Well it was bound to happen eventually.
Recipe FAIL.
I knew there was no way I was going to love every single recipe in this entire cookbook. I knew there would be some I (or Mr. Kitchenette, or both of us) wouldn’t like. I guess I just didn’t expect it to happen so soon, especially not with one so simple or that I was looking forward to. Or for my dislike to be so…. strong. I mean, this one was a Total Yuck (sorry, editors at America’s Test Kitchen….).
It looked pretty and it smelled good, but that’s pretty much all I can say in The Good category for this one. Oh, it also had a nice heat to it.
On to The Bad: Even after two-plus hours of cooking, the beans were still…. a little tough? toothsome? not cooked all the way through? How ever you want to put it, it wasn’t good. They weren’t crunchy or anything, but they weren’t done, or delicious, either. There was also some kind of unidentifiable metallic-ish bittnerness lurking under the heat that started off subtle but then just got gross. I really don’t know what it was, but it also wasn’t good.
There were a few odd ingredients in this one, such as slightly pulverized mushrooms, a wee bit of baking soda (which the book says “helped to keep the acidity of our chili under control and ensured that our beans stayed dark and didn’t turn gray or drab.”) and mustard seeds (or dry mustard). It could also have been my own fault: perhaps I could have picked a better tomato sauce to stir in halfway through its time in the oven (yeah, the oven instead of stovetop was also a little odd to me, but it seemed to be working okay) or maybe my chili powder was old or there was something off about my vegetable broth. I don’t know. It might have just been the day, which was a rough one here. Mr. Kitchenette’s cornbread muffins also fell flat (literally) and yucky with the added Yuck of a bit of scorch on the bottom.
Even the amount was a little bit off — not enough, for a change, though we were reaching for more out of sheer hunger at 8 p.m. last week, not deliciousness.
If you’ve made this recipe, let me know how it’s worked out for you. I’m curious.
In the mean time, I’ll be working on my own (vegetarian) black bean chili to share with you here soon.
Bear with me a little while longer while I keep learning/straightening out some technical stuff here. Posts are going up and will keep coming, but there are some issues with photos.
And if you know anything about the Evil Red WordPress HTTP Error, now would be the time to email me…
Yes, I know it is January in DC. And yes, I usually try to make things that are in season and come from the farmer’s market and all that jazz. But Mr. Kitchenette likes fennel and it looked good at the store. Plus, it was 60 degrees here so why not pretend it’s spring?
The Good
Who doesn’t love a one pan meal? And it’s not even a stir fry.
My favorite thing about this dinner, other than it being easy to make and clean up, is that it’s creamy without consuming more than 1/4 cup of cream (between two people). No roux, no elaborate cream sauce construction, just a little creamy. Very nice and not as guilt-enducing as the cream/butter/cheese combo that is Alfredo sauce.
A close second is nice variety of flavors and textures you get all in one bite between the sauce, pasta and vegetables. Downright refreshing. Though I haven’t tried it, I would bet you could do this up vegetarian using vegetable broth and leaving off the prosciutto (though for me, leaving off with any cured pork product is profoundly difficult).
The Bad
High-quality tortellini is a must. This is discussed in the recipe’s intro but mostly in the context of dried tortellini being pretty gross and fresh rating marginally better than frozen by taste-testers. We did use fresh, but note that “fresh” doesn’t always mean “good.” There are plenty of mediocre fresh pastas out there and the package from our neighborhood Harris Teeter was one one them. It didn’t render the dish inedible or anything, but they were kind of a disappointment. We made note for next time; don’t make the same mistake we did and try the Butoni pictured in the cookbook.
The Leftovers
None! We probably could have gotten the whole skilletfull on two large plates, but I was too busy trying to take pretty pictures.
Tortellini with Crispy Prosciutto and Spring Vegetables
from Cooking for Two 2011
Serves 2
Ingredients
4 think slices prosciutto (about 1 oz.), cut into 1/4-ich pieces
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
1 small fennel bulb (about 8 oz.), trimmed of stalks, cored and cut into 1/2-inch pieces
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 (9-oz.) package fresh cheese tortellini
3 oz. baby spinach (about 3 cups)
1/2 frozen peas
1/4 cup heavy cream
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, plus extra for serving
2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice
salt and pepper
Method
Cook prosciutto in 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium head until browned and crisp, 5 to 7 minutes. Using slotted spoon, transfer prosciutto to paper towel-lined plate and reserve for serving.
Melt butter in skillet over medium heat. Stir in fennel and cook until browned, 6 to 9 minutes. Stir in garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Stir in broth and tortellini and bring to rapid simmer. Simmer vigorously, stirring often, until tortellini is tender and sauce is thickened, 6 to 9 minutes.
