Green Thumb gets the thumbs up!

In the Hamptons I do the bulk of my shopping at farmers markets and local farm stands.  My favorite stand is “Green Thumb” http://www.greenthumborganicfarm.com/ ,  in Watermill.  This stand is where most of the chefs and private chefs in Southampton, Watermill, Bridgehampton and Wainscott shop for produce.  Looking for obscure fruits & vegetables?  Purple & green shiso leaf, summer savory, multiple varieties of heirloom tomatoes, the best corn in the Hamptons, multiple varieties of melons… their list goes on and on.  I like the fact that their produce is predominately local, organic and biodynamic.  Food just tastes better when it left to mature to ripeness on the vine and has added health benefit of being organic.

There is an additional benefit to buying locally produced fruits and vegetables.  It is the fact that your money is supporting your local economy.  Jo Halsey’s family have been farming the area since the mid-1600′s.  This makes their farm one of the oldest working farms in the United States.  I highly recommend everyone visiting the area to drop by Green Thumb.  If you see Jo or her mom, Peachy, tell them I said hi!

Wil Crutchley & Jo Halsey

Arguably the best heirloom tomatoes in all of the Hamptons...

New York City winters are brutal and seem ungodly long, spanning anywhere from 5 to 6 months typically.  Around the fourth month, we find ourselves yearning for the flowers to push up, warmer weather to be upon us and even more important than agreeable temperatures, the trees to burst forth their foliage.  In the span of 2 days, as gentle weather falls upon our fair city, the trees transform the monochromatic, hard-edged Gotham terrain into a lush, vibrant urban paradise.  I liken it to when Dorothy steps out of the pallid dullness of Uncle Henry’s house and finds herself in the middle of Munchkin technicolor splendor, in the Wizard of Oz.

As I write this, I also find myself asking what is on the minds of so many a New Yorker:  April is here?  Where are the tulips?  Why is it still cold?  When is it going to be Spring!?!   As it has been unseasonably cool though out many parts of the southern US this year, is it really worth vacationing to a traditionally warmer region only to be forced to wear clothing suited for a late-autumn weekend in Maine?  Probably not.  Why be out of a sizable chunk of change and continue to have those springtime cravings?  I have an affordable solution.

Food has the propensity to cure what ails you.  I am sharing a recipe-remedy for those final stages of cabin-fever.  This delicious printemps panacea utilizes the sunny flavors of lemon, rosemary and white wine.  It’s a crisp, light flavor combination that will tie you over until Spring has sprung.

Light & Delicious

Lemon Chicken with Broccoli and Angel Hair (serves 4)

1/3 cup, olive oil +2 tablespoons for sauteeing chicken

4 Garlic Cloves, chopped

1 tablespoons, fresh rosemary, chopped

1 cup, white wine

1 lemon, juiced (1/4 cup)

1 teaspoon, salt

1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper

3 chicken breasts, diced into 1 1/2” cubes

1/2 box angel hair pasta

1 bunch, broccoli heads, cut into florets

1 tablespoon parsley, chopped

4 heaping tablespoons, grated parmesan cheese

Fill a medium sized pot with salted water and bring to a boil

Meanwhile, place oil and garlic in a large frying pan and turn on heat to medium-high.  Once the garlic starts to sizzle, cook for 8 seconds then add chooped rosemary and cook for an additonal 4 seconds, mixing the oil with a whisk.

Immediately add white wine to the oil and boil down the sauce by half.  Add lemon juice, salt and pepper to the wine sauce and reseve.

In a separate pan, sautee chicken in 2 tablespoons of olive oil on medium high.  Cook chicken for 3-4 minutes  until almost cooked through and add the wine sauce to the chicken.  This will create a sizzle/steam effect, perfuming your kitchen with the aromas of warmer weather to come.  Turn off the heat to the chicken.

Add angel hair to the boiling salted water and cook for 2 minutes, stirring occasionally with a woden spoon to prevent the pasta from sticking.  After 2 minutes, add the broccoli to the pasta and cook for an additional 1minute and a half.  Strain the contents in a collander and add pasta and broccoli to the chicken.

Mix parsley and parmesian with the contents of the pan, making sure that the sauce is evenly incorporated with the pasta prior to serving.

Perfect Chicken (serves 4-8)

Perfect Chicken Soup (serves 8-12)

Chickens in the pot

***Cooking the chicken with this method is fun.  It also leaves the stock unbelievably flavorful and the meat, profoundly silky and moist…

Ingredients:

2 3-pound chickens, washed and giblets removed

2 bouillon cubes (optional)

2 medium onions, medium diced

2 celery stalks, medium diced

2 large carrots, peeled and medium diced

2 cloves of garlic, chopped

3 bay leaves

8-12 sprigs, fresh thyme, tied with twine

2 lemons, juiced

3 Tablespoons, sea salt + 1/4 teaspoon, ground white pepper

Enough water to cover 1-inch above chickens in the pot

8 Tablespoons, fresh chopped dill (optional)

1. Add all ingredients (except the dill) to an 8-quart pot. Remember to cover ingredients with water 1 inch above the chicken.

