June 12, 2013 | 9:00 am

Chef Jeff Salad [Recipe]

Posted by Elana Horwich

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This salad is named after world class chef Jeff Thickman of Florence, Italy. He is a family friend and was in town this week. I invited him, his partner Igor and friend Lissy down to Santa Monica and was planning on treating them to Shutter’s for lunch and a view. Last minute they said they didn’t want to go out and preferred to eat at my house.

Great. My mentor, my hero, personal chef to Zubin Mehta who has cooked for the likes of Clinton and Sting, was coming over for lunch and I had nothing in the house to eat! This is often when the best food comes to form: necessity is the mother of all invention apparently.

Needless to say they all loved it, thank God. What makes this particular salad special are the celery leaves and mint, both like background instruments that played perfectly into the harmony of the main dish.

Ironically, the celery had been in my fridge for weeks and was well on its way to wilting, hence I used only the leaves. The mint was not in the best of shape either, but chopped up no one knew the difference. Please note that the tuna was Italian tuna packed in olive oil (from Costco, mind you) and is actually much, much better than even the best water packed stuff. Though I dressed the salad with only olive oil, lemon and salt, I did serve some tzatziki on the side, which I realize that only cooking teachers happen to have on hand in the fridge. But let me tell you, though not necessary, with the tzatziki – double yum.

June 10, 2013 | 9:00 am

Popcorn Cauliflower [Recipe]

Posted by Elana Horwich

There’s not much to spiel about here except that when I was researching online to find out what temperature other cooks used to roast cauliflower, to my dismay I found that most put too much “stuff” in their recipes. Cauliflower already has a unique flavor and, when roasted, the slightly sweetish burnt-ish caramelization comes forth so beautifully that I can’t imagine adding garlic, cumin, chili pepper or whatever else in god’s name people tend to use to overpower, and hence ruin, this delicious vegetable. (I’m sure others disagree, in fact I know they do.) Let the cauliflower take center stage. It requires no more than olive oil, salt and pepper. The fresh lemon juice at the end will lighten the dish and send your taste buds into fervent applause.

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June 5, 2013 | 9:00 am

Simple Couscous with Quickest Homemade Broth [Recipe]

Posted by Elana Horwich

Chances are if you are serving couscous, you are making something else that has onions in it. Well, save those onion peels...the outer layer and the skins. They have great flavor. Scrounge up some celery, a carrot, something green like a bay leaf or a piece of parsley and you'll take your simple couscous up a couple notches and make yourself feel like an actual person that knows what they are doing in the kitchen. If you are at the market anyway that day, buy some chicken necks as they are cheap and add great flavor to broths.

The STATS:
1 cup of dried couscous will feed about 4 people
2 cups of dried couscous will feed about 8 people.
etc.

The RATIOS:*
1 cup couscous NEEDS 1 ½ cups water or broth and ½ teaspoon salt**
2 cups couscous NEEDS 3 cups water or broth and 1 teaspoon salt**
3 cups couscous NEEDS 4 ½ cups water or broth and 1 ½ teaspoons salt**
etc.

*Sorry folks water ratios aren’t perfect, nor is life, so start with this and add more if you see you need it.

**Add a half teaspoon kosher salt for every extra cup of couscous.

Ingredients:
good for a medium pot of water, about 5 cups; double ingredients if making more broth

For BROTH

• peel and outer layers of an onion
• 1 carrot broken in two
• 1 stalk celery broken in two
• 1 bay leaf
• piece of parsley (optional)
• chicken necks 1, 2 or 10 (optional)

For COUSCOUS

• salt
• extra virgin olive oil
• couscous
• water
• Fill a medium pot with water and set over a high flame.
• Add the vegetables, herbs and chicken if using.
• Cover and let boil for 10 minutes or more.
• Place couscous in a baking dish, sprinkle with appropriate amount of salt.
• Drizzle with some olive oil, about a teaspoon per cup of couscous. (*Watch video on how to choose the best olive oil.)
• Add the appropriate amount of hot broth.
• Cover with plastic wrap and let sit 15 minutes.
• Uncover and fluff with a fork before serving.

Great with my Chicken Tagine with Apricots and Prunes.

