Dinner Belle

[dinnerbelle]

Ditalini con Arrabbiata

One of our favorite pasta sauces to make at home is arrabbiata, meaning "angry" in Italian. It's meaty, spicy, smoky, and very satisfying - plus, this recipe makes a LOT of sauce, so you can feed a crowd, or be a little selfish and keep it for leftovers for the next few days.

While traditionally served with penne, I used ditalini in part because it's what I had on-hand, but also because I feel like I can control the sauce-pasta ratio a little better with a smaller noodle. (I like my pasta saucy.)

Photo courtesy Chris Sanchez Photography

Ditalini con Arrabbiata

4-6 ounces bacon, chopped (omit for vegetarian option)

1 pound ground meat mix (I've used both meatloaf mix - pork, beef, and veal - and plain ground beef. Use whatever you like, or omit it altogether for a veggie option.)

1 tablespoon olive oil

6 cloves garlic, minced

1 onion, chopped

1-2 teaspoons crushed red pepper, depending on how spicy you want to go

3 (14 ounce) cans diced tomatoes, or 1 14-ounce can diced and 1 28-ounce can crushed

1/2 teaspoon dried basil

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2-1 teaspoon salt, depending on your taste

1/4 teaspoon pepper

1 box ditalini pasta (or pasta of your choice)

In a large, flat-bottomed skillet, brown bacon over medium heat.

Once bacon is fairly crispy and the fat has rendered out, add the ground meat and brown and crumble. When cooked, remove meats with a slotted spoon and reserve in a separate bowl.

In a large pot, add olive oil to remaining bacon fat in pan and sauté onion until fragrant, about 5-7 minutes. Add in garlic and crushed red pepper and sauté for another minute or two.

Add in the tomatoes, basil, oregano, salt, and pepper. Once combined, add in the cooked bacon and meat and simmer for about 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Meanwhile, bring a large pot of lightly salted water to a boil. Add pasta, and cook according to package instructions until al dente. Drain, reserving a cup or two of the pasta water.

Once sauce has finished simmered, add a bit of the reserved pasta water to bring the sauce together and create a chunky but not too thick consistency. Start with 1/4 cup and move on from there - if you add too much, the sauce becomes too watery.

Remove from heat, adjust seasoning if necessary, and serve. Top with shredded Parmesan and chopped fresh basil or parsley, if desired.

[dinnerbelle]

Orange-Rhubarb Puff Pastry Tarts

This recipe was a bit of experimentation on my part. 1) I had picked up some rhubarb at the farmers market recently and was interested in trying it out. Disgraceful as it is, I am a Southern girl who has never even tried a strawberry-rhubarb pie, let alone tried to cook with these little aliens.

My personal shame

2) I had some puff pastry hanging out in the freezer unused from when my boyfriend and I celebrated Valentine's Day by having our own Chopped competition. He filled the house with every conceivable pantry staple I might need, so I have plenty of goodies left to play around with.

What resulted is this simple recipe using muffin tins as a baking vessel - crunchy and sweet with a little tang, it was the perfect end to a simple spring meal at a friend's house this week. It also doubles very easily if you're feeding a crowd of more than 4-8 (depending on how much everyone loves tarts). Even better, it was a complete do-ahead - I prepared the tart filling weeks prior and left it in the freezer. When I got the dinner invite and the request to bring dessert, I put it and the puff pastry in the fridge to defrost overnight, and made them right before walking out the door the next evening.

Orange-Rhubarb Puff Pastry Tarts

1 bunch rhubarb, sliced about 1/4-inch thick on the bias

1 c. orange juice

1/2 c. sugar*

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1/2 tsp vanilla

1/2 T orange zest

1 sheet puff pastry, defrosted

1/2 c. nuts, crushed (walnuts, pecans, or hazelnuts), if desired

  Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

Combine rhubarb, orange juice, sugar, cinnamon, vanilla, and orange zest in a bowl and let sit for 10-15 minutes.

Meanwhile, sprinkle a cutting board with flour and LIBERALLY coat muffin tins with cooking spray.

Unfold one sheet of pastry and roll out to about a 12-inch square. Using a pizza cutter or sharp knife, cut sheet into 9 squares.**

Place a square in each muffin cup, pushing into bottom and up sides and leaving corners pointing up.

