Maple Cider Popcorn Balls

I have made traditional popcorn balls a couple of times in my life...they never quite tasted as good as they looked.  They were too "one note" for my tastes.  I saw this recipe in the Tasting Table Kitchen Blog and thought, "One more chance."  Glad I did. 

 

And the best part is that in spite of the copious amounts of butter and sugar via marshmallows, one could maybe sort of justify it as a more healthy snack than your average buttery sugary snack since it boasts puffed versions of the ancient (and therefore good for you, right?) grains kamut and millet...wow, I can feel my cholesterol dropping even as I write this.  And the carmelized maple-y apple thing really puts it to another level.

The real key is that they are definitely not One Note Nancys (apologies to my many friends named Nancy.)  The different grains (and kettle corn) create different texture and the caramelized maple syrup/apple cider/marshmallow glaze ain't half bad.  Puffed Kamut and Puffed Millet can be found at Whole Foods, or more cheaply at Sprouts Market.  

And speaking of Sprouts Market, word is that it will be opening in Westwood on May 1st.  That means I can walk to purchase their amazing dark chocolate covered honeycomb.  Good thing it is a very long walk.

• INGREDIENTS

Nonstick cooking spray

1½ cups unsweetened puffed rice cereal

1½ cups puffed Kamut cereal (or substitute puffed rice cereal)

½ cup puffed millet cereal

7 cups store-bought kettle corn or freshly popped popcorn (preferably kettle corn-style, lightly buttered or unflavored)

¾ cup apple cider or juice

¼ cup maple syrup

6 tablespoons unsalted butter, divided

¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon

¼ teaspoon coarse sea salt

6 ounces marshmallows (either 3 cups mini marshmallows or 3¼ cups jumbo marshmallows)

DIRECTIONS

1. Preheat the oven to 350°. Generously coat the interior of a large bowl with nonstick cooking spray. On a rimmed baking sheet, place the puffed rice, puffed Kamut and puffed millet, and bake in the oven until fragrant and toasted, about 10 minutes. Set aside to cool for a few minutes and then transfer to the greased bowl. Add the popcorn and use your fingers to combine.

2. To a small saucepan set over medium-high heat, add the apple cider and maple syrup and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the maple-cider mixture produces thick, foamy bubbles and the temperature on an instant-read thermometer is 250°, 12 to 15 minutes (you can also test the temperature by dipping a metal spoon into the hot maple caramel and then submerging it in ice water; after 5 seconds, you should be able to press the bit of cooled caramel into a soft ball) (Note...it took a LOT longer than 15 minutes for me and I ended up raising the heat level to medium high.) Turn off the heat and add 2 tablespoons of butter, whisking to combine, then whisk in the cinnamon and salt.

3. While the maple-apple cider mixture caramelizes, melt the marshmallows: In a medium skillet set over medium-high heat, add the remaining 4 tablespoons of butter. Once melted, add the marshmallows and reduce the heat to medium-low, stirring occasionally until the marshmallows are melted, about 3 minutes. Use a rubber spatula to scrape the maple-cider caramel into the marshmallow mixture, whisking to combine. Immediately scrape the marshmallow-maple caramel over the popcorn mixture and use a wooden spoon to thoroughly combine. The mixture will become very webby.

4. Immediately use the nonstick cooking spray to generously spray your hands and form the mixture into nine 3-inch balls, respraying your hands as needed to prevent sticking. Place the popcorn balls on a baking sheet and set aside for least 1 hour to set up before eating. (To store, wrap the popcorn balls in plastic wrap and place in an airtight container for up to 5 days.)

Lemon-Glazed Madeleines

The interesting thing about madeleines is that most store bought ones taste like stale cake.  Other than the very pretty shape, I never really knew what all the fuss was about.  Until I made my own.  Specifically, until I made my own lemon glazed madeleines.  The buttery, lemony sweet little cake (really, it is not a cookie in the true sense of the word) is a confection unto itself.  And I don't really dig cake all that much, so that is a high compliment indeed.

