Steel Cut Oatmeal

Rolled oats are indispensible for granola, baking, and quick bowls of oatmeal on weekday mornings. But a bowl of creamy rolled oatmeal always gives me a craving for the much nuttier steel cut oatmeal.

The appeal of steel cut oats, also known as Irish or pinhead oats, lies in the texture. They have a bit of chew and a springiness between your teeth, unlike the mushiness of rolled oats.

Steel cut oats need about 30 minutes of simmering, which might be more time than you can spare when you're trying to beat the school bus to the corner. Fortunately, steel cuts oats reheat beautifully in the microwave.

Make a big batch on day one; store the leftovers in the fridge. Reheat a single portion with a bit of milk in the microwave. You get all the chewy texture plus creamy oat flavor.

As with many meals in a bowl, toppings make all the difference. My go-to toppings are toasted walnuts, maple syrup, and dried cherries. But most anything goes -- cinnamon, raisins, brown sugar, chopped apples or peaches, butter, cream, vanilla, and so on. I'd love to know what you're favorite toppings are.

Steel Cut Oatmeal

I use McCann's Steel Cut Oatmeal and follow their instructions for "Irish Porridge," described below. There are certainly other brands out there; just look for "steel cut oats" somewhere on the label.

4 cups water
1 cup steel cut oats
1/4 teaspoon salt, more to taste

Bring the water to boil in a medium sauce pan. Add the oats and salt and stir well. Reduce heat to low, and simmer uncovered for 30 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Enjoy one serving of oatmeal with the topping of your choice. I recommend a bit of maple syrup with chopped toasted walnuts and dried cherries.

Store the leftover oatmeal in the fridge in a sealed container. To reheat, scoop out one serving to microwaveable container, add 2 to 4 Tablespoons milk, and reheat (covered) in the microwave for about 1 1/2 minutes or so, until piping hot. Stir well, garnish as desired, and enjoy.

Recipe makes 4 generous (1 cup) servings.

Nutrition facts for 1 cup oatmeal (plain): 150 calories, 5 g protein, 2.5 g fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 148 mg sodium, 4 g fiber

Nutrition facts for 1 cup oatmeal with 1 Tbsp maple syrup, 2 Tbsp walnuts, and 1.5 Tbsp dried cherries: 343 calories, 8 g protein, 12 g fat, 0 mg cholesterol, 152 mg sodium, 6 g fiber

Here are some links to other recipes for steel cut oats you might enjoy.

• Steel Cut Oatmeal at Pinch My Salt
• Preparation tips from McCanns Irish Oatmeal
• Alton Brown's Steel Cut Oatmeal
• Heidi Swanson's Seven-Way Steel Cut Oats

Anne Burrell's Asparagus, Pecorino & Red Onion Salad

When I saw Anne Burrell make this salad with raw asparagus on her show, Secrets of a Restaurant Chef, I thought it was genius. She cut the asparagus crosswise into super-thin rounds, ensuring fresh, green flavor and crisp texture without any fibrous stringiness.

I admit I had doubts as I was chasing roly-poly bits of asparagus all over my kitchen. Once corralled, the miniature dots of asparagus were tossed with red onion, pecorino cheese, red wine vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, and kosher salt.

The result was a quick and satisfying spring salad. I served it along side a rotisserie chicken from the grocery store and had dinner on the table in less than 30 minutes.

I was so enamored with the miniature asparagus rounds, I used them the next day in a beef and asparagus stir fry.

You'll find Ms. Burrell's Asparagus, Pecorino and Red Onion Salad recipe here. If you're the type who can't get enough asparagus every spring, add this salad to your repertoire.

Nutrition facts for 1/6 of recipe (made with 1/4 cup olive oil): 167 calories, 7 g protein, 13 g fat, 13 mg cholesterol, 596 mg sodium, 2 g fiber

I'm not the only food blogger who was impressed. See what the Amateur Gourmet had to say about the asparagus salad here.

Homemade Buns

With grilling season upon us, I'll be using this recipe a bit more often. These buns are perfect for enveloping thick, juicy grilled burgers. Nothing fancy -- just a soft, white sandwich bread -- but with texture and flavor you don't find in the store-bought squishy buns.

That homemade buns are better than store-bought is not really such a bold claim. If you're a homemade bread enthusiast however, you may take offense to my methods. I use a bread machine to make the dough for my homemade buns.

I do so unapologetically because it's the reason my family enjoys freshly baked bread with some regularity. The bread machine stirs and kneads the dough and then provides a warm spot for the first rise. After that, I shape the buns by hand, let 'em rise, and bake them in the oven.

Peter Reinhart tackles the issue of machine versus hands-on kneading in his fabulous book,The Bread Baker's Apprentice. He refers to a "philosophical divide" between bread makers who knead their dough by hand and those who use a machine.

