Cookbook Recipe Testing

I have been enjoying myself quite a lot lately with testing recipes for cookbooks.  The one most recently on the shelves is one that I am particularly proud of.  It is the Food Network Magazine's Great Easy Meals.  This cookbook is a must for your library if you like to cook for yourself, family, and/or friends.  All of the recipes are easy to make and (more importantly) delicious!  Also, it is very reasonably priced and it contains 250 recipes!

Food Network Magazine Great Easy Meals : 250 Fun & Fast Recipes

You can get it from Amazon and Barnes and Noble just to name a couple of places. You won't be disappointed.







Other cookbooks I have worked on:

Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives : An All-American Road Trip ... with Recipes!








Coming soon:
The Next Food Network Star Cookbook - Food Network Star : The Book: Winning Recipes, Insider Stories, and Much More!  coming out August 16.

Anne Burrell's Cookbook:
Cook Like a Rock Star : 125 Simple Recipes, Lessons, and Culinary Secrets
Coming out October 4.

Every Day is Pie Day

HI - I have started a new blog called Every Day is Pie Day. Most of my posts will be there now, and I will post here when I have something non-pie related. See you there. everydayispieday.blogspot.com

Sausage Gravy

Recently, New York had a big snow storm. You probably heard about it or experienced it. In my neighborhood, 20+ inches of snow were dumped on our yards, houses and sidewalks in quick fashion. We were out of town and worried about what we were going to come back to. (With that amount of snow, it is usually important to try to keep up!) Luckily for us, we have the best neighbors ever.

Our next door neighbors were looking in on Ginger, our dog, and Sassy, our cat while we were away. We knew that they would feed both of them and walk the dog occasionally, but there were some unexpected items thrown in.

1. Stephen, next door neighbor, plowed our sidewalks and driveways. He not only did this for us, but for many other people on the block.

2. He brought his new book over to sit and read with Ginger and Sassy to keep them company for a while at night. We were surprised and definitely thankful! What a blessing to have these wonderful people right next door.

When we got home, we offered to pay Daniel, son of next door neighbor, for dog-sitting. He wouldn't take the money. What do you do in this situation? Offer to shovel for them the next time? Put money in an envelope and pretend it wasn't us that put it in the mailbox? Take them out to dinner? We were stumped, so we asked what we could do to thank them. Stephen's answer was truly simple: I hear you make good biscuits and sausage gravy. I would like some of that.

With that, I got right to work. The following Saturday, we delivered a dozen homemade biscuits and about 3 cups of sausage gravy. Still doesn't seem like we are even...

Biscuits and Sausage Gravy

Serves 4

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon baking soda

1 teaspoon kosher salt

6 tablespoons butter, chilled and cut into pieces

1 cup buttermilk (if you use sweet milk, use 3/4 cup + 1 teaspoon white vinegar)

1/2 pound bulk sausage, such as Jimmy Dean

2 tablespoon vegetable oil

4 tablespoons flour

2 cups milk

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Heat oven to 400˚ F. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder, baking soda and salt. Using a pastry blender or your fingers, add the butter and combine until it is the consistency of coarse crumbs. Gently fold in the buttermilk. Turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead 4-5 times. Less is better here. Roll or pat out to a 1/2-inch thickness and cut using desired cutter. A 2 1/2- inch cutter will yield about 12 biscuits. Bake for 10-12 minutes, or until golden brown.

Meanwhile, brown the sausage in a heavy skillet until fully cooked. Remove from pan. Leave the sausage drippings in the pan and add 2 tablespoon of oil. Sprinkle with the flour. Stir and cook over medium heat until the flour smells fragrant. Whisk in the milk slowly to avoid lumps. Season with salt and pepper. Bring to a boil to allow to thicken. Add sausage to the gravy and heat through.

Serve immediately.

