The Other Fat

I know, it's the holiday season and you're already eating half your weight in Christmas cookies, but maybe you should put down those butter saturated monsters and chow down on some heart healthy olive oil cake. Oh you heard me.

Olive oil is actually a lot healthier than butter. Per tablespoon, olive oil is cholesterol free and contains only 2 grams of saturated fat (the main dietary cause of high blood cholesterol), no trans fats, 2 grams of polyunsaturated fats, and 10 grams of monounsaturated fats (unsaturated fats help lower your blood cholesterol). Butter, on the other hand, is composed entirely of saturated fat with the added "bonus" of 31mg of cholesterol.

The FDA recommends replacing 2 tablespoons of your usual fats with olive oil every day, and it surprisingly easy to sub olive oil in for butter when baking. Just do a 1 for 1 swap. As long as you're not creaming the butter (like for frosting) or cutting in cold butter (like for biscuits) you can replace all of the butter with olive oil. The only advantage butter has over oil is that it can solidify, which is why it makes such a great biscuit. The cold butter melts in the oven, creating pockets of air. Olive oil can't do that. But it does make a super moist and rich cake, and you can find flavored oils to really add something special to your recipes, or even use other oils like walnut or hazelnut oil.



Lemon Olive Oil Pound Cake

3 cups all-purpose flour
1½ tablespoons baking powder
½ teaspoon salt
4 large eggs
1¼ cups sugar
Zest of 1 lemon (about 1 tablespoon)
1½ cups of lemon infused olive oil
⅔ cup whole milk
⅓ cup brandy
⅓ cup fresh orange juice (from about 1 medium orange)

Preheat the oven to 325˚ and arrange a rack in the middle. Coat a 9-by-5-inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray.

In a medium bowl, whisk the flour with the baking powder and salt and set aside. In a large bowl, whisk the eggs with the sugar until combined; add the lemon zest, olive oil, milk, brandy and orange juice and whisk again until combined. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and whisk until combined.

Transfer the batter to the prepared baking pan. Bake the cake, turning halfway through, until golden brown and a toothpick inserted into the middle comes out clean, about 1 hour 15 minutes. Let the cake cool on a rack for 30 minutes, then run a knife around the edge of the loaf and invert it onto the rack and let cool completely.

Serves 8.

The Wizarding World of Butterscotch

Last month, my boyfriend, Shaun, and I went to Orlando to visit The Wizarding World of Harry Potter with his extended family. In her books, J.K. Rowling describes, with great detail, a town just outside the Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry called Hogsmeade. There's the pub, The Three Broomsticks, where students drink pumpkin juice and butterbeer, and various shops to buy candy and supplies. An extremely creative art department came up with a spot-on recreation of the books' descriptions for the Harry Potter film series, and that same crew was hired by Universal's Islands of Adventure in Orlando to recreate Hogsmeade as a theme park.


Once we found out that they had also recreated butterbeer, well, of course we had to try some. I didn't put much thought into what butterbeer would taste like while reading the books, because it was a made up term with no basis in reality. I knew it wasn't actually beer, because children were drinking it, but that was about as far as I ever thought. So after walking through the gates to Hogsmeade, we went straight for the giant red barrel with a huge sign reading "BUTTERBEER". I bought Shaun a plain one, but got mine frozen. I watched them pull the tap and saw the fizzy substance pour into the mug, then they moved the mug to another tap and white foam was carefully laid on top, like the head of a real beer. Cute.

This was the sweetest and most delicious thing I had ever tasted. It had an overpowering butterscotch flavor, but with an even sweeter marshmallow-like head. I knew there had to be about 600 calories in this mug and I didn't care. I drank the whole thing. As I drank, I picked apart all of the flavors. Shaun and his cousins were insistent that the head was vanilla frosting, but to me it was clearly marshmallow. I just knew it. The soda itself was definitely butterscotch, but there was something else there. Creamy and vanilla. Like cream soda. And after finishing the last gulp, I turned to Shaun and declared, "I could totally make this."

Once we got home, I went to work assembling the ingredients and made a trial batch. I handed the mug to Shaun, and after the first sip, he screamed, "Holy shit! You just made butterbeer!" And so, in time for part 1 of the final chapter in the Harry Potter movies, I give you a true wizard's brew.

Butterbeer

1 bottle of good quality cream soda (I used Virgil's)
2 ounces of butterscotch syrup (such as Monin)
2 tablespoons of Marshmallow Fluff
1 tablespoon of heavy whipping cream

Put the marshmallow and cream in a bowl and whisk together using a fork until completely blended and smooth and set aside. Next, pour the soda and syrup into a large 2-cup Pyrex measuring glass at the same time, so they mix during the pouring process. Then pour half into one mug and half into another. Top both mugs with the marshmallow mixture and let sit for a minute. The carbonation of the soda will begin to activate the marshmallow, and it will foam up even more. Enjoy the sugar rush!

