Anadama – what a weird name for a type of bread.  I think I was first interested in making this bread because of the name.  After sampling some of it for the first time at The Friendly Toast in Portsmouth, NH years ago – it’s been a great go to bread for me ever since.  It’s also super easy to make, a good introductory bread recipe for anyone who doesn’t have a lot of experience baking breads.

The origin of the name itself is a funny story – this told from Wikipedia:

There are several popular myths about the origin of the name, which mostly take this form:

“A fisherman, angry with his wife, Anna, for serving him nothing but cornmeal and molasses, one day adds flour and yeast to his porridge and eats the resultant bread, while cursing, “Anna, damn her.” The neighbors baked it because it was so delicious and coined it Anadama or Anadamy.

With that fine intro, onto the recipe!  This recipe comes out of the Moosewood Cookbook from the awesome Moosewood Restaurant in Ithaca, NY.  Keep in mind that this will make a bunch of dough – enough for 2 big loaves or 3 medium sized loaves.  Also keep in mind that this bread does freeze well, so bake it all and then save it for later!

• 2 cups cool water
• 2 cups whole (or 2%) milk (or soy milk)
• 2 cups yellow cornmeal
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1 cup warm water
• 1/4 cup molasses
• 2 packs of active dry yeast (the standard kind you find in the baking aisle)
• Around 10 cups of unbleached bread flour – more as needed for dusting, etc…
• 1/2 cup canola or vegetable oil
• 2 Tbsp. kosher salt
• Butter for glazing (optional)

Combine the 2 cups cool water and milk in a pot and bring to a boil.  STIR in the cornmeal, then the brown sugar to make a thick mush-like goo – this will be really thick and hard to stir.  Once combined, set aside off the heat.

In a separate bowl, add the warm water and and molasses and whisk lightly to combine.  Add the yeast and dissolve it in the water/molasses mixture.

The temperature of the cornmeal mush should be around 110F – once it’s there, add the mixture to a mixer along with 2 cups of the flour and beat for around 100 strokes with the paddle attachment (or my hand of course).  Cover with a damp cloth and set aside in a warm place (around 80-90 degrees if possible) and let this mixture sit for 45 minutes.  I use my oven to let the dough rest and rise – sometimes even turning the broiler on for a minute to give it some warmth – this trick works well if your house is cool to begin with like mine.  The mix should bubble and rise slightly – this is called a “sponge”.

Stir the oil, salt and gradually cup after cup of flour to the sponge after it’s been bubbling for a while.  I did this with the dough hook of my mixer, but you can also do it by hand.  You may not need to add all of the flour – but you want to end up with a slightly sticky yet fluid dough that you can knead.  Turn it out onto your board and knead it for around 10 minutes by hand, adding flour as necessary.

Oil your large bowl and return the dough to your bowl, cover with the damp cloth and place again in the oven to rise for 45 minutes or until the dough doubles in size.  Punch down the dough and shape it to your liking – I made standrad shaped loaves, as well as round boules – both were delicious.

Lightly oil your baking dishes, then add the dough, cover with the damp cloth again and let rise in the baking vessels for another 30-40 minutes.  Preheat the oven to 350 F, brush the tops of your loaves with a little melted butter and bake for 40 minutes or until the dough is golden brown.  Cool on a wire rack and enjoy!

Brandade is something that I ate for the first time at Craigie on Main in Cambridge, MA – served in a small ball that had been lightly fried and served on top of squid ink aioli.  Ok, so that was my introduction to the stuff – and obviously I didn’t set out to replicate that dish.  Instead I wanted to learn a more rustic style of brandade, so I turned to a recipe from a great restaurant up in Portland Maine called Caiola’s in the West End.

