Clam Pancakes (Fritters)

Sometimes the best-laid plans go awry. I came across a recipe for a traditional Heiltsuk clam fritter recipe (more on the Heiltsuk below). This recipe, as with most fritter recipes, called for a heavy breading that gets deep fried in a lot of oil. The combination of heavy breading and deep frying did not really appeal to me. 

I thought I could make a couple of fairly simple modifications and I would end up with a fritter that did not have a thick breading soaked in oil. The principal change was to pan fry the fritters in less oil. That is where things started to go wrong.

The key to a fritter is to submerge it in oil so that all sides firm up almost immediately. When the same dollop is placed into a pan, it tends to spread as only the bottom part begins to firm. One then ends up with a pancake, as opposed to a fritter. 

To be sure, there are fritters that look like mini-pancakes. However, the picture on this particular clam fritter recipe displayed round, golden balls. Not flat pancakes. 

Alas, I lose points for authenticity. It is a little disappointing for my first chance to learn about the Heiltsuk, a native American people who have inhabited the central coast of what is now British Columbia, Canada, since at least 7,190 B.C.E. The Heiltsuk identify as being form one of five tribal groups: the Seaward Tribe (Wuyalitxv), the Calm Water Tribe (Wuithitxv), the Rosco Inlet Tribe (Wuithitxv), the Yisda People (Yisdaitxv) and the Northern/Downriver Tribe (Xixis). They are bound together by not just language, but something more. It is something that can be found just under the surface.

An ancient clam garden. Source: Univ. of B.C.

That something is the clam, which plays an important role in the culture and diet the Heiltsuk people. For example, the Heiltsuk had a "clam dance," which is a ceremonial dance performed by girls who portray supernatural clams that come to life in order to make fun of the clam diggers who turn up empty. 

While the Heiltsuk did dig for clams, they also maintained clam gardens, which were rock-walled, intertidal terraces built by the indigenous people (like the Heiltsuk) along the Pacific shorelines. These gardens provided a more stable way to manage the shellfish and, in turn, provide food for the people. Indeed, there is at least one study that shows that there is a greater biomass (meaning there are more clams, such as littlenecks, butter clams and cockles) in a clam garden as opposed to an exposed beach. Each clam garden was relatively small. Nevertheless, clam gardens lined the coast much like condos line the southern Florida coastline. After all, in both cases, the real estate has a lot of value.

Since my plans already went awry, I decided that I would prepare a wojape to go with these clam pancakes (fritters). I got the idea from my daughter, who loves to eat her pancakes with wojape. This particular wojape was made from blackberries and raspberries, along with maple syrup (instead of honey). The maple syrup was a nod to the fact that I was trying to make a dish from a first nation in what is currently known as Canada. 

CLAM PANCAKES (FRITTERS)

Recipe from Raven Trust

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 2 cups flour
• 3 teaspoons baking powder
• 4 cups cleaned, diced clams
• 1 1/3 cups diluted milk
• 2 teaspoons salt
• Pepper to taste
• 4 eggs, well beaten.

Directions:

1. Prepare the breading. Sift dry ingredients together. Add beaten eggs to milk.  Pour egg mixture into flour and mix well. Add clams, mix well, then make them into small round balls.

2. Fry the fritters. Drop the balls into hot oil (350 degrees Fahrenheit). Then turn heat down low (250 degrees Fahrenheit) and cook slowly, browning both sides. Let drain on paper towel. 

PEACE.

Ragu di Turchia Bolognese

The recipe, Ragu Bolognese, has graced this blog on more than one occasion.  I first made a Pappardelle with Spicy Lamb Ragu back in 2012 using a recipe from a cookbook by Josh Wesson, a renown wine expert. A few years later, in 2016, I made another recipe, Tagliatelle alla Bolognese, based on a recipe out of the Eataly cookbook. This second recipe brought me closer - in fact, very close, to the original dish. 

However, if one wants the authentic dish, then one has to travel to Bologna, a city in the Italian region of Emilia-Romagna. This region is considered the culinary capital; and, the city of Bologna is often considered the home of this pasta dish. After all, it is Ragu Bolognese. The association between the city and the dish is so strong that the Bologna Delegation of the Italian Academy of Cuisine patented the recipe with the Bologna Chamber of Commerce in 1982. 

While the patented recipe can be found online for anyone to enjoy, I decided to make my own twist to this famous dish. The original Ragu Bolognese calls for the use of beef (as in the patented recipe) and pork. My beautiful Angel does not eat beef or pork, but I wanted to make this dish for her. She eats turkey, so I substituted the ground turkey (a mixture of 85% meat, 15% fat) for the beef. I also dispensed with the pancetta (and, for that reason, I relied upon a ground turkey mixture with a higher fat content). Finally, the authentic (and patented) recipe calls for "a little broth." My guess is that a little broth means a little beef broth. Once again, to make this dish for my Angel, I used a little turkey stock.

These changes pushed this dish outside the scope of an authentic, traditional Ragu Bolognese. While it may not be authentic, the thing about this dish is that it has evolved as it has traveled beyond the borders of the region. Recipes in other regions of Italy have substituted pork for beef, even going so far as to use small meatballs as called for recipes in Abruzzo or Calabria. And, then there are the variations on the pasta used to make the dish. Perhaps that discussion is best left for another post at a later time. 

RAGU DI TURCHIA BOLOGNESE

Recipe adapted from Travel Emilia Romagna

Serves 4

Ingredients:

• 2/3 pound of ground turkey (preferably at least 85%/15%)
• 3/4 cup carrots, diced
• 3/4 cup celery stalk, diced
• 1/2 cup onion, diced
• 5 3/4 cups of tomato sauce or peeled tomatoes
• 1/2 glass of dry white wine
• 1/2 glass of whole milk
• A little turkey stock
  
• Extra virgin olive oil or butter
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1/2 glass of cream (optional)

Directions:

1. Begin sautéing the ingredients. First dice then chop the pancetta with a mezzaluna knife. The melt in a terracotta or aluminum thick pan of about 7 inches deep. Combine 3 tablespoons of oil or 1/4 cup of butter and the finely chopped vegetables and let them gook gently. Add the minced meet and mix well with a ladle until it is cooked and it "sizzles."

2. Continue cooking the mixture. Pour in the wine and stir gently until the alcohol is completely evaporated.  Add in the passata or peeled tomatoes, cover and simmer slowly for about 2 hours, adding broth when necessary, then add the milk at the end to counteract the acidity of the tomato. Season with salt. In the end, when the sauce is ready, according to Bolognese use, add the cream if it is to season dry pasta. For tagliatelle, use as is.

