Roast Tenderloin

Christmas comes around with ornament filled trees and colorful lights. A host of wrapped gifts bring good cheer. And a grand repast calls us to the table. We take into account favorite foods of all the family. So we have ricotta toasts with fava beans, crab dip and stuffed grape leaves. Roasted marrow,  homemade tomato soup and then the piece-de-resistance....a perfectly roasted medium rare beef tenderloin, accompanied by broccoli rabe and cannellini beans, a fennel and potato hash and roasted wild mushrooms. 

This recipe works for a few reasons. It is a reverse grill, meaning the beef is seared well before roasting in the oven. A fast sear to seal the outside allows the meat to roast easily in a low oven. No outdoor appliances are required, though the tenderloin will get a better crust if you use a grill. So you could make this anytime of the year. 

Bill Parisi's very adaptable recipe is a snap to make. Find a good quality tenderloin, preferably prime. Chop a lot of garlic, parsley, onion and thyme. Slather tenderloin with marinate overnight. Follow with the reverse sear. You are guaranteed a succulent success. 

ROAST TENDERLOIN

Adapted from Bill Parisi

Serve 6

1 2-3lb Tenderloin, trimmed of silver skin

5 Garlic cloves

2 tablespoons Thyme leaves

1/2 cup Parsley leaves

1/2 cup minced Red Onion

4 tablespoons Olive Oil plus more for searing beef

Kosher Salt

Ground Black Pepper

Chop garlic, parsley and thyme finely. 

Place in a bowl.

Add onion to bowl.

Pour olive oil over garlic and let garlic, parsley, onion and thyme macerate for 15 minutes. 

Place tenderloin on a baking sheet. 

Season generously all over with salt and pepper. 

Cover tenderloin with flavored oil. 

Marinate overnight. 

Heat oven to 275F/135C.

Heat a large griddle or frying pan. 

Add a tablespoon of olive oil to pan. 

When the pan is hot lay tenderloin in the pan and quickly sear all the sides.

Alternately, sear the tenderloin on a hot grill. 

Place tenderloin on baking sheet and roast in the oven for 25 minutes for  medium rare. Minus 5 minutes for rare beef. Add 5 minutes for a medium well beef. 

Take the meat out of the oven and let it rest for 5 minutes. 

Carve into 1/2" slices and serve. 

The melt in your beef pleases all. The grand repast ends with chocolate pie and a yogurt cake. A rather pleasant way to enjoy a special day.

Crab and Cheese Spread

Tis the season for meeting dear friends, enjoying the warmth of their familiarity, being together to celebrate joys of life. This group has met over the year, a camaraderie of like minded folk, a requisite in these troubled times. I have offered to make an appetizer for Colleen's holiday dinner. This spread is a quick way to use either crab meat or shrimp if you prefer them. I choose the former. 

Onion, chiles, lemongrass, ginger, garlic and tomato paste are blended into a coarse paste. Sauteed in a little olive oil, the paste takes on a darker hue. Precious cream cheese is added. Precious you ask? There is a shortage or cream cheese in the United States, so I use it only for loved ones! Cilantro, mayo and lemon juice round off the spread. Crackers, my vehicle of choice, are wedged alongside!

CRAB AND CHEESE SPREAD

Serves 6-8

1/2 Red Onion

2 Green Chiles

1 Lemongrass stalk

4 Garlic cloves

1" Ginger

2 tablespoons Tomato Paste

1/3 cup Water

2 tablespoons Olive Oil

1 cup cooked Crab Meat

1/3 cup Cream Cheese

2 teaspoons Mayonnaise

1/4 teaspoon Kosher Salt

Cilantro 

Lemon Juice

Crackers

Chop onion, chiles, garlic and ginger finely.

Trim lemongrass. Remove outer rough layer. Use only the bottom 3" of tender stalk. Cut into thin slices.

Blend onion, chiles, garlic, ginger, lemongrass and tomato paste with water, till pulpy.

Heat oil in a saucepan. 

Add paste to oil and saute constantly for 10 minutes till paste turns a deep maroon. 

Add cream cheese, mayo, salt and stir well to mix. 

Take pan off the flame and allow the residual heat to melt the cheese. 

Gently fold in crab meat. 

Add cilantro and squirts of lemon juice. 

