Work Work Work....Chimichurri and Blueberry/Blackberry Jam

I am in some strange form of limbo I've created for myself. There are things to be done. MANY things to be done. And yet, I seem to feel I've got all the time in the world to putter around and do things like....make a double layer espresso chocolate cake filled and iced with a chocolate ganache then covered with a caramel-y seven minute frosting (I'll try and post my crappy blackberry photo of the thing. Honestly, early afternoon I just thought "Hmmm, why not make this?") 

Part of me feels like I need to stop giving myself so much time to do other things, not just cooking but reading, eating out, or just plain walking around and taking in this barely-a-newborn spring that's coming in. But then I think to myself, what am I crazy? The only way I can become the writer/director I want to is by doing all these things just for the sake of DOING things. Of having experiences. Or at least, that's the excuse I give myself, because after making a couple batches of this homemade chimichurri and jam, I'm definitely going to have to find time to make sure there's always a good stock of it in the fridge. 

I originally came across chimichurri in Argentina, where they use this condiment (best descriptor I can think of) on pretty much everything. Mainly meats. And let me tell you, it is phenomenal. I've used it so far on steak, fish and pork, and there's nothing I don't want to douse it in. Think garlicy, herbaceous, lemony, with just a kick from some red chili flakes. All tossed into one phenomenal jar.

I'll tell you right now, by the way, that my chimichurri is by no means traditional. Most recipes simply call for olive oil, garlic, fresh oregano, cilantro, chili pepper, and salt. Mine has about five or six more ingredients. Why? Because that's who I am. Nor is it scientific. Honestly, the first time I just started adding things, and kept making adjustments along the way. I'd recommend doing the same, and using the recipe below as a guideline.  But seriously, try making this and not using it on every protein you consume. I dare you.

So, along with the chimichurri, about two days later (or it actually might have been the same night, not sure anymore) I made homemade jam out of the two berries I had sitting in my fridge. I think one of the main reasons I was so into making condiment-like foods was because I had just gone to The Broadway Panhandler (great kitchen store) and bought at least six different types of bell jars. And then felt compelled to fill them.

Actually, if I'm honest, I'll admit that I've wanted to make homemade jam for a lot longer than since buying the jars. I've made batches before, but they've always been more akin to curds or relishes. This is a proper, slather your morning toast, having between two slices of bread with peanut butter kind of jam. My inspiration came after buying a fabulous (and fabulously expensive) jar of Sarabeth's jam, turning it over and seeing "Ingredients: Cherries, sugar, plums". That was it. I just couldn't help myself. Surely if there's only three ingredients, I can't mess things up too much, can I?

And guess what? Apparently I can't! Hoorah! My on-the-fly jam came out lovely. A bit too much on the thick-ish side (next time I'll reduce the mixture a bit less), but it's jam, and it's delicious. And it definitely set me back WAY less than my fancy jam.

Probably cooked about seven or eight minutes too long. Try and stop your when you can coat the back of a spoon and run your finger clean across the surface. 

However, I did add an ingredient or two. Or, really just one ingredient in two different forms. Lemon, in the form of skin and juice (and a pinch of salt, but that hardly counts) I felt the berries were great, but the sugar had muddled that brightness of flavors a bit. The lemon juice and zest really helped bring that freshness back to the foreground.

Another reason this jam is so easy: there is naturally occurring pectin in fruits such as berries and apples. Hence why no gelling agent is necessary, the berries take care of that on their own. If you'd like to make a plum or pear jam, some other form of pectin might need to be added. Hmmm....I've got a ton of pears handy, maybe I can experiment and report back....Alright, I'll go write a couple pages, then get back to cooking. Life in balance.

