Black Cumin

One of my favorite things about the smoked peach chutney I posted earlier this week is the quick, sharp bite of cumin that hits whenever I bite into one of the seeds. I left them whole in the chutney precisely for that reason – I love that subtlety. The chutney inspired me this week to talk about another cumin seed that isn’t featured as prominently in grocery stores as its cousin the traditional cumin seed, called black cumin.

If you google black cumin, a ton of links come up for nigella seeds, which is not correct. Both cumin and black cumin are from the parsley family, and black cumin is simply a darker-colored version of the traditional sort. It looks a lot like caraway and has a slightly different, more milder flavor than traditional cumin. Where cumin has a bit more earthiness and an almost gamey quality, black cumin is sweeter, delicate, with more of the pine-menthol flavors and even a nuttiness. To me, it doesn’t linger as much on the palate as regular cumin.

Another difference from traditional cumin is in its use – how and where it is added to dishes. Rather than being ground to a powder form, black cumin is often left whole. It is generally very lightly toasted, which highlights that nutty flavor even more.

Black cumin is featured in a lot of North Indian, Pakistani, Afghani, and Persian dishes, often referred to as kala jeera or shahi jeera. Rice dishes like biryani benefit from a sprinkling of these seeds, and they are often a first ingredient for curries and stews. I love that they are used in breads and plan to do some black cumin biscuits soon myself. I pretty much use it whenever I want a milder version of cumin, where I want it to highlight but not overpower. Let me know if you’ve ever worked with this spice before!

Smoked Peach Chutney

Biting through velvet skin into the honeyed-sweet juiciness of a peach is such a summer pleasure. I’ve been on a quest, from farm stand to farm stand, to find the best of the bunch and have tasted this summer the stuff poets write about. Of course, a few weekends back, I got a bit carried away at a local stand, and I ended up with more peaches than I knew what to do with. What better way to use up this peak season fruit than to turn it into a chutney…Interestingly enough, it was a cocktail that inspired the flavor combo for the chutney; the drink had bourbon, crème de peche and cumin. Genius! The smokiness of the bourbon played beautifully off of the sweet tanginess of the peach intermingling with the warm earthiness of the cumin. I wanted to figure out how to capture that in this chutney.

Smoking was the answer, and you can use either a stovetop smoker (my lifesaver in a NYC kitchen…) or the grill. The smoked peaches by themselves are distinctive but a bit overwhelming until cooked down a bit more with some sugar, honey and the roasted cumin seeds. The resulting chutney has a gorgeous flavor! Smoky, sweet, tangy, with the bite of the cumin seed…it’s perfect on pork chops, fish or even with creamy brie on crackers. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Yields approximately 1 quart

6 large, lusciously-ripe peaches, halved with pit removed (skin on)

1 ¼ tbsps cumin seeds

2-3 tbsps water

¼ cup sugar

¼ cup honey

pinch of salt

Procedure

The first step of this chutney is smoking the peaches. I used a stovetop smoker and cherry wood. Placing the peaches cut side down on the grate, I smoked the peaches for 6 minutes and achieved the perfect level of smokiness. If you choose to do this on the grill, I would keep the temperature low (200° F to 225° F). Once the chips start to smoke, place the peaches cut side down on the side with no flame (indirect heat), cover, and smoke for about 10-15 minutes.

Peel the peaches, the skin should slip off relatively easily, and cut into a fine dice. Set aside.

Heat a medium-sized pot over medium heat. Add the cumin seeds, and toast, stirring, until fragrant and slightly darker in color. Reduce the heat slightly, add the diced peaches and remaining ingredients and simmer for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring at intervals, until the peaches are soft. You want this chutney to have form, so overcooking will turn the peaches to mush.

You can serve this warm, cold, or at room temperature.

Yuzu-Basil Rickey

The art of the summer cocktail…something light, refreshing, icy cool, perfect for a summer bbq or a breezy night out on the porch (or stoop as the case may be), and preferably in a pitcher so friends can help themselves! I personally love something that has a tart-sweetness to it like a mojito, caipirinha, or a spiked lime rickey, which was the inspiration for this drink.

I’ve talked a bit about yuzu in the past, but, basically, it’s a Japanese citrus that has an interesting flavor mix of lime, grapefruit and mandarin with a musky and slightly salty quality to it. It’s rarely found fresh here, but a bottle of yuzu juice from the Asian market will last forever (a few dashes go a long way). I love it in salad dressings, anywhere I might use lemon, and particularly in cocktails like this one.

A lime rickey is pretty simple – usually it’s made from fresh lime juice, carbonated water, and sometimes simple syrup to sweeten. My take here replaces lime juice with lemon and yuzu juices, includes club soda, and is spiked with vodka. The very simple syrup gets infused with fresh basil leaves, which complements the yuzu incredibly. This drink goes down a bit too easy if you know what I mean (what vodka?), but truly it’s my perfect summer drink – flavorful and totally refreshing. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Serves 8 to 10

1 ¼ cups water

1 ¼ cups sugar

10 to 12 leaves of basil

¾ cup lemon juice

1 ½ tbsp yuzu juice

2 ¾ cups club soda

1 ¼ cup vodka

Procedure

First, make the basil-infused simple syrup. In a saucepan, heat the water, sugar and basil stirring until water comes up to a boil. Remove from the heat, cover, and let steep for 15 minutes. Strain and cool.

In a large pitcher, mix together the remaining ingredients with the cooled simple syrup. It’s best to let it chill for a few hours for the flavors to come together, but it’s still great right away.

Serve the yuzu-basil rickey over ice.

Flaxseeds

These bear an uncanny resemblance to the Himalayan red rice of a few weeks ago, no? But red rice these are not. Although we think of flaxseeds as super healthy (which they are) and great on oatmeal and in granola (also true), flaxseeds have actually been used for centuries in cultural cooking from ancient Rome to the Egyptians.

