All We Can Eat

What's for dinner at the White House

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 16:30:00 -0500

Green is the theme at the first Obama state dinner. Desserts include pumpkin pie and pear tatin. (Brendan Smialowski -- Getty) The Obamas host their first official state dinner tonight in honor of Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh. Held under a tent on the South Lawn, with sweeping views of the Washington Monument, the dinner will feature a garden-themed decor. Tables will be covered in apple green linens. Deep purple flower arrangements at each table will pay homage to the national bird of India, the peacock. But who cares about all that, right? What about the food? New York celebrity chef Marcus Samuelsson, First Lady Michelle Obama and White House executive chef Cristeta Comerford designed a menu "to showcase the best of American cooking," Obama said at a press preview. "It's going to include the freshest ingredients from area farmers and purveyors," she added. "And because of all of

Chat Leftovers: Thanksgiving Q&A (twofer)

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 14:00:00 -0500

Here are two more questions from our Free Range chat on Wednesdays, 1-2 p.m. There's no Food section tomorrow (because we published on Sunday). But we will be online: same bat time, same bat channel. Silver Spring, Md.: I like pumpkin and want to use it more often in recipes. I have some recipes that call for peeling the skin and cutting in pieces. Any easy way to do this? If I want the pulp I would bake and scoop but how to peel and chop? I know I could substitute other squashes that are easier to peel but I like pumpkin. There's more than one way to peel a pumpkin. (Gerald Martineau/The Washington Post) What size pumpkins do you usually use? Last weekend I attended a cooking class held at Tenpenh that was given by chef Susanna Foo (in from Philly). She made, among several dishes, a kabocha squash

Edible Chesapeake to close

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 10:10:00 -0500

Local-food cheerleader Edible Chesapeake has published its last issue. In a note to readers, publisher Renee Brooks Catacalos said her decision to cease publication was based on how best to balance the needs of her family and the needs of the local food community. "I was before and I still am an advocate of local foods and a lover of local foods," Catacalos told me. "The magazine was so all-encompassing that this season I barely had time to pick up my own CSA (community-supported agriculture) share and cook for my family. It was a little too much." Catacalos took over as editor in spring 2007 and has published 11 quarterly issues. Highlights included a feature called "The Tale of Two Markets," which looked at food access issues at a time when the Anacostia farmers market closed and the Crossroads market in Takoma Park opened. The magazine also charted the rise

Say Cheese: Liptauer

Tue, 24 Nov 2009 07:00:00 -0500

Early in the life of this cheese blog, a reader made a query about Liptauer cheese. I had never heard of it, but from its description — a savory cheese spread spiked with Hungarian paprika and caraway seeds, two of my favorite spices — I knew I wanted to learn more. My small, usually helpful collection of cheese reference books had nothing about it, but online I found some good basic information. The cheese spread is named after the region of Lipto or Liptov, which once belonged to the Kingdom of Hungary and is now part of northern Slovakia. My own version of the savory spread. (Domenica Marchetti) "Lipto" also refers to a type of soft, unripened sheep’s-milk cheese produced in that area and used as a base for the spread. Apparently, it is similar to cream cheese, although a little more sour. Recipes for Liptauer cheese call for using

A Beaujolais with heft

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 14:00:00 -0500

At $13, it's a steal. (Dave McIntyre) Wine lovers tend to frown upon Beaujolais Nouveau as a cynical marketing gimmick (I've done so myself.) But we really should think of it as a fun celebration of the recent harvest. It’s Thanksgiving time, after all, and what is the National Day of Gluttony if it isn’t a celebration of food and the recent harvest? That Nouveau comes on the market exactly one week before Turkey Day is all the more fitting. Think of it as Hands Across the Sea, Franco-American friendship at its best. If you’d like to experience a Beaujolais Nouveau with some heft, the 2009 vintage is ideal. This was a terrific year in Burgundy and Beaujolais by all accounts, and even the simple, early drinking young Nouveaux will reflect the quality of the vintage. My call this year is the Domaine de Vissoux Beaujolais Primeur 2009 from