Grits

My husband recently reconnected with a college friend through Facebook. She and her family were planning a visit to New York just before the new year. We showed them around the city a bit and made some recommendations for food and fun. As a thank you gift, she brought some yellow corn grits from Lexington, South Carolina.
I have been a grit lover for years, but these are really something special. The corn flavor is subtly sweet and the texture is light small pearls. If you haven't cooked grits that are not instant - I highly recommend it. They aren't any more trouble than making a pot of rice and the results are truly delicious.

Last night, I was craving the grits and since they came from South Carolina, I decided to make some Low Country Shrimp and Grits with a little NY twist.

Shrimp and Grits, Marinara Style
Serves 4

3 cups water
1 cup coarse ground grits, not instant
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 large onion, sliced
1 large red pepper, sliced
1 tablespoon coarsely chopped garlic
1 14-ounce can crushed tomatoes
1/2 cup water
1 pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined, thawed if frozen
2 tablespoons chopped parsley leaves
salt and pepper to taste

1. In a medium saucepan, bring the water to a boil. Whisk in the grits and salt, bring the water to a boil again. Reduce heat and cover. Cook for about 15 - 20 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent sticking. Grits should be al dente when they are done.
2. In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium high heat. Add the onion and red pepper and saute until crisp tender, about 10 minutes. Add the chopped garlic and cook for one more minute. Add the crushed tomatoes and water. Simmer for 5 minutes, or until vegetables are tender. Add the shrimp and cook until the shrimp are pink, about 5 more minutes. Stir in the chopped parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste.
3. Serve in bowls. Spoon the grits into the bottom of the bowl and ladle the shrimp mixture over the top. Serve warm.

A Fun Party With Neighbors

For the 4th of July celebration, our street got together at a dear friend's back yard. The event was a "Slider Tasting and Competition". 13 entrants competed for the hamburger squeak-toy trophy. You can see the other entries on our neighborhood Facebook page: NoMa

The process of the party could not have been simpler. There were 2 grills going, names were drawn out of the hat to determine the order, and the contestants were responsible for cooking and serving their entry to the hungry crowd. On average, there were sliders coming out every 15 minutes.

The truly amazing part? No bad sliders! They were all just creative enough to be unique, but not strange. There was huge variety - we had everything from porterhouse steak to turkey to chili with Fritos. There were some different bun choices as well. Some were the pre-packaged slider buns, some were homemade dinner rolls and some were bakery ciabatta rolls.

All in all, a delicious day! The only downside was that you really had to pace yourself and not eat the whole slider. 13 sliders is ambitious for anyone who is not a professional eating contest veteran.

Thanks North Maryland Avenue (aka NoMa) for a great 4th!

Here is the recipe for the one I entered:

Kani Salad Crab Cake Slider

Light and refreshing for summer.

12 slider buns - recommend dinner roll style

Crab Cake:

1 pound lump crab meat

1 tablespoon mayo

1 tablespoon dijon mustard

1 tablespoon minced parsley

1/2 teaspoon Old Bay seasoning

dash tabasco

1 teaspoon Worchestershire sauce

1 egg

1 teaspoon lemon zest

1 tablespoon sesame seeds

2 tablespoons Panko, plus more for coating

Dressing:

1/2 cup mayo

1 teaspoon sweet chili sauce

1 teaspoon rice vinegar

1 teaspoon ketchup

1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil

salt and pepper to taste

Toppings:

1 medium cucumber, peeled,seeded and julienned

sesame seeds

Combine all crab cake ingredients gently, taking care not to break up the crab too much. Form into small cakes using a 1 ounce scoop. Coat both sides of the crab cake in panko; refrigerate for at least 30 minutes. Heat 1/2" of oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Fry crab cakes until golden on both sides.

Whisk dressing ingredients until combined. Refrigerate until ready to use.

To build, lay one crab cake on the bottom half of the slider roll, top with dressing, cucumbers and a sprinkle of sesame seeds.

Marinated Pork Tenderloin with Summer Vegetable Gratin

Pork Tenderloin is one of my favorite weeknight entrees. It is easy to cook and fast. The other night, I had several “singles” of summer vegetables. One yellow squash, one japanese eggplant, one tomato - you get the idea. I put them all together in a gratin and it was delicious. I hope you try it soon.

