Camacho Watcho

Our Mexican themed cooking club took place a few weeks ago – just in time to catch the final days of summer. Katie and RJ hosted, choosing a delicious menu of guacamole, quesadillas, fish tacos and stuffed poblanos. Dessert was a repeat of the Toasted Coconut Caramel Ice Cream Sundaes – yum!. I honestly can’t pick my favorite dish, as they were all fantastic.

While Vickie (left) and Katie (right) finished some kitchen prep, Chad acquainted us with his friend, Mr. Patron. Classic shaken margaritas were the perfect start to this Mexican fiesta!

We had two starters – smoked gouda and caramelized onion quesadillas and charred tomatillo guacamole.

Dinner was the fried fish tacos – large chunks of fish beer battered and crispy fried served with tortillas and a fresh pico de gallo – rice, and poblanos stuffed with goat cheese and shrimp.

We were in charge of the poblanos so we had a lot of leftover roasted red pepper sauce. (I used it to make a delicious pasta sauce by mixing it with an equal portion of tomato puree and added browned Italian sausage from Seward. It was finished with some red pepper flakes and mild seasonings to taste.) The stuffed poblanos and roasted red pepper sauce comes from Bon Appetit December 2002.

Smoked Gouda and Caramelized Onion Quesadillas
Bon Appetit September 1995

2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter
1 onion, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon golden brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon white wine vinegar

1 1/2 cups grated smoked Gouda cheese
4 10-inch-diameter flour tortillas
2 ounces sliced prosciutto, chopped
2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) butter, melted

Melt 2 tablespoons butter in heavy medium skillet over medium heat. Add onion, brown sugar and vinegar; sauté until onion is golden brown, stirring frequently, about 25 minutes. Remove from heat. Cool to room temperature.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Sprinkle cheese over half of each tortilla, dividing equally. Sprinkle prosciutto and sautéed onion over cheese. Season with pepper. Fold other half of each tortilla over cheese mixture. Brush tortilla with some of melted butter.

Brush heavy large skillet with some of melted butter. Place over medium-high heat. Working in batches, cook quesadillas just until brown spots appear, brushing skillet with butter between batches, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer quesadillas to heavy large baking sheet.

Bake until tortillas are golden and cheese melts, about 5 minutes. Transfer quesadillas to work surface. Cut each into 6 triangles. Arrange on platter and serve hot.

Fried Fish Tacos
courtesy of Katie and RJ’s friends

1 quart vegetable oil
12 to 16 corn tortillas
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons salt
1 cup beer (not dark)
1 pound cod fillet, cut into 3- by 1-inch strips

Optional accompaniments: shredded lettuce, sour cream, avocado slices, chopped or sliced radish, red or green salsa, and lime wedges

Preheat oven to 350°F. Heat 1 inch oil in a 10-inch heavy pot (2 to 3 inches deep) over moderate heat until a deep-fat thermometer registers 360°F.

Meanwhile, separate tortillas and make 2 stacks of 6 to 8. Wrap each stack in foil and heat in oven 12 to 15 minutes.

While tortillas warm, stir together flour and salt in a large bowl, then stir in beer (batter will be thick). Gently stir fish into batter to coat. Lift each piece of fish out of batter, wiping any excess off on side of bowl, and fry fish in batches, turning once or twice, until golden, 4 to 5 minutes. Drain on paper towels.

Increase oil temperature to 375°F and refry fish in batches, turning once or twice, until golden brown and crisp, about 1 minute. Drain on paper towels.

Assemble tacos with warm tortillas, fish, and accompaniments.

I’ve eaten out a lot lately…

First of all, Sea Change is an amazing addition to the neighborhood. I have eaten there several times and everything has been perfect. The mussels in green curry (don’t forget to spoon up all that tasty broth) and braised short ribs are foods to dream about. I also recently checked out L’Ecosse, the new Scottish restaurant at 48th and Chicago – solid comfort food and creative dishes from a former White House chef. I even tried haggis…and liked it! Then this past week I tried Volnay Bistro in Wayzata, which was…well, not the best of dining experiences. I hope to see a turnaround from a restaurant with such an idyllic setting.

