First of all, can I just say? Your comments on my last post were awesome. I am so on board for knife-sharpening, pie crust, roast chicken, and everything in between. I simply can’t wait to get started with our kitchen resolutions. Huzzah!

This past Sunday, bubbling with excitement about your responses, I went to the farmers’ market, drumming up some crazy ideas for things to make. Sometimes, when I’m at the farmers’ market, I try to channel Alice Waters. I think about what her trips to the market must be like — lifting fruit close to her face, sniffing for freshness, really getting her nose in there to find that peach that’s just bursting with sweetness, and deciding after her trip what’s on the menu for that night, for the rest of the week. My trips aren’t always as whimsical. Yes, I pick what’s freshest and plan a meal around my purchases — but I’d be lying if I said I hadn’t made the same pearl couscous-mushroom-zucchini-goat cheese dish three weeks in a row. Once I hit a routine that works, I tend to stick with it for a while.

But then it became September. (Um, when? What? I’m getting married in under three weeks. Whoa.) Newly freed from the shackles of nights and weekends at the office, I suddenly realized that tomatoes! and peaches! and corn! are just shy of done for the year. Eek! Better get cookin’.

(...)
Read the rest of Soy-Glazed Baby Eggplant

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2010. | Permalink | 10 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

I don’t know what it is about this place that gets me every time.

Partially, it’s the food. There’s hot, sweet challah in the oven right now, some really beautiful fruit on the counter, and onions and garlic browning on the stove.

It’s also the scenery. It’s 65 degrees, there’s not a cloud in the sky, and the view from our window is enough to make anyone swoon.

It all boils down to this: I’m only here once a year or so, but for some inexplicable reason, Jerusalem feels like a second home. I don’t make itineraries like I do when I’m in other countries; I don’t plan to see special exhibits or even make reservations at fancy restaurants. What’s important to me here is seeing the people I love, soaking in the beautiful weather, eating as much fruit and vegetables as I can get my hands on, and walking around my old neighborhood for as long as my feet will stand. And of course, I’ve got my camera here with me, so I’ll do my best to document my time here and share it with you.

I can promise some really, truly good eats — the kind of local food whose recipes involve measurements by the handful and simply can’t be matched. If I’m lucky, I’ll even have some recipes to share. So tune in, enjoy, and to those of you celebrating today, Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2009. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

My grandfather loved to eat. He and my grandmother went to restaurants about three times a week as far back as I can remember. For them it was never about trying the newest place or getting a coveted table at a popular joint; it was about old haunts. They had their usual spots — hell, they had their usual tables at those spots — and after years of frequenting the same Chicago institutions, they earned recognition as regulars. The maitre d’ always came over to say hi and schmooze. Grandpa was a classy guy, and he always chatted up our server. My brother and I both remember feeling proud at Grandpa’s easy way. Grandpa and Grandma loved restaurants; they loved the company, the nostalgia of it all, for certain. But they came for the food.

I vividly remember the first time I realized that food was a love we shared. We were sitting at Kiki’s Bistro, which has been around for almost 20 years. Grandma was eating a caramelized onion torte, and Grandpa and I were digging beneath the Gruyere-cloaked croutons in a bowl of piping hot onion soup. I asked Grandpa what he thought. He said, “there’s no such thing as bad soup. There’s only good soup and very good soup. This is very good soup.” He then went on to explain that Kiki’s has one of the best baguettes in the city, with the crispiest crust — he broke off a piece to show me how the crust shattered just so — and the best flavor. Grandpa was a food lover, through and through.

Sometime midday on Tuesday of this week, my grandfather passed away. As my brother so eloquently said, it’s hard to call his death at the age of 96 a tragedy. His life was not cut short. But without him, nothing can ever be the same again.

I’ve mentioned many times on this site that I owe my love of cooking to my mother. But it was Grandpa who opened my eyes to the pleasures of eating. By the time we started dining out together, Grandpa’s appetite was, well, petite. He usually made a meal of two appetizers. At Hugo’s, he ordered a small plate of frog’s legs, which I’d never seen before. After a few visits, I worked up the guts to try one. As I bit in, Grandpa looked up, eagerly awaiting my response. I ventured that they tasted a lot like chicken; Grandpa cracked up.

