Flex Your Mussels with the In-Laws

Meg’s in-laws just returned from a fabulous trip to France (that’s redundant, isn’t it?). Her mother-in-law, Linda, is a gifted photographer and put together a slide presentation to share with us, along with a French-inspired dinner. When asked to contribute an appetizer, I decided it was time to flex some mussels.

While every bistro in Paris has some form of mussels on their menu, usually cooked in a pot of white wine (Moules Marinières), I opted for more of a stuffed and baked approach. It’s ultra-simple and even non-mussel-eating guests enjoy these.

Baked Mussels with Herb Garlic Butter

1 lb. fresh mussels (in shells)

¼ cup dry white wine

1 bay leaf

4 oz. butter

2/3 cup fresh French bread crumbs

5 Tbls. chopped fresh flatleaf parsley (plus extra for garnish)

3 Tbl. snipped fresh chives

3 garlic cloves, finely chopped

salt and pepper

lemon wedges

Clean mussels thoroughly, scrubbing shells as needed and making sure to eliminate any “beards” attached to them. Discard any with broken or damaged shells. Put mussels in strainer and rinse well in cold water.

Preheat oven to 400º. Put mussels in large pot and add the white wine and bay leaf. Cook, covered, over high heat for 4-5 min., shaking pan occasionally, or until mussels open up. Drain well and discard any that do not open up. Shell the mussels, reserving one half of each shell. Arrange mussels in their half-shells, in a large shallow baking dish.

Melt the butter and mix in small bowl with bread crumbs, parsley, chives, garlic and salt and pepper to taste; mix well. Let stand a couple minutes to allow butter to set slightly. Drop a teaspoon or so of the bread/garlic butter mixture onto each mussel, pressing down with fingertips lightly to enclose the mussel meat in the shell.

To serve, bake the mussels in the oven for 10-12 min, or until hot and bubbly. Serve immediately, garnished with flatleaf parsley sprigs and lemon wedges.

What a wonderful evening. The in-laws shared a delicious and light white wine they discovered in France, “Lascaux”, to accompany the mussels, moving on to this winery’s Pinot Noir for dinner. Great tastes, lively conversation and the ultimate pleasure of the evening…photos of France.

--The Mother

May Showers

Apparently April showers just brings more May showers. Instead of dusting off the BBQ and grilling up some springtime goodies, we’re stuck inside on another rainy day. The only thing that makes me feel better about the rain is that it gives me an excuse to cook up a big pot of soup for two! Seriously, I’m obsessed with soup – doesn’t matter what time of year.
I’ve been eyeing this recipe in the Williams-Sonoma Bride & Groom Cookbook, a gift our friends in Chicago gave us for our wedding (thanks Sean & Emily!). The recipe was for Thai Shrimp & Corn soup. Honestly, anything with shrimp and/or corn is a guaranteed winner with my husband, so this shouldn’t be too difficult. Perfect! Plus, there wasn’t a single thing in the recipe that I didn’t already have in my kitchen. Even better.

Thai Style Corn Soup with Shrimp
1 tblsp vegetable oil
1 small onion, chopped
2 slices fresh ginger (1/4 inch thick)
½ tsp kosher salt2 cups fresh corn kernels (or frozen corn kernels)
1 ¾ cups vegetable stock
1 can (14.5 oz) coconut milk
3 tblsp fish sauce
2 tblsp fresh lime juice
1 tblsp light brown sugar1 tsp lime zest½ tsp green curry paste, plus more as desired (see note below)
8 oz medium shrimp, peeled & deveined
3 tblsp chopped fresh basil or cilantroHeat oil in a medium sauce pan over medium heat. Add onion, ginger, and kosher salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is tender (5 to 7 minutes). Add corn, stock, coconut milk, fish sauce, 2 tblsp lime juice, brown sugar, lime zest, and the curry paste and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add shrimp and cook until opaque (2 to 3 minutes). Remove ginger and stir in basil. Add more lime juice and curry paste if necessary.
Note: Must add more green curry than the recipe requires. Don’t be shy, really pile that curry on people!

Source: Bride & Groom First and Forever Cookbook
The soup is very “soupy”, so I’d suggest adding some jasmine rice or something to give it more structure. Unless you plan on mostly soaking it up with some bread, which we did, then no modifications required (other than the additional curry. Trust me on this).

And even though I made it for Sunday night dinner, when I had all the time in the world to cook, I think it’s a perfect mid-week meal because it doesn’t take much prep or cook time. So, in short, the soup was a hit with my husband – because of the shrimp & corn combo. And it was a hit with me too – because of the prep and cook time ease. Oh, and it was delicious too. I just figured that went without saying.

