ONE & SUPP

we got hitched / september 6

2009-11-06T10:15:00.001-08:00

Photo: Willow Robin

Photo: Jeremy L.

Photo: Jeremy L.

Photo: Holly Morse

Photo: Willow Robin

Photo: Jeremy L.

Photo: Willow Robin

Photo: Jeremy L.

Photo: Jeremy L.

Photo: Jeremy L.

Photo: August Heffner

stars and stripes / july 4

2009-07-06T08:36:00.000-07:00

A Gray June

2009-07-03T09:58:00.000-07:00

Dear Friends,

Please forgive us! Yet again, we're terribly behind in our posts. This has been a hard month for One & Supp. June is usually such an inspirational month - CSA's start, the weather warms up, backyard seedlings magically transform into hearty plants, the days grow longer - but this June has felt particularly gray.

Even before the weeks of rain set in, things felt decidedly gloomy around our house as we mourned the tragic and sudden loss of our sweet dog, Mr. Pam. Without her, our house, our patterns and routines have all shifted. It is taking us time to readjust and refocus. Luckily, in the last few days, we've seen glimpses of the sun, our CSA has been bountiful, and we've been compelled to get back in the kitchen. Perhaps this year July will be our month of inspiration.

With love,
One & Supp

Eats from the Last Few Weeks

2009-06-03T13:34:00.000-07:00

This last picture is from a Lobster/Clam Feast we put together for the great Sarah G for her Birthday. We planned on taking more photos but glasses of wine got in the way; so this is a supplemental testament to an incredible meal for an incredible lady. Click on the photos for more info or for the larger image.

Last Thursday / Hot Dog Lunch

2009-05-29T16:28:00.000-07:00

Last Wednesday, Harry was kind enough to not only hip me to some house made hot dogs at Marlow & Daughters but he also drove me there to get some; I could not be more thankful. Tom, Brent, and the rest of the M&D crew really know their sausages and these dogs were, in the words of Kyle, straight up Bombastic. We chopped up some Ricks Picks pickles for relish and made a salad to accompany them. It was the ideal backyard lunch. I implore to go get some dogs!
PS In case you're wondering, yes that is my leg hair, get over it!

Monday / Breakfast

2009-05-05T20:09:00.000-07:00

Creamy Polenta with a Poached Egg and Pea Shoots.

Last Wednesday / Hen of the Woods Mushrooms

2009-05-05T19:41:00.000-07:00

The weekend before last it was a beautiful sunny day and we accordingly took a stroll through the McCarren Farmers Market. Despite the 'tough economic times' we couldn't resist splurging on some Hen of the Woods (or Maitake) Mushrooms. Polenta seemed the logical accompaniment and we also made a dish of Asparagus and a Fried Egg with Chives and Truffle Oil.

Catch Up / Arctic Char & Brown Rice with Leeks

2009-05-05T17:40:00.000-07:00

Hola Amigos, as you may have noticed we are very behind on posts. Our apologies, we have been crazy busy. Sadly, I am not even sure when this dinner is from, but I remember it fondly. -dmp. (ps click on images for more info)

Wednesday / Roast Chicken and Kale

2009-04-17T07:44:00.000-07:00

Earlier in the week, Molly snagged a whole Chicken which we've been quite stoked about cooking up since as you may have noticed its been a while. While I try to avoid shopping at Sunac at all costs, I found myself there after work entranced by some beautiful purple kale. We've also been wanting to experiment with our old standard, Polenta, making it more creamy, using half stock and half whole milk. We stuffed the lil bird with lemons, herbs, and garlic. While that was in the oven, Molly made the polenta and I sauteed the psychedelic kale in a little salty fatback. Molly finished it with a pan gravy and the results were satisfying beyond belief; everything worked perfectly well together and the kale somehow stayed crisp despite being so cooked down. As the great WR would say it was like 'Restaurant' good. - dmp

Kombucha Pt. 2

2009-04-16T09:26:00.001-07:00

My first batch of Kombucha was made and happily devoured. After a little over a week of fermentation I bottled it and let it carbonate for a few days. It didn't get quite as fizzy as I would of liked (I think the bottle was too big for the amount of liquid) but it was still really good and honestly I like it better than any store bought Kombucha I've had as of late. My next bigger batch is in the works! - dmp

