Since the mid-1990s, with a time out for Michael-care, I’ve been a volunteer wilderness ranger in the Colorado Rockies. During those 25-some years my life has changed dramatically but the one constant has always been my ranger gig.
UDON NOODLES, ARUGULA & RED PEPPER SALAD
Hitching myself to Smokey Bear’s wagon was a bit of a stretch. Never considered a rough-and-tumble outdoorsy girl, our 1988 move to Aspen was a reach beyond my bubble. What I soon developed, however, was an affaire de coeur with these mountains that’s never waned.
Today’s post is an abridged answer to the question I’m most often asked, “What do you really do?”
In early June we combine patrols with field trips to reacquaint ourselves with the floral and fauna. (Our memories are not what they used to be!) L to R: Deb and Phil Overeynder, Jane Battaglia who also works in Arizona’s Santa Catalina National Forest and me at the East Maroon Trail portal.
BUT FIRST, IS ANYONE HUNGRY?
The East Maroon Trail always has wonderful springtime/early summer flowers. Discovered in 1820 on Pike’s Peak by mountain climber Edwin James, the Rocky Mountain columbine (Columbine Aquilegia caerulea) is Colorado’s state flower. Do you know your state flower?
This week’s recipes, UDON NOODLES, ARUGULA & RED PEPPER SALAD and RASPBERRY ICE CREAM with TOASTED WALNUTS, could be your summer menu’s superstars.
I’m planning to share this Udon noodle salad at two upcoming summer potlucks. What works with this recipe is anything. Most veggies on hand will play well in this salad. Don’t forget to change up your noodles. Soba noodles (buckwheat) and Udon noodles (wheat) offer two distinct taste experiences. The constant here is the citrus Ponzu sauce used in the dressing.
Serving homemade ice cream to your family/guests speaks volumes: “You are special.” Today’s ice cream maker is not your grandparents’ cranky relic. Ice cream is easily pulled together. Even recipes for sorbets and granitas are simple to follow. Don’t let summer fly away without dusting off your ice cream machine. (Both recipes are below.)
GET YOUR SMOKEY ON
To score a moose sighting is a thrill that few people experience.
BUT these are depressing times for the Colorado mule deer who takes an eye candy back seat to moose, bears and elk.
Let’s start at my story’s finale. Last year, through the efforts of 40-50 dedicated volunteer rangers, our Forest Conservancy contributed 10,685 service hours which translated to an in-kind donation value of more than $278,000. We interacted with more than 60,000 trail users and 320,500 visitors to the Maroon Bells Scenic Area. That’s our job. That’s what we do.
These kids we met on the East Maroon trail are having such a good time. “In every walk with nature one receives far more than he seeks.” John Muir
To keep updating our skills, every summer the Conservancy, a non-profit partner to the USFS, brings in experts from our Colorado universities/government agencies/NPOs to teach courses on flora and fauna, geology, life zones, and the like. When I’m not hiking, I’m often in the classroom or field attending these sessions. We all maintain First Aid/CPR certification but every year, like many other volunteers, I take a refresher course.
Last week the Conservancy sponsored a birding field trip. Everyone pictured here is a volunteer ranger. Birding at Aspen Music Festival’s new Bucksbaum Campus is a special treat for us. (Hey, Kay, this photo is for you.)
By mid-June, however, it’s time to get online and begin scheduling patrols to cover the 102 official trails located in our Ranger District. We communicate throughout this busy 4-month period via our website which is our lifeline to all ranger-related information, updates, bulletins and trail reports.
My office. (Liz Berg, For you and your sisters.)
Hiking with Phil, a utilities engineer who has overseen the city’s water, electric and streets departments throughout his career, is always a treat. Ask him a question, he pulls out his map and we find the answer together.
Although I patrol alone on nearby trails, we pair up for wilderness hikes. Our main responsibility is to maintain a safe, friendly environment for visitors and our wildlife residents. Of course everyone hopes to spot a moose or bear. In an odd twist, it’s often most difficult to protect the wildlife from the tourists.
I was hiking an East Aspen trail last week and was startled by this Mama and Baby Moose who were enjoying a mid-morning snack. I quietly backed down the trail and all was well. There are signs throughout Aspen’s East End cautioning residents about moose sighting and to keep dogs on leashes.
