Onion Soup

I made this last Thurs for a Friday night dinner with broiled steak and twice-baked potatoes with goat cheese (bit of an indulgent meal to start the weekend off right). I've been wanting onion soup for quite some time and was inordinately pleased with this as a first effort. Credit goes to Rob for the crowning touch, though. When he was on business in Italy, a ginormous hunk of real Parmesan came across his way and has since found itself in my refrigerator after I begged him to save me the rinds so I could make minestrone later on. When I mentioned Friday's proposed menu he asked if this was the reason I wanted the rinds. It hadn't been, but what a brilliant suggestion. After sitting for a day and reheated slowly with a chunk of Parmesan rind, the soup was incredible and umami-rich. It's a slight annoyance letting the onions caramelize, but rewarding in the end. You want to make this.

ONION SOUP
adapted from Gourmet, December 2006

roughly 2 lbs onions, thinly sliced (plain yellow worked wonderfully)
1 large bay leaf
3 sprigs of thyme (optional - I didn't use them, but would have had I been able to get them)
3/4 tsp salt
1/2 stick butter
2 tsp flour
3/4 c red wine (I used a good Merlot)
4 c good-quality low sodium beef broth
1 c low sodium chicken broth
1/2 c water
grinding black pepper
1 heaping tsp Dijon mustard
2-3 tsp balsamic vinegar
2x1-inch piece Parmesan rind (not waxy)

In a 4-5 qt Dutch oven or similar heavy pot, melt the butter over medium-low heat. Add the onions, bay leaf, (thyme sprigs) and salt and toss gently to combine. Cook slowly over medium to medium-low heat, stirring frequently, leaving the pot uncovered, until onions are very soft and a deep golden brown, about 45 minutes.
Add the flour and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Stir in the wine and cook for 2 minutes. Add the broths, water, pepper, mustard, vinegar and Parmesan rind and simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes. Serve hot.

Lunchbox: Spicy Shrimp and Cucumber-Chickpea Salad

Successfully completed grad school interviews, 1; number of other interview requests, 0; days to wait until hearing back, seemingly endless very large number.

I made this salad last night for dinner and have lunches now for the rest of the week. Super-simple recipe, but really freaking good. There's definitely a hit of spicy in it but not overpowering so you're not breathing fire afterwards. Somewhere there's a bitter note - I think I may have gotten a not-quite-right lime - but overall I'm gushing over it. I didn't think I'd eat today because of the interview stomach butterflies but I pulled this out of the fridge and downed every bite. It's tasty whether served warm or cold.

SPICY SHRIMP AND CUCUMBER-CHICKPEA SALAD
adapted from two combined Self magazine recipes, via Epicurious

salad
1 large cucumber
1/2 c plain nonfat yogurt
1/4 tsp chili powder
1/4 tsp garam masala
1/2 tsp ground cumin
1 tsp dried cilantro
sugar to taste (I used 1 1/2 tsp)
zest of 1 lime
1 15-oz can chickpeas, rinsed and drained
1/2 c julienned roasted red bell pepper
juice from 1/2 lime
1 tsp minced ginger
2 scallions, thinly sliced
1/8 - 1/4 red onion, thinly sliced
1-2 bags baby lettuce blend
shrimp
2 tsp olive oil
2 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp minced ginger
3-4 cloves minced garlic
12 oz frozen medium to large size shrimp, thawed
2 Tbsp chili garlic sauce
1-2 Tbsp lemon juice

For salad: Halve the cucumber lengthwise and scoop out seeds with a spoon. Cut each half into quarters lengthwise and dice. Place in a colander and toss with some salt; let drain for at least ten minutes.
Whisk together yogrut, chili powder, garam masala, cumin, cilantro, sugar and zest; set aside. Gently combine chickpeas, bell pepper, lime juice, ginger, scallions and red onion in a bowl. Add drained cucumbers. Pour the yogurt dressing over and toss to coat thoroughly. Season with salt and pepper to taste.
For shrimp: Heat olive and sesame oils in a medium skillet over high heat. Add the ginger and garlic and saute about 45 seconds. Add shrimp and chili paste, tossing to cook evenly, about 3-4 minutes until shrimp are pink and cooked through. Add lemon juice, stir, and remove from heat.
For each portion: arrange a bed of lettuce on a large plate or bowl. Top with 1/4 of the chickpea-cucumber salad and drizzle a little of the dressing around the greens. Top with 1/4 of the shrimp. Yields 4 servings.