A few years back, when I was learning about Ethiopian cuisine, I was pleasantly surprised to see flaxseeds toasted and sprinkled on top of salads, ground and mixed with water and honey to make a cool drink (telba), or ground into a paste to have with bread or the famous Ethiopian flatbread, injera. In Italy, it’s baked into bread, and, in India, flaxseeds are ground with spices to add to dishes or chutneys.

These cultures all recognize the not-so-secret health benefits of the seed and have found smart ways to incorporate it. High in Omega-3 fatty acids, high fiber, and cholesterol lowering, this is just a great ingredient to add in to cooking. I’m a huge fan of the morning, breakfast shake, where I always throw in a handful of flaxseeds. I take a cue from the Ethiopians and toast them like sesame seeds to sprinkle on my salads, and have thoughts about making a gorgeous spread out of it with spices, roasted garlic and cannellini beans.

How do you cook with flaxseeds?

Porcini Macaroni Pie

So I’m working on my second episode of Exotic Table, and this one is inspired by a nonna I met at Enoteca Maria, an Italian spot in Staten Island that has grandmas from all over Italy as chefs making specialties from their individual regions. How inviting is that? I found the concept so powerful – I had to dig deeper, and a nonna by the name of Rosa Turano showed me her simple and elegant porcini dish.

Of course, I can never leave well enough alone, so I did a bit of a double twist here drawing from my incredible day in the kitchen with Rosa and one of my favorites, Trinidadian Macaroni Pie. The result is this beautiful baked mac ‘n cheese threaded with porcinis. Cheesy, buttery, with a crust and that gorgeous porcini flavor…Enjoy and look out for the Exotic Table episode in a few weeks!

Ingredients

Serves 6 to 8 (yields (1) 3-quart baking dish)

olive oil or butter

1 cup fresh or rehydrated porcini mushrooms, thinly sliced*

1 yellow onion, finely diced

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 stick unsalted butter

½ cup all-purpose flour

1 quart milk

½ tsp white pepper

½ tsp black pepper

2 tsps salt

2 ½ cups grated gruyère

2 eggs

1 lb pasta (I used pappardelle here)

1 tbsp + 1 tsp fresh chives, finely chopped

1 ½ tsps fresh thyme, finely chopped

Procedure

Preheat oven to 350º F.

Heat a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Add olive oil, and, when hot, add mushrooms. Leave them alone and let them brown for a minute or two and then throw in a pat of butter to help with the browning. Stir and add salt – browning the mushrooms will really bring out their earthy flavor and adding salt at the end will prevent moisture from ruining the browning process. Lower the heat to medium-low and throw in the onions. Cook for 3 to 5 minutes until the onions are translucent. Add garlic and cook for 30 seconds or so until fragrant. Remove from heat and cool in a bowl.

In a large sauté pan or pot over medium heat, melt butter. Add flour all at once and whisk vigorously to avoid lumps. Cook for 2 to 3 minutes. You just want to remove the raw taste. Add milk and spices and continue to whisk to prevent lumps (remember to get the corners!). Once the mixture starts to bubble, reduce heat to low and cook for 8 to 10 minutes whisking often. You want this to simmer gently while it’s thickening. Remove from heat.

To the onion mixture in the bowl, add 2 cups of the grated cheese as well as the eggs. Add a ladle full of the béchamel (milk mixture) and stir. Continue to add ladlefuls until the egg mixture is up to temperature with the béchamel. Add everything back to the béchamel in the sauté pan and stir to combine thoroughly and make sure cheese is completely melted.

Add pasta to boiling, heavily salted water and cook until it’s a bit underdone. It depends on what type of pasta you are using. I used fresh pappardelle, and it cooked in 2 to 3 minutes. It’s going to continue cooking in the oven, so leave it al dente. Drain pasta and add to the béchamel/cheese mixture. Add 1 tablespoon of the chopped chives and 1 teaspoon of the chopped thyme and combine thoroughly. Pour into a heavily greased, 3-quart baking dish.

In a bowl, combine remaining herbs, ½ cup of cheese, and breadcrumbs. Sprinkle on top of macaroni and either dot with butter or drizzle with olive oil. Bake for 35 minutes until top is browned and bubbly.

Orange Blossom Water

I was making a fruit salad this week and threw in a few dashes of orange blossom water when (gasp!) I realized I’ve never really highlighted it in depth here. It’s such a beautiful ingredient, and now is truly my favorite time of year to work with it. Orange blossom water goes incredibly well with fruits, summer fruits in particular, and gives summer pies or a simple fruit salad a hint of something truly special.

Orange blossom water comes from the blossoms of the Seville orange, a bitter and crazy fragrant orange native to Asia. The petals of the flower are heated in water and the resulting steam is condensed and separated, now scented with the orange blossom. The result is a clear liquid that is at once floral with orange citrus notes and a hint of bitterness.

Orange blossom water is found throughout the cooking of the Middle East, North Africa, French and Mediterranean where its delicate fragrance laces some of the most beloved desserts, savory dishes, and, in some instance, even drinking water. It’s often added to a sugar syrup to drizzle over desserts or fruit, but it tastes beautiful used sparingly in tagines or other stews that have fruits. I’ve used it a few times here, once as a gorgeous floral balance to melon in a gelato and another time in one of my favorite desserts, Om Ali, a puff pastry-based bread pudding. I definitely plan to experiment more with it in savoury dishes and have designs to add it to fall vegetable mashes like butternut squash or sweet potato.

