Lamb Duo: Harissa and Date "Lambanadas" with a Lamb Sous Vide Spring Salad

Update: Please vote for this recipe in the American Lamb Pro-Am Boston contest between now and April 26th, if you'd be so kind. VOTE HERE!

Let's hope this post is coherent; creating this lamb recipe culminated in a last-minute feast with nine friends and a baby, and as these evenings always do, it ended with many rounds of drinks and a rousing game of Cards Against Humanity. I'm thrilled to participate in this year's American Lamb Pro-Am challenge alongside some of my favorite local bloggers and food-loving friends. (Well, I guess we're temporarily enemies since we're competing against each other!)

When I first started brainstorming what to do with the gigantic leg of lamb I was provided for this contest, I kept thinking about stuffing lamb into things - ravioli, maybe? Dumplings? - and incorporating some spring vegetables into the mix. But these ideas required ground lamb, and it seemed like a shame to just grind up such a beautiful cut of lamb. As a compromise, I decided to use the lamb two ways: ground in one part of the recipe and cooked in a different way for the other half.

The first draft: harissa and lamb empanadas (eventually dubbed "lambanadas" by one of my dinner guests) with a spring salad topped with sliced, roasted lamb. With some input from Joel, my dining companion/boyfriend/lamb slicer, I settled on adding dates to the harissa and lamb empanadas and using our makeshift sous vide (inspired by Cooking for Geeks) to prepare the lamb for the salad. For the ground lamb, I actually went out and bought the food grinder add-on for my newish KitchenAid stand mixer. Now I want to grind everything! For the salad, I raided every last bit of the final Somerville Winter Farmers Market of the season and came away with a gorgeous selection of late winter/early spring root vegetables. To tie the two pieces of the dish together, I used a Turkish spice blend in both lamb preparations.

This lamb duo pulls together fairly easily timing-wise. Allow at least 90 minutes for the lamb in the sous vide - but the nice thing about the sous vide is that you can actually leave it there all day and it'll still come out perfectly. The empanadas can also be made ahead of time; just warm them in the oven right before serving.

HARISSA AND DATE "LAMBANADAS"
Makes 20 empanadas

Ingredients

• 2 lbs ground lamb
• 1 tbsp Turkish spice blend
• 1 tbsp caraway seeds
• 20 empanada shells (such as Goya Discos)
• 1 1/4 cups harissa
• 6-8 Medjool dates, chopped coarsely
• 1 egg (optional)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. Season raw ground lamb with the Turkish spice blend and caraway seeds.
3. Brown lamb over high heat on the stovetop until fully cooked, approximately 6-8 minutes.
4. Spread empanada shells on a lightly greased baking sheet.
5. On the lower half of each shell (leaving a half-inch border all around), spoon about two tablespoons of cooked lamb. Top with about a tablespoon of harissa and 5-6 chopped date bits.
6. One shell at a time, use your finger to wet the bottom half of the circumference of the shell and fold over the top half, pushing down to seal.
7. Using the tines of a fork, make indentations along the edge to reinforce the seal.
8. Optional: In a small bowl, use a fork to whisk an egg until well-blended. Brush onto the top of each empanada for a shiny finish.
9. Bake empanadas for 15 minutes. 

LAMB SOUS VIDE SPRING SALAD

Makes 6-8 servings

• 2 lbs leg of lamb
• 1 tbsp Turkish spice blend
• 1 head red leaf lettuce or other greens
• selection of root vegetables (I used 6 parsnips, 1 moon radish, and 2 sweet potatoes.)
• olive oil
• salt and pepper (optional: garlic salt)
• Optional: honey (Our root vegetables were sweet enough on their own because the time of year is just right, but add a drizzle of honey if you'd like.)

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400F and sous vide to 135F.
2. Slice lamb into large (steak-sized) chunks and rub with Turkish spice blend before vacuum sealing for the sous vide.
3. Cook the lamb in the sous vide for at least 90 minutes or up to a whole day.
4. Meanwhile, slice the root vegetables, season with salt and pepper (add garlic salt if desired), drizzle with olive oil, and bake for 45 minutes at 400F.
5. Remove lamb from sous vide, sear at the highest possible heat for no more than 2 minutes per side, and then cut up into small slices.
6. Arrange lamb and roasted vegetables on top of a bed of lettuce or preferred greens; serve with Harissa and Date "Lambanadas."

Disclosure: I was provided a leg of lamb to use in the development of this recipe, courtesy of BostonChefs.com and the American Lamb Board, for the purpose of participating in a contest to decide which six out of fourteen local bloggers will compete at the 2nd American Lamb Pro-Am Boston.

Update: Please vote for this recipe in the American Lamb Pro-Am Boston contest between now and April 26th, if you'd be so kind. VOTE HERE!