What's In Your Basket?

Rachel (she of the Food Maven and also the highly enjoyable Coconut & Lime) kindly invited me to participate in her What's In Your Basket? event to share my grocery list. Would I? Gladly. I love grocery shopping. Sometimes my friends make fun of me. I'm actually trying to cut back.
I would like to preface, even disclaim, this by saying I feel this is a rather misleading grocery trip, for several reasons. One, I went after book club Monday night meaning it's late and the store - Genuardi's, about a minute drive - didn't have everything I wanted but I'm also not about to make another trip elsewhere at this hour for nonurgent things (such as ground turkey) I nevertheless would have bought had they been there. If I end up at Trader Joe's later in the week I'll be sure to addendum the damage to my wallet. Two, some meal components are things already in the pantry and I'm still working off the impulse buys from the last time (Quaker Quakes Rice Cakes which are single-handedly going to destroy my diet - I'm kind of addicted - and Nabisco 100-calorie cookie packs in three unnecessary flavors, I am so looking at you) and so the totals are down. Three, and perhaps most importantly, I realized my loot looks really deceptively healthful. I'm not a vegetarian, but you might not know that from this run. And lest you get the wrong impression about all that produce, I'm eating leftover takeout pizza as I blog. Mmm, greasy cheesy goodness.
Ok. I feel better.
Here we go:

2 cans of chickpeas, on sale for fifty cents each
8 oz bar Nestle Chocolatier bittersweet chocolate and 1 can evaporated skimmed milk, for this month's Sugar High Friday
1 container of fake eggs, on sale for 2.49. I like them best perhaps because they don't taste like real eggs. For many that's probably a downside to them, but it's a bonus for me.
1 small container plain nonfat yogurt
1.83 lbs bananas
2 kiwi
1 lime
1 cucumber
2 bunches of scallions. Don't leave the grocery store without them.
2 not-even-close-to-ripe avocadoes, 2 for $3
2 green-skinned pears
5-lb box of clementines, and they better be seedless for 7.99
2 bags baby lettuce blend, on sale for $2 each
1 bag baby spinach, on sale for $2
8 oz fat-free feta block. Buy the block and crumble it yourself and you get 2 oz more than you would buying pre-crumbled for the same price.

grand total: 39.25.

I Dream of Quiches

Tasty things come in small packages.

Sara and I made quiche this past weekend, and although I had it for breakfast three days straight, I could not get it out of my head. We went overboard with the veggies, so much so that we had it to split the filling among two crusts, and it came out just the way I like eggs: combined with so much other good stuff you barely notice them. But even all the other things - zucchini? Normally I don't even like zucchini. But nestled in there with a tangle of spinach and othher vegs, it was perfect.
Too perfect. I sent Sara home with the other quiche in an effort to restrain myself, but all for naught. I came home from work in the kind of mood that only cooking cures, got out my too-cute-for-words mini pie pans, the eggs and our leftover vegetables (sadly, all the zucchini went), and got on with it.
Not half an hour later, I had four tasty small packages and breakfast for the next few days. Better yet - the crustless version means it's virtuous (right? right?) and ridiculously easy. Sara, I owe you one for the inspiration.

CRUSTLESS VEGGIE AND MOZZARELLA MINI-QUICHES

3 large eggs, room temperature
1/2 c 2% milk, room temperature
3 oz reduced-fat mozzarella cheese (the string cheese kind comes in 1-oz portions)
1 Tbsp flour
1/2 red pepper
1/4 red onion
2 cloves garlic
1 ripe tomato, thinly sliced
salt
white pepper
2 tsp italian seasoning blend
nonstick cook spray

