*I’ve added photos of the spread above after the fact, and will be adding recipes over the next few days.

This year, I’m hosting Thanksgiving. I’ve co-hosted in the past, but haven’t ever done the full-throttle. I’m expecting 8 guests, 3 of them being immediate family, one being a boyfriend, two being a pair of friends and another lone wolf friend. It should be a nice blast, this year more liberals than conservatives (traditionally, my brother and dad go at it on a team, I being the black sheep in the family and suffering the brute of the political banter).

I’ll be serving I served:

Persimmon slaw-style salad
Haricot-vert with garlic, lemon zest
Ina’s Sausage stuffing
Butternut Squash/Acorn Squash/Chard/Beet Green gratin (it is divine)
Whipped sweet potatoes with orange and cream
Fresh herb butter with delicious ACME bread
Turkey breast; one lemon pepper, one smoky-sweet paprika
Fresh cranberry sauce
Fresh Pumpkin Galette with cocoa nibs & creme de cocoa/marscapone whipped cream (using this crust and a variation on this filling with less moisture)

Missing recipes to come over the few days as I make them; If you’re a well-versed cook than can handle improvising on the missing ones (which are all quite simple), this is the plan I have for doing-ahead:

Monday:
wash/trim parsley, green beans
cook sweet potatoes, reserve pulp
make herb butter

Tuesday:
make cranberry sauce
dry rub turkey
chop & wash cabbage, reserve

Wednesday:
pick chard (from my garden)
slice butternut squash for casserole
prepare casserole, cook most of way, reserve
make pumpkin galette
make stuffing, cook most way, reserve

Tday:
chop persimmons in AM
cook turkey
reheat stuffing
warm galette
finish cooking casserole
buy good bread
set out butter in AM
make green bean dish
assemble slaw

Gnocchi alla gorgonzola e pera is actually a pretty common dish in the northern half of Italy; the kind of thing any restaurant that might be serving tourists would throw on (without regard to seasonality, local cuisine, etc), and while that might turn you off, it’s actually quite good. That said, I ate it several places in Florence, and am fairly certain I spotted it on other menus around the way.

I couldn’t find much on the history of this dish, so I think it’s more of a modern classic–prior to not-too-many-years-ago, most classic products of regions didn’t get transported or heavily used much in other regions. There was a time when gorgonzola is what you ate when you were in piedmonte; risotto is what you ate in Milan and in the far north, you ate potatoes in Alto Adige and maybe in Emilia-Romagna. Less so now, with the best of the best being desired by Italians everywhere loving food.

Gnocchi is, however, typical of Alto Adige (where potatoes are most common), and gorgonzola–if it is officially DOP gorgonzola–is from Piedmonte. For this dish, you’ll want to use the opposite of what you’d likely want to snack on in a cheese plate. You’ll use Gorgonzola Dolce, which is the young, “sweet” gorgonzola. As the cheese ages it becomes more “piquante” or spicy, hot. It’ll tickle your throat if it’s the wrong type for this job. If you don’t have a quality cheese chop that carries both and can point them out, look for gorgonzola (imported, not pre-crumbled) that has a more soft, creamy texture with less blue bits–that’s usually it.

For 3-4
3 oz gorgonzola dolce cheeese
1 ripe pear, diced
1 T butter
2 T flour
1 cup light vegetable stock
1/2 cup milk
fresh gnocchi*
salt, fresh ground pepper

Boil your water and have it ready. If you are using fresh gnocchi (which you could be!), they require VERY little cooking time, take what you think they take and cut it by half. Seconds! Otherwise, they’ll fall apart, and you’ll regret it.

Dice your pear, have your ingredients ready. You may or may not need slightly more or less veg stock & milk. Create a roux by heating the butter in a small sauce pan, until clear and stopped bubbling, medium heat. Add the flour and whisk until color darkens slightly, about 2 minutes. Continue whisking and slowly add the vegetable stock, then the milk, until you get a mac-n-cheese type consistency, or slightly thinner. Add the gorgonzola and continue whisking until smooth.

