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5 Different Thanksgiving Purées

YumSugar — Wed, 19 Nov 2008 06:45:00 -0800

Thanksgiving may be a traditional holiday, but that doesn't mean you're tied to the same old sides. Reinvent a tired meal with new takes on the classic dish known as mashed potatoes. Try blending other root vegetables into the mix, such as sweet potatoes or turnips. Instead of flavoring your mashed potatoes with chives or garlic, embrace seasonal flavors, such as celery root or mushrooms. To learn more, read on.

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A Different Salad: Turnips in Sour Cream

YumSugar — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 05:30:12 -0700

During the period of transition from Summer to Fall, you may find that while you see a lot of Fall produce in the market, the weather isn't quite cold enough for stews. This turnip salad is the perfect dish to make during this brief season. Although it's uncommon to see recipes with uncooked turnips, they're actually delicious eaten raw, with a dense, crunchy texture, and a flavor similar to radishes. It's important to slice the turnips as thinly as possible, and to make sure the salad is seasoned liberally with salt and pepper. If raw onions are too overpowering, reduce the amount of shallots in your salad. To get this recipe, which calls for only four ingredients, read more.

Turnip Salad
Adapted from The Four Ingredient Cookbook by Joanna Farrow

Ingredients

3 turnips, peeled
1/4 cup finely minced shallots
3/4 tablespoon white wine vinegar, to taste
4 tablespoons sour cream
Salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

Thinly slice the turnips. Put in a bowl.
Add the shallots and vinegar, and season to taste with salt and liberal amounts of pepper. Toss together, then stir in sour cream. Chill well before serving.

Serves 4.

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In Season: Radishes

YumSugar — Thu, 06 Aug 2009 13:10:38 -0700

On a recent trip to my favorite local farmers market, the Ferry Plaza Farmers Market, I bought way too many vegetables - including a few bunches of elegant French breakfast radishes from Petaluma-based Marin Roots Farm.

Although radishes are available in Northern California year-round, it's during warm Summer months when one can truly appreciate them for their crisp texture and spicy-juicy bite. These root vegetables are related to the turnip and horseradish families, and come in a myriad of varieties, from my dainty, fine-textured breakfast radishes, with their fuschia-hued base and white tips, to fiery red globes, trippy-looking watermelon radishes, and large, sweet daikons. Learn what I did with mine

Butter-Braised Radishes: An Unexpected Surprise

YumSugar — Sat, 11 Oct 2008 08:00:00 -0700

Lately I've been drawn to preparing everyday vegetables in unexpected ways: Last week, I wrote about turnips and the spicy quality they take on when served raw in a salad. Likewise, when I saw a recipe for braised radishes, I couldn't wait to try it. Unlike turnips, which are often found simmering in stews, radishes are typically served raw in salads or as crudités. However, the fuschia-hued root vegetable is delicious when cooked. After braising these radishes, they tasted and looked liked red-skinned potatoes, with a blush-colored skin, a soft, waxy texture, and a mellow flavor.

Radishes, when sautéed with a little butter and quick-braised, are as comforting to eat as potatoes, but they require a fraction of the labor and have none of the heaviness of a serious starch. To get the recipe for this surprisingly stunning dish, read more.

Butter-Braised Radishes
Adapted from the Chicago Tribune

Ingredients

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 green onions, cut into 1/4-inch dice, white and light green parts only
2 bunches radishes, greens removed, trimmed, halved or quartered, depending on size
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon sugar
Freshly ground black pepper
1/2 cup water

Directions

Melt the butter in a large skillet over medium-high heat; cook until it just begins to brown, 3-4 minutes.
Add the onion; lower heat to medium. Cook, stirring, until the onion softens, about 3 minutes.
Add the radishes, salt, sugar and pepper to taste; stir in the water.
Raise heat to high; heat just to a boil. Cover; lower heat to a simmer. Cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 20 minutes.
Uncover; raise heat to high. Heat to a boil; cook until almost all the liquid has evaporated, about 4 minutes.