Preheat the oven to 400 F. Set four miniature pie pans on a baking sheet and spray each pan lightly with nonstick cook spray.
Finely dice the pepper and onion and mince the garlic. Place in a small nonstick skillet over low heat and cook for about five to seven minutes or until beginning to soften. Season with salt and white pepper to taste and the 2 tsp italian seasoning. Cook for one minute more, then remove from heat to cool.
Shred the mozzarella and toss in a small bowl with the flour.
In a large measuring cup, whisk together the eggs and milk. When the vegetables have cooled, gently add to the egg mixture and stir. Stir in the cheese-flour mixture. Stir well as you divide the quiche mixture among the four prepared pans evenly. Slip one tomato slice under the surface of each quiche until just covered with egg and top with another slice.
Bake the quiches at 400 F for about fifteen minutes, or until set. Let cool in the pans at least ten minutes. Gently slide a small spatula around the sides of the pie pans and slide onto a plate. Yields 4.

Scrap Iron Chef Indian

I hosted the charming Mindy K. this past weekend in a girls’ day in. She brought a bottle of peach wine and took us out for ice cream, and I stuck to the things I do best: gossiping, cooking, and falling asleep during movies (was anyone else severely disappointed by the Pierce Brosnan version of The Thomas Crown Affair? I’m glad I didn’t miss much).
City suburbs can be tough for girls with discriminating palates and low budgets. So I challenged myself into making the meals we would’ve had, had we gone out to eat, and seeing what I could make the most of from my pantry and buying the least to supplement it. After perusing her hypothetical eating options, Mindy chose Coriander Indian Bistro and I started getting creative. Allez cuisine, indeed.

Spending just over ten bucks (woo woo) I gathered together a semi-authentic Indian dinner: chicken tikka masala, I learned, is apparently actually a British-Indian concoction, and the coconut milk is possibly just shy of blasphemy. The sticking point though was the garam masala – I didn’t have it, didn’t find it anywhere, and wasn’t going back to the grocery store after I realized there actually isn’t cardamom in my spice stash. I subbed in five-spice powder, which though cardamom-less, had fennel, ginger, clove, cinnamon and star anise, all ingredients which I’ve found in one version of garam masala or another. Min said it tasted as good if not better than the restaurant tikka masalas she’s had. As I’d never eaten it before, I can’t say the same, but it’s darn tasty stuff. I can’t decide if the cucumber salad needs more of a kick or not, but we nearly ate all of it anyhow: the peanuts are awesome and make it entirely different from the Thai cucumber salad I also love.
Yesterday while cruising Reading Terminal Market on a work errand, I located the elusive garam masala. My work handbag and my kitchen cabinet are now both wonderfully spicy-smelling, and I’m one more spice prepared for my next scrap Iron Chef experience. Bring on your challenges!

CHICKEN TIKKA MASALA
adapted from allrecipes.com

Marinade
1 ½ tsp cumin
1 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp or so red pepper flakes
ground black pepper
1 tsp salt
heaping ¼ tsp coriander seeds, crushed
½ tsp turmeric
½ tsp five-spice powder
1/8 tsp nutmeg
1/8 tsp ground cloves
1 c plain non-fat yogurt
1 T lemon juice
1 T minced ginger
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 ¼ lbs boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into thin 2-inch long strips
sauce
8 oz tomato sauce
1 c light coconut milk
1 bay leaf
1 tsp cumin
1 tsp paprika
few dashes curry powder
cilantro (I just threw it in, maybe a tsp?)

For the marinade: mix all spices and stir until combined well. Stir in the garlic, ginger, lemon juice and yogurt and mix well. Place the chicken strips in a large plastic bag and pour in the marinade. Turn the chicken to coat. Seal the bag, squeezing out the air, and refrigerate for eight hours.
Preheat an indoor electric grill to medium.
In a saucepan set over medium-low heat, mix the sauce ingredients and heat, stirring, for twenty minutes. Do not boil.
When the grill is hot, remove strips and shake off marinade. Place chicken on the grill and cook for three minutes. Turn and cook for an additional three minutes. Check the chicken, cooking longer if necessary. As chicken strips are done, remove them from the grill to the saucepan and cook for two minutes, turning to coat in sauce. Serve hot.

