IDEAS IN FOOD: 31 entries from October 2018

« September 2018 | Main | November 2018 »

31 entries from October 2018

Fried Egg Salad

I have eaten plenty of salads topped with poached eggs. Aki often makes fried eggs with sauteed greens. Last week at Star Chefs ICC I tried and was smitten with a fried egg salad. It was spicy, funky, and bright with acid. It has been haunting me ever since. I made a dressing with grapefruit, mustard, fish sauce, soy sauce and cider vinegar. I sauteed the eggs in sunflower oil and deglazed the pan with a spoonful of dressing to steam and cook the top of the eggs. I dressed the greens with the vinaigrette and topped them with the hot eggs. I used scissors to cut up the eggs and tossed everything together. The salad was bright, funky, spicy, bitter and rich. It satisfied my craving and has me wanting more.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 31, 2018 at 03:52 PM in American Noodles, Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes, CULINARY EVOLUTIONS | Permalink | Comments (1)

Curiosity Doughnuts at ITV

We are thrilled to be bringing Curiosity Doughnuts back to Nick Elmi's ITV on Friday November 2. We will have a wide spread of our doughnuts as well as our pretzel crusted fried chicken sandwich. There will be beverages from coffee to cocktails. We start selling at 11 am and will be open till 4 or we sell out. See you soon.

Years Past

October 30, 2005 (2)

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 30, 2018 at 05:54 PM in Balancing Tastes, CULINARY EVOLUTIONS, Curiosity Doughnuts | Permalink | Comments (0)

If You Want Answers

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 29, 2018 at 05:07 PM in Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes, CULINARY EVOLUTIONS | Permalink | Comments (0)

Momofuku's Roast Duck Ssam

This video seems very appropriate as we head towards Thanksgiving. I've often pondered the wisdom of duck over turkey, less meat but so much more flavor. Sausage stuffed duck could be just the thing to get the ball rolling.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 28, 2018 at 05:43 PM in Approach to Cooking, Videos | Permalink | Comments (0)

Chicken Skin Tacos

We've taken to roasting chicken thighs every couple of weeks. Sometimes we roast them on vegetables and sometimes we make different salads. Occasionally there is rice or potatoes to go alongside. We take the leftover chicken and pull it, to use in other dishes. We save the leftover skin and bones for stock. On the night we roast up the thighs, Alex and Amaya harvest the crispy skins to make tacos. They stuff them with meat and vegetables and whatever else is on the table. Then they dip or drizzle them in hot sauce and savor the deep crunch and salty flavor of each delicious bite.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 27, 2018 at 04:08 PM in Approach to Cooking, At the Table | Permalink | Comments (0)

Quarter Pan Pizzas

The quarter sheet pan takes the half and half option out of the equation and allows for everyone to create a custom pie.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 26, 2018 at 05:04 PM in Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes, CULINARY EVOLUTIONS, Impromptu Pizza | Permalink | Comments (0)

Going Green

We have not been using herbs enough in our cooking. I crave the brightness and the crisp refreshing flavor that herbs bring to our dishes. We have not been using enough jalapenos lately either. I set about solving my own problems. I made a green sauce with parsley, cilantro, jalapenos, anchovies, salt and olive in our Vitamix. I pureed the herbs, stems and all. The only stem I removed was from the jalapeno. I spread the sauce into a miniature muffin pan and put it in the blast chiller. When the sauce is frozen I will pop them out of the pan and vacuum seal the individual portions for preservation and easy access. It takes an effort to go green. But the payoff is delicious.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 25, 2018 at 05:27 PM in American Noodles, Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes, CULINARY EVOLUTIONS | Permalink | Comments (0)

Look Up and Discover

We think we know the answer and we go around with that belief. When we take the time to look up the answer we discover paths we had no idea existed.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 24, 2018 at 03:46 PM in Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes, CULINARY EVOLUTIONS | Permalink | Comments (0)

Hot and Cold

I was brought a couple of slices of pizza from L'industrie Pizzeria. What I felt was exceptional was the post cooking addition of burrata and basil. The pepperoni was cupped and caramelized. The burrata was cool, creamy and elastic. The basil was bright and refreshing. The pizza itself was crisp, foldable, airy and cheese crusted. The balance in flavors, textures and temperatures showed me fresh insight into the combination and addition of ingredients.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 23, 2018 at 05:01 AM in Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes, CULINARY EVOLUTIONS, INSPIRATIONS | Permalink | Comments (0)