With all this eating out – I was looking forward to cooking a few meals at home. But to be honest, I’ve tried a few recipes recently that just haven’t been up to snuff. The corn risotto with seared scallops underwhelmed me. However, the leftover risotto, amped up with some additional seasonings and veggies, was pretty tasty stuffed into green bell peppers a few days later. Even pasta dishes that I normally love, just haven’t been as tasty. I blame the weather.

This all changed when I made the Herbed Ribeye with Mustard Sauce, which I topped it with crispy fried sweet onions and served on a bed of roasted green beans and onions. Oh, yeah…that satisfied.

Herbed Ribeye with Mustard Sauce
adapted from The Best of Food and Wine 1986 Collection
serves 2

1/4 c dijon mustard
1/2 tsp Worcestershire sauce
1/4 tsp grated fresh ginger
1 small garlic clove, minced
1 TBSP creme fraiche
1/4 tsp basil
1/4 tsp oregano
1/4 tsp rosemary, crumbled
1/4 tsp tarragon
1/8 tsp coarsely ground pepper
2 6-8 oz ribeye steaks

1. Combine the mustard, Worchestershire, ginger and clove in a small bowl. Cover and set aside.
2. Mix all the herbs in a bowl – basil through pepper – then press mixture evenly onto both sides of steak. Grill or broil steaks as desired. Allow to rest 5 minutes, tented with foil.
3. Stir creme fraiche into mustard sauce, along with any meat juices that have accumulated on the platter. Serve sauce on top of steak.

The roasted green beans and onions were tossed in olive oil with salt and pepper at 375 for 20-25 minutes and the fried onions were thinly sliced and fried in vegetable oil (without any batter) until crisp. Drain onions on paper towel then serve on top of steak.

With a last minute cancellation to cooking club this past week due to the host couple’s sick child, the rest of the group decided to still get together but to go out to dinner for a change. We chose Blackbird Cafe in South Minneapolis for the occasion.

I had previously visited Blackbird to photograph a beautiful bowl of noodles for this Heavy Table article, by fellow writer Susan Pagani. The day I went to photograph I had just eaten lunch, so when the noodles were offered to me I regretfully declined, but vowed to myself that I would be back.

A cross between a European cafe and a hunter’s lodge (only because of the mounted antlers on the wall..a bit of a mystery to me), Blackbird presents itself as an eclectic little spot that appeals to all. The menu is diverse with Asian, Latin and American flavors featured in the dishes. With all the tempting options, it makes it nearly impossible to decide on just one thing to order.

We decided to order some appetizers to start. My favorites were the BBQ ribs, coated in a rich and tangy sauce, and the empanada, a buttery pastry filled with green olives and pulled pork and served with smokey chipotle sauce.

Entrees were a wide array of choices, reflecting the diverse menu. Of course, I went for the Spicy Peanut Noodles with Tofu (featured in the Heavy Table article). This flavorful and well-balanced dish is similar to Thai pad thai, but with a saucier presentation (literally, it is presented with the sauce coating the noodles, rather than being sauteed together). If you do try this, don’t be fooled by the heat. The first few bites were Minnesota spice, but as the eating continued, the heat continued to build. And, of course, I love that Blackbird adds a fried egg on top – the yolk is a creamy, rich addition to the spicy sauce.

Also ordered was the salmon with creme fraiche and dill (a dish we replicated at home the next night), seafood tacos and the special of the day – halibut and blue crab ceviche served on masa cakes.

Our dining experience ended with fortune cookies. Everyone opened theirs and read their lovely fortunes. And then I opened mine. It was a bit like being a Chino Latino, where they give you nasty fortunes. Mine was a backhanded complemented that read, “You deserve respect and will eventually get it.” Ouch!

After Blackbird, we went back to Jill and Brian’s house for dessert. They had already made their assigned cooking club dessert and we certainly didn’t want it to go to waste. So we all enjoyed bowls of vanilla ice cream topped with homemade caramel and toasted coconut. Absolutely delicious.

