Lou's Most Excellent Curry II

This is remarkably good for you and remarkably tasty..... I forgot to take a picture when it was completed so here you see a half eaten version. And the picture sucks since the lighting was off and I wanted to hurry back to eat. Sorry.

I made this with hesitation: another oh-boy-something-healthy-it's-gonna-lack-everything. Turns out...it does lack but only because it ain't the real full-fat deal. But if you're watching things, you're gonna be very happy with it.

The addition of saffron probably contributes absolutely nothing to the dish except a visual: it looks nice. The scallops cook lightly - in fact they still are a bit raw in the middle but that's a good scallop. Cook longer if you wish...to ruin your scallops.

12 large scallops
6 large shrimp, peeled and deveined
Black sesame salt
1 14oz can light coconut milk
½ cup chicken broth
2 TBS Thai green curry paste
1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1 stick lemon grass, cut into quarters
5 - 7 dried Thai chili peppers
2 TBS minced ginger
4 shaved (or minced) garlic cloves
2 TSP cumin
Saffron sprigs
1 green onion, green ends cut into 2" pieces, whites finely chopped
Sea salt
¼ cup of chopped macadamia nuts
½ cup dried Chinese black rice (prepared to mfr's directions)
Peanut, olive, sesame, and chili oils

2 baby bok choi heads
8 oz choy sum (sometimes called yu choy)*
½ cup chicken broth
2 minced garlic cloves

*If you can't find this, add two more baby bok choi heads.

In a 3 quart pot add 2 TBS of olive oil and a dash each of the sesame and chili oils. Heat to medium then add the yellow onions with a big pinch of sea salt. Sweat the onions for about 10 minutes - you want them highly translucent. At this point, add the chili peppers (whole), ginger, and shaved garlic. Saute for about one minute, then stir in the cumin. Add the chili paste, stir to mix, then stir in the chicken broth until the chili paste has been dissolved. Pour in the coconut milk and add in the lemon grass along with a big pinch of saffron sprigs. Reduce heat to simmer and let sit for 30 minutes.

Take about 3 TBS of the black sesame salt and put into a little dish. Dip one end of each scallop into this, heavily coating it. Sprinkle the remaining salt over the shrimp. Set aside.

Cut the bottom inch off the bok choi, peel the leaves, and wash in a colander. They will be dirty. Do the same for the choy sum and save the flowers. In a 5 quart pan bring the other ½ cup of chicken broth to a simmer. Add the garlic, a big pinch of sea salt, and all the leaves at once. Continually turn to braise the leaves for about 10 minutes. Set aside.

In a non-stick saute pan add about 1 TBS of peanut oil, just enough to cover the bottom. Heat over medium high heat to shimmer. Sear the uncoated side of the scallops first for about 1 minute, then the coated sides for an additional minute. Remove from the pan - you will need a good spatula to do this as even in the non-stick pan they still stick a little. Set on a plate, cover, then cook the shrimp till done.

Add the green onion sprigs to the curry.

Drain the bok choi and place a small mound on a plate. Pour a large laddlefull of curry over the bok choi; in the center of the bok choi add about ¼ cup of the cooked rice. Arrange scallops around the plate and place two shrimp each on top of the rice. Sprinkle with macadamia nuts and the whites of the green onions. Don't eat the lemon grass nor the red chili peppers.

Lou's Most Excellent Wayne's Lasagna

Who doesn't like a steaming pile of lasagna when it's 19 degree's outside?

(Who thought I was gonna say steaming pile of shit?)

My buddy Wayne made the best lasagna [WMK - and that's all you get]. His trick is to think of it like layers of pizza rather than layers of noodles with sauce and cheese. The addition of spicy sausage also helps. He and his wife then abandoned me here in Washington and I now have to fend for myself.

Too runny lasagna results for many factors. First and foremost is the use of excessive amounts of tomato sauce in the lasagna itself. Another are the noodles being overcooked and unable to absorb additional liquid during the cooking process; worse are your noodles putting back their excess moisture into the lasagna because of that. You can have too much cheese - particularly ricotta - too. I never thought I'd say such a thing but there ya' have it.

Here's my take on it. Make the sauce the day before and let it mellow in the fridge overnight. It makes the sauce not as sharp in the dish itself. The use of hearty amounts of mozzarella in the lasagna, not too much sauce, and "chunks" of ricotta help keep it intact and provide nice little pockets of surprises in each bite.

