Veal with Fontina Cream Sauce

For our Valentine's Day dinner last night, I decided to keep things simple but flavorful. I was pressed for time because of many late afternoon errands, but knew I wanted to do something special. I browsed through a cookbook I own and have not yet cooked from, but which looks really good: Il Viaggio di Vetri. With limited time on my hands I was too overwhelmed to follow a new recipe step by step, since it is less time-consuming for me to just throw something together. I found a really yummy-sounding recipe, took the basic idea of the ingredients list, and put my own personal twist on it. This is what I came up with:

And here is what I did to make it...

First disclaimer, I measured nothing...

First, put a handful of dried porcini mushrooms to soak in hot water.

Next, pour some cream into a saucepan over low heat, add some thin slices of fontina cheese, and add some fresh rosemary. I cleared an entire sprig. Season with ground sea salt freshly ground white pepper. Let the sauce simmer at a very low heat all the while that you are preparing the rest of the ingredients so that the rosemary flavor will become deeply infused.

After at least 20 minutes of soaking, finely chop the porcini mushrooms, then saute them in butter. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.

Next, coat thick cubes of veal cutlet in flour seasoned with salt and pepper. Heat some vegetable oil over medium heat in a skillet, and cook the veal for about 5 minutes on each side more or less depending on thickness.

Meanwhile wash and trim some broccolini, and barely saute it in some olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.

Spoon a layer of sauce onto each serving plate. Top with a serving of veal. Sprinkle with porcini mushrooms, then drizzle some more sauce over the top. Garnish with freshly chopped Italian parsley. Add some broccolini on the side.

Enjoy!

Chocolate Chip Cookies (Vegan, but DON'T let that deter you!)

I was first introduced to this dessert last summer during a wine country picnic. One of my girlfriends at work follows a vegan diet, and she brought these cookies to share with the group. I have had my share of bad vegan cookies, so was pleasantly surprise and amazed when I experienced the well-rounded flavor and the terrific texture. I actually think they are better than most traditional chocolate chip cookie recipes.

Since tomorrow is Valentine's day, and Bill is STILL in Texas, I decided to make these cookies for myself. I MAY share and take them to work.

I would recommend doubling or tripling the recipe, yields about 3 dozen cookies. Note that the cookies spread a lot and come out big and fluffy.














Ingredients:
1 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1⁄2 teaspoon baking soda
1⁄4 cup unrefined sugar
1⁄4 teaspoon sea salt
1⁄3 cup pure maple syrup
1⁄4 teaspoon blackstrap molasses
1 – 1 1⁄2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract
1⁄4 cup canola oil (a little generous)
1⁄3 cup non-dairy chocolate chips















Preheat oven to 350°F (176°C). In a bowl, sift in the flour, baking powder, and baking soda. Add the sugar and salt, and stir until well combined. In a separate bowl, combine the maple syrup with the molasses and vanilla, then stir in the oil until well combined. Add the wet mixture to the dry, along with the chocolate chips, and stir through until just well combined (do not over-mix). Place large spoonfuls of the batter on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and flatten a little. Bake for 11 minutes, until just golden (if you bake for much longer, they will dry out). Let cool on the sheet for no more than 1 minute (again, to prevent drying), then transfer to a cooling rack.
I just ate a warm one straight out of the oven with a tall glass of cold soy milk :) I hope you enjoy this interesting and yummy recipe as much as I do!

Rhubarb-Strawberry Tart

It has been a long winter here in the New York Metropolitan Area. After weeks and weeks of the snow piling up, one snowstorm after the other, we are finally getting some days of warmer (above freezing) weather, and the snow is beginning to melt. This week, for the first time all month, I can see some of the grass in the front yard! This can only mean one thing: Spring is coming!

I am celebrating the first signs of the warm weather to come, as well as the upcoming Valentine's Day holiday, with this succulent red tart, brimming with rhubarb and strawberries.

Ingredients:

Tart shell

200 grams flour

1 teaspoon sugar

1/4 teaspoon salt

8 tablespoons butter

4 tablespoons ice-cold water

1/2 teaspoon almond extract

(+ 2 teaspoons melted butter and 1 teaspoon sugar to brush and sprinkle over prepared crust)

Filling

3/4 pound rhubarb

3/4 pound strawberries

1/2 cup sugar

2 tablespoons flour

Glaze

2 tablespoons strawberry preserves

1 teaspoon water

1/4 cup sugar

Instructions:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Make your tart crust by combining the flour, sugar and salt, and cutting in the butter, making sure to leave the mixture a little coarse so that the pea-sized chunks of butter can melt during baking, resulting in a flakier crust. Moisten the mixture with the water and almond extract, and gently mix together until the liquid is uniformly incorporated. Pat the dough into a ball, flatten into a disc, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Next wash the strawberries and rhubarb, and trim the ends and leaves. Slice into thin pieces. Mix with the sugar and flour in a large bowl.
• Roll out the dough, place in a tart dish, and fill it with the rhubarb-strawberry mixture. Brush the exposed crust with melted butter, and sprinkle with sugar.

• Bake at 400 degrees for 45 minutes.
• Prepare the glaze by melting the sugar, preserves and water in a small saucepan.
• Remove from the oven, brush the top with the glaze to ensure an evenly shiny finish, and let cool.

Happy Valentines Day!

Fresh Berry Cobbler

Since Valentines Day is this Monday my school friends and I were trying to think of interesting desserts that could be made for the occasion. Not for our relationships in particular, but just in general. Audrey came up with the idea to make a Fresh Berry Cobbler, which comes out amazing. We decided to make it tonight. I apologize for the dorm room photos again, the lighting was very yellow.