Serves 4.

Nutrition information per serving: 76 calories, 71% of calories from fat, 6 g fat, 4 g saturated fat, 15 mg cholesterol, 6 g carbohydrates, 1 g protein, 118 mg sodium, 2 g fiber

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Get Excited for Fall Foods

partysugar — Mon, 22 Sep 2008 09:00:15 -0700

The first official day of Fall was over the weekend and with the cooler weather and shorter days comes a bounty of fresh, crunchy fruit and hearty vegetables. While apples and pumpkins are commonly consumed in large quantities, this year the Wall Street Journal has published a list of 10 other foods to consider for Fall cooking. To check out their delicious suggestions, read more.

Concord grapes: Native to the Northeast, these small, black tart grapes are delicious raw or baked in a pie.
Kabocha: A type of squash with sweet, nutrient rich flesh that can be prepared as one would prepare an acorn squash.
Pears: The apple's less popular cousin definitely deserves its time in the spotlight. Harvested in September and October, there are more than 1000 varieties that taste great in everything from salads to sauces to sweets.
Pomegranate: The jewel like fruit's nectar is a wonderful source of antioxidants. Its seeds are a pretty garnish and its flesh adds a rich flavor to glazes.
Pine nuts: In summer these nuts are used as an ingredient in pesto, but in Fall they are an easy snack or crunchy addition to salad.
Quince: Popular in Europe, this fruit is packed with vitamin C and fiber. Although sour raw, when cooked or turned into jam, quince is soft, delectable, and subtly sweet.
Rutabaga: With a texture similar to potatoes and a taste like a turnip, this root vegetable is a scrumptious side especially when treated like a potato.
Thyme: The woody, fragrant herb can season anything from marinades to soups.
Tuscan kale: Its dark, green leaves are full of vitamins. Serve in stews or soups or in a classic Italian preparation, with white beans.
Sheep's milk cheeses: Due to the milking cycle of sheep, the Fall is the best time to consume aged sheep's milk cheeses. Best served at room temperature, enjoy alone or with crostini or preserves.

After reading this list, are you more excited about Fall? What foods are you looking forward to eating?

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What's in Season: Watermelon Radishes

YumSugar — Mon, 14 Apr 2008 10:18:39 -0700

I was recently at my local farmers market when I noticed these beautiful watermelon radishes. I've had them in salads before - they're absolutely gorgeous and add a tremendous amount of color to a dull-looking meal - but have a hard time finding them in person.

The watermelon radish has the crunchy texture like other radishes, and are peppery - like regular radishes - on the outside, and sweeter towards the middle. On the outside they appear to look like turnips or baby daikon radishes - they're actually an heirloom version of the daikon - and they can be prepared like them, too. You can cook them (braised, sautéed, mashes, fried, etc.) and serve it as a side dish, or you can serve them raw in salads, sandwiches, or as garnish.

Look for radishes that are firm and without any bruises. For a milder flavor, wash and cut radishes, and store in an ice-water bath several hours before serving. Also it's good to note that the intensity of the flavor will decrease the longer it sits around, so eat them up as soon as you can!

Have you ever had a watermelon radish? Do you enjoy them?

You Showed Us Your Cookbooks!

YumSugar — Wed, 29 Aug 2007 08:01:31 -0700

A few weeks ago I asked you to share your favorite cookbook with the rest of us. For PartySugar it's Williams-Sonoma's The Bar Guide by Ray Foley. For me it's Baking Illustrated by the editors of Cook's Illustrated Magazine. There were so many great entries (over 20!) and only one duplicate. These books look fascinating and I can't wait to try out some of them. Thanks to everyone who submitted their book!

Entry #1
LA's Sarah Kushner wanted to share Nigella's How To Be A Domestic Goddess. She says it's the one cookbook she uses on a regular basis.