This recipe, from blogger extraordinaire David Lebovitz is pretty foolproof as long as you follow the directions.  Use madeleine molds: I tried both the metal and silicone versions...the metal is slightly better and there is so much butter involved that the cakes come out clean.  And you may need to double the icing...I did. They are a big hit, both in the looks and taste departments.  The only thing is that they don't keep super well, so you better eat them shortly after you make them.  Or you can invite my daughter over and she will make sure they are gone for you.  She does it for me every time.

Ingredients

3 large eggs, at room temperature
2/3 cup (130g) granulated sugar
rounded 1/8 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cup (175g) flour
1 teaspoon baking powder (optional)
zest of one small lemon
9 tablespoons (120g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled to room temperature, plus additional melted butter for preparing the molds

3/4 cup (150g) powdered sugar
1 tablespoon freshly-squeezed lemon juice
2 tablespoons water

Directions

1. Brush the indentations of a madeleine mold with melted butter. Dust with flour, tap off any excess, and place in the fridge or freezer.  (I was totally lame with this step...forgot to dust with flour, forgot to put in fridge, but then again it was a cold day.)

2. In the bowl of a standing electric mixer, whip the eggs, granulated sugar, and salt for 5 minutes until frothy and thickened.

3. Spoon the flour and baking powder, if using, into a sifter or mesh strainer and use a spatula to fold in the flour as you sift it over the batter. (Rest the bowl on a damp towel to help steady it for you.)

4. Add the lemon zest to the cooled butter, then dribble the butter into the batter, a few spoonfuls at a time, while simultaneously folding to incorporate the butter. Fold just until all the butter is incorporated.

5. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for at least 1 hour. (Batter can be chilled for up to 12 hours.)

6. To bake the madeleines, preheat the oven to 425 degrees.

8. Plop enough batter in the center of each indentation with enough batter which you think will fill it by three quarters (you'll have to eyeball it, but it's not brain-surgery so don't worry if you're not exact.) Do not spread it. I used a small ice cream/cookie dough scoop thingy.

10. Bake for 8-9 minutes or until the cakes just feel set. While the cakes are baking, make a glaze in a small mixing bowl by stirring together the powdered sugar, lemon juice, and water until smooth.

11. Remove from the oven and tilt the madeleines out onto a cooling rack. The moment they're cool enough to handle, dip each cake in the glaze, turning them over to make sure both sides are coated and scrape off any excess with a dull knife. After dipping, rest each one back on the cooking rack, scalloped side up, until the cakes are cool and the glaze has firmed up.

Storage: Glazed madeleines are best left uncovered, or not tightly-wrapped; they're best eaten the day they're made. They can be kept in a container for up to three days after baking, if necessary. I don't recommend freezing them since the glaze will melt.

Santa Maria Style Tri Tip Steak

So this is my NEW favorite meat recipe that I pulled from the blog, Simply Recipes. You can keep your filet mignon, your rib eyes and your giant roast beast.  This recipe is easy and pretty foolproof.  I had posted another tri tip recipe using a red wine  marinade, but that requires forethought and planning and marinating.  This recipe is easier and, frankly, better.  And requires only the forethought of having an awesomely stocked spice collection and catching the tri tip sales at your local market.  

My family likes it rare, hence the "dead cow walking" look to the photo, but you can cook it longer if you like.  This is one of the few recipes that my entire family gets happy about...can you imagine this universal enthusiasm for the sweet potato recipe I posted earlier?  Clearly a carnivorous crowd.

Ingredients

1 Tri tip roast, 2 1/2 to 4 lbs, well marbled with fat

Santa Maria Rub (enough for a 4 pound roast)

1 Tbsp Kosher salt

1 Tbsp finely ground black pepper

1 Tbsp garlic powder

1 Tbsp onion powder

1 teaspoon cayenne

1 Tbsp dried oregano

1 teaspoon dry rosemary (or fresh, finely minced)

1/2 teaspoon dry sage

Procedure

1 Mix the rub ingredients together in a bowl. Sprinkle the rub on the meat on all sides, and massage the rub into the meat. Cover and let sit at room temperature for an hour.

