Pesto

I make batches of pesto every week or so through July and August. It is super simple; the most time-consuming thing is destemming and giving a good wash to the basil leaves. After that it's just blending a handful of ingredients in the food processor. We always, always, freeze it in ice cube trays. Then, once frozen (or more honestly, once it's been sitting in the freezer in ice cube trays for weeks...), we pop the cubes out and place them into a large freezer bag, where they store beautifully for a year or more. Usually ours don't last that long, though we always make sure a portion of our supply from the previous season lasts until my son's birthday in late June, since he always requests gnocchi with homemade pesto for dinner. We love having pesto cubes in the freezer to defrost one or several at a time. Pesto is delicious on pasta, of course (we defrost about 10 cubes or a little more for a pound of pasta), but also on a grilled cheese sandwich (one cube per sandwich), a caprese sandwich, on boiled potatoes, on pizza, in omelets, and so much more. 

Just-picked basil in salad spinner

  

Pesto

from The Gourmet Cookbook

3 large garlic cloves
1/2 C pine nuts
2/3 C coarsely grated Parmesan
1 t salt
1/2 t ground black pepper
3 C loosely packed fresh basil leaves
2/3 C e-v olive oil

Put all but oil in food processor. Process until finely chopped. With motor running, add oil, blending until incorporated but not completely smooth.

Use immediately, or refrigerate up to a week with surface covered in plastic wrap. (It WILL turn a darker green/brown in fridge almost immediately, but it is still fresh and fine to eat; just stir or scoop off the top layer if it bothers you.) Or do as we do and freeze in ice cube trays then store in freezer bags to use throughout the year as desired.

Bordeaux Tasting Dinner

Something we really enjoy is "tasting dinners"-- meals made up of many small courses, usually with each course thoughtfully paired with a wine. I have had the luck of being able to enjoy several of these over the years put on by my sister and brother-in-law, but in the past year or so I've enjoyed arranging and hosting a few of these events myself. Back in February we had a tasting dinner in celebration of several family birthdays that month. We wanted to taste and learn about red Bordeaux, so I created a menu in which all its courses would pair with that one type of wine. It felt like a big challenge at first but I found some good ideas online of some different types of foods to pair with Bordeaux, and it all came out pretty well. A few of these dishes we have already made again, especially the cherry compote with mascarpone, and the chicken mole enchiladas. The favorite recipes from the night are posted separately. Since my brother-in-law Cassidy was the only attendee other than me who wasn't celebrating a birthday, he helped out in the kitchen. He made the whole thing go more smoothly and look more polished. Here are the menu and some photos. 

 Birthday Bordeaux Wine Club Tasting Dinner

February 18, 2012

Chateau Dumas Cenot Bordeaux Superieur 2009 – Appellation Bordeaux Superieur Controlee

Charles Krug Generations 2008 – Napa Valley

Sterling Vintner’s Collection Meritage 2009 – Central Coast

Chateau Larkan Grand Vin de Bordeaux 2009 – Appellation Bordeaux Controlee

Chateau Michel de Vert Grand Vin de Bordeaux 2010 – Appellation Lussac Saint-Emilion Controlee

Sicilian-Style Sweet-and-Sour Swordfish

Sauce with local tomatoes and onion

Chicken Mole Enchiladas

          Misty Knoll Chicken  

Roasted Beets and Carrots with Blue Cheese

Farmers’ Market Vegetables

Risotto with Butternut Squash, Rosemary, and Blue Cheese

Local squash and onion

Roast Duck with Citrus Pan Sauce

          Sauce with fresh-squeezed lemon and Cara Cara orange juice

Korean Sizzling Beef Satay

Hardwick 100% grass-fed beef, grilled scallions

Dried Cherry Compote with Shortbread and Mascarpone

           With Chateau Larkan 2009 Bordeaux

Lora Brody’s Bete Noir

Local whipped cream, toasted salted almonds

Lora Brody's Bete Noir

from The New York Times

A favorite from Gordie's family. Restaurants always have "flourless chocolate cake" on the menu, but they never quite compare to the dense chocolatey richness of this recipe. Here we served it with toasted salted almonds and a quinelle of whipped cream.

