Category Archives: Recipes (Savory)

A Cookbook About Speedy Cooking from A Man Who Knows Speedy Writing

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Tonight's dinner of "Lemon Grass and White Bean Turkey Chili'' can be on the table in about half an hour.

When the food editor of the Associated Press writes a cookbook, you know it’s got to be all about getting food on the table fast.

After all, J.M. Hirsch’s job at the wire service is all about disseminating information timely and quickly.

His new book, “High Flavor, Low Labor” (Ballentine Books) features nearly 150 recipes designed for busy, working families who want to put creative dishes on the table, but don’t want to be slaving over a hot stove for hours to do it.

His “Lemon Grass and White Bean Turkey Chili” is an example of that. It’s sort of a cross between the classic Thai soup, tom kha gai, and American white chili. Made with ground turkey, coconut milk and jalapenos, it takes only about half an hour to make.

Since lemon grass isn’t always available at every corner store, I’ve taken to keeping a few stalks growing at all times in my back yard. That way, I always have a supply when I need it.

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Beer is the Secret Ingredient in this Stew

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It doesn't get better than hearty beef stew cooked with ale and topped with a fluffy buttermilk dumpling.

You know this beef stew has got to be fabulous if I made it and thoroughly enjoyed it during a fluke 90-degree heatwave a few weeks ago.

So just think how satisfying it will be during the bone-chilling fall weather to come.

“Beef-Ale Stew and Green Onion-Buttermilk Dumplings” is from the new “The Sunset Cookbook” (Oxmoor House) by the editors of Menlo Park-based Sunset magazine.

It’s the first new cookbook in 15 years by Sunset.

As a native San Franciscan, I grew up with Sunset magazine as a staple in my family’s house. A stack was always found on our coffee table. Over the years, the look of the magazine may have changed. But one thing that hasn’t is the reliability of the recipes. Meticulously tested, they always work and taste delicious.

The new cookbook, of which I recently received a review copy, follows that tradition. More than 1,000 recipes are packed inside this weighty book, which were selected from the magazine, then retested and updated.

The beauty of this stew is that the thick sauce is really made from nothing more than natural beef juices cooked down for three hours with caramelized onions and two bottles of ale. Yet it tastes far more complex than that. I used the New Belgium Brewing company’s Trippel Ale brewed with coriander, which was smooth, hoppy, robust and had an almost faint caraway note.

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Sweet Potatoes Made Sweeter with See’s Candies

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Sweet, creamy, gooey good.

There’s a kid inside every one of us who dreams about eating candy for dinner.

Now, you can satisfy that inner child’s delight with this fun recipe from See’s Candies that makes for a perfect side dish for Halloween or Thanksgiving feasts.

“See’s Scotch Kiss Sweet Potatoes” sounds like it would be entirely too achingly sweet for adult palates. But surprisingly, it’s not.

It’s made with See’s Scotch Kisses — marshmallows sweetened with buckwheat honey for an almost molasses-like flavor that are then hand-dipped in thick, creamy caramel.

See's Scotch Kisses

Marshmallow candies dipped in creamy caramel.

Yams or sweet potatoes get roasted in their jackets, then peeled and mashed with butter, salt and orange zest. Next, take 12 See’s Scotch Kisses, unwrap them and scatter them on top of the casserole. Bake until the top is golden, gooey and melty.

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A Welcome (and Delicious) Red Wine Stain

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Red wine stains usually send shivers of horror through hosts and hostesses.

Visions of our best white tablecloths or favorite eggshell-hued couch being ruined for life tend to torment us.

But here’s one case where the staining power of your favorite red varietal is welcomed, indeed.

Take a close look at that plate of pasta above. No, it’s not whole-wheat pasta. In fact, those noodles started out as regular beige-colored strands. Take another look. Go on. You might even notice a bit of burgundy-purple tint to the noodles. It’s not your eyes playing funny tricks on you. And it’s not my meager Photoshop abilities at work, either.

Nope. It’s the magic of Zinfandel wine. An entire 750-ml bottle to be exact.

“Zinfandel Spaghettini with Spicy Rapini” is a genius dish from the new cookbook, “Michael Chiarello’s Bottega” (Chronicle Books). The book, of which I recently received a review copy, is filled with more than 100 recipes for Southern Italian specialties by Chiarello, chef-owner of the wildly popular Bottega restaurant in Yountville.

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The One and Only Joyce Goldstein

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Fish fillets cooked Catalan-style -- with pine nuts. (Photo by Carolyn Jung)

For four decades, San Francisco’s Joyce Goldstein has been a cooking teacher, cookbook author, chef and restaurateur.

She introduced us to tapas long before the now-crazed small plates trend existed.

She was making couscous at her restaurant before most people even knew what it was.

Now, she’s hard at work on what will be her 26th book.

And oh, by the way, she just turned 75.

This tiny, bespectacled woman continues to teach us all about cooking, eating and culture. Read all about her in my story in the September issue of Food Arts magazine, in which she is spotlighted as this month’s recipient of its Silver Spoon Award.

Then, enjoy this dish from her book, “Tapas: Sensational Small Plates from Spain” (Chronicle Books).

As Goldstein notes, “Fish in Pine Nut Sauce,” which I spied on Epicurious.com, is typical of many Spanish fish dishes in that it features sauces made with nuts. Fillets of firm, white fish are either baked in the oven or cooked on the stovetop in a homestyle, brothy Catalan sauce of tomatoes, green peas, dry white wine, garlic, and sweet paprika that gets its body from ground pine nuts and bread crumbs.

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