ENJOY!

Mushroom Bisque with Yellow Oyster Mushroom Garnish

Ludwig von Beethoven once remarked, "anyone who tells a lie has not pure heart and cannot make good soup."  So, I should be honest when I say that I don't really make a lot of soups. There are approximately two dozen recipes on this blog, but that is over several years.  Much of my cooking has been focused more on main courses, and, in particular, my interest in barbecue.

Nevertheless, I think soups are important.  For many people, a soup may be a main course. It may be the dish that is served to the family because, for whatever reason, there is not enough money to go to the market and purchase expensive ingredients, like most proteins. It is far more economical to scrounge around for or use one's money to purchase a few, cheaper ingredients. 

Yet, he use of simple, cheap ingredients can be combined together to produce something almost magical.  A dish that can nourish people, providing the sustenance or fuel for the hard work that they do, day in and day out. That is what I would like to think that the combination of mushrooms, onions, garlic, and rice can do when combined together to produce a mushroom soup. 

I found a recipe by Martha Rose Shulman on NYT Cooking, which served as the starting point for this recipe. While I could make a cucina povera version of mushroom soup, I wanted to use my creative skills to elevate the dish a little.  Those skills were primarily focused on the yellow oyster mushroom garnish. I came across the yellow fungi in a store and wanted to try to use them with this soup.  Hence, the fried mushrooms became the garnish.

MUSHROOM BISQUE WITH 
YELLOW OYSTER MUSHROOM GARNISH

Recipe adapted from NYT Cooking

Serves 6-8

Ingredients (for the soup):

1 1/2 pounds of  mushrooms (white or cremini) sliced 

1 leek (white and light green part only, 

     cut in half, cleaned and sliced)

1 medium onion, chopped

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/2 cup medium grain rice

4 1/2 cups of vegetable stock or broth

1 bay leaf

2 teaspoons of dried thyme

1 Parmagiano Reggiano rind

1 tablespoon of soy sauce

2 tablespoons sherry

1/2 cup milk or additional stock

Sea salt, to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Ingredients (for the garnish)

Fresh yellow oyster mushrooms

2 teaspoons garlic powder

2 tablespoons olive oil

Sea salt, to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Fresh parsley leaves, chopped

Directions:

1.  Saute the vegetables.  Heat the oil over medium heat in a large, heavy soup pot or Dutch oven. Add the onion, leek and a pinch of salt.  Cook, stirring, until tender, about 5 minutes.  Do not brown the onions or the leek.  Add the garlic and another pinch of salt.  Cook, stirring, until the garlic becomes fragrant, about 30 seconds.  Add the mushrooms and cook, stirring until they begin to sweat and smell fragrant, about 5 minutes. 

2.  Cook the soup.  Add the rice, stock, bay leaf, thyme, Parmigiano Reggiano rind and soy sauce.  Salt to taste.  Bring to a boil, reduce the heat, cover and simmer for 45 minutes. Remove the bay leaf and the rind.

3.  Blend the soup.  In batches, blend the soup until smooth.  Fill the blender less than half way and cover the top with a towel pulled down tight rater than airtight with the lid because hot soup will jump and push off the top if the blender is closed airtight.  Return to the pot, taste and adjust salt, add pepper and the sherry. Add the milk and another cup of stock and heat through, stirring.  If the soup seems to thick, thin it with a little more water or stock, but check the seasoning.  

4.  Make the garnish.  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.   Line a baking sheet with foil and place in the oven as it preheats.  Remove the oyster mushrooms from the main stem.  Toss the mushrooms in a bowl with the oil and garlic powder. Remove the baking sheet, spray with non-stick cooking spray Spread them onto the hot baking sheet so that there is one layer.  Bake in oven for about 30 to 40 minutes or until all mushrooms are brown and crispy to taste.  

5.  Finish the dish.  Pour the soup into a bowl.  Add the crispy oyster mushrooms garnish in the center of the bowl.  Sprinkle the parsley around the crispy oyster mushrooms. 

Chef Bolek's Chesapeake Oyster Stew

Several months ago, I got to attend the Oysterfest, which is the annual oyster-centric festival held every fall in St. Michaels, Maryland. One of the key events of every Oysterfest is the oyster stew competition.  Last year, there were six competitors vying for the best oyster stew. I got to be one of the hundreds or thousands of judges. 

After having sampled six different oyster chowders, each with its own style and character, I decided that I would create my own Chesapeake Oyster Stew.  In my Oysterfest post, I wrote about the fundamental characteristics of an oyster stew.  The point was that there are two general styles of oyster stew.  The first is a cream colored soup, with a thinner consistency, both of which are features due to the use of half-and-half.  The other style is more like a chowder, with a whiter color and a much thicker consistency, both of which are due to the use of heavy cream.  Regardless of whether you use half-and-half or heavy cream, the oyster stew should have minced vegetables (celery, shallots, etc.), potatoes, and oysters.  As for the key ingredient, the oysters can be chopped or whole (a consideration that often depends upon the size of the oysters).

For my Chef Bolek's Chesapeake Oyster Stew, I wanted to go in my own direction.  This direction has three primary components.  First, the liquid. I decided to use whole milk, which would give a consistency that would be neither too light or too heavy. It would be just right.  Second, an element of smoke. Many oyster stews have a smoky element to their flavor, which is from the bacon used in the first step. One of the stews that I tried at the Oysterfest had a very smoky character to it, and, that was one of my favorite stews.  However, for my Oyster Stew, I don't want the smoke element to be too overpowering.  I would have to be very careful with respect to my choice of bacon.  I decided on a thick-cut, apple wood smoked bacon.  Apple wood has a milder smoke flavor than other woods, such as mesquite. The apple wood bacon provided a subtle smokey flavor to the stew.  Third, I decided to use whole oysters.  I strongly believe that the whole oysters provides a better presentation, with the oval bivalves "swimming" in the broth, enticing the eyes of the person about to dive into the stew. 

For my first ever oyster stew, I have to say that this was a great success.  This is definitely going to be on my short list of recipes to make, with the only limitation being the cost of the oysters (good ones, especially the local ones, can be a bit pricey, but it definitely worth the extra cost).  A stew like this is a good way to introduce oysters to someone who has never had them before or who is unsure of trying them. 

