Cardamom Honeyed Kumquats on Ricotta Toast

Cardamom Honeyed Kumquats On Ricotta Toast

A simple dish to make at home with the best of what's in season. Kumquats are so readily available in the grocery store. Anyone with a tree has an abundance to share.
Ingredients:
1/2 cup honey
1/2 cup water
3 cardamom pods, gently cracked
3 cups Kumquats, sliced
Crusty bread, cut in 1/2 inch slices
Ricotta cheese
Poppy seeds

Directions:

In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the water, honey, and cardamom pods. Bring to a simmer and stir until the honey dissolves.

Add the kumquats and bring the mixture back to a simmer for 10 minutes or until the liquid slightly thickens and the kumquats are translucent.  Remove the pan from the heat and let cool.  Discard the cardamom pods

Preheat oven to 350*F and place rack in middle position[.

Arrange bread slices on a baking sheet or directly on oven rack and bake for 10 minutes, flipping over half way if needed.

 Spread a generous amount of ricotta cheese on each slice of toast and top with a few spoons of kumquats.  Garnish with a few spoons of poppy seeds.

Store the leftover honeyed kumquats in a airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 1 week.

Cherries Jubilee

  

Cherries Jubilee Flambe 

Cherries Jubilee, a sauce made from sugared, butter-sauteed cherries flambéed with either kirsch or brandy, then poured over ice cream, was named in honor of Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee in 1897.    

(Johnny Miller / The New York Times)

Cherries Jubilee

Although this classic recipe was named in honor of Queen Victoria’s Diamond Jubilee in 1897, the method of sauteing cherries with butter, sugar and a splash of Cognac or kirsch probably predates those festivities. Flambéing the mixture helps cook off some of the alcohol and singes the cherries, adding a gentle caramelized note. But you can skip that step and just add an extra 2 minutes to the simmering in Step 5 after adding the Cognac. Serve this warm over ice cream, pound cake or both.

Makes   2 to 4 servings

Ingredients:

1 small orange

4 cardamom pods

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 to 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, to taste

8 ounces fresh sweet cherries, pitted (about 1¾ cups)2 tablespoons Cognac or brandy

Salt

Ice cream or pound cake, for serving

The Cognac or brandy in Cherries Jubilee is set on fire to cook off some of the alcohol and singe the cherries for a gentle caramelized note.

Directions:
Finely grate about ¼ teaspoon zest from the orange, then halve the fruit and squeeze out 2 tablespoons juice. Place the cardamom pods on a cutting board and use the side of a chef’s knife to lightly press on them, bruising them.

In a medium skillet over medium heat, combine butter, sugar, cardamom seeds and pods, and orange juice. Gently stir the mixture until the sugar dissolves, 2 to 3 minutes.

Add the cherries and orange zest to the saucepan. Cook cherries until they become tender and release their juices, 2 to 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and leave the pan on the stove.

Pour Cognac or brandy into a big metal ladle capable of holding 2 tablespoons of liquid, or a small saucepan. With a stick lighter or long match, carefully warm the brandy by gliding the flame directly over the liquid (stand back as you do this). When the brandy is warm enough, it will ignite with blue flames. Immediately pour the flaming brandy over the cherries and allow flames to burn off, about 30 seconds to 1 minute.

After the flames have died, turn the burner to medium heat and reduce the sauce until it begins to thicken, 1 to 2 minutes. Add a tiny pinch of salt to taste and spoon warm cherries over ice cream or cake.

Chai Tea

Chai Tea

Chai Tea is a beverage with no hard and fast recipe.  The one rule you want to follow is, do not boil the spices after you add the tea leaves but steep only.  Spices can be altered, eliminated, or increased to suit your taste.  This formula I offer is from the internet.   

Ingredients:

15 green cardamom pods or 6 brown pods

4 cinnamon sticks or 16 grams

16 grams black peppercorns or 1 tablespoon

12 whole cloves

Place on a baking tray and roast at 350*F  for 6 to 8 minutes until fragrant.  When cooled, grind the spices with a mortar and pestle, .   

Add ground spices and the ginger and nutmeg to filtered water: 

1/3 cup ginger,  rough chopped

1/4 teaspoon fresh grated nutmeg

1 quart filtered water:

MOST IMPORTANT   Over boiling will make your Chai bitter!  

Bring to a boil and quickly reduce heat to a simmer for 10 minutes.  Cool 30 seconds,  and add 1/2 cup good quality black tea.  Steep 4 to 5 minutes.  Do not boil tea but steep !!!

Add equal part of flavored mix with equal milk.

