Buttermilk Mashed Cauliflower

I'm a bit late to the party on this one. I blame the grumpy old man in me that occasionally pops up. Why wouldn't you want to eat potatoes? Mashed potatoes are one of the worlds great foods! Why are you trying to trick the children and fool your husband by passing off cauliflower as potatoes? Just serve the dang mashed potatoes! Well...Grandpa, that's not the point. Cauliflower tastes good, it's really healthy and it's fun to try something different.

So I finally did and now I get what all the fuss is about. Cooked and smoothed cauliflower is a very different animal from cauliflower on the veggie tray or roasted in the oven. Creamy and comforting - it won't fool anyone that's it's mashed potatoes, but holds it's own as a delicious side dish.

I simmered the buds in buttermilk to add some tang and richness. Don't be alarmed when you see the buttermilk curdle.  Those solids are like buttermilk cheese and will smooth out and enrich the end product.

Buttermilk Poached Mashed Cauliflower

makes about 2 cups

1 medium head cauliflower, cut into 1" florets
1 large clove garlic, peeled and slightly crushed
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon black peppercorns, wrapped in cheesecloth
4 cups buttermilk
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper


1. Put buttermilk, cauliflower, garlic, salt and peppercorns in a saucepan. Heat on medium-low until you see a little bubbling along the perimeter of the pan then cover and cook until tender, 25-30 minutes. The buttermilk will curdle but as I said earlier, don't worry about it - that's good stuff that will get incorporated into the cauliflower when you puree it. Drain, reserving poaching liquid. Toss peppercorn bundle. Put cauliflower, garlic and buttermilk curds in food processor along with butter and ground pepper and process until smooth adding a little of reserved liquid to desired consistency. I only used a teaspoon or two. Serve hot.

My peppercorn bundle wasn't tight enough on this batch
so I had to pick the little buggers out. 

Mini Salted Lemon Cheesecakes

The Oscar's are my Superbowl Sunday.

When the kids were younger, my husband and I had an unspoken agreement - I would be primary so he could watch the big game in January and he would return the favor a month later for the Academy Awards. And for the past 10 years we've had a small group of friends over to watch the awards with us. We love every minute - the competition, the spectacle, the clothes!, the back stories, the honoring of actors who have achieved a milestone or died during the past year (I'm sure this year there will be a segment devoted to Philip Seymour Hoffman.  Aren't we all so sad to see him go too soon? Didn't you love how quiet and human his acting was  - always with a little smirk directed only at himself and never a judgement of others? Tough one.)

This year I'm making these individual lemon cheesecakes with a some salt flakes lodged into the lemon curd. The salt makes the lemon more intense and brings out the sweetness in the crust and filling. This recipe makes nine but you could easily double it for more minis or triple the filling and double the crust for a full size cake (the lemon curd recipe makes plenty).

Kale Salad with Chimichurri and Hummus

I'm stretched. One old house, two kids, two dogs, one husband with a demanding job and various volunteer commitments have left me flailing.

Each thing is suffering in some way - either the kids don't have enough of my focused face time  or I forget to submit the form for their entry to this, membership to that or registration for the other thing. The dogs are bouncing off the ceiling, chewing the runner on the stairs and following me around e-v-e-r-y-w-h-e-r-e looking hopefully into my eye when they can catch it hoping I'll take them for a walk or to the dog park. My husband wants me to listen to his work challenges, their progression and resolution and also please tell him where he needs to be when and could I email him directions too.

I communicated wrong dates for the school fundraiser because as I was typing the email for it I was mentally already on to the next thing. I missed our daughter's parent-teacher conference, twice! Once because I was planning rides to a 4th grade roller skating party - the other time I was probably wrist deep in biscuit dough, listening to Fresh Air and having a grand ole time.  No tiger mother here. I know people are starting to think to I'm a flake. I might be... but that's not why I'm messing up. I just have too many bits and pieces tap-tap-tapping on the inside of my brain. My untoned caboose is jumping from one track to the other without any quality control measures and I find I'm rolling along with a missing wheel or two. It's not my finest hour.

Calgon, take me away. Or should I say Julia Child?

(At this time I'd like to thank anyone who's actually read to this point and didn't skip ahead to the recipe. It's this kind of free therapy that is keeping me sane).

