"shortcut" moussaka

Last month, a recipe in the New York Times caught my eye: shortcut moussaka. I like shortcuts, and I really like moussaka, a traditional Greek dish of layered eggplant, potato, and ground lamb covered in bechamel sauce. After spending nearly an hour in the kitchen and dirtying multiple pots and pans, I'm not sure this recipe really deserves its "shortcut" moniker, but it was pretty good and quite comforting, like a Greek shepherd's pie, so I'm sharing it with you, with a few of my tweaks included.

Here's the recipe, which serves 6:

2 medium eggplants, peeled and cut into 3/4-inch cubes

1 tablespoon olive oil

1.5 lbs yukon gold potatoes, peeled and cut into 1-inch cubes

1/3 cup whole milk

1 large egg yolk

1/2 cup pecorino romano cheese + 2 tablespoons more for sprinkling on top before baking

1/4 cup parmesan cheese + 1 tablespoon more sprinkling on top before baking

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature (I used Smart Balance Light - worked fine)

1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

1 lb ground lamb

1 large onion, finely chopped

2 cinnamon sticks

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1/8 teaspoon allspice

2 medium tomatoes, cored and chopped

salt and pepper

1. Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees. Toss the eggplant with 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and drain in a colander for 15 minutes.

2. Mix eggplant with olive oil and fresh ground pepper, spread on a large baking sheet, and roast until golden and tender, about 40 minutes, and set aside. Reduce oven temperature to 400 degrees.

3. In a large saucepan, immerse the potatoes in cold salted water and bring to a boil. Lower heat and simmer until potatoes are tender, about 20 minutes. Drain potatoes and return to warm pot. Stir in milk, egg yolk, cheese, butter, nutmeg, salt, and pepper and mash until potatoes are fairly smooth.

4. In a large skillet over medium heat, brown the lamb, breaking it up with a fork as it cooks. Season with salt and pepper. (If you have a lot of grease from the lamb, remove all about 1 tablespoon.) Add onions and cinnamon sticks and cook until the onions are soft. Stir in the allspice and garlic and cook for two minutes more. Add the tomatoes and season with salt and pepper. Cook until the tomatoes are soft and the mixture is thick, about 10 minutes. Remove the cinnamon sticks, add the roasted eggplant, and stir to combine.

5. Transfer the lamb-eggplant mixture to a large baking dish and top with mashed potato mixture. Sprinkle with additional cheese and bake until top is golden brown, about 30 minutes. Let stand at least 10 minutes before serving.

I served the moussaka with stewed gigante beans and some roasted vegetables.

Restaurant review: Tertulia

As I have previously mentioned, I am not a big tapas fan. I don't really like to share food, (which my husband attributes to the 8 months I spent sharing a placenta with my twin sister), I don't like small servings, and I don't consider myself a lover of Spanish cuisine. So, last spring, when my sister and several of her friends decided to invest in Seamus Mullen's new tapas restaurant, I thought she was nuts.

In case he's not a household name in your house, let me introduce to you chef Seamus: in 2006, Mullen, a Vermont-born chef who had studied and cooked in Spain, earned two stars from the New York Times at Boqueria, a Spanish restaurant he opened in the Flatiron District (a second location in SoHo has since opened). In 2010, he and the Boqueria team parted ways and he returned to Spain, where he was inspired by the local cider houses of the Asturias to open Tertulia. Seamus, who is only 37, was also diagnosed with rheumatoid arthritis a few years ago, and his new cookbook, "Hero Foods," a collection of recipes featuring anti-inflammatory, immune-boosting foods, is coming out next spring.

Since Tertulia opened in late July, I have eaten there 5 times, including just last week for my mother's birthday. And even though the menu is tapas-centric and they don't take reservations, (another pet peeve), I love it! The restaurant has a lively front bar room and a large but cozy back room with a mostly-open kitchen, a huge wood-fired grill (warning - it is very warm near the grill), and several long tables for communal dining.

