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13May

Spring Vegetables: Treating Asparagus the Right Way

Fresh Asparagus.

It’s springtime! Love is in the air, and the produce section at your local grocery store is probably overflowing with great fruits and vegetables. We’re a bit spoiled these days in that we can get almost any type of produce year-round, but it’s this time of year that a wonderful bounty of fresh, high-quality stuff hits the produce department. Those of you with CSA subscriptions will be enjoying your weekly deliveries soon enough, but if you’re looking for good vegetables, there’s plenty to be had, even at the local Giant, Harris Teeter, or Safeway.

Despite its (deserved) reputation for giving some people a distinctive aroma during a certain bodily process after eating it, I’m a big fan of asparagus. But not how it’s usually cooked – I’ve been the victim of boiled-to-death asparagus too many times to count. That product is not enjoyable at the dinner table – so tender it slides off the fork, with a nasty off-green color and a strong odor that overpowers the palate. Sure, it’s nutritious, but we shouldn’t be condemned to suffering through our vegetables! In a way it’s similar to broccoli – too many people have terrible memories of being forced to eat their broccoli by their parents, so they avoid it later on when they actually control their home menu.

Prepped and Snapped Asparagus.

But we have better ways of cooking vegetables! We don’t have to boil them into submission; we can apply better techniques and enjoy them quite a bit more. And before I lose you here – you don’t have to spend hours doing it, either. High-quality produce doesn’t need to be shepherded through difficult sauce-making or other rigorous techniques. While asparagus goes very nicely with Hollandaise sauce in classical French cuisine, those tricky emulsions still have me scared. And when I’m making dinner for my wife, I’d rather not worry about a sauce breaking – I want my dishes to be ready reliably. (The same holds true for any of you guys attempting to woo a lady with your cooking, which is a tactic I highly recommend. Date night recipes shouldn’t be too labor intensive, and should be fail-safe!) In any case, you have two big points to remember when getting high-quality vegetables into your kitchen:

Cooked and Seasoned Asparagus.

#1: Prep. This is probably the most important point for vegetable cookery, as you simply can’t bring veggies home from the store and toss them in the pot (most of the time, anyway). With asparagus, you’ll want to “snap” them – bend the stalks along the length until the woody base naturally snaps off. You wouldn’t want to eat that section anyway! You’ll be left with tender portions of the green stalks that won’t at all remind you of biting into a tree.

#2: Method. My favorite way to cook asparagus without absolutely killing it is high-heat roasting. Many restaurants recommend blanching veggies first, but they mostly do that in order to save time on the line. In the home setting, it’s easy enough to roast your asparagus all the way through without having to boil a pot of water. It’ll take a little longer, but since you’re not firing dishes out every five to ten minutes, you can afford to wait.

The beauty of asparagus is that it’s got a relatively strong natural flavor, meaning it will stand up to seasonings and spices pretty well. You can play around with the flavor elements in this recipe as you like – some sources I’ve seen recommend sprinkling the cooked asparagus with nutmeg or allspice as it comes out of the oven. I’ve also seen suggestions for using lemon zest, but I prefer the stronger flavor of fresh lemon juice. You don’t want to drown your poor veggies, but a solid squeeze over the plate after they come out of the oven, followed by seasoning and whatever spices you’d like to enjoy, will elevate the dish far beyond your dreaded memories of the family dinner table in your youth.

Roasted Asparagus

1 bunch asparagus stalks

Olive oil

1 lemon

Salt and pepper

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Prep your asparagus stalks by snapping off the woody lower ends and washing thoroughly. Toss with a tablespoon or two of olive oil until well coated and lay out in a single layer on a roasting pan or oven-safe plate (such as Pyrex).

Roast for 5 minutes, then check the tray and turn any stalks that appear to be browning quickly. Roast for another 5-7 minutes (depending on how thick your stalks are), then remove from the oven.

Squeeze fresh lemon juice over the asparagus, then sprinkle generously with kosher salt and fresh black pepper. Optional: omit lemon juice and sprinkle with nutmeg or allspice. Basil chiffonade is another nice option if you’ve got fresh herbs available.

Enjoy!

-HML

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Check out my friend Ami’s Costa Rica Tours and don’t forget to use the code “TOUCAN” to save money. He has some group tours that you can join, including an upcoming August tour, and I hear that airfare to Costa Rica is inexpensve right now for August.