Celebration Punch

Celebration Punch

It’s time to celebrate! To commemorate a special occasion, I raise a glass to you, dear readers. Ten ingredients combine to make one truly delectable beverage.  Flavors warm and spicy, crisp and cool, all at once. In keeping with our ongoing kitchen pantry preserve/ cocktail experiments, we use fig jam here to special effect, a subtle note that captures the essence of the season, and lingers on the tongue with a silky mouthfeel.
Ingredients:
½ gallon unfiltered apple juice
6 cardamom pods, crushed
2 cinnamon sticks
2 star anise pods
2 tablespoons fig jam
2 cups bourbon
2 12-ounce bottles ginger beer
5 oranges (use 4 to make 2 cups freshly squeezed orange juice and slice 1 into wheels for garnish)
½ cup crystalized ginger, sliced
10 dashes Angostura bitters
Directions:
Pour the apple juice into a large pot. Add the cinnamon sticks, cardamom and star anise and let simmer for about 20 minutes. Add the fig jam and stir to dissolve. Remove from heat and let cool, then transfer to the refrigerator to chill for several hours or overnight.

Pour the spiced apple juice into a large punch bowl or pitcher, using a strainer to remove the whole spices. Add the bourbon, ginger beer and orange juice and mix well. Top with the crystalized ginger, orange slices and bitters. Add ice to serving glasses if desired. Serves 8.

Home Cured Corned Beef

Home Cured Corned Beef

How to Make Corned Beef from Brisket

Over the years, many of my friends have encouraged me to cure my own corned beef, insisting that it wasn't hard to do, and well worth the effort. After finally getting around to it, I'm happy to report that my friends were right! It really is easy; it just takes about 5 days to cure.

Directions For Brining

Remember this is a five day process.
Make a salty curing brine with pickling spices like mustard seed, allspice berries, coriander seeds, and peppercorns.
Marinate a beef brisket in the brine, for 5 to 7 days.
Simmer the brined and drained brisket in water with more pickling spices for several hours until tender.

How to Season Your Corned Beef 

Because you get to choose what pickling spices to use, you can make your own distinctively flavored corned beef. You know how BBQ masters have their own favorite homemade dry rubs? It's sort of like that.

Pretty much every packaged corned beef brisket I've bought tastes about the same. The one I home cured? Wonderful and different.

Ingredients

• Pickling spices:
• 1 tablespoon whole allspice berries
• 1 tablespoon whole mustard seeds (brown or yellow)
• 1 tablespoon coriander seeds
• 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes
• 1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns
• 2 teaspoons whole cloves
• 9 whole cardamom pods
• 6 large bay leaves, crumbled
• 2 teaspoons ground ginger
• 1/2 stick cinnamon
• Brine:
• 1 gallon (3.8 liters) water
• 300 g Kosher salt (2 cups of Diamond Crystal brand Kosher Salt OR 1 cup 3 1/2 tablespoons of Morton's Kosher Salt)
• 5 teaspoons pink curing salt (NOT Hymalain)
• 3 tablespoons pickling spices
• 1/2 cup (90 g) brown sugar
• Brisket:
• 1 5-pound beef brisket
• 1 tablespoon pickling spices

Directions:

Toast and crush spices: 

You can either used store-bought pickling spices or you can make your own. To make your own, toast the allspice berries, mustard seeds, coriander seeds, red pepper flakes, peppercorns, cloves, and cardamom pods in a small frying pan on medium heat until fragrant. Note that it is pretty easy to burn spices; you want enough heat to release their flavors, not so much that they get burned.

Remove from heat and place in a small bowl. Use a mortar and pestle to crush the spices a little (or the back of a spoon or the side of a knife on a flat surface). Add to a small bowl and stir in the crumbled bay leaves and ground ginger.

1. 
2. Make curing brine: 

   Add about 3 Tbsp of the spice mix (reserve the rest for cooking the corned beef after it has cured), plus the half stick of cinnamon, to a gallon of water in a large pot, along with the Kosher salt, pink salt (if using), and brown sugar. Bring to a boil, then remove from heat and let cool to room temperature. Then refrigerate until well chilled.
3. Brine the brisket for 5-7 days: 

   Place the brisket in a large, flat container or pan, and cover with the brine. The brine should cover the meat. The meat may float in which case you may want to weigh it down with a plate.

   Alternatively you can use a 2-gallon freezer bag (placed in a container so if it leaks it doesn't leak all over your refrigerator), place the brisket in the freezer bag and about 2 quarts of brine, squeezing out the air from the bag before sealing.

   Place in the refrigerator and chill from 5-7 days. Every day flip the brisket over, so that all sides get brined equally.

   1. 
   2. Cook The Corned Beef: 

      At the end of the cure, remove the brisket from the brine and rinse off the brine with cold water. Place the brisket in a large pot that just fits around the brisket and cover with at least one inch of water. If you want your brisket less salty, add another inch of water to the pot.

      Add a tablespoon of the pickling spices to the pot. Bring to a boil, reduce to a very low simmer (barely bubbling), and cook 3-4 hours, until the corned beef is fork tender. (At this point you can store in the fridge for up to a week.)

      
   3. Cut across the grain: 

      Remove the meat to a cutting board. (You can use the spiced cooking liquid to cook vegetables for boiled dinner or corned beef and cabbage.) Notice the visible lines on the meat; this is the "grain" of the meat, or the direction of the muscle fibers.

