Cooky.it

Strawberry tart

Sun, 21 Aug 2011 18:31:00 -0400

Pastry cream

2 cups milk
1/4 cup white sugar

2 egg yolks
1 egg
1/4 cup cornstarch
1/3 cup white sugar

2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Heat up the milk and dissolve the sugar in a small saucepan.
Whisk the eggs with the remaining sugar and cornstarch.
Pour a little hot milk in the eggs to temper them little by little constantly stirring with a whisk.
When half of the milk is incorporated in the eggs, pour the egg mixture in the saucepan and let the cream thicken on slow heat.
When the right consistency is reached, blend the vanilla and the butter in.
Store with a layer of cling wrap on the surface to prevent drying.

Tart crust

1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

3 tablespoons sugar

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

6 tablespoons (3/4 stick) cold unsalted butter, diced

1/4 cup ice water

Combine the flour, sugar, and salt in a small bowl and place in the freezer for 30 minutes. Put the flour mixture in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Add the butter and pulse about 10 times, or until the butter is in the size of peas. Add the ice water and process until the dough comes together. Dump on a well-floured board and form into a disk. Wrap in plastic and chill for at least 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375ºF. Roll out the dough and fit into a tart pan with removable sides. Don’t stretch the dough when placing it in the pans or it will shrink during baking. Cut off the excess by rolling the pin across the top of each pan.
Line the tart shells with a piece of parchment paper and fill with dried beans or rice. Blind-bake for 10 minutes. Remove the beans and the paper, prick the bottom of the crust all over with a fork, and bake for another 15 to 20 minutes until lightly browned. Set aside to cool.

Tart glaze

Have 2 grams of gelatin blossom with 3-4 tablespoons of water.
Cut the strawberries on the sides, reserving the spongy cores.
Add 10 to 15 strawberry cores to 1 cup of water and 1/2 cup of sugar.
Dissolve the sugar over low heat and make a flavored syrup this way. (do not overheat)
Add 1 tablespoon of lemon juice and the reconstituted gelatin: dissolve over low heat and set aside.

Dispense the pastry cream over the tart crust, arrange the strawberry slices over it and brush with the glaze, making sure to add enough to cover the entire surface and fill up the empty spaces. Place in the fridge for a few hours and you’re golden.

Miso sweet spread. Honestly, the best thing after marmite. (from...

Tue, 25 Jan 2011 23:58:04 -0500

Miso sweet spread.

Honestly, the best thing after marmite.

(from the guy who taught me how to make miso)

Chekkalu….absolutely addictive.

Thu, 09 Dec 2010 19:29:31 -0500

Chekkalu….absolutely addictive.

Nitrous Oxide infusions

Thu, 26 Aug 2010 18:59:00 -0400

I’ve thought of using this approach but never really had a crack to this technique. Apparently it works like a charm and it’s so versatile!

IDEAS IN FOOD: Aromatic Mozzarella And So Much More

More here.

Canvas Underground - The great porchetta: - Fresh mozzarella...

Fri, 13 Aug 2010 19:38:00 -0400

Appetizer

Soup

Main course

Dessert

Canvas Underground - The great porchetta:

- Fresh mozzarella wrapped with grilled summer squash, roasted heirloom tomatoes, basil vinaigrette
- Smoked garlic soup with gypsy pepper cream
- Porchetta marinated with rosemary and sage, creamy polenta, slow cooked greens
- Roasted peaches and nectarines, chestnut honey ice cream, toasted almond biscotti

More pics.

Sprouts cooking club - Gnocchi

Fri, 23 Jul 2010 21:08:00 -0400

Sprouts cooking club - Gnocchi

Akamiso, mint and Thai basil marinated black cod

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 17:48:00 -0400

This dish is as simple as it sounds. Simply marinate 4 black cod skin-on fillets with 1 heap tablespoon of akamiso (red miso), one teaspoon of a light extra-virgin olive oil and a few whole leaves of Thai basil and mint (not peppermint). Gently rub the fish fillets with the miso/oil paste, add the leaves (whole) and put them for a minimum of 24 hours in the fridge. I kept them two days but even after three, they were still well balanced and not overpowered in flavors. After the fish has marinated, let it come to room temperature and quickly grill it (2 minutes per side, skin side first) on a non-stick grill pan. A light side of fragrant jasmine rice and you’re set.

