Cookbook of the week #22 : Sweet Food, including a recipe for Almond, orange and cardamom biscotti

I’m back. I have had a lot going on in my life since I last posted, but now I am ready to pick up where I left off.



This week’s cookbook was published by Murdoch Books, part of a series of themed books that are in equal measure recipe collections and unabashed food porn. There is a photo of every dish, each one designed to make the reader hungry. The book is divided into chapters for baked goods, desserts and pies & tarts, and other than the chapter divisions, there is no rhyme or reason to the way the recipes are collected, so that for example, the 5 cheesecake recipes in the book are to be found in two chapters and none of them on adjacent pages. This makes for interesting browsing. I have found that I can open this book at random and be almost certain to find something I want to try. I have had to eliminate several recipes I would have liked to try because of hard-to-find ingredients.

Note: The tbs called for are 20 ml tbs, rather than 15 ml ones.

The first recipe I chose is Almond, orange and cardamom biscotti

In Italian “biscotti” means “twice baked”, but according to Wikipedia, in Italy the term is used for any type of cookie. In North-America it refers to twice-baked pastries like the ones in this recipe, which in Italy are called “biscotti di Prato”, “cantoucchi” or “cantoucchini”.

I would like to imagine that when J.R.R. Tolkien wrote about lembas, he had something like biscotti in mind.

Makes about 40.

2 eggs
155 g (2/3 cup) firmly packed soft brown sugar
125 g (1 cup) self-rising flour (if you don’t have self-rising flour, use 1 cup plain flour and add 1 1/2 tsp baking powder and 1/2 tsp salt)
90 g (3/4 cup) plain flour
125 g (1 1/4 cups) almonds
1 tbs finely grated orange zest
1/4 tsp ground cardamom

Preheat the oven to 160°C (315°F), or lower temperature as indicated for convection ovens. Line a baking tray with baking paper.

Beat the eggs and sugar until light and creamy. Sift the flours into the bowl, add the almonds, zest and cardamom and mix to a soft dough.

Turn the dough out onto a floured surface, divide in two and shape into two loaves, about 5 x 20 cm (2 x 8 inches) in size.

Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until lightly golden. Cool on a wire rack. When cool, cut the loaves into 1 cm (2/5 inch) slices with a serrated bread knife. The biscotti will be crumbly on the edges, so work slowly and if you can, hold the sides of the loaves as you cut.

Arrange the slices on baking trays in one layer and return to the oven for 10 minutes on each side. If the slices look like they are not completely dry when removed from the oven, don’t worry – they will become crisp when they cool. Allow to cool before serving.

Great with coffee.

Edit:

Recipe review:
I made this recipe yesterday after I posted it. The dough was EXTREMELY sticky, so sticky that I ended up just forming it into one rough loaf and then I went to scrape a thick layer of gluey dough off my hands. Next time I will wet my hands before handling the dough. The raw loaf looked like a misshapen lump of lava, but it baked up smooth and when I sliced it it looked like biscotti should. In the instructions it says to cool the loaf – I would just let it cool for about 10 minutes and then slice it, because fully cooled it was hard to cut because the crust was so hard. The biscotti are very good, with a mild orangey flavour and just a hint of cardamom.

Sample recipe from Hollt og gott: Pancit Bijon

According to the book this is a Phillipine recipe, but I don’t know how authentic it is.

2 eggs, scrambled
1/3 cup vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
1/2 cup mushrooms, sliced
1 cup celery, sliced
1/2 cup finely grated carrots
1 cup grated white cabbage
1/2 tsp salt
4-5 tbs soy sauce
3/4 cup warm water
1 cup rice (raw)
1 cup bean sprouts

Cook the rice according to packet instructions.

Fry the eggs in 3 tbs. of the oil. Set aside. Cook the onion, celery, bean sprouts and mushrooms for 2 minutes in the oil. Add the carrots and cook for 2 minutes. Add the cabbage, soy sauce and water. Then add the rice and simmer until the vegetables are tender. Add the eggs. Serve.