We've been eating loads of this salad ever since they started packaging baby kale into easy to rip open plastic tubs (which are even easier to recycle now that Mpls has gone to single sort recycling bins). I've been wanting to try Smitten Kitchen's Ethereal Hummus recipe so I'm using that as a creamy base which kale has no trouble holding up to.  It's worth the trouble. You drag your fork through the hummus, then scoop up some crunchy salad dressed in a ka-pow chimichurri dressing and it's a bright combination of creamy, crunchy, rich and fresh. If you don't like chimichurri, just use lemon and olive oil on your salad and it will be just as great, but milder.

Chorizo Noodle Frittata

Like many others around the world, we've been watching a lot of the Olympics this week and being dazzled by freshness and intensity of the athletes. The downhill skiers take my breath away as does the height and pitch of the course (scary!) and I must say I was kind of thrilled by the women's snowboard cross event. That sport is growing on me. The announcers are enthusiastic and helpful and my only quibble is with the amount of camera time devoted to Bode Millers pretty wife and the mic on her that captures her pep talks with Bode which sound fake even though they're probably not. It's that weird thing where it's impossible to act naturally once you know you're being photographed or recorded. It's why people wave and smile like lunatics or shout "wooo!".

Anyway, we've been bringing our dinner plates to the floor in front of the TV and that's a treat - talk of sports and athletes makes for easy conversation and it's nice to root for the same team. Go USA!

This noodle frittata recipe is based on one from Food & Wine Magazine. I get so many food magazines and have vowed to try more recipes from them (plus don't you just love to say the word "noodle"?). I've been disappointed by frittatas in the past - too eggy and rubbery. Not so this one. This dish is creamy, super flavorful and has a nice soft, yet firm texture. It's substantial and would be good for brunch or dinner. Also great the next day warmed up in the microwave. Maybe better.

Note: bowl is on floor, dog is not on table.

Pineapple Banana Bread

I started making this banana bread a week ago.  That's when I had some spotted and fragrant bananas in the basket on the counter sharing their musty perfume with the sandwich bread. That first loaf was kind of awful. Great flavor but heavy, dense and a bit wet. So I've been playing with the recipe since adjusting the amount of pineapple, bananas, flour and fat and I think I finally got it right with this one (the fourth loaf). 

I love the flavor of pineapple and banana together (makes me think of something I'd drink on a beach with a fish taco, no shoes and no schedule) but both contain a lot of moisture which can seriously weigh down a baked good. So I tried an America's Test Kitchen tip of microwaving the bananas to get them to release some of their moisture but...it didn't work. This is probably because the bananas I used weren't brown enough (I was running out of patience in nailing this thing). However, I'm still recommending it because I know you wouldn't dream of making banana bread with hard, sunny yellow, unfreckled bananas but will instead wait for those that usually end up forgotten at the bottom of someone's lunch bag or purse and are the reason banana bread exists at all. I'm confident those kind of bananas will behave just as Christopher Kimball says they will and release abundant liquid which you can reduce on the stove and add back into your batter to make your bread incredible. I did it with the pineapple and wasn't disappointed. 

I used coconut oil because of seemed to fit the tropical theme and I like it as a substitute for butter or vegetable oil.  Wish I could say it made this vegan but there are eggs so....maybe next time.

Thai Beef with Coconut Rice & Cilantro Yogurt

A few years ago on a chilly Friday evening we were at our friends John and Faye's house hanging out in their kitchen and catching up over a beer while the kids played in the basement (a popular way for us to spend Friday nights when the kids were younger). We decided to order takeout from a great Thai place in the neighborhood and Faye ordered her favorite, a beef salad called Laab. I'd never had it before and was surprised to see that the beef wasn't cut into strips as I had imagined but was ground into small pieces like, well, hamburger. I thought ground beef was strictly the purview of North Americans and Europeans. Hamburgers, shepherds pie, pasties and that kind of thing. Well let me tell you, humble ground beef becomes quite a showy flower when it's combined with a few Thai staples and fried until it gets a little crispy around the edges. This is my version of that dish. It's savory, tangy, bright and feels good-for-you. 

I paired it with fragrant basmati rice cooked in coconut milk, crunchy raw vegetables (julienned just for fun and because I got a new tool for Christmas that makes it so easy*) and a tangy cilantro yogurt sauce. A fine meal that comes together quickly. I wish my photos did it justice but I was itching to eat this and decided they were "good enough". By the time I loaded the pictures onto my computer it was too late and every morsel had been consumed. So you'll have to trust me on this.

