Something to Love

How do I put this delicately?

I’m not much of a football fan.

It’s not that I don’t get why other people enjoy it: I can appreciate the thrill of a touchdown, the feeling of community, the tears when someone really deserving wins a Heisman, the prophet that is Tim Tebow. It’s just that...I don’t know what the fuss is all about. People name their first born sons after football players, throw things out the window in fits of rage over a bad call, even get arrested in the name of their teams. There’s a jail in the Eagles’ stadium with its own presiding judge for crying out loud.

Having said all this, the man I love loves football. I think I’ve come a long way in terms of my understanding and – yes, I’ll say it – appreciation of the game. I met David in the Fall of 2007, smack in the middle of college football season. There are few things this man loves more than the South Carolina Gamecocks (this being one of them), and so I found myself cheering for the team on a number of chilly Saturdays at the Copper Door Tavern in Murray Hill. Admittedly, I found myself routing for the other team a lot of the time, because I didn’t know who was who. But I will say that seeing David's devotion to his team was not only endearing, it was inspiring. I don't think many people know that kind of love. Flash forward three years, and Steve Spurrier, Marcus Lattimore, Stephon Gilmore and Alshon Jeffery are household names for the both of us. I should also note that I date the kind of guy who would name his first-born after one of these guys, and may have promised a few people that he would.

Two weeks ago, when South Carolina beat Alabama in what I have been told (by some biased fans) was the most amazing game in the history of college football, I found myself jumping for joy in a Mississippi dive bar. If that’s not evidence of true love, I don’t know what is. I’ve even begun to understand phrases like “bump and run,” “drop back” and “fair catch,” and why people cheer even when their players have been tackled. It’s all about getting to the end zone.

Where am I going with all of this? I’ll tell you. For the past few years, I’ve embraced football by making it an excuse to have people over for snacks. We may like different teams - and some of us might not even like football - but we can all get behind good food. Sometimes I make bruscetta, sometimes I bake biscuits with cheddar cheese and dill, and once there were slow-cooked French Dips on baguettes (that was an important game). But I have never made anything that can hold a candle to David’s Game Day Chili. Leave it to a boy from the South to have a chili recipe so utterly perfect. It is a party of pinto beans, green chilies, paprika, hot sauce and a can of dark beer for good measure (if you ask me, I think this is the secret ingredient). Looking at this recipe for the first time, throwing all these ingredients together seems risky. There's a lot going on. But somehow, they all truly complement one another. This chili is also my favorite left over meal. Reheat it on a Sunday night to keep the blues at bay.

This chili makes every game more special: the touchdowns become more glorious, the high-fives more emphatic. Even if your team loses, you still feel like you’ve won.

Now that’s something to love.

David’s Game Day Chili
Adapted from the St. George Church Cookbook

I’ve been asked to give the recipe’s original creator, Arthur Dukes, a shout out. According to David, he’s a swell guy. And I can tell you he's one fantastic cook.

2 lbs. ground ground turkey
1 med. onion, chopped
3 to 4 garlic cloves, minced
2 (15-oz) cans pinto beans, rinsed and drained
3 (8-oz) cans tomato sauce
1 (12-oz) bottle dark beer (David likes Brooklyn Lager)
1 (14.5-oz) can beef broth
1 (6-oz) can tomato paste
1 (4.5-oz) can chopped green chilies
2 tablespoons chili powder
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
2 tsp. ground cumin
1 to 2 tsp ground red pepper
1 tsp paprika
1 tsp hot sauce

Cook first three ingredients in a Dutch oven over medium heat, stirring until meat crumbles and is no longer pink. Break up the meat with a wooden spoon to aid in the browning. Drain cooked meat in a colander. Combine meat, beans, and next 11 ingredients in a Dutch oven and bring to a boil. Reduce heat, and simmer for at least three hours. In our experience, the longer the chili simmers, the better. Last week, David started cooking at 11 am for a six o’clock kick off. It was the best chili yet.

I like my chili served over rice with a dollop of sour cream and some grated cheddar cheese. A slice or two of jalapeno pepper adds a nice kick, though this chili is plenty spicy for most people.

