holiday time!

Ahhhh, the winter holidays in New York City. This is my favorite time of year. New York pulls out all her jewelry and puts out a lavish display, from the tacky to the superfine. AND the city clears out and becomes the hometown again that I grew up in. Not having to travel or go near a crowded airport is another bonus of staying home next week.

There is a neighborhood near me in Queens called Middle Village that is really fun to drive through at dusk to see all the lights on the Archie Bunker style houses complete with moving mechanical reindeer and inflatable Santas on Vespas. In Manhattan yesterday I walked by Bergdorf Goodman's and was mesmerized by their Alice in Wonderland inspired holiday windows. Every year they outdo themselves and this year the details are truly incredible. The Time Warner Center at Columbus circle is dazzling with gigantic stars and glittering purple trees out front. The outdoor craft market across the street on the corner of Central Park is worth a visit too.

I have to admit the festivities on the home-front have gotten off to a slow start this year. I have been cooking for so many parties straight through Thanksgiving that I haven't had a chance to plan my own. Christmas this year will bring 28 family and friends to my dinner table. This is what my mother would have called "a busman's holiday" for me. Which is to say that there will be a lot of work involved! yeah. I usually farm out dessert duty to my sister-in-law who makes a beautiful bouche de noel (a French yule log cake).  I think I will stick my uptown sister on Champagne duty (anything special she should look for this year, Amanda?)

I found these Mandarine oranges at Fairways to put in my salad.  I was looking for kumquats, but these were a happy alternative.

As for the menu, it has to be simple but special. It won't be vegetarian for this crowd, but there will be plenty for everyone's preferences (I hope). What is it you may ask. Well, I don't know yet, but I will definitely include my favorite salad of the season which is colorful and festive and easy to make for a crowd. I prepare all the different ingredients ahead of time (even the day before) and then assemble right before serving. The salad consists of mixed greens, chopped radicchio, sliced tangerines or kumquats, pomegranate seeds and sliced radishes.

My daughter loves the chore of removing the seeds from the skin of a pomegranate. Hey, I'll take the help!

The julienne does not have to be perfect. Daikon radish would work in this recipe too but I like the like red tips on these radishes.

This combination seems to be a winner. The sweetness of the fruits really plays well against the bite of the radish and radicchio. The colors are just perfect and the texture is great; crunchy and juicy- all in one little salad. I will dress the greens with the tangerine and walnut oil vinaigrette recipe from a few posts ago. To serve, I toss the salad greens and radicchio with the vinaigrette then sprinkle the rest of the ingredients on top. So pretty!

Mixed Greens with Citrus, Radish, Radicchio and Pomegranate Seeds
1 lb mixed greens
1/2 a small head of radicchio, chopped into bite sized pieces
1 cup sliced kumquats or sliced tangerines
10 radishes sliced or julienned
1 pomegranate seeded

Toss salad greens and radicchio with vinaigrette. Top with the remaining ingredients.
serves eight


Tangerine & Walnut Oil Vinaigrette
Juice of 1 Tangerine (my tangerine yielded 1 Tbs of juice, not much LOL!)
1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
1 teas. salt
1 teas. freshly ground pepper
3 TBs Sherry Vinegar
1/4 cup walnut oil

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl except the walnut oil. Mix well with a whisk. Slowly drizzle in the walnut oil as you continue to whisk until well blended. Toss vinaigrette with the salad and serve.

Amanda
Beautiful salad, Deb! Your comments make me miss my NYC days! Don't get me wrong, I love the "burbs" this time of year. But the Big Apple certainly holds a special place in my heart! On Thursday, the Westwood, NJ firetrucks came down my street, blasting Christmas music, with Santa riding on top. The firemen run alongside the trucks, giving candy to all of the children patiently (or not so much) awaiting this yearly ritual. It's so festive and wonderful, I wouldn't miss it for anything!


This time of year I like to take advantage of Italy's answer to Champagne - Prosecco. It's delicious and sparkly  - and much more affordable than Champagne. Prosecco is made predominantly from Prosecco grapes, in the northern region of  Veneto. It's elegant, refreshing, and simply put - delicious. Typically, this delightful sparkler has citrus notes, as well as flavors of almond, honey, and melon. It is crisp and lively, and suits all festive occasions. (I drink it all summer long as well...)


Prosecco is my sparkler of choice for all family gatherings and celebrations. Ranging from $9.99 to $17.99 a bottle, this is the perfect alternative to Champagne - especially for larger get-togethers. My family loves it. Rose Prosecco is also wonderful. It makes a perfect host/hostess gift as well. For something different, add a little peach nectar to make a belini. Yummy! Look to Riondo, Bisol, and Sorelle for some outstanding examples of this affordable gem.