At Coco Pazzo, an Italian joint, I remember Grandpa swooning over a squid-ink spaghetti and insisting that I try some. Well, not insisting, exactly: every few bites, Grandpa would push his plate a couple inches in my direction, catch some strands of spaghetti on his fork, and nudge them toward me. I looked up, and he’d start looking at me, then at his plate, signaling for me to take a bite. Finally, I consented. He looked up at me with inquisitive eyes: did I like it? I nodded, equally focused on the smooth noodles and their delightfully garlicky sauce as I was on letting Grandpa know I approved.

(...)
Read the rest of Eating with Grandpa

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2009. | Permalink | 6 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Just reminding anyone who’s interested that the deadline for Sugar High Friday should bake, photograph, post, and email their toasted recipes to me by MIDNIGHT MONDAY, OCTOBER 26th. I’ll do the round-up at the end of that week, so if you want in, get baking! I know I’ve already baked up a pretty delicious and unique recipe for this month’s fun. I may even squeeze in one more round of baking if I get better in time.

To enter, email me at Rivka [at] Not Derby Pie [dot] com with “SHF-toasted” as the subject. Please include:

-your name
-the name of your blog
-a link to the post about your submission
-the name of your submission
-any other info about why you made what you made
-a thumbnail image of your creation. It should be no wider than 100 pixels, in jpg format, and should be named the same as your blog. For example, my image would be named notderbypie.jpg.

If you do not have a blog, please post your recipe, and a link to a photo if you’d like, in the comments section either here or in the round-up post.

Hope to see you back here, recipe in hand, by October 26th!

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2009. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

What you see there is what’s left of my breakfast (some baguette with ricotta, avocado, and sea salt — crostini, anyone?), my lifeline (tissues), and my constant companion (a steaming cup of chai). I’m down for the count right now and need some serious R&R. Hopefully I’ll be better and back in a few days.

Meanwhile, humor me: when you’re sick, what are your creature comforts? Are there things you absolutely can’t live without? See you in the comments, everyone.

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2009. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

It’s not even 9 am and I already have 6 loaves of challah rising on the counter. What’s wrong with this picture?

I got a headstart on cooking this morning thanks to a 6:30 workout session with Julia. I was back home at 7:40 and by 7:50, I was covered in flour. Awesome.

Also on the agenda for today: thawing and making one of two briskets. My largest pot only fits one at a time. I’ll be making the briskets with a Separdic-style sauce that has pomegranate molasses and tamarind puree, among other things. It’s a hybrid of the two recipes that were featured in this week’s Boston Jewish Advocate article (found here). It’s a little sweet and a lotta tart and really, really tasty.

If brisket and challah aren’t enough, I’ll also be making a filling for my spanikopita, consisting of spinach, ricotta, feta, dill, salt, pepper, and onions. Not too difficult, right? I’ll make the filling today and then layer the filling and filo dough into a pan on Friday. Step by step, people.

And lastly, just to get a head start on some of the other prep, I’ll be baking some eggplant for babaganoush (the easiest recipe on earth, below). Wish me luck!

Babaganoush

3 eggplants
3 cloves garlic
1/2 cup yogurt
salt
pepper
lemon

Prick eggplants in several places. Make a slit in the bulbous end of each eggplant and slip a garlic clove inside. Wrap in tin foil and bake in a 350-degree oven for 60-75 minutes, until soft all the way through.

Let cool until you can handle the eggplants; using a spoon, scoop flesh off of skin into medium mixing bowl. Add yogurt; stir to combine. Add salt, pepper, and lemon to taste. For a more rustic style, simply mix with a fork. If you prefer a smoother texture, take an immersion blender to the baba until it’s as smooth as you like it.

Enjoy warm, cold, or room temperature.

