Deborah Madison offered a couple of great suggestions for what to serve with this rice, and I couldn’t wait to try it with the braised sweet peppers. You have options with this rice. It can be served warm right from the saucepan, or it can be pressed into a pan, chilled, cut into shapes, and browned in oil. It’s also pointed out that long grain rice won’t form solid cakes after being pressed into a pan. Short or medium grain rice is needed. The rice was cooked in a mixture of coconut milk and water with saffron and turmeric. Once cooked, thinly sliced green onions were tossed with the rice. The rice was pressed into a small pan that I lined with parchment paper, and black sesame seeds were sprinkled on top. The pan was refrigerated until set. I went with the diamond shape suggested for the rice cakes and browned them in coconut oil. For the braised peppers, I had a few different varieties from local farms in addition to some hot chiles. They were cooked in coconut oil with minced onion, garlic, and ginger plus cumin and more turmeric. A little coconut milk was added after sauteeing. I topped the browned rice cakes with the braised peppers and garnished with a chiffonade of papalo leaves. 

This rice is so delicious and could be used in so many ways, I predict I’ll be making it repeatedly. Leftover rice cakes can be reheated in the oven, or they can be broken apart and heated in a skillet like fried rice. I enjoyed lunches of leftovers both ways. Choosing plants instead of meat a little more often isn’t difficult at all with great ideas this like for flavorful dishes with always changing seasonal vegetables.

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Saffron Roasted Tomatoes with Labneh

A book focused on eating less meat, more vegetables, and a variety of whole grains and legumes was of course right up my alley. Diana Henry set out to learn more about what is truly healthy eating, and that’s how her new book, A Change of Appetite, came about of which I received a review copy. Not to worry though; this book isn’t about following strict rules or depriving yourself in any way. It’s about eating more fresh food and saving sweet treats for the weekend or special occasions. And the food here isn’t chosen for health benefits alone. Yes, the dishes in this book are healthy, but they were picked because of flavor first. The chapters are divided into seasons, and there are recipes for every meal of the day and even a special menu for each season. Although I mentioned a focus on less meat, there are still meat dishes included like Japanese Ginger and Garlic Chicken with Smashed Cucumber and Whole Roasted Fish with Tahini Dressing and Barley Tabbouleh. The influences on the food range from Middle Eastern to Asian to Scandinavian and Peruvian to name a few. And, I forgot to mention Indian. I can’t wait to try the Home-style Punjabi Lentils with a spicy tomato topping, Lentil and Roasted Tomato Soup with Saffron, and Roopa’s Indian Scrambled Eggs. The photos show off how beautiful these dishes are as well. The Burmese Chile Fish with Hot and Sour Salad; the Pilaf of Mixed Grains, Sweet Potato, and Fennel with Avocado Cream; and the Roasted Tomatoes and Lentils with Dukka-Crumbed Eggs all look irresistible. It’s no secret that I’m always drawn to dishes with saffron. I had to try the Saffron Roasted Tomatoes with Labneh. 

Here in Austin, our tomato season starts early. We actually have two seasons, and by late August we’re in between them. Fall tomatoes will arrive a little later. Luckily, we have farmers who sell at our markets that are from areas just far enough north of the city to still have tomatoes when the heat has ended the early season for other farms. I brought home plum tomatoes from Hairston Creek Farm for this dish. To start, the labneh needs to be made the day before serving. Greek yogurt was mixed with minced garlic, finely chopped parsley, and salt and pepper. It was left in a cheesecloth-lined strainer over a bowl in the refrigerator overnight. The cheesecloth should be twisted up and around the yogurt so it can be squeezed from time to time to release more liquid. The next day, the tomatoes were halved and topped with a mixture of olive oil, harissa, and usually I make my own but I was lazy and bought a jar this time, and saffron. The tomatoes were tossed in the mixture in a roasting pan, and they were placed in the oven for about 45 minutes. The roasted tomatoes were transferred to a serving platter, the labneh was broken into pieces and dotted around the tomatoes, and chopped toasted almonds were sprinkled on top. More saffron was heated with lemon juice and olive oil, and that mixture was drizzled over the top. I served the tomatoes and labneh with warmed pita. 

This was my first time making labneh, and I’ll definitely be doing that again. The tangy yogurt, garlic, and parsley mixture could be used in so many ways. Roasting tomatoes intensifies the flavor, and the saffron gives them a lovely added dimension. The pretty, lemon-saffron oil drizzled on top brought even more color to this bright dish. With so many styles of cooking and such variety of flavors, this book offers new fresh food adventures on every page. 

Sweet Saffron Roasted Tomatoes with Labneh 
Recipe reprinted with publisher’s permission from A Change of Appetite.

Saffron and hot spices, sweet tomato flesh, clean acidic yogurt, there is an irresistible interplay of flavors here. Try to make sure you get some of the saffron juices to smear the labneh; the golden streaks on creamy white yogurt look beautiful. Make this a complete main course by serving couscous on the side, or try kamut flavored with preserved lemons. You can sprinkle either pistachios or almonds on top. 