Tuesday / Hanger Steak

2009-04-09T09:03:00.000-07:00

After enjoying an incredible lunch of Pate, I started scheming for dinner. While at Marlow & Daughters, I also grabbed some Hanger Steak, Fresh Leeks, and Swiss Chard. Eating Steak doesn't happen too often around these parts so I wanted to be sure and do it up proper. First I made some veggie stock to braise the Leeks in. Then using the fat from the Pork Chops earlier in the week, I sauteed the Chard nice and slow. While the leeks were braising, I cooked up the steak hot and fast. Then while that was cooling, I made a quick pan sauce with garlic, shallots, and red wine. Simple and delicious. - dmp

Tuesday / Country Pate

2009-04-09T08:27:00.000-07:00

With a Tuesday off and some money in my pocket I finally made my way to Marlow & Daughters, the all-local, all natural butcher shop owned by the Marlow & Sons/Diner folk. As those of you in the NYC area will know, the weather was not on my side, it was windy and grey out but I persevered, determined to get my hands on their delicious Country Pate I had previously tasted at BK (thanks Harry).
A lot has been said about the 'culinary brooklyn' movement as of late so I won't further play cheerleader but I advise all of you to go there immediately if you haven't already. I bought all kinds of great things at bargain prices including this Country Pate, consisting of pork liver, duck, and a pig tongue running down the center!
Generously spread on some baguette with Cornichons and Parsley, this may be the most perfect bite of food I can imagine. If the Sheriff ever catches up with me and I'm on death row, please bring me some Country Pate before I make peace with my maker. - dmp

Thursday / Pork Chops & Salad

2009-04-05T20:05:00.001-07:00

Yes, yes... I know there have been a lot of Pork Chops as of late, but they are too delicious too resist! These chops are from Flying Pigs. I realized I may have been a bit unclear before, they are not pure Ossabaw's but Ossabaw/Tamworth mixed breeds. Ossabaws, beyond being a bit closer to beef in flavor and color due to their gaminess, also have a good deal of delicious fat (notice the layer in the second picture below pre-trimming). While we been eating a lot of chops, cooking them so much really gave me a chance to get it right and I definitely did this last time. -dmp

Above: Pork Chop with pan jus and lemon zest, Salad of arugula, fennel, apple, & cracklings.
Below: Jeff made some cookies the same night, this is a pretty glorious sight.

Homemade Kombucha Part 1

2009-04-05T19:46:00.000-07:00

One of the few things I really missed when moving back to New York from Texas in 2005 was GT's Kombucha. I became highly addicted to this fermented probiotic tea drink in Dallas, which was plentiful and cheap-ish but next to impossible to find here in NYC. For the first time in my whole life, I actually wrote to a company wondering where I could find it. A few years later it was everywhere and for twice the price. I still love the stuff but have been wanting to make it myself at home. A few weeks ago I got my hands on a Scoby or 'symbiotic culture of bacteria and yeasts' from Eric of Brewed in Brooklyn vis-a-vis the Kombucha class at BK (I recommend it to all). Fermentation is under way my friends and I couldn't be more excited.

Saturday / Breakfast Hash

2009-04-05T19:33:00.000-07:00

Fried Egg over Breakfast Hash made with Garden of Eve Potatoes and DiPaola Farm (NY) Turkey Sausage.

Wednesday / Pork Tacos

2009-04-05T19:28:00.000-07:00

Braised Pork Shoulder Tacos with Cabbage, Fennel, and Radish Slaw.

Spring / Carrot Inspiration

2009-04-02T09:21:00.000-07:00

Last week at the Williamsburgh Greenmarket we found the loveliest surprise at the Garden of Eve stand: a whole basket of the season's first baby carrots! They had been pulled out of the frosty earth on Long Island that very morning.

We bought two pounds, brought them home, gave them a good scrubbing, and I spent all afternoon admiring these first little signs of spring.

And then we started cooking:

For Spring's Newborn Animals Potluck hosted by the ever-lovely Jenn N.:

Simple Spring Veggies with Yogurt & Dill Dip
Curried Deviled Eggs

For supper:

Spring Soup with Garden of Eve baby carrots & new potatoes, local crimini mushrooms, chicken, onions, parsley, and homemade vegetable stock

What a hopeful and inspiring week it has been. After a long, bleak winter, it's so nice to be reminded that the summer harvest is just around the corner!

-mro

Monday / Simple Veggie Supper

2009-03-30T18:18:00.000-07:00

Sauteed carrots, parsnips and radishes with butter and herbs
Arugula salad with celery, apples, capers, and parmesan

Saturday / Chicken Schnitzel

2009-03-30T18:02:00.000-07:00

I was recently inspired to make Elise's Pork Schnitzel after hearing some pretty rave reviews here on the internets. I'll tell you, it lived up to the hype. We didn't have any pork on hand, so I substituted chicken, and instead of the more traditional sides, I simply roasted up some carrots. The chicken was tender and juicy, the breading perfectly crispy, and the creamy dill sauce couldn't have been better! Next time you're craving some comfort food, I highly recommend you dig out this recipe and give it a try.