For the sauce:

2 boxes Pomi crushed tomatoes (26 ounces)
1 box Pomi strained tomatoes (26 ounces)
3 medium yellow onions, chopped
8 cloves garlic, sliced thin or minced
10 sprigs fresh parsley, minced
2 TBS kosher salt
1 TBS ground black pepper
1 TBS sugar
8 - 10 store (local Italian deli preferred) bought meatballs
Extra virgin olive oil

In a 4 quart sauce pot, saute the onion + 1 TBS of salt over medium heat in about 3 TBS of olive oil until near translucent...about 12 minutes. Add the garlic and saute an additional minute, then dump in the tomatoes. Add the remaining ingredients and simmer over low heat for about 2 hours. Remove from heat, cool to room temp, and cool in the fridge overnight.

For the lasagna:

Sauce from above
Five 18 x 8 inch long pasta sheets*
6 spicy Italian sausages, cooked and sliced into ½ inch pieces
6 cups whole milk ricotta cheese
30 oz whole milk mozzarella cheese
½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup grated Pecorino-Romano cheese
1 egg
6 sprigs fresh parsley
1 TBS ground black pepper
2 TSP red pepper flakes

*If you can't find large sheets like this, smaller ones are OK - you just need enough sheets to make seven layers of lasagna.

Bring 7 quarts of salted cold water to a boil in an 8 quart pot. In another equal sized pot fill with cold water and set aside.

Boil the noodles, one at a time, for 2 minutes and immediately dunk into the cold water. Take care not to rip the noodles but if you do, no biggie. Dry the noodles on long pieces of wax paper.

in a large bowl add the ricotta, Parmesan and Pecorino cheeses, egg, parsley, black and red pepper and mix together to form a thick paste.

In a glass 13 x 9 pan, add about 1 cup of sauce to the bottom to lightly cover.

Add a noodle sheet and then about a half cup of sauce. Measure out about 1 cup of ricotta mix and dollop in heaping tablespoon amounts over the sheet. Take about 4oz of mozzarella and tear into chunks with your hands like string cheese and loosely dollop too. Sprinkle the equivalent of one sausage link over as well.

Repeat this six more times.

On the last layer just top with tomato sauce - about a cup. Remove the meatballs from the tomato sauce, halve, and then quarter each half. Spread the meatballs over the top of the lasagna, cover with foil, and bake at 350 for 50 minutes.

Reheat the sauce on the stove.

At T=50 check the lasagna - it should be bubbling along the sides. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella over the top and cook for 10 more minutes.

Remove from the oven, let cool for 10 minutes, and serve with additional sauce on the table for those who want it.

Lou's Most Excellent (Adult) Chicken & Rice

The reasons why our mothers made chicken and rice - that classic cream o'mushroom + rice + chicken mix - are simple. It was quick, easy, and could cheaply feed an army of hungry kids.

It's a guilty pleasure to us all, still. No one wants to admit they love White Trash Cuisine but this dish is one of the hallmarks.

I was mouth-agape/appalled at Paula Deen's take on this. No where does she have fresh anything (except the onion) and to top it all off, you use precooked chicken in it. To her credit, though, to give her dish some pseudofresh crunch she adds in water chestnuts...canned, of course. It's probably the only thing with crunch that comes in a can but I thought it was a neat addition. Still, welcome to the sad state (or future) of American cooking.

This one here, folks, is good enough to feed to guests and doesn't take too much work. You'll need a very large pan for this, either a roasting pan or a 10 x 15. This will not fit in a 9 x 13.

And yes, it still uses canned soup.

1 eight-part cut whole chicken*
1 large yellow onion, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, minced
1 can Progresso Creamy Mushroom Soup
1 can Campbell's Condensed (of course) Cream of Celery Soup
2 cups Jasmine rice
1½ cups dry white wine
10 Shitake mushrooms, stems removed and sliced into ½" strips
8 carrots, peeled and cut into 1" chunks
4 rutabagas, peeled and cut into ½" cubes
6 parsley sprigs, leaves minced
2 thyme sprigs, leaves minced
3 ounces sliced water chestnuts, rinsed and drained
1 TBS butter
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt
Pepper

* You can buy whole chickens precut if you want to save time.

