Starchy Side – Page 3 – From My Table…to Yours

Magazine Review: “Food & Wine” and Sweet Potato Gratin

This is the fifth (and final) installment of my series of Thanksgiving magazine reviews. You can see my evaluative criteria here. When I first decided what publications I wanted to review, I was going to keep FOOD & WINE off the list. My reasoning was that half of Food & Wine is, well, wine and I didn’t think it would be fair to pit it against the other magazines, which were all food-centric. However, I think it stacks up quite nicely, in fact.

214 pages total : 95 pages of ads (44%)
76 Recipes
News-stand price: $4.50
Price per recipe: $0.06
# of ads pretending to be articles: 5.
Recipe Index? Right after the table of contents, at the front of the magazine, Food & Wine offers two indexes – one listing the recipes in the issue, and another listing the wines. The first groups recipes by category (Soups & Starters, Fish & Shellfish, Pasta & Rice, etc.) and supplies a color coded system to let readers know which are Fast, Healthy, Make Ahead, Vegetarian, and “Staff Favorites”. The wine index lists all the wines

Photos: Food porn is not the reason to buy this magazine. The pictures provided are nice but are often quite small (usually about a quarter of a page) as compared to those seen in the other magazines I’ve reviewed. F&W also displays far fewer images than the others.

Best Sections:
• Equipment – This month the “Equipment” section tested skillets, comparing the pros and cons of cast iron, stainless steel, and nonstick versions. I found this to be very helpful and interesting, including the brand recommendations.
• Master Cook – A great monthly column highlighting one master technique and how to use it in the home kitchen. This month it is making your own ricotta cheese – brilliant!
• Wine-Tasting Room – A true advantage of this food magazine is the great wine advice. This section highlights yummy wines with a focus on affordable and everyday ones.

Best Features:
• Each recipe clearly displays the active cooking time and the total cooking time. Very helpful for those of us (ahem! me! ahem!) who tend to find themselves in the middle of preparation at 7:00 only to realize that the recipe requires 2 1/2 hours of braising time.
• Excellent layout and design. I find this magazine to be one of the easiest to read and work with.
• Wine suggestions with many of the recipes, shedding light on the esoteric and impenetrable art of food and wine pairing.

Thanksgiving at the Food & Wine house:
The F&W “Thanksgiving Planner” is wonderfully organized and clear and the theme is “delicious and stress-free”. Each recipe is marked with a symbol, letting the reader know if the dish can be made ahead, made way ahead, cooked on the grill or stovetop rather than the oven, or if you can finish it in the oven after the turkey comes out. The dishes are grouped into three suggested menus with a wine pairing, but swapping is encouraged! The ‘out-there’ factor is at mid range: goat cheese-edamame dip with spiced pepitas; creamed spinach and parsnips; grilled butterflied turkey; fennel, red onion and focaccia stuffing. Ruling? Choose wisely, my friend.

Particularly Unappetizing:
• Caraway-Ancho Chile Gravy
• Cream and Lemon Braised Pork Shoulders
• Giant Lima Beans with Stewed Tomatoes (sounds like images from my fifth grade nightmares…)

I’m looking forward to cooking:
• Cassoulet with Duck Confit
• Butternut Squash Turnovers
• *Sweet Potato Gratin with Chile-Spiced Pecans
• Cranberry-Pomegranate Sauce
• Creamed Spinach and Parsnips

*Sweet Potato Gratin with Chile-Spiced Pecans, from F&W November 2008.

