Poultry Gravy and Waffles

I despaired of ever being able to photograph this delicious dish without it looking like... well, something unappetizing on a waffle. I think I took somewhere near sixty photos over two days in four different sessions. I tried different thicknesses of gravy, different lighting, different plates, different orientation of waffles. And you know what? I think this photo turned out okay! Sometimes, it's darn hard to show off a dish the way it deserves, and this dish deserves some hoopla.

Both sides of my family come from Pennsylvania Dutch country, so it's no surprise that I'm all about waffles and gravy. It amazes me how many folks turn up their nose at the mere thought, but they just don't know what they're missing!! It's reminiscent of biscuits and gravy, but so much better. Of course, I would take a waffle over a biscuit any day. (By the way, make sure you are using a waffle recipe that does not have added sugar... this is a savory application and sugar would be weird). While you can make this with chicken or turkey, since I grew up with it usually being turkey (I think my mom only thought about making it in the midst of Thanksgiving excess), that's what I prefer.

And wouldn't you know that the other day I found a pack of turkey thighs at the grocery! Who knew they sold such a thing!?! Turkey's not just for Thanksgiving anymore! And it was darn reasonably priced, too. I paid less than $2.00 a pound. Can't complain about that!

Before you get started with the actual cooking, it's good to have the veggies ready. I used a standard combination of onion, carrot, celery, and garlic, just like I would use to make chicken broth.

In a large Dutch oven or stock pot, add a small drizzle of oil to get things going. Heat the pan over medium-high heat until the oil shimmers. Add the meat, skin side down and let sizzle until most of the fat is rendered and the meat in nicely golden. Flip the meat as necessary to brown all sides. Drain off the fat and set aside for later.

Add the water, vegetables, and herbs and cook uncovered for about an hour or until the turkey is well cooked and falling off the bones.

Remove the broth from the heat and remove the meat and let cool until it can be handled without burning the bejeepers out of yourself. Discard the skin and bones and pull the meat into bite sized pieces.

Strain and reserve the broth. Skim any excess fat, if necessary. Hopefully, you'll have somewhere around four cups of liquid. If you have too much, let it simmer and reduce until it's about right. If you don't have enough, add water to make four cups. In the now empty pan, add 3-4 TBS of the reserved fat and the flour. Mix thoroughly and then slowly add the broth, whisking constantly over medium heat. Continue whisking until the mixture has thickened. Remove from the heat and add the shredded meat. Add salt to taste. Oh, and don't forget to make the waffles!!

Poultry Gravy and Waffles
Yield: 6 entree servings

For the broth:

1-2 tsp vegetable oil
2 turkey thighs or 2 lbs chicken thighs
6 cups water
1 medium onion, quartered
2 celery stalks, chopped
5-6 small/baby cut carrots
2 garlic cloves
2 bay leaves
1/4 tsp dried thyme
1/4 tsp dried rosemary
1 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper

For the gravy:

4 cups of broth
3-4 TBS reserved fat
4 TBS flour
reserved meat
salt to taste

Heat a large Dutch oven or stock pot over medium-high heat. Add the oil. When the oil is heated and shimmering, add the meat, skin side down. Brown the meat and render out the fat, turning as necessary. Drain the fat and reserve.

Add the water and remaining broth ingredients. Simmer uncovered for one hour, or until the meat is well cooked and falling off the bones. Remove the meat to let cool and strain and reserve the liquid (skim any fat, if necessary). You want close to 4 cups of liquid. If there is too much, you can simmer it down; if there is not enough, add water to make 4 cups. When the meat is cool enough to handle, discard the skin and bones and shred the meat into bite sized pieces. Set aside.

In the now empty pan, over medium heat, add 3-4 TBS of the reserved fat. Stir in the flour and mix thoroughly. Slowly add the broth, whisking constantly. Continue to cook and whisk until the mixture comes just to a boil and thickens. Remove from the heat. Add the reserved meat and stir. Add salt to taste. Gravy can be made in advance and reheated or used immediately. Serve over waffles (savory waffles - be sure to use a waffle recipe that does not include added sugar). Serve immediately after pouring over waffles.