2. Bring contents of the pot to a rolling boil and allow to boil for 1 minute.  Uh, turn the burner on high. Cover with a lid and turn off the heat.  Yes, leave the pot covered and off the heat for 3 hours. This is an important step: DO NOT LIFT UP THE LID FOR 3 HOURS! Leaving the lid closed traps in the heat and cooks the chicken to proper doneness.

3.  Now you have ample time to multitask: set the table, arrange the flowers, make vegetable side dishes, go to the gym or off to the salon to get your hair and nails done.

4. After 3 hours have passed, remove chickens and discard the thyme.  If you decide to use the chicken for soup, remove the meat from off the bone and add it back to the poaching liquid, along with the chopped dill. Adjust the seasoning of the soup to your taste.

***Feel free to use multiple colors of melon in this recipe.  My favorites are cantaloupe, honeydew, galia, water melon, etc.

First cut the grissini into 3-4” lengths and then loosely 3/4 of the cut bread stick with a strip of the thinly sliced ham.  The unwrapped 1/4 portion will be the handle for the hors d’oeuvres.

With a Parisian Scoop (aka melon-baller) scoop out melon balls.  With the flat side of the melon ball on the cutting board, push a hole into the apex of each ball with a grissini stick.

Place the ham-wrapped grissini into each hole to form a lollipop so that the unwrapped portion is facing up and there is some ham loosely flowing off the bottom of the stick.  Be sure to eat the lollipops within 6 minutes  or the bread starts to become soggy.

Holy Guacamole!!!

Emergency Guacamole
Serves 8

4 ripe avocados
1 red onion, minced
2 cloves garlic, finely minced
1-2 serrano chiles (stems & seeds removed), minced
1/2 cup cilantro leaves, finely chopped
1 tablespoon of fresh lime juice
1 teaspoon coarse salt
Freshly ground pepper to taste
1/2 package of Emergen-C, Lemon Lime
1 ripe tomato, chopped (seeds and pulp removed)

1 Cut avocados in half. Remove seed. Scoop out avacado and place in a mixing bowl.

2 Using a fork, mash the avocado. Add the chopped onion, garlic, cilantro, lime juice, Emergen-C, salt and pepper and mash some more. Add the chopped tomato to the guacamole and mix.

For the cake (I am using my Recession cake recipe)
2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/3 cup sugar
3/4 tsp. Baking soda
1/4 tsp. Salt
3/4 cup Dutch processed cocoa powder
3 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine
1.5 cup hot coffee
1 cup mayonnaise
1 large egg
1 Tbl Vanilla extract

For the Pudding
2 (4 ounce) boxes instant chocolate pudding mix
4 cups cold milk

Everything Else
1 (14 ounce) package Oreo cookies
1 (8 ounce) package cream cheese, softened
4 tablespoons margarine
3/4 cup powdered sugar
1 (12 ounce) package Cool Whip

Other Items
1 clean unglazed (very important) terra-cotta pot
1 bunch artificial fresh edible flower
gummy worms

Baking the Cake
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line the bottom of a 8 X 11 baking dish with parchment and grease the sides.
Place flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl, sift and set aside.
Place cocoa powder, chopped chocolate and hot coffee in a small bowl and whisk until chocolate has melted. Add mayonnaise whisk till smooth. Add egg and vanilla and whisk until egg is fully incorporated.
Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until batter is smooth. Pour batter into prepared dish and bake for 30- 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.
Allow cake to cool in dish completely. Invert onto a cookie sheet. Cut into small squares.

Assembling other Components
While cake is baking, empty pudding mix into a bowl. Add milk and beat, according to package directions. Let thicken in fridge.
Grind cookies in blender or food processor until you have very fine crumbs that resemble dirt.
In a bowl, beat cream cheese and maragrine together. Add powdered sugar and beat until smooth and creamy. Fold cream cheese mixture into thickened pudding.
Get your flower pot (mine is about 9” tall) and line the bottom with small square of aluminum foil if the pot has drainage holes.
Layer ingredients into the flower pot in the following order:
Cookie crumbs first. Top with crumbled (or small cubes) chocolate cake. Then pudding mixture. Lastly, Cool Whip. Repeat layering 3 to 4 times. Top off entire pot with 1” of cookie crumbs.
Chill until set.  Garnish with flowers. Add gummy worms if you wish. Serve with spade.