-JAY

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17Feb

Cocova’s March Events

Cocova’s Happy Hour Tasting of Fresco Chocolate

Friday March 2nd
5:30pm – 7:30pm

“We make chocolate from cocoa beans, one batch at a time. Using natural ingredients, we slow roast each cocoa batch and stone grind our chocolate as in ages past. By adjusting ingredients, recipes and parameters throughout the chocolate making process we strive to discover unique chocolate flavors not commonly experienced. Then offer the results for your review.”

Come meet Rob Anderson of Fresco Chocolate and engage him in conversation about Fresco Chocolate.

Sat, March 17, 3pm – 6pm

1904 18th Street, NW Washington, DC 20009 (map)

Join us for our famous free sample day! We feature over 14 different kinds of chocolate from around the world for you to explore and enjoy. Bring your family, friends, and colleagues to experience a decadent event.

Editor’s Note: Their February Sample Day is 2/18.

Permalink Filed under: Events, Ingredients, Stores Tags: Biagio, chocolate, Cocova, Fresco Chocolate, Sample Day 1 Comment
09Feb

Vegetable Cookery: Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

While on our honeymoon a couple of years ago, my wife and I tried out an amazing restaurant in central Florida. We don’t usually go for the lavish tasting menus, but just that once, it was a fantastic (nine-course!) experience. One of my wife’s first selections was a butternut squash soup, and as I perused the vegetables at the grocery store on my way home, I decided to bring back a bit of that magic.

(Pro tip: when you try out a tasting menu, be careful with the wine pairings! At this restaurant, they wouldn’t take our plates until we were done with both the food and the wine since they didn’t want to rush us. This rapidly turned into my wife switching our wineglasses and insisting that I catch up…)

The butternut squash is a rather phallic gourd – and I know you think I’m kidding, but seriously, check Google Images! Peeling and chopping the narrow portion is easy enough; it’s only when you slice into the bulbous end that you reveal the pumpkin-like core that needs to be scooped out. The flesh is a rather bright orange when ripe and it takes a decent amount of knife work to get to chopped, usable squash, but this recipe gets easier once you get past that step.

Roasting the squash yields tender, flavorful flesh, and after roasting, it’s a few short steps to a nice, pureed soup. You can achieve the same end with any number of other vegetables – I tried out a roasted carrot and cumin soup last week, for one example – and the squash’s sweetness goes a long way towards a flavorful dinner. Since it’s so similar to the pumpkin, I thought some cinnamon would go well with it, but nutmeg would be nice, too. Finish the soup with some fresh herbs and saltines and you’ve got a gourmet meal on your hands. I’m not sure that it was quite as good as on our honeymoon, but the price was definitely right!

Roasted Butternut Squash Soup

Ingredients

2 large butternut squash

1 stick cinnamon, ground

6 tbsp unsalted butter

2 yellow onions, chopped

12 fresh sage leaves, chopped

6 cups chicken broth

Olive oil

Salt

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Peel and chop the squash into a rough dice – getting an even chop isn’t too important here as long as the pieces are basically similar, so don’t be too obsessive – and scoop the seeds out of the bulbous section. Toss the chunks with a few tablespoons of olive oil, season generously with kosher salt and add the cinnamon. (If you don’t have a cinnamon stick, a teaspoon ground is probably enough). Spread the chunks out evenly on a pan and roast until tender, 35-40 minutes.

Melt the butter over low heat in a large pot. Add the onions, toss to coat, and allow to soften for 8-10 minutes, stirring occasionally. (If the onions brown, your heat is set too high). Add half the chopped sage toward the end of the onions’ cooking time. Add the chicken broth and roasted squash chunks to the pot. Bring to a boil over high heat, then reduce to medium-low and simmer for 5-10 minutes.

Puree the soup in batches using a blender (or an immersion blender if you’re that well equipped). Check the seasoning, then return to the pot and hold on low heat until you’re ready to serve. Garnish the bowls with the remaining chopped sage.

Enjoy!

-HML

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11Jan

Spirited Desserts

Pic Courtesy of staceysnacksonline.com.

Five Best Spirits for Desserts

There’s something strangely satisfying about incorporating booze into your cooking, isn’t there? The sheer knowledge alone that there is beer or wine in your dish seems to almost make the utensils jump off the table and into your hands. Not only that, when you are talking about desserts, the combination is so tempting. It’s the course where the non-drinking parent manages to squeeze in some sorely needed hooch. The best part is that each one of the following spirits works as a great tipple right after.

Brandy
Candy and brandy make you dandy. So what could be dandier than a brandy dessert? One of the characteristics that seems to make good brandy a perfect fit for the last course is its flavorful, aged quality. The fruity floral life of “burned wine” can yield another layer of flavor.

