Craig

February 12, 2015
by Craig Leave a comment

Valentine’s Day Menu Part 2: Roasted Beet and Blood Orange Salad with Pea Shoots

Roasted Beet Salad with Blood Oranges and Pea Shoots. Serve as a beautiful side dish to go with a nice roast or steak.

For a nice little salad or side dish, this beet and blood orange salad is great for Valentine’s Day for the color alone. As a bonus, it’s both sweet and tangy with a bit of heat from red pepper flakes. The pea shoots provide both a nice crunch as well as a burst of green color to finish the whole thing off. They also hint of things to come as peas season will be here before you know it as spring creeps every closer.

This couldn’t really be easier which is, as always, a real bonus. It also is very simple and allows the three ingredients to really shine. As such, use the best quality olive oil you have. Now’s the time to break it out. Recipe follows after the jump… Continue reading →

February 12, 2015
by Craig Leave a comment

Valentine’s Day Menu: Start with Roasted and Blanched Vegetables

Blanched Broccoli and Cauliflower. Serve with a shallot and tarragon mayonnaise dip or apple cider vinegar honey mustard vinaigrette.

Roasted mushrooms with olive oil and fresh tarragon. Serve while warm or at room temperature.

Let me forewarn you that I will be posting multiple recipes for Valentine’s Day today and likely tomorrow. Let me apologize in advance if Valentine’s Day isn’t your favorite day. However, Valentine’s Day is just a few days away so let’s make a nice meal to celebrate. Who’s staying in? If you live locally in the Jerz, then you are probably aware that it’s supposed to snow. So, even if you plan on going out for a nice dinner, you might need a plan B. Either way, this is a great tasting and healthy starter for any special meal. More after the jump… Continue reading →

February 11, 2015
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Baked White Bean Soup with Herbed Breadcrumb and Parmesan Crust

The whole dish in the casserole pan.

Plated dish drizzled with a bit of olive oil.

This recipe is really a two-fer in that it really is a dish created for using up leftover bean soup when you are sick of eating the same bean soup after multiple days (at least that’s why I made it). It’s a dish that uses both tomato sauce and chicken stock (though vegetable stock would be fine), vegetables typical in soups, cooked beans, and hearty herbs to infuse the whole thing.

The leftover soup is then ladled into a an earthen casserole dish and slow cooked for several hours in a low temperature oven. After that, you simply make the topping, crank the heat to brown the top and you are done! Cooking it on low heat over a longer period of time allows the soup to really thicken into something resembling an actual baked bean dish.

I’ve been meaning to mention this as well. If you find cooking dried beans or making braises too time consuming given your schedule, you can use a pressure cooker. In a fraction of the time, you can achieve great results with dishes that typically take hours to cook. It’s a fairly pricey investment…about $100 or so but if you like slow cooked meals and are always short on time, it might be a great thing to consider. They are fairly easy and straight-forward to use as well. Anyway, recipe and more pictures follow after the jump… Continue reading →

February 9, 2015
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Products Worth Mentioning: How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman

Happy icy Monday from New Jersey! I just wanted to do a quick post about this cookbook. I received my first copy over the Christmas holiday and am really finding it a great resource. For those of you who don’t know, Mark Bittman is a writer for the New York Times, an award winning cookbook writer, and is on the forefront of thought pertaining to healthy eating habits using whole foods as the basis for a healthy, sustainable diet and lifestyle. Anyway, I really like this particular book for several reasons. First, it’s a great comprehensive cookbook that is as broad and deep as say The Joy of Cooking. However, it really is much more than that. Rather than focusing on recipes alone, Bittman’s book also details different techniques for cooking the same ingredients and offering multiple recipes and methods. So, for example, if you have a sunchoke and do not really know how to go about preparing one, you can simply look up sunchoke in the index and you will find multiple preparations and various alternative flavor options within the same general recipes. Further, he delves into how to properly choose the ingredient at the grocery store so you can understand what to and not to look for when picking specific produce, dairy, or meat items. So really, more than a cookbook, this book provides you with lots of advice and options when cooking and, even better, helps you choose to very best, freshest possible ingredients. Further he often discusses how to store those ingredients.