--the daughter

A Plum Assignment

Though it might appear that my daughter and I are having “dueling desserts”, I was inspired by her recent yummy offering and decided it was time to crack open the newest cookbook (a gift from her) to see what desserts were seductively waiting to be made. Talk about inspired…I was enthralled with the book, “Earth to Table” (by Jeff Crump and Bettina Schormann) and devoured both text and photographs with equal enthusiasm.

What caught my eye was a luscious “Plum Tarts”recipe. While this book whose premise is seasonal, local fare, is sectioned into…you guessed it…seasons, I couldn’t resist the temptation to create these little beauties. I figured, we live in California…if we have to pay over a million bucks for a modest bungalow to live in, then we deserve to have produce a few weeks ahead of the rest of the country. Faulty a notion as that might be, I do appreciate that our farmer’s markets are so prevalent while the truck-ripened produce is relegated to the supermarket.

I came upon the most gorgeous dark-skinned plums, spilling out of a basket from one

of my favorite produce vendors. They positively glistened as I rinsed them in preparation for their final emergence, tucked delectably

within the folds of a sweet cookie-like crust, vaguely reminiscent of snickerdoodle cookies of my youth.

Plum Tarts

Tart:

8 plums, cut into wedges

2/3 cup sugar, divided

1 Tbl. ground cinnamon

All-purpose flour

1 recipe Pâte Sucrée (see below)

½ cup Frangipane (see below)

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

In a bowl, toss together plums, ½ cup sugar and cinnamon; set aside.

Line a large baking sheet with parchment paper or a silicone mat. Lightly sprinkle with flour and set aside.

On a lightly floured surface, divide pâte sucrée into 8 equal portions. Using a floured rolling pin, roll out into eight 7-inch rough circles. Transfer to prepared baking sheet. Spoon 1 Tbl. frangipane in the center of each dough circle and spread out evenly, leaving a 2” border. Place a scant 1 cup plum wedges in the center of each circle. Lift border of pastry up over filling, letting pastry fall naturally into folds. Brush sides with egg and sprinkle with the remaining sugar. Refrigerate for 10 min.

Preheat oven to 350ºF, with rack placed in bottom third of oven. Bake tarts until filling is bubbly and crust is golden brown, about 45 min. Let rest for 5 min. before serving.

Pâte Sucrée:

2 ½ cups all-purpose flour

3 Tbl. sugar

2 tsp. salt

1 cup cold unsalted butter

2 large organic egg yolks

¼ to ½ cup ice water

In a bowl, combine flour, sugar and salt. Using a box grater, grate butter into the flour mixture. Toss together, like a salad, using your fingers.

In another bowl, whisk together egg yolks and water. Add to flour mixture, a few tablespoons at a time, kneading dough until it comes together.

Shape dough into a disk, wrap in plastic wrap and refrigerate until chilled, about 1 hour.

(Make ahead: Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks or freeze for up to 3 months.)

Frangipane:

1 cup unsalted butter, softened

½ cup ground almonds

¼ cup icing sugar

¼ cup all-purpose flour

2 organic eggs

Using an electric mixer, mix butter, almonds, icing sugar, flour and eggs until smooth.

(Make ahead: Transfer to an airtight container

and refrigerate for up to 2 weeks or freeze up to 1 month.)

The results of these juicy little babes were worth the effort, and since it produced eight of them, I was able to offer up a few for friends to try (boy was I popular). No wonder this was titled “A Plum Assignment”.

The book is a must-read and belongs in every cook’s library.

--the Mother

The Bad News Baker

Despite my passion for cooking, I must admit I haven’t quite mastered the art of baking. I am what I like to call, the “Bad News Baker”. Why is it that I can make the tastiest meals, and fail completely when it comes to the sweet stuff? Case in point – the birthday cheesecake that I made for my husband was flatter than Kate Hudson’s chest (pre-boob job). Case #2 - the Sour Cream Coffee cake that I made for Easter tasted like drywall (not that I’ve tasted drywall, it’s just what I assume it would taste like). I could go on, but I think you get my point.

You’d think since I have such a sweet tooth, that I would be a master in the dessert department. Apparently there are some talents that my mother didn’t pass along to me. That being said, if the “Bad News Baker” finds a recipe that she can do with success, I feel that it’s my duty to share it. To all those baking-challenged people of the world, this Brown Sugar Pound Cake is for you…

Brown Sugar and Chocolate Chip Pound Cake with Maple-Espresso Glaze

Cake
Nonstick vegetable spray
1 12-oz. pkg. semisweet chocolate chips
3 cups flour, divided
2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
¾ tsp. salt
1 cup unsalted butter, room temperature
1 ½ cups (packed) golden brown sugar
2 ½ tsp. vanilla extract
1 tsp. maple extract
4 large eggs
1 cup buttermilk