The homemade goodies that made up a baby shower gift. The dark one is the jam. Also included: mom's garam masala, picked red onions, and lemon-lavender poppyseed/browned butter and walnut sables. (Recipe for those coming soon)

Chimichurri

1 bunch basil

1 cup chopped cilantro

2 cups chopped parsley

9 -11 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

2-3 tbsp fresh oregano (use dried if you don’t have fresh, 1-2 tbsp)

5-6 sprigs fresh thyme

3 tsp chili flakes

3 tsp salt

2 tsp ground black pepper

¼ to 1/3 cup olive oil

1 lemon

Place all fresh herbs in food processor. Pulse for about 10 seconds to coarsely chop greens. Might need to do this in batches. Add remaining ingredients EXCEPT for olive oil. Pulse for a couple seconds to combine. Finally, keep food processor on and stream in olive oil. Add just enough to make the mixture a paste. Taste. Season more if necessary.

Blueberry/Blackberry Jam

3 cups blackberries

2 cups blueberries

1/3 cup sugar

2 tbsp lemon zest

2 tbsp lemon juice

pinch salt

Wash berries gently in a large bowl, and pat dry with paper towel. Using a fork, mush and macerate berries till most are crushed and mixture looks similar to a rough jam. Add contents of bowl to a stockpot, along with sugar and salt. Turn to medium high heat. The juices from the berries will make what looks like berry soup. Keep at a simmer and allow to reduce by about a third, or spoon test comes out clean (spoon test: dip back of spoon into mixture and run your finger across it. If the line stays clean, jam is done).

Turn off heat and stir in zest and juice. Let come to room temperature before storing in tupperware or glass jars. Keep refrigerated, will last approximately three weeks. 

I'm in the Zone! (Lemon Blueberry Buttermilk Cake w/ Browned Butter Crust)

The witching hour is when I always get my best work done. Maybe it's because there's absolutely no one else awake to distract me. But it's not been so easy for the past few months, which is a problem: the most important thing for me to accomplish at the moment is writing, and I don't know why, but it's become so hard to sit down and do just that.

Which is why I decided to celebrate my recent stroke of inspiration by taking a break and making use of my leftover buttermilk and wild blueberries by mixing them into this insanely moist loaf cake. This also gave me a chance to try out my new loaf pan! (I know, I live a terribly exciting life.) The pan browned the cake marvelously. The browned butter created a delicious crust, which was my absolute favorite part of this treat.

What's amazing is that this cake is ridiculously, unabashedly moist, almost to the point where after I sliced into it, for five seconds I was horribly worried I under-baked the loaf. And you will too. Relax, take a deep breath, you haven't. This just isn't a crumby, powdery sort of cake. It's got almost a pudding-like crumb, which is how it's supposed to be. That's from using buttermilk, and oil instead of butter. If you're not a fan of such a moist cake, you could opt to swap out the 1/2 cup of oil with a stick of room temperature  butter. Whip that with the sugar till light and fluffy and then add the rest of the wet ingredients. You could also add an extra half cup of flour to soak up more of that moistness. It might even be interesting to swap out half the flour with cornmeal. Hmmm...I should try that....

My definition of a wonderful Saturday night: page after page of writing accomplished, a cake baking in the oven, and a black market copy of My Fair Lady (always makes me think of my mom) playing in the background.  This was a spur of the moment experiment, which ended coming out a thrilling success. I'm anxiously looking forward to a slice with breakfast tea. This is also, like so many of my dishes, extremely adaptable. Prefer poppy seeds over blueberries? Not a problem, add half a cup of those instead. Or toasted walnuts. Or chocolate chips. Or both. The possibilities are endless. Kind of like the art of writing. Speaking of which...

 Lemon Blueberry Buttermilk Cake w/ Browned Butter Crust

Note: So, right off the bat I should be honest. I almost never sift my dry ingredients together. I’m just too lazy. And I’m sure my baked goods suffer somewhat from my laziness. Because I try not to promote such bad behavior, I have written out the directions below with the proper way to prep your ingredients, but in case you aspire to be just as lazy as I am, here’s how I make this (as well as almost every other cake I make) a one bowl recipe. I add the salt in with the wet ingredients, and when all of those are incorporated, I add the leaveners and mix thoroughly to combine. After that, generally the only other dry ingredient is flour, and I add that at the very end. I’m awful, right?