1/2 lb. unsalted butter at room temperature, cut into small pieces, plus butter for greasing the pan
8 oz. unsweetened chocolate
4 oz. semisweet chocolate
1/2 C water
1 1/3 C sugar
5 extra large eggs at room temperature, about one cup whites plus yolks

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Butter a nine-inch cake pan and place a neat circle of parchment or wax paper on the bottom, covering it completely. If wax paper is used, butter it. If parchment is used, it is not necessary to butter it.

Chop both the chocolates into fine pieces and set aside.

Combine the water with one cup of the sugar in a heavy two-quart saucepan. A large copper saucepan is ideal for this. Bring to the boil over high heat and cook about four minutes or to a temperature of 220 degrees.

Remove the saucepan from the heat and immediately add the chocolate pieces, stirring until they are melted and smooth. The mixture may ''sieze'' but that is all right; it will blend when the butter is added. Immediately start adding the butter, stirring gently until all of it is used.

Place the eggs and remaining sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer. Start beating on high speed and continue until they are quite thick and pale yellow, and tripled in volume. This may take about 15 minutes. It may be useful to place a dishcloth over the mixer and bowl to prevent splattering.

Start mixing the egg and sugar mixture on slow speed. Add the chocolate mixture, stirring only until it is fully incorporated. Do not overbeat. This would cause air bubbles to form.

Spoon and scrape the mixture into the prepared cake pan. Set the pan in a slightly larger pan and pour boiling water around it. Do not allow the sides of the pans to touch.

Place in the oven and bake 25 minutes. Insert the sharp point of a knife into the center of the cake; if it comes out clean, the cake is done. If it does not come out clean, continue cooking for up to 10 minutes. Do not cook longer than a total of 35 minutes.

Let cool (see note) in the pan for 10 minutes. Run a sharp knife around the edge of the cake and unmold onto a cookie sheet. Invert a serving plate over the cake and turn it right side up onto the serving plate.

Risotto with Butternut Squash, Rosemary, and Blue Cheese

from epicurious.com

A nice fall/winter risotto.

7 C (or more) low-salt chicken broth

3 T butter
1 1/4 C finely chopped onion
1 2-lb. butternut squash, peeled, halved, seeded, cut into 1/2- to 3/4-inch dice (about 3 cups)
2 t chopped fresh rosemary, divided
2 C arborio rice (about 13 1/2 ounces)
1/2 C dry white wine
4 C (packed) baby spinach leaves (about 4 ounces)
1/2 C whipping cream
1/2 C freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1/3 C crumbled blue cheese (about 1 1/2 oz.)

Bring 7 cups broth to boil in large saucepan. Cover and reduce heat to low.

Melt butter in heavy large pot over medium heat. Add onion and sauté until tender, about 5 minutes. Add squash and 1 1/2 teaspoons rosemary; sauté 4 minutes to coat with butter. Add rice and stir 2 minutes. Add wine and simmer until evaporated, about 1 minute. Add 7 cups hot broth; bring to boil. Reduce heat and simmer uncovered until rice is just tender and risotto is creamy and slightly soupy, adding more broth by 1/4 cupfuls as needed to maintain consistency and stirring occasionally, about 18 minutes. Stir in spinach, cream, and Parmesan cheese. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Transfer risotto to serving bowl(s). Sprinkle with blue cheese and remaining 1/2 teaspoon rosemary and serve.

Cherry Compote with Shortbread and Mascarpone

from foodandwine.com

I never realized how luxurious a texture and flavor pure mascarpone can be, having really only had it as part of tiramisu. It is a dessert that needs to be eaten slowly to savor every bit. As the web site where I found the recipe said, this dessert is just subtly sweet so it almost works as a cheese course. We have also tried the recipe with dried cranberries-- not as good. Any leftover mascarpone after the compote is gone can be enjoyed with cut-up strawberries or by itself on a spoon. 

Shortbread:

1 C all-purpose flour 

3 T sugar 

1/4 t salt 

rounded 1/4 teaspoon anise seeds (we skipped this)

1 stick chilled unsalted butter, diced 

1 large egg yolk

Compote:

3/4 C dry red wine (Bordeaux, Meritage)

1/3 C sugar 

3/4 C dried sour cherries (3 ounces)

  

1/3 C mascarpone, or more to taste (in addition to the plain mascarpone, we whisk in a little sugar and a drop of vanilla extract)

Preheat the oven to 350°. In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the sugar, salt, and anise seeds. Using a pastry cutter, cut in the butter until it resembles coarse meal. Using a fork, blend in the egg yolk. (At this point I have to add in a splash of ice water because the dough is too dry to gather together.) Gather the dough together and transfer it to a baking sheet. Press it to form a 6-inch round that's 1 inch thick. Using the blunt edge of a knife, mark 8 wedges. 