Caiola’s brandade was easy to make and delicious.  I really liked the idea of keeping some of the ingredients more course and less of a puree.  The salt cod is actually really delicious, adding a subtle but present fishiness that’s not overpowering, but instead comforting and delicious.  I added a bit of both lemon and orange zest, which added a really nice freshness.  This stuff is pretty rich and delicious, a good go to for any appetizer, but especially in the winter.  Here’s what to do:

• 1 medium fillet of Salt Cod (around 3/4 lb.) – soaked in cold water for 24 hours at least, changing the water multiple times.  Once soaked, drain and dry and reserve.
• 2 lb potatoes – Yukon golds or fingerlings work here – peeled and roughly chopped
• 1/2 cup cream
• 1/4 extra virgin olive oil + 1-2 Tbsp.
• 1/2 white onion – large dice
• 1 tsp. orange zest (more to your taste)
• 1 tsp. lemon zest (more to your taste)
• 1 clove fresh garlic – finely minced
• Salt and pepper to taste
• Cured black (pitted) olives to finish
• Bread for crostini – sourdough baguette or even focaccia work well

Preheat the oven to 350 F.

Start with the salt cod.  Once it’s drained, add it to a pan of water and bring the water to a boil.  Cook the cod in the water for 15 minutes or so, or until it nicely flakes apart.  Remove the cod from the water with a slotted spoon, dry, then add the cod to a food processor and gently pulse until the cod is mostly broken apart.  I decided to leave some larger pieces in the cod and it was really good!!  But it’s totally up to you.

Once the cod is done, add some salt to the water, then add the potatoes to the pan and cook those until they’re cooked through – 10-15 minutes.  Remove the potatoes from the water and rice or mash them in a separate bowl.  Add the riced potatoes to the cod mixture and mix together gently.

In a separate pan, add the 1-2 Tbsp. olive oil and then the onion and gently saute until soft but not browned.  Remove the onion and add it to the potatoes and cod.  Then add the 1/4 cup of olive oil to the hot pan and warm it until it’s fairly hot, then add it to the cod and mix.  Finally, add the cream to the heated pan (make sure the pan is over low heat) and heat it gently before adding it to the code mixture.

Finish by mixing in the garlic and zests, then taste the mixture and adjust seasoning as necessary.  Once you’re happy with it, place the brandade in an oven proof dish and bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until the top begins to brown and the middle is hot and bubbly.  Toast the bread and arrange on the plate.  Finish the brandade with the olives and a little more zest and serve with the toasts!

Everyone loves to eat cookies during the holidays and these will make you very popular.  You can bake them tomorrow and they will still be soft and chewy on Christmas.  I brought them in to work because it was too dangerous to keep them at home, and they were gone before 9am.

If you want to make a cookie that everyone will love, and that is fun to make with kids, here is your winner!  If I were you, I would consider doubling the recipe and bestowing these cookies on all of your most treasured friends, or keeping the extra dough in your fridge to bake at all of your holiday dinners over the next few weeks.

Note:  The recipe below is made with a stand mixture.  However, with plenty of will power and arm strength, it can certainly be made by hand.

Ingredients:

• 2 1/4 cups flour
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• 1/4 tsp. salt
• 1 tsp. ground cinnamon
• 1 tsp. ground ginger
• 3/4 cup (1 1/2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
• 1 cup dark brown sugar
• 1 extra-large egg
• 1/4 cup molasses
• Course granulated sugar (for coating cookie dough before baking)

Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Begin by sifting the flour, baking soda, salt, cinnamon, and ginger into a large bowl.

In a stand mixer, beat the eggs and brown sugar together until it becomes light and fluffy.  On low speed, add the molasses and mix until combined.  Slowly, add the flour mixture, about one cup at a time, until it is all combined into the dough.

Place the course sugar in a shallow bowl.  Using a teaspoon, scoop out a heaping spoonful of dough.  Roll into a ball using your palms, and then roll through the sugar.  Place on the baking dish.  Repeat to make the rest of the cookies (makes about 2 dozen).  Leave plenty of room between cookies on the baking sheets, as they will spread out during baking.

Bake for about 8 minutes, or until the cookies have spread and begin to crack slightly on top.  They should still be quite soft, and they will continue to firm as the cool.  Carefully, with a spatula, transfer the cookies to a cooling rack to cool for at least fifteen minutes (this is the hardest part of this recipe because they will look and smell so delicious).  Store in an air tight container for up to 5 days.

