You see before you the last remnants of my summer garden. Red peppers. Tomatoes. Basil. Soon the trees will be naked, and conversely, I will be buried under layers of clothing, cold weather wimp that I am. But never mind winter. For now, we still have these bright and fresh reminders of summer, three amazingly simple and incredibly delicious pestos that you can use to dress pasta, rice, grilled meats, crostini, sandwiches, cheese hunks or hell, just lick it off the spoon for a while, like I did, muttering, “mmm, so good, wow…amazing…mmm…”

And speaking of the tastes of summer, I am doing my first wine pairing here, thanks to my good friend Tanya Tuccillo, whose wildly successful Wired For Wine website keeps me well-stocked with an amazing variety of top-rated wines. WFW sends you “one incredible deal each day, until it sells out” with a “lowest price guarantee”. I love having wines, researched and recommended by someone with impeccable taste (Tanya and her right-hand sommelier) delivered to my door, free shipping and all!

We are “pairing” up to give you a lovely wine that would be just the thing to sip while you are making these pestos, or eating them or both! So print out the recipes, go to Wired For Wine and order this Wither Hills Marlborough Sauvignon Blanc 2010 from New Zealand described by the vintner as “intense gooseberry, tomato leaf, fresh cut fennel and red capsicum characters underpinned by the classically pungent melon, guava and passion fruit aromatics, immediately fill the senses.” If that’s not perfect for my pestos, I don’t know what is! So finish reading, print out these recipes, then click over to Wired For Wine to get this not-to-be-missed wine (at a very reasonable price, I might add.) You’ll make the pestos, the wine will arrive and you will be very happy you did.

Just a few more words about the pestos. They are not your run of the mill pestos. Roasted red peppers with almonds, shallots, marjoram, pine nuts. Basil with lemon and olives. Fresh tomato and dried tomato with capers and parmesan. So simple, but you will not believe how delicious. The recipes appeared in one of my favorite magazines, La Cucina Italiana in the August 2011 issue. My photo of the three pesto-laden spoons is an homage to Sarah Anne Ward’s much better photo in the magazine. I knew the minute I read the recipes I had to make them, and share them with you. Happily, I managed to get a bunch of small containers filled with these in my freezer before I ate all of it, and will be enjoying them in December or January and wishing for summer to roll around again. And don’t forget to get Wired For Wine!

NOTE: The roasted peppers called for in the Red Pepper Pesto can be roasted on the stove top as directed, or do as I do and roast them on the outdoor grill. They can be done in the oven too…split in half, skin side up on a sheet pan, at 400 degrees. Keep an eye on them so they char but don’t burn. Here’s mine on the grill.

NOTE ABOUT ADDING TO PASTA: Cook pasta as directed on package, then reserve a cup of the pasta water before draining. Return the drained pasta to the pot, over medium-low heat,  add a generous amount of the pesto and enough of the pasta water to help the pesto coat and spread well. Remove from heat after a minute of so. Add any additional cheese, mix well and serve!

Three Pestos
adapted from La Cucina Italiana, August 2011 

Red Pepper Pesto
makes 2 cups

INGREDIENTS

2 red bell peppers
3/4 cup sliced almonds
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup fresh marjoram (or dried if you can’t find fresh)
2 tablespoons pine nuts (I used walnuts because of an allergy to pine nuts, I’m allergic to the price!)
2 tablespoons minced shallot (or onions in a pinch)
1/2 teaspoon salt, freshly ground black pepper

PROCEDURE

1. Char peppers over a gas burner set on high, turning frequently, until skin is blackened and blistered on all sides. (or roast in oven or out on the grill.) Transfer peppers to a bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap; let stand for 15 minutes.

2. Remove peppers from bowl, rub skin off peppers, rinsing your hands, but not the peppers, under cool water as you go. Remove and discard core and seeds, then cut peppers in thirds to make blending easier.