Stir in spinach, peas and cream and cook over low heat, stirring gently but constantly, until spinach is wilted and tortellini is coated with sauce, 2 to 3 minutes.
Off heat, stir in Parmesan and lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Sprinkle individual portions with crisped prosciutto and serve with extra Parmesan.
So, as I explain over here, I finally got my hands on an awesome “for two” cookbook. Being from the folks at America’s Test Kitchen, it’s far more than just another cookbook. I’m sharing my adventures with it here, with all y’all, one recipe at a time through The Good, The Bad and The Leftovers (if there are any…)
For my first crack at using Cooking for Two 2011, I went with Baked Polenta (with toppings). There are a couple of variations on this, as the folks at America’s Test Kitchen often include, and Mr. Kitchenette was partial to the mushrooms, spinach and tomatoes, which is… more or less seasonally appropriate. Or at least more so than summer squash, anyway.
Now, stirring in raw garlic off the heat at the end was not how I learned to make polenta, so I had my doubts when I first read through the recipe. But I trust the editors at America’s Test Kitchen, so I went with it. And it totally works. The whole thing works. And while we’ll probably try some of the other variations — and making up some of our own — I’m pretty sure some version of this dish will make it into our regular dinner rotation. If nothing else, I have a new take on making polenta (though don’t think you’re getting out of any stirring on this one. It’s still polenta.).
The good
There is a lot going on, but rather than being overwhelming, it’s just enough. There’s garlic, but it’s not overwhelming. The teeny bit of rosemary is perfect. The tomatoes provide just enough acid. The sprinkle of chopped basil on top is perfect. There’s just enough cheese for some yummy gooey action without it becoming overwhelming and gluey.
The bad
Most of the things I didn’t like about this dish I can attribute at least in part to my own impatience. If I had it to do over, I would have cooked off more of the mushroom liquid, which was flavorful but made it a little soupy even after the requisite 10-minute resting period. I would also slow down and get just a little more carmelization on the onions. Both, I think, would provide even more depth of flavor. And I would have wielded the salt and pepper a little more liberally throughout. But on a scale of Yay to Yuck, these things are all pretty minor.
The leftovers
I don’t really think that cooking something in a pan, moving it to a bowl (that will also have to be washed), wiping out the pan and then cooking something else in it — even if the first things end up back in the same pan for a brief stint in the oven — entirely qualifies as a one-pan meal. In the old, sans dishwasher, no counterspace Kitchenette, that would have been a bigger deal, but for now it’s a pretty minor quibble. Just sayin’.
And, there were actual leftovers, maybe a little less than a quarter of the skillet’s worth, or about one lunch portion. Not bad, really, especially when you consider neither of us had been out chopping wood or anything and polenta is sooooo fillllliiinnnnng. I think if you made this after a day of skiing or something it would be totally gone in no time flat. Even if it doesn’t, the leftovers reheated nicely for a quick lunch the next day.
Baked Polenta with Mushrooms, Spinach and Tomatoes
from Cooking for Two 2011
Serves 2
Ingredients
Topping
5 teaspoons olive oil
1 lb. white mushrooms, quartered
1/8 oz. dried porcini mushrooms (about 2 T), rinsed and minced
salt and pepper
1 small onion, halved and sliced thin
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 teaspoons minced fresh rosemary or 1/2 t dried
6 oz. baby spinach (about 6 cups)
6 oz. cherry tomatoes (about 1 cup), halved
Polenta
1 2/3 cups water
1/2 cup whole milk
salt and pepper
1/2 cup polenta
2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
1 garlic clove, minutes
2 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into 1/4-inch pieces (about 1/2 cup)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 Tablespoons chopped fresh basil
Method
For the topping: Adjust oven rack to middle postion and heat oven to 450 degrees. Heat 1 Tablespoon oil in 10-inch ovensafe nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering. Strin in white mushrooms, porcini mushrooms and 1/4 teaspoon slat, cover and cook until mushrooms are very wet, about 3 minutes. Uncover and continue to cook until mushrooms are browned, 3 to 6 minutes; transfer to large bowl.
Heat remaining 2 teaspoons oil in skillet over medium heat until shimmering. Add onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in garlic and rosemary and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in spinach and tomatoes and continue to cook until vegetables are softened, about 1 minute. Transfer to bowl with mushrooms. Season vegetables with salt and pepper to taste.
For the polenta: Wipe out skillet with paper towels. Add water, milk and 1/2 teaspoon salt to skillet and bring to boil over medium-high heat. Slowly add polenta while whisking constantly in circular motion to prevent clumping.
Bring polenta to simmer, stirring constantly. Reduce heat to low, over and cook, stirring often and vigorously, until polenta becomes soft and smooth, 10 to 15 minutes. Off heat, stir in butter and garlic and season with salt and pepper to taste.