"There is a certain romantic, spiritual cachet to the idea of hand kneading, and I wouldn't deny the meditative, spiritual component of the process. Looked at from a strictly utilitarian perspective, however, each method can get the job done." (p.54)

The bread machine is perhaps the most un-glamorous kitchen gadget, but it facilitates a bit of kitchen magic. The home baker just pours in the ingredients and hits the start button. You miss out on those tense moments when the mass of ingredients transform from a messy, mash-up of separate parts into a cohesive whole. But you still get a feel for the dough as you shape the dough for it's final rise.

I use this recipe for hamburger buns, silver-dollar rolls, or hotdog buns. Homemade hamburger buns make a big difference for mundane meals like burgers or sloppy joes or ham sandwiches. The silver-dollar rolls make elegant mini sandwiches for entertaining. Homemade hot dog buns are great for meatball bombers or the obligatory Wisconsin brats. They can even dress up a Chicago style hot dog.



Homemade Buns

(1.0 pound recipe for bread machine)

3/4 cup (6 ounces) milk
2 cups bread flour
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 Tablespoon butter, cut into 4 pieces
1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

1 egg white plus 1 Tbsp water for egg wash

kosher salt, for topping

Pour milk into pan of bread machine.

Add bread flour, sugar, and salt to the pan. Spread the flour so it covers the entire surface of the milk. Put a piece of butter into each corner of the pan. Make a slight indentation in the center of the flour. Put the yeast in the indentation.

Put the pan into the bread machine and close the cover. Select the "dough" setting and turn the machine on.

When the dough cycle is complete, remove the dough from the pan and punch it down gently. Divide the dough into 6 equal portions for hamburger buns (or 8 equal portions for hot dog buns or 12 equal portions for silver-dollar rolls). Shape each portion into the appropriate shape, creating a smooth surface on the top.

Place the shaped dough onto a cookie sheet or baking sheet that has been lined with parchment paper. Rub the surface of the buns with oil or use spray oil. Cover with plastic wrap and top with a second baking sheet. (The top baking sheet keeps a flat top on the buns as they rise.) Allow to rise until buns are roughly doubled in size (35 to 60 mins). Brush buns with egg wash and sprinkle with kosher salt (or other toppings like sesame or poppy seeds).

Bake at 375 degrees F for 15 to 20 minutes. Cool on rack before slicing.

Nutrition facts for 1 hamburger bun (1% milk): 205 calories, 7 g protein, 3 g fat, 6 mg cholesterol, 452 mg sodium, 1 g fiber

Nutrition facts for 1 hotdog bun (1% milk): 153 calories, 5 g protein, 2 g fat, 5 mg cholesterol, 339 mg sodium, 1 g fiber

Nutrition fact for 1 silver dollar roll (1% milk): 102 calories, 3 g protein, 1 g fat, 3 mg cholesterol, 225 mg sodium, .5 g fiber

P.S. When my first bread machine gave out a few years ago, I followed the advice of the King Arthur Flour company and bought a Zojirushi. Its loaf pan has a traditional rectangular shape, unlike the buckets of the smaller models. It can handle up to 2 pounds, which means I usually double up on dough recipes and stick half in the freezer. I use it about once a week, most often for pizza dough, hamburger buns, or breadsticks.

Ricotta Gnocchi

Gnocchi hold a special place in my husband's heart. (You can read all about it in my post on potato gnocchi.) So when I mentioned the Daring Cook's Ricotta Gnocchi challenge, he was intrigued. When I told him the ingredients were ricotta, eggs, and Parmesan, he said "so it's a cheese ball?"

Regardless, my husband and I enjoyed the gnocchi-shaped ricotta cheese balls. I just had to avoid calling them gnocchi lest I trod upon his sentimental attachment to the potato version.

The ricotta gnocchi proved to be delightfully delicate, unabashedly cheesy, and intensely flavorful. So intense, these gnocchi were satisfying sauced only with a cloak of butter. But I was worried about the photo shoot, so I served mine with a tomato butter sauce enriched with a bit of cream and white wine, with italian sausage rounds on the side.

This was my first challenge with the Daring Cooks, a community of food bloggers who every month all cook the same recipe and share the results on their individual blogs. This month the chosen recipe was Ricotta Gnocchi from the Zuni Cafe Cookbook by Judy Rodgers. It was a daring recipe because it called for fresh ricotta and because gnocchi can be temperamental.

I used Heidi Swanson's Homemade Ricotta recipe, which you can find at her website 101 Cookbooks. It's whole milk ricotta and the recipe worked like a charm, making 4 cups of tangy curds. The ricotta drained nicely, leaving a dense, dry mass of cheese that squeaked slightly in my teeth.

Ricotta Gnocchi

This recipe is based on the Ricotta Gnocchi recipe in The Zuni Cafe Cookbook. It was delicious in a simple butter sauce, but equally as enticing in a creamy & buttery tomato sauce.

2 cups fresh ricotta, thoroughly drained
2 large eggs
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter, melted
pinch freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 cup finely shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 cup flour, for shaping gnocchi

1. Use a fork to vigorously break up the ricotta in a medium bowl, making sure there are no large chunks. Add the eggs and stir well. Add the melted butter, nutmeg, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and salt. Stir vigorously until dough is cohesive and soft.

