This is one of those dishes that is home to me. It comes out all piping hot and bubbling from the oven and you present it simply to your guests. You cut the flaky, tender crust into wedges so everyone gets a good piece and dish out the aromatic, creamy filling. The result is warmth and nourishment to the belly — pure rapture — and a dish that makes everyone feel like royalty.

Pot pies originated with the savory meat pies and pasties of the English. In the American colonies a similar savory pie was made in a pot — hence, pot pie. In the early stages of the colonies when food was scarce, these pies were a way of stretching food to feed more hungry mouths. The crusts were often heavy affairs made of coarse grain and suet. In would go the meaty filling — game, sometimes even bear, or poultry, held together with a heavy sauce. Clams, oysters or lobster were used for those coastal dwellers, but no peas, carrots or mushrooms studded these hearty pies until much later.

As food in the colonies improved, butter was substituted for the suet, vegetables were appropriated along with the meat and a variety of sauces were used. By the 19th century pot pies were so popular that some spoke of eating one pie per person per day! Even though the ingredients available to the general population improved over time, pot pie has always been a vehicle for using leftovers. The genius of leftovers is mostly lost on us modern-day cooks. These meals were many times the richest and most innovative in a common cook’s repertoire, having had time for the ingredients to meld together and then being combined with yet more leftovers for the ultimate in flavor.

I often think of pot pie in the winter at the end of the holidays. There are lots of exotic leftovers in my fridge calling out to me. So I make a crust and a creamy sauce just for the occasion and in go all sorts of goodies. I select a pot and pop it all into the oven for 45 minutes until the crust is golden brown and the filling is bubbling through its little air hole. If you were to make each component from the beginning, it would be a ton of work. With leftovers it takes about 45 minutes of prep.

Now, the nature of leftover dishes is there is no recipe to follow. I can teach you the basic technique but then you must be resourceful — go look in your fridge! I approach a pot pie by picturing what is in the fridge and imagining those things combined together and, most importantly, whether I would like the combination. I only include what sounds good together to me. If you feel inclined, plan ahead and develop a pot pie over a week of dinners. Of course, stretch the dollar as far as it will go. Sometimes I start with a whole chicken at the start of the week and end up with a pot pie toward the end — a dish in celebration of using everything. Better yet, rouse some friends, roast a chicken and have a pot luck one night and then the following evening make a collective pot pie.

Any way you decide, pot pie necessitates both planning and improvisation. I will give you the recipe for a delicious crust that’s flaky and tender in all the right places and that doesn’t gum up or get soggy after a day in the fridge. As for the filling, I can only offer guidance and incentive. The trick is to pull out all those leftovers, heat them up in a frying pan, and make a creamy gravy or sauce in a separate pan, then mix them together and put them into your casserole. They need to fill your pot/dish right up to the brim so you can nestle your crust on top.

This is the pot pie I made yesterday. It served 4 people. Since I already knew I wanted to make one I started by making the dough for the crust (recipe below) so it could go in the fridge and get cold while I thought about my leftovers.

We had made a roast young chicken — seasoned with salt, pepper, garlic and rosemary — gravy and roasted kabocha squash for Anjuli’s birthday dinner on the 29th. The squash was roasted with ghee, a little maple syrup, salt, pepper, cloves and some cinnamon. On Christmas I had made a roast ham — seasoned with Madeira, mustard, cloves and a little maple syrup — and cubed and froze the remainder. I also had ten shrimp left from a tapa we made for New Year’s Eve. So in went the chicken, shrimp, some thawed peas and carrots I always keep on hand and diced onion leftover from a dish the night before. I thinned my leftover chicken gravy with water (it had become very thick) and then squashed the squash (ha ha) with a fork and added it to the gravy. I whisked it until smooth. The result was three cups of velvety sauce.

I cooked my pot pie in a two quart casserole dish. I would say as a general rule of thumb that you need one cup of sauce for each two cups of filling. Below is a recipe to get you going…

Ingredients
2 cups cooked chicken, cut in bite-sized morsels
1 cup very thick gravy
1 cup water
1/2 kabocha squash
10 cooked shrimp
1 cup cubed, cooked ham
1/2 cup minced onion
2 cups of peas and carrots
Crust for 1 9” pie (recipe below)

Make the sauce. I put the gravy and 1 cup of water in a small sauce pan at medium low, stirred it and let it come to simmer. I squashed the squash with a fork and added it to the sauce, whisking until smooth and creamy. I let it come back to simmer, tasted for seasoning and turned it off. I put a lid on it. Less than five minutes. Sauce done.

Make the filling. I heated a medium frying pan to medium low and added 2 tablespoons olive oil. I fried the onion until soft, 1 minute. Then I added the frozen ham first. After 1 minute they were thawed so I added the frozen peas and carrots. In 1 minute I added the chicken. When everything else was heated through I added the shrimp. After 30 seconds I turned the heat off. Less than 5 minutes. Filling done.

Mix filling and sauce. I put the filling into the sauce and stirred to combine. I spooned everything into the casserole dish. Now I was ready for the crust.

