Hollandaise Sauce

Adapted from Appetite by Nigel Slater Clarkson Potter, 2000)

If you’re not familiar with Nigel Slater, you should be. The book this recipe comes from, Appetite, is a one-of-a-kind book from a one-of-a-kind author. It’s about how to satisfy your cravings without slavishly following recipes. It’s a book about appetite—yours. And it’s a wonderful book to have, whether to cook from or simply to read.

This sauce, so right for spring asparagus when it's crying out for something rich and lemony, is truly glorious—even if it seems like the scariest one to make. But approach this task with infinite patience and an absence of trepidation. Remember, this is supposed to be fun. You’ll be well rewarded once you’ve mastered it.

The real key is to heat the sauce gently while whisking constantly—never letting it get too hot.

Nigel says you’ll need a round-bottomed, heatproof bowl and a saucepan for it to sit snugly on, along with a plump balloon whisk. I use a metal bowl over a 3-quart saucepan and a balloon whisk with a wooden handle.

It’s easier to separate eggs when they’re cold. (Best to whisk egg whites warm—but that’s advice for another day.)

Hollandaise Sauce

3 extra-large eggs
227g unsalted butter (2 sticks)
Half a lemon (or less if very juicy)
Salt

Separate the yolks from the whites and place the yolks in a heatproof bowl—metal or glass is fine.

Fill a saucepan about halfway with water and bring it to a moderate heat. Place the bowl over the pan, making sure it sits snugly and doesn’t touch the water. Add a splash of water to the yolks and stir gently for a few seconds.

Cut the butter into twelve pieces. Add four pieces to the yolks and whisk steadily until fully absorbed. Then slowly whisk in the rest of the butter, a few pieces at a time.

Still whisking, squeeze in the lemon juice. The sauce should turn a soft, pale yellow. Season with a little salt. (Nigel calls for white pepper, but I don’t use pepper at all. Your call.)

Remove the pan from the heat.

Nigel says the sauce will keep warm over the water for half an hour or so if you whisk it now and then. This is the point at which it may curdle. No one is immune. But as Nigel says, "It is worth the sweat." However, I have found that this sauce can be made in advance and kept warm in a Thermos. If you do that, give it a good whisk before serving.

"We are talking heaven here." Nigel Slater

Lamb Chops in Parmesan Batter

Adapted from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan (Knopf, 1992)

For 6 servings

I have a very nice food store where I shop in the country. In fact, a very famous food writer—with a name and face you would recognize—shops there, although I’ve never seen her. And this food store has beautiful loin lamb chops, which they cut 2 inches thick for me. I love them. However, they do not have rib lamb chops, and they don’t always—or even usually—have rack of lamb. So this recipe, which makes a delicious dish, is too elusive for me to make right now, although when I lived in NYC, it was on regular rotation. In fact, the butcher at Lobel’s actually asked me for the recipe the third time I had him trim the chops for me.

You need to use single ribs trimmed the way they would be for a rack of lamb, which means the corner bone and backbone have been removed, leaving just the rib, and the rib bone has been “Frenched,” which means the fat has been removed from the bone. Then the eye of each chop should be flattened. At Lobel’s the butcher used a cleaver held sideways instead of a meat pounder. I assume you could do this yourself if you bought a rack of lamb and sliced it into single rib chops, Frenched them, and flattened them—but I’ve never done this myself.

To be perfect, instead of grating the Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese myself, I used to get the cheese for this recipe grated at DiPalo’s. It was more powdery when they did it than when I used the Microplane to grate it myself, which makes lovely little shreds—what I normally want, but not here.

I liked to serve these with side dishes that are good cold or at room temperature so I could plate the chops as soon as they were done and tuck in right away. Mushrooms with garlic, olive oil, and parsley were good; so were fried red peppers and haricots verts with a lemony olive oil dressing.