Once rhubarb has finished macerating, strain all liquid out and reserve it in a separate bowl.

Fill each muffin cup with an equal amount of filling. Top with crushed nuts if desired. Bake 15-20 minutes.

While the tarts bakes, pour reserved macerating juice into a small saucepan and reduce over medium heat until it becomes a glaze, about 10-15 minutes.

When pastry is golden brown and beginning to puff up, remove from oven and let tarts cool in muffin tin for a few minutes. When they are cool enough to handle, run a sharp knife around edges to loosen, and turn them out onto a rack to cool slightly.

Serve warm with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream and glaze drizzled on top. Yields 9 tarts.

  *Because I let my tart filling hang out in the freezer until I was ready for it, the fruit had longer to soak up the sugar and as a result was perhaps a little sweeter than I was looking for. If you plan to freeze the tart mix for another day, consider lowering the sugar amount to 1/4 cup or so. You can always give it a taste test before you back and add more if needed.

  **My bunch of rhubarb must have been a little scrawny, because I only had enough filling for 8 tarts. One little scrap got baked up empty and given to the dog. You know, just because.

[dinnerbelle]

Phantom Gourmet Hot Dog Safari

Having dutifully watched the Phantom Gourmet TV show for years, I was excited to attend one of their events last week - their Hot Dog Safari, held next to Fenway. With all-inclusive tickets costing only $10 when I purchased them and feeling like I got PLENTY to eat (as long as you consider three hotdogs, two slices of pizza, some chicken pot pie, and a scoop of ice cream plenty), it was a great event.

A beautiful day for some hotdogs. I especially like the guy up there in the yellow who appears to be going hands-free with one of two 'dogs.

The folks at the Kayem stand were predictably busy doling out their Fenway Franks, as were other hotdog purveyor's HenBorg's from Georgetown, MA.

Harrows Chicken Pies was also in attendance, marking my first occasion trying them since they opened a shop nearby in Dedham in January. Verdict: Even on a hot day, this was an exceptional pot pie, rich and creamy with a buttery, rich crust.

Clockwise from top: A pile of hotdogs from (somewhat surprisingly?) our favorite purveyor - Fuddrucker's, certainly better known for their burgers; a scoop of limited-time Celebration ice cream from Friendly's (cake-flavored with pound cake chunks and blue icing swirl) - while I liked it, my friend who attended with me thought it was far too sweet; and a veggie chop suey "dog" from Kowloon in Saugus, MA, with sprouts, bok choy, carrots, onions, and celery.

We had a really fun time, and the fact that all of the proceeds benefited the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation sweetened the deal - plus, being able to pop into the Fenway bars for a drink when we wanted certainly didn't hurt either.

I also have tickets for the Phantom Gourmet BBQ Beach Party being held June 21-23 - being a Southern girl at heart, this one is even more appealing than the hot dogs. Wish me (and my blood pressure) luck...

[dinnerbelle]

Nantucket Seafood Stew at 75 Chestnut

Flavorful, tangy Nantucket Seafood Stew from a girls' night out dinner at 75 Chestnut in Beacon Hill this week. Filled with Gulf shrimp, scallops, salmon, swordfish, halibut, and sea bass with potatoes, carrots, and onions, this stew was easily divided into two portions, and tasted even better the next day. I was pleasantly surprised to see a tomato base instead of a cream chowder like you see so often in New England, or a white wine/fish stock base such as those found in Mediterranean bouillabaisses (not that I don't love both of those as well).

[dinnerbelle]

Grilled Asparagus & Toasted Coriander Soup

With an eye still firmly focused on spring flavors, I'm taking advantage of being smack in the middle of the all-too-short asparagus growing season. After using only half of my bunch of asparagus on my spring ribbon salad, I decided to pick up another bunch from Silverbrook Farm out of Dartmouth, MA, this time at the City Hall Plaza farmers market, and see what I could come up with.

I started off with this recipe for chilled asparagus soup from Food Network's Anne Burrell, but I wanted to punch up the flavors a little, so I added some twists of my own. I found that grilling the asparagus and utilizing some traditional Indian spices, including toasted coriander and slightly sweet fenugreek and cardamom, gave the soup a nice depth.

