Picadillo Empanadas

Empanadas are savory "turnovers" that are common as streetfood in Latin America and Mediterranean Europe. Common fillings include flaked fish, potato, fried and mashed banana, pork, shredded chicken, and, most commonly found in Cuba and Miami - picadillo. Picadillo is a ground beef hash that contains browned onions, garlic, red pepper, green olives, tomato sauce or paste, citrus juice (sour orange and lime, particularly), oregano, and, depending on the cook, some sweet elements. The first memorable picadillo I ate as a child contained cinnamon, so I add that, as well as chopped dates or raisins. Don't let the cinnamon and dates/raisins throw you off; picadillo is a decidedly savory dish. A little bit of sweetness will keep your guests asking what the secret ingredient to the dish is.

PICADILLO

Ingredients:
2 pounds ground beef
2 large onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 red peppers, chopped
20 green olives, halved (the bottled Manzanilla variety is perfect)
1 sour orange
2 limes
10 dates, chopped
6 ounces tomato paste (or, alternatively, 10 ounces tomato sauce)
Oregano, to taste
Cinnamon, to taste
Ground black pepper, to taste

Procedure:
(1) Brown onions in a large, deep pan with a bit of olive oil.
(2) Add minced garlic and peppers, and sautee for a few more minutes.
(3) Add ground beef, combine well with other ingredients, and cook until brown.
(4) Season with ground black pepper, cinnamon, and oregano.
(5) Add tomato paste or sauce and stir well to combine.
(6) Add olives to the pan, along with a splash or two of the brine in which the olives are bottled. If doing this, there is no need to add salt; the olives and brine are salty enough.
(7) Juice limes and sour orange over the pan; stir well to combine.
(8) Add chopped dates or raisins. At this point, you will notice that there is a bit of extra liquid and fat in the pan. Do not drain this; allow the meat the simmer on low for about 15 more minutes so that all of the excess liquid is absorbed into the hash.

EMPANADAS

Ingredients:
Empanada discs (usually sold in the frozen foods aisle by Goya or another Latin American brand) Oil for frying

Procedure:
(1) Make sure that empanada discs are thawed before you begin to assemble the actual empanadas. They thaw quickly; just remove them from the freezer as you start the filling for the empanadas and they should be ready once the filling is done.
(2) Heat approximately one inch of oil in a large pan. It is unnecessary to deep fry empanadas; shallow-frying and turning them over once is just as effective. Fry on one side until golden brown and then turn with tongs to achieve the same result on the other side. I usually fry 5-6 empanadas per batch. Keep in mind that once the oil is well-heated, empanadas will take only about a minute or less to fry on each side.
(3) Once done, remove from oil and place onto a plate covered with double-folded paper towls. Blot excess oil to ensure crispiness when serving.

Halloumi Pita Sandwiches with Harissa-Spiked Hoummous, Oil-Cured Black Olives and Arugula

I was first introduced to halloumi cheese at Athens Cafe in Astoria, Queens, the heart of New York's Greek and Cypriot community. Halloumi melts at a much slower rate than other cheeses and is well-suited for grilling and pan frying. It is filling, "meaty," and "squeaks" when you bite into it.

.

I was first introduced to harissa-spiked hoummous, a/k/a "spicy hoummous," at a sampling at Sahadi's in Brooklyn Heights, only two blocks from my first New York apartment. Harissa is a sauce of several blended spices that is popular in the Maghreb (far north Africa along the Mediterranean) and, to a lesser extent, in France. It gives creamy hoummous - some makes of which I find pretty monotonous and one-toned - a nice kick and complexity of flavor.

.

One day, in my apartment during law school, I decided to spread harissa-spiked hoummous onto a pita, put grilled halloumi cheese onto it, and added some Moroccan oil-cured black olives and arugula. From that moment, this sandwich was born.

.

Ingredients:

Halloumi cheese, thickly sliced

Pitted olives (here, I used Moroccan oil-cured black olives)

Hoummous, preferably spiked with harissa or hot sauce

Pita bread

Arugula

.

