Random Cookbook of the Week - Pasta en Brodo from The Food You Want to Eat

The first cookbook drawn for my rebooted Random Cookbook Challenge was Ted Allen's The Food You Want to Eat: 100 Smart, Simple Recipes. And since Mr. Fraser and I have both been battling a particularly vicious summer cold, I chose to make what amounts to chicken soup:

Pasta en Brodo

Kosher salt for boiling pasta
6 c. canned low-sodium chicken stock
6 skinless chicken thighs, about 2 pounds
2 garlic cloves, halved
10 black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
1 large sprig of fresh thyme (optional--I meant to use it but forgot)
1 clove (optional--this I remembered)
1/2 lb. green beans, ends trimmed
1 lb. farfalle (bow-tie pasta)
1/4 c. extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 T chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 c. freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, plus extra for serving

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

2. Meanwhile, in a large saucepan, combine the chicken stock, chicken thighs, garlic cloves, peppercorns, bay leaf, and thyme and clove if using. Bring to a boil, reduce the heat to low, and simmer, partly covered, for 30 minutes to cook the chicken. Skim and discard any gray foam that rises to the top.

3. Remove the chicken with a slotted spoon. Strain the sock through a fine strainer into a clean saucepan and boil to reduce to 4 cups, about 10 minutes. Bone two of the chicken thighs and shred the meat; set the meat aside. Wrap and refrigerate the remaining chicken for another use.

4. When the pasta water comes to a boil, add the beans and cook for 5 minutes or until tender. Remove with a slotted spoon to a colander and refresh them with cold water to keep the bright green color. Then pat dry, cut into 1-inch pieces, and set aside.

5. Add the farfalle to the boiling water and cook until not quite tender, about 8 minutes. (You want to undercook the pasta slightly because it will cook further in the stock.) Drain and discard the pasta water.

6. Pour the reduced stock into the pasta pot. Add the green beans, shredded chicken, and olive oil, and bring to a simmer. Add the farfalle, ground pepper, and the parsley, and toss over medium heat for 30 seconds to warm the pasta and cook it completely. Remove from the heat. Use a slotted spoon to divide the pasta, chicken, and beans among 4 large, deep pasta plates. Ladle about 1/4 of the stock into each bowl and sprinkle each with 1/4 c. of the cheese.

Mr. Fraser liked this one better than I did and thinks I should make it again, possibly tweaking the ingredients a bit to lighten it up. (We're both on Weight Watchers, and this thing was a major hit to our points budget.) As for my opinion, well, while it's not a hard recipe, it did take me a little over an hour and cluttered the kitchen with dirty dishes. Given how busy my life is, if it takes more than 45 minutes and gives me more than one dishwasher load of dirty dishes, it better be something I'd proudly serve to company--like the rib recipe in this same cookbook. This was nice, but it was chicken soup.

Next week I'll be staying in the "cookbooks by Food Network hosts" section of my bookshelf and making something from Alton Brown's I'm Just Here for More Food. I may change my mind between now and this weekend's grocery run, but for now I'm torn between pineapple upside-down cake and blackberry grunt.

Random Cookbook of the Week: Pork Everywhere (Pig: King of the Southern Table and The Food You Want to Eat)

I'm not going to post the recipe I cooked last week from Pig: King of the Southern Table. It's a good cookbook, sort of an encyclopedia of pork recipes from various Southern cuisines, but something was wrong with the breaded pork cutlets with lemon-caper sauce I made. All I can think is that an ingredient was left out or listed at far too small an amount, because the sauce part just did not happen, even when I tripled the amount of chicken broth and threw in some butter. I had a thick gravy, but I'm sure it wasn't what the recipe intended, and it wasn't that good...so I'll just hope for better luck the next time the cookbook comes around in my rotation.

Instead, I'll skip straight to last night's dinner from Ted Allen's The Food You Want to Eat.

Mustardy Barbecued Spareribs

For the barbecue rub:
- 1 T kosher salt
- 1/4 c. sugar
- 1 T. chili powder
- 1 T. paprika
- 3 T. ground cumin
- 2 t. Colman's dry mustard
- 1/4 t. ground allspice

(You know, as I typed the recipe I realize I misread the ingredients while mixing the rub yesterday and put in 2 tablespoons dry mustard. No matter. It still tasted good.)

For the ribs and sauce
- 2 3 1/2 pound racks of spareribs (I used one 4-pounder because I was making this for just my little family, and it was the smallest one in the store.)
- 1/2 c. cider vinegar
- 1/2 c. medium-weight beer
- 1 t. sugar
- 2 t. prepared mustard
- 1 t. kosher salt

Preheat the oven to 300 F.

In a small bowl, combine all the rub ingredients. Rub the ribs all over with the dry spice mixture, place them in a roasting pan or on a baking sheet, put them in the oven, and let them roast for 2 hours or until very tender. They are now completely cooked and can be refrigerated for 2 or 3 days, or until you're ready to serve.