When visiting New York City recently, we got an opportunity to head to Momofuku Noodle Bar in the Village, which after going through the cookbook, was a big draw for me. Going in, I knew that the two dishes I was going to have the most difficult time choosing between would be the Momofuku Ramen (which I did end up ordering) and this dish below: Ginger Scallion Noodles.

The dish is totally simple to prepare, really not much effort, but the flavors are complex and delicious.  The base of the dish is the Ginger Scallion Sauce, which for the most part is just that, minced ginger and scallions along with some soy, vinegar and grapeseed oil.  It’s less sauce and more of a rub or condiment.  Whatever it is, you’ll love it, trust me.  As David Chang of Momofuku says:

“Improvise to your needs, but know that you need ginger scallion sauce on your noodles, in your fridge, and in your life.”

Here’s how to pull it together – first for the Ginger Scallion Sauce.  Make this first, as it gets better with age:

• 2.5 cups scallions.  Basically 2 standard bunches finely diced
• 1/2 cup finely diced ginger
• 1/4 cup grapeseed oil – make sure you use grapeseed, don’t substitute here!
• 1.5 tsp. light soy sauce (I used the low sodium version).
• 3/4 tsp. Sherry vinegar
• large pinch kosher salt (3/4 tsp. or so)

Mix all the ingredients together in a mixing bowl, then set aside to rest, letting the flavors blend together.  Let this mixture sit for at least 15 minutes or up to a day or two in the fridge.

Quick Pickle Cucumbers:

• 1 Tbsp. kosher salt
• 1 Tbsp. organic sugar
• A bunch of thinly sliced cucumber slices – standard cukes were cool with us.

Combine all ingredients thoroughly with your hands and let marinate for 5-10 minutes before using.

Pan-Roasted Cauliflower:

• 1 medium head of cauliflower – broken down and sliced into small florets.
• Grapeseed oil
• Kosher salt to season

Get the oil ripping hot in your pan, then add the cauliflower (careful, the oil may splatter!!) cut side down and toss letting all sides caramelize before seasoning to taste with salt and removing from the pan.

Ginger Scallion Noodle Dish: (for 3-4 people)

• All 3 condiments from above
• 1 package of store-bought ramen noodles (around a 1 lb package, like standard pasta)

Boil the noodles for just a few minutes in unsalted water, breaking them apart the best you can.  Keep in mind these ramen noodles cook MUCH faster than their Italian counterparts, so don’t overcook them!!

Drain the noodles and place in a large bowl.  Toss in the sauce and the rest of the ingredients/condiments, along with anything else to your liking!  Serve and enjoy once well combined.

When those first really cold days of the season sneak up on you, it is a little hard to shake off the chill.  I came up with this recipe after a full day at work wishing that I had worn wool socks and boots (instead of no socks and ballet flats) and a warm sweater (instead of a cotton long sleeve shirt).  Why must I be a slave to fashion?  By the time I got home, walked the dog, and made it to the grocery store, I thought I would never feel warm again.  On this kind of day, you have to warm up from the inside out.  You just have to drink tea and eat soup.

As I previously mentioned, I had already worked all day, walked the dog, and gone to the store – I was cold, and hungry, and getting crankier by the minute!  A slow cooked soup was out.  I needed something that would be ready quickly, but would have the same soul-warming effect of my mom’s chicken noodle soup.  To help me achieve this, I turned to ready-to-use canned beans and prepared chicken stock, two ingredients that always help quick-cooking food taste slow.  I also grabbed the hot Italian sausage because I needed heat in both temperature and spice to shake this chill!

The nutritional and delicious recipe below will warm you up, please your doctor, feed an army, and taste even better the next day.  Grab a loaf of your favorite crusty bread and get ready to feel the heat!