Try Cherries Jubilee with a little Hennessy. I think you’ll find the brandied form of this fruit its truest and most delicious.

Grand Marnier
I’m cheating a little bit here since Grand Marnier is actually based off Cognac (ergo, brandy). What makes this liqueur very unique is that it is made with bitter orange essence which leaves that distinct flavor profile. Douse your dessert with “Gran Ma,” light it on fire, and watch the blue flames dance over all over such delicate dishes.

Have a taste of the Grand Marnier Soufflé. It’s an airy confection that goes a long way with this liqueur. Or, maybe make a Crêpe Suzette.

Bourbon
Bourbon has extracted character from charred wood barrels. The flavors elicited from the barrel often renders the spirit with cinnamon, vanilla, and caramel notes – perfect flavors for desserts. Moreover, because nearly every “bourbon” whiskey is made with anywhere from 51-80% corn, it can often have a sweeter and thicker quality.

I don’t know if anyone can be disappointed with a Derby Pie; particularly, there’s some good ole Kentucky Bourbon Whiskey from Maker’s Mark Distillery.

Pernod
Where there’s candy, there’s licorice. And while licorice doesn’t derive its flavor from pastis or absinthe, a distinct anise flavor in both is undeniable. In fact, one of my favorite associations with a well made Sazerac is the candy-ish quality that accompanies the spicy, nutty rye whiskey flavor.

Like ice cream? Add a dabble of Pernod into that custard for a Star Anise Ice Cream. Like toppings? Make a Pernod whip cream!

Amaretto
Most people don’t know that Amaretto is distilled from either an apricot or almond pit base. The result is a nutty liqueur and since almonds are already a topping of choice for many sweets, this liqueur is a perfect fit for a wide variety of desserts.

“Leave the gun. Take the cannoli.” Next time TNT is running that Godfather trilogy marathon, whip up some of these with a little Amaretto in them.

-By Guest Writer & Alcohol Writer/Bartender Anthony of Done Like Dundee Gone Like Ghandi.

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27Aug

Pedon’s Gluten-free Pancake-mix Delivers

The packaging is simple, and the directions are easy. Like any recipe with wet and dry ingredients: in one bowl, whisk an egg, then whisk in a cup of milk. In another bowl, empty the entire packet of Pedon’s dry pancake mix then slowly incorporate your liquid into the dry mix with the whisk. Flex your whisking muscles to ensure a smooth batter and a couple minutes later you’re ready cook it stove-top.

The aroma while it’s cooking was a big tease, because it took a few minutes before the top dried and I could turn it over. Check out the gorgeous, even coloring once I flipped it.

The flavor of the finished product was similar to what I expected a pancake might be, and the texture was very good. No, it doesn’t taste exactly like a wheat-flour pancake but I didn’t mind. Salt content was perfect, and the option of adding sugar to the batter isn’t necessary; instead, pour some quality maple syrup on top and enjoy. Pedon’s got a winner: they’re in the same league as Pamela’s pancake mix which is the gluten-free gold standard in our household.

After offering a taste to my family, I polished off the entire batch. Win.

–Mark Feghali (MFF)

Disclaimer: I know something to this effect is stated in our “About” section, but (as sometimes happens), we received freebies. That said, our words are our own.

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03Aug

Spice Review: Chilean Dried Crushed Goat’s Horn?

Merquén Flakes

A week ago, I met up with JAY and he gave me a bag full of spice blends and rubs to try out. The majority of the bag’s contents were from the Fancy Food Show. I began to smell everything once I got home, but the first item up for review was the merquén, which was obtained by JAY at a Fancy Food Shoe-related Chilean event . Since I had no idea what it was, other than dried and smoked chiles, I did my research. The chile from which the spice is derived is called the cacho de cabro, or goat’s horn. An indigenous tribe, the Mapuche, traditionally use merquén in many dishes. The chiles are smoked, dried, crushed, and mixed with coriander, cumin and salt. It sounded delicious.

I have to be honest. When I made the recipe for dip (included in the spice bag), I was underwhelmed at first. Essentially, the dip is merquén, cream cheese, garlic purée, and cream. I was expecting something unique and exciting, especially after what I had heard and read about the spice blend. As it turns out, the packets of merquén only contained the chile flakes. A few years ago, chipotle seasonings made a splash in the world of foodies; my dip tasted as though I had mixed chipotle flakes into cream cheese. The smoky, hot flavor was present without the accompanying coriander and cumin. Once I added them, the dip was magnificent. I began with a ¼ teaspoon of each, and increased the amount in increments until I had a satisfactory amount. For each teaspoon of merquén flakes, I added ½ teaspoon of kosher salt, ½ teaspoon of ground cumin, and 1 teaspoon of ground coriander. I have no idea whether the proportions I used are congruent with the actual spice blend, but I thought it tasted incredible.

