Monday, 25 November 2024 17:39
Written by Madelaine Bullwinkel

WINTER THERAPY

Winter announced its arrival in Chicago last week with a blast of cold air and four inches of slushy snow. This rude entry is not uncommon in our region, but it is always a shock to the system. My response? I prepared a comforting pot homemade soup.

Onto the chopping block went all the vegetables I had on hand: a stalk of celery, two carrots, an onion, a head of garlic, slices of ginger root. A quick trip to the local grocery to buy a leek, a turnip and a carton of mushrooms completed my list of stock ingredients. From my snow-covered garden I rescued two stalks of thyme and a handful of parsley. They all got rinsed, trimmed, roughly chopped and loaded into a heavy eight quart pot.

As these vegetables and herbs sweated over low heat, their reassuring scent filled the kitchen and winter's cold receded. I added two quarts of cool water, a bay leaf and some salt then turned up the heat. After a half-hour simmer, this broth was ready to receive any vegetable I chose to feature. But first, I drank a soothing cupful and declared victory.

The wet snow had melted away by the next morning, and I harvested the patch of sorrel that had survived under its winter blanket. I rinsed and removed the stems and let the leaves wilt in butter with shallots and a crushed clove of garlic. (A pound of a root vegetable or hard shell squash could have taken its place.) This mixture then simmered in three cups of the vegetable broth. I thinned soup with a mix of broth and heavy whipping cream to measure one cup before a final seasoning with salt and pepper. I have been serving myself a cupful every evening with dinner. The rest of the broth is in the freezer, waiting to become soup after the next snowfall (possibly this week).

You may be wondering what became of the mass of limp vegetables remaining after I drained the stock pot. I removed the garlic and herbs stems, puréed the rest, thinned it with broth and seasoned it with a blend of curry spices. Recycling these vegetables is a work in progress. Stay tuned for a definitive recipe.

Monday, 21 October 2024 01:34
Written by Madelaine Bullwinkel

ON PAINTING THE PLATE

There’s a big difference between a plate filled from a buffet table and one composed in the kitchen and served at the table. Even if they share many of the same ingredients, the first plate will fill you, while the second will satisfy more than your hunger. A prepared plate sends a personal message.

We don’t have to wait for a professional chef to compose a beautiful plate at great expense to feel loved at the table. With attention to color, texture and the natural beauty of fresh ingredients, a home cook can plate a visually delectable meal. The French have this kind of seduction down to a science. Take, for example the recipe for Leeks Vinaigrette.

The leek, trimmed to its firm, white stalk is an essential but invisible ingredient in French soups and sauces. A distinctly mild onion flavor and silky texture signal its presence. If, on the other hand, you trim down the root end and remove the green leaves from several leeks and line them up in a row like columns, they become the equivalent of an artist’s palette. When halved lengthwise, quickly braised, drained and and set cut-side-up on a plate, the beauty their tightly bound leaves excite the eye and appetit. The cook can then dress them with bits of blue cheese, a serpentine strand of thick, mustardy vinaigrette and chives. Voila!

Viewers of the third season of The Bear on Hulu watched Chef Carmy perfect his fine dining skills by painstakingly garnishing a single perfectly roasted scallop with a spoonful of blood orange sauce. Although his intense concentration looks like the antithesis of the way a home cook finishes a plate, there are many user-friendly way to give visual pleasure to the diner at the last minute.

The day after streaming The Bear, I sautéed thin slices of leftover leek greens in a little oil from a can of tinned smoked sprats, simmered them with rice in vegetable broth and folded in preserved lemon bits and lemon juice. The gleaming scales on each small intact sprats made them look like gems arranged in a pinwheel pattern on a mound of rice in the center of the plate. Chopped Italian parsley and crushed Ritz crackers (for a touch of sweetness and crunch) completed the arrangement. There you have it: Rice with Preserved Lemons and Smoked Sprats. A beautiful plate of humble ingredients served at home.

Friday, 27 September 2024 19:38
Written by Madelaine Bullwinkel

SPICY CHERRY TOMATO JAM

Tomato lovers have been waiting for this time of year to satisfy their craving when this fruit ripens locally. Right now, tables at farmers' markets are full of beautiful red globes whose interiors are juicy, almost seedless, ready to slice and eat uncooked. Equally compelling are long, slim San Marzano varieties with firm compact flesh that cooks down to a rich pasta or pizza-ready sauce. My all-time favorite for snacking is the small golden cherry tomato that rarely makes it out of the kitchen. They are as sweet as candy and, when they make it into a pan, produce a spectacular jam to spread on crackers, sandwiches and burgers.

It takes just a few minutes of cooking for cherry tomatoes to dissolve into skin, seeds and juice. The addition of a little sugar, lemon juice and chili powder creates a exciting flavor symphony. It’s worth adding an aromatic finish with a few drops of vanilla extract to accentuate the tomato's tropical origins. One word of caution: this jam is delicious when eaten warm directly from the pan.

Tomatoes contain their fair share of pectin, the fiber that thickens fruit jams and jellies. And here's a fun fact: An enzyme deactivates tomato's pectin when they are peeled and chopped. Cooked whole or halved tomatoes retain their pectin which thickens the fruit juices for a lovely, jammy mouthfeel.

A 10 ounce container of red or golden cherry tomatoes will produce enough jam to fill an 8 ounce jar to store in the refrigerator, no vacuum sealing required. And yes, if you find yourself craving cherry tomato jam in December, the ones at supermarket are a good substitute.

If you can imagine taking the cherry tomato to the level of desserts, check out the post I published 15 years ago entitled Love Apples. There are also three tomato recipes in the 4th edition of Artisanal Preserves that is just off the press. .

SPICY CHERRY TOMATO JAM

Ingredients for 1 – 8 ounce jar. Timing: 10 minutes prep; 15 minutes cooking time

10 oz. container golden or red cherry tomatoes

½ cup cool water

2 teaspoons freshly squeezed lemon juice

½ cup sugar

¼ teaspoon powdered Cayenne pepper

¼ teaspoon vanilla extract

Place a small plate in the freezer compartment.

Rinse and halve the tomatoes. Place pieces in a 4 qt saucepan with water, cover the pan and bring the water to a boil. Uncover, turn down the heat to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes or until almost all the liquid has evaporated. If necessary, add enough water to keep the pan bottom wet during this period.

Stir in the lemon juice, sugar and powdered chili. Simmer for a minute or two until a spatula drawn across the bottom exposes the pan surface. Add the vanilla and cook another 30 seconds.

Take the pan off the heat. Drop a teaspoon of jam on the chilled plate and return it to the freezer for a minute or two. Taste and add more lemon juice, chili or vanilla until you can taste all three ingredients with the tomatoes. Cook in the additions for 1 minute. Test and taste again or pour the jam into a clean jar and screw on the cap. Cool on a rack and store in the refrigerator between uses.

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