Toasted-Coconut Caramel Ice Cream Sundaes

1 cup sugar
1/4 cup water
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1/4 cup sweetened cream of coconut
1 1/4 cups sweetened flaked coconut
1 1/2 pints purchased French vanilla ice cream

Place sugar and 1/4 cup water in heavy deep medium saucepan. Stir over medium-low heat until sugar dissolves. Increase heat to high. Boil until mixture turns dark amber, occasionally swirling pan and brushing down sides with wet pastry brush, about 9 minutes. Remove from heat. Immediately add cream and sweetened cream of coconut (mixture will bubble vigorously). Whisk over low heat until caramel sauce is blended and smooth and any caramel bits dissolve. do ahead Can be made 1 day ahead. Cool, cover, and chill. Rewarm slightly over medium heat, stirring often, before using.

Preheat oven to 350°F. Spread coconut evenly on small baking sheet. Bake until golden brown, stirring every 3 to 4 minutes, about 12 minutes. Cool. DO AHEAD: Toasted coconut can be made 4 hours ahead. Let stand at room temperature.

Scoop ice cream into bowls. Spoon some of warm caramel sauce over. Sprinkle toasted coconut over and serve immediately.

I am behind several weeks on posting, so I thought I would come back with a fun post on our last Cooking Club adventure. Chad and Vickie hosted (to begin our third year of this club) and chose a French menu for the occasion. I actually can’t believe another year has passed! It feels like only a couple months ago that I was writing about the start of our second year. Time really does fly! But it’s been really fun and everyone has really learned a lot about cooking and we’ve had fun trying out new recipes. So with that, below is the menu, some pictures and a couple recipes…cheers to the third season!

Menu
Balthazar French Martini

Mussels in White Wine
Greyere Gougeres
Stacked Crepes
Pommes Frites

French Onion Soup
Frisee Salad with Goat Cheese and Balsamic Syrup
Classic Creme Brulee

Kyle and I were assigned to make the Gruyere Gougeres and the Stacked Crepes as appetizers. We had made gougeres in April from the Bon Appetit recipe, but I was happy to make them again because they are so light and tasty. New to us, however, was making crepes. Although the stacked crepes recipe was not my favorite (just a little bland to me) I have a new found love of making crepes. Since then we have made rhubarb crepes with candied nuts for breakfast and corn crepes with shredded pork and chipotle bbq sauce for dinner. I haven’t found the perfect crepe batter recipe yet, but I will continue my search – that’s for sure!

All the dishes at cooking club were really good. The French onion soup was rich and cheesy (perfect for a rainy day like today) and the salad was sharp with a hefty creamy serving of chevre…but my favorites were the martini, mussels and creme brulee.

I’m not usually a martini girl (except for the occasional extra dirty gin martini that always guarantees for an interesting evening) and I’m really not a vodka girl. So when this martini was mixed and placed in front of me, I had my doubts. But after one taste of the lightly sweet but crisp and cool drink, I knew this combination was dangerous. No alcohol could be tasted, just raspberry-pineapple goodness. I immediately told Kyle that he was driving home, then proceeded to polish off a couple.

Simply said, the mussels were pure heaven. I stopped eating fish and seafood awhile ago, one of those irrational things you do as a kid. Being a little stubborn (or maybe a lot), as a teenager I recall watching with bewilderment during a trip to the Northeast as my parents and sister donned plastic bibs and polished off lobster after lobster, dipping the sweet meat into melted butter. I also just watched as my dad and sister’s continually searched to find the perfect oyster on the half-shell. Their love for oyster bars just never was appealing. But the topper was a trip in 2007 to Europe, where my mom and Kyle oohed and aahed over the steamed mussels served in seemingly bottomless black pots wafting with the scent of white wine and garlic. I just didn’t understand.

But all that sideline observation has ended and I’m enjoying rediscovering fish and seafood. I especially love mussels, so when they were listed on the menu for our French cooking club night, I couldn’t wait! RJ and Katie were assigned to the dish. And although the recipe, which called for 2 pounds of mussels, would have been enough for the group given the amount of food we were had planned for the night, they knew better and doubled it. The result was a giant vat of beautiful mussels served in a fragrant white wine broth with tomatoes, herbs and saffron. If you make this recipe, be sure to have some hearty bread on hand to mop up the broth. I can’t wait to make these mussels when the weather turns warm again!

