Lucky for me, my co-blogger Kristin keeps up on the cookbook scene. I rarely buy cookbooks (I think I’ve purchased maybe three in my lifetime) but Kristin always send me a good one for my birthday. This year, I was thrilled to receive Super Natural Every Day: Well-loved Recipes from My Natural Foods Kitchen by Heidi Swanson of 101 Cookbooks blogging fame. I pull regularly from her site for easy vegetarian recipes. I wasn’t aware she had a new cookbook until I opened Kristin’s package. What treat to try out some healthy dishes after weeks of December holiday food overload. I mean, I love Christmas cookies and Chanukah latkes, and a birthday cake or two goes down easy, but what really hit the spot after our New Year’s festivities were these savory chickpea wraps. The crisp celery, tangy mustard, and cool yogurt played off the tender chickpeas perfectly. The other recipes I’ve tried from the book have also been lovely, with the exception of one very terrible, nearly inedible chickpea stew. Note to Heidi (and fellow cookbook readers), I love saffron, yogurt, egg yolk and chickpeas–but not in soup form.

Chickpea Wraps with Celery, Dill and Mustard
adapted from Super Natural Every Day: Well-loved Recipes from My Natural Foods Kitchen by Heidi Swanson

For the bean-phobic, try substituting two cups of cooked, diced chicken breast for the chickpeas. I haven’t tried it yet but I’d bet good money this recipe makes a damn good chicken salad wrap.

Serves 4

3 cups (425 g) cooked chickpeas (garbanzo beans) or 2 x 15 oz/425 g cans chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1/3 cup (45 g) minced shallots
1/2 cup (60 g) chopped celery
1/2 teaspoon (or more to taste) dried dill or 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
1 1/2 tablespoons Dijon-style or stone-ground mustard
2/3 cup (155 g) plain yogurt
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, plus more if needed, and a bit of grated zest
4 pieces lavash flatbread or whole wheat tortillas (12 inch)
2 cups (30 g) mixed salad greens

In a large mixing bowl, whisk together the mustard, yogurt and salt. Spread about 2 tablespoons of the yogurt sauce across each piece of lavash.

Pulse 2/3 of the chickpeas in a food processor a few times, just enough to break them up. Transfer them to the mixing bowl with the remaining yogurt sauce, along with the remaining chickpeas, shallots, celery and dill. Gently toss to combine then add the lemon juice and zest and toss again. Taste and add more salt or lemon juice, if needed.

Sprinkle each piece of lavash with 1/4 of the mixed greens (the yogurt will help hold the greens in place), top each of the four wraps with 1/4 of the chickpea mixture. Fold or roll into a wrap and serve.

I was in a pub in County Cork on New Year’s Eve 10 years ago when the euro was introduced in 2002. We were staying with some friends whose parents had a holiday home in Schull, and I remember there was a German woman sitting in the corner of the pub smoking a pipe. After midnight, when we paid for our pints with Irish pounds, our change was handed back in euros, the notes starch-crisp and the coins shiny, fresh from the mint. It was the middle of the Celtic Tiger and everything was still possible. A decade later, with a wallet full of coins circulated from all over the European Union, no one seems to know what will happen now. Will the euro still be around by New Year’s Eve 2012? Will I be lugging around those old heavy Irish punts instead?

I’m just like everyone else I know these days — worried about money, a little scared about the future and nervous at what the coming year might bring. I’ve stopped reading the papers (again), put off by all the doom and gloom and financial crises I don’t understand. Instead, I retreat to my kitchen and make soup. This time of year calls for a big pot of lentil vegetable soup, in the spirit of the Italian tradition of eating lentils in the new year, when their coin-like shape becomes symbolic of wealth and luck. Who couldn’t use a little of that these days? I’ll take it wherever I can get it and eating some lentils is as good a place as any to start. That, and a lotto ticket.

Wishing all our readers a happy, healthy and (hopefully!) prosperous new year!