Smooth polenta into even layer in skillet. Spoon topping evenly over polenta, then sprinkle with mozzarella and parmesan. Bake until cheese is melted and golden, 15 to 20 minutes. Let cool for 10 minutes, sprinkle with basil, and serve.
… you just walked in to find me here, with that sad look upon my face…
Well, hopefully it’s more of a look of contrition than sadness, since I’m actually very happy to be back and with lots of brand-spankin-new-2012 plans for the much neglected corner of the Internet.
I don’t really have that much to say for myself, nothing that probably hasn’t been said by a million bloggers with varying degrees of truthiness. I am sad to say I got carried away in by the various other aspects of life and The Kitchenette fell by the wayside. It’s not that I wasn’t thinking of it. Of course I was! Every time I cooked something new in that teeny kitchen I was thinking about how I really should blog about this, or how awesome it would be to talk about some space-saving gadget on the blog. But the more time passed the more embarrassed I thought I would be to fire up WordPress and try to explain myself. Here goes anyway:
After the basement full of water (and the insufferable landlord’s reaction to it), there was a new job. And then another new job. And then a new job for Future Mr. Kitchenette. And then a ton of travel for My New Job #2 (and I do mean a Metric Ton). And then the wedding planning went from Moderately Crazy to Truly Insane to Actually Getting Married. And then, of course, there was The Honeymoon. And two days after returning from that I was back on a plane for the continuation of the Metric Ton of Work Travel. From there, work travel (and work in general) caused a lot of consternation before it really drove me to the breaking point. And not long after recovering from that, there was a move.
And now here we are.
Future Mr. Kitchenette is now just Mr. Kitchenette. The Kitchenette itself is no more… we left it behind in NoVa and moved into a house in the District that, while smaller overall, has a much larger kitchen — though it is not without its challenges [cough, 30yearoldelectricstove, cough]. While there are space-saving concerns for any kitchen, they are not as grave for me anymore and so I’m leaving that aspect of the blog behind for now. I’m still cooking for two and still struggling to limit the amount of leftovers languishing in our ‘fridge, so The Kitchenette 2.0 will focus more on that. Plus, I’ve got a little “cooking through a cookbook” project I’m embarking on and I’d love to have some kindred spirits along for the ride.
For those of you who have faithfully returned (or merely stumbled on the site while Googling), thanks for being here. I promise to give you a reason to keep coming back. For anyone just getting here, welcome to the party! I promise it’s going to go on for quite awhile, so you might just want to go ahead and bookmark this place now…..
Or Day 1 of the actual cooking, depending on how you’re slicing it; Day 1 basically consisted of obtaining said rotisserie chicken and, you know, eating some of it.
But now we’re getting down to business.
A Hat Tip goes out to Kitchenette pals the Sunday Sommeliers who took this allrecipies.com recipe out for a spin a week or so ago. The combo of spicy and sweet really drew me in, though I really took their warnings to heart — which resulted in doing quite a bit of tweaking to the original instructions.
First, the warning to those being short on burners and pans — this is a small kitchen blog. These are things I take seriously. Also, if I can alleviate Future Mr. Kitchenette’s dish-washing burden, all the better. So the quesadillas — which would have required an additional pan a tons more counter top to assemble — became burritos (also, burritos make FMr.K happy, generally speaking). Second, the SS’s noted that even when cut in half, there was a ton. of. food. Also a pet peeve here at The Kitchenette, so for this version, I tried to gear it more toward two people. Two hungry people, but just two. Finally, I kept a serious eye on those beans!
All Recipes offers the option to recalculate the whole thing for the number of people you have, but when I tried it, the measurements for this particular recipe got so silly I decided to just tweak it as I saw fit. We ended up with two huge burritos (and a few tablespoons of leftovers), which think would also translate to four big tacos, if that’s what you’re into. Do as I say and not as I do: don’t overfill your tortillas or innards will fall out all over.
Also, and this change is probably pretty obvious, the Kitchenette version also involved actual chicken. But as you can see in the original recipe and the SS’s post, it is totally doable (and I’m sure quite delicious, as Mr.S is usually a meat-eater), with vegetarian-friendly “chicken” strips.
Black Bean-Mango-Chicken Burritos
Ingredients
Method
* Yes, I actually have something that measures “a pinch.” I reckon it’s about 1/8 teaspoon, but you should use these two (or just one) ingredients to add as much heat and smoke as you like.
And every night, in fact. For a few days anyway.
Even though I gave the Internets a chance to boss me around last week, not many people took me up on it and told me what to make for dinner in the wake of The Great Flood. There was one person who made a suggestion that got the wheels turning, though (yeah, it would be my mother, The Kitchenette Mom. Go fig.): grocery store rotisserie chicken.
You heard me.
