Leek Bread Pudding

Every day, on my way to work, I pass by a Church in Scotch Plains that has a sign on the corner of their property. They post witty little messages on the sign… things like “Give Satan an inch and he’ll become a ruler.” For 4 years, I’ve been chuckling at whatever play on words they’ve posted that week. But at the end of a long snowy winter, their newest thought pretty much sums up the feelings of just about everyone I know: “Whoever’s praying for snow, please stop!”

I usually like winter, but I’m over it this year. Last Friday it was 65 degrees out, before the temperatures dropped again. It was a cruel tease. I saw tiny little spikes of my hyacinths poking through the soil and then it snowed again. The silver lining is that I can still crank up the oven and make lots of yummy comfort food. So that’s what you’ll be seeing here over the next week or so. Things like this lush leek bread pudding and blueberry butter cake and crispy chicken thighs…

But back to the leek bread pudding. It’s from Thomas Keller’s Ad Hoc at Home, a book which continues to be one of my top 5 favorite cookbooks. It's pretty simple to put together and tastes as good if not better leftover. We had it with grilled steaks, but it'd go well with ham, lamb or even pork. My adaptation is below - the original called for whole milk. I didn't miss the extra fat...



Leek Bread Pudding
adapted from Ad Hoc at Home by Thomas Keller

2 cups 1/2-inch-thick slices leeks (white and light green parts only)
Kosher salt
4 tablespoons (2 ounces) unsalted butter
Freshly ground black pepper
12 cups 1-inch cubes crustless Brioche or Pullman sandwich loaf
1 tablespoon finely chopped chives
1 teaspoon thyme leaves
3 large eggs
3 cups reduced fat milk
3 cups heavy cream
Freshly grated nutmeg
1 cup shredded Comté or Emmentaler




Preheat the oven to 350°F.

Put the leek rounds in a large bowl of tepid water and swish so that any dirt falls to the bottom of the bowl. Set a medium sauté pan over medium-high heat, lift the leeks from the water, drain, and add them to the pan. Season with salt and cook, stirring often, for about 5 minutes. As the leeks begin to soften, lower the heat to medium-low. The leeks will release liquid. Stir in the butter to emulsify, and season with pepper to taste. Cover the pan with a parchment lid, and cook, stirring every 10 minutes, until the leeks are very soft, 30 to 35 minutes. If at any point the butter breaks or looks oily, stir in about a tablespoon of water to re-emulsify the sauce. Remove and discard the parchment lid.

Meanwhile, spread the bread cubes on a baking sheet and toast in the oven for about 20 minutes, rotating the pan about halfway through, until dry and pale gold. Transfer to a large bowl. Leave the oven on.
Add the leeks to the bread and toss well, then add the chives and thyme.

Lightly whisk the eggs in another large bowl. Whisk in the milk, cream, a generous pinch of salt, pepper to taste, and a pinch of nutmeg.

Sprinkle 1/4 cup of the cheese in the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking pan. Spread half the leeks and croutons in the pan and sprinkle with another 1/4 cup cheese. Scatter the remaining leeks and croutons over and top with another 1/4 cup cheese. Pour in enough of the custard mixture to cover the bread and press gently on the bread so it soaks in the milk. Let soak for about 15 minutes.

Add the remaining custard, allowing some of the soaked cubes of bread to protrude. Sprinkle the remaining 1/4 cup cheese on top and sprinkle with salt.

Bake for 1 1/2 hours, or until the pudding feels set and the top is brown and bubbling.

Sassy, spicy, smoky baked beans

The inspiration to make ribs with all the fixin's hit me on a beautiful sunny day. I could almost taste the smoky ribs, baked beans and cole slaw as we sat on the deck watching the sun set. Of course, the day I decided to make this meal turned out gray, rainy, and 50 degrees. Oh well, it tasted good in the kitchen, too.

I love smoky food. Smoked paprika is my favorite spice; one of my favorite kitchen gadgets is my Cameron's stovetop smoker. I like to heat things up with smoky chipotles in adobo... the list goes on. When I make ribs, it's an all day process (most of it hands-off)- they're rubbed, smoked, basted, slow-cooked, basted again, and finally grilled. Perfect with cole slaw or potato salad, we have them several times each summer.This time, I went with cole slaw - it's easier than potato salad. So, for a starch, I decided to make a batch of smoky baked beans. This recipe is based on one I found in Steven Raichlen's Barbecue Bible. It calls for canned beans, which makes them really quick and easy.

Give them a try at your next BBQ - they go great with my smoked ribs.



Sassy, spicy, smoky baked beans
adapted from the Barbecue! Bible

3 slices thick-cut bacon
1 medium onion, chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 tsp. fresh grated ginger
1/4 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
1/4 cup molasses
1/4 cup barbecue sauce
1/4 cup ketchup
1 Tbsp. Worcestershire sauce
1 Tbsp. dry mustard
1 Tbsp. prepared mustard
1 Tbsp. cider vinegar
1 Tbsp. smoked Spanish paprika
1/4 to 1/2 tsp. cayenne pepper (optional)
2 cans kidney, cannellini or Great Northern beans, drained and rinsed
Salt and pepper to taste



Preheat oven to 350F.

In a frying pan, cook the bacon. Drain on paper towels. Discard all but 1 Tbsp. of the drippings from the pan. Saute the onion, garlic, and ginger in the pan until softened, about 5 minutes.

When the bacon is cool, coarsely chop it.

