Simple By Cindy

Roasted Carrots, Brussels Sprouts and Cranberry Salad

Apr. 29
2019

Spring is in the air! Recently, a friend of mine who moved to the city came to visit me. As I greeted her by the door, she asked: “What smells so good?” I told her she was smelling Spring. She was so surprised. Now that she lives in the city, she doesn’t realize that different seasons come with these subtle changes. When you live in the suburbs, you don’t notice it as much.

When I lived in Florida, I came back north around this time of year for a bridal shower. As I was walking to the celebration, I knew I smelled something wonderful and wondered what it could be. Then it dawned on me; like my friend, I was smelling Spring. When you live in Florida, there are no seasonal changes. At that moment, I realized how much I missed that. Fortunately for me, I got the chance to move back to the northeast and I always look forward to the seasons changing.

Spring is inspiring to me because it is a time of renewal. The trees and flowers are blooming, their colors bursting with the richness of the season. The air is sun-kissed and you can feel the warmth for the first time in so long. The sky becomes the most beautiful shades of blue. The birds come back, caterpillars become butterflies and the children are playing little league once again. Most importantly, there is the promise of summer soon to come!

Yes, bathing suit weather will be upon us before we know it. So, I thought I would start us off with a nice healthy recipe. This is one good, hearty salad. The roasted carrots are rich in flavor and texture. The paprika and cayenne pepper give it a little bit of heat and the red wine vinegar and the cranberries add just enough tang to make your mouth pucker. This salad is packed with flavor and will not leave you feeling hungry. I could not find poppy seeds in the supermarket, so I substituted sunflower seeds. You could add any seed that you enjoy and it will still be amazing.

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This recipe is courtesy of Epicurious and will serve 2-4 people who will be able to taste the changing season.

Ingredients for Roasted Carrot, Brussels Sprouts, and Cranberry Salad

4 medium carrots (about 8 oz.), sliced on a diagonal 1/4″ thick
1/4 tsp. smoked paprika
1/8 tsp. cayenne pepper
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, divided
3/4 tsp. kosher salt, divide
2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1/4 cup dried cranberries
1 tsp. poppy seeds
6 oz. Brussels sprouts, leaves separated

Preheat oven to 350°F.

Toss carrots, paprika, cayenne, 1 Tbsp. oil, and 1/2 tsp. salt on a rimmed baking sheet.

Roast until carrots are tender and golden brown, about 20 minutes.

Meanwhile, bring vinegar and 2 Tbsp. water to a boil in a small saucepan over medium heat (or microwave in a medium heatproof bowl).

Remove from heat, add cranberries, and let sit 10 minutes.

Strain cranberries through a fine-mesh sieve into a medium bowl; set cranberries aside.

Pour out all but 1 Tbsp. soaking liquid from bowl and whisk in poppy seeds and remaining 1 Tbsp. oil and 1/4 tsp. salt.

Add Brussels sprout leaves, carrots, and reserved cranberries and toss to combine.

It’s that simple!

Brussels Sprouts with Browned Butter and Garlic

Apr. 22
2019

As you know, I love to read cookbooks from cover to cover. This all started when I met my friend Beth. I am pretty sure before I met her I owned one, maybe two cookbooks and mostly relied on my mother’s guidance to cook. For this reason, I did not have a huge repertoire of recipes and I pretty much made the same things all the time.

As Beth and I became close friends I noticed all of her cookbooks, she had quite the collection herself, the biggest I had ever seen! When I asked her about them, she said that she reads cookbooks. Being an avid reader myself, it just had never occurred to me to read a cookbook the way I would read a book. She told me has had always loved reading them. You must be a great cook, then, I said, and she laughed.

One Thanksgiving, when Beth was having family and some friends over, she called me frantically an hour before she was going to serve dinner. Apparently, her turkey had not fully cooked and was in fact, rare, although it had been in the oven for a couple of hours. She blamed herself for not being a good enough cook and I calmly explained that there must be something wrong with her oven. I was right, but she never fully recovered from the experience and did not cook for crowds much after that.

That really is how I began my adventures into cooking. While Beth is a good cook, but she doesn’t really enjoy it the way I do. I do benefit from all her knowledge. If I have a question about what substitutes to use, she knows the answer. I am thankful she is always one phone call away because truthfully, she knows so much more about cooking than I do.

This is one recipe you do not have to have fine culinary skills to ace. I chose to prepare it because of its unusual ingredients. There are many ingredients that the author uses that I do not have access to. For example, he uses black garlic in this dish, but I couldn’t find any. Nevertheless, these Brussels sprouts are amazingly tasty! The caraway and pumpkin seeds contrast swimmingly with the tang of the lemon. The tahini sauce is the star of this dish as it adds depth to its flavor and richness to its texture.

