'A Lowcountry Treasure' for VIE April 2022

Photo by Niki Nero Photography

“Shrimp and grits are a culinary equivalent of the little black dress—good for all occasions. An LBD needs accessories to make it individual. So does this staple of the Lowcountry coast, only we add garnishes. Just like accessorizing this can be tricky business. The recipe is not a catchall. We like appropriate accessories—for example, mushrooms. Quartered or halved, mushrooms are not out of place in the bowl. They grow in forests right near the waterways. To honor the South Carolina Pig, I like hunks of sautéed andouille in my S&G….”

Read more and find Suzanne’s favorite recipe HERE in the latest issue of VIE Magazine!

Summer Pantry Week Two

A few years ago I was working on a book with the working title, The Music of Food. For that project (not completed) I interviewed well known musicians whose second passion was cooking. My favorite question to ask was, What do you want to eat when madly in love? The answers were all fabulous but one stood out above the rest, from Grace Potter:

Spaghetti. All day. I mean, it’s a love food! It is the most romantic food in the world because it’s just like…twirl things around in your mouth, basically what love is, you know? Whether it’s the tongue or something else. It’s basically the most — I think it’s essential food. For me the tactile experience is like twirling the pasta, or if I am madly in love with someone who doesn’t know how to twirl pasta, watching his clumsy fingers trying to learn how to twirl pasta. I love that so much, it’s one of my favorite things. So it’s a lady in the tramp experience you know…

With Grace in mind, we put together four no-cook pasta sauces for Week Two in Summer Pantry. Most of the ingredients come straight from the cans, jars, bottles, and boxes sitting on your pantry shelves this very minute. No need to turn on the oven! Let’s keep the heat out of the kitchen and in rooms where hotness really belongs. First put love right on the dinner plate. Satisfying a tummy ignites happiness in the heart. Proudly serve a plate of pasta that will delight the pickiest eater in your house, or a James Beard Award-winning chef if one happens to drop by around dinnertime. 

P.S. Still time to sign up for the rest of our Summer Pantry series HERE, and you should because you never know what you will learn. More than the recipes!

Spaghetti with Tuna, Garlic, and Cream Sauce

Mix everything by hand to get a grainier, more interesting texture. Delicious with shell pasta! Seggiano is my favorite brand, carried by Whole Foods. The pasta has a rough surface to which the sauce can cling…

• 7-ounce can of tuna packed in olive oil, drained 

• 1 clove garlic, chopped fine

• 1 large bunch flat-leaf parsley, stems discarded, leaves chopped

• 4 tablespoons heavy cream

• 1 egg, lightly beaten

• 3 tablespoon butter, softened

• salt and black pepper in a grinder

• 1/2 cup freshly grated parmigiana, plus additional for the table

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add pasta and cook for about 9 minutes, or according to directions. 

2. Meanwhile, in a bowl, mash the drained tuna with a fork. Add garlic, parsley, cream, egg, butter, salt, liberal grindings of pepper, and 1/2 cup of grated cheese. Mix well until a creamy sauce emerges. Taste and correct with salt and pepper.

3. Drain pasta, toss immediately with tuna mixture, and serve at once.

Winter Week Four

The past week featured our three guest teachers from very different backgrounds sharing dozens of insider secrets and tips from their cultures:

• Youmna taught us how to make her mother-in-law's Morrocan Hrira. Youmna's trick with saffron, to get the most aromatics out of these pricey golden-orange threads? Rub them between your palms to release maximum perfume before putting into the recipe. Do as the Moroccans and serve something sweet like dates with this soup.

• Celeste learned how to make Party Pickles from the best teachers of all, her six grandparents. Celeste's healthy tip? Replace chips with crisp pickled cucumbers.

• Victoria says that in Spain, if something is cooked in a paella pan then it is paella. Paella is usually served for Sunday lunch. Fish stock cooks for 20 minutes; to make it golden, leave the onion skins in broth and add saffron.

Yet more accolades from the Academy's fabulous students:

• It was a pleasure seeing you again today! I just love your classes and the fact that I have two new recipes to serve. I look forward to taking more classes with you.

• Thanks Suzanne! Celeste was a great teacher. The pickles are delicious. It was a lot of fun.

• Paella is easy if you prep. and have Victoria de la Maza and the Charleston Academy as your teachers!

• Such fun to do this on a cold wintery day with a fire going in the kitchen too!

• That was so much fun! Always good to see new and familiar faces.

(It might be time to start an Alumni Association…)

Don’t skip class during the last two weeks of school! We still have plenty of lessons to learn. Have you ever wondered about the art of napkin folding, how to make the best New England chowder or a magical tagine? Satisfy those three wonderings next week — find more details & registration links HERE.

Week Three Takeaways

Here’s we learned at the Charleston Academy during the past week of Winter 2021 classes:

Besides spending time together, having fun, creating fabulous smells, getting dinner ready for tonight and tomorrow, we are also connecting kitchen to kitchen and making our worlds a friendlier place. Hang out with us to add sparkle and substance to your week. (Spots are still open for the last three weeks of winter semester — Register HERE!)