-mro

Two Wednesdays / Two Pork Chops

2009-03-11T13:18:00.000-07:00

We're pretty behind on posts so I'm going to have double up this one. With all the bellies, jowls, and heads coming through here lately I've been trying to mix it up by cooking leaner chops, namely Pork Chops. The last two Tuesdays the good folks at BK have been kind enough to let me part with chops from some more of those beautiful Ossabaws' raised by Flying Pigs Farm and the last two Wednesdays I've cooked em up.

Salad of Arugula, Clementines, and Prosciutto

Pork Chop over Polenta with Parsley and Mint

Pork Chop over Swiss Chard with Potatoes

Sick Days & Snow Days / Soup

2009-03-09T17:51:00.000-07:00

We're so behind! In the wake of our first FEAST, my immune system took a real nose-dive, and I've been fighting some mutant strain of the common cold for the last week and a half. Needless to say, I haven't really been on my game and a few things have fallen to the wayside; namely, our blog. Even with a bad case of the sniffles and David encouraging me to stay in bed, I did manage to cook up a couple of soups that deserved to be posted. Simple, hearty, healing!

Creamy Mushroom Soup with Herbs

made with local portabellos, dill, parsley, thyme, vegetable stock, shallots, garlic and pureed with creme fraiche

White Bean Soup

cannellini beans cooked with sage, thyme, a head of garlic, and olive oil,
pureed with the starchy cooking liquids and topped with chives
served with toasted baguette and arugula & radish salad

Fish Stew with Sunchoke Puree

monkfish, andouille sausage, fennel, shitake mushrooms, shallots, rosemary, parsley, one 28 oz. can of San Marzano tomatoes & lobster stock with a creamy sunchoke puree

accompanied by David's lovely salad of sauteed asparagus, arugula, Parmesiano-Reggiano, capers, with lemon vinaigrette.

-mro

Ribollita

2009-02-26T14:16:00.000-08:00

Friends, things have been quiet here and for that we are sorry, but as many of you know we have been too busy making Ribollita Soup for the FEAST to write. By now most readers have eaten the final results but what was served at Feast went through several batches and lots of fine tuning.

Molly and I originally tried the classic Tuscan soup at Marlow & Sons in December and were blown away by this perfectly balanced, perfectly seasoned, and perfectly simple soup. Luckily Caroline Fidanza provided the laborious recipe in the more recent Diner Journal. I was pretty thrilled to make it. Cooking Pork Belly in its own rendered fat is obviously delicious but taking water, vegetables, and beans and making it complex and rich is cooking at its best. Of course this is also immensely challenging as simplicity necessitates perfection.

It breaks my heart to say it but for the first time ever, Caroline Fidanza let me down somewhat. Making the first batch it seemed strange to add 2 28oz cans of tomatoes to the mix but I trusted her vision. However, when the soup was done it was far too tomatoe-y and all the rich subtleties of the beans were lost. More than that, it was nothing like the brothy, complex soup we had in the restaurant. In the next batch I added more water and a quarter of the tomatoes originally called for. Alas, this was, more or less, what was served at Feast. Perhaps it was a typo but either way my faith in Chef Fidanza is still strong.The recipe was there, now there was only the small matter of making 120 servings. I've had some dinner parties in my day but feeding a small army is a totally different matter, even if that army is considerably educated, good looking, liberal urbanites. 2 days of cooking and 50+ quarts of soup later I am quite proud. - dmp

Sunday / Raspberry Orange Muffins

2009-02-16T19:23:00.001-08:00

Recently, we bartered a couple of hours of babysitting for a huge bag of almond flour and several of our friend Maggie's favorite recipes. It was a solid trade! In the last couple of weeks I've made two successful batches of muffins, and am hoping to move on soon to scones, cake, and dough.

On Sunday, I went to a lovely brunch hosted by my favorite ladies on Wilson St., and brought along these raspberry and orange zest muffins frosted with honey-sweetened Mascarpone cheese:

These muffins are delicious, not too sweet, and couldn't be easier to make! If you can get your hands on some almond flour, you should definitely give this recipe a try. Thanks, Maggie!