Preheat your oven to 325.

Rinse and pat dry the chicken parts. Generously salt and pepper the pieces. In a large skillet add the butter and heat to medium high. Brown the chicken parts, 2 - 3 at a time, for about 3 minutes each or until the skin has browned. For the legs brown each side. Set pieces aside.

[If you notice in my picture, the leg bone near the ankle is exposed. You can do this by cutting a ring around the ankle of the leg prior to cooking with a very sharp knife so you cut through the tough, white tendons. What results is a big, mega-tender, meltingly delicious ball of chicken meat on the end of the bone.]

In a large bowl add the two soups together, the parsley and thyme, and 10 ounces of water (one Campbell's can). Stir to mix and set aside.

Turn the heat down to medium and add about 1 TBS of olive oil and the onions. Saute for about 8 minutes, until the onions are nicely yellowed and near translucent. Add the garlic and saute for 30 seconds, then add the rice and stir to mix for two minutes.

Add the white wine and simmer an additional two minutes and then the carrots, rutabagas, water chestnuts. Saute one more minute and then add the soup mixture. Increase heat to high and bring to a boil.

Lightly butter the roasting pan. Pour in the rice/soup mixture into the pan and spread evenly. Set the chicken pieces, skin side up, on top of the rice with the larger pieces toward the ends of the pan. Cover with foil and bake for 50 minutes.

Voila.

[Or, in Deenish, "VOH-WAH LAH!"]

Lou's Most Excellent Berrymisu

"Paul loves berries...and chocolate," said his wife, Angela. It was Paul's upcoming 50th and Angela was writing for support in the mighty task of satisfying a group coming to celebrate. I volunteered myself for dessert:

> Dessert! ME ME ME!!! OOO! OOOO! I want dessert!!
>
> MEMEMEMEMEME!!!!!

Before I go on, a shout-out to Angela for providing these great pictures!

I came up with "berrymisu" because berries, especially blueberries, are plentiful in the DC region and I've found a new love for them (which means I'll be sick of them in about two weeks).

This recipe is a pain - there's a lot of work here. You could shorten things (such as buying ladyfingers instead of making Pan di Spagna) and leaving out the sides (raspberry coated chocolates and chocolate stuffed strawberries). In fact, if you left out these things the recipe is quite easy and quick. I've broken this down into subrecipes: pan di spagna, strawberry juice, ganache, and the 'misu' itself. Below is a list of everything you'll at least need:

16 large eggs
16 oz mascarpone
4 cups all purpose flour
4 cups sugar
1 lemon
1 pound blueberries
1½ pounds strawberries
4 oz raspberries
6 oz 60% semi-sweet chocolate
Vanilla
Raspberry liquor
Cognac
Unsalted butter
9 x 13 glass pan
Two 9" cake rounds
Blender
Cheesecloth
Canned air
Fine mesh strainer

Pan di Spagna
10 room temperature eggs, separated
3 cups sifted all purpose flour
3 cups sugar
2 TSP grated lemon peel
1 TBS vanilla extract
Butter
Two 9" cake rounds

Preheat the oven to 350. Butter and flour your cake rounds.

Add the sugar to the egg yolks and beat until thickened, having the consistency of frosting. Set aside.

Beat the egg whites until stiff and gently fold into the egg yolk mixture (about six foldings required), then fold the flour into this (again, about six foldings). Gently fold in the lemon peel and vanilla.

Spread evenly between the two pans and cook for about 20 minutes. Do the toothpick test; they will likely not be done so check again every three minutes. When done, flip upside down onto a wire rack and cool for two minutes. Remove the cake from the pans and continue to cool to room temperature (about an hour).

Straberry Juice
1½ pounds strawberries, hulled
1 TSP fresh lemon juice
2 - 3 TBS sugar

Quarter the strawberries and add to a blender. Add a ½ cup of cold water and the lemon juice to this and blend on the lowest speed until the berries are well ground up. Taste the juice - if not sweet enough add sugar as desired. Continue blending on low speed for about two minutes.

Line a fine mesh strainer with two folds of cheesecloth. Pour the berry mixture into the strainer (set over a large bowl to capture the juice) and let sit unoccupied for about 10 minutes. Lift the cloth from the strainer and gently squeeze the mixture into the strainer. Discard the cloth.