3. In a blender, or food processor, puree all the ingredients, including the roasted peppers, salt and a generous pinch of black pepper, until smooth.

Lemon, Basil and Olive Pesto
makes 1 cup

INGREDIENTS

1 lemon
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups packed fresh basil leaves
1/2 cup pitted calamata olives
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

PROCEDURE

1. Using a microplane or other fine grating tool, zest the lemon. Blend the oil, the zest and the juice of the lemon until it emulsifies. Add the basil, olive, 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt and generous pinch of pepper. Blend until smooth. (Pesto will be on the thin side.)

Two Tomato Pesto
makes 2 1/4 cups

INGREDIENTS

1 cup drained oil-packed sun-dried tomatoes (8.5 oz jar)
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon capers, drained and rinsed
1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes (I used whole tomatoes…that’s what I had on hand)
3 tablespoons freshly ground Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano cheese
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
1 tablespoon finely chipped fresh chives (optional)

PROCEDURE

1. In a blender, or food processor, puree dried tomatoes, oil and capers until well combined. Add fresh tomatoes and puree until smooth, adding 1-2 tablespoons warm water and stopping machine to stir, if necessary, to help blend. Transfer pesto to a bowl and stir in cheese and chives.

In Yiddish, or more accurately Yinglish, (a blend of old world and new), the word Tzimmes means “to make a fuss.” As in, “why are you making such a tzimmes over nothing!” A phrase that will prove to be a very handy comeback when dealing with my 15-year old daughter. I can see using it daily. So this dish, Tzimmes, a traditional favorite for Rosh Hashanna, is really simple, but a little bit of a fuss because of the prep. Carrots, turnips, parsnips, and in this case, butternut squash need to be peeled, sectioned and cut into cubes. Laced with honey, dried fruits and spices it is a culinary hope for a sweet and satisfying year ahead. I’m bringing it to our extended family gathering for the holiday.

I cheated a little by using “baby” carrots, which we know are not really baby carrots but just ugly carrots that get whittled down by machine to look like cute babies. Vegetal cosmetic surgery. So I didn’t have to peel those. OK…I bought the butternut squash already peeled too. It was there, right next to the whole squash, it was peeled, I was in a hurry to get it done for tonight, so I justified it. So, my Tzimmes is already not turning out to be so fussy. (and my writing is starting to have a Jewish accent! OY!)

I added raisins, dried cranberries, dried apricots and crystalized ginger. Not much fuss there.

Cinnamon, fresh nutmeg, cumin, salt…

and honey, a good amount of honey (please…I need a good year….you know, good health, a strong heart,  6 matching numbers in the Mega Millions…)

Some traditional recipes I’ve seen call for simmering this low and slow on the stovetop, making a kind of mushy, color faded stew. It could be why I was never a big fan of the dish. I roasted them in my clay roasting pan instead, but any roasting pan will do. Before I put it in the oven I added some chicken broth and orange juice, coating the mix and giving it some liquid to steam up through it during roasting. The veggies stay nice and moist that way, not to mention that added glaze from the reduced stock and juice. And don’t forget the honey. For a sweet, sweet New Year.

PS…it’s an amazing addition to any fall, or holiday meal, add yams for Thanksgiving….(it’s really not that much of a fuss, and it’s worth it!)

Roasted Root Vegetable Tzimmes

serves 8-10

INGREDIENTS

1 16-oz bag of baby carrots, cut lengthwise, in half
3 medium parsnips, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
2 medium purple top turnip, peeled and cut into 1 inch cubes
1 butternut squash, peeled, seeded, and cut into 1 inch cubes
1/2 cup raisins
1/2 cup dried cranberries
6-8 dried apricots, diced
3-4 pieces of crystalized ginger, finely diced
1 1/2 – 2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 tablespoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground whole nutmeg (if available, if not use already ground)
1 teaspoon orange zest (optional as garnish)
Juice of one orange (or 1/2 cup store-bought)
1/2 cup honey
1/3 cup chicken stock
1 teaspoon kosher salt (or more to taste after roasting)

PROCEDURE

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Prep all ingredients as specified (this is the fuss part.)