Want to take cooking classes with Elana in Los Angeles? Go to mealandaspiel.com.

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June 3, 2013 | 9:00 am

Chicken Tagine with Apricots and Prunes [Recipe]

Posted by Elana Horwich

My definition of good food is that it makes you want to roll around on the floor shouting mammmmmmmma! This dish will make you want to roll around on the floor and shout grannnndmaaaaaaaaa! But this is NOT that bland and boiled grandma meal made from food that is two steps away from dying itself.

Enlivened with cinnamon and other warming spices, this chicken will embrace your heart in a way that will link you directly to the ubiquitous superhero grandma that we all know and feel, even if yours is buried ten feet underground. The grandma that loves you unconditionally even when you fail a test or hit your brother. The grandma that has a piece of candy in her purse for you at temple just when you thought you would die of boredom and starvation. The grandma that pinches your cheeks and tells you how beautiful you are even when those cheeks are covered in atrocious pimples. The grandma whose joy in life is you.

Grandma equals love. And so does this chicken.

Remember, love can be tasted so pour your heart in when you cook.

Ingredients:
for 3-5 people (this recipe can easily be doubled)

(Vigor Triggers: To read Health Benefits of each ingredient, click on it)

• 5 chicken thighs*, bone in, organic if possible
• 1 large onion - chopped
• Extra virgin olive oil - about 3 tablespoons
• 1 whole clove or a good pinch of ground cloves
• 2 teaspoons cinnamon
• ⅛ teaspoon cumin
• ⅛ teaspoon turmeric
• ⅛ teaspoon ginger
• ½ cup dried apricots (sulfur-free, Turkish apricots if possible)
• ½ cup pitted prunes
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ground pepper
• ½ cup Basic Chicken Broth or vegetable broth, preferably homemade

*If you prefer to use some white meat, have the butcher cut breasts in half to have smaller pieces. Add more liquid to the pot, about another ½ cup.

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Place a tagine, dutch oven or heavy cooking pot that can go both on the stove and in the oven over a medium flame. (buy here)
3. Pour in enough olive oil to coat the bottom of the pan.
4. Add spices to olive oil and let cook for about a minute, but not much more or you can risk burning spices.
5. Place the chicken pieces in, skin side down, and cook for a few minutes on each side. (You are trying to brown the chicken which is good for flavor and appearance. The cinnamon and other spices do some of that for you.)
6. Remove the chicken temporarily to a plate.
7. Add the onion and sauté for about 5 minutes.
8. Return the chicken to the pot skin side up and add the dried fruit.
9. Sprinkle salt.
10. Pour in water or broth.
11. Use a wooden spoon or tongs to cover the chicken a little bit with the onions and fruit.
12. Cover the tagine or dutch oven and place in oven for 1 hour.
13. Do a little dance, take a little nap, call someone and tell them that you love them. This chicken is worth the slow-cooking.
14. Remove chicken from oven and place again over medium flame. Uncover.
15. Use your wooden spoon to smash the fruit a bit so it becomes part of the sauce. (You may want to remove the chicken as you do this, particularly if you have decided to use some white meat.) Allow to cook until juices thicken.
16. Return chicken to sauce and keep over low flame or in oven at 250°F until ready to serve.

Want to take cooking classes with Elana in Los Angeles? Go to mealandaspiel.com.

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May 29, 2013 | 9:00 am

Roberto’s Eggplant Parmigiana [Recipe]

Posted by Elana Horwich

This dish is named after Roberto Benabib, writer and producer of WEEDS. He and his wife Samantha, a college friend of mine, were my first daring clients. I delivered food twice a week to their love-filled home after the delivery of their baby Carolina. We had an initial consultation in which they got to tell me all that they liked to eat, and more importantly what they didn't like to eat.

Note to the unassuming: when preparing food for this kind of job, you need to think of foods that reheat well and are still just as good after the second time on the stove or in the oven.

Basically everything that I had in mind was exactly what they would not eat. Believe it or not, this was a blessing. It was an opportunity for me to work on new kinds of recipes. I set to work in my kitchen testing out turkey meatballs that never touched a hot oiled skillet, salmon crisped in the oven and then cooked in a puttanesca sauce, and ultimately this baked-not-fried eggplant parmigiana.