Add the gnocchi to the water and cook; remove the gnocchi as soon as they float to the top of the pan using a slatted spoon or gnocchi paddle. Add the pear to the sauce and let it warm up, adding the gnocchi to the sauce and stirring gently to coat, with a large wooden spoon (don’t use metal, you’ll chop up the dumplings).

Add some salt and black pepper to taste, serve!

Fresh gnocchi makes a huge difference over the vaccu-packed kind you’ll find on the pasta isle. It’s much less dense and has the texture of a down pillow, collapsing in your mouth. I buy mine in bulk from Rainbow market or from Faletti Foods; both carry gnocchi by the bay area’s “Pasta Shop,” which lots of local stores retail products from.

Inspired by Wild Ginger in Cambria, CA, these wontons are tasty, filling finger food; the slaw helps to cut the fat and is a nice fall accompaniment. They’re also a really convenient way to use up any leftover wonton skins and leftover salmon.

For 12-16 wontons

Square wonton skins
1/3 lb salmon, cooked (grilled, broiled, whatever)
1/4 C cream cheese (I prefer Gina Marie from Sierra Nevada Cheese Co)
1-2 tsp brown rice vinegar
1/8 tsp five spice powder
salt
lots of safflower/sunflower/other high eat oil for frying

Shred the salmon and mix with room temperature cream cheese. Add rice vinegar, five spice powder, and a pinch of salt to taste. Set aside for up to 2 hours or refrigerate up to 2 days ahead. Use 1T per wonton wrapper and moisten wrapper with spray bottle. Fold diagonally and seal, then bring end points together and seal. Fry at medium high heat, testing a piece of wonton skin first, until evenly golden.

Spicy Persimmon Cabbage Slaw

1/2 head cabbage, chopped somewhat finely
1 persimmon, sliced thinly
2 tsp gochujang or other chili paste such as harissa
juice of 1 lime
1/4 tsp ground cumin
salt

Whisk gochujang, lime juice, cumin and salt; toss cabbage and persimmon in mixture and let set 10 minutes before serving, or up to 1 hour.

Delicious chili made from Rancho Gordo heirloom organic beans, adapted from Smitten Kitchen.

olive oil
2 large yellow or sweet onions, diced
1 T minced garlic
2 large carrots, cubed
1 cup dry pinquito beans
1 cup dry yellow-eye steuben heirloom beans (also rancho gordo but they aren’t selling them online! if you’re in SF try Rainbow’s bulk section)
3 lbs ground beef, turkey, chicken, or pork (I used mostly beef/pork, but a little ground chicken too)
1 green bell pepper
1 red bell pepper
4 T chili powder
1 T cumin (ground)
2 T paprika
1 T dry oregano
1 T chili flakes
16 oz tomatoes chopped or stewed/pureed (I use POMI)
2 C beef broth or veal stock
1/4 C cider vinegar

Garnish:
Cheddar cheese, grated
Red onion, diced

Serve with macaroni  OR bread

Beans: Soak the beans overnight in plenty of water. Do not soak more than 9 hours or they will probably burst. They may be mixed for soaking. Try to pre-cook ahead, but if not, start cooking the drained, rinsed, soaked beans in fresh water in a seperate pan as you begin making the chili. Cover and be sure they are cooking at at least a simmer, but not a boil. You want them tender before you add them to the chili at the end. They like to be cooked about an inch of water over the beans; just drain off the extra water if they’re cooked through.

Chili: In a soup pot or dutch oven, heat a couple tablespoons of olive oil or butter. When hot, add diced onions. Cook until almost translucent, at medium heat. Add the garlic & carrots, cooking another 2-3 minutes. Add the meat, and let it cook through.

While meat is cooking, dice your peppers and gather your other ingredients.

When meat is cooked, add all of the spices. Cook 2-3 minutes. Add the tomatoes, beef stock, and vinegar. You may wish to reserve additional beef stock in case you prefer looser chili. Prepare your garnishes. Add the drained, cooked beans to the chili and you may serve in 10 minutes (simmering) or any amount of time after. The longer it sits, the better; I like to put the lid back on the pan and let it cool down very slowly, so that the flavors meld.

Serve with cheddar and red onion on top.

A friend and I stopped by Farmer Brown for a late night meal after seeing a play about a week ago and we had some shrimp & grits. Created a little inspiration.