2. Combine everything in on large roasting pan, including fruit, seasoning, spices and liquid. Cover tightly with snugly fitting lid or aluminum foil. This will allow the vegetables to steam and par cook. (this is the no fuss part.)

3. Roast for 25 minutes covered. Remove cover, gently toss vegetables to recoat in liquid. Roast for another 20 minutes or until vegetables are nicely glazed and lightly browned. Garnish with zest of one orange (optional).

You can also find this recipe posted on relish.com

For one thing, this dish is not photogenic. Fennel, shrimp, white beans…all in the white/beige family…don’t exactly pop for the camera. But, oh how they do pop on the palate! For another, this comes together so easily and so fast that I may have just gotten too excited about eating to take many photos.

Have you ever wondered about the moment in history, the “Clan of the Cave Bears” moment when some person somewhere saw this ugly root thing and figured out how to make it into this:

“The Clan of the what?” you are asking if you are under 45, but not to worry, here’s the cheat sheet: the Clan books were a series of novels about prehistoric times, in which the heroine always seems to be on the scene exactly when major breakthroughs for humanity, like the wheel, or cutting your toe nails, are suddenly made.  So, I’m wondering about that moment when carmelizing lowly roots into heavenly, sweet, melty magnificence was conceived. Surely there was an angels chorus–a bolt of lightning–sacrifices made to the God of Maillard Reactions, (formerly known as BRAHW-NING),…but really, who cares? It’s magic as far as I’m concerned, and I’m grateful to those ancients who risked there lives ingesting weird and possibly poisonous roots, and playing with fire, so that I could know how it’s done.

And the patient caramelization of the fennel is the longest part of this recipe…maybe 10 minutes. The rest of the ingredients spend a fleeting time in the pan, and before you know it, you are pulling your browned crostini slices out of the oven, piling a spoonful of this, simple-yet-complex-in-flavor mixture on each one. and serving a warm, hearty, delicious appetizer or light supper. Or, you can toss this with a pasta shape that will cradle the juices into your mouth, like a cavatelle, fusilli, or orecchiette. (See notes below for adding to pasta) Or, if you don’t want any carbs or grains (gluten intolerant or just dieting) you can eat this all by itself as a satisfying one-pan meal. Cave person or not, you’ll be glad you discovered it!

Shrimp, Fennel, White Bean & Arugula Crostini
Serves 4-6

INGREDIENTS

Thinly sliced Ciabatta bread or baguette
4 T. extra virgin olive oil (high quality, fruity, dark)
1 medium fennel bulb, thinly sliced
2-4 large cloves garlic, pressed or minced
1 pound, shelled and deveined shrimp, raw (jumbo/14-16 count/lb)
1 cup rinsed cannelloni beans (or other white beans)
1 heaping cup of baby arugula ( or more if you like)
1/2 C. white wine
2 teaspoons Kosher salt, zest of one small lemon, pepper, fennel fronds (the leaves off the tops of the fennel bulbs..kind of look like dill)

PROCEDURE

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Spread the slices of bread on a baking sheet. Place 1-2 tablespoons. olive oil in a small bowl and snip some fennel fronds into the oil, crusing them lightly with a fork to impart their flavor to the oil. Using a pastry brush or teaspoon spread the oil across the top of each slice. Lightly toast in oven, approximately 8 minutes, watching closely. They will seem like they are not toasting, then when you turn your back they will burn! Remove from oven and set aside. (You can quickly reheat the crostini before serving, or toast the crostini closer to serving time, it’s up to you, but they are just fine made ahead and cooled down.)

2. Zest one lemon using microplane. Mix the zest thoroughly with the kosher salt. Cut shrimp into bite-sized pieces, discarding tails. Season with the lemon salt, and freshly ground pepper and toss to coat well.