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2009. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

The Jewish New Year is fast approaching, and here at NDP we might just be in over our heads; we’re having lots of D’s family for the holiday and very excited to host them all!

With so many people to feed and not much time to prep, I’ve drawn up menus to keep myself on track and to make grocery shopping, prepping, and cooking as streamlined as possible.

Now, I haven’t started yet — the big cook commences tomorrow — so no pictures so far, but right now, I’ll share my menus with you as promised.

Keep in mind: I’m only making two of the meals entirely from scratch. We’re being hosted elsewhere for one dinner (but I’m making the brisket), and we’re doing a potluck for another (so I’m making only challah and a side dish). But I’m still cooking brisket, chicken, and 2 full meals — one meat, one dairy. Hopefully this will provide you all with a head start — or a kick in the butt — for menu-planning. Enjoy and please share your menus in the comments!!

Also — can’t resist this one little shout-out: my friends at KOL Foods, the only purveyors of local, organic, grass-fed kosher beef and chicken, were published in the Boston Jewish Advocate this week — and the article includes quotes and recipes from yours truly! Be sure to check it out — you’ll find 2 really yummy brisket recipes there: https://www.kolfoods.com/pdf/BrisketArticle.pdf

And now, menus.

Meal 1: Rosh Hashanah Dinner

Challah
Minestrone soup
Mesclun salad with hearts of palm, persimmons, and pomegranates
Tagine-style chicken with preserved lemons and olives
Roasted chicken with dried fruit and wild rice
Simple sauteed green beans and peas with lemon and almonds
Saffron rice
baklava and fresh fruit

Meal 2: Rosh Hashana Lunch

Challah
Watermelon-feta salad with pickled red onions and kalamata olives
Spanikopita
Sauteed shelling beans with tomatoes, oregano, and garlic
Orzo salad with fennel, dill pesto, feta, and lemon
Greek honey-almond cake
Greek yogurt with honey and poached fruit

Recipes are, for the most part, taken from epicurious, gourmet.com, and a couple other places. A quick search on epi will reveal recipes for lots of these dishes, and though I haven’t hammered out the final recipes I plan to use, these sites are where I plan to start. I’ll likely pull a few recipes and pull together the elements of each that I like to make whatever I’m making. I’ll do my best to blog the process as I start cooking tomorrow, so stay tuned!

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2009. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

This post by another name? Best Cake Ever. Hazelnut, Brown Butter, Cake. Do you hear me yet? Brown butter, aka liquid gold. Hazelnuts, the best nuts on the planet. Cake. Yea. It’s that good.

I’ve been wanting to make this cake ever since Deb posted it over at Smitten Kitchen, but considering the 2 sticks of butter called for in the recipe, I guess I felt like I needed an excuse, silly me.

Only one year later (one year of waiting, mind you!), I finally got the excuse I wanted. You see, D and I are going to a dinner party tonight being held exclusively to mark, and mourn, the end of Battlestar Galactica, a show that some of my people think is the best on TV, like, ever. I don’t get it, but I’ll happily go to a dinner that celebrates the end of a show with a name like Battlestar Galactica. For those nuts among you who watch the show, you know that cylons, enemies of humans that take the form of Darth Vader-like robots, are sometimes called “toasters.” We’re celebrating (er, mourning) the end of the show tonight by having a dinner with a “toasted” theme. Everything served will be toasted in some way.

(...)
Read the rest of Hazelnut Brown Butter Cake

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2009. | Permalink | 4 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Yea, I don’t know what happened this year. Normally, this dough gives me minimal frustration, but for some reason, this go-round I got half a batch of nice-looking little guys and half a batch of…well, sexyugly. Tasty, nonetheless — but not the kind of cookie you want to pass out. Especially not when you have a food blog. Ugh.

clearly these are the good ones

You know what? I’ll own it. This dough may not produce the prettiest guys in the pack, but they’re damn tasty. The dough is crunchy on the outside, nicely flaky, and flavored with tons of lemon zest. Nothing like those crumbly, nasty things they sell at the bakery. I’m just saying.

