POTATOES, CORN, AND LEGUMES
| —1870s— | • Stewed Corn (here), more pudding than stew. • Several recipes for pommes de terre à la maître d’hôtel show up in the recipe pages (see here). |
| —1880s— | • Baked hominy and hominy fritters. • Potato croquettes and potato salads are big. |
| —1904— | • Saratoga (potato) chips were invented at the Moon’s Lake House in 1853; recipes for them show up every couple of years in the Times (here). |
| —1937— | • Boston baked beans are ubiquitous. |
| —1940s— | • Succotash (here). |
| —1948— | • Jane Nickerson publishes a photo how-to on Candied Sweet Potatoes (here). |
| —1950s— | • Super-sweet corn is developed by botanist John Laughnan at the University of Illinois. • The double-stuffed baked potato is born; it lives on in steak houses. |
| —1954 — | • Tater Tots hit the supermarket. |
| —1960s— | • Americans adventure beyond baked navy beans to pintos, lentils, and black-eyed peas. |
| —1960— | • Janson’s Temptation (here), a gratin of potatoes and anchovies, is an oddball hit. |
| —1970s— | • Green lentils pass the baton to black beans. • Three- and four-bean salad enter the picnic pantheon (see here). |
| —1980s— | • Corn cakes are the first course of the moment, sometimes topped with caviar (see here). • If you aren’t baking a potato gratin, you are probably trying out the nifty new recipe for roasted potato salad (here). • French chef Joël Robuchon beats together 1 part butter to 2 parts mashed potatoes—the recipe becomes famous and keeps cardiologists in business. • The decade of corn, tuna, and the black beans. |
| —1984— | • Yukon Golds take on whites and russets. |
| —1990s— | • Red lentils pass the baton to chickpeas. • Smashed potatoes are the new mashed potatoes. |
| —2004— | • Smoked Mashed Potatoes (here). |
| —2007— | • Potato “Tostones” (here). |
POTATOES, CORN, AND LEGUMES
People who have written about food for the Times have shared a love for potatoes, corn, and fresh peas, and a general lack of interest in the rest of the legume family—lentils, chickpeas, and such. But legumes are in fact kindred spirits with potatoes and corn: they’re substantive, faintly sweet, and receptive to just about any flavor. There are a few such gems here—the Green Lentils with Roasted Beets and Preserved Lemon here and the Roasted Carrot and Red Lentil Ragout, also here. Isn’t it time to embrace them too?
Hot Potato Dishes
Larded Potatoes à la New York Times
Potato “Tostones” (Flattened Potatoes)
Madame Laracine’s Gratin Dauphinois
Cabbage and Potato Gratin with Mustard Bread Crumbs
Potato, Shiitake, and Brie Gratin
Potato, Ham, and Piquillo Pepper Croquetas
Ralph Vetter’s Sweet Potatoes with Lemon
Gratin of Yams and Chipotle Cream
Potato Salads
Potato Salad with Shaved Ricotta Salata and Green Sauce
Corn Dishes
Jonathan Waxman’s Red Pepper Pancakes
Fresh Corn Griddle Cakes with Parmesan and Chives
Legumes
Crispy Chickpeas with Ground Meat
Rice and Peas (Jamaican Rice with Coconut and Red Beans)
Maida Heatter’s Cuban Black Beans and Rice
Mediterranean Lentil Salad with Lemon-Thyme Vinaigrette
Green Lentils with Roasted Beets and Preserved Lemon
Roasted Carrot and Red Lentil Ragout
Crispy Tofu with Shiitakes and Chorizo
Sweet Potatoes/Yams
Ralph Vetter’s Sweet Potatoes with Lemon
Gratin of Yams and Chipotle Cream
Plantains
Yogurt with Plantain and Mango
Winter Potatoes, Corn, and Legumes
Cabbage and Potato Gratin with Mustard Bread Crumbs
Madame Laracine’s Gratin Dauphinois
Spring Potatoes, Corn, and Legumes
Summer Potatoes, Corn, and Legumes
Fresh Corn Griddle Cakes with Parmesan and Chives
Potato Salad with Shaved Ricotta Salata and Green Sauce
Fall Potatoes, Corn, and Legumes
Ralph Vetter’s Sweet Potatoes with Lemon
Gratin of Yams and Chipotle Cream
Green Lentils with Roasted Beets and Preserved Lemons
Roasted Carrot and Red Lentil Ragout
I thought these fritters were going to be a complete failure when I dropped the first spoonful of batter into the pan—it was so thin all looked hopeless. But then the batter seized and behaved like a cross between a crepe and a pancake, resulting in thin, delicate, even lacy cakes flecked with green peas—a fresh take on blini. Serve the fritters with a dab of crème fraîche topped with a pickled ramp or a nugget of smoked fish blended with chives and tarragon, or wrap them around crab dressed with lemon and coriander (admittedly, not how they ate them in 1876).
———
2 cups fresh or frozen peas
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 large eggs
1 cup whole milk
½ cup all-purpose flour
¼ teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon cream of tartar
Unsalted butter for greasing the pan
1. Cook the peas in ½ inch of boiling salted water just until tender, about 2 minutes for frozen peas, longer for fresh. Drain. Coarsely mash the peas and season with salt and pepper.
2. Whisk together the eggs and milk in a medium bowl. Mix together the flour, baking soda, and cream of tartar. Gradually whisk the dry ingredients into the egg mixture, and whisk until smooth. Add the peas and season the batter. Let rest for at least 30 minutes.
3. Heat the oven to 175 degrees. Place a nonstick crepe pan or skillet over medium-high heat and butter the pan. Drop the batter in in 2-tablespoonful-dollops—they should spread to 2- to 2½-inch pancakes. Cook until lightly browned on the bottom, about 1 minute, then flip and cook on the other side, 20 to 30 seconds. Place in a single layer on a baking sheet, and keep warm in the oven while you cook the remaining fritters.
MAKES ABOUT 30 FRITTERS; SERVES 6
COOKING NOTE
I cooked the fritters in a nonstick crepe pan because the pan’s low sides made maneuvering a spatula and flipping much easier.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Fresh and Smoked Salmon Spread (here), Roasted Salmon with Herb Vinaigrette (here), Fricassee of Chicken with Tarragon (here), Sugar Snap Peas with Horseradish (here), Strawberry Ice Cream (here)
SEPTEMBER 24, 1876: “RECEIPTS.”
—1876
POTATO SALAD WITH BEETS
This recipe appeared as part of a menu called “Lunch Bill of Fare” sent in by a reader, who wrote, “The midday meal should be light, as several hours of active employment follow it. We always have tea at lunch, hot at this season, iced in summer, with a slice of lemon in lieu of milk; bread, biscuits, cake of some kind; cold meat, if any to spare, if not, stewed oysters; ham and eggs; potato or lobster salad; preserves, cheese, and any fruit in season.”
What’s interesting about this salad is that you marinate the beets in vinegar for 30 to 60 minutes before adding the potatoes and mayonnaise. This flash pickling gives the beets a sharpness that contrasts well with the bluntness of potatoes.
———
4 medium Yukon Gold potatoes
4 medium beets, trimmed and scrubbed
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
¾ cup chopped onion
1 tablespoon capers
16 olives, such as Cerignola, Picholine, or Sicilian, pitted and chopped
Salt
Cayenne pepper
½ cup mayonnaise
1. Place the potatoes in a medium saucepan, cover with salted water, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer until tender. Meanwhile, do the same with the beets. Drain the potatoes and beets, then peel them. Cut the potatoes into ⅛-inch-thick slices; set aside. Finely chop the beets—you need 2 cups.
2. Combine the beets and 2 tablespoons vinegar in a bowl and let marinate for 30 to 60 minutes. Drain.
3. Combine the potatoes, beets, onion, capers, and olives in a large bowl. Season with salt and cayenne. Add the mayonnaise and remaining 1 tablespoon vinegar. Mix until well blended. Adjust the seasoning.
SERVES 4
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Stuffed Hard-Cooked Eggs (here), Cucumber Sandwiches (here), Brine-Cured Pork Chops (here), Docks Coleslaw (here), Strawberry Shortcakes (here), Blueberry Ice Cream (here), Buttermilk Pie (here)
MARCH 10, 1878: “RECEIPTS FOR THE TABLE.” RECIPE SIGNED SOUTH CAROLINA.
—1878
LARDED POTATOES À LA NEW YORK TIMES
I was drawn to this recipe because I’d recently had a delicious potato dish by the cookbook author and celebrity chef Jamie Oliver that involved boring holes in potatoes and stuffing them with bacon, sage, anchovies, garlic, and lemon zest, then baking them. The flavors of the stuffing seeped through the core of the potatoes as they softened, perfuming the whole.
Was the Times 130 years ahead of its time with its larded potatoes? Well, sort of. Sort of not. The concept is there: infusing a potato’s interior is a smart idea. Using a larding needle to do so is not. Oliver’s apple-corer technique can and should be used instead. What follows is my slightly modernized version: I larded each of my potatoes with chopped smoked bacon, sprinkled them with olive oil, coarse salt, and a lot of coarsely ground black pepper, and roasted them. The recipe is a bit of a stunt, as there are easier ways to combine bacon and potatoes, but it’s fun nonetheless to slice into a potato and discover a steamy sliver of cured pork.
———
1 pound baby white potatoes, scrubbed
4 slices bacon, chopped
Olive oil
Chicken broth
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Use an apple corer to make holes—end to end—through the potatoes. Stuff the bacon into the cavities. Place the potatoes in a roasting dish just large enough to hold them. Sprinkle with olive oil and a few tablespoons of chicken broth. Season with salt and pepper.
2. Cover the dish with foil. Roast the potatoes until tender, 40 to 60 minutes; remove the foil after 30 minutes.
SERVES 4
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Iceberg Lettuce with Smoked Bacon and Buttermilk Dressing (here), Broiled Steak with Oysters (here), Tomatoes Vinaigrette (here), Evelyn Sharpe’s French Chocolate Cake (here)
APRIL 13, 1879: “RECEIPTS FOR THE TABLE.” RECIPE SIGNED MELANIE.
—1879
STEWED CORN
“Stewed,” a word that suggests misery in a pan, should be removed from the food lexicon, or at least from this terrific recipe. To make the dish, you scrape the corn and its sappy juices from the cob, gather them all up, and simmer them with tiny bits of cream, butter, salt, white pepper, and a corn water made from the cobs. What you end up with is nothing like creamed corn, but more like a silky corn pudding.
There are two things to remember about stewed corn. It will change every time you make it (I’ve had it three times), because its sweetness and texture depend on the variety of corn you use and how the corn matures throughout the season. A version prepared in August with white corn was loose and sweet; in October, one made with yellow corn was thick and creamy like porridge. Both were remarkably good.
And to get the right balance of corn pulp to kernel, you need a $3 tool called a corn slitter. Cutting the kernels from the cob, then scraping out the excess juices with a regular knife will produce a different (though not terrible) outcome. A corn slitter scores the kernels and pushes out the creamy pulp, leaving behind the kernels’ chewy pods. One can be found at www.lehmans.com. You’ll pay more for the shipping than the slitter itself, but take the long view: you’ll get to have stewed corn every summer for the rest of your life.
———
16 ears corn, shucked
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon heavy cream
Salt and freshly ground white pepper
1. Using a corn slitter, score the kernels and scrape the pulp from the cobs. Reserve the pulp and juices. Put the cobs in a pan, barely cover with water, and bring to a boil. Boil for 30 minutes, then discard the cobs.
2. Measure out 4 cups of corn pulp and juices and place in a saucepan. Pour in ¼ cup corn water and bring to a simmer. Stir in the butter and cream, season with salt and pepper, and cook until slightly thickened, 1 to 2 minutes.
SERVES 6
COOKING NOTES
In this recipe, as in many old recipes, corn is referred to as “a rather indigestible vegetable.” It seems to have been drier and less sweet than the corn we know today. This may be why D.D.L., the author of this recipe, instructed you to add a lot of corn water to the corn pulp. I reduced the amount so that the finished dish remains a stew rather than a soup.
Corn water is incredibly delicious—you’ll have extra, so freeze it and use it for soups and risottos in the winter.
I reduced the original recipe, which called for 24 ears of corn. If you’re planning a feast, though, the recipe can easily be doubled or tripled.
VARIATIONS
Make a corn risotto by using the leftover corn water to cook the rice and stirring in some stewed corn at the end. Leftover stewed corn can also be stirred into chowders (a trick I learned from my sister, Rhonda, who has also made this recipe).
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Beer-Can Chicken (here), Fried Green Tomatoes (here), Summer Pudding (here), Fresh Raspberry (or Blackberry or Blueberry) Flummery (here)
PERIOD DETAIL
This dish evolved from the rustic corn stews of Native Americans and over time was shined up into something closer to a pudding. In The Story of Corn, Betty Fussell writes about a corn custard from Eliza Leslie, in 1837, in which the corn was blended with milk, sugar, eggs, and butter and served with a sweetened nutmeg-scented butter.
AUGUST 10, 1879: “RECEIPTS FOR THE TABLE.” RECIPE SIGNED D.D.L.
—1879
MAÎTRE D’HÔTEL POTATOES
This recipe—potato balls suspended in a béchamel with lemon and parsley butter—was part of a menu that included broiled shad, but you can serve it with anything that you usually eat with potatoes, such as duck, beef tenderloin, or salmon. Just be sure to invite friends who will appreciate your potato-carving ability.
———
5 large white potatoes, peeled
2½ tablespoons unsalted butter, 1 tablespoon softened
1½ teaspoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
Juice of ¼ lemon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1½ tablespoons all-purpose flour
2 cups whole milk, heated to just under a simmer
1. Using a melon baller, cut the potatoes into little balls. You should have 3 cups of marble-sized potatoes; reserve the trimmings for another use.