Having a light hand helps when it comes to this ingredient – it gets overwhelmingly perfume-y in excess and be sure to taste your particular brand before following a recipe. Your bottle may be stronger or weaker than what’s called for, and it’s better to use your cooking instincts and preferences here. Orange blossom water is becoming more widely available by the day – in Whole Foods, gourmet stores, Italian specialty shops, and, of course, Middle Eastern grocers.

Cinnamon-Passion Fruit Fool

When the weather is hot and beautiful fresh fruits abound, I always turn to a fruit fool as dessert. A classic British dessert, a fool is quite simply puréed fruit and a bit of sugar folded in with fluffy whipped cream. They are light, no fuss, and always highlight the flavors of the season.

There are umpteen variations and shortcuts for this dish – from the type of fruit (gooseberries, strawberries, peaches) to using a frozen purée or pre-fab whipped cream. You really can’t go wrong with this one. With the fragrant passion fruits in season right now, this latest incarnation of a fool became doubly inspired by a staple Brazilian dessert, mousse de maracujá. Maracujá is Portuguese for passion fruit, and the Brazilian version uses thick cream, sweetened condensed milk, and sometimes gelatin.

This dessert literally could not be easier. Passion fruits are basically already puréed, so you simply have to split and remove the pulp; you can, of course, use a frozen purée if you can’t find fresh. I sweeten the passion fruit pulp with a bit of sugar, add a squeeze of lime juice for brightness and a bit of cinnamon because I think it really brings out the signature flavor of the fruit. Fold all of that into whipped cream, and that’s it! It’s shockingly delicious. My fussy I-only-eat-meat-and-no-dessert husband went to town on a few bowls after initially, begrudgingly taste-testing. Light, fluffy, tart, sweet – this might be my favorite, easy summer dessert. Enjoy!

Ingredients

4 passion fruits, seeds and pulp removed to a bowl*

squeeze of lime juice

1 tsp cinnamon

½ cup sugar

2 cups heavy cream, cold

Procedure

In a bowl, mix together thoroughly all except a few tablespoons of the passion fruit seeds and pulp, the squeeze of lime juice, cinnamon and ¼ cup of the sugar.

In another bowl using a stand or hand mixer, beat the heavy cream with the other ¼ cup of sugar until stiff peaks form. Fold the passion fruit mixture carefully into the sweetened whipped cream. I like to add a third at a time and not overmix to avoid collapsing the fluffy cream.

Spoon mixture into dessert glasses and top with a few of the reserved passion fruit seeds and a bit of juice / pulp. I like to refrigerate for a bit before serving, but it can be eaten straight away.

*Slice the top off of a passion fruit, and use a spoon to remove all of the seeds and pulp to be used. You could also substitute about one cup of thawed, frozen passion fruit purée.

Jardaloo (Hunza Apricots)

So I thought I’d keep my exotic ingredient in theme this week and talk about these beautiful little, dried apricots I picked up the other day. The saffron fried chicken was definitely a nod to Persian influence, and it so happens that these apricots, or jardaloo, also have their roots in Persian cooking by way of the Parsis of India.

Jardaloo are also referred to as Hunza apricots, meaning wild apricots from the mountainsides of the Hunza Valley on the borders of Kashmir and Pakistan. In their ripe state, they are a beige-colored, sweet, small variety that have a bit more acidity than the cultivated fruit and a delicious almond-like pit. You can even crack the pit of these sundried ones to obtain it – it has a great nutty flavor and the kernel oil is loaded with vitamins.

Parsis are one of the Persian Zoroastrian communities that live in South Asia, migrating from Iran centuries ago to flee persecution, and with them they brought a truly rich culture and cuisine. Their nonvegetarian cooking retains a lot of the Persian influences introducing certain nuts and fruits, like this, to their stewed meats and curries. Their vegetarian cuisine is equally rich; I learned of a certain lentil dish called Dhansak when I was in Goa and returned a bit obsessed to learn from scratch this tradition that combines several different lentils with tons of seasonal vegetables and a spice blend, the Dhansak masala, that includes cinnamon, clove, star anise and fenugreek (to name a very few…).

Jardaloo are used in the Parsi signature dish Jardaloo Sali Murgh, where chicken is cooked down with aromatics, spices, and this lovely dried apricot to lend a sweet and sour effect. It’s gorgeous in slow-cooked dishes like a lamb stew, and the sweet applications would be too numerous (jardaloo clafouti anyone?), though pitting could prove to be too big a pain. I love to throw it into rice or even biryani for a nice fruity bite, warning all that eat to watch out for the pits!

Middle Eastern grocers or online purveyors are the way to go to find these little gems.

Saffron Fried Chicken

Is there anything more satisfying than biting into a salty, flavorful, crisp piece of fried chicken? I know I have a particular weakness for the stuff (umm, it’s my post-workout week splurge) and if I head down to visit my family in Florida, driving by a particular chain that starts with a “P” and has the same name as an old children’s cartoon and NOT hitting the drive-thru is next to impossible. Perfecting fried chicken is not easy, and it’s taken me years, a bit of a fried chicken connoisseur myself, to create a recipe that I’m fully happy with. Of course, leaving it well alone is not an option, so I created my own twist with saffron.

A friend of mine gave me this beautiful gift of Persian saffron that I am treasuring and using sparingly. Saffron is used in a lot of Middle Eastern and South Asian marinades, oftentimes with yoghurt, and it complements the flavor of chicken amazingly. Fried chicken was my perfect reason to break into the saffron stash.