Now let me be very clear: I never liked eggplant parmigiana. I found it too heavy. It has even made me feel nauseous at times. (Of course no Italian can believe this; they all tell me I have never eaten a proper one. I think I just don’t like fried foods with sauce and cheese.)

I am not sure how I came up with the idea to make Roberto and Samantha a baked eggplant parmigiana, but I am pretty sure that as a perennially disappointed connoisseur of the stuff, I was the right person to work on an eggplant parm that would be both light and delicious. I figured that the eggplant slices could be lightly breaded and could be baked instead of fried easily enough. I imagined them with a sweet-ish, tangy-ish tomato basil sauce, parmigiano reggiano and then mozzarella only on the top layer, as to not weigh the whole thing down with melted cheese. It worked, with fireworks on top. This became Roberto's favorite dish and we made sure there was one waiting for him each week.

So anyway, dear Roberto, this one is for you...

 

Ingredients:
serves 4 hungry people, recipe can easily be doubled

(Vigor Triggers: To read Health Benefits of each ingredient, click on it)

• an 8x8" glass or earthenware baking dish (buy here)
• 3 large dark purple eggplants
• 3 organic eggs
• 3 cups panko breadcrumbs
• about 4-5 ounces (three big handfuls) grated parmigiano reggiano (*see note)
• 1 large "ball" of good water packed mozzarella, buffalo mozzarella, or burrata
• 1 recipe for Simple Basic Tomato and Basil Sauce, at room temperature

*Note: it is imperative that you use parmigiano reggiano, the imported Italian cheese available at specialty shops, Whole Foods, Trader Joes, and even Costco. If you use parmesan, you are opting for a cheap American version of the real thing...and since this recipe has so few ingredients, the quality of the cheese is paramount to its success. (Watch video: Meal and a Spiel on Parmigiano Reggiano)

1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.
2. This is my easy way to cut the eggplant: cut off the green top of the eggplant. Cut the eggplant in half horizontally so you can have each half stand easily upright on your cutting board. Now, seeing the eggplant as a square, go ahead and cut off the skin on two opposite sides so you will have an eggplant that has skin on two sides and not on the other two. Starting on a naked side, with eggplant standing upright, slice it into 1/3 - 1/2 inch slices, each will have skin on the sides. Continue with the rest.
3. Lightly beat the eggs in a shallow bowl.
4. Put the panko in another shallow bowl.
5. One by one dip each slice of eggplant in the eggs to cover and then dip in the panko to cover and place on the baking sheet.
6. Bake for 12 minutes. Some pieces will be mushier or less cooked than others. This is ok. Let eggplant cool.
7. In the baking dish, lightly cover the bottom with tomato sauce. Layer with eggplant, followed by another light layer of sauce, followed by a generous sprinkling of parmigiano. (Trick: I use a Le Creuset rubber kitchen brush to paint the tomato sauce into every crevice. You can shop for this item here.)
8. Continue until you have three layers of eggplant, making sure you finish with tomato sauce and then parmigiano.
9. Cut the mozzarella in slices or shred with your hands and place on the top.
10. Bake uncovered for 35-40 minutes or until very bubbly.

Want to take cooking classes with Elana in Los Angeles? Go to mealandaspiel.com.

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May 27, 2013 | 8:59 am

Rosemary Spiked Cannellini Crostini [Recipe]

Posted by Elana Horwich

I became an expert at making this dish in my first years in Rome when my pocketbook was nearly always empty (no complaints on my side, I was a bartender thousands of miles away from the traditional life everybody expected of me and couldn’t have been happier) and when my curiosity to experiment with the marvels of Italian ingredients was always full. At the time we had a pressure cooker in the apartment that I shared with anywhere from 4 to 8 other (mostly French) foreigners at any given time depending on who had fallen in love or who had visitors in town. With the pressure cooker I made the cannellini starting with dried beans that I soaked overnight. Naturally, using dried beans and cooking them for hours is definitely optimal, but I have found that using a good can or even better, a glass jar of store-bought cannellini is still quite good, much much quicker and far easier. Once atop a piece of good crusty and toasted garlic-rubbed ciabatta bread and doused with some fruity extra virgin olive oil, any guests you invite to share them will never know how much you didn’t slave in the kitchen. I usually serve it as an appetizer but this dish, even just the rosemary cannellini without the bread, also makes a wonderful side for a grilled steak and green salad.