The usage of potatoes, as Chef Anne noted on her show "Secrets of a Restaurant Chef," brings creaminess to the soup without using dairy. By swapping out the chicken stock for vegetable stock, this is another recipe that would be easy to make vegan (just make sure the bread you use for your crostinis is animal-friendly as well). It also can be served hot or cold, giving you some flexibility. Lastly, if you don't have access to a grill or grill pan, the asparagus can be blanched in boiling, salted water for a few minutes and transferred to an ice bath to stop the cooking process.

Grilled Asparagus & Toasted Coriander Soup

3 T olive oil, divided

2 bunches asparagus, stems trimmed

½ baguette, cut into ¼ inch slices on the bias, brushed with olive oil

1 onion, diced

3 cloves garlic, minced

1-½ t salt, divided

2 tsp coriander seeds

1/4 tsp cardamom

½ tsp fenugreek

1 lb potatoes, diced

2 quarts chicken or vegetable stock (use 1-1/2 quarts if you prefer a thicker soup)

2 T lemon juice

  1. Preheat grill or grill pan to medium heat. Toss asparagus with 1 T olive oil and grill over medium heat for 4-5 minutes, turning occasionally, until they are bright green and have some grill marks. Remove from heat, trim tips and reserve; the remaining stalks can be chopped into quarters and set aside separately.

2. Arrange the baguette slices on the grill or grill pan and toast for about 1 minute on each side. Remove from heat and set aside.

3. Add remaining olive oil to a large pot and bring to medium heat. Season the onion and garlic with ½ tsp salt and sweat until the vegetables are soft, about 8- 10 minutes.

4. Toast the coriander in a dry heavy skillet over medium heat for a few minutes until they become fragrant. Grind the seeds using a spice grinder or mortar and pestle and add to pot.

5. Add the potatoes, stock, cardamom, and remaining salt to the pot. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 10 minutes. Add in the reserved asparagus stalks and simmer for another 10 minutes, or until the potatoes can be pierced easily with a fork. Remove from heat and stir in lemon juice.

6. Puree the soup using a blender or an immersion blender. Adjust seasoning if needed, and chill if desired (can be served hot or cold).

7. Garnish with reserved asparagus tips and serve with crostinis. Serves 6.

[dinnerbelle]

BCAE Bread Bootcamp

Last year, as I was attending the Boston Food Swap 1 Year Swapiversary party, I entered in for a few auction items and ended up walking away with both a Ball canning jar kit (which admittedly is still sitting unused in my pantry, but I have high hopes of getting to it this summer to can some jams and marinara sauce) and a $100 gift certificate for the Boston Center for Adult Education. I'd known about them for a long time and frequently browsed their food and wine class section, but I had never made time to sign up for a course.

Until now! Enter Bread Bootcamp, held on May 19 and taught by Brian Grabowski, Pastry Chef for Joanne Chang's Flour Bakery in the South End.

I wasn't sure what to expect at a BCAE cooking class, not knowing if we would be doing hands-on baking or mainly watching a demonstration. It turned out to be more of the latter, which was fine by me. Chef Brian was very informative and approachable, and I felt like I learned (and ate) a lot.

This was his first time teaching the class after having taken over for another instructor, so he followed her curriculum, teaching us how to make baguettes, brioche, and focaccia. We ended up with a bit of spare time at the end of the three-hour class, so I think in the future he may consider adding a fourth bread recipe.

Clockwise from top: French baguette; brioche; rosemary focaccia

Some of my favorite things I learned during class:

High-gluten flour gives a chewy, "holey" texture often found in baguettes, whereas cake flour is much softer, meaning you can experiment to find your ideal blend.

To develop that signature crusty baguette outside, you "steam" the oven in the beginning and then again halfway through the cooking time. Using either a spray bottle or bowl of water and your fingers, (carefully) wet the walls and floor of the oven so your bread will develop a nice, hard crust.

The simple (and delicious) focaccia recipe we learned is a very resourceful dough - not only can you cover it in a multitude of toppings from herbs to dried fruits to prosciutto and roasted potatoes, it also works very well for pizzas.

