Tribeca Yummy Mummy

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All recipes can be shared with Yummies but are tasty enough for a big person too. See a full list of ingredients, or browse through the recipes below:

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Celebrating Green: Spanakopita (Spinach Pie)

15 March 2010 Filed In: cheese, cooking class, Fall, greens, lunchbox, Main Dish, phyllo, Soy-free, spinach, Spring, Summer, Vegetarian, Winter

Just in time for St. Patrick’s Day, a nice, green, traditional Greek dish. Yes, we are mixing our metaphors, but this dish is universally delicious.

In writing the recipe for this spanakopita, I really tried to pare it down to its essential ingredients so that it will come together quickly and very simply. The basics are layered into a baking dish, family style, and baked off in about half an hour’s time.

When we made these in the afternoon last week, we had a funny little class of just my kids and one other student, Miss A, who was the only mini-chef neither in bed with a bug nor off on a tropical vacay.

As the Brits are apt to say (and perhaps the Irish?): Right then! More for us!

Spanakopita (Spinach Pie)

For the spinach layer:

*2 lbs of spinach, washed well

*1 t. coarse salt

*3 small cloves of garlic, minced

*1 medium red onion, finely chopped (substitute shallots, leeks, white onion, or scallions)

*1 T. olive oil

*salt and pepper, to taste

Together: Fill a large pot with cool water. Have your mini-chef toss in the coarse salt.

Big Person: Bring the water to a boil over a high flame. Working in 2 batches, place the spinach in a colander and lower the colander into the boiling water for 8-10 seconds. Pull out the colander and drain over the sink. Let the first batch drain and cool completely. (Here you are free to cook the spinach a little longer and shock it in an ice bath, but I find that this is a nice step to skip in a crowded kitchen and that cooking the spinach less works well.) Once the first batch of spinach has cooled, repeat with the second batch of the spinach.

Squeeze all the extra water out of the spinach. You can try doing this with your Yummy.

Big Person will then chop the spinach pretty finely to prepare it for sauteing.

Heat the oil over a medium-low flame. Add the onion and cook till translucent. Add the garlic and cook, stirring frequently, a minute more. Turn the heat up to medium-high, add the spinach, some salt and pepper to taste, and saute for another 3 minutes or so, till all the flavors come together. Remove to cool in a medium bowl.

For the Feta Layer:

*1 lb. feta cheese, room temperature

*1/2 lb. ricotta cheese, room temperature

*1/2- 3/4 t. freshly grated nutmeg

*black or white pepper, to taste

Together: Mix all of the ingredients together with a wooden spoon. Break up the big chunks of feta with the back of your spoon till you reach the desired consistency. We prefer a little bit of texture, but some people prefer it completely smooth.

To Assemble:

*1 package phyllo dough

*4 T. butter

*1/4 c. olive oil

Big Person: Melt the butter over low heat. Stir in the olive oil and our into another (cool) bowl.

Together: Show your mini-chef that you are going to paint with the butter-oil mixture with a pastry brush.

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees F.

First paint a 9×13 inch baking dish with the mixture. Then, beginning with 2 sheets of phyllo, lightly paint both sides of the sheets. Press them into the dish, one on top of the other. Do not worry if your sheets tear. No biggie! Just piece them back together and move on with assembly. Next, spoon half of the spinach mixture into the dish and spread it out all over the phyllo layer. Paint 2 more sheets of phyllo with the butter mixture and layer them over the spinach. Spoon 1/2 of the feta mixture on top of this phyllo layer and spread it out everywhere. Repeat this process using up the second half of each mixture and finishing with a layer of two phyllo sheets to top the spanakopita. Brush with a final bit of the butter mixture.

For easier cutting later, you can score the top into serving pieces with a serrated knife. We prefer to skip this step and add one last crinkled layer of buttered phyllo on top for the beauty it gives the presentation of the dish after it’s baked.

Big Person: Bake the spanakopita in the oven for about 30 minutes or until you see the top layer of phyllo turn golden brown. Cool for a few minutes before serving.

Snail Rolls

12 March 2010 Filed In: jam, pastry, raisins, tribeca

You have got to love New York. Just the other day, on my way home from running like three grazillion errands, I stopped into one of my favorite neighborhood bakeries to pick up a sandwich for lunch. While I was waiting for my order, the guy in front of me said, “Oh, that is my favorite. FAVORITE! Sandwich.”

His girlfriend’s eyes, poor woman, sort of glazed over as we discussed the salt, the ooze of tasty olive oil, the little bite of the red onion, the bitterness of the arugula, and the sheer genius of the Gestalt. It is the sort of sandwich that you can have daydreams about, really.

Having clearly found a kindred spirit, he introduced himself as Steve, and then asked whether I had ever tasted the lumaca, or snail pastries that the same bakery makes. Surprisingly, since I have pretty much sampled every other thing on the sweets menu there, I had not.

“They are so good! They are so good that I had to figure out how to make them myself.”

He then launched into the recipe for the lumaca that he’d come up with. He gave very few details but was able to communicate the basics when two of the other customers almost got into a fist fight over, well, who knows what. A latte? The last of those fabulous sandwiches? I had been too busy in sandwich land with my new friend.

So, our conversation was cut short; we used our good spirits to break up the fight. So, this one, Steve, is for you. Where ever you are, thank you!

Note: Steve described the pastry he used as phyllo, but here I have used puff pastry. It makes this dessert or morning treat one of the easiest things ever to make. Try baking them with very small mini-chefs, and I bet you’ll have success.

