Posts by: Andrew Cohen
This variation of rémoulade uses juice from grilled lemons, and adds some sharper mustard to add a smoky quality while adding to the zip. The marjoram adds a sweet freshness that counters the earthy qualities of celeriac and asparagus and brings out the sweetness of these vegetables.
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Simple, yet full of flavor and wonderful contrasts. The grilled lemon dressing really brings things together in a way that a non-grilled lemon dressing will not.
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Grilling a lemon just adds a certain je ne sais quoi to lemons where juice is going to be used. There is a certain smoky char that is faint but there, and the juice seems sweeter. This dressing was made for a salad with grilled zucchini and tomatoes and mint, so the bit of sweetness acts as a foil to the acid in the tomatoes and the slight bitterness of the squash.
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By French lentils I refer to the ones that used to be grown in Puy, France and were known as Lentille de Puy, but are now grown all over. I still think the Puy lentils are better, but the others are still excellent. This lentil holds its shape and has a nice meaty texture and flavor. The fennel and onions are cooked with the lentils and separately so you have two textures and the flavors differ as well.
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“…of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.” (Matt. 6:28-29)
What? Why am I quoting this piece of scripture in a food column you ask? Well, like leeks, onions, and garlic, asparagus is in the lily family, and for many this member of the family is THE harbinger of spring. For many of us that think with our bellies, asparagus is as beautiful as any lily, or more so. With its distinct flavor and fairly short season, asparagus is a divine treat and sure sign that winter is past.
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Tagged with: asparagus
This salad has plenty of crunch along with lots of flavor thanks to the quickled leeks, arugula, and dressing. You could add beets and/or a cheese like feta along with some pistachios maybe, but don’t add too many extras or the salad will become confusing to the palate and the flavors will be muddied.
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Tagged with: arugula • beets • cheese • garlic chives • green garlic • leeks • little gem lettuce • nuts • salad
The topping is what makes this a special dish, and that is due in great part to the unexpected hit of the lavender playing with the fennel. Clean and delicate with a light funk from leeks and green garlic, the topping brings out the meaty qualities of halibut without muzzling the sweetness. If you have the topping done ahead of time this is a dish that might take as little as 15-20 minutes to make.
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Simple, but the flavors play so well together. The slow cooking of the carrots really sweetens them and brings out the “carrot-ness” of them, while the Allium Topping contrasts with funk and top notes. This topping goes well with other things such as steak, salmon, potatoes braised with tomatoes and pimenton de la vera.
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This topping grew out of another recipe used on salmon. This is a little more subtle, and more floral with the addition of the fennel seeds and lavender. While made initially for seared halibut, it would go nicely with pork chops, chicken, or other firm fleshed white fish. It can be tossed with kale or other greens as well, or stirred into grains such as farro or barley.
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The flavors of potato and artichoke go so well together, and the textures are similar as well, so there is a flavorful surprise possible with each bite. Crisping the outsides gives a wonderful contrast to the interior creaminess, and the mild spring garlic adds a gentle garlicky note without any of the heat bulbed garlic can. If you don’t have spring garlic, spring onions, scallions, or no alliums will work also.
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This is not so much a recipe as it is a whole around a few ingredients. These are variations of a favorite breakfast/lunch/snack/light dinner with salad, party appetizer of mine. The core of this “dish” is a sushi roll called the Norway Roll from when I had a sushi bar which was cucumber sticks, thin slices of smoked salmon and Meyer lemon, the dill cream cheese, and dill scattered on the outside of the roll.
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This is a twist on a very traditional teriyaki sauce. The orange and ginger just go so well with the other flavors, and are elements often found in Japanese cuisine with teriyaki. Of course, if you have tangerine juice, even better. As this is based on a traditional Japanese sauce, there is not nearly as much sugar as you will find in Western iterations, so bear that in mind. It will be saltier, perhaps than some think teriyaki should be, so plan the rest of the meal with that in mind.
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Very simple, but with bright flavor that is great with lightly smoked fish such as salmon, trout, sable, etc. It is excellent on toasts with avocado or with cucumber, and crackers. It was originally part of a sushi roll called the Norway Roll from my restaurant. The roll had this, smoked salmon, cucumber spears for crunch, paper thin slices of Meyer lemon, and additional dill minced and scattered on the outside of the roll. Once made, the dill flavor will permeate the cream cheese.
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The sauce is based on traditional teriyaki sauce, and is a little less sweet that what many are used to. See the recipe for ideas about that. This is a quick and easy recipe, especially if you have the sauce in the refrigerator, which I highly recommend. Use carrots that are nice and sweet for this. Some carrots are earthier and can have a slight bitter edge, which the soy sauce can amplify.
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The Silk Robe refers to the silky texture leeks, fennel, and carrots take on when cooked slowly. You can grill the salmon, or roast it high or low temperature as you wish, or cook it entirely in a pan on the stovetop. Each method gives a different but delicious result. Higher temps yield a crispy part of the fish, where a slow and low cooking results in a supple and silky fish that matches the vegetable topping. Pan searing gives a crisp top deck and low oven heat yields silky flesh to meld with the topping. Because there are so few ingredients here, and cooking is so simple, be sure to use only the best ingredients. You could use halibut or other thick bodied flaky fish for this recipe, or even slowly poached chicken.
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This is a pureed soup, so it is smooth and “creamy” feeling, although there is no cream. The ingredients combine to make a slightly sweet soup, so serving this with a salad of bitter winter greens with a sharp-ish vinaigrette is excellent. The flavoring of this soup can go from Provençal to Southwestern American to Indian with ease. See Chef’s Notes for ideas.
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The meaty, winey Portobello mushroom and the nutty starchy farro mellow the bitter and earthy flavor of the radicchio while the sweetness of the carrot and onion dice act as a counterpoint. This is a dish with some substance, and the mushrooms make a good substitute for meat texturally and flavor-wise.
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Having always been a stickler as to the definition of “pesto”, I have relaxed about this a bit, but still feel “pesto” should contain an herb, garlic, nuts, and olive oil. In this case the herb is the fronds from fennel combined with a little parsley for bulk, the nuts are coarsely chopped almonds, and the pesto is pretty runny. There is no cheese in this, although you could add some young Romano to the recipe if desired. This recipe was meant for Carrots with Fennel Jam, but would work well with chicken, fish, pork, pasta, or drizzled on spaghetti. Mortar and pestle is my preferred method for texture and longevity of end product, but a blender works, and the method for that is listed after the mortar method.
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This dish is quite dramatic on the plate, especially if you have purple or multicolored carrots. If you wish, you can steam the carrots instead of roasting. Roasting and steaming help purple carrots retain color, and in the case of the purple carrots it intensifies the color. Wet cooking purple carrots washes out the color and tints every other vegetable in the pan a not pleasant shade or blurple. The earthiness of the carrot is offset by the fennel and the pesto, while roasting intensifies the sweetness of the carrots and intensifies the flavor at the same time.
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“Condiment” is used for lack of any better word, but I suppose salsa, jam, or chutney could be used as well. It is, essentially, sweet vegetables cooked until melting, to boost the flavors of earthy late season peppers. This is used as a topping for seared and quickly braised mei quin. Use as a side dish, add ground pork, tofu, or bits of leftover chicken and serve with rice for a main. A mandolin is very helpful with this recipe.
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