Introducing Monday Mashup

Hi all. Hope everyone had a great weekend. I found it a bit too cold to get the proper dose of outside bliss I've been craving, but time off is time off, right? On Saturday afternoon Ed and I skipped the PATH train from Jersey City to Greenwich Village where I "lived" (sigh) in my college years and took a long wandering stroll that led to spending the evening in Nolita.

It was a cup of my favorite Joe (which I still think does one of the best milk to espresso ratios for cappuccinos in the city), a cut-through the park and then after some browsing through the ever-colorful Pearl River for knick-knacks (and would you believe I passed on these?) I instead opted for another simple tumbler and wide glass bowl from Muji. I just love the clean shape on their products and not to mention affordability and that lovely aroma diffuser when you walk in. Note, anyone with a small space looking for a "dust bin" might like this slim to the wall one--I sure do. And it's always hard to pass on a new pocket-size task notebook.

After discovering that a former favorite haunt, Rice is now closed due to apparent lawsuits regarding labor- yikes and boo!), we managed be suitable enough among Nolitan fabuli to have a seat at Jack's Wife Frida. Pan fried Haloumi was tasty and meaty and Moules in Bloody Mary broth were a solid, interesting concept. Next time trying the Greek salad with the great big feta hunk. The burger was nice, too, according to the hunk across the table from me.

And now for the official Monday Mashup!  It will work pretty simply: every Monday I'll gather up a list of things I think are worth sharing, dreaming on or checking out, sometimes from the blogosphere, sometimes  from my own stumbling. Cuz that's how you learn about stuff...pass it down : )

Just finished Season One of Boardwalk. About 4 years late but so worth the concentrated attention.

A little night reading

This one is up next, just arrived in the mail.

Finally streamlining my zesting.

Some Pollan on Pollan via Platt food-geek reading

Love Heidi's always-inspiring latest shop-find. Clearly it went quick.

I have my eye on making this beauty for the near future

And that's it for now. See you soon with a new recipe! xo MN


Lead photo taken at Liberty State Park in Jersey City, NJ

Quinoa Lunch Salad

I promised you something new and savory as I don't want you to think I sit around and make sweets all day...and here I am with something that takes no time to pull together and tastes great. At first glance it may look like your average quinoa salad but it's a bit of a hybrid; not a pilaf side, not a greens salad topped with grains but something of a grain and green salad dressed up with nuts and legumes and cheese, where you're going for a quinoa proportion that coats itself over the greens and the other components chime in equally. Eat this on it's own, or I can imagine it topped with another form of protein like some flaked salmon or a seared slab of tofu.

Feel free to play around with the proportions to suit yourself but know that for me it was a bit of an exercise in restraint. I found that just a few things thrown into the mix is all I needed for variety, texture and balance. Think of it as a quartet, with a few trusty players bringing in all the right notes. I had roasted asparagus on hand, but I'd imagine some broccoli may be nice too (but I'm a bit of an roast asparagus fiend).

It started with a jar of leftover quinoa in the fridge. When you cook a pot of quinoa just right-that is, fluffy, delicately tender, cooked in a proper amount of liquid and well-seasoned, you better hope you have some leftovers. Once cooled, quinoa with mostly separated kernels is great to throw into salads like this.

I balance it out here with a bit of chopped leftover roasted asparagus, a handful of chickpeas, cubed fresh mozzarella, big torn handfuls of arugula, and a showering of halved toasted almonds. It's punched up with a slivered garlic, lemon and olive oil dressing, some thyme and parsley and finished with sea salt and served at room temperature.

One tip I'll emphasize here is that it helps for things like this to have the components already prepared. You can have roasted asparagus in the fridge, your mozzarella easily chop-able,  your almonds toasted and chopped, and your chickpeas drained. Then you just throw in and toss.