Easy Peasy Blueberry Tart

I had a ball of leftover pie crust dough last week. It had been in the refrigerator for a bit and I knew I needed to do something with it or I'd end up having to throw it away. I wanted to be able to use all of the dough and not have any scraps to mess with. I was also looking for quick and simple... hmmmm. What to do? I opened the freezer, as I am wont to do these days, trying to find things I can clean out of there in preparation for our impending move at the end of this month (yes, I know, we just moved here, right?). I saw a bag of frozen blueberries and knew that my crust was gonna marry those blueberries.

I decided on a free-form tart. I rolled the dough out into a roughly circular shape. In a bowl, I mixed the frozen berries (about 2 cups) with 2 TBS of cornstarch, a 1/4 cup of sugar, a teaspoon of lemon zest, and a few shavings of fresh nutmeg. I stirred that all together and plopped it in middle of the crust.

I folded up the edges and made an egg wash. I brushed all exposed crust surfaces so that they might develop a beautiful golden luster in the oven. Lastly, I sprinkled toasted sliced almonds and sanding sugar on the top of the crust. I baked it at 400 F until the crust was nice and golden (I think it took about 35 minutes). It was delicious! So quick and easy!

Majadra

I know what you must be thinking... two posts in two days! Stop the presses! It is somewhat exciting. My little boy is starting to go to bed earlier and earlier. Tonight, he was in bed asleep by 7:30. To top it all off, my husband is out of town on business. My time is my own this evening. It doesn't happen that often these days, so I figured I'd make the most of it.

I celebrated by making another of those sandwiches I've been so fond of lately and then made a big old pot of this delicious dish. It may not be much to look at, but, boy, does it have some flavor! Majadra is of Lebanese origin and has rice, lentils, and caramelized onions. It also has a hint of spice and is absolutely delightful. You can serve it as a side dish or a main dish. I like to fill a bowl full to the brim and eat it with a spoon. It's very tasty. The best part is that it makes a decent amount and it tastes just as good reheated the rest of the week. It makes a perfect leftover lunch.

The other nice thing about it is that it's pretty simple to make. While it's not fast, it takes about an hour to complete it, the actual prep work is minimal and involves slicing an onion. That's it! Really! Okay, you also have to slice open a lemon for a little bit of juice, but, who's keeping track?

You start by putting the lentils on to simmer and caramelizing the onions. These two tasks take about the same amount of time, about half an hour. When the onions are starting to develop some really nice color, throw in a small stick of cinnamon. If you don't have a stick, you can also add just a dash of ground, but the stick adds more of an aromatic component to the dish rather than a flavor you taste with your tongue.

Once the lentils are tender and the onions are caramelized, you add the Batsmati rice to the onions to toast slightly. Then you add the drained lentils, boiling water, and cumin; cover it; and cook for twenty more minutes. After twenty minutes, you open the pot and fluff the rice. Spritz a couple teaspoons of fresh lemon juice over and add salt to taste (I think I added between 1/2 and 1 teaspoons).

Majadra
Yield: 6-8 servings

1 large onion, halved and sliced thinly
1/4 cup olive oil
1 cup green lentils
water to cover lentils by 1-2 inches
1  2" cinnamon stick
1 1/4 cup Batsmati rice
2 cups hot water
2 tsp cumin
2 tsp fresh lemon juice
salt to taste

Heat a large pot and the oil over medium to medium-high heat. Add the onions and saute, stirring occasionally, until the onions are very golden, about 30 minutes. Adjust the heat as needed to keep them from burning. At the same time, put the lentils in a sauce pan and cover with water so that it is one to two inches above the top of the lentils. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer to cook for 25-30 minutes. The lentils should be tender about the time the onions are done. If the lentils are done before the onions, simply turn off the heat and let them sit. Drain the lentils once the onions are done.

When the onions are about 5 minutes away from being done, add the cinnamon stick and stir. Once the onions are nicely golden, add the rice and toast, stirring occasionally, for 3-5 minutes. Add the lentils, the cumin, and the water. Stir and bring to a boil. Reduce to a very gentle simmer. Cover and cook for 20 minutes. After twenty minutes, turn off the heat. Let sit 5 minutes. Remove the cover, add the lemon juice and salt and fluff gently with a fork.