Glaze
1 cup powdered sugar
2 Tbl. pure maple syrup
2 Tbl. (or more) whipping cream
1 ½ tsp. instant espresso powder

For Cake: Preheat oven to 325º. Butter 12-cup Bundt or Angel Food pan. Spray pan generously with nonstick spray. Dust pan lightly with flour. Mix chocolate chips and 2 Tbl. flour in medium bowl and set aside. Sift remaining flour with baking soda, baking powder, and salt into another medium bowl. Using electric mixer, beat butter and brown sugar in large bowl until fluffy, about 3 min. Beat in vanilla and maple extracts. Add eggs, 1 at a time, beating well after each addition. Mix in flour mixture in 3 additions alternately with buttermilk in 2 additions, beginning and ending with flour mixture. Fold in chocolate chip mixture. Transfer batter to prepared pan, spreading evenly.

Bake cake until tester inserted near center comes out clean and cake begins to pull away from sides of pan, about 1 hour. Cool cake in pan on rack 30 min. Invert cake onto rack and cool complete.

For Glaze: Combine powdered sugar, maple syrup, 2 tablespoons cream, and espresso powder in medium bowl. Whisk until smooth, adding more cream by ½ teaspoonfuls if glaze is too thick.
Source: Bon Appetit Magazine

The cake is pretty rich, but of course that didn’t stop me from cutting big slices. What can I say; I’ve got to satisfy my sweet tooth! Plus, I was proud that I finally produced a baked-good for my family that didn’t deliver bad news along with it!

--the daughter

Dinner and a Movie

I love when Sunday rolls around because it often means Meg and Drew come over for dinner and a movie. It’s a chance for Meg and I to try out new recipes and compare notes on the outcome. The guys are the lucky recipients of food lavished upon them, from appetizers to yummy desserts.

Usually by mid-week, Meg and I e-mail each other about recipes we’d like to try (always seasonal fare), and we “divide and conquer” on the menu. It’s a special time for us because it demonstrates what this blog is about…a mother and daughter learning from each other, sharing cooking secrets, and enjoying a good meal with the family. Of course, seeing a great movie doesn’t hurt either.

Take this past Sunday, for example. I wanted to experiment with the idea of a noodle kugel done in individual 4” springform pans so that, not only would the edges be golden crisp and the interior creamy, but each person would have their own.

Individual Noodle, Chard and Fontina Tortes

1/8 cup olive oil
1 lb. Swiss chard, stems and ribs discarded (spinach would probably work well too!)
1 medium onion, in ¼” slices, halved
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
¾ tsp. salt
¼ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
¼ lb. dried egg fettucine, broken in half
4 large eggs
½ cup half and half
2/3 cup mascarpone
¼ lb. Fontina cheese, rind discarded and cheese cut into ½” cubes

Preheat oven to 375º. Grease 4 individual (4 ½” dia.) springform pans with 1-2 tsp. (total) olive oil and wrap exterior of pans with foil (to prevent seeping). Cook chard in pot of boiling salted water, uncovered, until just tender, about 3 min. Transfer to sieve, reserving cooking water in pot. Press hard on chard to extract as much water as possible, then transfer to cutting board and chop.

Cook onion in 3 tbl. oil in heavy skillet over moderate heat, stirring occasionally, until softened and golden brown, about 15 min. Add garlic and cook, stirring, 1 min. Stir in chard, ½ tsp. salt and ¼ tsp. pepper and remove from heat. Cool chard mixture to warm. While chard cools, return cooking water to a boil and cook fettucine, uncovered until al dente. Drain pasta in a colander, then transfer to a large bowl and toss with remaining oil. Blend together eggs, half and half, mascarpone and remaining salt and pepper in blender until smooth. Stir chard and fontina into pasta mixture, then stir in egg mixture. Pour into greased pans sets in shallow baking dish. Pat down slightly to level, if needed.

Bake until just set and top is golden brown, 35-45 min. Remove pans to cooling rack for 10 min, then run a small sharp knife around inside edge of pan to loosen tortes. Remove sides of pans and serve torte hot or warm.

These looked really nice plated, and came out with the desired crisp exterior/oozy interior. Because the noodles were “self-contained” in shape, it allows for other food to be placed alongside…in this case, we had a simple tossed Caesar with seared scallops and a crusty piece of French bread. We finished off the chardonnay from Scribe they’d picked up on their picnic the previous weekend to go with it.

Then Meg delighted us with a brown sugar chocolate chip cake with maple espresso glaze. I made her do dessert because she “claims” she can’t do them. Nonsense. It was extra yummy. Do share, Meg, pretty please.

--The Mom

Taking turns with Tyler

Our family descended on my brother and sister-in-law in Colorado, to visit the newest member of the family…8 week old Tyler. We all took turns feeding him, rocking him to sleep, and changing his diapers (well, I was conveniently absent for most of those diapers!). We also took turns with the cooking, each of us responsible for planning a menu and preparing a comforting family meal.