The Barefoot Contessa’s Lentil Vegetable Soup
adapted from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook by Ina Garten

Serves 8 to 10

This makes a lot of soup, but I make a full batch anyway and freeze half of it for another time. Otherwise, just halve the recipe if you don’t want to make quite so much. If you’ve got a Parmesan rind hanging around (I always save them for soups and pasta sauces), add it to the soup along with the stock for an extra umami hit.

1 lb (450 g) French green lentils
3 large yellow onions, chopped
2 leeks, white part only, chopped
1 tablespoon minced garlic (3 cloves)
olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried
1 teaspoon ground cumin
8 celery stalked, chopped
4 to 6 carrots, chopped
3 quarts (3 liters) vegetable stock (or use chicken stock if you’re not worried about keeping it vegetarian)
3 tablespoons tomato paste
2 tablespoons red wine or red wine vinegar
freshly grated Parmesan cheese, to serve

In a large bowl, cover the lentils with boiling water and allow to sit for 15 minutes. Drain.

In a large stockpot on medium heat, saute the onions, leeks, and garlic with the olive oil, salt, pepper, thyme, and cumin for 20 minutes, until the vegetables are translucent and tender. Add the celery and carrots and saute for 10 more minutes. Add the stock, tomato paste, and lentils. If you have a Parmesan rind hanging around, add that in too. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer uncovered for 1 hour, until the lentils are cooked through. Check the seasonings. Add the red wine and serve hot, drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with grated Parmesan.

I wasn’t planning to post this week (birthdays, holidays, children, my excuses could go on forever), but this cake is so quick, easy, and different, I had to share. In case any of you need a holiday dessert you can make the ahead of time, this is the cake for you. It’s texture and flavor become more complex on day two, though eating it warm out of the oven might be delicious also. This cake alone might save my sanity this season. I made it last weekend for lunch with my cousin. It’s not too sweet so I’m taking another one to work for my birthday breakfast treat tomorrow. And then I’ll make it again on Friday night to serve with Christmas dinner on Saturday. Speaking of which, I’m cutting this post short  so I can get back to figuring out the logistics of seating thirteen people for dinner at a table that only holds twelve. Happy holidays everyone!

Clementine Cake
from Nigella Lawson

Serves 8

Like many of Nigella Lawson’s cakes, this one seems an incredibly bad idea as you stir it together. Seriously, who would think to boil whole clementines, mash them peel and all, and throw them into a cake that doesn’t even have flour? It works though, and your whole house will smell wonderfully of citrus as it bakes.

4 to 5 clementines (about 13 oz / 370 g total weight)
6 eggs
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons (225 g) sugar
2 1/3 cups (250 g) ground almonds
1 heaping teaspoon baking powder
Powdered (confectioner’s) sugar, for dusting

Put the clementines in a pot with cold water to cover, bring to the boil, and cook for 2 hours. [Check the pan regularly to ensure it doesn’t dry out.] Drain the clementines and, when cool, cut each clementine in half and remove the seeds. Then finely chop the skins, pith, and fruit in the processor (or by hand, of course).

Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C).

Butter and line an 8-inch springform pan with parchment paper.

Beat the eggs. Add the sugar, almonds, and baking powder. Mix well, adding the chopped clementines. I don’t like using the processor for this, and frankly, you can’t balk at a little light stirring.

Pour the cake mixture into the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour, when a skewer will come out clean; you’ll probably have to cover the cake with foil after about 40 minutes to stop the top from burning. Remove from the oven and leave to cool, in the pan on a rack. When the cake is cold, you can take it out of the pan.

I was having dinner out with a friend awhile ago and after overdoing it with the starter and main course, none of the heavy desserts on the menu appealed to me that night. “You know what? I’m going to do something I’ve never done before. I’m going to go off menu!” I said, and asked the waitress for an affogato al caffe. They sold vanilla ice cream and they sold espresso, so it was just a matter of putting the two together in one bowl, like an ice cream sundae for grown-ups.

I was reminded of affogato al caffe (which means ‘drowned in coffee’ in Italian) when Café de Cuba sent me some of their Really Good Organic Coffee, decaf coffee and teas to try recently. This is one of those recipes where the quality of the ingredients really matters. Use the best vanilla ice cream you can find and use good, strong espresso (regular brewed coffee will not work here).