Chicken and Herb Cheese Panini

 We eat a lot of sandwiches in our house, but this has to be my very favorite of all time. I wish I could say that the idea for this sandwich was my own, but - alas - it is not. I have to thank Panera for this one. Unfortunately, they've already "retired" this sandwich; how dare they!?! Last winter, they had this great hot panini with turkey, herbed cheese spread, and a cranberry moutarde. To be honest, it didn't taste much like a mustard based spread, which suits me fine; it seemed more like a cranberry relish. I make a mean cranberry-orange marmalade that I thought might taste divine in this application. So, after I realized my favorite sandwich was not going to make it to their regular menu, I decided to start making my own version at home.

The first step was to realize that it had my favorite cheese spread on it. Boursin cheese is one of those products that I dream about. I look for reasons to have company over so that I might justify having the stuff in my refrigerator. It's not figure friendly, and, when it's in my refrigerator, I feel compelled to eat half a baguette at a time slathered in the stuff. The good news? For a sandwich application, the Boursin Light tastes great! Hallelujah!

The next step is to choose the correct bread. This requires a high quality ciabatta bread. I often make my own, but certain little babies have been keeping from spending much time in the kitchen lately. I've recently found a brand of ciabatta that I really like called New French Bakery "Take and Bake." It's only in limited stores, but if it's in yours, grab it!

Cut yourself a nice sized sandwich and then slice the bread in half to open it up. Slather one side with the Boursin cheese. On the other side, I spread my cranberry-orange marmalade. You could probably approximate the flavor by mixing cranberry sauce and orange marmalade. Then pile on a nice bit of fresh spinach. The last item is the chicken or turkey. There are a number of ways you can fulfill the meat quota on this sandwich. You can use some leftover meat from a roast chicken or turkey dinner. You could slice chicken from a grocery store rotisserie bird. You could also pan saute a chicken breast (or tenderloin) with a little salt, pepper, garlic powder, and paprika and then slice it to put on the sandwich. That's the route I took the last two times I made this sandwich.

 After putting the sandwich together, get your panini "press" set up. I don't have a real one, so I just used a saute pan with a cast iron skillet pressing it down. Pre-heat the pan and lightly brush the outside of the sandwich with olive oil before toasting over medium heat. Grill until lightly golden on each side.

The combination of flavors in this sandwich is divine! It's such a nice change of pace from your standard grilled cheese sandwich. Who needs Panera, anyway?

Homemade Instant Oatmeal

I assumed going into this motherhood thing that, since I had a fair amount of childcare experience, I had it all figured out. What I hadn't realized, having always taken care of children six months and older, is that infants are quite a bit more time consuming than I had anticipated. I guess it's hard to entertain yourself when you can't sit up on your own, let alone reach out and hold something. On top of it all, my little boy is opposed to sleep. Oh, he sleeps great at night. In fact, last night, I got over six hours in a row and then a few more to boot! The problem is that my boy, who is almost ten weeks old now, doesn't like to nap much during the day. I looked up online how much infants should be napping at his age and it says around five hours a day. I'm lucky to get two out of him most days. The good news is that he isn't crabby with that little sleep. He's wide eyed and bushy tailed and ready to face the world... if only he could interact with it more!

As you might guess, between this sleep issue and keeping him fed, there isn't a huge amount of time for playing in the kitchen, but I've been making a concerted effort lately. I miss that tasty, creative outlet! So, in the last week, I've developed three new recipes. Of course, now the trick is to have the time to post them!

The first recipe I put together is for a homemade instant oatmeal. Once you've made the mix and put it in the pantry, you can prepare a serving in less than a minute and it is very, very tasty. It took me a few tries to get the flavor right, but I definitely think I've got it now. It's a brown sugar and maple flavored oatmeal with just a hint of cinnamon and vanilla. Very satisfying.

As I've mentioned before, muffins are usually my go to breakfast; it's my husband that's been consuming all the instant oatmeal up to this point (although that may change now!). As you might imagine, it galled me just a bit every time I put that box in the grocery cart. I just knew I could do better and cheaper. This recipe makes six servings for less than a buck. It looks very similar to what comes out of the box, doesn't it? But it doesn't have all those fillers in it! Just oats, salt, brown sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, and real maple syrup.