Holiday favorites: Vegetarian entrees

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 10:00:00 -0500

Mushroom Lasagna Bolognese takes some time, but it's worth it. (Photo by Renee Comet/styled by Lisa Cherkasky for the Washington Post/) The challenge of cooking vegetarian at Thanksgiving isn’t usually a lack of vegetable recipes. For this harvest-themed meal, it’s plenty easy to find dishes that feature seasonal produce. And if you’re able to stay clear of the everything-is-better-with-bacon philosophy, exemplified in the Best Brussels Sprouts Ever we featured in last week’s Food section, it’s not too hard to adapt anything to vegetarian (if not vegan) status. Vegetable broths can replace meat ones; nuts or other crunchy garnishes can replace those bacon bits, and so on. The challenge is the main course, so that you avoid the collection-of-sides approach. Vegetarians deserve a centerpiece, too. I’m not serving a vegetarian repast this year, but for a few hours I pretended that I am, and scoured our Recipe Finder database and

Groundwork: Falling for fall

Mon, 23 Nov 2009 07:00:00 -0500

Autumn in the vegetable plot at Green Spring Gardens. (Adrian Higgins/The Washington Post) The importance of autumn as a growing season in the fruit and vegetable garden cannot be overstated. In the mid-Atlantic, it is our way to be Northern gardeners and to enjoy what our brethren in New England, or Old England for that matter, take for granted. That is, the capacity to grow cool season veggies to perfection. Fennel is an excellent example. Valued for its anise-flavored, feathery foliage and bulb, it grows happily in colder climes. But as a spring plant here it will steadfastly refuse to form its coveted bulb. Spring offers a tight window. Because fennel is frost-sensitive, the gardener toils to start fennel from seed in early March and puts out the transplants in mid-April, hoping the spring will stay mild and tempered. But it does not. The heat arrives for a few

No shortage of waffle news here

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 17:30:00 -0500

Oprah calling it quits and now this: A national shortage of Eggo waffles. Will the shock and horror ever end? Actually, it’s the second weird waffle news I’ve had to swallow this week. The other was the discovery of a spray can of organic waffle batter. A can o’ waffles! Could this be a good thing? More on that in a moment. First, the Kellogg kerfluffle: Evidently, the big K had to shut down its four frozen-waffle facilities recently, after the government found that pesky meningitis-causing bacteria listeria in a batch of the buttermilk Eggos. The Colbert ReportMon - Thurs 11:30pm / 10:30cEggo Waffles Shortage Alertwww.colbertnation.comColbert Report Full EpisodesPolitical HumorU.S. Speedskating But instead of this being a bad, hang-your-head-in-shame thing for Kellogg’s, the shortage has spawned a boatload of publicity and a rush on the frozen breakfast aisle in the local supermarket, as addicts of mediocre breakfast food stock up

Holiday favorites: More desserts

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 14:30:43 -0500

On Tuesday, we offered you some suggestions for pies, tarts and other desserts that would be great on the Thanksgiving table. Because you can never have too many sweets, here are a few more of our favorite recipes from years past. Find these and many, many others in our searchable Recipe Finder database. Mama's Pecan Pie. (Terry Allen for The Washington Post) Let's begin with a superstar: Mama's Pecan Pie, a recipe from chef Virginia Willis. Yes, we know you've tasted a lot of pecan pies. But the premise behind this one is sheer genius: The ratio of nuts to goo is much higher than usual, making for a nutty, chewy interior that's not gloppy or sickly-sweet. It does take a lot of chopping (each pie contains 1 1/2 cups of pecans, and they are cut up rather than left in halves) but it's worth the small amount of extra

I Spice: Red Hots (really)

Fri, 20 Nov 2009 07:00:00 -0500

Please forgive me for adding Red Hots here as a spice. My editors made me do it. Granny Smiths in a Blanket. (Monica Bhide) I think this may be stretching it a bit, but I remembered seeing them used as a seasoning in “White Trash Gatherings: From-Scratch Cooking for Down-Home Entertaining” (Ten Speed Press, 2006) by Kendra Bailey Morris, and always wondered if other people used them as a seasoning, too. I was right: Red Hots have a place in the pantry as a fun way to add some zip to your dish, particularly if you are cooking with apples. But first, I had to do some digging to learn a bit more about these candies, which seem to show up in stores only around Valentine's Day. Made by Ferrara Pan Candy Co., the candies have a unique combination of strong cinnamon flavor and spicy heat. (The company offers a