Almond Flour Muffins

2 1/2 cups almond flour
3 eggs
1/2 stick butter
1/2 cup honey
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
plus the fruit of your choice, the zest of lemon or orange, and/or nuts, seeds

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Cream together the honey and butter. Stir in the eggs. Add the almond flour and baking soda, and stir until combined. Fold in the fruit (I used one container of raspberries), zest (orange in my case), a little squeeze of the citrus juice, and any nuts or seeds you like.

Fill muffin tins nearly to the top (these muffins will not rise as much as those made with all-purpose flour) and bake for 20-30 minutes, or until golden.

Makes roughly 12 muffins.

Mascarpone Cheese Icing

1 tub Mascarpone cheese
2 capfuls vanilla
honey to taste
a dash of cinnamon

Combine the ingredients and spread over cooled muffins.

Wednesday / Pork Belly Rillons with Salsa Verde

2009-02-12T20:09:00.000-08:00

Sunday we took the night off for an extraordinary date/dinner at Marlow & Sons, complete with oysters, semolina porridge, creamed kohlirabi with guanciale, risotto, sea bass, fried apple pie for desert, and an especially memorable appetizer of Pork Belly Rillons with Salsa Verde. As some readers will know, I've braised Pork Belly many times to varying degrees of success and after the jowl it is my favorite piece of pork. Still, discovering Rillons is similar to only knowing Surfer Girl and then having someone play you Pet Sounds; I had no idea something already so delicious could be that much better.

Tuesday night I nabbed a piece of Belly from a beautiful Ossabaw courtesy of Flying Pigs Farm, and making Rillons only made sense. Searching for recipes, sure enough the amazing folks of Last Nights Dinner had already made Caroline Fidanza's recipe; an amazing but perhaps not too coincidental discovery. I was quite happy with the results and our house still has the faint smell of sweet pork.

Time Life Books / Headcheese

2009-02-07T16:31:00.000-08:00

In the 1970's Time Life printed a 28 volume set of cookbooks entitled, Foods of the World; each volume dedicated to the culinary heritage of a country or geographical region. There are amazing recipes in each but also historical and cultural explanations of the the given culinary landscape (M.F.K. Fisher wrote the Cooking of Provincial France volume). Some are better than others but each is a gem in its own right. Ultimately it is the incredible images that make them invaluable. We'll be posting our favorite images sporadically until we run out, but that probably won't be for anytime soon. Given my recent Headcheese adventure I thought I'd start with this image from American Cooking: Creole and Acadian of a butcher holding Headcheese as well as some piggies from The Cooking of the British Isles.

Thursday / Butternut Squash & Golden Beet Soup with Truffle Oil

2009-02-06T09:53:00.000-08:00

Il Passatore, one of our favorite restaurants, makes an incredible butternut squash ravioli with truffle oil. Ever since I ate it that first time, I've been obsessed with trying to recreate a similar dish at home. This time I wasn't really in the mood for pasta, but I finally shelled out $9 for that teeny tiny bottle of truffle oil, and thought it would be delicious atop a creamy, pureed squash soup with parmesan cheese.
The result? Pretty good, but not quite good enough. Next time I think I'll add some garlic to the soup base and will stick to straight-up squash, instead of adding the beets. Maybe a little more maple syrup as well? I'll keep working on it!

p.s. the other day, I received an incredible package from my Grammy with 16 hand-sewn cloth napkins inside. The napkins, which can be seen in this photo, are just perfect and made my dinner feel all the more special. Thanks, Gram!

Tuesday / Lobster Sunchoke Risotto

2009-02-06T09:51:00.001-08:00

Inspired by a lovely post on Last Night's Dinner the other day, I decided to forgo the usual lobster treatment (boiled, dipped in butter) and use our two 1-1/4 pound fresh Maine lobsters in a creamy risotto.
After steaming up the lobsters, I broke them down, picked all the meat, and tossed the shells in a large stockpot with a bunch of veggie ends to make a stock. I reserved the meat on the side, and went about chopping up a handful of sunchokes (a vegetable I've been curious about for ages, but have never actually used!), several shallots, and a bit of fennel to add to the rice. After an hour or so of stirring and gradually adding the lobster stock, the rice was perfectly tender and the sauce silky. I stirred in the lobster meat, a bit of creme fraiche, more salt and pepper, and garnished with fennel fronds.

The result was pretty wonderful, if I do say so myself. The flavors were delicate, but distinct, and the dollop of creme fraiche gave the whole dish a delicious creaminess. I also tossed together a quick salad of spicy arugula dressed in lemon juice and olive oil, which was the perfect companion to to the rich risotto.

