fedward, tumbling

Hot Chocolate for Grown-Ups

INGREDIENTS:

• 3 level tablespoons cocoa powder
• 2 tablespoons boiling water
• 6 ounces whole milk, as hot as you can get it without scalding
• 1 dash ground nutmeg
• 2 dashes ground cinnamon
• ground clove (see note below) 2 dashes Angostura bitters
• 1 level tablespoon sugar
• 2 ounces Bourbon (Cognac or dark rum would also work)
• 1/4 ounce Cointreau (or Grand Marnier or other quality orange liqueur)
• Mini marshmallows

Place cocoa powder in a heatproof mixing glass.  Add boiling water and whisk until the mixture becomes a smooth paste with no lumps.  Add hot milk and whisk, using a spatula if necessary to unstick the cocoa paste from the glass.  Once fully mixed, add nutmeg, cinnamon, and clove if desired (use sparingly — the flavor can be overpowering, and you’ll end up with grit in the cup) Angostura bitters (see this post).  Add sugar and whisk until dissolved.  Add Bourbon and Cointreau, stir, and pour into mug.  Top with marshmallows.

Drink.

Tonight’s Dinner

We’re having some friends over for dinner tonight.  I had one menu in mind but I discovered that Angus beef short ribs were priced very attractively at Harris Teeter, so I changed my mind and decided to make the same menu I made for Valentine’s Day this year (we like our friends).

First off, last night I started this bread.  That’ll get turned into dough here in a little bit and allowed to rise all day.

The second thing to get started will be the braised short ribs.  The original recipe comes from the America’s Test Kitchen Family Cookbook, but they tell you to braise it in a Dutch oven in the oven at 300 degrees.  Knowing that I was going to need the oven (and at a higher temperature at that) to bake bread in, I guessed last time that it would work well in a crock pot.  I was right.  I also added dried porcini mushrooms to make the braising liquid richer. So the crock-pot-friendly version of the recipe follows:

BRAISED BEEF SHORT RIBS:

4 pounds bone-in short ribs, trimmed
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 onions, chopped coarse
1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms, rinsed and chopped
2 carrots, peeled and chopped coarse
1 rib celery, chopped coarse
9 garlic cloves, minced
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon tomato paste
1 (750ml) bottle dry red wine
4 cups low-sodium chicken broth
1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes, drained
1 tablespoon minced fresh thyme
3 bay leaves
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley

1. Turn crock pot on high.  Pat the ribs dry with paper towels, then season with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat until just smoking. Brown half the ribs, about 10 minutes, then transfer to crock pot. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of the fat and repeat with the remaining ribs.
2. Pour off all but 1 tablespoon of the fat from the pan and return it to medium heat.  Add the onions, porcini mushrooms, carrots, celery, and 1/4 teaspoon salt and cook until the vegetables are softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 15 seconds.  Stir in the flour and tomato paste and cook for 1 minute.
3. Stir in the wine, scraping up any browned bits.  Stir in the broth, tomatoes, thyme, and bay leaves.  Bring to a simmer and transfer to crock pot.  Cover and cook until the meat is tender, 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 hours. [NOTE: when I made this on Valentine’s day I used the crock pot’s “keep warm” feature at the end of the cooking period. The cookbook also says that the whole thing can be made ahead up to this point and then cooled, covered tightly, and refrigerated for up to 3 days.  This makes removing the fat easier; just scoop it off before bringing to a simmer over low heat].
4. Transfer the ribs to a large plate and cover with foil to keep warm.  Strain the broth into a large container, let settle for 5 minutes, then skim any fat from the surface using a spoon.  Stir in the parsley and season with salt and pepper to taste before serving.

I’ll start that once the dough is rising, then take a break until it’s time to punch down and shape the dough before its second rise.  Then when the dough is about ready for the oven I’ll also make a risotto. Again it’s based on one in the ATK cookbook, but I subbed shallots for the onion and decided I liked that milder flavor when combined with the mushrooms, and I’m also adding a bit of saffron to my mushroom risotto. Why not?

MUSHROOM RISOTTO:

3 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth
3 cups water
4 tablespoons + 2 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 shallots, minced
1/2 ounce dried porcini mushrooms, rinsed and minced
Salt
2 cups Arborio rice
1 pinch saffron threads, lightly crumbled
1 lb cremini mushrooms, trimmed and cut into small wedges
1 cup dry white wine
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme
2 ounces Parmesan cheese, grated

1. Bring the broth and water to a simmer in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat.  Cover and keep the broth warm over the lowest possible heat. Meanwhile, mince shallots and porcini mushrooms; trim and cut cremini mushrooms,  press garlic, and grate Parmesan.
2. Melt 4 tablespoons butter in a large saucepan over medium heat.  Add the shallots, porcini mushrooms, and 1/2 teaspoon salt and cook until lightly browned, about 9 minutes.
3. Stir in the rice and cook until the edges begin to turn translucent, about 3 minutes.  Add the wine and cook, stirring frequently, until it is completely absorbed, about 2 minutes.  Add 3 cups of the warm broth mixture and bring to a simmer.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until the liquid is absorbed, about 11 minutes.  Meanwhile, melt 2 tablespoons butter in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat.  Add cremini mushrooms and 1/2 teaspoon salt.  Cook until the mushrooms are browned, about 10 minutes.
4. Continue to cook the rice, stirring in roughly 1/2 cup of the broth every few minutes, until the rice is cooked through but is still somewhat firm in the center, about 11 minutes.  Meanwhile, stir 2 cloves minced garlic and 1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme into mushrooms and cook until fragrant, about 15 seconds.  Transfer mushrooms to an oven-safe bowl and keep them warm in a 200-degree oven.
5. Stir in the Parmesan. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

I’m serving this with some green beans with shaved parmesan and a bit of lemon juice.  I’d have gotten haricots verts but the green beans were local and in season. The haricots verts were in a sealed bag shipped from points unknown. Another option would have been some sort of bitter green salad (endive, frisée, escarole, radicchio), but I’d be too tempted to fatten such a thing up with bleu cheese and bacon, and lose the balancing effect on the plate. So green beans it is.