We Also Ate

An Ode to The South:

Oh Memphis, oh Oxford. You did me in with your fried foods and biscuits. Your ribs and hush puppies here were the best I’d ever tasted. I loved your baked eggs and country ham with a biscuit and raspberry jam on the side here and your Southern fried catfish and sweet potato casserole here. Your fried chicken here was so crispy and heartwarming, I couldn’t stop searching for leftover bites, long after we’d eaten every last piece. Your coffee and chocolate chip cookies here felt like Christmas Eve.





And then there was the wedding, which was my very reason for visiting you in the first place. Jen and Buddy threw the perfect Southern wedding in Mississippi in a big old backyard decorated with twinkle lights. There was a New Orleans jazz band and sweet tea. We danced barefoot and sipped champagne. We also ate. Ham and biscuit sliders, potato salad with bacon, crab dip, an insanely amazing cream cheese and pepper jelly concoction and the most perfect angel food wedding cake with butter cream frosting.



Which brings me to fish. I loved every second of my adventure in the South, but I craved something simple when I got home. It was time to get my stomach back on track. No more pork, no more fried food, no more butter (well, of course a little bit of butter. Let’s be reasonable). I always turn to fish when I need something light but nourishing. Full disclosure: one of my favorite stores in our neighborhood is Fish Tales on Court Street. That’s why I love Brooklyn. Sure, we have one-stop shop grocery stores, but we also have fish stores. And bread stores. And bakeries. But I digress.

This recipe is one I come back to again and again in some form. It’s simple French fare, dressed up with herbs and lemon juice. There’s nothing too fussy about it, but paired with a glass of crisp wine it feels elegant. It’s a clean, fresh meal that won’t make you go straight to sleep (like every meal in the South made me do. Seriously. I could not stay awake).

I love fish with orzo or couscous, and a big fresh salad. While it delivers a satisfaction that I’ll say is…different than the “I just had the best barbecue and biscuits of my life” variety, I find it’s just what I need after a weekend of eating like I’m having my last meal at every meal.



Go, fish.

Trout with Lemon Butter and Herbs
Adapted from The Gourmet Cookbook

This recipe originally calls for Chilean Sea Bass, but I usually pick trout, sole or cod. Chilean Sea Bass is usually triple the price per pound, and over-fished to the point of being endangered. If you really want bass, opt for black sea bass or striped bass, which both come from the Atlantic ocean. A simple white fish works just fine here. And always make sure you buy wild, not farmed. If you need recommendations, I know a fantastic fish monger on Court street.

Ingredients:

1/3 c mixed fresh herbs such as parsley, dill, and chives
2 trout or other white fish fillets with skin (each about 7 ounces)
1 tsp olive oil
1 1/2 Tbs unsalted butter
1/3 c dry white wine (anything that you would want to drink)
1 Tbs fresh lemon juice

Preheat oven to 200 degrees. Chop herbs. Pat fish fillets dry and score just through skin in 4 places. Diagonally cut each fillet in half and season with salt and pepper. In a heavy skillet heat oil and 1 tablespoon butter over moderately high heat until foam subsides and sear fish, skin sides down, for roughly 3 minutes, until skin is golden. Turn fish over and cook 2 minutes more until just cooked through. Transfer fish to two oven-safe plates and put in the oven to stay warm. Remove skillet from heat and add wine to deglaze, scraping up brown bits with a wooden spoon. Stir in lemon juice, herbs, remaining 1/2 Tbs butter, and salt and pepper to taste. Spoon sauce over fish.

It was time for gnocchi

This weekend, it officially became Fall in New York City. The air turned crisp, the wind kicked up, and we had to burrow under the duvet to keep warm. By Sunday, I was in need of a meal with substance. It was time for something with gumption, something that fills you soul as much as it fills your stomach. It was time for gnocchi.



When it comes to pasta, I’m a buy-it-at-the-store sort of girl. The idea of actually making pasta myself conjures images of heavy contraptions, hours in the kitchen and results that probably aren’t as good as the packaged variety. That being said, I really, really wanted to try my hand at gnocchi. These tiny potato dumplings have an imperfect yet completely comforting quality to them – and making gnocchi is a much less daunting process than rolling out paper-thin strands of spaghetti dough. I think. I’d never had anything other than standard white potato gnocchi, and I found myself craving something with a twist. I stumbled upon this recipe for sweet potato gnocchi, and well, that was that. Flavored with a hint of nutmeg and a generous scoop of Parmesan, this gnocchi has a sweet and savory taste to it. Pair it with Frankie’s Spuntino’s sage butter sauce, and you’ve got something special. The sauce gives the gnocchi a gorgeous, buttery, almost nutty quality.