Lebanese Lentil Soup - The secret to making the soup extraordinary? 

Guest teacher Youmna Squalli says to always, always rinse the lentils and rice three times. I was a witness; the water ran clear the third time. This soup is light, fresh, fantastic. Next week Youmna takes us to Morocco for Hrira, a whole meal in a bowl!

Dinner Party Strategy - Are Covid dinner parties possible, even fun?

Why yes, they are! Last minute invitations are often the best. People who come are in the mood. Outside parties are cool, literally and figuratively. Consider buying a heated vest which charges on your pocket phone charger. Serve heart-warming food to keep bodies from cooling temperatures (i.e. dishes from Weeks One and Two: bowls of gumbo, cassoulet, onion soup or bolognese…or perhaps some from future classes: paella, tagine, chowder, shepherd's pie.)

Ragu Bolognese - How do you turn a fabulous sauce into pasta perfection? 

Toss the drained (best quality) pasta into the simmering ragu sauce. Then add just a little softened butter plus a little bit of freshly grated parmesan cheese. Toss together until mixed. Serve immediately with extra freshly grated cheese to pass. 

What are people saying about Week Three?

• Thank you for the Academy — I love your online classes and how you share your many talents. You’re a gem!

• These classes are a delight!

• I love these classes so much! I’m already in another Zoom — crazy day!

• My house smells amazing and cannot wait until 6 pm!!!

• What a lovely way to spend the afternoon.

• Thank you so much for today's dinner party class! Really fun and inspirational!

• I took two pages of notes. THANK YOU!

Winter 2021 - Week Two!

Credit: Niki Nero Photography

Here’s what we learned this past week:

• French Onion Soup - How many onions do you need? So many that it looks like too many. Not to worry! They will shrink like your favorite dress washed in hot water, to 1/8th of their total volume. Slow cooked onions are not shrinking violets, they will taste extraordinary. They do not need to be cooked to a deep mahogany brown. You can but be careful towards the end so you don’t burn the caramelized onions. The flavor comes when the onions turn golden brown, even pale golden is delicious. Golden brown is the sweet spot. 

• Setting the Table - What didn't we learn from our international guest teacher, Victoria de la Maza? She covered it all: where to sit, who & when to sit them, when to drink, what to bring (or not to bring) as a hostess gift, how to deal with allergies, high heels, even cooking dresses! The questions varied. Where should the host (a participant from Bangkok) have sat the Duke and Duchess when he entertained them in England? As a guest, should you tell your host all the things you are allergic to, or simply bring your own food? How to shut someone down who spouts off about politics, sex or religion? Victoria knew all the answers! 

• Gumbo - Gumbo is a complex, not too spicy, spectacular dinner party food. Food with personality is like an invisible dinner guest, one who adds substance and fun, giving people something to talk about without being high maintenance. The host does not have to attend to the gumbo once guests arrive. While you chat with guests in the other room, the gumbo is wafting through with her perfume of many flavors subtly creating a tasty, anticipatory vibe.  Once ladled in bowls she demands to be center stage. This particular gumbo can handle being the center of attention just like Lady Gaga with that fabulous dove brooch on Wednesday.

Here’s what students had to say:

• “Amazing fun to be with so many interesting people from all over…equally amazing to enjoy the process with anticipation for my executing later when my schedule is not slammed as is just now.”

• Your classes inspire me to cook out of my comfort zone.”

• “Thank you for another fabulous class. I am really loving learning how to cook like a chef. We had the gumbo for dinner and it was DELICIOUS. I can't wait for COVID to pass so I can have a dinner party and serve this. Both you and your classes are AMAZING. I don't know if I enjoy your personality or the class itself more.”

• “It was a momentous hour. I learned SO much. I have never poached a whole chicken and I can’t believe the flavor of the broth after only an hour. Pulling the meat off the bones feels like what a ‘real chef’ does!”

And here’s on the front burner for next week:

• TUES. - Lebanese Lentil Soup (from a fabulous expert guest teacher, Youmna Squalli, born and raised in Tripoli, Lebanon.)

• WEDS. - Dinner Party Strategy

• THUR. - Bolognese 

Reserve your spot HERE!

"Baking with Barbara " for J. McLaughlin Blog

“‘Tis the season for homemade challah! Grounded in ancient Jewish tradition, this gorgeously glossy braided bread graces the Chanukah table—and then makes the most wonderful French toast and grilled cheese sandwiches. While there are lots of places in New York to buy great challah, including Eli’s Market on Third Avenue on the Upper East Side, there’s something special about making a loaf from scratch.

To prepare for the all-important holiday baking season, Barbara McLaughlin and her daughter Madeline signed up for Carbs 101, an online class at the Charleston Academy of Domestic Pursuits. Taught by Barbara’s friend Suzanne Pollak, founder of the Academy, professional baker and cookbook author, the classes are the next best thing to being in Suzanne’s cozy kitchen in Charleston, not far from our J. McLaughlin store on King Street….”