2. Bring a large saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the potatoes and cook until tender. Drain.
3. Meanwhile, mash together the 1 tablespoon softened butter with the parsley and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper. Chill.
4. Melt the remaining 1½ tablespoons butter in a large saucepan. When it is foamy, whisk in the flour and cook, whisking, for 1 minute. Gradually whisk in the hot milk, bring to a boil, whisking, and cook until thickened, 2 to 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Fold in the lemon butter and potato balls. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
SERVES 4
COOKING NOTE
After carving the potatoes, you’ll have plenty of trimmings ready for mashed potatoes. Just boil them in salted water and mash with warm milk and butter.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Shad and Roe Grenobloise (here), Filet de Boeuf Rôti with Sauce Bordelaise (here), Roasted Salmon with Herb Vinaigrette (here), Slow-Roasted Duck (here), Spinach with Sour Cream (here), Frozen Lemon Soufflé (here)
FEBRUARY 26, 1882: “HINTS FOR THE HOUSEHOLD: A SPRING DINNER FOR A SMALL FAMILY,” BY JULIET CORSON.
—1882
SARATOGA POTATOES
In America Cooks, published by Cora, Rose, and Bob Brown in 1940, the authors wrote, “A century ago, when Saratoga Springs was in its heyday as a fashionable resort, specialties from there swept the country; and one of them, Saratoga Chips, will endure as long as there are spuds left to slice.” They were partially right. The recipe has endured, but “Saratoga” vanished from the name. We now call them potato chips. In the nineteenth century, there were many recipes for potato chips in the Times—this one from the turn of the century seemed to me the best of the lot—and you can find plenty of recipes elsewhere in cookbooks of the era. (They are most often attributed to George Crum, the chef at Moon’s Lake Lodge in Saratoga.)
To make Saratoga chips, you slice the potatoes, as the Browns instructed in their book, “to fairy-like thinness” and fry them in lard. The Times recipe is unusual in calling for olive oil, a smart modification that gives the potatoes a cleaner flavor. If you can’t achieve fairy-like thinness, then aim for a plumper hobbit-like thickness. They’ll be chewier but just as great.
———
3 large white potatoes, peeled
Olive oil for frying
Salt
1. Slice the potatoes ⅛ inch thick; use a mandoline if you have one. Soak the potato slices in cold water until ready to fry, then drain and dry them thoroughly on a towel.
2. Heat the oven to 175 degrees. Fill a large sauté pan with ½ inch of olive oil. Heat over medium-high heat—the oil is ready when it browns a bread crumb in 30 seconds. Drop a handful of potato slices at a time into the oil and fry until the edges begin to brown, 3 to 4 minutes, then turn the slices and brown the other side, 1 to 2 minutes. Drain on a baking sheet lined with paper towels. Keep warm in the oven while you fry the rest of the potatoes.
3. Pile the potatoes into a bowl and season with salt, tossing to disperse the seasoning.
SERVES 4 TO 6 AS A SIDE DISH, 8 AS AN HORS D’OEUVRE
COOKING NOTE
I used fleur de sel for seasoning, because why not?
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Asparagus Salad (here), New York Strip Steak with Horseradish-Mint Glaze (here), Tomatoes Vinaigrette (here), Cucumbers in Cream (here), Chocolate Rum Mousse (here)
PERIOD DETAIL
Olive oil, it turns out, had been covered extensively in the Times long before Rachael Ray began touting “EVOO.” In 1897, William Drysdale wrote in detail about olive oil being pressed at J. E. Blanc in Velaux, Provence. In 1904, another feature cited producers in France, Italy, and even California. “In the kitchen it has come to supersede, where its cost is not regarded, all fats for frying,” the reporter wrote. That seems to have been an exaggeration, but olive oil was indeed a common ingredient in Times recipes then.
Another recipe in this article was for sliced apples fried in olive oil, dusted with cinnamon sugar, and served with buttered brown bread.
JUNE 26, 1904: “SOMETHING ABOUT OLIVE OIL: ITS EDIBLE MERITS AND KITCHEN USES—THE GARDEN PRODUCE AND FISH MARKETS.”
—1904
BOSTON BAKED BEANS
I’m including this recipe not because it’s so amazing—although it is pretty great—but because it’s so different from baked beans as we know them. The texture is creamy, like refried beans, and the sauce isn’t nearly as sweet and syrupy.
Florence Brobeck, who wrote the story, noted that baked beans were once treated as a main course. With “brown bread, the inevitable pickles or piccalilli, and hot tea or chocolate,” you’d have a meal—which would be impossible with cloying modern baked beans. These have an actual balance of sweet and savory.
———
2 cups dried white pea beans, rinsed, picked over, and soaked overnight in water to cover
¾ pound salt pork, blanched in boiling water and rind scored, or pancetta, sliced ¼ inch thick
1 small onion
2 teaspoons Colman’s prepared mustard
1 heaping teaspoon salt
1 cup boiling water
3 tablespoons molasses
1. Drain the beans, cover them with fresh water in a large saucepan, and heat slowly to a simmer. Cook until the skins burst, about 40 minutes. (The original recipe noted, “Any old-fashioned cook knows that the only way to tell when that stage is reached is to lift out a spoonful of the beans and blow on them. If they’re done, the pale shells blow off.”) Drain the beans and put them in a large heavy braising pan.
2. Heat the oven to 250 degrees. Nestle the salt pork and onion in the beans, leaving the rind exposed. Blend together the mustard, salt, boiling water, and molasses, then pour the mixture into the pan of beans. Cover and bake until the beans are very tender and most of the liquid has boiled off, 3 to 4 hours.
3. Remove the lid and bake for another hour.
SERVES 8
COOKING NOTES
As with many of the recipes in the book that originally called for dry mustard, I used Colman’s prepared mustard instead because I’ve found the dry to lack flavor—as in any flavor at all.
I used pancetta in place of the salt pork.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
North Carolina–Style Pulled Pork (here), Docks Coleslaw (here), Fresh Succotash (here), Jellied Strawberry Pie (here), Strawberry Shortcakes (here)
JANUARY 10, 1937: “YANKEE COOKS IMMORTALIZED IN OUR MENUS,” BY FLORENCE BROBECK.
—1937
FRIED CORN
Fried corn (like its friend, Stewed Corn, here) won’t seal your reputation as a great cook, but it’s an excellent, uncomplicated recipe and a staple of a solid repertoire.
In the story accompanying the recipe, Jane Nickerson, a longtime Times columnist, delivered a brief diatribe on how long to boil fresh corn on the cob, a debate that strangely lingers on today. “It being agreed, then, that corn is good, how shall we prepare it?” she wrote. “By boiling it 2 minutes, and no more. That quick, direct statement is an attempt to destroy the wicked precedent that says that the ears must boil and bubble 7 to 12 minutes. All wrong.” Got that?
———
4 slices bacon or 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups corn kernels (from 3 to 4 ears)
1 small onion, minced
½ teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons heavy cream
1. Pan-broil the bacon till crisp; drain and set aside.
2. Pour off all but 3 tablespoons of fat from the pan; or if bacon was not used, add the butter to the pan and melt it. Add the onion, salt, and pepper and sauté, stirring occasionally, until the corn has browned very lightly, about 15 minutes.
3. Add the cream and heat thoroughly. Serve garnished with the reserved bacon, if you used it, crumbled.
SERVES 4
COOKING NOTES
When cutting corn from the cob, always run the back of the knife down the stripped cob to scrape out any leftover pulp and juices.
Don’t use a bacon that’s been injected with liquid “wood smoke.” That false flavor will really come through in a dish like this.
During this period, the Times test kitchen had an unfortunate habit of making the key aromatics in a dish optional. For instance, in this recipe, the onion and cream were optional. Onion and cream are a cook’s best friends, so I removed “optional.” Also, the recipe calls for a small onion. Since it was 1947, a small onion was likely to be very small by today’s standards. Adjust accordingly.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Beer-Can Chicken (here), Brine-Cured Pork Chops (here), Wilted Chard with Pickled Red Onion (here), French Potato Salad (here), Jean Halberstam’s Deep-Fried Peaches (here)
AUGUST 3, 1947: “WAYS TO PREPARE CORN,” BY JANE NICKERSON. RECIPE BY THE NEW YORK TIMES TEST KITCHEN STAFF.
—1947
FRESH SUCCOTASH
Remember how we used to cook? Before we extracted flavors and reduced sauces? We would put the ingredients in a pan and turn on the heat. And if we had other stuff to do, we’d put the pan on the back of the stove until we were ready to eat. At the table, we wouldn’t talk about the texture of the corn or the salinity of the butter. We’d just eat it. And sometimes, as with this succotash, it was really good.
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1½ cups cooked fresh lima beans (about 2½ pounds in the shell) or frozen lima beans
1¾ cups corn kernels (from 3 to 4 ears)
⅓ cup whole milk
⅓ cup heavy cream
2 to 3 tablespoons unsalted butter
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Combine the beans and corn in a medium saucepan. Add the milk, cream, and butter and season to taste with salt and pepper. Bring to a simmer and simmer until the corn is cooked but still a little crisp, about 5 minutes.
SERVES 6
COOKING NOTES
The original recipe called for ⅔ cup milk or cream. I used ⅓ cup of each, and it worked well. Use whole milk—not just in this recipe, but in any recipe that calls for milk.
When cutting corn from the cob, always run the back of the knife down the stripped cob to scrape out any leftover pulp and juices.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
North Carolina–Style Pulled Pork (here), Cleo’s Daddy’s Barbecued Ribs (here), Fried Green Tomatoes (here), Black-Skillet Okra (here), Docks Coleslaw (here), Boston Baked Beans (here), Peach Salad (here), Blueberry Ice Cream (here), Fresh Blueberry Buckle (here)
AUGUST 26, 1947: “NEWS OF FOOD: TO PRESERVE VITAMIN C IN LIMA BEANS, BUY THEM IN THE SHELL AND COOK THEM SOON,” BY JANE NICKERSON.
—1947
I like to call the 1940s through the 1960s the “Just Add Sherry” era. People turned to sherry as if it were salt and pepper, to flavor sweet potatoes, vegetables (See Creamed Onions, here), sauces (Foamy Sauce, here), stews, and any dessert they could get their hands on. The wine does add a smidgen of acid, but, more important, it gives a sense of depth to simple dishes.
———
3 pounds sweet potatoes or yams
8 tablespoons (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
½ cup sherry (optional)
¼ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
¼ teaspoon ground cinnamon, plus more for sprinkling
About ¼ cup whole milk
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1. Boil the potatoes in their jackets till tender, 30 to 45 minutes.
2. Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Drain the potatoes, peel, and rice into a bowl. Add 6 tablespoons butter and the remaining ingredients, beating in enough milk to moisten the mixture. Spread the potatoes in a greased casserole, dot with the remaining 2 tablespoons butter, and sprinkle a little extra cinnamon on top. Bake until browned, 10 to 20 minutes.
SERVES 6
COOKING NOTE
I used yams, butter, and fino sherry.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Anton Mosimann’s Braised Brussels Sprouts in Cream (here), Ginger Duck (without the rice; here), A Moley (Curried Turkey Hash; here), Huguenot Torte (Apple and Pecan Torte; here), Queen of Puddings (here)
OCTOBER 18, 1947: “NEWS OF FOOD: EXPERT AT CORNELL PUBLISHES RESULTS OF A TWO-YEAR STUDY ON CHEAP FOODS,” BY JANE NICKERSON.
—1947
CANDIED SWEET POTATOES
I am not a fan, but about 250,000,000 Americans are, so here is my faint nod to their mystifying tastes.
———
6 medium sweet potatoes
1 cup packed light brown sugar
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Approximately ⅓ cup (5⅓ tablespoons) unsalted butter
1. Boil the sweet potatoes in water to cover until tender, 25 to 35 minutes.
2. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Drain the potatoes, peel, and cut into ½-inch-thick slices. Arrange the slices in 2 layers in a large greased casserole, sprinkling each layer with half the brown sugar, salt, nutmeg, and bits of butter. Bake for 30 minutes, basting frequently with the syrup in the casserole.
SERVES 6 TO 8
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Creamed Onions (here), Roasted Brine-Cured Turkey (here), Wild Mushroom Stuffing (here), Holiday Cranberry Chutney (here), Mississippi Pecan Pie (here)
NOVEMBER 22, 1948: “NEWS OF FOOD: THANKSGIVING’S CANDIED SWEET POTATO ALMOST AS ESSENTIAL AS TURKEY ITSELF,” BY JANE NICKERSON.
—1948
BACON POTATO PUFFS
Recipes for baked stuffed potatoes appear in the Times archive going back to at least 1878, so these are a fairly polished model, the filling loosened with milk and scented with bacon. As you scoop the bellies of the baked potatoes from their skins, you’ll feel empathy for the countless unsung cooks in steakhouses around the country who made these by the hundred.
Making this pedestrian but lovable dish requires some skill and delicacy. As you scoop out the potato flesh, you want to attempt to keep the skin, which is as thin as tissue paper, in one piece. As you progress, heavy patches of shell sometimes begin caving and tearing. Go slowly and scrape gingerly. Try to get the sides as thin as ⅛ inch. If the skin breaks, the filling can later be used as glue.
———
4 large baking potatoes
¼ cup melted bacon drippings
1 cup hot whole milk, or as needed
4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1. Bake the potatoes. When they are done, cut a slice from the top of each, scoop the contents into a bowl, and mash as for mashed potatoes, adding the bacon fat instead of butter and enough hot milk to whip them into a snowy, fluffy mass. Fold in the crumbled bacon. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
2. Refill the potato shells, heaping them high. Set under a preheated broiler (or the oven set to 400 degrees) long enough to brown the edges of the potatoes.