The menu is divided into three sections that I think of as bread and things that taste good on bread, tapas, and large dishes. Let me tell you about my favorites. First, you must start off with a selection of the toasted bread: the pan con tomate (rubbed with tomato - sounds simple, but it's excellent), toasta buey de mar (topped with crab, sungold tomato, avocado, pickled peppers, and herbs), and the tosta huevo roto y jamon iberico (topped with crushed soft-boiled egg, potato, and Iberico ham). Next, pretend your diet starts tomorrow, and order a parade of Tertulia's excellent fried tapas: pimientos de padron (fried padron peppers with sea salt), berenjenas rebozadas (fried fairytale eggplant with citrus yogurt, hazelnut and pepper sauce), nuestras patatas (crispy potatoes, pimenton, and garlic aioli), and croquetas de jamon (ham croquettes). Then move on to paella de mariscos (traditional paella with shrimp, claims and runner beans) and chorizo criollo (garlic sausage with garbanzos). The grilled prime rib is delicious, but I think at $72, it's overpriced. Skip dessert.

I really like the way a meal flows at Tertulia. The staff brings out the food in multiple small batches, resulting in a feast-like feel and providing relaxed diners with lots of time to enjoy the excellent sangria and people watching (keep an eye out for celebrity chefs - I have seen Jonathan Waxman and Harold Dieterle there and I heard from a reliable source that Mario Batali had dinner there just last week).

I realize I am likely partial, (Chef Seamus confused me for my sister last time I was there and gave me a big hug when he saw me), but I think Tertulia just may be the tastiest new place in the West Village.

***

Details:

Tertulia

359 Sixth Avenue (at Washington Place)

New York City

(212) 559-9909

Spanish feast for three with enough sangria to stain your mouth purple for days: $250

Hooray for soufflé

Readers: I am proud to present my very first guest post, courtesy of my sister, Kristy.

* * *
Earlier this year, my favorite new friend and co-worker Lydie invited me to dinner at her house in Connecticut. We picked an icy Friday night in February, and hopped on Metro North after work for the hour-long train ride up to the burbs. By the time we got to Greenwich it was already 7:30pm, and I wondered what tricks Lydie might have up her sleeve to serve dinner at a reasonable hour...

As it I was to learn, cheese soufflé is an excellent main course for just such an occasion. Lydie quickly handed me an apron and put me to work as her sous-chef. I had never tried to make a soufflé--although I have eaten many of Sipi's outrageous chocolate soufflés at Etats Unis over the years--and it was much easier than I thought. Soufflés are known for being temperamental since they can literally flop in the oven, but they don't need to be perfect to be tasty. And you don't need to be brave or professional to give it a shot.

I was surprised that Lydie's recipe was straightforward and called for very simple everyday ingredients including eggs, milk, cheese, butter, and flour. The preparation was even easier with a Kitchenaid mixer and two sets of hands. Our dish was in the oven within 20 minutes, and about an hour later…voila! The finished soufflé was fluffy, savory, and delicious - it was a huge hit. Lydie's full dinner included a salad to start, crusty bread, broccolini dressed with lemon juice, brownies for dessert, and several bottles of red wine. All told, it was a perfect menu for a perfectly easy dinner party. I could't wait to serve my very own soufflé the next time I was cooking for guests.

At the beginning of the summer, I invited Loren and Kate over to commemorate the Farewell episode of the Oprah Winfrey Show. A special occasion called for a special dish! I had saved this recipe for a Cheese and Herb soufflé in the Wall Street Journal and bought myself a large porcelain ramekin at Williams-Sonoma for a more dramatic presentation. Note that baking time for one large soufflé is about 60-70 minutes. I served this with an asparagus, prosciutto, and burrata salad and a loaf of pancetta bread from Eataly. We also went through our fair share of wine and kleenex that night...