If there are illegal fire rings, we dismantle them. Signs or trees down? We report it. Trash? We carry it out. With full-on fire restrictions already in place, we’ll be on the lookout. Our backpacks are always loaded with equipment and materials to cover all possibilities. (We have a must-carry checklist.) In fact, we’re trained to do everything but law enforcement. It’s a responsibility. I’m always wary.
Author and bird expert, Rebecca Weiss, R, who is a naturalist at the Aspen Center for Environmental Studies led the Conservancy’s birding field trip.
When the day is done, we file a comprehensive online report which not only goes to Marcia Johnson, our executive director, but also to the USFS and our colleagues. Then it’s homeward bound to my next major activity: Good Night!
Why do I get up at 5am to go birding? Because this little guy, a Green-tailed Towhee, is waiting to welcome me. That stunning rufous cap just makes me laugh.
UDON NOODLES, ARUGULA & PEPPER SALAD adapted from Jessica Merchant, How Sweet Eats
Serves: 4-6
INGREDIENTS:
If you haven’t tried Ponzu sauce (and, I hadn’t), look for it at your local grocery store. It’s ‘an intense soy-like sauce that is simultaneously sweet, tart, bitter, and salty.’
Dressing:
1/3 cup Ponzu sauce
1/4 cup sunflower oil or vegetable oil of your choice
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2-1 tsp kosher salt
Salad:
8oz. Udon noodles (options: Soba or rice noodles)
2 cups sugar snap peas, cut into thirds
1 red bell pepper, julienned
1/3 cup toasted slivered almonds
2 tablespoons toasted sesame seeds
3 green onions chopped, both white & green parts
3 cups arugula
1 heaping cup chopped cilantro
1. Mix dressing ingredients together in a large bowl and set aside. Dressing can be refrigerated overnight.
2. Cook the udon noodles according to the package. Add noodles to an ice bath to chill. Then drain.
3. Toss the red pepper slices and green onions in the bowl of dressing. Add the noodles, sugar snap peas, almonds, sesame seeds, arugula and cilantro. Toss until well combined.
4. Serve cold (refrigerate for at least 30 minutes) or at room temperature with additional toasted sesame seeds and slivered almonds and freshly cut limes and avocados.
Tip: 1. For more heat, mince a small Fresno pepper into very small pieces and add to the salad ingredients.
RASPBERRY ICE CREAM with TOASTED WALNUTS, by David Lebovitz,The Perfect Scoop
Makes 1 Quart
INGREDIENTS:
1 1/2 cups half-and-half
1 cup sugar
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
4 large egg yolks
1 1/2 cups strained raspberry puree (directions below)
1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice
DIRECTIONS:
1. Raspberry purée: Purée 6 cups of fresh raspberries or 6 cups of defrosted frozen raspberries in a food processor. Press them through a mesh strainer with a flexible rubber spatula, or use a food mill. Set aside.
2. Pour the cream into a large bowl, set a mesh strainer over the top and set aside.
3. Warm the half-and-half and sugar in a medium-sized saucepan.
4. Whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour the warm half and half/sugar mixture into the egg yolks, whisking constantly. Then, scrape the warmed egg yolks mixture back into the saucepan.
5. Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir, until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula.
6. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream. Mix in the raspberry puree and lemon juice, then stir until cool over an ice bath.
7. Chill the mixture thoroughly in the refrigerator.
8. Pour it into your ice cream freezer and make it according to the manufacturers directions.
9. After making the ice cream, mix the roasted nuts into the raspberry mixture before placing it into your freezer to harden.
When Emma, now 17, was born I found and framed this vintage Smokey Bear poster. Although it was replaced by singer Taylor Swift followed by her own photography, she still is quite the nature girl.
Memorial Day is now a memory. Hopefully, a joyful one. Now it’s time to get serious about summer. That’s why I just made my first batch of ice cream. This past winter I treated myself to more scoops at Berthillon’s (Paris most famous glacier) than necessary and regretted not one lick. Missing that occasional flavor burst in a cone, I mixed together Lemon-Speculoos ice cream this week. It’s ridiculously creamy and delicious. Why not pull out your ice cream machine? Show some love to those you love.
I showed some love to the evening crew at The Gant’s front desk with Lemon-Speculoos Ice Cream Waffle Bowls.
This week’s Cook-the-Book-Fridays recipe choice is Porc Fumé Façon Barbecue. We Iowans translate that to Smoky Barbecue-Style Pulled Pork. Although I’ve made Pork chops, loin, shoulder, tenderloin, sausage and ham and bacon, I’ve never “pulled pork.”
