Vermonster Weekend

We took a weekend trip up to Vermont to see the New England fall foliage, hike the mountains, and of course taste some of the local fare. Here's the whirlwind Vermont culinary tour in a nutshell:

• Cold Hollow Cider Mill: watch the cider press the apples into cider (see photo), and sample it fresh and cold or steaming hot on a nippy fall day. In addition to handpicked apples they have the gamut of local farm products including classic maple syrup, honey, homemade fruit jams and mustards, and of course the infamous apple cider donuts.
• Cabot Creamery: here you can sample a extensive variety of Vermont cheddar cheese, from sharp to extra sharp to seriously sharp (my favorite), to the milder Colby and Muenster cheeses, to the flavored cheddars such as chipotle, jalapeno Monterey Jack, "Tuscan" herbs and garlic, and sage.
• Lake Champlain Chocolates: from organic truffles to chocolate bars filled with nuts and berries, these Vermont chocolates are handcrafted to perfection with an all-natural gourmet seal. They have festive autumn chocolates and holiday samplers, but my favorite is the classic 5 Star chocolate bar, which Vogue calls "the ultimate chocolate bar" - and it is.
• Ben and Jerry's: A trip to Vermont wouldn't be complete without a trip to the famed ice creamery. We stopped at the factory out in rural Waterbury to glimpse where the magic happens, and then visited the original Ben and Jerry's shop in downtown Burlington where I had to sample the decadent Chocolate Therapy ice cream flavor. (Chocolate really is therapy, isn't it, ladies? Don't deny.)

The theme of Vermont cuisine: dairy, dairy, dairy! From cheese to chocolate to ice cream (and a few apples and maple syrup thrown in for more sugar) Vermont is sure to give you a real sugar rush! Who can deny the holy combination of cheese and chocolate, the perfect combination of savory and sweet? It's enough to turn anyone into a food Vermonster ...

Scallops Two Ways

I decided to do some culinary experimentation and present a food face-off - secret ingredient: scallops. Here's what I came up with:

1.) Seared sea scallops with sauteed chanterelle and baby porcini mushrooms with a roasted red pepper coulis, served over mixed greens:


How to do it: Lightly salt and marinate scallops in good olive oil and minced garlic and shallots to taste, at least 30 min. in a ziploc bag in the fridge before cooking. Slice and saute mushrooms, with red pepper roasting in the broiler. Remove mushrooms from heat and take the red pepper out of the oven to cool, dice and mix into mushrooms. Add fresh thyme and salt and pepper to taste. Sear the scallops on high heat in the marinade oil until golden brown on each side, serving with mushrooms and sprig of fresh parsley on top.


2.) "South of the border" scallops in chili spice rub with tequila lime butter and pepper rings garnish:


How to do it: mix spices in a shallow bowl to create the spice rub - I used equal parts chili powder, cayenne, cumin and a dash of hot paprika for a spicy mixture - and coat scallops evenly with spice rub. Chill scallops, and create the tequila lime butter by pouring dash of tequila (I used Jose Cuervo gold) over about 1-2 tablespoons of butter with the juice of half a lime and grated lime zest to taste. Sear scallops on high heat - the spices will create a crusty blackened edge - and flip to other side, pouring tequila lime butter over top. *Be mindful to stand back from the hot pan when pouring alcohol in it!* Plate the scallops with thinly-sliced pepper rings (I used banana peppers but other varieties will do) and lime wedges with a spring of fresh cilantro.

Taste test these recipes and choose your favorite!

Love the 'Shrooms

At our trip to Russo's Market this weekend we splurged and got three types of mushrooms: portobello, porcini, and chanterelle. Though here in Boston we don't have the luxury of going "mushroom-seeking" in the forest as we do back in Tuscany, in my mind Russo's is the next best thing. Over the years I've grown to love good mushrooms (unlike my childhood response: "ick!"), but it was on our trip to Italy this summer that I came to appreciate them on a whole new level. A good, raw mushroom salad, when using the freshest best-quality mushrooms drizzled in olive oil and tossed with shaved parmesan and fresh herbs, can be a wondrously rich and flavorful dish, no cooking required. I had the privilege of tasting some of the rarest mushrooms there, X, which practically melted on the tongue, they were so delicate yet rich in flavor. As I've learned more about mushrooms in my culinary exploration I've come to discover a myriad of kinds, from fun little shiitakes to creamy creminis to traditional buttons to lobster mushrooms - we discovered these at Russo's and they actually smell like lobster! Add that to a seafood pasta dish and let the flavors fly! Experiment and try cooking with oyster mushrooms, morefan-shaped oyster mushrooms, earthy morels, or go bold with black trumpets!

