the arugula files

Burnt Eggplant Dip, A Twist on Baba Ganoush from Yotam Ottolenghi of Plenty

My second cooking date with Yotam didn't go as well as the first.  I made his take on baba ganoush, which is similar to this recipe, but calls for the addition of pomegranate molasses and is a little heavy handed with the tahini.  I have to admit, I was quite taken with decorating my dip with pomegranate seeds.  So pretty. Like this lady's ruby slippers.  But, it turns out, that I didn't much like the sweetness of the pomegranate molasses, an ingredient I bought specifically for this dish (Thank you H Mart).  You might like it though. Do you love pomegranate?  Then this one might be worth a try.  I think I'll stick with Christopher Kimball for my baba ganoush.  That said, I'm still interested in pursuing Yotam in the kitchen and am looking forward to a third date!  Plus, now I have to think about ways to use my pomegranate molasses.  Do you have any ideas?

Wok Seared Lamb Lettuce Wraps, Or Over Rice (Plus, I Love Border Springs Farm)

Arugula Files is participating in the DC American Lamb Pro-Am. Thirteen local food bloggers received a boneless leg of lamb from Border Springs Farm and were challenged to prepare a great lamb dish for their readers. I'm happy to promote and recommend such a great, sustainable product.  As they say, "American Lamb is 10,000 miles fresher."  The best dishes will be presented at the American Pro-Lamb event on March 4.   Vote for my dish!

This is a recreation of a dish I once had at P.F. Changs that I quite enjoyed.  Yes, P.F. Changs, the chain restaurant.  The one with the absurdly big horse statue in the front.  Say no more.  

The dish is a simple stir fry, but the toasted sesame seeds and crispy iceberg lettuce make it special. Iceberg lettuce.  Wow, do I love thee. Iceberg lettuce has a bad (w)rap, largely attributable to its miscast role in the American salad, which is the last place it should be. People have called it the white bread of the produce aisle or likened it to red delicious apples.  Both apt comparisons.  But let's not be snobby about it.  I think iceberg lettuce deserves recognition as a topping in a stir fry or a wrap; that's where it earns an encore. Here, it's the perfect contrast to this deliciously greasy lamb.  The lamb.  Oh, let me tell you about lamb because its source makes me so happy.

Yotam's Taleggio Stuffed Portobellos

I have a mad crush on Yotam Ottolenghi.  His book, Plenty, is so gorgeous that it's hard not to fall under his spell, smitten by caper mayonnaise and cardamom rice.  I've had his book for a year now, but all we've done is lay around in bed together.  What can I say, I'm a cookbook slut.  This weekend, I finally committed: page 56, stuffed portobello with melting taleggio.  Yes, it was a low commitment cooking date.

The Vietnamese Meatballs At ShopHouse Are Crazy Delicious (Lucky Peach Magazine: Not So Much)

 

As soon as I heard about ShopHouse Southeast Asian Kitchen,  the new concept by Chipotle's founder Steve Ells, I had high hopes for the "Asian Chipotle," mostly because it's close to my office. It's convenience food that's conveniently located (for me anyway).  

I didn't expect it to be crazy delicious.  

I mean it's Asian fast food, and, quite frankly, while I'll eat at Chipotle, I don't love, love it.  I much prefer Baja Fresh, if I'm comparing apples to apples, and if I'm comparing apples to oranges, I would much rather eat tacos here or here.  So I was really surprised that Shophouse's Vietnamese offerings are full of flavor.  Like the flavor just reaches out and grabs you.  Then it makes you do the truffle shuffle.

My 2012 Culinary Resolutions 2011, Not So Much

I'm not going to lie to you.  I didn't do so well on my culinary resolutions.  I finished 13.5 out of 25.  And, let's be honest, they were the easy ones.  Like making whoopi pies with Modern Domestic, buying more pieces for my Russel Wright collection, or eating at Estadio.

What's a girl to do?  Cram.  Just last night I was thinking, I can finish at least six of "the big 25" THIS WEEKEND. Next thought: but do I really want to?  Have I lost the point of it all?  This list isn't a "to do list." It's a "live life list" and if I don't want to do the things on the list, well, I don't have to.  

Yeah! Screw you, list-I-didn't-finish.  

Here's the thing: I still like the idea of having a list.  And who knows, maybe someday I'll actually finish one. So here goes; my culinary resolutions for 2012.  Basically a list of things that I like to imagine myself doing, but probably won't do.  

Some of these are leftovers from 2011 or 2010.