Ingredients

12 single rib lamb chops, partly boned and flattened as described above
½ cup finely grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, spread on a plate
2 eggs, lightly beaten and put into a deep dish through a fine sieve
1 cup fine, dry, unflavored bread crumbs (not panko), spread on a plate
Vegetable oil
Salt

Instructions

Turn the chops on both sides in the grated cheese, pressing so the cheese sticks to the meat. Shake off any excess. Dip the chops into the beaten egg, letting the excess flow back into the dish. Then turn the chops in the bread crumbs, coating both sides, and shake off the excess. (So you can see that this is essentially a bound breading, using cheese in place of flour.)

You can prepare the chops up to this point as much as 3 hours in advance if you refrigerate them—just remember to return the meat to room temperature before cooking.

Pour enough oil into a skillet to come ¼ inch up the sides, and turn the heat to medium. When the oil is very hot, put in as many chops as will fit without crowding. As soon as one side forms a golden crust, turn each chop, and when the second side has formed a crust, transfer to a warm platter and sprinkle each side lightly with salt. They should be thin enough to be fully cooked at this point. If not, cook a little longer—you’ll get the hang of it after you’ve made this once.

The chops are so tiny to begin with, it’s easy to get them thin—it’s not like trying to smash a fat chicken breast into a cutlet. When all the chops are cooked, serve immediately.

Bruschetta - Real Garlic Bread

Adapted from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan (Knopf, 1992)

For 6 slices of bread

The amount here is for six slices of bread, which will probably disappear as fast as you serve them. I usually use bread I make from Jim Lahey’s groundbreaking recipe for No-Knead Bread.

3 or 4 plump garlic cloves
6 slices good, thick-crusted bread, ½-inch thick
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt – For this recipe I use Maldon Sea Salt
A few grindings of black pepper

Cut the garlic cloves in half, crush them with your chef’s knife, and peel them. Toast the bread to a golden brown. While the bread is still hot, rub one side of each slice with the cut side of a garlic clove. Drizzle olive oil over the garlicky side, and—if using Maldon—crush it with your fingers over each slice. Finish with a few grindings of black pepper. Serve while still warm.

The Tomato Version

All the ingredients above, plus:
6 ripe tomatoes
8 basil leaves

Wash the tomatoes and split them in half lengthwise. Remove as many seeds as you can easily with a pointy spoon or the tip of a knife. Place the halves cut-side down on a paper towel to drain the watery juices, then cut into ½-inch cubes.

Wash and dry the basil leaves, then slice them into thin strips with your kitchen shears or make a chiffonade with a knife.

After rubbing the hot grilled bread with garlic, top with some of the diced tomatoes. Sprinkle with basil, salt, and pepper, then drizzle a little olive oil over each piece.

Mushrooms with Garlic

Adapted from Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking by Marcella Hazan

Serves 6
I guess it's fair to say that if I could only have one cookbook, this would be it. I could eat out of it forever. These mushrooms are delicious and can be served hot, warm, or at room temperature, which makes them fabulous as part of an antipasto platter. I also love to serve them on top of a steaming bowl of Progresso Lentil Soup (not the low fat one, the original one) to which I have optionally stirred in a tablespoon or so of sour cream. This makes a great winter lunch with basic bruschetta (real garlic bread) and a tart green salad and a glass of minerally white wine.

To make this dish even more delicious and especially wine friendly, at the end of cooking add a very small glug of white truffle oil. Turn off the heat, and stir. The fragrance is divine, and it is yum.

1½ pounds white cultivated mushrooms
1½ teaspoons garlic, chopped
½ cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt
3 tablespoons parsley, chopped

Clean mushrooms carefully with a paper towel. I don't wash them because they soak up too much water. If you like, you can slice off and discard a thin disk from the end of the mushroom stem, but I often don't bother to do this. Cut the mushrooms with the stems still attached lengthwise into 1/4 inch thick slices.

Use a frying pan that can hold the mushrooms without crowding. Add olive oil to the frying pan, and heat it to medium. Add the mushrooms, and turn the heat up a little. Cook, stirring occasionally, with a wooden spatula.

When the mushrooms have absorbed the oil, add salt, and turn the heat down to low. As soon as the mushrooms release their juices, turn the heat up a little again, and cook those juices away for 4 to 5 minutes, stirring frequently.