SMOKY BARBEQUE-STYLE PULLED PORK SANDWICH with COLESLAW and SWEET GHERKINS
Ten years ago I successfully relied on You Tube for a tutorial on How To Set a Mousetrap. Perhaps, I decided, this called for another You Tube adventure. Readers, if I had viewed all the available You Tube videos on “pulling pork,” I wouldn’t have had the time to “pull” this pork. I watched three videos. I conquered pulling pork which produced perfect sandwiches for Memorial Day.
A GRATITUDE ATTITUTE
We first moved to Aspen in 1988. Each morning when I can wake up in this beautiful place, I never forget or take for granted how fortunate I am to live here. My photos in this week’s post especially offer a glimpse into why this is so. I dusted off my gratitude journal last month and plan to express visually what I often express with words. Where does it say that a gratitude journal has to be loaded with lists?
Hopefully you feel that same joy living in your chosen homeplace. Imagine what photos you might take to represent the gratitude of that. “Life is like ice cream, enjoy it before it melts.”
On Memorial Day I always walk through Ute Cemetery, listed on the National Register of Historic Places and located a few minutes from my condo. Of the 175 people buried there, 39 are the Civil War veterans memorialized on this stone.
After the war, many Civil War veterans settled in the West. These 39 veterans are buried on the crest of a ridge in the cemetery, one row above another. Our local war veterans always place flags at their stones every Memorial Day. Honor. Respect. We never forget.
On Memorial Day Donna Grauer and I also visited Aspen Grove Cemetery where many of Aspen’s early community movers and shakers and 12 more Civil War veterans are buried. Donna spotted this broken, discarded statue leaning against a ponderosa pine.
Ever the volunteer Ranger whether in or out of uniform, Donna climbed down into the woods to check out the statue. She found the head and we managed to put it together so we can safely secure it later. St. Francis of Assisi, the patron saint of ecologists, rises again to watch over his flock.
The WONDER OF WILDLIFE
Thanks to advice and assistance from my new Gant neighbor, Nancy Ferrillo, I now have a balcony filled with five flower boxes and four hummingbird feeders. First time ever. Six years and a very-determined-neighbor later, the hummers are deliriously happy and I have the balcony of my dreams.
Besides completing that project this week, I also began my USFS volunteer ranger duties. The highlight of my week, however, was a full-day Spring Migration Birding Trip led by Rebecca Weiss, the naturalist specializing in birds and botany at the Aspen Center of Environmental Studies and photographer Mark Fuller, newly retired after 37 years as director of the Ruedi Water and Power Authority. Although I’ve been on countless day-long birding excursions, this was an unbelievable and beautiful day with 53 different species sightings. I’ve only honor and respect for these wondrous creatures.
We started our day e-a-r-l-y at Rock Bottom Ranch in Carbondale. Our leaders, Rebecca and Mark.
For the past two years Rebecca and Mark have collaborated on this long-anticipated book which will be published in mid-July.
We looked up and saw a raptor flying overhead. It turned out to be a Golden Eagle. Not one. Not two. But, three. Three majestic eagles flew slowly by and disappeared over the ridge. Amazing. Dale Armstrong Photo
Look carefully to find the three eagles flying over our Rockies. (Whoops, one eagle has “flown the coop,” and gone over the ridge. My bad. This is a correction.) Dale Armstrong Photo
Say, what?
A raccoon at rest…..in a Cottonwood tree.
A warbling vireo sits on the nest. Dale Armstrong photo.
A peacock. Chickens. Rock Bottom Ranch. What can I say?
LEMON-SPECULOOS ICE CREAM by David Lebovitz, The Perfect Scoop
INGREDIENTS:
3 large lemons
3/4 cup sugar
1 cup whole milk
2 cups heavy cream
Pinch of salt
5 egg yolks
1 1/2 cups crumbled Speculoos or gingersnap cookies
DIRECTIONS:
1. Zest the lemons directly into a food processor or blender. Add the sugar and blend until the lemon zest is very fine.
2. Warm the milk with the lemon-scented sugar, 1/2 cup of the heavy cream, and the salt in a heavy saucepan. Cover, remove from heat, and let infuse for one hour.
3. Rewarm the lemon-infused mixture.
4. In a separate bowl, whisk together the egg yolks. Slowly pour warm lemon-infused milk into the egg yolks, whisking constantly. Then scrape the warmed egg yolks back into the saucepan.