Serves 8 

For the labneh 
1 3⁄4 cups Greek yogurt 
2 garlic cloves, crushed 
3 tablespoons finely chopped cilantro, mint, or parsley leaves 
pinch of salt 
black pepper 

For the tomatoes 
18 plum tomatoes 
1⁄4 cup olive oil 
2 teaspoons harissa 
good pinch of saffron stamens, plus extra to serve 
1⁄2 tablespoon sugar (unless you have great sweet tomatoes) 

To serve 
Arab flatbread 
1 1⁄2 cups slivered almonds, lightly toasted
juice of 1⁄2 lemon 
1⁄4 cup extra virgin olive oil 
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro leaves 

Make the labneh the day before you want to serve the dish. Line a strainer with a piece of cheesecloth and set it over a bowl. Mix the yogurt with the garlic, herbs, salt, and black pepper. Transfer to the cloth, tie it up, and refrigerate. The yogurt will lose moisture over the next 24 hours, producing a firmer, "cheeselike" substance. Help it along by giving it a squeeze every so often. 

Preheat the oven to 375°F. Halve the tomatoes and lay them in a single layer in a large roasting pan (or two small pans). Mix the regular olive oil, harissa, and saffron and pour the dressing over the tomatoes. Turn the tomatoes over in the oil to make sure they are well coated, ending with them cut side up. Sprinkle with the sugar and season. Roast in the oven for about 45 minutes, or until caramelized and slightly shrunken. Let cool a little. 

Take the labneh out of its cloth. Carefully move the tomatoes (they will be fragile and can fall apart easily) to a serving plate, dotting nuggets of the labneh among them as you work. You can also toast the flatbread, break it up, and arrange it among the tomatoes as well (or serve it on the side). Pour on any cooking juices that have collected in the tomato roasting pan, being sure to douse the flatbread if you have included it within the dish. 

Sprinkle the almonds over the top, then heat another good pinch of saffron stamens with the lemon juice in a small saucepan. Add the extra virgin oil and mix with a spoon. Spoon the mixture over the dish; the golden dressing looks beautiful against the white labneh. Sprinkle with the cilantro and serve warm, or at room temperature. 

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Sea Scallops with Saffron Potatoes and Orange-Meyer Lemon Salsa

I have go-to cookbooks for different purposes, different types of dishes, or different times of year. For instance every year when my birthday is approaching, the book I turn to for special dishes for celebrating with flavors that I love is Sunday Suppers at Lucques by Suzanne Goin published in 2008. It would be an understatement to say that I was a little excited when I learned she was releasing a new book. The A.O.C. Cookbook appeared at the end of last month, and I received a review copy. In a lot of ways, this new book feels like a continuation of Sunday Suppers. The seasonality, style of cooking, and flavors are consistent, but this time rather than menus for meals, the dishes are organized by starters, mains, vegetables, and desserts. The recipes are based on the menu from Goin’s restaurant A.O.C. which focuses on small plates, but in the book, the savory recipes are written to serve six as full courses or appetizers. Each section of the book is divided by season so you can turn to the appropriate time of year for what’s fresh and available at the markets. Also, in this book, Goin’s business partner, Caroline Styne offers wine pairing suggestions for every dish. And, there’s a cheese guide with descriptions of every type ever served at A.O.C. It was interesting to read that Goin has learned from her fans over the years. She knows that some cooks prefer simpler, streamlined recipes and others enjoy a bit of a challenge. In the headnotes, she mentions when a recipe fits that latter category so you know what to expect. I’ve flagged several pages including the ones for Dandelion and Roasted Carrot Salad with Black Olives and Ricotta Salata; Black Bass with Fennel Puree, Winter Citrus, and Green Olives in Green Harissa; Grilled Quail with Couscous, Walnuts, and Pomegranate Salsa; Turmeric-Spiced Root Vegetables with Kaffir Lime Yogurt and Mint Chutney; Torchio with Kabocha Squash, Radicchio, Walnuts, and Taleggio; and Ricotta Cheesecake with Dried Fruit Compote and Walnut Biscotti. And, those are just a few of the fall and winter dishes. 

