BIG, Bold and Beautiful by Jenny Lorish April 10, 2019 by Jenny Chang Leave a Comment Springtime: a season to renew, refresh and hit the restart button. Nothing brings a smile to my face like a beautiful springtime day. The birds are chirping, plants are popping out of the ground, the smell of the air is crisp and clean, the sun feels warmer and everyone seems happy. After a long, cold winter, I’m always ready for a celebration. Getting together with friends and family for some of the seasons fresh fruits and vegetables, flowers, and libations is the best way I can think to do a toast and welcome all that is new. Recently, my family went to Newport Beach, CA for Spring Break. Everything was green and lush. The sun was shining everyday and it felt, as my son Thomas says, “like a blanket on my skin”. We had many adventures and saw some beautiful sights. We also ate most of our meals at restaurants. There are many wonderful places to eat in SoCal. Before we left for our trip, we planned out the places we really wanted to hit. Many were recommended by family who live there. What surprised me most was that every restaurant was super healthy and had many vegetarian and vegan choices. Being pescatarians, my husband and I had no problems at all. Fresh fish, fresh veggies, fresh everything. One of my favorite things to do when I return home, is to recreate some of the recipes of the food we ate. Ceviche, salads, grilled fish tacos, etc. At one restaurant we ordered the crudité bowl. When it came to the table I laughed out loud. It was a huge bowl stuffed full of beautiful vegetables with an olive tapenade sauce and a tzatziki sauce for dipping. We devoured it. It was so fresh and crunchy, and with the sauces it had the perfect umami. If you want to get your children to eat their vegetables, this presentation will do it! Now that we are back, I’m ready to start my re-creations and celebrate Spring with my friends and family. First on the menu is sure to be the crudité bowl. Next, will surely be many of the delicious and amazing food and drink we enjoyed. But I really want to share this, oh so easy, but oh so BIG Crudité Bowl recipe with you. It’s not really a recipe per se, as it is an arrangement, customized how you like. I will be sure to make this ahead of time in one of the biggest and prettiest bowls I own. My version will include long leafs of romaine lettuce stacked vertically in the bowl to start. Then, whole peeled smaller carrots, and radishes with some of the tops left on. I will also add spears of cucumber, vertically sliced red and yellow peppers, and one minute blanched green beans. (Recipes for the dips, below) So, I’m going to go ahead, invite my favorite friends and family, set glorious table and go BIG! At Marcel’s, we celebrate Spring with fresh new merchandise for decorating and outfitting your kitchen with style. We have all the kitchen tools and gadgets to help get you started, BIG beautiful bowls included. We also host many cooking classes to help you be the best cook and entertainer amongst your family and friends. Stop in and let us help you with your Springtime entertaining! Tapenade & Tzatziki Dip 2019-04-11 00:27:09 Print Ingredients Tapenade Dip 1/2 cup black olive, puréed 3 big bunch basil, puréed Juice of 1 lemon 1/2 cup avocado oil or extra virgin olive oil Tzatziki Dip Two 7-ounce containers Greek yogurt (like Fage Total) 1/2 English cucumber, diced Juice of 1 lemon 1 tablespoon white wine vinegar 1 tablespoon minced fresh dill 1 clove minced garlic Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste Tapenade Dip Mix all ingredients well. Can be made up to a week ahead of time. Tzatziki Dip Mix all ingredients well. Can be made 1 or 2 days ahead of time. Marcel's Culinary Experience https://www.marcelsculinaryexperience.com/
An Ode to Onions by Brandy Fernow August 22, 2018 by Jenny Chang Leave a Comment Sometimes when I’m teaching a class, I hear someone say “I don’t like onions.” My ears perk up and I can’t wait to change their mind! Generally the dislike is because of the texture or flavor of raw onion. Onions are certainly aggressive in flavor when raw, but cooking them creates a sweetness and tender texture that will only embellish a dish! I love working with onions – the most common aromatic and essential ingredient that adds depth and flavor to so many dishes. The onion family includes bulb or globe onions, pearl onions, cipollini, shallots, leeks, scallions, chives and their cousin – garlic. Collectively they belong to a plant species called alliums. In my classes, one of the most common “Ah-hah” moments is learning how to correctly dice an onion. I will break it down below. 