Last for the evening was the creme brulee. Jill and Brian were in charge of this dessert, which they baked and chilled earlier that day. We brought our kitchen torch and the group made an activity out of each torching his or her own dessert to create their own sugary, caramelized top. Everyone did a great job, but style points go to Chad, who broke out the big torch once our small one ran out of butane. The creme brulee was a classic recipe with vanilla and the texture was perfectly creamy and smooth. If there’s anything better than hearing the top of a creme brulee crack with a light tap of the fork, I certainly don’t know what it is.

Balthazar Martini
Balthazar Restauarnt, New York City
1 oz. chilled vodka
1 oz. pineapple juice
1/3 oz. Chambord
ice cubes

Combine ingredients in cocktail shaker. Shake vigorously to create a frothy head. Strain into a martini glass and serve straight up. Makes 1 martini.

Mussels in White Wine
2004, Barfoot in Paris
3 lbs. cultivated mussels
1/3 c. flour
2 T. unsalted butter
2 T. good olive oil
1 c. chopped shallots (5 to 7 shallots)
1 1/2 T. minced garlic (6 to 6 cloves)
1/2 c. chopped canned plum tomatoes, drained (4 oz)
1/2 t. good saffron threads
1/3 c. chopped flat-leaf parsely
1 T. fresh thyme leaves
1 c. good white wine
2 t. kosher salt
1 t. freshly ground black pepper

To clean the mussels, put them in a large bowl with 2 quarts of water and the flour and soak for 30 minutes, or until the mussels disgorge any sand. Drain the mussels, then remove the “beard” from each with your fingers. If they’re dirty, scrub the mussels with a brush under running water. Discard any mussels whose shells aren’t tightly shut.

In a large non-aluminum stockpot, heat the butter and olive oil over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook for 5 minutes; then add the garlic and cook for 3 more minutes, or until the shallots are translucent. Add the tomatoes, saffron, parsley, thyme, wine, salt and pepper. Bring to a boil.

Add the mussels, stir well, then cover the pot, and cook over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, until all the mussels are opened (discard any that do not open). With the lid on, shake the pot once or twice to be sure the mussels don’t burn on the bottom. Pour the mussels and the sauce into a large bowl and serve hot.

A truly lovely Memorial weekend – perfect weather, great food…it doesn’t get better than that. During the last week, we’ve tried out several new recipes – all Mexican, of course (as it is still Mexi-Month). Most of the recipes were fantastic, but others (like this chicken) fell a little flat.

Last week I decided to go for traditional enchiladas starting with a tangy salsa verde (recipe below) in which to dip the homemade fried corn tortillas before rolling queso fresco and white onion in them. I tell you what – there is nothing like enchiladas made with fresh tortillas. They are a bit thicker and soak up the sauce, bloating them with flavor…muy bien! We served the enchiladas on a platter with grilled steak and sides of refried black beans and grilled queso panela.

Friday night we decided to go with a traditional fish made veracruz style (with tomatoes, onions, capers and green olives). Instead of poaching the fish in the sauce or baking it, as the recipe suggested, we tucked the fish and sauce in neat foil packets and finished them on the grill. Rich and tangy with the salty capers and olives – I loved this dish! My only switch for next time would be to grill the fish straight up and then spoon the sauce over. I think the flavor of the fish would remain more vibrant this way.

We finished the meal on Friday with a quick and easy dessert. Kyle took the reigns on this one – while I just stood aside and waited to dig in. He fried a homemade corn tortilla, then sprinkled both sides with cinnamon and sugar and topped it all with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. Quick, easy and very good!

Another dish we have been wanting to try out is chilaquiles. This is traditionally a breakfast dish (casserole, or hot dish, some may call it) with fried tortilla strips that are simmered in a sauce until they are tender and saturated with the sauce’s flavor. You can use any variety of sauce, but I stuck with my go-to chipotle-tomato sauce, which provided for a spicy, rich result. These can be served straight up or with scrambled eggs, as I did for breakfast on Saturday morning. The recipe suggests scrambling the eggs and and stewing them in the sauce as well, but I decided to keep the flavors separate and served my chilaquiles over the eggs. If you don’t want to make these at home, I have heard the current chilaquiles special at Longfellow Grill is quite good.