Merquén-Rubbed Grilled Meat Selection

After whipping up another batch of merquén, I fired up my grill. While the charcoal was doing its thing, I rubbed the blend onto a couple chicken tenders, a tiny piece of steak and a thin pork cutlet. The seasoning’s fragrance made me wish I had some of the dip left. I restrained myself from making a second bowl of dip by watching the charcoal turn gray. After retrieving my meat selections from the grill, I admired them briefly and then tucked in. Personally, I loved the pork cutlet best, but honestly each piece was very good. I saved a chicken tender for the next day, and it was equally amazing. For the record, I enjoyed my merquén-rubbed meats with cheesy mashed potatoes. I thought about adding the seasoning to them as well, but decided I should restrict it to one part of the meal at a time.

I encourage everyone to find the spice blend in a store or buy it online and try it soon. Whether you use it as a rub, an oil infusion for slices of baguette, or making it your secret ingredient, merquén is worth the effort to find it.

-TKW

Disclaimer: I know something to this effect is stated in our “About” section, but (as sometimes happens), we received freebies. That said, our words are our own.

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23Jul

Biagio’s August Sample Day

Biagio Fine Chocolate‘s next Sample Day will be Saturday, August 20, from 3pm-6pm.

Complimentary – no R.S.V.P. needed. What is Sample Day? It is a monthly event that has been wildly successful with our customers. We will have over a dozen varieties of some of the world’s best chocolate available for tasting. Sample day is held in Studio B, the tasting room/gallery behind Biagio Fine Chocolate.

Biagio Fine Chocolate and Studio B are located at:

1904 18th St. NW, Washington, DC 20009

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17Jul

Add Pink Pepperberries to These 5 Dishes

Note from Editor (JAY):

Please welcome Tiffany (TKW), our new spice writer. Shes has written a bunch of articles so far; we are meeting up this week, so that I can give her a bunch of spices (many of which are from the Fancy Food Show) to review.
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Pink pepperberries fit into a category of spices that are constantly mistaken for something they are not. For instance, what many people get when they think they are buying cinnamon is actually ground cassia… but that’s another article. Pepperberries are not related to any of the varieties of peppercorns (Piper nigrum), though their appearance would have you think otherwise. The berries are the dried fruits of a tree native to South America (Schinus molle). They have a delicate heat with a beautiful floral and citrusy flavor. Additionally, the tiny berries are gorgeous in the jar or on the plate.

I enjoy exploring new territory when it comes to spices. Cooking with the pepperberries was no exception. I discovered that I’d prefer to have a separate pepper mill for the spice instead of a mortar and pestle. The berries have a distinct taste from black peppercorns. Plus, the convenience of a mill is something I’m used to. The husks flake off and in liquids, they tend to float. Don’t let their errant ways deter you from using the spice. The color remains vibrant throughout cooking, and makes a striking presentation when the ground berries are sprinkled over any dish. I found five dishes that taste amazing after the addition of pink pepperberries:

1. Tropical Fruit Salad — the floral notes accent mango and papaya well and the slight heat will be unexpected. Use about 1 teaspoon of the ground berries for every four servings. For presentation, top each individual serving with a little shredded mint and a turn or two of the pepperberry mill.

2. Crusted Chicken — I recommend using basil or lemon to accent the flavor, perhaps in a sauce. Use 1 ½ teaspoons of the spice (coarsely ground) mixed in with your favorite breadcrumbs, and coat your chicken. Pan-fry for a little color and finish in the oven. The pink color looks fantastic on the plate, particularly with green sides like steamed broccoli or sauteed spinach.

3. Garlic Mashed Potatoes — again the color of the spice really makes a difference. The flavor adds a little kick, and the garlic brings out the citrus flavor of the berries. Use about ½ teaspoon when serving four, and grind a little extra on top.

4. Goat Cheese Spread — try mixing fresh oregano, ½ teaspoon of ground pink pepperberries, and chopped chives with your favorite brand of goat cheese. To make a pretty presentation, shape the spread into a rectangle and used cracked pepperberries to make an artistic S-curve on top.

5. Tuna Salad Sandwich — I think this will be my new favorite dish for awhile. I used about 1 tablespoon of pepperberries, coarsely ground. The sandwich looked great and tasted even better.