INDIAN CUCUMBER-PEANUT SALAD
adapted from allrecipes.com

2 large cucumbers
salt
¼ red onion, thinly sliced and separated into strands
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 Tbsp lemon juice + more to taste
1 tsp sugar
½ tsp cilantro
3 Tbsp dry-roasted peanuts

Wash the cucumbers, cut off the ends, and halve lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds with a spoon. Thinly slice and place in a colander in the sink or over a bowl. Add some salt and toss to combine. Let the cucumbers drain in the colander ten minutes.
In a bowl large enough to accommodate the cucumbers, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, sugar and cilantro. Add the onion strands and drained cucumbers and toss to coat. Sprinkle with chopped peanuts.

Lunchbox: Tuna, Tomato & Haricot Verts with Mustard Vinaigrette

This week's sandwich alternative comes by way of my new Martha cookbook and by my being sadly seduced by the bizarrely warm weather into thinking it was summer enough to make it. As luck would have it, the climate turned over the weekend, and today I ate my lunch at my desk staring at errant snow flurries.
Ultimately, I've decided that while the haricot verts make an acceptable workday lunch, they are far better suited to not traveling and being served still warm-ish, instead of needing to be refrigerated and sort-of-brought-to-room-temp. In addition, the tuna was frozen and thawed, which was good because it was cheaper and easier (you can thaw as much as you need at a time, and cook up a bit at a time throughout the week instead of all at once so it’s not gross still eating this on Friday) and still tasty, but I have to confess to being utterly superficial here. Tuna when not pumped full of all sorts of weird preserving things changes color when frozen. I suppose I should be grateful that I didn’t ingest all the weird preserving things, and know that it’s natural and good and all that, but a little (ok, a lot) of me can’t help but feel that this would be so much more appealing with tuna seared just so on the outside and left all red and rare on the inside even if it's through artificial means. So overall chalk this up to experience, and when actual summer comes around I'll try it again.

However, the mustard vinaigrette is really freaking good - I don't think I've ever wanted to eat green beans so much in my life, and for that it's bloggable. Martha's version didn't have quite enough mustard or vinegar for me, but with some adjustments I wanted to lick the bowl. Yum.

TUNA, TOMATO AND HARICOT VERTS WITH MUSTARD VINAIGRETTE
adapted from Martha Stewart's Living Annual Recipes 2005

1 lb tuna fillets
2 lbs frozen haricot verts
2-3 good-size ripe tomatoes
2 large shallots
2 Tbsp red wine vinegar
1 1/4 heaped tsp Dijon mustard
8 tsp olive oil
salt and pepper

Heat a nonstick pan over high heat. Pat the tuna dry and spray with nonstick cook spray or lightly brush with oil. Season with salt and pepper. Sear the tuna on both sides until cooked to desired doneness(if serving right away, go rare; if it needs to travel, medium-rare - it will hold up better). Remove to a plate.
Finely chop the shallot and season with salt and pepper. Stir in the red wine vinegar and let sit for fifteen minutes. Whisk in the mustard. Whisk in the olive oil, one teaspoon at a time.
Place the haricot verts in a large dish with several tablespoons of water. Cover and microwave on high for about seven minutes until cooked but still crisp. Drain well. Seed the tomatoes and dice them, or dice them and leave in a colander for several minutes to drain off some of the water.
Mix the haricot verts with the vinaigrette gently in a bowl. Add in the tuna and tomatoes and sprinkle with additional vinegar to taste.
Yields a workweek's worth of lunches.

Chili-Vanilla Shrimp with Avocado Salsa

When I first began blogging, I was really excited because I had convinced myself, much in the same way that when younger I convinced myself that simply getting a keyboard for my birthday would enable me to play the instrument and achieve rock-stardom, that I would now become an absolute whiz with digital photography, because, hey, I had a camera and now routinely things to take pictures of. Easy as pie – actually, I think pie is easier.
I still have not mastered the art of food photography, and I still haven’t become a rock star. The keyboard has a bunch of dust on it, and although the camera is well-used sometimes I beseech you just to trust me on these things, because I know they’re so much better than I make them look. It's not the food's fault.