Affogato is good any time of year, but if you’ll be entertaining during the holidays, it’s an easy option for a dessert and pick-me-up after a big meal.

Affogato al Caffe

Serves 1

Put a few scoops of best-quality vanilla ice cream (though you could also use chocolate ice cream) in a bowl, sundae dish or cappuccino cup. Pour over a shot of freshly made espresso and serve immediately. You could also add a shot of amaretto or other liqueur to give it a little kick.

My grandma’s neighbor is a baker and gives her leftover bread, which she sometimes passes down to me (lucky me!). This week I received two loaves of focaccia and decided to use one of them for a sandwich experiment. Not only was I looking for that perfect, toasted, crispy, savory bite, oozing with a little cheese, I wanted to see how much food I could clear out of my cupboard at the same time. I formulated and tested the following hypothesis: 1 jar of sun-dried tomato spread bought on sale a year ago + leftover chicken + excellent piece of goat’s milk mozzarella = hopefully something good enough to serve a guest. Luckily for my friend Denise who served as my test subject, the experiment succeeded. My high school chemistry teacher, or at least my home ec teacher, would be proud.

Oven Baked Chicken Focaccia Sandwich

A note for our American readers, this is a great way to use up your leftover Thanksgiving turkey, especially the white meat which tends to be a little bland for my taste.

Serves 4

1 loaf focaccia bread
7 oz (200 g) prepared sun-dried tomato spread or pesto
1/2 lb (225 g) boneless, skinless chicken or turkey breast, cooked and sliced
1/2 lb (225 g) mozzarella, sliced or shredded
4 oz artichoke hearts, roughly chopped

Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Carefully cut the loaf of focaccia in half horizontally. Spread one half of  the sun-dried tomato spread or pesto onto the cut side of each piece of bread.

On the bottom (spread side up) of the soon-to-be sandwich layer half the cheese. Next, cover the cheese with the cooked chicken, seasoning the chicken to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle the artichoke pieces around the chicken then add a final layer of mozzarella. Top the sandwich with the other bread half, spread side down and push the sandwich together lightly.

Wrap the sandwich in aluminum foil and place it on a baking sheet. Bake the sandwich for 20 minutes or until the cheese just begins to melt and the bread is golden and toasty. Cut the sandwich into 4 wedges before serving.

I originally posted this on February 15 2010, but have updated the recipe to make it easier and less time consuming.

I’ve been trying to go back to cookbooks I haven’t used in awhile, so last week I pulled The River Cottage Meat Book by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall down off the shelf and cassoulet caught my eye. While I wound up making a different version, it ticks a lot of boxes — this one can be made in a slow cooker, it’s good value (cassoulet is a traditional French peasant dish), it’s hearty, rib-sticking food for cold nights and it makes more than enough for two meals.

If you like the idea of a cassoulet but don’t have a slow cooker or don’t have all day to let it cook, you could try Jacques Pépin’s 30-minute version or Jamie Oliver’s kinda sausage cassoulet. In his recipe, Hugh F-W suggests serving this with an orange and watercress salad.

Slow Cooker Cassoulet

Serves 8 to 10

If you can’t get pork shoulder, pork leg or even loin would work too — just get the butcher to remove the fat for you. If you wanted to add in some veg, a few carrots, peeled and sliced on the diagonal, would work well.

olive oil
3 onions, coarsely chopped
salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 lb (1.4 kg) boneless pork shoulder, cut into 2-inch pieces (you can ask your butcher to do this for you)
1 lb (450 g) fully cooked or smoked chorizo or garlic sausage links, sliced on the diagonal
2 x 14 oz (400 g) cans of cannellini, haricot or Great Northern beans
1 x 28 oz (or 2 x 14 oz/400 g) cans whole plum tomatoes, drained and coarsely chopped
2 cups (500 ml) chicken stock
1 cup (500 ml) dry white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc (or use stock or water if you prefer not to use alcohol)
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 head of garlic, halved crosswise
1 cup (100 g) breadcrumbs, plus extra to serve
a handful of chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, plus extra for garnish
crusty bread, to serve

Put a large frying pan over a medium heat and add in a splash of olive oil. Add the onions and a pinch of salt to prevent the onions from browning and cook for about 10 minutes, until they’re translucent but now browned. Transfer the onions to the slow cooker, then stir in the pork, chorizo, beans, tomatoes, stock, wine, tomato paste and garlic along with a generous seasoning of salt and pepper.