Entry #2
Radarkitty from Livermore, CA wanted to share the book Sweet Gratitude. She choose it because it's all about baking desserts and is a fun illustrated read.

Entry #3
SoCalSugar, who's in Berkeley via San Diego, wrote in to share Christine Ingram's Vegetarian and Vegetable Cooking: The Definitive Encyclopedia of Healthy Vegetarian Food. She believes there's a lot of great variety, including hearty and unique vegetarian meals that omnivores will love too!

Entry #4
Llendril writes in from Peyton Colorado to share Dorie Greenspan's Baking, From My Home To Yours. She loves this book because she believes Greenspan to be a lovely writer who produces even lovelier baking recipes.

Entry #5
Portland based LovaAJN couldn't choose a cookbook, so instead she's decided to take a picture with her favorite pink binder. This binder holds her most cherished recipes, including ones passed down to her from her mom.

Entry #6
Chef Farid Zadi, who's originally from France but is currently based in LA would love to share The Food of Paradise: Exploring Hawaii's Culinary Heritage by Rachel Laudan. He chose this book because it helped him look at food cultures and food history through a new lens or rather multiple lenses.

Entry #7
France-based Jennifer ended up deciding on The Encyclopedia of Cajun and Creole Cuisine by John D. Folse. She believes it's beautiful and well researched with over 700 recipes that chart the evolution of cuisine in Louisiana.

For SEVENTEEN additional submissions, please read more

Entry #8
Maryann from Finding La Dolce Vita writes in to tell us about Honey From a Weed by Patience Gray. She chose this book because it contains stories and recipes gathered from the people who live close to the land in Tuscany, Catalonia, The Cyclades, and Apulia.

Entry #9
Jay from Cincinnati, Ohio wants to share both Professional Chef and Baking & Pastry from the CIA. Why? Because those two books are a continual inspiration for
all the "goofy *&^%" he wants to create!

Entry #10
Schianne dropped a line from Virginia to say that the Better Homes and Gardens New Cookbook (which is about 17 years old!) is her favorite because she can count on it to have recipes for the staples as well as fancier dishes.

Entry #11
Good ol' Chubby from Bunrab loves Simple French Food by Richard Olney so much that it's falling apart from use. This old school book without glossy photos contains recipes like onion panade, sorrel tart and turnip gratin that are beyond delish.

Entry #12
Carrie from Minnesota's Twin Cities loves the Betty Crocker New Edition Cookbook because she grew up with it and has become very familiar with the recipes. She's also never had one go wrong!

Entry #13
Lucky entry 13 comes from Nags in Hyderabad, India. Her favorite cookbook is Tarla Dalal's Healthy Subzis. It's the favorite because of the simple and healthy recipes, and because it allows her to mix-n-match.

Entry #14
Half-Baked in Alabama wants to share the Joy of Cooking with us all. She loves it because you can find a recipe for almost anything you want to make.

Entry #15
Sarina writes in from Trinidad to share Vegetarian Express by Nava Atlas and Lillian Kayte. She loves that it contains wonderful tasting vegetarian meals that can be made in 30 minutes or less!

Entry #16
Washington DC based Popgoestheworld would like to share America's Test Kitchen's The New Best Recipe. She believes it has the absolute best recipes for all the classic dishes.

Entry #17
Linda writes all the way from The Netherlands to share Donna Hay's Modern Classics 2. It contains lots of yummy and well-written recipes, but what she really "loooves" are the pictures!

Entry #18
Nahm in Santa Monica, CA would love to share Tommy Tang's Modern Thai Cuisine Cookbook. It's her fave book because most of the recipes are Thai, but not all the way Thai; therefore people who are not used to real Thai cuisine can enjoy them too.

Entry #19
TeamSugar member Rothchild wrote in to also share the Joy of Cooking. She says that it's her go-to whenever she makes something new or uses a new ingredient. She also says that it has never failed her!

