Shrimp and Grits

This is another GREAT recipe from Jubilee and if you have interest in doing a deep dive into cooking from the American south, I highly recommend this cookbook.  It is a great read, full of references to other cookbooks from the last two hundred years of African-American cooking in the Americas.  This recipe is the last recipe you will need to make this dish.  It is that good.  And so easy, a weeknight meal for certain.

• 3-1/2 C water + more as needed
• 1-1/2 C chicken stock
• 1 t salt, divided
• 1 C corn grits or polenta (not instant)
• 2 T butter
• 6 T whole milk
• 1/2 C shredded cheese
• 1/2 C bacon, diced (3-5 slices)
• 1/4 C flour
• 1 pound shrimp, peeled and deveined
• 1/2 C green onions, chopped
• pinch red pepper flakes
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled and pressed
• 1 T freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1 T fresh parsley, chopped
• salt and pepper as needed

In a large saucepan, pour in water, 1 C stock, and 1/2 t salt. Bring to a boil over high heat. Gradually whisk in grits, 1/4 C at a time, stirring until well-blended. Bring mixture to a boil again, then reduce heat to low and simmer until tender. Mine took approximately 30 minutes. If it starts to get too thick, add water as needed. Once the grits are tender, remove from heat. Stir in the butter, milk, and cheese. Stir until the cheese is melted and incorporated. Keep warm until ready to serve.

In a skillet, cook the bacon over medium heat until the fat has been rendered and the bacon is cooked completely. Remove the bacon from the pan and drain on paper towels. Leave 2 T bacon grease in the pan...remove any more than that. Turn off the heat.

In a small bowl, combine the flour and remaining salt. Toss the prepared shrimp in the flour mixture to coat lightly on all sides.

Heat the bacon fat again until sizzling. Stir in the shrimp and sauté for 2 minutes. Add in the green onions, red pepper flakes, and garlic. Cook for another minute or two. Pour in the remaining 1/2 c.  stock and stir until the gravy is smooth and thickened, approximately 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in lemon juice, parsley, and cooked bacon.

Chao Tom

I got this recipe from Cook Like a Local, but I think that this is a traditional Vietnamese dish (making me think ever more that I need to go there sometime when they let us back in), but this version is very good.  I made it on a weeknight, so even though it seems like it has a number of steps, it does comes together quickly.

Shrimp paste:
2 pound medium shrimp
1 tsp. Salt
1 Tbs. cornstarch
2 teaspoons  brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 Tsp.  fish sauce
2 large egg whites, beaten
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 shallot shallot
2 tablespoon butter or oil

Coarsely chop the shrimp, then put them in a bowl. Add a generous 1/4 teaspoon of salt, the cornstarch, sugar, pepper, fish sauce, egg, garlic, and shallot. Transfer to a food processor and process just until a coarse paste forms. Transfer to a bowl, stir in the pork fatback, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside for 15 to 30 minutes. The mixture will stiffen as it sits.

Prepare 12 3-inch sticks of sugar cane (We thought you could skip this, and just do them without).
Line a steamer tray with parchment paper and oil the parchment. Ready a pot of water for steaming.

Have a bowl of water near where you’re working, along with the shrimp paste and sugarcane sticks. Wet one hand, then use the free hand to put ~1/4 c. of paste in the palm of your hand, spreading it out into circle about 2 1/2 inches wide and a good 1/4 inch thick. Center a sugarcane stick atop the paste (the ends of the stick will not be covered), then close your hand to make the paste adhere to the stick and surround it. Or make the ball, and poke the stick through it.  Hold on to the sugarcane stick with your dry hand and turn the stick, all the while patting the paste with the wet hand to smooth out the surface. Set on the prepared steamer tray. Repeat to make 11 more. Put overflow sticks on a plate. 

Steam the shrimp sticks over boiling water for 3 to 4 minutes, until opaque, slightly puffed, and just cooked through. Transfer to a plate and set aside to cool. The shrimp sticks can be covered and refrigerated for up to 3 days.

Then you can heat 2 c. of oil to 350 and fry them, or do them on the grill.
Serve with Nuoc Cham.

Popcorn Shrimp

This comes from Chris Shepherd's cookbook Cook Like a Local.  My Food 52 cookbook group universally panned the corn based butter sauce included so we made a dipping sauce with sour cream and sriracha instead.
This is so so good.  The smaller the shrimp the better, but super simple and an easy week night meal. 

• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground pepper
• 1 cup rice flour
• 1 large egg
• 1/2 cup whole milk
• 1 pound shelled and deveined small shrimp
• Vegetable oil, for frying
• Snipped chives and lime wedges, for serving 

Set a rack over a baking sheet. Put the rice flour in a pie plate. In another pie plate, beat the egg with the milk. Season the shrimp with salt and pepper and dust them in the rice flour, tapping off the excess. Dip the dusted shrimp in the egg, then dredge again in the flour; transfer to the rack.

