Spicy Turkey Meatballs and Spaghetti

March 18, 2015 by Laura Messersmith in Cooking with the Contessa

Each week I follow along with Ina Garten (aka the Barefoot Contessa) and attempt to recreate one of her dishes in my tiny New York City kitchen. The catch? This is my version of cooking school and I’m making these recipes for the first time. I’ll share both my successes and um, challenges, along the way and we’ll see if I can keep up with the Contessa!

Episode: “Baby’s First Bash”

The Set-up: Ina’s close friends, the Libermans, are celebrating their first grandchild!

The Menu: Spicy Turkey Meatballs and Spaghetti, Truffled Popcorn, Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp, S’mores

0:40 – Ina’s theme for the party is “nursery food” which I guess translates to things that adults and children will like. Interested to see how she makes that work.

1:23 – First up Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp. Ina says that rhubarb has a very short season and I believe it since I think I’ve only tasted it once in my life.

2:15 – Pro Tip #1: Dissolve a little cornstarch in the orange juice before adding it to the fruit filling. The cornstarch will help thicken the fruit “goo” and mixing it ahead will prevent lumps.

3:41 – The party is taking place outside, so Ina has called up the troops – namely her friend Greg Yale, a professional lighting designer – to transform her already magnificent garden into a wonderland. This is one lucky seven week-old baby.

4:08 – We’re back with Ina to make the crumble topping, which she admits is basically the same from recipe to recipe with the usual suspects (butter, flour, brown sugar, oatmeal…)

5:36 – This particular crumble combination - strawberry rhubarb - is in honor of a recipe Ina once made up on the fly for the grandmother of honor. Even the Barefoot Contessa has to wing it from time to time.

9:43 – Time to make the main course: Spicy Turkey Meatballs and Spaghetti. Ina emphasizes the need to add moisture, in this case fresh bread crumbs soaked in milk, since they’re made from turkey.

10:35 – We check in with Greg, who is literally up a tree hanging café lights. This is a man who is dedicated to making things “magical.”

11:21 – Ina’s recipe calls for mincing up prosciutto to add flavor to the ground turkey, but to me prosciutto is just sort of salty and not all that flavorful.

12:39 – These meatballs are supposed to be spicy, so in go the red pepper flakes. I wonder if using hot Italian sausage instead of sweet would be too much?

13:14 – Instead of frying/sautéing the meatballs they’re going into the oven to roast, which sounds like a fantastic way to get out of standing over a pot of hot oil. Eww.

14:20 – Meatballs go in the oven as Greg and his team tether huge, helium inflated and presumably illuminated, balloons around the garden. These are going to look awesome.

19:06 – The meatballs are done and beautifully browned, now for a little shortcut: store bought tomato sauce. Glad to see that even Ina sometimes turns to a jar once in a while.

20:25 – Outside with Greg for the big lighting reveal and while I do think it’s a little over the top for six people it also looks really cool.

21:40 – Back inside to pop the bag of popcorn and melt truffle butter for the Truffled Popcorn. Newman’s Own in case you’re wondering. I think it’s the Natural Tender White which I can assure you is really good – not too salty, no strangely yellow butter.

22:33 – Full disclosure: I cannot STAND truffles. Seriously, even a whiff of one in a dish and I’m done. I do like the idea of doing a flavored butter or oil with popcorn though – something to explore perhaps…

23:08 – The Liberman family arrives as Jeffrey pops the cork on some champagne the lights twinkle in the trees. #jealous

26:44 – The spaghetti is done cooking and now it’s time to serve the most enormous bowl covered in sauce and meatballs. Yum!

27:37 – Ina’s whole philosophy of cooking could probably be summed up as “nursery food for adults.” She’s so great at taking comfort food classics and dialing up the sophistication without losing the familiarity. Obviously I’m a fan.

28:11 – Outside with the giant bowl of “meatballs and sketti” and everyone dives in over a beautifully candle-lit table. Next comes the Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp with vanilla ice cream.

29:55 – Finally, the moment we’ve actually been waiting for: making use of the fire pit to light marshmallows on fire for S’mores. Ahh, summer.

