Pasta Bolognese

As I mentioned in my last post, the keywords in my kitchen lately have been quick and easy. Still, I've missed the experience of really immersing myself in an elaborate recipe. I've been dying to get my hands dirty, try something new, and cook up something blogworthy. So the second I had a long, lazy Sunday afternoon in front of me, I decided to make a batch of pasta bolognese.

A good red sauce and a glass of wine is pretty much all it takes to make me happy. Unfortunately, I married a bonafide tomato hater. So I've spent the last few years collecting delicious pasta recipes that are completely tomato-free. Still, it's been my not-so-secret mission to convert my husband over to the side of justice and all that is good in the world. Bolognese was clearly the solution. Unlike the bright, assertive tomato flavor of a marinara, the tomato in ragu bolognese is tempered by the addition of rich, creamy milk. The whole thing simmers for a couple of hours, mellowing to an earthy, comforting sauce that even a tomato hater will crave.

My husband had two heaping bowls. The only "failure" of the entire undertaking was how effortless the recipe turned out to be. After chopping up the veggies and browning the meat, I looked at the recipe, did a double take, then looked again. "Is that it?!" I said out loud, feeling vaguely cheated of the relaxing chore of cooking. 15 minutes of work, then an hour and a half of twiddling my thumbs. Consider the quick and easy streak unbroken.

Pasta Bolognese (inspired by Mario Batali)

The orange-clogged one has yet to lead me wrong on a recipe. The only minor change I made was to substitute fennel for the celery and beef for the veal. I also cut down on the fat a bit. Between the meat and the pancetta, there was plenty of fat in the pan to keep the sauce rich and flavorful.

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon butter
1 pound ground chuck
1 pound ground pork
1 carrot, diced
1 medium onion, peeled and diced
1 fennel bulb, diced
1 clove garlic, sliced
¼ pound pancetta, diced
Just over half of a small can of tomato paste
1 cup milk
¼ cup vermouth or 1 cup dry white wine
Salt to taste
Grated Parmesan cheese, for serving

1. In a large, heavy-bottomed saucepan (I used my 5½ quart Le Creuset), heat the oil and butter, then add the carrots, onion, and fennel and cook over medium heat until the vegetables are soft but not browned (about 10-15 minutes).

2. Add the beef, pork, and pancetta and cook over high, stirring to keep the meat from sticking. Cook until the meat is browned.

3. Add the vermouth, then add the milk and tomato paste and simmer, covered, over medium-low heat, for 1 to 1½ hours. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

4. Serve over pasta of your choice, with plenty of Parmesan for scattering over.

Fig and Prosciutto Pizza

 

I apologize, I've been an absentee blogger. Nine (!!) months ago, I decided to start this little blog because I had a lot of free time on my hands. Recently, things have taken a turn for the busy, which is great for my life, but not so great for my blog. And it's not just blogging that has dropped off precipitously. Trust me when I say that you wouldn't want to read about the things that have been taking place in my kitchen this past month. Some jarred sauces are involved. I may have eaten a bag of jalapeno chips for dinner one night. Don't judge me.

In short, lately the keyword has been convenience. Luckily, there are solutions that fall somewhere in between potato chip dinner and four-hour long noodle project in terms of effort. Pre-made pizza dough, available at many supermarkets (including Trader Joes) is a real time-saver. Add some creative toppings, and you have a dish that's tasty enough to serve any day of the week.

Fig & Prosciutto Pizza (Inspired by Todd English)

I added mozzarella to the mix to make this pizza extra cheesy. I think straight blue cheese would have been a little too intense for my taste. I also threw some dressed arugula on top, which added a really nice tart/bitter edge that offset the sweetness of the fig jam.

Scant 1/2 cup blue cheese (I used Point Reyes)
1 fist-sized ball of fresh mozzarella
4 slices of prosciutto
1 ball of pre-made pizza dough
3 green onions
6 oz. jar of fig jam (I used Blue Chair)
Flour for dusting
Olive oil for baking pizza

2 large handfuls of arugula
1 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
2 tablespoons best-quality olive oil
Pinch of sea salt

1. Leave the dough on your countertop for about half an hour, so it can come up to room temperature. You should also refrigerate the mozzerella for at least half an hour, or until it is firm enough to shred.