Sample recipe from Hollt og gott: Vegetarian lasagna

Lasagna noodles, enough for two layers in the pan you intend to use.
Cook the lasagna until al dente and drain.

1 to 1 1/2 cup grated cheese
1 can mushrooms (it doesn’t say which size, but I think it’s probably a small one), drained and the liquid set aside for the sauce

Cheese and egg mixture:
1 1/2 cup cottage cheese
3 eggs

Stir the eggs well and mix with the cottage cheese.

Sauce:
1 can tomato purée (1 small can, about 142 g)
1 mushroom can of water plus the mushroom liquid
1 can tomatoes with juice (again, no size given, but probably a standard can)
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
1/2 tsp onion salt
1 cup fine soy mince

Dump into a saucepan and cook together for 5-10 minutes.

Heat the oven to 200°C. Arrange the ingredients in the lasagna pan as follows:

Lasagna noodles (I'm no lasagna expert, but isn't the sauce usually on the bottom?)
Cottage cheese and egg mixture
Sauce
Mushrooms
Grated cheese

Repeat once. Bake for 1 hour. Let stand for 15 minutes before serving.


If I make this recipe, I would use fresh mushrooms instead of canned: sliced, lightly fried and simmered in water for 2-3 minutes to make mushroom broth to use in the lasagna.

Cookbook of the week # 20 : Hollt og gott (Healthy and tasty), and the first sample recipe: Lentil soup

This is one of the self-published cookbooks in my collection. In this case the publisher was a religious group, the Adventists. This spiral-bound cookbook is full of meatless recipes (some vegan, others ovo-lacto vegetarian), many of which have the contributor’s name beside it. It came from my mother’s collection, and I think she got it from my aunt who in turn got it from one of her in-laws, who has a number of recipes in the book.

Since I am a little late in posting this, here is the first recipe:

Lentil soup:

1 1/2 cups lentils (it doesn’t say which kind, so I am assuming any type can be used)
2 large tomatoes, chopped
2 carrots, finely chopped
3/4 cup chopped parsley
3/4 cup white cabbage, torn into pieces
2 litres vegetable broth/bouillon
3 celery stalks, finely chopped
2 tbs soup herbs (this is a mixture of dried herbs and vegetables that is sold in shops here. I don’t know if it is available in other countries, but you can replace it with chopped kale)
1 bay leaf
The juice of 1 lemon

Cook the lentils in the veggie broth until soft. Add the rest and cook until the vegetables are tender.

Sample recipe from: The Book of Thai Cooking: Stuffed aubergine

I really like aubergines, and this looks like a tasty recipe.

Serves 4.

2 aubergines (eggplants), each weighing about 225 g
2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
2 stalks lemon grass, chopped
2 tbs vegetable oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
175 g chicken breast meat, finely chopped
2 tsp fish sauce
25 leaves of Thai basil (holy basil)
Freshly ground black pepper
Thai basil leave for garnish

Preheat the grill in your oven. Grill the whole aubergines for about 20 minutes, turning frequently, until they are evenly charred all over.

While the aubergines are cooking, grind the garlic and lemon grass together in a mortar. Set aside. Heat the oil in a wok, add the onion and fry, stirring occasionally, until golden. Add the garlic/lemon grass paste, fry for 1-2 minutes, then add the chicken. Stir fry for 2 minutes. Add the fish sauce and basil and plenty of pepper.

Cut each aubergine in half lengthwise. Carefully scrape most of the the flesh from inside the skins and put in a bowl. Keep the skins hot. Cut the flesh into pieces with scissors. Put in the hot wok and stir-fry with the chicken mixture for about 1 minute. Put the aubergine skins on a hot serving platter and divide the chicken mixture between them. Garnish with basil leaves.

Sample recipe from The Big Ready Steady Cook Book: Gnocchi with spicy tomato sauce

I chose this recipe because I have neither made nor eaten gnocchi before and I would like to. This is from the vegetarian chapter.

