red pepper flakes

Savory Pies- Rapini Galette with Goat Cheese & Red Pepper

09 Nov 2011
Rapini Galette with Goat Cheese & Red Pepper

I think I should get a job at Hot Pockets.

Rapini Galette with Goat Cheese & Red Pepper. This is savory pie number six in my week long tribute to the oeuvre. And not to brag (too loudly) but every one of my savory pies this week is better than anything Hot Pockets has to offer. So I guess you can look at this marathon as my resume in progress– certain to land me a head honcho type job at Hot Pockets.

Except there is one problem with the plan. I'd be too embarrassed to tell people where I worked.

Because look at the demographics. Do you know who eats Hot Pockets? College Kids and, how do I say this nicely... umm... White Trash! Since I can count myself as having (at one time or another) been in both groups I feel I can say that without too much offense. Because face it, College Kids and White Trash are a powerful market segment in America. How else can you account for the popularity of Hot Pockets?

Hot Pockets were invented in the late 70’s in Los Angeles by two brothers– London educated Iranian Jewish refugees from the Islamic Revolution. Their idea was to create a fast, easily consumed meal that would take advantage of the growing number of microwaves in American homes. Smart guys.

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Rapini Galette with Goat Cheese & Red Pepper

Rapini Galette with Goat Cheese & Red Pepper
By jgreghenry Published October 27, 2011
Prep time: 60
Yield:1 (Servings)

Ingredients:

  • 2 c all-purpose flour, (spooned and leveled)
  • 0.25 c extra-virgin olive oil
  • 1 t salt, plus more to taste and for boiling water
  • 2 bn rapini (1 pound total)
  • 0.25 c parmesan cheese, grated
  • 3 oz soft young goat cheese, sliced
  • 0.25 t red-pepper flakes, or to taste
  • 1 T large egg, lightly beaten

Directions

In a medium bowl, combine flour, oil, 1-teaspoon salt, and 1/3-cup cold water, stir to combine with a fork. Knead dough 1 minute. Cover with plastic wrap and let rest 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees, with rack in lower third. In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook rapini until bright green, about 1 minute. Using tongs, transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate. Dry well.

Roll out dough to a 14-inch round; transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle dough with Parmesan and top with rapini in a fairly dense single layer, leaving a 2 1/2-inch border. Top with red-pepper flakes and goat cheese; season with salt (optional). Fold dough border over filling and brush with egg. Bake until crust is golden brown, 35 to 40 minutes. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Earthworms, Salamanders and Flank Steak. Let's Eat!

31 Aug 2011
open-faced flank steak sandwiches with figs

Today I have a recipe and a wine pairing Open-Faced Flank Steak and Arugula Sandwiches with Fig & Red Onion Jam which my brother paired with  Buehler Zinfandel Napa Valley 2009. But I also have a confession and a conundrum I'd like to present.

Here's the confession: I like steak. Especially rib-eye. But I wasn't an immediate convert to flank steak, or so I thought. Partly because I perceived it as tough. And I don't mean chewy. I like a chewy steak (a chewy, bloody steak). But most of the flank steak presented to me as an adult was overdone and improperly carved. Making it way more than chewy.

Here's the conundrum: Why did it take me so long to “discover” flank steak? My mother had a recipe for flank steak (marinated in Worcestershire and garlic) that I had been eating almost since birth. And I loved it. It was something my dad called earthworms and salamanders.

You can easily see how a sophisticated grown up gourmande (such as myself) might eschew a dish with a name like that. So somewhere between the earthworms of my childhood and the rib-eyes of my adulthood I lost track of flank steak. Surely it wasn’t my fault, I am an adventurous eater. So how to explain it?

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Open-Faced Flank Steak and Arugula Sandwiches with Fig & Red Onion Jam

Open-Faced Flank Steak and Arugula Sandwiches with Fig & Red Onion Jam
By jgreghenry Published August 30, 2011
Prep time: 5
Yield:1 (Servings)

Ingredients:

  • 2 T granulated sugar
  • 1 pn cayenne pepper, or to taste
  • 1 t salt, plus more as needed
  • 1 large red onion, chopped
  • 1 lb fresh figs (any type), halved lengthwise
  • 2 oz walnuts, toasted (1/3 cup)
  • 1 pn black pepper, pluse more as needed
  • 0.5 c balsamic vinegar
  • 0.75 c olive oil
  • 1 pn red pepper flakes, or to taste
  • 1 (1 ½- to 1 ¾-pound) beef flank steak
  • 1 bn arugula, washed and dried
  • 0 parmesan cheese, thinly sliced or grated to taste

Directions

Make the jam: Combine sugar, cayenne, and teaspoon salt in a small bowl. Set aside.

Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Add onion, and cook, stirring occasionally, until lightly colored, about 12 minutes. Add 1/3 of the figs, and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add 1 tablespoon sugar mixture, and cook, stirring often, until sugar caramelizes, about 10 minutes. Let cool slightly, then pulse onion-fig mixture and walnuts in a food processor, adding a drizzle of water if necessary. Season with salt and pepper. (Jam can be refrigerated for up to 2 days.)

Marinate the steak: Whisk together a pinch of black pepper, vinegar, oil, and red pepper flakes in a large shallow dish. Add the steak and turn to coat. Cover and let marinate in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours and up to 8 hours, turning every 2 hours.

Grill the steak: Heat a grill or grill pan over medium-high heat until quite hot. Remove the steak from the marinade, letting most of it drip off. Season with salt and pepper. Grill, uncovered until lightly charred and crusty, about 4 to 5 minutes. Turn steak over, moving to a cooler part of the grill, or reduce the heat to medium if using a grill pan. Cook until medium-rare, 3 to 4 minutes more. Do not go much past medium-rare as flank steak gets tough when overcooked. Remove the steak to a cutting board and let rest for 5 minutes. Cut into 1/2-inch thick slices against the grain of the meat.

Roast the figs: Preheat oven to 400. Place remaining figs, cut sides up, on a rimmed baking sheet. Sprinkle with remaining sugar mixture. Roast until tender and caramelized on cut sides, about 10 minutes. Spread 3 tablespoons onion-fig mixture on each slice of bread. Top each with arugula, cheese, steak slices and several warm fig halves, and cut into 3 or 4 pieces. Serve immediately.

Source: Inspired by Martha Stewart and Bobby Flay

Blackberry Ketchup, Really?

09 Aug 2011
Blackberry Ketchup

Yep Really.

I am still wrangling with my obsession with summer fruit. This time it's blackberries. In fact if you yourself were a member of the bramble berry family, you might want to take out a restraining order against me. Because blackberries bring out the Glenn Close in me, and together we will not be ignored. So rather than ignore either one of us, I thought I would play a little summer catch up and use blackberries in ketchup (yikes I am bad writer...).

Now I want to be clear. This condiment is much more ketchup than sauce. And it's certainly not jam because it has a big vinegary bite. There is also enough complex spice in it to make it much more compatible with grilled meat than vanilla ice cream.

But this is no ordinary ketchup concoction. Tomatoes aren't even invited to this show, because the real stars here are the darkest and most luxurious of all the summer berries. The aptly named blackberry.

It's easy to make too. Once you have tasted it I know you'll think of all sorts of ways to serve it. But I wanted to pay honor to its ketchup-y nature so I used mine on a bun with grilled sausage. In this case classic garlic sausage with crunchy red onions and peppery watercress– oozing with intensely flavored blackberry ketchup. Sweet, and spicy with enough umami to make you scream oh, mommy!

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