Even though Maine lobsters only set you back $6.99 per pound in the off-season (the same as hamburger meat, here in NYC!), they have the ability to make any meal feel pretty darn fancy. We all felt like we were living large on Tuesday night. -mro

Monday / Oysters

2009-02-05T20:39:00.001-08:00

Molly and I made a trip up to the great state of Maine over the weekend for some QT with family and spectacular times were had all around. Before departing for the long drive back to New York on Monday, we visited a great little fish market in Portland, and grabbed up some Shellfish; Oysters, Mussels, and Lobsters. Said Oysters were Winterpoints from West Bath, ME and came highly recommended from the kindly gentleman helping us.

Shucking them, a first for both Molly and I, was quite an adventure (thanks again Jeff) but deeply satisfying. Molly whipped up an excellent minionette to accompany these incredibly delicious creatures; briny, salty, fresh, and sweet. If only we could eat them at every meal. - dmp

Friday / Lunch

2009-02-05T20:36:00.001-08:00

After the impeccable feast that was the homemade pasta and pork cheek ragu from the night before, I was not necessarily looking to make a masterpiece for lunch on Friday. But when I realized we had a good deal of fat from the jowl, an apple, and kale; I had a vision.

First I made cracklings, and with the rendered fat I sauteed up some Kale with chili peppers and a touch of maple syrup. While all this was happening, I cut up some apple and put together a salad that made me positively euphoric.

I dare say that between these two meals, things are really coming together here on Withers street. - dmp

Thursday / Pasta with Pork Cheek Ragu

2009-02-05T19:19:00.000-08:00

Last week, the kind folks over at BK sent us home with their new Norpro pasta machine to try out. Neither David nor I had ever made pasta from scratch, but we had been talking about it forever, and decided this would be the perfect opportunity. David was also lucky enough to bring home a sweet little pig cheek from the weekly butchering class, which was just the right cut for a delicious ragu.

These days, with work and busy schedules and the general goings on, it has been hard for David and I to carve out good chunks of time to cook together. Unlike some, we're a surprisingly compatible pair in the kitchen, and always look forward to spending extended periods of time together chopping, stirring, tasting, and creating piles of dishes. It just happened that the stars aligned on Thursday and we cooked and ate and drank wine late into the evening. This meal was a D&M collaboration at its best!

Pig cheek, with scored skin, braising in red wine, tomato, and rosemary

Flour volcano with eggs

David kneading the pasta dough

Pasta sheets, post-machine, laying out to dry

PASTA!

After 3 hours of braising, the fat from the pig cheek had rendered and created an incredibly rich sauce. At that point we pulled out the cheek, sliced off the fat, cubed up the meat, and tossed the meat back into the dutch oven to reduce some more. Once the pasta had finished cooking (in salty water, like the sea), we added it and a cup or so of starchy pasta water to the dutch oven to thicken and round out the dish. Hands down, this was the best pasta we've ever made and a pretty seminal culinary moment in our household.

Headcheese / Part Three

2009-01-30T20:19:00.000-08:00

After a full week since it entered our home, the Headcheese is finally done and I can safely say it was one of the most laborious foods I've ever made. At the same time, preparing it once immensely rewarding. While I think it came out quite well, the gelatinous pork delicacy is not for everyone and thus far I seem to be the only household member eating it.

Headcheese on baguette with pickle, mustard, and caper berries.

Tuesday / Fish Chowder

2009-01-27T20:54:00.001-08:00

Tonight David and I were hankering for fish, and since he was feeling under the weather I decided to use the potatoes, onions, garlic, sage, celery, salt-cured anchovies, & milk we had in the fridge to make a get well cure: chowder! In addition to the ingredients we had on hand, I made a quick trip to the store and rounded out the soup with some fresh cod, bacon, fennel, and a nice loaf of crusty bread.

With a little help from my chowder experts in Maine (thanks, Jim! thanks, Dad!) and a generous amount of salt, we ended up with a pretty fine dinner.

Friday / Breakfast salad

2009-01-25T13:24:00.001-08:00

Wednesday / Ten of Cups

2009-01-25T12:54:00.000-08:00

Wednesday night we feasted with dear old friends. We ate delicious food. We drank way too much cheap wine. We sang songs. We had our tarot read.

Priscilla's corn pudding
Karyn's Brussels sprouts with turnips and pecans

Molly's Pork Pozole with all the fixins

Tarot readings by JeffH

We spent all day Thursday recovering.