While the juice is straining using a spoon or spatula mix the juice in the strainer to alleviate potential clogs. When finished, clean the strainer and then restrain. I know this sounds ridiculous but just do it.

Store in the fridge until ready.

Filling

6 egg yolks, room temperature
¼ cup sugar
16 oz mascarpone cheese, room temperature
1 TBS grated lemon peel
1 pint heavy cream
2 TBS strawberry juice
2 TSP raspberry liquor

Beat the egg yolks with the sugar until pale yellow and slightly thickened. Add in the mascarpone and beat at low speed until mixed, then add the heavy cream and beat until thickened and creamy at medium speed. Add in the lemon peel, strawberry juice and raspberry liquor and mix until incorporated.

Assembly

Cut the cake rounds in half, and then slice each one down its length to make a total of eight, half moon shaped cakes. Cut each shape into a rectangle by lobbing off at the round edges, saving the edges.

In a 9x9 dish, add 1 cup of the strawberry juice and 1 TBS of the raspberry liquor and stir to mix.

Line a 13x9 dish with two pieces of plastic wrap, with about 8 - 10" of wrap hanging off the longer edges. Press the wrap against the inside of the pan and into the corners so the inside is completely covered. Pour about ½ cup of blueberries into the bottom.

Quickly dip sections of the cake into the strawberry/liquor juice and press along the bottom of the pan, forcing the berries into it. This does not have to look pretty so no worries. If the cake breaks, no worries on that either. Repeat this until the bottom is covered.

Pour ½ of the mascarpone mixture over the cake and top with another 1 cup of blueberries. Repeat the cake lining procedure as before, cover with the other ½ of the mascarpone mixture with another cup of blueberries, and additional cake (not dipped). Cover the cake tightly with the overlapping plastic wrap; the cake will likely be taller than the pan - this is OK. If you have one, place another empty glass 13x9 pan on top of this and set in the fridge for at least 4 hours. [If you don't have another pan, put a cutting board on top of the cake weighted down with a 3 quart pot.]

Raspberry Covered Chocolates

6 oz 60% semi-sweet chocolate
2 TBS butter
1 TBS cognac

Gently rinse the raspberries under cool water and roll on paper towels to dry. Using the canned air, carefully blow out any remaining water inside the raspberries.

In a small pan over low heat, melt the chocolate and butter undisturbed until the ganache appears milky. Mix with the butter and then mix in the cognac. Set aside for 1 hour.

Arrange the raspberries, hole side up, in between the rails of a cooling rack.

Fill a small tipped pastry bag (or a small Ziploc, cutting of the corner prior to use) with the ganache. Fill each raspberry with ganache. Cool in the fridge for at least 1 hour and let come to room temperature prior to serving.

Chocolate Filled Strawberries

Strawberries (as many as you think you need)
Ganache from above

Using a sharp knife carefully hull the strawberry as you would the top of a pumpkin prior to carving. If you have a bird-beak knife this is much easier. Remove the green leaves of the strawberry and cut off/discard the hull; set aside the top.

Hollow out the strawberry as best you can with a small knife. Set each berry upside down on paper towels to let drain a bit. Fill each with ganache and replace the top of the berry, pressing into the ganache. Fridge for at least 2 hours, not longer than 6 as the berries will begin to discolor. Let the berries come to room temperature prior to serving.

Final Steps

Whip up 2 cups of whipping cream sweetened with 1 TBS sugar and 1 TSP vanilla.

Unlayer the overlapping plastic wrap from the berrymisu. Place a large cutting board on top of the cake and flip over; remove the glass pan and carefully peel back the plastic wrap.


Cut slices of cake and top with the whipped cream; pour about 3 TBS of strawberry juice on the plate and garnish with the berries. Dust with confectioners sugar, if desired.

Voila!

Lou's Most Excellent Chicken Fajitas

According to Rob Walsh in "The Tex-Mex Cookbook," the first fajita originated in 1973 at Ninfa's, located on Navigation Street in Houston, TX.