So the reality is that there are a few (worthwhile!) steps here. I marinate the chicken in saffron buttermilk that serves to brine the chicken, make it even juicier, and deeply infuse it with all of the marinade ingredients – a pinch of saffron, garlic, a touch of mustard. I then double dip the chicken to create a super-crisp crust, and let it air-dry while the meat loses its chill. Finally, frying at the perfect temperature ensures fried chicken nirvana – crisp, flavorful, aromatic, tender and juicy. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Yields 3 to 4 servings

1 (3 to 4 lb) broiler / fryer chicken, cut into 8 pieces

Marinade / Brine:

3 cups buttermilk

1 generous pinch saffron

2 eggs

3 cloves garlic

½ tsp dijon mustard

2 tbsps kosher salt

1 tbsp sugar

Crust:

1 cup all purpose flour

½ cup cornstarch

1 tsp kosher salt

1 tsp black pepper

1 ½ tsps garlic powder

1 ½ tsps onion powder

1 tsp paprika

pinch of cayenne pepper

Vegetable shortening or oil for frying

Procedure

In a small saucepan, heat a ½ cup of the buttermilk until it comes up to a simmer. Add saffron and switch off heat. Let it sit for 10 minutes.

Pour this mixture along with the remaining buttermilk and the rest of the marinade ingredients into a blender and blend on high until smooth. Place chicken in a bowl or casserole dish and cover with the marinade. Refrigerate for a minimum of 6 hours and up to 24.

In a large bowl, paper or plastic bag, combine the crust ingredients thoroughly. Remove chicken from marinade and place in a colander for a few minutes to drain, reserving the marinade. Dredge or shake chicken pieces individually in the flour mixture and place on a wire rack fitted over a baking sheet.

Dip chicken once more in the marinade, letting any excess drip off. Coat again in the flour mixture and place back on the wire rack. Let chicken sit on the rack for an hour to dry / come up to room temperature.

In a large, heavy-bottomed pot, heat 2 inches of oil to 350º F. You actually want to fry the chicken at 325º F for the entire time, but the temperature will drop once you add it in. Place chicken in the hot oil and fry for 13 to 17 minutes making sure the temperature stays at 325º F. I like to take the wings out at 13 minutes , and fry the rest between 15 and 17 minutes depending on the size of the pieces and the type of meat. White meat cooks faster than the dark meat, and fatter pieces will cook slower. If the juices run clear, the chicken is cooked through.

Serve hot! It can be held uncovered in a 250º F oven to stay warm, but it’s preferable to serve immediately.

Himalayan Red Rice

Recently, on Facebook, I was asked about colors of salt and rice. What are the differences between pink, red and black salt and what about black or red rice? Great questions because it can all get pretty confusing. I will definitely talk about salts at another time (though I have a bit on black salt here), but I thought I would highlight Himalayan red rice, which is a tasty and healthy alternative to white rice that is truly worth exploring.

First, can I just say how beautiful this rice looks! It has a rosy hue that is stunning up against bright green veggies and even combined with white rice for a bespeckled dish. Himalayan red rice is, as its name suggests, grown in and around the Himalayas and is often referred to as Bhutanese red rice (although France and other parts of Asia do grow a variety in smaller quantities). It’s a short grain, heirloom rice that is grown at an altitude and thought to be fed by glacier water – making it particularly mineral-rich.

Himalayan red rice is semi-milled, and the residual red bran makes it compelling in terms of fiber content (way higher than white). It has trace minerals, vitamins, and antioxidants and is often compared to brown rice, but has, what I think, is a far better flavor. It’s nutty, a bit toothsome, sweet even, and has a gorgeous perfume to it…

With a higher level of bran, it takes a bit longer to cook than white rice, but the wait is worth it. It’s the perfect salad rice – great with a vinegar base for a summer picnic with fresh tomatoes and corn. The nuttiness holds up well to spices and blends seamlessly with mushrooms. It also cooks up like risotto (a personal obsession of mine), so I’ve been meaning to do a mushroom red rice risotto soon.

It’s definitely available at Whole Foods and health food stores carry it. Have you tried it? How do you cook with Himalayan red rice?

Pão de Queijo (Brazilian Cheese Bread)

One of my favorite Brazilian restaurants in the city is Casa. Tucked away on a quiet block in the West Village, this cozy spot gets it right – spot on flavors, perfect portions, delicious wines, an intimate setting. The feijoada and moqueca are killer, but I can never make it through a dinner there without ordering their little basket of farm cheese bread, or pão de queijo. These little cheesy, chewy, buttery balls are perfection, so I decided to dig further to satisfy my cheese bread cravings at home.

Brazilian cuisine is completely amazing to me because of the number and span of cultures that have contributed to it – Portuguese, African, Native American, Japanese, Syrian, Lebanese. Cassava or yucca is a staple ingredient in Brazilian cooking, and the resulting flour is used, in its coarse form, for farofa, and its finely ground form to make these lovely rolls.

We are familiar with one form of cassava or manioc starch, which is tapioca, but Brazilians have a sour fermented version, polvilho azedo, and a sweet one, polvilho doce. Traditionally, both are used to make this bread, but, on the fly, I only found plain manioc starch and went with it. If you can find both kinds, I suggest using them in 2/3rd sour / 1/3rd sweet ratio.

The great thing about these is, if you have a stand mixer, they are really easy to make. Otherwise, it’s a bit of a work out and requires some sweat to knead! The procedure and form is not unlike those lovely, French gougères, but the result here is a lot more dense and toothsome than that. They are the perfect dinner roll – buttery and cheesy with a delicately crunchy exterior. I added a touch of black pepper and nutmeg, not traditional but I think gives it a balanced flavor. Be forewarned, they are addictive…Enjoy!

Ingredients

Yields 20 golf ball-sized pieces

1 ½ cup manioc or tapioca starch

½ cup all-purpose flour*

2 tsps kosher salt

1 tsp sugar

½ tsp black pepper

pinch of ground nutmeg

1 cup milk

6 tbsps stick butter

3 eggs

1 ½ cups finely grated parmesan

Procedure**

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Fit a stand mixer with a paddle attachment. In the bowl of the stand mixer, sift together starch, flour, salt, sugar, and spices. In a small saucepan, heat milk and butter over medium-high heat until mixture comes up to a full boil (make sure it doesn’t boil over!). Add milk mixture to dry ingredients and mix on low for 2 minutes.

