Fresh Tart

A potato galette is simply thin slices of potatoes, fat, and seasoning layered into a shallow pan and roasted until crusty and browned. It's traditional to serve alongside a roast of some sort, and definitely do that, because you can imagine crusty, buttery potatoes do a fine job of soaking up meaty juices of almost any type.

But a potato galette also makes a killer meal all on its own, particularly alongside (or underneath!) a tart arugula salad. In fact, invite people over if you make one, otherwise...you will eat the whole thing by yourself. As healthful as a tart arugula salad is, it will not offset the regret of eating an entire galette on your own; I know this from experience.

I make galettes two ways and I'll leave it to you to decide which you prefer: Just potatoes and butter, or potatoes and butter with cream. Both yield a crispy top and bottom, but the cream version is creamier vs. crispy. The boys in my house prefer the all-butter version, I prefer the cream. It was not a bad weekend enjoying both!

Buttery potatoes make me badly want a glass of wine, so I checked in with my friend Jason Kallsen, social media marketing for The Wine Company and author of The Grilling Man blog, for the perfect wine pairing. He suggests a richer wine but with acid, perhaps a fine-tuned California Chardonnay such as LIOCO Russian River Valley or Chateau Montelena.

I suggest you take his advice and enjoy together al fresco. This is Minnesota's most perfect outside dining weather, right now. Enjoy!

Recipe for Potato Galette at TC Taste/Minnesota Monthly Magazine.

As someone who spends a lot of time in grocery stores, it's hard to deny the primal thrill of foraging for edibles in the great outdoors. It's similar to the pleasure in picking tomatoes I've grown myself, except a bit more powerful. There is, in fact, a Hierarchy of Food-Gathering SatIsfaction, which exists completely in my own mind, and goes something like this: Foraging (hunting, fishing), gardening, farm stands, farmers markets, co-ops, grocery stores. The thrill of the chase apparently persists even in the soul of a city girl.

Especially when you can forage right in the city! There are stinging nettles to be found in almost anyone's yard, which you well know if you've ever grabbed one to yank out of a flower bed (ouch). Next time you see them, put on some gloves, pull them up, then save them to make salt, an idea I'm stealing from my friends Kathy Yerich and Scott Pampuch, who both made and shared nettle salt in the last couple of weeks.

Nettle salt is easy to make and deliciously savory, with a slightly grassy flavor that is lovely with corn, eggs, butter, and bread. Kathy made hers by pulsing fresh nettle leaves with sea salt in a food processor, then spreading the mixture to dry on a baking sheet. Her salt was bright green and pungent, a gorgeous topping for the pizzas we Minnesota Food Bloggers made at our recent gathering at Kitchen in the Market with Zoe Francois. Scott made his by first drying the nettles before pulsing with coarse sea salt. His version had more texture and a softer flavor, which was amazing sprinkled on the popcorn tossed with brown butter he set out at his In Search of Food party at Fulton Beer.

Make it both ways! Recipe for Nettle Salt at TC Taste/Minnesota Monthly Magazine.

These butterflied shrimp are more of a technique than a recipe, a simple way to grill truly shrimpy shrimp.

Shrimp shells are where the flavor is at - even if you're preparing shelled shrimp for a salad or pasta, keep the shells! Either freeze them in an airtight plastic bag or make quick batches of stock as you go and freeze the stock. Use the stock to make risotto, soup, a simple pan sauce...wherever you add it, it's an incredible punch of flavor for very little effort.

Or especially during grilling season, just cook the shrimp in their shells. To not have to fuss with skewers, or with peeling hot shrimp (which is a bit of a pain), remove the legs from large shrimp (U15), then with a small, sharp knife, split them lengthwise down the middle without cutting all the way through the shells. Remove the vein that runs down the middle (running them under cold water makes the process go quickly) and press gently on the shrimp to flatten them. I set them on a baking sheet as I go, dry them all with paper towels when I'm done, then drizzle them with olive oil on both sides. I then sprinkle them very lightly with salt and grill over medium high heat until the shells are pink and the flesh is completely opaque, usually about 3 minutes per side.

Serving suggestions at TC Taste/Minnesota Monthly Magazine.

This salad just screams "Ladies!" to me. Right? Although my husband devoured it, so certainly plenty of gents will happily down lobster and asparagus atop buttery toast as well.