If you are a home cook just beginning this a great, indispensable resource and tool to get started. If you are more advanced and experienced with your cooking, this book offers lots of interesting variations on classic preparations that will surely entice you to either try his ideas or better yet, inspire you to try some of your own!

February 4, 2015
by Craig 2 Comments

Pizza Night Part Two: Crust Reconsidered

Garlic scape pizza with shallot, tomato sauce and homemade mozzarella

Prosciutto and Arugula Pizza with Homemade Mozzarella and Parmesan Reggiano

A few months ago I posted a ‘family pizza night’ recipe/menu and while I think the toppings are still solid, I wasn’t super excited about the crust. It worked and it’s tasty though I think it lacked that crispiness that good quality ‘pizzeria’ pizza possesses. So, I’ve experimented, read, and chatted with some pizza makers including one in Italy that made a pretty spectacular pizza in Florence. So, I’m going to post my new favorite pizza dough recipe.

You can still use the ingredients from my previous post. Also, the pictures are from Super Bowl Sunday and have different toppings as an option. The great thing about pizza, however, is that really creates a blank canvas for you and your family to use your imagination and create something all your own. As I mentioned in the first post, pizza night is a great opportunity to get kids involved in making dinner.

So the good news is that this dough is pretty easy to make and doesn’t take a lot of effort at all. However, the bad news is that, unlike the earlier pizza dough recipe I posted, this recipe takes 36 hours or more to make…yikes, I know. But it’s worth it. It takes no time at all to put together and you only work the dough for a couple minutes. From there, you just slip the dough into a bowl and cover it with plastic wrap before placing it in the refrigerator for the 36 hours or so to rise slowly. This develops the flavor of the crust and helps provide that crunchiness that my other recipe lacked.

Beyond the rise time, I tweaked the type of flours I used from a simple unbleached AP to a combination of unbleached AP and 00 flour. 00 flour is finely ground and comes from soft wheat’. Most flours like AP or Bread flour comes from ‘hard wheat’ varietals. There are a number of different types of hard and soft wheat and certainly feel free to experiment around with the various wheat types and whole grains. 00 Flour is commonly found in Italy but, while available in the US, it is certainly less common. You can purchase 00 flour at specialty and gourmet grocery stores. I can tell you that stop ‘n shop locally in Berkeley Heights does not carry it. However, Kings does and it runs around 4-5 per bag and the bags are typically smaller than the large bags of AP flour that are offered. So, it’s certainly more expensive. The investment in making a special meal is definitely worth it in this case as it makes a world of difference.

One last note: I know if you scroll through the site of late, it has been very heavily skewing towards Italian food. I plan to rectify that pretty quickly with some things I’m working on right now. So, if you don’t care for Italian food (who are you??), don’t worry…changes are coming. If you love Italian, don’t worry. I’m not abandoning Italian food altogether. I just want it to be a part of what’s offered and discussed. Anyway, stay tuned for new directions. Until then, have a pizza night with family or friends and show off your ability to create quality crusts…it will definitely impress!

PS- this recipe can be used for flatbreads as well. Recipe follows after the jump… Continue reading →

February 4, 2015
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Chestnut Flour Pasta with Mixed Mushrooms in Light Cream Sauce

Making fresh pasta can be a daunting task and one I have to admit I was a bit intimidated about tackling several years ago. Luckily, though, it really isn’t very difficult and, like bread making, can be a very hand-on and rewarding experience. Unfortunately, like bread making, there is also a bit of an art to making pasta and recipes for the dough can be a little off each time…a little too dry or too wet, etc. Over time, you develop a sense for those sorts of variances and can adjust. So, if you haven’t attempted making pasta before, it may take a few attempts for you to really get the hang of it. Otherwise, it’s a very simple process usually involving a dough with just a couple of ingredients.

When my wife and I visited Italy recently, there were chestnuts everywhere. Roasting on the street during festivals, the smell was pretty incredible. Chestnut flour, though not commonly found or used here in the US, is pretty regularly used in Italy. The chestnuts, dried and ground, flavor the pasta with a deep nutty and earthy flavor. The moment you crack open the chestnut flour the smell envelops you. The darker flour it creates also colors the pasta in a unique way when compared to pastas made with semolina or white flours.