Procedure:

(1) Grill or pan fry halloumi slices until golden brown on bottom; flip so that slices become browned on other side.

(2) Open pita pocket and spread hoummous within.

(3) Insert two slices of halloumi. Add olives and arugula.

Dark Chocolate Fudge with Smoked Sea Salt

This is one of the easiest dessert recipes you could possibly make. It has three - yes, three - ingredients and takes less than five minutes to put together. And, pretty much anyone who likes chocolate likes fudge. The richness of the dark chocolate topped with the complexity of oak-smoked sea salt gives you a memorable dessert of which you're likely to want more than just one serving.

Ingredients:
1-12 ounce can sweetened condensed milk
1 pound dark chocolate (here, I used Ghirardelli chips)
Sea salt (here, I used an oak-smoked variety)

Procedure:
(1) Create a makeshift double boiler by placing a heat-safe bowl over a small pot of water at a low boil.
(2) Pour sweetened condensed milk into bowl, and immediately add chocolate chips.
(3) Mix well until chocolate is uniformly melted.
(4) Pour mixture into a pan lined with wax paper or parchment paper; top with salt. Allow to set for at least an hour in the refreigerator, or, alternatively, in a cool spot at room temperature for two hours, before serving.

Thai Curry-Coconut Soup with Shrimp

Though I tend to favor thick, pureed vegetable-based soups as accompaniments to main dishes, there are a few soups I have had that struck me as perfect as meals on their own. This Thai-inspired curry-coconut soup is one of them. This soup's broth is fantastic - vegetable, chicken, or shrimp stock simmered with coconut milk, red curry paste, ginger, garlic and onions, with a splash each of lime juice and fish sauce, respectively. The soup gets its heartiness from a few generous handfuls of kale and oyster mushrooms as well as succulent shrimp poached in the soup before serving. Garnish with cilantro, lime slices or wedges, and serve in large bowls for a satisfying meal that needs little else on the side, save for perhaps a mango or papaya salad.

Ingredients:
1 large onion
3 cloves minced garlic
1 teaspoon minced ginger
3 bird chiles, seeded and chopped
1 piece lemongrass
1 teaspoon Thai red curry paste
1/2-pound oyster mushrooms
1/2-pound shrimp
1 can coconut milk
4 cups vegetable, chicken, or shrimp stock
Juice of 2-3 limes
2 tablespoons fish sauce
3 handfuls kale, torn into bite-sized pieces

Procedure:
(1) Sautee onions, garlic, and ginger in a pot over medium heat for about 7-8 minutes.
(2) Add curry paste and combine with other contents of the pot.
(3) Add coconut milk and stock.
(4) Cut several incisions in the piece of lemongrass and add it to the pot.
(5) Add lime juice, fish sauce, and chopped chiles.
(6) Allow contents to just barely reach a simmer, then add mushrooms and shrimp. Stir for a few minutes until shrimp have turned orange - this means they are cooked.
(7) Add kale and cook for about 2 more minutes.
(8) Remove lemongrass from the pot.
(9) Serve soup in large bowls, garnished with cilantro and lime slices or wedges.

Pizza Redux

I usually make two small pizzas every week or so. Over the last two weeks, I have made the following, from top to bottom.

(1) Applewood-smoked bacon, arugula, and chili oil;
(2) Caramelized onions, Moroccan olives, blue cheese, and thyme;
(3) Soppressata, serrano rings, and shaved garlic; and
(4) Applewood-smoked bacon, asiago, and rosemary.

All pizzas were cooked in a cast iron skillet using the method I detail here, with standard mozzarella cheese and a simple tomato sauce as a base. Sometime in the near future, I'm planning on making a pissaladiere as well as a cherry tomato tart, so be on the lookout for those updates!