Peanut Butter and Banana Smoothie Recipes (Vista Magazine)

I recently started doing a little bit of food writing for Vista Magazine, a "leading Latino publication celebrating 25 years in print. Focusing on family, food, entertainment and lifestyle, Vista highlights Hispanic life. Plus, it reaches about 2 million readers per issue." Check out my first post, "Simple Smoothie Recipes with Peanut Butter and Bananas," for a ridiculously easy set of variations on a banana smoothie. Frozen bananas really make an awesome smoothie because they give it a thick, velvety texture that you don't really get from other fruits. Plus, testing these recipes gave me a chance to perfect my banana-opening technique! Turns out most of us open it from the "wrong" side. Monkeys do it from the other side, and it's actually easier. You don't squish the end, and you get a convenient handle. Life-changing skill right here, folks.

Cauliflower "Risotto" (TEN Recipes)

Lately I've been spending most of my time preparing for TEN, an independent horror film that begins shooting next week. I'm acting in it as well as doing some behind-the-scenes work, particularly documenting the whole experience through photography and blogging. Since we have a cast and crew with varied dietary needs, it's easiest for us to maintain a vegetarian diet while we're all on set 24/7 for a week. There are some great cooks amongst the group, so I'll be sharing some recipes during the process. The first recipe is a cauliflower "risotto" (with vegan and non-vegan options) by Porcelain Dalya, who is playing a co-ed. Visit the TEN blog to see the recipe.

Recipe: Sweet 'n' Spicy Lamb Gyroti

In December of 2009, Joel and I spent a glorious week on the island of Antigua, eating Caribbean and French food, playing with lizards and baby donkeys, ziplining, and enjoying the tropical weather. While most of the food was extraordinary, one of the dishes that has really stuck with us is roti. In Indian cuisine, the word "roti" refers specifically to a round, unleavened bread frequently served with curry, but in parts of the Caribbean, it refers to a more complete dish: bread that resembles Indian roti, wrapped around a curry-coated filling, generally meat, poultry, or seafood. It's often topped with a fruit marmalade, particularly mango. As I mentioned in a previous post, we had no idea what roti was, but as we sat in a restaurant and overheard a nearby diner raving about how the roti was the best he'd ever had, we ordered it immediately. It was fantastic, indeed.

Back in Boston, we've been unable to find roti within our general Somerville/Cambridge dining radius, but there are apparently a few roti shops in Dorchester, Mattapan, and Roxbury. Meanwhile, we frequently make our own version. It's incredibly easy, and it's definitely a go-to dish on nights when we're not in the mood to exert much effort on dinner. In most cases, we grab a ready-to-go rotisserie chicken from Shaw's, shred it up and mix it with Kikkoman Thai Yellow Curry Sauce, and add some pan-fried potato chunks. Then we wrap it up in warm tortillas, which Joel toasts directly on the stovetop gas burner (which terrifies me a little bit), and we top it with a dollop of an orange or mango jam, whatever we have on hand.

Last year, the Tri-Lamb Group (no, not that one) reached out to me to see if I'd host a series of lamb dinner parties in order to help spread the word that lamb is a lean and delicious meat that is easy and versatile. Over the course of six months, they provided me with recipes, lamb, and other ingredients to host three different parties. Here's a video I created after the first party:

While the original plan involved just those three parties, they recently reached out again with one more challenge: this time, we'd have to create our own recipe and serve it at another dinner party. After scratching our heads for a few minutes, we decided we wanted to do a play on our beloved roti. We didn't love the idea of mango or orange with lamb, so the jam morphed into a blackberry sauce that we've used on duck and goose. We also moved away from curry, instead opting for a spicy yogurt sauce for the interior of the roti. Once we decided on yogurt, we realized we were heading in the direction of a gyro, so we decided to call our creation a "gyroti."

Sweet 'n' Spicy Lamb Gyroti
Serves 8-12

Hands-on time: 30 minutes
Marinating time: 2 hours minimum; overnight if time allows
Cooking time: 40-50 minutes

Ingredients

• 1 boneless leg of lamb, butterflied
• 12 whole wheat tortillas
• 18 oz plain Greek yogurt
• 3 tbsp harissa (with extra on hand for increased spiciness)
• 1/4 cup + 3 tbsp light brown sugar
• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp brandy
• 1/4 cup + 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
• 3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
• 6 oz fresh blackberries
• 3 tbsp olive oil-based butter substitute, such as Olivio
• salt and pepper

Ingredient Notes

• Ask your butcher to butterfly the lamb for you to save preparation time.
• If you can't find harissa, a Tunisian chili paste, substitute any other hot red chili paste. The Asian aisle of any supermarket will have several options.
• Suggested additions: include cucumber and/or tomato inside the wrap, or serve a tomato and cucumber side salad.

Utensils
This recipe requires no special utensils, although a potato masher comes in handy when preparing the blackberry sauce.

Directions

Marinate the Lamb
Start at least three hours prior to serving but preferably a day in advance.