Makes 2 servings

I Am Not a Witch

I’ll freely admit, there are weeks when nothing eventful happens. I will sit at my computer and haven’t a clue what to write about. Years before I would sit staring at a blank page, now it’s a blank screen. I’ve even been known to ask the little Microsoft Word “help guy” in the corner for ideas. He usually just scratches his little computer head and whistles softly.

However, I know from experience that if I sit here long enough with my blank monitor and my blank thoughts, something will land in my lap. Either one of my daughters will call with a fascinating cooking question, or the dog will go by on roller skates, or I’ll hear something pertinent on the news.

Earlier this week when I thought all was lost, I saw a Christine O’Donnell ad on TV telling Americans “I am not a witch.”

Thank you Christine; thank you, thank you, thank you; just in time for the start of the Halloween season. There she is on camera in a simple black dress and white pearls with a gray-blue swirling smoky background, obviously bubbling over from the cauldron. And, do you know what goes beautiful with a simple black dress and pearls—black and orange striped socks. You know she’s wearing them in that video.

Christine goes on to tell the audience, “I’m nothing you’ve heard. I’m you.” Now, for all the witches out there watching this campaign ad, they’re thinking, “well, that’s a misstatement. If you’re not a witch how can you be me if I am a witch?”

This is the time of year when we all should embrace our inner witchness. I actually do that all year ‘round. I am often known to cackle at the kitchen stove when stirring a big pot of something or other.

For all of you out there who have a “secret “ recipe or a recipe with a “secret” ingredient. Come on, we know what you’re doing; you’re brewing!

Christine then goes on to announce, “I didn’t go to Yale.” Well, duh. Of course you didn’t; you went to Hogwarts. You might have been just a C student, Christine, but then so was Bushy and he bragged about it. Be proud of your Hogwarts affiliation. Your alumni card should be arriving in the mail soon.

I’m sure that Christine didn’t write this ad. What’s scarier and creepier is that she read it and said, “Yeah, that’s great. Let’s go with this one.”

I can’t wait to see her next ad addressing masturbation.

Witch’s Brew

A nice garnish would be some very thinly sliced apples or oranges, peel and all. Use your mandoline for this.

4 cups water
1 ½ cups sugar
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
12 whole cloves
4 cinnamon sticks
4 whole allspice berries or 1 teaspoon ground allspice
2 quarts apple cider
3 cups orange juice
Juice of 3 lemons

Stir water and sugar together in a heavy large saucepan. Add ginger, cloves, cinnamon and allspice. Bring to a boil, stirring until sugar dissolves. Cackle while you stir. Reduce heat and simmer 20 minutes.

Strain syrup and return to pan. Add cider, orange juice and lemon juice. Bring to a simmer. Serve hot. You can spike this with rum or brandy, if you witch.

Makes about 14 cups.

The Versatility of Short Ribs

Restaurant Week is a 12 day celebration of food in Los Angeles, with participating restaurants serving up three-course prix fixe menus for $44 and under. Every year I undoubtedly come across a food trend I wasn't aware of while perusing the menus. Last year, sauteed scallops were offered at almost every restaurant, but this year the trend is clearly short ribs.

Spanish red wine-braised short ribs with olive oil crushed potatoes. Braised beef short rib with toasted couscous, wilted greens, and wild mushroom red wine sauce. Short rib risotto with port glaze and parmeggiano reggiano. Spice braised short ribs with creamy polenta and crispy shallots. These are just a few of the entrees listed.

If you're not familiar with them, short ribs hail from the chuck and plate primals, near the shoulder of the cow. They've got lots of connective tissue, which makes them perfect for braising. You can also slice the meat thin (a la Korean galbi), marinate it, and grill it up fast. Braising makes the ribs a bit more versatile, as the low, long exposure to heat and liquid render out all the connective tissue into gelatin, and this gives you the tender, falling apart, texture you want for stews. I like to use short ribs for more unconventional foods, however. You can replace just about any cut of steak with short ribs and make it into something new and wonderful. Beef stroganoff becomes absolutely mouth watering with the addition of short ribs, pulled apart first, and mixed in with all that creamy, mushroomy, awesomeness. Tacos become elevated. But my personal favorite, is adding short ribs to grilled cheese.

Most braised short rib recipes throw in all sorts of vegetables and herbs with the assumption that you're going to make a gravy from the remaining liquid. But for grilled cheese, that's too much unnecessary work. So here's my recipe for simply braised short rib grilled cheese sandwiches.


Short Rib Grilled Cheese

12 ounces of boneless short rib, cut into 2 inch chunks
1 tablespoon of olive oil
1 cup of beef broth
¼ cup of red wine
½ a white onion, chopped
1 bay leaf
8 slices of monterey jack
8 slices of good quality sourdough bread
1 tablespoon of butter

Preheat the oven to 350°. In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium high heat until it becomes glossy looking. Pat the ribs dry and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Sear the ribs on all sides for just a few minutes per side, then set aside on a plate. Add the chopped onions to the pot and cook until softened, about 10 minutes. Add wine to the pot and scrape up all the browned bits. Let the wine simmer until almost cooked off, about 6 minutes. Add the beef broth and bay leaf and bring to a boil. Add the ribs and any accumulated juices to the pot, cover, and cook in the oven for 1½ hours.