1 ½ cup flour

2 tsp baking powder

1/3 tsp salt

1 cup buttermilk

¾ cup plus ¼ cup sugar

3 large eggs, separated

2 tsp grated lemon zest

3 tbsp to ¼ cup lemon juice

½ tsp vanilla extract

½ cup vegetable oil

1 cup frozen wild blueberries (the small ones)

pinch extra flour

extra sugar

3 tbsp butter

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Spray a 8 ½ x 4¼ x 2 ½ inch loaf pan with nonstick cooking spray and set aside.

Take out frozen blueberries and spread onto paper towels to thaw. Pat dry and gather into bowl.

Sift together the 1 ½ cups flour with the baking powder and salt. In another bowl whisk together the buttermilk, ¾ cup sugar, egg yolks, zest, lemon juice, extract and oil.  Slowly add dry ingredients and mix to combine. Set aside.

In another bowel, place egg whites. Whip with electric mixer till frothy, then with mixer still on, slowly add ¼ cup sugar. Whip on high till egg whites are glossy and hold soft peaks (make sure the whites keep their sheen and don’t get too dry). In three additions, add to batter, folding each addition in with a spatula.

Take a pinch of flour (about 2 to 3 tsp) and toss to coat berries. Add them to the batter and fold gently to incorporate. Pour batter into prepared loaf pan and sprinkle top lightly with sugar. Place in oven.

While the cake is cooking, place butter in a small stockpot and cook on medium-low heat till nutty and brown. Remove off heat.

Keep an eye on the cake. When the top is still pale but not liquid anymore (about 20 to 25 minutes) take cake out and drizzle/brush browned butter on top. Since the sides had begun to set, I poked holes throughout the surface and allowed the butter to seep into the cake. Sprinkle with a touch more sugar and place back in oven and bake till golden brown.  Total baking time is about 45 to 50 minutes.

Cool for ten minutes in pan, then flip out onto parchment paper. Flip cake again onto cooling rack and cool completely before slicing.

What Shall I Do With My Life....Mmm, Kimchi Stew

In our feature film packaging class today, we were meant to write up two futures for ourselves. One being our fantasy version of what we would absolutely love to happen in the next 5 years, and the other what would most likely happen. It was somewhat...depressing. Not because I won't be able to achieve the fantasy version of my life, but even the realistic version seems so daunting. Can I really make a feature film in the next five years? Can I actually scrounge out a living making movies? I feel at any minute someone's going to catch me and realize I'm just having fun. I will then be forced to become an adult and do something responsible. Since it was such a heady day, I decided to go home and make my new absolute favorite one pot dish: kimchi stew.

A friend made a simpler version of this last Sunday evening and it honestly blew my mind. This beautiful spicy, tangy broth mixed with kimchi, some pork belly, hot dogs and tofu, and just underneath the surface a little pile of rice that became its own soupy component. How have I been living so long without this miracle food?!

So I set out to make the dish again, just a day later, however I didn't use fresh kimchi, which I realize is pretty much essential for this stew. Don't use a jar of kimchi you've had sitting around for a month. Go to the Asian supermarket and buy it fresh. I actually spent an extra few bucks and got the kind packaged like at a deli, in a temporary plastic container with the weight and price written out across.

Now, any koreans reading this: I totally realize I am breaking the rules. It's probably blasphemous to add corn and spinach to your kimchi stew, but I wanted a little variety in the vegetation swimming around. I'd highly recommend adding the spinach. It get soft and adds a wonderful texture. 

Korean chili paste. If you can find it, use it. And not just in this stew. 

I'm a big fan of lots of kimchis, not just the cabbage variety, so I decided, right at the very end of cooking, to add a bunch of chopped green onion and daikon radish kimchi. To be honest, I could take or leave the daikon radish in there; it's one of those kimchis better served cold. The green onion, however, added such a nice onion-y flavor, I'll definitely add it again.