I made this over the weekend, when Rob was craving seafood and I had the urge to put vanilla salt (all credit and thanks to Jasmine at Confessions of a Cardomom Addict) in something other than baked goods. And I had avocadoes and tomatoes, and after a bunch of Googling I ended up making a mixture of things which worked wonderful together (the failures I don't let you read about!) and totally loved. I like the contrast of a little bit spicy, a little bit sweet in the shrimp with the rich avocado cut by the lime. The only change I'd make next time would be to use larger shrimp - I think they have better flavor to begin with.

CHILI-VANILLA SHRIMP WITH AVOCADO SALSA

shrimp
12 oz peeled deveined shrimp, thawed if frozen
1 c white wine
2 Tbsp grapeseed oil
1/2 tsp vanilla extract
3/4 tsp vanilla salt
1/8 tsp white pepper
2 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
splash - about a tsp - lemon juice
1 tbsp chili powder
salsa
4 Tbsp lime juice
2-3 Tbsp grapeseed oil
3 cloves garlic, minced or pressed
1 1/2 tsp salt
small amount minced jalapeno to taste
3 scallions, finely chopped
2 tsp cilantro
2 small-medium ripe tomatoes
2 medium-ripe avocadoes (it helps if they're still somewhat firm)

For the shrimp: in a large bowl, mix together the wine, oil, extract, s&p, garlic, lemon juice and chili powder. Add in the shrimp and turn to coat. Cover and refrigerate at least one hour but no more than six.
Make the dressing: In a measuring cup, mix the lime juice, oil, garlic, salt, jalapeno, scallion and cilantro. Let sit at room temperature for at least half an hour to meld.
When ready to cook: Seed and dice the tomatoes and place in a medium bowl. Halve, pit, and dice the avocado and add to the bowl. Whisk the dressing to mix and pour over. Carefully, without smushing the avocado into a mass of green, toss the mixture together to coat. Sprinkle over a little additional lime juice to prevent browning.
Drain the shrimp from their marinade and cook in a very hot pan until shrimp are pink and cooked through.
Serves 2 really hungry people.

Lamb With Eggplant and Onions

It's no secret I’m a fan of lamb. That being said, it’s often not around because of either the price or it comes in massive legs that I never know what to do with. Apparently, a while back I had the foresight to buy one of those said massive legs on sale and cut it into pieces to use separately. I thought there were no more left, until one came bounding out in a freezer avalanche the other night and nearly clobbered me on the head. Finding lamb in the freezer, especially when it does not actually hit you in said avalanche, is kind of like rooting through your closet and discovering a purse or jeans you left twenty bucks in one night – what a great surprise!
I love this stir-fry of lamb (I’ve done beef in the past, which is also good here) and eggplant because I love both major components of it, and because their use here in the stir-fry is semi-Asian and semi-spicy. There’s no need to do anything annoying with the eggplants either: no skinning, no salting, and if you watch the pan carefully over the high heat relatively little oil used for a vegetable that can soak it up like a sponge, and so I think you get a much cleaner and more smoky eggplant flavor. The whole thing takes about forty-five minutes (minus time for the baking soda if you use it; I liked it here for tenderizing particularly because it was frozen and thawed meat), which will give you just enough time to make some brown rice for going with it. It makes what looks like a pile of food for one, but you’ll either have meals for a few days or find yourself sneaking cold pieces of the sauced eggplant from the fridge, which trust me is oh-so-tasty.

LAMB WITH EGGPLANT AND ONIONS
adapted from Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Library: Stir-Fry

Baking soda (optional)
1 lb boneless leg of lamb, cut into small chunks or slices suitable for stir-frying
1 egg white
1 Tbsp cornstarch
2 Tbsp soy sauce
3 Tbsp rice wine vinegar
3 Tbsp hoisin sauce
2 Tbsp chili sauce with garlic
2 Tbsp broth or water
1 tsp toasted sesame oil
2 eggplants, total weight about 2 ¼ lbs give or take
2 small to medium onions
5 scallions
~ 5 Tbsp vegetable oil

Optional: Place the lamb slices in a bowl and cover with baking soda to cover. Toss and rub in the baking soda until all is lightly covered. Refrigerate for at least 15-20 minutes or up to a few hours. When ready to begin, carefully rinse all baking soda residue from the lamb in a strainer under cold running water and shake dry.

