Cooking San Francisco

Marinated Steak with Madeira Cream Sauce

This recipe comes from The Loaves and Fishes Cookbook by Anna Pump
To make this ahead of time I coat the meat with the marinade (without the Madeira wine) and freeze it for later use.  The night before the dinner party I take the steak out of the freezer add the one cup of Madeira wine and let it defrost in the refrigerator.

 
Marinate

4 TBSP (1/2 stick) butter, softened
1/4 cup Dijon mustard
1 TBSP curry powder
1 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
1 tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 boneless 2-pound steaks, such as London broil 
1 cup Madeira wine

Sauce

2 TBSP butter
1/4 cup peeled and chopped shallots
1 clove garlic, peeled and minced
1 1/2cups sour cream ( used only 1 cup sour cream)

Chopped parsley (for garnish)

Mix the softened butter, mustard, curry powder,Worcesshire sauce, salt, and pepper until blended. Slather this ceamy mixture on the steak, spreading it over the sides, too.  Place the steak in a noncorrosive dish. Pour the Madeira over the steak. Refrigerate for 8 hours or more.

Preheat the broiler to high heat.

Reserving the marinade, transfer the meat to a broiler for 3 minutes on each side.
Transfer the steaks to a warm platter. Keep warm.

To make the sauce, melt 2 tablespoons butter in a small, heavy saucepan.  Add the shallots and garlic and saute over low heat for about 3 minutes until transparent.  Add the sour cream and stir to blend.

Add the Madeira marinade to the broiler pan and scrape up all the brown bits.  Pour this into the shallots and sour cream mixture.  Heat the sauce, stirring constantly, until hot, but not boiling.

Transfer the meat to a cuttting board.  Slice thinly on the diagonal.  Transfer back to the serving platter, pour the sauce over the steak, and garnish with chopped parsley.

Yields: 8 servings

Prep time: 15 minutes (excluding marinating time) 

 

San Francisco Southern Menu

• Oven Fried Chicken
• Collard Greens with Bacon and Garlic
• Sweet Potato Pie with Cinnamon Meringue

Sometimes in life, you just have to go with what works. That's how we feel about the purple-tinged tree collards we started growing in the backyard last May. Collards are one of the few produce items that grow easily and abundantly in our foggy, Marina environs. As much as we would love to stroll outside and pluck fresh tomatoes, zucchini or peppers; collards are not to be discounted.  They are mild in flavor (in a good way) but are rich in vitamins A, C and K, folate, fiber, and calcium.

In all our years of living in the Bay Area, we've never seen collards on a non-Southern restaurant menu, but they are available in local stores (Real Foods, Whole Foods and some Safeways) and farmer's markets, and of course you can call our friends at Star Apple Edible Gardens for a plant of your own.

If you have some extra time to turn this meal into something special, definitely make the Sweet Potato Pie with Cinnamon Meringue

If you don't have extra time, you can use 1 15 ounce can of Trader Joe's pureed sweet potatoes, skip the crust and make sweet potato puddings instead. Just whisk the sweet potatoes and other filling ingredients together and pour mixture into 6, 6 ounce ramekins. Bake at 350 for 50 minutes or until the middle is set. Top with whipped cream and sprinkle with cinnamon.

Here's how to pull this menu together…

Night before:

• If making the pie, bake or boil the sweet potatoes (you could serve Orange-scented Sweet Potatoes for dinner that night if you make extra).
• Make the pie/pudding filling. Cover and leave in refrigerator overnight.

In the morning:

• Put chicken in buttermilk marinade and let bathe in the refrigerator for the remainder of the day.
• Bake puddings or pie.

90 minutes before dinnertime:

• Pull chicken out of fridge and let sit at room temperature while you prepare the coating.
• Preheat oven to 425 degrees
• Dredge Chicken according to recipe and set aside.

60 minutes before dinnertime:

• Put chicken in the oven.
• Wash and slice collards and chop bacon.

During last 15 minutes of chicken baking time:

• Check and turn chicken.
• Saute and steam collards.

At the end:

• Keep collards warm in a bowl covered with foil while you let chicken to sit for 10 minutes before serving.

Oven Fried Chicken

 

 

As much as we love fried chicken, we rarely make it at home. Many recipes use quite a bit of oil, which we oppose from a health and waste standpoint (we have a hard time using multiple cups of oil to make one meal) and makes a huge mess of the stove to boot. A classic version of fried chicken involves chicken pieces that are fried after being dredged in flour, rather than batter. We liked the simplicity of this approach, and by using whole wheat flour together with cornmeal, our chicken came out of the oven sporting golden brown skin and a flavorful crunch. While we are always looking for short cuts, we think it's worth it to allow the chicken to have a nice, long buttermilk bath. The result is a tangy taste and moist texture underneath a crispy exterior.

