Sugar Plum Sherbet with Star Anise

My tongue just twisted writing the title to this! The unbearable heat in NYC has lead me to more inventive ways of cooling down. What could be better than a homemade, refreshing fruit drink made with seasonal ingredients and interesting flavors?

Sherbet in America has come to take on a sorbet-like connotation, but the origins are really in the word “sharbah”, which is Arabic for “a drink”. Sherbet (or sharbat as we called it growing up) is a soft drink of sorts made from fruits, flower petals, and/or herbs. These are often extracted with sugar and lime juice to form a syrup, which is then diluted with water, milk, or evaporated milk and served over ice. Falooda, a South Asian sherbet, has always been a favorite of mine; it’s intoxicatingly flavored with rose syrup – will have to make it soon. Hibiscus, screw pine (amazing and unique), and saffron are other flavors often used in sherbets.

Turkey, India, Afghanistan – to name a few – all have their versions of sherbet. I’ve been researching Turkish food more as I’m planning a trip there for later this year (seriously canNOT wait), and I came across a recipe for sour cherry sherbet. That was the inception of this recipe. In the greenmarket, I stumbled upon these luscious, burstingly-ripe sugar plums and thought these one-up a sour cherry any day.

I also personally love the combination of plum with vanilla, and the star anise creates a beautiful perfume to the drink. The plum-tartness is balanced out well by the creaminess of the evaporated milk, and the result is actually quite delicate, more fruity than creamy. The milk can be left out of the recipe for those who don’t tolerate it well or simply want to watch calories – it’s delicious as a simple fruit drink over ice. I mixed a little sugar and cinnamon to create a rim on a martini glass and served it that way – lovely. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Yields approximately 9 to 10 cups

8 cups water

1 ½ cups sugar

1 ¾ lbs sugar plums (1 carton)

½ vanilla bean, split and seeds scraped

2 star anise pods

1 can evaporated milk

Ground cinnamon and sugar (for glass rim, optional)

Procedure

This is super easy.

In a medium pot, heat water on high. Add sugar and stir to dissolve.

Add whole plums, vanilla, and star anise. Bring up to a boil and lower to a simmer. Simmer, partially covered for 15 minutes. Uncover, and simmer for another 5 minutes. Throughout the simmering process, you want to mash the plums with a spoon – they come apart really easily.

Strain through a cheesecloth- lined mesh strainer. Pick up the ends of the cheesecloth and twist to squeeze all of the juice out of the plums. You may need to let it cool a bit before doing this. Discard the solids.

Let juice cool for a few hours in the fridge. Add evaporated milk. Serve over ice or in a cinnamon sugar-lined martini glass.

South African-Style Shepherd’s Pie

The World Cup madness of a few weeks ago had me reminiscing about South Africa. A year and a half ago I spent some time there and actually cooked with a Dutch couple in their home in Kalk Bay, an incredible experience.

I love South African food; it’s truly a multi-ethnic cuisine, a rich combination of all of the cultures that inhabit the country – Dutch, Malay, Indian, Arab, Portuguese, German and, of course, the indigenous Africans (Khoikhoi, Xhosa, Zulu). Gertie, the lady of the house, was incredibly knowledgeable about Cape Malay food. Cape Malay people are a community of Muslim, Malaysian heritage that arrived in South Africa from Java in the 1600’s. Their food has become synonymous with South African cuisine, bringing much of the spice, curries, and chilies.

We ate such a feast that night! South African rock lobster, rack of karroo lamb, old cape malva pudding (which I now HAVE to make. it’s beyond. look out for it soon), and the dish I am showing you today, bobotie. Before I discuss bobotie , I have to mention the wines we had with this meal. Gertie paired a Gewurtraminer with the bobotie because it’s both spicy and sweet, and the Gwertz complemented it wonderfully. But the most AMAZING wine was the 2007 Diemersfontein Pinotage. It literally tasted like chocolate and coffee, two of my personal favorites. The flavor of it stays with me until today. Unfortunately, to ship it home costed more than the wine, itself, so we didn’t. And now I can’t find it anywhere in the U.S….sad.