For those of you who've never had this dish before and are interested in making it, please be warned: this is NOT for the faint of heart. Koreans are a strong, hearty people and they like their food SPICY. This bowl of soup is going to make you sweat, your nose drip, and you will need at least a gallon of water. I'm Indian, so while I might not be the biggest badass of chili eaters I know, I can take a good whacking. And trust me: this stew will give it to you. Of course, I added a good amount of Korean chili paste. You can use less if you wanna go the milder route. 

Kimchi Stew

Note: It is my belief that there is just no way to make stew for one. Or even for three. This recipe makes a LOT of stew. Enough that I’ll probably be enjoying it for the next week and a half. Also, stews to me have always been the kind of food that you’re able to constantly improvise with, so that’s what I did. The measurements below are approximations, but have fun creating your own version. Really, the only necessity in a kimchi stew is…well that should be obvious.

2 tbsp canola oil

½ cup chopped pork belly

1 cup chopped onion

3 tbsp chopped garlic

½ cup diced sausage/other protein (hotdog, kielbasa, marinated pork, etc.)

1 cup chopped tofu

4 cups chopped (or ripped) raw spinach

3 cups chopped cabbage kimchi

1 cup frozen corn

few splashes of mirin

few splashes of fish sauce

few splashes of soy sauce

close to ¼ cup Korean chili paste (gochugare)

salt and pepper to taste

3-4 cups chicken broth

4-6 cups water

1 cup chopped green onion kimchi (optional)

1 cup chopped daikon radish kimchi (optional)

Prepare this stew in the largest stockpot you have. Turn the heat on medium high and add the oil. Allow to heat slightly, then add the pork belly. Cook for a 3 to 4 minutes, till the pork is almost fully cooked. Add onion and garlic and sauté till onions become translucent and soft. There may be a good deal of fond (brown yummy bits) at the bottom of the pot at this point. If so, add the mirin and stir vigorously, to get all the flavor from the bottom back into the veggies and meat.

Add the chopped sausage and stir, allowing the pieces to sear a bit. After another minute, add tofu. Let tofu cook a couple minutes and add kimchi. Toss mixture with tongs for several minutes. Finally add spinach in batches and toss again, allowing each addition to wilt down before adding any more. Add corn and stir. Finally, add fish sauce, soy sauce, chili paste, and salt and pepper. Cook for several minutes, allowing the mixture to get mind numbingly fragrant. Finally, add broth and water. Stir to combine, and bring to a simmer. Cook till reduced by almost half.

If using, add green onion kimchi.  Cook for just another minute or two. Turn off heat and if using, add daikon radish kimchi. Stir and serve immediately.  

Serve with steamed rice in bottom of bowl (traditional) or on top. 

Sniffles Go Well with Soup (Curry Chicken Soup w/ Pickled Red Onions)

This is one of those ideas that simply...happens. I was in the middle of a horrible cold, and all I wanted was soup, and NOT to cook. But I couldn't find a single takeout place with a soup that interested me at the time. So, of course, I said "Fine...I'll just do it..." and started to throw things in a pot. Some leftover chicken tenders, a few vegetables, broth, and why not, let's just top it with some of these pickled red onions that couldn't fit into the jar I had just filled. (Homemade pickled red onions: a staple in my fridge.)

It was only when I got my face close enough to inhale the thick steam did I realize, wait, this may actually be quite good. And, can I just say, what an understatement. The red onions cutting through the thick curry flavors and all these nice, just-soft veggies and chicken floating in between....it was almost worth not having functioning sinuses for the next week. 

Indian Chicken Curry Soup w/ Pickled Red Onions

Note: I actually made this with Trader Joe’s curry marinated chicken tenders that I cubed. Thing is, in this kind of soup the meat became overcooked and chalky. I really didn’t care so much seeing as I was battling the plague, but for those of you with 100% functional taste buds I’d recommend using bone-in chicken pieces that you’ve marinated yourself. Or, for an easier yet still tasty soup, buy pre-roasted chicken and toss it in right before you add the liquids. 

