Lemon & Asparagus Risotto

Lemon & Asparagus Risotto

This lemon and asparagus risotto, from Alice Waters' The Art of Simple Cooking, was like springtime in a bowl. The only ingredients are rice, one lemon (zest and juice), 1/2 c dry white wine, chicken stock, a finely minced small onion and a couple tablespoons of butter.

Even Lee, who has lukewarm feelings about asparagus (at best) loved it! I think it would also be delightful with fresh peas. Alice Waters also suggested a pancetta and potato version, which would be nice for brunch.

Cake Friday and news.

1-2-3-4 Cake with Chocolate Buttercream Frosting

A Year in the Kitchen has been quiet lately; my apologies. We have been busy with a new project around here... Jen is pregnant! We are expecting our tiny sous chef on September 27.

For the past couple of months, cooking has been limited, to say the least. This is mostly due to morning sickness. Jen hasn't had many cravings (potatoes, icy-cold foods and some chocolate, but that isn't too unusual) but has many aversions: namely chicken and fish. Now that we're safely into trimester two and the nausea has subsided, we're back in the kitchen baking up treats and trying new vegetarian dishes.

To celebrate, we've instituted a new tradition: Cake Friday! We kicked things off last week with 1-2-3-4 Cake, a classic yellow cake from Alice Waters' The Art of Simple Food. It was relatively easy to make and delicious--very moist, very rich. We used farmers' market fresh eggs and homemade vanilla. We also used her recipe for buttercream frosting, adding in a little bittersweet chocolate at the end. Yum!

Shallow-poached fish

This winter, we eased into a pretty simple pattern. 

Each week we roasted a bird (mostly chicken) that we ate from for a few days and used to make stock. We've got four cups of stock left in the freezer, with room for plenty more.

Also, at least once a week, I've been poaching fish. Until this year, I really didn't understand poaching, at least not poaching at its best. But after reading The Art of Simple Food, I'm converted.

Poaching has got to be the simplest way to cook and flavor fish. And I'm talking about the shallow poach, which requires little liquid and even less effort. 

Basically, you put in enough water to go halfway up the fish (I usually put the fish into the pan to measure, then take it out). I usually add my seasonings here, so they steep for a long time. I might add rosemary or thyme, sliced lemon, a clove of garlic cut in half, and maybe a few drops of sherry vinegar. Sometimes, we use wine, but the vinegar adds a lot of texture.

Heat the water until it begins to boil, then turn the heat all the way down. You want constant heat, but no bubbles. When the water's settled, place the fish back in. 

Here's where things get really cool. With poaching, you can actually see the food get cooked. Of course, you can always watch the food cook, but the fish begins to cook as soon as it touches the water. It's amazing to watch, in part because the water is perfectly still, so nothing else is happening. 

Then after three or five minutes (depending on the thickness of the cut), you flip it. Another three or five minutes, and it's done. You'll know because it looks the same as all other cooked fish in the end. And for sauce, you can swirl a little butter into the remaining poaching liquid. I swear, it doesn't get any easier. 

The Art of Simple Chicken

The Art of Simple Chicken

We've made this chicken, from Alice Waters' The Art of Simple Food, twice now. Both times, the resulting bird has been juicy and tasty.

Start with a high-quality chicken (free-range, no hormones added, etc.). This is the most important step.

The day before you intend to roast it, clean the bird out and rub it with salt and pepper.

An hour before you intend to roast it, remove it from the fridge and let it rest on the counter. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

Then (and here's the second most important part), start the bird breast-side up and set your timer for 20 minutes. Flip her every twenty minutes until she's done (maybe an hour and a half for a four-pound chicken).

We roasted the chicken on a v-rack, placing some sliced yellow onion in the (dry) pan below. We served it with red potatoes tossed with olive oil and rosemary and roasted, covered, on the lowest rack of the oven. The chicken cooked on the middle rack at the same time. Also along for the ride was broccoli and fresh dinner rolls. And, of course, the perfectly carmelized yellow onions and accompanying jus, which we sneakily referred to as sauce.