Saturday, February 28, 2015

A Surfeit of Burgundies


For decades Dr. Hal has frequently declared, "My wife only drinks good Burgundies." He's got that right, but the truth of the matter is that his dictum applies to food as well as wine. And so, a recent craving for gooey, cheesy gougeres led me to a most pleasant imaginary sojourn in the province of Bourgogne which resulted in a somewhat extravagant dinner in the Burgundian style accompanied by a pair of outstanding vintage wines from the wine cellar that's really a walk-in temperature controlled insulated plywood box in the garage.

I have been to Burgundy twice, the first time on a wonderful bike trip circa 1979, and the second time on my first "grandes vacances" with Dr. Hal in 1989. Needless to say, I'm ready to go back any time! While the basic bones of Burgundy, the hills and vineyards, look very much like the Napa valley, only in Burgundy do you turn a corner to encounter a medieval chateau (real not faux) or a priceless Northern Renaissance altarpiece tucked away in an old hospital. But at the moment I was just touring inside my head, and it was time to hit the road!

My first stop on this culinary journey was a 1957 guide to the foods of France- Bouquet de France: An Epicurian Tour of the French Provinces authored by the founder and long-time editor-in-chief of Gourmet magazine, Samuel Chamberlain. Mr. Chamberlain also illustrated this impressive tome, which I picked up in Caliban's, a used bookstore in Pittsburgh. It once belonged to a lady named Joan M. Kaplan, whose name is stamped on the cover in gold. Mrs. Kaplan, wherever you may be, please know that your book has found a happy home! While I thoroughly enjoyed reading about the fantastic meals awaiting anyone touring Burgundy by car (I imagine a sporty little two seater roadster), the recipes were not too appealing.

So, I moved on to Mireille Johnston's The Cuisine of the Rose: Classical French Cooking from Burgundy and Lyonnais (1982). I considered attempting some classic Burgundian dishes- Escargots Bourguignonne ( I don't think so!), Jambon Persille, Coeurs a la Creme, Coq au Vin. Thinking about these recipes helped shape my preliminary menu, but with a vegan dinner guest coming, I had to move away from the preponderance of butter, cream, and cheese which seemed to be listed as ingredients for every recipe. As Dr. Hal volunteered to devise his own Boeuf Bourguignon, I was left to round out the meal to my own, and our vegan guest's satisfaction.

The results of further rifling through my collection of French cookbooks was this
Menu -
Les Gougères
Grill-Braised Boeuf Bourguignon
Potatoes Savoyarde
Beans Maitre d'Hotel
Salade au Chou
Mousse Au Chocolate
Wines-
- 1999 Vincent Girardin Corton-Charlemagne Grand Cru, Cote de Beaune (white)
The white was really very good, even after 14 years.
- 1997 Domaine Chandon de Briailles Corton-Bressandes Grand Cru, Cote de Beaune (red)
The red, while good, had faded some and would have been better a few years ago.
Sadly, both of these are now really too expensive to contemplate purchasing, the curse of very small production and a worldwide market. (Commentary by Dr. Hal)

Les Gougères
I can remember the first time I ever ate a gougere. It was from a bakery in Beaune, as big as my fist, crisp and brown on the outside, unctuously egg-y and cheese-y within.

1 1/2 c. whole milk + 1/4 c. for brushing the puff tops
1/2 c. butter
1 1/3 c. flour salt
Tabasco
pinch nutmeg
6 eggs
1 Tb Dijon mustard
2 1/2 c. coarsely grated Swiss (i.e. gruyere) cheese

Preheat the oven to 425°.

Heat the milk and butter together until the butter is melted. Remove from the heat and add the flour all at once. Cook for about 2 minutes – until the mixture forms a ball and comes away from the sides of the pan.

Off the heat, beat in the salt, a few drops of Tabasco and the nutmeg. Beat in the eggs two at a time, making sure each two are completely blended before added the next ones. Stir in two cups of the cheese and the mustard.