The crust
This crust is great for savory pies. It’s flaky and tender and yet will hold up to hot liquids without getting soggy. There are many ways of incorporating the fat into the flour — a pastry blender, a food processor, two sharp knives or your finger tips. In Colonial America it was finger tips. I am a tactile person. I like to knead my own bread, I often grind my own flour and I also use my finger tips to incorporate the butter into flour. I feel much more control over the process, whether it is true or not. And it feels good.

Ingredients Enough for 2 9” disks
Note: This was enough crust for two pot pies in two quart-size dishes. I saved the other crust, wrapped it in wax paper in the fridge, and made a vegetable pot pie two days later for Austin.

2 cups all purpose flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup, 2 sticks, cold unsalted butter
1 egg
1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar (preferably Braggs)
3 – 5 tablespoons ice water

Mix ingredients and cut in butter. Add the two flours to a large bowl. Add the salt. Cut the sticks of butter into little pieces. Cut the butter into the flour with the method of your choice, until the mixture resembles coarse meal.

Tip: For the butter, it’s easiest if you cut lengthwise into 4 strips and then cut into ½ inch dice.

For the hand method: If you want to try out the hand cutting method, toss all the butter pieces in the flour and make sure they’re broken up. Then, moving swiftly and only with your fingertips pull the butter bits through your thumb and fingers – using only fingertips! Continuously turn the bowl and every 30 seconds or so fluff up the mixture by turning it through open hands. Never smoosh, press down or use any other part of your hands. Once the mixture looks evenly clumpy like coarse meal all over, you’re done. Don’t overdo it.

Incorporate egg, knead and refrigerate. Mix the egg and vinegar together with a fork. Tossing lightly with a fork, add the egg mixture to the flour. Once it’s evenly incorporated, start adding the ice water, a little at a time, until the mixture barely holds together. It should not appear wet. Dump the dough out gently on your counter and gather it together, kneading two or three times. Form it into a disk on wax paper and refrigerate for 20 minutes to 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 375F.

Roll the dough. Measure the diameter of your pot pie dish or pot. Roll out a circle that is 2” larger than the diameter and 1/8” thick directly on your wax paper. Turn over onto the dish and carefully peel off the paper. Trim the edges to 1 inch all the way around the pot. Fold the edges under so they are tucked in over the edge of the rim. Crimp the edges by pinching together with thumb and index finger. This sticks the dough to the pot and also gives a decorative edge. Cut a 1/2” circle in the center of your crust to release steam as it bakes.

Bake the pie. Bake for 45 minutes until the crust is flaky and brown and the filling is bubbling. Serve each person a piece of crust and filling, although you may have to do these things separately!

Samples for inspiration…

Sauces
Leftover cream-based soup (e.g. of broccoli or mushroom)
Mashed potatoes thinned down with milk
Squashed squash
Gravy
Roux made of stock, butter and wine
Cream sauce of any kind

Fillings
Meat, poultry or seafood of any kind, cut in 1/2 to 1” dice
Frozen diced or small cut veggies
Roasted root vegetables
Broccoli, cauliflower or other cruciferous veggies (steamed, sauteed, roasted, etc)
Dark, leafy greens (steamed or sauteed)
Dried fruit
Diced onion, garlic, shallots
Bottled chestnuts
Herbs like oregano, tarragon, rosemary, thyme, basil, cilantro, parsley
Spices like paprika, black pepper, coriander, cumin

So, here’s dreaming…

• Roasted vegetables, broccoli, chestnuts, edamame and a cream sauce
• Beef, onions, carrots, potatoes in a roux-based sauce made from leftover gravy and seasoned with rosemary and thyme
• Cooked chicken, dried apricots and currants, leftover cabbage, slice, cooked mushrooms and cream sauce made with flour, butter, chicken stock and giblets, seasoned with shallots, parsley, and tarragon

Have fun!

Surely chile rellenos must have come from these sort of roots. A Mexican mama somewhere at some point pulled poblanos from the garden, grilled them as she always did, and then lovingly stuffed them with bits of ground meat and cheese before she covered them in batter and fried them. I don’t deep fry my chile rellenos, but don’t cry. These are damn good. I grilled them, as is traditional, to promote their smokiness and to help facilitate removing the tough skin. Then I stuffed them with a leftover homemade spicy sardine tomato sauce (recipe below), some black beans, cheese, and steamed broccoli and broiled ‘em until everything was fork tender and the cheese was bubbling and browning. These can easily be adapted to being more hearty (just add some cooked ground beef or turkey or even leftover chile) or more filling (just add some leftover rice).

I suggest you have a stuffed chile in your repertoire for summer nights just like these. Dig in. And of course if you don’t finish, there’s always tomorrow!

Chiles Rellenos
4 poblano chiles, washed
1 can of black beans, drained and mashed (you can also substitute 1/2 pound cooked ground turkey or beef)
2 tablespoons parsley + 1 tablespoon for garnish, minced
2/3 cup tomato spicy sardine tomato sauce (see below for recipe)
4oz pepper jack or other cheddar, grated, with some reserved for garnish
3 cups steamed broccoli, coarsely chopped
1/2 teaspoon smoky paprika
1/2 teaspoon cumin, toasted and ground
Freshly ground black pepper
Salt

Cut around the stem of each pepper and remove. Shake the seeds out over your trash or a bowl. Remove as much of the core as you can without cutting into the pepper.

