Wild Mushroom Soupy Stew

This Soupy Stew is the essence of mushrooms. Aside from the mushrooms, the ingredients are few but the taste is magnificently mushroomy. The idea came from a recipe in The Fig Table by Todd English and Sally Sampson called Wild Mushroom Ribollita. But that dish included bread cubes, parmesan and mozzarella cheese. For my taste, allowing those wonderful wild mushrooms to shine was the way to go.

There is not a lot of liquid in this recipe so I call it a soupy stew. If you wish, add more chicken broth. If you don't have all of the mushrooms listed, go ahead and make the dish with what you have on hand.

1 1/2 oz. dried porcini mushrooms, soaked in hot water for 20 minutes

21 tb. olive oil

3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

2 onions, thinly sliced

1/2 pound button mushrooms, trimmed and sliced

3/4 pounds shitake mushrooms, trimmed and sliced

1/2 pound oyster mushrooms, trimmed and chopped

1/2 pound portobello mushrooms, including stems, chopped

1 Idaho potato, diced

1 tb. chopped fresh rosemary leaves

6 cups chicken broth or canned low sodium broth

Drain the dried mushrooms, retaining the soaking liquid. Strain the liquid through a coffee filter to remove any silt and set aside.

Place large pot over medium high heat and add the oil when hot. Add garlic and onions and cook until the garlic is toasted, about 3 minutes. Add mushrooms, mushroom soaking liquid, potato and rosemary and cook until mushrooms have softened, about 20 minutes. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Lower heat and cook for 1 hour, stirring occasionally.

Serves 6

Note: The dish can be made a few days in advance and reheated.

The additional steps in the original ribollita recipe are: After the mushrooms have cooked for 1 hour, add 3 cups bread cubes, 1/2 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese and 2 balls (4 ozs each) buffalo mozzarella cheese, chopped.

Stir to melt cheeses. Place in shallow bowl and serve immediately garnished with diced tomatoes and chopped fresh basil leaves.

Mrs. Kolbert's Coconut Bars

This recipe appeared in the Christmas issue of Gourmet Magazine in 1993. After holding on to the magazine for 16 years I finally found the time to make this very simple, homey bar cookie. The impetus was my discovery of bags of flaked coconut sitting in my cupboard. Has this ever happened to you? You see an item in the supermarket and think it would be a good idea to buy it in case you need it. You have a problem when you do exactly the same thing several times. Not only do I have sweetened coconut but I have three bags of unsweetened coconut in my freezer. What to do? Yes, these sweet, adorable cookies present a lovely way of reducing the coconut overstock in my kitchen. But there is no need to wait until you have a coconut glut. Make these and enjoy their old fashioned goodness any time.

1 1/2 cups firmly packed light brown sugar

1 cup plus 3 tbl. flour

1 stick (1/2 cup) unsalted butter, melted and cooled

1 1/2 cups sweetened flaked coconut

1 cup chopped blanched almonds

2 large eggs, beaten lightly

1 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. In a bowl with a fork, stir together 1/2 cup of the brown sugar, 1 cup of the flour, and the butter until the mixture is combined well. Press the mixture evenly onto the bottom of a 13 by 9 inch baking pan (it may look as if there isn't enough dough but work on spreading it evenly and it will cover the bottom of the pan). Bake in the middle of the oven for 10 minutes.

In the bowl with the fork combine the remaining 1 cup brown sugar, the remaining 3 tbl. flour, the coconut, the almonds, the eggs, the vanilla, and the salt and blend the mixture well. Spread the coconut mixture evenly over the crust and bake for 20 minutes or until it is pale golden. Cut the mixture into 48 bars and let the bars cool completely in the pan on a rack.

Makes 48 small bar cookies

Notes: The next time I make these I will make 24 larger cookies. These were so small that I ate 6 of them in a flash. They can be frozen in airtight containers for 1 month. I froze half of my batch and Henry and I ate the rest very quickly.

Green Pea Soup

Hadassah invited us to her home for brunch yesterday afternoon. The meal she served was eclectic-herring, smoked salmon, pastrami, pate, chick pea salad, cheeses, stuffed eggs, potato salad and stuffed grape leaves. We were an international group and this was an international menu. Before the serious eating began, Hadassah served a delicious and delicate soup. We all asked for the recipe, which I just received.

3 cups chicken broth

1 tbl. flour

2 tbl. butter

2 cups green peas (Hadassah uses frozen peas)

1 small onion, cubed

1 cup cream or half and half

salt and pepper to taste

In the blender put 1 cup of broth, butter, peas and onion and blend til smooth and well blended (about 20 seconds). Turn into a pot and add the remaining broth.