1. Butterfly the lamb if it isn't already butterflied, and carefully cut some of the fat off for a leaner meal.
2. Sprinkle salt and pepper over all sides of the lamb, and then rub light brown sugar all over, patting it in gently. Place lamb in a container or bag for marinating.
3. Make the marinade by combining 1/4 cup brandy, 1/4 red wine vinegar, and 3 tbsp Worcestershire sauce. Pour over the lamb. Let marinate in the refrigerator for at least two hours, but preferably overnight.

Prepare the Blackberry Sauce

Begin at least two hours prior to serving so the sauce has enough time to thicken and cool. For best results, do this the day before and store in the refrigerator overnight. The sauce is best served at room temperature. 

1. Melt 3 tbsp light brown sugar into 3 tbsp butter substitute on the stovetop at low heat. Once melted, raise to high heat.
2. Add 2 tbsp red wine vinegar and allow the mixture to come to a boil.
3. Add blackberries; mash. (A potato masher is helpful here, but you can also just use a spoon or spatula.)
4. Return heat to low, and add 2 tbsp brandy.
5. Let reduce for 45 minutes to an hour; the final consistency will be runnier and thinner than a berry jam.
6. Set aside to cool until serving. (Refrigerate overnight if prepared a day in advance, and allow it to warm to room temperature before serving.)

Cook the Lamb

Start cooking at least an hour before serving. After the lamb finishes cooking, you'll want to let it rest for several minutes before carving. You can prepare the yogurt sauce while the lamb rests.

1. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Brown the lamb in an uncovered pan on the stovetop, about 6-8 minutes per side.
3. Cook uncovered in the oven for 25-35 minutes.
4. Let rest while you prepare the yogurt sauce.
5. Carve the lamb into small chunks.

Prepare the Yogurt Sauce

Combine the yogurt and harissa to taste, starting with three tablespoons of harissa. Add more if desired to reach your optimal level of spiciness.

Assemble the Gyroti

1. Warm the tortilla in the oven, toaster oven, or carefully directly on top of a gas burner on the stove. Place on plate.
2. Put a serving of lamb on the center of the tortilla and add any other optional mix-ins, like tomato and cucumber chunks.
3. Spoon a generous dollop of yogurt sauce over the lamb.
4. Wrap up the tortilla burrito-style.
5. Spoon a generous serving of blackberry sauce on top of the tortilla.

You're gonna want a knife and fork for this. Or a lot of napkins.

Disclosure: The Tri-Lamb Group provided me with enough lamb for recipe testing and for hosting a dinner party with eight guests, as well as a gift card to help cover other ingredient costs. 

Truly Extra Virgin: A Chilean Olive Oil Dinner Party

In the past, when I thought of olive oil, I thought of Italy, so I was immediately intrigued when I was contacted by a firm representing ChileOliva, an association of Chilean olive and olive oil producers. As part of a large marketing campaign, they were looking to sponsor dinner parties in the homes of food enthusiasts in several cities around the United States, including Boston, in order to spread awareness of Chilean Extra Virgin Olive Oil. I love throwing dinner parties, and I love olive oil, so it was easy to say yes. For attendees, I tried to pick a group of friends, both bloggers and non-bloggers, who would enjoy eating as well as learning about the olive oil. While I'm not sure how much education was retained due to the free-flowing Chilean wines brought by my guests, it was certainly a wonderfully fun (and delicious!) evening.

In preparation for the party, I spent some time reading up on Chilean olive oils and was surprised to find that it felt like I was reading about wines. From varietals to tasting notes, the topic of olive oil is much more complex than I had ever considered. Chile is apparently a perfect location for olive agriculture because it's geographically sheltered by a desert, an ocean, and mountains, and the climate is ideal: cold, rainy winters and hot, dry summers. (Its latitude is actually the Southern Hemisphere counterpart to the Mediterranean region in the Northern Hemisphere, which explains the similar climate.)

Extra Virgin Olive Oil is something I've bought for years without really knowing what the "Extra Virgin" part meant, so this was a good opportunity to find out. "Virgin" is a commercial grade of olive oil that indicates that it was produced only through physical means, without chemical treatment; a virgin grade generally corresponds with superior taste. (Compare to "refined," an inferior grade that indicates that the oil was chemically treated to neutralize taste and acid content.) Virgin olive oils have a maximum acidity of less than 1.5%; they can be further classified as extra virgin if the acidity is less than 0.8%. Extra virgin olive oils are considered to be the finest in terms of taste and overall quality.