3. Heat 2 T. olive oil in a large heavy skillet over medium heat. Add the fennel slices in a single layer and cook until lightly golden and slightly softened.

4. Reduce heat setting to low. Add garlic when pan is cooled down. Simmer 30 seconds. Do not let garlic burn. Add shrimp and stir for one minute. Shrimp will cook quickly, turning pink. Before the shrimp is fully cooked add white wine and beans. Turn heat up to medium and stir continuously for another minute or so allowing the wine to bubble and burn off it’s alcohol. Add greens and stir until just wilted. Remove from heat and transfer to a serving bowl.

5. You can serve two ways…in a bowl with crostini on the side and allow guests to make their own crostini…or you can spoon the shrimp mixture directly on to crostini and serve immediately. The mixture serves well at room temperature as well as hot off the stove.

To use as a topping with pasta:

1. prepare your pasta according to package directions, cooking to “al dente” or until the pasta is cooked but still has a “bite” to it, because we are going to continue cooking it for a minute or two with the shrimp mixture and you don’t want too soft pasta.

2. Reserve 1 cup of the pasta water before you drain the pasta. Return drained pasta to the pot, add 1/4 cup of the pasta water (or more as needed), and a teaspoon of olive oil to coat over medium-low heat. Add the shrimp, fennel mixture to the pasta and gently combine with a large spoon or rubber spatuala, taking care not to mush the beans. Do this for about 1-2 minutes over the heat. Remove from heat and serve immediately.

Less than a mile from my house is a farm with a “u-pick-it” peach and apple orchard, and while fruit is all well and fine eaten in it’s raw and natural state, there is just so much a person can take before that person has to get out the flour and the sugar and and the butter and make a pie.

A gallette is the pie version of my personality. Rough edges, not so smooth all the time, or too sweet. Everything about it is sort of spilling out, right in the open, a what-you -see-is-what-you-get kind of pie. It’s not delicate or perfect, but it definitely demands your attention and the simple laid-back exterior doesn’t mean it’s not intense and complex on the inside. Because it is.

Those peaches are not just peaches anymore. They are tossed in brandy and Grand Marnier and fresh thyme and sugar and orange zest and have been soaking that up for 30 minutes or so while I made and chilled the dough.

and rolled it out, even though I could not, for the life of me, find my rolling pin. Improvise!

Then I assemble gallette to look like my desk…controlled chaos.

Fold it over with perfect imperfection and paint with some beaten egg for a shiny finish.

I made two of these, one for us and one to give away. Both of them did not make it to nightfall. They were lustily and happily consumed. No excuses were made for having more than one slice at a sitting.

Vanilla ice cream, or whipped cream, or a dollup of sweetened marscapone cheese would make a slice of this even more perfect in it’s imperfection, but I’ll leave those decisions to be made between you and your waistline.

Peach Gallette
pastry dough recipe adapted from Smitten Kitchen 

INGREDIENTS

For the dough:
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup sugar
16 oz (2 sticks) cold butter, cut into cubes
1/2 cup sour cream
4 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 cup ice water

1 egg, lightly beaten to use as an egg wash

For the filling:
2 pounds or so of peaches (about 3-4 large), pitted and sliced into eight or more segments each.
1/4 cup sugar
1 tablespoon honey or maple syrup (optional)
1 tablespoon brandy
1 tablespoon Grand Marnier (orange liquor, or Triple Sec will do also)
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

PROCEDURE

For the dough:
In the bowl of a food processor combine the flour, salt and sugar by pulsing gently 3-4 pulses. Then add the cold butter and pulse until combined with dry ingredients to make a coarse, pebble-like mixture. Add the sour cream, lemon juice and run processor, slowly adding water as needed until dough comes together into a ball. Do not over work. Stop as soon as it comes together. Scrape the dough together and gently pat it into a ball or disc and wrap in plastic and refrigerate for a minimum of 30 min.

