Giving Latkes a Try

Every year around this time I start hearing buzz in the food world about potato pancakes. Potato pancakes in every incarnation, with sweet potatoes, rutabagas, and every other starchy thing under the sun. This year I decided to participate, but took a different route with spinach. The recipe for the latkes comes from the book Food 2.0, written by the former chef at Google. The pancakes were scrumptious, and defying tradition, I decided to skip the applesauce and indulge in a beautiful fried egg as an accompaniment. All is right with the world.

Thanksgiving Redux

Two years ago I made an amazing butternut squash soup for Thanksgiving. I never got a picture since my family slurped it all down as soon as it hit the bowls. Well, I just happened to have some leftover butternut squash recently, so the soup made another appearance. And this time I got the shot I wanted.

Learning to Love Italian

I am NOT a fan of Italian food. I think it's heavy, too dependent on tomatoes, and has way too many carbs. But I was probably poisoned to its possibilities by too much Ragu spaghetti and Domino's pizza when I was a child. So it's very rare that I agree to go to an Italian restaurant, and even rarer that I actually enjoy it. So I definitely didn't expect to enjoy Carmine's in New York City.

I am also not a person that enjoys eggplant. I think it's tasteless, pasty, and slimy, and would be perfectly happy never to have to eat it ever again. But that was before Carmine's. That was before eggplant parmigiana. Now just the thought of that delicious bit of heaven makes my mouth water. Unlike traditional eggplant parmigiana, which features thick slices of eggplant slathered in sauce, Carmine's eggplant is cut thin, fried crisp, and layered like a lasagna with lots of mozzarella. I always thought I would only be able to taste it at the restaurant, but, to my happy amazement, they have just released a cookbook.

I made the eggplant parmigiana this weekend, hoping it was just as good, and with a few changes to the recipe, it came out perfectly. And I absolutely love it. It's the only eggplant I love. It's the only Italian dish I love. The recipe is in this book.

Here are the changes to the recipe:

- I used a 9"x5" loaf pan instead of the 8"x4" loaf pan. I'm sorry, but all that eggplant doesn't fit in that little pan.

- You need an eggplant that's probably around 1 to 1 1/4 pounds. I found the 1 1/2 pound eggplant made WAY too much to fit in one dish.

- Err on the side of slicing thinly. The eggplant cooks faster and crispier when sliced thinly.

- Make sure you use the very finely grated Romano cheese (the same texture as the Kraft parmesan in the green canister). If you get a regular grate, it won't remain suspended in the egg wash.

- You don't need a full cup of sauce in the bottom of the dish. I used about 1/2 cup, just enough to get the bottom wet.

- Put the loaf pan on a cookie sheet, as it has a habit of dripping onto the bottom of your oven.

- You don't need to wait until the whole dish cools down, then flip it out, etc. Just cut into two or three large pieces and scoop it out. If you want a cheesy top, sprinkle cheese on top, and bake without foil until it melts, about five minutes.

Tex-Mex Breakfast

I've really been hurting lately for some Tex-Mex goodness. My last trip home was this summer, so it's been a months-long dry spell. I decided the easiest and most delicious option was to make some tasty breakfast tacos with guacamole on the side.

I wish I could say I used some chorizo or Jimmy Dean, but I didn't. Here in New Italy, your sausage comes three ways: hot, sweet, or luginiga. I picked sweet since I have to use the rest of the sausage in something else, but yes, it was weird. Luckily the onions, tomatoes, and jalapeno I added to the mix were just perfect. The eggs cooked up fluffy and bright, probably due to the fact that I splurged on some cage-free super eggs. The tacos were perfect with a topping of Cheddar cheese and the salsa I dragged all the way from Texas when I moved (all hail Joe T. Garcia's!).

Breakfast Tacos

1/3 chub Jimmy Dean breakfast sausage

1/2 medium tomato, diced

1/2 small onion, diced

1/2 jalapeno, diced

3 eggs

1 tbsp heavy cream

1/2 tsp ground cumin

Cheddar cheese

Salsa

Tortillas, warmed (corn tastes better, but flour holds up better)

Cook sausage in large skillet, breaking up into small pieces as it cooks. When it is no longer pink, add tomato, onion, and jalapeno. Cook for 3-5 minutes, or until onion softens slightly.

Beat eggs, cream, and cumin in a small bowl. Pour egg mixture over sausage and vegetables, and stir occasionally until eggs are scrambled and cooked. There should be enough grease left from cooking the sausage to keep the eggs from sticking to the pan. Stuff tortillas with egg mixture, and top with cheese, salsa, and any other topping you love. Suggestions include sour cream, guacamole, jalapeno slices, and cilantro. You can also add cubed cooked potatoes to the mix, but add some ground red pepper and salt to season the potatoes.

Quickie Curry

Tonight I wanted a quick dinner, but something still warm and comforting. While walking the aisles of my local A&P, some jarred red curry paste caught my eye. Pretty soon I was imagining all sorts of delicious goodies floating in a spicy sauce, so of course I bought it. I also got some butternut squash that is so prevalent right now.

I followed the recipe on the side of the jar, sort-of. Basically I sauteed some chicken and onions, then added a can of coconut milk, then several spoons of curry paste, a tablespoon of fish sauce, about two spoons of brown sugar, half of a cubed butternut squash, and a chopped green pepper. Twenty minutes later I had dinner.