3 to 4 pounds chicken pieces
2 cups buttermilk
1 to 2 teaspoon hot sauce
2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1/2 cup finely ground cornmeal
2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons butter
2 tablespoons olive oil

1. Pour buttermilk and hot sauce into a glass or plastic container with a cover (we used a large Tupperware container specifically designed for marinating meat). Place chicken in container and refrigerate either all day or overnight, or up to 24 hours.

   

2. Preheat oven to 425 degrees.

3. In a pie pan or bowl, combine flour, corn meal, paprika, salt and pepper. Remove one piece of chicken from the buttermilk mixture and let excess buttermilk drip off. Dredge the chicken in the flour/corn meal mixture, making sure to coat the entire piece. Place chicken on a plate or tray. Repeat the dredging with the rest of the chicken pieces.

 
4. Put butter and oil in a shallow roasting pan and place in oven to melt, about 3 minutes. When butter is melted, arrange chicken in the baking pan in a single layer, skin side down.

5. Bake for 30 minutes. Turn each piece of chicken over and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes longer, or until chicken is tender and reaches an internal temperature of at least 165 degrees.

Serves 4

Prep Time: 20 minutes, plus 8 to 24 hours marinating time

Cook Time: 45 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour, 5 minutes, plus 8 to 24 hours marinating time

 

Collard Greens with Bacon and Garlic

This collard greens recipe inspired us to develop the San Francisco Southern Menu. These greens have a heartier, chewier leaf than spinach and require a longer cooking time though this sauté/steam method takes only 15 minutes. We used about 10 large collard leaves from the garden and that was plenty to feed a small family of two adults and two small children. You can adjust any of the ingredient amounts below to suit your taste, including omitting the bacon and adding more garlic.

1  teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
2  ounces slab bacon or pancetta, chopped into small pieces
4  garlic cloves, thinly sliced
 pinch to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red-pepper flakes (to taste)
1 head collard greens (about 1 pound), tough stems and ribs removed, leaves coarsely chopped
1 teaspoon sea salt
1/2  cup water

Heat oil in a large saute pan over medium heat. Add bacon and sauté until browned and starting to crisp. Add garlic and cook, stirring often, until lightly browned, about 1 minute. Stir in red-pepper flakes, and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in collard greens and 1 teaspoon salt.

Reduce heat to medium-low. Add water, and steam, covered, until greens are just tender and water evaporates, about 10 minutes. If greens are ready but there is still water in the pan, raise heat to medium-high, and cook, uncovered, until completely evaporated.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes

Serves 4

 

Sweet Potato Pie with Cinnamon Meringue

 

This recipe from Gourmet Magazine, November 1998 is a great alternative to pumpkin pie for those among us who don't like traditional Thanksgiving fare (you know who you are).  We used a purchased pie crust from Star Dough, because nowadays there are some decent ones on the market (we also like Trader Joe's and Wholly Wholesome Organic pie shells), and as much as we do like to make crusts from scratch, we sometimes have to make compromises during the busy holidays. The Gourmet version includes a crust recipe, so if you have the time, go for it.

When making the filling of this pie, it is very important to follow the instructions that tell you to mix in the crystallized ginger after pureeing the other ingredients. Otherwise, the ginger becomes bitter and you don't get the little bursts of gingery flavor throughout the creamy filling. It is likewise important to follow good meringue-making practices. This fluffy Swiss meringue with warm, spicy cinnamon perfectly compliments the smooth sweet potato base and it is an incredibly tasty and somewhat unique addition to a holiday pie. Be advised that the meringue does spread quite a bit during cooking and then shrinks back down. Therefore, please heed the warning to not spread the meringue all the way to the crust.

Of course, if you are really pressed for time or just don't feeling like dealing with the whole meringue business, (we won't think less of you) you can omit the meringue altogether, bake the sweet potato portion of the pie for a total of 50 to 60 minutes or until the filling is set, and serve with lots of cinnamon whipped cream.

1 purchased, unbaked pie crust

For filling:

2.5 pounds sweet potatoes (about 3-4 medium)
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup heavy cream
1 tsp orange zest
1 Tbsp fresh orange juice
1/3 cup sugar
2 large eggs
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly grated nutmeg
a pinch of ground cloves
1/4 cup crystallized ginger, finely chopped

For meringue:
1 cup sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
5 large egg whites

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. and line a baking sheet with foil.