I'll Drink To That

Amanda
Every holiday and family get-together, I am assigned the task of creating the wine list. It is not a job I take lightly, for I love being afforded this honor! While I would not label my relatives "aficionados", they certainly enjoy wine. They are quite savvy when it comes to the usual varietals like Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, etc. But I take the holidays as opportunities to introduce them to something they would not have chosen on their own.


But Thanksgiving is different. Most often, I do not choose something aside from the usual varietals. This is simply because I know what works best with the traditional Thanksgiving fare. In response to Deb's last post, I received a question regarding Beajolais Nouveau, so I thought I would address this first. Like Champagne is to New Year's; Beaujolais Nouveau is to Thanksgiving. The annual release of this holiday staple occurs on the third Thursday in November, every year. The vintage typically does not matter - the release of this wine is preceded by enormous marketing campaigns. However, the 2009 vintage is different - it produced better-than-average Beaujolais, and the Beaujolais Nouveau is just a preview of the great quality of this vintage in France. I tasted it last week upon its arrival - and it is indeed very nice. Beaujolais is fresh, and bright, but not always very complex. It is a simple, easy-drinking wine which is always fun to include at Thanksgiving. To read more about this vintage of Beaujolais Nouveau, check out the article in The Wine Spectator.

This year, I will bring my favorite choices of Prosecco or other sparklers for starters; Chardonnay and Pinot Noir for the meal. My usual Prosecco is the La Marca from the Veneto region in Italy. Prosecco is perfect for sipping alongside cheese and crackers, dips and crudite. For Chardonnay, I will be bringing the Morgan Santa Lucia Highland Chard from California. It is delicious, rich and intense with a wonderful, buttery mouthfeel. The subtle oak flavors are not too overpowering for traditional Thanksgiving dishes.


The Stephen Ross Central Coast Pinot Noir will be my choice of red for this year's feast. It combines wonderful red fruit flavors, spice, and earth. The palate is rich and creamy with soft tannins. This delightful Pinot Noir is a huge crowd-pleaser to boot!


For Thanksgiving, I like to keep it simple. Chardonnay and Pinot Noir are my sure-fire "go-to" wines for this festive get-together where wine typically takes a back seat to food. At least at my house. It's usually all about the food.


To everyone and their families, have a wonderful holiday!

fried and true

Deborah
I might as well just put it out there bluntly. Amanda, what wine pairs well with FRIED? Um, you know, fried anything. A few years ago I purchased a deep frier and my life has never been the same. Once you get that baby going there is a compulsion to run around the kitchen looking for things to throw in it. Now, we don't do fried every night at my house, not even once a week. More like barely once a month. And no, I am not ashamed nor do I feel guilty. Properly deep fried at the correct temperature (350F), food will absorb far less fat than by a pan saute technique. Yes it is true.

 Roxbury Farm's beautiful red potatoes

Fried potatoes are as close to an American classic as we can get. Don't get Michael Pollan started on the evils of the ubiquitous Idaho potato which produces the BEST fried potato going. Yes, the Idaho is crowding out other worthy potato crops. So what about some other root vegetables? A recent fry fest with parsnips yielded some very tasty chips, a little sweet and slightly bitter. Really good and super cute, they resembled flower petals.

Parsnip chips doing their thing in the deep frier.

I don't always pull out my deep frier when I want a crispy potato. A quarter inch of oil in a pan heated to just about smoking will provide a great vehicle for cooking up cubed potatoes.
The real fun of fried foods is what condiment you serve with them. One of my favorite treats is a fantastic tomatillo salsa I buy in Saratoga Springs that is blessedly HOT and so pretty with its pale green color dotted with bright yellow kernels of corn. I LOVE the stuff!