5. Pour the remaining 1 1/2 cups cream into a large bowl and set a mesh strainer on top.
6. Stir the mixture constantly over medium heat with a heatproof spatula, scraping the bottom as you stir until the mixture thickens and coats the spatula. Pour the custard through the strainer and stir it into the cream. Discard the lemon zest and stir until cool over an ice bath.
7. Chill the mixture thoroughly in your refrigerator for 2 to 3 hours or overnight.
8. Freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer’s instructions. As you remove it from the ice cream maker, stir in the cookie bits and put in a freezer container.
9. Put into freezer until ready to serve.
TIP: Speculoos is A biscuit-like cookie made popular in Belgium. It’s very similar in flavor to a gingersnap. If you cannot find Speculoos in your grocery store, gingersnaps are a fine substitute.
Today’s post is a full-on Happy Meal. I need that, don’t you? This week Mother Nature shot Springtime out of a cannon into the High Country. We went to bed in Winter and miraculously woke up to this glorious season of rebirth.
BAGELS
During winter our highway that winds from Aspen over Independence Pass is closed. Since this is the last week before it’s opening to traffic, a friend and I planned one last quiet hike up the Pass. We were not alone. This beautiful fox, carrying not one but two bagels, trotted by. A Papa, probably, but this fox was on a mission to reach the den.
BEETS
Every week I include one simple and delicious user-friendly recipe. Because I enjoy discovering new chefs (to me), using unfamiliar spices and trying unknown techniques, another post recipe may be more complicated. With my Cook-the-Book-Fridays group I’m cooking through David’s Lebovitz’s My Paris Kitchen. As a group, we commit to making every recipe in his cookbook. This week I covered all three bases.
CREAMY LEMON PASTA by BARBARA KAFKA
1) Throughout the summer I need quick supper recipes. I’m a volunteer USFS ranger again this summer. If Smokey still wants me, I’m In. On days that I “work,” I return home hungry and tired. (Make that starved and exhausted.) This week I pulled up Barbara Kafka’s Creamy Lemon Pasta recipe which she first introduced in a March, 1999 New York Times column, Secrets of a Lemon Lover In a Season of Plenty. Almost 20 years later Food52 website considers it a Genius Recipe.
2) It was my Clara’s 15th birthday this week. Although I wasn’t in California for the family celebration, I still could make merry by baking Yotam Ottolenghi’s Beet, Ginger and Sour Cream Cake. I poured a glass of champagne, toasted my precious youngest granddaughter and discovered beets and bubbly bond beautifully.
Ready for the oven…
3) This week’s Cook-the-Book-Fridays recipe choice is David Lebovitz’s tasty Cheese, Bacon and Arugula Soufflé. Loyal Readers, may I be blunt? Some recipes, like Bûche de Noël, Turdunken and Baked Alaska, should be left to the pros. While this soufflé doesn’t rise to the difficulty of these examples, it is complicated, labor-intensive and high altitude-resistant.
Truthfully, this soufflé was very, very good.
BIRDS
It’s always exciting to spot a colorful Western Tanager.
I went birding with another ranger yesterday. It was a gorgeous, sunny morning and we were reminded how totally amazing these winged creatures are. Yellow warblers are migrating back from Central and northern South America. Hummers are flying in from Mexico. The Great Blue Herons are back in residence at the North Star Preserve and Rock Bottom Ranch and a pair of ospreys have returned to their traditional nesting site near the Rio Grande Trail in mid-valley.
Who doesn’t love a chubby American Robin?
The American Kestrel is the smallest and most common falcon in North America
There was drama of the fowl kind in California today also. My daughter, Melissa, like her mother, is an early riser. This morning she discovered an injured adult finch on their front walkway. Although Clara did not inherit the early-riser gene, she is an intern at Wildcare Eastern Sierra and always “on call.”
“Help me,” says the frightened finch.
The lucky baby received Clara Care until they dropped it at the sanctuary before school. Our worldwide bird population, a ‘vital gauge of our ecosystem’s health’ is in peril. The Trump administration is also rapidly rolling back environmental laws and protections for all migratory and endangered birds. Proud of my family. Every feathered friend is worth saving.
We don’t see many Turkey Vultures in the area except in flight. This guy, who was just hanging out on a low branch, startled us as we walked by.
RECIPES
Perfect.
CREAM LEMON PASTA by Barbara Kafka
Yield: 6 servings.