Mix and plop on to a platter. 

Arrange crackers around the spread and enjoy.

This is a rather superior version of crab by a long shot! We surprise ourselves with repeated slatherings. Col eats some in place of her dinner! Another delicious way to spread the love!

Cinnamon Sugar Puffs

Our goddaughter Nikita makes dessert puffs that melt in your mouth, a sugary confection I just fall in love with. I am determined to  try my hand at these bites of happiness. Why am I not surprised that it is a Smitten Kitchen find! After all, millennials love her recipes. 

Its an easy dough made with the usual suspects, butter, sugar, eggs, vanilla, flour, leavenings and some nutmeg. Buttermilk adds tang. Mini muffins are topped off with a coating of butter and cinnamon sugar. These baked puffs are a joy to make and eat!

CINNAMON SUAGR PUFFS

From Smitten Kitchen

Makes 24 mini muffins

1 1/2 cup AP Flour

1 1/2 teaspoons Baking Powder

1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda

1/2 teaspoon Table Salt

1/4 teaspoon ground Nutmeg

5 tablespoons room temperature Butter plus more for greasing muffin tins

1/2 cup Sugar

1 Egg

1 teaspoon Vanilla Extract

1/2 cup Buttermilk

1 tablespoon Cinnamon powder

1/2 cup Sugar

3 tablespoons Butter

Butter 24 mini muffin tins.

Whisk flour, baking powder, baking soda, salt and nutmeg in a bowl.

Heat oven to 350F/180C.

Cream butter and sugar in a stand mixer bowl, till light and creamy. 

Add egg and beat well.

Add vanilla and beat till combined.

Add 1/3 of the flour mix. 

Follow it by 1/2 the buttermilk. Beat well. 

Add another 1/3 of the flour followed by the rest of the buttermilk.

Pour the rest of the flour in. Scrape the sides down and cream till mixed. The dough will be pretty stiff.

Spoon about 1 heaped teaspoon in each muffin tin. 

Bake for 30-35 minutes till the edges are brown and a cake tester comes out clean. 

Cool on a wire rack for 5 minutes. 

While the muffins bake, combine sugar and cinnamon in a bowl. 

Melt the butter and cool.

Have butter and cinnamon sugar handy.

Lift the muffin out of tin and dip the top in butter. Allow butter to drip off, them roll the top in sugar. Place on wire rack. Finish the other puffs in this way. 

Eat them warm. Though they taste pretty good at room temperature as well.

I have to keep them a safe distance away from me....for they are  so easy to pop into your mouth!

Naan Triangles With Charred Eggplant

 

My friend Geets  makes a delectable Ottolenghi eggplant dip. A mash of charred eggplant, tomatoes, garlic and dill are a few things she added in. Topped with a drizzle of tahini sauce, the dip is the perfect foil for scraps of pita bread. I make something similar with a few twists.

Charring the eggplant is today's experiment. Rain prevents me from using the grill. So halves of eggplant are roasted in a hot oven till deep brown, then laid skin side up in a saucepan and sauteed till soft and pulpy. Though there is an easier method for some. Here in the US, Indian and Middle Eastern stores carry canned or jarred roasted eggplant pulp. Not quite the charred eggplant from an open flame but pretty adequate. Stir fried with tomatoes and spices, the eggplant transforms into thick puree. Store bought roghni naans cut into  small triangles, are topped with a schmear of dip. A slurry of yogurt and garlic make a tangy topping. Dill fronds perk it up. Time for appetizers!

NAAN  TRIANGLES WITH CHARRED EGGPLANT

Serves 4

1 cup charred Eggplant pulp, homemade or store bought 

2 tablespoons Olive Oil

1 small white Onion

4 Garlic cloves

1 teaspoon Tomato Paste

1/2 teaspoon Sugar

1 cup crushed Tomatoes OR Marinara sauce

Lots of Ground Black Pepper

3 tablespoons Dill leaves and more for garnishing

1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt

2 tablespoons Yogurt

1/2 teaspoon Garlic Powder

A pinch of Kosher Salt 

Roghni Naans or any Thin Naans

Cut onion and garlic into very small dice.

Heat oil in a saucepan.

Add onion and garlic to oil and saute till onion is soft. 