Final Thoughts:
Note to self: cook something with rhubarb this summer when it’s in season.

I want to try cooking popcorn in infused oil, maybe rosemary? This bears further trial.

Also, investigate giant inflatable balloon lights and a fire pit…

Lessons Learned:
I’ve cooked meatballs before, actually about a month ago, so trying Spicy Turkey Meatballs and Spaghetti was more about trying a different flavor combination and cooking technique.

Meatball Assembly – This mixture was a bit stickier than the original combination and I suspect that’s due to the lack of dry breadcrumbs. I assume they aren’t needed because turkey is so lean and the fresh ones absorb enough of the juices from the sausage. Fluff the mixture together with a fork, or gently fold together with clean hands to keep them from packing too tightly. Portioning to exactly the same size takes a little guess-timation – I find that if I divide the mixture into 4 parts and then try to roll 6 meatballs (for a total of 24) from each quarter it comes out about right. Full disclosure: I ended up with 23 this time, so close enough.

Meatball Cooking – These meatballs are cooked on sheet trays (don’t forget the parchment paper!) in the oven, which is a far simpler technique than cooking them in olive oil on the stove. I put both sheets in at the same time and probably should have switched them halfway through – the bottom ones were a little browner. So, lesson learned!

Final Simmer – I am officially a huge fan of doing this in the oven. It takes the same amount of time and there’s no stress about having to stir or watch the sauce. I just cover and stick the pot in a 350 degree oven where it can pretty much hang out as long as you need it to and then like magic it’s ready whenever the pasta finishes cooking. I’ll also point out that it opens up a burner on the stovetop and the fewer items I have bubbling away there the more in control I feel.

Small Kitchen Friendly?
Fairly, it felt more so than the first meatball recipe, but upon reflection it actually requires the same amount of items. Once again, I used my trusty 5.5 qt French oven for sauce and meatball simmering, in addition to a second large pot for the pasta, a colander, medium mixing bowl, two baking sheet (assuming you’re making the full recipe) and medium cutting board. For utensils, a dinner fork, a wooden spatula, a liquid measuring cup & measuring spoons, a microplane grater, and an instant read meat thermometer. I also needed a small food processor to prep the fresh bread crumbs.

The Verdict:
I made Spicy Turkey Meatballs and Spaghetti when we were having a group of visiting college students for dinner, and while making meatballs from scratch does take effort I also think it’s kind of the perfect home-cooking meal. I hadn’t fully considered what a treat it might be after months of dining hall food. Based on how many meatballs disappeared it was a popular choice. In this version I used sweet Italian sausage and a classic tomato basil sauce, but even with my relatively low tolerance for heat I’d up the spice-factor and use hot Italian sausage and/or an arrabiata sauce in future iterations.

Company Pot Roast

March 11, 2015 by Laura Messersmith in Cooking with the Contessa

Episode: “Comfort and Company”

The Set-up: Ina is re-testing some classic recipes and updating them for company.

The Menu: Company Pot Roast, Baked Potatoes with Yogurt and Sour Cream

0:27 – First step of Company Pot Roast: haul out the biggest pot in the house! That is seriously a giant Le Creuset French oven.

1:11 – Pro Tip #1: Pat the roast dry with paper towels to help it sear in the pot.

2:34 – I love a two-fer - Pro Tip #2: After seasoning, dredge the roast in flour – the light coating browns the meat and thickens the sauce.

3:25 – Ina lets one of her secrets for making this company-ready: she’s stealing some inspiration from Beef Bourgignon. Which if you think about it is basically the same dish, just fancied up.

4:16 – Ina keeps a notebook near by when she’s testing recipes to keep track of what she’s doing, a practice I whole-heartedly endorse. If I can’t remember what I did, how can I recreate it?

5:48 – Need a suggestion for the Company Pot Roast extra sauce? Ina uses it to make pasta Bolognese.

6:02 – This is a classic stew/soup/braise combo: onion, carrot, celery, garlic, leeks. Yum!