Pizza!

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 17:46:00 -0400

Thanks very much to Marco for hosting a terrific convivium at the San Francisco Baking Institute. Besides the inventive pizzas that many participants have created, I had the chance to refresh my palate with flavors such as gorgonzola and pears and Italian wild arugula (the pointy one) on top of an awesome focaccia di Recco (with Bellwether crescenza) and superb eclaires (recipe for the choux pastry from Sherry Yard).

My pizza was OK…I was light handed with salt and the dough came out bland in flavor althoug it has huge potential. A different take on the classic Gorgonzola and pears combination where the silky texture and the truffley flavors of goat cheese are contrasted by the tart crunchiness of green apples. For this pizza I always use an aged goat cheese like a Laura Chenel‘s taupiniere (very reasonably priced at Rainbow grocery).
Walnuts are also very welcome too as an additional topping.

Here is the recipe for my fail-proof dough (and it only takes 2-3 hours to have it).

500 g strong flour (W250 like the Ultimate performer from Whole Foods)
1 tsp of barley malt
1 tsp of gluten flour
4 good pinches of kosher salt
2 good pinches of sugar
one little piece of fresh yeast (1 x 1 x 0.5 inches) diluted in a glass of lukewarm water with a pinch of sugar

I do normally work the dough a lot, something like 10-15 minutes, until silky and elastic. I let the ball of dough rise in the oven for an hour (with the light on, or just turn it on for 30 seconds to generate a gentle heat) then punch it down, let it rise another hour or so and then it’s ready to use.
The wood-fire oven created beautiful blister and the dough was perfectly crusty and soft at the bite….I love it like that….

Tomini elettrici

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 17:44:54 -0400

Soft cow’s milk cheese with herbs and crushed red peppers preserved under oil: most probably the most soul-touching food I miss from Piemonte (after truffled cacciatorini). The tragedy is that there’s no close relative being sold in the US and even fresh cheeses like farmer’s cheese are too grainy and lacking the twang of a real tomino from Piemonte. Needless to say, I undertook the challenge and started from scratch.
I followed the recipe of Dr. Fankhauser for Neufchatel cheese and made some tweakings.
I used ½ tablet rennet, got 2 pounds of cheese out of 1 gallon of Clover Stornetta Organic Vitamin D milk and mixed with 3 tsp of salt.

I molded the cheeses into logs and sprinkled the surface with kosher salt.
Wrapped the logs into cheese cloth and sprinkled the cloth with salt too. I aged the cheeses for one week in the upper part of the fridge into a tupperware for herbs (the ones with a grid on the bottom and some apertures on the sides to keep the right amount of moisture).

I finally cut the logs into rounds, sprinkled them with crushed red pepper and dried oregano and parsley and covered them with safflower oil. Now they are in the fridge and they just taste phenomenal.
Considering the amount of handling that the cheese has underwent I won’t keep these more than two weeks in the fridge.

Mangialonga SF

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 17:42:00 -0400

Menu and path:

(A) Cantine Barbone
- tomino elettrico
- lingua in bagnetto verde
- vitello tonnato
Mutti Noceto 2007 Cortese Colli Tortonesi

(B) Antica Prosciutteria
- peperoni in bagna caoda
- zucchine in carpione
- tartine di polenta con crema di porri, fondue e bagna caoda
- tagliatelle fatte in casa al castelmagno e ragu’
Bovio Barbera d’Alba 2005

(C) Pasticceria Baldini
- brasato al barolo con patate al forno e pure’
- cotechino con lenticchie
Massa Pertichetta 2004 Croatina

(A) Cantine Barbone
- torta alle nocciole
- pesche all’amaretto
- panna cotta
- fragole e panna
- caffe’ e amaro
La Morandina Moscato 2007

A huge thanks goes to Ceri Smith of Biondivino in SF for having made the wine selection possible within a very limited budget. Pure Piemonte, thanks Ceri!