Headcheese / Part Two

2009-01-25T10:24:00.001-08:00

Today, while David is at work, he's left me in charge of the pig head. After brining that beast for 5 days, today's the day when the cooking actually begins. I haven't had to do much really, just peek inside the giant stockpot once in a while to make sure everything stays at a low simmer. For the next six hours or so, there the head will stay, bubbling in its bath of aromatics.

The house smells incredible - like celery and allspice - and it has become hard not to see this grotesque operation in a new light. There's something romantic about a several-day-long cooking project. Perhaps it's the sheer amount of care and attention paid to something as lowly as a pigs head (you can't help but grow attached!), or maybe it's just my longing for any connection to farm life here in the big city. In any case, as I've been meditating on this pig's head, I keep thinking back to my very favorite series of books from childhood: Little House on the Prairie. I know well and good that this Brooklyn apartment is worlds away from that Little House in the Big Woods, but today this pig-related passage feels strangely familiar:

Uncle Henry went home after dinner, and Pa went away to his work in the Big Woods. But for Laura and Mary and Ma, Butchering Time had only begun. There was a great deal for Ma to do, and Laura and Mary helped her.

All that day and the next, Ma was trying out the lard in big iron pots on the cookstove. Laura and Mary carried wood and watched the fire. It must be hot, but not too hot, or the lard would burn. The big pots simmered and boiled, but they must not smoke. From time to time Ma skimmed out the brown cracklings. She put them in a cloth and squeezed out every bit of the lard, and then she put the cracklings away. She would use them to flavor johnny-cake later.

Cracklings were very good to eat, but Laura and Mary could only have a taste. They were too rich for little girls, Ma said.

Ma scraped and cleaned the head carefully, and then she boiled it till all the meat feel off the bones. She chopped the meat fine with her chopping knife in the wooden bowl, she seasoned it with pepper and salt and spices. Then she mixed the pot-liquor with it, and set it away in a pan to cool. When it was cool it would cut in slices, and that was headcheese.

The little pieces of meat, lean and fat, that had been cut off the large pieces, Ma chopped and chopped until it was all chopped fine. She seasoned it with salt and pepper and with dried sage leaves from the garden. Then with her hands she tossed and turned it until it was well mixed, and she molded it into balls. She put the balls in a pan out in the shed, where they would freeze and be good to eat all winter. That was sausage.

When Butchering Time was over, there were the sausages and the headcheese, the big jars of lard and the keg of white salt-pork out in the shed, and in the attic hung the smoked hams and shoulders. The little house was fairly bursting with good food stored away for the long winter.

Headcheese / Part One

2009-01-23T19:02:00.000-08:00

It may seem strange from a quick look at this blog, but I was a fairly avid vegetarian for 8 years of my life, and a vegan for almost a year of that 8. While living in London I had a craving for meat and the usual internal motives that kept me from eating it weren't really there anymore. I always knew once I fell off the wagon, I would fall hard and I surely did. For at least a year I ate meat at every meal, trying to make up for lost time. This has leveled off considerably and while I have consumed a lot of meat since my veggie days, it has only been in the last few years that my growing ethical concerns about meat consumption has lead me to explore nose-to-tail eating and cooking.

So it is in the spirit of obligation, chance, and pure culinary exploration that I am making Headcheese for the first time. The good folks at BK were kind enough to let me part with a Pig's head (excluding the delicious jowls) from a pig butchering class and as I write it is sitting in a brine in my backyard. Before putting it in the brine I took a few pictures. After some discussion we decided I should just link to a picture of it to be courteous to our readers. While I agree with this decision, the only drawback is that having a Pig's Head posted would really separate us from every other 'couple-makes-beautiful-dinner-blog.' Oh well.

Anyway, should you not find such things offensive please go here. And in case you were wondering removing eyeballs from a pig is somewhat gross. More coming soon. - dmp

Recipe / Cass Elliot's Duck

2009-01-23T18:45:00.000-08:00

The Brooklyn Kitchen recently acquired several heirloom recipe index cards. They are free and near the cash register. Perusing through them I found some fantastic things but the diamond in the rough was this Duck recipe by Cass Elliot. I have no way to prove it but I hope and pray it is 'the' Cass Elliot; the one and only 'Mama' Cass Elliot of the Mamas and the Papas. Assuming she could cook as well as she sang I am sure this is heavenly.

Monday / Family Style

2009-01-19T20:17:00.000-08:00

Baked black beans with feta, pepperjack, corn and all the fixins.