I’ve tried two items from the book so far. The Butterscotch Pot de Creme with Salted Cashew Cookies was a comfort-food kind of dessert at its best. Sadly, butterscotch is never particularly photogenic, but it is delicious especially paired with a crunchy, nutty cookie. The second dish I made was the Sea Scallops with Saffron Potatoes and Orange-Meyer Lemon Salsa. This was a classic Suzanne Goin dish to my mind due to the lemon zest and herb seasoning applied to the scallops before cooking and the bright-tasting, citrus salsa. I took a couple of liberties with the recipe, and you can see the original version from the book below. Rather than skewering the scallops on trimmed rosemary sprigs and grilling, I seared the scallops in a hot pan. Also, even though blood oranges had appeared at the grocery store the week before I went looking for them, on the day I needed them there were none. I used Cara Cara navels instead which aren’t as deep red in color and are less bitter. It was the best option available, but I wish I could have used blood oranges. For the potatoes, I used fingerlings that I cut into thick chunks. They braised on top of the stove in a bath of saffron, water, and olive oil with onion, and chile de arbol. They absorbed all those lovely flavors while cooking until tender. The plate was assembled with potatoes topped with arugula, then the scallops, and finished with the citrus salsa on top. 

This dish was delightful in every way. The potatoes were both literally and figuratively the foundation. Earthy and mild with hints of saffron and onion in each bite, they countered the bitter, peppery greens while the scallops were sweet bites of the sea. And, the salsa punctuated everything just as it should. It’s going to be a lot of fun to cook from this book from season to season. 

Atlantic Sea Scallops with Saffron Potatoes and Blood Orange–Meyer Lemon Salsa 
Excerpted from The A.O.C. Cookbook by Suzanne Goin. Copyright © 2013 by Suzanne Goin. Excerpted by permission of Knopf, a division of Random House LLC. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher. 

I love the colors of this Sicilian- inspired dish—the deep red, orange, and yellow tones of the salsa spooned over those white scallops and over the mounds of sienna- hued potatoes remind me of an Italian vacation. I was never a big fan of scallops until I tasted the super- sweet, succulent, meaty East Coast diver- caught ones we are lucky enough to get from Steve Connolly in Gloucester, Massachusetts. Seek them out—they are so worth it! This preparation would also work beautifully with halibut, sole, or other white flaky fish. 

NOTE Mexican diver-caught scallops are a good alternative to the Atlantic sea scallops. 

6 branches rosemary, about 7 to 8 inches long 
18 Atlantic sea scallops, each about 2 ounces 
1 tablespoon Meyer lemon zest 
2 tablespoons finely diced shallots 
1 tablespoon champagne vinegar 
2 Meyer lemons 
3 large blood oranges 
1 cup extra-virgin olive oil 
1 tablespoon sliced mint 
1 teaspoon saffron threads 
2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1 1/2-inch chunks 
1 cup diced red onion 
1 tablespoon thyme leaves 
1 chile de arbol, crumbled 
2 ounces young dandelion greens or arugula 
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper 

Remove the rosemary leaves from the branches except for 2 inches at the bottom of each. Cut the leafless end of each branch at an angle with a sharpknife to make a point and coarsely chop the picked rosemary leaves. Season the scallops with the lemon zest and 1 1/2 tablespoons chopped rosemary. Skewer three scallops onto each rosemary branch. Cover and refrigerate. Place the shallots, champagne vinegar, and a healthy pinch of salt in a small bowl, and let sit for 5 minutes. 

Cut away the stem and blossom ends from the Meyer lemons. Stand the lemons on one end, and cut them vertically into 1/8-inch slices (keeping the rinds on). Stack the slices in small piles on a cutting board, and cut them lengthwise into 1/8-inch thick matchsticks. Line up the matchsticks, and cut them into 1/8-inch cubes. Cut away the stem and blossom ends from two blood oranges. Place the oranges cut- side down on a cutting board. Following the contour of the fruit with your knife, remove the peel and cottony white pith, working from top to bottom, and rotating the fruit as you go. Then hold the oranges in your hand, one at a time, and carefully slice between the membranes and the fruit to release the segments in between. Add the diced lemon, blood- orange segments, their juices, and the juice of the remaining orange to the shallot mixture. Stir in 1/2 cup olive oil, the mint, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and a few grinds of pepper. 

Light the grill 30 to 40 minutes before cooking, and take the scallops out of the refrigerator. Place the saffron in a small bowl, and pour 1 cup warm water over it. 

Heat a large Dutch oven over high heat for 1 minute. Swirl in 1/4 cup olive oil, and wait 1 minute. Add the onion, thyme, chile, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and a few grindings of black pepper. Reduce the heat to medium, and sauté for about 3 minutes, stirring often, until the onion is translucent. Turn up the heat to medium- high. Add the potatoes and 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and season with 1 teaspoon salt and a few grindings of pepper. Don’t stir the pan for a couple of minutes while the potato edges sear in the hot oil and form a nice crust. Lift and tilt the pan to distribute the oil evenly. After 3 to 4 minutes, firmly shake the pan to loosen the potatoes. Turn with a wooden spoon and cook for another 3 minutes, stirring to coat with the onions. Add the saffron water. Stir to combine, cover the pot, reduce the heat to low, and let simmer for about 25 minutes, until the potatoes are nicely glazed and tender when poked with a paring knife. If at any point the liquid starts to dry up, add a little more water. The saffron potatoes should be glazed, neither dry nor soupy. Turn off heat, and put the lid halfway on. When the coals are broken down, red, and glowing, brush the scallops with remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil, and season with salt and pepper on both sides. 