Creator: Kevin Woodford
Found on page 16.

Serves 2.

450 ml (15 fl.oz) milk
75 g (3 oz) semolina (pasta flour)
1 egg yolk
25 g (1 0z) butter
1 tbs double cream (whipping cream)
75 g (3 oz) Parmesan, grated
1/2 tsp freshly grated nutmeg

Sauce:
25 g (1/2 oz) butter
1/2 onion, finely chopped
1/2 red pepper (bell pepper), seeded and sliced
1/2 leek, sliced
1 garlic clove, crushed
1 tbs chopped fresh coriander
1 tbs chopped fresh parsley
400 g can of chopped tomatoes
1 few drops of Tabasco sauce
4 tbs tomato purée
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

To make the gnocchi: heat the milk to boiling and add the semolina. Stir constantly until the mixture thickens. Beat in the egg yolk, butter, cream and half the Parmesan. Then add the nutmeg, salt and pepper. Smooth the semolina mixture into a small oven-proof dish and allow to cool.

To make the sauce: melt the butter in a pan and cook the onion, pepper, leek, garlic and herbs for about 5 minutes or until softened. Add the tomatoes, Tabasco and tomato purée. Bring to the boil and simmer for about 10 minutes, stirring occasionally. Adjust taste with salt and pepper.

Turn the semolina mixture out on a worktable and cut out rounds using a 5 cm (2 inch) pastry (cookie) cutter. Arrange the gnocchi circles in the same dish in one layer, sprinkling with the remaining Parmesan. Put under a hot grill/broiler for 4-5 minutes or until the cheese has melted and turned golden brown.

To serve, transfer the gnocchi to plates and spoon the sauce around it.

Sample recipe from Entertaining: Mushrooms à la Grècque

According to my culinary dictionary, the title of this recipe, “Mushrooms in the Greek style” refers to dishes of Greek origin (no surprise there), but also to dishes cooked in the Mediterranean style, using olive oil, lemon and spices. Whichever it is, it seems an interesting dish, especially if you love mushrooms as much as I do.

2 tbs olive oil
1 onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, crushed
500 g (1 lb) small, whole button mushrooms
150 ml (1/4 pint) dry white wine
2 tbs tomato purée
1 tsp sugar
1 bouquet garni
Salt and pepper
Chopped parsley for garnishing

Heat the oil in a pan and fry the onion and garlic in it over low heat until translucent. Add the mushrooms and the remaining ingredients and adjust taste with salt and pepper. Cook uncovered for about 20 minutes. Cool, then remove the bouquet garni. Chill.
Serve cold with warm bread and garnish with parsley. (I think it would be great on toast).

Makes 6 servings.

Sample recipe from The Spice Cookbook: Spiced pumpkin casserole

It was only a few years ago that the big orange pumpkins one associates with Halloween started becoming available in Icelandic supermarkets (mostly those of one chain) and only at this time of the year. If I ever do try cooking with pumpkin, I will have to have several recipes at hand, because these things are so big that one looks like it could feed a dozen people.

Servings: 6.

4 cups cooked, mashed, fresh pumpkin
1/4 cup light brown sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1/2 tsp ground ginger
1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp lemon zest
1 tsp orange zest
1/4 cup (1/2 stick) butter, melted

Combine all ingredients and turn into a buttered 1 litre (1 quart) casserole. Bake at 175°C (350°F) for 1 hour or until hot and the top is lightly flecked with brown. Serve as a side dish.

Recipe from Moroccan Cooking: Eggplant purée

One thing I am unhappy with about this book is that it gives the Moroccan names only for a couple of dishes. This I intend to rectify by discovering what those names are, if possible, and including them with the recipes.

This eggplant purée is called Zahluk or Zaalouk in Morocco, and is known all over North Africa and in Turkey and probably other countries of the Near East. More vegetables are used in some versions, such as zucchini and tomatoes.

To serve 4.
Time: 40 minutes preparation, 20 minutes cooking.