Sunday / Leftover Stew

2009-01-19T13:04:00.000-08:00

My motivation for this soup was really just to clean out the fridge. At the end of any given week, we have lots of halves of several-day-old, nearly-wilted veggies, which are just begging to be tossed in a stock pot and slow-cooked beyond recognition. This week we also had one left-over chorizo, some chicken stock, and a half bottle of mediocre white wine, so it seemed pretty clear that soup was on the menu. I didn't have the highest hopes for this no-nonsense meal, but I was hankering for an afternoon cooking project, and decided to dive in.

I doubted this stew throughout the entire cooking process. Something seemed a bit off, so I kept trying to compensate by making more additions - wine, salt, tomato paste, herbs - but nothing I did seemed to make it better. Finally, I just decided to stop futzing with it and let it do its own thing. When we heard that Jeff's friends were coming over for dinner, I pulled the pot off the stove altogether, and moved it to the side to make room for preparing the 4-course feast that was to come. The stew sat neglected on the counter all night, and before we went to bed I hastily threw it in the fridge. What I didn't know, was that something miraculous would happen while that stew chilled overnight. When I pulled the dutch oven out to reheat the stew for Sunday dinner, the flavors had melded, everything had mellowed out, and the stew had thickened and become intense in its flavors but not overly aggressive. Served with a bit of herby sour cream and crusty bread, it was a total delight.

In the most recent issue of Diner Journal, chef Caroline Fidanza talks about insaporire; a word Italians use to describe the moment that a dish "opens up and swells" with all the flavors it has been cooking with. She talks about this real moment when "the dish will let you know that it has arrived and will point you in the direction of what to do next." It's not about timing or precision, it's about watching and tasting and trusting your ingredients. I didn't know it when I started, but I think this humble Leftover Stew served a much greater purpose than simply clearing out space in the fridge.
-mro

Saturday / Collective Four Course Dinner

2009-01-19T12:37:00.000-08:00

Saturday was a big day on Withers Street. Molly and I both had the all day cooking bug; she made a delicious soup (more on that coming soon) and I made my Coke braised short ribs. When JeffH came home and let us know his dear friends from out of town (Nick, Danny, & Andy) were coming over for dinner, a full on banquet took shape. I think I speak for everyone when I say how happy I was with it and how organically the whole process developed; it was a reminder of how powerful cooking with friends can be. While it wasn't planned, Fennel turned out to be the Iron Chef secret ingredient of the night.

First Course: Salad of Fennel, Beets, Carrots, Feta, and Parsley

Second Course: Jeff's Pasta with Eggplant & Fennel Ragu

Third Course: Coke-Braised Short Rib (spiced with Ras Al Hanout) over Sauteed Kale and White Beans

Fourth Course: Goat Cheese with local Honey and Fennel Seed (Inspired by our visit to Babbo, this is perhaps my favorite dessert.)

Scarpetta: In Italian culture, 'scarpetta' or 'little shoes' describes the act of soaking up the juices from the cutting board with bread. If only we had bread on hand. (thats Pam on the right)

Saturday / Lunch

2009-01-17T17:18:00.000-08:00

Generally speaking there is a very unified culinary palate here on Withers street; Molly and I amazingly nearly always agree on flavors. There are exceptions of course and Anchovies are one of them. I love them and Molly could easily do without. Today I toasted some French Baguette directly over the grill top, drizzled a little olive oil on them and laid these little fishes on there with some lemon juice, pepper, thyme, and a touch of salt.

In my humble opinion, anchovies are the perfect food. They are immensely salty and have so much depth and richness to them. At their very best they give the luminous impression of their origins, the deep blue sea. Rustic and simple; I, for one, can't think of a more satisfying lunch. - dmp

Saturday / Breakfast

2009-01-17T09:33:00.000-08:00

fresh ricotta with strawberries, honey, flax & cinnamon raisin toast

Thursday / Cinnamon Raisin & Rosemary Garlic

2009-01-17T09:19:00.001-08:00

Based on our previous success with no-knead bread, this week David and I decided to play with the recipe a bit and make some additions: Cinnamon Raisin & Rosemary Garlic. The loaves didn't rise quite as much as the originals, so next time I think we'll just add a little more yeast to compensate for all the additions. They taste great, though, so we'll continue to play around with different grains, nuts, herbs, etc.