Mexi-Month is almost over, but I have a feeling we will continue our adventures in Mexican cooking when we can in the upcoming months.

Quick-Cooked Tomatillo-Chile Sauce
Salsa Verde
adapted from Authentic Mexican: Regional Cooking from the Heart of Mexico

1 pound fresh tomatillos, husked, washed and boiled until tender
Fresh hot green chiles to taste (roughly 3 chiles serranos or 2 chiles jalapenos), stemmed
1/4 c. cilantro, roughly chopped
1 small onion, chopped
1 large clove garlic, peeled and roughly chopped
1 T. vegetable oil
1 c. chicken or vegetable broth
salt

Place tomatillos and chiles in a blender or food processor, along with cilantro, onion and garlic. Process until smooth, but still retaining a little texture.

Heat the vegetable oil in a medium-large skillet set over medium-high. When preheated, pour in tomatillo puree and stir constantly for 4 to 5 minutes, until darker and thicker. Add the broth, let return to a boil, reduce the heat to medium and simmer until thick enough to coat a spoon, about 10 minutes. Season with salt.

I’m rewinding back a few weeks ago, when I was in the midst of my April Bon Appetit challenge, to bring you a breakfast sandwich courtesy of my friend Carly. Perhaps it was a little crazy to forego cooking for a morning during the final week of the challenge, but Carly had been touting a breakfast sandwich creation for a long time and it was time for us to give it a go!

Born from a need for protein (egg) and something sweet (jam) in a to-go form (sandwich), Carly created a breakfast that fueled her every morning through several months of training, including for two marathons. She had her routine down pat – start the water to boil, start the coffee, drop in the egg, toast the muffin, spread the jam, dish up the egg, top with muffin half. With a routine like that, I had to see it in action.

Despite my love for savory and sweet (and my obsession with eggs), I had never tried the jam/egg combo. At breakfast, I have a few rules: bacon and sausage stay clear of maple syrup and there is no place for ketchup at the breakfast table (I know, I know – french fries get ketchup, so why not hash browns? Because they don’t. Period.) I never really had a jam/egg separation rule, but it just didn’t seem like a natural pairing to me somehow.

Breakfast was served – a toasted English muffin with a smear of strawberry preserves and a poached egg – very tasty! We ate them open faced, but the usual service is as a sandwich. Either way, I can definitely see this breakfast in my future. And despite my usual avoidance of breakfast greens, I thought the salad with orange slices was a nice offset to the savory/sweet meal.

Of course, on the way home Kyle and I really started pushing the limits of the sandwich, dreaming of a version with crispy bacon and a fruit pepper jelly. Not only would we have salty and sweet, but we would add crunch and spice! Now that is one sandwich I would break my breakfast rules for.

Last week I lacked inspiration for what to make for dinner. I knew it would be Mexican, but beyond that I was clueless. In an attempt to get things rolling, I decided to cook some pork chunks until they were tender. After that, I figured I would wait and see what happened.

Cubed pork shoulder went directly into a pot with water, garlic, salt and peppercorns and simmered for about an hour. Once tender, I removed the pork from the water and shredded it slightly with a fork…then I sat and stared at the bowl of pork and, again, tried to figure out what to make. My default is always tacos – diced onion, cilantro, tortillas, and a squirt of lime go a long way in this household in throwing together a meal – but I wanted to do something different.

Still stumped, I went about making some salsa to go with my favorite blue corn sesame tortilla chips. I diced up a couple medium tomatoes and added to them about half cup diced red onion, a couple minced garlic cloves, a jalapeno and a bunch of chopped cilantro – not the spiciest salsa I’ve made, but definitely fresh and clean tasting. About that time I made up my mind about the pile of pork – I would make tostadas.

I know – it’s not the craziest recipe out there, but I rarely eat hard shell (fried) tortillas, so I thought I would give them a go. Frankly, I don’t understand the hard taco shell – especially the commercially-made versions that are so brittle that they fall apart at the first bite. My dad once told me that he had never eaten a hard shell taco until he moved away from Mexico to the US, so we grew up eating soft tortillas. They were so much a staple in our house that I can hardly recall a meal when my dad’s plate didn’t contain soft, flour tortillas and a whole jalapeno, which he would eat between bites of whatever was for dinner (even holiday meals).