Read more about Barbara & Madeline’s adventures baking challah with Suzanne, and find a recipe for making loaves of your own this Holiday season, via J. Mc Laughlin’s blog HERE!

Crush Thanksgiving

Bake the best pie on the block. Choose a different fruit this year, because…well, everything is different. So why shouldn’t dessert be too? Pear Pie is delicious, surprising and has the added benefit of getting tastier by the day. So you can bake on Tuesday and then you’ll have at least one Thanksgiving task crossed off your list. Music to our ears! Just be sure to keep pie away from spouses, family pets, and others for 48 hours to serve at Thanksgiving dinner. Save a piece for Friday breakfast.

Another tip? Let’s do what the Queen of American Cuisine, Julia Child, did. The lady who taught your mom or grandmother all about cooking was nothing if not practical. She served Goldfish with reverse martinis at her Thanksgiving. No one can question Julia. (If something stronger appeals to your tiny crowd think about the utmost of classic cocktails: the Old Fashioned.)

Pssst…still a couple of spots left in Pie Pastry class this Saturday at 10:00 AM EST. Grab a spot to learn a new Thanksgiving dessert plus a lifetime skill that will keep on giving. Sign up HERE!

Making the World Better, One Bite at a Time

According to Dorothy Parker: Eternity is a ham and two people. I thought about Ms Parker when I made a pecan pie yesterday. (Because this is officially Pie Pastry Week at the Academy, I have half a dozen pastries just waiting to be filled.) I found myself thinking, What the hey hey (as my six year old grandson Owen says) am I doing making a pecan pie when I live by myself? Is this the definition of loneliness for eternity? NO! it is the definition of opportunity. After devouring a piece last night and another with coffee for breakfast, I still have six slices to share.

Everyone can agree on a pie. A couple of slices shared can be a delightful and powerful way to start conversation, to perhaps begin the work of connecting across the spectrum of beliefs. No matter how people with fundamentally different backgrounds think, how they voted or with whom they identify; when sharing a pie or making one together in class, everyone gets along just fine. So let’s make the world a little better one bite at a time!

There are still a couple of spots left in our Carbs 101 classes over the next few weeks…sign up HERE.

One Action Dinners, Part Three

One Action: OPEN YOUR LIQUOR CABINET. 

Cook with gin, vermouth, tonic, bitters & more. Those bottles can do more than fill cocktail glasses. Let the elixirs flavor your dinner food, too. Last week’s Academy project (finding fun anyway possible) was cooking with booze, using tablespoons and cups, not shot glasses. Still consuming alcohol but with emphasis on creativity and sophistication. The alcohol gets burned off so dinner is still child friendly. And the aromas are divine, as Mae West might say... 

Beefeaters & Beef

Beefeaters is more than a foundation for martinis and G&T’s! Smooth, silky and juniper scented, gin and beef is a marriage made in a pan. Sauté salted and peppered ribeyes over high heat. When steak is almost to your liking, pour in the gin and turn down the heat. Add a couple tablespoons of butter. While the gin and butter swirl together, turn the steak over a couple of times in the sauce. Remove steak to cutting board, slice, plate and pour gin sauce over steak slices while the juniper aromas are still strong.

Vermouth & Quail

The Vermouth bottle has been getting a workout. And when friends drop off quail, I quail with delight. After a quick flour dusting, sauté the birds in olive oil over medium high heat. When browned on one side, flip over. After both sides are brown, pour in vermouth. (our new favorite is Dolin.) Simmer until quails are cooked, throw in a tablespoon or two of butter, fresh thyme leaves, coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper. Done!

Vermouth & Savory Scones

When making ham and cheese scones (no yeast required) add equal parts vermouth to crème fraîche along with enough butter to satisfy fat requirements. To find out more, schedule a virtual scone class at the Academy.

Tonic’s Many Uses

Besides delivering a tiny hit of quinine, that lovely bitterness that mixes so well in cocktails, tonic can be whisked into flour (to the consistency of sour cream) making a batter for fried zucchini slices. Even children enjoy these green vegetables enclosed in crisp. After turning golden brown in very hot oil and draining on paper towels, use a generous hand when sprinkling coarse salt over the fried pile, because salt is a taste accelerator. 

Don’t forget the bitters lurking in your refrigerator…

Who doesn’t love nuts? Add a healthy dose of Angostura when you make spicy nuts. 

Roast 2 cups of unsalted nuts — a mixture of nuts is especially yummy — at 350 degrees for 10 minutes. Combine 1 tablespoon of Angostura bitters, 1 tablespoon brown sugar, 1 tablespoon honey, 1 tablespoon butter, 1 tablespoon chopped rosemary, 1/2 teaspoons of cayenne pepper and cinnamon and finally, 3 teaspoons of coarse salt. Mix with warm nuts. Serve with cocktails. Reheat extras for tomorrow and the next day and the next…or toss in a salad for crunch.

And desserts love liquor too.

You can flambé, scent, and build flavors with booze. Flame Bananas Foster with rum, make Grand Marnier or dry curaçao souffles, add tablespoons of sweet vermouth to macerate fresh strawberries for shortcake. 

