Prepared...at Home: California Roll

I think that it's safe to assume that most people would not be comfortable with the idea of making sushi at home. Sushi is one of those foods that holds a certain mystique: it's almost universally liked, comes in infinite varieties, and involves a certain ritual of preparation and eating. Sushi is something that you go out for, as opposed to staying in for.

Last year, I was at a used book sale, where I stumbled across a sushi cookbook for a laughably low price. I bought it, thinking, "How much can I lose?" and got reading.

A few days later, I made my sushi attempt with Alex assisting me. We washed and prepared the rice, making sure to cook and prepare it carefully, before slicing all the ingredients for California Rolls: avocado, cucumber, and imitation crab meat. Then, very, very carefully, we assembled, rolled, and sliced our rolls before digging in with a great deal of satisfaction and pride.

Recently, I purchased some inexpensive sushi making tools from my grocery store; I bought a combination paddle and bamboo mat set and then a fresh pack of nori (seaweed) sheets. Last time, in lieu of a bamboo mat, I had used my placemats wrapped in plastic to roll my sushi (too industrious for words, I know), so I was very excited to have a real mat.

Tonight, I tried again. I once again made the simple California Roll, but this time using my new tools. It all worked out really well, and I had five whopping sushi rolls to show for my efforts.



The Recipe:

Sushi Rice:

2 cups short grain sushi rice

2 cups water, in addition to water for draining

2 tbsps rice vinegar

2 tbsps salt

2 tbsps sugar


Before beginning, you will need to rinse your rice. Put it into a large bowl and cover it with cool water. Swirl the bowl around and pour the water out. Repeat rinsing and swirling until the water is clear.

Put 2 cups water into a medium saucepan. Add the rice and bring to a boil, then put on lowest heat setting. Cook covered and undisturbed for 15-20 minutes, then remove from heat and let sit for 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine the vinegar, salt, and sugar and heat them in a small saucepan so that they combine. Pour the vinegar mixture over the rice, folding in with a paddle or large wooden spoon so that all the grains are coated. Let sit until room temperature.

To make the California Roll:

1 avocado, halved, pitted, and sliced

1 small cucumber, sliced into long thin slices

1 pack imitation crab meat sticks

1 pack nori sheets

sushi rice from above

Cover your bamboo mat with plastic wrap and place a nori sheet shiny side down. With the paddle, take a heap of rice (about 1/2 cup) and place it in the center of the sheet. Then, using the paddle, spread it out up to the edges of the sheet (like buttering toast). Then, near the edge closest to you, place a piece of cucumber, avocado, and crab meat in a row. Then, pick up the mat side closest to you and flip it over quickly to roll the sushi in a tight cylinder. keep rolling and collecting the mat in your hand until the roll is complete.

Slice your rolls with a very sharp knife, and serve with soy sauce and pickled ginger!

Potluck Pizza Puffs

My friend, Sophie, was hosting a potluck dinner for her birthday party, and I had no clue what to bring.

After spending quite a bit of time looking through recipes for various lasagnas, enchiladas, frittatas, chilis, and chowders, I stumbled upon a recipe for pizza puffs, individual pizza muffins. Not only did they sound tasty, but they were also already divided and ready to serve upon completion--perfect!

These were not only very easy and inexpensive to make, but easy to transport. It wasn't long before all the puffs had gone up in smoke!

This recipe comes from "Plain Chicken":

The Recipe:

3/4 cup flour
3/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
3/4 cup whole milk
1 egg, lightly beaten
4 oz mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 1 cup)
2 oz mini turkey pepperoni, (about 1/2 cup)
4 oz low-fat sausage, cooked and crumbled
1/2 cup pizza sauce (for dipping, if desired)

Pre-heat the oven to 375° and grease a 12 cup muffin pan. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, garlic powder and baking powder; whisk in the milk and egg. Stir in the mozzarella, sausage and pepperoni; let stand for 10 minutes.

Stir the batter and divide among the muffin cups. Bake until puffed and golden, 25 to 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, microwave the pizza sauce until warmed through. Serve the puffs with the pizza sauce for dipping.



Images courtesy of Plain Chicken.

Elegant Autumn Desserts : Spicy Maple and Pumpkin Flan

For those of you who did not read my post from this past weekend, I had the real treat of taking a cooking class at the Institute of Culinary Education in the Flatiron District of Manhattan. The class, entitled Elegant Autumn Desserts and taught by executive pastry chef, Vicki Wells, covered many sophisticated autumn desserts that look fantastic but are relatively simple to make.

As promised, I am re-making each of the desserts from the class at home to (a) see if they work in a non-magical cooking class setting, (b) eat them again, and (c) share them with you.

The first of these desserts in this series is the Spicy Maple and Pumpkin Flan, which was probably my favorite.

This flan is not difficult or time consuming, but does take a few tricks to make it work. The result is an incredibly smooth and subtle maple and pumpkin flavor that is to die for.