Quinoa is not a grain you want to soak and then cook. It'll get mushy and porridge-like upon cooking (been there, done that). For some tips, I resorted to these nifty instructions. It's not that I forgot how to do it...but it doesn't hurt to go back to basics and play around with what works. Err on the side of less liquid for best results and be sure to let it sit for 5 minutes on the burner with the heat off. Once you have yourself a bowl of it, fork-fluffed and cooled, you have a template to go from.

Light and energizing, I consider this an ideal meal to eat before leaving the house for an afternoon of being out and about. It will keep you full without weighing you down; and quinoa and chickpeas are both good sources of protein.

Ouinoa Lunch Salad

Serves 2 

*Scant cup cooked, cooled quinoa

A hunk of fresh mozzarella ( chopped to yield about 1/2 c)

6-7 roasted asparagus spears, chopped into thirds or fourths

3 handfuls fresh baby arugula, torn in half

1/4-1/2 c drained cooked chickpeas

1/4 c whole toasted almonds, chopped

1/2 clove garlic, slivered

1/2 small lemon, squeezed, juice divided

Scant 2-3 T olive oil

Few sprigs parsley and thyme

Cracked/ground coarse sea salt

Start by separating some thyme leaves from the stem and mix a little olive oil into them as well as a crack of salt. Set aside. Next mix slivered garlic and half the lemon juice and a grind of salt with a glug of the olive oil. Set aside.

Separate your almonds and mozzarella and pour a 1/2 the thyme/oil mixture on each, briefly tossing to combine. 

Mix quinoa, chickpeas, chopped asparagus, torn arugula and the lemon-garlic-oil together, to coat, so that the quinoa is separated and spread evenly throughout the greens, then add the cheese and 1/2 the almonds. Toss again, sprinkle with the reserved almonds and a few grinds of coarse salt.

*Cooking quinoa: Measure 1: scant 2 quinoa to liquid (I used half veg broth and half water for liquid). Rinse kernels under fine mesh strainer, shake out water. Heat saucepan over medium, pour in quinoa and dry toast, stirring constantly until liquid is absorbed, a minute about. Add liquid and pinch of salt, stir once, bring to a boil, then lower to a simmer, cover and let cook 15 minutes. Turn off heat and let sit 5 minutes. Remove from heat and fluff with a fork. Pour out onto a lightly oiled (if desired) baking sheet to cool and separate. Store in a jar in fridge a few days or freeze any leftovers.

Whole Wheat Olive Oil Pumpkin Bread

One thing I'd say has changed a bit about my cooking over the past year or so is that I don't shy away from using good butter, all-purpose flour (unbleached!) and sugar when I know that is what a recipe needs to come out right and substitutions will only lead it astray.

That said...

You know I'm always sneaking in brown and rustic where I can, and rely more on a little oil, sea salt and lemons for seasoning rather than rich sauces. I did not shy away from creaming a stick of good butter into these delicious whole-wheat sables or these whole-wheat chocolate chip cookies. Or um, cutting the butter into the dough of these pop tarts. I suppose I don't mind all the butter if I'm sneaking whole grain flours into the mix.

Lately though, I've been feeling like I've been a bit too reliant on butter and sugar when I know I can also be experimenting with olive oil , maple syrup and even honey for equally good results.


When a bbox of unopened cooked winter squash made it's way into in my freezer in April, I thought to grind up the last cinnamon stick in the jar and make a loaf bread. While many adapted recipes feel like they are sacrificing, this one feels very authentic in the way it works; like something out of a traditional Mediterranean cookbook. It's a winner.

The loaf bakes up in just about an hour and is largely hands off. I cooled it a few hours then wrapped the whole loaf tightly in plastic to enjoy the next day. I believe the flavors meld well that way with loaf breads like pumpkin and banana, and the scent of cinnamon was luring from a few feet away the next morning as I walked into the kitchen. Don't skip the pepitas and raw sugar sprinkle atop--they really set it apart here.