2. Prick sweet potatoes in several places with a fork and on baking sheet bake in middle of oven until very soft, about 1 hour. When potatoes are cool enough to handle, halve and scoop out enough flesh to measure 2 cups, reserving remainder for another use.

3. In a food processor purée sweet potato with all remaining filling ingredients except ginger, until smooth. Stir ginger into filling. (Filling may be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered. Bring filling to room temperature before proceeding.)

4. Preheat oven to 375°F.

5. Place pie crust dough fit a 9-inch (1-quart) glass pie plate. Trim dough, leaving a 1/2-inch overhang, and crimp edge decoratively. Chill shell 30 minutes, or until firm. Pour filling into shell and put in the oven to bake for 30 minutes.

6. Make meringue after pie has baked 30 minutes: In a large metal bowl stir together sugar and cinnamon until combined well. Set bowl over a saucepan of simmering water and add whites, stirring until sugar is dissolved. Remove bowl from heat and with an electric mixer beat whites until they hold stiff, glossy peaks.

7. Mound meringue in center of hot filling and spread almost to edge of pie. Bake pie in middle of oven until meringue is golden brown, 12 to 15 minutes more. Serve pie warm or at room temperature.

Serves: 10

Prep Time: 1hr 30mins
Cook Time: 1 hour
Total Time: 2hrs 30mins

Winter Italian Menu

We really enjoyed putting together our 2010 Quick and Easy Holiday Menu and we've been hearing from other busy families that complete menus are, not surprisingly, more helpful than single recipes when planning out your week of meals. In 2011, our posts will combine old and new recipes to build a nice collection of menus for any occasion. We hope you find this new approach useful, so let us know what you think!

We're kicking things off with this comforting Italian-inspired menu:

Spaghetti and Meatballs
Fennel, Orange and Parmesan Salad
Ricotta with Walnuts and Honey

The spaghetti and meatball recipe is best made on a weekend when you have a bit more time. If you make it as directed it yields a large amount (in fact, we're making it this weekend for a potluck) and the sauce and meatball combination freezes well, so depending on the size of your family you can get two or three dinners out of it.

The fennel salad is a light and crunchy foil for the rich and hearty pasta entree and you can make it while the spaghetti is boiling and the sauce and meatballs are warming.

The ricotta dessert was also big hit in our house: sweet enough for the kids but also unprocessed and healthy enough for the mothers. Like the salad, the ricotta can be assembled quickly and easily on a weeknight.

Buon Appetito!

Fennel, Orange and Parmesan Salad

Now is the time to take advantage of the abundance of bright, fragrant citrus available in stores and markets. We used pink-fleshed Cara Caras and sunny California Navels. Blood Oranges would add some dramatic flair and sweetness to this salad as well.

1 bulb of fennel, frawns removed
3 medium, seedless navel oranges
2 ounce block Parmesan cheese, thinly shaved
1 tablespoon Champagne vinegar
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
 sea salt
 freshly ground black pepper

1. Remove the core at the bottom of the fennel bulb and thinly slice lenghtwise. You will end up with small sections.

2. With a small, sharp paring knife remove the skin and pith from each orange by slicing around the shape of the orange (for more on this click here). Slice the oranges width-wise into 1/4 inch slices.

3. Arrange orange slices and fennel sections on a platter or individual plates. With a knife or cheese shaver carefully shave the Parmesan cheese over the platter of fennel and oranges.

4. In a small bowl whisk together the Champagne vinegar and olive oil and drizzle over the platter. (You may end up with extra vinagrette depending on how heavily you want to dress the salad.) Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste and serve.

Serves 4

Prep Time: 15 min
Total Time: 15 min

Ricotta, Walnuts and Honey

This dessert is so easy its hardly a recipe. We've given ingredient quantities but you should adjust the amounts to your particular taste. We strongly suggest using Calabro Part-Skim ricotta and it seems to be pretty widely available in San Francisco. It's important to use a good quality or fresh ricotta that isn't too salty.

You can use unsalted pecans, pistachios or almonds, and any dried fruit. We had dried cranberries on hand, but thinly sliced dried apricots would add a perfumey hint of summer to the creamy ricotta and crunchy nuts.

2 cups good quality ricotta cheese
1 ounce unsalted walnuts, toasted
1 ounce dried fruit, sliced or chopped in to small pieces
4 tablespoons honey
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

1. In four shallow bowls or plates, spoon 1/2 cup of ricotta in each. Spread the ricotta around a bit to evenly distribute.