CHEF BOLEK'S CHESAPEAKE OYSTER STEW

A Chef Bolek Original

Serves several

Ingredients:

1 pint oysters, liqueur strained and reserved

2 tablespoons butter
1 cup onions, diced
1 cup potatoes, diced
2 tablespoons fresh thyme
1/2  cup of milk
1/2 cup of water
2 ounces smoked bacon
1 teaspoon white pepper
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Sea salt, to taste

Directions:
1.  Fry the bacon.  Heat a pan on high heat.  Add the bacon and fry until the bacon is cooked.  Remove the bacon, dice or break into small pieces, and set aside.  Drain the pan of all bacon fat and set aside.  Return 1 tablespoon of bacon fat back to the pan.

2.  Prepare the onions and potatoes.  Add another tablespoon of bacon fat in the pan and heat on medium to high heat.  Add the onions and potatoes and saute until soft.

3.  Cook the oysters.  Add the oysters and cook gently until the edges start to curl. Remove the oysters and set aside.  Strain the oyster liqueur.

4.  Prepare the stew.  Add the oyster liqueur to a pot, along with the milk and cream.  Bring the heat of the liquid to almost a simmer.  Do not boil.  Add the onions and potatoes and heat them.  Add the oysters and white pepper.  Stir gently.  Continue to cook the stew for about five minutes, or until the oysters begin to bcome firm along the edges.  Remove the pot from the heat and serve immediately.

ENJOY!

Detroit-Style Frog Legs

Sam Blythe, a columnist for the New York World, once wrote, "if you have never eaten frog legs in Detroit, you have something to live for, something for which to strive."  He wrote those words in 1905.  A mere five years later, according to Bill Loomis in his article When Frogs were King, "Detroit produced, shipped and consumed 12 tons of frog legs, 6 million pairs of legs (called saddles)."  Bill Loomis also noted that hotels in Detroit served 800 dozen saddles per day back at that time.  That is a lot of frog legs.  So much so that, one year later, the New York Times reported the seemingly obvious: "Detroit is famous for frog legs."  

That frog legs would feature prominently in the cuisine of Detroit does make some sense. After all, Detroit was originally settled by the French.  The Canadian French would head out on the hottest days of the summer along the banks of the St. Claire Flats or the marshes at Monroe near Lake Erie.  The fishermen used a variety of means to catch the frogs, such as tiny "cat and rat" shotguns with mustard seed shot or  a fishing line with a red flannel cloth as a lure (apparently bull frogs were attracted to that lure).  Some used frogging forks, spears and even clubs.  If one knew what he or she was doing, that person could catch as many as 200 frogs per day. 

Given those hauls, it is no wonder that the frog legs were found on many a menu at restaurants and roadhouses around Detroit.  Its introduction into Detroit cuisine was bottom up.  It first appeared on the plates of working class people, prepared in a very simple way.  The saddles were just dipped in milk, then flour and pan-sauteed in butter, and finished with some lemon juice and parsley.  That's it.  If you happened to be at one of the roadhouses around Detroit, which served more rugged and casual food, the cooks used crushed soda crackers for the breading before sauteing the frog legs in butter.  A diner could get a meal for just 20 cents, and, often times, it was an all-you-can-eat buffet of frog legs. 

Eventually, the saddles found their way onto plates placed on white tablecloths.  They also were prepared in a variety of ways.  According to Bill Loomis, Michigan cookbooks included recipes for frog leg salad, frog leg ravioli, picked frog legs, and a frog leg pie.

There were even criteria for what were the best frogs for cooking. The rule was that frogs had to be between 2 and 5 years old.  The problem is that it is fairly difficult to tell a frog's age.  (After all, the frog is not going to volunteer it to you.)  What is perhaps more likely is that the best frogs were determined by their size.  If the frog was too large (and presumably too old), its leg meat would be too tough with a fishy taste.  

However, too much of a good thing is definitely not good, especially for the frogs.  Over-frogging led to declines in the population around the Detroit area.   Even at its height during the first decade of the twentieth century, there were complaints about a dwindling numbers of frogs.  Demand had far exceeded the supply. There were efforts to stave off that decline.  For example, a law was introduced in 1913 that banned the hunting, sale, storage and service of frog legs at restaurants from June to November.  While hotels and restaurants in the city obeyed the law, the roadhouses did not.  Cooks at the roadhouses sold the frog legs under the counter.  Those roadhouses were too dependent upon the sale of frog leg dinners to stop serving them for five or six months a year.  It is recounted that, in 1915, a deputy game warden placed phony orders from roadhouses and returned with 1,000 dinners.   Demand and, eventually, pollution did the frogs in.  

Despite the fall of the frogs in Detroit, one can still find frog legs on menus at local restaurants.  Those frogs are not from the marshes at Monroe or the banks of St. Claire Flats.  Instead, the frogs are imported from India, Indonesia or Vietnam.

That is probably where the frog legs came from for this dish  I found frozen legs at my local Asian grocery store and thought I had to make a dish with them.  That is how I found the Detroit-Style Frog Legs.  An ingredient and a simple Google search resulted in an educational experience and a delicious dinner.  What a time that we live in!

DETROIT-STYLE FROG LEGS

Recipe from Hour Detroit Magazine

Serves 2

Ingredients:

4 frog legs

1 cup of milk

1 cup of flour

4 tablespoons butter

1/4 cup fresh parsley, finely chopped

1 lemon, juiced
1 lemon, cut into wedges
Kosher salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Directions:

1.  Saute the frog legs. Dip the frog legs in milk, then in flour and saute them slowly over medium heat until golden brown all over, about 6 to 8 minutes.

2.  Finish the dish.  Remove the frog legs to a hot serving dish, season with salt and black pepper.  Sprinkle with the lemon juice and garnish with the finely chopped parsley.  Pour what is left of the browned butter in the frying pan over the frog legs and garnish the dish with a slice of lemon.

If you want to learn more about the history and role of frog legs in the cuisine of Detroit, check out the Hour Detroit article written by Bill Loomis, the Spendid Table interview of Bill Loomis, or one of his books.

ENJOY!

Crab Bisque

Any blue crab soup that is described as "incomparably rich and delicious" is definitely worth trying.  I found the recipe for this particular blue crab soup in one of the cookbooks, Dishing Up Maryland.  The recipe is Crab Bisque.  It originated with the author's sister-in-law, Eleanor Van Dyke, who served it at her annual Christmas party.

A bisque is a cream-based soup that originated in France. Recipes for this soup first emerged in the 17th century, descending from pottage, a thick soup that was more of a puree. The early recipes involved the use of crustaceans, and, specifically, included pulverized crustacean shells as an ingredient.  The crustaceans used in these recipes were "crayfish," or rock lobsters.  If you want to see what some of those historical recipes look like, you should check out The Food Timeline, which is a great site for learning the history of particular recipes or ingredients.