SERVES 4
COOKING NOTES
To bake potatoes, heat the oven to 350 degrees. Wrap each potato in aluminum foil, place directly on the center oven rack, and bake until soft when pierced with a fork, 40 to 60 minutes.
The recipe calls for ¼ cup bacon drippings and 4 slices of cooked bacon. The problem is that it takes 8 slices of bacon to yield ¼ cup drippings. So you can either cook 8 slices and reserve the 4 extra slices for another use, or cook 4 slices, measure the rendered drippings, and supplement with butter.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Raw Spinach Salad (here), Ann Seranne’s Rib Roast of Beef (here), ‘21’ Club Hamburger (here), Orange Ice (here)
MAY 16, 1949: “NEWS OF FOOD: BACON, PLENTIFUL AND CHEAPER, IS FOUND TASTY FOR OTHER MEALS THAN JUST BREAKFAST,” BY JANE NICKERSON.
—1949
FRENCH POTATO SALAD
Jane Nickerson, a food editor and writer for the Times, offered three salient pointers on potato salad: use old potatoes, because they’ll soak up the dressing best; dress the salad while the potatoes are still warm; and never serve it cold.
———
4 to 5 medium potatoes (2 pounds)
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 to 3 tablespoons vinegar (use the smaller amount with wine, the larger amount with water)
⅓ to ½ cup vegetable oil
¼ cup dry white wine or water
1 tablespoon minced onion
Chopped chives, flat-leaf parsley, chervil, or tarragon
1. Boil the potatoes in their skins until just tender. Drain, peel, and slice. Put in a bowl.
2. Mix the salt, pepper to taste, vinegar, oil, wine, onion, and herbs. Pour two-thirds of the dressing over the potatoes; toss lightly with a fork to coat with dressing. Add more if needed. Serve warm or at room temperature.
SERVES 4
COOKING NOTES
I used red-skinned potatoes. White would also work, but I’d avoid Yukon Golds or Idahos, which don’t have the right smooth, light texture.
I used 2½ tablespoons vinegar, the wine, and a scant tablespoon of sliced chives.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Fried Sweetbreads with Maître d’Hôtel Sauce (here), Epigram of Lamb (here), Broiled Lamb Chops (here), Meat and Spinach Loaf (here), Watercress Salad (here), Coconut Loaf Cake (here), Lee’s Marlborough Tart (here)
PERIOD DETAIL
The price of potatoes, a topic of no concern now, was actually considered a news item in the 1950s. From 1952 to 1953, the price of potatoes plummeted from 13 cents a pound to 3. At the price height in 1952, Nickerson wrote about potato substitutes (pasta, rice, and cornmeal) and the following year, with potatoes back in favor, she ran this story, chockablock with potato recipes.
MAY 8, 1953: “FOOD NEWS: POTATO SALAD CAN HAVE MANY GUISES,” BY JANE NICKERSON. RECIPE BY MRS. RUTH P. CASA-EMELIOS, A HOME ECONOMIST FOR THE TIMES.
—1953
JANSON’S TEMPTATION
In researching who Janson was, I came across plenty of interesting details about the dish, none of them convincingly accurate. I read that the name came from an opera singer, a movie, or, possibly, a religious zealot. Some believe that earlier forms of the dish—a gratin of potatoes, anchovies, onions, and cream that comes from Sweden—included sprats rather than anchovies. And one person who wrote me about the dish’s history added her own delicious-sounding variation: she substitutes Greek yogurt for the cream.
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2 onions, sliced
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 cups raw potatoes cut into match-like strips
Two 2-ounce tins anchovy fillets, chopped, oil reserved
1½ cups heavy cream
About ½ cups fresh bread crumbs
Chopped flat-leaf parsley for garnish
1. Heat the oven to 400 degrees. Cook the onions in 2 tablespoons butter until they are wilted.
2. Sprinkle half the potatoes over the bottom of a buttered 8- or 9-inch baking dish. Sprinkle with the onion and then with the anchovies. Cover with the remaining potatoes and pour a tablespoon of the liquid from the anchovy over all. Pour half the cream over the layers and sprinkle with bread crumbs. Dot with the remaining 1 tablespoon butter.
3. Bake for 10 minutes. Pour over the remaining cream and bake for 10 minutes longer.
4. Reduce the heat to 300 degrees and bake for 20 to 25 minutes longer, or until the potatoes are soft. Serve sprinkled with chopped parsley.
SERVES 6 TO 8
COOKING NOTE
Don’t be tempted to add salt—the dish doesn’t need it.
SERVING SUGGESTION
Roasted Squash Soup with Cumin (here), Florida Beets (here), Königsberger Klopse (Meatballs in Creamy Caper Sauce; here), Arnaki Araka (Lamb with Peas; here), Swedish Nut Balls (here), Fresh Ginger Cake (here)
SEPTEMBER 4, 1960: “ANCHOVY COOKERY,” BY CRAIG CLAIBORNE.
—1960
FOUR-BEAN SALAD
An excellent version of the quintessential picnic salad. The article, from 1976, was titled: “Ethnic Delights Are Hiding on Supermarket Shelves.”
———
1 cup canned red kidney beans
1 cup canned white beans, such as cannellini, Great Northern, or white kidney
1 cup canned chickpeas
1 cup canned black beans
1 cup finely chopped scallions or finely minced red onion
1 small clove garlic, crushed to a paste with ½ teaspoon salt, or more to taste
½ teaspoon dry mustard
2 to 4 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
3 tablespoons olive oil
Salt if necessary
Freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons minced dill
Thin onion rings and lemon wedges for garnish (optional)
1. All beans should be rinsed of their canning liquid: place them in a strainer or colander and let cold water run through them until they are clear and shiny. Drain thoroughly.
2. Place the beans in a large bowl, along with the scallions, crushed garlic, mustard, 2 tablespoons lemon juice, and the olive oil. Toss gently with a wooden spoon until all the beans are well coated with dressing. Add salt, pepper, garlic, oil, and/or lemon juice if needed. Gently fold in the dill.
3. Let stand in the refrigerator for at least 1 hour before serving, tossing gently once or twice to distribute the dressing. (If refrigerated for more than 1 hour, let stand at room temperature for about 15 minutes before serving.)
4. Put the beans in a serving dish and garnish with onion rings and lemon wedges, if desired.
SERVES 8 TO 10
COOKING NOTE
The quality of the canned beans is obviously important. Look for brands with smaller, firmer beans.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Scotch Eggs (here), Elizabeth Frink’s Roast Lemon Chicken (here), Tomatoes Vinaigrette (here), Spoonbread’s Potato Salad (here), Strawberry Sorbet (here), Brownies (here)
MARCH 10, 1976: “ETHNIC DELIGHTS ARE HIDING ON SUPERMARKET SHELVES,” BY MIMI SHERATON.
—1976
MUSSEL AND POTATO MAYONNAISE
———
1 pound baby red potatoes
2 cups shucked Steamed Mussels (recipe follows)
1 cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoons Dijon or Düsseldorf mustard
1 teaspoon white wine vinegar
½ cup finely chopped onion
3 tablespoons chopped chives
1. Place the potatoes in a large saucepan, cover with salted water, and bring to a boil. Cook until tender, about 20 minutes. Drain them and let cool. Cut the potatoes into 1-inch cubes or slightly smaller.
2. Put the mussels in a bowl and add the potatoes.
3. Blend the remaining ingredients, and add half the mayonnaise mixture to the mussels and potatoes. Mix thoroughly, adding more mayonnaise as needed. Cover and chill until ready to serve.
SERVES 8
STEAMED MUSSELS
3¼ pounds mussels, scrubbed well and debearded
¼ cup white wine vinegar
1 bay leaf
Salt
12 black peppercorns
2 sprigs fresh thyme or ½ teaspoon dried thyme
1. Put the mussels in a large pot. Add the remaining ingredients. Cover closely and cook until the mussels have opened, 3 to 5 minutes.
2. Transfer the mussels to a bowl and let cool, then shuck them.
MAKES 2 CUPS SHUCKED MUSSELS
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Tom’s Chilled Cucumber Soup (here), Gigi Salad (here), Green Pepper Salad (here), Stuffed Hard-Cooked Eggs (here), Key Lime Pie (here)
JULY 20, 1977: “THE PICNIC: FOR ROMANTICS AND REVELERS,” BY CRAIG CLAIBORNE.
—1977
BLENDER CORN PUDDING
———
3 large eggs
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour
1½ teaspoons salt
1⅓ cups whole milk, heated to just under a simmer
1 small onion, chopped
1½ cup corn kernels (fresh or frozen)
1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter a 1-quart casserole. Put the eggs into a blender and blend at low speed until beaten. Add the remaining ingredients except for the corn and process until smooth. Add the corn and process very briefly to mix it in.
2. Pour into the prepared casserole. Bake until puffed and just cooked through, about 1 hour.
SERVES 4
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Green Gazpacho (here), Oliver Clark’s Meat Loaf (here), Zucchini with Crème Fraîche Pesto (here), Jean Halberstam’s Deep-Fried Peaches (here), Summer Pudding (here)
JULY 29, 1979: “LOCAL CORN LENDS AN EAR TO SWEET TALK,” BY FLORENCE FABRICANT. ADAPTED FROM ALEWIVES TO ZUCCHINI, A COOKBOOK PUBLISHED BY THE SOUTHAMPTON HISTORICAL SOCIETY (1976)
—1979
LATKES
Trying to track down the very best latke recipe, like trying to pinpoint the best apple pie recipe, is a fraught exercise. Everyone believes his or her own is superior to all others. So I won’t claim that this latke recipe is the best, but it must be close. These potato pancakes, which look like fried soft-shell crabs when they come out of the pan, are lavishly crisp and sting with white pepper.
For the uninitiated, the interesting part of making latkes is handling the potatoes. After grating them, you squeeze out as much liquid as possible from the potato shreds and save it. After letting it settle for a few minutes, you pour off the watery part and are left with a layer of thick, spackle-like potato starch. This goes back into the potato shreds, along with seasonings and the other binding ingredients, egg yolks and matzoh meal. Finally, you aerate this well-bound mixture with whipped egg whites before slipping spoonfuls into a hot pan.
This version is from Mimi Sheraton, a once-feared restaurant reviewer and terrific columnist for the Times, who wrote that the pancakes should be “prepared and fried as close to serving time as possible.” Serving them with applesauce is fine, according to Sheraton, but, “The less said about sour cream with potato pancakes, the better, even if the final topping is caviar.” I thought them so good even the applesauce was superfluous.
———
2½ pounds old baking potatoes (about 5 large)
1 large onion
2 extra-large eggs, separated
2 tablespoon potato flour or matzoh meal
Scant 1 tablespoon salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
1 tablespoon minced flat-leaf parsley (optional)
Corn oil for frying
Applesauce for serving (optional)
1. Peel the potatoes. (If working ahead, cover them with cold water until you are ready to make the pancakes.)
2. Grate the potatoes and onion into a strainer suspended over a bowl, to catch the juices; grate them alternately, as the onion juice will help prevent the potatoes from darkening. (If this is hard to manage, grate the potatoes and onion into a bowl, then turn into a strainer suspended over another bowl.)
3. Picking up handfuls of the grated potato mixture, firmly squeeze out as much liquid as possible back into the bowl, and put the squeezed potato and onion mixture in a clean bowl. Let the liquid settle in the bowl for 2 or 3 minutes.
4. Carefully pour off the watery part of the potato liquid, leaving the thick, starchy paste at the bottom of the bowl. Scrape that into the potato mixture. Add the egg yolks, potato flour, salt, pepper, and parsley, if using it. Mix thoroughly, preferably using your hands.
5. Beat the egg whites into stiff, shiny peaks and gently fold them into the potato mixture, again using your hands.
6. Heat 3⁄8 inch of oil in a heavy skillet, preferably cast iron. Drop the potato mixture into the hot oil, about 2 tablespoons per pancake, flatten slightly, and fry, turning once, until the pancakes are a deep golden brown on both sides; total frying time for each batch of pancakes should be about 5 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Keep the fried pancakes warm while you fry the rest. Put the drained pancakes on a rack on a baking sheet and place in a low oven (about 250 degrees). Do not hold for more than 15 minutes before serving, or they will become soggy.
7. Serve with applesauce if desired.
SERVES 8
I used matzoh meal.
Sheraton called for “old” potatoes, which contain more sugar and brown better.
When squeezing the liquid from the potatoes, do so as firmly as you can. This will lighten the texture of the pancakes.
In Step 4, it’s best to mix the potatoes using your hands so you can feel whether or not the starch is well distributed.
If you have someone to help you, fry the pancakes using 2 pans. It will save a lot of time.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Joyce Goldstein’s Pickled Salmon (here), Matt’s Whole Brisket with Tomato Gravy (here), Fried Artichokes Azzurro (here), Olive Oil and Apple Cider Cake (here), Purple Plum Torte (here)
DECEMBER 19, 1981: “DE GUSTIBUS: LATKES: FOOD FIT FOR A HOLIDAY,” BY MIMI SHERATON.
—1981
MAIDA HEATTER’S CUBAN BLACK BEANS AND RICE
I never would have tried this dish had not so many people written to me about it. Just look at how long the recipe is—would you? But I’ve joined the chorus: you’ve never had beans and rice like this. You think it’s going to be a two-component dish, and it ends up colorful, varied, and phenomenally good.
Find someone to help you shop and chop. After that, it’s not at all difficult to prepare and, as with so many Maida Heatter recipes, it’s filled with interesting techniques—such as steaming the cooked rice with a towel laid on top of it to keep it fluffy and light—and meaningful detail, like adding a little sugar, oil, and vinegar to the chopped sweet onions, which coats them in a light glaze.