N.B. Allen has three paragraphs of instructions for how to do the grilling piece if you're using a charcoal grill. We have a gas grill, so I'll just say that I heated the grill to medium.

Put the ribs on the grill and grill slowly, turning once, until the ribs are heated through and have developed a crust, about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, stir together all the ingredients for the sauce. When the ribs are ready, cut between the bones with a large knife to cut them into individual ribs. Brush with the sauce and serve the remaining sauce on the side.

All I can say is YUM. While the mustardy South Carolina style isn't my favorite sauce, it is quite tangy and tasty, and I can always order some proper Alabama sauce from Dreamland for the next time I make it. For indeed there will be a next time.

Random Cookbook of the Week: In My Kitchen

This year for Christmas I got two Ted Allen cookbooks, In My Kitchen and The Food You Want to Eat. When I drew the former as my random cookbook last week, I liked so many of the recipes I couldn't limit myself to just one. So on Saturday I made...

Herbed Edamame Canapes

1 1/2 t. kosher salt
1/2 lb. frozen, shelled edamame, thawed
1 t. unsalted butter
2 large shallots, halved and sliced into thin half moons
1/4 t. freshly ground black pepper
1 small garlic clove, smashed and peeled
3 T. fresh ricotta
2 T. extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 t. grated lemon zest
1 T. fresh lemon juice
1 T. chopped tarragon leaves
Endive leaves, cucumber or jicama slices, or toasted baguette slices

1. Put a medium saucepan half full of water over high heat and bring to a boil. Add 1 t. of the salt and the edamame, bring the water back to a boil, and cook for one minute. Drain and transfer to a bowl filled with ice water to stop cooking. Once cool, drain well.

2. Melt the butter in a medium skillet over medium heat. Add the shallots and cook, stirring occasionally, until golden brown, about 7 minutes. Season with the remaining 1/2 t. of salt and the pepper.

3. Combine the edamame, shallots, garlic, ricotta, olive oil, lemon zest, and juice in the bowl of a food processor and pulse to make a thick, slightly chunky puree. Season with salt and pepper. Scrape the mixture into a bowl and mix in the tarragon. Spoon onto endive leaves, cucumber slices, toasts, or what-have-you, and serve.

It came out looking like this:

I added a sprinkling of parmesan because I felt like it needed it, then realized as I was cleaning up the kitchen that night that I'd left out the tarragon. Oops. Anyway, this had a nice fresh, bright taste, and I can see myself making it again, maybe for a party appetizer.

Then Sunday was soup time:

Bourbon Squash Soup with Parmesan Frico

Soup:
2 T. extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
1 acorn or butternut squash, halved and seeded
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 med. yellow onion, chopped
2 celery ribs, chopped
2 med. carrots, chopped
1/2 hot red chile, seeded and chopped
2 garlic cloves, chopped
2 t. fresh thyme or 1 t. dried
1/4 c. bourbon whiskey
4 c. chicken stock, preferably homemade, or low-sodium store-bought

Frico:
1 c. freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 t. all-purpose flour
2 T pepitas (shelled pumpkin seeds) - I couldn't find these and therefore left them out.
1 t. finely chopped rosemary or thyme leaves (optional) - I left out
A grind of black pepper (optional) - included
1/4 t. cayenne (optional) - included

1. Make the soup: Preheat the oven to 375.

2. Brush olive oil on the cut sides of the squash and season with salt. Put the squash cut side down on a baking sheet, cover with foil, and roast for one hour, until tender. Remove from oven, turn the squash over, and let cool. Scoop the squash out of the rind and set aside the flesh.

3. Lower the oven temperature to 350.

4. In a large Dutch oven or stockpot over medium heat, warm the olive oil, then add the onion, celery, and carrots, and cook until soft, 8 minutes. Add the chile, garlic, and thyme, and cook until fragrant, 1 minute. Then, add the squash, whiskey, stock, 1 t. salt, and 1/2 t. pepper, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until slightly thickened, 20 minutes.

5. Meanwhile, make the frico: Mix together in a small bowl the Parmesan, flour, pepitas, and any of the optional add-ins. On a baking sheet lined with parchment paper, make 1-tablespoon piles of the mixture with a couple inches between each, and spread them out into ovals about 4 inches long and 2 wide. Bake in the oven until golden brown, 6 to 8 minutes. Let them cool on the baking sheet.

6. If you have time, first allow the soup to cool, and then puree in batches or with an immersion blender; reheat before serving. If not, be aware that hot liquids can explode out of food processors and blenders; hold on to the lid with a kitchen towel and proceed carefully. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

7. Tuck a frico into each bowl of hot soup, and serve.

Voila!

I know, it's very orange. And my fricos look kinda sloppy. But they tasted AMAZING. I'm already trying to think what else that I cook could be made all the better with a nice parm cracker or two on the side. The soup was delicious too--the small amount of chile and Bourbon came through powerfully and made for a spicy, rich, boozey dinner for a cold Sunday night.