INGREDIENTS:
12 ounces wide egg noodles (or, any pasta of your choice)
Zest and Juice of 2 lemons. Cut zest in very thin strips 1 inch long
1 cup heavy cream
Kosher salt, to taste
Freshly ground black pepper.
DIRECTIONS:
1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Add noodles and stir to separate. Cook for 8 minutes or until tender. Drain, then return to the cooking pot.
2. Just before noodles are done, combine the lemon zest, cream, salt and pepper in a small saucepan. Cook over medium heat for 2 minutes or until cream comes to a boil.
3. Pour cream mixture over drained noodles and add the lemon juice. Stir to coat. Cook over medium heat, stirring 1 or 2 minutes until all the liquid is absorbed. Season with additional pepper, if desired.
TIPS:
1. Start by using 3 TBSP of lemon juice and add more to taste;
2. The variations and add-ins to this pasta dish are numerous: green veggies (peas, of course); mushrooms; kalamata olives; onions; chicken, sausage or tuna. Or, use the pasta as a small side with steak, shrimp or white fish.
IT’S ALL ABOUT THE BEET, THE BEET, THE BEET.
BEET, GINGER & SOUR CREAM CAKE by Yotam Ottolenghi and Helen Goh, Sweet cookbook
The cake is ready for the oven. I used an 8-inch springform pan but an 8″ round or square pan works also.
David Lebovitz wrote a wonderful post about baking this cake. Get the recipe and see his comments here.
When I was in second grade my teacher had us raise our hand if we wanted to be a nurse, fireman or fill-in-the-blank, when we grew up. She never asked if anyone wanted to be a juggler. Yet most of our lives have probably been a juggling act. How well do you juggle? These days I’ll admit to dropping a ball or two every so often. Is it just me or are the balls coming at us more rapidly?
Each year, returning to Aspen after a 5 month winter absence, I put together a summer schedule. Long ago the school of trial and error taught me having it all is a myth. Balance. To my mind that’s what gets us into ‘summertime, and the livin’ is easy’ territory.
Step 1. Mise en Place
Realizing my planning/prioritizing is simpler now because it’s just all about me, there still are tricks I find useful to remain sane. Most importantly, if you want to stay off the Meds, learn to manage that FOMO gene. (Do not get discouraged. It took me 30 years to mellow my fear-of-missing-out.) ‘You can’t ride every wave that comes along without eventually going under.’
Roast those vegetables.
Now that I have your attention, try this. Put together a summer calendar and dilute it down to monthly, weekly and daily elements. Don’t pass go until you block out your constant Non-Negotiables. (For me, that’s 1. My blog post; 2. USFS volunteer ranger work; 3. AM Yoga; and 4. Colorado Mountain College music class.)
There are so many ways to utilize cooked, softened, sweet onions.
Then it’s up to us, realizing when we can’t do it all. Here’s a thought. You are not responsible for others’ happiness or saving the world. Sure, do your part, step up to the plate, love your family and be devoted to your friends. But stick to your calendar and prioritize your competing interests. Be willing to step back and say no.
For example, I know the greatest gift of love I can offer my family is to stay healthy, engaged and happy. When my daughter Melissa doesn’t worry about her mother, our whole family wins. My four Non-Negotiables push all those buttons.
After the pre-cooked tart is loaded with vegetables and filling, it’s ready to be baked.
The brutal honesty of aging enforces new energy boundaries. I’m accepting those borders while kicking and screaming all the way. Ironically, that sometimes is a good thing. Last year, feeling a bit sorry for myself, I complained to my doctor at the end of our appointment that I couldn’t keep up with my hiking buddies. My doctor, having just read my excellent health chart, wasn’t having it. No sympathy whatsoever. “Try harder,” she said, as she left the room.
Very Full Tart by Yotam Ottolenghi, Plenty cookbook
While you try harder on your 90-day summer calendar, I’ll prattle on about Yotam Ottolenghi, his imaginative cookbooks and delicious recipes. The best way to cook Ottolenghi is to read his recipe carefully, break it into parts and decide what can be done easier. For example, in this recipe I bought roasted peppers (Mezzetta Roasted Bell Peppers, Multicolor) and used pre-made pie dough (Pillsbury). Since I made an unexpected quick trip to Phoenix to help a friend, I needed to shorten the process.
Mise en Place, assembling and prepping all your ingredients, is key. Ottolenghi introduced me to unfamiliar spices I didn’t own but easily found to purchase. After prepping the ingredients, you’ll find his directions clear and easily followed. The result is a Wow. Check his cookbooks out at your local library.