But about those tostadas…Kyle whipped up some fresh corn tortillas, which we fried in vegetable oil instead of browning them on the skillet as we would for tacos. Once they were crisp and drained of the grease, we topped them with refried beans, pork and queso fresco and put them under the broiler for a few minutes to heat everything through. Out of the oven, they got a healthy serving of lettuce, a dollop of sour cream and a few squirts of hot sauce.

The tortillas turned out great – crisp, but still pliable, which made the tostada easy to eat but sturdy enough not crumble with the first bite. I had doubted the amount of lettuce at first – it seemed like a lot – but the balance of the cool, crunchy lettuce mixed with the hot, savory beans and pork blended together in a perfect union.

Mexi Month started with a bang – literally…as the handle of our newly acquired tortilla press smacked the counter and broke. Oops! But I’ll get to tortilla making later…first, let’s talk about Mexi Month.

My love for Mexican food runs deep, rivaling my obsession with eggs and addiction to coffee. I could eat Mexican food for every meal and, in fact, have done this before unintentionally for several days on end. As we were finishing up the Bon Appetit challenge in April, we started thinking about the Mexican recipes we have been wanting to try. Of course we make homemade salsa, guacamole and various tacos and enchilada dishes fairly often, but there are some traditional Mexican and Mexican-inspired contemporary cuisine that we’ve been wanting to try out at home. So why not dedicate a month to making this happen?

The original thought was to eat only Mexican food in the month of May – but as the challenge of April wore on, I decided to change this. The new goal is this: Any large meals that we make at home in May will be Mexican. Oh – and don’t forget the Mexican beer and tequila drinks…those are a must, too, right?

May 1st came and went – Twins tickets saved me from cooking and I thoroughly enjoyed my Top Dog at the Metrodome (honestly – the best hot dog stand in the dome…don’t settle for the Dome Dog). Saturday was also easy, as we went to the Cinco de Mayo festival in St. Paul to sample food and photograph for this Heavy Table article. Sunday we were summoned to cook and invited some friends over to celebrate our first Mexi Month meal.

The one thing that Kyle has been most excited about were the tortillas. We made a trip to El Burrito Mercado the previous weekend and purchased a new tortilla press for the occasion. The first batch was whipped up in no time (we decided to try corn first), then left to rest a bit in the refrigerator. Walnut-sized dough balls were formed and then pressed out and grilled on a hot skillet. Admittedly, I wasn’t expecting much from homemade tortillas, but these were really good. They were a bit thicker than store-bought and had a nice, pliable but crisp texture. Very tasty. We continued making tortillas, even after the press broke, by putting the press on the ground and standing on it to apply pressure. No problem, it still worked – but we do have a new pimped out tortilla press that arrived in time for dinner two nights later…so we’re all set again!

The first Mexi meal we made were some skewered shrimp, grilled tilapia tacos, Grandma’s mexican rice and a sweet and savory slaw (recipe below). The shrimp were good (anything brushed in butter and grilled is prone to be tasty), but nothing special. The tilapia was given a light salt and pepper and then grilled and then topped with the slaw, raw onion, cilantro and queso fresco. I have not been one to make fish tacos at home (it’s hard to justify with Sea Salt so near), but these were definitely good.

The next night we grilled some grass-fed flank steak and substituted it in for the fish from the previous night. Again, another tasty taco meal made in no time flat. Future Mexi Month recipes promise to be more than just tacos, but for these first few days, these were perfect, easy meals.

Cabbage Slaw with Lime-Ancho Dressing
Adapted from Bobby Flay’s recipe (but only because I forgot to buy the jicama and carrots from the store)

1/2 cup fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons rice vinegar
2 tablespoons ancho chile powder
2 tablespoons honey
1/2 cup mild vegetable oil, such as canola
Salt and freshly ground pepper
1/2 head cabbage, cored and shredded
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro leaves

Make the dressing:
Whisk together the lime juice, vinegar, ancho powder, and honey in a bowl. Whisk in the oil and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Make the slaw:
Combine the cabbage and cilantro in a large bowl. Pour the dressing over toss to coat well. Mix in the cilantro. Refrigerate for an hour to allow flavors to blend and the cabbage to soak up the dressing.