25.  Use my pressure cooker

24.  Make sausages from scratch.  

23.  Eat at Toki Underground

22.  Create a recipe for the Vietnamese meatball like the ones at Shophouse

21.  Take a class with Mrs. Wheelbarrow

20.  Start a Catherineholm collection

19.  Build a backyard pizza oven

18.  Make some fancy popcorn

17.  Paint my kitchen a nice, bright color

16.  Organize my food magazines and get rid of some

15.  Make more salads for dinner

14.  Eat at Ethiopic

13.  Cook fish more often

12.  Eat dinner in another country

11.  Throw a tiki party

10.  Make a gorgeous cheese plate

9.  Make a chocolate cake

8.  Try those blueberry capers at Ripple

7.   Make more dishes that include leeks

6.  Make at least one dish that includes cauliflower

5.  Share my recipe for lentil soup

4.  Make crab rangoon from scratch (ok, it's true, I already did this one and I'm adding it to the list after the fact.)

3.  Save enough money to buy a 5D

2.  Make a few recipes from Plenty.

1.  Re-design this blog

 

I love reading about people's culinary resolutions.  Like here and here. 

What are your culinary resolutions?

 

"Chinese Coleslaw"

 

I singled this dish out at a work potluck.  It was a holiday party so it's no surprise that it was the lone dish on the conference room table that actually included vegetables.  I had a bite and immediately fell in love with it.  I'm sold because, while it appears healthy (and, for the most part, is healthy), it actually includes Ramen as one of the main ingredients.  Which is, of course, not healthy.  But, oh well, at least you get some cabbage, carrots, and almonds.  What's the saying...just a spoon full of Ramen?  

By the way, when I asked my co-worker for the recipe she called the dish "Chinese Coleslaw," which I found odd because I've always thought of Ramen as Japanese.  After some extensive internet research on Wikipedia I found that ramen noodles actually originated in China, not Japan.  Who knew.  Anyway, I place quotes around the name of the dish because no matter where ramen noodles come from, no one in China is eating this cole slaw.  Plus, I like to put quotes around things; especially air quotes.  And sometimes I get carried away and use air quotes when they are not really called for.   Yes, I'm one of those people.

I recently made this dish for dinner on New Year's Eve.  It paired nicely with homemade egg rolls and crab rangoon. 

Thirteen Layer Chocolate and Vanilla Cake (Plus, Cheers to 2012!)

I didn't feel particularly productive in 2011.  Well, I did produce something major.  But otherwise, I don't even want to talk about my culinary resolutions right now.  I'll visit those some time next week.  That may give me a few days to cross one or two more off the list.  It's definitely in my nature to cram things in at the last minute.  Meanwhile, I offer you this cake. Since I didn't make the cake, it's an endorsement rather than a recipe. 

It's a delicious dessert, more of a torte than a cake, rich, with dark chocolate and caramel.  My friend Denise brought it over for dinner. Imagine that.  You ask someone to bring dessert and they bring you a thirteen layer cake (twelve for 2012, plus one layer for good luck).  It's like going horseback riding, but the ranch hand brings you a unicorn to ride instead of a horse.  Pure magic.

Denise followed the recipe from smitten kitchen.  You know it worked perfectly, as Deb's recipes always do. But, as Denise pointed out, she made her cake the hard way: round instead of square.  What an inspiration.  And with that, I'll say cheers to 2012!

A Lovely Night Out at Fiola

Photo: Abby Greenawalt

As we walked through the Fiola dining room, my friend Bridget loudly announced, "well this is a stodgy crowd." Just kidding, it was me who made the loud announcement.  Bridget was telling me to shhh.  I just want to see if she reads this blog. 

No matter who said it, it was true.  Fiola, on a Tuesday night, was filled with the only people who eat expensive dinners on a Tuesday night: lobbyist and maybe a few members of Congress wearing those pins on their lapels.  A lot of suits, in other words.  Then came us.  Three women, with babies recently tucked in their cribs, who escaped for a big night out.  While the lobbyist made deals, we talked developmental milestones, like giggling and rolling over.  Oh boy, we were ready for some Chef Fabio, and, wow, he did not disappoint. 

To start I enjoyed the Nantucket bay scallops with chanterelles and light as a feather meatballs with a fried egg on top.  For dinner, a delicate plate of cod filled gnocchi straddled by smoky, baby octopus.  To end the meal: sugary, warm donuts with cream. 

Every morsel of food was exceptional.  As in, moan-out-loud-in-a-stodgy-crowd good.  Oh, and how could I forget those ginormous, flaky popovers? The ones the waiters generously kept bringing more of until I reminded them that I recently had a baby, and, you know, I would like to fit into my old clothes someday, which somehow I forgot as I kept eating said popovers and then, Doh!, ordered donuts.  

I'm not one for fancy, or, as some people call it, refined Italian. Moreover,  I don't like foam, especially if it costs a lot, but I think Fiola's unique flavor combinations and exquisite detailing make it a stand out. The restaurant's dishes are more complex than raviolis filled with expensive ingredients or truffles this or that, and worth every penny, I say.  I plan on going back, for sure. Next time, I'll head there on a Friday night, when the young and hip sip Jeff Haile's craft cocktails at the bar.  I wonder what that crowd will think of my thoughts on swaddling and nap time.