Place the skewered scallops on the grill, and cook for 4 minutes, rotating once to create crosshatch marks and a browned crust. Flip the scallops, move them to a cooler side of the grill, and cook for another 1 to 2 minutes, until they’re medium-rare. Spoon the hot saffron potatoes into the center of six dinner plates, scatter the dandelion, and place the scallop skewers on top. Spoon the blood orange-Meyer lemon salsa over the scallops. 

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Chard, Ricotta, and Saffron Cakes

Rather than saying “eat your vegetables,” what I really want to say is “make the most of the beautiful, delicious vegetables that are growing right now.” The tables at the farm stands and farmers’ markets are overflowing. The greens are back, root vegetables are here, and we’re lucky enough to still be getting some summery things like corn, eggplant, and the very last of the second-season tomatoes. I’ve been so excited about all the pretty vegetables lately; I’m even considering skipping the turkey for our Thanksgiving menu. I’m imagining a feast of all vegetables. There’s always something stunning in our CSA box too, and I’ve been grabbing my copy of Vegetable Literacy for inspiration for using it all. A couple of weeks ago, I opened our box to find just-picked, stunning radishes and baby turnips. The greens, still attached, were perfectly fresh. I made the Finely Shaved Radish, Turnip, and Carrot Salad with Manchego and Spicy Greens from the book. The radish and turnip tops were sliced into a chiffonade and tossed with the thin discs of root vegetables cut on a mandoline. The salad was dressed with lemon and olive oil, topped with sprouts, and gilded with shaved Manchego. Turnips aren’t always an easy sell, but when they’re this fresh and mixed into such a bright, flavorful salad, they don’t last long. With our next CSA delivery, I found a fetching bunch of big, red Swiss chard leaves that deserved a good recipe for them. A quick look at Vegetable Literacy turned up little, savory pancakes made with chopped chard, ricotta, and saffron. It sounded perfect. 

The chard leaves were cut from the stems, washed, and cooked with just the water clinging to the leaves until wilted. The leaves were drained, left to cool, and then squeezed to remove excess water. I held onto the stems and used them as well. A couple of pinches of saffron were covered with two tablespoons of boiling water and left to steep for a few minutes. Meanwhile, flour, salt and baking powder were combined in a small bowl. In a larger bowl, ricotta, parmesan, milk, and eggs were whisked together before olive oil and the saffron were added. The dry ingredients were whisked into the ricotta mixture, and then the drained and squeezed chard leaves were finely chopped and added to the batter. The batter was dropped by the spoonful into a hot skillet with a small bit of olive oil. You want to cook the cakes over medium heat to allow enough time for them to cook through before getting too brown on one side. They cooked for about three minutes per side. They could be garnished in all sorts of ways including dollops of sour cream or yogurt and diced pieces of roasted beets or micro greens as Deborah Madison suggested. I had some creme fraiche on hand, so I used that for a topping. Also, we had received some fresh corn that I cut from the cob and sauteed in browned butter. After sauteing the corn, I sauteed the chopped chard stems keeping them separated to prevent the red stems from staining the yellow corn. Both were used on top of the creme fraiche. Last, I fried some sage leaves from my herb garden in the brown butter to add one more color to the presentation. 

These chard cakes were rich and tasty with the ricotta and eggs, and I always love the flavor of saffron. However, these would still be great without saffron. I can’t wait to see what the farms deliver next week. And, I can’t wait to find the right recipes for using it all. I just have to stop myself from bringing home more vegetables than we can eat. 

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Fried Eggs with Chard and Saffron-Red Pepper Hollandaise

I realized the other day that I categorize cooking in a few different ways in my head. There’s the day-to-day cooking that can be done on autopilot. And, there’s cooking from a recipe when I just need to check quantities but otherwise pretty much know what to do when. Then, there’s the exciting stuff that makes me think “now I’m really cooking.” Making sauces falls squarely in that last category. I received a review copy of Modern Sauces by Martha Holmberg, and I can’t seem to put it down. The instructions throughout the book take the fear out of making serious sauces. There are helpful tips, suggestions of what to look for as the sauce cooks, and ways to rescue a sauce that isn’t turning out quite right. The chapters are organized by type of sauce, and those include Vinaigrettes, Herb Sauces, Tomato Sauces, Vegetable Chile and Nut Sauces, Butter Sauces, Cream Sauces, Mayonnaise Sauces, Hollandaise Sauces, Gravy Jus and Pan Sauces, Sabayon Sauces, Custard Sauces, Fruit Sauces, Caramel Sauces, and Chocolate Sauces. There are recipes for several versions of each type of sauce which are followed by recipes for dishes incorporating those sauces. I’ve already made several things from the book, and there’s so much more I can’t wait to try. I want to drizzle the Honey-Ginger-Tangerine Sabayon over fresh strawberries, and I want to add the Fresh Orange-Smoked Paprika Vinaigrette to an arugula salad with grilled shrimp. I already made the Braised Vegetables in Charmoula and the Jalapeno-Lime-Ginger Butter Sauce with stir-fried vegetables. It’s amazing how just a small bit of sauce with big, bright flavors can change a dish. After reading the Chocolate Sauces chapter, I declared that I needed to try each and every version. So far, I’ve only gotten to the Mexican-Style Chocolate Sauce, and I’ll tell you more about that soon. First, I have to mention this lovely spin on a classic which is Saffron-Red Pepper Hollandaise. 