Combine remaining ingredients above in a large bowl. Adjust seasoning.

Set your oven to broil (high).

Grill over direct flame until completely blackened (either on your grill or gas stove). Remove peppers and place in a bowl and cover with saran wrap or place in a sealed plastic bag. Allow to steam for 5 minutes. Remove and peel off the blackened skin. You can use a knife, but don’t wash them! Slice each pepper down one side and place in a heat-proof baking pan.

Stuff each pepper well and top with remaining cheese. Broil in the oven until cheese is browning and bubbling, about 3-5 minutes. Serve!

Spicy sardine tomato sauce
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 vidalia, 1/2 inch dice
3 cloves garlic, sliced
1 tablespoon thyme, minced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon chili sauce
3 sardine fillets (preferably salt-packed), minced

1 28oz can whole peeled tomatoes, crushed between your hands
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh basil, chiffonade
Freshly ground black pepper
Sea salt

Heat the oil in a sauce pan on medium. Add the onion and saute until translucent, about 8 minutes. Add the garlic and saute a few minutes more. Add the thyme, tomato paste, chile sauce, and sardines, grind in some black pepper, and saute a few minutes more. Add the tomatoes, basil and red wine vinegar and simmer 25 minutes, or until thickened. Add in the sea salt. Taste, and adjust seasoning. Remove from heat.

We used this first to pour over some grilled zucchini which we topped with goat cheese and served with crusty bread (depicted above).

When Anjuli and I get together in a kitchen it is like the improvisation that goes on between jazz musicians. She has an idea and it sparks me, I enhance on it, back and forth we go until, from these sparks, a dish is created. It just flows from mind to mind and heart to heart with no effort and no ego. It is quite amazing to me. I used to sing in the 60s with a partner. Sometimes we would hit a perfect note together. The feeling of the perfection of the note would make the hair stand up on the back of my neck. It had a life of its own. When Anjuli and I cook together sometimes we create a dish that feels like that. We can just feel that it is right.

This dish started from a telephone conversation between us the week before Thanksgiving:

Anj: let’s make something with my tagine; how about making something with grain?

We were both thinking Middle Eastern since the idea was to use a tagine. We thought of couscous or bulgur. We decided on bulgur which is a form of whole wheat that has been cleaned, parboiled, dried and ground. It comes in different grind sizes as well as whole kernel. It’s been a staple in the Middle East for thousands of years. It has a wonderful, nut like taste and slightly chewy texture. It is different from cracked wheat in that it has been cooked. If soaked in water or broth it can actually be used in salads without further cooking.

Bulgur and brown rice are comparable nutritionally in terms of protein and calcium, but bulgur is two and one half times higher in fiber with less calories. We decided to soak it over night with water, a little lemon juice and a sprig of rosemary. The acid in lemon juice helps to release locked nutrients in whole grain so our bodies can digest them. We often soak our whole grain in something slightly acidulated for that reason.

Anj: Now what to go with the bulgur? Onions? Leeks? Shallots?
Weezie: It’s Middle Eastern so dried fruit and mint? How about prunes?
The dialog flowed back and forth until we had the following list of ingredients.

What a lovely, hearty dish with a complex flavor, slightly sweet from the leeks and prunes, slightly salty, a little bite from the pepper and that wonderful flavor of mint combined with acid from the orange peel. It ranged from chewy to a satisfying crunch from the walnuts, a symphony of flavor and texture. We used it as a major side at our Thanksgiving celebration. It could also be used on any occasion as a main course or a side. It is very complete nutritionally. - Weezie

Bulgur with Peas and Mint, Leeks, Prunes, Walnuts and Orange Peel Serves 10 – 12

Ingredients
For soaking and cooking grain:
2 cups bulgur
8 cups water
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 inch sprig of fresh rosemary

1 1/2 cups chicken or turkey broth, homemade (1/2 cup used w/ bulgur and 1 cup with peas and mushrooms)
3 tablespoon fresh thyme, ground (to be divided and used below)
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, ground
2 tablespoons orange zest

For the prunes:
1 cup dried prunes, quartered
juice of 1 orange

For the mushrooms:
3 tablespoons good olive oil
4 cups shitake mushrooms, scrubbed with wet paper towels, stems removed, and cut in 1/2 inch strips
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper

For the nuts:
1 1/2 cups raw walnuts

For cooking the dish:
3 tablespoons ghee, preferably homemade
3 medium leeks, (1 1/2 cups) halved, cut in 1/4 inch crescents, then washed in a bowl of cold water and drained
2 small handfuls of dried mint leaves, crushed
1 tablespoon dried oregano
2 packages (2 lbs) of organic frozen peas, put in a colander until come to room temperature
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
2 teaspoons salt
1/2 cup red wine

Note: This dish was inspired from the idea to use Anjuli’s tagine. She actually forgot to bring it to Connecticut with the millions of other things she was already bringing for the holidays, so we made it in my dutch oven. But it would be wonderful and perhaps culturally more correct to make it in a tagine.