Ingredients:

• 1 lb. hot Italian sausage
• 1 large yellow onion, diced
• 3-4 carrots, peeled and cut into 1/4 inch rings
• 4-5 cloves garlic, minced
• A dozen Crimini  mushrooms, sliced
• 4 cups kale, cleaned and roughly chopped
• 8 cups or two containers chicken stock (I prefer organic and sodium free so I can salt to taste)
• 2 15 oz. cans of cannellini beans
• 1/4 lb. bow tie pasta
• 3 tbs. olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. dried thyme
• 1 tsp. dried oregano
• Salt and red pepper flakes to taste
• Roughly grated Parmigiano Reggiano cheese to taste (for garnish)

I a heavy bottom, large soup pot, heat the olive oil over medium high heat.  Remove the sausage from its casing and add it to the pot, pressing it flat.  Leave it alone on one side, and then flip it when it is brown.  As the sausage browns on the second side, use a wooden spoon to break it up into bite sized pieces.

Add the onions, carrots, and garlic to the pot.  Season with salt, red pepper (optional), thyme and oregano.  Stir frequently until the vegetables begin to soften, about five minutes. Add the mushrooms and saute for another minute.   Add all of the chicken stock and cover and cook for twenty minutes over medium-low heat.

Add the kale to the soup.  Re-cover and cook for another fifteen minutes.  Strain and rinse the beans.  Add the beans and the pasta and cook until the pasta is al dente, about fifteen more minutes over medium-low heat.  Taste for seasoning.

Serve in big bowls garnished with Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and warm, crusty bread.  Feel the warmth and enjoy!

I think I’m now convinced that the pressure cooker is perhaps one of the greatest inventions to the home kitchen in a long time.  Especially if you’re the type of person who loves slow food: braising, slow cooking, falling of the bone, you know.  Basically the pressure cooker allows you to do this sort of food in around 30-60 minutes when it could otherwise easily take you 2-4 hours.  Since getting my pressure cooker back in the summer, I’ve mostly been focused on making pork in it, as well as some beef – mostly tough cuts like shoulder and rib meat.  The shanks are some of my favorite parts of the animal, especially lamb, which benefit from being a little bit more succulent than veal or Ossobucco in my opinion.

Shank meat is typically pretty lean – the shanks of the cow are very lean, much of the time used for extra lean ground beef (96/4 no joke!).  Lamb shanks are fairly lead too, but are full of connective tissue that renders into delicious gelatinous love when cooked long enough.  The pressure cooker makes this process happen in a fraction of the time – convenient for us working types.

This interpretation of the classic dish is somewhat French – utilizing rosemary, thyme, garlic and a simple braising liquid made of red wine and homemade stock.  Remember that you can do these in a pressure cooker for sure, but I imagine that the more popular way of doing these is in a dutch oven or heavy baking dish.  Either way, I think you’ll agree that braised lamb shanks are one of the more savory and comforting dishes you can do on a cold day in the fall or winter.

Serves 6

• 6 lamb shanks
• 2 medium yellow onions – chopped
• 2 small/medium heads of fennel – cored and chopped
• 6 cloves garlic
• 4-5 rosemary stalks – leaves removed
• A few stalks of Thyme – leaves left on the stalks is fine
• 1/2 – 3/4 bottle of red wine
• 6 cups of chicken stock (homemade preferred)
• Salt/Pepper
• Olive Oil

Start with the pot or pressure cooker over high heat.  Add enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the pot.  Add some salt/pepper to the lamb shanks and add them to the bottom of the pot, fat side down and brown them on either side, flipping them when one side is nicely browned.

Once all of the shanks are nicely browned, remove them from the post and set aside.  Turn down the heat to medium/low and add the onions and fennel and another small splash of olive oil.  Cook the aromatic vegetables slowly until they become somewhat caramelized and browned.  Add the garlic, rosemary and thyme next and stir in.  Cook for a few more minutes, and then add in half of the wine to de-glaze the pot – scrape all of the stuck bits from the bottom of the pan.

Add the rest of the wine and the chicken stock and then the lamb shanks back to the pot.  Try to keep the shanks in 1 layer, then cover and bring the pot to a boil.  If you’re using a pressure cooker, time to clamp down your lid and bring the pot to 15 pounds of pressure  and cook for 45-50 minutes.

If you’re using a dutch oven, then bring the liquid to a boil and cover the pot.  Lower the heat a bit to make the pot just simmer before letting it braise for a few hours.  You know your done when you can literally take a fork and literally pull the meat off with little to no effort.  This my friends is what we refer to as ‘falling off the bone’ and it’s one of the best things the food world has to offer.