I Sing the Baker Imperfect...

(Cream Scones with Brown Sugar Icing)

Sadly but predictably, the inspiration for this post title comes not from the Walt Whitman poem but from the song from the movie, Fame. What was I doing during the poetry units in numerous English classes in high school and college that I missed the opportunity to understand and appreciate poetry? What boy was I thinking about or hangover was I nursing or amusement was I planning for the night? I'm not proud, but there you have it. So many missed intellectual opportunities in the pursuit of love and fun. Sigh.

I was thinking about poetry today because the recipe for these scones comes from a local woman who is a baker, takes the most beautiful pictures and writes a soulful blog, vanillabeanblog.com. Her recipe is a good one and although my scones are a bit irregularly shaped, they are delicious and I think perhaps more homey and lovable for their slightly wonky appearance. The jagged angles get nice and crunchy and are a pleasant contrast to the soft buttery cake inside. Sweet, but not too. Imperfect - like me, but still striving.

Get Your Frico On...

(Parmesan Frico Cups with Kale Caesar)

I make these frico cups when I want to serve salad you can eat without a fork, i.e., at a cocktail party. I fill them with kale salad because kale is a bit sturdier than lettuce and can hold up to an hours-long buffet that's laid out for the night (or the game). People love them and they're easy - you can make the cups a few hours ahead of time and fill with salad right before serving. Some recipes say you can make these the night before, but I find they get tough and these are really glorious when they're crispy. Delicious with this kale caesar.

And here's a link to the song that inspired the name of this post which I can't get out of my head today. Such a good groove.

Get Your Frico On (Parmesan Frico Cups)

Makes about 12 frico cups

3/4 lb. Parmesan Reggiano cheese, freshly grated*

Chicken Sofrito

I tested this recipe for "Best One-Pot Meal" for Food52 and it's pretty great. My husband was swooning that I made him a casserole and this one has rich flavor like a paella or long cooked stew. You just brown some chicken thighs, saute lots of aromatics* (onion, fennel, leeks) and spices, deglaze with white wine and chicken stock, add any vegetables you have on hand along with some orzo pasta and bake for about 25 minutes.  The only change I made to the recipe was to add a bit more salt and a splash of sherry vinegar at the end to make it a little brighter. A fine winter dish. 

*Sofrito is to Latin cooking what a mirepoix is to French, the holy trinity is to Cajun and soffritto is to Italian - a blend of diced and sauteed aromatic vegetables like onions, garlic, peppers, celery, etc. that provide the base for many savory dishes. 

Find the recipe here:

Chicken Sofrito

Fried Chicken Sliders with Pimenton Aioli

Fried chicken and I have history - troubled history. A few years ago I fried huge quantities of it to take to a dinner party at my mom's house. It looked great and I was already basking in the compliments and appreciation I would receive until they cut into it and it was...pink. Not "do you think that's a little pink" pink but rather translucent fleshy pink that made me recall that plane crash in the alps movie where they have to eat their teammates. Of course, once it's at that point there isn't much you can do to save it. Stick it in the oven, but then your crust is gone. And no one will trust your food for a very long time. Or should they. 

The only frying I've done since then is shallow pan frying which is delightful and creates a nice crust, but different from fried chicken, which is to say deep-fried chicken, which produces a bumpy, bubbly all-over crunchy crust. Why don't more restaurants in Minneapolis make a perfect fried chicken or am I just too busy driving my kids around in my grimy car wearing my grubby winter boots to notice? Maybe because good fried chicken is REALLY DIFFICULT to make (I'm vindicated!)? Or maybe because it's so stinking why-waste-my-culinary-skills-on-it easy, that no one wants to bother? Yep, that's probably the one.

Rice Noodle Salad with Peanut Dressing

Anytime I've ever tried to diet, I've failed. The problem is my brain is wired to fixate on anything I tell myself I can't have. Try and go vegetarian and crusted, salty, griddle fried burgers on a soft white buns with pickles and onions haunt my quiet moments. Ban sugar or white flour and I simply must have a donut quickly or be cruel to my family. Even when I eat healthy it needs to have a naughty element so I feel satisfied. That's why this pretty salad contains white rice noodles instead of brown, a creamy dressing and as many chopped peanuts as I want. That way it tastes delicious, doesn't feel like I'm giving anything up and and will have me craving it again and again instead of saying "well that was OK, now when does the bakery close today...?" 

