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CHEESY BREAD, CABBAGE & KALE SOUP

February 8, 2011
Bacon, Bread, Cabbage, recipes, Soup
4 Comments


Great food is more than just a meal,
It’s who you’re with and how you feel.

This soup was rustic, tasty, fine,
Great friends to share with made it divine. :)

This is Jamie Oliver’s Recipe for Italian Bread and Cabbage Soup with Sage Butter.  It is comforting and filling, and perfect for a winter’s night.  I made very few changes to the recipe.  I used anchovy paste instead of fillets, which I added after the bacon was adequately cooked.  After all the cheese (I’m sure I used more than the recipe called for) I could not bring myself to add butter on top of it all.  I’m sure it would have been lovely but I can assure you it was delicious without the butter.

As Jamie suggests, I layered this soup in a casserole dish but, if I were to do it again, I would prepare it in separate ramekins.

After layering, I would suggest keeping any leftover broth –  you may need extra to serve with each bowl.

Thanks to Gina at BowlLicker for so much fun in the kitchen.

RECIPE PER JAMIE OLIVER

  • 3 quarts good-quality chicken or vegetable stock
  • 1 Savoy cabbage, stalks removed, outer leaves separated, washed and roughly chopped
  • 2 big handfuls cavolo nero and/or kale, stalks removed, leaves washed
  • and roughly chopped
  • About 16 slices stale country-style or sourdough bread
  • 1 clove garlic, unpeeled, cut in 1/2
  • Olive oil
  • 12 to 14 slices pancetta or bacon
  • 1 (4-ounce) can anchovy fillets, in oil
  • 3 sprigs fresh rosemary, leaves picked
  • 7 ounces fontina cheese, grated
  • 5 ounces freshly grated Parmesan, plus a little for serving
  • Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • Couple large knobs butter
  • Small bunch fresh sage, leaves picked

Directions

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees F.

Bring the stock to the boil in a large saucepan and add the cabbage, cavolo nero and/or kale. Cook for a few minutes until softened (you may have to do this in 2 batches). Remove the cabbage to a large bowl, leaving the stock in the pan.

Toast all but 5 of the bread slices on a hot griddle pan or in a toaster, then rub them on 1 side with the garlic halves, and set aside.

Next, heat a large 4-inch-deep ovenproof casserole-type pan on the stove top, pour in a couple of glugs of olive oil and add your pancetta and anchovies. When the pancetta is golden brown and sizzling, add the rosemary and cooked cabbage and toss to coat the greens in all the lovely flavors. Put the mixture and all the juices back into the large bowl.

Place 4 of the toasted slices in the casserole-type pan, in 1 layer. Spread over 1/3 of the cabbage leaves, sprinkle over a 1/4 of the grated fontina and Parmesan and add a drizzle of olive oil. Repeat this twice, but don’t stress if your pan’s only big enough to take layers – that’s fine. Just pour in all the juices remaining in the bowl and end with a layer of untoasted bread on top. Push down on the layers with your hands.

Pour the stock gently over the top until it just comes up to the top layer. Push down again and sprinkle over the remaining fontina and Parmesan. Add a good pinch of salt and pepper and drizzle over some good-quality olive oil. Bake in the preheated oven for around 30 minutes, or until crispy and golden on top.

When the soup is ready, divide it between your bowls. Melt the butter in a frying pan and quickly fry the sage leaves until they’re just crisp and the butter is lightly golden (not burned!). Spoon a bit of the flavored butter and sage leaves over the soup and add another grating of Parmesan. Such a great combo!


POPOVERS with Rose Petal Preserves

January 13, 2011
Bread, cooking, Pastry Dough
6 Comments

 

From York the pudding came to Maine,
But changed upon its new terrain.

Beef drippings on the other shore.
Butter here at our front door.

No longer cooked in one big pan,
Small tins were part of our game plan.

The eggy batter rises high,
Gravity the buns defy.

Golden crunchy outer shell,
Velvet drapes inside do dwell.

Slather it with fruit preserves,
Honey won’t mess with your curves.

Just try one so that you can taste,
What those before us so embraced.

The best popovers I’ve ever had are the ones from the restaurant upstairs at Nieman Marcus in San Francisco.  If you have a chance to try one, I highly recommend it. This recipe is almost exactly the same except for the very small pat of butter that is placed at the bottom of each tin.  If you are using the regular-sized popover tins, it would be best to double the recipe.

MINI POPOVERS

2 cups Flour

3/4 tsp. Salt

1/2 tsp. Baking Powder

3 eggs, room temperature

1 3/4 cups milk, warm

1 T butter

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  Spray the mini popover tin with non-stick spray.

