Margo's Feast

It’s official – January of 2009 was the coldest in two decades for the Chicago area. The snow is frozen hard, the sidewalks are icy and the wind is extremely hostile. I don’t think Chicago and I had a good start.

This week I’m into comfort food mode, trying to lift my spirits and struggling to stop the shivering. I always believed in simple, fuss-free dishes that uplift your mood with their smell and taste. Hour-long glaze and sauce reductions are not for me. I’d rather spend a few hours in the kitchen preparing several different dishes, than laboring over some complicated haute-cuisine extravaganza. So yesterday’s dinner was spaghetti with homemade pesto, garlic and cherry tomatoes, and today’s lunch – crab sticks, orange and mayo salad served with parsnip, green pea and Parmesan paste over toasted bagels.

If I hadn’t left my pasta machine behind, I would make the spaghetti myself. Nothing can beat homemade pasta – it has a different, more springy bite and the eggs add extra flavor. Once you learn how to make it and have a machine, it’s really easy. I love dealing with dough – getting it together and kneading it is one of the best stress relievers I know. Homemade pesto is also easy and way better than the stuff from a jar. As always with simple recipes you get the best results when using good quality products and even better when you make most of them yourself. I did cheat this time – the pesto was from my mother-in-law, but made from the basil she grows in her backyard, so I don’t feel guilty. It’s not easy to find fresh basil in winter, but you can play with the ingredients. I’ve made parsley pesto and mint pesto, as well as combinations of both. I would also use walnuts instead of the expensive pine nuts with very good results. Make more than you need and store in a jar in the fridge or freeze in small containers – it’s a great fast fix for vinaigrettes, roasted vegetables or even soups. I prefer handfuls to cups for measuring leafy greens and herbs – it’s a more helpful estimate when you are shopping for them, as bunches vary in size. It also saves time – no last-minute dashes to the store – and you end up with no wasted rotten greens in the fridge.

Spaghetti with pesto, garlic and cherry tomatoes (serves 4)

Ingredients for the pesto:

• 3 handfuls fresh basil, tough stems removed (or the same amount flat leaf parsley)
• ½ cup olive oil – not too strong, as it’ll overpower the taste of basil
• ¼ cup pine nuts (or walnuts)
• 2 cloves garlic, peeled
• 1-2 tbsp lemon juice
• salt
• 1/3 cup finely grated Parmesan or Pecorino Romano

Dry roast the pine nuts (or walnuts) in a heavy-bottomed pan over medium high heat, stirring constantly, as nuts tend to burn fast, until slightly brown and the aromatic oils begin to be released – about 1-1 ½ minutes. Place all the ingredients, except the cheese, in a food processor and process until smooth. If you don’t have a food processor (I don’t), use a standing or hand blender. Add the cheese and taste. Add some salt if you want, though the cheese should be enough. If you like it more sour – add extra lemon juice. No need to be slavish about this recipe – you can adjust it to your own taste. I’m sure there are as many pesto variations in Italy as people are making it.

Ingredients for the dish:

• 1 pound spaghetti (best you can afford)
• 1-2 cloves garlic, peeled and mashed to a paste
• 2 handfuls cherry tomatoes, about ½ pound – cut in half
• extra Parmesan or Pecorino Romano

Set the table, with the extra cheese, a salad, if you’ve made one, and plates, as you have to serve the pasta the minute it’s ready. Cook the spaghetti in plenty of boiling salted water (it should be really salty – try it and you should taste the salt) over high heat. Start trying the pasta after 4-5 minutes if using store bought – it’s hard to guess the time it needs to get to that al dente stage with different brands. When it’s tender but still firm, whatever that means to you, drain, but don’t run under cold water. Pour the pasta into a big bowl, add at least 4 tbsp pesto, the mashed garlic and tomatoes, and mix well. Serve immediately with extra Parmesan and more pesto if you wish.