In a small bowl, beat together 1 egg and 1 egg yolk. With the mixer still running, add eggs to the dough. When eggs are incorporated, add grated parmesan and mix/knead for another 5 minutes, scraping down at intervals. Refrigerate for a minimum of 1 hour.

Using a small ice cream scoop or your hands, portion out dough into even-sized pieces. Heavily (and repeatedly) flour hands and roll portioned pieces into balls. Place on a parchment-lined baking sheet. In a small bowl, beat the other egg. Brush dough balls with egg wash and bake for 25 to 30 minutes until browned and the outside is crisp and a bit cracked. Serve immediately.

*If you want these to be gluten-free, just use manioc starch in lieu of all-purpose flour here.

**A few points on procedure. The dough can be kneaded traditionally – that is, by hand – if desired. It just takes a bit of upper body strength. The resulting dough should be soft and very sticky. If not baking immediately (or that day), the dough can be frozen when formed into balls and popped in the oven at a later time. This bread is best served warm and straight from the oven as it turns a bit gummy when cold (though, of course, if can be reheated).

Aleppo Chilies

A few weeks back, I was working on a chutney recipe that married dried apricots with a luscious, sweet dessert wine. I threw in some of these chili flakes, and the flavor became complex – at once, sweet, fruity, those peach-lychee notes from the wine and a tart bite with a touch of heat from the Aleppo chilies. Although I’ve used it in cooking before, in that moment it dawned on me that I would no longer be reaching for typical crushed red pepper for my weekly (yes…once a week) pizza binge.

Aleppo chilies come from Syria and are named after the northern city of Aleppo. A pinch of Aleppo is called for in various Middle Eastern dishes and in foods throughout parts of the Mediterranean. This chili flake has often been compared to ancho and is fruity, moderately hot, with smoky undertones that come from being sundried. It has an acidic tartness to it (think sundried tomatoes with a kick!) and is actually a little salty; the heat hits fast and then subtly lingers.

What I realized during that last time I was cooking with it was that it’s just a really balanced chili flake, and it doesn’t require a ton of cooking or toasting to bring out flavor (thus using it to sprinkle on hot, cheesy pizza). It works as well with sweeter dishes, like a chutney, as with savoury, and is the perfect finale to a bolognese, in a kebab marinade, or, simply, to dress up a salad. The focus is a lot more on flavor here than heat.

Like the Urfa chili I mentioned a few months ago, this flake has a ton of oil, and I find that it keeps longer in the freezer. Middle Eastern grocers will have some of this in stock, but I’ve also seen it in some higher-end, gourmet shops and even William Sonoma.

Sweet Chili Jam

Happy 4th of July! I hope everyone is having a fantastic day, and enjoying a nice bbq with friends and family (I know I am!). I have gone waay too far with my menu today – lamb burgers with pickled cukes, some shrimp cakes, grilled corn, roasted potato salad, spiced grilled shitakes, a big green salad with cherry tomatoes and asparagus, pineapples soaked in orange liqueur, and a great pitcher of rum punch…

As promised, here’s the chili jam I use (on basically everything…) on my lamb burgers. Sweet, spicy, tart, and jammy…a beautifully versatile condiment that is soooo easy to make. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Yields approximately 3 cups

2-3 tbsp oil

3 medium white onions, thinly sliced (~2 lbs)

3 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped

10 red fresno chilies or combination red fresno / red finger chilies, finely chopped

1 cinnamon stick

1 dried bay leaf

¾ cup apple cider vinegar

1/3 cup brown sugar

1 cup water

Salt to taste

Procedure

In a medium-sized pot, heat oil over medium heat. Add onions and a bit of salt and cook slowly to caramelize, about 25 to 30 minutes. You don’t want the onions to brown quickly but rather develop a caramel color as they soften and sweeten, so keep the heat at about medium-low and stir at intervals.

Add the rest of the ingredients and bring up to a boil for 5 minutes, covered. Lower to a simmer for another 25 minutes, removing the lid and stirring for the last 5 to 10 minutes of cooking.

Remove bay leaf and cinnamon stick and process in a food processor to a jam-like texture.

Dill Seed

I did a little informal poll amongst friends that cook and some chefs I work with and dill seed is one of those spices that is truly under the radar. I wasn’t so surprised – heck, it’s not like I use it on a daily basis, but the reality is that this spice spans everything from our everyday dill pickle to Swedish breads to Ras El Hanout, a popular North African spice blend.

Interestingly enough, these flat, tear-shaped seeds aren’t seeds at all. They are actually the fruits of the dill plant (that gives us that beautiful, feathery herb). The flavor of the seed is definitely stronger than the weed or the herb; it has a sharper bite and none of the leafy sweetness. For me, caraway is the closest taste comparison, and there are also notes of chervil, parsley, and anise, which isn’t surprising since the plants are all in the same family.

I was shocked to find out how many different cultures actually use this spice! It’s hard to pinpoint the origin, but dill is thought to have started off in Eastern Europe, spreading later to the Mediterranean, North Africa, and Asia. Scandinavian cuisines, Russian, Ukrainian (it’s in borscht!) and German all use the spice. In the Middle East and North Africa, the spice is found in pickles, spice blends and salads. Even parts of Asia, Indonesia, and Malaysia, incorporate the spice in everything from meat curries to condiments. In South Asia, dill seeds are added to curries or even cooked like lentils; it’s also part of the spice blend that goes into biryani.