      To make the meat easier to cut, cut it first in half, along the grain of the meat. Then make thin crosswise cuts, across the grain to cut the meat to serve.

      

Lamb Biryani

Lamb Biryani

Ingredients:

• 2 pounds (910g) boneless leg of lamb, trimmed of excess fat and cut into 1-inch (2cm) cubes
• 1 cup plain, unsweetened full-fat yogurt
• 6 medium garlic cloves, peeled and finely grated
• One 2–inch piece fresh ginger, peeled and grated 
• 3 teaspoons Diamond Crystal kosher salt, divided; if using table salt, use half as much by volume
• 1/4 cup (60 ml) plus 2 teaspoons (10ml) ghee or neutral oil, such as grapeseed, divided
• 2 large yellow or white onions (26 ounces; 750g total), sliced thinly
• 5 green cardamom pods, lightly cracked, divided

1 cinnamon stick

• 4 cloves
• 2 dried bay leaves 
• 1 teaspoon garam masala, store-bought or homemade
• 1 teaspoon ground Kashmiri chili (see note)
• 1/2 teaspoon ground mace
• 1/2 teaspoon ground turmeric
• 1 cup (240ml) water or low-sodium stock (lamb, beef, or chicken)
• 2 cups (400g) basmati rice
• 1/4 cup (60ml) fresh lemon or lime juice
• 1 bunch fresh cilantro leaves and tender stems, chopped
• 1 bunch fresh mint leaves, chopped
• 1 fresh green chile, such as a serrano or Thai bird, minced
• 1/4 cup (60ml) whole milk
• 20 strands of saffron, divided
• 2 teaspoons rosewater
• 2 teaspoons pandan (kewra/screwpine) water (see note)

Directions:

Place the lamb in a 1 gallon (3.8L) ziptop bag. In a medium bowl, mix the yogurt, garlic, ginger, and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt until combined, pour the yogurt mixture over the lamb, seal the bag, and shake the bag to coat the lamb well. Leave the ziptop bag in the refrigerator to marinate overnight.

Heat 1/4 cup (60ml) ghee or oil in a Dutch oven or saucepan with a heavy bottom over medium heat. Add the onions, season with a pinch of salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions caramelize and turn dark brown (but not black), about 25 to 30 minutes.

1. 

Set oven rack at the middle position and heat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Place half the saffron threads in a mortar and pestle and grind to a fine powder. In a small saucepan placed over low heat, warm the milk just until it starts to bubble, then turn off the heat. Add the ground saffron and remaining saffron strands to the hot milk and let steep for 10 minutes.

1. 

Meanwhile, as the lamb cooks, prepare the rice. Pick over the the rice for any debris, then place it in a fine mesh strainer and rinse under cold running water, until the runoff is no longer cloudy; drain well. Place the rice in a bowl and cover with 4 cups (960ml) water and let stand for 30 minutes. Strain the rice, discarding soaking water. In a large saucepan, combine rice with 4 cups cold water, lemon juice, the remaining 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, the remaining 2 green cardamom pods, and the remaining 2 teaspoons of ghee or oil and bring to a boil over medium heat. Boil for 2 minutes and then strain the rice; discard cooking water. It will be partially cooked—if you break a grain of rice, you will see an outer translucent ring and a tiny, opaque inner ring.

1. When the lamb is tender, remove lid and increase the heat to medium, stirring often to prevent scorching, and cook until the liquid starts to thicken and reduces to about 1 1/2 cups (360ml), about 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Using a clean, large wooden spoon or spatula, spread the rice out in an even layer over the meat in the Dutch oven.
2. 
   
3. Set oven rack at the middle position and heat the oven to 350°F (180°C). Place half the saffron threads in a mortar and pestle and grind to a fine powder. In a small saucepan placed over low heat, warm the milk just until it starts to bubble, then turn off the heat. Add the ground saffron and remaining saffron strands to the hot milk and let steep for 10 minutes.

6.     

Sprinkle the saffron-infused milk over the rice, followed by the rosewater and the pandan water. Garnish the top of the rice with the reserved caramelized onions. Cover the Dutch oven with two sheets of aluminum foil and crimp the overhang to form a tight seal, place the lid over the foil, and place the Dutch oven in the preheated oven for 20 minutes to let the rice steam. Remove from the oven and let stand for 5 minutes. Uncover the pot and carefully peel off the aluminum seal. Use a fork to loosen the rice a little and serve immediately straight from the Dutch oven. Alternatively, biryani can be transferred to a platter and served.

Special Equipment
Dutch oven, 3 qt. saucepan, 2 quart saucepan, fine mesh strainer, mortar and pestle.

Notes:
The ground Kashimiri chile can be replaced with a combination of 3/4 teaspoon ground smoked sweet paprika and 1/2 teaspoon ground cayenne.

Pandan water can be purchased at speciality food stores or online.

Make-Ahead and Storage
Lamb biryani is best served immediately, but will keep in an airtight container for up to o0ne week in the refrigerator.