Fried Cubed Potatoes

2 Idaho potatoes unpeeled and cut into 1/2" cubes (sorry Michael P.)
Canola oil- enough to cover bottom of pan to about 1/4"
salt

In a pan large enough to hold all the potatoes in a single layer, heat oil under medium-high heat for at least 4 minutes to make sure oil is hot hot hot. Test for heat by dropping one piece of potato into pan and expect to hear an immediate sizzle. Place potatoes in hot oil in a single layer and adjust temperature to keep the sizzle sound going. Leave potatoes untouched for 6 minutes or so until you start to see some browning on the bottom. Turn one potato piece over to check the color. If it isn't perfectly golden leave the potatoes to fry until you have the desired color, then turn with a spatula. Cook on other side for another 6 plus minutes. Once the potatoes are golden toss them around in the pan and continue to cook until all sides are golden & crispy, another 2 or 3 minutes.
Remove from oil with a slotted spoon and salt immediately. Best served hot from the frier. They don't reheat in the most exciting way.

serves two

Amanda
Of course this looks delicious! Why wouldn't it be? It seems to me this would be a side to something. Is this how you would serve it - with something else? If so, I would probably choose a wine to match the main course. If you were just going to eat the potatoes by themselves, I immediately think of prosecco. Just something light with enough fruit to hold its own against the heat. I also see these potatoes plated with an omelet or fritatta - again, a prosecco would be absolutely perfect and fun! Deb, try it the next time you make these potatoes, and let me know what you think!

Back to Brunch

Deborah
Did anyone else try to make the Judith Jones' potato recipe from this Sunday's NY Times magazine section? Jones, the original editor of Julia Child's "Mastering the Art of French Cooking" dedicates her recipe to the late, great Julia. The recipe itself looked simple and delicious. Sliced potatoes are layered in a skillet and cooked in butter till crispy. I love to make a big late morning breakfast on weekends and this seemed like a perfect complement to my scrambled eggs with chives. I decided to forgo the garlic (it seemed too early in the morning), but that was the only substitution I made, other than NOT peeling the potatoes and adding some fresh thyme.


So the fun began when it was time to flip the potatoes. Jones says cook them on one side for eight minutes, then carefully flip onto a plate and slide back into the pan. This is something I have done before with, for example, fritattas, so I was not fazed. Jones warned that the potatoes would not stick together and she was not kidding. I flipped the potatoes and several slices managed to escape, flying across the kitchen. Hey! And then to my dismay I saw that the potatoes were not cooked enough on the flipped side. They were neither brown, nor crispy. Darn. I didn't want to end up flipping again, but, well, argh.


So I let the second side cook a little longer than the recommended five minutes and then with a spatula lifted up the edges to take a peek, duh. Good! Brown and crispy. Ok, now I'm flipping again to get the first side a little more cooked. Again potato slices went flying. Geez. It must have been too early in the day for me to be trying these maneuvers.

Out of the pan and onto the plate and into our mouths without incident, I can now say “YUM” and well worth the effort. The hard part is really the flipping and if I had been a bit more humble about my skills I would probably have MASTERED THE ART the first time. I will definitely make this recipe again. The only change I might make is to use less butter and add some olive oil. I have gotten out of the habit of eating a lot of butter and this dish tastes BUTTERY!  Potatoes and butter are a happy combination so I’m not complaining. This dish would be great on a brunch table and I can’t get enough of Prosecco as a brunch treat to go with it, but Amanda may have some other ideas.

Thanks Judith, for everything!

At the beginning, all is well

After eight minutes of cooking, flipped, but underdone

Flipped and flopped and happily on the plate.

Judith Jone's A Potato Dish For Julia
Ingredients:Serves 1

2 new potatoes (about 6 ounces)
1 small clove garlic
Salt
4 tsp. butter
Freshly ground pepper
Peel potatoes, and slice them very thin. Peel and mince garlic, then mash it, along with a generous pinch of salt, with the flat side of a large knife until it is a paste. Work about 1/2 teaspoon butter into it.

Heat 2 teaspoons butter in a small pan over medium-low heat; lay in half of potato slices, overlapping slightly, to fill the bottom. Lightly salt and pepper, and smear garlic paste on top. Add rest of potatoes to make a second layer, again overlapping.

Cook, setting a small cover askew on top of pan. After about 8 minutes, turn potatoes, which should be brown on the bottom, by setting a sturdy plate on top of pan and flipping them over onto it. Heat rest of butter in pan, then slide potatoes back in and arrange them as neatly as you can. Cook semicovered for 5 minutes, and uncovered for a couple more minutes, at which point they should be done and browned, both top and bottom. Slide them onto a plate; season with salt and pepper.

Amanda
Looks great! I can definitely see how the flipping of all the potatoes could be tricky, especially for a novice like myself! Before I comment on the Prosecco, I want to mention how delicious the spinach and mushroom strata turned out! Unbelievable! I plated it with a pretty fall salad, as I mentioned I would (I will provide the recipe in a later post). It looks so beautiful on a dish, though it is a pretty simple meal to prepare. Loved it and will cook it again, and again, and again! And, I must admit, it was a huge hit with my friends! Actually, I brought the leftovers to my brother's "break-the-fast" dinner on Yom Kippur. Once again, everyone loved it!

