Fresh Tart

Thanksgiving kicked off when my dad pulled up to the house last Tuesday afternoon, fresh from a quail hunt in Tennessee. My stepmom Susanna flew in a few hours later from Sheridan, Wyoming, their now home.

My house and kitchen were immediately improved. Dad sharpened my knives and starting halving and marinating quail in buttermilk and hot sauce. Susanna started washing dishes, straightening the house, and running loads of laundry. I felt a huge weight lift from my over-scheduled shoulders that can only come from guests who don't ask what needs to be done, but just find things and jump in. Usually those guests are family members, but not always.

Whoever the hell they are, they are always welcome in my home.

Sasha came by for dinner Wednesday night, just home from her freshman year at Wellesley. It was so good to see her! While we all chatted, Dad fried the quail: After their buttermilk soak, he dredged them in flour (gluten-free AP for me, which worked like a charm), let them rest on a rack for 15 minutes or so, then fried them in a couple of inches of hot oil.

My god. Tender-crispy-sublime. We devoured them.

Later that night David, Etta, and my cousin Craig arrived in various shifts from NYC and DC. I had big plans to stay awake to feed them late dinners. I even went for an almost-midnight walk, giddy in the balmy air, but upon return...I totally fell asleep.

Which was probably for the best, given my early-Thursday-morning playdate with butter and herbs and the big ol' turkey that I had brined overnight Tuesday, then let dry out in the fridge overnight Wednesday. That one-two punch always yields ridiculously crispy skin, lightly salty, perfectly buttery. I hit it pretty hard while Dad carved the bird.

In fact, if I could eat just crispy turkey skin and a pile of stuffing and call it Thanksgiving dinner I'd be so happy.

Which is why I am in fact I am happy, because that's exactly what I did.

OK, I - as well as my uncles Bruce and Jim, aunts Mary and Marge, cousin Craig, brother David, sisters Stacey and Etta, John, Mom, Dad, and Susanna - also inhaled these amazing Melissa Clark sour cream mashed potatoes, prepared by Stacey & Susanna. They have earned a do-ahead spot on my Thanksgiving table, for sure. The chives are a particularly lovely addition, as is Parmesan cheese on top. We skipped the called-for breadcrumbs and didn't miss them.

My aunt Mary brought green beans - no, not those green beans. Her version was fresh and simple - fresh beans tossed in an anchovy vinaigrette. Delicious.

I was thrilled with the way the (gluten-free) cornbread stuffing turned out. I added both spicy and sweet sausage, mushrooms, plenty of fresh sage, and Parmesan cheese. We've been frying the leftovers for the last few days, to top with poached eggs... Goodness do that.

My stepmom Susanna was the first to bring this gorgeous wild rice salad to the Thanksgiving table, sometime in the mid-90s, and one of us makes it every year, this year my aunt Mary. The citrus dressing is a welcome sweet-tangy palate cleanser in the midst of lots of buttery sausagey richness.

My mom made a cranberry-orange sauce and The Curry Diva herself, lovely Heather Jansz, gifted me a jar of her precious chutney. Both were stunning with the turkey, at the dinner table and on many sandwiches afterward.

I got too busy eating, talking, and drinking wine to snap a pic of my aunt Marge's perfect pumpkin chiffon and pecan pies! No! Needless to say, they were attacked as usual. Gone baby gone. She is a master.

I made this Michael Ruhlman oven stock from the carcass. It's the best stock I've made and so easy! With the stock, turkey, and leftover mashed potatoes I made a shepherd's pie, which we dug into last night. And turkey wild rice soup and latkes, which we ate Saturday night. And I'll be making this Mark Bittman turkey & spinach coconut curry for tomorrow. (I'm taking a break from turkey today...I need a little breathing space. Uff.)

Mom's cranberry sauce has appeared in three batches of muffins, one of which I brought with me to AM950 on Saturday morning, when I was on the Fresh & Local Show with Mike Madison of Unknown Prophets. We talked leftovers for an hour with host Susan Berkson and barely scratched the surface! The whole conversatoin left me starving so I came home and made myself a big batch of turkey nachos. I do so love turkey with chiles.

What fun have you been having with leftovers? I hope you all had a terrific holiday!

Recipe for Pan-Roasted Cornish Hens with Calvados & Apples at Food & Wine Magazine/Andrew Zimmern's Kitchen Adventures.

Sticky. Glossy. Sweet. Tender. Easy. Addictive.

Recipe for One-Pot Sticky Chicken Wings at Food & Wine Magazine/Andrew Zimmern's Kitchen Adventures.