Set the cooker to low and cook, covered, for about 8 hours, until the pork pulls apart easily with a fork (though it could be as much as 10 hours). Skim off any fat and remove and discard the garlic. Fold in the panko or breadcrumbs and the parsley. Taste and season as needed.

Let the cassoulet stand at room temperature for 10 minutes before serving. Sprinkle each serving with extra breadcrumbs and parsley and serve with warm crusty bread.

I pore over cookbooks in my 30s the way I once devoured fashion magazines in my teens. The pictures aren’t usually as interesting but the content is much more useful. Not that I don’t appreciate knowing when leopard print is in and heavy eyeliner is out, but style changes so much that it’s hard to keep up with. I prefer to spend my time thinking of something fabulous to cook than fabulous to wear. Luckily, I’m not alone. Much to my delight, I’ve noticed that most of my friends have food magazines or cookbooks stashed around the house. I found this recipe while hanging out with Leah (you may remember her rigatoni with pork and lemon ragu or tzatziki chicken with couscous and hummus). Maybe it’s because she also has a food blog, or maybe she was too nice to make fun of me, but she didn’t bat an eye when I asked her for pen and paper and transcribed this pantry staple-based recipe over a glass of beer. I guess this is adulthood.

Spaghetti with Red Pepper-Toasted Almond Pesto
adapted from The Best Simple Recipes by the editors of America’s Test Kitchen

Serves 4

My fridge is never without a bag of Trader Joe’s toasted, sliced almonds. They are perfect for throwing into a bowl of oatmeal, on top of brownies, or in a pasta dish like this one. The few extra cents I pay to buy them pre-toasted saves me toasting and cooling time (not to mention the aggravation of an extra pan to wash).

1 lb (450 g) spaghetti
1 cup (150 g) drained jarred roasted red peppers, patted dry (about 2 peppers)
1/3 cup (30 g) grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup (25 g) sliced or slivered almonds, toasted
1/4 cup (10 g) fresh basil
1 garlic clove, skin removed and quartered
1 teaspoon lemon juice
7 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Cook the spaghetti al dente in a large pot of boiling, salted water according to package directions.

While the pasta cooks, process the red peppers, cheese, almonds, basil, garlic, and lemon juice in a food processor until smooth. With the motor running, slowly add the olive oil until it is incorporated. Season the pesto well with salt and pepper.

Drain the spaghetti, reserving 1/2 cup (125 ml) of cooking water. Return the spaghetti to the pot. Add the pesto to the spaghetti and toss to combine, adding reserved pasta water as needed. Season with salt and pepper and serve with additional grated Parmesan, if desired.

A couple weeks ago I was at The Tannery in County Waterford having lunch with a few other bloggers and food writers to celebrate the launch of the Cook with Avonmore site, which features Tannery chef Paul Flynn as their first guest chef. On the menu that day there was a choice of crab crème brûlée or this bacon and butterbean chowder as a starter. I went for the crab not only because it’s The Tannery’s signature dish, but because I knew I had the recipe for the chowder in my press pack. What I didn’t know, though, was what a fantastic recipe it is. From just a few ordinary ingredients, this soup is more than the sum of its parts.

Paul Flynn says, “A chowder for me is something that’s really rich and comforting. It’s something that you eat in front of the fire or just after a lovely long walk and you’re cold and you want something hot and heart-warming to eat.” Serve this with some good crusty bread, a nice cheese and a glass of red wine — either with or without the long walk beforehand — and I’m willing to bet it will be one of the nicest meals you’ll make this autumn.