Marinated Pork Tenderloin with Summer Vegetable Gratin

Active Prep Time: 10 minutes Inactive Prep: 30 min.

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Serves 4

1 pork tenderloin, about 1 pound

2 tablespoons teriyaki sauce

2 tablespoons worchestershire sauce

2 teaspoons white wine vinegar

1 tablespoon soy sauce

salt and pepper

1 yellow summer squash, sliced 1/4”

1 zucchini squash, sliced 1/4”

1 japanese eggplant, sliced 1/4”

1 medium tomato, sliced 1/4”

1 tablespoon olive oil

3 tablespoons plain bread crumbs, divided

1. Place the tenderloin and the next 4 ingredients in a gallon sized plastic bag. Marinate in the refrigerator for 30 minutes and up to 8 hours.
2. Remove tenderloin from marinade and place on a sheet pan lined with foil. Lightly sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
3. Toss squash, eggplant and tomato with olive oil and 2 tablespoons bread crumbs. Season with salt and pepper. Layer in a 2 quart casserole. Sprinkle top with remaining bread crumbs.
4. Place tenderloin and gratin in a 375˚ oven. Roast until a thermometer registers 165˚ in the thickest part of the tenderloin and the vegetables in the gratin are tender, about 25 minutes.

Serve with a tossed vegetable salad.

Red Velvet Cake

Although the origins may be disputed, this cake is a crowd pleaser! I was reminded how much I love it when we attended the Brooklyn Bridge Birthday Bash in the spring of 2008. It was such a fun event. There were school choirs, mayoral speeches, fireworks and birthday cake. The cake was a deliciously moist and rich red velvet cake. I have spent some time developing a recipe that satisfies what I like in a red velvet cake: A semi-firm crumb, pleasantly moist, creamy frosting, and very red. I took the final version to a gathering of friends this weekend and it was a hit. If you are looking for an incredible cake, try this recipe.

Red Velvet Cake

2 sticks of unsalted butter, room temperature

2 1/2 cups sugar

4 eggs, room temperature

2 teaspoons vanilla

1 ounce red food coloring

2 1/2 cups flour

1 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon soda

3 tablespoons cocoa powder

1 cup buttermilk

Heat oven to 350˚. Brush 2 9” cake pans with melted butter and line the bottoms with parchment. Brush the parchment with butter as well.

1. Cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add eggs, one at a time, and beat well after adding each egg. Add vanilla and food coloring, beat well. Scrape down sides of bowl.
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, soda, salt and cocoa powder.
3. Add about 1/3 of the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix just till combined using the low speed. Add 1/2 of the butter milk and mix. Continue alternating the dry ingredients and the buttermilk and mix till combined each time. After the final addition, scrape down the sides and mix one more time to ensure the batter is properly blended.
4. Pour the batter into the prepared pans. Bake for about 20-25 minutes. Watch carefully and do not over-bake. A toothpick should come out clean when inserted in the center of the cake.
5. Cool in the pans on a wire rack for 15 minutes, then remove cakes from pans and cool completely. The cakes can be baked up to 2 days in advance. Wrap layers individually in plastic wrap and refrigerate until ready to frost.
6. Frost using cream cheese frosting.

Cream Cheese Frosting

12 ounces cream cheese, room temperature

6 ounces unsalted butter, room temperature

2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste* (extract may be substituted)

4 cups sifted confectioners sugar

1. Beat cream cheese and butter using a mixer until fluffy. Add vanilla bean paste and mix well.
2. Add the sifted confectioners sugar in two batches, beating well each time. You may need to add more sugar to get the right consistency.

Makes enough to frost top and sides of a 9” two layer cake.

* I like using vanilla bean paste in the frosting. The flavor is delicate and the vanilla bean flecks that show in the finished product are beautiful. You can find vanilla bean paste in most specialty kitchen stores such as Williams-Sonoma or Sur la Table.