Had a little panic, though. I canned my own tomatoes this summer with just some fresh lemon juice; a coworker and I were talking about canning techniques and she mtnioned she would not can her own tomatoes especially without preserved lemon juice because of the variation in pH in fresh lemons, due to the botulism risk.. I felt like a bit of a dummy. I took chemistry, why’s my brain not thinkin?

At any rate, I ran out of tomatoes and really had to break open that jar and had myself all hyped up that we might start having lazy eyes and collapsing lungs within a day or two, but it’s been a few and we’re fine. I did throw the rest of the jar away, kinda regretting that now, and what we did eat would have been totally worth it because it was totally tasty.

Here’s my version.

Shrimp and Grits
For four

1 C polenta
1 C chopped tomatoes, strained tomatoes, or 2C fresh tomatoes chopped and seeded
1 tsp dry thyme or 1 T fresh thyme
1/2 tsp chili flakes
1/4 C vegetable stock
16 18-20 count shrimp (prefer blue Mexican prawns), deveined and shell removed completely
2 C chopped fresh spinach
salt

Cook the polenta using a 1-3 ratio with water or stock. Be sure to bring liquid to boil first, evenly cipher in the polenta and continue stirring on low heat for at least 5-6 minutes until creamy and thick.

In a sauce pan bring the tomatoes to a simmer and add the chili flakes, thyme, and veg stock. Reserve some veg stock in case you need to thin the sauce. Let it reduce to a tasty, rich flavor and add the shrimp to cook. Add the spinach, turning off the heat and throwing a lid on the pan for 30 seconds or so to wilt. Serve on top of the polenta in a bowl.

6 large onions of mixed variety (mostly sweet yellow, but mix in some shallots, white onions, vidalia, etc)
2 qts beef stock or veal stock
2 beef bouillon cubes
2 tsp dried thyme or lots of fresh thyme
1 T butter
2 large beef short ribs (optional)
1/4 C white wine (optional)
lots of salt
nice bread
gruyere cheese

Slice your onions thinly;  if you have a mandolin use it to save time. Try to keep some longer strands along with some smaller ones.

Begin by melting the butter in a large soup pot or dutch oven at medium high heat, then (if using them) add the salted short ribs, browning on each side. When finished browning, remove ribs and set aside, add 1/4 C white wine to deglaze, (if you are not using ribs, continue here) then add the onions with 1-2 T kosher salt (a lot less if you are using iodized for some inexcusable reason) & the thyme, then reduce heat to medium low. Cook the onions at least 1 hour until limp and golden, and sweet to taste.

Add the ribs, stock, and bouillon cubes to the pot. Cover and cook at medium low or low for 1-2 hours. Remove ribs and seperate the meat, adding back to the pot in small pieces. Chop if necessary, removing large pieces of fat or other matter. Test for seasoning and add salt if needed.

If you do not have ramekins or other fire-safe serving ware, you’ll want to prepare the bread separately. Heat the oven to 400, slice the bread and top with gruyere. Cook about 10 minutes, until bubbly and golden. Place on top of the soup when serving.

If you do have ramekins, add the soup to them, a piece of bread to fit the top, and top generously with grated gruyere cheese, placing under the flame of your broiler until bubbly and golden.

Another round of macarons..using the Italian method. Admittedly, I was a little rushed and a little lazy piping this out, so they are a bit unevenly sized.

Basic French Macarons (Italian Method)

Part One
1 1/2 C powdered sugar (168 grams)
1 1/2 C Almond flour (or other nut flour; 168 grams)
2 large egg whites (55 grams)
Any extracts (use sparingly, 1/4 tsp or less), cocoa powder, or food colorings are added in this stage

Part Two
2 large egg whites (55 grams)
3/4 C granulated sugar (150 grams)
1/4 C water

Equipment
Stand mixer (If you choose to use a hand mixer I recommend having four hands, or you will find this to be a pain.)
Candy thermometer or good probe thermometer
Piping bags (1 large, one smaller for the icing; I prefer to use one with a coupler)
3/8 plain piping tip
Non-temperamental oven, or oven thermometer and hawk eye

Line 2 baking sheets with silpats or parchment; You may want to create a template to place below the parchment when piping of 1 inch circles. Prep your large piping bag with the tip, using a coupler or not. Preheat the oven to 275 F.