2 Prepare your grill for hot direct heat on one side, and indirect heat on the other. Sear the roast on all sides, 3-4 minutes per side. Carefully watch the roast during this process as one side of the roast is typically quite fatty and as the fat heats up it can drip down and cause flare-ups. Keep moving the tri tip away from the flame if flare-ups occur.

3 Once the tri tip is seared on all sides, move it away from direct heat and place it fat-side up on the grill rack.  If you are grilling on charcoal or wood, you may want to turn the roast over every few minutes, for more even heating. Try to maintain a grill temperature of 250°F to 300°F.

4 Cover the grill and cook until the temperature of the interior of the tri tip reaches 120°F for a rare roast, 130°F for medium-rare and 140°F for medium. At this point the meat will take anywhere from 20 to 40 minutes to cook, depending on how hot your grill is, how well done you want it, and the size of the cut. Note that the interior temperature will continue to rise at least 5°F after you take the roast off the heat.

5 Once the roast reaches temperature, remove it from the grill and let it rest, loosely tented with foil, for 10 minutes. Slice against the grain and serve.

Turkey Soup with Lime and Chile, aka The BEST Use of Leftover Turkey

 

So after slaving away for hours trying to create a memorable and fantastic Thanksgiving dinner, I cooked, served, cleaned and swore I would never ever do it again (I swear, cooking Thanksgiving dinner is like giving birth... you never remember how crazy hard it is.  Good thing, I suppose.)

But then I came across this soup for the leftover turkey meat.  It is so clean and bright with the lime and jalepenos and cilantro that it doesn't seem like leftovers at all.  It is as if David Tanis from the NY Times waltzed into my tiny kitchen and gave me a reason for making turkey at all.

I kind of wish I could just serve this for the big day instead of a ginormous bird.   

Time: About 1 hour 

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 cup diced onion

1 cup diced celery

1 cup diced carrot

1/2 teaspoon cumin seed

1/2 teaspoon coriander seed

1/2 teaspoon black peppercorns

6 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

1 cinnamon stick, 2 inches long

Cayenne

2 teaspoons salt, or to taste

8 cups unsalted turkey or chicken broth

Vegetable oil for frying (if you don't use premade tortilla chips)

4 corn tortillas, at least a day old, cut in 1/2-inch strips (OR TORTILLA CHIPS...Good quality!)

4 to 6 cups cooked turkey meat, shredded

1 or 2 firm-ripe avocados

6 scallions, chopped

2 jalapeños, thinly sliced

1 small bunch cilantro, leaves and tender stems, roughly chopped

Lime wedges.

  

Directions:

1. Heat vegetable oil in a heavy-bottomed soup pot over medium heat. Add the onion, celery and carrot and let soften, stirring occasionally, for about 5 minutes.

2. Toast the cumin, coriander and peppercorns in a small dry skillet over medium-high heat until fragrant, about 1 minute, then grind in a spice mill or mortar (or dedicated coffee grinder.) Add the ground spices to the pot, along with the garlic, cinnamon, a pinch of cayenne and salt.

3. Add the broth and bring to a boil, then reduce to a brisk simmer. Cook for 15 minutes, then taste for salt and adjust. Keep hot, covered, over very low heat.

4. If you aren't using premade tortilla chips, pour vegetable oil to a depth of 1/2 inch into a wide skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil is hot and looks wavy, add the tortilla strips and fry until barely colored, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove with tongs and drain on paper towels. Sprinkle lightly with salt. (The oil may be strained and saved for future frying.)

5. In a medium saucepan, heat the shredded turkey meat with a little of the hot soup. Divide the meat among 4 to 6 soup bowls and add a few slices of avocado to each. Ladle about 1 cup soup into each bowl, then garnish with tortilla strips, scallions, jalapeño slices, chopped cilantro and a generous squeeze of lime juice.

Yield: 4 to 6 large servings.