Classic Hollandaise is a beautiful thing, and adding the flavor and color from roasted red peppers, orange juice, and saffron took it to another level. In the book, the sauce is included in an eggs Benedict kind of dish made with sauteed Swiss chard and a fried egg stacked on toasted foccacia. I changed it up just slightly by leaving out the bread and adding a couple of slices of smoked salmon below the egg. Making the sauce requires a couple of easy steps to get everything prepped and ready for the final whisking action. Butter was melted and left to sit so the milk solids could fall to the bottom of the pan. Meanwhile, roasted red peppers were pureed with olive oil. I used a food processor which didn’t result in a perfectly smooth puree, so I strained the mixture and set it aside. Then, you’ll want to have your eggs separated and some orange zest ready. In a heat-proof bowl set over a saucepan with water, you start by warming orange juice with saffron threads. The egg yolks were added next and whisked into the juice. By whisking as the yolks slowly cook, they start to thicken. The recipe includes clear information on what to look for and how long each step should take. Once the yolks were just thick enough, the melted butter was slowly added off the heat while still whisking and the milk solids were left in the bottom of the pan. Last, pepper puree, orange zest, and hot sauce if desired were added, and the sauce was tasted for seasoning. The sauce can be kept warm in the top of a double-boiler while frying the eggs and making the rest of the dish. 

I loved everything about this sauce from making it, to its pretty orange color, to its decadent, orange and saffron flavor. I’m not quite ready to make Hollandaise on autopilot, but I’ll definitely be making it again soon unless I get completely distracted by the Caramel chapter first. I have a feeling this book is going to be spattered and stained from lots of use. 

Saffron–Red Pepper Hollandaise 
Recipes reprinted with publisher’s permission from Modern Sauces. 

I doubt if any Provencal cook has ever made this version of hollandaise, but I liked the way the flavors in it conjured up a south-of-France feeling as I made it, so I’m projecting a Provencal connection here. Use a nice, fruity extra-virgin olive oil to extend the Mediterranean note.This sauce begs to be served with seafood, especially hot and sizzling from the grill, and it’s crazy good on a gutsier version of eggs Florentine. Jarred Spanish piquillo peppers are excellent in this sauce. You’ll need about three peppers. Or, you can use regular jarred roasted red peppers, in which case one medium pepper should be sufficient. And, of course, you can roast and peel a fresh pepper. 

Makes about 1 cup/240 ml 

1/2 cup/115 g unsalted butter 
2 oz/55 g roasted red peppers 
2 tbsp fruity extra-virgin olive oil 
2 tbsp fresh orange juice, plus more if needed 
1 tbsp water 
Kosher salt 
Large pinch of saffron threads (about 15 threads) 
2 egg yolks 
1/2 tsp lightly packed finely grated orange zest 
1⁄8 tsp hot-pepper sauce such as Sriracha 

In a small saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Don’t stir as it melts. You want the milky solids to fall to the bottom and the butterfat to float to the top. Keep warm. 

In a food processor, combine the red peppers and olive oil and process until a smooth puree forms. You want to emulsify the oil with the peppers; the mixture should look creamy and combined. 

Pour water to a depth of 1 to 2 in/2.5 to 5 cm into a medium saucepan and place over medium heat. Rest a medium stainless-steel bowl in the pan over (not touching) the water. Put the orange juice, water, ¼ tsp salt, and saffron into the bowl and let sit over the heat for a few minutes so the saffron infuses the liquid. When you can smell the saffron, add the egg yolks and start whisking. As the bowl heats up, the yolks will begin to thicken. Whisk vigorously, scraping around the bowl with a heat-resistant rubber spatula from time to time so that bits of yolk don’t get stuck and overcook. Beat until thick and frothy but not quite fluffy, 3 to 4 minutes. The whisk will start leaving a clear space on the bottom of the bowl. Remove the bowl from the heat and whisk for another 30 seconds or so to stabilize the sauce and let the bowl cool down. 

