WELL FED

CHICKPEA, SAUSAGE & KALE SOUP

Bad news, you guys.  I broke my camera.  Not that it's a huge loss.  To be honest it was pretty much a piece of crap and it's a wonder that the pictures on this blog look as good as they do.  Here's what happened.  I know I haven't posted in QUITE a while and I'm sorry, but my current project is keeping me rather busy.  I'm in the middle of working on the fifth season of the double Emmy-winning Bravo series Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D List and my kitchen time has been drastically reduced.  I have made a few dishes and even taken photos of the process and results but my enthusiasm for them dulled soon after the meal was finished and as such I did not post them. This past Friday I was finally back at the stove trying out a version of a fantastic recipe that my friend Marissa had made for me recently, Bucatini Amatricia, and I was totally shooting it, taking lots of pictures of every step.  Then just as I was getting ready to plate it and take the moneyshot, I grabbed my camera off the counter but the strap had been closed in a drawer and it slipped out of my hand, crashed onto the floor and slid under the stove.  The door that secures the battery had broken off and I was unable to turn it on.  I was SOOO bummed.  I was SOOO close.  My camera was broken and then to top it all off, my version of Marissa's Bucatini wasn't as good as Marissa's.

A few days later whilst looking back at some old pics in iphoto I realized there was a dish I made that I really liked and for some reason never posted.  This is one of the rare recipes that I sort of made up.  I mean, it's not like I invented it or anything, but it's inspired by several recipes I saw on line as well as this soup I had for lunch one day at a nearby restaurant called Cube (although I liked mine better).  So I decided that since I had the pics in the bag and I'd really liked the dish, why not post it.  So, until I get a new camera and subsequently made a meal worth posting, I hope this holds you over.

INGREDIENTS

Extra virgin olive oil

4 sweet Italian sausages, casings removed

1 large onion, sliced

1 or 2 carrots, peeled and diced

1 tablespoon fresh rosemary, finely chopped

1 tablespoon fresh thyme, finely chopped

1 teaspoon fennel seed, crushed in a mortar or spice grinder

1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

4 garlic cloves, peeled and thinly sliced

1/2 cup white wine

2 cans chickpeas, drained and rinsed

6 cups chicken stock

1 parmesan rind (optional)

1 bunch kale, stripped from the thick stems and sliced into bite-sized pieces

METHOD

Heat a Dutch oven over medium heat for 2 minutes.  Crumble in the sausage and cook, rendering the fat from the meat, about 5 minutes.  Do not overcook the sausage.  You only want it browned on the outside.  The middle will cook once the broth is added.  Remove the sausage to a plate lined with paper towels.

Add the onions, carrots, rosemary, thyme, fennel and red pepper flakes, stirring to coat with the rendered fat.  If it seems a little dry, add a splash of olive oil.  Cook, stirring every so often, until the onions are tender, about 5 to 8 minutes.  

Season with salt and pepper, toss in the garlic then cook for another 2 minutes, until the garlic is fragrant.

Pour in the white wine and cook until most of the liquid has evaporated, about 2 minutes.  Then back in the sausage, the chickpeas, chicken stock and Parmesan rind.  

Cover the pot, raise the heat to medium high and bring to a boil.  Remove the lid again, lower the heat to a gentle simmer and cook for about 15 to 20 minutes.

Add the kale to the soup, stirring to combine and cook for another 5 minutes or so, until the kale is tender and bright green.  

Taste, adjust the seasonings and then serve in wide shallow bowls showered with Parmesan and accompanied by a thick slice of grilled bread rubbed with a clove of garlic.

We all know how much I love soup and this is a great one.  It's a hearty meal, but the soup itself is kind of light.  Although the sausage and chickpeas are filling, the broth is pretty light, but still has some character.  The parmesan rind kind of melts a little and infuses the chicken stock with a salty richness.  It's a good way to intensify store bought chicken stock and of course the sausage, fresh thyme and rosemary add tons of flavor.  The kale adds a nice chewy green that balances out the meat and density of the chickpeas.

The soup is best when freshly made, but it's fine reheated for several days afterward.  The only thing is the kale gets a little limp and turns a sad green.

Serves 6

BOEUF A LA NICOISE: BRAISED BEEF STEW WITH RED WINE, OVEN DRIED TOMATOES, OLIVE & BUTTERED NOODLES

This past week, Mark's mom Dee Dee was in town for a little visit.  It was her first time seeing the house and she just adored it.  She and Mark spent the next several days catching up with old friends and neighbors from when they lived in Mandeville Canyon in the 60's, and then I'd join them after I got off work.  The first several nights were spent out on the town, first up dinner at BLD.  Then the next night to satisfy a prime rib craving, we all went to Lawry's (perhaps you know their famous seasoning salt) where we indulged in the famous Lawry's spinning salad prepared tableside, thick slabs of beef accompanied by a heaping mound of mashed potatoes, rich, creamed spinach, and Yorkshire pudding.  Friday night, although I'd planned to cook for us, after work I was a little frazzled and didn't feel like dealing with food, so we ended up going out for Indian, something Dee Dee never gets up in Santa Maria.  Saturday, the plan was for a small dinner party - Mark, myself, Dee Dee and Annie and Pierson.  Usually I like to spend several days conceiving the menu, but work has been crazy and I didn't have the time.  So upon my return from the gym that morning, I pulled out ol reliable, Sunday Suppers at Lucques.

The thing about Ms. Goin's cookbook, as I've mentioned before, is that the recipes are time consuming, often need to be started the night before and require trips to multiple supermarkets to track down all the ingredients.  However, this recipe was sort of unlike many of the others.  It require nothing terribly exotic that one can only find at the Santa Monica Farmers' Market, it was a bit time consuming (braising for 3 hours) but not terribly so.  It was totally something that I could put together that afternoon for dinner that evening.  Plus I liked the idea of doing one more slow-cooked, cozy meal before the weather gets too warm.