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I had to obtain my 10-year-old son’s permission to write this post, as it contains his own recipe creation. He had guarded it for the last two years, but is finally ready to share with the rest of us. It was created in Milanówek – a beautiful garden town near Warsaw, during a visit to my husband’s godmother’s summer house. Ever since then, whenever we boarded the train to go there, he’d maniacally demand the products for his dish. So even before we would get to the tranquil rose garden, I would almost smell the pungent curry in my head.

Many times I was on the verge of telling him that chickens had gone extinct to free us from the curry tyranny. However, as it was me who created the gourmet monster by introducing him to oriental spices, seafood, coconut milk, Thai noodles, sushi – the list of my crimes could go on and on – I sat put and ate my curry. It is really a great, filling and easy recipe – I just don’t like that much repetition, and kids that age excel in it.

Regardless, I would let him indulge us once in a while on weekends, when I was too lazy to cook – besides, you’ve got to encourage children in the kitchen. Last Saturday was one of those days, and Eryk was happy to oblige.

Originally he would use sour cream for the sauce, but since I now have a steady coconut milk supply from the Tai Nam Food Market on 4925 Broadway – Chicago’s Vietnamese neighborhood – adds that instead. Some of the first spices I bought when we moved here were bright yellow turmeric and medium spicy Thai curry powder, both with Eryk’s dish in mind. Another modification I introduced was marinating the chicken breasts in buttermilk, which prevents the meat from drying. We eat that with rice and a simple green salad or with garlic naan bread, whenever I can get some. Originally baked in a hellish hot Tandoori oven, it’s hard to make at home.

Chicken curry with wild rice

Ingredients (serves four):

• 2 big chicken breasts – about one pound (500 g) or the same amount of chicken tenders – free range or organic if possible
• ½ cup buttermilk
• 1-2 tbsp medium spicy curry powder
• 2 tbsp turmeric powder
• 1 can coconut milk – 13.5 oz (400ml), or the same amount sour cream
• salt
• 1 tbsp vegetable oil
• extra milk to thin the sauce if too thick
• 1 cup wild rice
• 2 ½ cups water
• 1 tbsp butter
• 1 kid, big enough to be trusted a knife

Take the kid, give him a knife and watch him carefully cutting the chicken breasts into bite-size cubes. Place the meat in to a bowl, add the salt and buttermilk, turn to coat well and leave for 30 minutes.

Now you can start making the rice. I’m not very keen on this ingredient, but recently I found an amazing mix of wild, black and red rice in my Vietnamese market and the smell of it when it started cooking made me gasp – sweet and nutty.

Wash the rice once. Melt the butter in a heavy-bottomed pot, add the rice, stir for 1 minute and add the water and about 1 tbsp salt. Bring to a boil and then turn the heat down to a simmer, cover and let cook for 20-30 minutes or until all the water is absorbed. Remember that wild or black rice will need more time than the usual white stuff. Don’t take the lid off during the first 20 minutes.

Heat the oil in a frying pan or wok over medium heat, add the chicken with the buttermilk it was marinated in – it’s better not to use the kid during this step. Give the kid a wooden spoon and let him/her stir the meat until it’s seared from all sides. Add the spices and stir for 2-3 minutes, then pour in the coconut milk (or sour cream). Lower the heat to medium low and keep the kid stirring. If the sauce looks too thick, add some milk – ¼ cup at a time until it looks righ. Add more salt or curry if needed.

If I let Eryk do it his way, he would use 4 tbsp of the curry, but then I would have to make something else for his sister, which is not the effect I’m looking for on a lazy weekend afternoon. But you can make it as hot as you like. Let it cook for 3-4 minutes more. If your timing is good the rice should be ready by now and you can serve everything hot with a quick mixed-greens salad tossed with lime (or lemon) juice and olive oil. It helps to clean your palate and adds extra color and vitamins to the dish – if you manage to make the kids eat it.

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