Since those early recipes, bisque recipes have branched out to include any crustacean, such as lobster, shrimp and crab, as well as shellfish such as oysters or scallops.  I have had lobster bisque many times, and, Clare's father makes a very delicious shrimp bisque.  But, my love for blue crab got me to thinking about a crab bisque.  Such a soup is particularly popular in areas like the Chesapeake Bay and North Carolina, where there is -- relatively speaking -- an abundance of blue crab.

Recently, my beautiful Angel bought a container of fresh jumbo lump crab meat from North Carolina. With that pound of delicious crab meat on hand, I decided to make that "incomparably rich and delicious" soup.  This soup does not fit within the traditional nature of a bisque, as the recipe does not incorporate the use of crab shells.  Nevertheless, it is a very delicious soup and it is one where you could adjust the richness of the soup.  The recipe simply calls for "milk."  This means you can use skim milk, 1%, 2% or whole milk.  Obviously, if you use skim milk, the soup will not be as rich as if you use whole milk.  For this recipe, I decided to use whole milk.  I also altered the recipe in one respect.  The first and second steps call for the use of the sauteed vegetables in a cheesecloth bag.  I decided to let the vegetable bag steep in the soup for an hour or two with the heat low enough to keep the soup warm but not cause it to simmer or boil.  This allowed for the flavors of the vegetables to be drawn into the liquid of the soup.

This recipe lived up to its billing.  The best part of the recipe is not just the richness, but the fact that it is very simple to make.  This simplicity will ensure that it will become part of the "rotation" of dishes that I go to when entertaining guests, much like Ms. Van Dyke.

CRAB BISQUE

Recipe from Dishing Up Maryland, pg. 172

Serves 4-6

Ingredients:

1 pound Maryland jumbo lump crab meat

4 tablespoons butter

3 celery stalks, diced

1 small onion, peeled and finely chopped

2 tablespoons, all purpose flour

1 tablespoon dry mustard

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 cups half and half

2 cups milk

2 tablespoons chopped parsley

Directions:

1.  Prepare the crab. Pick through the crabmeat and remove any shells bits and cartilage.  Set aside.

2.  Saute the vegetables.  Melt the butter in a medium saucepan.  Add the celery and the onion and saute over low heat until they are translucent.  Remove the pan from the heat and scoop out the vegetables into the cheesecloth bag and tie the bag to the handle to the pan, so that the bag hangs inside the pan, close to the bottom. 

3.  Add the milk.  Return the pan to the heat and add the flour, mustard, salt and pepper, stirring until blended.  Add the half and half the milk and stir constantly until thickened.

4.  Add the crabmeat.  Add the crabmeat and cook over low heat for 15 to 20 minutes.  Remove the vegetable bad and sprinkle the bisque with parsley before serving. 

ENJOY!

Veal and Pork Meatball Sandwiches

There is this sandwich shop called The Sentinel in San Francisco.  Zagat's Guide tells of long lines at the take-out only shop.  It was opened by chef Dennis Leary.  After having served as the chef at Rubicon, Chef Leary decided to downsize to a small shop, one that would serve simpler, yet authentic fare for breakfast and lunch.  The result is the Sentinel.

I have never eaten at the Sentinel; and, until a few weeks ago, I never even knew about the restaurant.  I was researching recipes, looking for an appetizer or sandwich that I could use to represent San Francisco at the Savage Boleks Super Bowl Party VI.  I had already had the recipe that would represent Baltimore, the Charm City's classic, Baltimore Pit Beef with Tiger Sauce. That sandwich originated on Pulaski Highway, sold by restaurants like Chaps.  I needed a similar type of recipe to represent San Francisco.  That is when I came across The Sentinel.  I looked at its menus, and I came across a menu item ... Veal and Pork Meatball Sandwich, with cabbage. I thought that this recipe could work for a Super Bowl Party.

The only problem is that I did not have a recipe.  Chef Leary has not posted any recipes for the dishes that he creates or makes.  I scoured the Internet and eventually found a recipe for pork and veal meatballs.  I decided to make a few, very minor alterations to the recipe, such as making the meatballs larger than the size called for in the recipe.  The Italian side of my family seemed to be calling out to me for bigger meatballs.  They got their wish.  I also used breadcrumbs instead of stale bread for the meatballs, and adding more dried herbs to the tomato sauce.  I think these modifications worked well.  

The one thing I would have done differently is add some additional herbs and spices to the meatballs themselves.  The recipe calls for the use of fresh oregano, which is fine.  However, it is not as potent in terms of aroma and flavor as dried oregano.  I would have also added some basil and some crushed red pepper, both of which are usually standards for when I make meatballs.  If I felt a little adventurous, maybe some dried thyme or dried parsley would be added to the mix. 

Nevertheless, in the end, I think the recipe worked well.  I do not know how it fared being pitted head to head against Baltimore Pit Beef at a Super Bowl Party held about one hour away from Charm City.  I think the outcome may have been reflected in the final score of the big game itself. Who knows? The one thing that I know is that this is a fairly easy dish to make for a party, which means that I'll be making it again. 

VEAL AND PORK MEATBALL SANDWICHES

Recipe for the meatballs adapted from Tiny Test Kitchen

Serves 4-6

Ingredients (for the meatballs):

1 pound of ground veal

1 pound of ground pork

1/4 cup organic whole milk

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 small yellow onion, finely chopped

1 egg, lightly beaten

2 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped

1 tablespoon fresh oregano, finely chopped

1 tablespoon of fresh flour, for dusting
1/4 cup dried breadcrumbs

Ingredients (for the sauce):
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 garlic cloves
1 28 ounce can of crushed tomatoes (preferably San Marzano)
2 tablespoons of dried basil
2 tablespoons of dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon of crushed red pepper

Ingredients (for the sandwiches):
1/2 head of cabbage, sliced thinly
Hoagie rolls

Directions:
1.  Saute the onions and garlic.  Heat 9 inch frying pan over medium heat.  Add oil to hot pan.  Add onion and cook for 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until soft.  Add garlic, cook for 1 minute and make sure it does not color.  Let cool.  While the onions and garlic are cooking, add bread crumbs and milk in a small bowl, stir to combine.

2.  Make the meatballs.  In a large bowl, combine cooled onion and garlic, milk and crumbs, pork, veal, egg, parsley and oregano.  Season with a sprinkle of kosher salt and a couple grinds of pepper.  Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.  Form 1 inch meatballs and place them 3 inches apart on the lined baking sheets.  (You should have 3 rows of 6 on each sheet).  Place flour into a sieve or sifter and dust meatballs with flour.