INGREDIENTS

3 pounds beef chuck, sliced into 1/2 to 2 inch cubes

1 tablespoon freshly cracked pepper

1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves, plus 6 sprigs

6 cloves garlic, smashed

the zest of 1 orange, 1/2 of it grated, the other 1/2 removed in strips with a vegetable peeler

5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1/2 a large yellow onion, diced (about 1 cup)

1/2 a small fennel, diced (about 1/2 cup)

2 medium carrots, peeled and diced (about 1/2 cup)

1 bay leaf, preferably fresh

8 whole San Marzano canned tomatoes, plus 3/4 cup of the canning puree

1/4 cup balsamic vinegar

4 cups beef stock

1/2 cup pitted Nicoise olives

1 pound pappardelle

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 cup fresh leaf parsley, chopped

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

METHOD

In a large bowl combine the beef, black pepper, 1 tablespoon of the thyme leaves, the crushed garlic and the grated orange zest.  Toss to coat and combine then cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 4 hours or up to over night.

Take the meat out of the refrigerator 45 minutes before cooking.  After 15 minutes, season it on all sides with about 1 tablespoon of salt.  Reserve the garlic.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Heat a large dutch oven over high heat for 3 minutes.  Pour in 3 tablespoons olive oil and wait a minute or two until the pan is very hot and almost smoking.  Place 1/3 of the meat in the pan being careful not to crowd it.  You will likely need to brown the meat in 3 batches.  Sear the meat until well browned on all sides, adjusting the heat as necessary.  This is a very important step so do not rush it.  As the batches of meat are browned, remove to a plate or rimmed baking sheet while you continue with the others.

Reduce the heat to medium and add the onion, fennel, and carrot.  Stir with a wooden spoon, scraping up the brown crusty bits in the bottom of the pan.  If it's too dry, add a couple tablespoons of water.  Next add the thyme sprigs, bay leaf, reserved garlic and the orange zest strips.  Cook for 6 to 8 minutes until the vegetables are caramelized.

Add the tomato puree and cook for 2 minutes, stirring to coat the vegetables.  Add the balsamic vinegar and reduce to a glaze.

Pour in the red wine, turn the heat to high and reduce by half, about 5 minutes.  Add the beef stock and bring to a boil.  Add the meat to the pot, scraping in any juices that have collected on the plate.  

Cover with a lid and braise in the oven for about 3 hours.

While the meat is cooking, cut the whole canned tomatoes in half lengthwise.  Slather the bottom of a small baking dish with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and then lay in the tomatoes, cut side up.  They should fit pretty snugly.  Season with 1/4 teaspoon salt, pepper and the remaining 1/2 teaspoon of thyme. 

Roast the tomatoes in the same oven for 1 1/2 hours, until they are shriveled and slightly caramelized on top.

Take the dutch oven out of the oven and uncover, being careful of steam.  Using a slotted spoon, gently remove the meat from the braising liquid and place on a rimmed baking sheet.  Turn the oven up to 400 degrees F.  Return the meat to the oven to caramelize for about 15 minutes.  

Meanwhile, bring the braising to a simmer and reduce by half, or at least until it's thickened.  

Add the olives to the sauce and turn off the heat.  

Once the beef is caramelized, gently add it back to the dutch oven and stir to coat with the sauce.

Serve the stew with something hearty like mashed potatoes or noodles tossed with butter and parsley, which is what I did.  Top the noodles with the stew and tuck in a few of the oven-dried tomatoes.

So I made another Suzanne Goin stew recipe that was sort of similar to this one, in terms of process at least.  What I like is straining the meat from the braising liquid and then caramelizing it in the oven.  As much as I love stews, many of them really have very little to offer in terms of texture variety.  It's all kind of the same.  Soft and or mushy.  But by straining out the meat to re-caramelize in the oven it gets crisp on the edges and yet is fall apart tender.  It's pretty great.  It also then gives you the opportunity to reduce the braising liquid as much or as little as you'd like.  I hate spending hours on a hearty meal like this only to have the sauce to be runny and oily.  This way, you have more control.

I also love drying out the canned, stewed tomatoes in the oven.  What a great idea.  The slow roasting, dries them out and concentrates their flavor and the result is slightly chewy and gives the stew a really welcome hit of acidity.  The orange zest adds a bright floral layer of flavor and the nicoise olives impart an almost sour, brininess that cuts through the richness of the reduced wine and stock.

As I mentioned before, you could serve this with some lovely mashed potatoes, but at Suzanne's suggestion, I served it with buttered noodles, well, perfectly al dente pappardelle.  It's kind of better than your regular old mash.  I'm all about texture and the pasta gives the meal another interesting texture.

Serves 6

COQ AU VIN

Every year for my and Annie's birthday, we challenge one another with a dessert and over the years, they've gotten more and more difficult and time consuming.  One year I made her a flourless chocolate cake.  Then she made me a carrot cake.  The next year I made her a peanut butter bread pudding which I served with a chocolate sauce and banana ice cream.  She in turn made me individual pavlovas with coconut custard.  Never having made meringues before, the first several attempts were less than satisfactory and they had to be remade.  This past year, I requested a chocolate and coconut charlotte that required Annie to make her one chocolate lady fingers.  As revenge I'm sure, for her birthday this year she more or less demanded a pineapple dacquoise.  

Ok here's the thing.  I totally would have attempted it except for one thing - I was also already making dinner.  Annie's parents, Greg and Bev had flown to town for the weekend and wanted to see the new house, so we were going to host a little, intimate birthday dinner party.  The centerpiece of the menu was a coq au vin, the homey French dish of chicken braised with wine.  This version comes from the Balthazar cookbook.  To go with it, I planned a simple starter salad of mixed greens, sliced pear, a classic French viniagrette with tarragon and shavings of pecorino.  To soak up with coq au vin's rich gravy, I was going to make a decadent parsnip puree.  

With all this going on in addition to dessert, the dacquoise seemed a little too ambitious.  The meal itself was already ambitious.  In the end, I wound up making a simple but delicious peanut butter pie with a chocolate cookie crust.  It seems like with this intro, this post ought to be about the the afore mentioned pie.  But here's the thing.  I didn't take pictures of the pie.  I took pictures of the coq au vin.  So that's the recipe we have.  (Note that I sort of doubled part of the recipe so the amounts in the photographs don't reflect the ingredients list.)