Butter a cookie sheet or line it with parchment paper. Form heaping teaspoonsful of dough about 3 inches apart. Brush the tops with milk and put a bit of grated cheese on top.

Bake about 20 minutes, do not open the oven door during this time. They are done when they look puffed and golden brown. Serve warm. Makes about 30 puffs.

Grill-Braised Boeuf Bourguignon a la Dr. Hal
In the first French Chef episode, circa 1963, Julia Child makes a Boeuf Bourguignon, and you may recall that it is featured as a daunting recipe in the movie Julie and Julia.  Boeuf Bourguignon is actually a pretty simple recipe- you brown the beef, braise it in red wine, add onions and mushrooms, thicken the sauce, and serve.

It seemed like another candidate for the grill-braised approach, which I have written about for short ribs.  The idea is to grill the meat first over high heat, giving it a serious browning without added fat.  next the meat is braised in a covered BBQ, oven, or on the stovetop, the sauce is thickened, accompaniments are added, and it is then served.

The French Chef recipe uses salt pork or bacon for lardons in the stew.  They are rendered first and their fat is used to brown the meat.  The grilling does not require additional fat, but some pork product is needed to enrich the flavor.  A  smoked pork chop,weighing about ½ lb, makes a fine substitution.  Though smoked, the flavor is very subtle and does not overwhelm the recipe.  The original recipe also calls for 18-24 small fresh white onions, which must be individually peeled.  This is by far the most tedious aspect of the recipe and is replaced here by frozen onions, which are great.

While certainly in Burgundy a Pinot Noir would be used for the cooking wine, I don’t think this is the best choice, as a suitably hearty Pinot would be quite expensive.  An alternative choice would be a fairly big Zinfandel or something in the Rhone wine family, a Syrah or Grenache based wine.  This matches better to the heartier flavors from the grilling and they are not priced as dearly.

Thus we have for the meats:
½ lb smoked pork chop
3 lbs boneless beef chuck
¾ bottle of hearty red wine
1 can beef broth
1 ½ Tb tomato paste
3 cloves mashed garlic
1 bay leaf
½ tsp thyme
salt and pepper

Cut the beef chuck into strips about 1.5” wide and 1-1.5”thick.  These will be grilled then cut into individual chunks for the stew.  Try to make the cuts when possible along the natural edges of the muscle, and cut away any extra fat or silver skin.  Salt and pepper the meat and grill it  over high heat for a couple of minutes on each side, or until the surface is significantly browned.  Try to brown as many sides as possible.  When done, transfer the meat to a cutting board and finish cutting it into individual chunks, around 1-1.5”.

Cut the pork off the bone into lardons about ¾ -1” long by ¼”x ¼”.  Brown these using a bit of oil in the pot that is going to be used to braise the stew, I use a large cast iron pot, but any heavy covered casserole, large enough to hold the ingredients, will be fine.  I suspect that an enameled pot is probably traditional.

Add the grilled meat, the wine (about ¾ of a bottle or so, leave yourself a glass), and the other ingredients to the pot.  The idea is to have the combined braising liquid to almost cover the meat.  Bring the stew to a simmer on the stovetop. It can then be cooked on top of the stove over low heat or in the oven at 325 degrees for 2-3 hours, until the meat is very tender but not completely falling apart.  The temperature needs to be regulated so that the braising liquid is just at a moderate simmer, with some steam bubbles evident.

Preparing the onions and mushrooms.
1 lb white mushrooms
½ Tb olive oil
1 ½ Tb butter
¼ tsp salt

1 package (14 oz) frozen small onions
1 Tb butter
about 3 Tb water
½ tsp salt

Clean and cut the mushrooms into halves or quarters depending on their size.  Heat the butter and oil in a large sauté pan until the butter begins to stop foaming, then add the mushrooms and salt.  Continue over medium high heat until the mushrooms are browned and most of the moisture has evaporated.  Set aside.