Malta-Orange Braised Chicken over Sage-Parsnip Puree

What if I were to tell you that the secret ingredient to a deep, sophisticated sauce is a bitter and super-sweet soda than can be found in the Latin American aisle of your local grocery store for $0.50? Unlikely, yes, but sometimes unlikely ingredients used in a way to highlight their positives can bring a certain je ne sais quoi to a dish. The key to this sauce is a soda called malta, and is widely distributed around the US by the brands Goya and Hatuey. When used in cooking, malta imparts a rich, molasses flavor on whatever is braised in it as it reduces, and goes especially well with citrus and herbs. Here, I sear chicken thighs until golden and then braise them in a 50/50 mixture of malta and orange juice with a few generous pinches of sage and rosemary. I served the chicken over a parsnip puree infused with more sage, and together, this resulted in one of the best plates of food I've eaten in a while!

PARSNIP PUREE

Ingredients:
1.5 pounds parnsips
1 large (or 2 small) onion
1 bulb fennel
4 cups chicken stock
Salt, to taste
Pepper, to taste
Sage, chopped, to taste
Olive oil
2 tablespoons butter

Procedure:
(1) Chop onion and fennel. Sautee in olive oil for about 15 minutes.
(2) Cut parnsips into small chunks and add to pan along with salt, pepper, and sage.
(3) Sautee parnsips for about 10 minutes before adding chicken stock.
(4) Allow contents of pan to reach a boil, then simmer over low heat for about 10 more minutes.
(5) Add butter and allow to melt, then puree mixture with an immersion blender of standing blender.

MALTA-ORANGE BRAISED CHICKEN THIGHS

Ingredients:
1.5 pounds chicken thighs
6 ounces malta soda
6 ounces orange juice (fresh-squeezed or bottled are both fine)
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Sage, a few generous pinches, chopped
Rosemary, a few generous pinches, chopped
Orange zest, for garnish

Procedure:
(1) Liberally season chicken thighs with salt and pepper.
(2) Sear in olive oil until golden brown; flip and repeat on other side.
(3) Add malta and orange juice to pan along with chopped sage and rosemary.
(4) Allow sauce to reach a simmer and spoon it over chicken thighs every few minutes as it reduces. Once you add the liquid, allow meat to braise for about 15-20 minutes total.
(5) Incorporate some of the excess sauce into the parsnip puree. Serve chicken over puree, spoon extra sauce over top if desired, and garnish with orange zest and more chopped sage.

Burger with Blue Cheese, Bacon, Dijon and Arugula

I really enjoy a good burger every once in a while and this one is a stand-by of mine. First, I am a proponent of a charred crust but red, juicy interior. For that reason, I tend to make my patties pretty large. Next, I add some thick-cut bacon, which goes with pretty much anything. My favorite burger cheese is without question blue, so I add that for even more richness. Dijon mustard is slathered onto the bun for tang, and to round out the flavor profile and cleanse the palate, I add plenty of fresh and peppery arugula. Satisfying and simple.

.

Ingredients:

1 pound ground beef (an 80/20 meat/fat ratio is ideal), divided into 2 patties

4 strips thick-cut bacon (2 per burger)

2 ounces blue cheese, roughly crumbled (1 ounce per burger)

Dijon mustard

Arugula

Hamburger buns (here, I used focaccia because that's what I had in the apartment)

Salt and pepper for seasoning

.

Procedure:

(1) Cook bacon in a cast-iron skillet. Set aside bacon and either discard the grease or set it aside for later use.

(2) Put skillet over medium heat. Open a window and blow a fan at your fire alarm or disconnect it, because the room will soon fill with smoke!

(3) After forming the patties and seasoning them liberally with salt and pepper, add them to the skillet.

(4) Introduce patties to skillet. Turn the heat down to low-medium and do not move patties for a few minutes. This will allow a crust to form. Flip patties and allow a crust to form on their other side.

(5) Hold patties on the side of the skillet with a metal spatula in order to allow the laterals (the "sides" as opposed to the "tops"/"bottoms") of the burgers to brown. This should take about a minute for each lateral.

(6) At this point, burgers should be cooked to medium-rare. If you desire a more well-done result, transfer burgers to the oven for a couple of more minutes. Anticipate this potentially necessary extra step and preheat oven accordingly.

(7) Serve on buns slathered with dijon mustard and topped with bacon, crumbled blue cheese, and arugula.