When I started asking food friends what they think makes a great meatloaf, three separate people said ask Chef Stephen Trojahn of Gastrotruck, because his smoked meatloaf sliders are amazing.

So I sent him a note, and he kindly shared the following tips!

1. Start with excellent, grass-fed beef.
2. Test & taste your mixture (by frying off a bit first), adjust seasoning as needed.
3. If you don't have a smoker, add a few slices of smoked, finely diced & rendered bacon to the mixture.
4. Let it rest. It's even better if you let it come to room temperature then chill overnight.

I took those ideas and incorporated them into a recent favorite recipe by Chef Damon Wise. Both Trojahn and Wise endeavor to add layers of flavor to their meatloaf, with Trojahn adding the killer touch of cooking his in a smoker. If you have a smoker, do that! Absolutely delicious.

(Gluten-free note: I substituted gluten-free bread with excellent results.)

Recipe for tender, smoky Meatloaf at Dara & Co./Minnesota Monthly Magazine.

My mom is recovering from major surgery here at our home. She spent the first couple of weeks in a hospital and rehab facility, where the food was...truly awful. I brought her little farmer's market treats like sliced tomatoes and strawberries, to remind her that not all food comes from boxes and cans, but man, the overall effect of feeding healing people crap food is seriously depressing.

She is glad to be here now, noshing what appeals from my endless stream of cooking, and starting to cook for herself again too. She can't eat more than a few bites of anything at a time - and all she's truly hungry for is sweets, ha - but she made herself a killer BLT yesterday, thick with a perfect tomato and a pile of freshly picked lettuce, and managed to eat half of it.

Baby steps on the road to recovery.

She also managed a few bites of this soup, which really hit the spot on a cool, fall day. I love chicken soup for its endless versatility, and of course for its soothing, healing deliciousness. I studded this version with kale, sweet potatoes, garlic, and just a spot of bacon because my mom loves bacon.

I am of her, after all.

This is a nice transitional soup, warm on a cool day, but full of end-of-summer bounty like a garden-ripe tomato. A hint of nutmeg is lovely here, as is a shower of freshly grated Parmesan to finish.

Chicken Soup with Kale, Garlic & Sweet Potatoes
Serves 6

1 roasting chicken, about 3 lbs., patted dry
1 Tbsp. bacon fat or vegetable oil
2 yellow onions, 1 coarsely chopped, 1 diced
6 cloves garlic, 3 smashed, 3 minced
2 ribs celery, 1 halved, 1 diced
2 carrots, 1 halved, 1 diced
1 tsp. dried thyme
6 c. water
1 tsp. Kosher salt plus more to finish
2 slices bacon, diced
1/2 bunch lacinato (Tuscan) kale, ribs removed, sliced thin
1 large sweet potato, peeled & diced
1/4 tsp. freshly grated nutmeg

1 large garden-ripe tomato, diced
freshly ground black pepper
freshly grated Parmesan cheese

Make the broth:
Preheat oven to 250 degrees F.

Heat a Dutch oven or casserole with a tight fitting lid over medium high heat. Add the bacon fat or oil and when hot, add the chicken and brown it thoroughly all over. Remove chicken to a plate and set aside.

Turn heat to down to medium and add the coarsely chopped onion, 3 cloves of smashed garlic, 1 halved rib of celery, 1 halved carrot, and thyme. Stir around for a few minutes, then slowly add the water and 1 tsp. of salt. Nestle the chicken back into the pot and bring stock to a simmer. Cover and transfer to the oven. (Or, turn heat to low and simmer on top of the stove.)

Bake (or simmer) chicken for 1 1/2 hours, or until chicken is very tender. Remove chicken from the pot to a cutting board (it might break apart into pieces, which is fine) and let cool for a bit.

Strain stock through a colander into a large bowl. Skim fat from stock. Discard strained vegetables.

Make the soup:
Set the Dutch oven over medium heat and add the bacon to the pan. When the bacon is browned and crisp, add the diced onion, diced garlic, diced celery, diced carrot, kale, sweet potato, and nutmeg. Saute for about 10 minutes, stirring a few times, until the onion is softened. Pour in the stock and simmer, uncovered, for 10 minutes or until the carrot and sweet potato are tender.

While the soup simmers, tear the chicken into bite-sized pieces, discarding the skin and bones.

To serve, stir about half of the chicken into the hot soup (reserving the rest for another use) and taste for salt, adding more if necessary. Divide the diced tomato among soup bowls, ladle soup over the tomatoes, top with black pepper and Parmesan cheese, and serve.