3.  Bake the meatballs.  Preheat the oven to 390 degrees Fahrenheit. Place meatballs in oven and cook for 20 minutes.

4.  Make the sauce.  Heat oil in large sauce pan.  Add garlic, cook for 1 minute, stirring occasionally, making sure it does not color.  Add tomatoes, reduce heat to medium, to prevent splitting and leave to cook for 15-20 minutes.

5.  Add meatballs to sauce.  When meatballs are done, remove from oven.  Using tongs, place the meatballs in the sauce.  Reduce heat to low and cook covered for an additional 20 minutes.

6.  Finish the dish.  Toast the hoagie rolls.  Add 3-4 meatballs to a roll and spoon some sauce over the meatballs.  Garnish with some sliced cabbage and serve immediately.

ENJOY!

Hearty Tomato Soup (Like Campbell's Never Dreamed of)

In 1971, Francis Moore Lappé wrote a book, Diet for a Small Planet.  This book was one of the first critiques of grain fed meat production, arguing that it is wasteful and it contributes to global food scarcity.  (Although an avowed carnivore, I actually agree with the arguments relating to grain fed meat production and I try my best to buy only grass-fed beef.)  Lappé asked her readers to develop a new way of eating, focusing on what is best for both the Earth and one's body.  (I have to do a better job of working toward that goal.)

I have to be honest and say that I only recently became aware of Diet for a Small Planet.  Clare's parents were visiting us for a week.  They are both great cooks, and, one evening, they prepared a meal for Clare and myself.  The first course was a recipe from Diet for a Small Planet ... Hearty Tomato Soup (Like Campbell's Never Dreamed of).

Having never been a fan of Campbell's Soup, I can see why Lappé would add the parenthetical "like Campbell's never dreamed of."  This soup was very delicious and it was much better than anything that I have ever had from Campbell's Soup.  As for its preparation, Clare's parents said that they always use cooked rice rather than raw rice. On this occasion, they actually used some brown rice that we had in our pantry.  They also used whole tomatoes; however, they noted that, on some occasions, they add a little tomato paste.  The paste provides the soup with a deeper red color.  Finally, the garnish is their own creative contribution to the dish ... a couple of steamed asparagus spears and some freshly grated Parmesan cheese.  The garnish was the perfect way to finish this dish.

HEARTY TOMATO SOUP

(LIKE CAMPBELL'S NEVER DREAMED OF)

Frances Moore Lappé, Diet for a Small Planet at p.240

Serves 6

Ingredients:
Oil, as needed
1 clove garlic, minced
1 onion, choped
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 carrot chopped
1 28 ounce can of whole tomatoes, chopped and smashed
2 teaspoons of of salt
4 white peppercorns or lots of reshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon of sugar
1 teaspoon of basil
1 teaspoon of oregano
2 tablespoons of wheat flour
1 1/2 cups of cooked rice (or 3/4 cup of raw rice)
3 cups of milk, hot
1 tablespoon of butter
Parmesan cheese, grated, as a garnish
Asparagus spears, steamed

Directions:

1.  Saute the onions.  Heat some oil in a heavy pot over medium high heat, saute the onion, garlic, celery and carrot until the onion is golden.  Add flour and stir until toasty.

2.  Add the rice.  Add the rice, stir and saute until the rice is a little toasty.

3.  Add the tomatoes and spices.  Add the tomatoes, salt, pepper, sugar, oregano and basil. If you added raw rice, cook until the rice is done, about 45 minutes.  If you are using precooked rice, cook until all of the flavbors mingle, at least fifteen minutes.  Remove from heat.

4.  Blend the ingredients.  Puree all of the ingredients in a blender or you can run the ingredients through a sieve. 

5.  Add the milk and butter.  Add the milk and butter, along with more salt and pepper if need.  Warm the soup, but do not let it boil. Serve warm, garnished with the grated Parmesan cheese and asparagus spears.

ENJOY!

Chicago Style Ribeye with Potatoes Sotoccenere

It has been a while since I have had a Steak Night.  Those nights usually take place when my vegetarian wife is not around for dinner.  On those occasions, I usually buy a larger than average size cut of beef -- New York Strip, ribeye, cowboy steak, or sirloin steak -- and then begin the long thought process of how to cook or grill it.  Much of that process involves the rub or marinade.

Recently, I got to thinking about a Chicago-style rub.  A few years ago, my sister and brother-in-law bought me a jar of Chicago Style rub from Penzey's spices.  I no longer had any of the spice, because I used it all.  So, I decided that I would try to make my own Chicago-style rub for a ribeye.  

The Penzey's Chicago Steak rub uses salt, hickory flavoring, Tellicherry black peppercorns, sugar, lemon zest, and citric acid.  I also looked at a couple of other "Chicago-style" steak rubs, which used other ingredients, such as dried mustard.  Ultimately, I decided to create a rub that featured black peppercorns, Kosher salt, garlic, toasted onion and a little dried mustard.  I also decided to give a smoke flavor, not from hickory flavoring, but from smoked paprika. 

CHICAGO STYLE RIBEYE WITH POTATOES SOTOCCENERE

A Chef Bolek Original

Serves 2 or 1 Chef Bolek

Ingredients (for the ribeye):

1 grass-fed ribeye (about one pound)

1 teaspoon of dried mustard

1 teaspoon of Kosher salt

2 teaspoons of black peppercorns (freshly ground)

1 teaspoon of toasted onion flakes

1 teaspoon of garlic powder

1 teaspoon of smoked paprika

3 tablespoons of canola oil

Ingredients (for the potatoes):

3 Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and sliced 

1/4 cup of Sotoccenere with Truffles, shredded

2 tablespoons of butter

1/4 cup milk

Directions:

1.  Prepare the steak.  Combine the rub ingredients (mustard, salt, black pepper, onion flakes, garlic powder, and smoked paprika).  Rub the ribeye with the canola to all sides of the ribeye.  Apply the rub to all sides of the ribeye.

2.  Prepare the potatoes.  Boil the potatoes until they are fork tender, about fifteen minutes.  Drain the potatoes, add the butter, milk and cheese.  Using a masher, begin mashing the potatoes until they are the desired consistency.  Cover and set aside.

3.  Grill the steak.  Heat a grill to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.  Oil the grates.  Place the ribeye on the grill.  Cook for four minutes and turn ninety degrees.  Cook for four more minutes and flip.  Cook for four minutes and turn ninety degrees.  Finish the steak by allowing it to cook for about four minutes more for medium rare.  Let the steak cook a little longer if you would like the steak to be medium or medium well. 

PAIRING THIS RECIPE

For this recipe, a bold red wine would be best.  Think Cabernet Sauvignon or Zinfandel.  If you want to be more adventurous, try a Mourvedre (or Monastrell) blend or even a Ribero del Duero.   You could also pair this steak with a moderately hopped pale ale, like an American Pale Ale.