Add the garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the garlic turns golden, being careful not to burn it or it will be bitter. Add the chopped parsley, add salt to taste,* and stir. (*This is the point at which you might want to add a tiny glug of white truffle oil, just before you turn off the heat. It's tastes very earthy and smells divine.)

Lentil Soup

Adapted from Beat This! Cookbook by Ann Hodgman

This is an easy recipe from a good cookbook. It's fun to read and hard not to think the recipes in it are better than yours.  If they are, you're lucky.

Ann Hodgman calls this "Papa Bear's Own Lentil Soup" because she got the recipe from a friend whose husband was illustrating a cookbook by a priest named Father Joseph Orsini, and Papa Bear is Father Orsini's nickname.

You can use vegetable stock instead of chicken stock.

Lentil Soup
Adapted from Beat This! Cookbook by Ann Hodgman

1 quart chicken stock
1 quart water
1 pound dried lentils, washed and picked over
2 medium potatoes, peeled and diced
2 medium onions, diced
2 large tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and quartered
2 large carrots, peeled and diced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried marjoram (The original recipe calls for oregano.)
½ cup olive oil
Salt to taste

Bring the chicken stock and water to a boil in a soup pot.

Add all the other ingredients at once.

Bring ingredients to a boil.  Keep boiling for 15 minutes, then simmer over low heat for ½ hour.

That's it.

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Mayonnaise

Adapted from Essentials of Cooking by James Peterson



This is the basic recipe I use for mayonnaise made by hand - not in a food processor or blender because this is the recipe I have the most success with. I would have to agree with James Peterson that homemade mayonnaise is a "revelation" (and I would double or triple that thought about aioli). It is delicious and a different kettle of fish from store-bought.

Tasteless vegetable oils, such as grapeseed, make all-purpose mayonnaise. Olive oil has a much more distinct flavor, and I would rarely make mayonnaise with all olive oil (which I WOULD use in the aforementioned aioli), but I do sometimes mix olive oil and grapeseed together.

You have to experiment to find your favorite and/or combination of oils.

Mayonnaise

Adapted from Essentials of Cooking by James Peterson

1 egg yolk at room temperature
½ to ¾ cup oil (see above)
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon lemon juice

Combine the egg yolk, mustard, and lemon juice in a small bowl (Pyrex is fine), and whisk the mixture until smooth.

Put the oil in a pitcher. Pour it carefully down the side of the bowl, adding a little bit at a time - use only a teaspoon of oil at a time to begin with, and whisk it into the egg yolk mixture.

When the mayonnaise stiffens slightly, you can add the oil a little more quickly - about a tablespoon at a time. You will get the hang of it when you've done it a few times.

Continue adding oil until the mayonnaise is stiff. If the mayonnaise becomes too stiff, you can loosen it by adding a little more lemon juice.

The Store Pasta Salad

The Store Pasta Salad, adapted from The Store Cookbook: Recipes and Recollection from "The Store in Amagansett" by Bert Greene and Denis Vaughan (Vintage, 1986)

The Store Pasta Salad

Serves 6 to 8

The original recipe calls for ziti, but I now use penne with ridges because it holds the dressing so well. It also called for 2 packets of G. Washington Brown Bouillon Powder, but I use a dab of Better Than Bouillon Vegetable Base instead. It's more easily available, and I always have it in the house. 

1½ teaspoons salt
8 ounces penne rigate 
1/4 cup milk
1 red onion
A handful of grape or cherry tomatoes—the equivalent of 2 whole tomatoes
6 sweet pickles (size depends on how much you love sweet pickles)
2 small green peppers, or 1 small green and 1 small red
1 large shallot
½ cup sour cream
1½ cups mayonnaise
A little "dot" of Better Than Bouillon Vegetable Base 
3 grinds fresh pepper (black or white)
Dash of wine vinegar—red or white, your choice (I usually use white)
1 tablespoon sweet pickle juice (from the jar)
A handful of roughly chopped fresh dill (don’t leave this out—it’s important)

Cook the pasta in plenty of boiling salted water. When it’s done, drain and place in a bowl. Add 1/4 cup milk to moisten and toss well.

Chop the onion, pickles, and peppers into ¼-inch cubes. Mince the shallot. Cut the tomatoes in halves or quarters. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, beat together the sour cream and mayonnaise until smooth. Whisk in the vinegar and pickle juice. Add the bouillon, pepper, and salt to taste (remember the bouillon is salty). Whisk again, thinning with a little milk if needed. Reserving some dressing, pour the rest over the pasta. Add the shallot, pickles, and peppers. Mix well.

Chill until serving time. Just before serving, toss again with the reserved dressing and stir in the tomatoes. Snip fresh dill over the top with kitchen shears.

Note: This is a recipe I got from my friend Lee Friedman. She used to buy this pasta salad from The Store in Amagansett when she spent summers in East Hampton. She and her friends did everything they could to reproduce it without success—until The Store Cookbook was published. There was the recipe, with its secret ingredient—G. Washington Brown Bouillon Powder (2 little packets, not 2 boxes)—published for all to see. I can't get that bouillon powder in my grocery store now, so I use a dab of Better Than Bouillon Vegetable Base instead, and it’s actually an improvement.

Herb and Lee Friedman

Basmati Rice Pilaf

Adapted from the January-February 1997 issue of Cook's Illustrated Magazine

This fragrant and versatile rice pilaf has become a staple in my kitchen. While the original inspiration came from a Cook's Illustrated recipe years ago, I've made several adjustments over time to suit my preferences. The result is a subtly spiced, fluffy rice that's perfect alongside a variety of mains.

Basmati Rice Pilaf
Adapted from the January-February 1997 issue of Cook's Illustrated Magazine

Serves 4

1 tablespoon neutral vegetable oil 
1 cinnamon stick (about 3 inches), broken in half

2 whole cloves

1/8 teaspoon ground cardamom

1/4 cup finely chopped onion
1 cup basmati rice
1½ cups of vegetable broth, chicken broth, or water (I often use Better Than Bouillon Vegetable Base )

1 teaspoon salt
Small pat of butter (optional)

In a medium saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the cinnamon stick and cloves, stirring for about a minute until they release their aroma.

Add the chopped onion and cook, stirring, until it just begins to turn golden. Be careful not to let it brown or caramelize.

Stir in the rice and cook for another minute, ensuring each grain is well-coated with the oil and spices.

Pour in the broth or water, add the salt, and bring to a boil. Once boiling, reduce the heat to low, add the ground cardamom, stir once, cover tightly, and let it simmer undisturbed until all the liquid is absorbed—about 15 to 17 minutes. I usually check at the 15-minute mark, but this can vary depending on your pot and stove.

Once the liquid is absorbed, turn off the heat and let the rice sit, covered, for 10 minutes. Then, remove the lid and fluff the rice gently with a fork. If desired, stir in a small pat of butter for added richness.

Note
Feel free to adjust the spices or broth choice based on what you're serving. This pilaf is a flexible side that complements a wide range of dishes.

The Best Sangria

Adapted from the May/June 1998 Issue of  Cook's Illustrated Magazine

The Best Sangria
Adapted from the May/June 1998 Issue of  Cook's Illustrated Magazine

Serves 4

2 large juice oranges: one orange sliced, one orange juiced; both oranges washed
1 large lemon, washed and sliced
1/4 cup granulated sugar - if you can find finely granulated sugar, use it (India Tree Caster or Domino Pure Cane Extra Fine Granulated).
1/4 cup Triple Sec 
1 bottle inexpensive, fruity, medium-bodied red wine (Cook's Illustrated recommended Merlot)

Put the sliced orange and sliced lemon in a large pitcher. Add the sugar and mash gently with a wooden spoon to release some juice from the fruit without pulverizing it. The sugar should dissolve.  This will take less time if you use the finely granulated sugar - 

Add the orange juice, Triple Sec, and wine to the pitcher. Stir to mix well and refrigerate from 2 to 8 hours.

Before serving, add 6 to 8 ice cubes, and stir to remix the ingredients. Serve immediately. This won't last long.

Eggs in Tuna Sauce

Adapted from The Antipasto Table by Michele Scicolone

This is a lovely little recipe to make when you want a change from the usual deviled eggs. It's a wonderful addition to a summer lunch table. It's basically hard-boiled eggs with tonnato sauce.

Eggs in Tuna Sauce
Adapted from The Antipasto Table by Michele Scicolone

6 large eggs
1 6½-ounce can tuna packed in olive oil
4 anchovy fillets
½ cup mayonnaise (homemade is excellent but your favorite store-bought will do)
2 tablespoons capers in vinegar, drained
1 small garlic clove, peeled
1½ to 2 tablespoons lemon juice

The Eggs

I always wash eggs before I cook them, and after I wash them I pierce the largest end with an egg piercer. Also, I usually boil eggs that have just come out of the refrigerator.

If you have a favorite foolproof method that you use for hard-boiling eggs, use it here. Otherwise, bring the water to a boil in a saucepan large enough to hold six eggs in one layer.  Lower the heat slightly, and add the eggs. Cook for 6 minutes.  Drain the water from the saucepan and add cold running water until the water feels cold to the touch.  You can also add a few ice cubes once the water feels cook if you like, but it's not absolutely necessary.  When cold, remove from the , and peel under cold running water or refrigerate until ready to use.  This should make eggs with the white completely set and the yolk still a tiny bit soft.

The Sauce

Combine the tuna with its oil, anchovies, mayonnaise, capers, and garlic in a food procesor. Process until smooth, stopping to scrape the mixture down as necessary. Add lemon juice to taste.

The Assembly

Just before serving peel the eggs, and cut them in half lengthwise. Place the eggs cut sides up in a serving dish or on a special egg platter and spoon on the sauce.

Green Beans with Tomatoes

Adapted from Marcella's Italian Kitchen by Marcella Hazan

This is a wonderful recipe that can be used either as a vegetable or as a pasta sauce. If you make it in the summer when basil is fresh, green beans are young, and the tomatoes are ripe, ripe, ripe, it is perfect. Having said that, however, I have made it in the dead of winter with canned tomatoes, and it is still delicious.

Green Beans with Tomatoes
Adapted from Marcella's Italian Kitchen by Marcella Hazan

4 servings

1 14-ounce can Italian peeled plum tomatoes, cut up, with their juice
1 pound fresh green beans
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (plus 2 tablespoons if using as a pasta sauce)
2 teaspoons garlic cut into slivers (can optionally increase to 1 tablespoon if using as a pasta sauce)
Salt
1/4 cup fresh basil leaves*

Cut the root end of the green beans off, leaving the pointed end intact. (If using as a pasta sauce, cut the beans into 2-inch pieces, and use penne as the pasta).  Wash the beans in cold water.

Choose a pan with a lid that will hold all the green beans. I use a three-quart saucier. Add the olive oil and garlic to the pan, turn on the heat to medium, and sauté the garlic until it becomes colored a pale gold. Do not let the garlic brown. Add the tomatoes, turn up the heat, and cook for about 5 minutes.

Add the green beans to the pan, turn the heat down to medium, sprinkle with salt, and cover the pan. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the green beans are tender but not mushy. This will take 15 to 20 minutes. If the juices in the pan are watery when the beans are done, remove the beans with a slotted spoon, turn the heat up, and boil away the excess liquid. Then return the beans to the pan, mix in the basil leaves, and serve.

*If using this as a pasta sauce, do not add the basil to the pan. When the pasta is cooked and drained, toss with the beans and all the contents of the pan, add the basil leaves, toss again, sprinkle with the extra 2 tablespoons of olive oil, and serve immediately.

Variation using Fresh Tomatoes

If it's summer, and the tomatoes are glorious, make this using 1 pound very ripe fresh tomatoes (1½ pounds if using as a pasta sauce).  Wash the tomatoes, and drop them into a pot of boiling water When the water returns to a boil, cook for about a minute, then drain. When cool enough to handle, peel the tomatoes, and cut them into large pieces.  Make the recipe the same as above, substituting the fresh tomatoes for the canned.

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