*Pickled Red Onion recipe below

2 tsp canola oil

¾ cup red onion, chopped

¾ cup carrots, chopped

4 cloves of garlic, minced

3 tsp of ginger, minced

1 bay leaf

1 cinnamon stick

3 cloves

1-2 tsp salt

1.5 tsp fresh ground pepper

½ cup frozen corn

3 tsp and 1.5 tbsp favorite curry powder

2 tsp ground cumin

2 tsp ground coriander

3 tsp lemon juice

2 chicken thighs or 1 bone-in/skin-on chicken breast cut in half

1 tbsp tomato paste

2 cups chicken broth

1 1/3 cups water

¼ cup heavy cream

  

Mix the 1.5 tbsp of curry powder with the cumin and coriander in a small bowl.  Add a pinch of salt and some grinds of black pepper. Add lemon juice and combine.  The mixture should become a thick paste. Add water, a small amount at a time till you get a thinner paste, one that you can easily rub onto the chicken. Coat both pieces and let chicken sit for at least 30 minutes (but two hours would be better).

Put oil in stockpot and turn to medium high. When the oil is hot, add the chicken skin side down. Cook for four minutes, then flip. Cook for another four minutes and remove chicken from pot.

Add onions, garlic, ginger, carrots, bay leaf, cloves, and cinnamon.  Saute for 2 to 3 minutes, until onions turn translucent. Add salt, pepper and curry powder. If you feel that you’d like more curry powder, go ahead and add some! I’m a fan so I might actually add a little more than this.

Allow the curry powder to cook a bit, about 3 minutes. Add frozen corn and cook another minutes. Add tomato paste and turn heat to high. Stir to coat all the vegetables. Add chicken back to the pot and give everything a few stirs.

Add chicken broth and water. Allow mixture to come to a simmer and reduce a little more than a third, depending on how strong you like your soup. Finally, add cream and stir, cook for a minute and turn off heat.  (I actually added a touch more than ¼ cup but hey, I’m sick, I’m allowed.)

Ladle into bowl. Top with a pile of pickled onions.

Pickled Red Onions (adapted from David Lebovitz)

¾ cup red wine

¼ cup water

2-3 cloves

1 bay leaf

1 cinnamon stick

3 tbsp sugar

pinch salt

several good grinds of black pepper

2-3 good shakes of hot sauce

1 red onion, sliced thinly

Add everything except onion to a small stockpot and put on med high heat. Bring to a boil, turn heat down to bring to a simmer and add onion. Stir, and cook for about one minute. Turn off and let cool completely in pan. Transfer to either bowl o’ soup or jar and refrigerate. Onions will keep for about a month.

Antsy Wednesdays and Fancy PB&J Sandwich Cookies

I have work to do. A lot of work to do. I need to send my film out to festivals, write a short script, write a feature, help package another feature, update my website, apply for writing programs and internships....screw it. Tonight I make PB&J sandwich cookies. Why? Because with one bite you become 5-years-old again, when your biggest worry was hoping it wouldn't rain so you could ride your bike to the park. But these are adult cookies, more like a toasted peanut shortbread with nice, organic uppity peanut butter and jam sandwiched in between.

While America's Test Kitchen preferred using Jif in their cookies, next time I'd go with my Woodstock Farms Organic PB.

These cookies came about in a way many late night baked creations do. The "what if" moment. Let me explain: you're lying around, surfing the internet, when suddenly you think "what if I crossed a brownie with tater tots?" Thus begins the experimentations and epic successes and failures. This experience, I'd like to think, was a success.

I have recently become addicted to watching America's Test Kitchen episodes online on their website (I caved and bought the annual membership). If you haven't seen this show and enjoy cooking, well, first slap yourself for not knowing about this show, and then immediately go to their website and enjoy. This is their version of the perfect peanut butter cookie and except for one tiny little thing, I'd agree.