Whole Wheat Olive Oil Pumpkin Bread

Adapted from Fine Cooking

3/4 cup whole wheat flour
2/3 cup unbleached all-purpose flour
1 tsp. ground cinnamon, I used fresh-ground
1 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. fine sea salt

1/4 t vanilla
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1 cup well squash or pumpkin purée, (canned or fresh and well-drained)
*1/2 cup packed light brown sugar
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup honey
2 Tbs. toasted pumpkin seeds 

Pinch of large-grain raw sugar 

* I make my own with 1/2 T molasses and 1/2 c organic cane sugar.

Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 350°F. Grease/flour a 9x5-inch loaf pan (I also lined it with a small overlap of parchment in case I needed to lift it in the end).

Sift  flours, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt into a large bowl. Whisk the eggs, pumpkin, sugar, oil, and honey until well combined. 

Add wet to dry and stir until just evenly incorporated. 

Spoon the batter into the prepared pan and smooth the top. Sprinkle the top with the pumpkin seeds, pressing down lightly. Bake until the top is browned and a wooden skewer inserted in the center comes out clean, and the top springs back a bit, about 50-60 minutes.

Cool in the pan for 15 minutes on a wire rack and then transfer the bread to the rack to cool completely.

Retro Muffin

I have been getting up early just to have breakfast at home. Or shall I say, we. Ed and I. We are trying to steal a pocket, grab a moment, before dashing off into the cold to catch the train to our respective workplaces. To find a little home-placedness before the day begins. Many times this has only been a few minutes. But they are nice, long minutes, and I like these mornings. The coffee is set, and something is put out to share. These old-timey bran muffins have been the fix of the moment. I like to split them and place them under the broiler for a hot minute before dolloping a dab of salted butter on each half, and eating them with a cup of steaming coffee and a few dark and juicy purple grapes.

Is it a tad ridiculous that I consider a muffin recipe from 1991 a bit retro? But, as  some of my culinary history knowledge seems to remind me, bran was a bit popular in the 80s and 90s, or "trendy amongst the health kickers," should I say. These muffins, adapted barely, from a 1991 issue of Gourmet, have floated around the blogosphere in recent times; Joy The Baker and Smitten have made them and now Salv has, too. And she's glad she did. Twice in 2 weeks.

Let's talk first attractions. The word on these muffins was: very moist, not too sweet, with a straightforward  ingredient list, and the option to litter in some raisins and a pinch of cinnamon if you wish (and you should). No soaking bran overnight, or use of buttermilk or boiling water here. It's sour cream and molasses that do the trick. If you haven't made bran muffins before but want something akin to that delicious bakery confection (but better, and with no preservatives and in well-sized portions), look here.

And perhaps the first thing that gave these a gold star even before even turning on the stove, was the note at the bottom of the recipe: they last up to 4 or 5 days at room temperature tightly wrapped, and get better as the days go on. In our experience, day 2 and 3 have been heavenly. They haven't made it further beyond day 3 as a collective batch....

A note on technique: Be sure to cream the wet ingredients well but as always with muffins, use a light hand when mixing in the dry. Lumpiness is good. Really watch at the end here and look for golden brown tops and springiness and don't overbake. For cooling, I let them cool in the pan for a few minutes, then twist them out and turn them on their sides to rest and let the steam release from the bottoms. After a few minutes like that, onto the cooling rack they go. They are perfect for early mornings and later brunches as a side. Easter and Mother's Day, anyone?

It's hard to take a time out, isn't it? Hectic-ness seems to breed constantly, sending cues to everyone around it to tighten up, hurry up, get up, go. You've heard this before. This past weekend I literally had to convince myself to spend Saturday out of the house. I work in the gallery district of Manhattan. It's one of those walks you make in the morning stretching over the long avenues that add up to 20 minutes and end at the Hudson River. I simultaneously hate it and find it interesting since it's so far from the center and has a personality in itself. But mostly, lately, I've been hating the walk.