ENJOY!

Seared Sea Scallops with Carrot-Orange Gastrique and Cauliflower Puree

For my 40th birthday, a friend gave me a very special gift.  Knowing that I enjoy fine wine, he gave me a bottle of Veuve Cliquot Ponsardin's La Grande Dame (1998).  He said that, in his opinion, La Grand Dame was the best French Champagne, with perfect strands of bubbles.  My friend gave me the wine with one "condition," that I enjoy the wine rather than simply storing it in my basement or a cellar.   After thanking him profusely, I said that I should have no problem with that "condition."  I had immediately planned on sharing it with my beautiful Angel, Clare.

Soon thereafter, I began thinking about whether I could pair the La Grande Dame with  food.  In particular, I wanted to make a special dish that could be presented with the wine.  I began to research possible pairings with cuisines and ingredients.   I found a web post called Brigadoon with Bubbles: A Veuve Cliquot Brunch.  The author/blogger described a multiple course brunch that was paired with Veuve Cliquot wines.  The one dish that caught my attention was the Scallop, Orange and Carrot Gastrique with a Parmesan Pancetta Crisp.  That dish was specifically paired with the La Grande Dame (1998).  According to the writer, "the pairing worked beautifully."  So, I had my recipe.  The only problem was that I did not have a recipe.  The author/blogger only described eating the dish, not how the dish was prepared.

I now had a challenge ... to create a recipe based solely on the name of the dish.   The name has three components ... scallops, a carrot/orange gastrique and the Parmesan pancetta crisp.  Given Clare does not eat meat, I decided to forgo the Parmesan pancetta crisp.  I also decided to replace that component with a cauliflower puree.  The puree would give me a base upon which the scallops could be placed.  As for the remaining components, the scallops had to be seared and I had to make a carrot and orange gastrique. 

I now had a problem ... I had never made a gastrique before.  Generally speaking, a gastrique is a sauce made from caramelized sugar that is deglazed with vinegar.  It is a combination of sweet and sour (or tart), that is often enhanced with other flavor components, such as fresh fruit, herbs or, in my case, carrot and orange juice.  I dutifully studied "how-to-make gastrique" pages in preparation for making this dish.  And, although I wanted to do a couple "test-runs," I decided that I would go ahead and make it for the pairing.  Truth be told, I really wanted to try the La Grande Dame and, given the fact that I have not been cooking as much as I used to, I did not want to have to wait for the opportunities to try making gastriques.

In the end, everything worked out well, with one exception.  The scallops seared well, the gastrique was very good, and the puree, which Clare made, was very good.  That last bit is significant because I am not a fan of cauliflower, but Clare did a great job.  The one thing I need to work on, as you can see from the picture below, is my presentation.  Well, I guess I need to have something to work on....

SEARED SEA SCALLOPS WITH CARROT-ORANGE GASTRIQUE

AND CAULIFLOWER PUREE

A Chef Bolek Original

Serves 2

Ingredients (for the Sea Scallops):

About 1 pound of sea scallops

Salt, to taste

Ground pepper, to taste

Ingredients (for the Carrot-Orange Gastrique):

1/2 cup of sugar

2 tablespoons of water

1 pound of carrots

1 orange (Valencia)

2 cups water
1/2 cup of white wine vinegar

Ingredients (for the Cauliflower Puree)

2 pounds of cauliflower

1/4 cup of skim milk

3 tablespoons of utter

Garlic powder

Directions:
1.  Prepare the Carrot-Orange Juice.  Rinse the carrots and cut into pieces.  Puree the carrots in a food processor or a blender.  Add a tablespoon of water if the carrots are a little dry.  Remove the carrot puree to a large bowl and add two cups of hot water.  Let it the puree sit and steep for fifteen to thirty minutes.  Then strain the puree and set aside the juice.  Add the juice of one orange to the carrot juice.  Stir the juices and set aside.

2.  Prepare the Cauliflower Puree.  Steam the cauliflower florets in a steamer for about twenty to twenty-five minutes.  Remove the florets and place in a blender.  Add the butter and milk.  Blend the cauliflower until it is a smooth puree.

3.  Prepare the gastrique.  Add the sugar and water to a small, non-reactive saucepan.  Heat the mixture over medium high heat until the sugar dissolves and begins to bubble.  Watch the sugar mixture very carefully as it begins to caramelize.  You want to the mixture to have a nice golden color.  Once that color is achieved, add the vinegar.  Do not add it in a slow stream; add the vinegar quickly.  The sugar will harden, but it dissolve again as the mixture cooks.  Once the sugar has re-dissolved, add the carrot/orange juice.  Begin by adding one-half cup.  Taste the mixture to determine its tartness.  Keep adding the carrot/orange juice until you have added at most two cups.  If the mixture is still too tart, you can add a little more sugar.  Once you have the taste you want, continue to cook the gastrique until it is reduced and thickens a little.

4.  Sear the scallops.  Heat the oil on high heat in a pan.  Add the scallops and cook on high heat for about four or five minutes (depending upon the size of the scallops).  Flip the scallops and continue to cook about three to four minutes more.

5.  Plate the dish.  Spoon the cauliflower puree on the center of the dish. Plate four to five scallops over the puree.  Spoon the gastrique over the scallops and around the sides of the puree.

In the end, this was a great dish.  I will definitely make it again.

PAIRING THIS RECIPE

This dish was made for a special wine, Veuve Cliquot Ponsardin's La Grande Dame (1998), so I highly recommend that wine as the natural pairing for this dish.  However, it is a very expensive wine, so if you do not want to spend that much money on a wine, consider a French Champagne or sparkling wine.

ENJOY!

Cuore di Agnello Brasato al Chianti (Lamb Heart Braised in Chianti)

Every once in a while, a local grocery store stocks lamb hearts. I have made lamb hearts once before, as part of my culinary challenge, Around the World in Eighty Dishes.  The dish was Khalyat Alkadba wal Galoob or Fried Heart and Livers, a main dish from Libya.  It was the first time that I cooked with lamb hearts, and, I told myself that I would work with the ingredient again.  

From a nutritional perspective, lamb hearts have their positive and negative attributes.  Lamb hearts are relatively high in cholesterol, which is a definite negative; however, they are also packed with many essential vitamins and minerals.  A serving of lamb hearts, which is about 4/10 of a pound, has a whopping 357% of the daily value of Vitamin B12, along with 134% of Riboflavin, 95% of Protein, 59% of Iron, 42% of Niacin and 22% of Vitamin C.  