5 lbs. sweet potatoes
4 Tbs. unsalted butter
2 c. pecans
2 Tbs. sugar
1 tsp. chipotle chile powder
kosher salt
1/4 c. honey
1/2 tsp. cinnamon
1/4 tsp. ground allspice
1/8 tsp. ground cloves
1/2 c. heavy cream
freshly ground pepper
2 c. mini marshmallows

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Roast the sweet potatoes on a large baking sheet for about 1 hour and 10 minutes, until tender. Meanwhile, in a skillet, melt the butter. Add the pecans, sugar, and chipotle powder and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until sugar starts to caramelize and the pecans are well coated, 8 minutes. Spread the pecans on a parchment-lined baking sheet, sprinkle with salt and let cool. Cut the potatoes in half lengthwise and scoop the flesh into the bowl of a food processor; discard the skins. Add the honey, cinnamon, allspice and cloves to the processor and puree. Season with salt and pepper.

Scrape the potatoes into a 9×13 inch baking dish; scatter the marshmallows are golden. Sprinkle with the pecans and serve. MAKE AHEAD: The sweet potato puree can be refrigerated overnight. Bring to room temperature and top with the marshmallows bfore baking. The spiced nuts can be stored in an airtight container for up to 3 days. Makes 12 servings.

Results: So delicious! We could really taste the warm spices in the puree, and the crunch of the pecans was a welcome addition to this traditional dish. I would absolutely cook this for Thanksgiving or any fall meal. The leftover pecans (of which there were many!) went into my spinach, pecorino, and prosciutto salad for lunch, and they were perfect! They could also be a good accompaniment to a Thanksgiving cheese plate. I think that F&W does a wonderful job blending traditional recipes (cassoulet) and innovative techniques (homemade ricotta), not to mention providing great wine recommendations and pairing advice. If I could spare the shelf space, I would certainly add this publication to my subscriptions! I can’t end this post without pointing out that the recipe I tested is clearly NOT a gratin as I understand it – gratins have melted cheese or buttered and browned breadcrumbs on top, not kraft mini marshmallows.

Chive Risotto Cakes

When I started this blog oh so many, um…days ago, I asked myself a very important question: as I work my way through all of these millions of recipes that I have in piles, cookbooks, and Firefox bookmarks, will I post all of my results, or just the best ones? Will people want to read about a failed attempt at a standing rib roast, or is that pointless? Am I making recipe recommendations or offering people a chance to learn from my kitchen forays?
I said that I asked myself that question, but I never said I answered it. Until today, it really has not been an issue! Not that I am some culinary prodigy in the kitchen or anything, but in my first month of blogging, I haven’t yet had a disaster, and so I have been content to post about nearly all my recent recipe trials.

This is not to say that the chive risotto cakes were a disaster for me. In fact, I think I would be more excited about the post if they had been. I could have featured my Italian version of a “Cake Wreck” (get it? 😉 )! No, they did not fail completely – more like a B minus. However, those with whom I went to college know that such a grade could send me reeling for days…

I suppose I should preface the whole discussion with the fact that RJ and I love risotto. Not only does it fit into the warm-and-hearty comfort food category while still being an excellent option for entertaining, but risotto has a special place in my heart because it is one of the only dishes into which I can insert vegetables without RJ flipping out. His recent acceptance of onions, mushrooms, and butternut squash all resulted from one of my risotto variations. Generally, I will cook risotto on a night when I have time to stand around the stove for an hour or so, and we will have leftovers for Day 2. If you’ve never tried to reheat risotto in a microwave before, please trust me: it isn’t very pretty. It comes out gummy and sticky and nowhere near as good as fresh risotto. But the stickiness may be used to great advantage, also. Cold leftover risotto of any flavor can be molded into round balls, rolled in panko crumbs, slightly flattened into a hamburger shape, then pan fried in butter or oil. You will end up with a crispy browned crust and an oozy, like-Day-1 risotto center.

Reading Deb’s pick for the Barefoot Bloggers‘ Bonus recipe, I was actually thrilled. Ina’s description explicitly claimed that her recipe provides risotto cakes without the Day-1 effort of stirring and gradually adding stock ladle by ladle. “Brilliant!”, I exclaimed.