You start by mixing a portion of the oats with all the flavorings and then baking to dry it out and make it shelf stable. You then grind up that mix in a food processor (I suppose a blender might work too) until it is fairly finely ground. Finally, mix in the remaining oats and put it in a jar in the pantry. That's it! 

Obviously, you can make the servings as large or as small as you want and add the water to your taste, but as a general guide, five tablespoons of dry mix makes a serving. That's approximately 40 grams. A Quaker Instant Oatmeal serving is 34 grams and has 120 calories. Based on the nutritional information and measurements for my recipe, it comes to about 170 calories a serving. If it was a similar serving size as the Quaker, it would be 145 calories. Why the difference? It's not that my version is sweeter. I think it has to do with the fillers they have in there. 34 grams of oats have 128 calories. Oats are less calorie dense than sugar, so to be able to have only 120 calories per serving, there must be a bunch of other, very low calorie stuff in there... perhaps the guar gum, sucralose, or calcium carbonate. 

Homemade Instant Oatmeal

Yield: 6 servings

1/2 tsp table salt

4 or 5 TBS packed light brown sugar

1/8 tsp ground cinnamon

1 or 2 TBS real maple syrup

1/4 tsp vanilla

1 1/2 cup quick oats, divided

I have added some flexibility into the measurements of the sweeteners. My husband ultimately decided he wanted it slightly less sweet, so I've been making it with 4 TBS brown sugar and 1 TBS of maple syrup. Feel free to adjust to your tastes.

Preheat the oven to 250 degrees F. In a small microwave proof bowl mix the salt, brown sugar, cinnamon, maple syrup, and vanilla. Stir together and then heat gently in the microwave to liquefy the mixture, about 25-30 seconds.  Add 1/2 cup of the oats. Stir to completely mix. I like to use my hands to really ensure things are well mixed, which helps keep hard sugar balls from forming. Sprinkle out on a sheet pan lined with parchment. Bake for 30-40 minutes, stirring once, until the mixture is dry looking. Remove from the oven and let cool completely. Once cool, place the mixture in a food processor and process until the mix is fairly finely ground. Pour into a glass jar. Add the remaining cup of oats and shake to mix. Store tightly capped for maximum freshness. This recipe can be multiplied as many times as necessary to obtain the desired amount of mix.

To prepare the oatmeal, spoon 5 tablespoons of the instant oatmeal in a bowl. Add between 1/3 and 1/2 cup very hot water and stir. Let sit 30 seconds, stir again, and enjoy. The amount of water you use will be a matter of personal preference. Using 1/3 cup of water will lead to a thicker, more pasty oatmeal while 1/2 cup will be somewhat watery. Personally, I think halfway between is the perfect balance.

NOTE: A triple batch of this recipe will just about fill a one quart jar. 

Cinnamon Rolls - Mastered!

My in-laws showed up yesterday to come meet their newest grandson. I feel fortunate to have such a great relationship with my in-laws such that I am excited for their visit. It helps that my mother-in-law is great with babies and this has allowed me to get a few things done around here. To celebrate the first morning of their visit, I decided to make a pan of cinnamon rolls.

Now, I posted my recipe for cinnamon rolls a long time ago. You can see that post here. However, while the basic recipe has remained the same, there have been a number of changes that have turned these rolls from good to super-freaking fantastic. I used to have a hard time passing by a Cinnabon when out and about, but now it's not a problem. I like these rolls better! It's amazing what a difference a few subtle changes can make. You may want to read through my last post first if you are not familiar with the general gist of how cinnamon rolls are made. In this posting, I will focus on the changes to the recipe and then will re-post the recipe in full at the end in case you want to print it out.

The first major change was in the filling. I'm not sure why it makes such a big difference, but changing from regular sugar to brown sugar completely changes the way the filling melts. If you mix the butter and sugar together first into a paste, along with the cinnamon, it melts even better and makes a nice gooey filling. Here you can see the dough rolled out with the filling spread out on it.