Heatter, who is known for her baking (see here and here), lives in Miami—hence the Cuban recipe.
———
1 pound dried black beans, preferably turtle beans
6 cups cold water
2 small ham hocks (about 1¼ pounds total)
½ cup olive oil
3½ cups finely chopped onions
1½ cups chopped green bell peppers
2 tablespoons finely minced garlic
2 bay leaves
¼ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
3 tablespoons red wine vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
¼ teaspoon Tabasco sauce
3 tablespoons dark rum
Rice for Black Beans (recipe follows)
Onions for Black Beans (recipe follows)
1. Pick over the beans carefully to remove any foreign particles. Rinse well in several changes of cold water. Put the beans in a bowl with the 6 cups cold water. Cover and let stand overnight.
2. Drain the beans, reserving the water in which they soaked. Measure the water and add enough water to make 8 cups. Combine the beans, water, and ham hocks in a small pot and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and cook slowly, uncovered, skimming the surface as necessary to remove any foam, until the beans are tender, 4 to 6 hours (see Cooking Notes).
3. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet. Add the onions and green peppers and cook, stirring, until the mixture is wilted. Add the garlic and cook briefly, stirring. Remove from the heat.
4. After the beans have cooked for about 2 hours, add the onion mixture, bay leaves, pepper flakes, vinegar, and salt and pepper to taste. Continue cooking until the beans are tender, for 30 minutes.
5. Remove the pot from the heat and remove the ham hocks. When they are cool enough to handle, remove and discard the skin, fat, bone, and gristle. Shred the meat and return it to the beans. Remove the bay leaves, and add the cayenne pepper and Tabasco. This dish improves if cooked one day in advance.
6. When ready to serve, heat the bean mixture thoroughly. Just before serving, stir in the rum. Serve with rice on the side or spoon a portion of the bean mixture over individual servings of rice. Add the onions according to taste.
SERVES 8
2 cups long-grain white rice
Salt
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1. Rinse the rice in several changes of cold water until the water remains clear.
2. Bring 4 quarts of water to a boil in a large saucepan. Add salt to taste and the lemon juice. Add the rice a handful at a time. Stir the rice until the water returns to a boil. Cook, uncovered, for about 17 minutes, or until the rice is tender. Drain immediately in a sieve.
3. Melt the butter in the pan in which the rice cooked. Add the rice, and cover with a towel. Cover the towel with the pot’s lid, place the rice over the lowest heat possible, and let steam for about 20 minutes. Carefully stir the rice occasionally to keep the grains separate.
SERVES 8
ONIONS FOR BLACK BEANS
3 cups finely chopped sweet white onions
Salt
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tablespoon olive or corn oil
1 tablespoon white wine vinegar
Combine the ingredients in a bowl and let stand until ready to serve.
MAKES ABOUT 3 CUPS
COOKING NOTES
Heatter’s recipe said the beans would take 4 to 6 hours to cook; mine were done in 1 hour and 50 minutes. Keep an eye on yours, and add the onion mixture accordingly.
Make sure the towel you use for the rice doesn’t smell of detergent, or your rice will too.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
This is the ideal dish for a family get-together or Sunday dinner. Start with Guacamole Tostadas (here) and La Paloma (here), and finish with Spanish Cream (here) or Caramel Custard (here) for dessert. For a more ambitious menu, add Yucatán Fish with Crisp Garlic (here), Nueces Canyon Cabrito (Goat Tacos; here), or Hot Pepper Shrimp (here).
JANUARY 27, 1985: “FOOD: THE CUBAN CONNECTION,” BY CRAIG CLAIBORNE WITH PIERRE FRANEY. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM MAIDA HEATTER.
—1985
CORN CAKES WITH CAVIAR
Don’t let the caviar prevent you from making these corn cakes. You’ll be just as happy eating the cakes plain (as a side dish, like hushpuppies), or topped with dollops of crème frâiche and chives. The cakes—from a recipe by Anne Rosenzweig, when she was the chef at Arcadia in New York—are unlike any I’ve had. They’re crisp, pebbly with bits of corn, and lacy on the edges.
A more recent corn cake recipe can be found here.
———
8 small ears corn, shucked, or 3 cups frozen corn kernels, defrosted
⅓ cup whole milk
⅓ cup all-purpose flour
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
⅓ cup cornmeal
2 large eggs
1 large egg yolk
3 tablespoons finely chopped chives
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
¼ cup melted clarified unsalted butter
1 cup crème fraîche
6 tablespoons golden whitefish caviar, preferably fresh
2 tablespoons black caviar, preferably fresh
1. If using fresh corn, cut the corn kernels from the cobs; you need 3 cups. Put the corn (fresh or frozen) in a food processor, add 2 tablespoons milk, and blend to a coarse puree.
2. Put the corn in a medium bowl and add the remaining milk, the flour, 4 tablespoons melted butter, and cornmeal, stirring to blend well. Add the eggs, egg yolk, 2 tablespoons chopped chives, and salt and pepper to taste and blend thoroughly.
3. Heat the clarified butter in a nonstick skillet over medium heat. Spoon about 1½ tablespoons of the batter per cake into the skillet, without letting the cakes touch, and cook for about 1½ minutes, until golden brown on the bottom. Turn the cakes and cook on the other side for about a minute, or until golden brown and cooked through. Transfer to a baking sheet and keep warm in a 175-degree oven while you cook the rest of the cakes.
4. Arrange slightly overlapping corn cakes on each of 6 salad plates. Add a mound of crème fraîche to the center of each plate. Spoon 1 tablespoon golden caviar on top of each mound of crème fraîche and 1 teaspoon black caviar on top of the golden caviar. Sprinkle with the remaining tablespoon of chopped chives and serve.
SERVES 6 AS A SIDE DISH (WITHOUT THE CRÈME FRAÎCHE AND CAVIAR) OR A FIRST COURSE
COOKING NOTES
It’s worth clarifying the butter, because it will burn otherwise. To clarify butter, melt it in a pan over low heat; then skim the top and carefully pour the clear yellow butter into a bowl, leaving behind the solids.
The batter spits a lot when frying: be careful. Also, it’s best to work with 2 spatulas when flipping the corn cakes—the half-cooked cakes can be unwieldy, and the second spatula is handy for saving flipping disasters.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
These are designed to be served as a first course, but if you’re skipping the caviar, you can use them as a side dish for fried chicken, burgers, or chili. For a fancier meal: Billi-Bi au Safran (Mussels in Saffron Cream; here), Mezzaluna Salad (here), and Purple Plum Torte (here).
OCTOBER 2, 1985: “FROM ANTHROPOLOGY TO HAUTE CUISINE,” BY CRAIG CLAIBORNE. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM ANNE ROSENZWEIG, THE CHEF AT ARCADIA IN NEW YORK CITY.
—1985
SAUTÉED POTATOES WITH PARSLEY
There is a similar recipe in Julia Child’s Mastering the Art of French Cooking, except that Child has you cook the potatoes in a single stretch in one pool of butter. The result can be magnificent, the potatoes having soaked up the nutty perfume of butter and crisped all around. But you must remain ceaselessly vigilant lest the butter burn, the potatoes stick, and the dinner be ruined. This recipe by Pierre Franey cuts out all the worry with a slightly more labor-intensive but foolproof method. You boil the potatoes, ensuring their tenderness, then you slice them and crisp them in oil in a nonstick pan. And finally you bathe them in butter. This way, you get the caramelized edge, the pillowy centers, and the sweet taste of fresh butter.
———
5 medium white potatoes (1½ pounds or slightly less)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
About ¼ cup corn, peanut, or vegetable oil
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1 tablespoon finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
1. Put the potatoes in a saucepan and add cold water to cover. Add salt to taste and bring to a boil. Cook for about 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.
2. Drain the potatoes, and when they are cool enough to handle, peel them. Cut them into slices about 1 inch thick. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
3. Heat about 2 tablespoons oil in a large skillet, preferably nonstick over high heat. When it is quite hot, add half the potato slices and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until crisp and brown on one side. Turn the slices and cook on the other side until crisp and brown, 2 to 3 minutes. Drain on paper towels. Add more oil to the skillet if necessary, and cook the remaining potato slices as before.
4. Pour off any remaining oil from the pan. Wipe the skillet clean and add the butter. Return the potatoes to the skillet and stir gently to coat. Sprinkle with the parsley.
SERVES 4
The number of batches and the amount of oil you need will depend on the size of your potatoes and the size of your pan. I have a 12-inch nonstick skillet, so I got them all into a single batch and used just 2 tablespoons of oil.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Carbonnades à la Flamande (Flemish Beef and Onion Stew; here), Sole Grenobloise (Sautéed Sole with Capers and Lemons; here), Pork Arrosto with Prunes and Grappa (here), Salade à la Romaine (here), Chocolate Eclairs (here)
FEBRUARY 26, 1986: “60-MINUTE GOURMET,” BY PIERRE FRANEY.
—1986
CRISP POTATO CROWNS
The original recipe came with a forgettable salad, so I’ve forgotten it. But the crown, which is actually a thin, crisp potato cake, is a great little recipe and something that you can use in countless ways: top it with a poached egg and herb butter, serve it with spinach and hot bacon dressing or Caesar Salad (here), or use it as a bed for chicken stew. Employ it anywhere that a crisp potato disk seems apt.
———
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
4 small evenly shaped oval potatoes (about 4 ounces each)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1. Melt the butter. Using half of it, brush a circle over the bottom of each of four 6-inch round baking dishes, such as porcelain gratin dishes. Chill until the butter is hardened, about 10 minutes.
2. Peel the potatoes and cut into paper-thin slices. Arrange one-quarter of the slices, overlapping, on each circle of hardened butter, pressing down firmly. If necessary, make double layers to use up all the potatoes. Brush the slices with the remaining melted butter and chill for 30 minutes.
3. Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Bake the potato disks until crisp and brown, 20 to 25 minutes. Using a flexible spatula or knife, loosen the potatoes from the baking dishes, and very carefully turn out each potato crown.
SERVES 4
COOKING NOTE
You really do need a mandoline to slice the potatoes, because the slices must be wafer-thin.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Tomato, Fig, Goat Cheese, Basil, and Olive Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette (here), Oolong-Crusted Scallops (here), Macaroons (here)
AUGUST 10, 1986: “FOOD: FRENCH SALAD DAYS,” BY PATRICIA WELLS. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM JEAN-PAUL LACOMBE, THE OWNER OF LEÓN DE LYON IN LYONS, FRANCE.
—1986
MADAME LARACINE’S GRATIN DAUPHINOIS
A potato gratin from the Savoy in southeast France. The sliced potatoes are first simmered in milk with garlic, then baked in a bath of crème fraîche and grated Gruyère.
———
3 pounds medium baking potatoes, peeled and very thinly sliced
2 cups whole milk
2 cups water
3 cloves garlic, minced
Sea salt
3 bay leaves
Freshly grated nutmeg
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup crème fraîche or heavy cream
10 ounces Gruyère cheese, grated
1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Place the potatoes in a large saucepan and cover with the milk and water. Add the garlic, a generous amount of salt, and the bay leaves, partially cover the pan, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring occasionally so that the potatoes do not stick to the bottom of the pan. Reduce the heat to medium and cook, stirring from time to time, until the potatoes are tender but not falling apart, about 10 minutes.
2. Using a large slotted spatula or spider, transfer half the potatoes to a 2-quart gratin dish. Taste a potato—if it needs salt, season the potatoes. Sprinkle with nutmeg, and pepper, and dot with half the crème fraîche and half the cheese. Cover with the remaining potatoes, sprinkle again with pepper and nutmeg, and dot with the remaining cream and cheese. (Discard the milk in which the potatoes were cooked.)
3. Bake until the gratin is crisp and golden on top, 40 to 60 minutes.
SERVES 6 TO 8
COOKING NOTE
Use whole nutmeg and grate it generously.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Boeuf Bourguignon I and II (here), Watercress Salad (here), Steak au Poivre (here), Broccoli Puree with Ginger (here), Junior’s Cheesecake (here), Apple Tarte Tatin (here)
MARCH 13, 1988: “FOOD: THE FARMER’S BANQUET,” BY PATRICIA WELLS. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM MICHÈLE LARACINE, A FARMER AND AUBERGE OWNER IN SAVOY, FRANCE.
—1988
ROASTED POTATO SALAD
You may not remember 1989 as the Potato Renaissance, but that was the year that we began roasting them with olive oil, producing sweeter, caramelized potatoes with more depth to them. It was also when thin-skinned baby potatoes and waxier varieties like Yukon Golds started making inroads on the Idaho.
After browning the potatoes in a roasting pan, you toss them with vinegar and mustard. Then, just before serving, shower them with chives and rosemary.
———
2½ pounds baby Red Bliss or Yukon Gold potatoes, scrubbed
1 clove garlic, chopped
5 tablespoons olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1½ tablespoons red wine vinegar
1 tablespoon whole-grain mustard
2 teaspoons minced chives
1 teaspoon minced rosemary
1. Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Cut the potatoes into quarters or, if they are more than 2 inches in diameter, into eighths. Place them in a single layer in a baking dish. Scatter the garlic, 3 tablespoons olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste over the potatoes, and toss.
2. Roast for 30 to 40 minutes, tossing gently every 10 minutes so the potatoes cook evenly.
3. Beat the vinegar and mustard in a large bowl. Whisk in the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil until smooth. Add the roasted potatoes and mix gently. Season, if desired, with additional salt and pepper, and cool to room temperature.
