Roo's Steamed Artichokes

Roo has a new fave vegetable.

Hello, lovely.

I can not express how giddy this newfound love for artichokes makes me. Artichokes were, and quite possibly are still my own most favoritest vegetable. So, there's that.

But the real reason I cannot get over the fact that my kid, my boy, is sucking down artichokes like they're going out of style is that they have a really complicated texture. I mean, you have to get the teeth involved to effectively scrape the yummy yet decidedly gunky meat from the leaves. This is not something that comes easily to my child, Mr. Textural Sensitivity.

Yet, here he is, clamoring for artichokes, demanding his own full artichoke to disassemble and then savoring every last bit of heart dripping with bright yellow lemon butter. It makes a mama's heart swell with pride.

So totally worth the butter stains all over that sweater.

Roo's Steamed Artichokes

3 whole artichokes
1 quart chicken stock (or water)
1/2 cup dry white wine
2 tbsp olive oil
4 cloves garlic
2 whole lemons, halved
1 or 2 bay leaves
Several sprigs fresh thyme
salt and pepper
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter

Wash and trim your artichokes. If you're unsure how to do that, take a look at this video. Rub the cut sides of artichokes with one lemon half to prevent discoloration.

Combine the stock, wine, oil, garlic, 2 lemon halves, bay leaves, and thyme in a large pot with a lid. Bring to a simmer and season the liquid with salt and pepper.

Place the trimmed artichokes, bottoms up, in the simmering liquid. Cover the pot and simmer for about 30 minutes. They're done when a knife slips easily into the base.

When they're nice and soft, use tongs to remove the artichokes from the cooking liquid and drain. Flip them right side up onto a serving platter.

Melt the butter in a small dish. Squeeze the remaining lemon half into the butter and use as a dipping sauce for the artichoke leaves.

To eat the artichokes, pull off a leaf. Dip the soft end in lemon butter and use your front teeth to scrape the meat off. Discard the tough leaf. When you get to the small purple-tinged leaves in the center, remove them. Use a spoon to scrape out the hairy choke, trim and tough edges and eat the tender heart.

artichoke carnage

Miss M's Homemade Garlic Hummus

I have already professed my love for Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi's cookbook, Jerusalem. But just in case you didn't get the memo the first time, it is spectacular.

Here's the thing. You know how fancy European style bakeries seduce you with gooey rustic fruit tarts, fluffy whipped cream-topped pots de creme and snowy rows of toasted coconut pastries that legitimize all your 8-year-old fantasies about what dessert is supposed to be? Yeah, well, Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi do that too. But with vegetables. And legumes. 

Hummus, right. It's relatively innocuous. Two out of three KC kids dip carrot sticks and crackers in it by their own free will so that's something. I pick up a plastic container every couple of weeks at the grocery store, so why don't I ever make my own? Assuming you cook the beans ahead of time or use (gasp!) canned, it takes all of 10 minutes. That's not including resting time which I interpret more as sampling and adjusting time anyway.

As with most bean-based endeavors, Bean was looking forward to serving as kitchen assistant on Project Hummus. When the time came, however, she'd been sucked into a lengthy "game" of school with a relentless and exacting teacher, her big sister, Looly, and there was no recess to be had. Thankfully my adorable niece and cooking buddy, Miss M, stopped by to help me out instead.

At the risk of maxing out the cute-o-meter, I'm posting this photo of Miss M at work anyway. Look at that smirk! She was a stellar helper but do you think she tried a lick when we were finished? Not a chance.

Miss M's Homemade Garlic Hummus
Adapted from Jerusalem a Cookbook by Yotam Ottolenghi and Sami Tamimi

3 & 1/2 cups cooked garbanzo beans
1 cup tahini paste
4 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
8 cloves garlic (it is garlic hummus, people)
1 & 1/2 tsp salt
6 to 8 tbsp cold water
1 tbsp parsley, chopped
1 tbsp sunflower seeds

Put the garbanzo beans in a food processor. If your food processor canister is on the small side, like mine, you might want to divide everything in half and work in 2 batches. Miss M and I almost blew the lid off ours trying to do too much at once.

Process the beans until they form a paste. Keep the machine running and pour in the tahini, lemon juice, garlic, and salt. With the machine still running, add the water a tablespoon at a time until you reach your perfect hummus consistency. This is a most personal preference. For me it took 7 tablespoons. Let the hummus rest for 30 minutes or more.

Spoon the hummus onto a plate, garnish with parsley and a sprinkle of sunflower seeds for a little crunch. Serve with warm pita, carrot sticks, cucumber slices, or just about anything else you care to dip.

more garlic = more yummy

Baked Feta with Tomatoes

Withholding feta cheese from Looly is considered cruel and unusual punishment. So, when I made this baked feta for a potluck crafting party (Thanks Girl G!) a few weeks ago, I couldn't get it out the door without her finagling a taste. She's a fan. I hope you are too.