INGREDIENTS

6 large chicken legs with thighs

1 large yellow onion, cut into a 1/2-inch dice

1 large carrot, peeled and cut into a 1/2 inch dice

2 celery stalks, cut into a medium dice

1 head garlic, sliced in half horizontally

1 750 ml bottle red wine, such as Cabernet Savignon

1 bouquet garni (5 sprigs parsley, 2 sprigs thyme 1 bay leaf wrapped in a square of cheesecloth and tied into a bundle)

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1/4 cup olive oil

3 tablespoons tomato paste

3 tablespoons all-purpose flour

3 cups veal stock (you can use chicken if you prefer)

3 tablespoons cognac (optional)

1 pound pearl onions

1/2 pound smoked bacon, sliced into lardons

1 pound crimini mushrooms, wiped clean with a damp paper towel and quartered

1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves

3 tablespoons fresh chopped flat-leaf parsley

sprigs of thyme to garnish

METHOD

In a large bowl or dutch oven, combine the chicken legs, diced onions, carrots and celery, garlic and bouquet garni.  

Pour in the wine.  Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 24 to 48 hours.

Using a pair of tongs, remove the legs from the marinade and place on a platter.  Place a colander or sieve over a large bowl and strain the vegetables from the wine, reserving the wine.  Discard the bouquet garni.

Heat a 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a dutch oven over medium high heat until smoking.  Pat the chicken dry and season with salt and pepper and place 3 of the legs in the dutch oven, skin side down and cook until the skin has a deep brown color.  Flip the legs over and continue to cook until the other side is brown as well.  Remove the legs from the pot and place on a plater.  Wipe out the dutch oven and add 2 more tablespoons of oil and repeat with the remaining 3 chicken legs.

Reduce the heat to medium and add the reserved vegetables.  Cook until softened, about 5 to 8 minutes.  Stir in the tomato paste and cook for 2 minutes.  Sprinkle in the flour and cook, stirring, for 2 more minutes.  

Pour in the reserved marinade, bring to a boil and then cook until it has reduced by half, about 15 to 20 minutes.

Return the browned chicken to the pot, add the stock, cognac if using, and bring to a boil.  Reduce heat to maintain a gentle simmer.  Cook, uncovered, until the legs are tender, about 1 hour.

Meanwhile, prepare the other ingredients.  Bring a medium pot of water to a boil.  Add the pearl onions and cook until tender, 5 to 7 minutes.  Strain and set aside to cool.  When the onions are cool enough to handle, slice off the root end and gently squeeze the tip and the onion should pop right out of the skin.

Next cook the bacon over medium heat in a dry skillet until brown and crispy.  Using a slotted spoon, transfer the bacon from the pan to a plate lined with paper towels.  Pour half the rendered bacon fat into a small bowl and set aside.

Add the pear onions to the pan and cook over medium heat until browned all over, about 5 to 8 minutes. Transfer the onions to a small bowl and set aside.

Add the remaining reserved bacon fat to the pan and toss in the mushrooms and thyme, and cook over medium heat until golden brown.  About 5 minutes.  

Turn off the heat, and season with salt and pepper.  Transfer to a small bowl and set aside.

Remove the chicken legs from the braising liquid and set aside.  Strain the liquid, discarding the solids and return to the Dutch oven.  If the sauce seems too thin, bring to a simmer and reduce by half.  Return the legs to the sauce and add the reserved browned onions, mushrooms and bacon.  

Stir to combine, reduce heat to low and simmer until everything is heated through, about 15 minutes more.  Just before serving, stir in the parsley.

It's no secret that I love braising.  It's so unlikely that the results won't be fantastically tender and flavorful.  Such is the case with this coq au vin and I think the reason is because the chicken and vegetables are marinated in the red wine.  That's a key difference from many of the coq au vin recipes I looked up when I was trying to decide which one to use.

With the weather in Los Angeles cold and rainy, this hearty dish was perfect for our little dinner party.  The mushrooms are earthy, the pearl onions sweet and the bacon lends a smoky and salty flavor that works well with both.  The sauce is luxurious and velvety which I think comes from the veal stock and the reducing of the wine.  It perfectly coats the chicken and vegetables and lazily pools in and around what ever starchy mound everything is piled up on.

Annie and her parents loved it.  I think it more than made up for the fact that I didn't make the more complicated dessert.  Maybe next year I'll challenge her with a dinner.  Something like cassoulet.  (It takes like a week to prepare)

Serves 6

ROAST CHICKEN WITH MEYER LEMON & ROASTED SHALLOT GRAVY

Mark was gone.  Visiting his mother.  I opted not to go.  Since we moved in together, sometimes I like to take opportunities to be by myself since those opportunities tend to be rare.  I mean, I am an only child.  Although soon after he left, I felt aimless and bored and couldn't wait for him to get back.  When mealtimes came, the idea of cooking for one person felt like an ordeal.  The first night I just grazed in the refrigerator on a hodgepodge of foods and flavors that didn't really go together.  It somehow seemed sadder than making a meal for one.  The next day I decided that even though it was just me, I was going to make a proper dinner.

Sunday morning I went to the Melrose Place Farmers' Market, and perused the stands.  I picked up a bundle of fresh thyme, a pound of fat little shallots, a bag of pink potatoes and a handful of Meyer lemons.  I must confess that I wasn't exactly just spotting beautiful, seasonal ingredients and suddenly making up a recipe in my head of how they'd deliciously fit together.  I actually had a dish in mind, one that I'd seen in an issue of Sunset magazine a year ago while sitting in the waiting room of my dermatologist, Dr. Van Dyke.  I'm not quite at that level yet.  Hopefully one day.

Later that afternoon, I got busy prepping my roast chicken for one.  Just because one is dining alone, doesn't mean one can't be civilized.  No more refrigerator grazing.

INGREDIENTS

1 4-to-5 pound organic chicken

1 1/2 tablespoons kosher salt

freshly ground black pepper

zest of 2 Meyer lemons

juice of 1/2 of one of the lemons

the remaining 1 1/2 lemons quartered

1 tablespoon fresh thyme, chopped plus 4 whole sprigs

extra virgin olive oil

1 pound shallots, unpeeled

1 cup reduced-sodium chicken stock

1/3 cup dry white wine

METHOD

Rinse the chicken inside and out and then pat dry with paper towels.  Gently loosen the skin of the breast and the thighs and work some of the salt under the skin.  Rub the remaining salt all over the chicken and in the cavity.  Chill uncovered at least 3 hours or up to overnight.

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.  Remove chicken from refrigerator and let come to room temperature.

Pat the chicken dry inside and out.  Work half the zest under the skin covering the breast and thighs and then rub the rest all over the outside.  Then rub the skin with the chopped thyme and season with pepper.  Place the quartered lemons in the cavity along with the thyme sprigs.  Drizzle the chicken with olive oil, gently rub to completely coat.