In a bowl, mix together the egg white, cornstarch and soy sauce to dissolve the cornstarch. Place the lamb in the bowl and turn to coat well with the mixture. Cover and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes.
In a small bowl or measuring cup, mix together the rice wine vinegar, hoisin sauce, chili sauce, broth and sesame oil.
While the lamb is marinating, rinse the eggplants and cut off either end. Split lengthwise and cut each half into sticks, each about 2-3 inches long and a ¼-inch thick. Set aside.
Peel the onions and cut lengthwise, then slice each half into thin half-moon slices. Set aside in a separate bowl. Cut off the ends of the scallions and then cut each into lengths of about 2 inches and set aside.
Heat 1-2 Tbsp vegetable oil in a large skillet, wok or frying pan over high heat. When the oil is hot but not smoking, add about half of the eggplant. Cook, tossing and turning every 20-30 seconds for about five minutes, until the eggplant is cooked all the way through. Remove to a large bowl and repeat with the second half of the eggplant, adding a bit more oil if needed.
Lower the heat to medium and add a scant Tbsp of oil. Add the onion slices and cook, tossing and turning so they don’t brown too much, until hot and still just a little crunchy, about five minutes. Add the scallion pieces and cook, turning, for another thirty seconds. Remove to the bowl with the eggplant.
Add 1 Tbsp of oil to the pan and increase the heat back to high. Add the lamb in their marinade to the hot pan, tossing in the oil so they don’t stick, and cook until browned on all sides, about five minutes. Lower the heat to medium-high. Quickly stir the reserved sauce and add to the pan. Add in the eggplant and onion mixture and mix together with the lamb and sauce, turning to coat. Cook, turning, for about 2-3 minutes until all is heated through and sauced. Serve hot.

Lunchbox: Salad with Grilled Marinated London Broil

I’m not usually a fan of London broil, seeing as how it has a tendency to be monstrously tough, but there is something to be said for its good beefy flavor and relative cheapness. Back before the holidays, I’d tried to find flank steak but ended up having to settle. Armed with a slew of good reviews for the marinade both on Epicurious and the Food Network, I set out the ingredients. One day of marinating turned into two – and I’ve come to the conclusion that I would never let the London broil go for anything less than that, and never cook it longer than medium rare at most. Had it for dinners back before the break and froze the rest to use now for lunchtime salads.
The leftover beef slices got thrown cold into a colorful mix of romaine, radish slices, carrot shreds, scallion and tomato and topped off with TJ’s sesame soy ginger vinaigrette, which pairs well with all the flavors in the beef. Aside from the two days to marinade, which I found made an exceptional difference to improve taste and texture when using such a cheap cut like this, it’s an absolute snap. I love this marinade.

GRILLED MARINATED LONDON BROIL
Straight from Gourmet, May 1994

2 to 2 ½ lb London broil, trimmed
4 large garlic cloves, minced
4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 teaspoon dried oregano, crumbled
1 teaspoon dried basil, crumbled
1 teaspoon dried thyme, crumbled
1/2 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes
2/3 cup olive oil

Place the London broil in a large Ziploc bag. Mix all marinade ingredients in a measuring cup or bowl and whisk together well. Pour over the meat. Press the air out of the bag and seal. Set the bag on a plate or in a dish and refrigerate for 2 days in there, turning the bag over every 12 hours or so.
When ready to go: preheat your grill and remove meat from marinade; let the meat stand for a bit to take the chill off (this will help to give a more accurate temperature reading on the meat thermometer). Pat dry with paper towels and rub each side with a little vegetable oil. Grill meat to desired doneness. Let stand 10 minutes before slicing.