I was provided with a selection of recipes, from which I chose three courses for the dinner party, and in the days leading up to the party, I received plenty of olive oil for cooking and tasting, along with all of the other necessary ingredients to make the dinner party a success. In addition to some hectic last-minute apartment cleaning, I put together a music playlist on Spotify consisting of songs written and/or performed by Chilean composers and performers; you can check it out here if you want some appropriate background music as you read the rest of this post:



Even though I meticulously scheduled out the cooking and cleaning that needed to occur on the day of the dinner party, I ran into quite a few mishaps along the way: pastry dough that I should have thawed hours earlier, an undercooked first course, too much chicken for even my biggest pans, the panic that set in when it looked like there wouldn't be enough food, and several other exciting challenges. In the end, though, with the help of my roommate and our friends that arrived earlier in the day, everything came together. Without further ado, here are some food ideas and recipes so that you can throw your own dinner party. (Find more on the Chile Olive Oil website - and submit your own!)

Beverages
I wanted to make something light, refreshing, and summery, and I had a bottle of rosewater just sitting around and waiting to be used, so I made a giant pitcher of rosewater lemonade using a recipe from Food.com, reproduced below with some minor changes and notes. Additionally, several guests brought along a variety of fantastic red and white Chilean wines, obviously a perfect fit for the theme of the evening. Chile's primary wine region roughly spans the same area as the olive region, and it produces many fine wines, so it's hard to go wrong. Just ask for a recommendation at your local wine shop.

Blushing Rose Lemonade (Recipe by Food.com user Cynna)
Servings: 12
Time: 10 minutes hands-on; ideally 1+ hours in the fridge
Ingredients:

• 10 2/3 cups water
• 2 cups granulated sugar
• 2 2/3 cups fresh lemon juice (about 12 lemons)
• 6 teaspoons rosewater (I got mine at one of the Armenian grocery shops in Watertown)

Instructions: 

1. Combine water and sugar in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring just until the sugar has dissolved.
2. Remove from heat and let cool. (Or, for a cold weather variation, try continuing quickly on with the rest of the recipe without cooling and serving it immediately. I forgot to let it cool, and when I tasted the finished product while it was warm, it was quite good!)
3. Add to pitcher and stir in the fresh-squeezed lemon juice.
4. Add rosewater. (Be sure to add a little at first and taste as you go. It can be a strong flavor if you overdo it.)
5. Chill well until serving (ideally at least an hour).

Appetizers
I panicked when the first course, Fresh Tomato Tart (recipe below), came out completely underdone on the inside (a cream and egg mixture) but nicely golden brown on the outer crust, but my roommate came up with covering the crust with foil so it wouldn't burn as we put it back in the oven to finish the middle. Meanwhile, though, I realized that whether or not this course actually worked out, it didn't look like we'd have enough food. Fortunately, a few of our friends came earlier in the day and did a last-minute shopping trip and some quick thinking, resulting in a simple caprese salad and a giant tray of baguette slices with three tasty dipping options, at least one of which was olive oil-based.

And here's the recipe for the "official" first course, the Fresh Tomato Tart, provided by the Chile Olive Oil folks. (In the end, after a little bit of extra cooking in our temperamental oven, it turned out pretty awesome.)

Fresh Tomato Tart (Recipe provided by ChileOliva)
Servings: 10
Time: 20 minutes hands-on; 40 minutes in the oven (or more if your oven is stupid like mine)
Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 puff pastry sheets
• 1 1/2 cups fresh basil leaves, washed and dried
• 1 1/2 cups heavy cream
• 4 1/2 tablespoons Chilean Extra Virgin Olive Oil (preferably a smooth, rather than bold, variety)
• 4 extra large eggs
• 3 large ripe tomatoes
• Coarse sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Line a 12-inch tart pan with pastry dough, cutting and patching as necessary.
2. Combine the basil, cream, four tablespoons of oil, eggs, salt, and pepper into a food processor; process until the basil is very finely chopped.
3. Pour mixture into pastry pan and bake for 30-40 minutes until cooked through, golden, and fragrant. (This part confused me and took longer than expected. Ultimately, the end texture of the non-dough portion of this tart should be quiche-like.)
4. While the tart is baking, slice the tomatoes thinly. As soon as the tart is removed from the oven, arrange the slices on top and drizzle with the remaining half tablespoon of oil. (I put the tomatoes on after removing the tart from the oven the first time, before it was truly done, so our tomatoes actually got baked a little bit. It turned out well!)
5. Serve slightly warm.

Entree

We should have thought this one through before starting to cook! There had to have been a better way to divvy up the massive amount of chicken required. We ended up haphazardly cooking half in a wok and half in another large pan.  It seemed to be the only way to make it work so that all of the chicken ended up getting the flavors of the other ingredients while allowing everyone to be served at the same time, but I think this recipe would have worked much better on a smaller scale. It ended up being a bit bland due to the space issues in the pan; most of the chicken probably wasn't submerged in the broth throughout the cooking time. I couldn't taste the honey at all, and the onions didn't come close to caramelization.