Any hamentaschen disaster stories? Share in the comments.

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2009. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

In the interest of diversifying this blog beyond my standard “photo with recipe” formula, I’m instituting a new feature called Friday Freakout. No explanation needed, right?

Having recently returned from Israel, falafel is on the mind more than usual. Walk down the streets of Jerusalem with me for a moment: you won’t make it a block without passing at least one falafel/hummus/shawarma joint — more likely 2. Some are truly falafel stands, where all orders are to go, salad bar is DIY or done in a jiffy by the man behind the counter (trust me, you’ve never seen hands move so quickly). Others are hummusiot — hummus is what’s for dinner, served on its own or with any number of topings, ranging from tehina and chickpeas to sauteed mushrooms or even meat. Lastly, you’ve got the do-it-all places that have shawarma, falafel in pita or laffa (the big peasant-bread wraps), and hummus platters. And like I said, they’re everywhere.

So why is it that there’s no really, really good middle eastern food spot within walking distance of my house? To sharpen the gripe: there are three hummus/falafel/shawarma places within two blocks of my pad. The two best ones (Amsterdam Falafel and Old City Cafe) are decent, the third one (Shawarma spot) is really horrible — like, effervescent hummus and bug-in-plate horrible. AmFal and OCC are fine, and they do the trick in a pinch: their falafel is crispy and pretty flavorful, their salatin (salads) are varied and some are pretty ok, but nothing out of this world — and their hummus simply isn’t so good. Last time I checked, hummus makes or breaks the whole sandwich.

The real joke here is that considering how many options are around me, I’m relatively lucky: outside of Adams Morgan, the hummus-falafel-shawarma food group is pretty endangered.

And that’s not to mention the severe lack of other middle eastern food in the area: labneh (tangy, thick yogurt with a hint of salt), kubbeh hamousta (sour Yemenite soup with zucchini, sorel, and meat-filled dumplings) and good, not-overly-sweet baklavah are nowhere in sight. grr.

That concludes this installment of Friday Freakout. Do you live in DC and know of good ME food joints? Are you brewing over the lack of this food in another city? Comments, people, comments.

Now that the mood is off my chest, happy Friday and a wonderful weekend to all!

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2009. | Permalink | 5 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

It’s hard to believe that I’ve been on 3 continents in the past week. 7 days is too short for a proper vacation, especially when it involves places as wonderful as Israel and Paris. There’s so, so much I wish I could have done that I just didn’t get a chance to do — so many friends I’d have liked to see, hikes I want to repeat, hummus joints I crave — but with only three days in Israel and just over a day in Paris, it’s going to have to wait for next time.

After sleeping off some of my jet lag, I returned to my home kitchen with the tastes and smells of the Israeli shuk and the Parisian boulangerie still on my mind. Nothing rivals those deep, pungent aromas of spicy hawayej (a yemenite spice rub), fresh hummus, and still-piping hot pita by the stack. And those baguettes, those baguettes! Not to mention macarons, those delightful little gems of cookies that come in every imaginable color, flavor, and texture. I’m still dreaming of those macarons. (If you’re curious, D’s favorite of the 20 or so we bought was Rose flavored; I was partial to the pure vanilla, with its shockingly pronounced flavor and flawlessly creamy innards. We also both adored the caramel.)
(...)
Read the rest of Inspired Chocolate Macarons

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2009. | Permalink | 8 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Well, Menu for Hope was quite a success! Over $60,000 raised for the UN World Food Program in Lesotho…very impressive, especially considering the rough times.

To see if you won one of the many fantastic prizes, head over to www.chezpim.com for the complete list of winners.

Also, if you’re the lucky lady who won my Big Ole Box of Sweets (UE07), shoot me an email — Rivka(at)Notderbypie(dot)com — and I’ll be happy to discuss allergies, preferences, timing, etc. Very excited!

Congrats to all the winners and I hope everyone has a lovely weekend!

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2009. | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Confession: I’m going to Detroit this year with D and fam, and will not be cooking any T-day fare as I did last year. Sorry to desert!

