"new" spices

I love to try spices out -- my cabinet bulges from the little one to two ounce packets that I buy from The Spice House in Chicago. Since my wife is from Chicago, when we last visited, I had an opportunity to stop by and sample things in their store. These spices aren't new to this world, mind you -- they are, however, relatively new to me.

One of the things that intrigued me most was smoked paprika. I had never been into paprika at all -- didn't really understand what it was for. Smoked paprika, though, is incredibly full of flavor and very versatile. I have used it in any dish that would lend itself to the addition of a smoky flavor. We tend to infuse smokiness by using smoked meats (pork, primarily). If you are a vegetarian (poor souls), that really isn't an option. Try using some smoked paprika instead! I used it in a recipe for black-eyed peas and it was delicious. No bits of meat, but the flavor was there. I've also started using it in homemade barbecue sauce (and rubs) -- instant smoke flavor without having to use "liquid smoke."

Another interesting spice was fennel pollen. I would describe it as a sweeter, more intense version of the traditional fennel seeds. I rubbed a chicken down with this, kosher salt, and olive oil and roasted it at 375 until the thigh read 170 F on a digital thermometer -- everyone raved and was taken by the subtleties of this spice. It's not as pungent as the seed, so food doesn't taste so much like Italian sausage. By baking it into a sweet treat (like biscotti), it brings out some totally different characteristics of the spice...it seemed to have an almost floral essence (which, I guess, is natural since it's pollen).

Do you have any interesting spices or recipes to share? As I use up my stash, I'll post more ideas for what to I've dome with these non-traditional (insofar as America goes) and "new-to-me" spices.

[recipe review] korean-style grilled flank steak

This recipe, from the July 2007 issue of Gourmet Magazine, does a really nice job of bringing some simple flavors together to create a wonderful dinner salad that is satisfying, yet light.

First up: flank steak. This is a cut of beef that I really love. It is fairly lean, yet full of flavor. It can be tough if overcooked, but when cooked properly (no more than medium-rare) and sliced properly (thin and against the grain) it is juicy and tender -- requiring no more mastication than a NY strip.

The sauce consists of a mixture of several easy-to-find kitchen staples and Asian ingredients: soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, garlic, ginger, sugar, sesame oil, and Sriracha (Asian chile sauce). My local grocery store carries all of this stuff, save for the Sriracha. You can find it at Whole Foods or any Asian grocery.

Honestly, I had everything but the Sriracha and didn't feel like making a special trip so I used the same amount of Tabasco. It isn't a precise match, but brought the requisite heat to the sauce. Overall, the sauce seems salty until it is incorporated into the finished dish -- there, it serves to season the steak, rice, and lettuce and comes off as well-balanced and very tasty.

For the rice, I made sushi rice in my Zojirushi rice cooker, which always turns it out perfectly. Rather than make lettuce wraps, I used baby butter lettuce and made it more like a salad. The butter lettuce was a great choice -- it didn't wilt under the heat of the steak or rice and was mild in its flavor, providing a clean palette (along with the rice) for the steak and sauce to shine.

If you need a new way to cook a steak, I highly recommend this easy recipe.

1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons rice vinegar (not seasoned)
1 tablespoon grated peeled ginger
1 garlic clove, minced
2 teaspoons Sriracha (Southeast Asian chile sauce)
2 teaspoons sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons Asian sesame oil
1 to 1 1/4 pound flank steak
2 scallions, finely chopped
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds

Accompaniments: white rice; soft leaf lettuce

Stir together soy sauce, vinegar, ginger, garlic, Sriracha, sugar, and sesame oil.

Prepare a gas grill for direct-heat cooking over medium-high heat.

Oil grill rack, then grill steak, covered, turning over once, 6 to 8 minutes for medium-rare.

Transfer steak to a cutting board and drizzle with 2 tablespoons sauce, then let stand, uncovered, 5 minutes. Thinly slice steak across the grain. Serve with remaining sauce, scallions, and sesame seeds.