1. Cut the STEM end off and leave the ROOT end on. The root end is your friend! 2. Place the onion cut-side down on the cutting board and slice it in half lengthwise through the root. You should have two halves and the root should still be on. You wouldn’t cut off your friend, would you? 3. Peel the onion halves – you have two edges to work with, so it’s easy-peasy. 4. With the root end toward the back of the cutting board, slice lengthwise at even intervals, stopping just short of the root end. 5. Turn the onion and holding the root end, slice horizontally toward the root, again at even intervals. The pieces will fall away as you slice, leaving only the root end, your friend that held the onion together while dicing. I can guarantee this will yield uniform shaped pieces for even cooking, but I can’t guarantee you won’t be crying at the end. Cutting onions can cause watery eyes or even crocodile tears so guests also love this tip: Freeze the onion for 20 minutes before chopping – it helps contain the sulfuric compounds that make our eyes water. I always have a variety of onions on hand, as well as bread, cheese and cream – the makings of a classic bread pudding. So I’m sharing a favorite savory bread pudding recipe. I guarantee even those who “don’t like onions” will enjoy the delicious aromas and flavors created from some of the best alliums – leek, shallot, chives and garlic. Savory Leek and Fontina Bread Pudding 2018-08-22 22:58:05 Serves 4 Print Ingredients 1 1/2 cups cubed baguette, sourdough or ciabatta bread 1 tablespoon butter 1 small leek, white and light green parts only, sliced thin 1 small shallot, minced 1 garlic clove, minced 1 teaspoon fresh thyme 2 tablespoons chopped chives 3/4 cup grated Fontina 1/4 cup grated Parmesan 3/4 cup heavy whipping cream 2 eggs 1 tablespoon lemon juice 1 teaspoon salt 1/2 teaspoon pepper Instructions Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place bread cubes in an even layer on a parchment lined sheet tray and toast for 6-8 minutes until dry and just lightly browned. Remove and let cool. Melt the butter in a medium sauté pan. Add the leek and shallot; cook over medium-high heat until softened, about 3-5 minutes. Add the garlic and thyme and cook for 1 minute. Transfer leek mixture to a large bowl and add the chives, Fontina and Parmesan. Fold in the toasted bread. Whisk cream, eggs, lemon juice, salt and pepper in a medium bowl. Pour custard mix into bread/leek mixture and stir to combine. Scoop bread pudding mixture into a casserole dish and bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes. The custard should be set and the top lightly browned. Garnish with additional chives. Notes You can add wild mushroom or asparagus to this as well. Marcel's Culinary Experience https://www.marcelsculinaryexperience.com/
Rigatoni with Broccoli and Sausage July 5, 2018 by Jenny Chang Leave a Comment Rigatoni with Broccoli and Sausage 2018-07-05 19:04:44 Serves 4 Print Ingredients 3-4 garlic cloves, very thinly sliced Extra-virgin olive oil 1 pound sweet or hot Italian sausage Salt and pepper 8 ounces rigatoni 1 pound broccoli, stems trimmed and peeled, stems sliced crosswise into ¼” coins, and tops cut into florets ¼ teaspoon dried chile flakes ½ cup Whipped Ricotta (recipe follows) ½-1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano ¼ cup dried breadcrumbs, optional Whipped Ricotta (Makes about 1 ½ cups) 1 ½ cups whole-milk ricotta cheese (from Marché) ½ teaspoon kosher salt Freshly ground black pepper ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil Instructions Put the garlic in a small bowl and pour over enough olive oil to cover. Shape the sausage into 4 balls then flatten them like a hamburger patty. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add salt until it tastes like the sea. Add the pasta and cook just shy of al dente according to the package directions. Meanwhile, heat a small glug of olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the sausage patties and cook until nicely browned on one side, about 4 minutes. Add the broccoli coins and the sliced garlic, including the oil, to the skillet. Flip the sausage patties and keep cooking until the sausage is just about fully cooked, another 4 more minutes or so. Break up the sausage with a spoon into bite-size chunks. Add the chile flakes and cook for 30 seconds or so. With a ladle, scoop out about ¼ cup of the pasta cooking water, add it to the pan to stop the cooking of everything, and slide the pan from the heat. About 3 minutes before the pasta should be al