State of the Onion
Page 27
HONEY-ALMOND SCONES
SCONES
¼ cup buttermilk or plain yogurt
¾ cup honey 2 eggs
¼ tsp. almond extract 3 cups flour 4 tsp. baking powder
½ tsp. baking soda
½ tsp. salt
½ cup chilled butter
¼ cup sugar
½ cup finely chopped almonds
GLAZE
3 tbsp. butter, melted
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 drops almond extract
1 tbsp. hot water
1 cup confectioner’s sugar
Preheat oven to 375°F.
Grease scone pan or place parchment paper on a baking sheet, spray with cooking spray, and set aside. Add honey to buttermilk, stir, then beat in the eggs. Sift together flour, baking powder, soda, and salt. Cut in butter with a pastry cutter. Add sugar and almonds. Toss to coat.
Add the wet mixture to the flour mixture. Stir with a fork just until a ball forms. Turn out dough onto a floured board. Knead 5 to 6 times to make sure it is well mixed.
If using scone pan, spoon dough into the pan, spreading evenly among the indentations. If using baking sheet, roll dough into a ball and flatten it some. Cut into 8 wedges. Bake for 25 minutes or until medium golden brown. Cool on a wire rack.
In a medium bowl, mix melted butter, vanilla, almond extract, and hot water. Add confectioner’s sugar. Stir. If glaze is too thick to pour, add more hot water, 1 teaspoonful at a time, until the glaze has the consistency of thick syrup. Spoon the glaze over the warm scones.
I usually wait at least an hour before serving for the scones to stabilize, absorb the glaze, and develop a fine crumb texture, but the First Family likes them hot from the oven.
VIRGINIA HAM AND SPINACH OMELET
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
4 ounces good Virginia ham, diced
½ cup raw spinach leaves, well rinsed in water combined with 2 tbsp. vinegar in it, then rinsed again, drained, and dried (the vinegar rinse should take care of the threat of bacterial contamination)
1 tbsp. minced onion
3 eggs
2 tbsp. plain yogurt
½ tsp. tarragon
Couple of dashes Tabasco pepper sauce or other hot sauce
1/3 cup cheese of choice (Asiago, cheddar, Swiss, Monterrey jack, pepper jack, or any mixture of these), grated
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Place 8-inch seasoned cast-iron skillet or good-quality omelet pan on stovetop over medium heat. Add 1 tbsp. of olive oil to pan. Add ham, spinach, and onion to the hot oil.
Stir until ham warms through, spinach wilts, and onion turns translucent. Remove mixture from pan and set aside. In a small mixing bowl, whisk together eggs, yogurt, tarragon, and hot sauce. Place skillet back on stove. Add remaining 1 tbsp. olive oil to skillet and spread to cover entire surface. Pour egg mixture into oiled pan. Cook until bottom is set, then flip egg mixture in pan. (If this isn’t something you do regularly and you don’t want to destroy your kitchen attempting it, you can also pull the cooked egg to the center of the pan, and rotate the remaining liquid egg in the pan to cover the oiled surface. Either way, the eggs are cooked through, without leaving an overcooked and tough brown layer on the bottom of the omelet.) Top the cooking eggs with the warm ham mixture. Sprinkle grated cheese over top, reduce heat to low, cover, and cook just until the cheese melts. Take off cover. Fold omelet in half.
Serve immediately on warmed plate.
HENRY”S FAMOUS HASH BROWNS
(WITH FRESH CHIVES AND FRESH THYME)
4 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
3 potatoes, peeled and grated
6 sprigs fresh thyme, rinsed and stems removed (use ½ tsp. powdered if fresh is not available)
¼ cup finely chopped fresh chives (green onions will do in a pinch)
1/3 tsp. salt, or to taste
Fresh chive stalks and thyme sprigs for garnish (optional)
Place olive oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.
Mix remaining ingredients in a large bowl. Place grated potato mixture in a potato ricer and squeeze any excess water out of the potatoes. (This makes them crispy.) If you don’t have a ricer, place the grated potatoes between sheets of paper towels and press to remove excess moisture.