Ingredients:

for 3-4 people

(Vigor Triggers: To read Health Benefits of each ingredient, click on it)

• 1 can cannellini beans*, drained

• 2 whole garlic cloves smashed with side of knife + 1 whole garlic clove to rub on bread

• 2-3 small branches of rosemary (a total of 7 inches or so)

• a dash of red pepper flakes

• 1 shallot, finely chopped

• 1 just ripe tomato (vine ripened preferred), coarsely chopped

• salt

• freshly ground pepper

• ciabatta or other crusty thick Italian or country style bread (not baguette), sliced thick

• extra virgin olive oil

​

1. Light a medium flame under a heavy skillet for several minutes.

2. Add olive oil to coat the bottom, the dash of red pepper flakes, the shallots, and the two smashed cloves of garlic, making sure the garlic never burns or gets too brown.

3. Once the garlic and the shallots are translucent, a couple minutes, add the rosemary and tomato and mix around to coat them well in the oil and juices.

4. Add the drained cannellini, a healthy sprinkling of salt and a few generous grinds of the pepper mill.

5. Mix gently and regularly to make sure beans do not stick to the bottom. They will be done when tomatoes look cooked, most juices have evaporated and the beans are hot and taste good to you.

6. Adjust seasoning accordingly.

7. In the meantime, toast the bread in the oven on broil, turning the pieces until they just begin to brown on each side. With the last garlic clove, rub one side of each slice of bread - no need to over do it - and top with beans.

8. Plate the crostini and liberally drizzle olive oil on top. Serve and eat!

(Watch video on how to choose the best olive oil.)

*My favorite brand of canned cannellini is Carmelina Brands which comes in a bright yellow can. I find it at Whole Foods. I have to say that I was disappointed with the Trader Joes brand cannellini because they weren’t quite tender and creamy enough.

Want to take cooking classes with Elana in Los Angeles? Go to mealandaspiel.com.

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May 22, 2013 | 9:00 am

Here’s to You Mrs. Robinson Chicken Fingers [Recipe]

Posted by Elana Horwich

Seasoned with oregano, sage, rosemary and thyme...if you sing it the right way, pretending the oregano is really parsley, like I do, you have yourself a Simon and Garfunkel tune while you cook.

Anne Bancroft really deserves more than a finger food tribute but these are not quite unworthy of her affections and I am counting on the fact that while she is floating on a raft in an azure swimming pool up in heaven’s top hotel, with a wide brimmed hat and a long elegant cigarette, surrounded by teenage Adonises of the Olympian days, she will be pleased that she is still inspiring artwork, even if that artwork is chicken.

Oven-crisped, hence baked not fried, these chicken fingers are delicious due to the extra dosage of both herbs and pepper to give them a spicy kick. The trick is to cook them so the outside is crunchy and the inside is just done and very juicy. This is one of the few exceptions where I opt for white meat chicken and not thighs. In case you were wondering, I have tried these with whole wheat panko in attempts to make them a step healthier, but they were gross so that’s that.

Great as an appetizer, snack, main course, or platter for the guys watching sports so yours won’t finish the game fatter than when he started. Serve with dijon mustard if you like, though I eat them plain. I have served them to kids who devoured them, but for more picky kids for now you’re on your own. But working hard in my laboratory on a solution to that problem...

Ingredients:

(Vigor Triggers: To read Health Benefits of each ingredient, click on it)

• 1 ½ lbs. or 2 actual boneless, skinless chicken breasts - ask your butcher to slice them in half through the middle

• 1 ½ cups panko breadcrumbs

• 3 teaspoons dried thyme

• 1 teaspoon dried sage

• 1 teaspoon dried rosemary, crumbled with your fingers

• 1 teaspoon dried oregano

• 30 or more grinds of the pepper mill, a good tablespoon

• 1 ½ teaspoons salt

• 3 egg whites

• 1 teaspoon soy sauce or wheat free tamari*

• 1 generous tablespoon of dijon mustard

1. Preheat oven to 450°F and line a baking sheet with parchment paper.  

2. Using a kitchen scissors cut the breasts into tenders, some a little smaller and some a little bigger so some will be juicier and some crispier.