Crack eggs into work bowl of electric mixer fitted with whisk, and beat on medium speed for about 3 minutes, until foamy and pale in color.

Turn down mixer to low and add warm milk.

Combine the flour, salt, baking powder.  Gradually add the mixture to the bowl and beat on medium speed for about 2 minutes. Turn machine off and let batter rest for 1 hour at room temperature.

Add very small amounts of butter to the bottom of the tins and place in the oven for 2 minutes or until the butter is sizzling.  Remove the pan and fill the tins with the mixture almost to the top.  Place back in the oven and bake for 20 minutes.

After the first 20 minutes, reduce the heat to 375 degrees and bake for another 20 minutes.  Serve immediately with preserves or butter spread.

BUTTER WITH ROSE-PETAL PRESERVES

1 stick butter, room temperature

1/2 cup rose-petal preserves (found at any Mediterranean market)

Just mix the two ingredients together for a delicious spread.  The preserves are good enough to eat without the butter!

Bresaola, Burrata & Golden Beets

November 3, 2010
Appetizer, Bread, Cheese, Vegetable
4 Comments

Bresaola, Burrata & Beets

I have to visit Italy,
But not to dive into the sea.

I don’t even want to go,
To see Michelangelo.

With my conscience I will grapple,
Cuz I won’t see the Sistine Chapel.

I don’t want to stand in line,
To see any ancient shrine.

I’m sure to miss the Colosseum,
And Uffizi’s fine museum.

It’s all about what I can taste,
I won’t worry ’bout my waist.

Pizza, pasta, wine and cheese.
Oil that comes from olive trees.

Like this here Italian snack,
That you pile into a stack.

A simple fresh baguette will do,
One that’s crunchy when you chew.

Start with paper-thin cured meat,
Add a slice of golden beet,

Top it with some creamy cheese,
This deserves a Master’s frieze. 

BRESAOLA, BURRATA & GOLDEN BEETS

The idea for this recipe came from a local Inn and Restaurant, Wine & Roses. If you have the best ingredients, this combination is delicious! The bresaola, found at any fine deli, should be sliced very thinly. Italian burrata, basically a cream-filled mozzarella, is very creamy and flavorful. If you cannot find an Italian burrata, there are some very high-quality American ones too.

Ingredients
1/4 lb. bresaola (thinly sliced)
1/2 cup burrata
3 golden beets, peeled, cooked and thinly sliced
2 pears, optional
Extra virgin olive oil
coarse salt
1 loaf crunchy bread, cut into bite-size pieces

Golden Beets

Burrata

Add beets to a pot of water and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer and cook for about 45 minutes or until tender. Check for readiness with a fork. Set aside to cool in refrigerator. When cool, cut into thin slices.
On a serving platter, lay out the bresaola, beets (pears) and bread. In the center of the platter, add the burrata. Drizzle with olive oil and lightly salt beets.

ESMA ABRAHAM BASHA – FAREWELL TO MY BEAUTIFUL BAMA (Grandmother)

September 12, 2010
Bread, Cake, Uncategorized
3 Comments

 

A century gone, you were ready to go,
So many times you told me so.

Just like the life you lived each day,
With beauty and peace you passed away.

Selfish is grief, that much is true,
I mourn for myself. I’m away from you.

Your absence a void that hurts to feel,
Days without you seem surreal.

You cared for me like grandmothers do,
Feeding me, calling me, worrying too.

You taught me in loving, generous ways,
You built me up with all of your praise.

Time went by, tables turn,
To care for you was my concern.

Honored to be there at your side,
To cook your meals with joy and pride.

Tears will drop when I smell your perfume,
When I see your favorite flowers bloom.

When I think of the dinners we will not share,
At the table for cards when you’re not in your chair.

When I see the pearls for which you earned fame,
That took center stage on your tiny frame.

But I’ll do what you would have expected of me,
I will raise my head high and live happily.

Your words of wisdom for me a tether,
“Please, honey, no heavy weather.”

I’ll “Give With Warm Hands,” expect naught in return,
That way my heart will never yearn.

Your life I will celebrate every day,
My memories of you will light the way.

Without your love and warm embrace,
This world is truly a lesser place.


