Weeknight Pasta with Spicy Scallops, Fiddlehead Ferns and Mozzarella
For Two

4-6 scallops
2 oz dry spaghetti (I used whole wheat bionaturae spaghetti. I actually like the flavor of it.)
1-2 oz fresh mozzarella, chopped into chunks
1 medium leek, chopped in short thin strips, white & light green only
4 oz fiddlehead ferns, cleaned and trimmed (can sub asparagus, tender wild greens, or chicories)
1 C white wine
1 T butter
2 tsp chili flakes, divided
salt & pepper

Salt & pepper the scallops; sprinkle sparingly with chili flakes. Bring water to boil, and prep all ingredients.

Begin cooking the pasta. Meanwhile, cook the leeks at medium low heat for 5-10 minutes until coloring. Add 1 tsp chili flakes and fiddlehead ferns. Cook 2 minutes at medium high heat. Add about 1/2 C white wine and cover loosely with a lid; reduce heat to medium.

In a very hot pan (cast iron would work best), sear the scallops and turn only when browned at high heat. If sticking when turning over, do not force. Add 1/2 cup wine, wait a moment and wiggle them free to flip.

Add the pasta to the fiddlehead and leek mixture, turning heat up to medium high. Add the mozzarella and toss quickly. Plate with the scallops on top.

I made a pilgrimage to Rainbow Grocery over the weekend and scored some fiddlehead ferns, raw chocolate and among other things ramps. I spent most of the day thinking up how I should use said ingredients, with ramps and fiddleheads being new to my kitchen–I searched around and figured out the jist of what I intend to do (fish with ramps), but made my way to the grocery to pick up some fish to top it all off.

I was hunting for halibut cheeks, and while my fishmonger didn’t have any for me, he did offer up the halibut’s belly (he disappeared into a walk in fridge and came out with the collar of the fish, and proceeded to slice a beautiful filet off for me) and I did take 3 oz of it home for just $0.58. “Fish Scraps for Stock,” it was labeled. Thanks, fishmonger!

Turns out, I’ve been fooled my entire life. You can pop corn kernels in a paper bag in your microwave. Like normal microwave popcorn. For the same amount of time. Without all the hydrogenated shelf stable oil crap. And you can totally reuse the bag (like, from bringing two pints of ice cream home from the corner store and then several times as a popcorn bag)!

I don’t know if anyone else has been torn about giving in to this trend in restaurants lately– $6 or more a pop for specialty popcorns like maple-bacon, chipotle caramel, truffle butter, and more variations with bacon. I imagine ones with curry and indian spices, meta-gourmet (you know, we’re so gourmet that we serve sweet breads even though they are totally ghetto? the gentrification of food?) powdered cheeses and whatnot have been done too. I have to admit, I’ve given in to it. Woe was me spending $8 on a small bowl of popcorn and a $10 cocktail.

So I’ve been making healthier things lately (have you noticed?), and so I looked into air-popped popcorn. I was convinced without a $30 contraption I’d be forced to eat fake butter flavor and pay $4/a packet for Newman’s Own popcorn (or Orville, let’s be real).

Air popper? Totally obsolete and never necessary in the first place. And yet, my family had one in the early 90′s during the low-fat craze. We’re smart people; somehow that slipped past us. So, don’t feel bad, just go get that thing out of your cabinet and rejoice in the new space you have made for a paper bag to call home. Or a new Staub pan.

I’ve been known to hoard glass jars that can be reused. This goes from jelly jars to tomato jars to salad dressings to anchovies and spices. As you can see, it comes in quite handy. Because I live in a 100+ year old house, and mice are unavoidable if you tempt them, I swapped to all glass and steel containers about a year ago to deter them from my rather large stockpile of food (we won’t go hungry from an earthquake). I also use these jars when shopping bulk at the stores around SF, for leftovers, and for taking my food to work each week–I don’t like to reheat in plastic, so having glass makes things easier to store and then eat.

Fire Roasted Pepper Popcorn Recipe
Makes 4-5 Cups
1/4 C popcorn kernels (multi colored, white, or yellow-your choice)*
1 Tbsp butter (plugra if you have it around), melted and warm
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 tsp paprika
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 paper bag (bigger than lunch size but not grocery size–two bottles of wine size)

Add the popcorn kernels to the paper bag and fold the top of the bag several times to halfway. Put the bag in the micro and set it for 5 minutes. You’ll probably only need 2.5, so stay close and stop it when the pops are 1-2 seconds apart.

Add the spices to a old spice jar with a shaker lid and mix.

Place popped popcorn in a large bowl, and season it in two batches:  drizzle butter over the first half and add half the seasoning. Toss, add the rest of the popcorn and repeat.