2. Sprinkle ricotta with nuts, fruit and cinnamon. Drizzle with honey and serve.

Serves 4

Prep Time: 10 min
Total Time: 10 min

Quick and Easy Holiday Menu

At this time of year we find ourselves in the position of wanting to invite friends over for dinner after a holiday event, say going to The Nutcracker, but wondering how to pull off a festive meal when we've been gone all day. This menu was designed with just that situation in mind and we're going to show you how to do it with minimal stress and maximum enjoyment.

This meal serves 6 but the quantities can be easily adjusted up or down. If you want to serve 12, talk to your fish monger about ordering a whole salmon and roast the potatoes in a separate pan.

Roasted Salmon with Potatoes, Crispy Leeks and Lemon Vinaigrette
Persimmon, Prosciutto and Pomegranate Salad
Eggnog Panna Cotta with Quick Cranberry Compote

Day before:

• Purchase all ingredients except salmon.
• Make panna cotta and cranberry compote, if using.
• Make lemon vinaigrette.

Morning of your meal:

• Buy salmon. (Order ahead if you think that getting an intact piece of fish will be a challenge.)
• Prepare potatoes and leeks as directed in Step 2. Keep them in the bowl, covered and stored in the refrigerator until you return home.
• Clean parsley and slice lemons and store well covered (or in a zip top bag) in the refrigerator until you prepare the fish for roasting.

Once you arrive home, with guests in tow:

• Take potatoes and fish out of the fridge so they can warm up before going in the oven. Also remove the lemon vinagrette so it can come to room temperature.
• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.
• Make sure everyone has a festive beverage. If you want to offer some nibbles we would recommend Spiced Cocktail Nuts (made a few days in advance) or our favorite lightning-fast appetizer, Ricotta with Fig Jam.
• Once oven is hot, proceed with Steps 3 and 4.
• While salmon and potatoes are in the oven, make the Persimmon Salad.
• Serve salmon and potatoes while still hot from the oven.
• After dinner, remove panna cottas from the refrigerator, top with cranberry compote or caramel sauce and serve.

 

Roasted Salmon with Potatoes, Crispy Leeks and Lemon Vinaigrette

 

The idea for serving fish at a holiday meal was inspired by the Italian -American tradition of the Feast of the Seven Fishes. If you go to several family celebrations as we do, this oven-roasted salmon served with a merry and bright lemon vinaigrette offers a nice break from roast beef and ham.

Step 1: Make the vinaigrette
1 tablespoon lemon juice
2 tablespoons champagne or white wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1. Whisk first 5 ingredients in a small bowl.

2. Slowly add the olive oil to the lemon mixture while whisking the vinaigrette. Set aside.

Step 2: Prepare the potatoes
2 pounds yellow potatoes, small to medium sized, quartered
2 leeks, cleaned and sliced, white and light green parts only
2 cloves of garlic, minced
2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of freshly ground pepper

1. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl and stir gently with a spatula or wooden spoon until the potatoes and leeks are evenly coated with olive oil, garlic, salt and pepper.

2. Set bowl aside until fish is prepared.

Step 3: Prepare the salmon
2 to 3 pound piece of whole salmon, spine removed and butterflied (see note)
5 sprigs of parsley
2 lemons, thinly sliced
salt
freshly ground pepper
extra virgin olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

2. Place a piece of parchment paper or waxed paper that is longer than the salmon on the kitchen counter.  Remove salmon from packaging and rinse with cold water in the sink. Put salmon on the paper and dry inside and out with paper towels.

3. Open salmon up and sprinkle inside with salt and pepper. Arrange lemon slices and parsley evenly inside salmon. Drizzle with olive oil. Close salmon and set aside.

Step 4: Roast Potatoes and Salmon
1. Arrange potato and leeks on a large sheet pan covered with parchment paper, leaving room in the middle to place the fish.  Roast potatoes in preheated oven (without the fish on the pan) for 15 minutes.

2. Remove the pan from the oven and place on a heatproof surface. Carefully place the salmon in the middle of the pan, surrounded by the potatoes and leeks. Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle salt and pepper over the salmon and potatoes

3. Put the pan back in the oven and roast for 25 minutes, or until the salmon is just cooked through and potatoes and leeks are crispy.  (This method worked in our kitchen, but everyone has a different oven, so it's a good idea to start checking the salmon after 20 minutes of roasting. You want to avoid overcooking the salmon and undercooking the potatoes, so it's OK to take the salmon out and put it on the serving platter, covered with foil, and let the potatoes cook a few minutes longer.)

Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 40 minutes
Total Time 1 hour, 10 minutes

Serves 6 generously