Wednesday / Mussels with Chorizo and Fennel

2009-01-14T20:55:00.000-08:00

Thankfully, I think I redeemed myself with dinner tonight. As a Maine girl, preparing steamed mussels just comes like second nature. The chorizo, fennel, and white wine were new additions and added a lovely layer of spice and sweetness which balanced quite well with the rich, sea salty mussels.
-mro

Wednesday / Experimental Lunch

2009-01-14T11:09:00.001-08:00

On a clear, cold day such as this, our house feels mighty cozy - warmed by our hissing radiators and brightened by the strong midday sun, which splashes onto our living room floor and bounces back up to reflect on our kitchen ceiling. I couldn't help but be distracted from my work! It was just too tempting to be lured in by the romantic notion of enjoying a hearty, hot lunch for two.

Generally, we don't keep that many supplies in our fridge or pantry, but you can pretty much always count on breakfast staples: eggs, cheese, bacon. I decided to fold these three ingredients into a pasta carbonara - a rich, velvety, egg/bacon pasta. In theory it was a great idea: delicious ingredients, homemade pasta from the Italian joint down the street, good winter food.

In practice, though, it was kind of a disaster. The flavors worked well together and the pasta was cooked just right, but man, I really messed up the egg bit! Instead of the rich, velvety sauce, my whole dish was sprinkled with little bitty chunks of scrambled eggs. I know this is all part of the learning curve, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a bit annoyed. I'm hoping that with a few revisions, mainly tempering the egg mixture better next time, this dish's future incarnations will be a much more satisfying.

In the meantime, here are a few images of Pasta Carbonara, take 1:
-mro

Reading / Caroline Fidanza

2009-01-13T08:31:00.000-08:00

Serious Eats NYC posted a great interview with Caroline Fidanza, Executive Chef of Diner / Marlow & Sons and certainly One & Supp's favorite chef and inspiration.

Monday / Lunch

2009-01-12T20:52:00.001-08:00

Going to make my lunch today I was completely gutted to find that all of our delicious No Knead Bread was already all gone. We have some Whole Foods brand Multi-Seed Bread (our normal bread supplier has been absent from the McCarren farmers market on Saturdays) but still I was all jazzed about some cured pork on homemade bread with some olive oil. Lunch was still delicious but we gotta make more bread!

Saturday / Pork Tenderloin with Polenta and Apple

2009-01-11T16:58:00.000-08:00

Making polenta and rosemary pork tenderloin last night, a rare bit of improvisation struck me and I decided to bake the pork (post searing) in apple juice and 'julienned' apples and it was definitely the right choice. I thought the end product was a bit dry and could of used some more sauce (or 'jus' for the fancy) but mro and JeffH said otherwise. Thank the lord for saturday night. - dmp

Saturday / Bread & Butter

2009-01-10T15:25:00.001-08:00

It was back to basics today: homemade bread & butter. David taught me how to make butter a couple weeks back, and it's already become part of our weekly ritual. No churn required, just a pint of cream (I used our favorite, Ronnybrook), a hand mixer, some sea salt, and 15 spare minutes.

As for the loaf: I attempted Sullivan St Bakery owner Jim Lehey's no-knead bread recipe for the first time, and it couldn't have been easier. Stir up flour, water, salt, and yeast, give it a slow rise for 12-18 hours. Dust with cornmeal and let it rise again for two hours, turn it out into a dutch oven and bake for 45 minutes. That's it. No elbow-grease required. It is, hands down, the simplest and most satisfying bread I've ever made. And it even looks like the real deal.

All in all, it's been a most satisfying snowy Saturday.

-mro

Friday / Steak Over Creamed Spinach

2009-01-10T14:29:00.000-08:00

I made a similar meal for my family in Texas over the holidays. My mother referred to the salad as 'avant garde.' go figure. - dmp

One & Supp

2009-01-06T20:22:00.000-08:00

"And above all, friends should possess the rare gift of sitting. They should be able, no, eager, to sit for hours - three, four, six - over meal of soup and wine and cheese, as well as 20 fabulous courses. Then, with good friends of such attributes, and good food on the board, and good wine in the pitcher, we may well ask, When shall we live if not now?"
-M.F.K. Fisher

At Molly's grandparents' little house in Maine, dinner always begins with cocktails, and cocktails are always poured at 5 o'clock sharp. When the flurry of food preparation is through, dinner is baking in the oven and the table is set, her grandparents sit down together to enjoy a little peace, quiet and that final gin and tonic of the evening. When you hear them say "One and Supp?" it simply means, do we have time for one more cocktail before supper?

In our Brooklyn home, this tradition of food, drink, creation, and communion continues and this blog serves to document our home cooking and the care that goes into making such daily celebrations.

-Molly & David