* If you are having trouble finding popcorn kernels where you live (they are normally sold in bulk) and have access to a Whole Foods Market, they usually have them in their self-serve bulk section. You can also buy them on Amazon.

In 2006 I was living in the heart of Florence and attending culinary school. The best class I took was the regional Italian cuisine course with Marcella Ansaldo — we made a few typical dishes from pretty much every region in Italy throughout the semester. One of the recipes was for Fritole – yeast-based Italian doughnuts from Venice, traditionally eaten for Carnivale.

I posted about Fritole back in November of 2006–a few months after returning from Florence. I remade these delicious treats this morning; it is Easter Sunday and it made for a peaceful, tasty breakfast treat for the two of us. It’s a typical day in SF; the weather doesn’t know what it’s doing and it’s somewhere between heavy fog and rain, with a little bit of light poking through. We looked over our wet garden with some good coffee; fritole made the whole thing come together.

Note: You can prepare the dough the night before, leaving in a room-temp spot (not warm) overnight. Simply stir/punch down the dough in the morning, and let rise 30 more minutes before frying. It makes brunch a breeze!

Italian Fritole Recipe

1 1/2 C all purpose flour (200 grams) + 1 Tbsp
1/2 C brown sugar (60 grams; can use granulated too)
1 egg
1 packet yeast (8-10grams; fresh brewer’s yeast is great too)
1 C milk, divided (up to 200ml milk; any type)
1/4 C golden raisins (50 grams; can use other types of raisins too)
1/3 C dry sherry (or brandy, whiskey, flat champagne, etc)
1/2 tsp salt (generous three-finger pinch)
high-temp oil like peanut, safflower, or pine nut (most traditional) for frying
powdered sugar for dusting

Optional Ingredients (non-traditional):
1/2 tsp orange blossom water (add with milk) or
1/2 tsp cinnamon/nutmeg (add with flour) or
2 T chopped almonds (add with raisins; you might consider a few drops of almond extract w/ the milk too)

Combine the raisins with the sherry. You can substitute boiling water if needed. Microwave for 1 minute to warm combination and set aside to plump (5-15 minutes). Once plumped, drain the raisins and toss them with 1T flour until nicely dusted.

Warm 1/2 C of milk to about 110 degrees; add 1 tsp brown or regular sugar and stir. Add the yeast (mixture should be warm when adding). Set aside to bloom (at least 10 minutes).

Combine the flour, salt, and sugar. Whisk well. Use more flour if needed. Add the egg and dusted raisins, stirring gently but not thoroughly with a spoon. Add the bloomed milk mixture and stir until just combined. If the mixture is too dry (it should be sticky but combined, not runny), add more milk as needed, up to 1/2 C more. Cover the dough with saran wrap and let sit 1-2 hours in a warm spot*.

Prepare a large plate with two-three layers of paper towels (a draining rack is ok too, but the towels might remove more oil). Get some chopsticks or heat-resistant tongs ready. Put a light dusting of flour over the top of your batter to make preparation easier.

Heat oil in a wide pan with sturdy sides (like a high sided sauce pan) to medium high heat; the oil should be at least 1.5 inches deep. Once warmed, test a small dot of batter–it should rise to the top immediately and bubble around the batter, but not burn it in the course of a minute**. Using two large spoons, section just-smaller than an egg size scoops and gently place into hot oil. When deep golden brown, flip each doughnut over and cook; remove when evenly colored and cool on paper towels.

Serve with powdered sugar on top.

Makes 15 golf-ball sized fritole. 3 per person is sufficient.

*If the dough sits more than 2 hours, simply stir around to deflate and let rise 30 more minutes. This can be repeated twice if necessary.
**If the doughnuts seem to be cooking too quickly or getting too dark before you can flip them, lower the heat slightly and allow them to cook longer or else they will be gooey inside.

Red Snapper Filets en Papilotte

1/3 lb snapper filets, as many as needed (1 per person)*
lime, sliced thinly
thyme sprigs
parchment paper
*great* olive oil (optional)
salt & pepper

Begin by patting dry and lightly salting the filets. On a piece of parchment wider than the fish is long and twice as long as the fish is long, place the filet. Layer a few slices of thin lime on the fish, topping with some thyme sprigs and a dash of olive oil if you like. Top with pepper.

Fold the parchment in half, with the filet sitting flat against the crease of the paper. Fold the corners in, folding down several more times. Fold in the other sides and tuck under to create an enclosure (the fish will steam). Repeat on remaining fish.

Bake on a sheet (in case of leaking juices) for about 15 minutes at 350-400 degrees. Fish will flake away easily when done.