Honey Chicken with Caramelized Onions and Yukon Potatoes (Recipe provided by ChileOliva)
Servings: 10
Time: 40 minutes
Ingredients:

• 10 chicken breast halves
• 1 teaspoon of salt
• 1 teaspoon of pepper
• 7 1/2 teaspoons of Chilean Extra Virgin Olive Oil (preferably a bold, rather than smooth, variety) 
• 4 medium chopped red onions
• 5 tablespoons thyme
• 4 cups chicken broth
• 6 yukon gold potatoes, diced into quarter cubes
• 4 tablespoons honey

Instructions:

1. Sprinkle the chicken with half of the salt and pepper; set aside.
2. Heat CEVOO in skillet over medium heat until hot.
3. Cook and stir the onions and half of the thyme until the onions begin to soften.
4. Add the chicken, cook until slightly browned on both sides.
5. Stir in all of the remaining ingredients, except for the rest of the thyme.
6. Reduce heat to low. Cook covered for 6-8 minutes until chicken is fully cooked.
7. Sprinkle with remaining thyme.
8. Plate the chicken and vegetables. Garnish with thyme, a drizzle of CEVOO on the dish, and salt and pepper to taste.

Dessert
What good's a dinner party without a sweet ending? I selected the olive oil and sea salt brownie recipe from the batch of options provided to me because it occurred to me that I could sneak in some of my favorite ghost chili sea salt for a spicy twist. These ended up coming out quite thin and dense. Not bad, but I would have preferred fluffy, caky brownies.

Olive Oil and Sea Salt Brownies (Recipe provided by ChileOliva)
Servings: 10
Time: 15 minutes preparation; 25 minutes baking
Ingredients:

• 4 ounces semi-sweet chocolate, melted
• 1/3 cup of CEVOO (preferably a smooth variety)
• 1/2 cup dark brown sugar
• 1/4 cup granulated sugar
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup brown rice flour (The first recipe I was given used regular flour, which is what I used. The version I received later specifies brown rice flour. I'm not sure how this might change the texture. Go ahead and give it a try!)
• 2 teaspoons vanilla extract
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 1/4 cups chocolate chips

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Line an 8x8 pan with foil and spray lightly with baking spray.
3. In a large bowl, combine melted chocolate and olive oil.
4. Whisk in eggs, sugars, and vanilla until combined.
5. Add in flour and salt and stir until well mixed.
6. Fold in chocolate chunks.
7. Spread batter into pan and sprinkle with coarse sea salt. (Use ghost chili sea salt for a spicy treat!)
8. Bake approximately 25 minutes until toothpick inserted one inch from the edge comes out clean. (Keep in mind that the chocolate chunks will be melty. The toothpick kept coming out with melted chocolate on it, and I overcooked the brownies a bit as I kept mistaking the chocolate for undercooked batter. I clearly should not be allowed to bake.)
9. Let cool for 10 minutes before cutting into half-inch squares.

Finally, after much eating and celebrating, we reached the olive oil tasting portion of the evening, where we sampled mild versus bold varieties. Perhaps we should have done this at the beginning of the night as I suspect many of my guests were more concerned with finishing the remaining bottles of wine and having a dance party in the middle of my street. (Yes, that activity was actually considered and may have occurred.)

The somewhat coherent consensus, though, was that most guests preferred the mild variety; I, on the other hand, was a fan of the peppery bite of the bold variety. It'd go well in dishes where the oil is really supposed to be part of the main attraction (drizzled over a caprese salad, for example).

Thanks to my guests for attending and assisting with food and beverages in a variety of ways, and thanks to ChileOliva for reaching out to me and making this fun night possible!

If you're interested in learning more, check out ChileOliva's "How Virgin Is Your Extra Virgin?" campaign website, Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube channel.

Disclosure: This dinner party was sponsored by ChileOliva, which provided all necessary ingredients for the three official courses of the meal (with the exception of basic pantry items like salt and pepper), as well as several bottles of olive oil for cooking and tasting, plus a mini bottle of oil for each guest. In return, I agreed to host a dinner party and document my experience here on the blog and on my social media channels, while encouraging my guests to share their thoughts via social media as well. Despite the sponsorship, all opinions expressed are my own.

My Robotic Kitchen Planned This Dinner Party (Fork it over, Austin! - Part 13)

This is my thirteenth post on Austin, which reminds that I'm staying on the thirteenth floor of the hotel. I thought hotels never numbered a floor the thirteenth. Anyways.

I love throwing dinner parties. Planning, cooking, decorating, sharing - it's always stressful, and there are always glitches, but it's one of the most enjoyable experiences possible amongst groups of friends, especially at an age where we're less inclined to go out "clubbing" or "bar-hopping" or other things that I was never much into even when I was a little younger.

Some people would probably love to host a dinner party but don't know where to start. Maybe they're intimidated about cooking for other people or are worried about correctly timing all the dishes. Maybe they just wish there was a robot that could do all the work for them. Enter Mike Lee and Will Turnage, presenters of the SXSW talk "My Robotic Kitchen Planned This Dinner Party." I was already a little familiar with some of Mike's work; as a hobby, he plans dinners in unexpected places, and I remember reading about one of his adventures last year, a multi-course fancy dinner party along an NYC subway line. Pretty awesome.