Possibilities

One of the tricks to being a good cook is being able to see the possibilities in your ingredients. There was time when I would look at these bananas and think I'd better eat them quickly. Now I look at them and think about what I could make. Roasted bananas or Bananas Foster? Banana bread with peanut butter or banana layer cake with chocolate frosting. They're on the smaller side, so maybe some scones with cashew butter or some muffins with apples and oatmeal streusel. There's enough there for banana cream pie or even a simple pudding. The possibilities are endless.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 22, 2018 at 04:43 PM in Approach to Cooking | Permalink | Comments (1)

Pumpkin Muffins With Chocolate Chips

Sundays are a great day to make muffins because you can eat them that day and have them on hand for lunches and after school snacks in the beginning of the week. Amaya made her first batch of pumpkin muffins today and they were a smashing success. Muffins are very forgiving and therefore perfect for beginner bakers. We fill the muffin tins slightly above the top using a blue ice cream scoop. We find that the smaller muffins are not quite big enough for a snack and leave us a little hungry, so we go for a slightly larger size that satisfies with one muffin per person. These muffins are moist and light. We use a blend of milk and dark chocolate chips (Guittard) to finish them off and make them feel just a little bit indulgent. You can easily leave them out if you don't have any on hand or add some diced apple instead.

Pumpkin Muffins with Chocolate CHips

Makes 10 larger or twelve smaller muffins

1½ cups all purpose flour

1¼ cups sugar (any blend of light and dark)

1 teaspoon baking powder

½ teaspoon baking soda

½ teaspoon salt

½ teaspoon cinnamon

One 15-ounce can organic pumpkin puree

⅓ cup neutral oil (we use sunflower seed)

2 large eggs

1 teaspoon vanilla paste or extract

½ cup chocolate chips (we used half milk, half bittersweet Guittard)

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Line a standard muffin tin with papers and spray them with pan spray or simply spray the tin with pan spray.

Put the flour, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and cinnamon in a medium mixing bowl and whisk to blend. Put the pumpkin, oil, eggs and vanilla in a smaller bowl and whisk to blend. Add the pumpkin mixture to the flour mixture and stir to combine. Once the mixture has come together, add the chocolate chips and stir briefly to combine. Divide the batter among your muffin tins, filling them slightly below the top for twelve muffins and slightly above the top for ten muffins. Bake for 25-30 minutes until the muffins are golden brown, just firm to the touch, and a cake tester inserted into the center of the largest muffins comes out clean. DO not over bake the muffins, you want them to be soft and moist.

Remove from oven and let cool for at least 15 minutes before eating.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 21, 2018 at 03:05 PM in Approach to Cooking, Recipes | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tandoori Linguini with Butternut Squash and Kielbasa Bolognese

The dish is a combination of our tandoori linguini and a butternut squash bolognese sauce made with our kielbasa sausage. We topped the dish with a generous dollop of ricotta and sprinking of Parmigiano Reggiano. The kielbasa sausage is the secret to the bolognese and the tandoori spice adds a pointed focus to a tangle of noodles. The dish was an impromptu creation fashioned from a pantry of interchangeable parts.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 20, 2018 at 05:41 PM in American Noodles, Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes, CULINARY EVOLUTIONS | Permalink | Comments (1)

Because We're All Teachers

One of my very favorite Ted Talks. Rita Pierson gets right to the point.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 19, 2018 at 06:02 PM in Beyond the Kitchen Doors, Videos | Permalink | Comments (0)

Frozen Mirepoix

"Frozen Mirepoix." Words to make Alex shudder. I love it though. When I first saw it in the freezer at Whole Foods I chuckled at it. Then I bought it. Now I use it all the time. It's a standing joke, whenever we're making anything that could use an extra layer of flavor I suggest using the frozen mirepoix. Alex never does. I use it all the time. It's so easy and it makes my cooking so much faster. What can I say, I'm a sucker for convenience, especially at dinnertime on a weeknight, as long as it's still a product I can feel good about.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 18, 2018 at 05:32 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Tandoori Spiced Noodles

There's a definite chill in the air, spurring us to embrace the use of warming spices. Today we added 2% tandoori spices to our base extruded pasta recipe. It was enough to give us a clear flavor of the spices to work with as we play with sauce ideas.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 17, 2018 at 04:37 PM in American Noodles, Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes, CULINARY EVOLUTIONS | Permalink | Comments (0)

Butternut and Black Lime

In Maximum Flavor we made butternut squash capponata. The squash is bright, sweet, crispy and juicy. It is a melon with structure. Since then we have looked at other ways of serving it raw and marinated. Today we started playing with the squash seasoned with salt and powdered fermented black lime. It is sweet, sour, salty, bitter and refreshing. It is a simple combination creating a delicious salad.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 16, 2018 at 02:09 PM in American Noodles, Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes, CULINARY EVOLUTIONS | Permalink | Comments (0)

