SPRING INTO EASTER

 

                                                 Spring into Easter

           Last week it was tempting to paraphrase Gilbert and Sullivan: “The snowflakes that fall in the spring, Tra la, have nothing to do with the spring”. A relatively mild early March had lulled us hoping for an early spring only to remind us, the week before Easter, of our northern location. However, the vase of forced forsythia branches on our table inspire me to think of foods for the season.

          Hot Cross Buns on grocery shelves are a reminder of the rich heritage of various buns from the British Isles. Fans of Jane Austen and other writers from the 19^th century will recognize such names as currant buns, Bath buns and Sally Lunn. These are all rich yeast dough buns served for breakfast, tea or as a snack, varying only in size and inclusions like currants, raisins, candied citron, and spices. Here is my relatively straightforward recipe for currant buns. This recipe uses a stand-mixer, but hand kneading will give equally tasty results.

                                        Currant buns with apricot glaze

          Dissolve 1 tsp. sugar in ½ cup lukewarm water and stir in 1 package active dry yeast. It should be frothy and doubled in volume in about 10 minutes.

          In the meantime, melt ¼ cup unsalted butter in a small pot, stir in ½ cup sugar, ½ tsp. salt, ¼ tsp. nutmeg and ¾ cups milk. Heat all to lukewarm making sure the sugar is completely dissolved.

          Turn butter and milk mixture into the large mixer bowl, stir in the frothy yeast mixture and 2 fork beaten eggs. On a low setting incorporate 1 cup of all purpose flour, switch to a dough hook and add 3 more cups of flour. When flour is fully incorporated set the mixer on #2 setting and knead for 10 minutes. Scrape dough into a well-greased large bowl, turn, cover bowl with a towel and allow to rise in a warm place for 45 minutes to 1 hour.

          Plump 2/3 cup of dried currants in a small bowl with some boiling water for 20 minutes. Drain currants and pat dry.

          Slightly beat down the risen dough and turn out on a well-floured board. Flatten out to about 12x10 inch shape and sprinkle the currants all over the surface. Fold the dough over and knead with a bit of additional flour to distribute the currants. Form a 12-inch log, cut it into 12 pieces and roll each one to form a ball. Place the balls on a well-greased pan about two inches apart. Cover with a towel and allow to rise again for 30 minutes. Bake in a 400-degree preheated oven for 15 minutes.

          For glaze melt 2 tblsp. apricot jam with 1 tblsp. water in small dish. Set your rack on top of a piece of wax paper for the baked buns to catch excess glaze. Baste the still warm buns with melted jam. Enjoy warm or at room temperature with a bit of butter.

           Easter dinner calls for a traditional ham which you can bake for several hours with a glaze or heat a wrapped ready-cooked ham for a shorter time. Both are well complemented by fried apples, requiring only a pan, ½ cup butter, 1/3 cup sugar, 1 tblsp. cinnamon and 4 Fuji or Pink lady apples sliced and cored, cooked in 5-7 minutes just before serving.

          Asparagus, the traditional Easter vegetable, will get a new treatment this year at our house and will introduce the dinner as an elegant asparagus soup. This recipe is adapted from Jacqueline Hériteau “A Feast of Soups”.

                                              Cream of asparagus soup

          Combine ½ cup sour cream with 1 cup heavy cream in a small bowl and set aside at room temperature.

          Snap tough ends off 1 lb. asparagus, wash and cut the green parts in 2-inch pieces. Set aside a few spear tips for garnish. In a 3-quart pot melt 2 tbslp. butter on low heat, stir in 2 tblsp. flour to make a roux and slowly stir in 1 cup of chicken broth to make a thick sauce. Stir in 3 additional cups of chicken broth, bring to boil, add the asparagus, and cook for 15 minutes. Cool slightly and puree in a blender. Return soup to pot, stir in ½ tsp. lemon pepper, 1/8 tsp. mace and 1 cup milk. Heat to boiling, stir in the cream and heat again to just before boiling. Serve hot garnished with asparagus tips or chopped chives.

          According to Doug Larson:” Spring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush”.