Place two egg whites in bowl of the stand mixer and add the whisk attachment. Plug the beast in.

In a bowl, preferably with a flat bottom, mix the powdered sugar and almond flour well. Add any powders such as matcha or cocoa at this time. For RED VELVET cookies/chocolate cookies, add 20 grams cocoa powder as a replacement for some powdered sugar. Always replace powdered sugar with dry flavorings in order to keep the balance of the batter. Add the egg whites and any food coloring and extracts such as vanilla, almond, etc. Mix into a paste with a large spatula, until it shows even color.

In small saucepan on medium heat, bring water and sugar to a boil. Place the thermometer in the pan from the get-go, when it gets to 226F, begin whipping the egg whites on high. When the sugar reaches 230 (egg whites should be a bit foamy), remove it from the flame and add the liquid slowly to the whipping egg whites to create an Italian meringue. Continue whipping until the bowl is cool to touch, about 8 minutes or so, depending on the temp of the room.

Fold the cooled meringue into the almond mixture. Notice that the batter looks like shiny plastic; watch for it to look like wet plastic shortly after the ingredients are combined. Be sure not to stir the batter, but to fold* cutting in and rotating the bowl. When it looks shiny, stop, and put it in the piping bag.

*Find a youtube video on this if you aren’t sure how. The videos are all wrong, I just looked. None of them are quite right. The main thing is to put your spatula in vertical, like a knife. Then, pull it through along the side of the bowl and around, gently turning it over the center and letting the batter you scooped drop. Rotate the bowl 1/4 and cut into the center and do it again. Rinse and repeat. It’s important.

Pipe them out into even 1-inch circles spaced 1 inch apart. Bake for 12-20 minutes; Mine took about 14. Check every 2 minutes after the first twelve by touching the top of the macaron with a flat finger and trying to shake it. The cookies are done when the top moves just a little against the ruffle.  Let them cool a minute or two before attempting to remove with a small, sturdy metal spatula. They taste best if you stick them in the fridge covered overnight, or even the completed cookies this way. They’re good up to five days, and the cookies without filling can be frozen.

Cream Cheese Icing for Red Velvet Macarons
4 oz cream cheese room temp
1/2 stick butter room temp
1/2 lb confectioners sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla

Mix butter and cream cheese – whip 30 seconds or so. Slowly add sugar with a hand mixer on low, scrape sides once in a while. Add vanilla and blend until fluffy, 1 minute.

Italian Buttercream Icing – Great standard macaron filling
2 egg whites (55 grams)
1/3 cup plus 1 tbsp granulated sugar
60g unsalted butter at room temp, roughly diced (just less than a 1/2 stick)

Whisk together the egg whites and sugar. Set the bowl bain-marie style (over a pot of simmering water) and heat the mixture, whisking often, for 3-5mins until the  sugar has dissolved.

Remove from heat and whisk on high speed with a hand mixer until it is stiff and shiny, similar to the Italian meringue made for the macarons. Add the butter slowly, one cube at a time, and continue to mix till all the butter is combined. Add any flavorings and refrigerate to firm up to use in a piping bag.

You can flavor and color this icing many different ways; try adding some green tea powder when the sugar is melting, or some food coloring once it’s whipped up.

& Thank you gifts! I hosted my old roommate (of Tuscany Road Trip 2006 fame) & her friend a few weeks ago; recently a surprise package arrived! She sent me delicious fig balsamic and extremely hard-to-get-my-paws-on Ligurian Olive oil!! Way to bring back awesome times, K! I spent lots of weekends in Cinque Terre when I lived in Florence, and it just brought back amazing culinary memories. I can’t wait to use it.

I was reading the Times a couple of days ago and saw an article about whole wheat pasta and its merits. Yeah, it’s merits. I haven’t tried the stuff in years and 100% agreed with the starting sentiment of the article–it’s icky stuff, and I’m a pasta traditionalist, picky as hell about my Italian food in general.