Soak the grain
We soaked 3 cups of bulgur not realizing that it swells to about 4 times its dry, pre-soaked volume. So we changed the recipe to 2 cups. Add the water to a large bowl along with the grain. Add the lemon juice and a sprig of rosemary to build flavor. Soak for 12 hours or overnight. Drain the bulgur.

Cook the grain
Add 1/2 cup of the broth to a medium sized saucepan. Stir in the drained bulgur, ground rosemary, orange zest, and 1 tablespoon of the thyme. Bring it to a boil and let it simmer about 5 minutes. Take off the heat, put a lid on it and set aside.

Soak the prunes
Soak the prunes in a small bowl with the orange juice and enough hot water to cover for one half hour.

Roast the Mushrooms
Preheat the oven to 350 F. On a cookie sheet toss the mushrooms with the olive oil, 1 tablespoon of minced thyme, salt, pepper, and the nutmeg. Roast for 20 minutes until the edges are brown. Toss the mushrooms twice during the roasting process. Remove from the oven and place on a paper towel. Let some of the oil drain then move to a bowl. Set aside.

Toast the Nuts
Turn the oven down to 325 F. Toast the nuts on a cookie sheet for 15 minutes until they change color slightly. Shake the pan once during toasting. Remove from the oven and cool on parchment paper. Once cool, break into pieces and set aside.

Cook the fruits, nuts, herbs and spices together
In a dutch oven or large heavy-bottom pan, melt the ghee on medium low. Add the leeks and saute until they soften, about 5 minutes. Add the mint, oregano, peas, mushrooms, black pepper, and salt. Saute for 1 minute. Add the wine and remaining 1 cup of broth and the prunes with their liquid. Bring to a boil and turn down the heat, put on a lid and let it simmer for 15 minutes. Remove the lid and cook off most remaining liquid on medium-high, about 3 minutes. Turn off the heat.

Assembly the dish
Add the nuts and bulgur. Toss lightly to combine with a large spoon, but don’t press or mash. Keep it covered until ready to serve. We served it directly from the dutch oven.

…November 11, 2009 in Connecticut, around 3:30pm to be exact…
Girl wants to make soup for boy on a chilly afternoon. A lazy, delicious conversation ensues.

Boy: What do we have on hand?
Girl: Turnips, carrots, onions, potatoes, and homemade soup stock, some tomatoes, cannellini beans, and all the spices and herbs (at least dried) we could want. Let’s stick to the things that are in season together, and nix the tomatoes. I’ve never made a turnip soup, but let’s try one. They’re a little starchy, sweet, and a little tangy, I think. That’s a good place to start.

Girl: Do we want a broth based one or a creamy one?
Boy: A savory broth soup.
Girl: Ok, maybe we can use some miso paste in with the chicken broth. We’ll want to put it in right at the end though, because otherwise it’ll lose a lot of the nutritive value. We won’t want to cook any of the vegetables after. I say if we want to make it a savory one, let’s also nix the cannellini beans. They will make it too meh.

Girl: Do we want something light or hearty?
Boy: Something good and hearty.
Girl: Ok, then we should probably go get some chicken breast or we could use beef or something.
Boy: Let’s stick with some chicken cause we have the stock. We can use some dark meat.

Girl: What do we want the texture to be like? Chunky, smooth, all different textures?
Boy: A thick broth but with tender chunks of turnips.
Girl: Ok, well then we can saute some onions and maybe a leek or something, then chop up the vegetables and add them in. Based on the ingredients so far, we can use some rosemary, and maybe a little dried oregano.

Girl: Do we want any spiciness to it?
Boy: Real basic stuff. Not a lot of Indian spice. Some toasted cumin, maybe, and some simple pepper heat.
Girl: A lot of pepper would be good.
Boy: Yeah.

…Girl and boy go to the grocery store. Later on in the day, 8:30pm to be exact…
Five cups of turnips have been painstakingly chopped into 1/2 inch dice along with 1/2 onion and six carrots on hand and two leeks and a sweet potato purchased at the store. The onion and leeks have been sauteed in ghee, the turnips and sweet potato added, then the carrots. Homemade chicken stock has also been made with a whole four pound chicken purchased at the store. Four cups of stock have been added to the soup along with 1/2 cup wine. The soup has been brought to a boil and simmered for ten minutes with a cocked lid. One teaspoon of toasted cumin, one tablespoon of fresh rosemary, and one teaspoon of dried oregano have also been added, along with a teaspoon of salt and ton of black pepper.

Girl: Time to add the chicken. Should we puree some of the soup to make the broth thicker?
Boy: Wow, it’s good but really sweet. Yea, I think that would be nice. Maybe just 1/4 of what you have there.

