THE LADY OF SHALLOTS

First post of 2020! For Christmas, a dear friend gave me Sonoko Sakai's Japanese Home Cooking . This particular dear friend grew up in Japan, cooks Japanese food like nobody's business, and enjoys food as much as I do, so I knew this book would be a treasure. Beautifully produced, it is the kind of cookbook I love -- one that tells a story. The photographs by Rick Poon are intimate--an invitation to really value and understand the food, the culture, and the chef. I might challenge the byline a bit: "Simple Meals, Authentic Flavors."  In truth, the "simple" part really needs two things: 1) access to some of the ingredients (read: city) and 2) a basic understanding of the culture of Japanese cooking, which is NOT "on-the-go" and "short-on-time."  That said, Sonoko Sakai honors her audience and is realistic about what will be challenging, and what will be more simple. I am so enjoying her prose--she has had a rich and varied life, mak...

Cannellini and Lamb Soup from Jerusalem , p. 135, photo by RM This is probably one of the best soups I have ever made and was absolutely perfect for the snowy wintery weather we've been having. A few things. It calls for 20 cloves of garlic.   -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- KITCHEN GADGET ALERT: GARLIC EDITION! This is my favorite tool to peel garlic. It shouldn't cost more than 2 bucks. You don't need anything fancier. All you need is a clean, stable, and dry surface. The older the garlic, the easier it is to peel. This actually works, believe it or not, in removing garlic odors from your hands. Yes, I know, you can rub your hands all over your stainless steel kitchen faucet, but forgive me if I think this is more graceful. And a shout out here to Katie (over at Cook The Book Fridays ) who sent me my steel soap one year for Christmas! -----------------------------...

So, as part of the Lady of Shallots Get Healthy in 2013 Plan, we are eating vegetarian at least three nights a week.  Tonight's dinner threatened to be too light, but I cut the liquid down a bit to make this soup a very hearty and wonderful meal in itself. I also like that it is seasonal, and if I had been very noble, I would have walked to the Winter Farmers Market this morning in 13 degrees to get local parsnips and carrots. Unfortunately, I sold out and let my husband go grocery shopping instead. I also apologize for the poor quality photos--I'm in need of a new card reader for my camera.  I did chop/blend in small batches, and added water in small portions until I had my desired consistency.  If I was serving this as a side, I'd add more water. I also added parsley and more pepper after I pureed it. Very well-balanced as the roasting makes the parsnips more interesting. Also, I was too lazy to make olive oil toasts, so fresh baguette sufficed. And...I used my...

Potato-Leek Soup (The City Tavern Cookbook) and onion & garlic burrata on sunflower bread I had a lovely morning at the Farmer's Market, enjoying a chance to chat briefly with two fabulous people (hi, Alex and Claire!), and I headed straight for Jordan Bros. Fish upstairs, having enjoyed the scallops I bought last week. This week I bought some flounder (in addition to more scallops), which I will be making tomorrow night. Next to Jordan Bros. were two of my favorite Somerville companies: Taza Chocolate and Fiore di Nonno , so some 80% chocolate and Onion/Garlic burrata jumped into my bag. When I got home I realized I still had potatoes and leeks from last week's market ( Enterprise Farm ) that I never cooked, and the leeks still looked fine, so that was the priority for tonight. I wanted to make what is probably an amazing and fantastic potato leek soup from Barbara Lynch (as found in her book, Stir ), but a recipe calling for four cups of cream isn't really compat...