Mike and Will spoke about an app that they're in the very early stages of developing, Food.You.Me., which helps people plan dinner parties, and they demonstrated and described how the app could basically walk you through the steps of the dishes you're preparing, including helping with the timing - what can be done three days ahead of time? When can you spend a few minutes tidying up and setting the table? While it might be most helpful for fairly novice dinner party hosts, I'd certainly find it helpful even though I've already hosted my share of parties and feel pretty comfortable with the process. I'm most intrigued by the way it would help me time things better, as that is, for me, the most stressful part of hosting a dinner party.

A few takeaways that stuck with me:

• The brain is more important than the gadgets. Focus on learning basic techniques and culinary patterns so that you can build variations upon them. Don't focus on learning individual recipes and using ultra-specific gadgets.
• "Are you just eating to have a great Facebook wall?" The 'sportification of food' hits close to home for me; although I've been blogging fairly frequently about food for almost four years, and it's opened a lot of interesting doors for me, I constantly have doubts about the depth and usefulness of what I'm doing. When I'm eating for the sole purpose of posting an awesome photo on Facebook or writing a killer blog post, something's wrong. The social sharing should be much less important than the actual act of eating and enjoying food.
• Simplify, simplify, simplify. And "structure breeds freedom."

Overall, the talk was full of energy and laughter (and awesome kitchen robot photos), and it rejuvenated me a bit after I didn't particularly enjoy the first panel that I attended.

Other posts in the Fork it over, Austin! series:
Part 1: Whip In
Part 2: Foreign & Domestic
Part 3: Caffe Medici
Part 4: Walking Along SoCo and Lunching at Chi'Lantro
Part 5: The Capitol, UT Austin, and Lunching (Again) at Torchy's Tacos
Part 6: Museum of the Weird
Part 7: Uchi
Part 8: East Side King at The Grackle
Part 9: Franklin Barbecue
Part 10: Flagship Whole Foods and My First Green Smoothie
Part 11: Late Night Pizza at Via 313
Part 12: Kebabalicious
Part 14: Papi Tino's
Part 15: Annie's Cafe & Bar
Part 16: The Peached Tortilla
Part 17: Cupcake Quest: Hey Cupcake!
Part 18: Arancini
Part 19: The DeLorean, Boxing Robots, and Roller Derby Pillow Fights
Part 20: Second Bar + Kitchen
Part 21: Tia Kelly's Navajo Tacos
Part 22: Hopdoddy Burger Bar
Part 23: Gourdough's
Part 24: The Ice Cream Social
Part 25: Walking to Barton Springs
Part 26: Izzos Tacos

I'm also posting daily recaps on the Tasted Menu blog, FOOD=LOVE:
Day 1: A First Taste of Austin
Day 2: Tons of Tacos, Sushi at Uchi, and a Late Night Trip to East Side King
Day 3: Early Morning Barbecue and Late Night Pizza
Day 4: Globetrotting: Kebabs, Enchiladas, Pommes Frites
Day 5-6: Meeting and Eating

Pomegranate-Glazed Porgy and Latkes

This post is belated; we made this during Chanukah, hence the latkes. The porgy (also known as scup) is from our favorite fish market, New Deal, located between Inman Square and Lechmere in Cambridge. We asked for advice on what would go nicely with a pomegranate glaze (other than salmon, which seemed like the most obvious choice, but Joel had had that a restaurant a few days prior and wanted something else). The porgy was recommended to us because in winter, it's a bit fattier than in warmer weather while still marked by a fairly light flavor; it seemed like a good fit in terms of texture and taste.

We grilled it on our cast iron grill pan (an absolutely essential kitchen tool as far as we're concerned). The idea for the pomegranate glaze was two-fold: mainly, I'm just obsessed with pomegranates while they're in season (and I finally learned how to easily remove the arils without making the kitchen look like a murder scene). Also, pomegranates figure prominently into a variety of Jewish traditions, so it seemed like a good way to celebrate Chanukah. (That and presents. And gelt, of course.)

Latkes and sauteed greens went well on the side.

And we finally opened up a Dr. Loosen late harvest riesling we picked up a few months back. It was spectacular and played nicely with the pomegranate.

Happy much-belated Chanukah!

Fractal Broccoli for Miss Lima

Miss Lima taught 10th grade geometry. At least I think it was 10th grade and I think it was geometry, but to be honest, high school memories are starting to get a little hazy. I can't even remember the names of all my teachers anymore. It's strange to think I used to have my entire week's schedule memorized to the minute. In any case, I do remember vague bits of a field trip Miss Lima organized. We went to a day-long fractal conference. A day. Of fractals. It was either at BU or MIT, and my dad was one of the chaperones.