The cookies were moist, chewy with great texture, and the toasted chopped peanuts added to the batter give them a great, nutty taste. The only problem is, ATK recommends using Jif peanut butter, stating that most organic peanut butters are too gritty for this cookie. Thinking there's no way these giants of food knowledge could steer me wrong I did what they said and realized: they were, in fact, wrong.

See if you can spot the remanents of my "test subject" cookie.

In the end, these cookies weren't peanut-buttery enough for my taste. My gorgeous Sarabeth's Plum and Cherry Jam was completely covering the peanut goodness. I wanted stronger flavor, and Jif just wasn't cutting it. I had a jar of Woodstock Farms' Organic Peanut Butter on hand, and I decided to add a little extra peanut butter in between the cookie layers. So essentially, I made a pb&j sandwich, but instead of using bread, I used these insanely rich cookies. Because I'm all about eating healthy. 

So good. I wish I was 5 again so I could eat 8 of these and not have them affect my hips at all.

With that extra layer of peanut butter I got exactly what I wanted: toasty peanutty yumminess paired with tart, sweet cherry jam. But be warned: these cookies will kill you. I made standard sized cookies, but as sandwiches, they were pretty heavy and dense. Next time, I'll try to make them petite. But if you use a good, strong peanut butter in the batter to begin with, I'd guess you wouldn't have to add more PB to the final product.

And I'd suggest using a good jam for these. Keep the Smucker's for your late night/half drunk toast cravings and break out the local artisanal stuff. I opted for the Sarabeth's line, which I believe is generally available in most New York City grocery stores. They are expensive, but they are fantastic. Or, if you want to save a few bucks and have ten minutes, just make jam at home using my little ol' recipe (coming up in a couple days). 

I tried a flat version of these cookies as well. These browned a bit more, and had a slightly more caramel-y taste. I'd say if you like doughy, go traditional, but if you like a deeper flavor, try to flatten these cookies out.

PB&J Sandwich Cookies (adapted from America's Test Kitchen Peanut Butter Cookies)

Note: I opted for the smooth peanut butter over chunky, as is stated in the original recipe, because I knew from the beginning I'd be using these cookies in sandwich form, and felt too much nuttiness would create a structural problem. The toasted chopped peanuts you add bring enough of that peanut flavor, in my opinion. Just use good peanut butter!

2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
2 sticks butter, salted
1 cup packed dark brown sugar
1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup smooth peanut butter (Woodstock Farms Organic is good)
2 large eggs
2 tsp vanilla extract
1 cup roasted salted peanuts, ground in food processor to resemble bread crumbs
Jar of good jam (will depend on how much jam you'd like as to how much to use)

Adjust oven rack to low center position and heat oven to 350 degrees. Sift flour, baking soda and powder, and salt together.

In large bowl beat butter until creamy. Add sugars. Beat in peanut butter, then eggs, then vanilla. Toss dry ingredients into wet and stir gently. Add ground peanuts, stir until just incorporated.

To make smaller sandwich cookies, take a little less than a tablespoon of dough and roll into a ball. Continue with the rest of the dough, placing each ball on a cookie sheet about two inches apart from one another. Pour cold water into a small bowl and grab a fork. Dip fork in water and press the tines into the dough ball, flattening it. Dip fork again and press into cookie at a 90 degree angle from the first impression, creating the traditional pb cookie crosshatch.

Bake until the cookies are puffy and slightly browned around the edges. The middles should NOT be browned. About 10 minutes. These will not looked completely baked, but trust me. Cool on tray for about 4 minutes, then transfer to cooling rack.

Once the cookies have completely cooled, spread selected jam onto the bottom of one cookie and take another and press bottoms together. If you'd like more PB flavor, spread a thin layer of peanut butter on 2nd cookie bottom.

Save Me, Cauliflower (Spiced Cauliflower with Arugula and Egg Salad)

Sometimes, you just need a simple meal to make sense of life. This last semester of the grad film program at NYU has gotten my brain in knots. Melting knots that are on fire. Does that make any sense? If not, you have an idea of what my state of mind is at the moment. I am in the middle of writing a feature, writing a short, helping package another feature, sending out my last film to as many festivals as possible, and various other school-related obligations. Oh, and attempting to have a social life (haha, that's a funny joke...). 