In a round baking dish, whisk together the brown sugar, molasses, barbecue sauce, ketchup, Worcestershire, dry mustard, prepared mustard, vinegar, paprika and cayenne. Stir in the bacon and the onion mixture. Stir in the beans. Add salt and papper to taste.

Cover and bake for 30 minutes. Stir then continue baking for about 30 minutes more, uncovered.

A few of my favorite things: Potato, leek and mushroom gratin

There are so many reasons to search for a recipe. Sometimes you have a craving, sometimes your husband has one. Sometimes you want to recreate a dish you've had before. Sometimes, you just want to use up what's in the fridge. Yesterday was one of the latter. Saturday I made another French Laundry recipe (post coming soon) and aside from a delicious meal, I had a fridge full of ingredients that I needed to use up - a couple leeks, some cream, the list went on. I was going to grill a rack of lamb for dinner so I thought a leek and potato side dish would be perfect.



So I began my search. Usually these searches result in a pile of at least 10-20 of my 100+ cookbooks strewn all over the island. This time I got it on the first try. I grabbed the Bon Appetit Cookbook, looked up leeks in the index and just about jumped for joy when I read that there was a Potato, Leek, Mushroom and Gruyere Gratin - perfect!!! Aside from potatoes and leeks, I also had a nearly full package of Crimini mushrooms. I scanned the recipe and found I'd need to substitute my Crimini mushrooms for the recommended oyster mushrooms and use Swiss in lieu of Gruyere. Easy enough. (And I used part cream, part lowfat milk to reduce the fat...)

This is a really nice gratin - I baked it in the afternoon and then reheated it for dinner. The mushrooms add a nice earthy flavor - try to cook the water out of them when you saute them to keep the gratin thick and creamy. My version follows - this would serve 4 as a side dish. The original is for a 13x9 inch pan, so I cut it in half to fit the ingredients I had (and to ensure we wouldn't be eating it for weeks to come!)



Potato, Leek, Mushroom and Cheese Gratin
adapted from the Bon Appetit Cookbook

2 Tbsp. butter, divided
8 oz. crimini mushrooms, cleaned and sliced 1/4-inch thick
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 cups thinly sliced leeks, white and pale green parts
leaves from 2 sprigs fresh thyme, minced (about 1 tsp.)
3/4 cup chicken broth
1 cup cream (I used half cream, half lowfat milk)
3 Tbsp. dry white wine
1/2 tsp. kosher salt
1/4 tsp. black pepper
1 1/2 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and thinly sliced (I used 2 large)
1 cup grated Swiss cheese
1/4 cup freshly grated parmesan cheese
1 Tbsp. plain breadcrumbs

Melt 1 Tbsp. butter in a saute pan over medium-high heat. Add mushrooms and saute until almost tender, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and saute until mushrooms are tender and golden and their liquid has evaporated. Transfer mushroom mixture to a bowl. In the same pan, melt 1 Tbsp. butter. Add the leeks and thyme. Saute until leeks are tender and starting to brown, about 8 minutes. Transfer to the bowl with the mushrooms and stir to combine. (This can be made a day ahead.)

Preheat oven to 400F. Butter a baking dish (about 9-inch square). Whisk broth, cream, wine, salt and pepper in a bowl to blend. Arrange 1/3 of potatoes in the bottom of the dish. Top with 1/2 the mushroom leek mixture and 1/2 the Swiss cheese.



Create another layer of potatoes on top, then pour half the cream mixture over it. Add the remaining leek and mushroom mixture, then the remaining Swiss cheese. Top with the rest of the potatoes and then push the whole thing down with the back of a spatula. Pour the rest of the cream mixture over the top, then sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese and breadcrumbs.

Bake uncovered until potatoes are tender and sauce is bubbling thickly, about 1 hour 20 minutes. Let stand a few minutes before serving.

Quick and easy pasta with arugula and Romano cheese

Last weekend found us driving from NJ to MA and back in a day and then headed to Albany overnight on Sunday, so Saturday was all about getting things done. (And having time to go shopping with mom for baby clothes! Priorities!!!) So dinner needed to be quick, but yummy...

And who doesn't love a fast, easy, side dish that's packed with flavor and pairs well with just about any main course? This pasta dish takes no time to make and it goes great with steak, chicken, fish, pork or serve it on its own. I love having leftovers for lunch. With a measly 5 ingredients, this is great if you have unexpected guests or find yourself without a plan for dinner like I did on Saturday. I had decided on steaks (with Little Italy relish) and needed a side. This dish popped to mind and my husband almost jumped for joy when I mentioned it. Done and done.

Quick and easy Pasta with Arugula and Romano Cheese
recipe adapted from Everyday Pasta by Giada DiLaurentiis

1/2 pound dried pasta, ant shape will work, but I like Mafalde, long wide ribbons with curly edges
2 Tbsp. Unsalted butter
3/4 cup fresh grrated Pecorino Romano
About 2 cups baby arugula, washed and dried
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
Extra romano or Parmesan cheese to garnish (optional)

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Cook pasta according to package directions. Drain pasta, reserving the cooking liquid.

Cut the butter into small pieces and toss with the hot pasta to coat. Gradually toss in all of the cheese. Mix in the arugula and about 1/2-1 cup of the hot cooking liquid. Add black pepper to taste. The arugula with wilt slightly from the hot pasta and water. Serve immediately, garmished with extra cheese, if desired.

Serves 4 as a side dish or two as a main course. Can easily be doubled!