The Recipe

For the flan molds:

1 cup sugar
1 tsp heavy cream
1 tbsp butter
2 tsps rum

First, set up about 8 small ramekins in a deep baking pan so that they are ready when you pour in the caramel.

You will now need to caramelize the sugar. This can be a tricky task, especially if you have not made caramel before. I will give you one warning I wish I had had when I first made caramel last year: DO NOT TOUCH IT. EVER.* Put your sugar in a saucepan and add just enough water to moisten it. This will not be much. You do not want to bathe the sugar, just to make it damp. Then put it on the stove over medium heat and let it warm. You will not want to stir it with a spoon because the sugar will solidify. Just make sure to swirl the pan often, to move the mixture around. The mixture will soon start to develop big bubbles and will then very suddenly start to turn color. While the sugar is cooking, prepare your cream, butter, and rum and have them on standby. As soon as the sugar turns a caramel brown, remove it from heat and add the other ingredients. Swirl and let it combine. Then, pour a small amount into the ramekins (about 1/2") and let them cool and set.

For the flan:

1-1/2 cups heavy cream
1/2 cup milk
5 egg yolks
5 tbsps sugar
1-1/2 ounces maple syrup
3-1/2 ounces canned pumpkin
1/8 tsp Green Mountain maple extract (available at Fairway!)
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1/4 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp cinnamon

Preheat oven to 300' F.

Dry roast the spices in a medium saucepan. You will just need to heat them for a few seconds, until they release an intense aroma. As soon as this happens, add the cream and milk and whisk. Add half the sugar and bring to a boil, whisking. Then remove from heat and let cool 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine the yolks very well with a whisk. Add the other half of the sugar, the maple syrup, and the maple extract.

Temper the cream to the yolk mixture. Pour in a little of the cream and whisk well before adding another small amount. Do this until it is all combined. Add the pumpkin and stir very well, until smooth. Strain and remove the foam.

Pour into the caramel filled molds. Now, create a water bath with boiling water. The water should go 1/3 of the way up the ramekin sides. Bake them until they are set and no longer jiggle. Let them in room temperature and transfer to the fridge when cooled slightly.

When ready to serve, turn the ramekin over a plate and tap to release the flan.


*Sugar's boiling point is much higher than water, so not only is it scalding, but it will also solidify, while still scalding you, which makes it impossible to get off before severe damage is done. I was dumb. Learn from me.

Butternut Squash Risotto

Last night, I made homemade risotto for the first time. But, as a twist, I decided to make not just any old plain risotto, but a butternut squash risotto (for those of you who are keeping count, this is 6 squash down, 2 to go). Isabelle had recommended this to me, and I was very excited to give it a shot.

This risotto is very simple to make, but takes a little time. Don't worry, though, it's most definitely worth it!

The Recipe

1 tablespoon butter
1 1/2 pounds butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1/2-inch chunks
Coarse salt and ground pepper
1 cup Arborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) chicken broth, mixed with 1/2 cup water and heated
1/3 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon chopped fresh sage

First off, melt your butter in a medium to large saucepan (you will be adding both rice and many cups of chicken broth to this, so make sue you have room) over medium heat and add your squash, along with salt and pepper. Cook, stirring frequently, until te edges of the squash start to soften and they become very slightly mushy.

Add rice and stir so that it is mixed in well with the squash. Add wine; cook until almost all liquid has evaporated, 1 to 2 minutes. Now, reduce the heat to medium-low or low and add 1/2 cup hot broth mixture. Cook, stirring, until almost all liquid is absorbed. Add remaining broth mixture, 1/2 cup at a time, stirring until liquid is absorbed before adding more, 35 to 40 minutes total.

Right before you serve, add the Parmesan, sage, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. Serve immediately.

It's that simple!

This was a really lovely risotto, though I think that next time, I would perhaps try adding some paprika instead of pepper. That might give it a really nice touch. Other than that, this was a great risotto with a lot of texture and flavor, spicy but subtle. I would definitely make it again!

Elegant Autumn Desserts at the Institute for Culinary Education

Yesterday morning, I had the pleasure of attending my first class at the Institute for Culinary Education, located on 23rd street between 5th and 6th avenue. As I had been getting more interested in baking and cooking, and as I had been devoting more time to it recently, I became interested in finding recreational cooking or baking classes in the city that would (a) get me out of the house, (b) let me meet new people, and (c) let me learn some very valuable kitchen skills.

But where was I going to find these cooking classes that I had in mind? I Googled it.

The Institute for Culinary Education offers a full range of recreational cooking classes for those interested in cooking, baking, wine and bar-tending, and cheese.

The class that caught my eye was "Elegant Autumn Desserts" taught by chef Vicki Wells, the Executive Pastry Chef at Buddakan who has worked with Sarabeth’s Kitchen, Hotel Plaza Athenée, Maxim’s, Montrachet, Rakel’s, Metro, El Dorado Petit, Le Bernardin and Trattoria Dell’Arte.