In my excitement to braise something, anything over the past freezing weekend, I got a little carried away and bought an 8-pound boneless pork shoulder...

...for four people, one of whom (Nathan) is hardly ever home and one of whom (my mom) has barely an appetite.

But guess what? It's almost gone! I cut the roast in two, braised half, and grilled the other half long and slow. I served the braised half to our friend Marty, as well as Stacey and Cooper, for family dinner on Sunday night. I sliced the other half and gave some to Stacey, and made sandwiches for Mom and Nathan, and then nachos for Nathan, and about 50 snacks for myself...

And just like that, we'll finish off the last bit in some sort of hash tonight.

What am I trying to say? That I'm excessive in oh so many ways? No, although of course that's true. My point is that the versatility of braised meat is just endless! Braise on Sunday, with very little effort, and have several easy meals all week. It's cheap, delicious, and damn good fun.

The pic up top is the braised version, on polenta, with tomato jam, and finished with bits of crispy guanciale (cured pork jowl) gifted to me by my friend Joy Summers. She visited Mom and me last week and brought me the guanciale plus a pound of Hope Creamery butter. There is love.

Anyhow, the pork-polenta dish, inspired by my friend Molly Herrmann's stunning dish at the Tour de Farm Chicknic in July, blew minds all over this house.

Round II goes to the tacos. Crisp pork in a skillet, in its own fat (not exactly carnitas, but same effect, as in kill-me good), wrap in warm corn tortillas with your favorite taco garnishes. Yah.

Recipe for Braised Pork Shoulder with Chiles & Cinnamon at Dara & Co./Minnesota Monthly Magazine.

It is so ridiculously easy and delicious to braise a whole chicken that I do it almost every week, just to have on hand for last-minute meals. I've posted my recipe for chicken braised in coconut milk before, but not some of the other variations I play around with, so hopefully this post will round things out.

If you've made the coconut milk version, you know that a braised chicken achieves a silkiness in texture that a roasted chicken just doesn't achieve. It's almost obscene the way it falls apart into a pile of intensely-flavored goodness, ready to eat as is or perfectly happy to sit in the fridge for a few days getting better and better (that's why I make one so often).

I vary the seasoning profile to keep things interesting - the aforementioned coconut curry; Mexican (dried chiles, salsa, cumin, splash of cream); French (fresh herbs, wine, splash of cream); and this Moroccan version. I suggest that you take the formula below and experiment to your heart's (and palate's) content.

And then, let me know what you come up with!

The carrots in the picture above are the pickled carrots posted below. They are the perfect, crunchy-sweet condiment for tender chicken.

Braised Moroccan Chicken with Saffron Rice
Serves 4

Chicken
1 roasting chicken
Kosher salt
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 tsp. cumin seeds
1 tsp. coriander seeds
1 medium onion, quartered
2 cloves garlic, smashed & peeled
2 Tbsp. harissa
2 tsp. paprika
2 tsp. freshly grated ginger
2 Tbsp. honey
1 preserved lemon, seeded, chopped
1/2 c. water
freshly ground black pepper

Saffron Rice
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. butter
1/2 medium onion, diced
1 clove garlic, minced
3 saffron threads, crumbled
1 c. basmati or long-grain rice
1 1/2 c. water
1 tsp. salt

For the chicken:
Preheat oven to 275 degrees F.

Sprinkle chicken generously with salt, inside and out.

In an oven-safe Dutch oven with a lid, heat oil over medium-high heat. Brown the chicken thoroughly on all sides. Don't rush the process, since the chicken won't brown much while braising.

While chicken browns, in a small skillet, toast the cumin and coriander seeds until fragrant. Grind them in a mortar & pestle and set aside.

When the chicken is thoroughly browned, transfer to a large plate. Add onion and garlic to the pan and saute for 2-3 minutes, then stir in harissa, paprika, ginger, honey, and preserved lemon. Nestle the chicken back into the pot, breast up, and add water to the pan. Bring to a simmer, cover, and set in the oven.

Bake chicken for 1 1/2 hours or until very tender. Transfer chicken from the pot to a cutting board (it may fall apart, which is fine) to cool a bit. Skim fat from pan juices, then puree juices with an immersion blender or in a blender. Return to the pot and season with salt & pepper.

Using your hands, pull chicken meat into bite-sized pieces, discarding bones (and skin if you don't like it). Add chicken to the pan juices. Serve warm with saffron rice. Or cool, cover, and chill. Reheat gently to serve.

