Heights Eats

I just finished reading David Lebovitz’s The Sweet Life in Paris. It’s a great book, full of sharp (often self-deprecating) wit, astute cultural observations, and very good (often surprisingly easy) recipes.

The root of good humor is serious issues, and the book is grounded in loneliness, alienation and the quest for good food (if you don’t think this is serious, ask Parisians). Lebovitz first realizes he’s become Parisian when he puts on a fresh ironed shirt and nice pants just to walk downstairs to deposit a bag of trash. Apparently clothes are continually judged there. He also refers to a series of commercials for a newspaper, Le Parisien Publicite, which humorously portray Parisians’ self-centeredness. At the same time, he continually humiliates himself as he inadvertently mangles the language, e.g. a one-syllable mistake that leads him to repeatedly refer to a male body part without realizing it.

The interspersing of recipes is not only useful but … continue reading

I like both scallops and asparagus but am not a huge fan of either. Michael Ruhlman’s preparation, though, sold me on the greatness of both ingredients.

The texture of the asparagus purée (with a bit of added lime juice and a knob of butter) was perfect, and a fine mesh strainer wasn’t necessary. In fact when I started trying to strain it, I was just getting pale green asparagus juice (a food mill might have worked, though). The sharpness of lime and asparagus contrasted perfectly with the rich flavor of the scallops (which I seared in a combination of butter and olive oil). After removing the scallops, I used the same pan to briefly sautee the reserved, unpureed asparagus.

Sarah loved this as well and had been looking forward to my making it. It’s definitely repeatable and can be ready in about 15 minutes.… continue reading

A lot of us like chocolate cake, but it feels a bit much to make a full cake on whim for a family of three. So when Sarah said she wanted some, I figured I’d make a half-recipe. Here’s a picture of a slice:

The recipe is from the Gourmet Cookbook (reprinted here). I got around the problem of baking one and a half 8″ layers by cooking one 10″ layer (math knowledge is useful when baking) and dividing it into thirds. Here’s the recipe:

Devil’s Food Cake

1/2 cup boiling water

3/8 cup unsweetened high-quality cocoa powder (not Dutch-process)

1/4 cup whole milk

1/2 teaspoon vanilla

1 cup all-purpose flour

scant 3/4 teaspoon baking soda

1/4 teaspoon salt

1 stick (1÷2 cup) unsalted butter, softened

5/8 cup packed dark brown sugar

3/8 cup granulated sugar

2 large eggs

Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter 1 (10– by 2-inch) round cake or springform pan and line bottom with rounds of wax or parchment paper. Butter paper and dust pan with flour, knocking out excess.… continue reading

I’ve been playing around with Mark Bittman’s recipe for whole wheat pizza dough (from How to Cook Everything Vegetarian), and it’s super-versatile. I’ve made pizza, baguettes, breasticks and even hot dog buns thus far. Focaccia would also work well, as Bittman points out–just top a pizza round with olive oil and herbs.

The flexibility is in large part due to the oil. You’ll always end up with a moist, flavorful bread.

All-purpose Whole Wheat Dough (adapted from Mark Bittman’s recipe)

2 cups bread or all-purpose flour 2 cups whole wheat (or white whole wheat) flour 2 1/2 t. yeast (preferably instant or bread-machine) 2 1/2 t. course salt 4 TB. extra virgin olive oil

Combine first four ingredients in a food processor or stand mixer [full disclosure: I’m much too lazy to hand-knead dough most of the time]. Add 2 cups water and 3 TB. olive oil. Mix with bread hook or in food processor until shiny and elastic, 1–2 minutes for the food processor or 5–10 minutes for the stand mixer.

Coat dough with remaining olive oil and cover.

You can make 2–3 pizzas or baguettes from this … continue reading

My friend Amy told me recently that Michael Symon’s Mac ‘n Cheese recipe from Lola was now published. Sarah and I got to thinking that a vegetarian version might be good, so we came up with this:

We really liked it, and the grilled asparagus went really well with everything else.

Mac ‘n Goat Cheese with Grilled Asparagus (adapted from Michael Symon’s recipe)

(serves 5–6)

A large bunch of asparagus (at least a pound) Paprika Olive oil 3 cups heavy cream 2 TB. fresh rosemary 12 oz. rotini, preferably whole wheat (it holds up better to the other flavors) 4.5 oz. goat cheese Course salt and freshly ground pepper

(1) Snap woody ends off of asparagus and season liberally with salt, pepper, olive oil and paprika.

(2) Grill asparagus over high heat for about 5 minutes, flipping once, until dark grill marks appear on both sides. Cool and coarsely chop.

(4) Cook pasta until al dente. Drain in colander.… continue reading

Inspired by Michael Ruhlman’s post on breakfast pizza, I decided to give one a try.

I used Mark Bittman’s recipe for half-whole wheat pizza dough, bacon from the freezer, 4 eggs (I’d use one more next time) and cheddar cheese. The biggest trick was figuring out how to make this with scrambled eggs without their spilling over the edge. I cooked them briefly on the stove until they gelled somewhat, then, after baking the dough at 500 degrees for five minutes, added them along with the cheese and precooked bacon. Reduce the heat to 375 when you add the eggs so they’ll turn out fluffy and not dry.

Sarah and I really enjoyed this, even more so than Whole Foods breakfast pizza. Ruhlman says that a pound of dough makes two servings, but we had this for two meals.

This is also surprisingly simple to make. I read Ruhlman’s post at 11pm Monday, made the pizza dough that night, and finished everything else in the … continue reading

I’ve been meaning to try Bön Apetit’s S’more Cookies for a while but never seemed to have the ingredients on hand. I finally just made them with what I had–white chocolate instead of marshmallows, clabbered milk instead of buttermilk–and they turned out great. They definitely don’t taste like health food, but they’re much more filling and satisfying than regular cookies.

I would have photographed a whole plate of these, but, after taking some to a party and eating a lot ourselves, there aren’t a whole lot left.

We’ll definitely make these again.

Triple Chocolate Wheat Cookies

(adapted from Bön Apetit)

3 cups white whole wheat flour1 1/2 cups (packed) brown sugar3/4 teaspoon salt1/2 teaspoon baking soda2 large eggs2/3 cup buttermilk (or 2/3 cup milk plus 1 TB lemon juice left to sit for 15 minutes)1 tablespoon molasses1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, melted3/4 cup chocolate chips (about 4.5 ounces)3/4 cup chopped milk chocolate (4.5 ounces)1/2 cup white chocolate chips (3 ounces)3/4 cup … continue reading

The Sweet Life in Paris

Scallops and Asparagus

Chocolate Cake w/Ganache and Ice Cream

All-Purpose Whole Wheat Dough

Mac ‘n Goat Cheese w/Asparagus (& Tiger Chick Peas)

Breakfast Pizza

Triple Chocolate Wheat Cookies