7:16 – The plot thickens! Ina is going to be home alone and doesn’t need an entire pot roast, so she’s calling her friend Dwyer (who’s in the depths of a kitchen remodel) to see if she’d like dinner. Naturally the answer is “yes.”

10:47 – Apparently if you want to terrify Ina just invite her to a really stiff, formal dinner with starched napkins and hard chairs. Actually that does sound unappealing…

11:22 – Now for the bouquet garni of rosemary and thyme fresh from the garden and tied with kitchen twine.

12:28 – In goes the Burgundy - she really is drawing on beef Bourgignon - cognac, tomatoes, and chicken stock. And (!) something really old-fashioned: a bouillon cube!

13:10 – Dwyer the lucky duck is now jetting around town buying flowers for Ina as a thank you. So sweet!

14:28 – Pot roast is in the oven to bubble away for a few hours. I love hands-off cooking!

18:39 – On to the Baked Potatoes with Yogurt and Sour Cream and Ina is using baking potatoes – specifically russets.

19:02 – Pro Tip #3: Potatoes bake better if the skins are dry before they go in the oven. I never knew that!

20:35 – These are some seriously no-fuss potatoes – no foil, no olive oil, not even pierced with a fork! – just placed right on the oven rack at 350 degrees.

21:41 – Dwyer continues to plan a thank you for Ina by picking up Chinese take-out for dinner. If you’re curious, she orders General Tso’s Chicken with Broccoli and white rice – I assume this is Ina’s usual?

22:53 – Pro Tip for the Ages: “You can make something really simple, but if it’s beautifully presented it makes all the difference in the world.” I’m trying to incorporate that into so many areas of life!

26:16 – Why choose chunky or pureed sauce for Company Pot Roast when you can have both?

27:03 – Pro Tip #4: Mashing the flour into softened butter prevents lumpy sauce. This is one of my all time favorite tricks.

28:20 – I like how Ina upped the fanciness with the ingredients and the presentation by pre-slicing the roast. So much easier to serve!

29:38 – Dwyer arrives to pick up dinner and deliver her surprises to Ina, who seems genuinely delighted by them.

29:59 – Fast forward to dinner time and Dwyer sends Ina a photo of everyone enjoying their delicious meal. Yay!

Final Thoughts:
It’s amazing how the addition of an ingredient or one small change can transform one dish into something else entirely (ex. Beef Bourgignon vs. Company Pot Roast)

Still reflecting on the Pro Tip for the Ages. Should I stitch a throw pillow so I don’t forget?

Wondering, with all the cooking Ina does, how many people in the Hamptons get a catered dinner each week compliments of the Barefoot Contessa Test Kitchen?

Lessons Learned:
I’ve made similar dishes in the past, but I decided to make Company Pot Roast any way to learn more about Ina’s techniques for developing flavor and to see if it really was special enough for company.

Alliums – as I’ve been cooking more I’ve realized that using multiple members of this family - aka onions, leeks, garlic, shallots, etc. – can build layers and depth in a dish. The complexity of flavors increases so much just by using adding shallot or leeks to the standard onions. Try it sometime and see if you taste a difference too.

Sauce – similar to the layering of alliums, Ina’s recipes (and now my own) often incorporate wine and in this case, cognac too. I’m continually amazed by the richness a cup of red wine adds to a tomato sauce and the combination with roast beef is classic.

Presentation – the recipe suggests allowing the roast to rest before slicing and serving with the sauce. Such a small adjustment, but such a big difference! It saves the host(ess) from wrangling a giant piece of meat at the table and definitely takes this dish to “company” level.

Small Kitchen Friendly?
Surprisingly, yes - Company Pot Roast is essentially a one-pot meal! I used a large cutting board, my trusty 5 quart Le Creuset, and a blender. I also used a chef’s knife, measuring cups & spoons, tongs, a wooden spatula, a large spoon, and a large pronged fork. Kitchen twine will be helpful too.