As an optional step, you can fire up a sauté pan on high heat and finish the lamb shanks by browning them off to add a little crust to the outside of them.  This is really going to give you the awesome texture on the outside, while still being incredibly tender on the inside.  Enjoy!

This post was co-authored (really the recipe was co-cooked) by @taylorbarstow

At some point during the winter, I inevitably will get a serious craving for some delicious and wholesome braised beef short ribs. With winter waning, a few of us on a ‘dudes night’ decided to do something we rarely all do together: cook. It was really rainy out, and all of us were thinking about drinking some dark beer, so Guinness was the answer for both the glasses and the dish. After shopping around a bit with Taylor and Kippy, we found ourselves in the North End, at Sulmona Meat Market on Parmenter Street – classic, old school Italian butcher and had some beautiful short ribs that we decided to have the butcher leave whole and not chop in half like usual short rib cuts.

The cuts of beef will look rather large as you can see in the pictures, but this was cool with us all around.  We decided to use a combination of braising liquids, all brought together with the classic French mirepoix of onions, carrots and celery.  Braising liquids included Gunniess, chicken stock (you can use beef too of course) and a touch of coffee.  We decided to pair the dish with some creamy Parmesan polenta and some of the braising liquid on the plate.  I’d also consider serving some blanched and sauteed bitter dark greens – or really whatever you like.  The beauty of short ribs is that they’re so damn tender “falling off the bone” that you tend to forget whatever else is on the plate.  Here’s what to do:

Before starting, remember that these short ribs can take up to 3 hours to cook!!!  So start early with them!

• 4-6 Whole (or 8-12 halved) short ribs – the freshest you can find – Grass-fed beef preferred!
• 1 large (or 2 medium) carrots – roughly chopped
• 2-3 stalks celery – washed and cubed
• 1 large white onion – diced
• 3 cloves of garlic – smashed
• 2 bay leaves
• A few stalks of parsley
• 2 pint cans of Guinness stout
• 2 cups chicken or beef stock
• 1/2 cup coffee (optional)
• Olive oil
• Salt and pepper

First thing you want to do is locate a good heavy bottomed pot to use for the braise.  I’ll sometimes use a large roasting pan that I cover with tinfoil if I have too many ribs to fit in my Le Creuset dutch oven.  Once you’ve got your equipment, preheat your oven to 350 F.

Season the short ribs thoroughly with salt and a small amount of pepper and set aside.  Heat your pot over medium/high heat and add a few glugs of olive oil to coat the bottom of the pot.  When the oil is just about smoking hot, add the ribs and brown on all sides, then remove the ribs and set aside.

Lower the heat to medium/low and add all of the vegetables, including the parsley and bay leaves and mix to combine and cook until softened – around 5-7 minutes.  Add the braising liquid and bring to a simmer, then add the short ribs back into the pot, cover with a heavy lid and place into the preheated oven.

The time you want to cook your short ribs is really up to you, but I would advise AT LEAST 2 hours.  My rule of thumb I learned from Taylor Barstow and it basically goes like this: cook the short ribs until they are basically completely falling apart and the bone comes out easily.

The last part really pulls the dish together: Start a saute pan over medium high heat and a just a tiny bit of olive oil.  When the pan is really hot, add the short ribs and sear them on each side to add a little bit if texture back to the short ribs (a little crust for your meat).  Once they’re done, serve along side polenta or whatever you’d like and enjoy immediately!

Stew is food for the soul, and that is exactly what I was after with this dish.  I don’t make stew very often because it is so time consuming, and with life as hectic as it is, most of my cooking these days happens about thirty minutes before I am ready to eat.  But tonight I was cooking a meal for a good friend of mine who could use a little boost in spirits.  The meal was for the next night, so I had plenty of time to prepare a slow-cooked pot of food without the hasty influence of hunger.  You just can’t rush soul nourishment, and no dish can warm a person’s being any better than stew.  And, if you ask me, the earthy, rich flavor of lamb makes the best stew.