When oil is heated to a simmer, pour potato mixture into skillet and mash it down to a thinnish pancake using a spatula. Cook until bottom layer is browned and crispy, about 4 minutes. Turn over and cook other side until browned and crispy, about 3 minutes. Place onto warmed plate or platter and serve garnished with sprigs of fresh thyme and chives tied together with a knotted chive leaf, if desired.
BROILED GRAPEFRUIT
2 ruby red Texas grapefruit
2 drops almond extract
Scant ¼ cup brown sugar, loosely packed
Turn oven to Broil on high heat.
Cut grapefruit in half across the fruit, exposing halved sections. Place cut sides up in ovenproof pan or on baking sheet.
Mix almond extract into brown sugar. Sprinkle sugar mixture on halved grapefruits.
Place under broiler until sugar melts and turns bubbly, about 3 minutes. Since ovens differ greatly, watch carefully.
Serve immediately.
CINNAMON BREAD
1 package yeast
¼ cup warm water
2 cups milk (any kind will do nicely—the richness of the dough will increase as you add fat)
½ cup sugar
½ cup butter
2 tsp. salt
1½ tbsp. cinnamon
6–7 cups flour
2 eggs, beaten
Cinnamon sugar to garnish (optional)
Preheat oven to 375°. Grease two standard loaf pans and set aside.
Mix the yeast and water in a medium bowl.
Gently heat the milk, sugar, and butter in a saucepan over low to medium heat until the butter melts; do not boil. Remove from heat and set aside.
Sift salt, cinnamon, and 3 cups of flour together into a large bowl. Add the frothy yeast and milk mixtures and beaten eggs to the dry ingredients. Mix until a soft doughy ball forms. Turn dough out on floured board. Knead until dough is smooth and has the soft and rubbery texture of your earlobe. In the course of this process you may need to add up to 4 more cups of flour to get a nice, springy dough. Knead for 10 minutes.
Cover dough loosely with either a damp towel or greased plastic wrap and leave to rise for 1 hour. Punch down and then divide into two balls of dough. Form into loaves, place into loaf pans, cover, and then leave to rise about 30 minutes, or until doubled in size.
Dust the tops with the cinnamon sugar if desired and bake for 35–40 minutes. If the loaves start to brown too quickly, cover with foil for the remaining cooking time.
Excellent served buttered for breakfast, or as a base for peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
PEANUT BUTTER AND BANANA SANDWICH ON CINNAMON BREAD
2 tbsp. peanut butter
2 tsp. honey
2 slices Cinnamon Bread (page 311), warmed
1 small banana, ripe, sliced into rounds
1 tsp. sunflower seeds (optional, but gives a nice crunch)
In a small bowl, mix together peanut butter and honey. Spread over slices of Cinnamon Bread. Scatter the peanut butter mixture with banana slices and sunflower seeds, if desired. Sandwich can be served open-faced, or the two slices can be merged into a traditional sandwich.
For a lovely fall option, when apples are at their peak, substitute thinly sliced apple for the bananas. Honeycrisp apples are fabulous this way.
MATCHSTICK VEGETABLES WITH A KICK
3 tbsp. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled and crushed
2 tsp. finely grated fresh ginger
1 tsp. Chinese five-spice powder
¼ tsp. chili powder
3 large carrots, peeled and cut into matchstick strips
1 cup fresh green beans, ends removed and strung, sliced diagonally
3 larg
e ribs celery, cut into matchstick strips
½ small head cabbage, roughly chopped as for slaw
1 tsp. salt, or to taste
Heat oil in a large pan.
Add garlic, ginger, five-spice powder, and chili powder, and stir for 1–2 minutes. Add carrots, green beans, and celery. Stir over medium heat until vegetables are half cooked, about 2–4 minutes. Add cabbage and continue to toss and cook for a further 5 minutes or until all the vegetables are tender but still crisp. Sprinkle with salt, mix well, cover and cook for 2 minutes.
Serve immediately.