Put the frozen onions, along with the butter and water, in a sauté pan and heat until boiling.  Cover the pan so that the onions can steam until mostly thawed, about 3-4 minutes.  Remove the cover and let the remaining water evaporate, then continue sautéing over medium heat until the onions start to brown, about another 5-10 minutes total.  Set aside.

When the meat is done, remove it to a separate bowl.  If there is a significant amount of extra fat in the broth, it can be skimmed off, but this is not really necessary.  If there seems to be too much liquid and its flavor seems thin, it can be reduced over medium high heat to make a richer sauce.  If there seems to be too little liquid, extra beef stock can be added.
Boeuf Bourguignon components- onions, meat, sauce & mushrooms
Thickening the sauce.
3 Tb butter
3 Tb flour

Cream the butter and flour together in a small bowl with a rubber spatula or a fork.  Heat just the braising liquid in the pot to the simmer.  Whisk a few spoonfuls of hot braising liquid into the butter-flour paste until all lumps are gone, then gradually add the mixture to the pot of braising liquid.  Whisk the sauce until the thickener is fully combined and the sauce has thickened.  Add the meat, onions, and mushrooms and bring the stew back to the simmer, stirring occasionally. Correct the seasoning, adding salt and pepper to taste.

The stew is ready to serve or it can be reheated later.  It can also be cooled, refrigerated and reheated in a day or two with no ill effects.  It can also be eaten cold from the refrigerator for breakfast, again with no ill effects.

Vegan-esque Stove-Top Potatoes Savoyarde
Adapted from The Way to Cook by Julia Child
I've had bad luck with these layered potato gratins- even when I parboiled the potatoes in advance my gratins always seemed to end up soupy and raw. This delicious specimen turned out to be an exception to the rule, it was perfect!. To please our vegan dinner companion I used olive oil, vegetable broth, and left his portion sans cheese. Made me feel like a chef reborn!

3 cups thinly sliced onions
2 Tb olive oil
2 1/2 lbs. boiling potatoes
2 cups vegetable broth
big pinch of dried herbs de provence or a mixture of dried basil, thyme, and oregano
1 large clove of garlic, pureed
Optional: 1 1/2 cups grated Swiss cheese

Over medium heat saute the onions in the olive oil in a non-stick frying pan large enough to ultimately hold all the onions and potatoes. Stir occasionally and cook until they are limp and tender, about 10 minutes or so. Remove the onions to a bowl.

While the onions are cooking, peel the potatoes and cut them into slices 1/8" thick. To avoid brown ugly potatoes, drop the slices into a bowl of cold water as you do them.

Add one cup of vegetable broth, the dried herbs, and the pureed garlic to the frying pan and bring it to a boil. Add the potatoes and onions, making rough layers as you do. Season well with salt and pepper and add enough broth to come two thirds of the way up the potatoes-onion mixture. Cover the pan and simmer for 15-20 minutes, watching to make sure that the liquid doesn't boil over, or until the potatoes are tender and the broth is almost all absorbed.

Just before serving, reheat the potatoes on medium-low and sprinkle some or all of the top with the Swiss cheese. Put the pan under the broiler, about 4-5 inches from the element, and broil until the cheese is nicely browned.
Serves 6

Beans Maitre d'Hotel
You can make this tasty bean dish with your own home cooked or canned beans. I had some exotic Rancho Gordo "Vallarta" beans festering in the cupboard that were begging to be cooked. Described as "Super rich heirloom bean originally from Jalisco, Mexico, now a favorite among Napa's best chefs." You could use any bean that you have festering - Julia C. suggests black beans, Great Northerns, navy beans, cannellini, pinto, etc. Find detailed instructions for cooking beans in my post Cassoulet & Company.