dente, add the broccoli florets and cook all together until the pasta is ready. Scoop out another cup of pasta cooking water, drain the pasta and broccoli, and add to the skillet. Return the skillet to the heat. Add ¼ cup or so of the pasta water, the whipped ricotta, and half the Parmigiano. Season the pasta generously with salt and black pepper. Shake the pan to combine the ingredients, put back over med. heat, and cook for a couple of min. to warm everything through and make a nice saucy consistency. Serve with more Parmigiano and top with the breadcrumbs, if using. Whipped Ricotta Directions Put the ricotta, salt and 20 twists of pepper in a food processor and start to process. With the motor running, add the olive oil in a thin stream. Pause and scrape down the sides if needed. The mixture should get lovely and creamy. Taste it and adjust with more salt, pepper. Or a bit more olive oil – you should be able to taste the oil as well as the ricotta. Store in the fridge for up to 1 week. Notes From the book: Six Seasons: A New Way with Vegetables by Joshua McFadden Marcel's Culinary Experience https://www.marcelsculinaryexperience.com/
Summer Vegetable Gratin June 28, 2018 by Jenny Chang Leave a Comment Summer Vegetable Gratin 2018-06-28 16:41:25 Serves 4 Print Base 1 garlic clove, minced 1 15 ounce can tomato sauce 2 teaspoons italian seasonings Gratin Ingredients 2 large beefsteak tomatoes 1 red onion 1 large eggplant 1 zucchini 1 summer squash 8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese 4 sprigs fresh thyme Salt and pepper, to taste Instructions Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Stir together base ingredients in a 9x13 inch baking dish. Wash the vegetables. Cut each vegetable into 1/2 inch slices. Arrange vegetables and cheese over base, alternating colors. Top with fresh thyme, salt and pepper to taste. Cover with foil and bake for 39 minutes. Remove foil and bake another 15 minutes. Notes This is a great side dish and can also be a main served over pasta. Marcel's Culinary Experience https://www.marcelsculinaryexperience.com/
Lessons Learned At The Table by Kelly Sears June 14, 2018 by Jenny Chang 1 Comment There are 275 countries in the world; 19 major world religions; 6,500 spoken languages. Food is the one universal. Food has no language barrier, is borderless, and is entry: entry to people, their culture, their families, their lives. In a tribute to his friend Anthony Bourdain, Anderson Cooper shared “in places near and far in the world, he talked, tasted, with open mouth, and eyes, and open heart and mind.” Simple, yet with depth; raw and honest, much like the man we think we knew as Anthony Bourdain. Bourdain expressed “…everywhere in the world, we go, and we ask these very simple questions, what makes you happy, what do you like to eat, what do you cook? We tend to get some really astonishing answers. People are telling you a story when they give you food. If you don’t accept the food, you are, in many cultures, whether in rural Arkansas or Vietnam, you are, rejecting the people.” When you sit down with someone and share their food, you are sharing their story. People are telling you something about themselves with each bite, each sip, each serving. No matter how small the size of the offering, the gesture is large, and the moment is magic. We all tell a story through our food. If you listen closely, the dish will share more than the cook will reveal in standard conversation. It’s the ingredient not listed in the recipe, not found on the grocery list. It’s the depth of flavor, the peek inside, that if you are lucky enough, you can taste in each bite. My husband is a landlord to college students. Our tenants represent the melting pot of not only America, but also the world. If you stay within the confines of your job, the relationship is tenant/landlord. But if you take the time to say hello, learn a name, discover what part of the map is home, doors open, and magic happens; you share a table. He calls them by name, they call him Mr. Dan. Two young engineering students from a small village outside of Beijing invited us to their apartment to make dumplings. Multi-generational, mom and grandmother were visiting and deftly rolling out dumplings with the speed of a twelve-person assembly line. Every dumpling is the exact shape and size. Once all the dough was ready, it was time to fill. Their dumplings were perfect, beautifully shaped, properly proportioned. Ours, overstuffed and unable to close. With direction, “the dumpling is the purse, the meat filling the money. Don’t let the money fall out of the purse.” An “ah