In a large saucepan, heat 1 1/2 inches of vegetable oil to 350°. Add half of the shrimp to the oil and fry until golden and crisp, about 2 minutes. Using a slotted spoon, transfer the shrimp to a paper towel–lined baking sheet and season lightly with salt and pepper. Repeat with the remaining shrimp.

Transfer the shrimp to a platter and garnish with chives and lime wedges.

Sally's Chocolate Birthday Cake

• For the Cake:
• 12 ounces unsalted butter (about 3 sticks; 340g)
• 12 ounces brewed black coffee, or black tea such as Assam (about 1 1/2 cups; 340g)
• 3 ounces Dutch-process cocoa powder (about 1 cup, spooned; 85g)
• 6 ounces finely chopped dark chocolate, roughly 72% (about 1 1/4 cups; 170g)
• 16 ounces light brown sugar (about 2 cups, packed; 455g)
• 1/2 ounce vanilla extract (about 1 tablespoon; 15g)
• 1 teaspoon (4g) Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt, use about half as much by volume or the same weight
• 6 large eggs, straight from the fridge (about 10 1/2 ounces; 295g)
• 3 large egg yolks, straight from the fridge (about 1 1/2 ounces; 45g)
• 9 ounces all-purpose flour, such as Gold Medal (about 2 cups, spooned; 255g)
• 1 tablespoon (about 13g) baking soda
• 6 ounces finely chopped dark chocolate, roughly 72% (about 1 1/4 cups; 170g)
• 16 ounces light brown sugar (about 2 cups, packed; 455g)
• 1/2 ounce vanilla extract (about 1 tablespoon; 15g)
• 1 teaspoon (4g) Diamond Crystal kosher salt; for table salt, use about half as much by volume or the same weight
• 6 large eggs, straight from the fridge (about 10 1/2 ounces; 295g)
• 3 large egg yolks, straight from the fridge (about 1 1/2 ounces; 45g)
• 9 ounces all-purpose flour, such as Gold Medal (about 2 cups, spooned; 255g)
• 1 tablespoon (about 13g) baking soda 

Milk Chocolate Frosting
3 cups (24 oz) heavy cream
3 3/4 cups (20 oz) good quality milk chocolate, finely chopped
1/4 tsp kosher salt

1. Getting Ready: Adjust oven rack to lower-middle position and preheat to 350°F (180°C). Line three 9- by 2-inch anodized aluminum pans with parchment and grease with pan spray. (The cakes can be baked in 2-inch-deep pans, but they will dome more and rise less.)
   
2. For the Cake: Combine butter and coffee or tea in a 5-quart stainless steel pot or saucier over low heat. Once melted, remove from heat, then mix in cocoa and chocolate, followed by brown sugar, vanilla, and salt. Mix in eggs and yolks, then sift in flour and baking soda. Whisk thoroughly to combine.
   
3. Divide batter between prepared cake pans, about 23 ounces each. (If you don't have three pans, the remaining batter can be held at room temperature up to 90 minutes, though the rise will not be quite as high.) Bake until cakes are firm but your finger can still leave an impression in the puffy crust, about 30 minutes (a toothpick inserted into the center should come away with a few crumbs still attached).
4. Cool cakes directly in their pans for 1 hour, then run a butter knife around the edges to loosen. Invert onto a wire rack, peel off parchment, and return cakes right side up. Meanwhile, prepare the buttercream. 
    
   Frosting:
   

   In a 3 quart stainless steel pot, warm the cream over medium heat. When bubbling hard around the edges, pour over chocolate in the bowl of a stand mixer. Whisk by hand until smooth, stir in the salt, and set aside until no longer steaming. Cover and refrigerate six hours, or until thick and cold (45˚f) about 6 hours. Alternatively you can cool in an ice bath, stirring frequently, for about an hour.

   Whip with a whisk attachment on medium high until the frosting is thick and silky. (75 to 120 seconds). Use immediately.

   
   

   Assembly:

   Invert each pan onto a wire rack, and peel off the parchment. Trim the tops of the cake using a serrated knife. Place one layer cut side up on a serving plate or turntable. Cover with a cup of the frosting spreading evenly with the back of a spoon or offset spatula. Repeat with the second and third layers, cut side down. Finish the top and sides of the cake with the remaining frosting, and the decorations of your choice

Wake the PoPo up Before They GoGo

I cannot say how much I dislike the terminology around this concept, which is juxtaposed with how much I like this solution.  I do think there are a lot of things that need to be done immediately about police brutality, with this being the longer term goal and the ousting of those police officers for whom humiliation and brutality are a way of life, probably both on and off the job.  I also, while we are at it, want to stop focusing on how many people are killed and instead say that what we saw with the murder of George Floyd was just how casually brutality was meted out and how accepted it was by fellow officers as just another day at work.  I have been disgusted by the displays of police gassing peaceful protesters in a respiratory disease pandemic.  They are reaping what they have sown. 