-TKW

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16Jul

Tandoori Eggplant: Redux!
Eggplants, by Flickr user jayluker

A few years ago I developed (OK, maybe that’s a stretch: I made up) my Tandoori eggplant bites as an easy go-to party dish. Unable to either leave well enough alone or to keep doing things in an easy way, recently I decided to update the dish. By which I mean: “I didn’t have the right ingredients handy and was too lazy to go to the store, but at least planned long enough in advance to make something complicated.”

This time around, I used small regular purple eggplants (sliced into rounds and purged*), for starters, and I marinated and grilled them instead of a rub and roast.

For the marinade, I used:
- 12 tsp tandoori spice
- 2 tsp Vegeta
- 2 tbs olive oil
- 1 tbs lemon juice
- 1 tsp red wine vinegar
- 2 tsp mirin
I marinated the sliced eggplant about 6 hours, and then grilled. They turned out to be really tasty, and people at the party ate them up. In fact, I even used mine, with some hot sauce on top, as a last-minute veggie burger, which worked very well, and might be another variation to try (on purpose)!

*Funny story: when I had sliced all my eggplants, I realized that I was out of table salt, so I purged them with sea salt I ground into powder with my coffee grinder and used a colander as a sieve. This, it turns out, is a thing that can be done. I don’t recommend it.

– MAW
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14Jul

A Morning In Old Town

A week or so ago, I decided to spend my morning in Old Town Alexandria. I began with breakfast at Buzz Bakery on Slater’s Lane. My husband and I have been in love with their cupcakes for almost a year but hadn’t really tried any of their other food or drinks.

When I walked in, the café had more people seated inside than I expected for 9 am on a Sunday morning. Luckily, only a handful of people were mulling their decisions in front of me. I made my request of a large mocha, and two scones: one was a caramelized onion & manchego, while the other contained ham, cheddar & scallions. My mocha was good, but ordinary. The scones, however, were heavenly. Both scones amazed me with their lack of a dry or crumbly texture. The caramelized onions really did taste a little sweet, and the manchego was not overpowering. The ham and cheddar matched well in the other scone, and the scallions accented both flavors. In hindsight, I probably would have enjoyed them even more if I had requested that they be heated. After finishing my breakfast, I left Buzz Bakery for the heart of Old Town.

I found a miraculously close parking space to my next destination, and decided it was an omen. The Spice & Tea Exchange on King Street is easy to miss because they don’t have a street-facing entrance. Rather, the door faces another shop right across the walkway from it. When you walk in, a large waist-high display shows off some of the gift ideas for spices and seasonings. All the spices, salts, herbs, peppers, and teas are in large glass jars on shelves against the wall. Little signs posted everywhere encourage the customers to open the jars to smell the products. I followed the signs and began to smell my way around the store.

One interesting note: this shop also sells flavored sugars, and various powders. You can not only find vanilla or cinnamon sugar, since they also carry habanero, sweet onion, and espresso sugars. Their powder selection is equally diverse, containing wasabi, beer, and pumpkin. A kind young lady, Cory, helped me purchase some of the bulk spices. All in all, I came away with grains of paradise, mesquite powder, cardamom seeds, pink pepperberries, berry bouquet herbal tea, purple sticky rice, and bamboo scented rice. Ask any of the employees if you have questions, as they seem to be very knowledgeable about their products.

On a recommendation from Cory concerning coconut-flavored desserts, I went down a couple blocks and crossed King Street to Pop’s Old Fashioned Ice Cream Company. The temperature had been climbing, and I reached the shop shortly before noon.

It was packed with people, inside and out, and about 15 people were waiting to be served. I joined the end of the line and began to examine the menu, which was written in multi-colored chalk. A few flavors had been wiped off the board, and it appeared that coconut was one of them. One of the flavors was called “Cleveland Brownie Sundae” and I was curious to find out what made it different than other brownie sundaes. I also noted that Pop’s offered Brown Cows, as well as Coke Floats. A large Banana Split was advertised as serving four people, with a chalk illustration depicting the decadent dessert.

When my turn finally arrived, I asked the young man behind the counter about the dessert. He smiled and said that the flavor was supposed to taste just like eating a sundae, complete with chunks of brownie. I had a scoop of the aforementioned ice cream and a scoop of the yellow cake flavor. I waited until I was out the door and walking back toward my car before taking a bite. The buttery goodness of the yellow cake ice cream was astounding in its simplicity and tastiness. In contrast, the Cleveland Brownie Sundae flavor seemed like nothing special at all (though that didn’t stop me from eating it). I plan to try more of Pop’s ice creams in the future, but I suspect I’ll always end up getting some of their yellow cake flavor.

-TWK

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