Add tomato paste, sugar and tomatoes. Stir fry for a few minutes.

Add eggplant to tomatoes. 

Season with pepper, dill and salt. 

Cook over a low flame for 5-7 minutes till thick.

Mix yogurt, garlic and salt in a small bowl. 

Heat naans. 

Cut naans into small triangles. 

Top each triangle with a teaspoon of eggplant puree. 

Dot with yogurt. 

Garnish with dill fronds.

Enjoy!

These appetizers make converts out of my eggplant hater. Yes there are a few. So it warms my heart to see her gobble a few....

Clam and Green Pepper Soup

My son's friend Andrew Ortiz generously gives me a bag of Long Island clams. Ones that he enthusiastically dug out at the beach, on a cold morning. He is a fishing aficionado, his love for the briny catch a mainstay on weekends.  I'm happy to share in his wealth!

With fair warning on their sandy nature, I open the clams with a hearty boil. Once shucked, I give them a good rinse before using them. They look like mini geoduck clams. Soup starts by sautéing onions and garlic. Green peppers come from Rosemarie, Andrew's mum's garden. The focus is on the tender clams, the texture not quite as chewy as cherrystones, but a softer, buttery flavor. Soup is spot on!

CLAM AND GREEN PEPPER SOUP

Serves 4

2 dozen Steamer Clams, Cherrystone or Quogue

1 large white Onion

3 Garlic cloves

1 large Green Pepper

1 tablespoon Olive Oil

1 heaped tablespoon all purpose Flour

4 1/2  cups Chicken Stock 

1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt

Ground Black Pepper

Wash clams well. Discard broken clams.

Place them in a large pot and cover with cold water. Bring to a boil. Let clams boil for 3-5 minutes. Discard unopened clams. 

Remove clam meat from the shells. 

Steamer clams have a proboscis. Peel off the outer leathery covering. Rinse well again as these clams are gritty.

Chop onion, garlic and green pepper into small dice.

Heat oil in deep saucepan. 

Drop onions, garlic and peppers into oil and saute till soft and translucent, 3-5 minutes. 

Scatter flour over veggies. Stir well and allow the raw flavor of flour to cook off.  Do this over a medium low flame. Stir constantly or the flour will catch and burn. 

Add clams to the saucepan.

Pour stock into the saucepan and bring soup to a simmer.

Simmer soup for 10 minutes. 

Serve hot. 

Clams are a revelation! My first time cooking and eating these beauties. It is love at bite spoonful. Thank you Andrew and Rosamarie! 

Jewish Apple Cake

How do you realize that the cake you've made is a big success? When friends eat fat slices for breakfast, lunch, tea and dinner! When you hear moans and groans between bites! When a large, yes, a rather large cake disappears practically overnight! 

Dear friends from Evansville arrive at teatime, to a spread of Indian snacks and this charming cake. No shrinking beauties, the girls start with slivers and end with chunks! I have to restrain them as dinner is a few hours away!

I first saw this cake on Sikandalous, a foodie website. The chef referred to a Washington Post recipe which I read and loved.  Such a versatile recipe. Such ease of prep work. It helped that I had a basket full of New York State apples. Using a springform pan instead of a bundt pan, resulted in a showstopper, easy to lift from the pan rather than upend a bundt, which at the best of times is a calculated risk. I like the fact that the cake uses oil in place of butter.

Why is it called Jewish cake I wonder? It might be a reference to Eastern European dietary customs as they used oil and orange juice in place of butter. What ever the reason is, one slice is all the sweet, soft comfort you need.

JEWISH APPLE CAKE

Adapted from Betsy Krystal

Serves 10-12 

2 cups + 5 tablespoons Sugar

1 heaped tablespoon Cinnamon powder

3 cups all purpose Flour

1 tablespoon Baking Powder

1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt

4 Eggs

1/4 cup Olive Oil

2 1/2 teaspoons Vanilla Extract

1/4 cup Orange Juice

6 small Apples

Confectioners Sugar

Grease a springform pan well. Use butter or oil spray. 

Line the bottom of the pan with parchment paper.

Whisk 5 tablespoons of sugar and cinnamon in a small bowl.

Whisk flour baking powder and salt together in another bowl.

Peel, core and cut the apples into 1/2 inch slices.

Heat oven to 350F/180C.