3 cups cooked beans or two cans of your beans of choice
2 large cloves of garlic, pureed
3 Tb olive oil
1/4 - 1/2 tsp fresh lemon juice
handful of fresh chopped parsley and/or other green herbs (basil, oregano, thyme)
salt & pepper

If using canned beans, drain them in a colander, rinse with hot water, and drain. Briefly saute the garlic in the olive oil in a saucepan. Fold in the beans, let them heat through, and gently stir in the lemon juice and salt and pepper to taste. Just before serving toss in the chopped parsley or herb mixture. Serves 4-6.
Salade au Chou
An improvised mix of Napa cabbage, Japanese watermelon radishes, roasted cauliflower, and Dijon mustard vinaigrette
Mousse Au Chocolate Ambassade d'Auvergne
Adapted from Bistro Cooking by Patricia Wells.                                                                                   The Ambassade d'Auvergne is an old time Paris restaurant that specializes in the cuisine of it's namesake region, the Auvergne, which is located to the southwest of Burgundy. Pardon the liberty taken here, but this mousse is like eating the world's most delicious chocolate bar, but even better, because it's nice and creamy too. I was trepidatious about adding the orange liqueur because I don't like my chocolate flavors interfered with, but found that the small amount of liqueur served to intensify them without tasting "orange-y."

8 oz. bittersweet good quality chocolate (Lindt, etc.), broken into pieces
3 Tb orange liqueur (Grand Marnièr or Cointreau)
2 tsp. vanilla extract
8 Tb (4 oz) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
8 large egg yolks
1/2 c. sugar
5 large egg whites

Place the chocolate, orange liqueur, and vanilla in the top of a double boiler over simmering water. Stir until melted. Remove from the heat and stir in the butter, and allow to cool until lukewarm. The mixture may seem to "seize up" at the beginning, but will smooth out as you continue to mix the butter in.
Love that ribbon!
Combine the egg yolks and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer and beat, gradually increasing the mixer speed to medium high, until thick and pale yellow, and form the "ribbon." (Whites are stiff enough to make a ribbon trail from the beater that holds its shape.- See photograph.) Be patient, this can take a while. Next beat in the chocolate mixture while it is still warm. If necessary (only one mixer bowl), transfer the chocolate-egg yolk mixture to a large mixing bowl.

Wash and dry the stand mixer bowl until totally clean and dry, otherwise the egg whites won't whip properly. Place the egg whites in the clean mixer bowl. Beat the whites until they are stiff but not dry.

Stir one-third of the beaten egg whites into the chocolate mixture to lighten it. Gently fold in the remaining egg whites. Do this slowly and patiently. Do not overmix, but be sure that the mixture is well blended.

Pour the mousse into a large serving bowl (1 1/2-2 quart capacity). A plain white soufflé dish looks "very French." Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate the mousse for at least 6 hours before serving. Makes 8-10 servings.

Sunday, February 8, 2015

The Hunt For Jewish Food: SF Bay Area

The Zaslavsky family in Philadelphia c. 1915. My grandmother is the little girl on the left.
I have been drawn out of my blog posting lethargy by a recent bout of food sleuthing. Tasked (by myself) with producing a mini bar-mitzvah buffet extravaganza for my mother's extended family in Modesto, I was soon on the hunt for local sources for Jewish & Yiddish foods. The occasion was a reception in honor of the publication of the McHenry Museum and Historical Society Stanislaus Stepping Stones magazine issue dedicated to the history of my mother's family, the Zeff nee Zaslavsky clan who have lived in Modesto since about 1918.