Toss the unpeeled shallots in a heavy roasting pan and drizzle with a little more olive oil, tossing to coat.  Set a V-shaped baking rack in the pan and then place the chicken in the rack, breast side up.  If you'd like, you can truss the chicken, but I opted not to.  Slide the chicken in the oven and roast for 1 1/2 to 1 3/4 hours, basting with chicken stock, every 30 minutes (you should use about half the stock).

When the chicken is golden brown and the internal temperature reads between 160 and 170 degrees F, remove from the oven.  Using a pair of tongs, tip the chicken to let the juices run out into the roasting pan.  Remove the chicken from the pan, set on a plate, and cover loosely with a square of tin foil.

Using a slotted spoon, remove the roasted shallots and reserve in a bowl to let cool slightly.

Meanwhile pour the pan drippings into a measuring cup or fat separator.  Either spoon off or pour off all about about a tablespoon of fat.  Pour the drippings into a food processor or blender.

When the shallots are cool enough to handle, slice off the top and root end and then squeeze out the soft insides into the food processor or blender.  

Add the white wine, the remaining 1/2 cup of broth, and pulse until smooth.

Return the sauce to the roasting pan and cook, scrapping any brown bits, over medium-high heat until the sauce turns a nutty brown, about 10 minutes.  Stir in 1 tablespoon of the reserved Meyer lemon juice, or more to taste.  Taste and season with salt and pepper is need be.

If you like, you can pour the sauce through a fine-mesh strainer to make the sauce silky smooth.

Finally, carve the chicken, discarding the lemon wedges and thyme, and serve with a bowl of the sauce.  Don't forget to save and freeze the carcass to make chicken stock.  If you feel the skin on the wings and thighs are kind of pale and flabby from being roasted on the underside, just toss them onto a pan and stuck them under the broiler for about 2 minutes to crisp them up.  That's what I did.

 

My first observation about this recipe is that it dirties up kind of a lot of dishes, pots, pans and utensils.  Or maybe I'm just a messy cook.  Regardless, finally having a dishwasher and counter space makes me not care.  Plus the resulting chicken is that good, it'll make you not care about dirty dishes and I think this might be due to the salting.  I can't be positive, but I think it made the chicken really really juicy.  I've never made a chicken with such juicy white meat, and I've made a lot of really great chickens.  I think form now on, if I have the time, I'll be salting my chicken.  

Next observation - nestling the flavoring (in this case the Meyer lemon zest) under the skin, is a much more effective use of said flavoring.  I have done this before and really like the results.  It comes in direct contact with the meat and really has a chance to impart flavor.  You don't have to do it, but it's better if you do.  The zest really gives the meat a bright, fresh taste.  Very clean and slightly sweet and perfumey.

And then there's the roasted shallot gravy.  Roasting the shallots intensifies their flavor and brings out the sweetness, which is mirrored by the sweetness of the Meyer lemon juice.  Unlike some flour and butter based gravies that have a rich, heavy consistency, this one is nicely thick but still feels light and fresh.  As I mentioned before, you don't have to strain the sauce.  I did and it just made more things to clean, however, straining it makes the sauce more elegant, so if that's the tone you are going for then do it.  I almost think the next Thanksgiving turkey I make, I'm going to include a bunch of shallots in the roasting pan and use that as the basis for the gravy.

To go along with the chicken, I made another recipe from the Sunset magazine article about Meyer lemons - crispy olive oil slicked roasted potatoes that get tossed with parsley and more of the sweet Meyer lemon zest.  But really you could serve anything.  That's the great thing about roast chicken.  Versatility.

Serves 4 to 6

CORNMEAL-FRIED ONION RINGS

So I love how when January rolls around all the food magazines and cooking shows are all suddenly promoting "heathy eating."  This past Saturday, Food Network was devoted to it.  Both Anne Burrel and Tyler Florence made steamed fish tucked away in a cozy little pocket made of parchment paper (although at the end, Tyler still put about 4 tablespoons of a compound butter on his fish.  I'm kind of making fun of it, but I totally get it.  From Halloween through New Years Eve, it becomes two months of non-stop indulgence and I am no different.  I ate lots of chocolate, I couldn't GET enough bread, and my drinking was putting me on a fast track to needing a liver transplant.  Come New Years day I vowed to turn my life around.  However not even a week went by and I was soon heating up a dutch oven full of oil to deep fry myself some onion rings.

Listen you guys, I'm sort of obsessed with deep frying.  As I mentioned before, for New Years Eve I fried some olives that were stuffed with Italian sausage and coated in Panko.  And then a few nights later, I fried up some fontina stuffed risotto balls, also coated with Panko.  And on a recent episode of Jamie at Home, Jamie braised rabbit in white wine until it was almost but not quite falling apart and then fried it.  I so want to give that a try.  But I wasn't always like this.  In my old apartment I once tried to make fried chicken but in the end, the whole thing seemed like such an ordeal and it felt like the entire kitchen was slicked with grease that I had little to no interest in revisiting frying.

However, a while ago I was reading in one of my cookbooks (I can't remember which one, but it might have been either Sunday Suppers at Lucques or maybe The Zuni Cafe Cookbook) and the author was wistfully remembering back to one of his or her culinary influences.  This person apparently was fearless in the kitchen and an example of it was that she would fry things at the drop of a hat.  For some reason, that idea has stuck with me.  I liked the idea of that sort of spontaneity with out concern about cleanup.  I wanted to be like that.  After reading it I pictured casual gatherings of friends all hanging out drinking wine or beer and suddenly I'd call out, "Hey! Let's make some pomme frites!"  One friend would peel and slice potatoes.  I'd be manning the dutch oven full of oil, bringing it up to temperature, WITHOUT a thermometer (I'd just know when it was hot enough).  Another friend would be whipping up a bowl of aioli to dip the frittes in and yet another friend would be refilling all of our wine glasses.  Perhaps outside, someone else would be grilling up steaks using a stem of rosemary plucked from the garden to brush them with good olive oil.  I mean, doesn't that sound so fun?  Of course in my head, all of this took place in my rustic farmhouse surrounded my by own vineyard.