Continue whisking as you slowly drizzle in the warm melted butter, taking care not to add too much of the milky-watery layer from the bottom of the pan. As you pour and whisk, make sure the yolks are accepting the butter and the yolks and butter are emulsifying. If the sauce looks at all broken or “curdly,” stop adding butter and just whisk for a few seconds. Only resume adding butter once you’ve whisked the sauce into creaminess again. Once all of the butter has been added, whisk in the pepper puree, the orange zest, and hot-pepper sauce. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt, hot-pepper sauce, and orange juice if needed. If possible, serve right away. 

Fried Eggs with Garlicky Chard and Saffron-Red Pepper Hollandaise 

Note: For my version, I skipped the toasted bread and added slices of smoked salmon before topping with a fried egg. I also never bother to boil chard before sauteing.

Here is another recipe created by my friend Matthew Card. It’s a riff on eggs Florentine (eggs Benedict but with spinach instead of Canadian bacon or ham) and, like every dish he makes, it is turbocharged with flavor. It would also be delicious with any of the other sauces in this chapter, so feel free to experiment. Avoid using a hard-crusted bread here. If you can’t find focaccia, substitute something tender and flavorful, such as brioche or a soft Italian loaf. Peppadew peppers, which originated in South Africa, are sweet, tangy, and only modestly hot. They are pickled and sold in jars in the deli section of well-stocked grocery stores. 

Serves 4 

Kosher salt 
1 large bunch Rainbow or Bright Lights Swiss chard (12 oz/340 g), leaves and stems separated and stems cut crosswise into slices 1/4 in/6 mm thick 
4 tbsp/60 ml extra-virgin olive oil 
3 cloves garlic, minced 
Pinch of Espelette pepper or red pepper flakes 
1/2 cup/80 g thinly sliced jarred roasted red pepper 
4 tsp minced pickled Peppadew pepper 
4 large eggs 
4 pieces focaccia, toasted 
1 cup/240 ml Saffron–Red Pepper Hollandaise 

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add the chard leaves (not the stems) and cook, stirring occasionally, until just tender, 3 to 5 minutes. Drain, rinse well with cold water, and squeeze out as much excess water as possible. Chop coarsely and set aside. 

In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, heat 3 tbsp of the olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the chard stems and a large pinch of salt and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender and lightly browned, 6 to 9 minutes. Add the garlic and Espelette pepper and cook, stirring, until very fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in the cooked chard leaves, roasted pepper, and Peppadew pepper. Cook, stirring often, until the flavors are blended and the chard is hot, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a medium bowl and cover to keep warm. Do not rinse the pan. 

Break each egg into a small teacup. Return the frying pan to low heat and add the remaining 1 tbsp oil. Carefully slide the eggs from the teacups into the pan so they stay whole. Season them with salt, cover the pan, and cook until the eggs are just set, 2 to 3 minutes. 

Place a piece of focaccia on each plate, divide the chard mixture evenly among the focaccia, top with an egg, and then spoon a generous blanket of the warm hollandaise over the top. Serve right away. 

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Rice with Wild Mushrooms

There's only one way to keep food traditions alive, and that is by cooking. I was taken in by the following quote from Rustica: A Return to Spanish Home Cooking: "we cooks are simply the vehicles for these dishes to take shape. Without us they would simply remain ideas or words on a page--so whenever we cook these recipes, we invoke the idea of the food itself." This is the latest book from Frank Camorra of which I received a review copy. The goal of the book is to preserve the traditional dishes of Spain where the food ranges from simple, resourceful cooking to postmodernist art on a plate. Camorra set out to gather simple dishes that are "the foundations of Spanish food" and that still fit with the way people eat today. The recipes are mostly from home cooks with a few tapas or pintxos usually found in bars. The chapters are organized by topic or region, and my favorite was Las Huertas or The Kitchen Gardens. Huertas are found all across Spain, and they are small plots where families can grow most of their own food. There are simple vegetable dishes like Green Beans with Garlic Confit and Summer Chickpea Cream with Ripe Tomatoes along with heartier stews as well as desserts like the Red and White Cherries with Fresh Goat's Curd Ice Cream. The other chapters cover dishes with jamon, recipes for preserving vegetables, fish, and fruit, coastal specialties, Basque cooking, cooking over fire with wood or coals, and the Moorish legacy of food from Andalusia. Throughout each section, along with the beautiful photos, there are stories about cooks, markets, ingredients, traditions and more that help to paint the picture of all that Spanish food is.

To get cooking, I started with Las Huertas chapter and a dish that's intended to stretch a special ingredient for several people to enjoy. That special ingredient in this case is a wild mushroom known as trompetas de la muerte, and by cooking the mushrooms with rice you end up with a generous-size paella of sorts. Of course, I wasn't able to find this exact type of mushroom, and really wild mushrooms aren't that easy to come by here, but I did bring home some locally cultivated oyster mushrooms and shitakes. I also just happened to have some Bomba rice in the pantry, and this was a perfect time to use it. The dish is prepared like paella by first cooking onion, garlic, and herbs with saffron before adding some wine and then tomatoes. I used canned, diced tomatoes rather than the fresh ones that would have been flavorless right now. Next, some stock was added followed by the rice. In a separate pan, the mushrooms were sauteed with more garlic and some parsley. After the rice was cooked until tender, the mushrooms were added to it, and it was left to sit for a few minutes before serving.