Similarly, the brioche recipe is also extremely versatile, but it must be refrigerated before use. This you can turn into cinnamon rolls, tarts, pastries, doughnuts, and more. It is loaded with butter and eggs though, so as Chef Brian put it, maybe this is just a once a week treat.

"Clovers" made from rolling brioche dough into balls, dropping into muffin tins, and dusting with finishing sugar

I made an attempt on my own focaccia shortly thereafter, and I would say it was moderately successful. I'm not sure if I wrote it down wrong, but the 2-3/4 cups all-purpose flour to 2 cups (minus 2 tablespoons) of room temperature water resulted in a dough much more like pancake batter. In class Chef Brian made a point to tell us it would look soupy at first but would come together as it mixed, but mine never did. To salvage it, I added probably another 1 to 1-1/2 cups of flour until it more resembled a ball of bread dough - the result was pretty similar to what we made in class, so I may adapt the recipe a little to fit what I learned on my first time out of the gates.

Overall, it was a great class, and for only $55 I thought well-worth the price. They have tons of other classes, from food and wine to even more in other areas like writing, foreign language, business, fitness, etc. I've already signed up for another class to use up the rest of my gift certificate (Become Your Own Boss: Writing an Effective Business Plan, starting this July), so I am definitely a fan of the BCAE and will continue to sign up for classes every few months or so.

[dinnerbelle]

Spicy Asian Lettuce Wraps

With some leftover radishes after my spring ribbon salad, I decided to put them to good use. Alongside some carrots that I still had after my last winter CSA box and the scallions I bought at the farmers market last week, I put together these simple, versatile, and fun spicy Asian lettuce wraps.

This recipe is easily made to please everyone from vegans to carnivores. I chose to just go with the veggie option, but a 1/2 lb. or so of cooked chicken added in after the carrots, radishes, garlic, and green onions have sweated can round out the dish and give it some more oomph for those who like a bit more meat on their plate.

Some other nice variations include adding 1/2 cup snow peas or water chestnuts in step 2, or topping finished cups with a sprinkling of crushed cashews for a little extra crunch and texture. When it's in season (the flavor reaches its peak in the cooler months), daikon, also known as Japanese radish, can be substituted for the standard red radishes; these white, carrot-like vegetables have a milder flavor without quite as much bite.

Spicy Asian Lettuce Wraps

2 T olive oil

1 bunch radishes, sliced thinly (about 10-12, depending on size)

1 bunch carrots, sliced thinly (about six small-medium; looking for roughly the same amount as radishes)

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 cup green onions, chopped

2 T soy sauce

2 T hoisin sauce

2 T rice-wine vinegar

1 tsp sesame oil

1/8-1/4 tsp crushed red pepper (depending on how spicy you like to go)

1 small head Bibb or Boston lettuce, leaves separated, washed, and dried

Fresh basil and/or mint for garnish

1. Heat oil in a medium skillet on medium high. Add carrots, radishes, garlic, and green onions to the pan, stirring frequently until fragrant, about 3-5 minutes.

2. Add the soy sauce, hoisin sauce, vinegar, red pepper, and salt & pepper and stir to combine. Continue cooking until heated through and sauce begins to thicken, about 2 minutes. You may need to add a bit of salt here if you're using reduced sodium soy sauce; season to taste.

3. Serve with chopped fresh mint and or basil for garnish and allow guests to spoon mixture into individual lettuce leaves. Serves 4.

[dinnerbelle]

First Trip to the Farmers Market & Spring Ribbon Salad

After the dreary, gray days of winter in New England finally start to shuffle away and sunlight grows stronger and stays longer, I begin to look forward to the start of farmers market season with increasing eagerness. Because of its size and convenience, I do most of my shopping at the Copley Square Market, and this is where I headed last week for my first trip of the season.

Because of the protracted growing season, New England farmers markets can be a bit sparse in the beginning. Without fail, you’ll find many different kinds of greens (lettuces, spinach, collards, etc.), perhaps some leftover items from winter storage (carrots, popcorn, onions, etc.), as well as plenty of potted flowers and herbs.