Inquire about Academy classes to learn these techniques & other spiritual matters. During the past few weeks we have learned how to hold your hand, guide you step by step, answer all questions and even look into your cabinets, examining mixing bowls and knives. Real learning takes place when you do all steps on your own!  It’s not watching and wishing. It’s watching, doing, producing and tasting, together. Best of all, it’s hanging out with your friends and completing an activity!

One Action Dinners, Part Two

Less equals more, that’s what we are learning. We know what we do not need, what we can live without, and what we can do that we didn’t realize before. We might be discovering that the simplest dinner ever can be soul satisfying. The children might be happy with macaroni and butter but you need some fiber and greens.

One Action Dinners are simple. The one action might be brushing olive oil on a vegetable. Something delicious awaits you about an hour later. Sixty minutes to sit back, feel proud, drink a cocktail or finish a work project, know that you will be fed, and soon!

By the way, who said dinner had to be a meat and three? No it doesn’t! Sometimes one is enough. Kids might not like all of these, but you will. (Because…health.)

• Huge baked sweet potato - 425-degree oven for 1.5 hours, served with salted butter and sour cream and plenty of S&P.

• A pound of veggies - cut up & marinated in olive oil and any spices you’d like, grilled until charred. 

• Roasted red cabbage - slice, toss with olive oil and place in a 400-degree oven for an hour. Sprinkle in some caraway seeds and S&P. (Some cabbage slices get crispy, others are soft, all delicious and a little different.)

• Crispy potato pancake - thinly slice peeled white potatoes, toss with olive oil, arrange in an overlapping circle, sprinkle with S&P and bake for 1 hour at 425. What you want is golden brown crispness. This potato cake is addictive. If you want two actions, serve with a poached egg. 

• Fennel bulb - cut lengthwise into fourths, add oil and salt, roast for an hour at 425. Toss with fronds before serving. Served hot, warm or room temperature for a very pleasing dinner.

• Broccoli rabe - toss with olive oil, sprinkle with S&P, roast for 30 minutes at 400. 

For a change in pace — when you feel like doing two things and have some farm vegetables a neighbor left at your door — melt a little butter in a pan and sauté spring onion bulbs (white parts cut lengthwise in half) until lightly browned, and their delicate onion-y smell fills the kitchen. Then throw in a few snap peas and add tablespoon or so of heavy cream. While the mixture simmers, get a plate, fork, S&P and DONE! Dinner is simple and simply delicious.

What to do with leftovers? Add in pasta, rice or salads for yet another One Action delight.

The Art of Biscuits

Photo by Landon Neil Phillips 2016

THE ART OF BISCUITS 

Carbs make people feel better, that is by now a well-covered fact. Another current fact is that yeast is difficult to find. The first and foremost beauty of the biscuit is no yeast is required.

Find the Academy’s best Biscuit recipe HERE and CONTACT to schedule a virtual class with the Dean on this or any other subject under the domestic sun…

The Beauty of Biscuits

Oh, what the mighty little biscuit can do if you just ask him. He serves a purpose all day long. What other food can bring satisfaction all day, every day? Especially something so easy to make?

• Breakfast biscuits - split (never cut) and slathered with marmalade or honey. 

• Lunch - split and covered with gravy from fried or roasted chicken.

• Herb biscuits - fresh herbs either folded in dough or stuffed inside. A version of a salad. 

• Tea time - wipe heavy cream on top, sprinkle a lot of sugar on top, and Voilá!  You have a version of scones. (You could even add dried fruit if you are feeling fancy.)

• Cocktail hour - ham biscuit with lots of cheese and/or freshly ground black pepper in dough. Hot mustard optional.

• Don’t forget about dessert! Split and serve with strawberries and freshly whipped cream.

See below for recipe adjustments...

The Beauty of Biscuits Part 2

Perfect to make ahead the morning of, the day before, the month before — simply freeze and bake as needed. It's called being Ready for Anything.

The Beauty of Biscuits Part 3

Not daunting to make if you follow instructions and learn to handle the dough 'til it resembles a baby’s bottom. Practice a few times and you will become as good as Bash, the Biscuit Baby, Academy alum.

Why I came up with my particular recipe:

The first time I tasted a croissant, visiting Europe from Africa, my head spun! I fell in love for life. I’d never tasted anything as light and airy as a croissant. However, as love affairs tend to do, I became a prisoner. I skipped school for two days and made croissants. I promise, if you are learning to bake croissants, even now, you are planning to open a French bakery. They are so hard it’s unbelievable. There is a great probability they will turn into hockey pucks. 

Biscuits will not. I never had a biscuit until I moved South. My head spun once more. They are friendly, probably because they are not as sophisticated and as haughty as the elegant croissant. Croissants are the couture pastry. I took what I learned during my croissant cooking try and added that to biscuit making. 

Only takes 8 - 10 minutes to bake so bake them fresh. 