The Verdict:
Who could doubt that the Barefoot Contessa has a kick-ass (pardon my French) and company appropriate recipe for pot roast? The flavor of the sauce is amazing - definitely serve this along side something to soak up the extra, like mashed potatoes or polenta - deeply tomato-y and rich with the wine and herbs. I’d also recommend saving any that remains after dinner to serve over pasta or with baked eggs (more on that idea next week!)

Apple Cake Tatin

March 04, 2015 by Laura Messersmith in Cooking with the Contessa

Episode: “Housewarming Party”

The Set-up: Ina’s friend Valerie moved into the neighborhood, so Ina is bringing her an entire dinner to celebrate the new house.

The Menu: Cheese Puffs, Herbed New Potatoes, Loin of Pork with Green Peppercorns, Roasted Asparagus, Apple Cake “Tatin”

0:29 – Before we even start with the cooking can I be the first to say: this is major dinner – five (!) recipes all for a housewarming party? Whoa.

1:10 – Now that I have that out of my system we can get on with the Loin of Pork with Green Peppercorns.

2:34 – In keeping with our theme of making a Major Dinner, Ina is using a bone-in pork rib roast, frenched and all. Not sure that my local grocery store stocks such a thing….

3:27 – Now for the rub/marinade which involves whole grain and Dijon mustard along with freshly ground fennel seed. Yum!

4:15 – The appetizer for this Major Dinner are Cheese Puffs - involves pâte au choux, the type of pastry dough that is used for éclairs, beignets, and profiteroles.

5:44 – I loooove all the delicate little pastries I mentioned above, so trust that I am watching this process like a hawk.

6:06 – After making croissants I (unfairly) assumed that pâte au choux would also involve 5,000 steps, but it actually doesn’t seem that hard! I’m starting to dream of beignets…

7:32 – Dang. I knew there had to be a catch: piping bag and accompanying skills required!

10:45 – Now for dessert: Apple Cake “Tatin” which involves making caramel – yikes!

11:20 – I notice that Ina cut the apple slices in really thick wedges – I assume that pouring hot caramel over them does a lot of the cooking?

12:53 – Cakes that incorporate sour cream (or in my case, greek yogurt) are the best – so moist!

13:29 – Valerie has arrived to collect the Cheese Puffs and get instructions on re-heating. She seems to live directly next door to Ina – guess who I’d borrow a cup of sugar from…

14:21 – The Herbed New Potatoes go into a dutch oven to cook themselves with just a little butter – this is a technique I need to try.

19:14 – Time to turn the Apple Cake Tatin out of its pan and I swear this is one of the most stressful things about baking. Bundt cakes half stuck in the pan is my nightmare.

19:22 – Spoiler alert: Ina’s comes out just fine. We also check-in with Valerie talking to herself about the good fortune of having Ina next-door, but do I detect a dash of haterade in her words?

20:47 – Our main course - Loin of Pork with Green Peppercorns – is out of the oven and on cue registers exactly 140 degrees. Good job, pork.

21:03 – Now to make the sauce with the green peppercorns. A little research tells me that they are unripe version of what becomes black peppercorns preserved in a brine.

22:35 – Ina is putting the final touches on dinner – prepping the Roasted Asparagus and adding herbs to the Herbed New Potatoes.

23:18 – Back over to Valerie and the Cheese Puffs and she’s using her best scheming villain voice, and plotting how many she can eat before the guests arrive. “Divine, just diviiiine” like they’re stolen jewels. Not that I can relate or anything.

24:46 – Ina’s friend Frank arrives to cart dutch ovens around. I never noticed how tall he is before, but next to Ina he looks like a giant.

28:24 – Valerie is put in charge of passing the cheese puffs around while Ina plates dinner and we know she’s not to be trusted! An unusual misstep for Ina.

29:50 – Everyone sits down to eat and as Ina reveals the Apple Cake “Tatin” for dessert. Valerie gets to keep the leftovers, so I’m guessing those will be some small slices passed around…

Final Thoughts:
I’m seriously tempted to try making choux pastry. Am I crazy?

Starting to feel like my lack of piping skills needs to be addressed. This is getting ridiculous.

