HEARTY COMFORT FOOD

Hearty Comfort Food

            Goodbye ‘Daylight Savings Time’, hello early winter twilights! These predictable seasonal changes should come as no surprise, however I still find myself somewhat shocked that another fall is dwindling into winter. My nasturtiums this fall managed to survive until the end of October, but are unlikely to grace any more salads. Time for hearty comfort food.

            This means hearty soups and braised dinners. Each of these does require a bit more time for preparation, but comes with an added benefit. Since they reheat well with improved flavor, one cooked dish will provide several meals in the week to come. A cold and rainy weekend is often a good time to spend in the kitchen and cook. Not only are you doing something deliciously constructive, but the delicious flavors filling the house are bound to lift everyone’s spirits.

                         Smoked Paprika Lentil Soup with Kale

            In a large pot cook 2 strips of thick bacon to crisp and set aside on paper towels. In the rendered fat sauté finely chopped: 1 large onion, 2 carrots and 1 stalk celery until softened about 5 minutes. Stir in 3 chopped garlic cloves and sauté for an additional minute. Stir in 1 tsp. thyme, 1 bay leaf, 2 tsp. smoked paprika for an additional minute and then add 1 cup red wine. Bring to simmer and add 1 can (14.5 oz.) diced tomatoes, 6 cups chicken or vegetable broth and 1 ½ cups green or black beluga lentils and bring to boil. Lower the heat to simmer, cover and let the lentils cook for 40 minutes. At this point remove the bay leaf and if you wish a creamier soup, puree 2 cups of the lentils and return to the pot. While the lentils are cooking, wash and devein ½ small bunch of kale and cut the leaves in thin ribbons. Stir the cut kale into the lentils and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and cook for an additional 15 minutes. Stir in 1 tblsp. balsamic vinegar (optional). Adjust the thickness of the soup as desired with hot water.  Serve hot with the reserved bacon crumbled on top and crusty bread on the side.

Braised beef makes many hearty dishes cooked either on stove top or baked. My favorite old recipe for beef brisket makes for an easy and delicious dinner using a Dutch oven pot with a tight-fitting lid.

                        Beef Brisket with Onions

Trim excess fat from a 2-3 lb. beef brisket and place in the Dutch oven. Season with salt, pepper and 1 tsp. herbe’s de Provence. Add 1 bay leaf and cover with 3 thinly sliced onions. Do not add water. Cover tightly and bake in a 325 degree oven for 4 hours until very tender. The last hour arrange 5-6 medium sized peeled and halved potatoes around the meat, sprinkle with salt and replace the tight cover. Turn and baste the potatoes every 15 minutes during the cooking time. Skim off the fat and serve the meat with juices from the pot or use them to make gravy with a bit of flour and water. To carve, cut the meat across the grain at a slant. If desired, serve horseradish on the side.

Beef brisket is also very tasty with some old-fashioned dumplings. Unlike Oriental dumplings that are filled, these old-fashioned dumplings are really cooked dough balls that absorb the meat flavors with which they are served.

                        Thyme Dumplings

Sift together 1 cup all purpose flour with 2 tsp. baking powder, ½ tsp. salt and 1 tsp. ground thyme. In a measuring cup break a large egg and add enough milk to the ½ cup mark. Beat the egg with a fork and add to the flour mixture, stirring until a stiff dough is formed. Heat 2-3 cups stock in a wide pan and drop the batter from a tablespoon into the broth when it comes to simmer, without the dumplings touching each other. When all dumplings are in the pan, cover and simmer for 5 minutes, turn the dumplings and simmer for an additional 5 minutes. Serve at once with meat juices or sauce.

            Hearty comfort food comes in many flavors, some savory, some tart and some sweet. The winter months give us ample time to explore them all.

(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: the Smart-Frugal Food Plan”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)

OCTOBER/OKTOBERFEST

October/Oktoberfest

          It seems the month of October brings out our need for special celebrations across the world. The fall signals that the pleasures of summer are at an end and we must face the rigors of winter to come Hence we have devised activities since ancient times to postpone contemplation of the approaching change.

Our joyous Halloween celebrations really date back to the more somber Celtic origins of All Hallows Eve, with humans contemplation of death and the spirits of the ‘nether world’. Other old-fashioned harvest festivals have evolved in local celebrations focused on food and fun. The annual Damariscotta Pumpkin Festival is eagerly awaited each year by everyone near and ‘from away’.

The most frenzied of these festivals undoubtedly is Oktoberfest, which originated in 1810 in Bavaria as a wedding celebration for a crown prince, However it has now evolved like the foam of an overflowing beer stein in a colossal celebration not only in Munich, Germany, but has also found followers in many parts of the world, including USA. The official 2 week celebration spans end of September into October, with the spirit of it remaining strong through the rest of the month.

If you missed an expensive trip to Munich earlier this month, you may still celebrate at home. Traditional foods such as sauerbraten and spaetzle may be a bit tedious to prepare, but there are easy alternatives. All you need are: bratwurst, red cabbage, potato pancakes and beer.

Bratwurst and beer are easily obtained from the store and the numerous Maine breweries. Bratwurst can be grilled or cooked, though I have on good authority that bratwurst is cooked in beer if you are originally from Milwaukee. Red cabbage and potato pancakes are especially tasty and are not very time consuming to prepare as described below.