I was surprised by how much fun one can have with sweet potatoes. There’s something so satisfying about transforming an object into something completely different. And what’s more gratifying than mashing potatoes? This recipe called for a potato ricer, but the potatoes were so tender when they came out of the oven that a fork was all I needed to turn them into orange mush (and I use the term “mush” in the most endearing way). Also, I think mashing the sweet potatoes with a fork gives them an airier texture than you’d get from a ricer or food mill. After the sweet potatoes are mashed, they need to cool in an even layer on a sheet pan. Then they’re formed into dough with egg, flour, nutmeg, salt and pepper. Then they’re cut, rolled into ropes and then rolled into tiny balls. I bet you’ll never pay this much attention to sweet potatoes.



Know what else is fun? Shaping the balls of sweet potato dough with fork tines. Technically, the tines are meant to give the dough a twisty shape. This recipe makes a lot of gnocchi (six servings), so I had plenty of dough to practice with. I only got about ten really pretty pieces of gnocchi, but I consider that an accomplishment. Cooking the gnocchi is fun, too. The dough goes in the boiling water and announces when it’s ready to get out by rising to the surface. How assertive! All in all, the process takes about 2 1/4 hours. It’s a long time, but a perfect way to spend a Sunday. And it makes me think that even homemade spaghetti might be achievable – and maybe even fun.




Sweet Potato Gnocchi with Browned Sage Butter
Adapted from Gourmet and the Frankie’s Spuntino Cookbook

Ingredients

Gnocchi
1 1/4 pounds russet baking potatoes (about one large and one medium sized potato)
3/4 lb sweet potatoes (about three medium sized)
1 large egg
1/2 tsp grated nutmeg
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground black pepper
1/3 c grated Parmigiano Reggiano plus more for serving
1 c all-purpose flour plus more for dusting

Browned Sage Butter Sauce
4 Tbs unsalted butter
1/3 c extra-virgin olive oil
1 c sage leaves (from 1 bunch)
Salt and white pepper to taste

Preheat oven to 450°F with rack in middle. Pierce russet and sweet potatoes in several places with a fork, then bake in a sheet pan until just tender, 45 minutes to 1 hour. Cool potatoes slightly, then peel and mash with fork on sheet pan, spreading in an even layer. Cool potatoes completely. Lightly flour another large baking sheet or line with parchment paper. Beat together egg, nutmeg, salt, and pepper in a small bowl. Gather potatoes into a mound in sheet pan and form a well in center. Pour egg mixture into well, then knead into potatoes. Knead in cheese and 1/2 cup of flour, then knead, adding more flour as necessary, until mixture forms a smooth but slightly sticky dough. Dust top lightly with some of flour. Cut dough into six pieces. With floured hands, form 1 piece of dough into a 1/2-inch-thick rope on a lightly floured surface. Cut rope into 1/2-inch pieces. Gently roll each piece into a ball and lightly dust with flour. Repeat with remaining five pieces of dough. Turn a fork over and hold at a 45-degree angle, with tips of tines touching work surface. One at a time, roll gnocchi down fork tines, pressing with your thumb, to make ridges on one side. They should become more oval than round. Transfer gnocchi as formed to baking sheets. Refrigerate before use.

When you’re ready to make the gnocchi, bring a large pot of salted water to a boil.

Begin making the sauce. Melt olive oil and butter in a large skillet over medium heat until the butter begins to foam. Add sage leaves, and cook for about 1 to 2 minutes, or until the foam subsides. Heat about 4 minutes, until the butter becomes a golden brown. Reduce heat to low and remove sage leaves. I don’t like the taste of sage leaves, but if you do, feel free to leave them in the sauce. With the sauce on low heat, add half the gnocchi to boiling water and stir. Cook until they float to surface, about three minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to skillet with butter sauce. Don’t worry too much about draining the pasta. A little extra water will help thicken the sauce. Cook remaining gnocchi in same manner, transferring to skillet as cooked. Heat gnocchi in skillet over medium heat, stirring to coat. Serve sprinkled with grated Parmesan cheese.