I gathered my ingredients and even went to my favorite cheese shop for fine imported Fontina. Though the chives were a bit yellowed in some places, I figured I would only use the best ones and we’d be fine. But all the Fontina val d’Aosta and fresh-from-the-ground chives in the world could not save these risotto cakes. I am interested to see if the others felt the same as I did, or if I have just been spoiled by having ‘real’ risotto cakes as part of my repertoire for a while now, but I thought these suffered severely from the outset due to one major flaw in the directions – you cannot cook risotto in water! My cakes tasted, well, watery – comparable to how the inside of a baked potato with chives might taste if you omitted salt, butter, and sour cream.

To defend Ina’s honor, I probably could have salted the water more, or incorporated even more cheese or dried the rice in paper towels as opposed to a sieve. But none of that could have compensated for the flavor that chicken broth gives to risotto. That just wasn’t there. Even with all the cheese the recipe called for, the rice was barely holding together in balls because of the way the rice had been waterlogged. My clear conviction is that there is no shortcut to risotto, and thus no shortcut to the crispy cakes. Go the traditional route and make your favorite risotto dish. Then, on Day 2, treat yourself to your own homemade creation, covered in panko and fried.

Well, this is the moment of truth. Do I post the recipe? Will posting it diminish my integrity as a blogger or detract from my validity as messenger of good taste? I think not. You’ve read my opinion of the recipe above, but of course you all have the ability to make up your own minds. Perhaps reading the recipe will give us all some insight into where it goes wrong. Conversely, you may set out to prove that Ina is right and I am not, and I invite you to share your results with me in the comments section. Just don’t ever say I didn’t give you fair warning.

Chive Risotto Cakes, from Barefoot Contessa: Back to Basics

Kosher salt
1 cup uncooked Arborio rice
½ cup Greek yogurt
2 extra-large eggs
3 tablespoons minced fresh chives
1 ½ cup cups grated Italian Fontina cheese (5 ounces)
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
¾ cup panko (Japanese dried bread flakes)
Good olive oil

Bring a large (4 quart) pot of water to a boil and add ½ tablespoon salt and the Arborio rice. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 20 minutes. The grains of rice will be quite soft. Drain the rice in a sieve and run under cold water until cool. Drain well.

Meanwhile, whisk together the yogurt, eggs, chives, Fontina, 1 ¼ teaspoons salt, and the pepper in a medium bowl. Add the cooled rice and mix well. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 hours or overnight, until firm.

When ready to cook, preheat the oven to 250 degrees.

Spread the panko in a shallow dish. Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium-low heat. Form balls of the rice mixture using a standard (2 1/4 –inch) ice cream scoop or a large spoon. Pat the balls into patties 3 inches in diameter and ¾ inch thick. Place 4-6 patties in the panko, turning once to coat. Place the patties in the hot oil and cook, turning once, for about 3 minutes on each side until the risotto cakes are crisp and nicely browned. Place on a sheet pan lined with parchment paper and keep warm in the oven for up to 30 minutes. Continue cooking in batches, adding oil as necessary, until all the cakes are fried. Serve hot.

A Meal Fit for Company

Today I bring you a full menu rather than one dish. This meal is simple, delicious, quick and relatively healthy. It can be multiplied to serve a crowd without much more effort or additional funds, and thus it is also a recent addition to my running list of “dinners fit for company costing less than $20.”

I thank Whole Foods, as much as anybody, for the idea. I had been given the opportunity to shop there due to an overnight stay in Cambridge, MA and I was awed at the prospect. For a girl that lives way, way up on the North Shore, the visit to this shopping Mecca where the peppers are never bruised and you can choose from 8 flavors of wood-smoked salmon was a treat indeed. Thus, it took me about an hour and a half (no joke) to get through all the aisles. There was a lot of internal dialogue involved, wherein I argued my need for fancy organic granola (“it has currants! Not raisins, currants! And coconut flakes!”) against the persistent reality of my checking account balance (“no you do not need Plugra butter”). Plus, I had to decide what form of protein I was least likely to get at my home grocery, either because they don’t carry it or my husband won’t eat it.