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Fri, 20 Nov 2009 07:00:00 -0500

Chat Leftovers: Thanksgiving Q&A

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 14:45:00 -0500

Questions came fast and furious during yesterday's Free Range chat, so we'll try to answer some each day through Thanksgiving, starting with these two: Washington, DC: I have a special holiday challenge: for medical reasons, I’ve been told to eat a low-carb diet, but at the same time, I’m supposed to gain weight. I’m finding it a challenge to cook foods -- especially holiday-friendly fare -- that are consistent with these two goals (and I’m really sick of eating almonds). Got any brilliant ideas for me, especially on desserts? (A delicious pumpkin custard, perhaps?) Thanks! Berry Mousse. (Renee Comet for The Washington Post) A challenge indeed. Cranberries and raspberries are in the low-carb fruit category, and both make for some spectacular desserts. I took a spin through our recipe database and found the following candidates, including a personal favorite of mine, Tiny Tim Cranberry Tarts (11 carbs per serving). They

Flour girl: Cheesy old favorites

Thu, 19 Nov 2009 07:00:00 -0500

Mary Curtis Simonds's recipe book. (Courtesy of Donald M. Simonds) Recipes have changed over time -- and not just what ingredients or dishes are in style, but the format of recipes themselves. A few years ago, I got a call from Donald M. Simonds, a reader who wondered whether I could make use of his mother's handwritten collection from the 1920s and '30s. I was curious to see them, even though at the time I didn't have a plan in mind. When I looked back at a personal collection from 80 years ago, I was struck by how much information used to be assumed and was therefore not transcribed. Many of the recipes listed only ingredients and left it up to the cook to figure out pan size, technique, oven temperatures and baking times. These are things we've come to expect for any directions beyond a peanut butter and

Holiday favorites: Stuffing

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 10:00:00 -0500

Why is stuffing (or dressing, for you purists who say it has to be, well, stuffed to be stuffing) served only on Thanksgiving? Searching through recipes made me a) hungry and b) wonder why I indulge just once a year. Maybe it's because most cooks don't have stale bread to use up nowadays. Maybe it's because it's really hard to eat just one portion. Whatever the reason, I’m glad it's Thanksgiving now. So many good stuffings/dressings to choose from: with corn bread, with dried fruit, with chestnuts. The sky is the limit. Here are a few on my shortlist this year: -- Jane Black Prosciutto and Cornbread Stuffing: Thick slices of ham with sweet cornbread give a perfect balance of sweet and salty. Mushroom and Fennel Stuffing: This savory dressing uses olive bread to add oomph. Sourdough Stuffing with Pears and Sausage: Lots of flavor and not that fattening; only

Chat Leftovers: Thanksgiving Q&A

Wed, 18 Nov 2009 07:00:00 -0500

Happy Wednesday, all. A week from today, many of us will be getting ready to cook a big Thanksgiving spread. Got everything under control? If you have questions, never fear: You can join us today (and every Wednesday) at 1 for our Free Range chat, where we try to answer your food-related queries and just generally gab about what we like to cook and eat. Meanwhile, here's a couple of Thanksgiving-related questions from last week's chat that we couldn't get to during the hour: Every Thanksgiving, my special contribution to the occasion is champagne and a small appetizer to keep everyone content until dinner is on the table. Any recommendations on a good small bite to pair with champagne?

Shop for This Week's Dinner in Minutes

Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:00:00 -0500

Well, you may have to fudge this a bit if you want to make Man Crepes with cheese and turkey tonight. The recipe was written with Thanksgiving turkey leftovers in mind. But you can substitute pieces of roast chicken or store-bought smoked turkey from the deli. The recipe is adapted from Lucinda Scala Quinn's "Mad Hungry: Feeding Men & Boys" (Artisan, 2009). The author and her eldest son were in town last week on a book tour; we had fun dishing with them in the kitchen. Man Crepes 4 servings 2/3 cup whole or low-fat milk 3 large eggs 1/2 teaspoon coarse salt 1 teaspoon baking powder 3/4 cup flour Unsalted butter, as needed (maybe 2 tablespoons total) 8 to 10 ounces leftover roasted turkey breast, preferably at room temperature 4 to 8 ounces finely shredded cheddar cheese (may substitute a good-melting cheese of your choice) Questions? We're here to