APPLE TART
1 pie crust (Marcel makes it from scratch at the White House, but when I make this at home, I cheat and buy the rolled, refrigerated ones)
Roughly 2 pounds (generally about 5 or 6, depending on size) of tart, sweet apples; Granny Smith or McIntosh, generally about 5 or 6, depending on size
Juice of 1 lemon
½ cup sugar
2 tbsp. fresh lemon rind, grated
3 tbsp. unsalted sweet butter, cut into small pieces
1 tsp. cinnamon
½ cup clear apple jelly
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Place pie crust in a 10-inch pie or tart shell with a removable bottom and set aside.
Peel the apples and cut them into quarters. Cut away and discard the cores. Slice thinly. Place apple slices in a bowl, add lemon juice and toss until the apple slices are coated (this will keep them from browning).
Arrange the apple slices on the tart pan in a tight pattern like fish scales, in overlapping layers. Continue until all apples are used. Sprinkle the apple slices with the sugar and lemon rind. Dot with butter. Sprinkle with cinnamon. Place on a baking sheet in the preheated oven and bake for 15 minutes. Reduce the oven heat to 375°F. Bake 25 minutes longer. Keep an eye on the tart for the last 15 minutes of baking. If necessary, cover with foil to keep from browning too much.
While tart is finishing baking, melt the apple jelly over low heat, stirring until liquid. Gently brush the top of the hot tart with the melted jelly.
Serve hot or cold, as preferred.
OVEN-FRIED CHICKEN
½ cup butter
1 cup flour
2 tbsp. garlic powder
1 tbsp. onion powder
1 tbsp. salt, or to taste
1 tsp. freshly ground pepper, or to taste
1 tbsp. fresh lemon zest, finely diced
1 roasting chicken, rinsed and cut into pieces, giblets (if any) removed (I make stock out of them, but it’s perfectly acceptable to just toss them)
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Place butter in ovenproof baking dish large enough to hold chicken pieces in a single layer, or a 9 × 13 cake pan. Put in oven to melt.
Place flour, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, and lemon zest in a large, sturdy resealable plastic bag. Shake until mixed.
Remove pan with melted butter from oven.
One piece at a time, place chicken pieces into bag with flour mixture, seal, and shake until chicken is coated. Remove from bag, and roll in melted butter in pan. Place in pan, skin side up.
Continue until all pieces are coated in flour and butter, arranged in pan.
Place pan in oven. Cook until chicken is brown and crispy on top and cooked through—about 40 minutes.
Remove chicken from pan. Plate and serve.
Should you desire it, pour off most of the liquid from the baking pan, deglaze the pan, and make gravy. It’s fabulous. But the president, though blessed with a good metabolism and a fondness for running, is watching his waistline, so I generally don’t serve him gravy with this dish.
GARLIC MASHED POTATOES
2 lbs. peeled and diced potatoes (I like to use traditional Idaho russets, but just about any variety of potato will do)
6 tbsp. butter
½–1 head garlic cloves, peeled and mashed
½–¾ cup milk, warmed
1 tbsp. salt, or to taste
½ tsp. freshly cracked pepper, or to taste
¼ cup fresh chives, chopped, for garnish (optional)
Place potatoes in a large, heavy-bottomed pan. Add water sufficient to cover them. Put lid on pan and bring to a boil over medium heat, watching to be sure pan doesn’t boil over. Once the water is boiling, reduce heat slightly and simmer until potatoes are fork-tender. Approximately fifteen to twenty minutes.
Drain cooked potatoes and set aside. Return empty pan to heat and add butter. When butter melts, add garlic. Cook until tender. Return cooked potatoes to pan. Mash or whip with immersion blender until nearly smooth, gradually adding warm milk until potatoes are the desired consistency. Add salt and pepper. Place in warmed serving dish, top with chives if desired. Serve.
Some people salt the water the potatoes are boiling in, which raises the temperature of the boiling water and lets the potatoes cook faster. I prefer to add salt at the last stage, when I have more control over the amount the dish has—I think it leaves the potatoes more tender, too. But either method works.
