Can't Wait till April!

The release of my new cookbook Flavored Butters is closing in fast—April 2 is the big day. I’m excited to announce that the book will have a newly redesigned cover. I want you to see it here first…

Pictured is the Bed & Breakfast Butter in peach and cherry. I’m not too shy to say that I’m thrilled with the new cover. I had a fantastic time shooting it, and I think the design team at Harvard Common Press did a tremendous job. Hopefully it makes people very hungry!

While I’m making announcements, the winter issue of Cooking Club magazine is out. Check out the "Weeknight Cook" column for a Turkey-Sage Meatball Soup with Orzo recipe (on page 49) by yours truly. Try it once, and this healthy and delicious soup is sure to become a staple in your home.

And finally, the winter Clark College class schedule just came out. I'll be teaching Hands On Italian Restaurant Chicken Favorites, Hands On Potato Gnocchi, and Soup Series: Hands On Chinese Favorites. Please join me in the kitchen! Current class listings can always be found in the Cooking Classes, Book Signings & Appearances sidebar on the right.

At Long Last

I’m back.

I didn’t mean to be gone so long, but this fall was a difficult one. Though I wanted nothing more than to be here, it wasn’t meant to be—one thing after another kept me away…

There were problems at work, problems that caused me much stress and angst. Complications that drove me to distraction and made it difficult to see the big picture. At times it seemed my entire professional future was in doubt.

There was a debilitating back injury, one that made both sleep and work nearly impossible. One that continues to lurk in the background, threatening constantly.

And then there was a death in the family the day after Thanksgiving. It was the result of a supposedly routine procedure. It wasn’t her time to go. There's no making sense of it. It was painful and needlessly drawn out, just heartbreaking.

So I hope you can understand why I had to be away. All I can say is that there was a lot of comfort food shared with family over the past few weeks. I saved some for you…

Home Fries with Chestnuts
Printable Recipe

6 ounces chestnuts
3 tablespoons canola oil
2 large Russet potatoes, peeled and diced
½ yellow onion, diced
Kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Using a chestnut knife, cut an X in the cheek of each chestnut. Arrange the chestnuts in a single layer on a baking tray and bake for 25 to 35 minutes, or until tender. Let rest for about 5 minutes, or until just cool enough to handle. Peel and dice.

Heat a large, heavy sauté pan over medium heat until hot but not smoking. Add the oil and swirl to coat the bottom of the pan. Add the potatoes and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, tossing about 2 times, until crusty and brown in spots.* Reduce the heat to medium-low, add the onion, and sauté for 10 to 12 minutes, or until the onion is soft. Add the chestnuts and sauté for another 20 to 22 minutes, or until the potatoes are cooked through. Season to taste with salt and pepper, transfer to a bowl, and serve immediately.

Serves 2 to 4, depending on what else is for breakfast. Enjoy in the fall, when chestnuts are in season. A visit to the local chestnut orchard on a brisk day, after all the leaves have fallen from the trees, provided me a few moments of much-needed peace. Chestnuts are easiest to peel when they're hot.

*Searing the potatoes in this manner adds tons of flavor to the finished dish. For everything you ever wanted to know about searing, plus dozens of fabulous searing recipes, look for my book Seared to Perfection in stores now.

Opposites Attract and Chanterelles

They say opposites attract. I believe it. In fact, I think my husband and I prove it. We couldn’t be any more different. He’s left brained and analytical. I’m a creative type and completely right brained. He’s practical, and my head’s always in the clouds. He’s quiet, and I chat endlessly. We don’t have any hobbies in common either. I’m a bookworm and love to shop, which he barely tolerates. He prefers sporty outdoor activities, activities which have often resulted in bodily injury (including one concussion) to me. It can be hard for us to find ways to spend time together.

But there is one thing we’re equally passionate about: foraging for mushrooms.