It’s truly a versatile spice and works beautifully in potato salads, vinaigrettes, rice dishes and all types of breads. I’m thinking about working it into a lobster salad along with the herb and a touch of coriander, but it’s also gorgeous in soups and stews (where it softens and becomes toothsome). The seed definitely gets a boost from dry-roasting, but it should be ground to order as the flavor dissipates quickly after being ground. The dill seed from India has a milder flavor than that from other areas, so taste-experiment-repeat where necessary!

Smoky Lamb Burgers w/ Mint-Chili Pickled Cucumbers

Smoky Lamb Burgers with Mint-Chili Pickled Cucumbers

Does anyone else have summer fever? I seriously have been dreaming about barbecues for months, and now that it’s upon us I’m living for summer Sundays, hanging with friends and family and eating simple, flavorful meals that can be done on the grill. The recipe for these smoky lamb burgers came out of wanting to create a kicked-up burger that was no-fuss and would taste delicious with an ice-cold beer…

I have two (not one, but TWO) secret ingredients in this burger that give it that smoky, peppery edge. The first is black cardamom, which you may remember me writing about a few months back. The flavor is a bit lighter than green cardamom – earthier and with a woodsy smokiness. Black cardamom is used throughout North and East African cooking, in South Asian and Middle Eastern cuisine, and even in Sichuan cooking.

But, don’t worry if you only have the green kind. It works beautifully here as well because there is still the second secret ingredient: pimentón de la Vera. If you’ve never used it before, this dish is a great intro – it’s smoked paprika and is a key ingredient in Spanish cooking. Both of these spices meld together here and bring out what’s best about lamb.

Now, I’m a burger-with-pickles kind of gal, so I had to do a super quick pickle (ready in an hour!) to go with these. Thinly sliced cucumbers get quick-pickled with Thai green chilies, some fresh mint, garlic and thinly sliced shallots. The shallots pickle too, so I use both along with some fresh chopped mint and a nice piece of butter lettuce to top this burger. And these burgers are not for the faint of heart – they are big and bold! Feel free to turn this recipe into sliders or more modestly-sized patties if you so desire. Smoky, earthy, juicy lamb burgers with mint- and chili-pickled cucumbers on a gorgeously toasted bun is the perfect summer bbq food (and I WILL be serving these this weekend…) Enjoy!

Ingredients

Serves 4

Lamb Burgers:

6 tbsps butter

2 shallots, finely chopped

4-5 garlic cloves, minced

2 tsps ground black cardamom*

1 ½ tsps black pepper

2 tsps cayenne**

2 ½ tsps pimentón / smoked paprika

1 tbsp kosher salt

2 lbs ground lamb

vegetable oil

Mint-Chili Pickled Cucumbers:

¾ cup rice vinegar

¾ tsp kosher salt

1 ¼ tsps sugar

2 Thai chilies, halved

1 shallot, thinly sliced

2 garlic cloves thinly sliced

2 mini seedless cucumbers, sliced thin

handful of mint, roughly torn

Procedure

For the lamb, in a medium skillet, heat butter over medium heat. Swirl the pan as the foam subsides and continue to heat until butter starts to brown. Don’t let it burn! Immediately, throw in the shallots, garlic and spices and cook stirring continuously to prevent sticking for 2 to 3 minutes until shallots are translucent and cooked through. Remove and let cool briefly.

Place lamb in a bowl and make a well in the center. Add cooled shallot and spice mixture and mix thoroughly. Do not overmix or the meat will get tough. Form mixture into 4 equal patties, keeping the center a bit thinner than the edges. Conversely, you can make this mixture up to a day ahead of time and the flavors will come together even more beautifully.

Heat a grill pan or skillet over medium-high heat and coat with a thin layer of oil or grill on the outdoor grill. Cook for about 4 minutes per side to get to a medium rare and longer for more well-cooked burgers.

For the cucumbers, in a bowl, whisk together vinegar, salt and sugar until dissolved. Add remaining ingredients and toss to coat. I like to put the cucumbers in a wider, shallow container to increase the surface area as they are pickling. Let sit at least an hour before serving, but it can also be refrigerated and will keep for a few days.

Serve burgers on a toasted bun topped with the pickled cucumbers and a few of the pickled shallots.

*I use my spice grinder to grind the whole pods of black cardamom, and then I pass it through a fine mesh sieve to get rid of the coarse bits. If you only have green cardamom on hand, that works; it’s still delicious.

**Go easier if you like less heat.

Mini Gumbo Pot Pies (Take 2)

A few months back, I put up a recipe for mini seafood gumbo pot pies, spicy little pescatarian pots of joy that were topped with puff pastry crust. After visiting New Orleans, I decided to revisit this recipe and tweak it here and there. I learned so much on my trip and got a serious lesson in NOLA cooking from my friend, Gwendolyn Scott, who owns her own catering company out there. We caught the whole thing on film and wrapped it into my first webisode of Exotic Table, which I’ll post a little later this week! (All of the pics here are from the video.)

That NOLA smoked sausage is just irresistible, so you know I had to throw a little andouille in…I also made some changes to my “holy Trinity” ratio (holy Trinity is Louisiana’s catch phrase for onions, celery and peppers, which are key to their cooking) and added in a lot more okra to help thicken up my gumbo.

Thick, rich, spicy and hearty, but elegant enough to serve to dinner guests – little mini gumbo pot pies are a fun twist on an old favorite. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Yields 8 10-ounce ramekins

1 stick unsalted butter

¾ cup all-purpose flour

2 tbsps butter

1 large onion, finely chopped

1 green pepper, finely chopped

1 celery, finely chopped

1 fresno, finely chopped

1 (1/2 lb) andouille sausage, diced

4 or 5 garlic cloves, minced

Creole seasoning (recipe follows, a little over 4 tbsps)*

4 cups chicken stock

2 cups sliced okra

1/3 cup peas

½ cup heavy cream

2 dried bay leaves

½ cup sliced green onion

small handful of cilantro, finely chopped

small handful of parsley, finely chopped

1 lb mixed seafood (lump crab, rock or small shrimp, bay or small scallops, shelled lobster)**

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

lemon juice to taste

1 egg (beaten with a bit of cream or water)

2 sheets of puff pastry, thawed according to package directions

Procedure

Preheat oven to 400° F.