But, anyway, bobotie is an absolutely beautiful alternative to shepherd’s pie. It traditionally starts with either ground lamb or beef, spiced with curry powder and apricot preserves, and is layered on top with an egg custard. Amazing – spicy, sweet, with a creaminess from the egg custard. I actually use a combo of ground beef, veal, and pork, and, instead of apricot preserves, I use red currant jelly. It comes out richer and with a more robust flavor. Oh, and also, I don’t use curry powder….ever. Curry is a blend of spices, so, although the traditional recipe uses a pre-fab powder, I give a personal blend.

This makes a lovely casserole (all men cheer!), but I made it in individual portions here in soufflé ramekins – automatic portion control and it looks much prettier. Baking it in a water bath is also key to creating a luscious egg custard and not some sort of dried-out frittata layer. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Yields 4 10-ounce ramekins

Meat Filling:

1 slice white bread or brioche

2/3 cup milk

1 yellow onion (small)

2 ½ tbsps canola oil

1 or 2 green chilies, jalapeno or serrano

¼ tsp ginger, grated

1 ¼ lbs ground beef, pork, & veal (ask the butcher to do it thirds)

½ tsp turmeric

½ tsp cumin

½ tsp coriander

¼ tsp garam masala

½ tsp hot paprika

¼ tsp cayenne

½ tsp black pepper

3 garlic cloves

4 tbsps red currant jelly

2 tbsps malt vinegar

1 plum tomato, roughly chopped

salt

Egg Custard:

4 eggs

¾ cup heavy cream

pinch of salt

chives, for garnish

Procedure

Preheat oven to 350° F.

Place bread in a bowl and cover with milk. Let sit until ready to use, turning if necessary to make sure entire piece of bread is soaked.

Heat pan over medium-low heat. Add oil and sauté onions and chillies for 1 minute. Add ginger, turmeric, cumin, coriander, garam masala, hot paprika, cayenne, and black pepper and sauté another 4 to 5 minutes until onions are translucent. Add garlic and cook for under a minute or until it becomes fragrant.

Increase heat to medium-high. Add meat and brown for 3 to 4 minutes. Add red currant jelly, malt vinegar, and tomato, lower heat and simmer uncovered for 15 to 20 minutes.

Transfer mixture to a bowl using a slotted spoon and let cool briefly. Wring out excess milk from bread and add to meat mixture. Mix thoroughly. Fill 4 10-ounce ramekins ¾ full with meat mixture and place ramekins in a baking dish.

Combine eggs, heavy cream and pinch of salt and pour to fill ramekins. You want to bake these in a water bath, so fill baking dish with boiling water until it comes at least halfway up the sides of the ramekins.

Bake for 30 minutes or until the custard is set. Let cool for a few minutes before serving.

Moroccan Preserved Lemons

Preserved lemons are an incredibly distinct and subtle ingredient used in North African, Middle Eastern, and even certain East Asian cuisines. They may be added to soups, stews, salads, rice dishes, tagines, used as a stuffing, baked in a savory or even sweet pie…there are endless uses. Since it takes a month or so for the lemons to preserve and the flavor to really develop, I wanted to get on it immediately. I’ve been envisioning a beautiful sauce or even a bright salad to be served with summer’s grilled fish dishes and a cold goblet of rosé for a summer Sunday “family” dinner party…and maybe a friendly game of spades.

Although the flesh is used, it’s truly the peel and pith that are the celebrated ingredients. Meyer lemons are great for this because they naturally have a softer peel that eats very well. A cross between a lemon and a mandarin, their sweetness is an added bonus. If only regular lemons are available, go with them – that’s the tradition anyway.

Many recipes call for various spices like coriander and bay leaf to be included in the pickling liquid; some even add rose or orange blossom water. I’m keeping this super simple because I want these little lemons to be as versatile as possible. Enjoy!