I finally settled on a balanced, colorful meal of panko-crusted flounder, creamy Spinach, and roasted butternut squash with cranberries. As the outline of the menu unfolds below, you may initially cringe at some of the flavor combos but let me tell you, these dishes really did work well together. I would make this meal again in a heartbeat – or at least in 24 hours, if you promise me a ride to Whole Foods.

Roasted Butternut Squash with Cranberries
1 large butternut squash, peeled and scraped of seeds
3/4 c. to 1 c. fresh cranberries

Olive Oil
Maple Syrup
Salt

Preheat oven to 400˚F. Cut butternut squash into medium-sized chunks, approximately 1 1/2 inches square. Add them to a large mixing bowl toss with olive oil to coat. Spread squash in a baking dish large enough to fit the squash in a single layer, not overlapping but not inches apart either. Next, pour the cranberries (as much as you like, really) into the mixing bowl and coat with another tablespoon or so of olive oil. Scatter the cranberries in and around the butternut squash pieces. Sprinkle the whole pan with salt to taste, and then lightly drizzle with maple syrup, making sure that every bite of squash gets at least a couple drops. Roast for about 1 hour – test the squash by stabbing a piece with a fork. If you pull the fork back the squash should easily slip off the tines. If it wants to follow with the fork, return the squash to the oven and roast for another 10 minutes before checking again. When done, some of the cranberries will be blackened and shriveled – I think they’re yummy like this. If you prefer your cranberries all to be juicy and full, add them halfway through the cooking rather than with the squash at the beginning.

Creamy Spinach and Mushrooms (sauce adapted from the Joy of Cooking)
3/4 c. milk
1/4 onion or 1 clove crushed garlic
bay leaf
pinch of nutmeg
3 Tbs. butter, divided
2 Tbs flour
4 oz. cremini mushrooms, sliced
1 lb. spinach or baby spinach
1 Tbs. Dijon mustard
1/4 c. grated cheese (gruyere, Jarlsberg, parmesan or some combination)

First simmer the milk with the onion (or garlic), bay leaf and nutmeg in a small pot for about 15 minutes. Remove the solids (onion or garlic and bay leaf) and then set aside. In a separate saucepan, melt the 2 tablespoons of butter, then whisk in the flour over low heat until fragrant, about 1 minute. Slowly whisk in the milk mixture and return to low heat. Simmer, whisking frequently, until thickened to a soup-like consistency (as you can see from the picture, I didn’t wait long enough…). In the meantime, melt the final tablespoon of butter in a sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the cremini mushrooms and cook until lightly browned. Add the spinach and stir gently until the spinach is cooked down. To the milk sauce, add the mustard, followed by the grated cheese, stirring to blend. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Drain any excess liquid from the mushroom and spinach mixture. Add the sauce to the cooked spinach gradually until you reach the creaminess level you are comfortable with. For some, a touch of the sauce is plenty, others want the whole mess of it.

Sun-dried Tomato Panko-Crusted Flounder
3 filets of flounder (or 1 per person)
2 eggs
2 cups of Sun-dried Tomato Panko flakes (mine were courtesy of Whole foods, but feel free to make your own with chopped parsley, minced sun-dried tomatoes, and fresh breadcrumbs)

Here’s a simple one – pat the fish filets dry with paper towel. Beat the eggs together in a shallow bowl or platter. Dip the fish filets, one by one, in the egg to coat. Let the excess egg drip back into the bowl, then dredge the filets in the breadcrumbs, turning to coat. Over medium-high heat, melt a tablespoon of butter in a nonstick pan. Lay the filets in the pan and cook about 3 minutes on one side, then flip to cook the other side for about a minute and a half. Check for doneness – the fish should be opaque, not translucent – then transfer to dinner plates.