Cookbook Club Roundup - February 20th, 2016

Cookbook Club RoundUp! 

Members of our brand new Cookbook Club brought some delightful dishes and recipes to this week's gathering. Here's a sampling:

Caviar Pie, from Mother’s Club of New Rochelle 1987 Cookbook.

Chipotle & Rosemary Spiced Nuts, from Ina Garten's Barefoot Contessa, How Easy Is That? Fabulous Recipes & Easy Tips.
           
Turkey and Zucchini Burgers with Green Onion and Cumin, adapted from Jerusalem: A Cookbook.

Zahatar Cherry Tomatoes Crostini, from Rose Water and Orange Blossoms: Fresh & Classic Recipes from my Lebanese Kitchen, Maureen Abood.

Marcella Hazan’s Famous Tomato Sauce, originally appeared in Marcella Hazan's Essentials of Classic Italian Cooking. 

Some members shared their own recipes too, these included Dill Pickles; Sauerkraut; Spinach, Cheese & Veggies Quiche; and Gougeres. 

What, you may ask, is a gougere?

Choux pastry, or pâte à choux, is used to make sweet profiteroles. When cheese is added for a savory dish, they are called gougeres. These mini-pastries should be crisp and golden on the outside and light and fluffy within.

Gougeres – Cheese Puffs

Makes about 3 dozen

Ingredients

1 cup Gruyere or Parmesan Cheese, finely grated

1/2 cup unsalted butter, cut into pieces

½ teaspoon Kosher salt

1 cup flour

4 large eggs

Method

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Put the butter and water in a saucepan and bring to a rolling boil. Reduce the heat to low and add the flour and salt, all at one time.

Stir rapidly and continuously with a wooden spoon as the mixture comes together. Cook for up to three minutes, or until the mixture forms a smooth ball.

Take the pan off the heat and allow it cool for a few minutes. Beat the eggs. Add them to the warm dough one at a time, beating thoroughly to incorporate. Mix in the grated cheese.

Using a teaspoon, place spoonfuls of the mixture on to a baking tray lined with parchment paper, leaving room between each spoonful for the pastry to puff up. Bake for 10 minutes, then turn the heat down to 325 degrees for another 20 minutes, or until the pastries are cooked through and golden.

Gougeres can be made a few hours ahead of time and reheated before serving.

Remy's Soup

Remy's Soup

Chef D'Amour Giovanni Green from Break Bread Not Hearts had a lot of help in making a wonderfully hearty vegetable soup. Here's Giovanni's simple recipe. 

Ingredients

Potatoes – three medium sized
Parsley – one bunch
Carrots –three medium sized
Portobello Mushroom – one to two large caps
Baby Spinach – ¼ pound
Scallion – three stalks
Garlic – 4 cloves
Diced/Crushed Tomatoes – one 28 oz. can
Coconut Milk – one 14 oz. can
Salt, Pepper, Thyme, Red Pepper Flakes (optional)
Butter or Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Love

Directions

1. Begin by being thankful and excited for the meal you are about to prepare.  
2. Rinse potatoes and cut them into small bite sized cubes, mince the garlic, and remove the gills from the portobello mushrooms.  Slice the mushrooms into thin strips.
3. In a saucepan or stockpot drizzle 2-3 tablespoons of the olive oil or the butter over medium heat.  You can now add the potatoes, garlic, and mushrooms with a pinch of salt and pepper.  Stir constantly until the garlic turns light golden brown, about 2-4 minutes.
4. Add the can of diced tomatoes, can of coconut milk, a healthy dash of salt and pepper and increase the heat to medium high until the soup begins to boil.  Once boiling reduce the heat back to medium-low and allow to simmer for 15 minutes.
5. Slice carrots into any shape and drop into the soup and cook for an additional 5-7 minutes.  If you want the carrots to be soft cut them into smaller pieces.  If you like them with a bit more crunch cut them into larger pieces and cook for a shorter period of time.
6. Once the potatoes and carrots are cooked through the soup is ready to be served.  Thinly slice the scallions and the spinach.  Place the spinach at the bottom of a bowl, ladle the soup on top, and garnish with scallions and thyme.
7. Enjoy with love!


This recipe in the film comes together based on the ingredients available at hand to the characters.  Allow your imagination, taste buds, and the rest of your senses to guide you when preparing this soup or any other meal as a team.