It was counter-intuitive, then when Ed suggested a long-postponed gallery spree on a non-work day, and managed to convince me that despite the dull embedded sterility of the neighborhood that bothers me so, I would feel differently if we purposely went there on a weekend. I'm not going to say it was a magical reawakening to the neighborhood but it was a different feeling overall to just walk by the office and not go in, and it was a sun-filled day, with a few art standouts. The above is a pigment print on display at Bruce Silverstein Gallery that I found particularly moving. A group of selected works by Danish artists Nicolai Howalt and Trine Sondergaard, including photos and prints curated in a fashion that somehow ties it together. My favorite show of the spree. Check it out when you're in the neighborhood. Til soon, MN

Sour Cream Bran Muffins Recipe

Adapted from Gourmet Oct 1991

Makes 12 muffins
1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar (I made my own with molasses and organic cane sugar)
1 large egg, beaten lightly
1 cup organic sour cream
1/4 cup dark molasses
1/2 cup raisins
1 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup miller’s bran
1/4 teaspoon cinnamon

Set the oven to 400 degrees F. In a bowl whisk together the flour, the baking soda, the salt, the cinnamon and the bran. Set aside. In a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, cream together the butter and the brown sugar until the mixture is light and fluffy, beat in the egg, the sour cream, and the molasses, and stir in the raisins. Add the flour mixture to the sour cream mixture, and stir the batter by hand until it is just combined. (The batter will be lumpy.) Spoon the batter into 12 well-buttered  muffin tins, filling 2/3 full and mounding the tops, and bake the muffins in the middle rack for 15 to 20 minutes, or until they are golden brown and springy to the touch. Turn the muffins out onto a rack and let them cool.

That Cookie

Well, I'm late with it but joining the club. To the blogosphere, it goes without saying that there's been quite a following of Kim Boyce's whole wheat chocolate chip cookie, the cookie that trumps other traditional chocolate chip cookies and tastes delicious while being made with only whole wheat flour. So I wasn't sure I should post about them to begin with if I made them and add to the masses. We are always trying to come up with something brand new anyway. And also I was a little nervous to make them to begin with and I'd delayed for a few reasons-one being that I use whole wheat pastry flour so much I don't typically stock whole wheat flour itself. Then I needed more chocolate. Well, finally I had enough of everything, all together on hand at once, and started my research.

I'd poked around all the other blogger's entries who'd tried them and some who'd taken their own spin. Some that used white whole wheat flour, some that used whole wheat pastry, some hard whole wheat. Some that used cold butter as instructed, and others that followed the trend of creaming room temp butter and then chilling the dough before baking off the little balls off in the hot oven. Well, I found myself slightly confused about all these caveats others had found, as well as some people cried failure and claimed theirs came out like dry pucks, and I began fearing just starting them. But by then it was 3:30 and if this sweet treat was going to happen on a mellow Friday afternoon it was going to be within the ne

So I just started, using the recipe as Kim wrote it, except I halved it, as I am not about to have 30 cookies lying round my little apartment. Now halving bodes well in this recipe as you are now required 1 egg to one stick of butter to one cup sugar (half brown, half white)...no half eggs and other jazz like that. I was careful not to over-mix the dough and follow Kim's instructions to the tee. I had no time to wait for butter to soften, so pure whole wheat flour and cold butter it was, and into the oven they went after an itty bitty sprinkling of coarse sea salt. I made the dough, then baked 5 off at once, scooping the rest into ten more "ready balls" to chill for the coming days. As I was doing this, I smelled the 5 baking and thought, "well, hey, it does smell nice, so that seems to be on the right track." There was a depth there.

And as mine were a bit smaller than the recommended 3 Tablespoon scoop of dough per cookie, they baked for 16 minutes exactly, the lower end of what Kim instructs. As the time edges towards 15 minutes, don't walk away. Take a cue from the edges and the coloring. Kim instructs to look for them to be turning a darkish brown, and I really don't like a raw feeling cookie. And yet, an over-baked one isn't good either. So there is a precise moment of chemical transformation that you must watch for here.