Steak on the Stove

I do not really cook meat at all, but my spouse does and he loves this technique if it is just not a grilling night.  Yes, I know it is summer, but yesterday we had almost three inches of rain in a thunder and lightning filled storm and if steak had been on the menu, there is no way grilling would have been an option.
So here goes.
Enjoy!

• 2 pounds sirloin steak
• 4 tablespoons butter 1 tablespoon for each piece of steak
• salt and pepper

Instructions 

• Melt some butter in an oven safe pan. Keep pan super hot, medium-high to high. Preheat the oven to 350.
• Salt and pepper one side of the steak then place it seasoning side down into the pan. Season the other side. Cook the meat 3-4 minutes on the first side without touching it or moving it around.
• Flip your steaks over, top them with butter and then throw them into the hot oven for 5 minutes, keeping them in the same skillet. 
• After the 5 minutes, take them out of the oven and transfer steaks to a plate. Cover with foil and rest for 5 more minutes.
• Finally, take the foil off and thinly slice the steak against the grain. Serve with vegetables, potatoes or any other side you like to have with your steak.

Beef Daube

This is from Dorie Greenspan's spectacular book Around My French Table.  She is a favorite with the Food 52 Cookbook group I am in, and it was the first time we tasted the cow we just got a 1/2 of (sharing with a coworker of my spouse and presenting challenges related to freezer space in the midst of a pandemic, where appliances are hard to come by).
This is delicious (and so is our cow, thank goodness).

• 4 slices thick-cut bacon, cut crosswise into 1-inch-wide pieces
• 3 1/2-pound beef chuck roast, fat and any sinews removed, cut into 2- to 3-inch cubes
• 2 tablespoons mild oil (such as grapeseed or canola)
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 2 yellow onions or 1 Spanish onion, quartered and thinly sliced
• 6 shallots, thinly sliced
• 1 garlic head, halved horizontally, only loose papery peel removed
• 1 1/2 pounds carrots, trimmed, peeled, halved crosswise, and halved or quartered lengthwise, depending on thickness
• 1/2 pound parsnips, trimmed, peeled, halved crosswise, and quartered lengthwise (optional)
• 1/2 cup Cognac or other brandy
• 1 750-ml bottle fruity red wine (I know this may sound sacrilegious, but a Central Coast Syrah is great here)
• A bouquet garni — 2 thyme sprigs, 2 parsley sprigs, 1 rosemary sprig, and the leaves from 1 celery stalk, tied together in a dampened piece of cheesecloth

Instructions

 

1. Center a rack in the oven and preheat the oven to 350 degrees F.

 

2. Put a Dutch oven over medium heat and toss in the bacon. Cook, stirring, just until the bacon browns, then transfer to a bowl.

 

3. Dry the beef between sheets of paper towels. Add 1 tablespoon of the oil to the bacon fat in the pot and warm it over medium-high heat, then brown the beef, in batches, on all sides. Don’t crowd the pot — if you try to cook too many pieces at once, you’ll steam the meat rather than brown it — and make sure that each piece gets good color. Transfer the browned meat to the bowl with the bacon and season lightly with salt and pepper.

 

4. Pour off the oil in the pot (don’t remove any browned bits stuck to the bottom), add the remaining tablespoon of oil, and warm it over medium heat. Add the onions and shallots, season lightly with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring, until the onions soften, about 8 minutes. Toss in the garlic, carrots, and parsnips, if you’re using them, and give everything a few good turns to cover all the ingredients with a little oil. Pour in the brandy, turn up the heat, and stir well to loosen whatever may be clinging to the bottom of the pot. Let the brandy boil for a minute, then return the beef and bacon to the pot, pour in the wine, and toss in the bouquet garni. Once again, give everything a good stir.

 

5. When the wine comes to a boil, cover the pot tightly with a piece of aluminum foil and the lid. Slide the daube into the oven and allow it to braise undisturbed for 1 hour.

 

6. Pull the pot out of the oven, remove the lid and foil, and stir everything up once. If it looks as if the liquid is reducing by a great deal (unlikely), add just enough water to cover the ingredients. Re-cover the pot with the foil and lid, slip it back into the oven, and cook for another 1 1/2 hours (total time is 2 1/2 hours). At this point, the meat should be fork-tender — if it’s not, give it another 30 minutes or so in the oven.