When it was my turn for dinner, I initially planned on rosemary breaded shrimp over white beans and arugula. Apparently my menu didn’t take into account the limitations of available foods in Pueblo, CO. My mother laughed at me through every aisle of Wal-Mart saying, “Oh sure, arugula – good luck with that Meg!” Okay, change of plans. Wal-Mart had shrimp and bread crumbs so I kept it on the menu, and substituted the beans & arugula for a risotto. I was able to find all the fixings for risotto, so I was in business.

While the gang was busy keeping Tyler occupied, I poured myself a glass of wine and headed for the kitchen to start dinner. First up, getting the risotto started…

Spinach Risotto
2 tbsp Olive oil
5 cups chicken stock
1 onion finely chopped
1 ½ cup Arborio rice
½ cup white wine
3 cups baby spinach
3 tbsp Parmesan cheese

Heat chicken stock in medium saucepan. Heat 2 tablespoons oil in large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and sauté for 2-3 minutes. Add rice and cook for additional 2 minutes. Add wine and stir until liquid is absorbed, about 2 minutes. Add 1 cup chicken stock and simmer until liquid is absorbed. Continue adding stock 1/2 cup at a time until rice is cooked and mixture is creamy. Continue to stir often, about 25 minutes. Add spinach and Parmesan cheese and butter into risotto. Stir in additional chicken stock as desired. Season to taste with S&P. (I also like to add a little cayenne pepper to spice the risotto up and give it some character).

Breaded Shrimp
1 lb. uncooked shrimp (peeled & deveined)
1 cup bread crumbs
1 tbsp rosemary
1 tlsp olive oil
S&P

Preheat oven to 400. Combine bread crumbs, rosemary, olive oil and S&P in small bowl. Coat shrimp with bread mixture and place on baking sheet. Bake for 10-12 minutes.

We happily filled ourselves with bowls of risotto and breaded shrimp on top. It was the perfect meal to keep us all going for those late night feedings. I guess the saying is true; it certainly does take a village…


--the daughter

The Opening of Some Wine....and a Winery

Sounds like the wine country picnic was a big success…everyone well fed, plenty of wine to sample, gorgeous vineyards in sight and, most important, friends in attendance. Meg had solicited my thoughts on a “parting gift” for the guests and we talked about several ideas...when I remembered something funny I’d seen at the liquor store; it looked like a giant Q-tip that was bent at the end. It was a wine decantor brush. Aha! Add a fun tag (downloaded a corkscrew image off the internet) with a “thanks for joining us”, a festive bow, and you’re in business.Back to the picnic…I ended up contributing a salad to the mix and decided that Ina Garten’s Greek Salad* is one of our favorites and just perfect to add with the Curried Rice & Artichoke Salad (previous blog) and other picnic fare.

Greek Salad

1 English

cucumber, unpeeled and sliced ¼” thick

1 red pepper, large-dice

1 yellow pepper, large-dice

1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved

½ red onion, sliced in half-rounds

½ lb. feta cheese, ½” diced

½ cup calamata olives, pitted

for the vinaigrette:

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp. dried oregano

½ tsp. Dijon mustard

¼ cup good red wine vinegar

1 tsp. kosher salt

½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper

½ cup good olive oil

Place cucumber, peppers, tomatoes and red onion in a large bowl.

For the vinaigrette, whisk together the garlic, oregano, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper in a

small bowl. Still whisking, slowly add the olive oil to make an emulsion. Pour the vinaigrette over the vegetables. Add the feta and olives and toss lightly. Set aside for 30 min. to allow the flavors to blend (it lastest quite nicely for several hours in the cooler). Serve at room temperature.

*2009 Ina Garten

Something Meg and I particularly like about Ina’s version of Greek Salad is that she uses halved cherry or grape tomatoes instead of cutting a larger tomato in pieces (which tends to make the salad a little “sloppy”) and she doesn’t use crumbled feta but suggests buying a brick of it and then cubing it so it’s a real bite in the salad. We also find it’s not overly dressed so the taste of the veggies comes through. Nothing worse than being over-dressed, particularly at a picnic.

I bought a couple of light-weight acrylic containers with snap-lock lids to carry the salads. It looked pretty in the jars and made transport easy to the table at Scribe (a brand new to the scene--and yet very old with incredible history-- Sonoma winery). The group was privileged to have enjoyed the ambiance and beautiful surroundings of this winery, officially opening this coming weekend. Check out Food & Wine Magazine's March 16 edition. Maybe the wild time had by all had something to do with the "wild yeast" the winery uses! They were most hospitable to accommodate the group. Highly recommended place to enjoy.

Day done and many happy memories.

--The Mom