And then, upon snatching them from the oven, I thought, in addition to the lovely cracks and big chocolate chunks visible on the surface at first glance, one of the most attractive things about this cookie is the fact that it does indeed turn a deep gold/brown. Lastly, I'm going to emphasized that chopped chocolate chunks (good chocolate of the Scharffen Berger variety) are essential here.

And the verdict? Ed and I liked these a lot. You get a crispy edge, a chewy center and melty chocolate, and and as a bonus, despite having a cup of sugar, they are not of the super sweet confection zone in that they ask you to grab at them. They are more like super elegant and sophisitcated and actually ask you to restrain. Maybe that's the whole wheat at work.

But the best thing was, I really haven't baked a chocolate chip cookie in a long time. Doing so was like a reminder of a classic, available simplicity, updated with a heady coolness. Or shall I say, warmth.

 

Whole Wheat Chocolate Chip Cookies 

Makes 15

Parchment for the baking sheet

Dry
1 1/2 c whole wheat flour (I used King Arthur)
3/4 t baking powder
1/2 t baking soda
scant 1/2 t sea salt

Wet
1/2 c sugar
1/2 c dark brown sugar (I made my own with 1/2 T molasses and  1/2 c regular cane sugar)
1 egg
1 stick unsalted butter cut into tiny cubes
1 t vanilla
4 oz bittersweet chocolate chopped into 1/2 and 1/4 inch chunks
Coarse sea salt to sprinkle

Racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Oven to 350 degrees. Parchment on the baking sheet or sheets, depending on how many you want to bake at once.

Sift dry ingredients into a bowl, pouring any grain remaining in the sifter, into the bowl.

Set up your stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment. Toss in cold butter and both sugars. Mix on LOW just until they are blended. Scrape down sides. Add the egg, mixing on low to incorporate fully. Scrape. Add vanilla, still low.

Add flour mix, blending on low until just combined, 30 seconds. Scrape. Add chocolate all at once. Mix until evenly combined on low. Scrape sides and bottom.

Now scrape batter onto a work surface. For me that was a piece of plastic wrap spread on my counter top. Use your hands to incorporate ingredients, then scoop out 2 T or 3 T mounds of dough and place onto the parchment. Depending on your sheet size, try not to fit more than 6 on a sheet. Leave a good 2 inches between them. Sprinkle with sea salt if desired.

Bake for 16-20 minutes depending on size. Rotate sheets halfway through. Look for the cookies to be evenly dark brown with crisping edges and softish centers still. Transfer from pan to rack, still on parchment.

They are best after a bit of cooling on a rack but still a teeny bit warm.

While they bake, make all your extra dough into balls and store. The balls keep 5 days in fridge wrapped or covered, or longer in freezer if flash frozen and stored in freezer bag.

Homemade Pop Tarts

Right now  I'm staring at a vacuum that I didn't pick up today. It was a long day culminating in a tumbler or two of red wine on the couch that I drank just a tad too fast while listening to Ella, Nina and Sam Cooke and then watching last week's episode of Girls from a possibly dubious source since I don't get HBO or have a screen beyond my laptop for that matter. Like a lot of people, I can't decide what I think of this show and I don't relate a lot of it anymore, but since I spent my early 20s flailing in NYC, I of course, tune in.

But let's rewind to the morning and change the subject totally. I am going to give you the best excuse to eat pie for breakfast: a pop tart from your oven.

No not the ones in the box. Forget them. It's just good jam tucked into flaky pie dough (ok, yeah, but with a nutritional punch from some wholesome rye flour) brushed with egg and kissed with a pinch of sugar for a lovely brown hue, and a send off to your oven and that's all. No cornstarch, no toaster, no glazes and nothing else required for this pastry, except a pastry scraper and brush.

Ahem...let's clear something up about this pie dough.While I understand that there is only a small sect of people out there who can get up on a random morning and have the 2 hours it takes to make, chill, rest and roll pie dough, have no fear--the point of these tarts is their ability to be made ahead, frozen and baked on demand that morning you wish them at your table.