Limoncello math

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 17:41:35 -0400

My limoncello has won many blind tastings even when compared to some bottlings imported from Italy.
I’m not bragging here…
Basic recipe:

10 lemons (the most healthy, organic and unsprayed you can think…the thicker the skin, the better)
1 L 95º alcohol (Everclear in the US….only 75º)
400 g sugar
½ L filtered and purified water

Zest the lemons with a microplane and soak the zests in alcohol for 4 weeks in a sealed jar.
Filter the flavored spirit twice and add to the syrup prepared from sugar and water over a gentle heat.
Shaky shaky and you’re done.
Store in the fridge for up to one year and in the freezer for better results.

Aperitivo sessions

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 17:36:36 -0400

One of my little dreams is to open an aperitivo spot, a little shack with finger food, great wine and Italian aperitifs.
Just to remember the pairings I’ve been experimenting with great success:

Toasted english muffin (sliced in 2 and then 4 sectors)
homemade ricotta (thinned with milk and blended with freshly grated horseradish and ¼ tsp of mustard)
thyme/garlic marinated grilled red pepper
sprinkle with fennel seeds.

Torino-Milano (½ Campari, ½ Punt e Mes, a splash of soda, orange wedge, two ice cubes).

Bagna cauda

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 17:33:54 -0400

A favorite from Piemonte.
We topped some polenta cakes and red peppers with this earthy and dense sauce.

6 garlic heads, peeled and core removed
12 oz of salted anchovies, deboned and washed with red wine
4 cups of milk
2+ cups of oil
1 cup of whipping cream

Open garlic heads, separate cloves, peel them and cut longitudinally to remove the core.
Place in a bowl, cover completely with milk and let stand in a fresh spot for the night having care to cover the pot with a lid or plastic wrap.
Drain the garlic and discard the milk.
Place the pot on a stove, cover completely with milk again and let slowly simmer until the garlic begins to melt.
Let the mixture cook slowly until a creamy texture is obtained.
It requires slow simmering and continuous care to prevent the sauce from drying up.
Add the anchovies and simmer until completely melted and blended in the garlic mixture.
Slowly add oil as needed to create a smooth cream, about 2 cups.
When the mixture comes to a slow boil again, pour the whipping cream and bring back to a slow boil/simmering.
Divide in small portions and serve on butter warmers to help the sauce keep the temperature.
The Bagna Cauda can be eaten with many different vegetables (raw, parboiled or boiled), such as: celery stalks, roasted bell pepper, fennel, boiled fingerling potatoes and jerusalem artichokes or parboiled green cabbage, red radicchio, onion, turnips, parsnips, and white cardoon.

Beans

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 17:30:48 -0400

A few profiles:

Aduki Beans: coriander, cumin, ginger
Black Beans: bay leaf, chile peppers, cilantro, coriander, cumin, epazote, garlic, ginger, oregano, parsley, savory, thyme
Black-Eyed Peas: bay leaf, cayenne, chile peppers, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, cumin, ginger, turmeric
Cannellini Beans: parsley, sage, savory, tarragon, thyme
Chickpeas: cardamom, cilantro, coriander, cumin, fennel, garlic, ginger, mint, paprika, parsley, rosemary
Fava Beans: basil, cilantro, cumin, fennel, garlic, mint, parsley, rosemary, sage, savory, thyme
Flageolet Beans: parsley, savory, thyme
Kidney Beans: bay leaf, cumin, fennel, oregano, parsley, sage, savory, thyme
Lentils: bay leaf, cardamom, cilantro, cinnamon, cloves, coriander, cumin, curry, ginger, mint, parsley, oregano, thyme, turmeric
Lima Beans: cilantro, mint, parsley, sage
Mung Beans: cilantro, coriander, cumin, ginger
Navy Beans: basil, bay leaf, garlic, parsley, savory, thyme
Pinto Beans: chile peppers, cilantro, cumin, oregano, parsley, savory

via The Kitchn.

Using caul fat

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 16:28:25 -0400

Riding the wave of meat wonders, here is a fantastic tutorial on how to cook with caul fat.

Taiwanese cuisine, a dish feared by many, a mandatory gourmet...

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 16:26:51 -0400

Taiwanese cuisine, a dish feared by many, a mandatory gourmet experience for us.
Where to start?