Pistachio Stock

Pistachio stock was the revelation that brought our mortadella, cabbage and pistachio ragout together. I blended salt roasted pistachios, water and soy sauce together. I strained the mixture and the result was a rich and creamy stock. It had an intense pistachio flavor and was the liquid I needed for our sauce. It carried the element of pistachios throughout the ingredients with a saucy fullness.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 15, 2018 at 06:31 PM in American Noodles, Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes, CULINARY EVOLUTIONS, INSPIRATIONS | Permalink | Comments (0)

Fall Favorites

The weather has finally turned and there is a welcome chill in the air. This afternoon there was football on tv and chili simmering in the pot. I had planned for baked potatoes and forgotten about rock climbing practice. So, the baked potatoes became twice baked potatoes, seasoned with generous amounts of butter, salt and cheddar cheese. After practice, we spooned the chili over the baked potatoes and everybody was happy.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 14, 2018 at 06:27 PM in Approach to Cooking | Permalink | Comments (0)

Lay It Down

I love the flavor of prosciutto and speck in cooked dishes. What I do not love is the way the ham dehydrates and gets super salty during the cooking process. In order to eliminate this problem, tonight I laid slices of speck on the bottom of the roasting pan and then added my artichokes and chick peas over the meat. Finally I arranged the chicken thighs in the center and roasted the whole thing. The speck gave a gentle seasoning to all of the other ingredients and remained soft and supple enough to be scooped up with the vegetables. We'll definitely be using this approach again.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 13, 2018 at 06:41 PM in Approach to Cooking, Food For Thoughts, INSPIRATIONS | Permalink | Comments (0)

My Latest Obsession

Just in time for Halloween, I'm perusing all of the extensive candy options in my local stores. Be honest, we all do it. As long as I have to buy candy to give away, I may as well ensure that I have good leftovers. 100 grand bars are always in our pumpkin bowl. This year they're been supplemented by Snickers Crispy and a few variety bags that have specialty items like Milk Duds and Almond Joys. You may have noticed that I have a thing for caramel and crispy, chewy textures.

Last weekend, when Amaya was perusing the candy aisles to spend a little of her hard earned cash, I surreptitiously examined the display. When I found the Snappers I immediately pointed them out to her and she snapped them right up. What can I say, we have similar taste in candy--and she shares. Admittedly the actual candy (they claim they are snacks) looks a little smaller and less beautiful than what you see on the bag. They are dangerously good though, tiny salted pretzel squares glued together with chewy caramel and drizzled with milk (or dark) chocolate. It's a very satisfying mouthful of chewy, salty, sweet, crunchy goodness. It's a good thing I didn't buy them, my conscience keeps me from eating her stash. They're a little too hard to resist.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 12, 2018 at 03:48 PM in Indulgence | Permalink | Comments (0)

Season Your Shells

By seasoning the shells we have the opportunity to let flavors mingle. The seasoning concentrates and changes as we grill the oysters. When we pick up the oysters and slurp them the seasoning compliments and does not overpower the shellfish.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 11, 2018 at 07:07 PM in Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes, CULINARY EVOLUTIONS, INSPIRATIONS | Permalink | Comments (0)

Sunday Doughnuts in Princeton, NJ

As promised, we're bringing Curiosity Doughnuts back to Jersey. Starting this Sunday we will be popping up on Sunday mornings at the Princeton Whole Foods Market. We will be there at 10:00am, with some of the best doughnuts in the world, until whatever time we sell out. The address is 3495 US Route 1 South, Princeton, NJ 08540. Come for doughnuts to make your Sunday just a little bit sweeter.

Years Past

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 10, 2018 at 03:47 PM in At the Table, Curiosity Doughnuts | Permalink | Comments (1)

Cross Cut and Thick Cut

I have been searching for thick cut and cross cut short ribs for many years. I was too lazy to make them myself. And I never remembered I was looking for them when I was in the butcher shop. Every time I saw cross cut ribs for sale I lamented the fact that they were always so thin. Finally I found the short ribs I was looking for. My vision for the ribs was to treat them in some way like chicken wings. I wanted to salt them, cook them sous vide, chill them, dredge them in cornstarch, fry them and glaze them in spicy sauce. But when I finally found them I was running around and not prepared with the time to follow through with my vision. Instead, I salted them and refrigerated them overnight. The following day I cooked them for 20 minutes in the pressure cooker.

The ribs were good. I was disappointed. I had a vision and when the opportunity arrived I was only able to bunt. I became distracted by my vision and did not adapt to the situation in front of me. It was an important reminder to have several plans ready because the situation will not always be how you planned it.