Once the ribs are done, pull them from the pot and place them on a plate to cool. Once cooled enough to touch without burning yourself, pull the ribs apart into shreds. Pre-heat a cast iron skillet on the stove top while arranging the sandwiches. For each sandwich, place one piece of monterey jack, then layer the meat on. Top with another slice of cheese and the bread. Heat butter on the skillet and grill the sandwich on each side for 2 minutes. Slice each sandwich diagonally and serve.

Serves 4

Put 'Em Up!

Summers in the Catskills make you feel like a socialite. Calendars are filled with events, many of them overlapping and competing for your attention and attendance. This mad rush of going to concerts, theater shows, gallery receptions, lawn sales, parties, and fairs makes for a whirlwind of activity. 

By September, the winding down of events is almost a relief and prepares us for the void that is winter, when watching the mail lady stop at the roadside mailbox is an occasion. 

In the Catskills, it is seasonally feast or famine. It’s especially like that in the vegetable garden as it winds down as well. 

I’ve picked the last of my tomatoes and cucumbers. There are some straggler zucchinis and—until the frost comes—green beans, peppers, and my second crop of lettuce and peas. The last to leave the party is the kale and Swiss chard. They’ll dance on into the snow. 

If these buckets of tomatoes and baskets of zucchini don’t get cooked up and eaten they’ll be food for the compost pile. This is when I take dust off my canning supplies and leaf through relish, chutney, and pickle recipes for interesting recipes to “put up.” 

There are some really wonderful canning books available. My first book on canning was from the makers of the Ball canning jars, the Ball Blue Book to Preserving. Back then it was a short, thick booklet with basic pickle, jam, and jelly recipes, and loaded with instructions for the novice canner. I made my first peach jam following the instructions in the book. It has since been updated. It’s a real hardcover book with 400 recipes for both rookies and pros. Not only is the peach jam recipe in it, but Thai Hot and Sweet Dipping Sauce, as well. The times they are a changin’. 

Here’s a list of some other great canning and preserving books I found really wonderful. I absolutely drooled over some of the exquisite photos. My idea of a centerfold photo is of a jar of Sticky Fig Jam. 

Preserving Summer’s Bounty by Rodale Food Center 

The Joy of Pickling by Linda Ziedrich 

The Joys of Jams, Jellies, and Other Sweet Preserves also by Linda Ziedrich Canning for a New Generation by Liana Krissoff 

The Complete Book of Small-Batch Preserving by Ellie Topp 

The Big Book of Preserving the Harvest by Carol W. Costenbader  

Put ‘Em Up by Sherri Brooks Vinton 

Preserve It by DK Publishing 

Well-Preserved by Eugenia Bone 

You Can Can by Better Homes & Gardens  

How to Survive the End of the World as We Know It by James Wesley Rawles (I just thought I’d include it. You never know.)  

Williams-Sonoma The Art of Preserving by Rick Field 

You can find these books, and many, many more about canning and preserving at online bookstores, brick and mortar bookstores, and at the best resource, your local public library. If your local library doesn’t have a specific book on its shelf, they can get it from another library that does if you just ask. 

I’ll be making the following chutney today from the Preserve It cookbook to use up the abundance of green beans and zucchini from my garden. I have mostly Romano beans and will be using them instead of green beans. Romano beans are flatter and wider than standard green beans. Typically, they are cooked with tomatoes. I usually cook them with tomatoes, garlic, onions, and a bit of hot pepper until the tomatoes cook down a bit and then serve it with pasta.

Green Beans and Zucchini Chutney
 
1 ¼ pounds green beans, thinly sliced
4 zucchini, thinly sliced
3/4 pounds cooking apples, peeled, cored and chopped
2 onions, finely chopped
2 ¼ cups light brown sugar
1 teaspoon mustard powder
1 teaspoon turmeric
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
2 cups cider vinegar

Put the beans, zucchini, apples, and onions in a large stainless steel saucepan; add the sugar, mustard powder, turmeric, and coriander seeds. Pour in the vinegar and stir.

Green beans (I used Romano beans) sliced small and in the pot.

Cook over low heat, stirring until all the sugar has dissolved; bring to a boil and cook at a rolling boil, stirring occasionally, for about 10 minutes. Reduce to a simmer and cook for about 1 ½ hours, stirring from time to time, until the mixture thickens. Stir continuously near the end of the cooking time so that the chutney doesn’t stick to the bottom of the pan.

Pint jars bubbling away. Just 10 minutes does the trick.

      Ladle into warm sterilized mason jars, leaving ¼-inch head space and making sure there are no air pockets. Process in a boiling water bath for 10 minutes; cover and seal with a two-part top, and label. Store in a cool, dark place. Allow flavors to mature for 1 month before using and refrigerate after opening. Make 2 ¼ pounds or 3 medium jars.

The finished product. I made half-pints and pints, some to keep and some to give as gifts.