You mentioned Prosecco for this current recipe. This frizzante, refreshing sparkler is Italy's answer to Champagne. So affordable and delicious, it is the perfect wine to have at all family get-togethers, either as an aperitif, or complement to a meal. I can drink it anytime, anyplace. It is so affordable that it's perfect for large crowds as well, alone or mixed with orange juice (mimosa), or even a touch of peach nectar (bellini). The grape used for this crowd-pleaser is actually called Prosecco, and is grown in Italy's Veneto region. One of our best-selling Prosecco's in the shop is made by Riondo. They also make a Rose which is equally delicious.  Both sell for $9.99. Bisol also makes outstanding Prosecco, more towards the $20 price range. And, Sorelle Bronca is a newcomer to our Prosecco line-up. It's elegant and crisp and makes a wonderful alternative to the higher priced Champagnes. Sorelle Bronca sells for $17.99. The range of Prosecco's in the $20 and under price range is tremendous - there is really no need to spend more than that. My favorite selections are actually all under $15. This pleasing bubbly is a must-have for any Brunch! But I always bring a bottle (or two) whenever I am invited to someone's house for an occasion, be it dinner...or just because!

Let's Do Lunch

Amanda
So, lately I've been in the mood to entertain. Not to a huge group, but rather a very small group, perhaps at the table outside on the patio. A beautiful, crisp Fall day calls for it. I'm in the mood. And, I've come up with a plan. My five and a half year old son started Kindergarten two weeks ago. So far, so good. He loves it! But, he is longing for his pre-K friends of days gone by. They, too, have embarked on their journeys through the education system. I have decided to plan a "reunion" for him and his pre-K friends, so they can "discuss" their kindergarten experiences thus far, two weeks into it. It is going to be a "How is Your Kindergarten Going?" party. (mom's included). For lunch, kids will dine on pizza from a local pizzeria. But I am thinking of the moms. I love preparing meals for my girlfriends. The party is on Sunday, and I am looking to do something "brunch-ish". Just one course, with a pretty, tasty Fall salad. I will have some greens with a little blue cheese, cranberries and pear, topped with a vinegarette made with walnut oil. I've made it before and it is delicious. Deb, what do you think would be a good dish to serve my girlfriends? Something straightforward yet impressive, that will be nice plated with this side salad? Perhaps, we might open a bottle or two of Prosecco, if the ladies are up to it!

Deborah
Ooooohh, that salad sounds delicious! What a nice idea for a party. An early fall brunch makes me think of Strata, which is basically a savory bread pudding meets quiche. And like quiche you can add any number of ingredients to make it your own. The classic combination of spinach and mushrooms is great this time of year.

I first encountered Strata a few years ago when a client asked me to make one for a weekend brunch she was hosting. It was the perfect dish for me to prepare a day in advance and then have the hostess bake off on the day of the party. A satisfying dish, it can be really easy to prepare. Or complicated, depending on how ambitious you are feeling. I like to add lots of flavor to this casserole so I add a few extra steps sautéing different ingredients to build flavor and complexity. I try to simplify a bit by using the same pan for all the sauteing, removing one cooked ingredient and adding the next with out washing the pan in between. 

The easy part comes the next day when all you have to do is throw the cassarole into the oven. A fruit salad goes great with this dish. A simple green salad would also work really well. Combining fruit and greens as you are doing with the cranberries, pears and greens in your salad is perfect! Are you going to share the recipe?

Spinach Mushroom Strata
3 Tbs butter (plus 1 Tbs to butter baking dish)
3 Tbs. olive oil
2 large onions finely chopped
10 oz. Baby Bella Mushrooms, sliced
3 cloves garlic finely minced
2 lbs fresh spinach, washed and stems trimmed and finely chopped or 2 (10-oz) package frozen spinach, thawed, squeezed dry and finely chopped
8 cups cubed (1 inch) Sourdough, Hallah or whole grain bread (1/2 lb)
6 oz grated Gruyère (2 cups)
2 1/2 cups milk
9 large eggs
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
In a large sauté pan melt 1 Tbs butter and 1tbs olive oil. When the fats are warm and bubbly, add the chopped onion and cook for 10 minutes until onion is translucent and golden, as the onion cooks add salt and pepper to taste. Remove onions from pan and set aside.