Fractals are complex shapes made up of self-similar parts, which in turn are also made up of self-similar parts, and so on, theoretically to infinitely small self-similar parts. The Koch snowflake is a common visualization. Fractals occur in nature, but not quite as neatly as the theory dictates, of course. 'Infinitely small' is hardly possible in practical application. A few natural examples: ferns, lightning, blood vessel systems...and Romanesco broccoli (also called Romanesco cauliflower), a member of the broccoli and cauliflower species Brassica oleracea.

Two years ago, I learned that Miss Lima, who had since married and had three children, had died of breast cancer at only 39 years old. This post is dedicated to her. I'm still amazed that she was able to get a whole class full of high schoolers excited about a math field trip. I've hardly encountered fractals in an academic setting since then, but the memory has stayed with me.

I first stumbled across Romanesco broccoli somewhere on the Internet last year, probably in a blog post, and I was intrigued by its approximate fractal beauty. I scoured the farmers markets, but it seemed that I had missed the season. Finally, this weekend, I spotted it at the Somerville Winter Farmers Market. I can't remember the name of the farm - too excited about the find to notice, I guess - but they recommended roasting it with some goat cheese and balsamic vinegar. (They also recounted the story of a passerby who commented that looking at Romanesco broccoli was probably much like what you'd see on acid.)

We stopped by the Foxboro Cheese Co. stand to investigate whether they had goat cheese. They didn't, but we ended up with asiago (my favorite cheese) and a lemon honey fromage blanc, which seemed like a perfect accompaniment to the broccoli (instead of goat cheese). Yes, it was perfect.

Lightly season the broccoli with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Roast it at 425 for about 15 minutes. Remove it from the oven and add cheese (fromage blanc, goat, or your choice) and balsamic. We used a store-bought balsamic glaze rather than straight balsamic vinegar. Put it back in the oven for another three or four minutes, and then broil for a minute or two. Voila: cheesy roasted Romanesco broccoli with balsamic glaze. The flavor was a perfect mix of broccoli and cauliflower, fairly mild. Delicious, beautiful, and fleeting.

And then it was gone.
Even nature's not infinite, but it does a good job of convincing us otherwise.
  

Video: Super Spicy Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cookies

I wrote about these cookies back in March, but I figured they'd be a fun subject to revisit for another video post. Through the Foodbuzz Tastemakers program, I recently received a complimentary sample of Ghirardelli's new Intense Dark chocolates, and I had always wanted to try out the cookies with a darker chocolate (I used Ghirardelli 60% Cacao Chocolate Chips for all the other times I've baked these cookies.) Goodbye 60%, hello 86%!

Joel took a hammer to a couple bars: the 72% ("Twilight Delight") and the 86% ("Midnight Reverie"). We were afraid to make the cookies too bitter, so we included about a 2:1 ratio of the twilight to the midnight. (As for the leftover chocolate? Well, let's just say there's no such thing as leftover chocolate.)

The result? The most delicious batch of the spicy cookies that we've ever made...but it was also the least spicy. I think I used the same amount of ghost chili powder and salt as usual - except for that one time when I was a bit tipsy and included a heaping spoonful of the powder - so I'm guessing maybe the stronger, darker chocolate masks the spice a bit more. Upon eating the cookies, I still got the strange chill and euphoria that ghost chili seems to trigger for me. In any case, these remain my favorite cookies to bake - and to share with unsuspecting friends!

If you'd like to download or print the recipe, check out the PDF version here.

Links to stuff mentioned in the video:

• The recipe that inspired this one: "Dark Chocolate Cookies with Espresso Salt" by Bianca Garcia (Confessions of a Chocoholic)
• Ghost chili products online: ghost chili sea salt at saltworks.us and ghost chili powder at bhut-pepper.com (I've also found part of the bhut-pepper.com product line at The Meat Hook in Brooklyn, NY.)
• Dried ghost chilis available locally: Christina's Spice and Specialty Shop (Inman Square, Cambridge, MA)

Special thanks to Joel Edinberg, who (a) helped me shoot the video, particularly when I'm the one on screen, (b) helped me bake and eat the cookies, and (c) did all of the music/sound work, including writing, performing, and recording the music, recording my voiceovers, and tracking down the perfect cat and elephant noises.

Also, thanks to several of my co-workers, who, with varying levels of enthusiasm, allowed me to record video of them tasting the cookies: Rob Ciampa, Yelena Kadeykina, and Theresa Moore.

Video: Lambapalooza

I used to avoid lamb. It fell under the "too cute" category - a distinction which now makes no sense to me. If I'm going to eat meat, I'm not going to pick and choose based on an arbitrary scale of adorability. This awareness has helped me appreciate the meat I do eat while also helping me start to cut back on meat, an ongoing process that I'm thinking about more and more.