Of the mushrooms we selected this time, they each have different characteristics to contribute to a dish. The portobello mushrooms are the "meatiest," with both their larger shape and thicker texture and beefier flavor that bring a hearty taste to a meal. I often substitute portobello mushrooms for meat in my vegetarian cooking, such as in grilled burgers, and have even seen a vegetarian shephard's pie that uses portobellos instead of ground beef!

Porcini mushrooms, though smaller than portobello caps, have a rich, almost musty flavor. These were our real "splurge" of the day as they were the most expensive, but even two of these bulbous babies go a long way. We also selected a bunch of fresh chanterelles, which look like little gold trumpets. They are soft and delicate in flavor, for some even evoking the smell of apricots. Here is a photo of our fresh chanterelles before we sliced them:

We decided to make a three-mushroom risotto, using each kind to build a depth of flavor. After soaking the mushrooms in water to remove the grit and sauteeing them with garlic, sweet onions and olive oil, we started the risotto base (keep adding stock to arborio rice and stir to keep from sticking) and added the mushrooms halfway through the cooking process to infuse the risotto with their flavor. The combination of the meaty portobello, rich porcini, and delicate chanterelles melded to create a pot of mouth-watering goodness:

The meal was hearty enough to satisfy even an avid meat-eater, laden with earthy flavors from the mushrooms and finished with fresh thyme and fontina cheese stirred in to give it a creamy texture. We paired the dinner with a nice Malbec, as the portobellos can stand up to red wine, and topped the risotto with some shaved pecorino for natural salt - note this meal uses very little butter or salt in our case, so the richness comes from the mushrooms themselves.

Next I used a few of the little porcinis and chanterelles for a seafood dinner, sauteeing them with a red pepper coulis to top seared sea scallops served over mixed greens:


These 'shrooms sent us into a nice psychadelic trip ... of food ecstasy.

Fall Fare

As I like to cook and eat seasonally and locally-grown produce as much as possible, we've transitioned from the summertime meals (of grilled fish, corn and tomatoes, etc.) to the fall meal season in my kitchen. Here are some fresh ideas for fall that I've whipped up that I recommend you try:

• Roasted pear and fig salad over fresh arugula with walnuts and gorgonzola: pears are a great fall fruit that taste lovely fresh and cooked, if you haven't tried it. For this salad I sliced Bosc pears (Asian pears or Anjous also work well in salads) and gave them a quick roasting to caramelize the sides, so the fruit juices dripped on to the greens to flavor the plate. A nice quick dressing for this salad is to whisk olive oil with apple cider vinegar and a bit of Dijon mustard for a nice fall flavor drizzled over every bite.


• Brussel sprouts sauteed with green apple, pumpkin butter and raisins: this side dish combines autumn vegetables and fruits with the nutty-sweet pumpkin undertone and smattering of raisins like plump little nuggets of sweetness throughout the savory sprouts. I added some red pepper flakes to this to give it an extra kick, as I'm a spicy girl, but it stands alone either way. Brussel sprouts pair well with proteins like pork chops, but I served it with crispy baked tofu topped with applewood barbeque sauce. Delish.


• Mashed sweet potatoes topped with sauteed baby bok choy, maple-glazed carrots, and dried cranberries: this dish celebrates the colors of fall with the bright orange sweet potatoes and carrots mixed with the dark leafy greens, and fuses the flavors of savory and sweet. I mashed the sweet potatoes with some cayenne and cumin to spice up the natural sweetness, with a hint of cinnamon and nutmeg and roasted turnips to add another healthy veggie to the meal. This meal would work just as well with kale or swiss chard, whatever you find at your local farmer's market that day. Be creative and see what you create!

Next concept I'm excited to try:

• Pumpkin kibbeh: sauteed spinach with chickpeas and walnuts served inside of a pumpkin - the gourd doubles as a festive bowl!

Autumn Produce Fest

We went for our fall trip to Russo's and stocked up on all the fabulous autumn produce, getting pumpkins, three kinds of squash, apple cider, leeks, walnuts (as we are squirrels stocking up for the winter, or so it would seem), an assortment of rare mushrooms and peppers, and at the deli exquisite meats and cheeses, and more ...