***
Cheese Soufflé with Garlic and Fresh Herbs (adapted from the Wall Street Journal 5/7/11)
Serves 8
Softened butter and grated Parmesan cheese to prepare the molds
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cloves minced garlic
6 tablespoons flour
2 cups boiling milk
1 tsp plus one pinch fine sea salt
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
1/8 tsp nutmeg
6 egg yolks
10 egg whites at room temperature
1 tsp cream of tartar
1/3 cup finely minced chives
1/3 cup minced Italian parsley
6 oz coarsely grated Gruyere or a combination of Gruyere and grated Parmesan

1. Butter 8 individual 1 1/4 cup soufflé molds or ramekins. Dust with Parmesan and place on a baking sheet.
2. For the soufflé base, melt the butter along with the garlic in a medium saucepan. Cook for one minute, stirring. Stir in flour and continue to stir over moderate heat until butter and flour foam together for two minutes without browning. Remove from heat.
3. Off heat, add boiling milk and beat vigorously with a whisk until well blended. Add 1tsp salt, peppers, and nutmeg. Return to heat and boil, stirring, for one minute. Sauce should be very thick. Remove from heat.
4. Off heat, add yolks, one at a time, beating well after each addition. Correct seasoning. Seasoning should be strong as the upcoming addition of the whites will dilute flavor.
5. To finish the soufflés: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
6. Whisk egg whites with a large pinch of salt and cream of tartar. Start beating on a low speed and raise the speed gradually as the egg whites mount. When soft peaks form, stir one quarter of the beaten whites into the soufflé base followed by chives, parsley, and all but three tbsp of the cheese. Then fold the lightened base into the remaining whites.
7. Ladle equal amounts of the soufflé mixture into the eight prepared molds, place them on a baking sheet, and sprinkle the remaining three tbps cheese over the tops. Place on the middle rack of the oven. Lower the heat to 375. Bake 20 minutes or until risen and set. Serve right away.

Hurricane watch

As if Tuesday's earthquake wasn't excitement enough for New York City, we now have this to look forward to:

Yes, months after breaking an 86-year record for its snowiest January ever (a total of 36" of snow fell in January alone), weeks after its hottest day since 1977 (it got up to 104 in Central Park on July 22nd), and days after its rainiest day ever (7.7" of rain recorded at JFK on August 15th), New York City is preparing for a rare direct hit from a hurricane sometime tomorrow morning. As a result, the city has literally ground to a halt. Service on the entire subway and bus system was suspended indefinitely at noon, several low-lying neighborhoods have been under a mandatory evacuation order since 5pm, and Mayor Bloomberg is telling us all to stay indoors until tomorrow night.

Even though I stopped by Fairway before work yesterday, I decided to go back out this morning for a few last-minute hurricane provisions in case we really are stuck at home for the next 24 hours. Still-groggy from last night's pre-storm celebrating, I was not prepared for the mayhem I encountered as rabid upper westsiders stormed the few local stores that opened this morning.

Whole Foods at the Time Warner Center, which had stayed open all night, hit its maximum capacity of shoppers at 9:45am and was turning people away in advance of an early closure. Fairway, which is open all day even on Thanksgiving and Christmas, closed its doors at 10am. Which prompted Citarella, pictured above, to get so crowded that a line formed just to get in the door!

Thankfully, with my sister's help, I managed to get all of the ingredients I needed for chili (organic ground beef, assorted bell peppers, crushed tomatoes, red and black beans, corn, and onion) - that seemed like appropriate hurricane fare - and the marinara sauce I plan to make tomorrow, and get home before 11am, where I've been loafing around, closely following the local news coverage, ever since.

Once the hurricane moves out of the area, I would not be at all surprised if locusts started raining down or a wave of plague swept the city. In the meantime, Shun Lee is open for business and even delivering food tonight because nothing, not even Hurricane Irene, comes between a New Yorker and Chinese food.

Tasti-D-what?

I was walking past Tasti-D-Lite over the weekend and noticed a very strange sign in its window. Tasti-D-Lite, NYC's famous purveyor of dairy-based soft serve frozen deliciousness, is now serving soup. Soup at Tasti-D-Lite!? What is the world coming to?