BAMA ESMA’S BANANA BREAD RECIPE

3 ripe bananas

2 eggs

1 3/4 cups flour

1 1/2 cups sugar

1 1/2 cups walnuts

1/2 cup vegetable or light olive oil

1/4 cup plus 1 T buttermilk

1 tsp. baking soda

2 tsp. vanilla

1/2 tsp. salt

In a mixer, add bananas and mix until smooth.  Add sugar and mix until blended. Add eggs one at a time. Mix in the oil and vanilla.  In a separate bowl, mix all of the dry ingredients together. Slowly alternate the dry ingredients and the buttermilk into the mixer until the batter is smooth. Do not over mix.  Bake at 325 degrees for 60 minutes.

 

SUMAC REVISITED (The Za’atar Experience)

August 30, 2009
Bread, Herbs & Spices
2 Comments

Manaeesh: the Lebanese Pizza

Za'atar Spice Blend

Za'atar Spice Blend

This sphere-shaped, spiced-up flat bread is one of my favorite things to eat.  It will do just about any time of day: breakfast, lunch or dinner.  Though of Lebanese descent, I did not grow up eating Manaeesh or the tangy spice that tops it, Za’atar. It was my husband that introduced me to this odd but totally addictive blend of spices which include sumac, roasted sesame seeds, marjoram, thyme, oregano and salt. 

I wish I could say that everyone I serve this flat bread to loves it but that just would not be true.  I always tell the people who scrunch up their noses that it takes a sophisticated palate to appreciate such a fine blend (I never tell them that I was a first-time nose-scruncher myself.)  Even some of my own family members have a hard time with Manaeesh because the texture can be tart and a bit grainy.  The fact is, however, that Manaeesh is the Middle Eastern version of pizza and is eaten just as often and with just as much enthusiasm.

Manaeesh comes with many different toppings but the most popular are cheese and Za’atar.  My mother-in-law, Sonia, adds chopped onions.  Other people add tomatoes.  In other words, it can be served to your taste.  As for the Za’atar, many Middle Easterners keep a shaker of it next to the salt and pepper and sprinkle it on such things as fried eggs, Lebanese thick yogurt and hummus.  It makes sense that Manaeesh with Za’atar are an excellent addition to a morning meal or brunch and are always a topic of conversation when served as an hors d’oeuvre.

Before I begin with the recipe, I must tell you that dough and I are not good friends. In fact, dough is my nemesis.  After two failed attempts, I finally called my beautiful sister-in-law, Ghada, who gave me a recipe for the most perfect dough I have ever made.  She hails from Amman, Jordan and has not only tasted the finest Manaeesh from the local bakers in her neighborhood, but makes an excellent version in her own right. Thank you, Ghada! I was getting ready to throw in the towel.

Manaeesh With Za’atar

manaeesh 016

Manaeesh with Lebanese Yogurt and Watermelon

 

Dough Recipe

 3 cups flour

1 cup water (warm)

1 teaspoon active dry yeast

1 teaspoon sugar

1/2 cup vegetable oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

Mix the water and yeast and set aside for ten minutes or until frothy. In a mixer, add the flour, sugar and salt. When the yeast is ready, add it to the flour along with the oil and mix it until the dough pulls easily from the sides of the mixing bowl. The dough should be sticky but not so much that it sticks to your fingers and is unworkable. Cover the dough and set it aside for thirty minutes.

Za’atar Recipe

1/4 cup sumac

2 tablespoons thyme

1 tablespoon roasted sesame seeds

2 tablespoons marjoram

1 teaspoon coarse salt

1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil

In a pan, lightly roast sesame seeds until they are light brown. To a mortar, add all spices including sesame seeds and salt and grind them down with a pestle. The consistency should be slightly grainy, not powdery. Add the olive oil and mix to blend the spices.

Manaeesh

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Once the dough is ready, you can determine what size Manaeesh you’d like to make. They come in all sizes. For this post, I cut the dough into pieces the size of golf balls. Place them on a cookie sheet.  With your fingertips, pat down the pieces until they are flat.  Nine to twelve should fit per sheet.

Once they have all been flattened, put 1/2 teaspoon of Za’atar in the middle of each piece. With a pastry brush, spread the Za’atar over the dough. Make sure the edges are brushed with the olive oil from the spice mixture so that they become chewy and crunchy. Let them sit for 10 minutes before you put them in the oven so that the olive oil soaks into the dough.

Place them on the bottom shelf of the oven for 15 minutes and on the top shelf for 5 more minutes. The edges should be slightly browned and crispy while the middle is soft and chewy.

For those of you who do not have time to make Za’atar, you can find it already prepared at your local mediterranean market.

Manaeesh Appetizer with Tomatoes and Hummus

Manaeesh Appetizer with Tomatoes, Olives and Hummus

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