Of course, any claim like that is surely met with controversy as others claim it was invented much earlier, perhaps the 1940s when Hispanic ranch hands using typically undesired cuts of meat (head, intestines, diaphragm) would marinate these in lime juice and serve them on flour tortillas with all the fixin's. At an outdoor festival in 1969, Sonny Falcon took skirt steak, some salt and pepper, and cutting against the grain made little chunks of meat out of it and wrapped it in a tortilla. On and on and on....

Here is a great recipe for chicken fajitas. It has some elements of the classics and then some. You can do this with skirt steak too; just follow the same procedure except cut the steak against the grain when finished. This is also one of the few instances where I use a commercial spice blend in my cooking: Stubb's Chili-Lime Spice Rub . It's quite good.

1 pound of chicken breasts, filleted
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 TSP table salt
1 TBS ground cumin
2 TBS olive oil
Juice of two limes (lemons can be a sub)
Stubb's Chili-Lime Spice Rub

In a bowl large enough to put the chicken in, add the garlic and salt and with a spatula mash into a paste. Mix in the cumin, then the olive oil and then the lime juice. Toss in the chicken and coat; place in fridge for 30 minutes.

Get your grill going. You can do these on the stove too but the grill is preferred. A hickory-based fire is awesome here.

Remove the chicken from the fridge and sprinkle some Chili-Lime rub to each side (as much as you want). Gently press the rub in with your fingers.

Grill chicken over direct heat for about 1½ - 2 minutes per side. You don't want to over cook it, hence why you filet them to start with. Cut each piece of chicken, along the grain, into about 5 - 6 strips.

Serve immediately with warm flour tortillas and your favorite condiments, such as salsa, sour cream, cheese, and the suggestions below.

Pico de Gallo
- ½ medium minced yellow onion
- 2 Roma tomatoes, seeds removed and cut into ¼ inch bits
- 1 Jalapeno pepper, seeds removed and minced
- Juice of one lime
- Combine all the above ingredients and add a big pinch of salt

Grilled Onions & Peppers
- 1 medium yellow onion, halved and cut into ½ inch strips
- 1 bell pepper (color doesn't matter), halved, seeds removed, and cut into ½ strips
- 2 Jalapeno peppers, seeds removed, and cut into ¼ inch strips
- Combine the onion and peppers in a large bowl.
- Sprinkle ½ TSP salt and 7 - 10 cranks of black pepper, toss, and then toss in about 2 TBS of olive oil.
- Rest for 10 minutes then grill over high heat in a grill basket or a hot pan.
- Get a good char on these but take them off before they get floppy. You want them to stay crunchy.

Lou's Most Excellent Kitchen Tips: Grilled Pizza

I make a pretty mean grilled pizza. It's really not that hard to do if you have a grill and some gumption. It does take some attention to detail as even slight variations can really mess this up.

The following tips are more of a guide for grilling pizza rather than an actual recipe. I've included a dough and sauce recipe that I've used many, many times that works well. However, if you have access to a local wood fired pizza shop, see if you can buy some dough from them. They've spent the better part of their career perfecting their dough and will likely sell it too you cheaper than what it would cost to buy the ingredients.

Avoid pizza dough from your local grocery, including Trader Joe’s. These have been handled a bit too hard and you may not know how old they are (a dough shouldn’t be held at fridge temp for more than three days). What results from grilling these is a chewy, undercooked crust that’s often difficult to work with.

It is important for the dough to have a high gluten content - this allows you to stretch the dough easily. Since you're aiming for a thin crust that's critical. Typical high-gluten flours are general "all purpose" types.

I cannot stress that enough: thin crust. As in nearly ½ to ¼ inch thin. With a relaxed, high gluten crust this won't be difficult.

Everything you want on your pizza should be ready in advance and within easy reach. From rolling the dough to topping to on the grill should take no more than 5 minutes. An assembly line is ideal.

Ingredients should be at or near room temperature too.

Equipment: cutting board, thin cookie sheet or pizza paddle, large metal spatula, grill tongs, grill mitt.

The grill. The hotter the fire the better. Gas grills, because they’re prone to condensation and do not get as hot, are not ideal for cooking pizza but do the job. Make sure it’s been on for at least 30 minutes before using it.

A BIG indirect fire is what you want, meaning, the coals/fire is on one half of the grill and the other half is empty.

Use real wood if you can and quartered splits if you can find them (hickory preferred). Splits last longer and burn hotter. If using briquettes use a lot of them - about 8 - 10 pounds. Lump charcoal is great but the fire will burn out quickly; be prepared to continually feed it if using lump.