Entry #20
Josh writes in from the Bay Area to promote Radical Brewing by Randy Mosher. While this book does not have a recipe for cookies, meatloaf or veggie casserole, it does have a plethora of delicious beer recipes from polka dot pilsner to pumpkin spice beer.

Entry #21
Our very own TeamSugar has fallen in love with Anthony Bourdain's A Cook's Tour. She thinks it's a superb read because not only does he cover the food, but the culture and people that have made it.

Entry #22
Team member tdamji wants to make sure we all know about How It All Vegan by Sarah Kramer and Tanya Barnard. She loves it because the recipes are simple and don't require a lot of special ingredients. She belives that it's a great cookbook for vegans and non-vegans alike!

Entry #23
Kiwitist wants to make sure that we all know how much she loves The Fannie Farmer Cookbook. It's her old, beat-up favorite book!

Entry #24
Finally, last but not least, we have YumJimmy who is sharing How To Cook Everything by Mark Bittman. He uses this book all the time and treats it like a reference. This should give you an idea on how much he uses it: Whenever I ask him about something the answer is usually, "Well Bittman says..."

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Exercise in Excess: Feasting at The French Laundry

YumSugar — Wed, 20 Jun 2007 08:01:31 -0700

A little while back, I confessed to never having eaten at a single one of the 50 best restaurants in the world. Well, last week I finally fixed that by dining at Thomas Keller's number 4 ranked (number 1 in the US) The French Laundry of Yountville, CA (Napa wine country). The menu there consists of two options: the chef's tasting menu or the taste of vegetables menu, so unfortunately there's no popping in and ordering a la carte. In fact, there's no popping in of any sort - we had our reservations booked two months in advance, and even those were hard to come by. The meal itself is rather pricey, but I felt worth it for the food, atmosphere service and experience. It's not something I could see myself doing often, mostly for financial reasons. When I told everyone that I went, the first question was, "was it worth it?" followed shortly by, "what did you eat?" To find out the answers and see a parade of delectable pictures, read more

The evening started off by being presented bottles of both still and sparkling water. The still water was from Hildon and my friend Eric made sure that I noted that the bottle said it was "An English Natural Mineral Water of Exceptional Taste." Once we were settled in with waters, we (there were four of us) all decided to go with the Chef's tasting menu. The vegetable menu looked great, but I knew I would be sad not to get the chef's menu. Once our menus were chosen and our variations (a few dishes had options) selected, it was time for the amuse-bouches.

The two amuses were little gougeres (cheese bread puffs) served on a warm plate, and red onion crème fraiche filled, black sesame cornets topped with salmon tartare. I could have eaten just these and been quite a happy camper.

Next up is the "Oysters and Pearls," "Sabayon" of Pearl Tapioca with Beau Soleil Oysters and White Sturgeon Caviar. This is one of of the only dishes that is served just about every evening, and after tasting it, I know exactly why. The oysters were great, the caviar delectable and the texture amazingly creamy. It was like a savory tapioca pudding, everything just melted in my mouth. They followed this up with one of the best breads I'd ever eaten. A "brioche-like" roll and I must say, if this recipe is in either the French Laundry or the Bouchon Bakery cookbook, this will be disaster for my waistline.

After the caviar it was time for Moulard Duck "Foie Gras Au Torchon" "Compressed" Strawberries, Purple Top Turnips, Frisée Lettuce and Black Truffle "Gastrique" served with fresh buttery rich brioche. This dish was smooth, creamy and totally my undoing. I should have eaten only part of it, but I devoured it instead. In fact, I had more than one helping of brioche. Along with the brioche, the foie gras was also served with a trio of fancy salts.

At this point we were only 2 of 9 courses in to the meal, and on our 3rd glass of wine. Like I said, the whole evening was an exercise in excess! Be sure to come back for tomorrow for part 2 of my French Laundry recap!