Chestnut pasta can be used in a variety of ways but classically it’s paired with mushrooms as the nutty earthiness of the pasta is enhanced by the earthiness of the mushrooms. The light cream sauce helps cut through some of the overpowering earthiness to bring a nice balance of flavor. Here, I used both dried (porcini) and fresh (crimini) mushrooms. Feel free to use all fresh or all dried or a combination of both. Also, fresh peas and other fresh vegetables are great to add to the mix. However, given the unique flavor of the chestnut pasta itself, I think everyone owes it to themselves to make a simple dish at first with just a few flavors and ingredients so that you can really savor the flavor and texture of this pasta and allow it to stand on its own. From there, go where your imagination takes you! Recipe and notes follow after the jump… Continue reading →

February 1, 2015
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Baked Chinese 5 Spice Chicken Wings with Honey, Sriracha, and Black Sesame Glaze

Toasted Black Sesame Seeds

The finished product!

Quick post before the Super Bowl. If you are looking for an interesting way to cook your chicken wings for the big game, this is a basic recipe I landed on. The sauce is spicy, salty, and sweet with a bit of crunch from the black sesame seeds. The five spice adds a nice warmth with it’s mix of cold weather spices. I’ll post a picture of the end result later today when I finish mine up. Enjoy. Recipe follows after the jump… Continue reading →

January 28, 2015
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Butter Bean and Roasted Butternut Squash Dip with Lemon, Garlic, and Sorghum

This is a special post as this marks the 100th post of this website experiment that we share together!

When I started culinaryflightsoffancy and food writing in general I did so rather reluctantly. I was unsure of so many things, worrying about whether people would read it, whether I could create recipes that were interesting but yet doable for home cooks, whether I could continue to be creative on a regular basis, whether I could be consistent enough with this project that I could sustain an audience, and whether I had or have a voice that represents something unique to add rather than just simply adding to the volumes of things available on the Internet and in cookbooks.

I think the jury still may be out with regard to some of those issues, but I really have enjoyed doing this…way more than I ever thought. Thank you so much for reading and responding and I really hope you have enjoyed and continue to enjoy these little recipes that I work on throughout the week as inspiration strikes. I’d like to especially thank my wife, Tara, for encouraging me to do this and being patient with me while I worked through what something like this would look like for me. It took me quite a while to go from thinking about the look and feel of the site to actually making it a reality and she gave me the space to be able to create while still being encouraging, which is something special.

I haven’t counted, but given this post marks the 100 point, I would have to guess there are probably 80 original recipes now on this site…some more original than others. There are also a handful or so recipes that come from other places and other people that I decided to cook and include here because I enjoyed the recipe so much that I wanted to share it and my experience with it.

Anyway, thanks again for reading and for your support in the past, now, and continuing on into the future as I likewise continue on this creative adventure in our Berkeley Heights home kitchen. Okay, enough! Let’s move on to the recipe at hand:

Recipe Begins here:

So, let’s keep the healthy Super Bowl dips theme going with this one. This again, is super easy and very fast to make. I like this dip as it really tastes great and it adds another vegetable and other healthy elements into Super Bowl festivities that otherwise may be fairly unhealthy. It takes about 30 minutes or so to roast the butternut squash and that can be done a few days ahead of time. Otherwise, this takes about ten minutes to pull together. If you don’t have sorghum (or if you don’t care for it), you can use molasses (which would be what I recommend) or honey. Also, if you don’t like or don’t have butternut squash, you can certainly use any winter squash including pumpkin and it would work great. If you do so, you would likely need to change the roasting time and it may require more or less lemon juice and oil depending on the texture of the squash used. Recipe, etc. follows after the jump… Continue reading →

January 28, 2015
by Craig Leave a comment

Black Bean and Black Garlic Dip with Red Chili Flakes and Feta Cheese

Are you ready for the Super Bowl? Me too! Are you going to a party or throwing one to celebrate the big game? If you are or if you are just hanging out and watching it at home by yourself or with your family, chances are you will be looking for something good to snack on during the game. This dip is easy, tasty, and very healthy.