Bonus if you use the opportunity to make some dough in general ahead of time to have a few rounds on hand for future galettes, pop tarts and quiche dough (well, anyway, that's my plan going forward so I don't chicken out of making galettes or empanadas at the last minute). They keep in the fridge for 3 days and freezer for a lot longer (just defrost in the fridge for a day).  

Yet, truly, I'm still a bit tepid to make a ton of dough at once because I am still mastering the technique and don't want to end up with a bunch of tough dough and wasted butter if I mess up.. BUT. The key to pie dough is faith and trust and a solid method. As I've said before, I look to Chez Pim for this and I am a believer and have become more confident every time I make dough her way. This was a good round.

And yet, the beauty of making little tarts to order is that the amount you use is not that big. Most pie dough recipes you'll see measure out to make 2 standard 9-inch rounds, and I usually halve this because, well, we've gone over the fact that I am an expensive European butter rationer, and day-to-day, I don't have a lot of people to feed. So I love the art of halving.

See above. This is a time in life when I endorse flakiness. A lot of it. Layered flakiness. That comes from the all-butterness and the folding and rolling the of dough.  I promise you if you practice the Pim method you'll start to get the palming and folding process which creates the more puff pastry-esque quality we're going for.

These tarts made with this dough and decent jam (I used a wild blueberry mixed with a hint of leftover pear butter--but you can use anything so long as it has a thickness to it, i.e., not a runny jam) are seriously a morning or afternoon treat.

They can be formed into tarts and placed on the baking sheet, covered in plastic tightly and kept overnight that way in the freezer until you're ready to bake the next morning, or if it will be a few days, after flash freezing on the pan for a bit, wrap the frozen tarts in plastic and foil and place in a freezer bag until ready to bake on the day. Working in advance is the best kitchen advice I've picked up from the internet, cooking memoirs and cookbooks. Because the bottom line is, you usually cook what you have.

One last thing here before the recipe: I endorse a high-ish temperature at 400 degrees as I think it browns them beautifully in less time and gives a stronger flake. Just let them cool several minutes before eating...just enough time on a cooling rack while you make the coffee.

Dough
Makes 2 rounds, enough for 4 good size pop tarts.

scant 1/3 c rye flour
3/4 c unbleached all purpose flour
pinch salt
1/2 c (1 stick salted butter)
2 T cold water

Follow this method. Do the folding 3-4 times. 

Filling
2 heaping Tablespoons strong jam of your choice (I used Bonne Maman wild blueberry) 


To Bake
1 egg, whisked
Few pinches turbinado sugar


Start by making the dough. It works best if made ahead of time but you can certainly do all it at once. If you made 2 small rounds using the measurements listed above and want to make 2 good size pop tarts, use one of the rounds. If you want to make 4, use both.

Line a baking sheet with parchment.

Work quickly to keep dough cold. Roll out the dough into a rectangle or as best you can, and use a sharp knife to divide the dough into 4 squares. Spoon a heaping tablespoon of jam into the center of two pieces. Place the other two pieces of dough carefully on top, press the edges together, crimp the sides with a fork and trim it slightly with a sharp knife to look pretty then prick all over (see picture). Place the tart on baking sheet.

If working with a few tarts at once, place the sheet in freezer while you repeat the process on the other tarts. Then freeze them covered in plastic tightly to bake the next day, or after they've frozen, wrap in plastic and foil and place in a freezer bag.

Fifteen minutes before you're ready to bake the tarts, preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Get dressed or do something : )

Then take the tarts out and prep them on a parchment lined baking sheet. Crack an egg and dip a pastry brush in, brush the tarts with egg, sprinkle with a bit of turbinado sugar (don't skip, it gives a great crust) and place the tray into the oven.