Christmas Eve, and More Biscotti

Back into the new year, hello '07, and back into the swing of things with cooking! Hoping you all had lovely holidays . . .
Though Christmas is now past, I can’t let everything go by without putting up some of the food memories.
My family’s big on food, family and tradition at the holidays, and though it’s evolved some to accommodate my numerous discovered allergies and my parents’ recent adoration of South Beach, Christmas Eve dinners have remained relatively the same since my childhood. I wouldn’t have it any other way - there's something so comforting about the familiarity, and in having the family traditions.
For appetizers, there’s smoked salmon with red onion and capers, herring, shrimp with homemade cocktail sauce and in more recent years breaded calamari (it took so long one year to do hand-cut, hand-breaded that we’ve caved to sensibility and sanity and just buy Contessa frozen – it works for me well enough). This year I brought along the leftover black pepper parmesan biscotti: draped with smoked salmon, it’s a thing of beauty.
Every year, my father relates the story of going home with my mother back in college when they were dating, and helping her mother, my grandmother, grate the potatoes for potato pancakes. He now uses a Cuisinart to do the dirty work, but this marked his 34th year of helping or making the pancakes. They’re never quite the same year to year, but they’re always phenomenal. Dinner is broiled flounder or shrimp scampi and potato pancakes. Vegetables, while always there, are sort of an after-thought to our stars of the show.Dessert this year was phenomenal, above and beyond. My mother puts out whatever goodies she gets from her students, my father makes miniature mince tarts in a muffin tin. This year my friend Sara, who joined us for festivities, brought home an absolutely delectable bread pudding with cherries in port and white chocolate sauces from Mumford’s.
It’s been my job since high school, when I received a copy of Williams-Sonoma’s Cookies and Biscotti, to bring chocolate chip biscotti. Last year I worked with a bit of a chocolate drizzle on top and was feeling the need for something different, a new tweak, and came up with these: they’re enhanced by cinnamon and employ one of my latest baking favorites, cacao nibs.
Christmas Day, whatever there is for dinner at my aunt's, there is leftover scampi and kielbasa before. It is simply not quite Christmas without kielbasa. Preferably, real Polish kielbasa. Sometimes they will travel an hour or more out of their way for the kielbasa. We’ve had some poor ones before, not quite up to par, but this year’s came from my mother’s cousin, possibly by way of a farmer’s market somewhere. It was excellent: honest real smoked kielbasa, actual chunks of pork, peppery and garlicky, cooked my mother’s way with tons of dilled sauerkraut. I’m hoping we’ll score some more of it for Easter, which is the other big kielbasa occasion during the year.

Between everything else in the course of the days, I can also say I’m now a proud owner of the it book Baking: From My Home to Yours by Dorie Greenspan, and given everyone else’s raves can’t wait to break it in. Next year's biscotti might come from there; for now, I'll leave you with these.

CHOCOLATE CHIP BISCOTTI WITH CINNAMON AND CACAO NIBS
adapted from Williams-Sonoma Kitchen Library: Cookies and Biscotti

2 c flour
1 1/2 tsp baking powder
2 tsp cinnamon
1/8 tsp vanilla or regular salt
1/2 c unsalted butter at room temperature
1/2 c firmly packed light brown sugar
1/2 c sugar
2 eggs
1 12-oz bag (about 2 c) dark/bittersweet chocolate chips
3/4 c cacao nibs
cinnamon sugar (1/4 c sugar mixed with 3/4 tsp cinnamon)

Preheat an oven to 325 F and butter two baking sheets.
Sift together the flour, baking powder, cinnamon and salt in a bowl; set aside.
Combine the butter and sugars in a large mixing bowl. Mix on high speed until light and fluffy. Mix in the eggs, one at a time, and beat until light and fluffy.
By hand, mix in the chocolate chips and cacao nibs. Add the flour mixture and mix by hand just until incorporated.
Divide the dough in half. Place each half on a prepared baking sheet. Lightly flour hands and form each half into a log, about 3" wide and 3/4" high. Sprinkl;e the loaves well with cinnamon sugar; press gently into the top.
Bake until firm to the touch, 25-30 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool for 5 minutes. Leave the oven set at 325.
Using a spatula, carefully transfer logs to a large cutting board. Use a serrated knife to cut on the diagonal into slices about 1/2" thick. Arrange the slices cut-side down on the baking sheets and bake until bottoms are brown, about 10 mintes. Remove from the oven and carefully turn slices over. Bake until the bottoms are brown, about 10 minutes. Transfer to wire racks to cool.
Yield: about 3 dozen.