ha” moment for sure; our dumpling skills improved. The meal was set out on two card tables, served on paper plates, with lots of chairs crammed around the tables. Make room for what’s important, worry less about what’s not. Several young men from Saudi Arabia invited Mr. Dan to stay for coffee after he fixed their leaky faucet. They set a cup in front of him and filled it half way. Mr. Dan said, only half a cup? The host then shared that his father, and his grandfather before him, taught him that you invite someone to stay by only filling their cup halfway. This way, the cup will constantly need to be filled, a little bit at a time, encouraging the guest to continue to stay and visit. When you fill the cup all the way, you are inviting them to leave; as in, This WILL be your only cup! Half full leaves you room for more. We invited some new tenants, a lovely Hispanic couple, over to teach us how to make tamales. We spoke with our hands, so we could understand one another. When I was about to add water in with the masa, my hand was tapped, and an index finger waved no-no. She pointed to the pot where the pork had slow cooked and then back to the masa bowl. Yes, of course! Water tastes like water, but pork juice tastes delicious!! We followed the leader and tied the husks. We counted hands and realized twelve hands make a hundred tamales easier than two. Share the work and it doesn’t feel like work. After long holiday breaks, some would return with gifts for Mr. Dan, gifts from their home: tea leaves as fragrant as the small-town countryside, homemade candies and sweets from their villages, silk scarves, a Qur’an. Share a dumpling, a coffee, a tamale; open a door to a connection. This is me, this is how I live. We spend a lot of time watching food TV, taking pictures of food, posting food but how much time do we spend breaking bread. We look down into phones instead of up into experiences. We can probably identify people by the parts in their hair rather than the colors of their eyes. How much time do we spend listening and connecting (the wireless kind). Whether it’s a kitchen table, dining table, picnic table or folding table, pull up a chair and gather round. Eat what’s offered off the fork. People open up when you nod and say “yes please” to the plate being passed. More tales are told, more stories shared. It’s the first step to a connection, to listening. May your purse hold money, your coffee cup never completely full, may you talk and taste with an open mouth, and eyes, with an open heart and mind. I know you’ll never leave hungry. Bread can be sliced, dipped, slathered or torn, goes with any meal, can be served piping hot, toasted or stale tossed in a salad. Most recipes make two loaves, or in this case, rolls. Break Bread and Connect. Pepper Bacon Bread 2018-06-14 13:36:00 Yields 20 Print Ingredients 340 grams Russet or Yukon Gold Potatoes 70 grams reserved Potato Cooking Liquid 14 grams reserved bacon fat (can substitute butter here) 1 teaspoon instant yeast 332 grams all-purpose flour 9 grams sea salt 72 grams bacon, cooked and crumbed (fat reserved, see above) 5 grams coarse black pepper (may prefer 3 grams if making rolls) Instructions Preheat oven to 400 degrees one hour prior to baking (baking vessel too) Boil potatoes (unpeeled) until tender, about 15-20 minutes Reserve 70 grams of the cooking water; set aside potatoes and liquid to cool Once cooled, mash the potatoes In a mixing bowl, combine the mashed potatoes, reserved cooking liquid, bacon fat and instant yeast. Stir to combine Add half the flour and stir well (the mixture will be crumbly) Add the rest of the flour and the sea salt and stir. The mixture will seem very dry Use your hands and squeeze, press, and knead the mixture until it comes together as a dough Scrape the mass of dough on to a work surface and knead the dough 5-6 minutes. The dough will start out quite stiff and dry but will moisten over time Press the dough into a rectangle, top with bacon and pepper. Knead for a couple more minutes to incorporate the bacon and pepper Place in an oiled container, cover with plastic and ferment for 30 minutes After 30 minutes, fold the dough, cover again and let rest for 30 minutes After 30 minutes, the dough is ready to be shaped (loaf, batard or rolls) Proof the dough for 45 minutes to an hour; it should swell nicely and have a springy texture Once the loaf has risen, score the top from end to end Bake for 30-40 minutes until golden browned Adapted from Zingerman’s, Ann Arbor, MI Adapted from Zingerman’s, Ann Arbor, MI Marcel's Culinary Experience https://www.marcelsculinaryexperience.com/