For the filling:
While dough is in the fridge…combine all the filling ingredients in a large bowl, tossing gently to coat the peach segments without breaking them. Allow to mascerate, tossing occassionally to recoat with marinade.

PREHEAT OVEN 375 degrees.

Remove dough from fridge and roll out on a lightly floured surface. Do not over work the dough or allow it to get too warm. Roll to a rough circle or oblong shape. Transfer rolled out dough to a parchment or SiPat lined baking sheet.

Leaving a 2″ wide border of dough all around, place peach segments down around the dough in concentric circles (one circle fitting inside the other) or as close to that as you can get. (see picture in post). When you’ve put in as many peaches as you can fit, fold over the edges of dough to hold in the fruit and create the crust of the gallette.

Paint the crust with a thin but thorough coat of egg wash. You don’t want the egg wash to glop down from the dough on to the sheet pan because this egg will harden during the baking process and can cause the dough to stick to the pan. So if there are gloppy drips of egg wash you may want to wipe them up before placing the gallette in the oven.

Bake the gallette for 30-40 minutes or until the crust is a nice golden brown and the juice from the peaches seems to bubble. Start watching it around 25 minutes to see if it’s done, but don’t rush it..let it get good and browned or else the top will be cooked but the bottom of the dough will be a little raw.

Enjoy!

What’s the best morsel of food you had on a trip? Leave a comment and let me know! Our trip to Europe seems like years, not just weeks ago with the little detour I made to Cardiakastan, that dangerous territory between Stressoslavakia and the Hospitalizacian Sea. This kind of trip produces its own special brand of jet lag involving medication side-effects, fast moving fatigue and panic at every little twinge that occurs above the waist. Since I have always maintained that cooking is a form of meditation for me, as is writing, I find that being in the kitchen and here, with you, is what feels most healing.

In the picture I’m standing on a narrow 11th century street in the gothic district of Barcelona. I can’t explain it, but when I’m around these old buildings, there is a weight I feel, a heartache, when I think of all the lives gone by, the lives lived in such surroundings, the hardships, the brutal history. (Don’t ask how I felt at The Colosseum. Oy!)  I’m not the best traveller, I think my husband would say, because of this. When he sees me begin to feel crushed beneath this way of looking at things, he says I’m “switched” (like I’ve switched out of my body somehow and am floating around somewhere else), and immediately takes me somewhere to sit down and eat. Earth to Rachel!

Which leads me to croquetas. Though they may have their origins in the 11th century (not sure about this or if they did deep frying back then), they do not make me sad. They are delightful, steaming, crusty, tender, silky, satisfying little nuggets of comfort and flavor…a beschamel caught up in a crunchy container. And in Barcelona, no matter where you are, you are within a block of a place that can serve them up, mouth-burningly hot within 90 seconds. On this particular day we were a short walk away from Le Boqueria, off the chaotic tourist mecca Las Ramblas, which is basically a roof hanging over gorgeous stand after stand of the most dizzying variety of tapas and other prepared foods, produce and proteins. Those croquettas pictured above were the lightest, airiest I’ve every tasted and they were laced with salt cod or “baccala” another ubiquitous staple of Spanish cuisine.

Making croquettas are a bit involved because there are a few steps…making the beschamel, then forming the croquettes, then coating each one with egg and breadcrumbs…and there is the frying part that a lot of people don’t like to get into for many reasons..the fat content of the final dish, the odor that frying leaves in the kitchen, etc. But here is what I have to say about all that. Phooey!

For one thing, some dishes are just worth the work (though this is definitely an under 1 hour recipe….even with all the steps). For another, fried, doughy foods should not be eaten everyday, maybe not even once a week if you are watching your weight, or want to be on a heart-healthy diet, but they are the one thing, along with ice cream, I will never completely live without and feel perfectly comfortable having on my “in moderation” or “special occasion” list.