                   Wine Braised Red Cabbage and Onions

Quarter a small head of red cabbage and slice thin (about 6 cups). Halve a medium red onion and slice thinly.  Render 2 slices of bacon in a 3-4 qt pot. Set the bacon aside and sauté the sliced onion and cabbage in the bacon fat for 10 minutes with stirring. Stir in ½ cup red wine, ½ cup balsamic vinegar, 1 tsp. ground cloves, 1 tsp salt, ¼ tsp. pepper, 2 tsp. sugar and 2 thinly sliced cored apples. Cook on low heat for 20 min. with occasional stirring until all the liquid is absorbed and the cabbage is soft. Serve in a shallow dish surrounded by additional sautéed apple slices that have been cooked briefly in butter with 2 tblsp. sugar and cinnamon. Sprinkle the crumbled bacon on top. Red cabbage can be reheated several times and the flavor will continue to improve.

                   Potato Pancakes

Peel 4 large potatoes, grate quickly on a box grater and turn into a colander to drain. In a medium bowl beat 2 eggs with 3 tblsp. flour, ¼ tsp. baking powder, 1 tsp. salt and ¼ tsp pepper. Grate a medium peeled onion into the eggs and mix. If you like a little spice in your potato pancakes, finely chop a little habanero pepper and add to the eggs at this point. Squeeze all the juice from the potatoes in a paper towel and stir in the egg mixture. Heat 1 tblsp. vegetable oil in a 12 inch pan to hot and fry ¼ cup amounts of the potato mixture in pancake form for 4-5 minutes to a side until browned and cooked through. Set aside to keep warm and continue in batches with the remaining potato mixture. Serve warm with a dollop of sour cream.

In München steht ein Hofbräuhaus        In Munich stands a Hofbrauhaus

Eins, zwei, g’suffa…….                          One, two, drink-up…..

          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: the Smart-Frugal Food Plan”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)

END OF SUMMER PLEASURES

Tomato-Eggplant Bonanza

Summer’s end is one of those times the home cook either loves or hates. If you have a sizeable garden yourself, you are chained to the kitchen trying to preserve some of this fresh bounty for the dreary winter months. If you just enjoy the fresh produce that is so abundantly displayed in September farmer’s markets, you try to savor these fresh flavors on your everyday table in as many different ways as possible. This fleeting abundance is best found in mounds of fresh tomatoes and the glistening varicolored globes of mounded eggplants.

Eggplant is one of those vegetables that truly shines at summer’s end and comes in different varieties. We see the large dark purple globes throughout the year and they can be prepared in a variety of ways after peeling. Summer also brings us other varieties. Some are white or purple and white striped, usually smaller in size. These and the long thin Japanese eggplants have the added bonus of having thin skins that do not require peeling for use in any dish, which cuts time in preparation.

My patio Japanese eggplants recently had a bumper crop and after making a batch of Sicilian Caponata, there remained enough for my favorite September Tomato Eggplant soup. Since eggplants like zucchini contain a lot of moisture, slicing and broiling the sliced vegetables with a bit of oil and garlic salt improves their flavor and texture for the following recipes.

                   Tomato-Eggplant Bisque

Slice 2 eggplants in ½ inch slices or 6 long thin eggplants lengthwise. Lightly brush with olive oil and sprinkle with garlic salt. Broil 3-4 minutes to a side and set aside. In a 3-4 quart pot sauté a large chopped onion and 2 sliced stalks of celery in 2 tblsp. olive oil for 5 minutes. Stir in 3 chopped garlic cloves and after a minute add: 3 chopped large tomatoes, the eggplant, 32 oz. beef or vegetable broth, 1 cup of water, ¼ tsp. red pepper flakes, 1 tsp. herbes Provençe, 1 tblsp. Worcestershire sauce, ½ tsp. smoked paprika, 1 tsp. sugar and 8 oz. tomato sauce. Bring to boil and cook for 20 minutes. Allow to cool and purée in batches with some fresh basil, parsley and oregano (optional). Adjust to desired consistency with additional water. Reheat with 2 tblsp. balsamic vinegar. Serve hot with a dollop of sour cream and chopped chives. The soup can be made ahead and reheated and it freezes well.

Having proudly and successfully used up all my harvest, I was surprised by a friend with a gift of additional eggplant and tomatoes from her more elaborate garden. Well, never waste good produce! We had friends coming for lunch the next day, so it was back to the kitchen.

Eggplant Gratin with Linguica

Slice 2-3 medium large eggplants in ½ inch slices, broil as above and set aside. Coat with baking spray the bottom of a 10x7x2 inch baking dish and sprinkle with 2 tblsp. bread crumbs. In a small bowl whip 2 eggs with 1 1/2 cups flavorful spaghetti sauce. Slice 1 mild flavored linguica in thin rounds. Assemble gratin: 1 layer of eggplant, ½ of the sauce, scatter some basil leaves on the sauce, layer the linguica slices, ½ cup shredded mozzarella, ½ cup freshly grated Parmesan, another layer of eggplant, sauce and ½ cup parmesan. Top with 4 overlapping slices of provolone cheese and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes. Allow to sit for 10 minutes before serving. It can be made ahead and reheated covered for 20-30 minutes.

                   Lemony Sautéed Kale

The eggplant gratin went very well with this slightly spicy kale. In 2 tblsp. olive oil sauté 3 chopped garlic cloves, turn up the heat and add in batches 4-5 cups washed, deveined and sliced kale, ½ tsp. salt and a pinch of red pepper flakes. When kale is wilted squeezed the juice of a lemon on the kale. Add ¼ cup water, cover and cook on low heat for 10 minutes. Cook uncovered until any remaining liquid is gone. Serve warm.

When in doubt, improvise! With all that fresh goodness, you can’t go wrong.

(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: the Smart-Frugal Food Plan”; website: www.winicov-harrington.com)