The class was limited to 10 people and was spread over four hours on a Saturday morning. The price was reasonable, considering the time in the kitchen, the price of the materials, and the fact that you got to take bags of goodies home.

Within our four hours we made a Warm Apple Cider Cake with Bourbon Vanilla Ice Cream, Spicy Maple Pumpkin Flan with Gingersnaps, Pears Poached in Pinot Noir, Double Chocolate Shortcakes with Oven-Roasted Cranberries, and a Warm Greenmarket Apple Charlotte with Clove Molasses Ice Cream.

Each one was relatively simple to make, and came out looking and tasting divine. Each used tools and ingredients that are easily available and that shouldn't be too much of a drain on the budget.

The Cider Cake was built on a great basic recipe that takes a normal spice cake and adds onto it with variations of the liquid used. While we used bourbon, you can substitute any alcohol or even coffee as the liquid. The cake was filled with a tangy cider reduction and topped with bourbon vanilla ice cream, which was so good that I might invest in an ice cream machine.



The Pumpkin Flan might have been my favorite of all the desserts. It incorporated the welcome fall flavors of maple syrup and pumpkin into a smooth flan topped with a caramel layer and sauce. The flan was served with a dollop of fresh whipped cream and a gingersnap as garnish.



The Chocolate Shortbread tasted very similar to a chocolate mousse that Alex makes. It took a chocolate shortbread biscuit which was then topped with cranberries and chocolate pastry cream. This was another dessert that I could never tire of eating.



The Apple Charlotte was a variation on a French apple upside-down tart, which was made with a brioche crust and filled with caramelized apples and apple compote. A perfect version of an apple tart for fall.



I will undoubtedly be attempting these recipes again over the next few weeks, and with each attempt, I will post the recipe for the desserts I have described above. So, stay tuned, and get hungry!

Also make sure to check out ICE's list of classes at : http://rec.iceculinary.com/

Prepared...at Home: Ricotta

I was gearing up for a homemade butternut squash gnocchi recipe that called for some ricotta cheese, and was inspired to try and make my own.

Now, I didn't just think of this. That's not a thought that pops into my head. I don't saunter down the cheese aisle and say, "Hey, it would be a great idea to make my own [insert cheese name here]."

I was watching a short program on the Channel 4 NYC Foodie show, and watched a clip by the "Working Class Foodies," instructing how to make delicious and inexpensive ricotta cheese from scratch for use in zucchini and lemon zest pancakes.

"Not too shabby," I thought.

The next day, I bought something I never buy--whole milk--and headed home with my ricotta and my gnocchi on my mind.

I tried to make my own cheese yesterday, and all I can say is that it was an epic failure for reasons that still do not understand.

The recipe called for 1 quart of 2% or Whole milk, and 2 tbsps of lemon juice.

You're supposed to bring the milk to a boil, stirring and whisking all the while, and then add the lemon juice to curdle it--which separates the curds from the whey.

You then strain the mixture through a strainer or cheesecloth to drain out the whey. What is left is your ricotta which you season with lemon zest, salt, and pepper.

I had whole milk. I had lemon juice. I did the steps.

My milk would not curdle. It refused. I added more lemon. Still nothing. I whisked and whisked and boiled and boiled until I realized that something was wrong.

I was really excited to make this, and perhaps I will try again, but all I can say is that this was not as I had hoped, and I will very well have to get some storebought ricotta for my darling gnocchi.

Vegetable Quiche à la Vati

I was first introduced to this delicious quiche two years ago by my former roommate, Marisa, who is a vegetarian. Marisa had first seen the recipe in an English vegetarian cookbook, but had altered the recipe over the years until she and her family had found a perfect variation. The recipe below is the Vati family variation, for your enjoyment.

The quiche combines roasted butternut squash and red onions with a sprinkling of spinach and a flavorful filling. It's fairly quick and easy to make, and can be served fresh out of the oven or as a leftover.

This will serve 6-8 people.



The Recipe:

1lb butternut squash
1 red onion, cut into small wedges
2 Tbl olive oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
1 tsp salt
3 eggs
1/2 cup cream
1/2 cup milk
1 Tbl parsley, chopped
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp rosemary
1 premade pie crust
1 3/4 oz spinach, blanched
1 Tbl grated parmesan cheese

Preheat your oven to 375' and line a baking sheet with tin foil. Take your squash and cut it lengthwise, then cut it into fairly thin horizontal slices. Place them in a single layer on the sheet and add the coarsely chopped red onion. Season with salt and pepper, and drizzle with olive oil. Toss to coat. Cook for 30 minutes on one side, and then turn for the final 30 minutes.

Whisk together the eggs, cream, milk, and herbs, and season with salt and pepper. Grease a loose-based fluted flan tin or 9inch cake dish. Place pie crust inside and press to sides.

Arrange the vegetables over the base of the crust, and pour the egg mixture over the vegetables before sprinkling with parmesan.

Bake for 35-40 mins or until the filling is golden brown and set.