As romantic as the idea of careless spontaneity is, my frying obsession is also prompted a great deal by frugality.  I just hate to throw things away and I'd only fried a couple handfuls of olives in six cups of oil.  I wanted to get my money's worth out if it before I ditched it.  As long as you strain the oil through cheese cloth or paper towels to remove any particles, you can reuse the oil several times - just store the oil in a cool dark place.  After the olives and risotto balls I kept wondering, "What can I fry next?"  I looked around my kitchen and my eyes landed on a bowl of onions.  Bingo!

This recipe mostly comes from Ina Garten, but the seasoning of the flour and cornmeal mixture was inspired by some of the flavors I used when I made blackened catfish.

INGREDIENTS

1 large yellow or Spanish onion

1 1/2 cups buttermilk

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Tabasco (or other hot sauce) to taste, but at least a teaspoon

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup (medium) yellow cornmeal

1/2 to 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves, finely chopped

4 to 6 cups vegetable or peanut oil

METHOD

Slice off the top and root ends of the onion or onions and carefully peel off the brown skin, then slice into 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick slices and then separate them into rings.

In a large bowl, combine the buttermilk, 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt, 1 teaspoons of pepper and the Tabasco.  Add the onions and using your hands toss well to make sure everything is coated.  

Place the in the refrigerator and let marinate for 20 minutes, up to several hours.

In a separate, wide and shallow bowl, combine the flour, corn meal, 1 teaspoon salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, the cayenne and the thyme.  Set aside.

When you are ready to fry the onion rings, preheat the oven to 200 degrees F and line a large baking sheet with paper towels.

Pour the oil into a dutch oven and attach a candy thermometer to the side.  Heat until the oil is 350 degrees F, adjusting the heat level to maintain a constant temperature. 

One at a time, lift a ring out of the buttermilk and place in the seasoned flour and cornmeal mixture.  Gently dredge them and then place on a rimmed baking sheet.  

Continue until all the onion rings have been coated.

Working in batches, drop some of the onion rings into the hot oil, being careful not to overcrowd the pot.  Fry until golden brown, flipping every so often with a pair of tongs.  

Once the onion rings are cooked, remove from the oil and place on the baking sheet lined with paper towels and place in the oven to stay way while you continue cooking the rest.  They should remain crisp in the oven for 30 minutes.  Serve hot with lots of ketchup!

I tend not to care for the types of onion rings that have a heavy, poofy batter enveloping them.  I much prefer something more delicate and crisp, and that is exactly what these are.  The coating is so light and crunchy (not tempura light, but not far) and just really well seasoned.   When adding the Tabasco and cayenne, don't be shy.  It would really take a lot to make these onion rings what would be considered spicy spicy.  In fact, since I really like the heat, I even add a healthy dose of Tabasco to the ketchup I'm dipping them in.  One thing to note is that since the onions shrink down while cooking, it might be wise not to separate every single layer of rings before marinating and then dredging them.  Maybe try to keep two layers of onion for each ring.  Or mix it up, keep some think and some thin.

As we ate these I remarked to Mark that these would be (obviously) great alongside a thick steak or a big burger.  Or a few rings topping a burger.  It is football season (so my sports enthusiast friends tell me) and a big mountain of these would be perfect to serve some friends while watching the game.  Now I wish I had a burger.

1 very large onion serves 2 very generously and more likely 4

KITCHEN UPDATE: Tile, lighting and paint

Somehow the entire month of December slipped by without one post.  I am very sorry.  I neglected to acknowledge Well Fed's three year anniversary.  I didn't do one post about my own birthday (mid-thirties for those who are wondering).  Nothing about Christmas and nothing about New Years Eve.  It's not that I haven't been cooking.  I have.  In fact, I've had some time off between projects and my goal was to cook up a storm and blog the hell out of it.  And yet, nothing.  I do have an excuse, be it a feeble one.  The battery in my camera died.  It's kind of a blog equivalent of "the dog ate my homework" isn't it?  But it did.  I'll go get one tomorrow, I promise.  

I also promise to recreate some of the meals I've made, the results of which I was very pleased with.  There's a really great curry from Nigel Slater that I've made several times.  I had my first dinner party (spiced pork stew with pan-roasted root vegetables from Sunday Suppers at Lucques) as well as my second (chicken tagine with kabocha squash and chickpeas and a carrot and coriander salad from a fantastic new cookbook called A Plater of Figs).  I made a great rice pudding with flavored with orange flower water.  I baked chocolate thumbprint cookies with a vanilla and honey chocolate ganache filling that I saw Martha make one day with special guest star, Paula Abdul.  I used stock that I made from the Thanksgiving turkey carcass to make risotto and then used the leftover risotto to make aracini - little risotto balls stuffed with fontina cheese, which are then rolled and breadcrumbs and then fried.  Heaven.  Seriously.  And then there was the big New Years Eve party Mark and I hosted with the unbelievable help of Annie, Heather and her professional chef boyfriend, Timothy.  We counted down till midnight nibbling on roasted shrimp cocktail (Barefoot Contessa), fontina and truffle oil fondue (New York Times), creamy balls of goat cheese seasoned with smoked paprika and then rolled in strips of roasted red and yellow peppers (Anne Burrel).  There was also a warm crab dip as well as sausage stuffed, fried olives.  Oh yes.

With all this entertaining, I was frantic to get the kitchen done.  Unfortunately it still isn't.  But it's very. very close.  

The subway tile backsplash was installed and looks amazing.  (And for anyone in the Los Angeles area who might be interested, my tile guy is fantastic)

That would be a framed photo of Jane Fonda as Barbarella in her trailer on a break making soup or pasta or something while still in costume.  A little reminder that just because we're cooking doesn't mean we can't also look fabulous.

The gorgeous brushed nickel industrial style hanging fixtures for over the sink and in the breakfast room (which Mark thinks looks like something out of The City of Lost Children) have been hung.  Let there be light.  (I would also highly recommend my brilliant electrician)

And after weeks and weeks of priming, wet sanding, painting, more wet sanding and yet more painting, the cupboards, doors, drawers and also walls are finally done.  

Well, almost - there's still all the baseboards and the bookcases and walls in the breakfast room.  I'm still not sure about the color - are they the same as the cupboards, are they white like in the rest of the house, or something different still?  I'm really liking the idea of black woodwork.  

And then there has been some issues with the hardware for the cabinets.  As I install them, I keep breaking screws off in the wood.  While I figure out how to rectify the situation and make sure it doesn't keep happening, my drawer pulls are little tags made from painters' tape.  So classy.  But as far as a functioning kitchen goes, I couldn't be happier.