So, at any rate, most days when I get home, I need some kind of comfort. Something simple and delicious that will hug my insides and say "It's ok. We're here for you." For me, that comes in the form of cauliflower. I'm not sure why, but I love the stuff. It may be because I'm Indian. We tend to have an affinity for broccoli's pasty cousin. Generally, I am used to this vegetable being sauteed Indian-style as "Gobi" (my Mom's...oohhhhhh.....). But recently I thought of treating cauliflower as I do most other vegetables, tossed some spices on it, along with a bit of oil, and threw it in the oven for a fair bit of time. What came out was....well pretty much spectacular. 

I generally like my roasted vegetables tossed with thyme, red pepper, perhaps some tarragon, more European seasonings. Cauliflower, however, has always been an Eastern vegetable for me. So instead, I rubbed it with coriander, cumin, and...get this...cinnamon. Seriously, you must try this. It is phenomenal. In fact, it's so good that I plan on just keeping this as a staple in my fridge, to toss into any old salad. Here I paired it with a bit of arugula tossed in olive oil and lemon juice, as well as a perfectly medium-boiled egg. Mmm...ok, one more bite and I'll return to my chaos.

Spiced, Roasted Cauliflower

Note: This is really not a recipe, but more of a suggestion for how you can prepare some cauliflower you've got lying around. You could try this with broccoli, but I have a feeling it won't work out as well. There's a creaminess to cauliflower that pairs very nicely with these spices. Would probably work well with potatoes, okra, turnips, onions, and various kinds of squash. Also, the spices are completely to taste. This is a rough estimation of what I used.

3 cups cauliflower, cut up into equal sized pieces
2 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp ground cumin
2 tsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp salt
1 tsp red pepper
1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
3 tbsp vegetable oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Toss all ingredients till cauliflower is well covered. Spread out on baking sheet. Bake till cauliflower begins to brown, and becomes soft. Approximately 30 minutes. Eat hot or at room temperature.

And...I'm back! (a.k.a Argentinian Pizza memories: four cheese and prosciutto)

I know, I know. It's been a while. You probably thought I'd forgotten all about this little venture I've undertaken. Truth be told, I've just needed a bit of a break from...well pretty much everything. This past fall semester at NYU had been tough, and I decided to spend the whole month of winter break in Chicago, resting and writing. (More resting happened than writing, but oh well.)

But I'm back now, and ready to sink my teeth into this new feature I'm writing, as well as some delicious pizza. For those who aren't aware, my sister and I backpacked through Argentina this past summer, and encountered some of the most delicious pizza either of us had ever had. The two that stuck with us the most were prosciutto with fresh mozzarella and arugula, and four cheese with a red wine reduction sauce. 

There's no other way to put it: these pizzas are fantastic. REALLY fantastic. I especially loved the red wine reduction idea. It's simply a normal wine reduction squirted onto the pizza as soon as it's come out of the oven. I've always loved wine reductions, and with the four cheese it works phenomenally. Don't forget to use a pretty kick ass wine for the reduction, as the flavor is really going to stand out. It also works great with a spicy italian sausage pizza with arugula (kind of a mix between the two here).

Really, these are two pretty simple pizzas. And I'll be honest with you from the get go: I did not make this dough. You'll notice a pattern after a while: I love being lazy. If there's an easy route, I'm generally on it. We used Trader Joe's pizza dough, and I personally love it. Plus a pre-made dough makes this a great weekday meal. We really enjoyed it with a bottle of cabernet sauvignon that Ajooni and I smuggled back from Argentina. Mmm...shoot, now I'm craving a glass of that wine right now...and a slice of that pizza. (Oh who am I kidding, I'm craving at least 4 slices of that pizza.)