You can make them into little cylanders as I did, or just roll them into little balls, like those we had in Barcelona, for even faster prep time. Set up your flour, egg, breadcrumb station like this (below) and you will be a marvel of efficiency. Note: I used panko breadcrumbs which resulted in a highly textured and crunchy finish, but I might opt for a finer ground breadcrumb next time I do this to achieve the smoother surface found on the ones we ate in Spain. You can use either, or spin the panko in a blender for 15 seconds or so to make them finer…just let me know how they came out!

A great excuse to make these is a party! They make great pass around bites. Or if you are not the one entertaining, bring these as your contribution to someone else’s party. They will be a huge hit amongst the expected three bowls of layered chip dip, or cream cheese roll-up thingies or the dealdy hubcab of frozen shrimp on a plastic tray offering. You can lightly and quickly fry these ahead, (BTW, I set up my deep fryer on the back patio if it’s not raining, or in the garage if it is, to avoid the fry smell in the house), then heat them up in a 350 degree oven for 10 minutes and they will be deliciously, mouth meltingly good to go! All you need is a simple aloli for dipping…close your eyes and think of those old cobbled and narrow streets of Barcelona. On second thought…I better not.

Chicken Croquetas

adapted from Joshua Whigham, Sous Chef at The Bazaar, Los Angeles 

INGREDIENTS

1 stick (4 ounces) unsalted butter
½ Spanish onion, finely chopped (about ½ cup)
1¼ cups all-purpose flour, divided
1½ cup whole milk
6 ounces rotisserie or pre-roasted chicken, cooled and shredded (about 2 cups)
Salt and freshly ground white pepper
1 pinch nutmeg
2 large eggs, beaten
1¼ cup breadcrumbs or panko
a high heat tolerant oil, for frying (grapeseed, canola, safflower…and mix in a little olive oil for flavor if you like.)

PROCEDURE

1. In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onion and cook until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add ¾ cup of flour and stir to blend well. Cook the mixture, stirring frequently, until the flour begins to turn golden and smell toasty, about 5 to 7 minutes. Add the milk in a slow steady stream, whisking continuously.

2. Add the chicken and season to taste with salt, pepper and nutmeg. Stir to combine and cook until the mixture is warmed through and thickens up slightly more, about 2 minutes. Adjust seasoning if needed. Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let the filling cool to room temperature, about 30 minutes.

3. Take a rounded tablespoon of the cooled filling and roll it in your hands to make a small cylinder. Dredge the cylinder in the remaining ½ cup flour, then in the eggs and then in the breadcrumbs. Repeat with the remaining filling.

4. Preheat the oven to 200° and place a wire rack on a rimmed baking sheet. In a 4-quart saucepan, add enough olive oil so that you’re able to completely submerge the croquetas. Heat the oil to 375°. (My trick for knowing the temperature of oil when I don’t have an oil thermometer handy? Throw a kernel of unpopped popcorn in the heating oil. When the kernel “pops” the oil is about 350. Then I turn the heat under the oil down a bit to maintain that temp or a little above to fry whatever I’m frying.) Working in batches, fry the croquetas until golden brown, about 1 minute per batch. Drain on paper towels, then season lightly with salt. Transfer to the prepared baking sheet and place in the oven to keep warm until ready to serve.

About baking them: I know some of you will wonder if the frying step can be avoided all together and these egg-flour-breadcrumb nuggets can be simply baked to a brown and beautiful finish. The answer is: probably, but I didn’t try it. If you want to try it, I would start with a test run of two or three. Gently spray the ready-to-go nuggets with some olive oil on all sides and then bake at 375 until golden brown. You may have to turn them once during the baking process to make sure the bottoms get crispy too.

I look forward to the day when I will be posting short videos of “how to” for each of my recipes, but I don’t know when I’m going to get around to it. So in the meantime here is a great short video of Chef Joshua making these.