OLLIE’S GREEN BEANS
2 tbsp. olive oil
3 cloves garlic, peeled and thinly sliced
1 small onion, finely diced
2 lbs. fresh green beans, rinsed and strings removed
Salt, to taste
Place oil in large, heavy skillet over medium heat.
Add garlic and onion, stirring until softened and onion turns translucent. Add green beans. Stir to coat. Continue cooking until beans are still bright green and slightly crunchy but cooked through. Salt to taste.
Serve immediately.
CHOCOLATE ANGEL FOOD CAKE WITH FRESH BERRIES
¼ cup boiling water
2 tsp. vanilla extract
4 tbsp. Dutch processed cocoa powder
1 cup cake flour, well sifted or pulsed in a food processor
2 cups sugar
½ tsp. salt
12 jumbo egg whites, or egg whites equal to 2 cups (this can be accomplished with 16 large eggs, or even meringue powder, if you don’t want to deal with so many leftover egg yolks—but egg yolks make fabulous puddings, a nice Lord Baltimore cake, or custard sauce, so Marcel never minds having leftovers)
2 tsp. cream of tartar
1 pint fresh berries, rinsed, drained, and chilled
Confectioner’s sugar and cocoa powder, for garnish
Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
In a medium bowl, combine boiling water, vanilla, and cocoa powder. Stir until smooth and glossy. Set aside. In another medium bowl, or in food processor bowl, whisk or pulse together cake flour, 1 cup sugar, and salt. Set aside.
In a large, clean bowl (the slightest bit of fat will keep your egg whites from whipping properly), beat the egg whites until foamy. Add cream of tartar. Continue beating until egg whites form soft peaks. Gradually add 1 cup sugar until stiff peaks form.
Remove 1 cup of egg mixture from large bowl and fold gently into cocoa mixture.
In large bowl, take remaining egg mixture and incorporate flour mixture into it by gently sifting 1/3 cup of the flour onto surface of beaten eggs, and folding them together. Don’t overwork this batter or it will lose its incorporated air. Work gently but efficiently and quickly.
Gently fold cocoa mixture into egg batter.
Spoon or pour batter into an ungreased angel food cake pan. Run a knife through the batter in a circular motion to eliminate any large air pockets. Smooth the top of the batter with a spatula.
Place in oven and bake for 45 minutes. Do not open oven door during the first 30 minutes of baking. Top of cake will crack—this is part of its charm. Cake is done when surface springs back when gently touched or toothpick inserted into middle of cake comes out clean. Remove cake from oven and invert pan.
Let cool completely (at least 2 hours) at room temperature.
Remove cake from pan by running a sharp knife around sides and center of tube pan to release from sides, then remove cake from pan. If cake has removable tube, run knife around
bottom of cake pan before removing.
Dust cake and berries with confectioner’s sugar. To serve, place cake slice on individual plate dusted with cocoa powder and confectioner’s sugar. Heap berries to side of cake. Dust with more confectioner’s sugar. Serve.
As a special treat, here are a few more of Olivia’s White House favorites.
CRISP TRIPLE CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES
2 cups flour
1 tsp. baking powder
1 tsp. salt
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, room temperature
1 cup brown sugar (light or dark)
¾ cup white sugar
1 tsp. vanilla
1 egg, beaten until yellow
1 (6-oz.) package milk chocolate chips
1 (3-oz.) bar dark chocolate, diced into chunks
1 (6-oz.) package white chocolate chips
Parchment paper to cover cookie sheets
Preheat oven to 350° F.
In a medium bowl sift together dry ingredients and set aside.
In a large bowl, cream softened butter and sugars. Stir in vanilla until smooth. Stir in egg until smooth. Add dry ingredients 1 cup at a time, stirring to incorporate. Dough will be soft and uniform. Stir in chocolates.
Shape into quarter-sized balls. Place on parchment paper covered cookie sheets, in 3 widely spaced rows—this batter will spread during cooking! Bake until cookies are browned and flat, roughly 15 minutes. Cool on cookie sheets. Remove cooled cookies from parchment paper and store in a tin.