The Pleasure Biscuits Bring

To see your loved ones happy and smiling when they first smell the baking, then bite into the biscuit is the greatest pleasure; to say nothing of your own satisfaction later when everyone wonders where all the biscuits have gone and you can tell them matter-of-factly, Straight to your stomachs.

Biscuit Basics

What to use if you can get it:

• Use full fat buttermilk

• Use European style butter.

• Any kind of flour - I have made 1,000,000,000 biscuits. White Lily is good and so is King Arthur’s unbleached white. King Arthur has a little more structure, While Lily, sort of similar to cake flour, is a little softer. What can I say? I like structure in everything. 

Alternatives when your grocery store is out of buttermilk:

• Sweet milk - biscuits made with whole milk.

• Yoghurt or sour cream - fresh thyme leaves are super good in these!

• Heavy cream - more like scones. Add a cream wash and sugar to the top.

• Cheese - add 6 ounce any kind of cheese to the 3 cup flour biscuit & use 4 tablespoons of butter. Roll a little thinner, but not like a cracker. I like spicy with cheese but prefer freshly ground black pepper instead of cayenne. Split and stuff with country ham and hot mustard. These are delicious hot and at room temperature. 

• Sweet potato - add 1/2 cup mashed cold cooked sweet potatoes. Dough will be heavier so roll out thinner. Delicious taste and color.

A Kitchen Wears Many Hats

Natalie Wood by Martha Holmes, 1944.

In quarantine time the kitchen will serve as dining room, office, playroom, classroom, homework station, living room, winery, even penal colony. It’s a room that is integral to family life no matter the size of the family, one to a dozen. 

Exploit all its advantages. First off:

Order in the Kitchen!

Kitchens crave order. Having multiple people hanging out in the house day and night is a recipe for maximum mess and stress. Coats, backpacks, mail, needs to be put away. After classwork time the countertops need to be cleared to start the nightly dinner. And after dinner — we all know that dirty dishes do not improve with age, so get them done! The silver lining is NOW is the perfect time to reboot the responsibilities of all residents, from tiny to teetering on how to properly wash the dishes, fill and empty the dishwasher, sweep a kitchen floor and mop one too. Keeping the kitchen tidy is vital for mental stability. 

Kitchen Therapy  (Tackling the Frustration of Focusing) 

Your mind may may be all over the place, way worse than usual. It’s hard not to spin our wheels. One way to tame the wildness of the brain is to focus on skills. Bake biscuits, or a pie. These foods, while not slimming, make anyone everywhere feel better. The smell of a baking project perfumes a house and makes inhabitants feel comfortable and loved. And the recipes require attention. 

Another way of occupying your time is by organizing one pantry at a time, or even your cookbook shelf…

Kitchen Gym

Install an iron bar from one short wall to another, or in a corner near the ceiling. Use the bar to do pull ups. Even one, a half one, a fourth of one, will make you strong. And the time commitment? Two seconds. Unless you are superman and can do multiple. 

Time for Carbs

The fact is that carbohydrates are mood lifters. If you are cranky and exhausted — and who isn’t right now? — then don’t poo poo carbs. Give them a try!

When I was fifteen, I left Monrovia, Liberia, for boarding school in New Hampshire. I knew no one in this new country, new climate, my twelfth school in as many grades. Maybe to combat the stress of those changes, one Saturday morning I ate seventeen English Muffin halves. Everyone around me was astonished. Maybe it was a way to procrastinate school work, a way to meet new friends, or possibly just the allure of delicious melting butter in little muffin holes. But really I suspect I craved comfort and didn’t know where to find it. Carbs to the rescue!

When I was thirty I ran a bakery (illegally) out of my house. One hot seller were the English Muffins, all types: plain, raisin, spicy, cheese for hamburger night. I couldn’t keep up with the orders. So yesterday, in need of a mood enhancer, I remembered the English Muffin of long ago, which I haven’t enjoyed in years. I decided their time had returned. So in the spirit of spreading joy, lifting spirits, using my hands and trying to focus, I created a new type of English Muffin with what I found in my refrigerator. Buttermilk and sour cream.

For those of you who have not handled bread dough, the recipe might look long. Do not be alarmed! It is not done in one fell swoop, but in a few shorter steps. You can attend to other things during the process. If you need help, “Dial the Dean.” We are available for tutorials anytime. (Contact HERE to schedule.)

Buttermilk English Muffins

Makes 24

• 2 tablespoons active dry yeast

• 1 tablespoon sugar (or honey or molasses)

• 1/4 cup water

• 1 cup buttermilk 

• 1/3 cup sour cream

• Whole milk

• 4 cups flour

• 1-1/2 tablespoons coarse salt

• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter at room temp.

• Cornmeal

1. Combine yeast, sugar and water in the bowl of a standing mixer and let sit for about ten minutes, until the yeast has bubbled all over the surface of the water. 

2. Combine the buttermilk and sour cream in a two cup container. Add enough milk (preferably whole) to bring liquid up to 1-3/4 cups. Stir mixture into yeast and water. 