The rice picked up all the flavors from the onion, garlic, wine, and saffron, and even though the mushrooms I used weren't specially foraged wild ones, they were still a great match with the rice. I'm easy to please with the saffron, pimenton, seafood, and sherry that are all a part of Spanish food. And, I'm happy to keep cooking to help continue food traditions.

Arroz con trompetas de la muerte (Rice with wild mushrooms)
Recipe re-printed with publisher's permission from Rustica: A Return to Spanish Home Cooking.

When you have something good and you want to share it around, but there’s not enough for a big piece for everyone, the Spanish answer is to put it in a soup or a rice dish. Time and time again, right across Spain, there are rice dishes that somehow champion the guest ingredient without detracting from the integrity of the rice. The champion in this case is a wild mushroom called trompetas de la muerte (trumpets of death). These mushrooms are so named not because they herald the demise of the ingestor but because they are black and look like little trumpets!

6 raciones

extra virgin olive oil
a pinch of saffron threads
1 large white onion, finely sliced
2 teaspoons coarse sea salt
4 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon thyme leaves
3 bay leaves
1 1/8 cups white wine such as verdelho
4 ripe tomatoes, peeled and puréed
6 1/2 cups chicken stock
1 1/4 cups Calasparra rice
2 tablespoons butter
a handful of roughly chopped parsley
9 oz fresh trompetas de la muerte (if unavailable, use sliced chanterelle, shiitake, or oyster or other wild mushrooms)

Heat half of the olive oil in a perol or frying pan over mediumhigh heat. Add the saffron and stir for 30 seconds, then add the onion and 1/2 teaspoon of the sea salt and cook for 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add half of the sliced garlic cloves, all of the thyme and bay leaves and cook, stirring occasionally, for another 5 minutes, or until the garlic is soft.

Increase the heat to high, then add the wine and boil for 2 minutes. Reduce the heat to medium, add the tomatoes and cook for 10 minutes, or until the tomatoes have reduced and thickened. Add the stock and bring to a boil, then stir in the rice and remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer very gently, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the butter and the remaining olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the remaining sliced garlic and the parsley and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes, or until the garlic is lightly browned. Add the mushrooms, season to taste and sauté for 5 minutes, or until tender.

When the rice has been cooking for 20 minutes and is tender, stir in the mushrooms. Remove from the heat and allow to stand for 10 minutes before serving.

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Harissa and Yogurt Chicken with Persian-spiced Pilaf

Sometimes you’re in the mood for Indian food or Italian food or Chinese food. The other day, I was in the mood for Donna Hay food. I’m not sure that even makes sense to me, but I’ll attempt to explain it. Donna Hay recipes are always full of interesting flavors, and the preparations are never too fussy. That was the kind of meal I wanted to make for dinner. In her book, Off the Shelf, there’s a dish called Persian-spiced pilaf with harissa-seared beef, and there’s another one called harissa and yogurt baked chicken. I swapped the chicken for the beef, and that was my dinner plan. You can buy harissa in a jar, but I almost always seem to have some that I’ve made in the refrigerator. I started making it a couple of years ago and figured out it’s a perfect condiment for baked sweet potato fries which is why I usually have some on hand. I make the version from Sunday Suppers at Lucques, and it’s smoky and just spicy enough. So, the chicken was marinated in a mixture of yogurt, harissa, cumin, and mint, and that was sure to be a good thing. The Persian-spiced pilaf brought cinnamon, cardamom, and saffron to the meal, and the spice aromas filled the kitchen and lingered through the house.

Although this recipe doesn’t require the chicken to be marinated in advance, I always feel like chicken for any dish should be seasoned several hours or the day before cooking. But, I forgot this time. I mixed the marinade as suggested with cornstarch, yogurt, harissa, shredded mint, and cumin, and spread it over the chicken pieces. It sat while the oven pre-heated. There was no need to worry since these were big flavors, and they found their way into the chicken without any problems. As the chicken roasted, the pilaf was made with basmati rice steamed in vegetable stock with a cinnamon stick, three green cardamom pods, and a pinch of saffron. You know you’re in for a good meal when it smells as good as this one did as it cooked.

This delivered exactly what I was craving both in terms of preparing it and eating it. The yogurt kept the chicken tender, the spices worked their magic, and my work in making the meal mostly involved sitting down with a book while the chicken roasted and the rice steamed. And, when are you not in the mood for a meal like that?