Tasti-D-Lite became a household name in the mid-1990's, in my household at least. I do not think it's an exaggeration to say that I ate it every day during high school. In fact, there were three locations within a few blocks of my childhood home, and I had copies of their calendars listing the daily flavors offered at each in our kitchen so I knew to which location to go on a given day. My mother and sister were also huge Tasti-D-Lite addicts and we usually had plenty of Tasti-D-Lite in our freezer for the odd night when one of us didn't feel like walking over to an actual shop.

Buying Tasti-D-Lite was not an entirely pleasant experience. Most of the stores were poorly-lit holes in the wall and the line to order often snaked out the door and down the street. The women who worked there were unfriendly and unhelpful more often than not. And yet I kept going back for small servings of french vanilla, angel food cake, rice pudding, apple pie, coconut, cake batter, and strawberry colada -- all smothered in rainbow sprinkles and/or granola (which was a perfect compliment to apple pie).

By the time I graduated from college, my Tasti enthusiasm had waned, and I don't think I was alone -- Tasti locations were harder to find and the lines had gotten much shorter. Fast forward another ten years, and Pinkberry is the popular new kid on the low-calorie frozen dessert block. Still, there are a few stores around, including the "flagship" store on 60th and Broadway, which never has anyone in it and where a 4-ounce serving now costs at least twice what it did in 1997. Turns out that Tasti was acquired by a private equity firm in 2007 and is currently being run by the former CEO of Mail Boxes Etc. I can't imagine that adding hot soup to the menu of a dessert shop is a good idea, but maybe that's what it takes to transform Tasti-D-Lite into a 500-franchise brand. I doubt it.

The Central Park West CSA

One November night a few years ago, I was invited to dinner by two of my Brooklyn-dwelling friends (and new parents to a beautiful brand new baby girl, Michela), Peter and Stefania. It was an unsurprisingly wonderful meal since they are some of the best cooks I know. I still distinctly recall the delicious roasted pumpkin salad and celery root pie from that evening’s menu, both of which, as they proudly explained, featured ingredients from their CSA. Huh? Their what?

Turns out “CSA” stands for community-supported agriculture and it works like this: you buy an annual membership/subscription from a local organic farm for a flat fee, and each week for ~26 weeks, you get one share of whatever their farm produces from a local pickup location. Stability for the local farmers, and a fun way to get fresh produce for the city-dwelling members - sounded like an interesting idea, but I assumed back then that CSA membership was only for the same kinds of Brooklyn-dwelling intellectuals and hippies that might have a chicken coop in their backyard, and I didn’t give it much more thought.

Fast forward nearly three years. There are already six Whole Foods markets on the 33.77 square-mile island of Manhattan and a seventh is now under development on East 57^th Street; farmers’ markets are every where you go (including, as I just discovered last weekend, the small city of Marquette, Michigan where Judd grew up); and even McDonald’s is inviting you to meet the potato farmers behind their famous fries. I dare say the acronym CSA may now be almost as well known as CSI in parts beyond of Prospect Heights.

This season, I jumped on the CSA bandwagon and signed up for the Central Park West CSA. (Thanks to my friend and Lower East Side CSA member, Alex, for sending me a link to this website where you can find your nearest CSA.) Each Wednesday afternoon between 4pm and 7pm, I am invited to pick up our share of whatever Angel Family Farms in Goshen, New York has brought down to West 84^th Street. Thee annual membership cost for 20-something weeks was $460. (We did not elect to add on a fruit, egg, or fresh pasta share, which were all optional for an additional annual fee.)