3. Add flour and salt and mix on low speed until dough consolidates. Throw in the butter, half tablespoons at a time, with the mixer running. When the mixture comes together, remove dough from the bowl and place on a floured counter.

4. Hand knead for ten minutes, or as long as you want. Kneading reduces stress, we promise! Knead until dough is no longer sticky. (If the dough is sticky, add a bit more flour on the counter and knead the dough on top to incorporate that flour.)

5. Wash and dry the bowl of the standing mixer. Place the dough into the bowl, cover with a dish towel and let sit at room temp. for an hour or two. When the dough has doubled in bulk, use a rubber spatula to scrape out of the bowl and back onto the cleaned counter. The dough will be sticky again and that is okay. (Alternatively, if you are busy and cannot attend to the dough till later, place the bowl of dough in the refrigerator where it can wait for up to two days).

6. Cover two rimmed baking sheets with cornmeal. Using a serrated knife or pastry scraper, cut dough into 24 pieces. Roll each piece into a ball. Place 12 balls, spaced apart, on each baking sheet. Using the heel of your hand, press each ball into a disk. Make sure the bottom of each muffin is sitting on plenty of cornmeal. 

7. While the muffins rise one more time (about 30 minutes) heat a few 9” sauté pans over low to low/medium heat. The muffins will be puffy after their rise. Carefully lift each muffin with a spatula and place four in each pan. The cornmeal will still be on the bottom of the dough. Cook each side for 9 minutes. If each side is not lightly brown, keep cooking for 2 -3 more minutes per side. (Alternatively, the muffins can be kept on the baking sheet, covered with plastic wrap, in the refrigerator overnight.)

8. Use a fork to halve the muffins, plunging the tines into their middles, then prying them apart into two. The muffins are now ready for their time in the toaster or under a broiler.  Use plenty of butter. Watch the smiles light up on faces around you, as order is restored in the emotional ecosystem.

One Action Dinners

We love Churchill’s Action This Day! campaign. He believed in getting the extreme priorities done daily. (Everything else was relegated to Report In Three Days...)

At the Academy, we take Churchill’s quote in a culinary direction because feeding people is an extreme priority. We like the idea of one step at a time towards delivering dinner tonight. Sometimes it’s too difficult to focus on more than a single action during times of distress.  

Know that some of the tastiest meals are the simplest. Here is a dinner menu made up of one action items, all delicious:

• Had Enough Cocktail - Pour soda water over ice. Sprinkle a few cocktail bitters on top. This is a perfect drink if you decide to reduce alcohol but still want the illusion of a cocktail.

• Roast Chicken - Liberally sprinkle the outside and inside with coarse salt, freshly ground pepper and Herbs de Provence. Stick chicken in 425-degree oven for 1.25 hours. Done!

• Fennel - Cut fennel bulb in quarters and save the fronds. Toss in oil. Place in 425-degree for 1.25 hours. No turning. To serve sprinkle the crispy roast fennel with S&P and lots of reserved fennel fronds. Delightful! 

• Sweet potato - Wash sweet potato. Put in 425-degree oven for 1.25 hours. Cut and let diners load potatoes with butter, creme fraiche, sour cream — any or all. Their choice! 

While looking through the fridge and figuring out what to make with what’s inside, remember that often the simplest things are the best.  Sometime all it takes is ten minutes and even less ingredients to deliver a meal you can proudly serve to anyone in need.

• Eggs + Butter = Omelette

• Jars of cherries + Angostura bitters = Old Fashioned

• Parmesan + Heavy cream + Fettuccine from the pantry = Alfredo

• Olives + Anchovies + Capers + Tomatoes + Spaghetti from the pantry = Spaghetti alla Puttanesca 

• Sour cream + Buttermilk + Herbs + Lemon = Dressing for a wedge of lettuce with crispy bacon

• Sour cream + Yogurt + Lemon zest and juice + Garlic = Creamy sauce for meats of all kinds…

@#$%&! #’s are difficult right now. Looking at a scale (going higher), looking at a bank account (tanking), all information that leads to even more numbers — faster heart rates. Let’s lower that beat by counting breaths, counting numbers in a recipe, counting projects to be done in the house and the times it takes to do them, counting how many times our children and other inhabitants living at home ask, ‘What is there to eat?’ (Actually don’t count that last one but the Academy has solutions for that too.) 

For all of us it comes down to one number, ONE. One step at a time, one day at a time, one problem solved at a time. But make that one into a smart choice. Make that into One Action Now.

'The Pasta Principle' for April VIE

“Hassan made pasta like an Italian grandmother, with a mound of flour and an egg in the middle. He rolled the dough into sheets like antique linens, so thin you could almost see through to the other side, with a texture that only a handmade object can obtain.

Hassan was my favorite person in a ll of Africa. He was our cook in Mogadishu, Somalia—the only real chef we hired while living in six countries over eighteen years, and he was an expert at feeding an entire family….”

Read more about Hassan and achieving the perfect pasta at home (plus why it’s worth all the effort) in the latest issue of VIE Magazine HERE!