Pumpkin Orange Mascarpone Pie

Thanksgiving approacheth.  And while we all have our favorites and tradition does not allow us to stray much from the set menu that we have used for years, I offer you my favorite pumpkin pie from Sunset Magazine.  It is a pie with depth.  With character.  With serious OMG flavor.  With mascarpone cheese, a hint of orange flavor and a gingersnap (brilliant!) crust.  This will kick your regular old pumpkin pie in a pastry crust to the curb...I promise you.

And you can make it in advance.  Which ups the usefulness quotient by one hundred thousand for me...and hopefully for you.

Total: 1 Hour, 20 Minutes

Ingredients

• 2 cups finely crushed gingersnap crumbs (about 32 gingersnaps)
• 6 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted 
• 4 ounces cream cheese, at room temperature 
• 8 ounces mascarpone cheese (thank you Trader Joes, for carrying this item all the time!)
• 2/3 cup plus 2 tbsp. sugar 
• 3 eggs 
• 1 can pumpkin purée (15 oz.)
• 2 teaspoons orange-flavored liqueur, such as Grand Marnier
• 1 1/2 teaspoons freshly grated orange zest 
• 1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest 
• 1 teaspoon ground cinnamon 
• 1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg 
• 1/4 teaspoon salt 
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• 1/2 cup crème fraîche

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 325°. In a 10-in. pie pan, stir together gingersnap crumbs with melted butter and press into a crust. Bake until set, about 6 minutes. Set aside.

2. Increase heat to 350°. Beat cream cheese, mascarpone, and 2/3 cup sugar in a large bowl until smooth. Add eggs one at a time, beating for 30 seconds after each egg. Add pumpkin, 1 tsp. orange liqueur, citrus zests, cinnamon, ginger, nutmeg, and salt. Mix until smooth.

3. Pour filling into crust and bake until edges are firm but center still jiggles a bit, 45 to 50 minutes (bake any extra filling in ramekins). Cool to room temperature, then chill at least 6 hours and up to overnight.

4. When ready to serve, beat cream, crème fraîche, and remaining 2 tbsp. sugar and 1 tsp. orange liqueur in a large bowl until soft peaks form. Serve pie with orange whipped cream.

Roasted Sweet Potatoes

Jeff was out of town this week, which left me to cook whatever caught my fancy (as long as the children were adequately mollified by some random pasta dish.)  One night it was a head of roasted cauliflower, another it was leftover lamb shank with dilled rice and lima beans from Raffi's Place in Glendale.  Tonight, it was sweet potato.  Yup. Sweet potato for dinner.  Not as a side (though, that would certainly work for those who desire a more balanced meal) but as the main attraction.  And it was good.  Great, even. Which, of course, is why I bother to share it with you.

It is adapted from Yotam Ottolenghi's new book, Jerusalem.  I have been waiting for this book to come out since his other tome, Plenty, makes me plenty happy in a vegetarian sort of way.  And it is the first recipe that I have seen on the internet (oh, the internet makes me so happy sometimes!)

I used a purple sweet potato which just happened to be lying around my house (because I have that kind of house with random ingredients,) but any color will work.  Without further ado, I bring you:  Dinner (or Side Dish.)

Yield: 6 servings 

Cook Time: 25 minutes

• INGREDIENTS
• 
  
4 medium sweet potatoes (about 2¼ pounds) (the recipe doesn't specify that you peel them, but the photo in the book looks like they are peeled, so I did it.)


3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided


2 teaspoons flaky sea salt (such as Maldon) (I actually just used kosher...totally ok.)


Freshly ground black pepper


2 tablespoons plus 2½ teaspoons balsamic vinegar


1½ tablespoons granulated sugar


12 scallions--white and light green parts only, stalks halved lengthwise, then sliced crosswise into 1½-inch segments


1 Fresno chile (or another small, mild red chile), thinly sliced crosswise (I could only find a red jalepeno, so I seeded it and it was fine...not too hot.)


6 ripe figs, quartered (optional) (this was not in my fridge tonight, so no figs for me...)




