Welcome Fall colors menu

The weather for the past few weeks has just been spectacular. I find that I enjoy the wet and cold days as much as the crisp blue sky days, and both kinds of weather make me want to cook!

The menu for the past week was especially suited to the changeable mood of Fall, providing enough soothing creaminess to warm the chill away, and ginger and spice to go with sunnier days. The pumpkin spice bread was a hit with everyone, and I loved making multiple batches of risotto. The butternut squash was sauteed in olive oil with just a dash of salt and pepper before going into the risotto. The caramelized squash added depth to the tang of wine and Parmesan in the rice and lent a sweet dimension to the flavors.

Did I mention that the rolls were fabulous? I love to make bread because of all the amazing smells at each stage of the process. Am I weird because I love the smell of yeast? The smell of bread rising and baking in the oven is one of the best things in life. I also enjoyed making the pear crisp with its triple punch of ginger and sweet almonds in the topping. I could not resist packing some freshly whipped cream to go with the crisp --- oh well, a dollop of whipped cream judiciously applied and enjoyed adds longevity and joy to life.

I am excited about planning more Fall menus. Look for Daube Provencal, Braised Lamb Shanks, and Osso Bucco in the coming weeks. I am also excited to try some new grain dishes to balance some of the richness of these traditional stews. I hope I can talk some of my clients into trying the individual chocolate souffles --- I have been dying to make them, but they have to be baked just before serving (they are made ahead and frozen). We'll see. But they would be REALLY perfect with the Daube...

What I am thinking about this week...

It would be hard not to draw inspiration from this gorgeous weather. Fall always calls out to me with its golden light and foliage, and I love to echo these notes in what I cook. There is some sort of divine affinity between the fruits of the earth and the orchard, pears and butternut squash, pecans and walnuts that calls out for the lingering warmth of ginger and cinnamon to complete it.

So in this spirit, here is a Fall menu:
*Pumpkin and spice bread
*Cream of mushroom soup
*Butternut squash risotto
*Roast pork with fresh sage
*Snap Beans
*Pear and ginger crisp

Holy Mole! (no, not the little mammal, the Mexican dish)

The weeks are whizzing by with the speed that all drivers along Mopac wish that they could attain during our increasingly busy rush hours. (Is it rush hour if it starts at 3:30? Really, what is up with all this traffic?) I keep getting stuck in these long quagmires of cars and getting really angry - which is probably why I am resorting to such belabored metaphors... Between being stuck in traffic, coaching, volunteering with the kids at Mathews, and cooking, the last couple of weeks have been so packed that I can barely remember what happened.

I had a great time experimenting with a red mole recipe that I have had for a while. Mole is a wonderful invention of Mexican cuisine that combines roasted and ground chilies, nuts, and unsweetened chocolate to create an unctuous, complex sauce for poultry and meat dishes. Most people are only familiar with the dark moles, but in searching for a mole recipe that did not contain any nuts, I ran across some recipes that I got a few years ago from the MexicArte Museum here in Austin. The recipes were given out in conjunction with a celebration of Dia de los Muertos during the 100th Anniversary of Frida Kahlo's birth, and were all variations of the more familiar dark mole. The one I used is called "Frida's Heart", and it is for a red mole. You simmer a pork loin roast in water with onions and bay leaves, then use the stock and meat in the recipe. The broth that results from cooking the pork is heavenly. Many Asian soups are based on pork broth, and I can see why... The sauce is composed of ancho and guajillo chilies that are warmed, then soaked and ground into a paste after the seeds and ribs are removed, plus onions, garlic, plaintains, sesame seeds and potatoes. As I tasted I was surprised at how "raw" everything tasted. The chilies were aggressive and blunt, and none of the flavors came together very well. I improvised by adding some sugar to balance the spiciness of the chilies, some unsweetened chocolate for depth, and letting the dish cook for an additional hour or so. By the end of all this I had it --- the rich, multilayered flavors that I had been seeking. I used some of the leftover plantain to make "tostones" and garnished the finished dish with these and more sesame seeds. (I will always sacrifice authenticity for tastiness, and fried plantains are GOOD)

This was the entire menu:

• Maple Apricot Granola with candied ginger
• Cuban Black Bean Soup
• Corn Bread
• Grilled Shrimp
• Red Mole with Pork Loin
• Basmati Rice
• Grilled Asparagus
• Chocolate Mousse

It was definitely challenging to prepare the mole, but well worth it at the end.

Moroccan Breezes

This past week I was thinking about Morocco. Of course I have never been to Morocco, but rather than seeing this as a drawback I chose to view it as an asset. After all, who wants their fantasies clouded with grubby reality? I would much rather imagine the Souq in Marrakesh --- stalls filled with supple leather goods, fragrant spices sold by sloe eyed women, dust and dappled sunlight in the heat of midday... This is probably much more pleasant than the actual experience. The only time I have been in Africa was a stop at Tunis. The visit was difficult. The streets were filled with vendors and hustlers so that you could not take a pace without being asked to buy something, and conversation was impossible. At the same time, there were scenes of startling beauty that made me wish that I could have visited about a century ago.