The Ultimate Leftovers

In the unlikely, lovely, & extraordinary event a half tin of leftover caviar lies in your kitchen, the Academy knows exactly what to do with it! Caviar soufflés! Caviar soufflés are beyond delicious, delightful, deluxe, and completely do-able. Thank you to retired Academy Dean Lee Manigault for being the bearer of those magnificent tiny black beads.

Recipe serves 4.

• 3 tablespoons unsalted butter plus 1 tablespoon butter softened

• 3 tablespoons Parmesan

• 1/4 cup flour

• 3/4 cup whole milk

• 2 ounces crème fraîche

• 1/2 teaspoon sea salt

• 1/2 teaspoon white pepper

• 7 medium egg yolks

• 9 medium egg whites

• 6 ounces goat cheese

1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Butter four 1-cup soufflé dishes with 1 tablespoon softened butter. Sprinkle Parmesan cheese inside each dish.

2. Melt the butter over medium-low heat. Whisk in the flour to make a roux, whisking continuously for 2 to 3 minutes. (Use a flat whisk made especially to get into the corners of the pan.) Stirring constantly, slowly add the milk. Whisk until the sauce is thick. Add the crème fraîche, salt and pepper, whisk and remove from heat. Whisk in the egg yolks and stir in the cheese.

3. Using an electric mixture, beat the egg whites and a pinch of salt at medium-high speed until frothy. Increase speed to high until stiff peaks form. With a rubber spatula, fold one quarter of the whites into the yolk base until no streaks remain. Then fold in the rest of the egg whites, being careful not to over-blend. A few white streaks are fine…

4. Spoon the mixture into the prepared dishes. Smooth the surface with a spatula. Bake in the bottom third of the oven until golden brown, about 30 minutes. Serve at once. Pass a bowl of crème fraîche and the tin of caviar to be spooned individually by each lucky guest into their soufflés.

Mason Jar Gifts

Homemade gifts are often the loveliest presents because who really needs one more thing?

A gift made in your kitchen can become everyone’s most anticipated present, especially if given on an annual basis. Why not start a signature gift that becomes your holiday offering to loved ones near & far? Make sure it is super delicious and include directions on how to use...

For ten years, I gave mason jars filled with homemade mincemeat from James Beard’s tremendous recipe. Recipients can make mince pies in fifteen minutes and serve a holiday dessert that tastes like Christmas distilled.

These days I give jars of George Washington’s punch, an extraordinary concoction of alcohols mixed and blended, smooth as velvet. The punch can be served in two ways: poured into a punch bowl (complete with ice ring) and topped with two bottles of champagne at a holiday party, or individually as the world’s best Old Fashioned. Just add a bit of soda water and an orange slice. Divine!

Another mason jar gift which is a tasty treat all year long is Alison Roman’s granola. The Academy’s adopted version (adding whole nuts and coconut, subtracting buckwheat) pairs exceptionally well with the Handbook as a hostess gift for your nearest & dearest...

A non-mason jar homemade never to be forgotten gift is a Buche de Noel. If you are lucky enough to be invited to a Christmas Eve or Day dinner, consider arriving with a Buche (but do tell the host in advance.) I had a friend who gave large annual holiday buffets for years, and I always showed up with two Buche de Noels. This year I am making two again, one for Christmas Eve and one for Christmas Dinner. Sometimes you can’t get enough of a good thing.

Great A Little a Today is Pancake Day

Besides tea and liqueur, another favorite liquid we must not forget is BUTTERMILK.

Ol’ Blue Eyes at breakfast…

Sometimes a plate of buttermilk pancakes are the most comforting thing in the world: a message of love from the person manning the frying pan to the one sitting at the table waiting to be fed. When my children were little every Saturday was pancake day and I woke them up singing the silly nursery rhyme Great a Little a Today is Pancake Day. Once they went to boarding school they all began to hate pancakes because those were pale, limp, reheated — and who can love those? What a shame!

A plate of pancakes should be golden crispy on the outside, soft on the inside, not too big so that the ratio of outer edge crispy to inside soft can be enjoyed in every bite, teamed up with sautéed fruit (pears, apples or peaches) and crispy thick bacon, served with warm excellent maple syrup to drizzle on top. It’s the perfect weekend breakfast, and even the best hotels in the world cannot make pancakes to match yours at home. Why? Because first, pancakes must be served the minute they are ready.

The trick to making fantastic pancakes is to melt lots of butter over medium or medium high heat (depending on the thickness, thicker pancakes use medium heat) until butter is very bubbly, but not yet browned. Drop tablespoons (1-3 per pancake) then leave alone until small bubbles cover the entire top and you can see the edges start to crisp. That’s the time to flip them over and leave for a minute or so. Plate immediately. Do not wait! Either give one or two to each waiting person at the kitchen table, or else a stack to one person while the others gaze impatiently and sip their coffee and juice in anticipation. Pancakes are a kitchen meal, not dining room food, because they need to go from pan to plate to stomach as fast as possible, giving maximum pleasure to the taste neurons.