VERY FULL TART by Yotam Ottolenghi, PLENTY
Serves: 4-6
INGREDIENTS:
1 red pepper
1 yellow pepper
6 TBS olive oil
1 medium eggplant cut into 2-inch dice
1 small sweet potato peeled and cut into 1-inch dice
1 zuchinni diced into 2-inch pieces
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
2 bay leaves
salt and pepper
8 thyme sprigs, picked
Your favorite savory tart or pie crust dough recipe
1/3 cup ricotta
41/2 oz feta
7 cherry tomatoes, halved
2 eggs
1 cup heavy cream
DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
2. Remove the pepper stalks and seeds, place the peppers in an oven tray, drizzle with oil and roast.
3. Mix the eggplant with four tablespoons of oil and season with salt and pepper. Spread into an baking tray and roast on the shelf below the peppers.
4. After 12 minutes add the sweet potato, stir and roast for 12 minutes more.
5. Add the zucchini, stir and roast for another 12 minutes.
6. Once the peppers are brown and the vegetables cooked remove them all from the oven and turn the heat down to 325 degrees.
7. Cover the peppers with foil and leave to cool, once cool, peel off the skin and tear the peppers into strips.
8. Meanwhile heat two tablespoons of oil in a frying pan on medium heat. Cook the onions with the bay leaves and some salt for 25 minutes stirring occasionally until brown, soft and sweet. Discard the bay leaves and set aside. (I needed to add another TBS of olive oil.)
9. Grease a 9-inch loose-bottomed tart pan. Roll the pastry to a 1/8 thick circle large enough to line the pan with some overhang. Press it into the edges and line with baking paper and fill with baking weights or rice. Bake blind for 20 minutes, carefully lift out the weights or rice and bake the tart for a further 10 minutes or until golden brown.
10. Remove the tart from the oven and spread the onions over the bottom. Spread the roasted vegetables on top. Scatter half the thyme, dot with chunks of both cheeses and then the tomatoes, cut side up.
11. Whisk the eggs and cream with some salt and pepper and carefully pour into the tart. The top layer of tomatoes and cheese should remain exposed. Scatter the remaining thyme on top.
12. Bake for 35 – 40 minutes, until the filling sets and turns golden.
13. Rest for 10 minutes, release the tart and serve.
TIP: Just add a leafy green salad and this is lunch or supper.
Thanks to the Forbes Magazine’s communication council for some organization suggestions
CHERRY CHOCOLATE PECAN COOKIES by The Skinny Chick
For the previous four winters I’ve emptied my Aspen condo of personal belongings, parking them in my down valley storage unit, and handed my keys to The Gant’s front office personnel. There’s no way to make this easy. Physically, it’s double-duty difficult, packing for a 51/2-month journey while converting my home into rental space. Mentally, it’s always been way outside my comfort zone. I just couldn’t get my head around the process.
ONE BOWL BUTTERMILK BRAN MUFFINS by CAFÉ SUCRE FARINE
Usually I return to Colorado, as I did last week, dreading the re-entry chores awaiting me. But this year, compared to the past, that has seemed less daunting. If I weren’t dieting, I would call it “a piece of cake.” In four years I’ve apparently morphed from hunter-gatherer to true believer, less is more, keep it simple. My mantra is if I take something out, don’t bring something else in.
MADELEINES au SARRASIN by David Lebovitz
Every year it seems my less becomes less, my simple is simpler. It may be, as someone suggested, I’ve stepped so far outside my comfort zone I’ve forgotten how to climb back in. If that translates to lightening my load, I vote yes.
SPRINGTIME in the ROCKIES (no grumbling, we desperately need the moisture).
After a 3-month hiatus from cooking, hanging out in my kitchen says Welcome Home. Since we’re into comfort zones, being inside and out, I’m thinking this blog sorta teeters on the edge. Dear Readers, when did you last do something brand spanking new? Something that nudged you outside the familiar. That’s the true test.
ONE BOWL BUTTERMILK BRAN BREAD
This blog has forced me into a deep dive of unknown recipes, techniques and ingredients. Every week it’s a learning experience with more failures than I will ever admit. In fact I’ve become quite comfortable with failing. Oops!
