a change of scene

Deborah

Body baring weather is quickly upon us. My season changing ritual is to head to a day spa for some desperately needed rejuvenation. It seems that Koran spas specialize in body scrubs and that is what I am looking for when shedding the winter doldrums. My current favorite is Aura Wellness Spa on 33rd Street in Manhattan. The polished interior makes me feel pampered, it has never been crowded any time I go, AND they have these amazing igloo shaped saunas and steam rooms with crystal incrusted interiors. You have to see it to believe it. The decor says relax and indulge but once you get behind the treatment-room doors it is all business. The body scrubs are SERIOUS and I happily endured the aggressive handling in order to kiss my winter skin behind.

Skipping home post-scrub all smooth and silky I passed by countless Korean restaurants with very tempting menus and I had kimchee on my mind. But pressed for time I headed straight home to stir up some miso soup for myself.

Thinly sliced vegetables cook quickly in Miso soup and still retain a little crunch.

Miso is so versatile and is really easy to use. There are many traditional recipes for miso soup, but I allow myself to improvise for a quick light meal. This version started with some stock (vegetable or chicken), the miso, a handful of thinly sliced vegetables, a sheet of nori cut into thin strips and some rice noodles. Within 10 minutes I had a delicious and very satisfying soup. 

My new skin and I are going on a week long vacation with my husband to the Caribbean Island of Antigua. I have arranged to take a cooking class while I am there with cooking instructor Nicole Arthurton who runs the cooking school out of her beautiful home. I am SO EXCITED and can't wait to share with you what I learn from Nicole when I get back.

Simple Miso Soup

4 cups Vegetable or Chicken Stock

1 cup of thinly sliced Vegetables (scallions, zucchini, celery, carrot, cabbage, green bean, snow pea, etc.)

1 sheet of Nori cut into thin ribbons (I fold the sheet of nori up and use a scissor to cut it)

4 oz Rice Noodles soaked in hot water for 10 minutes and drained

4 Tbs. Miso

1 Tbs. Soy Sauce

1 Tbs. Sesame Oil

Heat the stock in a sauce pan, when it comes to a simmer add the vegetables and cook for 5 minutes. Ladle from the pot about half a cup of the stock and put it into a small bowl. Mix the miso into the bowl to thin it out. Pour the miso mixture back into the soup pot. Add the noodles, soy sauce and sesame oil and simmer for one more minute. ENJOY!

Rice noodles come in lots of shapes and sizes. I have seen different instructions for cooking on various packages from adding cold water, to boiling water, to luke warm water. It seems to work fine if you soak the noodles in warm water for 5-8 minutes till noodles are tender and then use them in a soup or stir fry. 

Amanda
I hope you are enjoying a relaxing, wonderful vacation, Deb! Sounds terrific. I cannot wait to hear about it - especially the cooking class!

I happened to be in Whole Foods this afternoon, and picked up the ingredients for this soup. I am a huge fan of Miso Soup and it is always a must when I go out for Japanese. This was my first attempt at the soup, and I was happy to see how incredibly easy and quick it was. But it didn't taste anything remotely akin to restaurant miso. It was good - just very different. Deb - isn't miso, well...miso? What could account for such a completely dissimilar flavor? Would it have to do with the brand of miso? Are there different qualities or blends?

I followed Deb's basic recipe, but added a twist here and there. I did not use noodles. And, instead of the nori seawood, I used Akame. It is actually more noodle-like, and I used quite a bit of it, along with onions, carrots and cabbage. I intentionally filled it up with veggies and seaweed to make it a little more substantial and hearty - so I could have it for lunch all week and it would satisfy me. (My appetite is on the bigger side). The soup came out light and delicious - and filling.

But - as for the wine - there really is no wine that I would pair with this. There is honestly not one that I could think of that I would want to sip alongside Miso Soup. However, whenever I dine on Japanese food, I love to sip Sake. Not the inexpensive, warm, not-so-great quality Sake. I love the higher-end, sublime Sakes that have a higher percent of the rice grain polished away (which makes a higher quality Sake). I find the varied flavors and styles of Sake so incredibly delicious, and interesting; and I would not hesitate to make it my drink of choice when it comes to Miso Soup.