Oh well, let’s find it first, not that many vendors sell it; how are we going to decipher the menus written in Chinese?

Stinky tofu presents itself, not to worry, a block before, something like a sewage pipe has broken in the street.

I’m not kidding, it’s intense and activates that subconscious reflex that says to your brain “don’t eat me”.

Oh well, here we go, 20NT$, less than a dollar, 8 fierceful pieces of fermented (~rotten) soy material, deep fried and accompanied by a garlicky concoction, spicy sauce, a vinegary kimchee-like cabbage salad and a soy-saucey broth.

There you go, first byte, not dreadful, soft glutinous texture, classic fried flavors and then, the payback…a mounting backend of, in order:

cow’s manure
dried hay
stale matter

In the end, not my favorite and definitely not for the squeamish. I still have some doubt on how it can be considered something to look for but I definitely survived the experience and will try again soon on a stick with extra scallions.

Yumi's udon tsuyu

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 14:20:00 -0400

6 cups of water
1 piece of konbu 3×3 in
20g dried katsuobushi
1/2 cup mirin
1/2 cup light soy sauce
1/2 to 1/3 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar

Flash idea #2

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 14:17:00 -0400

Pan seared scallops lightly seasoned with sweet paprika topped with uni foam and cilantro microgreens. Base of black garlic vichyssoise. Neutral, slightly garlicky croutons.

Walla Walla onions and leeks quiche

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 14:14:28 -0400

A staple of my oven, sometimes topped with crumbled goat cheese (or a edgy aged blue cheese like Stilton.

for the dough (for a 9 inches baking dish – 4 people):

1 ½ cups all-purpose flour (although I like high-protein flours more)
½ tsp kosher salt
7 tbs cold butter (almost a stick)
2 tbs ice-cold water

I normally refer to this to convert butter content:
¼ pound = 4 oz = 115 g = 1/2 cup = 8 tablespoons

I stick everything in a food processor except the water. When everything is dusted, I add the water to bring the flour together in the food processor then with cold hands I work the dough minimally and shape it into a ball that goes, wrapped in cling film, straight in the fridge for at least an hour.

for the filling:

4 leeks (white part and some green)
1 big Walla Walla onion (or a white onion soaked in water for 30 minutes)
1 egg
2 tbs heavy cream
4 tbs grated pecorino
2 tbs butter
extra virgin olive oil
pepper/salt

Melt the butter in olive oil to prevent milk proteins to burn (enough to cover the pan you’re cooking in).
Sautee the chopped onion and the leeks (big chunks, to keep a bite) and slightly salt the mixture to release some water (lid on). Remove the lid and start browning/caramelizing. Stop at a golden stage with the onion structure maintained.
Cool down and mix one beaten egg, a splash of cream and the pecorino.
No salt added because of the pecorino but adjust with salt if Parmigiano is used.

Roll the dough, prick the bottom with a fork and stick in the fridge (covered).
Gently pour the filling and prick the borders like a galette.
Cook 30 minutes at 450º (or until the top gets nicely browned).

:: wine: Walter Massa “Derthona” Timorasso or a Loire Sauvignon.

Pickled daikon

Thu, 22 Jul 2010 14:10:00 -0400

Daikon, such a versatile radish. Less pungent and peppery than its brothers and more watery….

Had it pickled with sushi, loved it and reproduced it this way: (makes a ½ gal jar)

1 cup rice vinegar
1 cup filtered water (no chlorinated tap water)
1 cup sugar ½ tsp turmeric
4 juniper berries
1 lbs daikon kosher salt

Slice the daikon into ¼-inch thick rounds and cut them into semicircles. Salt the slices generously in a bowl then transfer to a colander and let them drain for one or two hours.

In the meantime, combine water, sugar,vinegar, juniper berries and turmeric in a saucepan and cook on medium heat to dissolve the sugar. Try not to reach the boil. Let it cool down covered and allow the flavors to infuse. Rinse the daikon slices with water, pat dry, arrange in a sterile mason jar and cover with the brine (filter through a very fine mesh/coffee filter). Refrigerate overnight.

Good after one week. Keeps 2 weeks.