4. Just before serving, fold in the chives and rosemary.
SERVES 6
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Cold Beef with Tarragon Vinaigrette (here), Haricots Verts with Balsamic Vinaigrette (here), Brownies (here)
MAY 21, 1989: “OLD FAVORITES, NEW TASTES,” BY FLORENCE FABRICANT.
—1989
POTATO, SHIITAKE, AND BRIE GRATIN
With Humboldt Fog and Garrotxa cheese now at our fingertips, it’s hard to remember why we were all once so smitten with Brie. In France, you can find handsome specimens of Brie de Meaux with downy rinds and buttery centers. But here the cow’s-milk Brie tends to resemble silicone grouting. Which may explain why in the 1980s we were so eager to wrap it in puff pastry and bake it. Everything goes down easier melted and warm, chased by a river of wine.
Still, Brie was an important gateway food. It let us know that cheese could be soft and gooey, that there was such a thing as a rind, and that cheese was not a means to an end (a layer in a sandwich, a topping on a burger) but an end in itself. Without Brie, we might never have been ready for robiola, Epoisses, and the like. And because of its creamy texture, commercial Brie retains some charm as a cooking ingredient.
In the late 1980s, Regina Schrambling, a writer for the Times, used the cheese in a delicious potato and mushroom gratin. The dish is a happy mash-up of 1980s fads: French bistro food was catching on, so potatoes au gratin (oh-GROT-in) was becoming potato gratin (gra-TAN)—a leaner, meaner iteration with less cheese sauce and more attitude. Brie was entering the mainstream, and shiitakes had become the urbane antidote to pedestrian white mushrooms, paving the way for the “wild mushroom” deluge of the 1990s.
To make the gratin, you layer sliced potatoes with slivers of shiitakes and cubes of Brie and then batten them down with cream, garlic, and thyme (followed later by a covering of bread crumbs and Parmesan cheese). Into the oven you send them, assured of a tasty outcome. Schrambling has you bake the gratin for an hour or more, far longer than necessary to cook the potatoes through, but the extra time in the oven gives the top a chance to brown and crisp.
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6 good-sized new red potatoes, scrubbed
1 teaspoon unsalted butter
½ pound shiitake mushrooms, stems removed
½ pound fairly firm Brie, rind removed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup heavy cream
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon chopped thyme
2 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
¼ cup fine dry bread crumbs
1. Using a mandoline or sharp knife, cut the potatoes into slices about ⅛ inch thick. Place them in a large bowl of cold water and soak for 30 minutes, changing the water twice. Drain and pat the slices dry.
2. Set one rack on the middle shelf and one in the bottom third of the oven (with enough room between them for the gratin dish) and heat the oven to 425 degrees. Butter a shallow gratin dish or glass baking dish about 10 inches across. Thinly slice the shiitake caps.
3. Using your fingers, pinch the Brie into gumdrop-sized pieces. Layer a third of the potato slices in the dish. Lay half the shiitakes and half the cheese evenly over the top. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Add another third of the potatoes and top with the remaining shiitakes and Brie. Season with salt and pepper. Arrange the remaining potato slices on top. Combine the cream, garlic, and thyme and pour over the potatoes, pressing down on them so that all the liquid is absorbed. Cover the pan tightly with foil and bake on the center oven rack for 30 minutes.
4. Combine the Parmesan cheese and bread crumbs and season with salt and pepper. Remove the foil from the pan and sprinkle the crumbs over the potatoes. Place the pan on the bottom oven rack and bake for 30 to 40 minutes longer, until the potatoes are very tender and the top is crusty and dark brown.
SERVES 6 TO 8
COOKING NOTES
The potatoes are soaked and drained twice before cooking to remove excess starch.
I used my 3-quart oval Le Creuset casserole dish, and it worked perfectly.
Before pouring the cream over the gratin, make sure you disperse the garlic, because it tends to pour out all at once.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Roman Lamb (here), Lattich Salat, Warme (Warm Lettuce Salad; here), Almond-Carrot Salad (here), Apple Galette (here)
PERIOD DETAIL
Raymond Sokolov first wrote about the mandoline in the Times in 1971; mentions of Brie go back to 1906.
OCTOBER 1, 1989: “CAMPFIRE CACHET,” BY REGINA SCHRAMBLING.
—1989
SWEET POTATO CASSEROLE
I’ve never understood why many people see cooking sweet potatoes as an opportunity to subordinate their natural flavor. We joyfully eat regular potatoes plain—roasted, fried, or sautéed with little more than salt—so why do we need to smother sweet potatoes with molasses and marshmallows?
Jimmy Sneed, the chef and co-owner of The Frog and The Redneck in Richmond, Virginia, found a subtler way to underline sweet potatoes’ natural sugars. After roasting, you mash them up with a little sugar, orange juice, vanilla, butter, and eggs (which lighten them). As a top layer, you make a crumble that’s heavy on pecans and light on sugar. The result is a downy casserole that tastes like a savory Creamsicle.
———
6 large sweet potatoes
6 tablespoons brown sugar
2 large eggs, beaten
¼ cup orange juice
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
½ teaspoon salt
For the Topping
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, slightly softened
½ cup packed brown sugar
¾ cup chopped pecans
1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Bake the sweet potatoes on a baking sheet until very tender, about 1 hour and 20 minutes. Remove and let cool slightly. Reduce the heat to 350 degrees.
2. When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, cut them in half, scoop the flesh into a bowl, and mash until smooth. (You should have 4 to 5 cups.) Stir in the brown sugar, eggs, orange juice, butter, vanilla, and salt. Place in a casserole dish.
3. To make the topping, combine the butter, brown sugar, and pecans. Sprinkle over the sweet potato mixture. Bake until the nuts are toasted and the casserole has puffed, about 30 minutes.
SERVES 8
COOKING NOTES
The recipe did not specify light or dark brown sugar; I used a combination.
An 8-inch square baking dish worked well.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Cleo’s Daddy’s Barbecued Ribs (here), Spinach and Artichoke Casserole (here), Old South Buttermilk Biscuits (here), Cashew Butterscotch Bars (here)
NOVEMBER 18, 1992: “ON THANKSGIVING, WHAT’S A CHEF TO DO?” BY MARIAN BURROS. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM JIMMY SNEED.
—1992
DRUNKEN BEANS
———
2 slices bacon, diced
1 onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 cups dried pinto beans, picked over, soaked overnight in water to cover, and drained
4 cups chicken broth, or water
2 cups beer
2 to 4 jalapeño peppers, thinly sliced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped cilantro
1. Place the bacon in a large pot and cook over medium heat until the fat is rendered. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon and discard (or enjoy as a cook’s treat). Add the onion and garlic and cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the beans, broth, and beer and bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to a simmer and cook for 30 minutes.
2. Stir in the jalapeños. Cook until the beans are tender, about 30 minutes, adding water if necessary to keep the beans covered. Season with salt and pepper to taste and stir in the cilantro.
SERVES 6 TO 8
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
La Paloma (here), Grilled Onion Guacamole (here), Staff Meal Chicken with Salsa Verde (here), Border Town Hunter’s Stew with Antelope (or Venison), Poblanos, Pumpkin, and Hominy (here), Grapefruit Granita (here), Churros with Chocolate Sauce (here)
JULY 4, 1993: “THE TEXAS THREE-STEP,” BY MOLLY O’NEILL. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM THE NEW TEXAS CUISINE, BY STEPHAN PYLES.
—1993
MEDITERRANEAN LENTIL SALAD WITH LEMON-THYME VINAIGRETTE
I made this with the minuscule French le Puy lentils: You should too. They’re light, snappy, and low on starch. And I recommend cutting everything up nice and small to mirror the lentils.
———
1 cup le Puy lentils (available at specialty markets)
1 tomato, cored and chopped
½ cup oil-cured black olives, pitted and coarsely chopped
½ cup crumbled feta cheese
2 stalks celery, peeled and thinly sliced
¼ cup fresh lemon juice
2 large cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons minced thyme
2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons olive oil
½ teaspoon salt, or more to taste
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped flat-leaf parsley
1. Combine the lentils and 5 cups water in a large saucepan and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the lentils are tender but not mushy, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain, place in a large bowl, and let cool completely.
2. Toss the lentils with the tomato, olives, feta, and celery.
3. Whisk together the lemon juice, garlic, and thyme in a medium bowl. Slowly whisk in the olive oil. Whisk in the salt and pepper to taste. Toss the salad with the vinaigrette and season to taste.
4. Divide among 4 plates and garnish with the chopped parsley.
SERVES 4
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Moroccan Tomato Soup (here), Cinnamon-Scented Fried Chicken (here), Moroccan Chicken Smothered in Olives (here), Lamb Shoulder Chops with Anchovy and Mint Butter (here), Cumin-Mustard Carrots (here), Flourless Apricot Honey Soufflé (here), Fresh Blueberry Buckle (here)
JULY 18, 1993: “FOOD; LIGHT STARCH,” BY MOLLY O’NEILL
—1993
SPOONBREAD’S POTATO SALAD
A perfectly calibrated American potato salad: creamy, sweet, tart, and pungent. Mixing the oil, vinegar, salt, and paprika with the still-warm potatoes is a crucial step. The potatoes absorb the flavors and mellow out the sharp notes in the dressing, and then, when later mixed with the mayonnaise, some potato gets mashed into the dressing, which binds the salad.
Spoonbread is the name of the Manhattan catering company that made this salad.
———
2 pounds white potatoes, scrubbed
5 tablespoons vegetable oil
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
1 teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon paprika
1 small onion, minced
½ cup diced celery
2 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
½ cup mayonnaise
1 tablespoon Colman’s prepared mustard
1 teaspoon celery salt or to taste
Optional garnish (olives, green pepper rings, and sliced grilled red peppers
1. Cut the potatoes in half if large. Put them in a pot and add enough lightly salted water to cover them by 2 inches. Bring to a boil, uncovered, and boil gently for 15 to 25 minutes, until just tender. Drain.
2. When the potatoes are cool enough to handle, peel and cut into coarse chunks. Place in a large bowl.
3. Whisk together the oil, vinegar, salt, and paprika in a small bowl. Mix with the still-warm potatoes. Cover and chill for several hours.
4. Right before serving, add the minced onion, celery, and chopped eggs to the potatoes. Mix together the mayonnaise and mustard, stir into the salad, and season with the celery salt. If desired, garnish with olives and red and green peppers.
COOKING NOTE
The original recipe instructed you to add ¼ teaspoon dry mustard to the oil and vinegar mixture; I used Colman’s prepared mustard instead.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Lobster Roll (here), Pork Burgers (here), Docks Coleslaw (here), Summer Pudding (here)
JULY 2, 1997: “CULINARY FIREWORKS, CLASSIC AND COOL,” BY SUZANNE HAMLIN. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM NORMA JEAN DARDEN AND CAROLE DARDEN, THE OWNERS OF SPOONBREAD INC., A CATERING COMPANY IN NEW YORK CITY.
—1997
ROASTED CARROT AND RED LENTIL RAGOUT
This is a hot one—you get a splash of sweetness from the carrots and then a stampede of burning heat. It’s terrific served over basmati or jasmine rice, which tames the spice a little. If you’re not into hot food, reduce the chile powders to ½ teaspoon each.
Red lentils cook very quickly and, together with the carrots, turn this ragout the color of embers. It’s soft and porridge-like, with a toasted, spicy warmth. Serve with rice, or as a thick stew.
———
1½ pounds carrots, peeled
5 tablespoons olive oil
2½ teaspoons kosher salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
¾ teaspoon ancho chile powder
¾ teaspoon chipotle chile powder
⅛ teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 cup red lentils, rinsed and picked over
5 cups chicken broth
1. Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Lay the carrots in a roasting pan or a baking sheet and toss with 3 tablespoons oil. Season with 1½ teaspoons salt and a few grinds of pepper. Roast for 20 minutes.
2. Turn the carrots, add the onion, and roast for 15 minutes, or until the carrots are brown and tender. Remove from the oven.
3. When the carrots are cool enough, cut them into ¼-inch dice.
4. Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons oil in a large saucepan. Add the carrots and onions, chile powder, and cayenne pepper, and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Stir in the lentils, add the broth, and bring to a simmer. Simmer, stirring occasionally, for 20 to 25 minutes, until the lentils are falling apart. Season with the remaining 1 teaspoon salt and pepper to taste.
SERVES 6
COOKING NOTE
When roasting the carrots and onions, I put the onions on top of the carrots so the onions wouldn’t burn.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Yogurt Rice (here), Moroccan Chicken Smothered in Olives (here), Cucumbers in Cream (here), Pepper-Cumin Cookies (here)
JANUARY 11, 1998: “FOOD: SIMMER DOWN,” BY MOLLY O’NEILL.
—1998
GREEN LENTILS WITH ROASTED BEETS AND PRESERVED LEMON
Sharpen your chef’s knife for this one; much chopping awaits. When it says “finely” chopped and diced, do your very best, because the tinier those pieces are, the prettier and more delicate this dish will be. When you pull it all together with its dices and cubes, shreds, mashed pulp and zest, you get a salad that you’ll make for a lifetime.
The recipe comes from Deborah Madison, a pioneer of vegetarian cooking. She lifted vegetarian food out of its heavy brown slump and made it into a colorful, desirable, and often elegant way of cooking.
———
5 small beets (about 1 pound), peeled
1 teaspoon olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 cup French green (le Puy) lentils, rinsed and picked over
1 carrot, peeled and finely diced
½ small onion, finely diced
1 bay leaf
4 sprigs flat-leaf parsley, plus ⅓ cup chopped parsley
2 sprigs thyme
1 preserved lemon (see Cooking Notes) or 2 teaspoons grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons chopped mint
For the Vinaigrette
1 teaspoon grated lemon zest
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 shallot, finely chopped
¼ teaspoon salt, or more to taste
5 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
Mint sprigs for garnish
1. Heat the oven to 350 degrees. Reserve 1 beet for garnish and cut the remaining 4 into ½-inch cubes. Toss with the oil, season with salt and pepper, and spread on a small baking sheet. Roast until tender, 30 to 35 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove from the oven.