While Sake is referred to as a "rice wine", it is actually brewed more in the style of beer, then fermented like wine. Futsu-shu is ordinary Sake, with the same status as table wine. Tokubetsu is special or premium Sake - the kind I enjoy. These Sakes are distinguished by the degree to which the rice is polished.

Recently, I participated in a sushi and Sake tasting at which I tasted a wonderful line-up of premium Sakes. One of my favorites was Ama No To Heaven's Door Tokubetsu Junmai. (at least 30% of the rice grain is polished away). With a slightly earthy, raisiny flavor and subtle elegance, this Sake would work perfectly next to Miso Soup. I love the idea of this combination! The Ama No To Heaven's Door can be found for around $34.

Surprise Hit

Deborah
Racing through the supermarket yesterday looking for food to feed my family I plopped a big bag of green beans onto the check-out counter. When I got home and unpacked the food I had to ask myself what was I thinking? Green beans are no good this time of year. And with no exception, this batch was lumpy and somewhat limp, a sure sign of age. As Billie Holiday sings in the opening refrain to A Foggy Day- "I had a feeling of self pity. What to do, what to do, what to do?" The only appealing choice was to deep fry the beans to bring out their flavor and try to compensate for their texture. Blanching or steaming would only accentuate the flaws, creating a rubbery, bland and very uninteresting bean.

With careful sorting and trimming I managed to rescue a reasonable pile of beans. Next, I set up my wok for deep frying. Woks are a great tool for this. Their wide shape and deep sloping sides make manipulating frying foods easy. I wanted to use only a cup of canola oil so I had to fry in small batches.

It took no more than three minutes of frying each batch and the beans came out great! The color perked up and the natural nutty flavor became pronounced. I would happily eat them this way with a little salt, but I wanted to take it a little further.

Chopped ginger, sliced scallions and some dried chilies become the aromatics for this dish.

After pouring the hot oil out of the wok I briefly sauteed some aromatics and tossed the beans back in. I had some homemade sesame paste on hand so I tossed a spoonful on top of the beans, added a splash of rice vinegar and heated everything through.

Pity no more! Did this taste good! The aromatics delivered some punch and the sesame paste created depth. I would consider this a hit and even allow another out-of-season bag of beans to find their way home with me again.

Sesame Paste

-I came across this recipe recently published in the NY Times as part of a larger recipe.  The paste is  really versatile and can be added to many dishes adding a nutty sweet/salty flavor.

Toast 6 Tbs. sesame seeds in a dry pan for 2-3 minutes till they slightly change color. Put in a spice grinder and grind into a  powder. Put this powder into a food processor and add 1/2 cup more sesame seeds, 1/4 cup soy sauce and 2 Tbs. sugar. Process into a paste. The paste will store well in the fridge for several weeks.


Amanda
Wow! This looks so awesome and pretty straightfoward! And green beans are one of the few vegetables my husband will eat! Perfect! As is the case in pairing veggies with wine, always remember to pair the wine to the sauce or seasonings, not the veggie itself. Certain wines just work so unbelievably well with Asian flavors - Gewurtztraminer, Pinot Gris, Riesling, Pinot Blanc. But at the wine shop, we've been promoting one Pinot Gris in particular, and it therefore is jumping out at me as the perfect wine for this dish.

It is the Domaine Alfred Chamisal Vineyards Pinot Gris 2007. For those of you unfamiliar with this varietal, it is the same as Pinot Grigio - just goes by a different name in this part of the world. And, it is stylistically very different depending upon it's homeland. In Italy, Pinot Grigio is leaner and crisper. In places like Oregon, California and Germany, the wine is typically fuller bodied with a wonderful oily, creamy texture - exactly what I look for in a white. It is delicious - rich with flavors of peach, fig and elements of spice.


Pinot Gris is also incredibly versatile when it comes to food. It is marvelous when paired with highly spiced foods, but will also be fine next to more delicate flavors. It has a great deal of fruit and the pairings are endless! When dining on Thai, Mexican, or Asian cuisine, be sure to consider this fun, affordable varietal.
Domaine Alfred is located in the Edna Valley in California. They also make terrific Chardonnay and Pinot Noir as well. The Pinot Gris can be found for $11.99. A true bargain!