DIRECTIONS
1. Preheat the oven to 475°. Halve the sweet potatoes lengthwise, then slice each half lengthwise into thirds. On a rimmed baking sheet, place the sweet potato wedges and season with 2½ tablespoons olive oil, the salt and some ground black pepper. Toss to combine and arrange the wedges skin side down. Roast until soft and dark around the edges (but not mushy), 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the oven, set aside to cool, then arrange on a platter.




2. In a small saucepan set over high heat, add the balsamic vinegar and sugar and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and simmer until thick, 2 to 4 minutes. Once the vinegar looks slightly runnier than honey, remove it from the heat (it will continue to thicken as it cools; stir in a drop of water if it is too thick to drizzle).




3. In a medium nonstick skillet set over medium heat, add the remaining ½ tablespoon olive oil. Once the oil is hot, after 1 to 2 minutes, add the scallions and sliced chile. Fry until the scallions are browned and frizzled, stirring often so they don’t burn, 3 to 5 minutes (I actually cooked it at medium heat for about 7 minutes without it turning brown.) Spoon the scallion-chile mixture over the sweet potatoes. Add the figs, if using, then drizzle with the balsamic reduction. 

Fresh Tuna Salad

Yes, it is still hot in Los Angeles and though I was foolish enough to heat the oven to 500 degrees to get some pizzas going last week (another blog post on that, coming soon!), I really tried to make things as cool as possible.  Hence, this really fabulous looking and eating Nicoise Salad from Thomas Keller's Ad Hoc at Home cookbook.  The Ad Hoc cookbook is huge...as in coffee table size huge.  And even though I generally go for function over form when it comes to cookbooks, this is a pretty good one.  The recipes aren't IMPOSSIBLE (where, oh where, do I find corn fungus or freekeh?) and the pictures are glossy and inspirational.  

Trader Joes and a decent fish market are your best friends for this dish, though you can get everything from just about any ol' market.  Just make sure your fish is sushi grade (thank you, ubiquitous Japanese markets around West LA.)  It is definitely company worthy, but totally worth making for you and whatever other members of your family will eat it.

INGREDIENTS
1 lb trimmed center cut tuna loin (4 x 4 x 2 block if possible)
3 heads Bibb lettuce (or you could use another delicate lettuce like the butter lettuce package from Trader Joes)
3/4 c Canola oil
2 Tbl Dijon mustard
1/4 c. red wine vinegar
6 oz haricort verts (skinny french green beans, again available at TJ's)
bowl of ice water
4 oz cherry tomatoes, halved
1/2 c pitted kalamata olives
4  eggs
avocado
tarragon leaves (tasty, but the dish will work without it)
chervil (yep, this is one of those ingredients I just left out...where on earth do you find chervil?)

DIRECTIONS

1.  Bring a large pot of heavily salted water to a boil and dump in the haricort verts for a couple of minutes, until bright green. Drain and put in ice water for 5 minutes or so until cool.  Drain again and put aside.  Get more ice water ready for the eggs.

2. Put the eggs into a pot of cold water and bring to a simmer over medium high heat.  Cook for 4 minutes once water is simmering.  Transfer the eggs to the ice water to stop them from cooking further.

3.  Make the dressing:  combine canola oil, red wine vinegar and dijon mustard in a small jar...shake, shake, shake like a polaroid picture.  

The above steps can be done ahead of time.  You don't have to use all of it in one salad...use your judgment....it will stay in the fridge for more salads of any sort during the week.

4.  Season the tuna on all sides with kosher salt and pepper.  Heat some canola oil over a frying pan and when it is really hot, add the tuna.  Turn the tuna when the bottom has cooked through (you can see it on the ends) and continue to cook until the top has cooked through.  Remove the tuna from the pan and drain on paper towels.  Slice tuna into 1/2 slices.

5.  Assemble the salad:  Toss the lettuce with some of the dressing and add kosher salt and pepper.  Cut the haricort verts in half and add to salad along with tomatoes, olives, peeled eggs cut in quarters, and cut up avocado.  Taste and add salt and pepper to taste.  Place tuna on top and add tarragon, if using.