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The Ultimate Winter Couscous

I had a couple of little butternut squashes that I’d been neglecting, and a turnip collection sat hopeful but lonely in the vegetable bin. It was time to find a good winter dish where they’d be put to use. That didn’t take long once I grabbed my copy of Plenty. The recipe really is called the ultimate winter couscous, but I don’t think that means you have to stick to it too precisely. You could use any type of winter squash, and turnips weren’t even mentioned in the ingredient list, but I was sure they’d be fine. What was in that list was carrots, parsnips, shallots, dried apricots, chickpeas, chopped preserved lemon, harissa, and lots of spices. The vegetables were to be roasted until tender and sweet, and I could imagine the smell of the spices filling the kitchen before the oven was even warmed. I think this is the ultimate winter dish because it really couldn’t go wrong. It was full of warm spice flavors, sweet roasted charm, and perky acidity and heat.

First, big chunks of all the vegetables needed to be roasted, and I used carrots, parsnips, turnips, and butternut squash. Shallots were added to the roasting pan along with cinnamon sticks, star anise, bay leaves, ground ginger, ground turmeric, hot paprika, chile flakes, olive oil, and salt. After roasting for a bit, chopped dried apricots, chickpeas, and a little water were added to the pan. Just before the vegetables were ready, couscous was added to boiling water with saffron and olive oil. After the couscous had absorbed the water, butter was added, and the couscous was mixed and fluffed. When the roasting pan was removed from the oven, a big spoonful of harissa and some chopped preserved lemon rind were stirred into the vegetables. The couscous was served topped with the roasted vegetables and some chopped cilantro leaves.

This was such a fragrant dish, and it hit on just about every flavor you can name. The preserved lemon added little sparks of brightness here and there while the cilantro brought some fresh herbiness. The flavors of all the vegetables had become sweeter and more intense from roasting, and the spices permeated each bite. This was an ultimate winter dish, and I’ll remember it next time my butternut squash or turnips or parsnips are feeling overlooked.

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Saffron Panna Cotta with Rhubarb Marmellata

Last Tuesday, I was reading a post on Cooked Books when I had to stop everything. You see, Rebecca mentioned that there’s a recipe archive on Babbo’s web site. Well, that set off a flurry of clicks, and I couldn’t get my printer flicked on fast enough. Babbo’s recipes are right there, ordered alphabetically, free for all. I don’t know how often the archive is updated or how complete it is or isn’t, but I quickly found several recipes to stack on top of my to-cook pile. The first of those was this panna cotta with rhubarb from Gina DePalma.

Part two of this story is that I had never before in my life cooked rhubarb. I have no excuse either, so it is clearly my Mom’s fault. She never cooked rhubarb that I remember, so I had no history with it at home. I’ve eaten it but never cooked it or had it at home. I had no idea what I was missing. It’s so easy, and it just makes a nice, thick sauce all by itself. And, now there’s sure to be rhubarb in my kitchen each time it’s in season. For this marmellata, it was chopped in one-quarter inch thick slices and cooked until soft with sugar and the scrapings of a vanilla bean. That was allowed to cool. For the panna cotta, gelatin sheets were softened while cream, sugar, lemon zest, and saffron threads were brought to a boil in a saucepan. That was left to steep for 10 minutes before the gelatin sheets were squeezed and added. Once the gelatin dissolved, the mixture was poured through a sieve, milk was added, and this was poured into ramekins. The ramekins were chilled until set.

To serve, the panna cotta was gracefully turned out of the ramekins, and the rhubarb marmellata was spooned on top. In reality, as I plopped the first serving out of its ramekin, it of course fell apart and broke into blobs on the plate. I had to try two more times before getting a photogenic one. All of this meant that we ended up with three desserts on plates for two people, and we didn’t mind that at all. I was feeling very full after dessert but happily so. I really love the unique flavor of saffron and with the lemon zest, the panna cotta was divine. The rhubarb topping which was thickened just enough all on its own, with its sweet and tart character and underlying vanilla, was a perfect match.

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Shellfish with Saffron, Tomato, Shallot, and White Wine

Serves two:

1 medium to large shallot finely diced

3 garlic cloves, sliced

3 T olive oil

1 c diced tomato, canned if out of season

1 c white wine such as sauvignon blanc

2 pinches saffron

11 black mussels

11 littleneck clams

8 fresh Gulf shrimp, u20, shelled and deveined

2 T chopped fresh parsley

in a five quart pot, saute shallot and garlic in olive oil over medium heat until fragrant; add tomato, wine, and saffron and bring to a boil; add all shellfish and cover for five minutes; remove shellfish as it is done (mussels may open before clams and shrimp will cook more quickly if closer to the bottom of the pot); place shellfish in two big soup bowls with tomato-wine liquid ladeled over top; garnish with chopped parsley; serve with toasted garlic bread to soak up the delicious saffron tomato broth.

--This was an easy Sunday night shellfish meal. We enjoyed this with whole grain garlic toast and a salad of mixed greens.

*Kurt expressed his delight with this dish without even being asked!

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