This week brought my first delivery to the NNC (new New Client), so I am anxious to get their reviews. The menu was:
*Carrot and Ginger Soup
*Chicken Tagine with lemon and olives
*Couscous Pilaf with Pine Nuts
*Stir fried Green Beans with garlic slivers
*Honey Whole Wheat bread
*Molasses Spice Cookies
and blueberry pancakes as the breakfast offering.

The tagine was wonderful - fragrant and rich with deep spice notes and a subtle sweetness from the dried apricots. I especially love the interplay of flavors from the cracked green olives and the strips of lemon zest. The flavor is really indescribable - although olives and lemons are also common in the cooking of European countries around the Mediterranean, there is something utterly different in the flavors that they conjure when combined with the exotic spices of north African cuisine. The chicken is first dusted with flour and browned, then braised with carrots, olives, and a blend of cinnamon, cumin, coriander, ginger and paprika. The finished dish is exquisite, with a slow heat that lingers. The couscous is also very good. I like to toast the grains and then add them to some minced shallots sauteed in butter and whatever liquid I am using. After the grains plump in the broth I fluff them with a long fork and toss in toasted pine nuts. The resulting pilaf makes a perfect companion to the tagine. The house smelled wonderful all day.

After making many batches of the molasses spice cookies that I usually bake, I learned something important. You can only bake one sheet at a time, otherwise the cookies will not puff and crackle correctly. With two sheets baking in the oven, even if you rotate them halfway through, the cookies spread more and are thinner and less chewy than if done one at a time. It turns out that this is an important difference because it really affects texture. (I guess I'll just have to bake a second batch to confirm the results!)

I am looking forward to next week and seeing what it will bring. I am still thinking of warming menus - maybe a Chinese inspired meal? Kung Pao or something equally spicy. Or a Spinach Lasagna with a Mushroom Barley soup... Who knows when and what inspiration will strike.

Busy, busy, busy...

Although I have been inspired to cook, Food Muse has not been inspired to write. Actually this is not strictly true, but the desire to write and the availability of time in which to do so has not coincided.
I am glad to report that I finally had coffee with my wonderful "foodie" friend Suzanna. In her case "foodie" is not just an adjective, it's her job title. Suzanna is the girl in the know at CM. Besides being funny, ironic, smart AND sassy, Suzanna knows food - pretty much anything you want to know that is cooking or product related, Suzanna knows. We chatted and drank coffee at Jo's on South Congress, and bonded over leaf lard. Seriously, how many other women could I possibly sit with and wax rhapsodic about the possibility of acquiring some fresh, locally sourced lard? OK. I actually know one more, my other smart/sassy/funny friend Amy, who also shares a similar love of pork, pancetta, and of course bacon. Amy once cracked me up by declaring that the people on "Survivor" were all morons because they picked such idiotic things to take with them. "Seriously," she said, "if I was going to be stuck on a desert island, and could only pick one thing to take with me, it would be a pig." She'd win too --- as soon as those other contestants smelled bacon sizzling over a fire, it would be all over.
Suzanna told me about a butcher shop, Dai Due, that delivers great products, all locally sourced. I looked at their website and signed up for the newsletter - I'm not sure how it works exactly, but I plan on ordering some of the fabulous charcuterie and planning a menu around it soon. Dai Due is better known as a Supper Club that meets at different venues and cooks a meal around a theme with - you guessed it - all local, organically produced food. It sounds amazing, and their menus have an earthy and fanciful quality that really captures the imagination. Here is a link to their website to check out.
So, back to cooking - last week I made a New Orleans inspired menu. It all started with the rhubarb and fresh strawberries at CM that insistently whispered pie in my ear, but then somehow my thoughts turned to gumbo. I have no idea how gumbo relates to strawberry rhubarb pie, but inevitably, one thing led to another. I also made a rustic, multi-grain loaf that threatened to take over the kitchen until I tamed it with a final rise and some acute slashing. The gumbo was paired with a fragrant basmati rice pilaf, meltingly tender collards simmered with bacon and a touch of apple cider vinegar, and fresh corn fritters. The fritters used the last of the sweet summer corn, and are a little like a savory pancake. The batter is a combination of fresh corn kernels that are pureed with buttermilk and then mixed with corn and regular flour, plus the addition of chopped green onion, diced Pannonia ham, and more fresh corn. I wish I could describe the aroma of the batter as it hits the buttered griddle and starts to bubble. The cakes, once turned, are golden and crisp with a moist steamy interior that is indescribable. My friend Jen said she liked them so much she might marry them. (I love Jen!)
*Gingerbread pancakes
*Rustic multigrain boule
*Gumbo with Shrimp and Andouille
*Basmati Rice Pilaf
*Collards with bacon
*Fresh corn fritters
*Strawberry Rhubarb Pie
Sadly I did not have enough time to take photos of all the dishes, but I did get a picture of the bread and the strawberry rhubarb pie.