Bacon and Butterbean Chowder
adapted from Paul Flynn via cookwithavonmore.ie

Serves 2 as a main course or 4 as a starter

Paul Flynn says that “when you use beautiful ingredients like butter and cream, you’ve got to realize that if you put just enough in, it gives you that lovely, luxurious richness that you’re looking for, and that will really comfort you on a cold night”, but you can use a little less cream if you don’t want the chowder to be quite as rich. You can also use a handful of fresh parsley instead of thyme.

knob of butter
olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
pinch of salt
1 garlic clove, finely chopped
6 pieces of smoked bacon or dry cure streaky bacon, finely diced
1 tablespoon flour
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves, plus extra to garnish (or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme)
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
freshly ground black pepper
2 cups (500 ml) chicken stock
1 x 14 oz (400 g) can of butterbeans, rinsed
1/2 cup (125 ml) cream
crusty bread, to serve

Melt the butter in a pot over a medium heat along with a splash of olive oil so the butter doesn’t burn. Add the onion and a pinch of salt to prevent the onion from colouring. As Paul Flynn says, “The real key to this is that what you do inside this pot with the onions will provide you with the whole base flavour for the soup. If you rush this, it’s not going to be right.” So turn the heat down a little to medium-low, put the lid on and “let the magic happen”. Cook the onion for about 10 minutes, until it’s translucent. Raise the heat back to medium, add in the garlic and cook for 1 minute more, then add in the bacon and cook for about 5 minutes (though note that the bacon won’t go crispy because of the juice from the onions). Sprinkle the flour over the onions and bacon and give it all a stir, then allow it to cook for 2 minutes. Add in the thyme and mustard and a generous grinding of black pepper, then pour in the stock. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and add in the butterbeans. Continue to simmer the soup for a few minutes, until the beans are warmed through, then stir through the cream. Taste the soup and adjust the seasoning if you think it needs more salt, though be careful because the bacon and stock are already salty. Ladle the soup into bowls, garnish with some of the reserved thyme leaves and serve with crusty bread.

Madeleines are my new favorite thing to bake. I don’t normally go for recipes that call for hard-to-find ingredients or specific equipment, but a madeleine pan is a little luxury and even the tiniest kitchen could surely squeeze one in. They take only minutes to pull together and 10 minutes to bake, yet people are invariably impressed by them. They’re perfect with tea or coffee and also make an excellent treat for a play date, seeing as how they don’t have that much sugar and are just the right size for little hands to hold.

They’re also open to endless variations — in my own cookbook collection, I have recipes for hazelnut lemon madeleines, rosewater madeleines and butterscotch madeleines — but I’ve fallen in love with these honey spiced ones and have made them three times in the past three weeks. There’s something about the spices, just right for autumn, and the soft, cake-like texture when they’re still warm from the oven that remind me of a doughnut, and in my book it doesn’t get better than that.

Honey Spiced Madeleines
adapted from Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan (recipe available online here)

Makes 12 madeleines

There are all sorts of tips and tricks for how to make the perfect madeleine — letting the batter rest, putting the tin in the freezer, piping the batter into the moulds, not using baking powder — but I don’t worry about any of that and they still turn out perfectly fine and perfectly delicious.

3/4 cup (90 g) all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon ginger
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon ground cloves
1/8 teaspoon ground nutmeg
pinch of salt
pinch of freshly ground black pepper
1/3 cup (75 g) sugar
grated zest of 1/2 orange
2 large eggs, at room temperature
2 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
6 tablespoons (90 g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled
powdered sugar (icing sugar), to dust (optional)

Whisk together the flour, baking powder, spices, salt and pepper and set aside.

Working in a mixer bowl, stir the sugar and orange zest together. Fit the mixer with the whisk attachment, add the eggs to the bowl and beat for about 2 minutes, until the mixture is light, fluffy and thickened. Add in the honey, then the vanilla.  Switch to a rubber spatula and gently fold in the dry ingredients followed by the melted butter. You can use the batter now, but Dorie Greenspan says it’s better if you can give it a little rest. Press a piece of plastic wrap against the surface of the batter and chill for 3 hours or, if you have the time, overnight. Making the batter in advance also means you can have madeleines that are fresh from the oven and still warm if you’re serving them to guests, or make them in the morning and bake them after the kids get home from school for a little treat.