Years Past

October 9, 2015

October 9, 2011

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 09, 2018 at 04:05 PM in Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes, CULINARY EVOLUTIONS | Permalink | Comments (0)

Frank's and Bolognese

I made another round of Frank's Red Hot flavored noodles. I dressed the noodles with our buttermilk bolognese. I finished the pasta with a spoonful of our Frank's bulletproof beurre monte. The noodle flavor stood up to the rich sauce. The beurre monte added a final richness to the bowl of pasta.

Years Past

October 8, 2012

October 8, 2011

October 8, 2005

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 08, 2018 at 05:13 PM in American Noodles, Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes | Permalink | Comments (0)

Jalapeno Noodles with Pistachio, Cabbage and Mortadella Sauce

I made jalapeno noodles. They have become a regular addition to my noodle making repertoire. The intensity of the jalapenos acts as a flavorful foil for rich sauces. I started the sauce with cabbage, soffrito and minced mortadella. I made a pistachio stock with salt roasted pistachios, water and soy sauce. I pureed them together and strained the mixture. The result was an intense pistachio stock. I added it to the soffrito and cooked the ingredients together until the cabbage was tender. I finished the sauce with a spoonful of prepared horseradish. I cooked the noodles and glazed them in the sauce. I finished the bowls of noodles with grated salt roasted pistachios.

Years Past

October 7, 2015

October 7, 2012

October 7, 2011

October 7, 2005

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 07, 2018 at 04:05 PM in American Noodles, Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes | Permalink | Comments (0)

Flavoring Noodles

We recently made 4 flavored pastas: jalapeno, yellow mustard, Frank's hot sauce and horseradish. The flavor must be at least three times as intense as the desired end result. The flavor is diluted three times in the noodle process: in the making, the cooking, and the saucing. By making sure the initial flavor is overly assertive the final flavor becomes a delicious element in the final dish.

Years Past

October 6, 2015

October 6, 2012

October 6, 2011

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 06, 2018 at 05:10 PM in American Noodles, Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes, CULINARY EVOLUTIONS | Permalink | Comments (0)

Life and Death and Little Bit of Humor

A little perspective from Emily Levine.

Years Past

October 5, 2015

October 5, 2012

October 5, 2005

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 05, 2018 at 05:58 PM | Permalink | Comments (0)

Pizza Dough Dumplings

I spent yesterday making and sharing noodles. At one point I borrowed a pizza dough, cut it up and put it in the pasta boiler. The dough cooked up into a tender, plump dumplings. Are pizza dough dumplings necessary? Probably not. But they show potential worth exploring in texture, flavor and as a creative canvas.

Years Past

October 4, 2015

October 4, 2012

October 4, 2008

October 4, 2005

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 04, 2018 at 08:09 PM in Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes | Permalink | Comments (1)

Buttermilk Bolognese With Burrata

Our latest obsession is burrata on top of pasta. We've found these smaller balls of cheese that are perfect for single servings. When you break it open over a hot bowl of rigatoni with buttermilk bolognese, you get this wonderful melding of textures and flavors: creamy and chewy, hot and cold, soft and firm. It's the perfect opportunity to play with your food.

Years Past

October 3, 2015

October 3, 2012

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 03, 2018 at 12:40 PM in Approach to Cooking, At the Table | Permalink | Comments (0)

Monte Madness

I prepared 4 bulletproof beurre montes for pasta-fest tomorrow at the Pizza and Pasta Expo. I am fortunate to be making and cooking in the Arcobaleno booth. I will be serving an array of noodles in the style of those we have made for American Noodles. The monte flavors are: original, Frank's Hot Sauce, jalapeno-soy, and farro-miso. They bring flavor, fat and function to a la minute pasta making. Stay tuned for the rest of the dishes.

Years Past

October 2, 2015

October 2, 2012

Ideas in Food: Great Recipes and Why They Work

Maximum Flavor: Recipes That Will Change the Way You Cook

Gluten Free Flour Power: Bringing Your Favorite Foods Back to the Table

Posted on October 02, 2018 at 04:04 PM in American Noodles, Approach to Cooking, Balancing Tastes, CULINARY EVOLUTIONS | Permalink | Comments (0)

Kielbasa Sausage

Salumi soffritos have been an essential element in our pasta preparations. Over the years we have used salumi as an ingredient. I finally integrated the cured meat into a fresh sausage. I am working on a few varieties. The first is kielbasa sausage. The cured, smoked and cooked sausage is a flavorful inclusion to the pork shoulder. The end result is the best of both ideas: fresh and cured.