Cover and bring to a boil. Simmer for 5 minutes. Add the cream (or half and half) and bring to a second boil, stirring constantly. Serve with croutons.

Notes: The soup can be made a day or two in advance and then reheated.

French Apple Tart

My niece Liz brought this apple tart to our last family gathering. It was an incredible hit. Not only is the tart beautiful and delicious but Liz insists that it is not at all difficult to prepare. Since the dough is not in a tart pan but rolled freehand, the tart has an appealingly rustic appearance. If you are one of those pastry dough phobics (as I am), this recipe would be a good one to start with. Thanks to Ina Garten's Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics cookbook for this one.

Pastry:

2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 tsp. kosher salt

1 tbl. sugar

12 tbl (1 1/2 sticks) cold unsalted butter, diced

1/2 cup ice water

Apples:

4 Granny Smith apples

1/2 cup sugar

4 tbl (1/2 stick) cold unsalted butter, small diced

1/2 cup apricot jelly or warm sieved apricot jam

2 tbl. Calvados, rum or water

For the pastry, place the flour, salt, and sugar in the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade. Pulse for a few seconds to combine. ad the butter and pulse 10 to 12 times, until the butter is in small bits the size of peas. With the motor running, pour the ice water down the feed tube and pulse just until the dough starts to come together. Dump onto a floured board and knead quickly into a ball. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a sheet pan with parchment paper.

Roll the dough slightly larger than 10 by 14 inches. Using a ruler and a small knife, trim the edges. Place the dough on the prepared sheet pan and refrigerate while you prepare the apples.

Peel the apples and cut them in half through the stem. Remove the stems and cores with a sharp knife and a melon baller. Slice the apples crosswise in 1/4 inch thick slices. Place the overlapping slices of apples diagonally down the middle of the tart and continue making diagonal rows on both sides of the first row until the pastry is covered with apple slices. Sprinkle with the full 1/2 cup of sugar and dot with the butter.

Bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until the pastry is browned and the edges of the apples start to brown. Rotate the pan once during the cooking. If the pastry puffs up in one area, cut a little slit with a knife to let the air out. Don't worry! The apple juices will burn in the pan but the tart will be fine. When the tart's done, heat the apricot jelly together with the Calvados and brush the apples and the pastry completely with the jelly mixture. Loosen the tart with a metal spatula so it doesn't stick to the paper. Allow to cool and serve warm or at room temperature.

Serves 6

Notes: If the dough is a bit ragged, don't worry about.

The instructions re the apples sound more complicated than the reality. I'll try to get a photo to show you how to layer the apples or find the recipe on Foodchannel.com and see the photo. Or just do your own thing. The taste will still be wonderful.

This recipe got rave reviews on the foodchannel website. One reviewer cheated by buying prepared puff pastry and using that instead of making her own pastry. Whatever works is fine.

Adobo-Rubbed Pork Tenderloin with Black Bean Pico de Gallo

When I crave a break from the usual chicken or fish I think of pork tenderloin. It's very lean and cooks quickly. Does it taste great? Usually not. Pork tenderloin can be a little dry and boring. This dish is different. It has a bit of a spicy kick and the meat stays juicy and flavorful. The adobo rub is easy to put together and does wonders for the super lean pork. Black bean pico de gallo is a perfect partner. I served this with oven roasted sweet potatoes and asparagus. The sweet potatoes went into the oven first, followed by the asparagus and then the pork. The recipe makes extra adobo rub which you can try on, what else, chicken and fish of course. Thanks to Self magazine (4/03) for this excellent recipe which I changed slightly.

Pork

6 tbsp paprika

2 tbsp freshly ground pepper

2 tbsp coarse salt

1 tbsp chili powder

2 tbsp brown sugar

3 pinches cayenne pepper

24 oz. pork tenderloin, trimmed, cut into 3 to 4 ounce pieces

Pico de gallo

1 15 ounce can black beans

4 medium tomatoes, diced

1/2 cup diced red onion

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro

2 tbsp minced jalapeno pepper

2 tbsp fresh lemon or lime juice

salt to taste

For pork: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In small bowl, mix paprika, black pepper, salt, chili powder, sugar and cayenne. Rub all sides of each tenderloin piece with spice mixture. Preheat oven safe skillet over medium high heat and pan sear pices until golden brown on all sides. Transfer to oven until done (about 12 minutes- check at 10 minutes).