My grandmother was the second of nine children, and the colorful, larger than life stories of her and her siblings were the stuff of my childhood- there was my grandmother, who never learned to drive after a mishap in the 1930's when she took husband Sidney's car out unaccompanied and ended up crashing through the front window of the ice cream shop four blocks down the street. Maurice, the surgeon, who met his wife Margaret, also a physician, when he was a patient at UCSF with a grievous back infection (before antibiotics) and she was the resident who took care of him. Uncle Willie, the Superior Court judge and friend of Earl Warren who married us. Aunt Sue, the aspiring actress who made Tallulah Bankhead jealous during an audition and forgot her cancan panties the day that the family came to watch her perform in the Cavalcade of the Americas at the 1939 World's Fair in San Francisco.  Uncle Sam, her twin, who used to dance up the wall shouting "Look everybody, I'm Fred Astaire!" Uncle Babe, war hero, successful businessman and my father's golf buddy. Sadly, I never knew my great grandmother Pesse, who was the light of my mother's life. She passed away in 1942 from an adverse reaction to anesthesia during surgery.
My great grandfather Ben Zeff, his second wife Vally, and most of their children and grandchildren.
Sophisticated as the foodie scene may be around here, the Bay Area, unfortunately is known for its dearth of delis. So, it is with great pleasure that I share my menu, the sources that I discovered, and a few Zeff family recipes.

Best Sources:
Corned Beef, Pastrami, Corn Rye Bread, Chocolate Babka: 
Wise Sons Deli   3150 24th Street, San Francisco, CA 94110  (415) 787-3354
Runner-up: Corn Rye & Chocolate Babka-
Your local Trader Joe's, believe it or not! Know that the Chocolate Babka is stocked seasonally.                                                                      
Smoked Salmon:
Bi-Rite Market   3639 18th St,  San Francisco, CA 94110-1531  (415) 241-9760; 2nd location- 550 Divisadero St., SF (415) 551-7900
Salmon is cold smoked in-house
Runner-up:
Spence & Co. Nova Lox at your neighborhood Whole Foods.
Kosher Salami:
Hebrew National at Draeger's Markets (San Mateo, Menlo Park, Los Altos & Danville)
Smoked Turkey, Pickled Herring, & German-style mustards:
Dittmer's Gourmet Meats & Wurst-Haus   4540 El Camino Real, Los Altos, CA 94022,
(650) 941-3800 Don't get all excited when you see their corned beef and pastrami; it's made from top round and is way too lean! And make them slice the turkey for you fresh.
Runner-up: Pickled Herring- Blue Hill bay brand on sale in 26 oz. jars at Costco
I was able to order challah and bagels from these sources through my local grocery store which was much appreciated, as it cut down on the last minute running around.
Challah:
Esther's German Bakery  987 N. San Antonio Rd., Los Altos, CA 94022  (650) 941-4463
Esther's also delivers to groceries in San Francisco and on the Peninsula, and sells at local farmers markets, listed on her webpage.
Bagels:
House of Bagels   5030 Geary Blvd., San Francisco, Ca (415) 752-6000
Also House of Bagels-Mountain View located at 1712-D Miramonte Ave, Mountain View, CA, 94040 (650) 694-4888
These bagels have that tough water bagel crust and a soft interior, delicious with cream cheese!
Izzy's Brooklyn Bagels   477 S. California Ave., Palo Alto, CA 94306  (650) 329-0700
Izzy's bagels have a softer and squishier exterior. Best fresh from the oven!
Overall, best stocked Kosher foods department:
Mollie Stone's Markets (Nine locations in Marin, San Francisco & on the Peninsula)
Fresh matzo, frozen chicken schmaltz(!), Kosher meats, chocolates, etc. etc. Where Bay Area families who actually keep kosher shop.

The buffet table
Recipes
To delve further into the history and many delights of Jewish cuisine, consult The Book of Jewish Food by Claudia Roden, winner of the James Beard Foundation Cookbook of the Year award. So fun to look up a recipe and read that your mother's version is "Ukrainian style," which was exactly where the family emigrated from.

Jewish Chopped Liver
You either love it or you hate it. I hadn't cooked chicken livers in over twenty years and found them to be a little disgusting, but the results won raves from happy eaters.

3-4 hardboiled eggs, peeled and chopped
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup rendered chicken fat (schmaltz) (See Note)
1 onion, finely chopped
1 pound chicken livers, trimmed
1 cup flour
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Matzo, for serving

In a very large skillet, melt the butter and 1/4 cup of the chicken fat. Add the onion and cook over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened and just starting to brown, about 10 minutes.