Pep-talk: I would be remiss to leave you empty-handed as you tackle your Turkey, tofurky, and other accoutrement. With that in mind, I’ve written a page of vegetarian recipes that I deem Tday-worthy. Are they particularly traditional? No, not necessarily — but they’re pretty darn tasty. If you’re bored of the same old turkey-stuffing-mashed spuds triumvirate, click over to this page for fresh inspiration. Hey — even if you’re not cooking T-day dinner, this page offers some pretty good suggestions for everyday eats. Click away!

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2008. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

photo by A. Gilbert l link to photo source

Yes, this is a food blog; no, I don’t intend to make it anything else. But I simply can’t let yesterday’s events go unrecognized. Never in my life have I been prouder to be part of this country. I’m simply overjoyed that the racial barrier has fallen, and that we have elected Barack Obama as our next president! Yes, there were some bittersweet moments as yesterday’s results rolled in — most notably, the passage of proposition 8 in California, which I simply cannot understand — but in all, November 4th 2008 marked a historic event in our nation’s history, and it’s certainly cause for celebration!

Happy post-election madness to all of you!

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2008. | Permalink | 4 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

You hoo — anyone out there? It’s been a rough couple months for NDP, between six weeks of crazy work schedules and a long vacation to Alaska (yes, I’m back and I’ve got beautiful pictures to share!). But I promise, I haven’t forgotten about you. No, no, no. Never. In fact, I’ve decided not only to resume regular posting, but to do so with a bit of a bang. Read on.

(But first, peek at my pics from Alaska….)

(...)
Read the rest of September 2008: An NDP experiment

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2008. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Because it’s Passover, and my fridge is completely empty, save for two trays of leftover chicken and a huge bag of chocolate chip cookies and marshmallow brownies graciously donated care-packaged by D’s family. Thank heavens, we won’t starve. But I’ll be hiding out in my cave until Passover is over, at which point I promise more delicious treats and recipes. Hang in there!

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2008. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

And you thought the Yule Log was a challenge. Sure, Dellie and I found ourselves cleaning the kitchenaid every five minutes, rolling a delicate cake around itself, and spreading intense buttercream frosting to look like bark — but judging by this month’s challenge, the yule log was a mere warm-up.

Julia Child’s French bread is a classic recipe, written in Julia’s whimsical yet meticulous style, that purports to produce the most perfect, flavorful French bread around. Indeed, having tasted my scrumptious loaves, I know I never need to buy a baguette again. Unless I don’t happen to have 12 HOURS ON MY HANDS to make my own. Yep, you heard it here first — I woke up at 7:30 to start the dough, and my loaves didn’t emerge from the oven until after 8pm. Now I know some really talented folks finished their bread in a shorter time, but what can I say? I’m a flippin’ turtle.

(...)
Read the rest of Julia Child’s French Bread: the Ultimate in Daring

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2008. | Permalink | 11 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

buy unique gifts at Zazzle

Hi lovely readers!

At long last, I’ve kicked my own butt into gear and created Not Derby Pie Note Cards, featuring pictures taken by yours truly. Here are the details:

• The cards were created in collaboration with Zazzle, an online create-your-own-stuff company.
• Each card has a full-size picture on the front, and a smaller, related picture on the back.
• Each card comes with its own envelope.
• Cards are 4″x6″.

There are also some bargains that you should know about:

• Zazzle offers free boxed sets with orders of 10 cards.
• Buy 10, and save 12%; buy 20, and save 32%!
• Discounted prices apply to your total order; they don’t all have to be the same card.

I’ve created ten cards; feel free to buy a boxed set of one of each, or to mix, match, and double up as you please. Thanks to all those who requested these cards enough that I finally made ‘em happen, and enjoy!

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2008. | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

You know it’s holiday time when this is your kitchen table display…

Happy Holidays to all, and enjoy the winter season!