…30 minutes later…
1/4 of the soup has been pureed and added back in. The chicken has been broken up into bits, four more cups of stock has been added. The soup has been brought to the boil again, and more pepper added in. A ladle of soup has been removed and two tablespoons of miso mixed with it, then returned to the pot. The soup has been slowly simmered for five minutes more, then turned off and lidded. The soup is ladled into a big bowl and brought to the table.

Girl: Well?
Boy: F*cking noms.

Turnip Chicken Soup
I have always found myself a fan of plucking raspberries just before they’re ripe, when their pale seeds are in the transition between tart and sweet. So while I wasn’t sure I’d even like turnip soup, let alone add some super sweet sweet potato into it, this soup is so nourishing I actually have to wonder if we were just so hungry we would have eaten a box of Mike and Ike’s and dreamed about the experience. But we tried the soup again today, and it fully stood up to my first impression. Sort of a lingering sweet, coaxing the side of your tongue while a savory mouthful of chicken goodness, a little hint of onion and rosemary, and the tiniest blush of miso has you dipping in for seconds. And thirds. I don’t know if I’ll be raving about turnips anytime soon, but a good soup can settle many disagreements, I kid you not.

Makes 8-10 servings
2 tablespoons ghee
1 Spanish onion, 1/2 inch dice
2 leeks
5 cups yield turnips, peeled, ends removed, and chopped into 1/2 inch dice (about 4 medium sized turnips)
1 large sweet potato, peeled, ends removed, and chopped into 1/2 inch dice
5 carrots, peeled, ends removed, and chopped 1/2 inch dice
1 tablespoon dried oregano

Boiled chicken, yield cut into pieces from a 4 pound Organic chicken and 2 quarts of stock (see my recipe on how to make)
1/2 cup red wine
1 teaspoon whole cumin seeds
1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, minced
A lot of black pepper
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons dark miso

Cut off the ends of the leeks and also the dark green part of the stalk. Slice the leeks in half lengthwise, and then slice into 1/4 inch moons. Place the leeks in a bowl of cold water and stir around to dislodge any dirt. Strain in a colander and press out any remaining water.

In a heavy stock pot, heat the ghee on medium. Once hot, add the leeks and onions and saute until soft, about 8 minutes. Grind in some black pepper.

If all your veggies are about the same density, add them all in at the same time. If the sweet potato or the turnips are harder, add them in first and saute 4 minutes. Add in the remaining vegetables and saute another few minutes. Add a quart of the chicken stock, the red wine, cumin, oregano, 10 good grinds of black pepper, and bring to a boil. Simmer for 15 minutes, until the vegetables are tender. Remove 3 cups of the soup and puree in a blender, then add back into the soup. Add in the rosemary.

Add in the chicken and the rest of the stock and return to a boil. Add the salt. Spoon out a cup of stock and stir in the miso. Add back to the soup. Simmer for 5 minutes more but make sure not to bring back to the boil. Taste, adjust seasonings, turn off the heat and allow the flavors to meld for 5 minutes. Serve with a good hunk of cozy bread.

Tip: When serving leftovers it’s nice to add a bit of fresh minced rosemary. This soup can be left in the fridge for up to 4 days or stored in the freezer for a month.

We’ve been moving around quite a bit lately, so it’s been hard to find the time to soak beans. Ah, bean soaking. That cooking activity we all say we don’t have time for but of course we do. Well I’ve also grown tired of using canned chickpeas when I’m in the need for some hummus. And the colder it gets, the more I like the idea of a spread and some toasted pita fresh from the oven. While the unsalted kind can work, the texture of the beans many times turns out mealy, and sometimes doesn’t accept any moisture at all. You wind up with an incredibly green, greasy, ball of chickpea dough spinning around and around in your food processor. Not cool. Amusingly enough, this is the first dish Matt and I attempted together, and basically how he was introduced to my cooking. Note to self: salting too early makes for not awesome mouth feel and impermeable starches and proteins.

We’ve got a lot of awesome garlic, parsley, and radish right now, harvested from my mother’s garden. So when I was in need of some hearty spread the other day, I decided to try out some cannellini beans instead. Surprisingly, even a can of Organic salted ones greatly improved the recipe. Cannellini beans have a much better texture – creamy, a little lighter, and more accepting of flavors with much less need for tahini and oil. The spread that materialized out of a lot of finger licking and pureeing reminds of an awesome crostini my friend used to make, the aroma of toasted cumin, and something my cilantro-adoring Indian father always likes to say: “Ewwww, parsley.” With a little sweetness from caramelized onion, a little garlicky kick, and some heat to warm you up, it’s a hearty, addictive snack.

1 small sweet or red onion
1 tablespoon cooking olive oil

3 pitas
Coarse sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Extra virgin olive oil

1/2 teaspoon cumin
1/2 teaspoon urad, toor, or chana dal (optional)
A few whole peppercorns

1 can cannellini beans, rinsed
2 cloves of garlic, peeled, and coarsely chopped
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon tahini
1/3 cup Italian parsley, woody stems removed
Juice of 1/2 lemon
A pinch or more of paprika
4 radishes, ends removed, and 1 radish sliced thinly for garnish
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 teaspoon salt

Turn the oven on to 250 degrees.