Argentinian Pizza!
Note: These pizzas were extremely freestyle, so while I do offer measurements here, they are approximations as I don't really measure amounts. It's really however much I think needs to be added. Go ahead and change amounts according to your taste.

Another Note: We made one pizza on a pizza stone, and the other on a baking tray. Since not all kitchens come with a pizza stone, for the purposes of these recipes I explain how to prepare both on baking trays.

Four cheese with Red Wine Reduction

For the pizza:
1 pouch Trader Joe's pizza dough (or any pizza dough you prefer, about 14 to 16 oz)
1.5 Sliced Fresh Mozzarella
1/3 cup Crumbled Gorgonzola
1/3 cup Grated Parmigiano Reggiano
1/3 cup Sliced/Grated Manchego
Thyme
Salt and Pepper
Olive Oil

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees. Take the dough out of the package and toss a bit of flour onto it, molding it into a ball. Let sit for about 20 minutes so it can rise.

While the dough is rising, take a cookie sheet and generously rub olive oil over the surface. When the dough has sat for long enough, set it onto a well floured surface and roll out to about 1/4 inch thickness, into the shape of a long oval. To be honest, I suck a little bit at rolling out pizza dough, so when I transfer the dough to the tray, I generally have to coax it into a rectangular shape with my fingers.

Brush a nice amount of olive oil onto the surface. Add the sliced mozzarella, first, then the other three cheeses. Pull the thyme leaves off the stalk and sprinkle onto the surface. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Toss into the oven for about 25 minutes, until the edges of the crust are golden brown, and the cheese is bubbly. As soon as you take your glorious pizza out of the oven, squirt on the red wine reduction sauce.

For the reduction:
Bottle o' Great Red Wine (I'm a cab fan, but a bordeaux would be good too)
Cinnamon Stick
2-3 Bay Leaves
1-1.5 tbsp Peppercorns
4-5 Cloves
1 Stalk Thyme (don't worry about taking the leaves off the stem)
1 tsp Salt
1/2 cup Chicken Broth
2-3 tbsp Butter
2-3 Minced Shallots (or about 1/4 cup minced red onions)

Take half a tablespoon of the butter and melt that into a sauce pot. Toss the minced shallots in and let those soften a bit. Add the bay leaves, cinnamon stick, cloves, thyme, and peppercorns. Let the spices heat up a bit, till you almost faint at how amazing the smell is coming out of that pot.

When the onions have gotten a bit brown, add the wine and stock. Let the sauce reduce till only about a third is left. Constantly taste to see if the flavor is where you want it. You might realize you love the taste and thickness when the sauce has reduced to half instead.  

When the sauce is done reducing take out the cinnamon stick, peppercorns, cloves and thyme stem. Add the rest of the butter in pieces, stirring so every addition is completely mixed in. You should have a velvety sauce at the end that you can put into a squeeze bottle and squeeze onto your pizza. Or right into your mouth.

Prosciutto and Arugula Pizza

15 oz Pizza Dough
6-7 Slices of Prosciutto
1.5 cups Sliced Mozzarella
1 cup Grated Manchego
6-7 Chopped Garlic Cloves
3 Tbsp Tarragon
2-3 Sprigs of Thyme
2-3 Cups Arugula
Olive Oil
Salt and Pepper

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Take the dough out of its package, let it rest 20 minutes. Oil a baking tray. Place rested dough onto a floured surface and roll out to 1/4" and into a long oval. Place onto the tray and push into a rectangular shape.

Brush olive oil onto the dough. Add the slices of mozzarella. Rip the prosciutto into chunks and spread across the dough. Add the manchego, as well as the garlic. Pull the thyme leaves off the stems and scatter across the pizza. Sprinkle tarragon as well, and salt and pepper to taste.

Pop in oven for about 25 to 30 min till crust is golden brown and cheese is bubbly. As soon as it comes out of the oven, place the arugula on. Personally, I generally need to add another cup of arugula to my pieces of pizza alone, but that's because I'm an arugula addict.