2. Meanwhile, place the lentils, carrot, onion, bay leaf, parsley and thyme sprigs, and ½ teaspoon salt in a small pot and add water to cover by about ¾ inch. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and simmer, covered, until the lentils are tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Drain well, discard the herbs, and transfer to a large bowl.
3. To make the vinaigrette, combine the lemon zest, juice, shallot, and salt in a small bowl and let stand for 15 minutes. Whisk in the olive oil and season to taste with pepper and more salt if necessary.
4. Quarter the lemon and scrape out the soft pulp. Finely chop enough of the pulp to make 2 teaspoons and stir into the vinaigrette (or add the lemon zest). Finely chop the lemon peel and add it to the lentils, along with the vinaigrette, roasted beets, and chopped parsley and mint. Toss well and transfer to a platter. Grate the reserved beet and use it for garnish, along with mint sprigs.
SERVES 4 TO 6
COOKING NOTES
This is best made with tiny French le Puy lentils.
Preserved lemons are available in Mediterranean markets or specialty shops, or see here for a recipe.
Don’t overcook the lentils: they’ll continue cooking and softening even after they’re drained. You want them to retain some snap—15 to 17 minutes of simmering is plenty.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Buttermilk Roast Chicken (here), Wilted Chard with Pickled Red Onion (here), Steamed Lemon Pudding (here)
FEBRUARY 15, 1998: “FOOD: DEBBIE DOES CABBAGE,” BY MOLLY O’NEILL. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM VEGETARIAN COOKING FOR EVERYONE, BY DEBORAH MADISON.
—1998
YOGURT WITH PLANTAIN AND MANGO
Some might call this a side dish, others a condiment, but both parties will agree that it’s fragrant, tangy, and delicious. Serve the yogurt at room temperature or cold, with steamed basmati rice.
———
1 medium yellow plantain, peeled and cut into ¾-inch dice
1½ cups plain yogurt, preferably Greek-style
1 cup water
½ teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon chana dal (yellow split peas)
1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds
2 dried hot red chiles, halved
15 fresh curry leaves or basil leaves
1 medium shallot, cut into fine slivers
3 thin slices fresh ginger, cut into fine shreds
1 cup diced (¾-inch) mango
1. Place the plantain in a small pan, cover with water, and bring to a boil. Cover, reduce the heat to low, and cook until the plantain is tender, 10 to 15 minutes. Drain and set aside.
2. Beat the yogurt with a fork in a small bowl until smooth and creamy. Slowly add the water and salt. Set aside.
3. Put the oil in a small deep frying pan over medium heat. When the oil is hot, add the dal and stir until it just starts to turn reddish. Add the mustard seeds. As soon as the seeds begin to pop, a matter of seconds, add the chiles. Stir once and add the curry leaves. Stir again and add the shallot and ginger. Reduce the heat to medium-low and stir and fry until golden, about 2 minutes.
4. Add the spice mixture to the yogurt and stir to combine. Fold in the diced plantain and mango and serve at room temperature or cold.
SERVES 4
COOKING NOTES
Use a good thick Greek yogurt, like Fage. Not low-fat.
Brown mustard seeds, chana dal and curry leaves are available at Indian food markets, like Kalustyan’s (www.kalustyans.com).
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Creamy Curried Sweet Potato Soup (here), Country Captain (here), Spicy, Garlicky Cashew Chicken (here), Bademiya’s Justly Famous Bombay Chile-and-Cilantro Chicken (here), Cucumbers in Cream (here), Green Beans with Coriander-Coconut Crust (here), Almond Cake (here)
JULY 29, 1998: “TRICK TO PLANTAINS IS IN THE PEEL,” BY AMANDA HESSER. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM MADHUR JAFFREY’S WORLD VEGETARIAN, BY MADHUR JAFFREY.
—1998
GRATIN OF YAMS AND CHIPOTLE CREAM
This appears to be a simple gratin, a tall stack of yams, browned on top and sagging on the edges. As you sink your fork into it, though, it reveals layer upon fine layer, like a piece of puff pastry. And when you bite into it, the layers, separated by a smoky chipotle-scented cream, collapse in your mouth.
What makes this gratin so exceptional is the precise slicing of the yams, which is done using a mandoline, the slicing tool that made the leap to the home kitchen around the time this article ran. If you don’t have a mandoline yet, the good news is that the best one available today is a plastic Japanese model that costs less than $20. (You can find one at most good cookware stores.)
———
1 cup heavy cream
1 teaspoon chipotle sauce from canned chipotles
1½ pounds yams, peeled and cut into 1⁄16-inch-thick slices
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1. Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Whisk together the cream and chipotle sauce in a bowl until smooth.
2. Arrange a thin layer of the yams in an 8½-inch-by-4½-inch-by-2¾-inch-deep terrine or loaf pan. Season with a little salt and pepper and spoon over a little of the cream mixture. Repeat, layering the remaining yams and cream mixture, seasoning every other layer. Press firmly on the gratin to compact the layers.
3. Cover the terrine with aluminum foil and bake for 30 minutes. Remove the foil and continue baking for 35 to 40 minutes, or until most of the cream has been absorbed and the yams are tender and browned. Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes.
4. Cut the gratin into 4 rectangular pieces and carefully transfer to serving plates, using a spatula and a fork.
SERVES 4
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Slow-Roasted Duck (here), North Carolina–Style Pulled Pork (here), Docks Coleslaw (here), Roasted Cauliflower (here), Boston Baked Beans (here), Tapioca Flamingo (here), Summer Pudding (here), Caramelized Chocolate Bread Pudding (here)
JANUARY 27, 1999: “THE TOOL THAT CHEFS LOVE, AND HOME COOKS BARELY KNOW,” BY AMANDA HESSER. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM BOBBY FLAY, THE CHEF AT MESA GRILL IN NEW YORK CITY.
—1999
In the late 1990s, I made the mistake of doing a few stories that involved finding the best way to prepare an ingredient or dish. When you write a story like that, you end up cooking dozens of variations, and those variations tend to be your sustenance for that week. By the time you’re done, you never want to see that ingredient or dish ever again. It took me years to eat duck again after roasting, steaming, and braising ducks to come up with a few great methods (one is here.) And I’ve made maybe one or two batches of fries since writing this recipe a decade ago. But I can promise you this: if you make French fries, this is the recipe to use.
Getting that perfect fry—long, thin as a chopstick, speckled with salt crystals large enough to feel on your tongue, brown as toast, nutty but not too greasy, and, like a ficelle, crisp on the outside and tender on the inside—requires great synergy. In this recipe, the hand-cut potatoes are soaked twice, fried once in peanut oil at a low temperature to cook them through, and then fried again at a higher temperature to brown them.
———
4 large long Idaho potatoes
Peanut oil
Kosher or coarse sea salt
1. Peel the potatoes. Place in a bowl, cover with water, and refrigerate for 8 hours.
2. Slice the potatoes lengthwise into ¼-inch-thick sticks. Place in a bowl, cover with water, and refrigerate for 8 hours more.
3. Drain the potato sticks and lay out on dish towels to dry. Be sure they are completely dry before frying.
4. Heat 2 inches of oil to 300 degrees in a large deep pot with a frying basket and a deep-frying thermometer clipped to the side. Add just enough potatoes to cover the bottom of the frying basket and cook until slightly limp, 1½ to 2 minutes; do not brown. Lift the basket and drain the fries, then transfer the potatoes to a wire rack set over a baking sheet and separate the sticks. Repeat with the remaining potatoes.
5. Increase the heat to 375 degrees. Again add the potatoes in batches to the oil and fry until chestnut brown on the edges and crisp. Drain and transfer to a bowl lined with paper towels. Immediately season with salt, tossing to coat.
SERVES 4
COOKING NOTES
I had always considered the Idaho potato—properly called the Russet Burbank—a plebeian tuber, something that large growers foisted on the American public because it was cheap to grow and high in yield. Baked, it has the appeal of ground-up chalk. But almost every chef I spoke with used it to make fries. And I discovered that it does have redeeming qualities when fried in oil. Its interior expands like a soufflé and turns creamy; its exterior becomes crisp before absorbing too much oil. And browning the outside, which means caramelizing the potato’s sugars, gives it just the right bitterness. French fries need a touch of bitterness and loam, smoothed out with fat.
Soaking the potato slices beforehand draws out the starch, making them more rigid and less likely to stick together.
VARIATIONS
For a light pork flavor, add a 3-inch-long slice of bacon or prosciutto to every 2 quarts of oil. For duck flavor, add 7 ounces of duck fat to every 2 quarts of oil.
For herbed fries, toss a handful of fresh leaves (any combination of rosemary, parsley, basil, sage, savory, oregano, and/or tarragon) into the oil a minute before the fries have finished browning during the second frying. (Serve the fries with the crisped herbs.)
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
‘21’ Club Hamburger (here), Docks Coleslaw (here), Kosher Pickles the Right Way (here), Brownies (here), Brown Butter Peach Bars (here)
MAY 5, 1999: “DEEP SECRETS: MAKING THE PERFECT FRY,” BY AMANDA HESSER.
—1999
———
½ cup olive oil
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
6 cloves garlic, finely sliced
1 dried chile, mild or spicy
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
2 bay leaves
3 cups chickpeas (garbanzo beans), rinsed, picked over, and soaked in cold water for 24 hours at room temperature
5 to 6 cups vegetable broth
10 saffron threads
1 tablespoon kosher salt, or more to taste
¼ teaspoon freshly ground white pepper, or more to taste
1. Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Warm the olive oil in a large casserole over medium-high heat. Add the onions, garlic, chile, coriander, and bay leaves and sauté for 5 minutes.
2. Drain the chickpeas and add them to the pot, along with the broth, saffron, salt, and pepper. Cover and bring to a boil. Transfer to the oven and bake until the beans are soft and cooked through, 45 to 50 minutes. Season with salt and pepper if necessary.
SERVES 6
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Matt’s Whole Brisket with Tomato Gravy (here), Arnaki Araka (Lamb with Peas; here), Warm Cabbage Salad with Goat Cheese and Capers (here), Ratatouille with Butternut Squash (here), Moroccan Rice Pudding (here), Revani Verrias (Semolina Cake; here)
READERS
“After the prepared recipe comes to a boil, I stick the pot in the oven with whatever else I am baking that day, at whatever temperature those recipes need—usually 350 degrees—so the dish takes a while to bake. I check the pot every now and then and have never found it overdone. After transferring the chickpeas to a smaller pot or glass bowl (depending on the presentation of the day), my treat is the leftover caramelized gunk on the bottom of the pan, which tastes delicious! The dish is always a hit.”
Ruth Leah Kahan, Brooklin, MA, letter
JUNE 9, 1999: “BY THE BOOK: AUTHENTICALLY BASQUE,” BY AMANDA HESSER. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM THE BASQUE KITCHEN, BY GERALD HIRIGOYEN.
—1999
CHICKPEAS IN GINGER SAUCE
———
¼ cup canola oil
2 cups chopped onions
2 tablespoons minced fresh ginger
2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 teaspoons ground coriander
½ teaspoon ground cardamom
½ teaspoon mango powder or 1 ½ teaspoons fresh lemon juice
¼ teaspoon cayenne pepper
¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 medium tomato, cored and chopped
4 cups cooked or canned chickpeas, with 1 cup of their liquid
½ cup water
Salt
1 medium onion, thinly sliced
1 green chile, seeded, and shredded
1. Put the oil in a large skillet and turn the heat to medium-high. Add the chopped onions; cook, stirring occasionally, until they turn light brown, about 5 minutes. Add the ginger and garlic, reduce the heat to medium, and cook for 2 minutes, stirring.
2. Add the coriander, cardamom, mango powder (not the lemon juice if using), cayenne, and black pepper; stir. Add the tomato and cook until the tomato becomes saucy and begins to separate from the oil, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the reserved chickpea liquid, water, the lemon juice if you are using it, and salt to taste. Cover, turn the heat to low and simmer for about 10 minutes, or until the mixture is thickened. Add the chickpeas, cover, and cook for 10 minutes longer. Taste and adjust the seasoning. Serve, passing the sliced onion and chile at the table.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Spicy, Garlicky Cashew Chicken (here), Ismail Merchant’s Spinach Puree (here)
OCTOBER 13, 1999: “A SHELF OF TREASURES, ALWAYS FRESH,” BY MARK BITTMAN. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM JULIE SAHNI, A COOKBOOK AUTHOR AND COOKING TEACHER.
—1999
FRESH CORN GRIDDLE CAKES WITH PARMESAN AND CHIVES
Another stellar corn cake recipe lives here.
———
4 medium ears corn, shucked
1 large egg
¼ cup all-purpose flour
¼ cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon snipped chives
½ teaspoon salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon unsalted butter
1. Working over a large bowl, grate the corn on the large holes of a box grater until the cobs are clean; discard the cobs. Add the egg, flour, cheese, chives, salt, and pepper to taste to the corn, stirring until the batter is smooth.
2. Melt the butter in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Scoop up ¼ cup batter and scrape it (the batter will be thick) into the pan to form a round cake. Repeat with all the remaining batter; you should get 6 cakes. Cook, turning once, until the griddle cakes are a rich golden brown on both sides, about 9 minutes. Serve immediately.