To make pico de gallo, mix all ingredients. Serve 1/2 cup over tenderloin pieces and place the remaining pico de gallo on the table.

Serves 4

Notes: My daughter Rachel and her wife Lisa make a very delicious corn relish during the corn season and often send us a few jars of it. I added some relish to the pico de gallo. The bright yellow corn looks beautiful combined with black beans and the taste is wonderful. If you have some corn on hand, add it. Chopped avocado would also be a great addition.

Turkey and Bean Chili

Getting ground turkey to taste good is always a challenge. But I'm determined. Using spices and other assertive ingredients helps a lot. Here is a chili recipe that is easy to prepare and flavorful. We had it tonight for dinner and I'm looking forward to the leftovers tomorrow evening. Try this. If you wish, crank up the spice level higher and/ or add another can of beans.

1 tbl. olive oil

1 medium size onion, chopped

2 carrots, scraped and sliced

2 celery stalks, sliced

3 garlic cloves, chopped

1 pound ground turkey

3 (or more) tbl. chili powder

2 tsp. ground cumin

2 tsp. dried oregano

2 tsp. adobo chilis

1 15 ounce can beans, drained (pinto, navy or black beans all work well)

1 14 ounce can diced tomatoes with juice

1 1/2 cups low salt chicken broth

8 ounces brown mushrooms, trimmed and sliced thickly

Put olive oil in large, heavy pot. Add onions, carrots, celery and garlic and saute until vegetables are softened. Add turkey and saute until there is no pink meat visible, breaking up the large chunks of turkey with a large spoon or fork. Mix in chili powder, cumin, oregano and adobo, stir and cook for 1 minute. Add beans, tomatoes with juice and broth. Bring to a boil and reduce heat. Simmer, uncovered for 30 minutes, then add mushrooms. Continue simmering until the chili thickens, stirring occasionally, about 30 minutes more. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve with rice and yogurt(if desired).

Serves 4

Chicken Curry, Madras Style

This very flavorful chicken dish is simple to prepare and can be made in advance and reheated. Leftovers are so desirable that you should consider making extra for that purpose. The dish is based on a chicken curry recipe I found in Tangy Tart Hot and Sweet by the glamourous Padma Lakshmi. I didn't have the pipali peppercorns and tamarind pulp Ms. Lakshmi used so I made the dish without them. I also added a bunch of sliced carrots. Serve with plain basmati rice and a chutney. Spicy Apple-Pear Chutney (10/15/09 post) works well.

1/4 cup sesame oil

5 garlic cloves

2 cups sliced shallots

1 tablespoon pipali peppercorns or black peppercorns

3 black cardomom pods

2 1/2 tbl. minced fresh ginger

5 hot, dried chilis

1/2 cup shredded unsweetened coconut

1 chicken (3-4 pounds), cut up with giblets and skin removed or 3 pounds chicken parts, skin removed

2 russet potatoes, peeled and cut into large chunks

1 bunch carrots, scraped and cut into 1/2 inch slices

2 tsps. curry powder

10 plum tomatoes, quartered lengthwise

salt to taste

1 cup chopped cilantro leaves

2 to 3 tbl. fresh squeezed lemon or lime

Heat the oil on medium heat in a deep stew pot and add the garlic. After 1 minute, add the shallots and stir well for 3 minutes, until the shallots soften. Add the peppercorns, cardomom pods, ginger and dried red chilies. Cook until the onions are wilted. After about 8-10 minutes, add the coconut and stir for 2 minutes more, or until the coconut is toasted.

Add the chicken and stir well to brown all sides. After 4 minutes, add the potatoes, carrots and curry powder. Add 4 1/2 cups of warm water and stir. Cover and cook for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Turn the heat down to low and add the tomatoes. Continue to stir and cook uncovered for 5 minutes and then let simmer, covered, for 10-15 minutes. The chicken should be falling off the bone. Adjust salt to taste. Before serving, stir in the cilantro leaves and lemon juice to awaken the flavors.

Serves 4-6

Notes: If you can get tamarind pulp, use it this way: Soak 1 ounce (golf ball size) knob of tamarind pulp in 1 cup of boiling water for 20 minutes. When adding the potatoes and curry powder, pour in the tamarind water, straining it through a fine-mesh sieve and pressing the tamarind with the back of a spoon to get out as much of the pulp water as possible. Add 4 cups of warm water through the sieve and stir. Do not add the additional 4 1/2 cups of water.

1 cup of canned tomatoes can replace the plum tomatoes.

If possible, remove the peppercorns before serving. My tasters did not enjoy eating them or picking them out of the plate at the table.