This recipe is courtesy of Simple by Ottolenghi and will serve 4-6 people who will be amazed by the variety of flavor this side has to offer.

Ingredients for Brussels Sprouts with Browned Butter and Garlic:

1 pound Brussels Sprouts, trimmed and cut in half lengthwise
1 tablespoon olive oil
Salt
3/4 teaspoon caraway seeds
3/4 ounce black garlic, roughly chopped (I used regular)
2 tablespoons thyme leaves
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
3 tablespoons pumpkin seeds, toasted
1 1/2 teaspoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon tahini

Preheat the oven to 450°F.

Mix the Brussels sprouts with the oil and 1/4 teaspoon of salt.

Spread out on a parchment-lined baking sheet. Roast for 10 minutes until the sprouts are golden brown but still crunchy. (This took longer than 10 minutes for me, more like 15-18.)

Meanwhile, lightly crush the caraway seeds with a pestle and mortar.

Add the garlic and thyme and crush them to form a rough paste.

Put the butter into a large sauté pan and place over medium-high heat.

Cook for 3 minutes, until melted and dark brown.

Add the crushed garlic paste, sprouts, pumpkin seeds, and 1/8 teaspoon of salt.

Stir for 30 seconds, then remove from the heat.

Stir in the lemon juice and transfer to a bowl or individual plates.

Drizzle with the tahini and serve at once.

It’s that simple!

Dutch Baby with Lemon Sugar

Apr. 18
2019

I must confess, until I found this recipe I had never heard of a Dutch baby. It sure wasn’t served in my house growing up. I am beginning to find out there were a lot of things I missed out on when I was growing up.

According to Epicurious, a Dutch baby is a cross between a pancake and a popover. It is also known as a German pancake, a Bismarck or a Dutch puff! Originating in Germany, they were first served in the States in the early 1900s at a diner in Seattle called Manca’s. The owner’s named it “Dutch Baby” which is the American version of Duetsch. They are very thin, thinner than pancakes, and surprisingly easy to make. You have to place the skillet in the oven before you start heating it. Then while it is rising to the desired heat, you can do your prep. For this recipe, they ask you to use room temperature eggs, and room temperature milk. Take those out well in advance of your mis en place. Once you gather everything you need, putting it all together goes quicker than you can imagine.

I wish I knew how to make this delightful little pancake when my kids were young, because they would have loved them with a little confectioner’s sugar, of course. There are so many different ways you can serve them, like with fresh berries, jam, or syrup. If you want to have them for lunch or for dinner, melt some cheese on them and throw on a nice fresh vegetable. How about a fried egg and some sliced ham? These versatile treats allow the imagination to run wild!

As you can see, my Dutch Baby did not come out like the ones you will see on the internet or in books. Apparently, the sides are supposed to rise up much higher than the pan. I wonder what I did wrong… I guess I just have to make them again, I certainly won’t mind eating them again!

This recipe is courtesy of Epicurious and will serve 4-6 people who will quickly realize what they’ve been missing out on.

Ingredients for Dutch Baby with Lemon Sugar:

1/3 cup sugar
2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
3 large eggs at room temperature 30 minutes
2/3 cup whole milk at room temperature
2/3 cup all-purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon pure vanilla extract
1/8 teaspoon cinnamon
1/8 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 stick unsalted butter, cut into pieces

10-inch cast iron skillet

Put skillet on the middle rack of oven and preheat oven to 450°F.

Stir together sugar and lemon zest in a small bowl.

Beat eggs with an electric mixer at high speed until pale and frothy, then beat in milk, flour, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg, and salt and continue to beat until smooth, about 1 minute more (batter will be thin).

Take skillet out of oven.

Add butter to the skillet and let it melt, swirling to coat.

Add batter and immediately return skillet to oven.

Bake until puffed and golden-brown, 18 – 25 minutes.

Top with lemon sugar mixture and serve immediately.

It’s that simple!

Passover Apple Pecan Pie

Apr. 15
2019

Every year for the past 10 years, my family flies down to Miami to celebrate Passover with my brother, Shelley and their family. My husband really enjoys it because he goes to play golf. And me? I love it because it is another opportunity to cook with Shelley. It was also convenient because sometimes Shelley’s guest list is rather large, and it is nice to be there to help her, as she helps me on Thanksgiving!

That said, I am always glad that Shelley does Passover at her house. I am not fond of the type of cooking that needs to be done for this holiday. First, there are too many rules about what you can eat. Second, there are too many eggs to be peeled. I have tried every trick to make egg peeling easier and trust me, nothing works. Third, so many of the ingredients in Passover food are bad for you.

This year, because they hosted a wedding, they are not having Passover at their home. So I am having the first night of the holiday at my home. I love hosting, so I am happy to have everyone. It’s just all those rules that make the cooking aspect such a chore for me! Looking for recipes for the holiday is not easy, but it is exciting nonetheless, as I am trying to use fresh ingredients when I can. But really, matzoh crackers are just not my thing.