As I said in my last post, finishing up these last recipes from Bon Appetit wiped me! With the days I was out of town, I ended up with more than I had bargained for and going into the last week I questioned whether I should finish. Asking this of my husband, however, he assured me that I should and encouraged me to keep going. In the end I’m glad I did, as I made a few recipes in the last couple days that were outstanding! As well, I got to experiment with ramps, which I had never cooked with before. And so…this is the rest of the story.

As I mentioned, I had never cooked with ramps before and, in fact, I can’t recall ever eating them before either (turns out they are sort of a leek/green onion/garlic hybrid and are quite good when they are cooked long enough to mellow the garlicky flavor). The first challenge was finding ramps, as they have a very short season and were not readily available the last week in April. The Wedge had some that were shipped in from the West, but I was hoping to find some local offerings. After several calls to almost every co-op in town, Mississippi Market on Selby came through and I headed over to pick up a couple bunches. (As a note, local ramps are now more readily available in all the co-ops if you’re looking for them – but act quick because they will be gone soon!).

The first recipe I made was the Ramp and Sausage Risotto. In my attempt to cram as many recipes into the last two days of cooking, I actually served this for breakfast, which was really tasty. The recipe was good – a pretty standard risotto recipe – so I have no complaints about it, but I will make sure to get a spicier, less sweet sausage next time as it unfortunately dominated the flavor of the dish. But it was very good and I would make it again.

The leftover risotto was put to use in another breakfast, mixed with a little egg and cooked into a patty topped with a poached egg (surprise surprise!) – I actually thought the egg balanced out the sweetness of the sausage, so I liked the leftover version better.

Next up was the Seared Salmon with Linguine and Ramp Pesto (pictured above). I served this for a dinner that I had invited some friends over to share. I highly recommend making the pesto the night before, as it gives it time to blend the flavors and mellow. I tasted the pesto upon first making it and found it extremely spicy (from the garlicky ramps) so I was a little hesitant about whether my guests would like it. After a night in the fridge it did mellow, but I served it on the side of the salmon (grilled instead of seared) just in case. I also made the linguine with parmesan cream sauce (without the vegetables) again to serve alongside the linguine with pesto. Fortunately, however, I was wrong and everyone loved the pesto and overall both dishes.

Before dinner I made the Classic Gougeres recipe, a heavenly addition to the magazine from Molly Wizenberg, writer of the spectacular blog Orangette. They whipped up quickly and were in the oven in no time – puffing up to the expected “lighter-than-air” texture with the heavenly taste of Gruyere cheese throughout. The recipe made two dozen and I think the four of us ate eighteen or so – if these are on your party menu…be sure to make a huge batch! I can’t wait to make these again!

The next day (April 30th) was a big one – four recipes to be made before the challenge was over. For breakfast we had the Ramp and Buttermilk Biscuits with Cracked Coriander and the Scrambled Eggs with Ramps, Morels, and Asparagus. Although I rolled the biscuits too thin, they were still really good – buttery and crisp with the perfectly matched combination of ramps and coriander. If you make this recipe – do not forget the coriander…it definitely makes the recipe perfect!

The eggs were good, but nothing really to write home about. I thought it was a bit strange that there was no addition of milk or cream to the eggs and I think that is why they turned out one dimensional (I love fluffy eggs in my scrambles). Also, instead of morels (which are insanely expensive and not to be found in April in MN) I used skitakes – but that couldn’t be helped. I love to make egg scrambles, so I’ll probably just stick to my own concoctions that I make with leftover ingredients from now on.

For lunch I made the Tuna, Asparagus and New Potato Salad with Chive Vinaigrette and Fried Capers. I don’t like canned tuna, so it spoiled it a bit for me and I really don’t get why the capers need to be fried (skip the mess and just toss them on the salad raw, in my opinion). Otherwise the chive vinaigrette was really good and the combination of the potatoes, egg, asparagus and capers was really tasty. I’ll probably make this again but add grilled chicken or flaked salmon in place of the tuna.