Wash the liver, drain well, and pat dry on paper towels. Combine the salt and pepper with the flour in a pie plate. Dredge the livers in the flour mixture and add them to the skillet. Cook over moderately high heat, turning occasionally, until barely pink inside, but crusty on the outside, about 8 minutes.

Put the hardboiled eggs in the bowl of a food process and process until crumbly and put them in a medium-size mixing bowl. (You can also hand chop them.) Scrape the livers into the bowl of the food processor and let cool slightly.  Pulse until the livers are finely chopped but not completely smooth. Add the remaining 1/4 cup of chicken fat and pulse to combine. Season to taste with more with salt and pepper.

Transfer the chicken liver to the bowl with the eggs and gently stir together. Taste again for salt and pepper. Press plastic wrap onto the surface and refrigerate until chilled, about 45 minutes. Serve with the matzo.

Chicken Schmaltz
Trim the raw chicken skin and fat from chickens before roasting and save it in the freezer until there is enough to render.

Put the fat and a little water in a small saucepan and cook slowly (1 ½-2 hours, depending on the quantity). Throw in a sliced onion and cook the schmaltz until the onion and cracklings are light brown. Cool the schmaltz and then strain it into a jar while it is still liquid.

Sourcing schmaltz: You can buy commercially made chicken schmaltz at stores that carry Jewish and Kosher foods. In the Bay Area you will find it in the freezer section of Mollie Stone’s Markets.

Pickled Herring in Sour Cream
Not my favorite, but they were swiping the bowl clean! Excellent on corn rye.

2 12-oz. jars pickled herring, either whole fillets or in chunks
2 cups sour cream
1 red onion, thinly sliced
Pepper, to taste

Drain the pickled herring in a colander. Place it in a bowl and stir in the sour cream and onion. Add black pepper to taste. Refrigerate for a few hours to allow the flavors to blend. Makes 4 cups.
The dessert table: kugel, mandelbrot, babka, nut strudels, and honey cake.
Lokshen (Noodle) Kugel

12 oz. wide egg noodles, parboiled (slightly undercooked, 5-7 minutes) and drained
1 cup large curd cottage cheese, full fat (if you can find it; otherwise use farmer's cheese or full fat small curd cottage cheese)
1/3 cup sugar
4 Tb salted butter, melted, plus more for greasing the baking dish
4-6  eggs, well beaten
1 tsp.vanilla
1-2 tsp. cinnamon
¼ cup white raisins

Preheat oven to 375°F.

Mix all the ingredients together and bake in a well buttered baking pan. (You can use any size pan as long as the pudding is at least 2 “ high.)

Bake the kugel for about 45-50 minutes or until it is lightly browned on top.


Mandelbrodt 
Jewish biscotti! To minimize crumbling, slice the long loaves into individual cookies while they are still warm. These taste sort of lousy until they have had their second baking.


3 eggs
1 c. sugar
½ c. salad oil
½ c. (or more) toasted almonds, coarsely chopped
½ t. vanilla
3 c. flour
2 ½ t baking powder
whole raw almonds

Beat the eggs, add the sugar, and then the oil. Mix in the chopped almonds. Sift the dry ingredients together, and add them to the egg mixture. The dough should be wet, but firm enough to form loaves. (Add a little additional flour, if needed.)

With floured hands, form three long narrow loaves (1 ½’ high x 2 ½” wide) 2” apart on greased cookie sheets.  Push raw whole almonds, with points parallel to the width, into the dough at 1” intervals.

Bake in a 350° oven for 25-30 minutes, or until lightly brown on the edges. Immediately cut into 1” wide slices by cutting between the almonds on top. Turn the cookies on their sides, and return to the oven and bake again until lightly browned, another 20-25 minutes. Makes 3-4 dozen cookies.