Count on at least an hour to have the fire ready; longer if using splits.

Do not use a pizza stone on the grill unless the stone says you can. Most stones are not rated for temperatures above 600 degrees.

When rolling the pizza dough be generous with flour to prevent sticking to the rolling surface and easier manipulation on the paddle. Corn meal also works to prevent sticking; use this when done shaping the dough.

Shaping. I tend to make my pizzas in the shape of a 14 inch oblong “football.” Roundness works but I find that with the haste of getting this done shape isn't so much a worry. I've made pizza shapes that would make Picasso envious. A) It's still gonna taste the same and B) gives it some more homemade character.

Also make sure the crust isn’t too big. You should make it so you have at least 2 - 3” of clearance from the sides of the grill to allow easier manipulation and more even heat distribution around it.

Since the pizzas are small count on one pizza per person. This is part of the fun: you're making multiple pizzas so you can experiment with different toppings and combinations.

You CAN have too much when it comes to toppings. Decorate your pizzas thinly. Now is not the time for extra cheese, double pepperoni, sausage, ham, meatballs and extra sauce. Go thin on the sauce, the cheese should just barely cover the sauce, only about 6 - 8 thin slices of pepperoni, etc. Limit overall toppings to four max.

Toppings like sausage, bacon, shrimp, meatballs, chicken, broccoli and others that require long cook times should be precooked. Cut large chunks into bite sized pieces.

Force yourself to do just a classic cheese pizza first. This is the experiment and will give you a good gauge on how things are going for your baseline.

Some great combos:
- Cheese, tomato sauce, pepperoni, fresh garlic, mushroom
- Cheese, olive oil, fresh garlic, dried oregano
- Cheese, ricotta, tomato sauce OR olive oil, spinach leaves, fresh garlic
- Cheese, ricotta, tomato sauce, sausage
- Cheese, Parmesan, pepperoni, tomato sauce, cherry tomatoes, arugula (add this when finished)
- Classic Neopolitan (mozzarella, sauce, basil, olive oil drizzle)
- Classic Margherita “DOCG” (buffalo mozzarella, crushed tomatoes, basil leaves, olive oil drizzle)

Cheeses. Mozzarella (both regular and buffalo), provolone, fontina, ricotta, Parmesan all work great. A favorite blend of mine is a 75/25 mix of mozzarella and provolone.

If you have a big active fire in the grill it's not ready yet. You want the fire to die down some to mostly hot, glowing embers. Fire = burnt pizza. (Duh)

The pizzas will cook fast. Slide decorated the pizza onto the side of the grill with no coals and then close the lid for about 3 minutes. Open and using your spatula lift up the side closest to the coals; if it's browned rotate the pizza 180 degrees and close the lid again for 3 - 5 minutes. By now all the toppings should be melted. Let it set at room temp for about 2 minutes then serve immediately.

Troubleshooting
Pizza cooking slow. It's due to one or both of two things: pizza is too thick or the fire isn't hot enough. The corrections for this are easy...thinner crust or boost your fire.

Crust too thick and you can't thin it out. Low gluten content in the dough and there are a couple options here. Roll out the dough and place it on the grill with no toppings. After it's cooked some (bubbles will start to appear on the crust), flip it, and then decorate the pizza directly on the grill. You can also roll the dough out in between two sheets of parchment paper.

This is a bit tricky but it works well. When thin enough let it rest for about 5 minutes then peel off the parchment and place on the floured work surface. Work quickly.

Toppings melted, crust not crispy but chewy. You've got a low gluten crust most likely. A quick fix is to move the pizza over the fire when finished. This will crisp up the crust but will yield a pita-like consistency. If you don't say anything your guests won't know the difference.

Recipes

Lou's Most Excellent Pizza Dough

Before starting note this is an overnight recipe and you need a heavy duty electric mixer.

4½ cups all-purpose flour, sifted
1 packet instant yeast
2 TBS honey
2 TSP salt
Extra virgin olive oil

In 1.5 cups of babywarm water add the yeast, stir, and set aside for 10 minutes. If this does not begin to foam at the top after 10 minutes start over as your yeast is probably old or the water was too hot.