Using a stand or handheld mixer, beat remaining sugar, eggs and oil till creamy and light colored about 2-3 minutes.

Mix the vanilla into the batter.

Add the flour in thirds, following each portion with half the orange juice. Start and end with flour. Beat well after each addition. The batter will be thick. but fluffy.

Pour half the batter into springform pan. Smoothen it gently.

Arrange half the apple slices in a concentric layer over batter. Overlap the apples if you need to. 

Sprinkle half the cinnamon-sugar mix over the apples. 

Gently pour the remaining batter over the apples. Smoothen it.

Then arrange the remaining half of the apples over the batter. Do this in a neat fashion as it will be visible once baked. 

Sprinkle the rest of the cinnamon-sugar over the apples. 

Thump the pan a couple of times gently then place it on a baking tray and bake for 50-60 minutes or until the top is light brown and a cake tester comes out clean.

Transfer pan to a wire rack to cool for 10 minutes. 

Run a knife along the edges of the pan and release the edges. 

Once the cake is cool, lift gently  and peel the parchment paper off.  Transfer cake to a plate. 

Dust with confectioners sugar before serving.

NOTES

Small apples give the cake a more dramatic appearance. 

The cake can be covered in plastic wrap and refrigerated for 4-5 days.

The cake freezes well wrapped in parchment and plastic wrap, for up to a month. Wrap the entire cake or individual slices. 

I tell the truth. Generous portions of cake abound! Cake makes for happy people. Except one. Geets is allergic to apples so has to abstain. A favorite dessert will have to suffice.

Lemon Chicken

When Ottolenghi reinvents an old favorite, I pay a great deal of attention. Then I make neccessary adjustments, often because his process is a tad laborious. I say this tinged with some regret as his recipes are glorious. Sadly I do not have the discipline most times to go through hoops for everyday dinner. So I improvise, amend, usually loving whatever spouts from the great guru. Once again, I try, with astounding results. 

Ottolenghi calls for pounded chicken breasts. I use boneless, skinless thighs. The emphasis on lemon is overwhelming, so I omit some. Other than these minor omissions I follow the recipe. Chicken is marinated overnight. Lemons are cooked till soft and pulsed into a thick paste. The sauce is an easy boil of stock, sugar, lemon paste, turmeric and roasted cumin. Strong spices that float away and echo dimly on your palate. Once you have the foundation prepared, shallow fry the chicken, pour the sauce in, garnish and serve! Ottolenghi is a culinary genius!

LEMON CHICKEN

Adapted from Yotam Ottolenghi

Serves 2 hungry people

3 boneless skinless Chicken Thighs

1 Egg White

2 tablespoons Soy Sauce

2 tablespoons Cornstarch

1 tablespoon Canola Oil

1/2 cup Chicken Stock

1 tablespoon Butter

1 teaspoon Sugar

3 teaspoons Lemon Paste (Recipe Below)

A Pinch of Turmeric

1/4 teaspoons Roasted Cumin Powder

1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt

Ground Black Pepper

1 Scallion

Lemon Paste

3 Lemons

1/2 teaspoon Kosher Salt

Slice 1 lemon thinly. Place in a small saucepan. Juice the other two lemons and add to slices. Sprinkle with salt, cover and cook for 10 minutes over a low flame. Uncover and process or blend cooked lemons into a thick paste. Add 1 tablespoon of water if needed. Refrigerate in a covered container. This makes a 1/2 cup of paste.

Trim chicken thighs of visible fat. Cut each thigh into 2 pieces and place in a bowl.

Add soy sauce, egg white and corn starch to chicken. Mix well. 

Refrigerate overnight or marinate for at least 4 hours. Bring refrigerated chicken to room temperature before frying. 

Heat stock, sugar, butter, lemon paste, turmeric, roasted cumin powder, salt and pepper in a saucepan. 

Bring to a simmer and cook for 10 minutes till slightly thickened. 

Heat oil in a nonstick saucepan. 

Add chicken to pan and cook till golden on one side for 3-4 minutes. Flip chicken and cook the other side till golden another 2-3 minutes. 

Pour sauce over chicken and simmer for 5 minutes. 

Thinly slice scallion and scatter over the chicken. 

I am a convert to this delectable chicken. Hope you will be too!