This week I’ve baked three newbies which I guarantee you bakers will be trying. My new bestie is buckwheat flour, not only healthy but hearty. You’ll see me using it in more recipes this summer. Although I’ve never waded through Proust’sIn Search of Lost Time, I can now bake madeleines. Hooray for me. Thank you, Dorie Greenspan and David Lebovitz.
Two of my favorite bloggers, Liz, That Skinny Chick Can Bake, and Chris, Café Sucre & Farine, are the stars of two recipes. They’re keepers, both the bloggers and the recipes. It’s Cook the Book Fridays with Madeleines au Sarrasin from David Lebovitz’s My Paris Kitchen. Here are the recipes:
Each summer I need a tasty, freezable drop cookie recipe for snacks and to share. This chunk of sweetness loaded with two kinds of chocolate, roasted nuts and dried cherries is quick, simple and delicious.
YIELD: 36
INGREDIENTS:
1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
2 teaspoons vanilla
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1 1/2 cups flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 cup coarsely chopped white chocolate
1/2 cup coarsely chopped milk chocolate
1 cup dried tart cherries
1/2 cup coarsely chopped, roasted pecans
DIRECTIONS:
1.Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Line baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
3. In the bowl of a stand mixer fit with the paddle attachment, beat together the butter and sugars until light and fluffy. Add the egg and vanilla extract, and beat to combine, scraping down the sides of the bowl as needed.
4. Mix in flour, baking soda, and salt. Mix in cherries, white and milk chocolate, and roasted pecans either in the mixer or with a wooden spoon.
5. With a cookie scoop or tablespoon, drop 2 tablespoonfuls of dough and place about 2 inches apart on the baking sheets.
6. Bake until just set and golden, about 12-14 minutes.
7. Let cool on baking sheets for about 5 minutes, then remove to a wire rack to finish cooling.
TIP: Store in an airtight container for about 3 days or freeze for up to a month
MADELEINES au SARRASIN(Buckwheat Madeleines) by David Lebovitz, My Paris Kitchen
Besides the madeleines, I also used the leftover batter to make delicious mini-muffins.
David’s take on madeleines using buckwheat flour is genius in a hearty, more healthy manner. It’s less sophisticated and refined than its white flour sister but the guys at The Gant’s front desk loved these “seashells.” In fact James told me, “My mom used to make these every Christmas.”
YIELD: 18 madeleines
INGREDIENTS:
8 tablespoons (4 ounces) unsalted butter, cubed
2/3 cup buckwheat flour
1/3 cup all-purpose flour
3/4 cup sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons aluminum-free baking powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1/2 cup egg whites (usually about 4 large eggs)
1 tablespoon dark honey
When crepes are made with buckwheat flour, they are called Galettes. We recently ordered this Galette at Breizh Cafe in Paris.
DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
2. Melt the butter in a skillet over medium heat. As the butter cooks, it will sputter a bit and then it will settle down. Cook the butter until it’s the color of maple syrup and smells toasty. It’s about a 5-minute process. Remove from heat and set aside to cool. (See the How-To below in TIPS.)
2. In a medium bowl, whisk together the flours, sugar, baking powder and salt. Stir in the egg whites and honey. Stir in one-third of the browned butter and gradually add the rest of the butter, including all the dark bits, without scraping the bottom of the pan. Mix until the batter is smooth.
3. In a madeleine mold, brush the indentations with melted butter. Fill the molds three-quarters full with the batter. Bake for 9-10 minutes, until the spring back lightly when you touch them in the center. Because of the color of the buckwheat flour, color is not a good indication of doneness.
4. Remove from oven, wait 30 seconds, then tip out onto cooling rack. Madeleines are best eaten warm, or on the same day they are made. Sprinkle confectioners sugar on the tips if you wish.
TIPS: Here’s a great link to browning butter 101 by Joy the Baker (Love, love, love Joy the Baker). Personally I would take my butter to a deeper brown, a maple syrup color, than Joy suggests.
For most of my adult life I have searched for a tasty bran muffin. I like the idea of a bran muffin and the taste. Unfortunately I’ve never met a bran muffin that isn’t dry. With that first bite, I’m always hopeful. By the third bite, dry, crumbly, no flavor. Chris’ bran muffin passed the dry test. In my opinion the honey-butter glaze is the magic. Before you glaze the warm muffins, why not poke it with three small holes so the glaze will seep through.
Here’s Chris’ link. Besides the recipe, she offers many tips, a must-read.
CooktheBookFridays is a international group virtually cooking through My Paris Kitchen by David Lebovitz. Join us by clicking here.