Combine the flour and salt in a mixing bowl and attach to your mixture with the dough hook(s). Add the yeast+water, honey, and 2 TBS of olive oil. Turn the mixture on low to combine. Now...pay attention.

The above is a very very very crucial step in pizza dough making. You don't want to overwork the dough here. If the mixer is "fighting" it too hard, meaning having a tough time, you need to add more water (if dry) or flour (if wet) by the tablespoon. The dough is done when it balls up into one solid lump and the hooks move it around the bowl. When that happens turn the mixer off for 10 - 15 minutes and let it "relax."

After this first 10 - 15 minutes turn the mixer back on for about 2 minutes. By now the dough should be somewhat of a solid clump - not too sticky, not too dry. It will have a wet appearance but will hold together. This will "feel right" almost by instinct so trust yourself here.

Plop the dough onto a floured work surface. Using a very sharp knife cut it into six equal parts and form balls out of them. Rub some olive oil over them, place on a large parchment lined cookie sheet, cover with plastic wrap and set at room temp for about 15 minutes. Place the cookie sheet in the fridge overnight.

The next day take the rounds out at least one hour before you plan to do anything with them.

Lou's Most Excellent Pizza Sauce

Simplicity is the key here so don't screw around with this too much. I don't add any sugar to my pizza sauce - it doesn't need it. If you want a sweet sauce just order Pizza Hut and call it an evening.

1 quart/box of crushed tomatoes (Pomi brand is my favorite)
3 cloves of garlic, finely minced
4 - 6 basil leaves, chiffoned
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt & pepper

Heat about 2 TBS of olive oil over medium heat in a 2 - 3 quart pot. Add the garlic and saute for about 30 seconds, then pour the tomatoes in and add the basil. Give about 4 big pinches of salt and a few cranks of pepper. Simmer for 30 minutes.

Lou's Most Excellent Cold Chocolate

Should be more appropriately labeled as Heart Attack In A Shot Glass. People love this, especially those who appreciate spicy foods.

[As far as the 25% rule (see right hand Disclaimers) try not to be too off on this one.]

½ cup of milk + extra
½ cup of "table" cream
½ cup half and half
8 ounces 68 - 72% chocolate (dark), broken into small pieces
4 ounces 35 - 42% (milk) chocolate, broken into small pieces
2 Ancho peppers, coarsely chopped
½ TSP superfine sugar (optional)
Salt

In a small sauce pot add the milk, cream and half and half together over medium heat. Once small bubbles begin to form – about 10 minutes. [Be careful not to bring this to a boil; it should just get to barely a simmer. If you do start all over.] Add the Ancho peppers and stir until peppers are covered in milk, cover and remove from heat. Let steep for 15 minutes.

Strain the peppers out reserving the milk (duh). Warm milk up to medium and add a pinch of salt. Add the chocolate in 2 ounce increments, stirring each time until dissolved before adding the next round. If the chocolate is very thick (it will be much thicker than hot chocolate) add more milk to thin as desired. You want it the consistency of maple syrup.

Taste and decide if you would like additional sweetness. If so, add the sugar. Chill at least four hours in the fridge.

Serve in small portions (a shot glass works best) since a little goes a long way. Works great as an amuse bouche for dessert or part of a dessert trio.

You can serve this hot if you want. I find that chilled works best since the heat from the Ancho pepper provides a nice little bite to the back of the throat while the smooth, cool chocolate takes the harsh sting away from your tongue.

Lou's Most Excellent Poached Pears

A pictorial of this recipe can be found on Angela Potter's food blog, Red Wine Poached Pears

I’ve adapted this from two recipes – one out of the Silver Spoon and another from Michael Chiarello. The recipes have similarities; I think poaching pears in red wine is pretty standard. While this recipe looks complex and long it’s actually quite simple. Little things make a difference and I’m just pointing them out.

This recipe takes some time and concentration - it's very easy to miss a step and creates a huge mess in the kitchen. YET it's not that difficult. Review it first, get your shit together, then proceed. It's a major crowd pleaser and an impressive presentation, as you can see from Angela's pictures.

It’s important to use ripe pears so buy them about 2 – 3 days before you need them. While unripe pears will work OK – the poaching softens them up – you won’t have the sweetness you desire. If this is the case, add additional sugar to the poaching liquid.