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2007. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

It’s that merry time of year again! Being Jewish, I get that Christmas isn’t my holiday, but I can’t help anxiously awaiting It’s a Wonderful Life and the SNL Christmas special and Harry Connick, Jr. on the radio. It makes me so happy!

Ok, I suppose it’s much easier to revel in the merriment of the season since I don’t have 1001 Christmas gifts to buy. But for the rest of you, if you’re looking for that perfect foodie-gift, I have two excellent suggestions. Both landed on my shelf by way of Hannukah (thanks, Ima!) and I couldn’t be happier.

1) Pictured above is Nigella’s new cookbook, Nigella Express. If you love Nigella (which we most certainly do), you’ll love this larger, just-as-beautiful cookbook of recipes that can be made in a flash. If you’ve never opened a Nigella cookbook, now’s the perfect time to start. Her photographers are amazingly talented, and everything looks mouthwateringly delicious.

2) This one is a must-have. I heard an interview with Judith Jones on the latest episode of The Splendid Table (a public radio food podcast), and she’s an absolute delight. Jones grew up in the days of ladylike behavior and stockings draped over the bedside…but she was in Paris, living with a man (yes! a man!) whom she later married, discovering all that is wonderful about French food-life. Jones had a sixth sense about chef-authors; she has “discovered” trailblazers such as Julia Child, Madhur Jaffrey and Claudia Rodin, and she was the editor of Mastering the Art of French Cooking by Julia Child. She’s now a VP editor at Knopf, and her story is worth hearing, or reading about, in full. Best of all, this book is less than fifteen bucks! Make someone happy without breaking the bank, will ya?

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2007. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2007. | Permalink | 2 comments | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Mine was wonderful. We spent the morning hours curled up on the couch, watching the parade and drinking chai. We stopped being lazy in time to have meal #1 with my friend and her family at 2 pm. Don’t be deceived by the early hour: they had the largest Turkey I’ve ever seen, stuffed with challah stuffing and accompanied by flawless sweet potatoes, giblet gravy, cranberry and gooseberry sauces, and many more things than I can name. A little bit of everything was the only way to go — but when pie time came, it was hard to hold back. Mrs. Sorel’s pecan pie was perfectly creamy without being too gelatinous; it was the best I’ve ever had.

After that, we headed over to my parents’ house for Tday meal #2, equally delicious and entirely vegetarian. I took way too much delicata squash, cranberry stuffing, wine-braised shallots, cranberry-jalapeno chutney, mushroom-chestnut hash, and (again) other things I can’t think of at the moment. Jeez, talk about excess… and of course, we saved room in our already-full stomachs for pumpkin, pecan, and apple-cranberry pies with fresh whipped cream. We also may have taken half a pie home with us. It’s all gone now.

Lessons learned: one Tday meal is really, really more than enough. Two Tday meals? Whoa.

Hope you all had a restful and filling T-day weekend. Back to the grind…

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2007. | Permalink | One comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

You and I know how hard it is to get a meal on the table Friday night (let alone Saturday morning) that’s well-cooked but not over-cooked, tasty and colorful, and not entirely dried out after a long tenure on the blech. It’s not easy! In honor of these hardships, here’s a laundry list of questions from my dear friend Sarah about how, exactly, to coordinate a Friday night dinner service….and my answers.

Sarah: I need some food related advice. I’m making Shabbat dinner for friends on Friday. I have the day off on Friday but have a 3pm doctors appt that will make the afternoon kind of rushed and give me only an hour to cook. I’m making zucchini and pumpkin muffins before hand and roasting squash and potatoes (your recipe!) beforehand too and just reheating. Is that a bad idea?

The main dish is terriyaki salmon. Was just going to Marinate and broil… but then I realized I really dont know hot to broil! How long do you leave it in for and do you leave the door ajar? You rock.. thank you!