Melt another 1 Tbs butter and 1tbs olive oil in the same pan (no need to wipe it out). When the fats are warm and bubbly, add the sliced mushrooms. As the mushrooms cook add salt and pepper to taste. Let mushrooms cook in pan with out tossing around, for 3 minutes until they start to brown and caramelize. Turn gently and cook on the other side for another 5 minutes. Remove mushrooms from pan and add them to the onions.

Melt another 1 Tbs butter and 1tbs olive oil into the same (dirty!) pan. When the fats are warm and bubbly, add the chopped garlic. Cook garlic till it is golden, about 3 minutes. Add the spinach, and s & p to taste and cook till spinach is wilted and soft, about 5 more minutes. Remove from pan and add spinach to the onions and mushrooms. Mix well to combine.

In a large bowl whisk the eggs, milk and nutmeg together.
In a shallow buttered baking dish spread one third of the bread, then one third of the spinach mixture, then one third of the grated cheese. Repeat two more times ending with cheese. Carefully pour the egg mixture on top of the bread in an even layer and let egg custard soak into the bread. Tightly wrap baking dish with plastic wrap and refrigerate over night.

prereheat oven to 350°F. Take strata out of the fridge and allow to come to room temp. Unwrap and bake in oven for 50-60 minutes till golden and puffy.

Bitter Blight

Deborah


Saratoga Spa State Park, a gorgeous place to picnic.

This weekend was our family's annual trip to Saratoga Springs, NY and their farmers' market is undoubtedly the highlight of my summer. The variety of produce and the passion among farmers and shoppers for all things fresh and delicious is always palpable. I dream for weeks ahead about the elaborate meal I will make after my shopping. This year, as always, I headed straight over to my favorite heirloom tomato grower. My heart sank as I looked over his beautiful knobby fingerling potatoes and his lush lettuces. Not a tomato in sight. I was informed that almost the entire crop had been wiped out by the raging tomato blight and there was little hope of salvaging even a tenth of the crop. So sad.

One or two farmers had small tomatoes available and I grabbed up a few precious fruits. My plan this year was to head straight to our picnic site after shopping, so food prep had to be simple.

Such cute little canteloupes!

The grapefruit sized mini cantaloupes could not be passed up and some pretty sweet white onions rounded out the salad I had in mind. I had already packed a vinaigrette that I made at home, so all was set. It is hard to accept that I won't be seeing much of the heirlooms this summer. I wait all year for one month of tomato bliss. The farmer told me that the organic and small farms are the ones being the hardest hit. I had been enjoying the relentless June rains for keeping my home garden moist but now I am realizing the bitter price.

Well, I had the makings of a fantastic salad in my hands so it was time to look on the sunny side.

A trifecta!

Tomato Cantaloupe and Sweet Onion Salad

serves 4

4 Small tomatoes thinly sliced

1/2 a cantaloupe melon, thinly sliced

1 small Sweet Onion, thinly Sliced

Vinaigrette

1 Tbls sherry vinegar

I garlic clove, crushed

1/2 tsp powdered mustard

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. ground pepper

1/4 cup really good extra virgin olive oil

So, the key to this salad is the thin slicing. The tomato and melon don't have to be paper thin, but try to get the onions as thin as possible. Arrange everything on a plate in any pretty way you like. The colors will be beautiful.

Make the vinaigrette: in a small bowl whisk together the first 5 ingredients to blend, then slowly drizzle in the olive oil as you whisk to emulsify. Try to use the best olive oil you can get your hands on as this is what is going to make the salad heavenly.

Spoon the dressing over the salad and let sit for a few minutes so all the flavors mingle.

serves four

Amanda

Deb - This salad sounds great, especially given its simplicity. I might even be making a trip to the market on the way home to try this myself! Sounds like a perfect dish for a hot day like today. I would love to enjoy it alongside one of my favorite summertime drinks - a nice, cold glass of Prosecco. This wonderfully refreshing sparkler is Italy's answer to Champagne, just slightly less effervescent. The Prosecco grape hails primarily from the Veneto region of Italy. It typically produces light, crisp, delicate sparkling wines with wonderful fruit flavors. Prosecco doesn't have the same "serious" side as Champagne. It's just a great libation to enjoy with friends, sitting outside on the patio during summer. And what makes it even more attractive is its affordability! Price generally ranges from $9-$20. Two of my favorite Prosecco producers are Bisol and Riondo. The light, refreshing characteristics of Prosecco make it a perfect complement to this light, refreshing salad! Might just have to invite a few friends over tonight! - Amanda