Recently, the store stocked locally raised, lamb hearts.  I bought a couple of hearts with a specific recipe in mind.  I decided to braise the lamb hearts in wine, much like a Brasato al Barolo.  I thought about braising the hearts in Barolo wine, but a bottle of Barolo can be very expensive.  For that reason, a brasato is often done with other red wines, such as Chianti.  A good Chianti Riserva is much cheaper than Barolo and it can still produce a great sauce.  

I found a recipe for beef hearts braised in wine, so I used that as a guide.  However, I made a few changes to the recipe, apart from the use of lamb hearts and Chianti wine.  I substituted beef broth with veal stock.  I also added some ingredients, such as a shallot and crushed red pepper.  In the end, my efforts produced a nicely braised dish of lamb hearts coated in a velvety, rich sauce.  I have to say that this is a great success.

CUORE DI AGNELLO BRASATO AL CHIANTI

(Lamb Heart Braised in Chianti)

Recipe adapted from Allrecipes.com 

Serves 2 

Ingredients:

1 pound of lamb hearts (about two hearts)

1/8 cup of all purpose flour

2 tablespoons of butter

1 carrot, sliced

2 Vidalia bulbs, diced finely

1 shallot diced finely

1 pinch of crushed red pepper

1 tablespoon of dried thyme

1/4 cup of Chianti Riserva

1/4 cup of veal stock

Salt, to taste

Ground pepper to taste

2 tablespoons of flat leaf parsley, chopped finely

Directions:

1.  Prepare the hearts.  Wash the hearts and dry them.  Trim the hearts of excess fat and arteries.  Slice the heart in half and then slice the halves in 1/2 to 3/4 inch slices.  

2.  Saute the hearts.  Heat the butter over medium high heat in a deep saute pan.  Coat the heart slices in flour and add to the saute pan.  Cook the heart slices for thirty seconds to one minute.  

3.  Add the vegetables and liquids.  Add the onions, shallots and carrots, along with the crushed red pepper and thyme.  Also add the wine and veal stock.  Cook for fifteen minutes at most. 

4.  Plate the dish.  Spoon the lamb hearts, vegetables and sauce into bowls.  Sprinkle with flat Italian parsley.  You can serve this dish with some mashed potatoes or rice.

PAIRING THIS RECIPE

Given the lamb hearts are braised in Chianti wine, the most obvious choice for a wine pairing is a Chianti wine.  Any Chianti wine -- Chianti Classico, Chianti Riserva, Chianti Ruffina, etc. -- will do.=  Other Sangiovese wines, including blends like Super Tuscans, will also pair well with this dish.  A couple of wines that I have reviewed, which I think would work well with this dish include:

La Mozza -- Aragone

40% Sangiovese, 25% Alicante, 25% Syrah and 10% Carignan

Tuscany, Italy

Flavors of cherries, raspberries and a little plum

Marchesi Frescobaldi -- Nipozzano Riserva

100% Sangiovese

Chianti, Tuscany, Italy

Flavors of dark cherries, with a little spice

ENJOY!

For more about the nutritional value of lamb hearts, check out Self Nutritional Data.

Wensleydale Mashed Potatoes

Wensleydale is a place and a cheese.  The place is a valley (dale) of the Ure River, which is located in North Yorkshire in northeast England.  Wensleydale has its place in English history.  Mary, Queen of Scots was imprisoned at Bolton Castle, which is located in the dale.

As for the cheese, its history predates Mary, Queen of Scots.  Wensleydale cheese was first produced by French Cistercian monks from Roquefort who settled in Wensleydale.  Historically, the Wensleydale cheese was a blue cheese, originally made from sheep's milk.  Over time, the monks and other producers made Wensleydale cheese from cow's milk.  In addition, the cheese went from being a blue cheese to a white cheese.  When  the monastery was dissolved in 1540, (two years before Mary was born) English farmers picked up the slack and continued to produce this cheese until the Second World War.  During the war, most of the milk in Great Britain was used to make "Government Cheddar."  After the end of the war, farmers resumed producing Wensleydale, albeit on a much smaller scale.

Wensleydale cheese is somewhat moist and can be crumbled, which makes this cheese a good candidate for being incorporated into mashed potatoes.  Typically, when I make mashed potatoes, I use either a hard cheese, such as grated Parmigianio Reggiano or Pecornio Romano.  I also use blue cheese, such as Maytag or Rogue.  When Clare and I were recently perusing the cheese aisle at a local grocery store, we came across the Wensleydale Cheese with Cranberries.  We both love this cheese and have had it on prior occasions.  So, we decided that it would be worth trying to make mashed potatoes with the cheese.  Our hope was that the cranberries would add an interesting flavor component to the dish.  So, the recipe for Wensleydale Mashed Potatoes was born, just in time for it to be a side dish with the Herb Crusted Rib Roast with Bordeaux Thyme Au Jus. 

WENSLEYDALE MASHED POTATOES

A Chef Bolek Original
Serves 10

Ingredients:

8 Russet potatoes, peeled and cut into eighths

4 tablespoons of butter

1/2 cup of milk

4/10s or 1/2 of a pound of Wensleydale Cheese with Cranberries

Directions:

1.  Boil the potatoes in a pot of water for about ten of fifteen minutes. 

2. When the potatoes are soft and break up with a fork, strain the potatoes and return them to the pot.  

3.  Add the butter and milk and begin to mash the potatoes.  Add the Wensleydale cheese, a little at a time as you are mashing the potatoes.  Continue to mash the potatoes until they achieve the desired smoothness.  Personally, I like my mashed potatoes to have some chunks in them.  But you can keep mashing them until they are smooth.  

ENJOY!

For more about Wensleydale Cheese, check out Wikipedia. 

Around the World in 80 Dishes: Mongolia

After tackling the culinary challenge in Greece, my adventures take me half-way around the world ... to Mongolia.  For me (and, I would guess, a lot of Americans), Mongolian cuisine conjures a certain image ... a cook standing over a flat top grill cooking meat and vegetables with some sort of sauce.  That image is derived from what "Mongolian" cuisine is in the United States.  While in college, I would go to Tony Cheng's in Gallery Place, which held itself out as an all-you-can-eat Mongolian Barbecue place.   Later it was BD's, which is a large chain of all-you-can-eat Mongolian Barbecue places.  At either Tony Chengs or BD's, customers choose their meat, vegetables and sauce, handing over the overflowing bowl to a cook who then cooked (or, in some cases, played) with the food until it was done.  The food was good, but it is not true Mongolian cuisine.  This concept of "Mongolian Barbecue" is more American than Mongolian.  Actually, it is more Japanese than either American or Mongolian, because the cooking style is actually patterned after Japanese Teppanyaki. 