2. While your dough/cheese are warming up/cooling down, slice the prosciutto into bite-sized pieces, rinse and dry the arugula, clean and thinly slice the green onions.

3. Preheat your oven to 525 degrees Farenheit.

4. Flour a cutting board well. I find it easier to split the dough into two pieces, rolling each one out into a rectangle about 12" by 8". As you can see from the photo, I use the term "rectangle" very loosely. This makes a fairly thin crust (but not cracker thin). Place a piece of tin foil on a baking sheet and lightly oil the foil. Set one of your rectangles of dough on the foil. Repeat with the other piece of dough and a second baking sheet.

5. Rope your husband into shredding the mozzarella while you are rolling out the dough. Then mix the shredded mozzarella together with the crumbled blue cheese.

6. Assemble both pizzas in the same way: first spread a little less than half of the jar of fig jam over the surface of the dough. I used the entire jar of jam to make this, but next time I would leave back about two tablespoons. Break up any large pieces of fig with your fingers. Scatter half of the cheese mixture generously over the jam, leaving about an inch around the edge to accommodate the ooze from melting. Then top with half of the green onions and prosciutto. Repeat with the second pizza.

7. Place pizzas in oven for 15-17 minutes. While they are cooking, make a quick vinaigrette with red wine vinegar, a splash of balsamic, olive oil, and a pinch of sea salt. Dress the arugula and set aside.

8. After 15 minutes or so, your pizzas should be done. The crust will be slightly browned at the edges and the cheese will be bubbling hot. You should be able to lift the pizzas off of the foil very easily with a spatula. Top with dressed arugula, slice, and serve.

Sweet Corn and Chanterelle Soup

I have a serious weakness for simple pureed vegetable soups. Done correctly, they capture the essence of their main ingredient: sweet spring peas, creamy butternut squash, or roasted red pepper, for example. Some people's eyes light up when they see artisanal cocktails or a great cheese selection on a restaurant's menu, but spotting a sweet corn soup with smoked shrimp is what set my stomach rumbling on a recent excursion to Frances, a newish restaurant in Castro that's been getting rave reviews. It was by far the best course of the evening, and not one week later, I found myself craving another bowlful of summery corn soup in the worst way.

For my base, I used a recipe by Alice Waters. Cooking a seasonal soup with just a few ingredients screamed of her style to me, and this recipe really delivered. I added my own little twist, garnishing the soup with a dollop of creme fraiche and chives, and a handful of sauteed chanterelles. The result was like summer in a bowl.

Sweet Corn and Chanterelle Soup (adapted from The Art of Simple Food by Alice Waters)
2 tablespoons butter
4 ears of fresh shucked corn
1 medium-sized yellow onion, diced
1 quart (4 cups) of water
Two large handfuls of chanterelle mushrooms
Splash of olive oil
3-4 tablespoons creme fraiche
1 tablespoon snipped chives
Salt to taste

1. Melt the butter and cook the onion over medium heat in a heavy-bottomed pot for about 15 minutes. Do not allow the onions to brown. Season with a healthy pinch of salt.

2. Meanwhile, in a prep bowl, hold a shucked ear of corn upright and remove the kernels with a small, serrated knife. Repeat with the remaining ears of corn.

3. Add the corn kernels to the onion/butter mixture and cook for 2-3 minutes. Cover with 1 quart of water, bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes.

4. While the soup is cooking, clean and slice the chanterelles. Heat up a splash of olive oil in a small frying pan and cook the chanterelles with a pinch of kosher salt for about 3-4 minutes, or until they are soft.

5. Puree the soup in batches. Waters suggests passing the puree through a mesh strainer, but this step is a little too "restaurant-y" for my style, so I left it as is. Salt to taste. I added about three more pinches of salt.

TO SERVE: Place five or six mushrooms in the bottom of a bowl and spoon over about a cup of soup. Then add a generous dollop of creme fraiche and scatter some chives over the top. Some fresh cracked black pepper is excellent here.