When you’re ready to bake them, centre a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Butter 12 full-size madeleine molds (or 36 mini-molds), dust the insides with flour and tap out the excess. If you have a non-stick madeleine mold, butter and flour it anyway or give it a light coating of vegetable cooking spray. (If your pan is silicone, you can leave it as is.) Place the pan on a baking sheet.

Spoon the batter into the molds, filling each one three-quarters full (if you overfill the molds, they’ll spill out over the sides a bit and won’t be quite as pretty when they’re done). Bake the large madeleines for 11 to 13 minutes and the minis for 8 to 10 minutes, or until the madeleines are golden and the tops spring back when prodded gently. Remove the pan from the oven and release the madeleines from the molds by rapping the edge of the pan against the counter. Gently pry any stuck madeleines from the pan using your fingers or a butter knife. Transfer the cookies to a rack to cool to just-warm or room temperature. Dust with powdered sugar (icing sugar) if you like.

There are a million ways to make chicken salad, but my mom’s recipe makes a knock-your-socks-off, can’t-go-wrong sandwich, especially when served on a buttery croissant. It’s perfect to take to baby showers, wedding showers, work lunches, picnic lunches, or any other place where you aren’t sure how picky the eaters are going to be. Everyone enjoys it. Pair it with this fresh and fabulously textured farro salad or, if you don’t feel like babysitting a pot of simmering farro or wheat berries but want an equally healthy and tasty side dish, try some roasted chickpea snacks. The Good Bean sent me a few complimentary packets of their pre-packaged version and we all loved them, especially my husband. I plan to pack them in lunches and throw them in my purse for snack emergencies.

Cheddar Chicken Salad

Makes a dozen cocktail sandwiches (or 6 full-size sandwiches)

3 cooked chicken breast halves (boneless, skinless), diced
1/2 cup (125 ml) mayonnaise or Miracle Whip
4 oz (100 g) chopped pitted black olives
1/2 cup (50 g) shredded cheddar cheese
1/2 green bell pepper, chopped fine
1/2 small onion, chopped fine
small croissants or cocktail rolls (about 1 dozen)

Gently mix all the ingredients together except the rolls (obviously). Fill the rolls and serve. If not serving immediately, chill the salad for up to 24 hours or filled rolls for up to 2 hours in the fridge, covered.

***

Farro with Cucumber
adapted from Molto Gusto: Easy Italian Cooking by Mario Batali

Serves 6

As much as I love this recipe and Molto Gusto: Easy Italian Cooking, the cookbook it came from (currently on its third renewal from my local library), it doesn’t taste great as leftovers. Try to eat it within 24 hours of preparing it unless you like seriously chewy grains.

8 oz (225 g) farro or wheat berries, picked over and rinsed
1 lb (450 g) cucumbers, cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 medium red onion, cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 red finger chile or serrano chile, cut into tiny dice
1/3 cup (10 g) packed fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced (chiffonade)
1/2 cup (125 ml) red wine vinaigrette (below)
Maldon or other flaky sea salt

Combine the farro and water to cover by 2 inches in a large saucepan and bring to a simmer, skimming off the foam. Reduce the heat to a bare simmer and cook until the farro is just tender, about 25 minutes if using pearled farro, about 1 1/2 hours if using wholegrain farro (or wheat berries).

Drain the farro and transfer to a large bowl. Add the cucumbers, onion, chile and basil, mixing well. Add the vinaigrette, tossing well. Season well with salt and serve, or let stand at room temperature for 1 hour to bring out the flavors.

Red Wine Vinaigrette

Makes 1 cup (250 ml)

1/2 cup (125 ml) extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup (60 ml) good-quality red wine vinegar
1/4 cup (60 ml) sparkling water

Whisk the oil, vinegar and water together in a small bowl, or shake the ingredients together in a small, lidded jar, until well incorporated. The vinaigrette can be refrigerated for up to 5 days.