I have much-loved guests coming, so it will still be a labor of love. I made a menu I know will be wonderful, and I will be happy once I finish peeling all those damn eggs!

This pie is perfect for the holiday. It is sweet, but not too sweet. The cinnamon, vanilla, and nutmeg combine for pleasant savory goodness. The lemon gives it a nice tang. It is topped with candied pecans, which adds extra “wow!” factor. It has no crust, so it is more of a crumble than a pie.

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This recipe is courtesy of Tori Avey, and will serve 12 people who will be humbled by this beautiful pie, and actually surprised how good this Passover dessert is.

Ingredients for Passover Apple Pecan Pie:

5 ripe, granny smith apples – peeled, cored, and chopped
¼ cup butter or margarine, divided
½ cup applesauce
⅓ cup white sugar
5 tablespoons brown sugar, divided
1 ½ tsp cinnamon
1 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 lemon, juiced
3 egg matzos, crushed into large crumbs
2 large eggs
1/2 tsp salt
Nonstick cooking oil spray
3/4 cup finely chopped pecans

Preheat oven to 350°F.

In a medium saucepan, melt 2 tbsp butter or butter substitute

Add applesauce, white sugar, 2 tbsp brown sugar, vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and lemon juice.

Stir till well combined, then bring to a boil.

Reduce heat to medium and add diced apples to pan. Stir apples till they are well coated with sugar mixture.

Cover the pan and cook over medium heat for exactly 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Do not overcook!

Uncover apples at the end of cooking and remove from heat; allow to cool.

Meanwhile, place crushed matzos into a large mixing bowl and cover with water.

Let matzos soak for 1 ½ minutes (no longer), then drain in a colander.

Gently squeeze the matzo crumbs in the colander to remove excess moisture.

In a small bowl, beat the eggs with the salt.

Add eggs to the matzo and stir till well combined.

Pour cooled apples and sugary syrup from the pan into the mixing bowl with the matzos.

Stir till combined.

Reserve the pan.

Spray a deep pie dish generously with cooking oil spray.

Pour the apple mixture into the pie dish.

In the same saucepan you used to cook the apples, melt 2 tbsp butter, or butter substitute, then stir in 3 tbsp brown sugar and mix to form a thick syrup.

Stir chopped pecans in the syrup till they are well coated. Remove pan from heat.

Sprinkle candied pecans evenly over the top of the apple pie.

Bake pie for 45-50 minutes, until the top is golden brown and pie is cooked through.

Serve warm.

It’s that simple!

SPRING!

Parmesan Bread Pudding with Broccoli Rabe and Pancetta

Apr. 11
2019

Every now and then I am pleased to find a recipe that is truly unique. This is definitely one of them.

I wanted to blog a recipe by Ottolenghi because I love his recipes, but do not get to make them as often as I would like. I actually found this recipe while scrolling on my phone, which does not happen so often. I thought I sent the recipe to myself, but apparently I did not (not unusual for me). Now I had all the ingredients, but no recipe!

Since I own all his cookbooks, I took to my collection and began searching through their indexes. The first book, no recipe, and the same with the second book. I thought it must have been in the last and final book but alas, no recipe there either. I thought I had overlooked it and even went through them all again.

Next, I checked online and sure enough, I had all of his cookbooks. Now you’re probably wondering why I didn’t look up the recipe online. I finally did, and Epicurious and Bon Appetit both had the recipe on their websites. I found it very strange that neither of them named the author.

I opened up a fellow food blogger’s page who had made this recipe as well. It wasn’t until that moment I realized that this was not Ottolenghi’s recipe at all. It was Bon Appetit’s. I still to this day do not understand how I typed in Ottolenghi’s recipes and came up with this one. But (sigh) this kinda stuff happens to me all the time.

This dish is so extraordinary in so many ways due to its unconventional pairing of ingredients. I wouldn’t call it a bread pudding, but I can see how it kind of is one. It is more of a side dish than a breakfast or dessert. The broccoli rabe is first cooked with the garlic and red pepper flakes. The pancetta tops it all off with a nice crunch and makes it much more savory. It is so simple to make and I just know you are going to love it. My obsession with bread pudding continues.

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This recipe is courtesy of Bon Appetit and will serve 4-6 people who will adore this perfectly satisfying side dish.

Ingredients for Parmesan Bread Pudding:

1 tablespoon olive oil
2 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 medium bunch broccoli rabe (rapini), trimmed, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 teaspoons kosher salt (plus more)
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper (plus more)
6 large eggs
1 1/2 cups whole milk
1/2 pound country-style white bread, cut into 1-inch pieces (about 8 cups)
1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons finely grated Parmesan
6 thin slices pancetta (I used a little more, because why not?)