I like to start by making the roux since it takes some time to develop color. That is, melt butter in a heavy bottomed cast-iron pan (large enough) or dutch oven over medium heat. Add the flour and whisk. Continue to whisk at very frequent intervals (semi-constantly) for 15 to 20 minutes until the mixture has turned a deep chocolate brown. Be careful not to burn.

In a separate skillet, melt butter over medium-low heat and add onions and a bit of salt (to draw out the moisture). Cook for about 2 minutes and add peppers, celery. Cook for another 5 minutes, and push to veggies one side. Crank up the heat, and brown the sausage in that side of the pan. When browned, add minced garlic and creoled seasoning, mix in the veggies, and let cook for about 30 seconds to a minute until fragrant. Remove from heat, and, if the roux is ready (good timing!), add directly to the roux.

To the cooked roux, add the chicken stock and whisk to fully incorporate. Add the onion mixture as discussed, okra, peas, heavy cream, and bay leaves. Make sure none of the roux is stuck to the bottom or in the crevices of the pot. Bring mixture up to a boil and lower to a simmer for 20 minutes. You want it to thicken up, so leave it partially covered.

On a floured surface, roll out the puff pastry to about 1/8th of an inch thick. Using pastry cutters or a glass that’s larger than the diameter of your ramekins, cut out 8 circles. Make sure they are large enough to fit over top the ramekins.

To the gumbo, add the green onions, chopped herbs, and seafood. Adjust seasonings at this point, adding salt, pepper and a shot or two of lemon juice, if needed. Ladle gumbo evenly into ramekins.

Brush the tops of the ramekins on the outside with the egg wash. Place puff pastry circles on top, crimp to your desired effect, and brush entirely with the egg wash. Use a knife to make slits into the top to let the steam escape. Place ramekins on baking sheets and bake for 20 to 25 minutes until the top is brown and crusty.

*Creole Seasoning:

1 tsps onion powder

2 tsps garlic powder

1 tsps dried oregano leaves

3/4 tsp dried sweet basil

1 tsps dried thyme leaves

½ tsp black pepper

½ tsp white pepper

¼ tsp cayenne pepper (whatever you can stand!)

½ tsp celery seed

2 tsps sweet paprika

½ tsp ground mustard

**For the seafood, I like to use small pieces for a few reasons. (1) The seafood has to fit into the ramekins with room for all of the other great stuff, and (2) I only put the seafood in right before it goes into the oven – small pieces will cook perfectly (without overcooking) and pre-cooked items, like crab, don’t turn to mush. If you are using larger shrimp or decide to do this in a casserole dish rather than individual ramekins, adjust your cooking time accordingly.

Grape Molasses

Here, in the States, the term molasses conjures up images of gingerbread cookies and shoofly pie, that thick, dark syrup that’s the result of refining cane sugar. But, in Mediterranean and Middle Eastern regions, molasses is something else entirely – still a syrup, but from sources like pomegranates, dates, grapes, figs, carob, or even mulberries. The process and the flavor are completely different…and delicious.

In the old days, sugar was extraordinarily expensive in regions outside of India, and honey was, let’s say, tricky to procure. During the summer months when sweet fruits were plenty, the fresh juice of these fruits were boiled and reduced down to create intensely flavorful and perfectly sweet syrups, or molasses. These syrups were the ideal sweeteners, capitalizing on peak season fruit, and kept for months. I’m leaving out a great part of all this – they are way healthier than other sweeteners, given that they are fruit-based, and actually contain antioxidants, vitamins and minerals.

Grape molasses is one that I happen to love because it’s not overly sweet and has that amazing grape flavor. When I was in Turkey, this lovely syrup, which is also called pekmez, was served at breakfast in lieu of honey. I loved the traditional combo of grape molasses and tahini on flatbread – it was my PB&J for the trip!

There are so many ways to use this stuff. Many simply mix it with water or milk for a great drink, and I’ll be using it to sweeten my flavored lemonades this summer. I do love it on toast with peanut butter or tahini, and it’s incredible with cream cheese on currant scones or drizzled on cinnamon waffles. Beyond all of the sweet dishes, the syrup can be added to stews to add a sweet thickness to them. I used pomegranate molasses, which has a real sweet and sour feel to it, to make some lovely baby back ribs. Think of it like you would honey or molasses.

I pick mine up at an ethnic food store, but I’ve seen this beautiful syrup at Chelsea Market and even a Whole Foods. Have you ever tried any of these fruit-based molasses and how do you use it?

Patois

Whenever I travel, I do a slightly obsessive nerdy cross-referencing of sorts to make sure I have the ultimate eating experiences on my trip. Between friends’ suggestions, write-ups, locals’ thoughts and general meandering, there’s nothing more joyful than finding a little place that embodies the spirit of a geographical location or a part of the culture. Before heading to New Orleans, a friend mentioned Patois, where the food is “classic French cuisine with a patois, or local accent.” I was so sold…

Like the other resto I visited on this trip, Patois has had a James Beard nod with the chef earning a semifinalist spot for Best Chef: South for the past three years. The place is so unassuming and homey, a seamless building in a residential Uptown neighborhood, that the fact that chef Aaron Burgau is turning out deliciously modern-NOLA-Southern-French-Mediterranean food may just sneak up on you until you are stuffed and happy and think “wow, that was good.”