3. Put panko on a plate or in a shallow bowl.

4. Add the herbs, salt and pepper and mix around with hands.

5. In a separate shallow bowl, add the egg whites, dijon mustard and soy sauce. Stir with a fork to integrate as much as possible.

6. Take each piece of chicken and dip in egg mixture and then in breadcrumb mixture, making sure it is well coated with the herbed panko.

7. Place on the parchment-lined baking sheet. Continue until done.

8. Bake for 5-6 minutes, flip pieces over and bake for another 5-6 minutes. Taste. If lacking salt or pepper sprinkle some on top. Eat hot!

*Shop for specialty foods and hard to find ingredients here.

Want to take cooking classes with Elana in Los Angeles? Go to mealandaspiel.com.

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May 20, 2013 | 9:00 am

Spaghetti Al Cavolo Nero (Spaghetti with Black Kale) [Recipe]

Posted by Elana Horwich

Though kale is more commonly known as a staple of the California vegan hippy diet, the darker, flat leaf variety is actually a favorite ingredient unique to Tuscan cooking. If used properly, it will transport you to the rolling countryside of Siena, as this recipe does. However, when I make it with good brown rice pasta, I can invite both my discerning Italian friends and my picky health-nut peeps over to the same dinner party. Everybody is happy and feels they rubbed off on me well.

Ingredients: (for 4 people)

- 1 bunch lacinato or dinosaur kale (dark flat leaf, not the curly one)

- extra virgin olive oil - about 1/4 cup (*Watch video on how to choose the best olive oil.)

- 2 cloves garlic

- 1 large anchovy fillet, preserved in salt or oil (buy here)

- 1 pinch red pepper flakes

- 1 bigger pinch salt plus more for pasta water

- ½ ladle of water from pasta pot, plus more if needed to “bathe” kale

- parmigiano reggiano and/or pecorino romano (*Watch video: Meal and a Spiel on Parmigiano Reggiano)

- fresh ground black pepper

- 1 pound Italian semolina pasta or gluten-free brown rice pasta (Tinkyada - buy here)

 

1. Put a 6 qt pot of water on stove and cover.

2. Wash the kale and cut off the thick bottom part of the bunch - the bottom 4 inches at least.

3. Slice the rest of the bunch thinly, about 1/4 inch thick or so, and then cut the whole thing in half down the center so each piece is only half as long.

4. Cut the anchovy into tiny bits and set aside.

5. Set a heavy skillet over medium high heat and while it gets hot prepare the garlic.

6. Take the side of kitchen knife and smash the garlic down on a cutting board until the clove splits a bit and the skin is easy to peel off.

7. Pour enough olive oil to cover base of skillet, about 1/4 cup, and drop in the garlic and red pepper flakes. Notice as the garlic lightly bubbles…it is infusing the olive oil with its flavor. (Make sure it does not burn, as this will add a bitter flavor to your whole dish.)

8. Add the anchovy to the pan, stirring it so it dissolves in the oil.

9. Just as the garlic begins to become translucent and slightly golden brown, toss the kale into the oil and toss it, with tongs if you have them, until it is all coated in the oil.

10. Let the kale saute for a minute and then add the salt and a half a ladle of water, turn heat to low and cover.

11. Cook for about 20 minutes or until kale is very dark and very soft, falling apart in your mouth when you taste it, checking on it every so often to make sure it does not burn. If it looks dry add a bit more water.

12. Cook pasta al dente and strain. (Rules for an Al Dente Pasta)

13. Immediately add pasta to the skillet with the kale, turning up heat to a fuoco vivace, a lively flame, medium high. Toss the pasta using pasta tongs (buy here) or two forks until all the spaghetti have been mixed into the “sauce.”

14. Divide onto plates, generously grate parmigiano and/or pecorino romano and freshly ground pepper on each one.

15. A tavola, to the table!

Watch video on how to cook perfect al dente pasta.

If you live in LA and would like to take cooking classes with Elana, please visit mealandaspiel.com.

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