The nest major change was the way that I rolled the dough. If you look at my pictures in my original post, you'll notice just how thick the dough was when I rolled it up. That resulted in rolls that were very bread-y without a lot of that delicious filling. I now roll the dough almost as thin as I can manage. I shoot for no thicker than one quarter of an inch now. In my experience, it is imperative to have the dough cold to manage this. That's why I put the dough in the refrigerator for a second proofing. Roll the dough up and then use a serrated blade to cut perfect rolls.

Compare this photo with the similar one in the previous cinnamon roll post and you can see just how many more rolls you get in the dough when it is rolled thinly. It leads to a much better balance of dough and cinnamon/sugar filling.

You can see here how that filling melts so much better than in my previous recipe. The last change that I made to the recipe was in the icing. Adding a little cream cheese to the icing, with that little bit of tang it imparts, is absolutely divine and really puts these rolls over the top. My goodness, these things are delicious! Be sure to have a plan for all twelve rolls or you may find them all in your own tummy!

Cinnamon Rolls - Mastered!
Yield: 12 rolls

2 1/4 tsp instant yeast
1 1/4 cup warm milk
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup shortening
1 tsp table salt
3 whole eggs
4 to 4 1/2 cups flour

1/2 cup butter (one stick)
1 cup brown sugar
4 TBS cinnamon

4 ounces softened cream cheese
2 cups powdered sugar
1-2 TBS milk

Mix the first 6 ingredients together in the bowl of a stand mixer (through the eggs). Add two cups of the flour. Mix on medium with a paddle for 3 minutes. Add the remaining 2 to 2 1/2 cups flour. The amount of flour can vary depending on the humidity of your kitchen. You are looking for a dough that is still somewhat soft and sticky. It will become more workable after it rises and is chilled.

Place the dough in a grease bowl, covered with plastic wrap, until it is doubled. Knock down the dough and refrigerate for 2 hours (and up to 24 hours). Turn the cold dough out onto a floured counter. Roll out into a rectangle as thin as the dough will reasonably allow; shoot for less than 1/4 of an inch. The rectangle will be approximately 20 inches by 12 inches. Beat together the softened butter, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Heat gently in the microwave if it is not soft enough to spread on the dough. Spread the mixture evenly on the dough. Roll up tightly and slice, using a serrated blade, into twelve rolls. I trim off the ends before slicing so each roll has a nice look to it.

Place the rolls in a greased 9x13 inch pan. They also fit nicely four to a pan in 8" disposable aluminum pans if you want tot gift them. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and allow the rolls to rise for 30 minutes or until slightly puffy. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Remove the plastic wrap and bake rolls for 25 minutes or until baked through and gently golden. Remove rolls from the oven and cool for 15 minutes before icing.

Beat the cream cheese, powdered sugar, and milk together until it forms a smooth icing. It will be too thick to pour. Spread the icing over the rolls. Serve immediately or store in an airtight container and reheat in the microwave before serving.

7/31/13: I have altered the amounts for the filling slightly. I decided, if your going to go all out and have a cinnamon roll, it might as well be the best roll it can be! I upped the amount of brown sugar slightly (from 3/4 cup to one) and increased the amount of cinnamon a bit (from 3 to 4 TBS). I just made these again this weekend. Sooooo fabulous!!!

Getting Our Feet Under Us

Well, our boy finally decided to grace us with his presence one month ago today, and we've been getting our feet under us ever since. People aren't kidding when they say this whole having kids thing is a life adjustment! Especially when you're as old as we are! ;-)

We are blessed though. Very blessed. Not only did we welcome a healthy baby into the world, but we also apparently welcomed a happy one too! While it's not all peaches and cream all the time, overall, we've got it made. He not a big crier and I'm getting decent amounts of sleep. I'm beginning to get back into some of my regular routine. I've even started cooking again... well, I mean like cooking stuff other than the super easy standbys that I can cook with my eyes closed (and already posted three years ago). I'm looking forward to new recipes and new posts! Thanks for your patience while I took some time to figure out this whole motherhood thing. So far, I'm a big fan.