1 kg eggplants, peeled and cut into 2 cm cubes
1/3 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic, crushed
Ground pepper
1 tsp ground sweet paprika
3 pitta breads
1 egg white, lightly beaten
2 tbs cumin seeds

To prepare eggplant:
Steam eggplant cubes in a colander or bamboo steamer over boiling water for 30 minutes. Heat oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add eggplant cubes, garlic, pepper and paprika. Lower the temperature a little. Fry and stir constantly for about 10 minutes, or until the eggplant is very soft. Serve hot with the toasted pitta bread.

To prepare the bread:
Split each pitta bread into two rounds. Brush with egg white, sprinkle with cumin seeds and bake at 180°C for 20 minutes, or until crisp. Break into pieces before serving.

Serve as a starter or as part of a meal of several small dishes.

Aloo gobi: Indian potatoes and cauliflower – mild version

I arrived at this recipe after some experimentation with different recipes for this classic Indian dish. In reality, I never measure for it, but this is close enough to the aloo gobi that I make. I generally don't put chilli peppers in it unless I have a cold, chilli being an excellent way of unclogging a stuffed nose.

Serves one as a main dish, two as a starter, three to four as a side dish.

2 medium potatoes, cubed
equal amount of cauliflower, divided into florets
1/2 onion, chopped
2-3 cm piece of ginger root, grated or very finely chopped
1 tsp yellow mustard seed
1 tsp cummin (or to taste)
2 tsp coriander (or to taste)
1 tsp turmeric
garlic to taste
salt
1/2 cup water
1 tbs cooking oil (2 tbs if you are not using a non-stick pan)

For hot version, add as much fresh, chopped chili pepper as you can stand and remember to serve the raita – it's cooling.

Heat the oil in a wok or frying pan. When hot, add the mustard seeds and put a lid on the pan. Allow seeds to pop for about 20 seconds, lower the heat and add cummin, coriander, turmeric, garlic, ginger and onion, mix well and fry gently until the onion begins to turn transparent. Take care not to burn. Add the cauliflower and potato pieces and mix to coat with spices. Fry for a couple of minutes, then add the water and simmer for 10-15 minutes or until the potato pieces are cooked through and the sauce has thickened. Serve as a side dish with meat, or as a main course with chappatis or naan and a raita (yogurt salad).

Raita:
1/2 cup plain yogurt or buttermilk
1/2 tsp cummin seeds
1/2 tsp ground cummin
1/2 cucumber, finely chopped
dash of salt

Stir salt, spices and cucumber into yogurt and serve chilled. Very good with spicy dishes.

Indian recipe: Alu Mattar Rasa (potato and pea curry, Utter Pradesh style)

1 large onion
1 fresh red chilli
2 tsp chopped fresh ginger
2 tbs oil
1/2 tsp ground turmeric
2 tsp ground coriander
1 cup shelled peas
1 cup hot water
1 tsp salt
500 g potatoes, peeled and cubed
2 large ripe tomatoes, peeled and chopped
2 tbs yogurt
1tsp garam masala

Peel and roughly chop the onion. Seed the chilli and remove the stalk. Purée together the onion, chilli and ginger, adding a little water if necessary. Heat the oil in a heavy saucepan and fry the purée, stirring, for 3-4 minutes. Add turmeric and coriander and fry a little longer. Add the peas, hot water and salt, cover and cook for 10 minutes. Add the potatoes. If the peas are very young and tender, they can be added with the potatoes. When peas and potatoes are half-cooked, add the tomatoes and continue cooking for a few minutes more. Tahe the yogurt and stir with a little water until smooth, then add to the vegatables. Simmer until the cooking liquid thickens. Sprinkle with garam masala and stir gently to mix. Serve garnished with fresh cilantro (leaf coriander).

Indian recipe: Dhal Mulego Thani (South Indian lentil mulligatawny)

The Tamil phrase "Mulego Thani" translates as "pepper water" in English.
This is a soup.

