Off the Menu (44 page)

In a large dutch oven, melt half the butter, and when the foaming subsides, sauté the onions until they become golden. Add in all of the meats, and the rehydrated mushrooms. Add the stock and liquid from the mushrooms and bring to a boil. Make a bouquet garni by tying the bay leaves and peppercorns tightly in cheesecloth. Lower the heat and add the bouquet garni, pickles, capers, and fresh mushrooms. Simmer 10 to 15 minutes. Melt remaining butter in a skillet and cook the tomatoes and tomato paste for a few minutes, then add the flour and sauté for another few minutes. Add a cup of the soup liquid to the skillet and stir in well, then return pan ingredients to the soup pot. Add the olives, dill, marjoram, garlic, pickle juice, and paprika. Adjust soup’s seasoning with salt and pepper; and simmer another 10 to 15 minutes. Remove pot from heat and remove bouquet garni. Adjust seasonings and serve with sour cream and lemon.

Grate the cheese either by hand or in a food processor. Put everything into the processor and blend til it is diplike. Taste and adjust lemon juice, salt and pepper.

Toss all ingredients together and serve chilled.

Combine chopped shallots with vinegar and honey in a small bowl and let sit ten minutes. Add mustard, salt, and pepper to the shallot mixture and blend well. Put into a blender, or use an immersion blender to blend smooth and then add oil in a thin stream until it is well emulsified. For a less creamy, more broken dressing, simply shake in a jar or shaker instead of blending. The dressing may be stored, covered, for up to one week in the refrigerator, but should be brought to room temperature before using.

Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add salt. Add the pasta and cook until al dente, about 10 minutes (plan to reserve ½ cup cooking water).

While the water comes to a boil and the pasta cooks, cut the zucchini into long strands that mimic the pasta … I use a julienne peeler for this, just running it around the outside of the zucchini and not using the pulpy seed part. You can also do this on a mandolin, or make long julienne by hand.
(The idea is to be able to twirl the zucchini up with the pasta, but if you don’t care, you can cut it into half moons, it will still be delicious!)

Heat oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add the shallot, and cook until translucent, then add the red pepper flakes. Add chicken and sauté briefly until light brown. Deglaze the pan with the wine and let reduce until almost gone. Add chicken stock, lemon juice, and lemon zest. Swirl in butter. Taste for salt and pepper. Toss in zucchini strands and then immediately add cooked pasta and combine. Add the cheese and herbs and enough reserved pasta water to ensure the sauce is smooth, and toss to combine well. Taste again for seasoning and add salt and pepper, as needed. Grate about 2 more tablespoons Parmesan over the top and serve at once.

Beat the sweetened condensed milk and water until completely smooth. Add in the pudding mix and blend for at least 2 more minutes, ensuring that there are no lumps. Put in a zip-top bag, press out all the air so that no skin can form and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight. Will hold for three days.

When you are ready to assemble the pudding, whip 3 cups of the heavy cream to stiff peaks. Whisk the pudding mixture to lighten it up and then fold pudding mixture into cream in two batches.

In a large, deep 4- to 5-quart casserole dish or bowl, layer one-third of the wafers, followed by one-third of the bananas, followed by one-third of the pudding mix. Drizzle on ½ cup of caramel sauce. Repeat the layers (wafers, bananas, pudding, caramel) two more times, ending at the pudding. Whip the remaining cream with the sugar to soft peaks and top the pudding with the whipped cream. Crumble 4 to 6 wafers to fine powder and dust the top of the cream with the cookie powder.

Let sit in the refrigerator at least 4 to 6 hours before serving, or overnight. Take the pudding out of the fridge about 30 minutes before serving just to let the chill dissipate.

Use the formula for exciting variations! You can substitute chocolate pudding and chocolate wafer cookies for a chocoholic version, or skip the caramel and do raspberries instead. Or keep the bananas and try melted peanut butter instead of caramel. Go exotic with fresh mango and gingersnaps. Once you have the basics down, it really lends itself to experimentation.

Put onions in a large skillet with a lid over medium heat. Cover skillet and cook for about 10 minutes, until onion is dry and almost sticking to pan. Add fat or oil, raise heat to medium-high and cook, stirring occasionally, until onion is nicely browned, at least 10 minutes or so longer.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of water to a boil. In a separate, medium saucepan, bring 1½ cups water to a boil, stir in the kasha and about a teaspoon of salt. Cover and simmer until kasha is soft and fluffy, about 15 minutes. Let stand, off heat and covered.

Salt the large pot of boiling water and cook noodles until tender but still firm. Drain and combine with the onions and kasha, adding more fat or oil if you like. Season with salt and lots of pepper and serve immediately.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Cook the pasta according to the directions on the box. Reserve ¼ cup of pasta water. Drain the pasta.

Cook pancetta in a dry skillet until the fat is fully rendered and the pancetta cubes are crisp. Remove the pancetta, leaving the fat in the pan. Add ¼ cup olive oil to the pancetta fat, and add the pepper flakes, the cinnamon, and the chickpeas. Add in the pine nuts and pancetta and sprinkle the bread
crumbs over the top, mixing over medium-high heat until the bread crumbs are toasted. Add in pasta, Parmesan and reserved pasta water. Season to taste with salt and pepper and stir in basil.

Eat half of the pasta for dinner. The next day, mix the eggs with the cream and blend with the leftover pasta. Cook over medium low heat in a skillet with 2 tablespoons olive oil until golden brown and almost set up. Slide the frittata onto a plate, drizzle the top with olive oil and flip it over back into the skillet to brown the other side and cook through. A knife in the center should come out clean.

Let the frittata rest for ten minutes before cutting into wedges. Serve wedges with a spoonful of marinara and a sprinkle of Parmesan.

Place potatoes in large saucepan and add water to cover by 1 inch. Bring to boil over medium-high heat; add 1 tablespoon salt, reduce heat to medium, and simmer, stirring once or twice, until potatoes are tender, about 8 minutes.