I enrolled in the CPW CSA in early May, several weeks before the first pickup on June 15th, very excited to try the 50 different varieties of vegetables that I'd heard they grow. On the next several Wednesdays in June, I unenthusiastically toted home (and subsequently threw out) more leafy greens than a non-rabbit could possibly be interested in, ranging from rather pedestrian green lettuce and spinach, to more exotic offerings like wild arugula, mizuna, tatsoi, purple tatsoi, and mustard greens. And did I mention the herbs? So many herbs -- huge bundles of dill, parsley, cilantro, sage and oregano. Three weeks in, I was already experiencing what my friend and veteran CSA member, Catherine, has aptly described as “vegetable fatigue.”

Last week though, things finally started to get interesting. There were red and yellow onions, stout little carrots, and huge bundles of swiss and rainbow chard. This week, more carrots (this time white) and onions, peas, and even beets!

One of the most fun parts of being a CSA member is the chance to broaden my vegetable cooking horizons with all of this random produce. Here are two recipes to make Peter and Stefania proud, from earlier this week.

Swiss Chard, Leek, and Goat Cheese Tart with Fresh Herb Crust

(adapted from a recipe by acclaimed cookbook author David Leite, whose wonderful blog, Leite’s Culinaria, was recommended to me by my savvy friend Ann)

1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

1 teaspoon salt

several grinds of freshly ground pepper

12 tablespoons cold, unsalted butter, cut into ½ inch cubes

5 tablespoons iced water, plus more if necessary

Filling

3 tablespoons unsalted butter

4 medium or 3 large leeks*, white and pale green parts only, thinly sliced

1 pound Swiss and/or rainbow chard, stems discarded, and roughly chopped

3 large eggs

1/3 cup heavy cream or half and half

1 teaspoon salt

freshly ground pepper

¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg

3 tablespoons golden raisins, plumped in boiling water for 10 minutes and drained

3 tablespoons toasted pine nuts

4 ounces fresh goat cheese, crumbled

*as a general rule, leeks and swiss chard (not to mention arugula, spinach, scallions, basil, and cilantro) are grown in soil that contains a lot of sand/grit. Rinse each very thoroughly to remove all grit before chopping. For the leeks, I usually slice them lengthwise and run cold water between each layer. For the chard, I place it in a large bowl of water and jostle the leaves around with my hands. The leaves will float on top of the water, and the sand/dirt will fall to the bottom of the bowl. You may want to repeat that process once or twice with several changes of water. No need to spin the chard leaves dry – just drain them in a strainer.

1. In the bowl of a food processor fitted with a steel blade, pulse the flour, herbs, salt and pepper until blended. Add the butter, and pulse mixture resembles coarse cornmeal, with pieces of butter no bigger than small peas (about 13 to 15 one-second pulses). Add in water and pulse until mixture forms a wet ball (about 5 to 10 one-second pulses), adding more water if necessary. Remove dough from food processor, shape into a disk, wrap in plastic, and refrigerate at least one hour.

2. In a large skillet, melt the butter over medium heat and sauté the leeks, until soft, about 8-10 minutes, stirring frequently. Add the chopped chard leaves and cook down until water has evaporated, about 8-10 minutes. Let cool.

3. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. On a lightly-floured surface, roll out the dough into a 13” circle. Transfer the dough to a 10” or 11” tart pan, fitting it snugly against the sides and bottom, and trim off any excess.** Prick the bottom of the tart with a fork and cover with parchment paper. Fill the tart with pie weights or beans, and bake for 25 minutes. Remove the weights/beans and set the crust aside.

4. In a medium bowl, whisk the eggs, cream/half and half, nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Stir in cooled chard/leek mixture, crumbled goat cheese, toasted pine nuts, and raisins.

5. Pour mixture into pre-baked tart crust and bake until filling is set and puffy, about 25 minutes. Let cool on a rack for at least 20 minutes before serving.

This tart can be served warm or room temperature and is perfect for brunch, lunch, or a light dinner. Serves 6-8.

**I had so much excess crust that I made a second small tart. For the filling, I sautéed a ½ pint of grape tomatoes, which when cooled I mixed with two beaten eggs, a tablespoon of crème fraiche, a ¼ cup of grated pecorino cheese, salt and pepper. If I had had fresh basil, I would have added that, too. It was quite tasty.