I used to think of it as something reserved only for People Who Do Not Cook. But it’s also for The Busy, Those Contending With Disasters, People in the Middle of Moving and a wide assortment of others. And the more I thought about it, the more I thought about all the recipes in my arsenal that call for “xx cups of cooked chicken.” Why do I cook something only to have to to cook something again? Hmmm…
So a plan was hatched. A plan-cum-challenge, really. We have here, in The Kitchenette, two people, one rotisserie chicken and five days of the week. I’m going to try to make tasty dinners (and maybe even a couple lunches) with the pre-cooked chicken and some obvious and not-so-obvious ingredients on hand. We’ll see how long we can stretch it and how good a meal I can turn out basically using leftovers. Are you up for it?
Day 1 of the Chicken Challenge was just Boston Market rotisserie chicken and side dishes (damn, I love side dishes). Apparently, grocery stores around here only have chickens available at certain times and we missed the cut off. Repeatedly. But at least the basement is back to normal.
Stay tuned for more adventures in chicken…
For some reason, Boston Market dismembers your chicken for you when you order a whole one.
I’ve been hooked on magnetic timers for a while, starting with this little digital Ikea baby I think I got for a dollar or something.
It hung with me for a long time before giving up the ghost a couple of weeks ago. We’re talking years. Not bad for a buck.
And then along came this beauty.
Easy to use (as long as you follow the directions). And dig that retro styling — retro kitchens call for retro widgets and details! It ticks and rings like a real bell and everything, all without batteries. I went with green to bring out the lovely (asbestos?) tile floor, but it comes in a variety of colors from a couple different manufacturers.
I have even taken to carrying it around the house with me or sticking it on the fence or metal shed in the yard when I’m outside, as defense against my total lack of sense of time.
It’s metal and therefore a little on the heavy side as far as magnetic timers go, but the ultra-strong magnet keeps it in place on most surfaces. Rather than digging through a drawer when you need it or parking it on the counter even when you don’t really have the space, track yourself down a pretty magnetic timer and plaster to the front of the ‘fridge. As an added bonus, it holds up whatever recipe you’re using.
Just a quick note, Dear Readers, regarding the current state of chaos in The Kitchenette.
The power kicked off this morning at Casa de Kitchenette, which is, sadly, not a rare occurrence. There was the usual trekking down the dangerous basement stairs in the dark. But instead of hitting the cold basement floor with a smack, my bare foot hit about three inches of water with a sploosh instead.
The entire (full, finished) basement was full of water, no thanks to the pair of failed sump pumps that usually run pretty much constantly. After hours of consternation from the “management company,” our favorite plumber was able to get us back in business. More or less. There is still a lot of clean up to be done. We’re looking at some pretty substantial casualties and keep finding new puddles, so bear with us for the next couple of days. There’s probably not going to be a lot of cooking or a lot of posting.
In the mean time, I’m calling a Reader’s Choice: you say it, I saute it! What should we be cooking to a) make us feel better and b) that’s easy and virtually mess-free (as we are spending an inordinate amount of time cleaning up messes in the basement and are in no mood to extend that to the kitchen)?
So here we are, in that uncertain space between seasons. It only lasts a few weeks, but I am easily frustrated by it. The sunshine (it’s back!) makes me want to throw open the window and run around in a tee-shirt. But when the window is open, it’s a cool breeze that seeps in, tinged with the scent of earth and cold rain.
It’s in-between time for food, too. The sun and warmth and budding trees makes me long for fresh summer vegetables, but it’s only time for planting them, not eating them. And I’ll admit it, I’ve never been that into the first tastes of spring — you can keep your fiddlehead ferns and your ramps. To me, they always taste more bitter and wintery than springy and fresh.
Maybe that’s because when I was little, spring and Easter meant Lebanese food, not foraged weeds. When my family, immediate and extended, all lived in Cleveland, holiday hosting duty rotated among the homes of relatives, mostly on my mother’s Italian side. There was Wedding Soup on Christmas Eve at Mrs. Citino’s house (the mother of my uncle’s wife), a “side dish” of lasagna at my grandmother’s Thanksgiving table. But Easter was different. That was at my aunt and uncle’s house, and Uncle Eddie took the Lebanese half of his heritage very seriously — at least when it came to the food.
The Easter I remember best from my childhood featured an inordinate amount of lamb in all kinds of Lebanese preparations — lamb stew with preserved lemon and garlic, kibbeh balls fried to perfection, the more exotic kibbeh nayyah with little wells of olive oil, lamb kabobs grilled with pomegranate molasses and spices — plus plenty of lebneh and laban and tahini to slather on things at will. I ate so much kibbeh nayyah and bulgher, I gave myself a stomach ache. My uncle just laughed, happy to have a niece who gobbled up raw lamb without even blinking. read more…