Bake 15- 22 minutes. Set the timer for 15 minutes and start checking then. Look for nicely browned tops and bottoms and edges. Rotate the pan and give it another few minutes but not much more. Cool on the pan for 2 minutes, then transfer to a wire rack and cool, eat at whatever temperature you desire. I think they are best a few notches warmer than room temp so they've set but are still a little warm. Bon appetit!

Roasted Carrot Salad

Once I received advice to copy if need be. I can't remember who said it and if they were even a credible source, but the message I took away was simple: when in doubt, look for inspiration, look for what works, what has, not what doesn't and hasn't. And remember what does. In cooking language, that can be translated to: look to Jean-Georges Vongerichten.

This salad is inspired by one on the menu at the elegant and green ABC Kitchen. I have not yet dined there (soon!), but I've browsed the menu and photos and all that jazz and realized I could easily live on the appetizers section alone. Fried eggs, greens galore, various squashes, grains, pairings, etc.

Last year I had the luck to stand next to JGV himself and his assistant when I was kitchen-assisting (way below the level of the JGV assistant) at a big long night of a catering event last year. I had no idea that it would be an amalgamation of tons of top chefs crammed into the makeshift-ness that is the "onsite" kitchen experience in catering, plating samples for important people-- I just thought it was another night of pinching thyme for the dollar. But when I arrived I was asked to, by JGV's charming and calm French-speaking assistant (and I'm not joking when I say he was a doppel of this guy ), after getting dishes washed, scrape at the bone of a rib for while feeling very scared I was doing it wrong.

After a few hours of prep like that, JGV whisked into the kitchen like lightning, checked on everything and took up an actual whisk at the hot plate, whipping up the glaze for the guests' game in about 5 minutes.

What I took away from my "station:" JGV was cool and calm and on the game. He was fast and intuitive. Simple as that. He was to the point and en pointe. And green. He stuck to colors and basics and created complexity with little effort. And he mixed a mean, bright green creamy asparagus puree that all the KAs and more important KAs were dipping into out of the pot after it was hurriedly almost all depleted and poured and plated for the guests as intensely as you see on the cooking shows.

Then the waiters leave, and the calm comes after the storm in the kitchen.

This salad.  Five simple and potent components: roast carrot, ripe avocado, crunchy seeds, sour cream, lemon and a micro-green of a sort. Now that to me is simple and winning and works. Like driving. It's amazing how taking a little road trip can make you feel so much better. Even if it's to Ikea : ) Because a day later and I'm sitting writing to you from a nice long white desk. I made this roasted carrot salad before going and surprisingly it didn't make me buy anything of the vermillion hue. We stuck to whites.

For extra nutrition the skin is left on these bright organic carrots that were "2 bags for $3" from the store across the street, then they are halved, quartered as you fancy, swooshed in olive oil, paprika, cayenne, cumin and salt before hitting the oven. And the rest is JGV common sense. A little of each kind of texture is at play: tender, creamy, crunchy, acid, pillowy, tang, sharp. I had arugula on hand so that's what I did for the sharp component. I also added a bit of scallion chop at the end. Carrots make your eyes healthy.

Serves 2 small, one big to share or one big hearty one for one....

 Roasted Carrot Salad

2-3 big handfuls arugula
3-4 large whole carrots
1/4-1/2 an avocado
2 T sunflower seeds, toasted
Pinch of minced scallion tops

Honey
Sea salt
Lemon juice
Olive oil

Dressing
2 big dollops sour cream
Juice of 1/4- 1/2 lemon
1/2 clove garlic smashed and minced
1/4 of the white part of a scallion
1-2 T olive oil
pinch cayenne
sea salt


Preheat oven to 425 degrees, cut, and toss carrots in spice and oil and roast carrots on baking sheet about 25-30 minutes. Check for tenderness and slight shrivels. Squeeze a teaspoon or so of honey onto the carrots and toss, then let cool on a wire rack. If you don't have toasted seeds on hand, toss some into the oven on another sheet while the carrots cook. Really watch that they don't burn, just a few minutes is what you're going for for a little fragrance and browning.