In a small saute pan, heat the cooking olive oil over medium. Once hot, add the onions and saute without burning until caramelized, about 15 to 20 minutes. Stir periodically to prevent burning. Season with a little salt and freshly ground black pepper. Remove from heat.

Cut the pita into 8ths, drizzle with olive oil, sprinkle with salt, grind on some pepper, and place evenly on a cookie sheet. Toast in the oven for 10-15 minutes until crispy. Remove, place in tinfoil, and keep in a warm oven until ready to use.

While the onions and pita are cooking, dry toast the cumin, dal (if using), and peppercorns in a small saute pan on medium. Once they start to pop, add them to the food processor.

Assemble the rest of the ingredients and add them to the food processor, reserving one sprig of parsley and the sliced radish. Once the onions are done, add them as well and puree until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning. If it’s a little dry, add in a tablespoon of oil. If not creamy enough, add in a tablespoon of tahini.

Place the spread in a bowl, garnish with the radish and the parsley, and serve the pita on the side. Enjoy!

You can never, ever, go wrong with this anatomy for a sandwich: crust, spread, something crunchy, something moist, and something savory. This simple formula has made some seriously classic sandwiches. Whenever I come across a sandwich in my path that I don’t particularly like, it’s always missing one of these elements. Open any fridge in any household and, dorm room kiddie fridges aside, you can almost always find the ingredients to make something delectable for lunch that fits between two slices of bread.

Crust: Do I even need to go here?…
Spread: mayo, mustard, relish, tapenade, peanut butter, pickle, ketchup, miso
Crunchy: lettuce, pickles, veggies, chips, fries, onion, bacon, chocolate, apples
Moist: cheese, jelly, pulled meats, chicken, cream cheese, marshmallow, fruit, cooked greens, raisins, tomato
Savory: meats, harder cheeses, cured meats, smoked fish, miso

My most recent take on a sandwich included Japanese miso, Mexican avocados, Portuguese sardines, Japanese cucumber, Italian Parmigiano Reggiano, and Indian pickle. The lot of leftover ingredients never tasted so good together.

2 pieces of whole wheat bread, toasted
A few spreads of miso tahini

Sardines in oil
1/2 sweet red onion or shallot, small dice
1/2 lemon
Freshly ground black pepper.

1/2 avocado, sliced, sprinkled with lemon juice and coarse sea salt
1/2 burpless cucumber, sliced thinly into rounds -or- 1″ chunk cucumber, halved, seeded, and sliced
1/2 ripe ripe juicy yummy tomato, sliced
A few stems of sorrel or other spicy lettuce, washed and chiffonade
A few shavings of Parmigiano Reggiano
A good spicy pickle (I used Indian mango pickle)

Take a few sardines and chop them coarsely. Combine the sardines and onions in a small bowl. Grind in some pepper and sprinkle with some lemon juice.

Spread the miso tahini paste onto both slices of bread. On slice 1 – layer on the avocado, followed by slice of cucumber, followed by the Reggiano, followed by the spicy pickle. On slice 2 – Put down a good bed of tomato, followed by your sardines, then a topping or sorrel or other lettuce. Put together and enjoy!

Miso tahini spread
This is a staple that we use on sandwiches, with freshly cut veggies, and sometimes just on your finger and straight into your mouth. The original is from Sandor Ellix Katz’s Wild Fermentation

2 tablespoons good miso
2 tablespoons tahini
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon freshly squeezed lemon juice

Mix and save and savor and eat and love. Keeps for a week in the fridge.

Grain salads can be your best friend in summer. You usually have something fresh on hand or something to get rid of, it’s all about the produce, and it’s so f*cking hot you want something cooling and excellent that doesn’t require being chained to the stove. In summer you’d be hard-pressed to find a blog or site that doesn’t include a “new spin” on this old favorite. When I found a bag of hard red spring wheat berries in the cabinet I thought I’d give it a try. Since I am not a fan of being slave to recipes (or my stove in summer, apparently), I spent a little time researching what goes well with these grain salad things people love so much.

The classic grain salad is served cold, and usually includes Mediterranean/Middle Eastern flavors and summer vegetables. I fell in love with the nutty, hearty wheat berry, which definitely holds its own more than bulgar, quinoa, or farro. Of course, these grains are excellent too. Wheat berries are whole wheat kernels with the husks removed, while bulgar is a quick-cooking form of whole wheat that has been parboiled, dried, and ground into little bits. If you’re sick of durum wheat, then quinoa, farro, wild rice, buckwheat groats, or barley are also good to play with.

Below I give you a ratio that will work well for most of the hearty grains and allow you to mix and match depending on what you have on hand. When I think about pairing ingredients for this dish, I start with the ingredient I really want to use. Then, depending on its texture and flavor I try to balance it with something else. If I have some insane beets to roast, maybe I want some citrus to counter the starch, and some toasted walnuts or pecans to add some body, a little arugula for spice, some grapefruit for that sweet/sour acid, and a little fresh goat cheese to give something really creamy to the bite of the beets. If I really wanted to go with some really excellent, ripe tomatoes, maybe some avocado, cilantro, red onion for bite, lime juice, and cumin. Or how about some sauteed zucchini and squash, wilted chard, lemon juice, shallots, basil, and cayenne.