I gave poor Valerie a hard time for coveting those cheese puffs, but who hasn’t been tempted to eat half of something before guests even arrive and pretend that's all you made?

Lessons Learned:

I pretty much can’t believe that I’ve never attempted anything like an Apple Tart Tatin or in this case Apple Cake “Tatin”. This oversight can probably be blamed on the “caramel-factor” which loosely translates to my fear of anything that requires molten sugar and/or a candy thermometer.

Caramel – This was nerve-racking, but ultimately not too hard. If you’re nervous like I was use a big pot – it’s less intimidating some how. DON’T stir, just veeery gently swirl the water and sugar together. Lastly, this takes longer than you might think – about 5 minutes by my count. Once the caramel begins change from semi-opaque white to light gold keep a close watch – you’re shooting for something the color of honey.

Apple Placement – This probably sounds silly, but it took me a few tries to figure out how to fit the right number of apple slices in my pie dish, so I’d wait on buttering until you have a plan of attack. In my 9” pie plate 9 thick slices scalloped around the perimeter with the remaining 3 slices in the middle was just right.

Butter – A note on butter. The recipe says “generously” and I can’t emphasize enough: don’t skimp! I found that smearing a healthy 1 – 1 1/2 tablespoons with the empty butter wrapper was just about right. The cake, apples, and the accompanying caramel were released from the pie plate without too much trouble.

Releasing the Cake – Again, the recipe calls for the baked cake to cool for 15 minutes before turning it out onto a plate. I used the cover and flip technique and then let gravity do the rest. Here’s the thing: don’t wait too much past that 15 minute mark or the caramel will cool too much and you’ll be chipping it from the bottom.

Small Kitchen Friendly?
Kinda. I used a medium sauce pan, medium and small mixing bowls, hand-held electric mixer, and 9 inch pie plate. I also used a rubber spatula, medium cutting board, chef’s knife, peeler, microplane grater, measuring cups and spoons.

The Verdict:
I made Apple Cake “Tatin” as dessert for a dinner party with friends and it seemed to be a hit, or at least they were too polite to say otherwise! Personally, I loooved it – the apples and caramel are the star, but the cake itself is really delicious too. It kind of reminds me of angelfood cake – totally different textures of course - there’s just enough lemon zest and vanilla to make it flavorful on it’s own, but still let the fruit shine. I will be making this again, for sure.

Chicken a la Vendemmia

February 25, 2015 by Laura Messersmith in Cooking with the Contessa

Episode: “Dinner in Napa”

The Set-up: The Gartens are on vacation in Napa (lucky!), so Ina is cooking California-style.

The Menu: Israeli Couscous and Tuna Salad, Chicken a la Vendemmia, Raspberry Crumble Bars

0:35 – The Gartens have rented a house in Napa for their vacation and Ina is making them dinner in the garden.

1:16 – Starting in order of importance, Ina is making dessert first: Raspberry Crumble Bars, which apparently were a Barefoot Contessa staple.

2:03 – So far this looks like a really simple recipe – flour, sugar, butter, salt, vanilla.

3:22 – Now raspberry jam is spread over a short bread crust, and this actually reminds me a lot of a recipe I make a lot, but mine involves chocolate chips…

4:37 – Interesting, Ina is using granola to make a short-cut crumble topping. Very tricky…

5:29 – Field trip! We’re going with Ina to visit the Oakville Grocery one of my favorite places in the Napa Valley!

6:14 – It turns out that Oakville Grocery served as a guide back when Ina was first running Barefoot Contessa in the late 70s. Further confirmation that she has great taste.

9:33 - We’re back at the Garten’s home away from home to make Israeli Couscous and Tuna Salad which I’m guessing was inspired by Oakville Grocery’s “main course salads.”

10:02 – The recipe calls for Italian tuna packed in olive oil and I’ve really never worked with that ingredient. Ina says it has lots of flavor, so…?

11:21 – I was on board with everything until the black olives – no thanks, too briny!