I had a few recipes in mind, most of which centered on what produce I had a good chance of finding – FarmFresh.org has a very useful harvest calendar if you’re unsure what’s in season in your area. I ended up with a sampling of items on my list (radishes, asparagus, lettuce, green onions, and rhubarb for a grand total of $14.50), but struck out on others: Peas aren’t quite in season yet thanks to a colder-than-usual spring so far, no fiddleheads were to be found (but these can be hard to find regardless), and the nettles and mushrooms were just too expensive – I was interested in making a lemon risotto with morels, but at $10 for only a quarter-pound, it just didn’t seem sensible.

For my first dish from my farmers market haul, I was craving salad. My winter CSA from Stillman’s was wonderful for hearty squashes, juicy apples and pears, and more potatoes than I could really handle, but naturally greens have a hard time holding up against howling winds and drifting snow. Again, I used what I could find at the market, but a variety of other vegetables would be excellent in this salad, such as yellow or green squash, cucumbers, or perhaps young kohlrabi when they come into season.

This spring ribbon salad is a pretty presentation for fresh, new flavors. The thicker the asparagus you find, the better – they are much easier to shave thinly when you have more to hold onto. If all you can find are thin stalks, or you just don’t want to go to the trouble, feel free to chop them into bite-sized pieces instead, but the delicacy of the ribbons adds an elegant touch.

Spring Ribbon Salad w/ Garlic-Herb Dressing

1 bunch thick asparagus spears

1 head Boston lettuce, torn (I used red leaf for color)

1 bunch radishes, tops removed and very thinly sliced

1 clove garlic, peeled

1/4 tsp  kosher salt

1/4 cup mayonnaise

1 T sour cream

2 T olive oil

2 T lemon juice

2-3 T chopped fresh herbs (chives, rosemary, thyme, tarragon, rosemary, etc.)

Couple dashes Worcestershire sauce

1/8 tsp freshly ground black pepper

  1. Bang the garlic clove on your cutting board with the flat side of your chef’s knife to crush it, being careful to keep fingers out of the way. Sprinkle with salt. Holding the knife almost flat with the cutting board, mash the salt and the garlic together until they form a coarse paste.

2. In a large bowl whisk together the garlic paste, mayo, sour cream, olive oil, and lemon juice. Stir in herbs and Worcestershire sauce. If needed, thin with a little milk or water, starting with a tablespoon and adding more until you are happy with the consistency. Adjust seasoning if needed and set dressing aside in the refrigerator in a sealed container (can be made even farther ahead of time to allow flavors to meld).

3. Cut off woody stems from asparagus and remove purple scales from spears if stalks are particularly tough. Cut off flowery tips and set aside. Using a vegetable peeler or mandolin, (carefully) shave thin, vertical ribbons from the spears, starting at the base.

4. Arrange lettuce, asparagus, and radishes on a platter or in separate bowls. Place a few asparagus tips on top for decoration and drizzle with dressing. Serves 4-6.

[dinnerbelle]

Welcome to Dinner Belle

As a self-confessed fat kid at heart, food has always been a part of my life, from the very beginnings of my childhood spent in Virginia, Georgia, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and beyond. I learned to make my first recipe at age 5 (chocolate pie - what kid wouldn't love that?), ordered poached salmon for dinner when all my friends preferred chicken tenders, and DVRed far more hours of Food Network than is prudent for one to admit.

Over the past few years, I have been lucky enough to write restaurant reviews for a number of publications such as Time Out Boston, DigBoston, and several of the local branches of AOL's Patch.com. During that time, I've also been honing my cooking skills, collecting, creating, and perfecting recipes using as many local, whole ingredients as possible; taking culinary classes at The Cambridge School of Culinary Arts and the Boston Center for Adult Education; and generally over-filling my freezer and the bellies of my friends and loved ones with my experiments.

I decided that I might need a place to start sharing what I learn, discover, and taste, from recipes to reviews to food event coverage, and so Dinner Belle was born. Here I hope to bring together all of the things that make me happiest in the world, namely anything that makes its way into my kitchen or onto my plate. I hope you enjoy.

“You can't just eat good food. You've got to talk about it too." - Kurt Vonnegut

Kathrin Havrilla

Dinner Belle