We both get excited when the fall weather comes, bringing with it the chanterelles. We both eagerly anticipate the thrill of the hunt, and we both fantasize about the size of our haul and the delicacies we will cook with it. The long drive into the woods, the bushwhacking in the cold rain, and the scouring of every inch of forest floor are things that we both enjoy. And of course, we both absolutely love the part where we devour the mushrooms. Now that’s what I call “quality” time together.

Chanterelle Ragu
Printable Recipe

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 pounds chanterelles, diced
4 slices bacon, diced
1 yellow onion, diced
3 stalks celery, diced
1 large carrot, diced
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tablespoons tomato paste
¼ cup white wine
1 cup milk
1 14 ½-ounce can diced tomatoes
1 cup chicken broth
1 bay leaf
Generous pinch freshly grated nutmeg
Freshly ground black pepper
Kosher salt

Heat a large, heavy pot over high heat until very hot but not smoking. Add the oil and swirl to coat the bottom of the pot. Add a third of the chanterelles and sauté for 5 to 6 minutes, or until tender. Using a slotted spoon, remove the chanterelles to a plate. Sauté the remaining chanterelles in the same manner and set aside. Reduce the heat to medium-low, add the bacon to the pot, and fry, tossing frequently, for 10 to 12 minutes, or until rendered. Add the onion and sauté for 5 to 6 minutes, or until soft. Add the celery and carrot and sauté for another 5 to 6 minutes, or until soft. Add the garlic and tomato paste and sauté 2 to 3 minutes more, or until fragrant. Add the wine and simmer for a minute or so, scraping up the brown bits from the bottom of the pan with a heat-proof spatula. Return the chanterelles to the pot and add the milk in thirds, simmering for 2 to 3 minutes, or until nearly dry, after each addition. Add the tomatoes, broth, bay leaf, nutmeg, and a generous pinch of pepper. Bring to a boil and simmer for about an hour, or until thickened and saucy and the flavors come together. Discard the bay leaf and season to taste with salt and pepper.

Makes enough for 8 to 10 portions of pasta or polenta, which absolutely must be topped with plenty of grated Parmegiano-Reggiano. If you want to go all out, use this to make Lasagna Bolognese. When working with chanterelles, I usually prefer to tear them into bite-size pieces, but I chose to dice them here so that the texture of the finished ragu would more closely resemble Ragu Bolognese.

Cranberry Gingerbread Upside Down Cakes

Hubby took one bite, smiled, and said, “Tastes like fall!” Exactly the reaction I was going for!

Before I get to the recipe, I’d like to take a moment to thank HuffPost Taste for featuring my Wonton Soup in their Chinese Takeout Recipes to Make at Home recipe roundup and my Steak au Poivre with Red Wine Sauce in their Classic French Recipes to Cook at Home recipe roundup.

Cranberry Gingerbread Upside Down Cakes
Printable Recipe

5 ounces (1 ¼ stick) unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing the pan
1 cup plus 2 tablespoons sugar
1 ¾ cups cranberries
2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1 teaspoon ground ginger
¼ teaspoon ground cloves
1 teaspoon baking powder
¼ teaspoon baking soda
¼ teaspoon fine sea salt
2 eggs, at room temperature
1 ¼ cup milk, at room temperature
¼ cup molasses

Preheat the oven to 350ºF. Butter a jumbo 6-cup muffin pan. Spoon 1 teaspoon of the butter and then 1 tablespoon of the sugar into each muffin cup. Divide the cranberries among the muffin cups.

Whisk together the remaining ¾ cup of sugar and the flour, cinnamon, ginger, cloves, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Whisk together the remaining 4 ounces of butter and the eggs, milk, and molasses in a medium bowl. Add the egg mixture to the flour mixture and stir until just combined. Divide the batter among the muffin cups. Bake for 32 to 36 minutes, or until the edges of the cakes start to shrink away from the pan and a toothpick inserted into the center of a cake comes out clean. Let the cakes cool in the pan for about 10 minutes. Invert onto a cooling rack and let cool slightly. Serve warm.

Makes 6 large individual cakes. Can also be made in a standard 12-cup muffin pan—just adjust the baking time accordingly.