True Mongolian barbecue involves something a little more basic, like Hoorhog, which involves heating stones to very high temperatures and stuffing the stones into a milk can, layering meat on top of the stones.  One then closes the can to allow the stones to cook the meat.  Or Boodog, which involves heating stones and placing those stones in the cavity of a goat that is tightly sealed to cook like the sheep in the Hoorhog recipe.  While I would love to try either of these recipes, I lack a metal milk can and, most likely, the patience of my neighbors because all of this type of cooking would have to be done in my back yard.

Yet, there were a wide range of other dishes available for me to make. I chose two dishes, a soup and a main course, for my personal culinary challenge. First, I made Guriltai Shol, which is a soup that, at least according to what I have read, is fairly common in Mongolian cuisine.  Second, I made Huushur, which are basically deep-fried meat dumplings.  Although both dishes are fairly simple when it comes to ingredients, the preparation requires some more skill, which, during the course of this challenge, I learned I still have to develop.

THE APPETIZER

Guriltai Shol is a soup of meat, vegetables and dough strips.  The key to the soup is the broth.  Mongolians make the broth using fatty meats, allowing the fat to flavor the broth.  Traditionally, this soup is made with mutton.  But mutton is not always available, so I decided to make the soup with the younger version ... lamb.  I bought lamb in the supermarket that included some bones, because the bones would also add to the flavor of the broth.

GURILTAI SHOL (MEAT AND DOUGH SOUP)

Adapted from e-Mongol.com  and Mongolfood.info
Serves 4 

Ingredients: 

1/2 pound lamb, cut into thin slices

1 onion chopped

1 carrot, sliced

2 1/4 cups of flour

1 pinch of salt
1 pinch of dried thyme

3/4 cup of Water

2 tablespoons of vegetable oil.

8 cups of water or more for the broth

Directions:

1.  Saute the vegetables.  Saute the onion in a pot with the vegetable oil.  Add the carrot and continue to saute until the onion is translucent and the carrots are softened.

2.  Saute the meat.  Add the lamb, salt and pepper.  Saute briefly, but do not let the lamb cook completely.

3.  Make the soup.  Add the water and bring it to a boil.  Then reduce the heat and let the soup simmer.  If you have lamb bones available, add the bones to give additional flavor to the broth.  Let it simmer for about 25 minutes.

4.  Make the dough strips.  Make the dough strips by adding flour to 3/4 cup of water.  Kneed until smooth.  Let the dough rest for about 15 minutes.  Knead the dough again.  Roll out the dough until it is thin.  Cut the dough into strips and sprinkle with flour to keep the strips separate.

5.  Add the dough strips and finish the soup.  Add the dough strips and continue the simmer for about five minutes.  The dough strips (with the flour) will work to thicken the soup.

6.  Plate the dish.  Spoon the soup into bowls and serve immediately.

This soup worked out well.  If there is one tip that I can give, it is to make sure that the pasta strips have enough flour on them or are completely separated from one another.  Otherwise they will stick together (as they did when I made the dish).  I tried to pull them apart, but that is very difficult.  As a result, the dish got a more "rustic" look.  

THE MAIN DISH

Hushuur is a meat dumping that is, as with the Guriltai Shol, made with fatty mutton or lamb.  To add to the artery-clogging nature of this dish, most recipes call for the hushuur to be deep-fried in animal fat.  A little wary of consuming that much fat and cholesterol, I decided to use ground lamb in the meat mixture and to deep fry the dumplings in vegetable oil.  

HUSHUUR (FRIED MEAT DUMPLINGS)

Adapted from Epicurious.com
Serves 4 

Ingredients:

1 pound of ground lamb

2 cloves of garlic, mashed into a paste

1 cup of minced onion

2 scallions, minced

1/4 cup of water

6-8 cups of vegetable oil

2 1/4 cups of flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup of water

Directions:

1.  Make the dough.  Make the dough by stirring together the flour and salt and then stirring in warm water until the dough forms.  Transfer to a floured surface and knead briefly.  Form into 14 or 16 balls of about one and one-half inch in size.  Let stand, covered by an inverted bowl, at room temperature for 1 to 2 hours.

2.  Prepare the filling.  While the dough is resting, make the filling by stirring the lamb, onion, scallion, garlic, water together in a bowl.  

3.  Make the dumplings.  Roll out the dough balls into rounds on a floured surface with a floured rolling pin.

Add 1 to 2 tablespoons of the meat mixture to each round.
 

Fold the round to make a half-moon and flatten slightly.

Begin to seal the edges (I used a fork). Before sealing each half-moon completely, make sure the air is forced out.  

4.  Fry the dumplings.  Heat the oil on high (to 350 degrees Fahrenheit) in a wok.  Cook four dumplings at a time.  Drain the cooked dumplings and use a paper towel to remove any excess oil.  Put the dumplings in a preheated oven to keep warm while cooking the others.

\

The Hushuur turned out well, especially considering this was the first time that I ever deep fried food outside of a restaurant.  Deep frying food is much easier with a large deep fryer and baskets.  It is a little more difficult when doing it with a wok.  Still, if I could change one think, I'd probably trim the edges of the Hushuur.  I did not do that this time because I wanted to leave them on to ensure that the dumplings cooked without breaking open. 

THE BEVERAGE

Finally, I decided at the last minute to make a beverage to go with the meal.  I found a recipe for Suutei Tsai, a Mongolian milk tea.  This is a fairly straightforward recipe, but I decided to use a short cut.  I used a green tea teabag and steeped the combined water/milk until it began to boil. 

SUUTEI TSAI (MILK TEA)

Adapted from Recipes Wiki
Serves 2

Ingredients:

2 cups water

2 cups milk

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 tablespoon green tea

Directions:

1.  Boil the water.

2.  Add the tea and salt.  Then add the milk.

3.  Boil again and strain.  Serve warm.

*     *     *

In the end, I would say that I passed the culinary challenge in Mongolia.  I was pleased with the fact that I able to make a meal using the two principal ingredients in Mongolian cuisine, meat and milk.

Mongolian food is not very healthy, whether it is the use of fatty meat in the soup or the deep-frying of the Hushuur, but that is to be expected when you consider that they live on the steppes, where the fat is needed to help keep them warm.

If there is one thing that I came away with from this challenge, it is that Mongolian cuisine is much more than some high school age kid standing over a flat top stove playing with the ingredients you choose from a long bar-like counter.  I hope you come away with that same understanding.  Until next time....

ENJOY!