Kristendish

Wolverine from Cheeseboard with Lionza cheese

I rarely purchase a wolverine (wheat/sourdough roll with dried fruit and walnuts), generally opting instead for a bialy, oat scone or brain muffin, but sometimes it’s just meant to be…

The cheese wasn’t as good as the name implies. Probably good in a grilled cheese sandwich maybe with some sauteed onions or mushrooms, kind of plain for snacking purposes.

The remnants.

Rutabaga, Potato and Butternut Squash Mash- with leeks, garlic and yogurt dollop

Whiskey marinated flank steak

Once again, I adapted a recipe from Culinate for a delectable meal. Sometimes I make something then literally a week later I see that same something in their newsletter, and other times I go to them for ideas. We really are compatible. I was so happy to come across this one and then to purchase the last available flank steak from Prather Ranch Meat Co. at the farmers’ market. Luckily, I made it to the market at 8:15am when everyone was setting up (I know, that’s ridiculous…)

Ingredients

• 1 lb flank steak
• 4 Tbs whiskey (used a smokey scotch that wasn’t to my palette for drinking, but worked out well for marinating steak)
• 4 Tbs oil
• 4 Tbs soy sauce
• 2 Tbs brown sugar
• 1 tsp hot sauce
• 2 minced garlic cloves
• 1 tsp black pepper

Directions

1. Mix ingredients apart from steak and marinate steak in sauce you’ve created (flip to coat) for 4hr to all day.
2. Remove from marinade and either broil or grill to medium rare. As I have no grill, I just broiled on each side about 8 minutes, I would have preferred it pinker.
3. While meat is cooking, heat marinate in sauce pain and reduce (med-high). You can also add some other ingredients to taste at this time (herbs, spices, butter, wine, whatever).
4. Served with sauteed broccoli rabe atop polenta.

Dona Tomas chile relleno.

Potato croquettes with artichoke-prosciutto stuffing

I had some leftover potatoes from the gnocchi, other ingredients from a spread, so I decided to wrap the first around the second and fry the whole shebang. All you need to do is boil potatoes until tender, mash with an egg and olive oil drizzle until the batter holds together (I also added some parsley) and wrap around filling of choosing then fry until golden on each side. This one happened to have goat cheese, chopped prosciutto and diced artichoke hearts.

Linguine with clams

After reading a passage in Heat, a book about a famous NY chef who “finds himself” in Italy (shocker), I had an immense craving for linguine and clams, which I have never made before. The dish is surprisingly simple and even if you buy very quality ingredients (which I definitely recommend) it’s also not pricey at all. The taste is simple yet classy, like a nice black cocktail dress and leaves you very satisfied like your favorite pair of jeans.

Ingredients (Enough for 2 large portions, you will want them!)

• 1/2-3/4 lb clams (if small, buy more because the shells make them weight more)
• 1/2 lb fresh linguine (I used simple egg noodles so that the flavors would stand out, but lemon or herb or some such would do)
• 4 cloves garlic, diced
• 1/4 C diced leek or onion
• 1 C dry white wine
• 2-3 Tbs butter
• Olive oil drizzles
• 1/2 C chopped fresh parsley
• Lemon squeeze

Instructions

1. Submerge clams in water and wash.
2. Heat garlic and onion in about 2 Tbs olive oil drizzle on medium until soft
3. Add clams, wine, butter. Simmer about 20min, until clams open (do not eat if they don’t open). You can add more butter/oil/wine/etc. to taste.
4. While clams are cooking, boil pasta about 5 minutes (or according to directions), drain. Toss clams in pasta with parsley and squeeze of lemon.
5. Serve with crusty bread (or toasties) and salad.

Twin clams- I swear this isn’t a prank!

If I could only figure out how to get clams to always breed twins, I’d make a fortune in the shellfish industry!

Fresh Gnocchi

This has become one of my go-to dinners when I’m in the mood to get my hands dirty with some potato dough. A lot easier than they will have you believe. I usually use yukon gold potatoes just because I think they are more flavorful than Russets, but this time I went with the classic Russets and they were similarly lovely and held together much better (duh, probably why the recipe calls for Russets in the first place!)

Ingredients

• 2 large Russet potatoes (or the equivalent in another type of potato)
• 1 egg
• 1/2-3/4 C flour
• Dash salt

Directions

1. Peel, quarter, boil potatoes until tender. Drain (save potato water), and wait until cool enough to handle.
2. Using a fork, press down on potatoes to create fluffy mashed potato. It’s important to work lightly with this step and future steps so the potato stays fluffy. Apparently, there’s an apparatus called a ricer that makes fluffy potato mash much faster, but I do not own one and this works just as well.
3. Whip egg in small container and add about 1/2 to top of potato along with flour, salt then fold ingredients into potato with fork/spatula/hands, which ever works for you. Knead dough lightly until thoroughly incorporated. Add flour as needed so dough holds together and is not sticky- but don’t add too much!
4. Cut dough into 8 pieces, roll out each into a log. Take one log and cut of 1/2 inch pieces all the way down. Using fork, create grooves in each piece like you’ve seen before. Repeat with all logs.
5. Boil in old potato water, add some if needed. Cook in 2 batches, gnocchi are done when they rise to the top.
6. They can be served with any accoutrement you’d use with pasta, I like to join then with a prosciutto-garlic-greens and light cream sauce.

Endive salad with toasted walnuts and a meyer lemon dressing

I served this with handmade gnocchi (previous post) with a prosciutto, garlic, greens sauce. The salad could have been dressed up for a lunch main with fresh crab and citrus and/or avocado.