During the WWII era, in order to their stretch rations, housewives used mayonnaise in their baking instead of eggs and butter/oil.  Today, many housewives down South still observe this practice in much of their cake and cornbread baking because the end product is an amazingly moist, rich cake.  In honor of tax day, I am listing this easy, fast and economic recipe.  To cut down on cost (and calories), dust the cake with powdered sugar.  I guarantee that this will be one incredibly moist and delicious chocolate cake…

2 cups all purpose flour
1 1/3 cup sugar
3/4 tsp. Baking soda
1/4 tsp. Salt
3/4 cup Dutch processed cocoa powder
3 oz. bittersweet chocolate, chopped fine
1.5 cup hot coffee
1 cup mayonnaise
1 large egg
1 Tbl Vanilla extract
Powdered sugar for dusting

Directions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Line the bottom of a 8 X 11 baking dish with parchment and grease the sides.

Place flour, sugar, baking soda, and salt in a medium bowl, sift and set aside.

Place cocoa powder, chopped chocolate and hot coffee in a small bowl and whisk until chocolate has melted. Add mayonnaise whisk till smooth. Add egg and vanilla and whisk until egg is fully incorporated.

Add wet ingredients to dry ingredients and stir until batter is smooth. Pour batter into prepared dish and bake for 30- 35 minutes or until toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

Allow cake to cool in dish completely. Invert onto a cookie sheet. Cut into squares and serve plain or dust with powdered sugar.

Arthur Schwartz’s Apple Cake

Makes one 8-inch-square cake
Topping_1/2 cup coarsely chopped walnuts or pecans_3/4 cup sugar_1 tablespoon ground cinnamon or a combination of ground cinnamon, nutmeg, mace, and ginger
Cake_3 eggs _3/4 cup sugar_1/3 cup vegetable oil_3/4 cup matzo cake meal_5 medium apples, peeled, cored, halved, and cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices (about 5 cups), preferably Golden Delicious, Crispin (Mutzu), or other apples that keep their shape when cooked 1/3 cup raisins (optional)

Position an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 350˚F. Lightly oil an 8-inch-square glass baking dish.

To prepare the topping, mix together the walnuts, sugar, and cinnamon in a small bowl; set aside.

To prepare the cake batter, in a bowl, with a hand-held electric mixer, beat the eggs on medium speed until well mixed. Beat in the sugar, about 2 tablespoons at a time, beating until the mixture is thick and foamy. Beat in the oil, adding it in a steady stream. Scrape down the bowl with a rubber spatula. With the spatula, stir in the matzo cake meal, blending well.

Pour half of the batter mixture into the prepared pan. Sprinkle about half the topping mixture evenly over the batter. Top with half the apples and all the raisins. Scrape the remaining half of the batter over the apples, spreading it out to cover the apples. Arrange the remaining apples on top of the batter. Sprinkle evenly with the remaining topping mixture.

Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes, or until the sides of the cake pull away very slightly from the baking dish and the topping has begun to caramelize. (A cake tester is not reliable. It will not come out clean due to the moist richness of this cake.) Let sit in the baking dish for several hours until completely cool before cutting into serving portions. Keep the cake in its dish, covered tightly with plastic, and the next day the topping will have become a moist, candy-like coating.

Good Kitty!!!

Kitty Litter Cake

INGREDIENTS

1 (18.25 ounce) package German chocolate cake mix
1 (18.25 ounce) package white cake mix
2 (3.5 ounce) packages instant vanilla pudding mix
1 (12 ounce) package vanilla sandwich cookies
3 drops green food coloring
1 (12 ounce) package tootsie rolls

DIRECTIONS

1. Prepare cake mixes and bake according to package directions (any size pan).
2. Prepare pudding according to package directions and chill until ready to assemble.
3. Crumble sandwich cookies in small batches in a food processor, scraping often. Set aside all but 1/4 cup. To the 1/4 cup add a few drops of green food coloring and mix.
4. When cakes are cooled to room temperature, crumble them into a large bowl. Toss with 1/2 of the remaining cookie crumbs, and the chilled pudding. You probably won’t need all of the pudding, you want the cake to be just moist, not soggy.
5. Line kitty litter box with the kitty litter liner. Put cake mixture into box.
6. Put half of the unwrapped tootsie rolls in a microwave safe dish and heat until softened. Shape the ends so that they are no longer blunt, and curve the tootsie rolls slightly. Bury tootsie rolls randomly in the cake and sprinkle with half of the remaining cookie crumbs. Sprinkle a small amount of the green colored cookie crumbs lightly over the top.
7. Heat 3 or 4 of the tootsie rolls in the microwave until almost melted. Scrape them on top of the cake and sprinkle lightly with some of the green cookie crumbs. Heat the remaining tootsie rolls until pliable and shape as before. Spread all but one randomly over top of cake mixture. Sprinkle with any remaining cookie crumbs. Hang the remaining tootsie roll over side of litter box and sprinkle with a few green cookie crumbs. Serve with the pooper-scooper for a gross April Fools Day dessert.