This is so easy, especially if you have some leftover chicken in the fridge. Make the dressing, cook the noodles and cut up your vegetables and chicken. You can assemble it in easy-to-identify-fussy-eater-piles, as I have, or toss it all together. 

Thick and Soft Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies

These cookies are a bit of an improvisation due to low supplies. Though we had a wide assortment of chocolate chips (semi sweet, dark, milk, butterscotch, etc) it wasn't a deep supply. I dumped out the bags that were there, open and nearly empty from teenage hands dipping in for a quick chocolate hit, and got about a cup. I was also short on flour. Enter oatmeal. Butter? Check. Eggs? Check. Walnuts? Enough. Good to go.

I like a thick cookie that's soft on the inside and crisp on the outside and I've read some recipes out there that call for a little corn starch to achieve this, so I tried it. I wish I knew what that does to the dough but I can say it seems to keep these little buggers from spreading out when they hit the heat of the oven (which makes them thin - and thin is not what I want). Keeping the butter chilled helps too. I think it keeps small slivers of butter intact after mixing allowing them to release a little puff steam during baking making the cookies light instead of dense, even though they're thick. At least that's my theory. To be able to discuss this with more certainty would require research and there's no time for that since my kids are in need of attention and rides with school being cancelled due to cold (this on top of a 2 week break). And we just heard it's cancelled tomorrow too. So we're going to need these cookies.

Beet Carpaccio

Every Christmas, my husband gives me a cookbook. He usually browses the pages before he wraps it and writes a little note indicating which recipes he like me to try. I realize this sounds a bit like the old yarn about a husband giving his wife a vacuum or washing machine or something else that will add more to his comfort and less to her joy, but not in this case.  It's my favorite gift because it's a gesture that says he really knows me and, as my friend Royce who reads all matter of relationship books would say, he's speaking my love language. I love to cook. I love it when my cooking is appreciated and I really love it when someone asks me to cook something specific (especially if it's something I've made before that they enjoyed).

This recipe was inspired by a cookbook he gave me about 10 years ago - The Naked Chef Takes Off by Jamie Oliver - a chef whose casual, imprecise style really suits me. He made it with beef (delicious). I made it with beets, turning it into a good side dish or appetizer. Earthy beets, a bite from the horseradish and tiny fried onion rings for a bit of salty, crispy garnish.

Sticky Sriracha Wings

Chicken wings can be a glorious thing when they're fresh, hot and coated with great sauce (or great spice like this recipe I want to try when I work up the nerve). But I've eaten a lot of mediocre wings with a flabby texture that only serve to remind me how unhealthy they are and maybe not worth the calories. So I've taken to trimming the excess skin off the little appendages before I cook them. I learned this trick from my dad who goes at his wings* like a surgeon with a straight edge razor and makes them almost heart-healthy. I'm less rigorous and just look for any little flaps that aren't firmly adhered to the meat.  I think it's worth the effort. 

This version is spicy and garlicky with that addictive Sriracha flavor.  I made two pounds and probably should have doubled it for my family of four. A hit with everyone, these are quick to make because there's no need to marinate. You can make the sauce while the wings bake and bring them together in the last 10 minutes. 

* I just realized this makes it sound like my dad's a bird. He's not. 

Parsley Potatoes

The more time I spend in the kitchen, the more I realize that successful cooking is about technique. That specialized knowledge of how to prepare food that transforms simple foodstuffs into something special. And it's most exciting when the foods are humble, available and cheap. Enter potatoes, parsley, butter and salt. The preparation is equally straightforward. You don't have to clarify or zest or break out your mandoline. The technique at play is roasting - dry heat cooking that browns and caramelizes the surface of food and creates rich flavor. Slice, salt, roast. The only frivolity is a sprightly parsley leaf - added for nothing more than whimsy and because whoever you make them for will feel just a little special.

Note: I think these would be a great appetizer with a little dollop of....use your imagination. I would love a bit of salty caviar and creme fraiche (humble and haute?) but I probably wouldn't get it. Santa, if you're reading this...lots of room in my stocking...