The feta is so stellar here because unlike its softer milder cousin, mozzarella, who's constantly trying to monopolize the yummy-when-melted-with-tomato-sauce glory, feta maintains its chewy firmness when baked. And the salt! The briny feta is spectacular alongside gushy, sweet, herby tomatoes.

Speaking of tomatoes I use a combo of fresh and canned. I like the saucy juices of the canned tomatoes alongside the bright bits of pulp and skin from the fresh. Feel free to use all of one or the other, just double up on your quantity.

With the Super Bowl just around the corner, what could be more crowd-pleasing and gut-thawing than a dollop of simple, soothing, savory warm cheese on crusty bread? File under perfect hearty winter party fare.

Baked Feta with Tomatoes

1 tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic cloves, minced
1 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
4 fresh, ripe tomatoes, chopped
1 14-ounce can diced tomatoes
2 tbsp chopped fresh oregano leaves
salt and pepper to taste
16 ounces best quality Greek feta cheese you can find

1. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and saute for 1 minute. Add red pepper flakes and cook 30 seconds more. Add fresh and canned tomatoes and simmer until the sauce is slightly thickened, about 30 minutes. Stir in oregano leaves and season with salt and pepper, but go easy on the salt. The feta will provide lots of salty flavor. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. In an ovenproof dish, break the feta into pieces large and small. Scatter over the the bottom of the dish. Pour the tomato sauce over the cheese. Bake for about 25 minutes until the sauce is bubbly and thick and the top is just starting to char. Serve with crusty bread.

No Cook Tomato Sauce

Our tomato garden is producing in a big way, which is awesome because I cannot get enough of this super easy, fresh tomato sauce. I've been tossing it with pasta, slathering it on bread, and eating it by the forkful with Burrata cheese.

Bonus: even the kids are eating it! Little Roo, who can't handle a tomato skin due to his many textural aversions, is eating this sauce, at least sometimes. Of course I peeled the tomatoes.

I think this just might be the closest we've come to a healthful, delicious, true family dinner - one where we all eat the same thing at the same time at the same table and no on cries, vomits, or takes more than an hour to eat a reasonable amount of food. Break out the confetti, I've been waiting for this moment for the past six years!

Fresh Tomato Sauce
adapted from Fine Cooking Aug/Sept 2012

1 pound pasta
6 ripe, fresh tomatoes
1 cup basil, chopped
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp red pepper flakes (optional, I leave it out for the kids)
1 pound perlini fresh mozzarella balls, or other fresh mozzarella cut into 1/4-inch cubes

1. Bring a large pot of water to a boil and prepare pasta as directed. 
2. While the pasta cooks, peel the tomatoes using a serrated vegetable peeler or this method. Remove core, seeds, and chop tomatoes. Place the tomatoes and basil in a large bowl.
3. Place the olive oil and garlic in a small sauce pan over medium heat. Heat until the oil is hot, but not smoking. Pour the oil and garlic mixture over the tomato mixtures. Add salt and red pepper flakes, if using, and stir. Toss warm pasta with the sauce, then stir in the fresh mozzarella. Let it sit for a moment or two until the cheese gets all melty and oozy, unless you're cooking for Roo, in which case, keep the mozzarella on the side.

Buttermilk Biscuits with Garlic Chive Butter

Earlier this week we made our own butter and buttermilk. Then we put them to work in Buttermilk Biscuits with Garlic Chive Butter.

Buttermilk Biscuits
Adapted slightly from Alton Brown

2 cups flour
4 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. baking soda
3/4 tsp. salt
4 tbsp. butter
1 cup buttermilk, chilled

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees
2. Combine flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in a large bowl. Cut in the butter using a pastry cutter or two forks until the dough resembles course crumbs. Make a well in the center, pour in buttermilk. Mix only until the dough comes together. No more than absolutely necessary.
3. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface. Knead 5-6 times and press to a 1-inch thickness. Cut out biscuits with a 2-inch round cutter (the rim of a glass will also work in a pinch). Place biscuits on a baking sheet so their edges just touch. Reform dough and repeat.
4. Bake until fluffy and light golden brown, about 15-20 minutes. Serve warm with more butter, jam, or garlic chive butter.

Garlic Chive Butter

1/4 cup unsalted butter (homemade if possible)
1 small clove garlic, finely minced
2 tbsp. chives, finely chopped
pinch salt

Bring butter to room temperature. Mix in garlic, chives, and salt. Let stand for several minutes to blend flavors. Spread on warm buttermilk biscuits.