SERVES 4 TO 6
COOKING NOTE
This makes large cakes—I’d make them half the size next time, because they’d be easier to handle.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Bouillabaisse (here), Sea Scallops with Sweet Red Peppers and Zucchini (here), Roast Lobster with Vanilla Sauce (here), The Most Voluptuous Cauliflower (here), Haricots Verts with Balsamic Vinaigrette (here), Cherry and Coconut Brown Betty (here)
AUGUST 11, 1999: “IF CORN’S OFF THE COB, USE YOUR IMAGINATION,” BY JACK BISHOP.
—1999
MASHED POTATOES ANNA
I included this recipe not because it had anything particularly interesting to say about the period (the return of comfort food—y-a-w-n!), but because it’s a great mashed potato recipe, and if you don’t already have a great one, now you do. No bells and whistles. Just the same sound technique that has worked for generations. You rice the potatoes before gradually whisking in the milk, butter, and cream to emulsify them; that is how you get the mash to fluff. But fluffiness doesn’t last, so ignore what everyone tells you about mashed potatoes and their resiliency. Serve these right away.
The original recipe came from an impoverished Parisian cook named Anna, whose recipes were collected and published—Le Carnet d’Anna—by Edouard de Pomiane, a French doctor and beloved food writer.
———
2 pounds baking or Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and cut into cubes
1 cup whole milk
4 tablespoons unsalted butter
⅓ cup heavy cream
1½ teaspoons salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1. Place the potatoes in a saucepan, add enough cold salted water to cover, and bring to a boil. Partially cover the pan, lower the heat, and simmer for 20 minutes, or until the potatoes are tender.
2. Meanwhile, place the milk in a saucepan over medium-low heat and heat until bubbles just form around the edges of the pan. Remove from the heat, cover, and set aside.
3. Drain the potatoes and put them through a ricer or mash with a potato masher. Return them to the pan and place over low heat. Gradually whisk in the hot milk, butter, cream, salt, and a few grinds of pepper.
SERVES 4
COOKING NOTE
I cut the potatoes into 1-inch cubes.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Iceberg Lettuce with Smoked Bacon and Buttermilk Dressing (here), Steak au Poivre (here), Spinach with Sour Cream (here), Al Forno’s Roasted Asparagus (here), Mrs. Hovis’s Hot Upside-Down Apple Pie (here), Coconut Pie (here)
DECEMBER 5, 1999: “FOOD: GOOD AND PLENTY,” BY MOLLY O’NEILL. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM A PASSION FOR POTATOES, BY LYDIE MARSHALL.
—1999
HEIRLOOM PEA PANCAKES
———
¼ pound sugar snap peas, trimmed
½ cup freshly shelled green peas
2 tablespoons whole milk
1 tablespoon heavy cream
1 large egg, lightly beaten
¼ cup all-purpose flour
½ teaspoon baking powder
⅛ teaspoon sugar
⅛ teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons unsalted butter, or as needed
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1. Heat the oven to 450 degrees. Bring a pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Fill a bowl with ice water. Add the snap peas to the boiling water and blanch for 2 minutes. Remove with a wire skimmer or a slotted spoon and immediately plunge into the ice bath. Remove the snap peas from the ice water and set aside. Repeat the procedure for the fresh peas, blanching them for 3 minutes, or until tender. Set aside.
2. Puree the sugar snap peas with the milk and cream in a blender or food processor. Pour into a large bowl and whisk in the egg. Sift the flour, baking powder, sugar, and salt into the mixture, and whisk to combine. Coarsely puree the blanched peas in a food processor, then fold into the batter.
3. Melt ½ tablespoon butter in a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Drop tablespoonfuls of the batter into the pan. When the edges are lightly browned, place the pan in the oven and bake for 1½ minutes. Flip the pancakes over gently with a spatula and cook over medium-high heat until the bottoms are lightly browned, then return to the oven for another minute. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels; sprinkle with salt and pepper. Repeat the process until all the batter is used.
MAKES ABOUT 14 PANCAKES; SERVES 4 TO 6 AS A SIDE DISH OR HORS D’OEUVRES
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Wine Lemonade (here), James Beard’s Champagne Punch (here), Rhubarb Bellini (here), Kir Royale 38 (here), The Minimalist’s Gravlax (here), Hearth’s Fava Bean Salad (here), Asparagus and Bulgur with Preserved-Lemon Dressing (here), Spring Lamb Salad with Pea Shoots and Sugar Snap Peas (here), Fontainebleau (here)
JULY 12, 2000: “MY, THOSE ARE LOVELY PEAS YOU HAVE,” BY MELISSA CLARK. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM JUDSON GRILL IN NEW YORK CITY.
—2000
RALPH VETTER’S SWEET POTATOES WITH LEMON
Ralph Vetters, a quiet and methodical cook, was a student at Harvard Medical School when I met him. I watched him make this family recipe, a brilliant spin on candied sweet potatoes (here), for a story I was doing for a Thanksgiving issue. Traditional sweet potato recipes are loved for one’s memory of the flood of sugar, but in practice they tend to cloy, which is why people only make them once a year. In this variation, the acid in lemon juice and the fragrance of its zest sharpens every bite.
———
6 medium sweet potatoes, scrubbed
2 cups sugar
½ cup water
1 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
Two 3-inch-long strips lemon zest
½ teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons unsalted butter
6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice (from about 2 lemons)
1. Place the potatoes in a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the potatoes are just tender, about 25 minutes. Drain and allow to cool completely.
2. Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Combine the sugar, water, nutmeg, lemon zest, and salt in a small saucepan, bring to a simmer over medium-low heat, and simmer for 10 minutes. Add 5 tablespoons butter and the lemon juice and stir well. Remove from the heat.
3. Peel the sweet potatoes and slice them into ½-inch disks. Grease a shallow 9-by-12-inch baking dish with the remaining tablespoon of butter. Lay the sweet potatoes into the pan in overlapping rows so that they cover the pan evenly. Pour the lemon syrup over the potatoes.
4. Bake until bubbling and very lightly browned, about 30 minutes. Serve hot.
SERVES 6 TO 8
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Roasted Brine-Cured Turkey (here), Slow-Roasted Duck (here), String Beans with Ginger and Garlic (here), Baked Mushrooms (here), Caramelized Endive (here), Marcella’s Pear Cake (here), Evelyn Sharpe’s French Chocolate Cake (here)
NOVEMBER 15, 2000: “AMERICA CELEBRATES: SOMERVILLE, MASS: A BLEND OF TOWN AND COUNTRY,” BY AMANDA HESSER. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM RALPH VETTERS, A MEDICAL STUDENT IN SOMERVILLE, MASSACHUSETTS.
—2000
PUREE OF PEAS AND WATERCRESS
I have probably made this recipe more often than any other in the book. I learned it from my husband, who got it from The Loaves and Fishes Cookbook, by Anna Pump. You simmer frozen peas—yes, frozen, which work better than fresh here—in water and toss in some watercress during the last minute of cooking, then ladle the vegetables into a food processor, and buzz away, working some butter, salt, and pepper into the green-on-green puree. It couldn’t be simpler or more lovely to eat—the epitome of an indispensable recipe.
———
4 cups frozen peas
Two 1-pound bunches watercress, trimmed to 2 to 3 inches and washed well
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
¾ teaspoon sea salt, or more to taste
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, or more to taste
1. Fill a large saucepan with water and bring to a boil. Add the peas and return to a boil. Turn off the heat, add the watercress to the peas, and cover the saucepan. Let sit for 5 minutes so that the watercress wilts.
2. Drain the peas and watercress and transfer to a food processor. Add the butter, salt and pepper, and process until smooth. Taste and adjust the seasoning.
SERVES 4
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Sautéed Red Snapper with Rhubarb Sauce (here), Ginger Duck (here), High-Temperature Roast Lamb (here), Al Forno’s Roasted Asparagus (here), Mushrooms with Manzanilla Sherry (here), Forget-It Meringue Torte (here), Almond Cake (here), Coeur à la Crème with Rhubarb Sauce (here)
READERS
“Some twenty years ago, we couldn’t get the Sunday NYT in Lincoln. So a small group of enterprising people, lusting for news, talked the local newspaper distributor into bringing the Times to Lincoln. We became the ‘paper boys and girls’ and delivered them to our friends. . . . Suffice to say we’re ‘out here’ in Lincoln with sophisticated tastes but often lacking many of the ingredients for recipes available on both coasts, no Whole Foods, blank stares when asking for watercress (a local farmer grows curly cress for your recipe), a wonderful seasonal farmers’ market, entrepreneurial farmers, GREAT cooks, and, in my case, piles of slick pages torn from the Food section of Sunday’s Times.”
Natalie Olson, Lincoln, NE, e-mail
JULY 15: 2001: “FOOD DIARY: LOVIN’ SPOONFULS,” BY AMANDA HESSER. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM THE LOAVES AND FISHES COOKBOOK, BY ANNA PUMP.
—2001
SWEET POTATOES ANNA
According to Larousse Gastronomique, potatoes done “Anna style” are thinly sliced, layered with butter, and cooked in a covered baking dish. Slicing potatoes is an old trick for lightening a heavy ingredient and blunting the starch: you layer the potatoes with another flavor like butter or cheese. The only odd part of this recipe is when you are told to toss the sliced sweet potatoes with the melted butter and seasonings. The melted butter seizes up as soon as it touches the room-temperature potatoes, so it’s more like spreading spackle than dressing them. Stick with it—the finished layered potato cake with its toasted top layer is worth the minor inconvenience.
———
6 medium sweet potatoes, peeled
10 tablespoons (1¼ sticks) unsalted butter, melted
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
Coarse sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
1. Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Using a mandoline or sharp knife, slice the potatoes about ⅛ inch thick. Place in a very large bowl and add the butter, thyme, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss until all the slices are well coated with butter and seasonings.
2. Reserve about a dozen of the best-looking slices for the top layer. Arrange a layer of slightly overlapping slices in a 10-inch round gratin dish, ovenproof skillet, or other shallow ovenproof pan. Layer the potatoes until all are used, topping the gratin with the reserved slices.
3. Place a sheet of parchment or heavy-duty foil directly on top of the potatoes. Place the pan in the oven and place a heavy pan slightly smaller in diameter than the first pan directly on the foil. Bake for 30 minutes.
4. Remove the top pan and carefully peel away the parchment. (If necessary, use a spatula to help separate the parchment from the potatoes.) Continue baking until the potatoes are soft and the top is almost caramelized, 20 to 30 minutes longer.
5. If the potatoes haven’t browned to your liking, place the dish under the broiler for a few seconds to crisp the top layer. Cut into wedges and serve.
SERVES 6 TO 8
COOKING NOTES
A mandoline makes your life easier (you can slice the potatoes in half before sliding them crosswise down the mandoline if it makes them easier to control).
After layering the potatoes in the baking dish, use a rubber spatula to scrape the excess butter and seasonings from the mixing bowl onto the gratin—it would be sad to waste such good flavors!
For covering the potatoes, parchment is preferable to foil.
To get a little extra crispness on top, I broiled the dish for a minute before serving.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
A Moley (Curried Turkey Hash; here), Pork Arrosto with Prunes and Grappa (here), Brussels Sprouts “Slaw” with Mustard Butter (here), Banana Meringue Steamed Custard (here)
NOVEMBER 14, 2001: “SWEET POTATOES WITH NARY A MARSHMALLOW IN SIGHT,” BY REGINA SCHRAMBLING.
—2001
Hoppin’ John, wrote Matt Lee and Ted Lee, isn’t a singular recipe but one of a family of rice and peas recipes found all over the world. The earliest record appears to be a thirteenth-century manuscript from Baghdad, which described a chickpea and rice stew “seasoned with sheep fat, cinnamon, dill, coriander, and ginger.” Hoppin’ John, a dish associated with Southern cooking, is made with either the black-eyed pea or the field pea, which, the Lees explained, “produces a ruddy broth as it boils, and tastes beefier, more nutty and less earthy than the black-eyed pea.”
“The muted depth of the dish,” the Lees wrote, “the felty, soothing, starch-on-starch texture of it, begs for at least a little richness—a little fat. Which is where the pork comes in.” Here they add smoked pork jowl, and to make sure you’re not lulled to sleep by the starch and fat, they also impose a wallop of red pepper flakes and the acid tang of tomatoes.
———
1 cup dried black-eyed peas or field peas, rinsed and picked over
2 tablespoons olive oil (if using the hog jowl)
1 smoked hog jowl or ¼ pound (3 strips) thick-cut smoked bacon
1 medium onion, coarsely chopped
6 cups water
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
½ to ¾ teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
5 or 6 tomatoes, peeled (see Cooking Note, here), or half a 28-ounce can, drained (optional)
1½ cups long-grain white rice
1. Soak the peas for 4 hours in ample fresh water.
2. When ready to cook, heat the olive oil in a 4-quart pot over medium-high heat and brown the hog jowl on both sides. (If using bacon, omit the olive oil, and simply render its fat in the pot for 5 minutes before adding the next ingredients.) Add the onion and cook until softened, about 5 minutes.
3. Add the water, salt, black pepper, and red pepper, and bring to a boil. Let the mixture boil for 10 minutes, then add the peas. Maintain a low boil, uncovered, until the peas are nearly tender (25 minutes for black-eyed peas, 30 minutes for field peas).
4. Lightly crush the tomatoes if using, in a bowl and add to the pot. Add the rice, reduce the heat to low, and simmer, covered, for 20 minutes.
5. Turn off the flame and allow the hoppin’ John to steam in the pot, lid on, for 5 minutes. If using hog jowl, remove it from the pot and shred the meat. Fluff the hoppin’ John with a fork, and add the shredded jowl if you have it.