Meanwhile, make dressing. Whisk sour cream, scallion, garlic, cayenne in a small bowl. Slowly drizzle in olive oil as you stir, it should have an aioli feel and be a bit glossy. Set aside.

When the carrots are mostly cooled, slice avocado, then assemble greens on plate and toss with a little salt, oil and lemon juice just to coat, then place carrots, avocado slices on top, along with a few dollops of dressing, the seeds and pinch of minced scallion top.

Toasted Almond Whole Wheat Sables

Kitchen Aid Stand Mixer, hello. I can actually clear off the counter now while I count to 60 as you mix for me... methinks I've opened to a new world.

These little golden toasted almond sables lightly adapted from Heidi who lightly adapted it from Alice,  were the first thing I made with the famous machine newly slotted in the back corner of my counter where I am able to slide it at its will forward when it calls for usage.

The method: I creamed salted Irish butter and organic cane sugar along with vanilla and sea salt, threw in toasted, finely chopped almonds, then blended in a mix of both whole wheat pastry and all purpose flours,  swirled in a handful of diced golden raisins, chilled the ball of dough overnight then rolled it out and stamped shapes with, not, I'm afraid with a vintage cookie cutter, but with the twist of the top of a spice jar. Which happens to be the perfect small circle size I like cookies.

I love how they nicely crisped around the edges and maintained a buttery base while delivering that nice nuttiness of whole wheat. Very nice browning is possible here without burning if you keep your eye on the oven as they finish up. You're going for color. And, even after halving this one from the original (because, well, I still get a bit frugal about using 2 sticks of butter in the same baking extravaganza) I still ended up with two jars of cookies on my counter. I mean, they are small little things, but since they're shortbread, they'll be good for a week. The bonus of the eggless cookie : )

The delicate whole wheat combined with the deeply toasted almonds gives the flavor a toasted sandy nuttiness. And that phrase quite reminds me of being a child and always wanting a Good Humor Toasted Almond Crunch ice cream bar. You see, even then I had a thing for toasted, chopped nuts. And now I put them in everything--salads, cookies, yogurt, you name it.

So if you're looking for that perfect, sandy afternoon cookie without delving into the chocolate realm, a few of these alongside a little milky, honeyed black tea just might make your day. xo MN

Toasted Almond Whole Wheat Sables

1/2 c (1 stick) salted good butter (I used Kerrygold), softened (left out for about an hour)
1/2 c whole wheat pastry flour
1/2 c all purpose flour
1/4 c sugar
1/8 t  fine sea salt
3 T toasted, finely chopped almonds
1/4 c finely chopped raisins (or whole currants)
1/2 t vanilla extract
Larger grain sugar for sprinkling

In a medium bowl, sift the flours together and set aside.

In a stand mixer, cream butter, sugar, salt and vanilla for about a minute until creamy, then add the almonds and give it a light stir. Add the flour and mix until barely combined. (I just briefly used the mixer stir setting and really watched it). Add the raisins and stir again until just incorporated.

Scrape dough into a ball, dump onto a piece of plastic, shape into a round patty, and tightly wrap. Refrigerate at least a few hours or overnight. 

15 minutes before you're ready for baking, take out your dough. Preheat oven to 350, position racks in the top and bottom thirds of the oven, line sheet pans with parchment.

Roll the dough out 1/4-inch thick on a lightly floured counter top, cut into desired shapes. You can re-roll scraps. Just place the dough in the freezer for a moment if you find it getting melty. Cold is important. Line the pans with the cookies about an inch apart, sprinkle each with a tiny pinch of larger-grain sugar, and place the trays in the freezer for 10 minutes.

Bake 13-15 minutes until edges are golden and crisping. Watch the color. Rotate the sheets about 9 minutes in. I changed the back to front angle and  switched the top and bottom racks. Let cool on the tray 2 minutes then transfer to wire racks to cool completely. Store in jars.