My festive autumnal centerpiece for our kitchen table, with leaves I collected outside:

The squash, now decorating our dining room, to experiment with by cooking in fantastic ways:

An assortment of cheeses (clockwise from left: gouda, goat cheese, gorgonzola, scamorza, pecorino romana, fontina - center ):


We even got a star fruit! Went a little wild at the market again, as always had a fabulous time.

Fun with Butternut Squash

In the spirit of fall, here are some of my favorite butternut squash recipes:

Butternut Squash Soup

Yield: 
8 servings 1 hr 40 min

Ingredients

1 tablespoons unsalted butter

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 onion, thinly sliced

2 sage leaves

1 tablespoon minced garlic

1 medium butternut squash, peeled and roughly diced

3 cups peeled and roughly diced apples

2 teaspoons Toasted Spice Rub, recipe follows

4 cups low-sodium chicken broth or water

Sea salt, Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

Melt the butter in a large pot over medium heat, and cook until it turns nut brown. Add the onion and cook until slightly softened, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and saute briefly to release its fragrance, add sage, 1 teaspoon of the salt and season with pepper, to taste.

Add the squash and apples, raise the heat to high, and cook, stirring, until the vegetables begin to caramelize, about 5 minutes. Stir in the Toasted Spice Rub and cook briefly to toast it, about 1 minute.

Add the broth-water mixture, bring to a simmer, and partially cover. Adjust the heat to maintain a gentle simmer and cook until the squash and apples are tender, about 40 minutes.

Transfer in batches to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth. Return to the pot, reheat to serving temperature, and season with salt.

Divide the soup among warmed bowls and garnish each portion with some walnuts, parmesan, green onions. Serve immediately.

Toasted Spice Rub:

1/4 cup fennel seeds

1 tablespoon coriander seeds

1 tablespoon black peppercorns

1 1/2 teaspoons crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 cup pure California chili powder (about 1-ounce)

2 tablespoons kosher salt

2 tablespoons ground cinnamon

In a small heavy pan over medium heat, combine the fennel seeds, coriander seeds, and peppercorns. When the fennel turns light brown, work quickly. Turn on the exhaust fan, add the red pepper flakes, and toss, toss, toss, always under the fan. Immediately turn the spice mixture out onto a plate to cool. Put in a blender with the chili powder, salt, and cinnamon and blend until the spices are evenly ground. If you have a small spice mill or a coffee grinder dedicated to grinding spices, grind only the fennel, coriander, pepper, and chili flakes. Pour into a bowl and toss with the remaining ingredients.

 

Butternut Squash with Apples and Maple Syrup

This is a lovely side dish with roasted pork, braised chicken thighs, or lamb: the sweetness of the vegetables complements the rich flavors of the meat.... and it’s super easy to make! Leftovers reheat well.

½ c fresh parsley
4 large shallots
1 large leek, incl. green parts
1 medium butternut squash, peeled
1/4 c unsalted butter
1 Mutsu or Granny Smith apple, peeled
1 ½ T maple syrup
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Mince parsley and set aside. Mince shallots. Quarter leek lengthwise, wash well, and slice thinly. Quarter squash and cut into ½-inch slices. Peel and quarter apple, slice thinly.
Melt butter in a heavy skillet over medium heat, saute shallots and leek for a minute or so, till beginning to soften. Add sliced squash and stir; cover skillet and cook until crisp-tender, about 8 minutes. Add apple, maple syrup, and nutmeg to skillet, season with salt and pepper. Toss lightly to combine and cook, stirring now and then, until apples have softened slightly.
Stir in parsley, adjust seasoning, and serve.

Sunday Night Dinner

We hosted a Sunday night dinner party for some friends in town and decided to do an authentic Italian meal with the proper courses:

Antipasto: homemade herb flatbread pizza with mozzarella, broccoli and mushrooms.

Primo piatto: the pasta course (of course) - spaghetti al frutti di mare, which means in a seafood sauce; we used scallops, shrimp, and cherry tomatoes with olive oil, garlic, and finished with white wine.

Secondo piatto: the fish course - we did fresh New England cod two ways: 1) baccala fritto, lightly battered in flour and pan-fried with diced tomatoes, capers, black olives and fresh parsley; and 2) baked in a lemon-mustard-dill sauce.

Insalata: a classic Greek salad with cucumbers, tomatoes and real feta, and my take on an "autumn harvest salad" with baby spinach leaves, chopped Granny Smith apple, almonds, and gorgonzola drizzled with an apple cider-mustard vinaigrette.

Dolce: sweet and simple with fruit dipped in ganache (and a few homemade chocolate-covered oreos to indulge!)

A feast as always in Princess Peach's kitchen.