Golden Crusted Pork Loin

Well, I guess I've been a little MIA lately, which is a little funny since all I've been doing is a lot of sitting around waiting for this baby to decide to come into the world. Granted, that means I haven't been doing a huge amount of experimental cooking since my feet balloon up to gargantuan proportions when I'm on them too long these days. I've been mostly sticking with the quick and easy "sure-things" when we aren't doing take-out or delivery. My due date has come and gone and we're just waiting for the little guy to decide to make an appearance. I'm not sure if its been a "nesting" thing or what, but the last two days, I've been very energetic and productive. Maybe that's a good sign? Please be a good sign. I'm ready to have my body back!

Last night, I had some pork tenderloin thawed out and was looking for a quick and tasty way to prepare it. I often butterfly my tenderloins and stuff them, but I just couldn't get up the gumption for that. My husband was dreaming of a pork tenderloin sandwich, but I was also wanting to forego any pounding and frying. I thought a nice crunchy crust might be found another way. Perusing through the pantry, I found what I was looking for... Panko (the perfect breading standby) and French fried onions (you know, the ones you put on top of green bean casserole). At that point I was on my way to a fabulously flavorful and easy dinner.

The breading goes on easy and stays on well through the cooking process. It comes out golden and crispy and very flavorful. I highly recommend it!

Golden Crusted Pork Loin
Yield: serves 4-6

1 package pork tenderloin (usually contains two loins)
2-4 TBS all purpose flour
2 eggs
1 cup French fried onions
1 cup Panko bread crumbs
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese
1 TBS dried parsley
1/4 tsp salt
spray cooking oil

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with foil. If the loin looks excessively marbled, consider using a roasting rack to keep the loins from sitting in the excess fat as it cooks. Remove the loins from their packaging, rinse and pat dry. Prepare the egg wash by cracking the two eggs into a large, shallow container and beat gently. Then prepare the crunchy coating. In a food processor, pulse the French fried onions until they are similar in texture to the Panko. Mix the fried onions, Panko, Parmesan, parsley, and salt together on a shallow dish or tray.

Sprinkle the loins with the flour until all surfaces are lightly covered. Gently tap off any excess. Then dip each loin into the egg wash and roll around in the crunchy coating until they are evenly coated. Place on the baking sheet. Spray lightly with cooking oil spray. Place in the top third of the preheated oven and roast until a thermometer placed in the thickest part of the loin reads 150F. Remove from the oven and let rest for five minutes before slicing and serving.

Wine Steamed Mussels

I find it amazing how sometimes the dishes with the most flavor are the quickest to prepare. Take this dish, for instance. In less than ten minutes, you end up with a super flavorful broth and perfectly tender mussels. I had never prepared mussels before last night. I was pleasantly surprised at how easy and delicious they were to prepare.

They're especially easy if you purchase fresh cultured blue mussels. These mussels are "farmed" up in Canada off Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia, but really they're not so much farmed as managed. The mussels grow in waters in which they are native, they are simply "encouraged" to grow in specific places. They eat their natural food (i.e. the "farmer" does not feed them in any way). They are then allowed to grow naturally. Lastly, they are harvested year round to end up perfectly fresh at your supermarket's fish counter. Why are these cultured mussels easier to cook with? Because they've already cleaned them for you! No need to soak or remove those pesky beards. I can appreciate that!

Being a mussel buying newbie yesterday was, I'll admit, a bit embarrassing. I asked for three pounds of mussels; it is recommended that you plan for a pound per person. Since we're big eaters, I figured I'd get an extra pound. They were surprisingly cheap, even at Whole Foods. I got them on sale for $1.99 a pound here in the D.C. area, but even their regular price is less than $4.00 per pound. So the fish monger weighed them out for me into a plastic bag, placed the price tag on it, and proceeded to attempt to hand me the bag... with it hanging open. I looked at him like he was crazy and asked, "Are you really trying to hand me this bag of messy shellfish without any further packaging?" He rolled his eyes (very politely, I might add) and told me that they needed to breathe and that if I closed the packaging up, I'd kill them. Oh. Duh. Okay.