Black garlic can be found at specialty and health food stores and at most Asian markets. It can also be easily found on-line. So, what is black garlic? It’s pretty straight forward in that it is simply garlic that has been roasted and then fermented for a period of time (usually around a month or so). During the fermentation process the garlic is kept at specific temperature and humidity levels and it’s through this process that the garlic literally turns black and changes in flavor from raw garlic to something that is slightly savory and slightly sweet with notes of molasses with just a hint of the original garlic flavor. Its flavor is quite interesting and, in my opinion, quite good. Due to the fermentation process, the garlic takes on specific health and wellness qualities beyond the normal benefits garlic provides (which are numerous).

The chili flakes add touch of heat and the feta just adds a bit of texture and color. You can certainly use any crumbly cheese you prefer or have on hand. Also cilantro or chives would work well instead of or in addition to the parsley. Finally, if you have time, there’s no substitute for making beans from scratch using dried black beans. If you go this route, it will likely take about 90 minutes or so. Otherwise this dish takes about ten minutes to pull together.

Serve this dip with homemade pita chips, tortilla chips, bread, vegetables or whatever you’d like. After the game, if you have leftovers, use it as a spread on a sandwich or a tortilla wrap. Enjoy the game! Recipe follows after the jump… Continue reading →

January 22, 2015
by Craig Leave a comment

Products Worth Mentioning: Black Garlic

Black garlic is simply garlic that has been roasted, fermented, and aged in a controlled temperature and humidity level for a period of time, usually about a month. It has a super interesting flavor with notes of sweet garlic, molasses, and perhaps even some vinegar notes. I read about it a few months ago and decided to order it (on Amazon) over the holidays and made a flatbread with black garlic and mushrooms last week (recipe for some flatbreads to follow in the coming days). Tara and I both agreed that we had never really had anything like it. It, as I said above, has just a really interesting flavor. You can read more about black garlic here.

Oh, I almost left out the best part of using black garlic: it is very, very good for you. If you are into food (and I assume you are since you are reading a food blog), you’ve probably noticed an increase in conversation about the benefits of fermented food and it’s link to helping improve and balance the bacterial world that resides in our guts. Black garlic,since it is fermented, has a number of health benefits.

Interestingly, scientists are finding ever increasing evidence that these bacteria provide us with a huge number of important health and wellness benefits. It’s one of the reasons you have been hearing more and more about yogurt with bacterial cultures left in tact, sauerkraut, and kimchi among others and how all of these fermented foods truly benefit a number of biological functions and environments within our body. As an aside, I made yogurt, kimchi, and sauerkraut last year and all are easy to pull off. Please experiment around. I’ll try to post a couple of recipes on these myself but, for example, homemade sauerkraut consists of cabbage and salt at its most basic level and only requires time to ferment. The end result is infinitely better (I mean way better) than the store bought variety and is so very good for you. I digress…

Along with the flatbread last week, I am planning on making fresh ravioli with black garlic tonight. Right now the plan is to use it with some marscarpone and something else with savory notes (as you can tell, I’m still working that out). However, assuming it turns out well, I’ll post the recipe for the black garlic ravioli at some point next week. In fact, I’m making a number of different pastas from scratch tonight so hopefully, with luck, they will turn out and you can expect those next week too. I’m sort of excited about the pasta as I know a good number of readers here love pasta and I’m planning on making some unique flavor combinations that use a number of different flours, etc.

Further, I’ve been experimenting around with various types of flours in hopes of coming up with a better quality pizza crust (which can double as a flatbread crust) that can work for home cooks. By experimenting and having some rather lackluster results at times (ask Tara), I think I’ve come up with a winner of a recipe using two different types of flour and a drastically reduced amount of yeast. Also, I spoke to a chef in Florence about their pizza crust (which I loved) and he gave me a great tip/hint as well and I’ll share that too. So, I will be posting another pizza night extravaganza suite of recipes similar to what I did a few months back but reflecting my new crust recipe and cooking technique…plus new topping ideas.

Until then…try the black garlic and other fermented foods. You will love the taste and you will reap a good number of health benefits to boot!

culinary flights of fancy

Home Cooking Adventures in Berkeley Heights

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