I realize that berries aren't in season during the winter. I haven't tried the following fruits, but it's foreseeable that some of these may be good alternatives especially if you only want to use in-season fruits: Pears,  Red Bananas and Red Currents. The selection during the winter is limiting, but even with out of season berries the cobbler tastes quite good since all the juices from the fruit mixes into a light all natural sugar syrup and the fruits become flavored by the warmed mixture of that. There is no need to add extra sugar to the fruit since fruit is so naturally sweet to begin with.

Ingredients:
2 cups of flour
2/3 cup of sugar
1/2 a cup to 3/4 cup of butter
3 to 4 cups of mixed berries
1/8 cup of water

Before you start to cook take the butter out of the refrigerator so it becomes a bit soft.

When the butter is ready sift the flour into a mixing bowl and slowly add the sugar. Once the flour and the sugar is mixed together well place the first 1/2 cup of butter, sliced into the bowl. With your hands begin to break up the butter and get the ingredients to become one cohesive crumbly mixture. You may or may not need to add the remaining 1/4 cup of butter.

Take the mixed berries, cut any strawberries in halves and then using a medium sized glass dish pour the mixed berries on the bottom and the water, spread evenly. Next take the crumb mixture and sprinkle evenly on the top.

Cook the cobbler for 20-30 minutes or until the crumbs have begun to brown slightly. It can be eaten warm or cold and the end result is all about the texture of the fruit with the sweet crust.

Spanakopita

Spanakopita (spinach and feta pie)

This dish is really delicious, and great for dinners at home as well as parties. It can be served as an appetizer or as part of a complete meal with a salad and other small dishes on the side.

Ingredients:

1 lb spinach

5-6 finely chopped scallions

1/2 cup finely chopped parsley

1 lb feta cheese, crumbled

1/4 cup milk

4 eggs, beaten

salt and pepper

1/4 cup melted butter + 1/4 cup olive oil

2/3 lb ready-made filo pastry

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

Blanch the spinach in boiling water for one minute, then drain and squeeze out as much water as possible.

Chop the spinach, and mix with the scallions, parsley, cheese, milk, eggs, salt and pepper.

Melt oil and butter together, and brush a thin coating of it onto a 14-inch baking pan with a pastry brush. Layer half of the filo sheets into the pan, brushing the oil & butter combo between each layer.

Spread the spinach filling evenly on top, then cover with the remaining filo sheets, again brushing each sheet with oil & butter.

Score into 12 serving pieces, sprinkle with a little water, and bake for 1 hour or until golden brown. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Places to Eat on the Lower East Side, New York City

 I've been so busy with school work that I haven't been able to cook so I figured instead I should post a bit about my favorite restaurants and coffee shops on the Lower East Side (Where I currently am dorming in NYC for school). For those of you who don't live in New York City.... these are the places that you should be visiting when you come down to the touristy Lower East Side. Good luck!



An Choi: 85 Orchard Street, NYC 10002
This Vietnamese restaurant has really great food. Their sandwiches and their noodles are really tasty and much lighter/less greasy than most other Asian style restaurants. The only problem with them is that they don't handle having a busy restaurant well.

88 Orchard: 88 Orchard Street, NYC 10002
By day it's a hip coffee shop with great pastries and sandwiches and by night it becomes a casual, but really nice dinner spot. The food it simple, but really good and their lattes have a lot of flavor.

Essex Street Market: 120 Essex Street, NYC 10002
Okay, so sure I don't exactly eat here, but it's where I do most of my food shopping. It's an indoor market with individual shops for different trades. The bread shop is some of the best bread I've eaten, there is a really great cheese shop, a meat shop, fish stand, chocolate shop, and lots of other shops for fruits, vegetables, and other staples.

Creperie: 135 Ludlow Street, NYC 10002
This Creperie is really good, they have lots and lots crepe options... I usually just get butter and sugar (the classic crepe)... They are open really really late most days are a bit expensive, and most importantly I think I'd eat here most often if I thought I wouldn't gain five hundred pounds for eating there every day.


Mikey's Burger: 134 Ludlow Street, NYC 10002
This place quite possibly has the best burgers downtown. They cook them all in front of you and their meat appears to be hand made since they are all rolled into balls and flattened when they begin to cook it for you. They have a lot of hamburger/vegetarian burgers options and the cute seats around the grill is perfect for the more eclectic lower east side feel.



Bruschetteria: 92 Rivington Street, NYC 10002
This place has a great atmosphere, it's all about drinking good wine with a nice meal. The only problem is that their coffee isn't so great, and that the food is hit or miss. Some of their dishes are absolutely fantastic and then others are horrible... there seems to be no in between. All of their bruschetta is really good, but then all of their pastas are horrible.... I think they may use ragu sauce or something... It's a risk to eat here, but if you pick your food well it's actually a really great restaurant.

Other really great places:
D'espresso: 100 Stanton Street, NYC 10002
Laboratorio Del Gelato: 188 Ludlow Street, NYC 10002
Congee Village: 100 Allen Street, NYC 10002
Teany: 90 Rivington Street, NYC 10002
Himalayan Cafe Inc: 78 East 1st Street, 10009
Bluebird Coffeshop: 72 East 1st street, 10003

My Cuppa Tea

Tonight after dinner I developed a sweet tooth (as I usually do). Chocolate didn't seem like the answer and ice cream seemed too sweet. Then I spotted the kiwi in my fruit basket. Juicy, light, slightly sweet and mildly tart...crunchy little seeds...that's the ticket! And it was...now for my evening tea with a cinnamon stick and the juice of a Myer lemon picked from my friend's backyard. Yesssssssss....