SERVES 6
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
North Carolina–Style Pulled Pork (here), Stewed Corn (here), Brandied Peaches (here), Sour Cream Ice Cream (here)
JANUARY 1, 2003: “HOPPIN’ JOHN SMILES ON THE NEW YEAR,” BY MATT LEE AND TED LEE.
—2003
CABBAGE AND POTATO GRATIN WITH MUSTARD BREAD CRUMBS
Kay Rentschler, an occasional contributor to the Times, said a Hungarian chef once told her that no cabbage deserves to be boiled. And when you taste what Rentschler does with cabbage here, and see how splendid and sophisticated the vegetable can be, you understand exactly what the chef meant.
———
⅓ cup diced (¼-inch) slab bacon
¾ cup diced (¼-inch) onion
1½ cups diced (½-inch) Yukon Gold potatoes
1 small bay leaf
1¼ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
8 cups sliced (1-inch squares) green cabbage
½ cup heavy cream
For the Bread Crumbs
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1¼ cups fresh bread crumbs
Pinch of salt
Pinch of cayenne pepper
2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons chopped flat-leaf parsley
¾ cup grated Comté or Gruyère cheese
1. Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Place the bacon in a 12-inch sauté pan, set over medium heat, and cook for about 2 minutes to render some fat. Add the onion and sauté, stirring frequently, until the bacon is crisp and the onion is golden, about 5 minutes. Add the potatoes, bay leaf, salt, and pepper and sauté for 2 minutes. Add the cabbage and sauté, stirring frequently, until it wilts a bit, 5 to 7 minutes.
2. Turn the cabbage mixture into a large bowl. Pour the cream into a saucepan and boil over high heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until reduced by half, about 2 minutes. Pour the cream over the cabbage and stir to mix.
3. Slide the cabbage mixture into a shallow 1½- or 2-quart casserole dish. Cover the casserole with foil. Bake for 10 minutes.
4. Meanwhile, make the bread crumbs: Melt the butter in a 10-inch skillet over low heat. When it’s foamy, add the bread crumbs and sauté, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon, until crisp and golden, 5 to 7 minutes. Remove from the heat and add the garlic, salt, cayenne pepper, mustard, and parsley, stirring well to combine.
5. Sprinkle the casserole with the cheese, then with the bread crumbs, and return to the oven, uncovered. Bake until fragrant and bubbling slightly around the edges, about 5 minutes.
SERVES 4 TO 6
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Spicy New England Pot Roast (here), Elizabeth Frink’s Roast Lemon Chicken (here), Spoon Lamb (here), Broiled Lamb Chops (here), Ismail Merchant’s Spinach Puree (here), Raw Spinach Salad (here), Frozen Lemon Soufflé (here), Tourtière (Apple, Prune, and Armagnac Tart; here)
JANUARY 22, 2003: “GIVING CABBAGE THE ROYAL TREATMENT,” BY KAY RENTSCHLER.
—2003
POTATO SALAD WITH SHAVED RICOTTA SALATA AND GREEN SAUCE
2 pounds medium Yukon Gold potatoes or fingerlings
Sea salt or kosher salt
½ cup packed mint leaves
¼ cup packed basil leaves
3 tablespoons sliced chives
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
Approximately ¼ pound ricotta salata
1. Peel the potatoes, rinse, and spread in a large pot. Cover with water and season the water generously with salt. Bring to a simmer and cook gently until the potatoes are just cooked through but not mushy, about 20 minutes. Drain and transfer to a bowl. Let cool.
2. Meanwhile, drop the mint, basil, and chives into a food processor with a pinch of salt. With the motor running, begin pouring the olive oil through the feed tube and process for about 1 minute, to a bright green puree.
3. Slice the potatoes into 1-inch cubes and put on a serving platter. Pour over the green herb oil and season with a few grinds of pepper. Gently fold together to dress the potatoes. Peel wide thin shavings of ricotta over the potatoes, about ½ cup—a light covering, the amount you would add to pasta, is good. Serve at room temperature.
SERVES 4
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Fresh Salmon and Lime Cakes (here), Elizabeth Frink’s Roast Lemon Chicken (here), Salade à la Romaine (here), Pots de Crème (here)
JUNE 4, 2003: “THE 3 THAT MAKE A KITCHEN COMPLETE,” BY AMANDA HESSER.
—2003
You may think, as I did, “I know how to roast potatoes!” But if you let Nigella Lawson guide you through her simple but nuanced method, you’ll end up feeling enlightened and with a deeper understanding of the technique. By cutting the potatoes into cubes and roasting them in a pan in which they are not crowded, they gain a crust on their cut sides while remaining pillowy in the center. And because the potatoes are not seasoned until you can move them to a serving dish, they retain their French-fry crispness.
———
2½ pounds waxy potatoes (about 6 medium), scrubbed and cut into 1-inch cubes
12 cloves garlic
2 teaspoons dried oregano
½ cup olive oil
Salt
1. Heat the oven to 425 degrees. Combine the potatoes, garlic, oregano, and oil in a large roasting pan. Stir until the potatoes are well coated, and spread them evenly in the pan.
2. Place in the oven and roast until the potatoes are golden brown and crisp, 1 to 1¼ hours. (If the potatoes are crowded in the pan, they will take longer to crisp.)
3. Remove the potatoes and garlic from the oven and transfer to a serving dish. Sprinkle with salt to taste and serve immediately.
SERVES 4
COOKING NOTES
The first time I made these potatoes, I misread the recipe and used chopped fresh oregano. I tried it again with dried oregano. Both are lovely.
The recipe simply called for “salt”—since you’re sprinkling it on at the end, use a coarse salt, whose crystals will not melt but will add their own crunch. Maldon sea salt, kosher salt, or, if you’re feeling lavish, fleur de sel, all work well.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Zuppa di Funghi Siciliana (Sicilian Mushroom Soup; here), Braised Ligurian Chicken (here), Steamed Spinach with Balsamic Butter (here), Panna Cotta (here), Ricotta Kisses (here), Bolzano Apple Cake (here)
SEPTEMBER 17, 2003: “AT MY TABLE: IT ISN’T LA DOLCE VITA, BUT IT’S PRETTY CLOSE,” BY NIGELLA LAWSON.
—2003
SMOKED MASHED POTATOES
Matt Lee and Ted Lee, who wrote about these mashed potatoes, described them best—as having “a suave smokiness” and “a sweet vanilla-like edge.” They’re a lot of effort for making mashed potatoes—in fact, I e-mailed the Lees before tackling the recipe to ask if they were sure it was worth it—but the rewards are plentiful.
———
4 teaspoons kosher salt, or to taste
2 pounds baking potatoes, peeled and quartered
2 pounds Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled and quartered
3 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into pieces
½ cup heavy cream, half-and-half, or whole milk
Freshly ground black pepper
1. Pour 4 quarts of water into a 6-quart stockpot, add 3 teaspoons salt, and bring to a boil over high heat. Add the potatoes and cook until fork-tender, about 25 minutes. Drain, reserving 1 cup of the cooking water.
2. Smoke the potatoes to taste in a smoker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. If you do not have a smoker, set a 13-by-16-inch aluminum roasting pan with a rack on the stovetop so that it spans 2 burners. Scatter 2 tablespoons ground hickory, apple, or cherry wood chips (for stovetop smokers) evenly in the pan. Lay a double thickness of foil over the rack and crimp any overhanging foil around the edges. Arrange the potatoes in a single layer on the foil. Cover the pan tightly with foil—use 2 sheets of foil laid side by side if necessary. Turn both burners to medium-low and smoke the potatoes for 15 minutes.
3. Transfer the potatoes to a large bowl and mash them with a fork, or pass them through a ricer or food mill. Add the remaining 1 teaspoon salt, the butter, cream, and ½ cup of the potato cooking water and whip until thoroughly combined. Add more cooking water 2 tablespoons at a time until the potatoes reach a smooth, fluffy consistency. Season with salt if necessary and pepper to taste.
SERVES 6
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Monte’s Ham (here), Stir-Fried Collards (here), Bourbon Pecan Pie (here)
APRIL 28, 2004: “NEW WAVE COOKING: DO TRY THIS AT HOME,” BY MATT LEE AND TED LEE. ADAPTED FROM WYLIE DUFRESNE, THE CHEF AT RESTAURANT WD-50 IN NEW YORK CITY.
—2004
LIGHT POTATO SALAD
I liked how this salad takes the best elements of German potato salad—bacon and vinegar—and blends them with the best elements of French potato salad—garlic and oil. Maybe it should be called Potatoes Luxembourg.
———
Salt
5 pounds new potatoes, creamers, or other small (1 to 1½-inch-diameter) potatoes, scrubbed
6 scallions, thinly sliced
2 tablespoons garlic oil
10 slices (½ pound) bacon
2 tablespoons yellow mustard seeds
¼ cup good quality white wine vinegar
Freshly ground black pepper
1. Put the potatoes in a large wide pot of salted water, bring to a boil, and cook until tender, about 20 minutes.
2. Drain the potatoes, cut in two, and place in a large bowl. Add the scallions and toss gently to mix.
3. Return the dry potato pot to medium heat and add the garlic oil and bacon. Cook the bacon until it’s very crisp; transfer to paper towels.
4. Add the mustard seeds to the bacon fat in the pot. After a few moments, they will begin to pop. Immediately turn off the heat and add the vinegar. Scrape this over the potato mixture and toss together. Season with salt and pepper. Cover the salad with plastic wrap and allow to stand at room temperature for about an hour.
5. To serve, transfer the potato salad to a serving bowl and crumble the crisp bacon on top.
SERVES 8 TO 10
COOKING NOTE
If you don’t have garlic oil, warm 2 tablespoons of olive oil and a smashed garlic clove in a small pan over medium-low heat; remove the garlic from the pan before it begins to brown.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Spicy, Supercrunchy Fried Chicken (here), Stir-Fried Collards (here), Pickled Watermelon Rind (here), Key Lime Pie (here)
MAY 26, 2004: “AT MY TABLE: AN UNLIKELY GUEST SIMPLIFIES THE FEAST,” BY NIGELLA LAWSON.
—2004
POTATO “TOSTONES” (FLATTENED POTATOES)
Many foods benefit from a good pounding and leveling—see the Seasoned Olives here and the Squashed Tomatoes, also here. Flattened foods give you more surface area to work with and allow the aromatics to better penetrate the ingredient.
As enjoyable as pounding the living daylights out of an innocent garlic clove or olive may be, probably the most satisfying flat food of all to prepare is Susan Spungen’s potato “tostones.” You steam baby potatoes until they’re just tender, let them cool enough so they can be handled, and then press them between your palms until they flatten a bit and you hear their skins begin to snap. Next you heat up some oil in a skillet and fry the potatoes until they’re nice and brown on their flat sides. Each potato is crisp and caramelized but still moist inside.
———
2 pounds (about 20) small potatoes, like Yukon Gold
1 teaspoon kosher salt
Olive oil
Coarse sea salt
1. Place a steamer basket in a large pot filled with an inch of water and add the potatoes and salt. Cover and bring to a boil over medium heat. Steam until the potatoes are just tender when pierced with a paring knife, about 25 minutes. (Don’t overcook, or they won’t hold together when flattened.) Remove the basket and let the potatoes cool enough so they can be handled.
2. Gently squeeze the potatoes, one at a time, between your palms so that they flatten slightly but remain in one piece (some will break, but they can still be used). Pour ¼ inch of oil into a medium skillet set over medium-high heat. Add the potatoes, in batches to avoid crowding, and fry on both sides until crisp and browned, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Drain on a plate lined with paper towels.
3. Arrange the potatoes on a platter and sprinkle with sea salt.
SERVES 6
COOKING NOTE
When you sauté the potatoes, you want them to get a thick, golden crust. For this, a well-seasoned cast-iron skillet works best.
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Pan-Roasted Chicken with End-of-Season Tomatoes (here), Stewed Corn (here), Fresh Blueberry Buckle (here), Raspberry Granita (here), Summer Pudding (here)
JULY 22, 2007: “THE WAY WE EAT: LOW FOOD,” BY AMANDA HESSER. RECIPE ADAPTED FROM RECIPES, BY SUSAN SPUNGEN.
—2007
CRISPY TOFU WITH SHIITAKES AND CHORIZO
———
1 pound extra-firm tofu, drained and sliced crosswise into ¾-inch-thick slabs
2 tablespoons peanut oil
1½ cups thinly sliced shiitake mushroom caps (4 ounces)
3 ounces cured chorizo (1½ small links), diced (or cured Chinese sausage)
2 scallions, thinly sliced, dark green parts reserved for garnish
¼ cup chicken broth
3 to 4 teaspoons soy sauce
2 teaspoons mirin (sweet rice wine) or dry sherry
1. Using paper towels, pat the tofu dry. Heat the oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add the tofu slabs and cook, peeking as little as possible, until golden on the bottom, about 3 minutes. Turn and cook the other side, 2 to 3 minutes more. Drain on a paper-towel-lined plate.
2. Increase the heat to high, add the mushrooms, chorizo, and scallions (white and light green parts), and cook, tossing occasionally, until the mushrooms are softened and light golden, about 3 minutes. Stir in the broth, soy sauce, and mirin and cook until the sauce reduces and thickens slightly, about 1 minute.
3. If the tofu is no longer hot, push the vegetables in the pan to one side, add the tofu, and cook until heated through. Transfer the tofu to serving plates and top with the mushroom mixture and pan sauce. Sprinkle with the scallion greens.
SERVES 2
SERVING SUGGESTIONS
Clear Steamed Chicken Soup with Ginger (here), Almond and Buttermilk Sorbet (here)
APRIL 9, 2008: “TOFU MEETS ITS MATCH IN A DISH FIT FOR CARNIVORES,” BY MELISSA CLARK.
—2008