For the rice:
In a large saucepan, heat oil and butter over medium heat. When hot, stir in onion, garlic, saffron, and rice. Saute until onion softens and rice browns a bit, about 10 minutes. Stir in water and salt, bring to a boil, turn heat to low, and cover tightly. Set timer for 20 minutes.

When rice is done, stir with a fork.

Crispy, buttery, salty chicken topped with a fresh salad. It's all in the contrast. My recipe for Chicken Piccata with Radish & Pea Shoot Salad at Dara & Co./Minnesota Monthly Magazine.

I worked out this decadent, completely over-the-top (gluten-free!) dish with the help of friends Andrew Zimmern, Scott Pampuch, and Ken Okumura.  A delicious, collaborative blast.

Recipe for Poached Egg, Crispy Pork Belly, & Watercress on Rice Flour-Potato Pancake with Bacon-Maple Vinagrette (whew!) at Dara & Co./Minnesota Monthly Magazine.  Have at it!

PS I realize that's two poached egg posts in a row.  I'll give it a rest for awhile, I promise.

Thanks to Daniel Klein's Chilled Carrot Soup with Coriander Yogurt & Daylilies recipe, which I posted this week at Dara & Co./Minnesota Monthly Magazine, I am obsessed with toasted coriander seeds.  The fragrance off the hot skillet is at once fresh and warm, totally sexy, everything I want now that spring is finally showing its sheepish head.  (I put on a bathing suit and sat in the sun today.  I almost wept for the warmth.  It has a been a long Minnesota winter, friends.  Brutally long.)

So after devouring the soup's coriander yogurt garnish, leaving hardly a drizzle for the soup, I starting poking around for more toasted coriander seed ideas.  I zeroed in immediately on taklia, a Middle Eastern condiment, usually comprised of toasted garlic, toasted coriander seeds, cayenne pepper, and butter.  Yes, yes!  Commonly the garnish for melokhia (Egyptian herb soup, although I had it first at a Lebanese restaurant), it's also delicious on pretty much everything.

The garlic and seeds together are crunchy, and salty, and toasty-lemony-heaven.  You have to try it.  I have a couple of other taklia posts up my sleeve, so stay tuned...

First up, just simply sauteed chicken.  I'm a (chicken) thigh girl, but John is not...so I make sure the breast at least has skin for crunch and flavor.  Take the meat off the bone yourself (not difficult) or even better, make the butcher do it.

As I ate half the taklia right out of the pan (insert need for self control, gah), sauteed spinach with a hint of orange sounded like a just-right foil for butter, garlic, coriander, and crunchy chicken. I had leftover pickled orange marmalade from the Corner Table CSK Roast Chicken Sandwich recipe, but you could use marmalade from a jar, of course.

Chicken with Taklia (Coriander Seeds & Garlic Toasted in Butter) and Sauteed Spinach
Serves 4

2 Tbsp. coriander seeds
6 cloves garlic
salt
5 1/2 Tbsp. butter, divided (4 Tbsp. + 1 1/2 Tbsp.)
1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper
1 1/2 Tbsp. olive oil
4 skin-on, boneless chicken breast halves
1 lb. spinach leaves, chopped a bit if large
2 Tbsp. orange marmalade
freshly ground black pepper

Heat a small skillet over medium-high heat.  Add coriander seeds and toast until fragrant and a little brown, just a couple of minutes.  Transfer seeds to a mortar & pestle and crush/grind.

Mince garlic, with a couple of generous pinches of salt, into a paste.

Return small skillet to medium heat.  Add 4 Tbsp. butter to the pan and when melted, add garlic.  Saute until garlic is just starting to turn golden.  Stir in coriander seeds and cayenne pepper and saute for a 1-2 minutes more, until garlic is lightly golden brown.  Transfer right away to a small bowl so the garlic stops cooking.  Season with salt to taste and set aside.

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.  Season the chicken generously with salt and pepper.  Heat a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat.  When the skillet is hot, add the butter and oil.  Place the chicken, skin side down, in the skillet and brown well.  Turn the chicken skin-side-up and transfer the skillet to the oven.  Roast for 15 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through.

Return the skillet to the stove top.  Transfer the chicken to a platter and keep warm.  Remove all but 1 Tbsp. of fat from the skillet.  Heat the pan over medium heat and add 1 Tbsp. of the taklia and orange marmalade to the pan.  Stir up any pan drippings, then add spinach to the pan with a little sprinkle of salt.  Saute until just-wilted.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Slice chicken breasts and serve with spinach and taklia.  Store leftover taklia covered, in the fridge.