Moved into the new apartment, nearly had a heart attack (you try and fit the entire contents of a top floor brownstone in a much smaller two bedroom) and got some gas to cook with. The stove is lovely and clean and since it’s not on a tilt, I can cook things properly. Hooray. No recipes or food porn, but do read my talented friend’s piece on canoes over here.
Rarely is it when I read a recipe and think, “this looks crazy, I’ve gotta try it right now,” but it happened last week. Straight off the NYT’s presses, the January 8th recipe for Poached Scrambled Eggs, was easy, different and delicious. Since the article is now restricted, I took the liberty of putting the recipe in full below.
Poached Scrambled Eggs
Ingredients:
4 large eggs
extra-virgin olive oil
Fine sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
Soft cheese (optional)To Do:
1. Crack each egg into a slotted spoon, letting the thin white drain away and place on a cheesecloth lined sieve. Transfer the remaining yolk and white to a small bowl. Beat the eggs vigorously with a fork for 20 seconds.2. Set a medium saucepan filled with 4 inches of water over moderate heat. Put another strainer (or clean the one you just used) in the sink. When the water is at a low boil, add a few large pinches of salt, then stir in a clockwise direction to create a whirlpool. Put eggs into the moving water, cover the pot and count to 20.
3. Turn off the heat and uncover the pot. The eggs should be floating on the surface in ribbons. While holding back the eggs with a spoon, pour off most of the water over the strainer. Gently slide the eggs into the strainer and press them lightly to expel any excess liquid.
4. Scoop the eggs into bowls, drizzle with olive oil if desired and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper and add the cheese and mix it around a bit. Serves 2. Adapted from Daniel Patterson.
After having some problems getting a new, reasonably priced apartment in Park Slope, we succeeded! The kitchen is nice and large too with great cabinets…move in is next weekend, so things will probably be quiet on Combustication.
Also! Take note! The brilliance of Gabe will be on display tonight in the upstairs section of hipster mecca Piano’s in the LES. He’s on at 8:30 and it’s FREE and he realllly good, so come out to play.
Once again, things have been extremely busy on the other side of the computer screen. The New Year’s Eve party was thrown, apartment hunting is now done and packing is starting. In the midst of all of this, I haven’t had much desire to blog about cooking, but all that changed with my new pasta maker. I had made ravioli before, but I cannot stress how much better, easier and faster it was to make it with this pasta maker - and making pasta is a snap. Here’s a recipe for beet pasta. The dough is a beautiful vibrant dark pink when you roll it out, but a lot of the color is lost when you cook it. Not sure what would solve this except some food coloring, but the light pink pasta was still pretty to look at and very tasty. It was complimented by a creamy beet sauce that was all Phil’s idea. Our dinner guest loved it, so I guess we’re on to something. I don’t think I’ll ever buy pasta again.
Beet Pasta with Creamy Beet Sauce
Ingredients:
1 large beet
a little less than 2.5 cups of AP flour
3 extra large eggs
1 tsp olive oil
1/8 tsp salt
3 oz goat cheese
1 small can of tomatoes
green beans (steamed - optional)
toasted walnuts (optional)To Do:
Know in advance that this recipe takes time because of the beet. If you want to cheat, substitute a can of pureed beets or a jar of beet babyfood, but it won’t be the same. Start by scrubbing the beet and removing the leaves, but keeping the stem on. Place in pot, cover with water and let it boil until it becomes tender (stick a fork in it to see if its done). If it’s a large beet, it’s gonna take about an hour. Remove beet from the water and let it cool for a half hour. Slide the skin off and chop into smaller pieces. Puree the mixture in a food processor or blender and let sit in a seive for another hour.
When the beet is drained, make the dough. I used a food processor, but you can do this by hand if you like. It’s the same concept. Place the flour in the food processor bowl. In another bowl, combine the eggs, olive oil, salt and 2 tablespoons of beet puree. Start running the food processor and pour the mixture through the slot slowly. A ball should eventually form. If the dough is too dry add a tablespoon of water. The dough should be soft, but not sticky. Take the dough out of the food processor and knead it on a well floured surface until it becomes smooth and elastic. Place in a bowl covered with saran wrap and let sit for at least a half hour.
Finally, the pasta part! Take the dough and break off small piece. Cover the rest of the dough so it doesn’t dry out. Flatten the dough until it’s about a centimeter thick and run it through the highest setting of a pasta machine (7 for me). Change the setting to one lower (6) and run again…keep going till about setting 2 and then run the sheet of pasta through the fettuchini setting. Take the strands and place them over the back of a chair or laid flat on a dishtowel and keep making pasta till the dough is done. Place in salted boiling water for 4-5 minutes and drain.
For the sauce:
Place pureed beets, goat cheese, tomatoes and some olive oil in a food processor and puree. Add salt and pepper to taste. Heat through when ready to serve and place atop the pasta. This sauce is a crazy fuscia color and all of the elements compliment eachother in a perfect, but strange way. Add string beans and toasted walnuts to complete the meal. Yum!
Fun with pasta maker:
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