Recipe for Lobster-and-Asparagus Salad with Miso-Mustard Vinaigrette at Andrew Zimmern's Kitchen Adventures/Food & Wine Magazine.

You can whip up a batch of this simple, gorgeous soup any time because frozen peas are quite lovely when pureed.

But as fresh peas come into the market, make it then too, and enjoy the essence of spring, garnished with fresh mint and chives, cold from the fridge.

Recie for Pea-and-Parsnip Vichysoisse at Andrew Zimmern's Kitchen Adventures/Food & Wine Magazine.

It's a little bit ridiculous that I haven't posted about sopes before - I make and devour them several times a week. In fact, I'm a maniacal cornmeal cake fan in general. Chef Thomas Boemer had an insane version on Corner Table's menu a couple of weeks ago, with a bit of lard kneaded in, fried in butter, and topped with pork confit. Oh my word it was so good that I ordered another one to go to have for breakfast the next day.

You can do some pretty serious sope damage at Midtown Global Market as well. Taqueria Los Ocampo's version is a fabulously hot mess, loaded with tender chicken, melted cheese, lettuce, radishes, and sour cream. Add one of their fantastic salsas, alongside a large stack of napkins, and dig it like a day off.

The version I eat most often is the one I make at home. Nothing more than masa harina, a pinch of salt, and water kneaded together before being shaped and fried, they're the perfect delivery vehicle for pretty much whatever you have on hand: Guacamole, eggs any style, salad, cheese, beans, chorizo, tomatoes, pickled things, fried potatoes, on and deliciously on...

Recipe for Sopes at TC Taste/Minnesota Monthly Magazine.

I created these moist, chocolate-y brownies for my stepdaughter several years ago. I was new to Kosher for Passover cooking when I first met her and had a lot of fun playing with matzo meal and matzo cake flour to come up with scratch treats that were easy to make and tastier than the box mixes that crowd grocery store shelves during Passover.

The finishing sprinkle of coarse sea salt is a new addition, added by a friend who was taste-testing this batch for me. It's both pretty and delicious, adding texture and depth of flavor to already fudgy brownies. An evolving tradition...I love it.

Recipe for Fudgy Passover Brownies with Sea Salt at TC Taste/Minnesota Monthly Magazine.

Man oh man oh man do I miss matzoh ball soup! It used to be a bit of a joke in my household because my husband is Jewish, and doesn't like matzoh balls, and I am not, and could eat 10 of them in one sitting.

Not kidding.

While I couldn't dig into these myself (gluten), my tasters adored their light, lovely texture. The broth is rich. There is schmaltz in those beauties, the only way to go for a rich chicken flavor. The finish of fresh dill brightens the whole.

Oh!

Matzoh Ball Soup at Andrew Zimmern's Kitchen Adventures/Food & Wine Magazine.

This weekend at Mall of America! I'm judging with WCCO's Jason DeRusha and Le Cordon Bleu's Chef Jason Ross! I hope that you can stop by for all sorts of competitive food fun.

Here's a Fox 9 News teaser with defending champ Chef Vincent Francoual:

Local Chef Challenge Preview with M.A. Rosko: MyFoxTWINCITIES.com

Yes, I got to eat both scallops and lobster at 7:30 am yesterday...NICE!

I made the original saltcod version of these fritters via Andrew Zimmern's Kitchen Adventures and watched my friends and family devour them. I love fritters! I love anything fried! So I created two versions - both glutenful and gluten-free - and was delighted when taste testers couldn't tell the difference between the two.

If fritters - sweet or savory - aren't in your rotation, they should be. They come together dangerously quickly, as in you'll find yourself from craving to stuffing your face with crispy fried goodness in about 15 minutes. I have visions of frying up a batch for my girlfriends post-cocktails. In fact, that should happen tomorrow. Hmm...

I worked out a ham variation for those of you who will soon have slabs of it leftover post-Easter dinner. Definitely make ham soup, but save a spot for these as well. Fritters make a lovely nibble with bubbles or a light dinner alongide salad or a perfect accompaniment to...soup! It might be a bit over-the-top to serve ham fritters with ham soup but maybe not. They would for sure be delicious alongside a tomato version.

Recipe for Ham Fritters at TC Taste/Minnesota Monthly Magazine.