But the author won my trust as I read and knowing I could get their “favorite” brand at my neighborhood grocer, I grabbed some when I was at the store later in the week and gave it a go. It’s really non offensive. It even has a nice texture. We’ll try rigatoni next time.

Also, I just returned from a fabulous trip to Mexico with my S.O., and am seriously craving some pasta! We ate pretty much meat, and a little bit of vegetables, and a lot of coconut milk and wine (oh come on, not together!).

Pasta with Goat Cheese for two:

12 shrimp of your preference (blue Mexican gulf prawns for me, until they don’t have them next year..)
2 T butter
2 tsp olive oil
2 T goat cheese
3/4 C vegetable stock
1/4 C heavy cream
120 grams spaghetti (I used bionature whole wheat organic spaghetti)
1 tsp chili flakes
2 cloves garlic
1/2 tsp mixed Italian dry spices
salt & pepper

Start your water to boil and chop the garlic finely. When you add the pasta to the boiling water, warm a skillet to medium high heat and add the butter and oil.

When the oil and butter are hot, reduce to medium and add the garlic. When the garlic is fragrant, add the veg stock, cream, chili flakes and spices.

De-vein and peel your shrimp, patting dry and tossing with a little salt. When the sauce is bubbly and slightly reduced, add the goat cheese until incorporated, and then immediately the shrimp.

The pasta should be about done; drain and add it immediately to the sauce*. If you should need to wait for it to finish, DO NOT over cook the shrimp–take them out slightly underdone and set aside, re-adding them with the pasta. Simmer a bit as you see in the picture above and serve it up!

*You could also add some swiss chard, kale, or spinach to this dish at the end, throw a lid on it to wilt and serve.

*In my opinion, the trick to really good home pasta is to simmer the pasta a bit in the sauce, getting it really hot.

Homemade pork sausage, chard, tomato paste/veg broth/creme fraiche sauce with rigatoni pasta.

Lots of pasta dishes lately, as they make for quick weeknight meals.

Rigatoni Pasta with Spicy Sausage & Chard
This recipe is forgiving and many things can be substituted to accommodate what you already have around. I will try to provide some guidance.

50 grams dry pasta per person (for entree size)
1/4 lb ground pork per person (or Italian sweet or spicy sausage, without casing)
1/2 C shallot, onion, or fennel per person, sliced in nice edible size pieces
2 cups raw greens per person (spinach, chard, kale, other braising green)
1-2 T tomato paste per person
1 C vegetable stock (or chicken, etc) per person
heavy cream or creme fraiche, about 1-2 T per person

If you are working with ground pork and not pre-seasoned sausage, season your sausage with what you have on hand: paprika, chili powder, chili flakes, fennel seeds, coriander seeds, salt, pepper and even rib rub. Mix well.

Boil water for the pasta and begin cooking the pasta. In a large skillet on high, cook the ground pork in chunks, separating bits with your hands and tossing into the pan; when all pork is in the pan, add the onions/fennel/shallot. When pork is browned on one side, stir vigorously and add enough stock to cover the bottom of the pan. Add tomato paste and stir to dissolve, add salt. Add greens to wilt, and as the pasta is finishing, add the cream or creme fraiche to taste. Serve in warmed bowls.

Inspired by Thursday Farmers Market @ The Ferry Building, I made these “tacos” in spirit of Namu‘s lunch stall.

These is loosely adapted from my mother’s bulgogi recipe–I’m not sure how she came up with it, whether from a recipe a friend gave her while we lived in Seoul or if her own interpretation from eating the real thing, but I’ve been using it as a beef marinade ever since and broke it out on skirt steak for these.

1 half pound or more skirt steak (I like grassfed/organic)
5 cloves garlic, minced
1 inch ginger, grated
1/4 C whiskey
1/2 C soy sauce
3 T toasted sesame oil
1 T red pepper flakes

Mix marinade ingredients together with a whisk. Cut the skirt steak into 1/4 inch slices, and mix together. Marinate at least 1 hour at room temp or up to 2-3 days in the refrigerator.

Make some white rice, feel free to add one of those great Japanese seasoning packets with beans and cut your nori/seaweed.

In a skillet or wok, add some sesame oil and pan-fry the beef. Assemble and top with some sesame seeds and some gochujang (Korean hot sauce).