-Stumped in Seattle

Rivka: Sarah you rock! Ok… in answer to your qs:

muffins are a perfect idea! The potatoes should also hold up really nicely; you might stick them in the oven just before you leave for the dr, so that by the time you return they’ll have been in for a good two-ish hours. If you’re using small potatoes, this is more than enough. If you’re using large ones, you can leave them in for a bit longer. In any event, the reheating should be fine. Just check their moisture level when you’re about to stick them back in the oven; if they’re a bit dry, add a splash of olive oil and a splash of water or stock and reheat covered for a few minutes, then finish uncovered; if they’re soft, crisp them by reheating without a cover.

Squash will also keep very well. If you’re doing delicata, make sure you only par-cook it in advance (say about 15-20 minutes) so that your re-heat won’t overcook the squash. Butternut, acorn and other winter squash varieties will withstand a reheat without getting mushy.

Teriyaki salmon — yum! Broiling can happen two ways: some ovens actually have a broiler, usually found beneath the regular oven. To use this, turn your oven on broil and when it’s nice and hot, stick your salmon inside. My broiler has a metal tray with three shelf heights, and I use the second from the top for fish. If your oven doesn’t have a broiler, just turn the knob to broil, put your fish on the highest rung in your oven, and yes — leave the door ajar. This allows the steam to escape so that you achieve the crispy crust of a good broil. Baste the fish at least once in the middle of the broil. Also, a note on reheating — make sure that you don’t overdo it, so that it doesn’t dry out when you reheat it. I’d estimate about 10 minutes per inch of fillet. My fillets are usually an inch and a half at their thickest. I’d say broil it for 10-12 minutes, then check for doneness. You don’t want it to be raw inside, but if the very center is a bit underdone, you can finish cooking it during the reheat.

I want to be at your Friday night table!

Happy cooking and coordinating and chowing…it’s a delicate dance, indeed.

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2007. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags:

Really, those things are in reverse order: first, welcome to my new blog! After years of loyally reading and shamelessly admiring others’ food blogs, I’ve decided to join the fun. With absolutely no promises about what this blog will or won’t contain, my guess is that I’ll blog about anything and everything food-related, including but not limited to:

• teaching D, my SO, to like food that isn’t Subway (or “subwayeatfresh,” as she affectionately calls it)
• the good, bad and ugly of trying new restaurants
• lots and lots and lots of home cooking and baking
• the general rants on being a foodie with very few foodie friends

So start reading and don’t stop! Because the posts and laughs will keep coming as quickly as I can get a good bite to eat or put food on the table (and drag D away from her footlongs).

Now, for the pics I promised….

This one is from a delightful little chocolate shop in the Marais section of Paris. You’ll learn quickly that my total lack of self-control is mitigated only by my frequent trips to the gym. Put differently, I make up for all that running and lifting and pretty disgusting sweating by eating my way through hoards of chocolate, of all varieties. I would pretty much kill for a heath bar or skor bar; My food-illiterate friends think I’m a snob for liking toblerone, so when I splurge for the occasional bar of single-origin chocolate, it stays in my desk drawer at work. Plus, D would be horrified at the thought of wasting money that could otherwise buy…you guessed it.

On my last day in Paris, I ate at a bistro in the 5th Arr. called Le Petit Vatel. D and I both ordered this vegetable plate as our entrée. Jasmine rice sat beneath the veggies and sopped up the ample liquid from the carrots, zucchini, tomatoes and french lentils. Like many of the things we ate, this was remarkably simple, and absolutely delicious. As you can see, the whole thing is topped with some mysterious flowers. To this day, I don’t know what they are. I tried to ask the maître d, but she mumbled something in French. It was too quick to catch, and I didn’t want to be a nuisance. Boy, do I regret that. I’d ask three times if I could do it all over. must. have. me. some. of. those. flowers.

Fish market at closing time. Really there are more boxes than anything else — and this man sure looks like he wants to go home. He was just thrilled that wanted to take pictures. By thrilled I mean wildly entertained. By wildly entertained I mean ready to go home.

That’s all for now. Soon enough, I’ll make the pie for which this blog is named, and post about it. Until then, happy reading and thanks for checking out my blog!

© rivka for Not Derby Pie, 2007. | Permalink | No comment | Add to del.icio.us
Post tags: