Meringuehawk

From Anne Fishbein's Nikel Diner slideshow. I'm thinking about making it my facebook profile pic. There's also a meringue-Marie Antoinette, but this is more me, I think.

"Mushrooms" in Ink, Morels in Cream

Here's the review of the documentary, "Know Your Mushrooms" I wrote for Squid Ink. I planned to run the review with a recipe from Joe's mushroom phylogenist friend, Tess, but the recipe didn't make it into the final copy so I'm reprinting it here as a Live and Active cultures EXLUSIVE recipe.

May (and into June) is "morel month" in the mushrooming community (Morels can be several species of the Morchella genus).
And then the beginning of June and through the summer is Porcini (Boletus edulis) time.

Both mushrooms grow all over the world in wooded areas. They are both "mycorrhizal" fungi, meaning they grow in association with plants roots, in this case tree roots.

Those are the two main wild mushrooms people can easily find or buy at all times of the year, either fresh or dried. Actually, both are great even when dried. Here is a recipe using morels. It is a pretty common combination of cream and morels, but it's not copied from any specific recipe, so that should be good for you to print.
It is great on bread as an appetizer, or over pasta, or with grilled chicken or steak, etc.

Morels in Cream
8 oz. fresh morels (or 1 oz. dried)
1 cup cream
2 oz. butter
salt and pepper to taste

Additional ingredients for variation:
1 t. chopped fresh herb such as parsley, thyme, basil, sage, or chervil, etc.
1 chopped shallot
1 clove minced garlic
1/2 c. white wine

Begin by blanching morels, both fresh or dried. This helps remove dirt and some compounds from the mushrooms that are potential carcinogens. To blanche, slice morels either lengthwise or crosswise and place in a small bowl and pour boiling water over them, soak 5 minutes then discard the water.
Add blanched mushrooms and butter to a heated skillet or sauce pan. Saute' 5 minutes. Add wine, if using, and reduce. Add cream and herbs and reduce to desired consistency- thinner if serving over pasta, thicker if serving over meat, and thicker still if serving over bread.

That's the recipe. It's simple, easy, versatile and tastes delicious!

Tess makes and does a lot of cool stuff on her blog, Homegrown. Thanks again for the recipe, Tess! I'm super excited to try it!

Tourist Makes Local

I got up the other day with Alana, my girlfriend from Massachusetts, and made fresh orange juice. We took six oranges from a large plastic sac, knocked them around a little to soften them up, and squeezed their sweet, pulpy contents into a glass. I scooped out the seeds with a spoon, and we sipped it all morning.

Two weeks before, we were driving through a section of L.A. equally unfamiliar to both of us on the way to Hollywood. I've become accustomed to drives like this in this city.: start somewhere I know, have no idea where the hell I am for awhile, and get spit out in a familiar spot. Usual for a city, but in L.A. it just gets stretched out over miles of long freeways and boulevards full of traffic and stoplights, which augments the nervousness and bewilderment. This role as the semi-lost, local chauffeur-cum-tour guide can't be reassuring to my passenger when I'm the one who's supposed to know my way around, but honestly, I've learned more and seen more of L.A. this way than I have as a resident.

On the way, we stopped at an ATM tucked away form the street at the rear of a drab, beige adobe bank building, and pulled up next to a midsize white pickup full of oranges. The man standing next to the truck offered up a taste, and told us that an entire sack of what must have been thirty medium sized oranges was only six dollars. Granted, he probably picked the best looking one from his lot, but what we tasted was fresh, juicy, sweet, not to mention that it came from the back of the truck, and was handed to me by a man who either picked it or knew the people who did. It was a little bit of L.A. packed into one moment: fresh produce (citrus, no less) and food hidden in a mini mall.

We threw the oranges in the back of my car (for only $5...he gave us a deal), and the first thing we thought of, never before having so many oranges at our disposal, was to do something a little reckless: make fresh OJ out of them. Easier said than done, of course, because she had to return to MA the next day. Alana took a few oranges back with her, and I was left with a huge bag of oranges sitting in the kitchen to chip away at slowly and remind myself of unmade orange juice and her absence.

Alana returned, of course, and we got to squeeze some oranges. They literally hissed with juice when I cut them in half. From six oranges, we got one delicious eight ounce glass. The juice tasted a bit green because not all of the oranges were perfectly ripe, but it was nice to get a little more of the citrus bite and lose the sugary viscousness that's in even "fresh squeezed" store-bought OJ.

Running into the orange truck was a complete surprise, one that I should perhaps come to expect in L.A. I was happy to get credit for the chance find as tour guide. But it made me think, why wouldn't the city be literally brimming with oranges during citrus season, so much so that usual channels aren't even enough to unload them all? Why can't I always have oranges that aren't covered in wax and that I pick from a neat pile at the grocery store? Why shouldn't I make my own fresh juice? This the kind of stuff that I can only do here. What I loved about this was that it wasn't just new to Alana, but it was new to me too in a different way: it made the myth of L.A., of finding good food in a parking lot or in a truck, real. It's like when I ate at Zankou Chicken the first time: it made the the vast unknown knowable. Where do I go to eat when I've got hundreds of square miles to choose from? In a dumpy mini mall.

So when Alana asked me, "why wouldn't you have a juicer if you lived here?" I told her that I'd be getting one soon.

Top Chef, in Ink

You have to admit, "TOP CHEF SEASON 5 PENULTIMATE BUS TOUR STOP: STEFAN AND FANS TALK HEAVY CREAM AND SEXY SHIT" is the best title ever to appear on Squid Ink.

The event itself was surprisingly funny. Stefan was particularly riotous. He stole my heart.

Read my Top Chef "sexy shit" here.

I Covered Cake Monkey in Ink

I conducted my first phone interview with Cake Monkey's Lisa J. Olin on Sunday. She and Elizabeth Belkind were busily trying to pull together everything they needed for the launch of their new line of breakfast pastries the following day and I was slightly flustered, so the conversation lasted all of about 3 1/2 minutes. Of those few minutes, I can only remember that I used variations of the word "excited" with astounding frequency.

Read the resulting post here.

Food on Film

Daily Dish ran this breakdown of upcoming food films. The list is only slightly underwhelming. I've actually seen "Pressure Cooker" already and it totally choked me up so I'm optimistic for the rest. Still, a good food-centric narrative doesn't seem like too much to ask for.

'Food, Inc.'
Director Robert Kenner has teamed up with famed authors Michael Pollan and Eric Schlosser to make an expose that he says “started out as a story of how our food gets to our dinner table, and turned into a horror film.”

Kenner, who won an Emmy for “The American Experience,” interviewed several commercial farmers for the documentary, which provides a critical look at our nation’s failing industrial food system and how we got into this mess in the first place.

Opens Friday at the Nuart Theater.

'Pressure Cooker'
"Pressure Cooker" is the culinary equivalent of "Dangerous Minds," showing that a little tough love can go a long way for a few Frankford High School students in Philadelphia. This documentary follows a class as it participates in a culinary training program run by Wilma Stephenson. Stephenson is one tough cookie, but she’s just the type these at-risk youth need to serve up success. The students are prepping for a competition held by C-CAP, where they compete for scholarships to some of the country’s top culinary schools (Iron Chef Morimoto makes a guest appearance as one of the judges). Though it lacks thrills and serious drama, this film serves as testament to the power of food.

Now playing at the Laemmle Sunset 5 and the Laemmle Pasadena Playhouse 7.

'Corked!'
This wine country mockumentary is a spoof on the romanticized ideas of winemakers and producers that "Sideways" and "Bottle Shock" have portrayed on the big screen. The film was co-written and directed by Paul Hawley of Sonoma’s Hawley Winery (who makes a fabulous Viognier) and Ross Clendenen. It packs a few laughs and some stunning vineyard footage, courtesy of the access the boys had from Paul’s papa being in the biz.

Showing through Thursday at the Downtown Independent Theater

'Bananas'
Filmmaker Fredrik Gertten sheds light on the global politics of food and the effects of free trade in his film, which documents the plight of 12 Nicaraguan banana plantation workers fighting a legal battle against Dole Foods over use of a dibromochloropropane-based pesticide called Nemagon (the chemical has been banned in the U.S. because it causes sterility in men and has also been linked to certain cancers). Spearheading the legal battle is a local celebrity, Juan Jose Dominguez, whose ads are on the back of L.A. Metro buses.

Screening at the L.A. Film Festival on June 20 at 7 p.m. at the Regent Theater and June 23 at 9 p.m. at the Landmark Theater 8.

'Know Your Mushrooms'
Fungi gurus Gary Lincoff and Larry Evans star in a documentary about the strange and mysterious world of mushrooms. Foragers and 'shroom enthusiasts will likely get a kick out of this film, which features two of the most highly regarded mycologists in the field.

Opens Friday at the Downtown Independent.

Cottage Cheese Spinach Tart

More recipe catch-up:

In February we celebrated Julie's birthday with a ladies lunch. The menu consisted of artichoke-chicken salad, roasted red pepper hummus with pita points and this cottage cheese spinach tart. Julie single-handedly made everything but the hummus.

When I asked if I could help with the tart my adorably totalitarian aunt told me to take pictures. Technically, I participated.


COTTAGE CHEESE SPINACH TART

MARTHA STEWART'S PATE BRISEE:
(Makes 1 double-crust or 2 single-crust 9- to 10-inch pies)

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, chilled and cut into small pieces
1/4 to 1/2 cup ice water

In the bowl of a food processor, combine flour, salt, and sugar. Add butter, and process until the mixture resembles coarse meal, 8 to 10 seconds.

With machine running, add ice water in a slow, steady stream through feed tube. Pulse until dough holds together without being wet or sticky; be careful not to process more than 30 seconds. To test, squeeze a small amount together: If it is crumbly, add more ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time.

Divide dough into two equal balls. Flatten each ball into a disc and wrap in plastic. Transfer to the refrigerator and chill at least 1 hour. Dough may be stored, frozen, up to 1 month.

Roll it out 1/8 inch thick on a floured surface, and fit it into a 9-inch flan pan with a removable fluted rim. Prick the bottom of the shell with a fork and chill the shell for 30 minutes. Line the shell with parchment paper, fill the paper with raw rice, and bake the shell on a baking sheet in the lower third of a preheated hot (425) oven for 15 minutes. Remove the rice and the paper carefully, bake the shell for 10 minutes more, or until it is golden and let it cool on a rack.

FILLING (From an old school Gourmet):
4 large eggs
1 tomato
1 1/2 cups creamed cottage cheese
1/2 cup grated parmesan
1/3 cup onion
3 Tbs unsalted butter
1/2 cup spinach, well squeezed
1/4 cup milk
nutmeg
salt
pepper

In a skillet cook 1/3 cup m inced onion in 2 Tb unsalted butter over moderate heat, stirring for 2 m inutes, or until it is softened. Add ½ cup cooked and well squeezed and chopped spinach and cook the mixture, stirring for 2 minutes. Remove the skillet from the heat, stir in ¼ cup milk and nutmeg, salt and pepper to taste, and let the mixture cool.

In a bowl beat together 4 large eggs, 1 ½ cups creamed cottage cheese and ½ cup freshly grated parmesan and stir in the spinach mixture. Pour the mixture into the shell, arrange thin slices of tomato over the top completely covering it and sprinkle them with salt and pepper. Dot the filling with 1 Tb unsalted butter and bake the tart in a preheated moderate oven (350) for 35 to 40 minutes, or until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean.

Let the tart cool on a rack for 10 minutes before serving.

Armenian Food Fair, a "Holy Fucking Shit" Flavor Fest

The website for the Armeanian food festival claims that "[n]o restaurant can begin to compete with the lavish attention and extraordinary dishes Armenians create in their kitchens." From noon till 10 p.m. on Saturday, they proved it.

We entered the parking lot of Montebello's Holy Cross Cathedral to pony rides and monster trucks. Opposite the plastic chairs and tables where families devoured pounds of pilaf and kebab, children from the local dance studio performed a tango on a wooden stage decorated with white banners that boasted the names of festival sponsors. The music blared, almost drowning out the Middle Eastern men and women whose voices have only one volume: loud. In the parking lot that, for the day, transcended parking lots, things were bigger and more colorful, and flavor was chief among these.


It seemed odd that there was only one stand for savory foods and one for sweets. Festival coordinator Anita Altounian explained that the proceeds from the food went entirely to the cathedral and hall renovation project so the meat was prepared by a local restaurant and the pastry were prepared the night before by a group of ladies in one of their homes. We ordered the beef kebab and a few savory pastries we had never heard of. I've never had bad Kebab, but the restaurant-prepared dish was unremarkable. The pastry, on the other hand, was lovely. Particularly the Piroshki, a ball of deep fried dough reminiscent of that used in traditional Sufganiyot filled with sweet buttery mashed potato, the pastry were all slightly similar to dishes traditionally associated with other Middle Eastern countries.

The same was true of the sweet pastry. After making my way through bites of two of the six homemade pastry - the Perog, a jam-filled cake, the Shakar Lokoom, a buttery sugar cookie - the Bourma stopped me. It's essentially a tubular Baklava with a "holy fuckin shit what is that flavor"-flavor. I've had Armenian food and Armenian pastry, and I've had Baklava, but never like this.

Denise Hagopian, who headed the cooking demonstrations, explained that although the ladies all grew up watching their mothers and grandmothers making the same traditional foods, there are no definitive recipes. "The country is so hilly, so geographically varied, that the spices available on my side of the hill might be totally different from the spices on your side. You always use the best of what's available and that varies from region to region -- so some ladies make their baklava with pistachios and some ladies use cashews." They can end up tasting totally different, but they are both very much Armenian.

Procedurally, though, recipes are more or less standard. So Hagopian gave us a private tutorial on rolling Sarma, Armeanian Dolmas. Though "you should use fresh leaves when they're available," Hagopian said, she used Orlando brand jarred grape leaves for her demonstration.

HOW TO ROLL GRAPE LEAVES FOR SARMA:
-When pulling the leaves from the jar, be careful not to tare them.
-In a bowl of water, wash the leaves thoroughly to get rid of the brine. This will probably require refreshing the water a few times.
-With the veiny side up, cut out the hard stem.
-Marry the two edges.
-Add your rice horizontally (perpendicular to where the stem had been).
-The leaf naturally folds with the veins in, fold it like a burrito: rolling the bottom up around the filling once before folding in the sides and then continuing to fold up.
-When you're finished folding, keep the tail end down.


Like all of the homemade dishes at the Armenian Food Festival, the Sarma samples were delicious and all the recipes are available in the Holy Cross Cathedrial Ladies' Aid Cookbook.

Doughnut Day Follow-up

Thinking that the actual event coverage might make a nice follow-up to the first Doughnut Day piece, Aaron and I went to Randy's Doughnuts eager for the fete's promised highlights: lassies in vintage uniforms, red kettles, a marching band (maybe), and a jumbo check. But when we arrived at around 9:30, nobody was there.

I asked the lady at the window, "Wasn't there supposed to be some kind of celebration here...? With Salvation Army ladies in vintage uniforms?"
"Yes," she said. "They were here earlier. But they left because of the rain."