*This recipe will work for any fish en papilotte; you may need to adjust cooking time for thicker fish and I think the method lends best to more delicate fish (ie, not salmon)

Endive, Apple, Red Cabbage Slaw

serves four

1/2 small red cabbage, sliced very thinly
1/2 medium red onion, sliced very thinly
1 large carrot, shredded
1/2 or whole apple of choice, cubed
2 endives, sliced in 1/4 or 1/8 inch short strips (can use radicchio, etc)
juice of 1 lime
1 tsp walnut oil (or other mild oil)
1/2-1tsp ground cumin
salt

Using a mandolin (ideally), slice the onion and cabbage. Slice the endives (or radicchio or other chicories), chop the apple and shred the carrot. Whisk the lime juice, cumin, oil and salt to taste. Mix everything together. Keeps well for 1-2 days, but best fresh.

An easy weeknight meal, greens and beans make a healthy, nicely balanced snack or meal. You can always add more meat or greens to suit your taste & dietary needs.

Vallarta Beans from Rancho Gordo (or other small-medium size firm bean)

2 Cups spinach per serving

1 inch cube smoked pancetta per serving, diced (can use regular pancetta too)

Prep the beans by soaking for 6-8 hours in room temperature water. Strain and put the beans in a large pot, cover with 3 inches of water and simmer for 1-2 hours; do not boil, do not let the pot run dry. Strain and you can reserve for up to a week in the refrigerator.  Use 1/2 cup cooked beans per serving.

Fry the pancetta in a medium hot pan; when beginning to brown add the beans and cook until hot. Add the spinach and cook until wilted; serve.

The Master Macaron Recipe

A few months ago I pledged my friend P that I would attempt making a tea macaron. I was given some shake from a Wuyi oolong from Red Blossom (heritage tie luo han), and had to figure out how to get the flavor in. Turns out, it’s not so easy to make tea infused buttercream.

Admittedly, this batch was a little screwy–I used some leftover egg whites (from one of those cartons that claims to be only egg whites) and everything was a little thinner than it should have been. In short, I don’t recommend using carton egg whites for macarons. It’s a bad idea. I’m confident if you follow the regular recipe with normal, fresh egg whites–you’ll be fine.

- sprinkle a bit of tea on each macaron before baking, or on 1/2 of the cookies.

- use the buttercream filing, but reduce sugar to 1/4 cup. Separately, steep 2 T tea in 1/2 C heavy cream, strain well and press excess liquid out of tea. Chill the cream, and whip it into whipping cream– fold into finished plain buttercream and pipe the cookies

I had occasion to cook last night– a Sunday– and was feeling pretty inspired by a very solid weekend of good eats. Friday night a feast in our back yard, Saturday a hike from our doorstep to the top of twin peaks, down into the mission for a stop at Delfina Pizzeria, an errand at Tartine (here’s a hint: it involved walnut bread, croissants and an eclair) and another at BiRite (which involved this steak) and yet another feast in our back yard.

There is a huge collection of cookbooks in my living room. You can tell they aren’t used often because they’re behind glass, stacked with ornamental things on top that would have to be moved to use them. I woke up around 9 on Sunday and tip toed into the living room to loot a few, returned to bed and did the most serious reading I’ve probably done since college…and the result, my final paper, if you will–this menu.

Scallop in Fava & Pea Puree from Amuse Bouche (slightly altered for scale and for oil content)
With Vouvray

Clams with White Beans, Sausage & Chard from Amuse Bouche (altered significantly)
With Vermentino from Sardegna

Creme Fraiche Pannacotta with Strawberries (From Sunday Suppers at Lucques — perfect as is but would use more milk/less cream next time)
with Moscato di Asti

Saturday night dinner for two. Birite Market – Five Dot Ranch.

The fat was so tender and tasty; just salt & pepper and the fat was catching on fire at the grill. Crispy on the outside, rare on the inside.

These sound really disgusting, I know–but they’re actually really delicious.

Whole Wheat Waffles with Tofu

This recipe ultimately makes non-dairy waffles that have a higher fiber content and lower sugar content than most treats of this nature. I use my vitamix blender to do these, but you could just as well use a whisk or hand mixer very thoroughly. I’d recommend a bowl with high sides and a narrower bottom, if you must go that route.

Makes 4-6 waffles (not meant for Belgian style molds; you’ll find it too thin of a batter)

1/2 C flour
1/2 C whole wheat flour (or whole wheat pastry flour)
1/2 tsp salt
3 tsp baking powder
1 cup light soy milk
3 oz silken tofu
1 egg
1 T honey
1/2 tsp – 1 tsp cinnamon, orange zest, almond extract or other flavorings you prefer
real maple syrup

Mix dry ingredients and set aside. Mix rest of ingredients and blend very well; if in blender, on high for 1-2 minutes, if with hand mixer or whisk, until very, very smooth and thin. Slowly add dry mixture. Let sit 2 minutes before using.

Warm your syrup and plates when serving.