Ingredients

Meyer lemons or regular lemons

Sea salt

Lemon juice

Sterilized jar

Procedure

I’m not giving exact quantities because it really depends on how large the jar is that you are using. You want enough lemons to fit in the jar and be completely submerged in lemon juice. You also want to be able to apply some level of pressure on the lemons so the juice oozes out of them.

Start by slicing each lemon into quarters but still keeping them intact at the stem end. Then, take ¼ tsp of sea salt per lemon and rub it onto the inside flesh. Place each lemon into the jar pressing down as you go. When the lemons are all prepped and in the jar, add enough lemon juice to cover completely. Weight down or use the lid of the jar as pressure and seal.

At this point, you just want to store them in a cool place. As I mentioned, they will take about a month, but they do look beautiful on the kitchen counter!

A South Indian Gazpacho

A friend of mine asked me for a gazpacho recipe and was looking for something a little different than the traditional. She wanted it to be fresh and healthy but with a more robust flavor. At first I considered making a white gazpacho, which is a delicious combination of almonds, grapes, garlic and bread. But summer shorts are upon us, and carb-minimization is in full effect.

I, then, thought about this East African stew I grew up eating. It’s called chana bateta and is made with chickpeas and potatoes in a thin, tart broth. That broth, in turn, got me to thinking about a popular South Indian soup called rasam as they share a very similar flavor profile. Rasam is a thin, peppery, tart soup that is often served to warm up winter nights or to help remedy a cold.

While at Devi, I often saw it used in various ways. My time there and the spices and ingredients at that restaurant will never cease to inspire me. I truly enjoyed working with Chef Mathur, who was innovative in his own right (thus helping to earn the restaurant a Michelin star in both 2007 and 2008).

Rasams come in all different forms – tomato, lemon, pineapple, and even mint, and it’s one of those recipes that is different for each household. Some have daal as an ingredient; some don’t. This is a completely different expression in that it’s a cold gazpacho-like soup with the flavors and ingredients of a rasam.

Tamarind is a requisite ingredient in every rasam, and I usually use the brick form. This requires soaking a nob of it for a period of time in hot water followed by straining and pressing to extract flavor – it’s a longer process but has a more developed flavor when using it for curries, chutneys and the like. For a quick cold soup like this, though, the jarred tamarind concentrate works really well (because, really, isn’t the ease the whole point of a cold soup like this?).

Although the soup is cold and refreshing, it has spice to it. You can always modify the amount of jalapeno depending on its heat, sub in a bell pepper, and add or remove chili powder to your tolerance level. I also cook the spices and the garlic because I’m not a fan of those raw. For a hot summer day, I think it becomes even better, with an iced, fresh mint tea made from steeping actual mint leaves in hot water with sugar and then pouring over ice. Or even serving it with a crisp, cold Sauvignon Blanc, because, after all, you did save on the carbs…Enjoy!

Ingredients

Yields 4 to 6 servings

1 cup water

1 tbsp tamarind concentrate

2 tsp palm sugar

3 tbsp canola or other neutral oil

2 tsp black mustard seeds

½ tsp fenugreek seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

1 tsp coriander seeds

10 curry leaves

3 garlic cloves

¼ tsp turmeric

½ tsp chili powder

5 tomatoes on the vine, medium dice

1 shallot, medium dice

½ to 1 jalapeno (or some combination of jalapeno and a half bell pepper), medium dice

Handful of cilantro, thoroughly washed

Procedure

Bring water to a boil, and add tamarind and sugar making sure both are fully dissolved.

Heat oil over medium-low heat. Add black mustard, fenugreek, cumin, coriander and curry leaves and listen for them to start popping. At that point, add garlic, turmeric, and chili powder and cook for a few minutes, stirring often to prevent sticking or burning of the spices. Quickly add a little water and remove from the heat if it looks like its about to burn.