Bake the shortbread for about 35 minutes, until the dough is pale brown around the edge. While the shortbread is still warm, using a serrated knife, cut it into 8 wedges. Let cool to room temperature. 

In a small saucepan, simmer the wine with the sugar until the sugar is dissolved. Add the dried sour cherries, cover, and simmer until they're plump, about 4 minutes. Let cool. 

Dollop the mascarpone into bowls. Spoon the cherry compote on top and serve with the shortbread. 

Willem very  much enjoyed his with a wine-free cherry compote

Korean Sizzling Beef Satay

from foodandwine.com 

This dish was beautiful with the bright green scallions and had delicious flavors. It was equally good cold out of the fridge the next day. 

 
 1/4 C soy sauce 
2 T sugar 
2 T dry white wine 
2 large garlic cloves, very finely chopped 
1 T toasted sesame oil 
2 t crushed red pepper 
one 2 1/2-lb. beef flank steak, cut across the grain into twenty 1/4-inch-thick slices 
16 scallions 
Vegetable oil, for rubbing 
Salt 
Steamed rice, for serving (we didn't serve it with rice) 

In a large, shallow dish, combine the soy sauce with the sugar, white wine, chopped garlic, toasted sesame oil, and crushed red pepper, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Add the sliced flank steak and coat thoroughly in the marinade. Cover and refrigerate the steak for at least 4 hours or overnight. 

Light a grill or heat a griddle. Rub the scallions all over with vegetable oil and grill them over high heat, turning once, until the scallions are just softened, about 2 minutes-- not too long or they'll lose that bright bright green. Season with salt. 

Working in batches, grill the steak over high heat until the slices are richly browned and medium-rare, about 30 seconds per side. Transfer the steak to a serving platter and serve with the grilled scallions and steamed rice.

Chicken Mole Enchiladas

from foodnetwork.com 

Instead of baking the enchiladas in a casserole dish, we rolled them individually, put extra sauce on top, and sprinkled individually with the queso fresco.

2 chicken breasts

s & p

1/2 C olive oil

Mole:

5 dried pasilla chiles or dried anocho chiles, stemmed and seeded (we used 2 jalapenos, toasted them, cut them, took out seeds, and blended them)

1/2 C hot water

2 (6-inch) corn tortillas, grilled crisp, recipe follows (or handful of regular tortilla chips)

2 T olive oil

1 or 1 1/2 medium onions, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1 3/4 C chicken stock

3 T smooth peanut butter

1 T sugar

1 t dried oregano

5.5 oz. Mexican chocolate, chopped, (recommended: Ibarra; if no Mexican chocolate substitute 1 oz. semi-sweet chocolate, 1/2 t cinnamon, and drop of almond extract)

s & p

(we also added 1 T paprika, 1 T cumin, 1 t cinnamon)

Enchiladas:

12 corn tortillas, warmed

olive oil, as needed

1/4 C creme fraiche or sour cream

3/4 C queso fresco or mild feta

For the chicken breasts: Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. On a baking sheet, season the chicken breasts with salt, pepper, and olive oil, and bake for 10 to 15 minutes until cooked through, or, set aside to cool, then shred into small (1-inch) pieces. (To cook chicken, instead we cooked breasts at medium heat in pan, picked off skin, tore it apart.)

For the Mole: Reconstitute the dried chiles by soaking them in 1 1/2 cups hot water for 15 minutes, then drain and set aside (or prepare jalapenos as we did, above). Grill the 2 corn tortillas in a grill pan until dry, crisp and golden. Tear into pieces and set aside. In a heavy large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onions, season with a little salt and saute 3 minutes, or until translucent. Then add the minced garlic and cook 2 minutes more. Transfer onion and garlic mixture to blender with all remaining mole ingredients (except for the chocolate and chicken) and blend until very smooth. Then transfer the sauce to a medium saute pan and bring to boil over high heat. Reduce the heat to medium, cover and simmer 20 minutes. Stir in the chocolate. Season the mole with salt and pepper to taste. Reserve 1 cup of mole for garnishing the enchiladas, the rest will be used for dipping the tortillas.