12:13 – Ina says that lots of people think couscous is a grain, but that it’s actually a pasta. Cue the More You Know Star…

13:38 – Now we’re checking in with some California chefs to get advice on great salads: Craig Stoll @ Delfina says he keeps it simple and uses the best ingredients like caprese salad with heirloom tomatoes and basil oil.

13:55 - Liz Prueitt @ Tartine contrasts hot and cold, so she serves wilted spinach and gruyere with vinaigrette tossed baby greens.

14:24 – Danny Bowien @ Mission Chinese plays with plating by wrapping a spicy salad with lots of fresh herbs in toasted nori sheets like a sushi handroll. Sort of like a cross between a salad and a spring roll…

15:17 – Back to Ina’s to finish off the Israeli Couscous and Tuna Salad with fresh herbs and a little lemon juice.

19:59 - Time for dinner with Jeffrey is the glorious garden at complete with chilled glasses of rosé. This looks like heaven.

21:30 – Chef Michael Chiarello has invited Ina to come to his home, which just happens to be surrounded by vineyards. Good lord, I had forgotten how gorgeous Napa is.

22:16 – I suppose one of the benefits of being a famous chef living in an agricultural paradise is wandering around your property snipping bunches of grapes, sprigs of rosemary and ripe figs just before it’s time to cook!

23:42 – We’re in the kitchen now getting ready to make Chicken a la Vendemmia, a Southern Italian dish traditionally made during harvest time.

24:25 – Pro Tip: Cook the “presentation side” first while the oil in the pan is fresh and it will cook cleaner.

25:37 – Now I know that Chef Chiarello and I are kindred spirits: he likes cobalt blue Le Crueset pans too!

28:44 – Finishing touches to the chicken as Michael and Ina make a sauce from the chicken drippings grape juice and figs.

29:39 – Dinner time! The chicken looks delicious and according to Ina the flavor is like a sweet and savory taste of fall. Yum!

Final Thoughts:
I love incorporating fruit into savory dishes, so I’m excited to try it with grapes.

The California style of cooking is so distinctively flavorful and simple, definitely bears further investigation….

It’s official: I am dying to get back to Napa!

Lessons Learned:
I wanted to try Chicken a la Vendemmia for a few reason – first: we really liked the flavor of the grapes in the Roasted Sausages and Grapes and second, some of the ingredients reminded me a lot of these Pickled Grapes from the Lee Brothers. All good news as far as I was concerned.

Sautéing the Chicken – This is a technique I’ve been practicing now for the past year and I’m just now starting to feel confident in my ability to get really crispy flavorful skin while maintaining juicy tender meat. A lot of credit goes to pan temperature – getting the pan and then later the olive oil really quite hot is key. Remember that shimmer I mentioned? That comes into play here too.

Reducing the Sauce – Definitely “toast” the rosemary a little before adding the grape juice to help mellow the flavor of the herb and infuse the sauce. After that, reducing the fresh grape juice just takes a little patience and a little stirring, but the resulting concentration of sweet and tart sauce is worth it.

Herbs – Rosemary is pretty straightforward, but fennel spice was a little beyond what we had on hand and frankly I forgot to see if the grocery store here carries it. No matter though, I find that tarragon and fennel have a similar “green” anise flavor, so I made a one-to-one substitution with dried tarragon and the outcome was still delicious.

Small Kitchen Friendly?
Yes, assuming you have a blender or food processor. I used a blender, a small mesh sieve, medium cutting board, chef’s knife, and a medium sauté pan. I also needed tongs, a rubber spatula, and measuring cups and spoons.

The Verdict:
I made Chicken a la Vendemmia for Mike and I earlier this week and Mike, as you might have suspected, will always ask for more spice. If that’s you too, I’d suggest taking the red pepper flake inspiration from the Lee Brother’s pickle recipe and incorporating it at the same time you add the rosemary to the sauté pan. I also added a handful of fresh whole grapes in the last few minutes for some textural interest. This recipe has a lot to recommend it – simple ingredients, big concentrated flavors, and processes that make even the saddest wintertime grape sing.