The butter and bacon have to be of the best possible quality. Don’t do this on the cheap; you’ll only be saving a couple of bucks and let me tell you the taste difference is huge, from an OMG reaction to no comment at all. Add freshly squeezed OJ, and really delicious coffee or tea. 

Do not buy low fat buttermilk either. Forget about that junk. Choose the whole milk buttermilk or even one with extra butter if you can find it. For goodness sake, we are talking four to six pancakes for one special breakfast. Hardly enough dairy or flour to upset anyone! My favorite houseguest years ago ate over 20 in one sitting. I loved that kid. And then there was Shannon the Marine, who loved the pancakes with sautéed pears. He told my son when he was in Afghanistan that he used to dream of those pancakes I made him especially when he missed America. Isn’t that what it’s all about?

One Pan Wonder

Moms are the masters of cooking with only one pan (and only one arm!) Photo: Elliot Erwitt c. 1955.

What is so great about one pan meals? For starters, one word: EASY to make and to clean up!

Beyond that, one pan is a way to train the brain to become free from distraction and endless chatter. Use this type of cooking to remain razor focused for a short period of time instead of multi tasking with too many pots and other problems. The job at hand, whatever is going on in one single pan, is all that is important, at least for the moment. Before putting pot to fire, stow away your cell phone, set the table, organize the mise en place, warn your family to be ready to sit when called.

Lastly, limiting yourself to one pan frees you from a deluge of too many options, giving you a chance to get creative! Cooking is really fun when you riff and listen to your intuition. What is your stomach telling you? What is calling you from the aisles of the produce section?* One pan cooking is about following your likes and your mood, using a recipe as a guide rather than a rule book… 

Steak and Veg. for Two

• thin steaks, sliced 1/4 inch thick, edges notched to keep from curling

• 1 raw potato, peeled and cut into small cubes

• 1 red pepper, sliced

• handful of mushrooms, sliced

• 2 cloves garlic, crushed

• coarse salt, freshly ground black pepper

• fresh oregano (leaves removed from the stems)

• olive oil

Choose a skillet large enough to hold the steaks in a single layer. Pour in just enough olive oil to barely coat the bottom of the pan. Heat the skillet over high heat until smoking hot. Cook the steak just long enough to brown on one side, then turn over and season with salt and pepper. Do Not Over Cook! 3 minutes on one side, 2 to 3 on the other, for rare. Transfer steaks to a plate to rest. Add a tablespoon or more of olive oil. When hot put the potatoes in. Leave the potatoes alone until crispy brown on one side, turn, then add the peppers, mushroom and garlic. Sauté for a few minutes until all ingredients are crisp and tender when pierced with the tip of a knife. Sprinkle with salt, pepper and oregano and place vegetables next to steaks. 

*Don’t give up on physical visits to the grocery store. The benefit of walking up and down the aisles (instead of having everything delivered) is the opportunity for a spontaneous idea to spark while faced with a pyramid of potatoes, a deluge of favas, a mountain of shiitakes, or whatever else might be right in front of your eyes! Tonight’s dinner might take a left turn from what you thought you wanted. We know the ease of delivery: avoiding traffic, saving time, etc. etc. But still, there is something about a grocery store that is creative and even relaxing. All you are doing is planning for meals. Taking a toddler to a  grocery store is a learning experience that shouldn’t be missed.  (When my twins were small enough to sit in the front of the cart together, one twin picked up a tomato and took a bite of what he thought was an apple. Oops!)

Start a Project: PICKLES

Why not spend an afternoon making pickles? A pickling is not a big time commitment but still delivers huge rewards in the coming weeks. A refrigerator door lined with jars of homemade pickles is always worth opening — if only to admire, get a blast of cool air, and for the good feeling of being on top of your domestic game (at least for the moment.)

Here at the Academy, we choose refrigerator pickles because no canning or boiling is involved, and they are the definition of simplicity and tastiness. You will have brightly colored jars of tangy morsels to enhance any plate of food, adding a touch of something handmade to your meal.  Smart parents know that the pickle is one way to introduce stronger flavors to the pickiest eaters on earth, most under the age of fifteen.

Pickled Mushrooms

Ingredients:

• 1 pound white, cremini, bella or shiitake mushrooms (cleaned with paper towels to remove dirt)

• 1 tablespoon olive oil

• 3 teaspoons coarse salt

• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar

• 4 garlic cloves

• a few branches fresh thyme, marjoram and parsley, leaves removed from stems

• 1 tablespoon honey

• freshly ground black pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Combine mushrooms with oil and 1 1/2 teaspoon salt. Roast in a roasting pan for about 10 minutes. The mushrooms will give off a liquid. Drain in a colander. 

2. Combine the vinegar, garlic, thyme, marjoram, parsley, honey, pepper and 1 1/2 teaspoon salt and mix well. Add the warm mushrooms and stir. Chill the mushrooms in the refrigerator until cold, about an hour. Transfer to mason jars. Seal tightly and refrigerate. 

3. Storage: The pickles will keep for at least a month in the refrigerator.