PUMPKIN CHEESECAKE WITH PECAN PRALINE SAUCE

I had the whole Thanksgiving menu planned with the exception of dessert.  I'd noticed that a little bakery/cafe at the top of my street was selling pies and sweets and whatnot that could be pre-ordered for Thanksgiving.  One of their confections was a pumpkin cheesecake with praline topping or something.  I liked the idea of that.  A nice little twist on the regular old pumpkin pie.  I decided to get one.  I phoned  the lovely woman at that cafe and soon my order was place but after I hung up I was a little, I don't know, uneasy.  I IMed Annie and asked "Do you think $56 for a cheese cake is a lot?" She thought it was.  I explained that what with everything else I was making I wanted to just buy the dessert, but the price seemed like a lot.  However the recipe sounded so good.  "Don't be a cheater," she wrote back.  She so knows how to get me.  I was totally cheating.  "What would Martha do?" she added, twisting the knife.  UGH.  Damn you, Annie!

I called the lovely woman at the bakery/cafe and cancelled my order.  Fortunately the November issue of Food and Wine had a recipe for a cheesecake that sounded almost exactly like the one I had ordered.  I sat down and made a list of ingredients I needed to pick up.  I guess I was making dessert as well.

INGREDIENTS

(For the cheesecake)

One 15-ounce can pumpkin puree (1 3/4 cups)
8 whole graham crackers, broken
1/2 cup pecans (2 ounces)
1 tablespoon light brown sugar
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted, plus more for greasing the pan
1 1/2 cups cream cheese (14 ounces), at room temperature
1 1/2 cups granulated sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground allspice
5 large eggs, at room temperature
1 cup heavy cream, at room temperature
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
2 teaspoons pure vanilla extract

(For the pecan praline sauce)

1 1/2 sticks unsalted butter
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup heavy cream
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups pecans

(For serving)

Softly whipped cream, unsweetened

METHOD

Set a rack over a baking sheet and line the rack with 2 layers of paper towels. Spread the pumpkin puree over the paper towels and let drain for 2 hours, until the puree is fairly dry.

Preheat the oven to 500°. Butter the bottom and side of a 9-inch springform pan. In a food processor, pulse the graham crackers until finely ground. Add the pecans and brown sugar and pulse until finely ground. Add the melted butter and pulse just until incorporated. 

Press the crumbs onto the bottom of the prepared pan. Bake the crust for about 8 minutes, just until it is fragrant and slightly browned around the edges. Let the crust cool completely.

In the bowl of a standing electric mixer fitted with the paddle, beat the cream cheese until it is very smooth. In a small bowl, whisk the sugar with the salt, cinnamon, nutmeg, cloves and allspice. With the machine on, add the spiced sugar to the cream cheese and beat until creamy, scraping the bottom and side of the bowl. 

Carefully add the drained pumpkin puree and beat until smooth. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well and scraping down the bowl between each addition. Beat in the heavy cream, lemon juice and vanilla until the cheesecake mixture is smooth.  It'll be pretty runny.

Pour the cheesecake mixture over the cooled crust.

Bake the cheesecake for 12 minutes. Lower the oven temperature to 225° and bake the cheesecake for about 3 hours, until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the center registers 150°.  Right from the oven it'll be very puffed and the center will be slightly jiggly but not liquidy.  As it cools, it'll deflate and it may crack.

Let the cheesecake cool on a rack, then cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight.

To make the pecan praline sauce, Preheat the oven to 350°. In a large saucepan, combine the butter and brown sugar and cook over moderate heat, stirring, until smooth. Stir in the heavy cream and salt and bring to a boil. Simmer just until slightly thickened, about 3 minutes. 

Let the caramel cool.

Spread the pecans on a rimmed baking sheet and toast for about 8 minutes, until they are lightly browned and fragrant. Transfer the pecans to a work surface and let them cool. Coarsely chop half the nuts and leave the other half whole.  Just before serving, stir them into the cooled, but still slightly warm caramel.

To serve the cheesecake, run a hot knife around the cheesecake and loosen the springform ring. Carefully remove the ring and transfer the cake to a plate. Using a warm knife, cut the cake into wedges and serve with the Pecan Praline Topping and whipped cream.

I have to say, I'm really happy that I challenged myself (or rather Annie shamed me into challenging myself) and made a dessert, which I've written multiple times in the past, is not something I feel incredibly confident in.  But then there are tricks, and things like cheesecake are among them.  Whenever I've baked cakes, they usually wind up dry.  A cheesecake, can't be dry.   Anyway, this cheesecake is the perfect new Thanksgiving tradition.  Pumpkiny and full of the warm spices like cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg and allspice, it's the essence of fall.  I really like that it's not super sweet.  Rather that sugar kick comes from the warm, oozy, and buttery praline sauce.  Note that the sauce is best when it's made the day it's being served.  To accompany leftover cheesecake in the days following Thanksgiving, I reheated it several times, and maybe I let it get too hot, but the butter or something sort of separated from the sugar and the sauce became sort of a weird greasy mess.  Just so you know.  

Serves 12 or so

The First Thanksgiving in the New House

Check out my bird!

It was an intimate gathering, just two other people.  The menu consisted of a selection of cheeses, crisp flat bread, medjool dates, and charcuterie to snack on before dinner.  Then we had a radicchio, endive and frisee salad with sweet slices of red pear, candied walnuts, shavings of parmesan and a maple balsamic vinaigrette (a Tyler Florence recipe).  The center piece of the meal was a herb roasted organic, free-range fresh turkey (a Barefoot Contessa recipe using an Alton Brown trussing method that I had to watch on YouTube several times to get down just right).  To go with it I served Grainy Mustard Mashed Potatoes (another Tyler Florence), Creamed Brussels Sprouts with Bacon (a disappointing recipe from the Two Dudes, One Pan cookbook), and Sausage, Fennel and Apple stuffing (a combination of a Barefoot Contessa recipe and one I found in the Gourmet Cookbook).  