 

7. Taste the sauce. If you’d like it a little more concentrated (usually I think it’s just fine as is), pour it into a saucepan, put it over high heat, and boil it down until it’s just the way you like it. When the sauce meets your approval, taste it for salt and pepper. (If you’re going to reduce the sauce, make certain not to salt it until it’s reduced.) Fish out the bouquet garni and garlic and, using a large serving spoon, skim off the surface fat.

 

8. Serve the beef and vegetables moistened with the sauce.

Genesis Begins Again by Alicia Williams

This coming of age story is one that feels all too real. It highlights the fact that racism, leading to a preoccupation with skin tone is still very much alive- even from one person of color to another. From a young age, thirteen-year-old Genesis has been told that she’s “too black” and that everyone wishes she looked like her light-skinned mother. The saddest part is that she hears these words all too often from her father: her alcoholic, gambling, dark-skinned father. In order to please her father  Genesis follows any method to try to lighten her skin- rubbing lemons on her flesh, lathering herself in yogurt, and even taking a bath in bleach, even after her mother shares with Genesis her own experience of being excluded for being "not black enough". However, Genesis soon discovers that her skin isn’t the problem and that perhaps if she just understands the real issues, a change in her perspective could be the solution that everyone has been looking for.
The characters in this book are well written personalities that are unique from each other and the reader gets a chance to get to know their backgrounds which makes them very believable and three dimensional. The experience of getting immersed in another family's culture reminds me of my own growing up experiences that shaped my adult self.  A very good story that resonates right now.

Soy Sauce Pickled Eggs

This recipe comes from Chris Shepherd's cookbook, Cook Like a Local.  It is super fast and easy, and really nice change from deviled eggs, and even easier to make.
I did not have the bonito flakes that are called for, and just peppered the eggs and added some sesame oil and chili oil to the mayonnaise and miso mix to jazz it up a bit.  I also used a 1/2 recipe and stuffed 9 eggs into the jar.

3 star anise pods

4 garlic cloves

12 large eggs, at room temperature

2 teaspoons to 1 tablespoon kosher salt

1 teaspoon white miso

1 cup mayonnaise

1/4 cup bonito flakes

In a medium saucepan, combine the soy sauce, rice vinegar, brown sugar, cinnamon stick, star anise, garlic, and 1 cup water. Cook over medium heat until the brown sugar dissolves, then remove from the heat and let cool completely.

Place the eggs in a saucepan large enough that they can all fit in a single layer. Cover with enough water to submerge them. Add the salt and bring to a boil over high heat. As soon as the water boils, remove the pan from the heat and cover; let sit for 7 (for a soft, pudgy yolk) to 10 minutes (for hard-boiled). Drain the water, then transfer the eggs to a vessel filled with ice water to stop the cooking. Peel the eggs and place in a large container. Pour the cooled soy liquid over the eggs, transfer to the refrigerator, and let marinate for at least 2 and up to 6 hours. Drain the eggs.

 In a medium bowl, whisk together the miso and mayonnaise until completely smooth. Halve the eggs lengthwise, spoon a small dollop of miso mayo on the cut side of each egg half, and top with a sprinkle of bonito. Serve.

Chickpeas and Greens

This recipe is from Ottolenghi's cookbook Plenty, but with a couple of variations.  I had collard greens from my CSA, which require long cooking to become tender whereas his recipe calls for Swiss Chard, which cooks up quickly.  He called for tamarind and I subbed apple cider vinegar.

• 1 lb swiss chard (stalks and leaves), cut into 3/8-inch slices, or other greens
• 1 medium onion, thinly sliced
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 14 oz canned chopped plum tomatoes, with their juices
• 1 1/2 tbsp sugar
• 1 cup dried chickpeas, soaked and boiled (or 2 cans chickpeas)
• 1 1/2 tsp coriander
• 3 tbsp tamarind paste or apple cider vinegar
• salt and black pepper
• 2 lemons
• cilantro
• greek yogurt

1. Put the onion and olive oil in a large heavy pan and saute on medium heat for about 10 minutes, or until the onion is soft and golden.   Add the canned tomatoes, sugar, chickpeas, ground coriander, chard or other greens that have been cooked until tender, and some salt and pepper. Add water to keep the texture desired.
2. Add the tamarind.  Bring to a boil, then cover with a lid and leave to simmer for about 20 minutes.  Taste and add more salt and pepper if needed. Add the juice of two lemons just before serving.
3. While the stew is cooking, chop cilantro for serving.
4. When ready to serve, spoon in to bowl and can finish with greek yogurt and cilantro.