The first time I ate lamb, I was at a dinner party with my then-boyfriend at his relatives' house. When I saw that the main course was lamb, I panicked but quickly decided that the best route would be to take the smallest portion possible to avoid being rude and maybe take a few small bites.

Next thing I knew, I was asking for seconds. So much for cute.

Lamb Supper Club? Yes, Please.
Fast forward to now. I was recently contacted by the Tri-Lamb Group, a "collaborative initiative between United States, Australia, and New Zealand lamb producers to enhance demand for lamb in the United States." They wanted to know if I'd be willing to host a series of three lamb supper clubs for groups of friends: they'd provide the lamb, a recipe, and other necessary ingredients, and I'd take it from there. I realized that I'd never actually cooked lamb before, so it seemed like a good opportunity.

I rounded up the boyfriend, the roommate, and an assortment of blogger and non-blogger friends, set a date for a meal I dubbed Lambapalooza #1, and asked everyone to bring a dish they thought would go well with lamb.

Irene Keeps Us Indoors
I desperately wanted to grill the lamb outdoors and eat under a leaf-covered trellis in my yard; I've never eaten under it, and I hoped the final days of August would provide a good opportunity. Unfortunately, Lambapalooza ended up occurring the day before Hurricane Irene, so we expected heavy rains to begin right during dinner and opted for indoors instead. I obsessed a bit over decorating and ended up settling on picnic-style checkered tablecloths and a few other accoutrements, including an adorable lamb print by Alyson Thomas. (I also have one of her fantastic "cheeky meat" prints.)

Irene Also Inspires a Drink
Yep, hurricanes. How could we not? I'm not going to bother providing the recipe because, honestly, it was pretty much the entire liquor cabinet. There are tons of variations online - find one that looks good and play around with it if you really want to drink this. Our first attempt included blue curacao, which gave it a gray color - definitely hurricane-like, but certainly not appetizing. After some tinkering, we came up with a nice pink version (without the blue curacao). Think Long Island Iced Tea meets the sketchy jungle juice from a frat party, and that's pretty much what we drank. Keepin' it classy.

Lambapalooza Begins
The guests arrived bearing wine and food. Molly (Cheap Beets) and her husband Rich brought curried potato latkes with curry yogurt sauce (also a delicious topping for the lamb!) Lindsey and Jon (the duo behind Beantown Eats) brought minted orzo with peas; you can view their recipe here. My non-blogger friends Lauren and Cindy brought an excellent chickpea salad. I also prepared dinner rolls - I'm using the term "prepared" loosely here as I actually only added seasoning to Pillsbury dough - and brie and fig cups, part of my new obsession with wonton wrappers. The cups are ridiculously easy to make; check out the video above for a demonstration.

Lambapalooza Hits a Snag...
The recipe we were provided was rather vague about when to slice the lamb. Since we were using the alternative oven- and pan-roasting instructions rather than grilling, and since the recipe didn't specify otherwise, we thought we were supposed to keep the lamb whole and in the netting as we roasted it. Turns out the 25-minute cooking estimate applies if you butterfly it before grilling; for our method, it was a good 90+ minutes. Oops. In the end, though, it was still delicious.

In Case You'd Like to Try It
Here's the marinade recipe from the Tri-Lamb Group:

Ingredients
1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce or tamari
1/4 cup honey
2 teaspoons ground ginger
3 to 4 red Anaheim chilies, thinly sliced (ribs and seeds removed if you'd like less heat)

Mix them all together, and marinate the lamb overnight if you can.

As far as cooking goes, you can try butterflying and grilling it (about 25 minutes, supposedly). We ended up doing a chaotic combination of searing on the stovetop and oven-roasting...and searing some more...over the course of about an hour and half. While it ended up great, I'd recommend checking some other sources to figure out what you should really do with a giant hunk of boneless lamb.

Lamb Thoughts from My Dinner Guests
"Why do I love lamb? It's never tasted gamey to me. I just think it's really tender and delicious. I love that it's even a little more meaty than beef sometimes. It tends to show up in the types of food I love, too: Indian, Greek..." -Rich

"My mom never really cooked lamb. It's been one of those meats that was kind of intimidating for me to cook for myself, maybe because I was never really exposed to it. The first time I think I really had lamb was with Jon. He made it really, really simply - a small rack of lamb, pan-seared in a cast iron skillet. I realized how easy it was in that kind of set-up. He just seasoned it with garlic and rosemary and it was so good." -Lindsey

"I love lamb to the point where Rachel should get jealous." -Joel  [Ed. note: Hmmmmm. -Rachel]

"I'm really excited for this lamb" -Lauren

Disclosure: As mentioned above, this meal was sponsored in part by the Tri-Lamb Group, who provided the lamb, the recipe, and ingredients for the marinade. By accepting these items, I was asked only to host a lamb dinner party and provide feedback on the event. This video and blog post were my own idea; I was under no obligation to complete them.