I did manage to get the little buggers home without killing or spilling them everywhere. When it came time to prepare dinner, I simply rinsed them off and picked through them to be sure there weren't any damaged or dead ones. If you come across a mussel with a broken shell or one who is open and won't close with a little tap, discard it. Let the mussels hang out while you prepare the broth: garlic, onion, tomato, white wine, and water is all that's in there, but once the mussels add their juices and it all cooks together a bit? Divine!!

Steam the mussels over medium-high heat for 5-10 minutes, until the vast majority of them open. The amount of time it will take to cook them depends on the heat, obviously, but also how many mussels you've got in the pot. Although I've read conflicting reports, the prevailing wisdom states that you should also discard any mussels that don't open during the cooking process. It seemed best to me to be safe rather than sorry, so I followed that suggestion. Be careful not to overcook the mussels or they can become rubbery and unappealing. They're ready when they've opened so keep and eye on them. Once the mussels are done steaming, stir the pot and ladle them up. Be sure to serve them with some rustic bread to sop up those perfect juices!

Wine Steamed Mussels
Yield: 3 servings

2 TBS butter
1 TBS minced garlic
1/2 cup diced onion
1/4 cup diced tomato
1/2 cup white wine (such as Pinot Grigio)
1/2 cup water
3 pounds of mussels, cleaned and debearded
salt and pepper to taste

In a large Dutch oven or stock pot, melt the butter over medium-high heat. Add the garlic and onion and saute until they are slightly softened. Add the tomato, wine, and water and bring to a boil. Add the mussels and cover the pot. Let steam for 5-10 minutes, until most of the mussels have opened. It is recommended that you discard the mussels that do not open during the cooking process. Remove from the heat and give the pot a stir. Taste the broth and add salt and pepper to taste. Be cautious about salting the broth before cooking and tasting as the mussels give off a salty brine when cooking. Serve immediately with crust bread for dipping.

Farro Love

Curiosity about new foods is a key aspect of how I operate in the kitchen. Sometimes it takes a bit longer to get around to trying something than I might like to admit, but I'll get there eventually. Sometimes I get a little prompt by being presented a food while eating out elsewhere, and that's usually never a bad thing. Take this grain, for instance. I first had it about three months ago at a catered event and immediately fell in love. What a wonderfully flavorful, easy to cook, chewy, tasty delight!

Farro is a grain within the wheat family, but is botanically different enough that some people who are allergic to the modern wheat variety found most commonly in the grocery can tolerate farro. Farro is also known as emmer wheat, and while it appears to have been cultivated in antiquity (i.e. thousands of years ago), its modern resurgence is fairly recent (as in the early 1900s). Most farro available for purchase today in the United States is grown in Italy.

While farro berries look very much like wheat berries, they cook very differently because most farro you'll find has been pearled (had the outer husk and much of the bran removed). Removing this bran casing allows the grain to cook much more quickly. You can visually judge how much of the bran has been removed by looking at the color of the grain; the more bran that has been removed, the lighter in color the grain will be.

So, how do you cook farro? Easily! I usually cook about one cup of the grain at a time. This will leave you with between 2 and 2 1/2 cups of cooked farro. You can round out the taste of the farro by dry toasting the grain in the pot first before adding the water. Simply turn the heat to medium, add the grain, and stir periodically until the grain gives off a nice toasty aroma. At that point, add water to cover, about 2 cups if you are cooking 1 cup of farro. Bring to a boil and then reduce to a simmer. I have had equal success with cooking my farro covered or uncovered. Simmer until the grain is tender, about 30 minutes. It will still be chewy, but pleasantly so. Drain off any excess water and let sit for a few minutes to absorb any remaining moisture after draining.

You can then use the farro in any number of ways. I like it very much as is and there are plenty of recipes for farro salads that are really excellent. My favorite way to serve it, however, is as a side dish with a slight flavor boost. After draining, I add salt and pepper to taste. I then drizzle a tiny bit of extra virgin olive oil and a tiny drizzle of fresh squeezed orange juice into the grain and stir. Be cautious not to overdo it with the oil and juice; you want to highlight the natural flavor of the grain, not mask it. Stir and serve! Farro is another great way to include more whole grains into your diet!