So, knowing the dish would be done well past my normal bedtime, I started preparing this dish about seven, after I had gotten home from work, walked the dog, and eaten take-out Thai food.  I had solicited Adrian’s help, so he had gone to the store and cubed the meat by the time I got home.  For stew, you want meat with some fat on it, so a shoulder cut is great.  Even lamb neck pieces can make great stew.  A leg of lamb is a little lean, and tends to dry out a bit, so while it is delicious for roasting, it is not the best cut for this preparation.  We bought arm chops and cut them into cubes.  We browned up the bones with the rest of the meat and cooked it in the stew to add richness.  Before I packaged it up to send off to my friend’s house I removed the bones, which were clean of all their meat.

Since I was sending this stew off as a meal to go, I decided to serve it with quinoa, a nutty, extraordinarily nutritious grain.  I also prepared a spinach salad with dried cranberries and crumbled goat cheese for a little acidity to balance out the rich favor of the stew.  I threw in a baguette to complete the meal.  Next time your soul needs a little lift, or you know someone who does, give this delicious stew recipe a try.

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ lbs. lamb stew meat, cut into 1 in. cubes
• 4 cups chicken stock (or lamb stock, if you can get it!)
• 2 cups of dry red wine
• 4 large carrots, peeled and cut into 1 in. pieces
• 1 large yellow onion, very roughly chopped
• 1 10 oz. bag of pearl onions, blanched and peeled

• 5-6 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3 Turkish bay leaves
• 1 tsp. fresh thyme leaves or ½ tsp. dry thyme leaves
• 1 tbsp. plus 1 tsp. ground cumin
• ½ tbsp. smoked paprika
• 5-7 threads of saffron
• 3 tbsp. all-purpose flour
• 2 tbsp. olive oil
• 2 tbsp. unsalted butter
• Salt and pepper to taste

Begin by patting the meat dry with paper towels.  The meat will not brown properly if it has too much moisture.  Season the cubes with salt and pepper, and then dust them with the flour, 1 tbsp. of cumin, and the paprika.  I do this part in a brown paper bag so I can gently shake the meat to coat it evenly. Then I shake off the excess flour before I brown the meat.

In a heavy bottomed Dutch oven, heat the butter and olive oil over medium-high heat.  When the pot is hot enough so that it begins lightly smoking, put one layer of the meat in the pot.  Leave the meat alone to brown for about three to four minutes before turning.  Brown on both sides and then put aside.  Repeat this process as necessary until all of the meat is brown.

Remove all but one or so tablespoons of remaining fat from the pan and reduce the heat to medium.  Add the chopped onions, remaining cumin, saffron, thyme, bay leaves, and a pinch of salt and sauté for a few minutes until the onions begin to soften.  Add the garlic and carrots and sauté another few minutes.  Add the red wine and scrape up all of the bits on the bottom of the pot.  Let the wine cook down over medium heat for about five minutes.

Return the meat to the pot and add the chicken stock, which should cover the meat.  Bring the stock to a boil and then reduce the heat to a simmer.  Place a lid on the pot and let it cook for 2 ½ to 3 hours, or until the sauce has thickened and the meat falls apart.  Taste for salt and remove bay leaves and bones, if you used them.  Serve immediately, or refrigerate it for up to a week and reheat when you are ready.  The flavor just gets better when it has a chance to sit.  Serves 6.

A lot of cooking for me is trying some thing that you don’t traditionally think would go together.  Such is the case here, when I opened up the fridge and found 5-6 lonely but beautiful golden beets and thanks to another great idea from Ana Sortun (chef at Oleana and author of the cookbook Spice) this dish happened.

If you’re not familiar with what Tzatziki is, it’s basically a Greek yogurt-based side dish that’s usually paired with grilled meat like lamb or chicken.  It’s typically got cucumbers in it, but the base is really simple (and really good too!) including lemon, a little garlic and that great, thick Greek yogurt.  I added some fresh thyme as well, and this worked out well I think you’ll agree.  You can also use this dish as a topper to something like falafel or gyros or Shawarma.