Roasted beet salad

4 medium beets, scrubbed but not peeled

½ cup plus 2 tablespoons olive oil

¼ cup red wine vinegar

3-4 ounces crumbled goat cheese

¾ cup toasted walnut halves

salt

freshly ground pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2. In a large bowl, toss beets with 2 tablespoons olive oil, salt, and pepper. Wrap the beets individually with tin foil, place on a baking sheet, and bake until the beets are tender when pierced with a fork, about 1 ½ - 2 hours. Remove from oven and let cool in foil wrappers until cool.

3. When beets are cool enough to handle, peel (you may want to wear rubber gloves for this step), and slice.

4. In a medium bowl, whisk remaining olive oil and vinegar. Add beet slices, crumbled goat cheese, and toasted walnuts. Season with salt and pepper.

Serve with mixed greens and/or a crusty baguette.

Restaurant review: Barrio Chino

I recently ventured out of my West Side comfort zone for dinner on the Lower East Side. For those unfamiliar with the Lower East Side, it is located in the south eastern portion of Manhattan, north of Chinatown and south of the East Village. Formerly known for its squalid tenements overflowing with recent immigrants, the Lower East Side has evolved into a haven for hipsters in recent years and is now home to many trendy shops and restaurants. An in-the-know friend from L.A. stopped by Barrio Chino on Broome Street when he was in town a few weeks ago which got me thinking I should check it out myself.

Barrio Chino, a small and nondescript restaurant whose name apparently means "Chinese hood" in Spanish, celebrates the neighborhood's immigrant past by combining Mexican fare with Chinese-accented decor. The weather here in NYC was particularly glorious on the night my friend Ann and sister joined me there for dinner, and we were seated in an airy corner table near the restaurant's open windowed front wall.

It seemed serendipitous that the perfect accompaniment to Mexican food would also be the perfect accompaniment to a warm and breezy early summer evening: margaritas, in our case traditional fresh lime, jalapeno lime, and fresh grapefruit. YUM!

Barrio Chino offers eleven anotjitos (appetizers) including six varieties of tacos. Since I can't have Mexican food without guacamole, I was glad to see guacamole on the menu, which we ordered and enjoyed with their homemade chips and a bowl of seriously spicy salsa for only $8.

We also shared an order of the al pastor tacos - three homemade tortillas overflowing with marinated grilled pork, chunks of pineapple, cilantro and white onion. They were awesome.

After the guacamole and soft taco opening act, I ordered another margarita and the vegetarian enchiladas verdes -- two tortillas stuffed with sauteed zucchini and mushrooms, and topped with a green salsa and melted oaxacan cheese. They were ok, but not nearly as good as the tacos. The tortillas were mealy and mushy under all that sauce and the vegetables inside were fairly bland.

My sister ordered the bistek a la casa -- marinated skirt steak served with sauteed spinach and mushrooms, black beans, and queso fresco. Nothing memorable, but perfectly acceptable for those who try to limit their personal food pyramid to proteins and vegetables.

Ann, who was also on a short-lived pre-wedding Atkins plan the night we had dinner, ordered cazuela de mariscos -- sauteed calamari and shrimp in a tomato chipotle sauce. It was pretty good, but tasted more Italian than Mexican to us.

For dessert, we tried to order churros, but they didn't have any. So we settled on the coconut flan which was pretty good, if you like flan, and I ordered a third margarita which in retrospect, was not the best idea I've ever had, but they were so good!

Words to the wise: while our dinner was pretty good, I think a taco-focused meal would have been even better. Also, if you love margaritas like I do, I suggest you save Barrio Chino for a Friday or Saturday to avoid worrying that you will become one of the sick passengers who occasionally screws up the morning subway commute.

**

Details:

253 Broome Street (between Orchard and Ludlow)

New York, New York

(212) 228-6710 (I don't think they take reservations, but just in case)

Margaritas with a side of tortilla-enhanced food: ~$50/each