Bartletts work best for this recipe due to their shape, flavor, and availability. You could also use a D’Anjou or another similar sized fatty. Boscs and red pears also work but I don’t decore them; I halve them instead since removing the core with a corer would remove too much pear. Instead, remove the core with a melon baller and fill it during presentation (I’ve done it with ice cream in the past). With a Comice pear I’d do the same since the pear is large and poaching it whole would be inefficient. Also, the longer you poach the more likely the pear will fall apart so you want to keep poaching to 15 minutes or less. I’ve also used Seckels – which are smaller but very sweet. You have to be very gentle with these and not poach as long.

I tried this with Asian pears once – not good. The texture was very gritty.

Chiarello finishes his sauce with some butter. I’m certain this adds depth but I left it out since I wanted the syrup to be closer to a mock balsamic rather than a creamy syrup. Plus, the creamy sauce with the filling I think compete with each other. You could probably use this syrup as a sub for balsamic in a salad dressing, now that I think about it....

As you can see this recipe makes quite a mess in the kitchen but it’s very simple. I’ve been using the “Thomas Keller” method of sauce making: anytime you go from one container to another, filter, no matter how mundane the change over may be. It’s a bitch but it really does make a difference.

The pears alone are great too so if pressed for time skip the filling.

Poaching the pears
6 ripe Bartlett pears
1 bottle cheapish red wine (I usually use a Rioja)
1/2 cup sugar
Juice of one lemon
3 cinnamon sticks
1 TBS black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
4 coarsely crushed cloves (smashed with flat part of knife)
2 tsp vanilla
1/4 tsp salt

Filling
8 oz mascarpone, softened to room temp.
1 pint whipped cream
3 heaping TBS honey
1 heaping TBS whole lavender

Soak the lavender buds in 2 TBS of hot tap water for 5 minutes then drain saving the buds. In a quart pot add the whipping cream and it to the point of where it just starts to steam a little; do not bring to a simmer. Remove from heat, add the lavender, stir then and cover for 5 minutes. Filter through a wire mesh filter lined with cheesecloth into a new container and place in an ice bath.

Pour the wine, 2 cups of water and sugar into a pot you know will hold the pears and bring to a light simmer. Add the cinnamon sticks, peppercorns, bay leaf, and cloves.

While the wine is simmering, cut the top part of the pear off (save the stem) and about 1/2 inch from the bottom so the pear stands up straight. Peel and remove the core using an apple corer. I use a vegetable peeler instead of a knife since it leaves more of the outer flesh in tact, which is the sweetest. If the pears are ripe the corer should go right through them, if not you may have to force it a bit but be careful not to damage the pear. After peeling/coring each pear, lightly rub with lemon juice to prevent browning. Save the residual cores.

Bring the wine mixture to a boil and gently add the remaining lemon juice and pears using a slotted spoon. It does not matter if the pears are upright or on their side – just covered with the liquid. Return the liquid to a light simmer, cover, and poach for 15 minutes. GENTLY remove the pears with a slotted spoon and stand each upright on a plate to cool. It helps to use a chopstick inserted down the hole to help since the pear will be hot. Some of the pears may have a peppercorn or clove stuck in it; if so gently pry out using a toothpick. Cool to room temperature then cover with plastic wrap.

Add the pear cores to the liquid and using a potato masher CAREFULLY break the cores apart to release the extra juices and simmer for five minutes. Carefully pour the hot wine mixture into a new pot through a cheesecloth lined fine wire mesh filter to remove the spices and pear bits. Add the vanilla and salt and return to a high boil and reduce to a final volume of 1/2 a cup. This will be very syrupy. Run the syrup through a mesh filter again (no cheesecloth) into a new container. Set aside, taste what you made, and then clean your jeans.

Using a heavy spatula, mix the mascarpone and honey together. In a separate bowl whip the whipping cream to stiff peaks. [You only need a 1/2 pint of the whipping cream but it’s hard to whip a 1/2 pint so do the whole thing.] Gently fold the whipped cream into the mascarpone.

Place a pear on a plate and fill using a pastry bag or a Ziploc with a hole cut into the corner. Add some syrup to the bottom of the plate, just enough to lightly cover it, and then place a stem on top of each pear. Serve with extra cream on the side if desired…which it will.