Makes 4 servings.

really good madeleines

If you've ever been seduced by a madeleine, you know that the little cookie-esque cake (or is it a cake-esque cookie?) is a tender, buttery pastry that pairs particularly well with a hot beverage. We know that M. Proust waxed poetic about its ethereal qualities, but he didn't leave anyone a recipe. Funnily, people have been chasing the Proustian madeleine for quite some time. I'm not claiming to have found "the" recipe. My only claim is to have added some tweaks to classic madeleine recipes that really jack up the flavor. By using roasted almonds and browned butter, this recipe goes for the flavor jugular -- producing aromas of caramel and spices that aren't in the recipe. If you don't have a madeleine pan, you can spoon the batter out on a parchment-lined cookie sheet and bake it that way -- not quite madeleines, but tasty nonetheless.

1/3 cup whole roasted almonds*, ground fine
3 TB cake flour
3 TB all purpose flour
1 egg
2 egg yolks
1/4 c sugar
1/8 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp. vanilla
1/2 tsp almond extract
5 TB butter, browned and cooled**

* you can either buy roasted, unsalted almonds or roast your own in a 375 F for 10 minutes and allow to cool before grinding.
** heat butter in a saucepan over low heat until it begins to become very aromatic and you notice it changing color to a medium-brown -- dare to go as far into brown as you want, but be careful not to go too far...you'll end up with black butter!

Preheat oven to 375 F.

Combine the ground almonds and flours in a small bowl and set aside.

With a hand mixer or stand mixer, whip eggs and yolks for 3-5 minutes, until they become very pale and begin to thicken. Add the sugar, salt, and extracts and beat for 3-5 minutes more -- the eggs should begin to form "ribbons" when you allow some to fall from the beaters back into the batter.

Gently fold the flour mixture into the eggs and follow that with the browned butter, making sure everything is incorporated but be gentle -- don't go any further than necessary.

Spoon the batter into a prepared madeleine pan (use baking spray or butter then flour) and bake for 10 minutes. Allow to cool for a couple of minutes and then gently lift each out of the pan. Enjoy with some tea or -- my favorite -- with a double shot of espresso.

Makes 12 madeleines.

great american bake sale

I can still remember enjoying a cupcake or brownie at school bake sales or church carnivals. I never could decide which one to choose -- everything looks good to a five-year-old kid! I do recall having a soft spot for yellow cake with chocolate frosting, and that soft spot lasts still :-)

Anyway, one of the things that totally breaks my heart is knowing that there are hungry children and families -- especially when I have been blessed with such bountiful plates every day. Below is a snippet from the Share our Strength website. If you feel so moved, click on the icon in the upper-right part of this website to give a little -- it can go a long way toward making a difference!

Hunger is a Reality for over 12 million children in America.

While America doesn't have the kind of starvation that plagues victims of war and famine overseas, and makes for dramatic footage on the evening news, the evidence of significant hunger in our midst could not be more pervasive.

Because of hunger, there are children in America not growing as they should be. They are underweight, and often neurologically and developmentally delayed and impaired. Children who experience hunger get sick more often and have lower academic achievement than their well-fed peers. Many of these children are helped by federal feeding programs. Unfortunately, not all eligible children currently participate in these important programs, leaving them vulnerable to hunger during the summer and after school.

Nationally, 1 in 6 American children live in homes at risk of hunger. Many of these children are helped by federal and state feeding programs, but there remains gaps in their eating during the summer and after school.

Grants from Share Our Strength's Great American Bake Sale support local organizations that provide children with the nutritious meals they need during the summer and after school.

Together We Can End This

With your help, we can end childhood hunger in America. We want to continue strengthening our communities and working to end childhood hunger in America, but we need your help.

american vs. british chocolate bars

Here's a link to an article in the NY Times about the differences between some candy bars made in the UK and the States. Having eaten a massive amount of the British version of a Cadbury Dairy Milk (thank you Ben Smith!), I can attest that it is indescribably better than its US counterpart.

My favorite chocolate is still Callebaut (from Belgium), but I can only get it in one pound bricks (or larger). This isn't so bad of a problem, save for the fact that I manage to eat the entire pound of it in a day or so. Their milk chocolate has an almost caramel-like undertone that is incredible melted into a ganache and served over vanilla ice cream.

As far as American chocolate goes, no one beats Scharffen-Berger, which has become widely available at Whole Foods or Fresh Market. If you're ever in the San Francisco area, be sure to stop by their factory for a tour and -- even better -- a chocolate tasting!