The salad we made was totally satisfying and when I kept the ingredients and the flavorings separate, it kept for days. Experiment and enjoy.

CHOOSE your INGREDIENTS (a couple of portions):
1/2 cup nuts or olives: e.g. toasted pecans, toasted walnuts, kalamata, black olives, or green olives
1 cup summer vegetable(s): e.g. diced cucumber, tomato, or sweet peppers; blanched peas; sauteed zucchini, summer squash, or eggplant, or roasted beets, diced avocado
1/2 cup sweet fruit: e.g. segmented oranges, segmented grapefruit, golden raisins, dried or fresh figs, dried currants, or dried cranberries
1 cup summer greens: e.g. arugula, watercress; wilted chard or spinach

CHOOSE your FLAVOR PAIRINGS (one of each):
2 tablespoons Mediterranean herb: e.g. parsley, mint, oregano, marjoram, basil, dill, or cilantro
1 teaspoon citrus juice: e.g. lime, lemon, orange, or grapefruit
2 tablespoons vinegar: e.g. cider vinegar or red wine vinegar
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

ADD a little UMPH, if you like:
3 oz fresh cheese: e.g. cubed feta, mozzarella, or crumbled goat cheese
1 allium: e.g. 1 diced shallot, 1 minced clove garlic, or 1/2 red onion diced
Spice: e.g. 1 teaspoon dry roasted cumin or 1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1 teaspoon something sweet: e.g. maple syrup or honey

COOK some WHEAT BERRIES (in advance if you like):
1 cup hard red spring wheat berries
3 1/2 cups cold water
1 teaspoon salt

Put the berries, water, and salt in a medium heavy-bottomed pan and turn on to boil. Cook 1 hour or until berries are bursting and chewy. Remove from heat. Cool until ready to use.

ASSEMBLE the STUFF

MAGIC will HAPPEN (kind of like this)
Ours blossomed into a wheat berry salad with watercress, arugula, cucumber, kalamata olives, red onion, mint, and crumbled feta.

When I think of dinner parties, I think of time I will be spending in the kitchen. My recent adventure actually left leisure time for relaxation and conversation BEFORE DINNER WAS SERVED. Shocker. There was exceptional kitchen help and there was also chicken adobo. Crowd pleaser. Leftover king. Low-key, accommodating, with some natural charisma and a lot of flavor.

This chicken is a little sweet and a little savory, falling off the bone, and accompanied by tender whole cloves of garlic. Adobo is Spanish for marinade. It’s as simple as it sounds. Chicken adobo originated in the Philippines. I received it by way of my mother, who learned it from family friends who are Filipino. The vinegar in adobo preserves the chicken over long periods of time, and enables you to basically cook it in the AM and eat it in the PM with no fuss. Naturally, the Filipino dish was commonly taken by travelers on journey.

After years of making adobo for dinner parties and her family, my mother’s recipe has been distilled into the brilliance below. Traditional recipes will brown the chicken and refine the sauce (sauce instructions below). We keep it simple and delicious and served over brown rice. Great for dinner parties or cozy evenings. It’s even better the day after.

Note: Filipino adobo is not to be confused with Puerto Rican or Mexican adobo. It also has no resemblance to Goya’s adobo.

6 Organic skin on bone in chicken thighs, washed
1/3 cup soy sauce
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon whole peppercorns
1 whole head garlic, skins removed
2 bay leaves

Peel the garlic. The way I do it is to first break all the cloves off of the head and remove all the flaky outer skin. Then I place the garlic on its side on the cutting board and place the thickest part of a chef’s knife horizontally atop it. Then you hit the knife with the side of a fist enough to break the outer skin but not smash the garlic (it’s OK if it’s a little bruised). Guys beware: this is not a manly feat.

Place all the ingredients in a heavy-bottomed pot. Yes, this means putting in the whole peppercorns and garlic. Bring it to a boil. Once it boils, turn the heat down slightly until it is only a rolling boil (not furiously boiling) so much so that the liquid with disappear. Put a lid on and cook for 30 minutes. Every 10 minutes turn rotate the thighs. Turn down to simmer and let it cook for another 15.

Take off the heat. Let sit for at least 4 hours away from the stove. The vinegar preserves the chicken, so it can be left to sit covered at room temperature while it marinates. Skim off the fat that has risen to the top. If the sauce is not yet in a solid state, the fat will be the clear slippery liquid floating on the top.

If you want to make the dish more elegant (depending on who the eaters are), you can strain and cook down the sauce. If you choose this option, take out the chicken and garlic and place in a bowl. Strain the sauce through a sieve and discard any solid material. Place the sauce back into the pot and simmer until at desired thickness (about 20 minutes). Let cool. Place the chicken back into the pot until it’s read to serve.

Heat the chicken back up on medium until warm and serve over brown rice.