To assemble the enchiladas: Re-heat the shredded chicken if necessary and keep warm. In a medium saute pan (wide enough to fit the tortillas laying flat) over high heat add the oil to reach 1/2-inch up the side. When oil is hot, dip one tortilla at a time, and fry for a few seconds just until soft and heated through. Lift out, let excess oil drip, then dip the fried tortilla directly into the warm mole (which should be right next to the pan for easy dipping) and place on a cutting board. Working quickly, put about 1/3 cup of the warm shredded chicken in the center, being careful not to over fill. Roll the tortilla like a cigar to enclose the filling and place in serving dish seam side down. (Individual gratin dishes work great to hold the extra mole sauce or if serving family style, a baking dish will work as well.) If necessary, use tongs or a spatula to place each enchilada seam side down in the dish. Continue to fill all of the tortillas and place them side-by-side. Pour the remaining, reserved mole over the top, drizzle with a little creme fraiche, sprinkle with queso fresco, and serve.

Strawberry-Rhubarb Jam

from Epicurious

We made this last year and loved it. It was a little tart and a pretty pink in color. I've just started a couple of rhubarb plants in our garden, so someday we should have all we want of the stuff with which to make jam and other goodies.

4 C 1-inch pieces fresh rhubarb (about 1 1/2 lbs.)
2 C sugar
1 T lemon juice
1 1/2 pints raspberries or strawberries
1/2 t ground cardamom

Combine rhubarb, sugar, and lemon juice in large heavy dutch oven. Cover and refrigerate until juices form, stirring occasionally, 8 hours or overnight (I combined the ingredients, went berry picking, and used it when we got back).

Bring rhubarb mixture to a simmer over medium heat, stirring until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to high and boil until rhubarb mixture thickens slightly, about 5 minutes. Add berries and boil until mixture is thick, stirring occasionally, about 6 minutes longer. Remove jam from heat. Stir in ground cardamom. Cool jam.

Ladle into sterile jars and seal as in Strawberry Jam recipe. Store for up to one year.

Strawberry Jam

from Joy of Cooking 

Had a productive day making jam last week. Made three varieties in three separate pots: this recipe, as is; this recipe, doubled (2 quarts berries and 6 C sugar), with snipped lavender in it; and this recipe, doubled, with snipped thyme in it. Made 19+ 8-oz. jars of jam-- 8 strawberry, 8 strawberry-lavender, and 3 strawberry-thyme.

1 quart strawberries
3 C sugar (Joy recipe calls for 4 C, I have done it with 1/4 less sugar for two years)

Stem, wash, and dry strawberries.

Put berries into large, heavy pot with sugar on top.

Stir mixture with a wooden spoon over low heat until it has "juiced up." Then raise heat to moderate and stop stirring. When the whole is a bubbling mass, set timer for 15 minutes-- 17 if berries are very ripe. After 15 minutes, tilt the pot. You should see in the liquid at the bottom a tendency to set. Take pot off heat. Sprinkle surface with about 1 oz. lemon juice. Allow it to cool, uncovered.

Simmer lids in water and keep them there to be removed one at a time with tongs.

When cooler, stir lightly and place in sterile jars (I ran them through the dishwasher and took them directly from there). Leave 1/4 inch space at the top of each jar. Clean tops and sides of jar, then set lids on, then twist rings on until finger tight. Don't overtighten.

Bring pot of water to a boil. Place jars upright and boil for 10 minutes. Remove with tongs and let cool 12 hours. Check that all have sealed by checking for indentation in lids. If the lid has give or is not indented, put jar in refrigerator for immediate use or look into processing again for storage. (Ball jar web site has good information.) You will hear a satisfying pinging sound as they seal themselves. The next day, tighten rings. Store for up to a year.

Vodka Lemonade/Limeade

1 1/2 oz (shot glass) vodka
~1 oz. simple syrup
~1 oz. lemon or lime juice
1 oz. water

Shake with ice. For a fun presentation, serve in a martini glass.