Of course you have to have cranberry sauce.  Mine was a sweet and tart Cranberry Chutney made from stewing fresh cranberries in red wine along with sugar, orange zest, a cinnamon stick and a couple grindings of black pepper (a combination of two Tyler Florence recipes).  It's a shame I forgot to serve it with dinner.  It's also a shame that I sort of burnt the stuffing.  I was keeping it warm in the oven, which was off.  I then realized that it might be nice to serve the dinner rolls warm, so I turned the oven back on, forgetting the stuffing was still inside.  Tens of minutes later I remembered, but not before the top had gone from beautiful and golden to a harsh dark brown verging on black.  Despite my well-planned minute-by-minute schedule, mini tragedies happen.  Curses.

Fortunately I redeemed myself with dessert, a pumpkin cheesecake topped with softly whipped cream and a warm, toasted pecan praline sauce.

The recipe will be posted shortly.  Happy belated Thanksgiving.

SPICED, BRAISED PORK WITH PAN-ROASTED ROOT VEGETABLES & GREMOLATA

As you would imagine, my kitchen remodel has sort of consumed me ever since we closed on the house.  Before, really.  It started when we first saw it.  I would day dream the day away thinking of cabinets, appliances, tile and faucets.  My co-workers over the last several months, Amber and Fern, had to put up with this, my running off in the middle of the day to meet my cabinet maker or electrician.  Having deliveries sent to the office (I wouldn't want my new hanging fixtures for over the sink and in the breakfast room to be just sitting on the front porch all day, would I?)  Spending lunch breaks looking at granite for the counters and debating drawer pulls.  The whole time this was going on, it was common that they would ask (well threaten, really) to be invited over for dinner once it was done.  I assured them that they would be, I just had a few more things to do to make it presentable for guests.  First the subway tile for the backsplash needed to be installed.  The hanging fixtures needed to be hung.  I wanted to get six matching dining room chairs and I needed to finish painting the cabinets.  

These last two seemed to be taking much longer than I anticipated.  Then, a few weeks ago, my job came to an end and so I thought I better just bite the bullet and have them over, even though the kitchen wasn't to the level of finish I'd hoped.  It was sort of good timing, actually.  Without work to get in the way, I could focus on coming up with the menu and making something that took time and care.  Of course I wanted to impress, sort of show off a bit, so where else to turn than Sunday Suppers at Lucques.  I wanted to make something sort of fallish and cozy while at the same time avoiding the sort of flavors that we'd all be seeing on Thanksgiving.  I chose this recipe, a slowly braised pork stew that Suzanne explains in the book is influenced by some of the Mexican spices so commonly found in Southern California.  Perfect.

INGREDIENTS

(for the pork seasoning)

1 tablespoon cumin seeds

2 tablespoons coriander seeds
2 tablespoons fennel seeds

3 pounds pork shoulder, trimmed of fat and cut into 1 1/2 inch to 2 inch chunks

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano plus 3 whole sprigs

6 cloves garlic, smashed

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

(for the braise)

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 cup diced onion (about half a large onion)

1/4 cup diced carrot (1/3 a medium carrot)

1/4 cup diced fennel (1/4 a medium fennel bulb)

2 bay leaves

1 chile de arbol, crumbled

1 cup dry white wine

2 cups chicken stock

2 cups veal stock

1 lemon

4 to 6 sprigs fresh cilantro

(for the pan-roasted root vegetables)

3 medium carrots, peeled

3 medium parsnips, peeled

3 medium turnips

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1 cup shallots, peeled and sliced 1/4 inch thick

(for the gremolata)

zest of 1 lemon

1/2 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

2 cloves (about 1 teaspoon) minced garlic

METHOD

Toast the cumin, coriander and fennel seeds in a skillet over medium heat until they release their aroma and are slightly browned.  

Place the seeds in a spice mill or a mortar and pulse or pound until coarsely ground.  The texture is better from using a mortar and pestle.  

Place the pork in a large bowl and sprinkle with the crushed cumin, coriander, and fennel as well as the cayenne, the crushed garlic and oregano leaves and sprigs and the thyme leaves.  Using your hands, toss well to make sure everything is coated well.  

Cover the bowl with cling film and refrigerate overnight.

Take the meat out of the refrigerator 45 minutes before cooking to allow it to come to room temperature.  After 15 minutes, season it on all sides with 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons salt and some black pepper.  Reserve the crushed garlic and the oregano sprigs.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

Now the meat needs to be browned.  You will likely need to brown the meat in batches.  I did mine in 3 batches.  Heat a large Dutch oven over very high heat for 3 minutes.  Pour in the olive oil and wait a minute or 2, until the pan is almost smoking.  Place the meat in the pan, being careful not to over crowd it.  Sear the meat until well browned and caramelized on all sides.  Adjust the heat if it seems like the pork is getting too dark.  After the meat is browned remove from the pan and reserve on a plate while you continue with the rest of the pork.  

Turn the heat down to medium and add the onion, carrot, and fennel.  Stir with a wooden spoon, scraping up the brown crusty bits left in the bottom of the pan.  Stir in the bay leaves, crumbled chile de arbol, and the reserved garlic and oregano sprigs.  Cook for about 6 to 8 minutes, until the vegetables start to caramelize.

Pour in the white wine and reduce by half, about 5 minutes.  Next, add the stocks and bring to a boil.

Using a vegetable peeler, peel off long strips of zest from the lemon.

Turn off the heat and add the browned pork to the pot.  Tuck in the lemon zest strips and cilantro sprigs. 

 

Cover the pot tightly with aluminum foil and place on the lid.  Put in the oven and braise for 2 to 2 1/2 hours.

While the meat is braising, you can prep the root vegetables.  Cut off the stem and tip of the carrots and then slice in half lengthwise.  Place the carrot halves cut-side down and slice on an angle into 1/4 inch thick pieces.  Do the same thing to the parsnips.  To prep the turnips, cut of the stem and root ends.  Cut the turnips into quarters and then slice each quarter into small wedges approximately the same thickness as the carrot and parsnip pieces.

Next make the gremolata.  Place the lemon zest on a cutting board and top with the parsley and garlic.  Chop the whole mixture together until very fine.  Set aside.

Back to the pork.  To test the meat for doneness, remove the lid foil being careful of the steam and spoon out a piece of meat.  It should yield easily with the tip of a knife and almost fall apart.

Turn up the oven to 400 degrees F.

Using a slotted spoon, remove the meat from the pan and place on a single layer on a rimmed baking sheet.  Return the pork to the oven to caramelize, about 10 to 15 minutes.  

Meanwhile, place the Dutch oven over high heat and reduce the braising liquid to a thick sauce.  Taste for seasoning.