Aki came over for dinner last night and we tried to do all the dirty work in advance. However, we seem to go at our own pace when cooking, and things rarely turn out like magic. After a bit of practice with this recipe, the 10 minute theatrics of making the curry come to life will surely be something to save for the crowd. The spicy and very savory curry of this dish goes well with the softness and sweetness of the fish. The shallots are similar to the small pinkish onions found all over India, and give a more complex flavor than yellow onions.

Basically this recipe is pure genius (and a lot of ghee and chili). I pulled it from Mangoes & Curry Leaves, an exquisite cookbooks by a husband and wife team of who bring recipes from East to West in as much their original form as cultural difference will allow. Some modifications have been made for availability (nontraditional shallots and Tilapia are used in this recipe). The recipes come from Bangladesh, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka. This particular one is from the state of Kerala on the the southwestern tip of the Indian peninsula. My father was born in Alathur. Much of Kerala is covered in rice patties off the coast. Due to the state’s communist history and later social reform favoring laborers, education (90% literacy rate) and health have always been a higher standard than neighboring states.

Notes about process
One significant way Indian recipes differ from Western ones is by incorporating spices at different points in the recipe to develop the flavor. This makes the list of ingredients look daunting, even if many of them are the same.

In this recipe, the process begins with adding seeds and leaves to oil, then the masala paste (a pre-blended mix of spices), then the fish, then tempering. Tempering/Baghar/Tadka/Chonk is a technique used to add flavor to a dish quickly. Spices and herbs are added to a hot oil until they pop (flavor opens up). Then they are added directly to the dish.

Notes about fish
Selecting a fish today is like maneuvering through a battlefield. Tilapia, the freshwater fish that has grown increasingly popular for aquaculture, was the recommendation for this recipe. If you can find it wild, its sweet mild flavor and firm texture are wonderful for this recipe. The key is to find a mild and firm white fish that will quickly absorb the flavors of the dish. Others that come to mind are sole, flounder, snapper, or maybe even monkfish.

If you must go farmed, as of writing this entry tilapia from the U.S. in on the ECO best list. Also, here’s an interesting look at Kerala fisheries.

Cayenne chilies
Cayenne chilies have a lot of heat that is long lasting but also a good flavor. You can’t really substitute these for any other chili. If you use 9 this dish will probably be quite hot, so use discretion. Don’t be a hero. If you burn your mouth you won’t taste anything. I always serve hot Indian dishes with yogurt, especially when making them for the first time.

I substituted the 1 inch long green chilies and felt the heat was perfect.

Masala Paste
3 tablespoons ginger, coarsely chopped
1 tablespoon garlic, coarsely chopped
1/2 cup shallots, coarsely chopped
6 green cayenne chilies, seeded and coarsely chopped
1/2 cup packed fresh coriander leaves and stems
/2 cup fresh or frozen grated coconut, or substitute dried shredded coconut mixed with 1 tablespoon water
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon tumeric

Place the ginger, garlic, shallots, chilies, and fresh coriander in a food processor or stone mortar and process to a coarse paste. Add in the coconut and check the moisture. Transfer to a bowl and stir in the ground coriander and tumeric. Set aside. This can be done a day in advance.

Tempering
About 4 tablespoons ghee (or butter, if you must)
4 to 6 fresh or frozen curry leaves
1/2 cup sliced shallots
2 tablespoons minced garlic
3 green cayenne chilies, stemmed and cut in half

Your tempering should be made as close to plating as possible, ideally about the same time you start cooking the curry. Heat the ghee in a heavy skillet over medium-high heat.

Toss in the curry leaves, wait 20 seconds, then add the shallots and garlic.

Lower the heat to medium and cook until starting to soften, about 4 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the chilies and cook until the shallots are very soft and touched with brown, about 5 minutes more. Set aside.

1 1/2 pounds tilapia (not farm-raised)
1/2 cup coconut oil or other vegetable oil
2 teaspoons black mustard seeds
1/2 cup fresh or frozen curry leaves
2 cups water (1 cup if using tomato)
4 to 6 pieces fish tamarind, or substitute 1 cup chopped green tomatoes
1 1/4 teaspoons salt

Rinse the fish fillets, cut into 2-inch pieces and set aside. Heat the oil in a wok or large pan over medium-high heat. Once hot, add the mustard seeds. Once they have started to pop and turn gray, add in the curry leaves and masala paste. Lower the heat to medium and cook, stirring occasionally, until the oil rises to the surface, about 5 minutes. It will literally begin to pool and separate from the mixture. Make sure it doesn’t burn. Add the water and fish tamarind or tomatoes and bring to a boil. Add the salt and the fish and simmer, turning the fish once, for 3 to 5 minutes, until just barely cooked through. Add the tempering mixture and simmer for a minute, then serve hot over brown rice.

Shopping List
If you already have the basic spices and seeds for Indian cooking, here’s what you’d need to accomplish this recipe:
1 head garlic
4 shallots
9 green cayenne chilies (found at Indian specialty stores)
1 bunch fresh coriander
1 1/2 pounds tilapia
Fresh or frozen curry leaves
4-6 pieces fish tamarind
1 bag frozen or fresh coconut