2. Prepare a large pot of salted boiling water for the gnocchi. You'll need it ready for a test batch before you form the whole batch of gnocchi.

3. Spread the flour on a large tray or rimmed baking sheet. The flour helps to form the gnocchi and keeps them from sticking.

4. Make a few test gnocchi. I didn't want a smooth surface on the gnocchi, so I deviated from the Zuni Cafe method a bit. I used the tip of a spoon to scoop about 2 teaspoons of dough into a roundish ball, which I dropped onto the floured tray. I gently pushed the gnocchi around in the flour to coat it on all sides. Then I picked it up and very gently rolled it along my wooden gnocchi board, using just enough pressure to flatten the ball into an oblong and to make striped indentations on the gnocchi. [This technique is much different from the rolling technique I use for potato gnocchi. The result is a solid oblong of dough, without the concavity of potato gnocchi as I know it.]

5. Cook the test gnocchi. Drop them in the large pot of boiling water. Reduce heat immediately to a gentle simmer. After the gnocchi float to the surface, continue simmering gently for 5 minutes. Start checking for doneness earlier (at 3 minutes), but I found 5 minutes just right for gnocchi that were fully cooked and tender, without a gooey center.

6. If your test batch was a success you're good to go. You can add more salt to the dough at this point if desired. (If your test gnocchi fell apart, the Zuni Cafe Cookbook suggests the addition of a teaspoon of egg white into the batter. My advice would be to stir some flour into the dough; start with 1/4 cup. With either method, you'll have to make another test batch.)

7. Form the remaining dough into gnocchi using the same technique described above. Rest each formed gnocchi on the floured tray, keeping space between individual gnocchi to avoid sticking.

8. Heat up your sauce in a separate pan and keep warm over low heat until the gnocchi are done. If you want to coat the gnocchi with butter before saucing, melt 2 to 4 Tablespoons of butter in a medium saucepan separate from the sauce.

9. Cook the gnocchi in 2 batches. Drop half the gnocchi one at a time into the simmering water. Adjust heat as needed to maintain a gentle simmer. When all the gnocchi have floated to the surface, continue simmering for 5 minutes, until gnocchi are firm and cooked through. Remove gnocchi with skimmer, toss in melted butter if desired, and add to the sauce. Repeat with the second batch of gnocchi. Do a little happy dance and serve.

This recipe makes 48 gnocchi.

Nutrition facts for 1/4 recipe (about 12 ricotta gnocchi): 297 calories, 18 g protein, 21 g fat, 174 mg cholesterol, 330 mg sodium, 0 g fiber

Nutrition facts for 12 ricotta gnocchi with about 1/4 cup tomato butter sauce and 2 oz. italian sausage: 500 calories, 28 g protein, 36 g fat, 217 mg cholesterol, 858 mg sodium, 1.5 g fiber

Improvisational Cooking

There’s irony in a trend toward improvisational or “recipe-less” cooking that relies on cookbooks to spread the word. I read this Wall Street Journal article on the topic with interest. As intended, it prompted me to check out the referenced books (here and here) and food blog, all of which appear to include some form of recipes.

The article explains that some cookbook authors “are moving away from the rigidity of recipes and advocating improvisational cooking, where measurements are approximations and ingredients are interchangeable.” That sounds like a recipe to me.

Rigidity in cooking is not in the recipe, it’s in the cook. Home cooks who can’t extrapolate from a well-written recipe surely won’t fare better with only their innate culinary wisdom to guide them. Recipes can be good or bad, just as improvisation can yield good or bad results. In cooking, the quality of the output results from the skill of the practitioner. To develop those skills, you need recipes.

Maybe it depends on your definition of recipe, or the level of detail in the recipe. Most recipes focus on the what – ingredients, measurements, cook times, temperatures. But it’s the recipes that tell you why that are most valuable. You can take that learning and apply it elsewhere.

The irony was lost on me 5 years ago when I bought a book titled “How to Cook without a Book,” by Pam Anderson. I recommended the book to a perceptive foodie friend who immediately pointed out the paradox. I bought a book to learn how to cook without a book. The recipes in the book are flexible by design with an emphasis on method.

I learned some great stuff from that book, like how to make a quick pan sauce. Even though I’ve internalized the basic rule – start with ½ cup liquid, reduce by half, enrich with fat – I still open the book to review the details. Learning the basic rules so I can become a better cook is the reason I plan to purchase Michael Ruhlman’s new book, which seems to downplay recipes in favor of ratios.

The onslaught of recipes – in cookbooks, magazines, newspapers, websites, and food blogs – only serves to inspire improvisational cooking. Just read the comments on a recipe at any food website and it’s clear many home cooks have no problem adjusting measurements and ingredients. Recipes are the springboard for creativity.

Improvisation in the kitchen can be powerful. I feel a smug thrill when I have to ad-lib a recipe (because I’ve run out of a key ingredient) and it turns out better than usual. I gain confidence when a recipe doesn’t seem to be working and I trust my instinct to correct it. But at the heart of every successful improvisation, there’s a recipe, call it what you like.