And it really was. All of the ingredients are, of course, locally sourced, and the menu changes often, seasonally driven. I visited Patois on the last day of my trip, the Sunday I was leaving, for a delicious lunch-brunch. Ponchatoula strawberries with creole cream cheese, beautiful potato gnocchi with crawfish, ramps, edamame and a dollop of mascarpone, and the crumbly house-made muffins were just the start of it. I’m still dreaming about the gnocchi’s buttery sauce…

We moved on to the almond crusted gulf fish, succulent grilled lamb ribs with green tomato relish and finally (my favorite!) the fried Mississippi rabbit with a biscuit, eggs, and sausage gravy…eating light in NOLA is an impossibility. I also HAD to sample the grits (as I did everywhere I ate), and these were the best of the bunch – creamy, buttery, peppery, and gorgeous corn flavor.

I did go light on dessert with a beautiful strawberry sorbet, but, seriously, there was no room after the previous feast and my diligent grits taste-testing. This is definitely the type of place I’d go back to if I’m lucky enough to travel again to New Orleans…

Crispy Asparagus with Fenugreek Aioli

Asparagus can be polarizing, lovers and haters – I happen to be a lover. I’m a huge fan of throwing asparagus in an oven with some olive oil, salt and pepper (and maybe a pat or two of butter…) and letting it roast to perfection while I’m making the rest of my meal. With the abundance of beautiful, thick and luscious asparagus in the greenmarket, I’ve found myself going beyond simple roasting and grilling techniques to figure out ways to single it out and highlight its taste at this time of year. This recipe is one lovely variation.

I know. The old adage that frying makes everything taste better is a bit overused, but, in this case, it is so true! This requires basic breading, but I like to spice up the flour for dredging a bit and use panko to form the crispy crust. The asparagus are then shallow-fried until they just yield under the bite.

Homemade aioli is the perfect accompaniment. It’s cheaper and easier to make your own mayo, and this one is scented with a bit of fenugreek powder. Fenugreek is one of the key spices in curry. I actually love it on its own, without the rest of the spices that comprise curry. It definitely has a bitter edge to it though, so a little goes a long way. Some garlic, a touch of mustard, and you have a deliciously creamy sauce. The crisp asparagus dipped into the garlicky aioli with hints of curry are the perfect summer side. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Serves 4 to 6

For the asparagus:

¼ cup all purpose flour

½ tsp salt

1 tsp garlic powder

½ tsp onion powder

black pepper to taste

2 eggs, beaten

1 ¼ cups panko breadcrumbs

1 bunch of asparagus (approximately 1 lb)

oil for frying

For the fenugreek aioli:

2 or 3 garlic cloves

large pinch salt

1 egg yolk, room temperature

2 ½ teaspoons fresh lemon juice

½ tsp Dijon mustard

¼ tsp + a small pinch finely ground fenugreek

½ cup oil*

Procedure

For the asparagus, using three trays or bowls, set up a breading station. Whisk together the flour, salt, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper into one. Set up another with the beaten eggs, and a third with the panko. If you like, pulse the panko in the food processor to make it a bit finer before using.

Dredge the asparagus in the flour mixture, tapping off any excess. Dip into the beaten eggs, and, finally, coat with the panko. Transfer to a rack over a baking sheet and work in batches to bread all of the asparagus.

Heat ¼” to a ½” of oil in a large skillet to medium heat. You don’t want the oil to be too hot or the breading will brown (and burn) before the asparagus cooks through. I like to shallow-fry about 2 to 3 minutes per side on a medium heat to get that golden brown crust and perfectly-cooked asparagus.

Transfer back to the rack over the baking sheet and sprinkle with additional salt if you like. If you aren’t serving immediately, keep warm in a 200° F oven.

For the aioli, place the garlic and salt in a food processor and pulse until chopped as finely as possible. Conversely, you can do this by hand and chop the garlic finely and make a paste with the salt. Add the egg yolk, lemon juice, mustard and fenugreek and pulse or whisk until blended and uniform. Start the processor or continue whisking and add in the oil in a thin stream until all is completely incorporated.

Serve the asparagus warm with a side of the aioli.

*To save a bit, I like to use a combination of regular olive oil (extra virgin can turn bitter) and canola or other vegetable oil.

Epazote

Modern day foraging in urban areas is not necessarily a new idea. With amazing restaurants like Noma, whose philosophy of foraging the local countryside has defined a new tradition, I’m happy to see how much this trend has been embraced and am looking around for a cool class to take some time this summer. This is only relevant because epazote, an herb that’s popular in Mexican cooking, actually grows wild in Central Park! I need to know what other exotic herbs I can grab from the NYC parks…

Epazote otherwise grows wild throughout Mexico, Central and South America, and Caribbean. Also called American wormseed, I’ve read the Aztec translation of the word actually means “skunk sweat” (which seems like one of the last things I’d like to add to food…). The fresh leaves have a strong, petrol-like smell, but the dried form, here, captures some of the flavor of this herb and works well as a tea to aid in digestion.

In Mexican cooking, epazote is a key ingredient in (amongst others) black bean dishes, Oaxacan mole verde, and mole de epazote, a goat casserole. It’s flavor is distinctive and may require some getting used to. Some describe it as soapy (like cilantro), camphorous, and definitely minty. It’s not something you want to add to raw dishes because it’s so pungent, but it doesn’t require long cooking time either; it does the trick in cooked salsas.

To be completely honest, I have not done a ton of cooking with this herb, but it does add beautiful flavor to my (seriously) beefy chili. I’m also working on a roasted tomatillo salsa recipe into which I slip in a bit. Share with me please! What are your favorite ways to use epazote?

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Crispy Asparagus with Fenugreek Aioli

Epazote