The last and final recipe of the day and the month was the Spice-Rubbed Pork Tenderloin with Roasted Baby Carrots. This was extremely tasty – spicy, tender and sweet at the same time – and I will most certainly make this again. The minor adjustments I’ll probably make to the actual recipe are as follows: roast the carrots in a bit of olive oil, salt and pepper in a glass baking dish for 15 minutes, then drizzle the carrot marinade over them and toss just before putting the seared pork on top. Finish it all as directed (about 18 minutes) until pork is done. I found that the carrots got too done when they roasted for almost 50 minutes total and the marinade burned onto the pan after that amount of time in the oven.

And that, my friends, is the end of the April 2009 Bon Appetit challenge. I found some recipes that I really love and will definitely make again (like the tarts, gougeres, chicken, biscuits, coffee cake, halibut, scallops, lamb, pork, another chicken, pizzas and sandwiches) and I reconfirmed my aversion to tuna in a can. I also declared a new kitchen rule: No using sharp knives before the first cup of coffee in the morning (that was a close call!).

And now on to Mexi Month…Oh, did I forget to mention that May is Mexi Month? More about that soon…

It’s May 1st and the April challenge is over…I did make it, but only barely. The last week was a bit hairy with all the recipes I needed to make, but I pushed through and pulled it off – now I just need to catch up on blogging.

This post covers five recipes – well, technically one was a suggestion from Bon Appetit on how to use leftovers but they listed it in their recipe index (did we really need a suggestion from them to throw leftover rice, snow peas and chicken in a bowl and microwave?). But given that the cod dumplings actually had two parts to it (dumplings and cabbage) but was listed as one recipe – I think it all evens out.

Let’s start with the Spring Vegetable and Mini Matzo Ball Chicken Soup. The matzo balls were a nice balance between light and dense – very tasty. The actual soup, however, tasted really chicken-brothy. Perhaps that sounds silly since it was made with chicken broth as the base, but I just felt that it needed some other seasonings to balance it out. In particular, it calls for low-salt chicken broth (which I used), but the result was very bland. I did add some kosher salt to it at the end which helped, but it would have been better to add it earlier in the recipe for it all to blend together.

The next recipe is for Cod Dumplings with Savoy Cabbage Saute. Talk about a recipe that just did not appeal to me. The caption in the magazine says that it is their “modern take on gefilte fish.” I had no idea what that was, but it didn’t sound good. A quick google and I found out that it’s just a poached fish patty – could be worse, I guess. Anyway, I was making a few recipes at the same time so I actually forgot to add the egg and matzo meal…pretty important pieces to keeping the dumplings together. But I didn’t realize this until they had been poaching in the simmering water for several minutes already. I went with it – and amazingly, they did not fall apart! The result was a really light, poached cod dumpling. The dill, lemon peel and horseradish added a great flavor to the dumplings and paired with the cabbage (I just used regular cabbage), they were really good. Who would have guessed?

Also up this week were the Pan-Seared Steak Pizzaiola and Five Spice Roast Chicken with Ginger-Scented Rice and Snow Peas with Toasted Almonds. We’ll start with the steak. It was just too nice outside to sear the steaks indoors, so we grilled them instead. Overall the recipe was good, including spicy tomato sauce, but I just didn’t need the sauce on my steak. I love steak and am not opposed to sauces on steak, but this was just a bit much I thought. I will, however, use this tomato sauce in the future – it’s quick, spicy and ultra-rich.

The Five Spice Roast Chicken was fantastic! In fact, Kyle said that with the exception of some amazing jerk chicken we ate years ago from a street stand in Jamaica, this is the best chicken he’d ever eaten! I wholeheartedly agree, which surprised me. I just don’t get very excited to cook chicken anymore, but this was really good. The five spice, made of fennel seeds, Szechuan peppercorns, cinnamon, star anise and cloves, is really mellow and sweet. I had never cooked with it before, but I will in the future. Instead of buying a more expensive whole chicken, I just bought two cheaper packages of chicken quarters (leg and thigh). The dark meat held up beautifully for roasting and its savory flavor combined nicely with the sweet five spice powder.