Bofinger Sauerkrat with a knuckle of pork, white sausage, Strasbourg sausage, sausage with cumin, smoked pork belly, pork loin and boiled potatoes. Brasserie Bofinger
Dear Miss Manners,
When I was in Paris recently, I attended a small dinner party with four other American friends. Our gracious host and hostess live in an apartment with a balcony view of the Tour Eiffel. During our marvelous dinner we set our Apple watches for “on the hour” alarms to catch the 5-minute breathtaking display of sparkling lights superimposed over the tower’s golden lighting.
That meant the five of us left the table en masse four times during dinner. Was that rude? Is an apology needed? I feel guilty. Thank you for responding ASAP.
Mary Hirsch
PS – In our defense, here’s our once-in-a-lifetime view. Vive la France.
As you read this post it’s a good bet I’m boarding an Air Canada 777 making my 32-hours way to Aspen via Toronto and Denver. After more than a five months absence, my tiny 940’ condo will seem like a palace. May is always a month of construction frenzy at The Gant. That’s okay. It’s jackhammer-loud, noisy and messy with just me and the construction guys on site. As a reminder of that, I understand earplugs (free) await me.
Aspenites Karen Kribs and Cathy O’Connell enjoying the Paris Skyline with our host, Michael.
While eager to see Colorado, leaving Paris is a bit of a tug. If you’ve joined me virtually for this adventure, you already know I’ve loved my experience.
Another familiar face from Aspen, Fred Venrick.
It’s always a treat to eat white asparagus during its very short season. Aliza Sokolow, an award winning food photographer, is in the background with Dorie.
NIBBLES WITH the GREENSPANS
For starters there were oysters with gougères and salmon rillettes. The last two, which I’ve also made, were from Dorie’s Around My French Table cookbook.
In a recent post I wrote about having dinner with Dorie and Michael Greenspan who were spending time at their Paris apartment. If you recall, for more than five years I was part of a group which cooked through Dorie’s Around My French Tablecookbook. Last week Dorie called to invite me and my Aspen friends, who had just arrived in Paris, to come for drinks and nibbles. An unexpected invitation, I was very pleased as were my friends.
I had never eaten oysters before so Cathy provided a tutorial and encouragement.
Just a heads up Readers, if you’re ever invited for “nibbles” at the Greenspans, we’re talking full-fledged dinner. Let me say this about the evening…..I knocked at their door and introduced them to 3 Aspenites who they had never met before. By the end of the evening (ahem, 12:30am), we were all best friends.
Although I am being facetious about writing Miss Manners. We did bob up and down and Apple watches were involved.
All Aboard. Belgium-bound.
ANTWERP by TRAIN
At the International Market with Andrea and 3 of her 4 daughters
Paying homage to Morocco at the International Market in Antwerp
During my 8 years of food blogging many of the acquaintances I’ve known virtually are now friends. Those who live in the USA I’ve often met personally. Others who live in faraway places, not so much. That’s why last Saturday was such a treat. I finally met the very-talented Andrea Mohr who blogs as The Kitchen Lioness and lives with her husband and four daughters in Bonn, Germany.
Pomme Frites with Mayo, surprisingly delicious
Posing with Nijntje (Miffy), a storybook character
We cooked up a plan where I would come by train to Antwerp and she, Thomas and the girls would drive from Bonn, a 21/2 hour trip for us both. Miraculously, with thanks to the Europeans’ efficient train system, the day passed without a hitch. Andrea met me at the station with, what else, a bouquet of gorgeous tulips. Their itinerary included visiting the International Market and all Andrea’s favorite kitchen stores, seeing Antwerp’s historical highlights, enjoying Belgium food specialities and a hot chocolate break. Since we’re usually separated by 5,000 miles, this was a glorious meet up.
“Homeless Jesus,” a sculpture by Timothy Schmalz was installed in Antwerp in February.
PARIS EATS.
Lunch – burrata and Jambon de Parme salad
Bofinger’s fish sauerkraut with haddock, scottish salmon, langoustine, sea bass, boiled potatoes and horseradish butter Brasserie Bofinger
Île flottante, Brasserie Bofinger
PARIS REMEMBERS.
Memorial de la Shoah, Paris’ holocaust museum was dedicated in 2005 by President Jacques Chirac.
Honoring Winston
PARIS PLAYS.
The Luxor Obelisk with the Grande Roue de Paris in the foreground. The ferris wheel is 2000′ high.