Maybe the best part about this is it’s really simple to make – besides the time it took to roast the beets, we’re talking around 5-10 minutes tops.  I’ve used golden beets here, and I recommend you do the same (or candy beets will work too), but the subtle flavor of the golden beets worked really well.  If you like beets (or even if you don’t and just want to try something new) give this one a shot!

• Around 7-8 small/medium golden or candy beets – ends trimmed and washed
• 1 cup whole milk Greek-style yogurt
• Juice of 1/2 a lemon
• 2 small cloves fresh garlic – finely diced
• 4-5 sprigs of thyme leaves removed and chopped
• 1 Tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
• Small splash of vegetable or canola oil
• Salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Preheat the oven to 400 F.  Wash and trim up the beets and arrange them in a shallow oven-safe roasting pan or skillet (I used a small fry pan).  Top the beets with the vegetable oil and some salt and pepper, mix to combine.  Add a few Tbsp of water to the bottom of the pan and cover with two layers of tin foil (fairly tightly).  Add the beets to the oven and roast them for around an hour or until they’re very tender when poked with a knife.

Next make the Tzatziki – First take the diced garlic and add it to a small bowl with the lemon juice and a good pinch of salt.  Let these ingredients sit and marinate together for 10-15 minutes in order to mellow out some of the bite on the garlic.  Next add the yogurt and whisk together with some pepper.  Finally add the thyme and whisk in the olive oil before finishing with a little more salt and perhaps a little more lemon depending on your tastes.

Once the beets are finished, remove them from the oven and rub their skins off or peel them with a paring knife.  Take out a box grater and grate all of the beets down on the large holes of the grater.  Add the grated beets to the yogurt mixture and stir gently to combine, taking care not to break up the beets too much.  Serve on top of grilled meat or alone as a side dish.  Enjoy!

Clam chowder is a New England dish that has made a national debut.  Even in July in San Diego, I would be willing to bet that you wouldn’t have to walk very far to find a seafood restaurant that serves clam chowder.  Granted, you might not be treated to the same charming description of why their “chowdah” is the very best in the “greatah Bahston Areah”, but you will most likely be satisfied.  It wasn’t until I lived in Boston, however, that I discovered fish chowder, and in the years that I have been living here, I have come to appreciate fish chowder more than its creamier, more commercialized cousin.

It is an unspoken rule that fish chowder has a lighter broth than clam chowder.  Something about a clam is able to stand up to a broth that is almost as thick as pudding in consistency, and this is often the kind of chowder served in restaurants.  Fish chowder, however, is more delicate and subtle in its decadence.  It typically is served in a much thinner, lighter broth which I find more appetizing and better suited for an entree serving size.  I also love making fish chowder at home because it is so easy!  The batch I prepared for the recipe here took 30 minutes, almost exactly!  That wouldn’t be the case if I were scrubbing shells and chopping Quahogs.

Ingredients

• 1 lb. fresh haddock fillet, skinned with bones removed
• 2 small Yukon gold potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1/2 inch cube
• 1 yellow onion, chopped
• 1 carrot, finely chopped
• 1 stalk of celery, chopped
• 3 cloves of garlic, minced
• 1 tsp. fresh or 1/2 tsp. dry thyme
• 3 tbs. butter
• 2tbs. flour
• 3 cups seafood stock
• 2 1/2 cups milk
• Salt and pepper to taste

In a large, heavy bottom pot, melt the butterover medium heat.  Add the onions, potatoes, carrots, celery, garlic, and thyme.  Season generously with salt and pepper.  Let the vegetables soften for about 15 minutes, or until the potatoes are near tender.  Add the flour and stir to coat the vegetables and cook for one more minute.  Add the stock and milk and let it come to a soft boil, stirring occasionally to prevent the milk from burning on the bottom, and then reduce the heat to low.

Cut the fillet into thirds.  The pieces will break up as they cook.  Add them to the creamy stock and cook for about 7-10 more minutes, just until the fish turns opaque and begins to fall apart.  With a wooden spoon, break up the fish into bite size pieces.  Serve immediately.

Serves 4.