Put tamarind mixture and cooked spices in the blender and blitz until the spices are thoroughly ground. The blender makes a fantastic spice grinder. Set aside in a bowl.

Using a food processor, process tomatoes, shallots, jalapenos and cilantro separately to achieve desired texture. Combine with tamarind and spice mixture and season to taste with salt and black pepper. I like to refrigerate for a few hours or even overnight to let all of the flavors combine. It’s a great do-ahead dish.

Savoury Roasted Cinnamon Popovers

I just looked at the title of this, and my mind immediately went to a breakfast association. The interesting thing is these popovers were conceived as a thought for an awesome dinner accompaniment: a hollow, savoury, buttery puff with which to scoop up extra sauce or even a jus.

I was eating Van Leeuwen cinnamon ice cream (out of the container) when I came up with the thought for these tasty treats. Van Leeuwen, which creates incredible artisanal ice cream, uses a Ceylonese version of cinnamon – the flavor reminiscent of Atomic Fireballs, those crazy hot candies we ate as kids that turned our tongues red. Although lovely, I prefer the more woodsy and subtle flavor of Vietnamese or Saigon cinnamon…Which I’ve read is actually a version of the cassia plant, not cinnamon after all.

Cinnamon is such a diverse spice and is a staple ingredient in many savory ethnic dishes; it adds such complexity and nuance to even a simple marinade. Whether part of Indian garam masala or a Mexican spice blend, the added note can elevate a simple dish to something much greater. Pan-roasting the cinnamon deepens the smoky-woodiness of the spice, which makes this even better as a savoury side. And who doesn’t love a popover? I mean their shapes alone are comical. And there is something about serving a warm baked (from scratch!) good at dinner that is suggestively decadent.

The best part is that this is a super easy recipe with ingredients most of us have on hand. Oh, and I’ve tailored it for use in a muffin pan. I feel like I don’t make them often enough to warrant the expense of popover tins and much prefer the smaller size. Although easy, the recipe is not without science, because getting these little guys to rise can be nerve-wracking. I’ve done it a million times and still stand watch peering through the hazily-lit oven (never open!) to make sure they are on track. So read the procedure carefully. And enjoy some luxurious dinner (or breakfast) popovers…

Ingredients

Yields 12 popovers in a traditional muffin pan

1 stick cinnamon or ¾ tsp ground cinnamon (Vietnamese, Saigon, whatever you like)

1 cup AP flour

½ tsp salt

1 cup whole milk

2 eggs

1 tbsp melted butter

melted butter for brushing

Procedure

Lower the rack in your oven to the 2nd rack from the bottom, and preheat oven to 450° F. Keeping the rack lower will prevent over-browning of the popovers.

Pan-roast cinnamon sticks or ground cinnamon in a sauté pan on medium-low heat until fragrant and toasty. If using sticks, grind in a spice or coffee grinder. You want to yield ¾ of a teaspoon of ground cinnamon.

Combine milk, butter, and eggs in a blender. Blend thoroughly. Add flour, cinnamon, and salt, and pulse until thoroughly combined. Don’t overmix. I like to pulse, scrape down, and blend until it just mixes through. You want to let the batter stand and come to room temperature (around 20 to 25 minutes). A room temperature or even slightly warm mixture will rise much higher and easier than a cold one.

When the batter is almost ready, place the muffin pan on a baking sheet and place in the oven for 5 – 10 min. You want to preheat the tin, and placing it on a baking sheet creates better heat from the bottom – again, all good for the rising of the dough. When hot, brush the muffin pan with butter to prevent sticking.

Fill the cups about halfway full and immediately place in the oven. Bake for 10 minutes at 450° F, and then lower temperature to 350° F for another 20. Don’t peak at them or they will fall! You want to keep the oven heat even. The puffs should be crusty on the outside and soft and hollow on the inside. I shut the oven off and leave the door slightly ajar, a technique used for gougeres, for another 3 to 5 minutes just to make sure.

Serve these delicious puffs warm!

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