While this sauce is thickening and the meat is caramelizing, you should pan roast the vegetables.  Heat two large skillets over high heat for 2 minutes.  Swirl in the olive oil and wait 1 minutes.  Divide the carrots, parsnips and turnips between the 2 pans and season with 1 teaspoon of pepper 1/4 teaspoon of pepper and the thyme.  Stir the vegetables to coat with the oil then cook for about 10 minutes, until the vegetables have just started to brown.  

Add the butter and saute another 5 minutes, stirring often.  Add the shallots, 1/2 teaspoon salt and continue to cook until the shallots are soft and the vegetables are tender, about 5 more minutes.  Combine the vegetables into 1 of the pans and toss with half the gremolata, reserving the rest for garnish.

Spoon the pork onto a large platter and pour over the reduced sauce.  Scatter the gremolata coated pan-roasted root vegetables over the top of the pork and then sprinkle with the remaining gremolata.  Serve with a hot bowl of creamy polenta.

Okay so observation number one:  It turns out that turnips are kind of really good.  More that beets, but not as much as rutabagas, turnips have such a geriatric reputation.  So not sexy.  And yet they are surprisingly great.  Especially when they are pan-roasted like this along with carrots and parsnips.  The edges get crisp and charred and the insides stay tender.  Glazed with butter and then tossed with the bright, fresh, garlicky gremolata, this trio of root vegetables prove themselves to be a worthy companion to the braised pork.  

I will tell you that the platter was passed around the table several times for more and more helpings of that pork.  Not surprisingly, the combination of the fennel, cumin and corriander spice the pork in a really earthy way, but what I particularly liked about it was the texture of the spices.  Not grinding them in a spice mill gives them a really great rustic feel.  They almost crust the pork, sort of like a steak au poivre and how the rugged bits of pepper coat the meat.  It's a great contrast to how fall-apart tender it is.  It seriously will melt in your mouth.  To be honest, I probably could have cooked the meat slightly less, because it was so tender, not that I minded.  And although it seems fussy to fish the meat out and put it back in the oven while you reduce the sauce, it really does elevate what would be a very typical stew into something more unique.  The meat dries out a bit in the oven and sort of gets re-caramelized on the edges, a great contrast to the moist interior.  Then you have the freedom to thicken the sauce however much you want.  I may have gotten mine a bit thick, but I think it still worked.  My guests could not get enough.  And I already want to make it again.

Serves 6

BRISKET CHILI WITH PINTO BEANS

So I've been sitting on this post for like two-and-a-half weeks but it continued to get waylaid, what with the whole election and my ensuing Obama excitement/Prop 8 depression plus the fact that I was finishing up my latest project (be sure to tune into The Millionaire Matchmaker this January on Bravo!) AND trying to get things painted before the holiday, I've been hellabusy.  I am sorry.

Anyway, Chili.  Now that it's been so long since I made it, I can't remember any amusing little story as to why I did it.  I think the weather had gotten cool and I wanted to make something cozy.  Of course it's back up into the 80's now and I'm sitting here with all the windows open and a hot bowl of chili doesn't seem that appropriate.  But it'll cool down quickly enough again and I'll want to get out my Dutch oven.

INGREDIENTS

(forhe chili)

8 ounces bacon, cut into 1/4 inch wide pieces

1 pound beef brisket, cut into 1 inch cubes

2 yellow onions, finely chopped

4 garlic cloves, minced

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

1 1/2 pounds ground chuck

2 1/2 tablespoons chili powder

1 tablespoon ground cumin

1 tablespoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 1/2 teaspoons garlic powder

1 1/2 teaspoons onion powder

1/4 cup light brown sugar

1 28-ounce can whole peeled tomatoes with their liquid

1 12-ounce bottle of beer

1 cup ketchup

2 tablespoons tomato paste

1 1/2 tablespoons Worcestershire sauce

2 teaspoons white vinegar

1 teaspoons Tabasco sauce

3 14-ounce cans pinto beans, drained and rinsed

(to garnish)

Grated Cheddar cheese

Scallions onions, thinly sliced on an angle

Tabasco sauce

METHOD

Heat a Dutch oven over medium-high heat for 2 minutes.  Add the chopped bacon and cook, stirring often until browned about 10 to 12 minutes.  Use a slotted spoon to transfer the bacon to a paper towel lined plate and set aside.

Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of the bacon fat and return to medium-high heat.  Add the brisket cubes, season with salt and pepper and cook until all sides are brown, about 5 minutes total.  Add the onions, garlic, and a bit more salt and cook until the onions are soft, about 3 minutes.  

Stir in the ground beef, chili powder, cumin, oregano, cayenne pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and brown sugar and cook, stirring often until browned, about 5 to 8 minutes.

Pour the tomatoes into a large bowl and, using your hand, shred them into small pieces.  Be careful, they can unexpectedly squirt on you.  Add the tomatoes, beer, ketchup, tomato paste, Worcestershire sauce, white vinegar, Tabasco, 1 cup of water to the pot and 1 teaspoon of Kosher salt, stirring to combine. 

Bring to a simmer then reduce the heat to low and cook uncovered for 3 hours, until the brisket is fall apart tender and the chili is thick.

Add the pinto beans, half the reserved bacon and stir to combine.  Continue to cook for another 30 minutes.  

To serve, ladle chili into deep bowls and sprinkle with grated cheese, sliced scallions, some of the reserved bacon, and lots of Tabasco.

The brisket really makes this chili.  I've never made a chili using a meat that wasn't ground, and having tender, fall apart chunks of beef takes what would otherwise be an ordinary chili to the next level.  Cooking it low and slow really give the flavors time to mix and mingle and the results have a fantastic depth.  Now keep in mind, the flavor profile on this chili veers toward the sweet side.  The first night I served it I garnished with some nice aged white cheddar, but then the second night, I crumbled some smoked blue cheese over the top.  I particularly like that contrast between the sweet and the smoked.  Works really well.  Especially with the crumbled bacon.

In the book, they guys note that the leftovers are great used in a chili dog and as tempting as that does sound, I was more than happy to eat the leftovers reheated and ladled into bowls.  Maybe next time.  Actually, now that I think about it, it might be fun to have a little chili dog party.  Complete with home-make sauerkraut and a melange of hot sauces and mustards and lots of cold beer.  Hmmmm...

Serves 8 to 10