    (I. Winicov Harrington lives in coastal Maine and is the author of “How to Eat Healthy and Well for Less than $5.00 a Day:” and “Uncharted Journey from Riga”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)

 

 

QUICK AND TASTY WEEKNIGHT SUPPERS

 

                                    Quick and tasty weeknight suppers

           As spring approaches, the longer daylight seems to energize us for more diverse activities every day.  So, less time in the kitchen requires the cook to utilize shortcuts without sacrificing the taste or presentation of the meal. One of the best shortcuts is to utilize pre-cooked ingredients, or to put it bluntly – leftovers! Those healthy home cooked ingredients that can form the basis for a subsequent dish.  Meals featuring rice or chicken come to mind and adapt easily to creating subsequent meals. Occasionally I will cook extra rice for dinner while already planning a dish for another day.

Such a plan should not mean simply reheating the leftovers in the microwave.  Rather, combinations of interesting spices and other meat or vegetable additions will allow the cook to create a completely new and delicious meal, often with international overtones.

Chicken Paprikash is one such example. Roast chicken will invariably leave you with extra cooked chicken meat that can be cut in bite size pieces and assembled quickly in a delightfully spicy and colorful meal with paprika the national spice of Hungary. Most of us are familiar with paprika as only a colorful red powder sprinkled on deviled eggs or other dishes for colorful garnish with negligible taste. It is made of dried ground red bell peppers. But others, such as Spanish smoked paprika, prepared by smoking during the drying process, has a distinctive strong smoky flavor.  The most complex is flavorful Hungarian paprika.  In Hungary this spice can be found in eight levels of heat from mild to super-hot, but most brands in the US supermarket do not specify the level of heat and hence require judicious application the first time to asses it’s potency. 

                                                      Chicken Paprikash

Dice leftover chicken into bite size pieces 3-4 cups. Melt 2 tblsp. butter in a large pan and sauté 3 thinly sliced shallots with 1 garlic clove for 5 minutes. Stir in 2 tblsp. tomato paste, 2 tblsp. red wine vinegar and 2 tblsp. sweet paprika to a paste. Add 1 cup chicken broth and ½ tsp. hot Hungarian paprika (or ¼ tsp. hot red pepper flakes). Add the diced chicken and cook until thick. Stir in ½ cup sour cream, heat thoroughly and serve on wide noodles with a green salad.

Oriental fried rice is a tasty meal prepared quickly with leftover rice. Leftover rice is less sticky than freshly cooked rice and makes for better fried rice texture.  Fried rice’s primary ingredients are rice, ham or shrimp, egg, seasoning and scallions. Chinese fried rice is prepared with long grain rice with salt as seasoning, while Japanese fried rice depends on short grain rice and is seasoned with soy sauce. A recent Bon Appetit recipe inspired the creation of the following dish.

                                                    Ginger ham-fried rice

Assemble the following: 3 cups cooked leftover rice, 1 cup coarsely shredded cabbage, 1 cup snow peas cut in thirds (or 1 cup frozen peas thawed), ½ lb. diced ham, 1 tsp. fresh minced ginger, ¼ red seeded pepper cut in julienne strips and 3 large thinly sliced shitake mushrooms.

For sauce stir together: 2 tblsp. reduced salt soy sauce, 3 tsp. rice vinegar, 2 tsp. toasted sesame oil and ¼ tsp. sugar.

In a large pan or wok fry the mushrooms in 1 tblsp. vegetable oil, add cabbage, pepper and ginger and stir fry for 5 minutes. Scramble in 2 eggs, stir in rice, ham, 2 sliced scallions, snow peas and the sauce. Cook to heat through and dry. Garnish with pickled ginger and serve with sliced seedless cucumber and radish salad dressed with seasoned rice vinegar.

 Leftover cooked noodles such as penne or rotini can also become an unexpected shortcut gem when lightly browned in 1-2 tblsp. butter. These crisp noodles will complement cutlets and other meats when served instead of French fries.

The cook’s judicious choice of shortcuts with leftovers is bound to save time without sacrificing the joy of a tasty and interesting dinner.

(I. Winicov Harrington lives in coastal Maine and is the author of “How to Eat Healthy and Well for Less than $5.00 a Day:” and “Uncharted Journey from Riga”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)