1 cup masoor dhal (red lentils)
2 medium onions
1 tsp sliced garlic
1 small cinnamon stick
1/4 tsp whole black peppercorns
2 bay leaves
6 cups water
1 tbs ghee or oil
6-8 curry leaves
2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp garam masala (see yesterday's recipe)
1 cup coconut milk (optional)

Wash the lentils well and soak for about an hour. Drain, put into a saucepan with the water, 1 onion (chopped?) and 1/2 tsp garlic, cinnamon, peppercorns and bay leaves. Bring to the boil, cover ans simmer until lentil and onion are soft. Strain through a sieve, mashing the lentils and discarding the spices.
Slice the remaining onion very thinly. Heat ghee or oil in a saucepan and fry the onion and curry leaves until the onion is dark brown. Add the lentil liquid, salt and garam masala and simmer for a couple of minutes. For a richer soup, add the coconut milk at the end of the cooking time and stir until it is heated through.

This week's recipe: Rice with leeks and mushrooms

Cup and spoon measurements in this recipe are for American size cups and spoons.



2 cups rice (white or brown)
4 1/2 to 5 cups hot vegetable stock, chicken stock with the fat skimmed off, or water
1 tsp salt
2 tbs olive oil
1 tbs unsalted butter
4 leeks with most of the green removed; split lengthwise, rinsed well and sliced crosswise into 5 mm (1/4 inch) slices
2 cups sliced mushrooms
Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

To make vegan: use veggie stock or wate, leave out the butter and increase the olive oil by 1 tbs.



Put rice, 4 cups of the stock/water, and the salt in a thick-bottomed saucepan, cover and bring to the boil over medium-high heat. When the stock/water boils, reduce heat to medium low. Cook rice as indicated on packaging. It should be cooked to the al dente stage (firm but fully cooked).
While the rice is cooking, heat the olive oil over medium heat in a pan or skillet. Add the sliced leeks and sauté them for about 3 minutes, stirring occasionally.

Add the mushrooms and toss to mix with the leeks and sauté for about 3 more minutes, stirring occasionally. Add 1/4 to 1/2 cup stock or water and adjust the taste with salt and pepper. Reduce heat to medium low, cover and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring occasionally.

When the rice is cooked, add it to the pan/skillet with the vegetables and toss well. Add what's left of the stock and adjust the seasoning. Serve hot.


For variety, the authors recommend using 50/50 rice and wild rice, using chanterelles or morels instead of button mushrooms, and/or adding a little wine (white or red) to the stock near the end of the cooking time.
--

As I live alone and the recipe serves 8 persons and I hate seeing food go to waste, I made it smaller. I halved the amount of olive oil, butter, leeks and mushrooms, and used 1/4 of the given amount of the other ingredients, as I was going to eat the dish as a main course and felt the ratio of rice to vegatables was too big. (Sometimes I just can't help changing recipes). I used vegetable stock, as I am not fond of chicken stock.


The outcome was a dish which would have been indistinguishable from a risotto if I had used Arborio rice instead of Basmati. Using Basmati lent the dish a slightly nutty flavour that complemented the leeks. The taste of the leeks was rich but not overwhelming, even with double the amount of leeks to rice from the original recipe. While I can not say I tasted the mushrooms pieces much, the mushrooms did lend an extra dimension to the cooking liquid and texture to the dish. Both rice and mushrooms turned out perfectly al dente, while the leeks ended up so soft that they melted on the tongue. I did use what some might say was a little too much pepper – I like pepper but must remember to be careful when I make the dish again, as it will in all likelihood be for company.

Yes, it was that good. Next time, though, I am going to take Dille and Belsinger's advice and use wild mushrooms and add some wine to the broth. I am undecided whether I will try it with a different kind of rice, as I liked how the nutty flavour of the Basmati combined with the leeks.

While I did change the proportions in the recipe, I think the dish will be just as good using the original proportions, but more suited as a side dish than a main dish.