There had been rain at 7 a.m., when the event was supposed to start, but it had cleared completely by 8 a.m., and by 9:30 the sky was beautifully blue. They had called off festivities for the day celebrating the Salvation Army's interminable altruism during 34 days of rain in WWI France because of a Los Angeles drizzle? We left chuckling over the irony.


Blue skies and empty lines at Randy's Doughnuts.

Essential Reading for Food Journalists

Apropos our conversation about food books:

In 2002, Jonathan Gold sent Margy this list of what he considered to be essential reading for aspiring food critics. Now 7 years later, I'm sure there'd be additions, but it seems like a good place for us to start. Most of it seems like stuff we'd want to read anyway. As we make our way through, we can post reviews of/comments on each.

Here's his annotated list:

Calvin Trillin, "Tummy Trilogy." As far as I know, the first guy to write about eating instead of about food.

MFK Fisher, "The Art of Eating." Her five best books collected. Food as emotion, described with economy and precision.

Jane & Michael Stern, "Roadfood and Goodfood." A decently written, if overacute, compendium of American regional cuisine, including many of the classic old places as critic should know about. Make sure to get an old edition. The current one, "Eat You Way Across the USA," kind of blows.

Seymore Britchky. Any old NY restaurant guide. Very outdated style, but he taught us all how to describe food.

Angelo Pellegrini, "The Unprejudiced Palate." The most lyrical of the back-to-the-land manifestoes. Very beautiful.

Patricia Wells, "A Food Lover's Guide to Paris" and "A Food Lover's Guide to France." Faith Willinger, "Eating in Italy," Nina Simonds, "China's Food." Restaurant guides. We're supposed to know this stuff. Also Waverly Root's books on the foods of Italy and France.

Joseph Wechsberg, "Blue Trout and Truffles." Solid writing on cuisine between the wars.

Joseph Mitchell, "Up in the Old Hotel." About as good as narrative journalism ever gets, and about two-thirds about eating and restaurants. Essential.

A.J. Liebling, "Between Meals." Food memoir as tightly written as poetry. A thousand leads to steal.

A few cookbooks, including definitely Richard Olney's "Simple Cooking," my favorite cookbook anywhere, as well as possibly Elizabeth David's "Italian Food," Marcella Hazan's "Classic Italian Cooking," "Japanese Cooking: A Simple Art--by Shizuo Tsuji, M.F.K. Fisher"

And he or she might as well get Page & Dornenburg's "Dining Out," which is kind of bogus but features extensive interviews with restaurant critics (including me and Ruth) about the basic perils of the profession.

FYI, I have an Amazon wishlist.

Doughnut Day, A History

I wrote a short chronicle of the Salvation Army/doughnut relationship, with a few National Doughnut Day celebration suggestions. Read it here.


Aaron and I are off to Randy's for exclusive Live and Active Cultures coverage of the festivities.

"Kitchen Secrets" on and Destiny(?) via Squid Ink

Squid Ink posted our coverage of Amanda's stone-fruit baking class this morning. We had a such a good time at the class and I couldn't be happier with the way the post turned out, but writing it was tricky. First, because Laurie got fired, and then I didn't know if it would have a home, and then because I wanted so badly to make everyone proud, and then because there was this looming certainty that any minute someone was going to find out that I have no idea what I'm doing, and then because I realized how lucky I am.

Then Joe sent me this:

...I'm reading about neutral milk and it's overwhelming. I know why Ryan feels so sure of everything...
The universe keeps telling me things...[T]his is destiny, big time, and this is what we have to do, and that we will.

Then, I submitted the piece and my new editor sent me this:

...do you want to put together a list of pitches for the blog and run them by me? We can start narrowing down from there and get you more assignments.

Cheers,
E

All I've ever wanted to do was contribute something positive. I had no idea how I would do it and I still don't, but it really does feel like the choice is being made outside of me and all I want to do is submit.

I don't know where this will lead but I'm incredibly happy to be here.

More of Aaron's photos from Sunday:






Aaron, your photos and my words are peanut butter and jelly. I'm so grateful to have you with me.