Snail Rolls

*one package of puff pastry dough

*a bit of flour for the work surface and the rolling pin

*1/4 c. apricot jam

*1 c. pecans, walnuts, or a mixture of those two

*1/2 c. raisins, finely chopped

*1/4 c. sugar for sprinkling

Preheat your oven to 375 degrees F.

Together: Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

Place the nuts into a large plastic zipper bag and seal tightly. Have your mini-chef roll a rolling pin back and forth over the nuts, crumbling them.

Flour the surface that you’re going to be rolling the pastry out on and flour the rolling pin. Working together, roll the puff pastry dough out so that it is about 1/8-inch thick.

Spoon the apricot jam on the upper half of the rectangle. Spreading the jam on the longer edge will give you smaller pastries while the short edge will give you slightly larger pastries, but they are both wonderful.

Sprinkle the raisins and the nuts all over the jam. Then, starting from the edge with the jam, begin to roll the puff pastry up as tight as you can, creating a long tube.

Big Person: Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 20 minutes.

Pull the chilled dough out of the fridge and cut it into 1/2-inch slices using a serrated knife.

Together Again: Place the spirals on the prepared baking sheets with plenty of room to grow as they bake. Have your mini-chef sprinkle the sugar all over the top of the spirals.

Big Person: Bake the pastries for 25 minutes, or until they are golden brown at the edges. Cool for a few minutes before eating. Happy snail-eating!

Miniature Worlds

09 March 2010 Filed In: corner view

When I was a little girl, dollhouses fascinated me… sometimes the most magical worlds can be found inside the tiniest spaces.

Look inside more miniature worlds over at Jane’s blog.

Tamales with a Cumin Tomato Sauce

06 March 2010 Filed In: Appetizers, cooking class, corn, Dairy-free, Fall, Gluten-free, Main Dish, Soy-free, Spring, Summer, tamales, tomato, Vegan, Vegetarian, Winter

Tamales have a way that of bringing a group together. You could make these by yourself, but really they are the sort of thing, like dumplings, that are much more fun to put together with family, extended family even, or a big group of friends.

In class, we assembled and tied our tamales, steamed them, and ate them up altogether. Recipes like this one that are like art projects always please the children and bring the feeling of fun and community into the kitchen. Our mini-chefs attention span magically expanded, and they sat there working on this project for a long time, absorbed in what they were doing.

We filled our tamales with a cumin tomato sauce, the masa harina dough, and some roasted chicken, but you can really go to town in dreaming up your favorite fillings. Roasted vegetables, pork, tofu, and various sauces- anything goes. Make a bunch at once and try to get everyone in on the action because, as fast as they are made, they will be gone even more quickly.

Tamales with Cumin Tomato Sauce

For the Masa Harina Dough:

*4 c. masa harina

*1 t. salt

*1 t. baking powder

*3/4 c. butter, room temperature

*3/4 c. vegetable shortening, room temperature

*1/2 c. carrot puree

*1 1/2- 2 c. warm water

*1 c. corn kernels, optional (frozen kernels are fine)

Together: In a big bowl, measure the masa harina, salt, and baking powder and combine thoroughly with a whisk. Place that mixture in the bowl of an unplugged standing mixer or food processor. (You can absolutely mix this dough by hand if you do not have either appliances or would just like to do it without. It will take a bit longer of course.) Secure the lid, and plug in the food processor (Big Person) if you are using a food processor. Add the butter, vegetable shortening, and carrot puree and mix for another minute or process for a few seconds. Begin to add the water, starting with 1 1/2 c. and adding more as necessary. The dough should begin to form a ball. In a mixer this might take a couple of minutes, and in the food processor it will be a few seconds.

When a ball forms, place the dough into a large bowl and stir in the fresh corn kernels by hand.

For the Cumin Tomato Sauce:

*3 c. crushed tomatoes

*1 T. olive oil

*1 small onion, finely chopped

*1 clove garlic, minced

*1 T. cumin

*2. teaspoons dried ginger

*1 T. honey

*salt and pepper to taste

Big Person: Saute the onion in the olive oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and the spices and saute, stirring, another minutes. Then add the tomatoes and let simmer for about 20 minutes uncovered so that the sauce reduces.

To make the tamales:

*about 48 dried corn husks

*one recipe of masa harina dough

*one recipe of the cumin tomato sauce

*optional: pulled pork, roasted chicken, grilled or roasted vegetables, etc.

About 30 minutes before assembling your tamales, soak the corn husks in warm water.

Set up a large pot and tight fitting lid with an inch or more of cold water. Have some more water waiting to be poured into the pot when you need it while the tamales are cooking. Place a steamer insert inside the pot, making sure that the water level is lower than the insert. Bring the water to a boil while you are assembling the tamales.

To make the tamales: First have your mini chef tear a couple of the corn husks into thin (1/4-inch or less) long strips to tie the tamales. Then take a corn husk and spread it out length-wise on your workspace with the shorter width at the bottom and the wider width at the top. Using about a tablespoon of the masa harina dough, form the dough into an egg shape. Place that down in the middle of the husk. Add a tablespoon of the cumin tomato sauce and anything else you are using.

Begin folding the corn husk around the filling by folding the bottom up. Then fold each of the length sides into the middle, sealing in the filling completely. Help your mini-chef tie one corn husk strip around the top, creating a neat little package. If you are at all worried about the filling falling out, you can always use another strip and tie it around the middle of the tamale for extra insurance.

Big Person: Place the tamales in the prepared pot and steam for about 30 minutes. When they are cooked, take them out of the steamer using tongs and place them onto a platter. To eat, either untie the corn husk strips or using a small knife, make a slit length-wise right through the corn husk, exposing the filling. Be careful if they are very hot since steam will escape when you open the tamales up. Enjoy!